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An Introduction to Rainwater Harvesting Hari Srinivas The Global Development Research Center http://www.gdrc.org Rainwater harvesting is a technology used for collecting and storing rainwater from rooftops, the land surface or rock catchments using simple techniques such as jars and pots as well as more complex techniques such as underground check dams. The techniques usually found in Asia and Africa arise from practices employed by ancient civilizations within these regions and still serve as a major source of drinking water supply in rural areas. Commonly used systems are constructed of three principal components; namely, the catchment area, the collection device, and the conveyance system. A) Catchment Areas Rooftop catchments: In the most basic form of this technology, rainwater is collected in simple vessels at the edge of the roof. Variations on this basic approach include collection of rainwater in gutters which drain to the collection vessel through down-pipes constructed for this purpose, and/or the diversion of rainwater from the gutters to containers for settling particulates before being conveyed to the storage container for the domestic use. As the rooftop is the main catchment area, the amount and quality of rainwater collected depends on the area and type of roofing material. Reasonably pure rainwater can be collected from roofs constructed with galvanized corrugated iron, aluminium or asbestos cement sheets, tiles and slates, although thatched roofs tied with bamboo gutters and laid in proper slopes can produce almost the same amount of runoff less expensively (Gould, 1992). However, the bamboo roofs are least suitable because of possible health hazards. Similarly, roofs with metallic paint or other coatings are not recommended as they may impart tastes or colour to the collected water. Roof catchments should also be cleaned regularly to remove dust, leaves and bird droppings so as to maintain the quality of the product water (see figure 1). Land surface catchments: Rainwater harvesting using ground or land surface catchment areas is less complex way of collecting rainwater. It involves improving runoff capacity of the land surface through various techniques including collection of runoff with drain pipes and storage of collected water. Compared to rooftop catchment techniques, ground catchment techniques provide more opportunity for collecting water from a larger surface area. By retaining the flows (including flood flows) of small creeks and streams in small storage reservoirs (on surface or underground) created by low cost (e.g., earthen) dams, this technology can meet water demands during dry periods. There is a possibility of high rates of water loss due to infiltration into the ground, and, because of the often marginal quality of the water collected, this technique is mainly suitable for storing water for agricultural purposes. Various techniques available for increasing the runoff within ground catchment areas involve: i) clearing or altering vegetation cover, ii) increasing the land slope with artificial ground cover, and iii) reducing soil permeability by the soil compaction and application of chemicals. Clearing or altering vegetation cover: Clearing vegetation from the ground can increase surface runoff but also can induce more soil erosion. Use of dense vegetation cover such as grass is usually suggested as it helps to both maintain an high rate of runoff and minimize soil erosion. Increasing slope: Steeper slopes can allow rapid runoff of rainfall to the collector. However, the rate of runoff has to be controlled to minimise soil erosion from the catchment field. Use of plastic sheets, asphalt or tiles along with slope can further increase efficiency by reducing both evaporative losses and soil erosion. The use of flat sheets of galvanized iron with timber frames to prevent corrosion was recommended and constructed in the State of Victoria, Australia, about 65 years ago (Kenyon, 1929; cited in UNEP, 1982). Soil compaction by physical means: This involves smoothing and compacting of soil surface using equipment such as graders and rollers. To increase the surface runoff and minimize soil erosion rates, conservation bench terraces are constructed along a slope perpendicular to runoff flow. The bench terraces are separated by the sloping collectors and provision is made for distributing the runoff evenly across the field strips as sheet flow. Excess flows are routed to a lower collector and stored (UNEP, 1982). Soil compaction by chemical treatments: In addition to clearing, shaping and compacting a catchment area, chemical applications with such soil treatments as sodium can significantly reduce the soil permeability. Use of aqueous solutions of a silicone-water repellent is another technique for enhancing soil compaction technologies. Though soil permeability can be reduced through chemical treatments, soil compaction can induce greater rates of soil erosion and may be expensive. Use of sodium-based chemicals may increase the salt content in the collected water, which may not be suitable both for drinking and irrigation purposes. B) Collection Devices Storage tanks: Storage tanks for collecting rainwater harvested using guttering may be either above or below the ground. Precautions required in the use of storage tanks include provision of an adequate enclosure to minimise contamination from human, animal or other environmental contaminants, and a tight cover to prevent algal growth and the breeding of mosquitos. Open containers are not recommended for collecting water for drinking purposes. Various types of rainwater storage facilities can be found in practice. Among them are cylindrical ferrocement tanks and mortar jars. The ferrocement tank consists of a lightly reinforced concrete base on which is erected a circular vertical cylinder with a 10 mm steel base. This cylinder is further wrapped in two layers of light wire mesh to form the frame of the tank. Mortar jars are large jar shaped vessels constructed from wire reinforced mortar. The storage capacity needed should be calculated to take into consideration the length of any dry spells, the amount of rainfall, and the per capita water consumption rate. In most of the Asian countries, the winter months are dry, sometimes for weeks on end, and the annual average rainfall can occur within just a few days. In such circumstances, the storage capacity should be large enough to cover the demands of two to three weeks. For example, a three person household should have a minimum capacity of 3 (Persons) x 90 (l) x 20 (days) = 5 400 l. Rainfall water containers: As an alternative to storage tanks, battery tanks (i.e., interconnected tanks) made of pottery, ferrocement, or polyethylene may be suitable. The polyethylene tanks are compact but have a large storage capacity (ca. 1 000 to 2 000 l), are easy to clean and have many openings which can be fitted with fittings for connecting pipes. In Asia, jars made of earthen materials or ferrocement tanks are commonly used. During the 1980s, the use of rainwater catchment technologies, especially roof catchment systems, expanded rapidly in a number of regions, including Thailand where more than ten million 2 m3 ferrocement rainwater jars were built and many tens of thousands of larger ferrocement tanks were constructed between 1991 and 1993. Early problems with the jar design were quickly addressed by including a metal cover using readily available, standard brass fixtures. The immense success of the jar programme springs from the fact that the technology met a real need, was affordable, and invited community participation. The programme also captured the imagination and support of not only the citizens, but also of government at both local and national levels as well as community based organizations, small-scale enterprises and donor agencies. The introduction and rapid promotion of Bamboo reinforced tanks, however, was less successful because the bamboo was attacked by termites, bacteria and fungus. More than 50 000 tanks were built between 1986 and 1993 (mainly in Thailand and Indonesia) before a number started to fail, and, by the late 1980s, the bamboo reinforced tank design, which had promised to provide an excellent low-cost alternative to ferrocement tanks, had to be abandoned. C) Conveyance Systems Conveyance systems are required to transfer the rainwater collected on the rooftops to the storage tanks. This is usually accomplished by making connections to one or more down-pipes connected to the rooftop gutters. When selecting a conveyance system, consideration should be given to the fact that, when it first starts to rain, dirt and debris from the rooftop and gutters will be washed into the down-pipe. Thus, the relatively clean water will only be available some time later in the storm. There are several possible choices to selectively collect clean water for the storage tanks. The most common is the down-pipe flap. With this flap it is possible to direct the first flush of water flow through the down-pipe, while later rainfall is diverted into a storage tank. When it starts to rain, the flap is left in the closed position, directing water to the down-pipe, and, later, opened when relatively clean water can be collected. A great disadvantage of using this type of conveyance control system is the necessity to observe the runoff quality and manually operate the flap. An alternative approach would be to automate the opening of the flap as described below. A funnel-shaped insert is integrated into the down-pipe system. Because the upper edge of the funnel is not in direct contact with the sides of the down-pipe, and a small gap exists between the down-pipe walls and the funnel, water is free to flow both around the funnel and through the funnel. When it first starts to rain, the volume of water passing down the pipe is small, and the *dirty* water runs down the walls of the pipe, around the funnel and is discharged to the ground as is normally the case with rainwater guttering. However, as the rainfall continues, the volume of water increases and *clean* water fills the down-pipe. At this higher volume, the funnel collects the clean water and redirects it to a storage tank. The pipes used for the collection of rainwater, wherever possible, should be made of plastic, PVC or other inert substance, as the pH of rainwater can be low (acidic) and could cause corrosion, and mobilization of metals, in metal pipes. In order to safely fill a rainwater storage tank, it is necessary to make sure that excess water can overflow, and that blockages in the pipes or dirt in the water do not cause damage or contamination of the water supply. The design of the funnel system, with the drain-pipe being larger than the rainwater tank feed-pipe, helps to ensure that the water supply is protected by allowing excess water to bypass the storage tank. A modification of this design is shown in Figure 5, which illustrates a simple overflow/bypass system. In this system, it also is possible to fill the tank from a municipal drinking water source, so that even during a prolonged drought the tank can be kept full. Care should be taken, however, to ensure that rainwater does not enter the drinking water distribution system. Extent of Use The history of rainwater harvesting in Asia can be traced back to about the 9th or 10th Century and the small-scale collection of rainwater from roofs and simple brush dam constructions in the rural areas of South and South-east Asia. Rainwater collection from the eaves of roofs or via simple gutters into traditional jars and pots has been traced back almost 2 000 years in Thailand (Prempridi and Chatuthasry, 1982). Rainwater harvesting has long been used in the Loess Plateau regions of China. More recently, however, about 40 000 well storage tanks, in a variety of different forms, were constructed between 1970 and 1974 using a technology which stores rainwater and stormwater runoff in ponds of various sizes. A thin layer of red clay is generally laid on the bottom of the ponds to minimize seepage losses. Trees, planted at the edges of the ponds, help to minimize evaporative losses from the ponds (UNEP, 1982). Level of Involvement and Skill Various levels of governmental and community involvement in the development of rainwater harvesting technologies in different parts of Asia were noted. In Thailand and the Philippines, both governmental and household-based initiatives played key roles in expanding the use of this technology, especially in water scarce areas such as northeast Thailand. Cultural Acceptability Rainwater harvesting is an accepted freshwater augmentation technology in Asia. While the bacteriological quality of rainwater collected from ground catchments is poor, that from properly maintained rooftop catchment systems, equipped with storage tanks having good covers and taps, is generally suitable for drinking, and frequently meets WHO drinking water standards. Notwithstanding, such water generally is of higher quality than most traditional, and many of improved, water sources found in the developing world. Contrary to popular beliefs, rather than becoming stale with extended storage, rainwater quality often improves as bacteria and pathogens gradually die off (Wirojanagud et al., 1989). Rooftop catchment, rainwater storage tanks can provide good quality water, clean enough for drinking, as long as the rooftop is clean, impervious, and made from non-toxic materials (lead paints and asbestos roofing materials should be avoided), and located away from over-hanging trees since birds and animals in the trees may defecate on the roof. Specification Maintenance is generally limited to the annual cleaning of the tank and regular inspection of the gutters and down-pipes. Maintenance typically consists of the removal of dirt, leaves and other accumulated materials. Such cleaning should take place annually before the start of the major rainfall season. However, cracks in the storage tanks can create major problems and should be repaired immediately. In the case of ground and rock catchments, additional care is required to avoid damage and contamination by people and animals, and proper fencing is required. Advantages Rainwater harvesting technologies are simple to install and operate. Local people can be easily trained to implement such technologies, and construction materials are also readily available. Rainwater harvesting is convenient in the sense that it provides water at the point of consumption, and family members have full control of their own systems, which greatly reduces operation and maintenance problems. Running costs, also, are almost negligible. Water collected from roof catchments usually is of acceptable quality for domestic purposes. As it is collected using existing structures not specially constructed for the purpose, rainwater harvesting has few negative environmental impacts compared to other water supply project technologies. Although regional or other local factors can modify the local climatic conditions, rainwater can be a continuous source of water supply for both the rural and poor. Depending upon household capacity and needs, both the water collection and storage capacity may be increased as needed within the available catchment area. Disadvantages Disadvantages of rainwater harvesting technologies are mainly due to the limited supply and uncertainty of rainfall. Adoption of this technology requires a *bottom up* approach rather than the more usual *top down* approach employed in other water resources development projects. This may make rainwater harvesting less attractive to some governmental agencies tasked with providing water supplies in developing countries, but the mobilization of local government and NGO resources can serve the same basic role in the development of rainwater-based schemes as water resources development agencies in the larger, more traditional public water supply schemes. Suitability The augmentation of municipal water supplies with harvested rainwater is suited to both urban and rural areas. The construction of cement jars or provision of gutters does not require very highly skilled manpower. Development Costs The capital cost of rainwater harvesting systems is highly dependent on the type of catchment, conveyance and storage tank materials used. However, the cost of harvested rainwater in Asia, which varies from $0.17 to $0.37 per cubic metre of water storage, is relatively low compared to many countries in Africa (Lee and Vissher, 1990). Compared to deep and shallow tubewells, rainwater collection systems are more cost effective, especially if the initial investment does not include the cost of roofing materials. The initial per unit cost of rainwater storage tanks (jars) in Northeast Thailand is estimated to be about $1/l, and each tank can last for more than ten years. The reported operation and maintenance costs are negligible. Effectivness of Technology The feasibility of rainwater harvesting in a particular locality is highly dependent upon the amount and intensity of rainfall. Other variables, such as catchment area and type of catchment surface, usually can be adjusted according to household needs. As rainfall is usually unevenly distributed throughout the year, rainwater collection methods can serve as only supplementary sources of household water. The viability of rainwater harvesting systems is also a function of: the quantity and quality of water available from other sources; household size and per capita water requirements; and budget available. The decision maker has to balance the total cost of the project against the available budget, including the economic benefit of conserving water supplied from other sources. Likewise, the cost of physical and environmental degradation associated with the development of available alternative sources should also be calculated and added to the economic analysis. Assuming that rainwater harvesting has been determined to be feasible, two kinds of techniques--statistical and graphical methods--have been developed to aid in determining the size of the storage tanks. These methods are applicable for rooftop catchment systems only, and detail guidelines for design of these storage tanks can be found in Gould (1991) and Pacey and Cullis (1986, 1989). Accounts of serious illness linked to rainwater supplies are few, suggesting that rainwater harvesting technologies are effective sources of water supply for many household purposes. It would appear that the potential for slight contamination of roof runoff from occasional bird droppings does not represent a major health risk; nevertheless, placing taps at least 10 cm above the base of the rainwater storage tanks allows any debris entering the tank to settle on the bottom, where it will not affect the quality of the stored water, provided it remains undisturbed. Ideally, storage tanks should cleaned annually, and sieves should fitted to the gutters and down-pipes to further minimize particulate contamination. A coarse sieve should be fitted in the gutter where the down-pipe is located. Such sieves are available made of plastic coated steel-wire or plastic, and may be wedged on top and/or inside gutter and near the down-pipe. It is also possible to fit a fine sieve within the down-pipe itself, but this must be removable for cleaning. A fine filter should also be fitted over the outlet of the down-pipe as the coarser sieves situated higher in the system may pass small particulates such as leaf fragments, etc. A simple and very inexpensive method is to use a small, fabric sack, which may be secured over the feed-pipe where it enters the storage tank. If rainwater is used to supply household appliances such as the washing machine, even the tiniest particles of dirt may cause damage to the machine and the washing. To minimize the occurrence of such damage, it is advisable to install a fine filter of a type which is used in drinking water systems in the supply line upstream of the appliances. For use in wash basins or bath tubs, it is advisable to sterilise the water using a chlorine dosage pump. Further Development of Technology Rainwater harvesting appears to be one of the most promising alternatives for supplying freshwater in the face of increasing water scarcity and escalating demand. The pressures on rural water supplies, greater environmental impacts associated with new projects, and increased opposition from NGOs to the development of new surface water sources, as well as deteriorating water quality in surface reservoirs already constructed, constrain the ability of communities to meet the demand for freshwater from traditional sources, and present an opportunity for augmentation of water supplies using this technology. References: * Gould, J.E. 1992. Rainwater Catchment Systems for Household Water Supply, Environmental Sanitation Reviews, No. 32, ENSIC, Asian Institute of Technology, Bangkok. * Gould, J.E. and H.J. McPherson 1987. Bacteriological Quality of Rainwater in Roof and Groundwater Catchment Systems in Botswana, Water International, 12:135-138. * Nissen-Petersen, E. (1982). Rain Catchment and Water Supply in Rural Africa: A Manual. Hodder and Stoughton, Ltd., London. * Pacey, A. and A. Cullis 1989. Rainwater Harvesting: The Collection of Rainfall and Runoff in Rural Areas, WBC Print Ltd., London. * Schiller, E.J. and B. G. Latham 1987. A Comparison of Commonly Used Hydrologic Design Methods for Rainwater Collectors, Water Resources Development, 3. * UNEP [United Nations Environment Programme] 1982. Rain and Storm water Harvesting in Rural Areas, Tycooly International Publishing Ltd., Dublin. * Wall, B.H. and R.L. McCown 1989. Designing Roof Catchment Water Supply Systems Using Water Budgeting Methods, Water Resources Development, 5:11-18.
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Epoxy is a term used to denote both the basic components and the cured end products of epoxy resins, as well as a colloquial name for the epoxide functional group. Epoxy resin are a class of thermoset materials used extensively in structural and specialty composite applications because they offer a unique combination of properties that are unattainable with other thermoset resins.
Epoxies are monomers or prepolymers that further reacts with curing agents to yield high performance thermosetting plastics. They have gained wide acceptance in protecting coatings, electrical and structural applications because of their exceptional combination of properties such as toughness, adhesion, chemical resistance and superior electrical properties. Epoxy resins are characterized by the presence of a three membered cycle ether group commonly referred to as an epoxy group 1,2-epoxide, or oxirane. The most widely used epoxy resins are diglycidyl ethers of bisphenol-A derived from bisphenol-A and epichlorohydrin.
The market of epoxy resins are growing day by day. Today the total business of this product is more than 100 crores. Epoxy resins are used for about 75% of wind blades currently produced worldwide, while polyester resins account for the remaining 25%. A standard 1.5-MW (megawatt) wind turbine has approximately 10 tonnes of epoxy in its blades. Traditionally, the markets for epoxy resins have been driven by demand generated primarily in areas of adhesives, building and civil construction, electrical insulation, printed circuit boards, and protective coatings for consumer durables, amongst others.
The major contents of the book are synthesis and characteristics of epoxy resin, manufacture of epoxy resins, epoxide curing reactions, the dynamic mechanical properties of epoxy resins, physical and chemical properties of epoxy resins, epoxy resin adhesives, epoxy resin coatings, epoxy coating give into water, electrical and electronic applications, analysis of epoxides and epoxy resins and the toxicology of epoxy resins.
It will be a standard reference book for professionals and entrepreneurs. Those who are interested in this field can find the complete information from manufacture to final uses of epoxy resin. This presentation will be very helpful to new entrepreneurs, technocrats, research scholars, libraries and existing units.
The term “epoxide” is a prefix referring to a bridge consisting of an oxygen atom bonded to two ther atoms already united in some way. This chapter deals only with the synthesis and characteristics of the a- or 1,2-epoxides wherein the other two atoms are carbon. The capability of this group to undergo a large variety of addition and polymerization reactions leads to the numerous thermoplastic and thermosetting forms of epoxy resins. We define an epoxy resin as any molecule containing one or more a-epoxide groups.
The nomenclature of epoxides is confusing. In addition to the 1,2-epoxide, there exist a large variety of heterocyclic compounds with similar sounding names. The reader can thus easily go astray in searching the literature. To avoid this pitfall we briefly point out some of the more misleading facets.
Monocyclic compounds containing more than one type of atom in a heterocyclic ring are named by combining a prefix that describes the additional element with a stem that describes the ring size and degree of unsaturation. Shown in Table 1 are the prefixes for the various elements in a heteroring system (the “a” is elided where necessary). Table 2 lists the stems for the various oxygen and nitrogen saturated and unsaturated heterocycles in 3- to 10-membered rings. Note the similarity between ethylene oxide, trimethylene oxide, and tetrahydrofuran, which are called oxirane, oxetane, and oxolane, respectively. A further point of confusion arises from the numerous epoxy prefixes. In this system ethylene oxide is called epoxyethane.
bCorresponding to the maximum number of noncumulative double bonds, the hetero elements having the normal valences shown in Table 1.
cThe syllables denoting the size of rings containing 3, 4, or 7 to 10 members are derived as follows: “ir” from tri, “et” from tetra, “ep” from hepta, “oc” from octa, “on” from nona, and “ec” from deca.
dFor phosphorus, arsenic and antimony, see footnote b of Table 1.
eExpressed by prefixing “perhydro” to the name of the corresponding unsaturated compound.
fNot applicable to silicon, germanium, tin, and lead, for which “perhydro” is prefixed to the name of the corresponding unsaturated compound.
There are additional names for 1,2-epoxides that add further to the confusion. Cyclohexene oxide is variously referred to as 1,2-epoxycyclo-hexane, 1,2-oxidocyclohexane, and 7-oxabicyclo [4.1.0] heptane. When epoxides are regarded as derivatives of a-glycols, the prefix “anhydro” is used. This term is prevalent in the naming of sugar epoxides. Furthermore, several of the simple epoxides have common names that tell little about their structure. l-Chloro-2,3-epoxypropane (1) is called epichloro-hydrin, l-hydroxy-2,3-epoxypropane (2) is called glycidol, and 2,3-epoxypropanoic acid (3) is called glycidic acid.
The terms “epoxy” and “epoxide” are most commonly used to describe the oxirane ring. The latter is doubtless more correct. The terms “epoxide” and “oxide” are used throughout the text in conjunction with the useful “glycidyl.” The term “glycidyl” is used to describe the terminal epoxide group, OCH2CHCH2-. The prefix is modified by “ether,”’ “ester,” “amine,” etc., according to the group attached to the third carbon atom.
Since this chapter is concerned with recent developments in the synthesis of epoxides, reference is made only to investigations that appear to throw light on the epoxidation reactions involved. This is sometimes arbitrary, but we have tried to present all of the important evidence. In addition, a section on structure is included, since it is desirable to have this clearly in mind in considering the characteristics of epoxides.
The bond lengths and angles in ethylene oxide have been determined by electron diffraction and by microwave spectroscopy. The bond angles of C-O-C, O-C-C, and H-C-H are 61°24', 59°18', and 116°15', respectively. The bond lengths are C-C = 1.47, O-C = 1.44, and C-H = 1.08 Å, respectively. Each CH2 group is in a plane at right angles to the plane of the ring, and the angle between each CH2 plane and the C-C bond is 159°25'.
The dipole moment of ethylene oxide is 1.82 D in benzene solution and 1.91 D in the gas phase. The heat of mixing with chloroform, the frequency shift of the OD band in the infrared specteum of CH3OD solutions and the chemical shifts in proton magnetic resonance show that the electron density on the oxygen atom is unusually low compared with that in acyclic and larger ring cyclic ethers. The calculated charge distributions for a series of epoxides are shown in Table 4. The electronic states of other epoxides are shown in Table 5. The strain energy, taken as the difference between the experimental and the calculated heats of formation, has been found to be 13 kcal/mole for ethylene oxide.
The viscous and elastic response of a polymer to a cyclic stress, or strain (varying sinusoidally with time) is termed the dynamic mechanical response. The gross apparent stiffness of a polymeric material at a particular temperature and frequency is measured by the dynamic (Young’s) modulus (ER). This gross stiffness factor may be resolved in terms of an elastic and a viscous contribution. The elastic or springlike contribution to total stiffness is termed the storage modulus (E1) and is a measure of the mechanical energy stored and recovered each dynamic cycle. The viscous contribution to total stiffness is called the loss modulus (E2) and is direct measure of the energy dissipated each dynamic cycle and lost primarily as heat.
It is well known that the gross stiffness of a polymer changes with both temperature and cyclic frequency. As the gross stiffness changes so does the elastic (storage) and viscous (loss) contributions to this total stiffness. Characterization of the total stiffness, in terms of these energy storage and loss contributions, and as a function of frequency and temperature, provides information useful to both the research chemist and product engineer.
Fig. 1. Curves show how stress and strain vary with time.
In general the strain wave (Curve C) lags the stress wave (Curve A) by some phase angle (d). Under these conditions we can divide the stress wave into two components (Curves B) an elastic stress (SE) which is in phase with the strain (g), and a viscous stress which is 90 degrees or p/2 radians out of phase with the strain (g). The ratio of the maximum elastic stress (oSE) to maximum strain (go) is termed the storage modulus (E1).
In a similar manner the ratio of the maximum viscous stress (oSv) to maximum strain (g0) is termed the loss modulus (E2).
where |ER| is the absolute value of the dynamic modulus.
The glassy transition temperature is dependent on the time scale or frequency of the measurement. This time dependency results from the fact that a diffusion rate controlled mechanism is normally associated with the “freezing in” of molecular mobilities in the transition region. A standard procedure for determining the glassy transition temperature is to measure some function of density with change in temperature. In phenol-formaldehyde resins the glassy transition temperature has been associated witii the heat distortion temperature and dynamic mechanical dispersion.
Fig. 2. Curves are illustrative of dynamic mechanical dispersion.
(a) over a narrow frequency region the dynamic moduli (E1) and (ER) drop from higher to lower values as the frequency decreases or temperature increases.
(b) the loss tangent (tan d) goes through a maximum at the frequency at which the dynamic modulus (ER) curve has its inflection point, and E2 goes through a maximum.
(c) the dispersion region shifts to lower frequencies as the temperature is lowered.
In the glassy state it has been shown experimentally that each dispersion region is associated with a specific molecular group. As the frequency is increased or temperature lowered this group is “frozen in” and thus contributes to an increase in stress and resulting modulus.
complex dynamic modulus (ER) through the dispersion region and maximum tan d value will be much larger than for a glassy state dispersion region. These properties of dynamic mechanical dispersion are illustrated in Figure 2.
where A is the activation energy of flow, R the gas constant and log aT the logarithmic frequency shift relating temperatures T and To.
The “reduced variables treatment” checks well for polymers having weak intermolecular binding forces in the region of the glass transition. In the glassy state it would appear that each mobility may have a discrete activation energy and that the shape of the dispersion curves depend on temperature.
The diglycidyl ether of bisphenol-A was chosen as the common epoxy base for the several cure compositions. This epoxy was crosslinked catalytically with a boron trifluoride amine complex to produce the homopolymer and coreacted stoichiometrically with four diamine curatives, of varying structure and molecular weight. The chemical reactants and formulation and curing conditions are indicated in Table 1 and Table 2 respectively. Specimens for mechanical properties testing were cast in rectangular molds and machined to final shape. Specimens for dynamic property testing were either cast in glass tubes or machined from rectangular shape.
1-3 100 10.3 24 R.T.
1-4 100 13.5 24 R.T.
1-6 100 79 24 R.T.
The test fixture and specimen for the modified Vicat heat penetration test, as used in our laboratories, is iliustrated. The test is adapted for use with a standard neat distortion tester. The penetrator head, having a flat penetrator needle of square cross section and 1.0 mm2 area, attaches to the load shaft. The compression weight is adjusted to a total of 1.0 Kg. The rate of bath temperature rise remains at 2.0°C/min. The test permits semimicro testing of samples of simple geometry and provides a penetration depth versus temperature curve as shown in Figure 3. By convention, the intersection of the extrapolated linear portion of the penetration curve to zero penetration is termed the heat penetration temperature.
The glassy transition temperature is obtained from linear expansivity curves as shown in Figure 4. The curves are plotted with adjusted base values of DL to provide for convenient vertical displacement.
The outstanding adhesive-bonding properties of epoxy resins were first recognized by Preiswerk and Gams in 1944. At that time epoxy-resin adhesives were recognized as the first cast-in-place adhesives featuring a versatile chemical functionality and a remarkably low shrinkage on curing. This led to adhesive joints with low internal stress. Since the transition to the cured state takes place by a polyaddition reaction, no low-molecular-weight substances are evolved. These properties were then of unusual significance in that, for the first time, it was possible to obtain reliable adhesive joints with excellent cohesion, structural integrity, and outstanding adhesion to all kinds of substrates. For example, bonds could be made to metals and glass without resorting to the application of pressure during the bonding process and without any problem in bonding irregular surfaces. It was of technological significance that the manner in which these adhesives were used was reminiscent of well-known metal-soldering techniques. Therefore the discovery of the bonding function of epoxy resins introduced a new concept in adhesive materials and inaugurated the modern approach to the technology of adhesive bonding.
Since the commercial introduction of epoxy resins in 1946, adhesives have been one of the most valuable uses for such resins. Thus of the 161.7 million lb of epoxy resins (unmodified basis) sold in the United States in 1969, 19.4 million lb, or 12%, were used for bonding and adhesive purposes. Modern adhesives technology has led to the development of many types of epoxy-based adhesive systems. Adhesives have been formulated to meet various specifications and use criteria. The principal applications are in the field of structural metal bonding, particularly in the aerospace industry and in military equipment, as well as in miscellaneous small-part assembly of plastics and metals. To demonstrate the scope and versatility of epoxy-resin-based adhesives technology, Table 1 illustrates the storage, application conditions, service temperature, and joint-strength behavior of various formulated epoxy adhesives. Most of the information in this table was abstracted from an article by Carson on the specifications of structural adhesives. The variation of properties with formulation indicates the wide range of structural applications for which epoxy-resin adhesives can be designed. For example, phenolic-modified epoxy resins produce the best high-temperature adhesives, whereas nylon-epoxy combinations produce adhesives with the highest joint strengths.
The formulation of epoxy-based adhesives into serviceable adhesive-bonding systems is a broad field of technology. Epoxy-resin-based adhesives can be produced in various forms: one- and two-part liquids, film, or solvent based. This wide variety of formulations is indicative of the advanced state of the art of epoxy adhesives.
Generally the adhesion function and mechanism of adhesive-joint strength is poorly understood. However, a more systematic understanding of adhesion phenomena and adhesive-joint strengths is beginning to take form. This chapter treats the adhesive properties of epoxy resins from a scientific viewpoint. As a background, the most recent theories of adhesion and adhesive-joint strength will be presented, followed by an analysis of epoxy adhesive materials from a strength-of-materials viewpoint.
The chemical aspects of epoxy resins specific to the field of adhesion and adhesive applications will be presented. In particular the chemical background pertinent to the development of epoxy-resin-based adhesives of the type listed in Table 1 will be reviewed. This will be followed by a discussion of the technological aspects of adhesive joints concerned with the stress, environmental aging, and curing behavior of various practical epoxy-based adhesives.
bAluminum-to-aluminum lap joints tested acording to ASTM D1002.
Adhesion is a scientifically and technically diverse subject. In essence adhesion is an interfacial phenomenon. Physical and chemical driving forces are always operative when matter comes together to form an interface. Therefore, in its strictest sense, the adhesion strength of an interface is a measure of the degree to which the two surfaces are attracted. In practice the molecular basis of adhesion is rarely studied, and one must resort to secondary interpretations to determine the strength of adhesion. Hence the status of adhesion at an interface between two materials is presently reflected only by the test procedure used. Nevertheless, the process of adhesion can be systematically analyzed.
The mechanism of adhesion is manifested by two stages: wetting and setting. However, from a practical standpoint, the entire process of adhesion must include the performance behavior of the joint since in many ways, the type of wetting or setting mechanism markedly influences the environmental resistance of an adhesive. For example, adhesive joints may appear to be satisfactory at first, but they may fail drastically under common use conditions, such as a moist environment or mechanical impact. The key to this problem lies in the state of the interfacial contiguous layer that exists between the polymeric adhesive material and the substrate. Specifically, it will depend on what types of interaction prevail at the interface, whether the absorbed or bonded species are sensitive to moisture, and the presence or absence of voids due to improper wetting. A scientific approach to this problem is now beginning to take form, and it is believed that the answers should come from a deeper understanding of the absorption theory of adhesion; more specifically by probing the roles that chemisorption and diffusion play in the manifestation of adhesion effects.
A brief look into the background of the surface-coatings industry gives an understanding of the position epoxy resins hold in this field today. At the outset it should be noted that the formulation and manufacture of coatings are going through a period of transition from a craft type of endeavor to a scientifically regulated industry. For many years natural sources were the basis for the polymers and film-forming materials used in paints and varnishes. Paintmaking at that time was a typical craft, with artists and painters mixing their own paints from pigment and oil. The properties of the finished product depended to a great degree on their judgment and experience.
This period was followed by a transition that saw the establishment of paint and varnish factories whose products were controlled by the craftsmanship of the paint and varnish maker.
The development, in more recent years, of synthetic polymers, such as alkyd- and varnish-type phenolic resins, represents a significant step in the transition of the industry from an art to a science. Since this transition a steady flow of new synthetic polymers has become available. Procedures used in their production, control, evaluation, and application have formalized a technology based to a large degree on scientific principles and methods. This is substantiated by the increase in scientifically trained personnel and scientific technique being used in the laboratories of the coatings manufacturers. The transition is continuing, and the balance is shifting more and more from art to science.
The technical literature is abundant with references to the evaluation of the new synthetic polymers in coatings applications. Comparisons are shown of the new materials used both alone and in combination with established products. In many instances at least some advantage is claimed for the new materials. The number of new products finding practical applications indicates that many never leave the laboratory for commercialization. Quite a few of those that do leave the laboratory are found only in a limited number of low-volume, specialty applications.
On the other hand, epoxy resins based on epichlorohydrin and bisphenol A, introduced to industry a little over 20 years ago, are well-established coatings materials used in a wide variety of applications. Nearly 50% of the total epoxy-resin production finds its way into coatings formulations. The importance of epoxy resins to the coatings industry is shown by the consumption of 69 million lb in 1970 in coating applications.
2. Cold- or room-temperature-cured systems based on curing agents containing amine groups.
3. Baking systems, particularly those in which the epoxy resins are reacted with phenolic resins, amino resins, or thermosetting acrylic resins.
4. Thermoplastic epoxy-resin systems based on extremely-high-molecular-weight epoxy resins.
These types of system, with a further subdivision into solvent-borne and liquid epoxy-resin solventless and super-high- solids systems, powder coatings, epoxy-resin-ester emulsions, water-reducible epoxy-resin poly-amide-cured coatings, and water reducible epoxy-resin coating systems for electrodeposition, are covered in this chapter. Emphasis is placed on the more recent developments in epoxy-resin coatings technology.
The earliest and even the current epoxy-resin coatings technology revolves mainly around solid epoxy resins or their solutions. The commercially available types can be classified, as in Table 1, according to end use, average molecular weight, WPE range, viscosity, hydroxyl functionality, and weight per gallon.
Because of the decided trend in the coatings industry to utilize liquid epoxy resins, Table 2 is included to show the differences in the materials finding their way into coatings formulations.
The solid types of epoxy resin can be reacted with vegetable-oil fatty acids to form epoxy-resin esters. The most commonly used resin type for these products has an average molecular weight of about 1400. In this reaction the epoxy resin is regarded as a resinous polyol containing epoxide and hydroxyl groups, both esterifiable. The epoxide groups have a hydroxyl functionality of 2 since two ester groups can be formed with each epoxide. Normally esterification proceeds under typical alkyd- or polyester-processing conditions. Temperatures ranging from 425 to 550°F and typical esterification catalysts (sodium carbonate, lithium naphthenate, or calcium acetate—0.05 wt % based on total solids) can be used. Kettles used are of the fusion or azeotropic type, as in the production of alkyd resins. Better color and lower viscosity characteristics result from the use of azeotropic equipment.
aGrams of resin containing 1 gram equivalent of epoxide.
bGardner-Holdt viscosity of 40 wt% solids in butyl carbitol.
dIncludes hydroxyl functionality of two hydroxyl groups for each epoxy group.
eReadily pourable only when heated slightly above room temperature.
Esters produced from the higher-molecular-weight (2900 and 3750) resins have higher viscosity, greater impact and chemical resistance, and flexibility. Drying rate and application solids are lowered.
The choice and amount of fatty acids related to the amount of epoxy resin affect final properties. A variety of epoxy-resin esters, similar in scope to the various types of alkyd resins, can be made by use of these two variables. Long-, medium-, and short-oil-length esters are formulated in this manner.
Long-oil linseed or soya epoxy-resin esters are soluble in mineral spirits, and, by adding driers, an air-drying system for industrial maintenance applications can be formulated.
Short-drying-oil epoxy esters are not soluble in aliphatic solvents but are soluble in aromatic hydrocarbons. These products can be used by themselves. Specific improvements in properties can be obtained by cross-linking them with urea-formaldehyde resin (Beckamine 21-511, Reichhold Chemicals, Inc.; Beetle 227-8, American Cyanamid Co.; Uformite F-240, Rohm and Haas), or melamine-formaldehyde resins (Resimene 875, Monsanto Chemical Co.; Uformite MM-55, Rohm and Haas).
Overprint varnishes (short-oil dehydrated castor epoxy-resin esters) for metal containers, bottle caps, and screw-cap enclosures constitute a large-volume usage. A highly detergent-resistant appliance primer can be formulated by crosslinking a short-oil soya ester containing an epoxy resin (molecular weight 2900) with a melamine resin.
Epoxy-resin esters based on low-rosin-content tall oil crosslinked with an amino resin have attained significant importance in automotive primers.
There is an alternative procedure for producing epoxy-resin esters wherein a selectively precatalyzed liquid epoxy resin (Epon Resin 829, Shell Chemical Co.) with a narrow range of properties is reacted with varying amounts of bisphenol A to prepare a broad group of solid epoxy resins or their fatty-acid esters. Higher-molecular-weight-resin esters at shorter oil lengths than are feasible with commercial solid resins can be prepared. The composition listed in Table 3 is proving quite interesting in coating evaluations, as it shows noticeably improved through- drying, flexibility, impact strength, and chemical resistance properties.
aEpon Resin 829, Shell Chemical Co.
bWoburn’s Supra, Woburn Chemical Co.
cEsterification catalyst; 0.1 wt % based on resin components.
dApproximately 3 wt % as an azeotropic solvent.
The pollution elimination-motivated desire to limit solvent usage is the basis for a large amount of research on water-borne coatings. If the vehicle involved is hydrophylic or “water-loving” or if emulsifiers can be included which are complementary to whatever hydrophylic character the polymer itself may have, successful coatings result. The vehicle which started the “water revolution” in the coatings industry was, as is well-known, a styrene-butadiene copolymer. This material obviously is not very hydrophylic. On the other hand, it is compatible with emulsifying agents and the preparation of an emulsion is relatively simple. At least it is simple once you know how to do it. The technique for emulsifying styrene-butadiene copolymers was a major part of the rubber program during World War II and, accordingly, a great body of knowledge existed for preparing such emulsions.
Poly (vinyl acetate) was also readily emulsified. The acetate groups being polar are eager to be solvated by water molecules and dispersion can be helped along with the proper emulsifiers and stabilizers such as poly (vinyl alcohol). Similar comments apply to acrylic polymers and copolymers.
Protective coatings chemists soon found, however, that there are other polymers which do not emulsify readily. Heading the list are the epoxy resins. An epoxy resin had ether and hydroxyl groups in the chain and, of course, epoxy end groups. All of these groups are polar and one might think that they would assist in the emulsification of the epoxy resin. Not so, for a complex reason about which theoreticians like to debate. An epoxy resin has a very rigid structure because of the bisphenol A component. It is this rigidity, perhaps, which prevents the hydroxyl and ether groups from exhibiting polar character. On the other hand, epoxy resin compositions have relatively poor water resistance because of the polarity presented by the ether and hydroxyl groups. Thus there is an inconsistency that requires complex theoretical rationalization. The practical point, however, is that epoxy resins are difficult to emulsify.
The difficulty varies with the type of epoxy resin composition involved. An epoxy resin ester can be emulsified readily by esterifying some of the hydroxyl groups with one carboxyl of a dibasic acid or anhydride such as maleic anhydride. The unreacted carboxyl can be neutralized with sodium hydroxide or an amine to provide an intrinsic emulsifier. Correspondingly, the unsaturated fatty acid groups of the ester can be maleinized by heating with maleic anhydride and, again, carboxyl groups are present which, after neutralization, make emulsification possible. This type of composition is used for electrocoating.
On the other hand, a two-component epoxy composition comprising an epoxy resin and a coreactant such as an amine or a polyamide resin is much harder to convert from a solvent-based to a water-borne system. Persistent work on the part of coatings chemists, however, has produced such water-borne systems and these are in use today. Much of the success in emulsifying epoxy resins depends on the coreactant. Amino-containing polyamide resins are coreactants which are readily emulsifed by neutralizing some of the free amine groups with acids. Intrinsic emulsifiers result which make possible the emulsification or dispersion of the material in water. The amine-containing polyamide with its intrinsic emulsifying groups will emulsify not only itself but will also disperse the epoxy resin. To be sure, the dispersion must be assisted by extrinsic emulsifiers and when these are carefully chosen a water-borne vehicle results which can be pigmented and which has many of the properties of the corresponding solvent-based system.
Perusal of the patent literature provides interesting insight into the type of work underway to make epoxy compositions water-dispersible. If a baked coating is contemplated the problem is somewhat easier because the baking contributes to good properties. On the other hand, if a room temperature-curing system is desired the problem is complicated if only because the emulsifiers present tend to detract from properties such as water resistance.
Typical of the patents which have issued recently on water-borne epoxy coatings are the following.
German patent 2,627,697 issued to Ciba-Geigy AG describes technology in which an epoxy resin with a molecular weight varying from 340 to 5,000 is reacted with an aminoalcohol such as diethanolamine. Presumably the amine group of the diethanolamine reacts with the epoxy linkages to give a composition with primary hydroxyl groups. These are in turn ethoxylated to increase the hydrophylic properties of the polymer. When the ethoxylated composition is combined with a methylated urea-formaldehyde resin, a water-dispersible baking finish results.
Another baking finish which is intended primarily as a cathodic electrocoating vehicle is described in Dutch patent 11,958 assigned to BASF. Here the epoxy resin is made more hydrophylic by reacting it with an equivalent amount of mercaptan to provide a thiol ether. This in turn is quaternized with an epoxide and acid to provide a sulfonium compound. The free hydroxyl groups which were initially present in a the epoxy resin are partially masked by reaction with a polyisocyanate, although insufficient polyisocyanate is used so that gel formation is avoided. In a typical example, a bisphenol A-based epoxy resin with a molecular weight of 1,000 and an epoxy value of about 500 is reacted with mercaptoethanol in ethylene glycol. The thiol ether that results is in turn reacted with ethylene oxide and acetic acid. The water-dispersible composition that results is combined with a melamine resin.
Another patent for a baking coating which makes use of diethanolamine is British patent 1,469,495 assigned to M&T Chemicals. Here an epoxy resin derived from bisphenol A is reacted with mono- or diethanolamine in a ratio such that all of the epoxy functionality is consumed. An aqueous solution of this material is applied to a substrate which has been heated to 200 to 300°C. A coating is said to result which is durable, solvent- resistant, and flexible. It is not clear, however, from the description what kind of crosslinking, if any, takes place.
A heat-curable water-borne epoxy resin composition is described by Mobil Oil Corporation in U.S. patent 4,029,620. The coating comprises two parts, one of which is an emulsified epoxy resin in which the stabilizing agent is a nonionic surfactant. The second portion which cures the epoxy resin on heating is a solvent-soluble copolymer containing carboxyl functionality. This is dispersed in water by forming a salt of some of the carboxyl groups with a volatile amine or ammonia. If ammonia is used, up to 90% of the carboxyl groups may be neutralized. If an amine is used, there is a 30% maximum for neutralization. Also, when the two components are mixed there must be a 25% excess of epoxy functionality over carboxyl functionality.
A related baking coating is described in U.S. patent 4,021,396 assigned to duPont de Nemours Co. This, however, is a one-component system in which both the epoxy resin and the carboxyl-containing coreactant are dispersed in aqueous medium at a level of 25 to 50 weight percent. Five to forty percent of epoxy resin may be used with 60 to 95% of an acrylic polymer whose number average molecular weight is above 10,000. The copolymer is based on styrene, methylstyrene, methyl methacrylate, or acrylonitrile with an alkyl acrylate or methacrylate and up to 10% of an unsaturated carboxylic acid.
A number of patents describe epoxy resin emulsions. Thus one in which the epoxy resin is emulsified with a nonionic surfactant is claimed in Japanese patent 013530 assigned to the Dai-Nippon Toryo Co. The dispersed epoxy resin is combined with a suitable hardener and the mixture is said to be stable on storage which means that the coating must be baked in order to achieve curing.
1. Determination of the structure and physical properties of the cured and uncured resins.
2. Control of resin charges, analysis of hardeners, flexibilizers, fillers, etc.
3. Following the progress of the curing reactions and determining the extent of final cure.
4. Identification of unknown samples that are supposed to be epoxy resins.
Recently physical methods have become valuable tools in epoxy-resin analysis; however, the older, more classical chemical methods still remain important and accordingly cannot be disregarded.
Several classification tests for epoxy resins depend on the detection of free epoxy groups, but a series of reactions that are specific for the bisphenol A ether skeleton are used predominantly. The latter tests do not require the existence of free epoxy groups and therefore can also be used to detect cured or esterified bisphenol A epoxy resins. In all cases the solubility of the epoxy resin in the reaction medium has to be considered.
Qualitative identification of epoxides and epoxy resins by means of infrared spectroscopy will be discussed in Section I.D.
a. Addition of Chloride Ions. The addition of chloride ions to epoxides proceeds even in neutral solution, as was stated by BrOnstedt et al. .
According to Wurtz the hydroxyl ions formed can be detected by the precipitation of metallic hydroxides from the concentrated solutions of the corresponding chlorides (e.g., aluminum or magnesium chlorides). Lenher recommends a saturated neutral solution of manganous chloride as the best test; however, the halides of aluminum and the divalent halides of magnesium, iron, tin, and zinc are also useful reagents. For the determination of the hydroxyl ions formed Deckert used the color change of an acid-base indicator. Water-soluble epoxides can be treated with an aqueous solution of sodium chloride or potassium thiocyanate. A suitable indicator is phenolphthalein, used in a procedure described by Fisch to detect epoxy groups of substances that are insoluble in aqueous salt solutions.
Lithium chloride solution, 10%. Mix 85 ml of methyl Cellosolve and 5 ml of water and dissolve 10 g of lithium chloride.
Phenolphthalein indicator solution, 1% in ethanol.
and, if necessary neutralize the solution. After mixing with 2 ml of lithium chloride solution, heat the sample for 20 sec to boiling. An intense red color indicates free epoxy groups.
The various quantitative hydrochlorination analytical methods are also suitable classification reactions and can be used for this purpose with somewhat simplified procedures.
b. Selective Oxidation. A further test for the detection of epoxides and epoxy resins has been given by Fuchs, Waters, and Vanderwerf. The method employs hydration of the epoxide, followed by periodic acid oxidation of the corresponding glycol. The test is interfered with by a-glycols, a-oxyaldehydes, a-oxyketones, a-diketones, and a-dicarboxylic acids. Alcohols, aldehydes, and ketones do not interfere.
Periodic acid solution, 0.5% in water.
Silver nitrate solution, 1% in water.
Dioxane or glacial acetic acid.
Dissolve 1 to 2 drops of the substance to be tested in 2 ml of dioxane or glacial acetic acid, add 2 ml of the periodic acid solution, and shake for several minutes. Add 1 to 2 drops of silver nitrate solution. Precipitation of white silver iodate indicates that free epoxy groups were present.
c. Pyrolysis. A test described by Feigl employs the pyrolytic splitting off of acetaldehyde from epoxides when heated at 240 to 250°C. The acetaldehyde thus formed can be detected by the color reaction with sodium nitroprusside and piperidine. Other materials (e.g., cellulose) evolve acetaldehyde only when heated to much higher temperatures. The test is also positive for cured epoxy resins.
Sodium nitroprusside solution, 5% in water.
Piperidine or morpholine solution, S% in water.
Heat the substance to be tested in a tube immersed in a metal bath at 240 to 250°C. Place a filter paper moistened with a few drops of sodium nitroprusside and piperidine solutions in the tube. A blue color indicates free epoxy groups.
d. Color Reactions. Several epoxides, with tertiary amines like pyridine, â-picoline, quinoline, etc., give specific color-producing reactions, which sometimes allow a quantitative estimation, as in the case of ethylene oxide. An intensive study of these reactions was published by Lohmann. Gunther employed the reaction with lepidine (4-methylquinoline) for a microdetermination of ethylene oxide. Swann suggested the following procedure for a qualitative test, which is also suitable for epoxy resins.
Dissolve 1 drop of the sample in 3 ml of Cellosolve, add 5 drops of lepidine, and heat to 125°C in an oil bath. Development of a blue color indicates that free epoxy groups are present.
e. Preparation of Derivatives. Pure alkylene oxides can be characterized by the preparation of the readily crystallizing sulfides, which are formed by the addition of dinitrothiophenols.
or semicarbazone; however, quite often two isomeric compounds are obtained.
Ulbrich reported that bis (1-naphthyl-urethanes) are suitable derivatives for the identification of glycidyl ethers.
Besides the described procedures for the determination of epoxy groups there are a series of reactions that are characteristic tests for epoxy resins based on bisphenol A. These tests do not require the existence of free epoxy groups; that is, they are also positive for cured and esterified epoxy resins. Compounds of the phenyl glycidyl ether type give only a very weak positive reaction.
a. Mercuric Oxide and Nitric Acid Tests. These two reactions, which were first described by Foucry, are used to a large extent. Rudd and Zonsveld recognized the fact that these tests are specific reactions of epoxy resins based on bisphenol A. Other epoxides, lacquer solvents, phenol formaldehyde resins, phenol, bisphenol A, melamine resins, etc., do not interfere. It is customary to apply both tests and to carry out a blank test on an epoxy resin of the bisphenol A type.
Denigè’s reagent. Mix 10 ml of concentrated sulfuric acid and 50 ml of water, dissolve in the hot mixture 2.5 g of mercuric oxide, and filter the solution.
Sodium hydroxide solution, 5% in water.
1. Mix 1 ml of the sulfuric acid-resin solution with 5 ml of Denigè’s reagent and let stand for 30 min. An orange precipitate indicates an epoxy resin of the bisphenol A type.
2. Shake 1 ml of the sulfuric acid-resin solution with 1 ml of concentrated nitric acid. After 5 min pour the solution with stirring into 100 ml of sodium hydroxide solution. Epoxy resins of the bisphenol A type are indicated by an orange color. | 2019-04-23T04:15:49Z | https://www.niir.org/books/book/epoxy-resins-technology-handbook-manufacturing-process-synthesis-epoxy-resin-adhesives-epoxy-coatings/isbn-9788178331744/zb,,18bb1,a,16,6,a/index.html |
If you want every security component in a single well-integrated package, plus bonus features, Bitdefender's Total Security mega-suite is what you need.
Top scores from labs. Cross-platform protection. All expected suite features perform well. Ransomware and spyware protection. System speedup and cleanup tools. Many useful bonus features.
Features limited in iOS app. Mediocre score in one of our hands-on tests.
If what you want is every possible security component in one integrated package, Bitdefender Total Security is exactly what you need. It's an Editors' Choice for security mega-suite.
Security companies that offer a basic security suite often add a higher-level suite, usually in one of two ways. Some create a mega-suite by adding advanced features for Windows computers, things like online backup and system performance optimization. Others go cross-platform, adding support for macOS, Android, and iOS. Bitdefender Total Security does a bit of both. On Windows, it adds system optimization and anti-theft. It also lets you install full-blown protection for your macOS and Android devices, and limited protection on iOS. Bitdefender Total Security is our current Editors' Choice for security mega-suite, and also does pretty well in the cross-platform realm.
For $89.99 per year you can install Bitdefender on five devices; upping that to $99.99 raises the limit to 10 devices. That same $99.99 would get you five licenses for Kaspersky Total Security, while Norton Security Premium costs $109.99 for 10 devices (plus 25GB of hosted online backup). Bitdefender's pricing sits in the middle. Note that for those who manage a ton of devices, McAfee Total Protection costs $99.99 per year for unlimited installations on Windows, macOS, Android, and iOS.
As befits a product that's not limited to one platform, you activate your subscription by entering a code in the Bitdefender Central online console. Once the product appears in your console, you can install it on the system you're using, or send an email with a link to install on other devices. The installation link automatically downloads the appropriate installer for the active operating system.
On a Windows device, the product looks almost identical to Bitdefender Internet Security. Other than the window title, the only difference is that the Utilities page gives you four useful utilities, instead of an invitation to upgrade.
The installer also adds Bitdefender's VPN, powered by AnchorFree Hotspot Shield Elite. However, to lift the 200MB daily bandwidth cap you must purchase a separate VPN subscription. For full details on the VPN and basic Windows suite, please read our review of Bitdefender Internet Security.
On the Utilities page of the Windows edition you'll find three optimization tools: OneClick Optimizer, Startup Optimizer, and Disk Cleanup. To get things rolling, click Optimize My Device under OneClick Optimizer. On my test system, the scan quickly found hundreds of items in the categories Disk Cleanup, Registry Cleanup, and Privacy Cleanup. As recommended, I clicked to view details in each category.
Disk issues included junk, temporary, cache, and debug files, occupying 2GB of disk space. In the Registry issues category, Bitdefender reported useless or erroneous entries of several types, including software locations and shared DLLs. Privacy issues turns out to refer to browser cache, cookies, and history. I clicked Optimize to wipe away all the issues.
On completion, the suite offered a detailed report, a lengthy HTML document listing every single file and Registry change. Similar components in some suites let you preview the changes and exempt specific ones, or reverse some or all of the changes afterward. Most users would have no idea what to look for among the hundreds of items, so Bitdefender doesn't bother with either preview or undo.
Over time your computer can become cluttered with dozens of products whose makers think they're important enough to launch at startup and always run in the background. In many cases, launching only as needed is sufficient, and it takes time to load all the programs. The Startup Optimizer helps clear the background process clutter. Quick Heal and Panda Global Protection offer basic management of startup programs, but Bitdefender kicks the process to the next level, showing you just how much the programs slow your startup experience.
When you click Optimize Device Boot for the first time, it warns that you must reboot so it can measure how fast the apps launch. After reboot, it displays how long the boot process took and how much of that time involved loading startup apps. On my physical test system (this feature doesn't work on virtual machines) apps used just one second of a nearly two-minute boot time; your mileage may vary.
You can reversibly disable any startup program, meaning that you'll have to launch it manually if you want it. For a situation in which startup programs truly slow the boot process, you can set some of them to load after a delay. This feature aims to report what percentage of Bitdefender users choose Enable, Delay, or Disable for each app. If you don't see the community data right away, just give it a little time. BullGuard Premium Protection offers a similar feature, with a full timeline of processes that load at startup. The startup manager in Symantec Norton Security Premium reports resource usage and prevalence among other Norton users.
Where the Optimizer component looked for useless files taking up space, Disk Cleanup seeks very large files and leaves you to decide whether you need them. The report does include files essential to Windows, such as pagefile.sys, but it warns that you can't delete these files. The previous edition displayed results in a colorful double-ring pie chart, but the current edition offers a simpler, more practical view. It buckets found items into four size ranges: More than 5GB; 1GB to 5GB; 500MB to 1GB; and 10MB to 500MB. Deciding which file might be unnecessary can be tough, but you should probably ignore any that aren't in familiar document, image, or movie formats. Sorting the results by file type makes identifying those easier.
If you're not sure about a found item, you can click a search icon to examine it. For example, on my test system Bitdefender turned up a 12GB file called LOTREE.mp4. A little scrutiny revealed that indeed it was Lord of the Rings, Extended Edition, part of the file collection used in my suite performance tests. Once you make your choices and confirm deletion, Bitdefender wipes the files from disk, bypassing the Recycle Bin.
You don't have to do anything special to enable anti-theft on a Windows laptop. Clicking Explore Anti-Theft simply takes you to Bitdefender Central. Buttons on the Anti-Theft page let you locate, lock, or wipe the device. The option to sound a loud alarm is Android-only.
When the device connects via Wi-Fi, it gets its location using Wi-Fi triangulation. In testing, this proved quite accurate. However, on an Ethernet connection it falls back on IP address geolocation, with much coarser accuracy. If you're lucky, it will give you the right city. In my case, it located the laptop about three miles away, in a sometimes-flooded nature area. Fortunately, a stolen laptop will almost certainly connect via Wi-Fi.
Clicking Lock brings up a few options. By default, it remotely locks your user account and deactivates other accounts. You can choose to have it snap a few webcam photos as it locks, on the chance you'll get a mug shot of the laptop thief. If your laptop's Windows account doesn't have a password, first, for shame! Second, you can still lock it down with a four-digit passcode. And if you forget the passcode you can find it again at Bitdefender Central. When I tested this feature, I forgot that my test laptop necessarily goes without an account password. Fortunately, the passcode from the online console served to restore access.
That's it for anti-theft, but really, this is everything you need for a laptop. Yes, the option to sound an alarm is absent, but you're a lot more likely to lose an Android phone around the house than a laptop. You can locate a lost or stolen laptop, and you can lock it to prevent misuse. If it's hopelessly unrecoverable, you can send a remote command to wipe the device, keeping your data out of unfriendly hands.
The parental control system in Bitdefender's entry-level suite supports Macs, but in a slightly odd way. It first installs a trial of Bitdefender's macOS antivirus. Once the device shows up in Bitdefender Central, you can connect it with the parental control system. Even after the antivirus trial runs out, parental control remains active.
With the cross-platform product, you get a full installation of Bitdefender Antivirus for Mac, as well as the free version of the VPN. Independent antivirus testing labs love this product, and it aced our hands-on phishing protection test. It protects your files and your backups against ransomware. And its TrafficLight browser extension warns of dangerous links in search results, just as it does in a Windows installation.
Bitdefender Antivirus for Mac is an Editors' Choice in its field, sharing that honor with Kaspersky Internet Security for Mac. To learn all the details about Bitdefender's macOS product, please read my full review.
The easiest way to install Bitdefender Security on an Android device is to send an email from Bitdefender Central. Click the link to download the app from Google Play, and you're ready to go. Your Bitdefender Central credentials are baked into the process.
Initially, Bitdefender Security leads you through some important settings and actions. You need to give it Device Administrator status to enable anti-theft, as well as more mundane permissions such as access to your calls, photos, media, and files. It recommends a full malware scan and invites you to enable App Lock (more about that shortly). If you activate the feature, Bitdefender can snap a photo of someone trying to guess your lockscreen PIN.
From the online console, you can locate, lock, or wipe the device, as with Windows. You can also make it sound a loud alert, handy if you've misplaced your phone. There's an option to invoke these features using coded text messages, but since the Android device I use for testing isn't provisioned for cellular, I couldn't try that. For safety's sake, Bitdefender only accepts the coded text messages from a phone that you've previously identified as trusted.
That malware scan at startup runs quickly, and you can launch it again any time you feel uneasy. Bitdefender also scans new apps as you install them. It doesn't go quite as far as the Norton Android app, which rates apps right in the Play Store, but it won't let you install anything malicious.
Account Privacy is a mobile-specific feature; I'm not sure why it doesn't appear in Windows. It checks your Bitdefender account against known breaches, and reports any hits. On my test device, it found breaches at exploit.in and breachCompilation, dating back two and one years respectively. The app advises to change the account password and then swipe away the warnings.
Nobody can access your phone when it's locked with a PIN or, even better, a fingerprint. However, someone who picks it up unlocked while you're not looking could dig into your private email or other data. App Lock lets you put additional security on email, Messages, Settings, or any other apps you wish. Just tap to choose the protected apps.
As for how and when they lock, you have choices. By default, every use of a locked app requires unlocking via PIN or fingerprint. You can set it to keep unlocked apps open until the screen goes off (which kind of defeats the purpose). More usefully, you can permit a brief exit and return without requiring a second unlock. And you can set it so that all apps remain unlocked when you're on a trusted Wi-Fi network.
Bitdefender also applies its powerful web protection to keep you safe from malicious and fraudulent sites, just as it does on Windows. It protects Chrome automatically, and can optionally protect Dolphin, Firefox, and Opera.
While not the security extravaganza that Bitdefender offers on Windows, Bitdefender Security on Android is a comprehensive suite of security components. It includes antivirus, anti-theft, web protection, locking for your sensitive apps, and even account privacy reporting.
Bitdefender's mobile security for iOS is a free product, and not technically part of Total Security. When you install protection on an iPhone or iPad, it doesn't use up one of your licenses. That's understandable, because the iOS product just doesn't do a lot.
As with Android, the iOS app has a connection to the VPN built right in, and you can use it for 200GB per day of secured internet connection on a server selected by the app. If you've paid for a Premium VPN subscription, you can choose the country for your server and use the VPN as much as you like, with no bandwidth cap.
This app incudes the same Account Privacy feature found on Android, along with similar antitheft abilities. You can't make it sound an alarm the way you can on Android, but from the Bitdefender Central console you can locate, lock, or wipe the device.
In testing, I found that Bitdefender reported its location to the online console upon installation, but not thereafter. When I took it to another location and tried to locate it via Bitdefender Central, I got the message, "We are working to locate your device. We'll notify you when your device's location becomes available." That notification never came. Even back in my office, the Locate feature got the same message.
Likewise, the Lock command had no effect. In order to check that, I had to change the iPad's settings, because it automatically locked after one minute. On an iOS device with default lock settings, the remote Lock command is only valuable during that minute before auto-lock kicks in.
Bitdefender's mobile security for iOS is seriously limited, and it didn't perform all that well in testing. But note, again, that this is not actually a feature of Total Security. It doesn't use one of your licenses. It's a free app that you can manage alongside your other protected devices.
At the start, I mentioned Bitdefender Central as the location for extending protection to new devices. As you've seen, it's also the go-to for locating lost device and activating anti-theft features. But there's more to this console, much more on some platforms.
Select a Windows device in the console and you get five tabs: Dashboard, Protection, Optimizer, Anti-Theft, and Vulnerability. I've already gone over the Anti-Theft features. Dashboard, the default tab, displays stats on threats blocked in the last week, along with details like the device's MAC address, the device type, and the vendor.
From the Protection tab, you can view the results from the latest quick or full scan for malware. You can also launch either scan remotely. That can be handy if you're managing devices for a less-techie family member. Similarly, the Optimizer tab shows the results of the latest optimizer and startup optimizer scans. You can remotely optimize the Windows system, and remotely manage startup items. And on the Vulnerability page you can launch a vulnerability scan or view existing scan results.
When you choose an Android device, the console offers the same Dashboard information, along with Protection and Anti-Theft tabs. There's just the one scan, no distinction between quick and full, and you can view the latest results or launch a scan remotely.
Devices running macOS just get the Dashboard and Protection tabs, with the option to run a quick or full scan. Sorry, no Anti-Theft for Macs! And for an iOS device, Dashboard and Anti-Theft appear. The Dashboard will always report no threats blocked in the last week, since there's no antimalware component on iOS.
Webroot SecureAnywhere Internet Security Complete offers a similar dashboard, with the ability to remotely review scan results and recent malware detections, along with a set of remote commands. You can remotely launch a malware, cleanup, or system optimization scan, and you can lock, restart, or shut down the device remotely. However, Webroot's anti-theft component is strictly mobile.
The My Kaspersky dashboard associated with Kaspersky Security Cloud lets you manage licenses and devices, log into password manager data, and configure parental control, but it doesn't include the remote scan options that Bitdefender offers. You can set up a trust relationship that lets McAfee installations check and change each other's configuration, but only within the same network. Bitdefender's ability to remotely monitor and control security on your devices is outstanding.
Bitdefender Antivirus Plus wins awards from the independent labs and aces our web-based tests. It includes a raft of features, among them multi-layered ransomware protection, banking protection, a password manager, and a virtual private network. Bitdefender Internet Security expands Windows protection with a firewall, a spam filter, a file encryption system, and a fully functional cross-platform parental control system. At the top of the line sits Bitdefender Total Security. For Windows systems, it adds system tune-up and anti-theft, and it extends protection to macOS and Android devices. It can even manage Bitdefender's free iOS security tool.
With its massive collection of security features, all of them are top notch, Bitdefender Total Security is our Editors' Choice for security mega-suite. If your real aim is full protection for many devices on different platforms, consider Symantec Norton Security Premium, our Editors' Choice for cross-platform multi-device security. | 2019-04-18T14:22:08Z | https://in.pcmag.com/software/52299/bitdefender-total-security |
Talking Naturally is a fortnightly podcast discussing birds, wildlife, conservation and whatever else interests us and we think will interest you. Presented by Charlie Moores, a long-term birder with a passion for conservation and animal welfare and produced jointly by Rare Bird Alert and WildSounds & Books.
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Episode 31 is in two parts. First a recording from this year's British Birdfair of Charlie Moores (Talking Naturally and BAWC), Dominic Dyer (CEO of the Badger Trust), and Mike Dilger (ecologist and TV presenter eg the BBC's One Show), discussing wildlife crime, then a conversation with the World Parrot Trust's Africa Programme Manager Dr Rowan Martin on why the Convention on Trade in Endangered Species must move the Grey Parrot from Appendix 2 to Appendix 1 and end the trade in wild-caught birds.
Episode 30 is all about Hen Harrier Day 2016, a nationwide protest at the vanishingly low numbers of breeding Hen Harriers in, especially, England, where the scientific consensus is clear: there should be more than three hundred pairs but in 2016 there were just three: illegal persecution has brought the Hen Harrier to the brink of being wiped out as a breeding species in England. This podcast is a series of vox pops and in-the-field conversations, with birders, naturalists, political leaders, and leading conservationists including Mark Avery and Chris Packham.
So, you and your mates decide you'd like to produce a definitive photographic field guide to the birds of Britian and Ireland. You think about what's needed and ten years later, having sifted through a quarter of a million photos and enlisted one of the UK's top birders to write the text, it's finally out. Is it what you hoped? Is it what birders have been waiting for? Or are we all switching to apps, and is a new field-guide what's needed anyway? Andy Swash and Rob Hume give us their thoughts.
A shorter than usual Talking Naturally conversation, a fact we're cunningly disguising by calling it a 'Special' - which isn't to say that isn't special, just a bit short. This one is about parrots, and I talked with David Woolcock, curator at Hayle's Paradise Park, about an hour after I finished a 24 hour, 200 mile cycle ride - Pedal for Parrots - from Wiltshire to the Hayle Estuary in Cornwall, raising funds for the World Parrot Trust.
Episode 28 and this time around we are swapping out our own 'birds conservation wildlife' tag for something completely different. We're talking about mental health with Tris Reid, aka The Inked Naturalist, a conservationist/general naturalist who has become well-known for wearing his heart on his sleeve and covering most visible parts of his body with tattoos of birds. Why the change in focus? Because while this podcast might not work for most people, if it helps even one listener it will have been worth posting it.
Owned by Northumbrian Water, Kielder Water holds a staggering 200 billion litres of water, making it the largest reservoir in the UK by capacity with a shoreline that is almost exactly the same as the length of a marathon! The reservoir itself is the centre-piece of the Kielder Water and Forest Park which boasts the largest working forest in England. Wildlife? Ospreys, Otters, Red Squirrels, Water Voles, Adders and much, more more.
Episode 26 and we have two interviews linked by beaches and things that - most of us will probably agree - shouldn't be on them: feral cats and trash. First up is Grant Sizemore of the American Bird Conservancy discussing plans to sue New York State Parks for maintaining a colony of neutered feral cats which are endangering breeding Piping Plovers, then Martin Dorey, founder of #2minutebeachclean who is asking everyone to do just a little bit to help keep beaches free of plastics and other trash.
Episode 25 and we have two interviews and both begin with the letter H: we're talking Hedgehogs with Charlie Creek of Willows Hedgehog Rescue, and hunt trespass with Joe Hashman of Hounds Off Both are creating a hub of information, both are working to halt harm to our wildlife...so hip hip hooray to the both of them.
Episode 24 and this episode is all about 'ultra marathons' - like marathons with a bit more distance and bit more suffering thrown in. Who is suffering and why? Radio producer Mary Colwell, who is walking 500 miles to fundraise for Curlews, and - myself: yes, in an outrageous piece of self-publicity I'm discussing with Jamie Gilardi, Director of the World Parrot Trust, my 24 hour 200+ mile cycle ride from Wiltshire to Cornwall to fundraise for wild parrots.
In this episode we're talking with Terry Townshend, an ex-pat Norfolk birder who's been living and working in Beijing, China since 2010, where he writes the increasingly influential and conservation-based 'Birding Beijing' - a blog dedicated to celebrating the birds of China’s capital city. An excellent birder, Terry has a professional background in environmental law, is a regular contributor to the China Birdwatching Society’s lecture series, and in 2012 he became the BirdLife Species Champion for the Endangered Jankowski's or Rufous-backed Bunting.
In a special podcast we're back 'Around the Med' discussing the almost incredible numbers of migratory birds killed in the region every year - around 25 million birds killed illegally by shooters and trappers every year - with Roula Trigou and Fran Vargas-Bianchi of the Hellenic Ornithological Society or HOS, the BirdLife partner in Greece.
We have two interviews in this episode, themed (pretty loosely) around the Mediterranean. We're looking at Montagu's Harrier conservation on both sides of the Med with Mark Thomas (RSPB) and Almut Schlaich (Dutch Montagu's Harrier Foundation); and at the Critically Endangered Iberian Lynx (which like its principal prey item the European Rabbit) is endemic to the Med, with Eduardo Goncalves founder of SOSLynx and chief-exec of the League Against Cruel Sports.
A special TN podcast about Abberton and Hanningfield Reservoirs in Essex, sponsored by and produced in association with Essex and Suffolk Water, part of Northumbrian Water Limited. Abberton, where a successful expansion scheme was completed last year, is the largest body of freshwater in Essex, an SSSI, a Special Protection Area (or SPA), and a Ramsar Site because of the large numbers of waterbirds that roost, stage and winter here. Hanningfield is also an SSSI with a large colony of Soprano Pipistrelle bats and important numbers of waterbirds. Both locations hold small reserves managed by Essex Wildlife Trust, a partnership that works to manage and improve biodiversity across both sites.
In this episode we're discussing an Australian endemic, the Critically Endangered Orange-bellied Parrot with Mark Holdsworth: if it wasn't for the extraordinary efforts of Mark and other members of the Orange-bellied Parrot National Recovery Team the species would already almost certainly be extinct in the wild. Closer to home we're talking with Rob Adams, Chairman and Treasurer of Spurn Bird Observatory Trust about - of course - Spurn, site of the Spurn Migration Festival and the UK's newest observatory accommodation. On a sombre note, Rob was a close friend and colleague of Martin Garner, one of birding's brightest stars who died at the end of January and Rob pays tribute to Martin..
We've three interviews for you this episode. We're talking with Noah Strycker, the new Big Year world record holder who in 2015 travelled to 41 countries on all seven continents and finished with a remarkable 6042 species on his year list; with the RSPB's Andre Farrar discussing the recently-released government Hen Harrier Action Plan - a short document that includes the prospect of brood management in its 11 pages; and with Bristol-based author and researcher Ed Drewitt on the rise of the urban Peregrine.
Noah Strycker:. You can read Noah's daily blogs from his big year, here. And you can watch a 5 minutes highlight reel of Noah's big year here.
Hen Harrier Action Plan: You can read the full report here (pdf).
Read response from Martin Harper, the RSPB's Conservation Director, on the Hen Harrier Action Plan here.
A look back at 2015 - not easy to compile really as since we launched Talking Naturally in late May we've uploaded almost 20 hours of discussion and chat, some of it serious, some of it more light-hearted. We've talked with a wide range of authors, activists, scientists and experts - many of whom describe themselves as 'ordinary people' - and covered everything from the badger cull, driven grouse shooting, and saving pilot whales, to pesticide overuse, what MEPs actually do, raptor persecution, and walking, kayaking and cycling for turtle doves. Here are a selection of conversations based loosely around the theme of 'Inspiration' - something hopefully to inspire us as we make our way into 2016.
In this episode we talk with Molly Smith Cato, the first Green MEP for the South West of England, who talks a huge amount of sense about green politics and activism, and with Graham Jones, the RSPB's Area Conservation Manager for the Northwest of England, which includes the Forest of Bowland and it's vanishing raptors.
TN 15 features a full-length interview with one of the finest British nature writers working today - Patrick Barkham, Guardian journalist and author of three beautifully-written and thoughtful books: The Butterfly Isles, Badgerlands, and the recently published Coastlines, which a review in The Times described as 'Real, proper, close-to-poetry literature'.
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You will be entered into a draw for the three books which will be drawn on Wed 2nd Dec and the winner will be contacted by social media, Good Luck!
This time around we're looking at Turtle Doves, a bird that spends less than half of its life in the UK but is embedded in our culture, a bird that would have been familiar to any birder just thirty or forty years ago but which has declined so rapidly that just last week it was formally reclassified by the IUCN as Vulnerable to Extinction in the medium-term.
Having declined by 90% in the UK since the 1970s, the species has gone into freefall in the past decade, with numbers falling by a further 77%. Is it too late to save a beloved summer visitor? Of course not. We have interviews with RSPB, BTO, and Dove Step 'Turtle Dove Hero' Jonny Rankin.
In this episode of TN we're looking at pesticides, strong poisons that are sprayed in ever-increasing amounts - literally millions of tonnes annually - over the food we eat, the grass we walk and play on, and even - if we follow the lead of actors pretending to be gardeners or proud home-owners - on the driveways we park our cars on. Poisons that - despite friendly reassurances from the chemical industry that 'If used correctly, pesticides should not pose a risk to the health of people' kill far more than the 'weeds' or insect 'pests' that they supposedly target and are soaking into every part of our environment: perhaps the best known example of this is the cocktail of chemicals found in the body fat of Arctic Polar bears more than a decade ago.
Dave Goulson, Professor Of Biology (Evolution, Behaviour and Environment) at University of Sussex.
We're back with what seems to be an unfortunate theme - attempts to control wildlife. We're talking with Paul Walton, Head of Habitats and Species for RSPB Scotland, on proposals by the Scottish government to allow up 30% of the Greenland-breeding Barnacle Geese wintering on Islay to be shot (www.rspb.org.uk/news/387585-conservation-partnership-urges-minister-to-rethink-risky-goose-cull).
Next we talk with Alyx Elliott, the UK Head of Programmes and Campaigns at World Animal Protection, on Wildlife Crime Awareness Week an initiative in collaboration with Crimestoppers aiming get more people aware of wildlife crime, a high percentage of which is committed during efforts to control wildlife (crimestoppers-uk.org/).
And lastly an interview that we'd planned to use in our badger podcasts: a chat with Tom Quinn, Director of Campaigns at the League Against Cruel Sports (www.league.org.uk) on whether he thinks the badger cull - designed to control badger numbers - is politically motivated.
Get out in the countryside and become Eyes in The Field and report any suspicious activity to Crimestoppers.
In this two-part episode the theme's as solid as a badger's hindquarters, as clear as the stripes on a badger's face, and as focussed as a badger sat in front of a pile of peanuts...yep, it's about badgers.We've made this podcast to celebrate badgers, as our contribution to National Badger Day (October 6th), and hopefully to give an alternative view of the badger cull. In Part One Charlie goes out on a wounded badger patrol in Gloucestershire with GABS, and talks with veterinarian Mark Jones, Programme Manager at the Born Free Foundation. In Part Two he's outside again, this time with members of the Somerset Badger Patrol, and then finishes with a talk with Dominic Dyer, chief-executive of the Badger Trust.
In episode 10 we have three very different interviews. First up is Rosie Kunneke, who is a Land Team Leader with Sea Shepherd discussing the grindadrap, or Pilot Whale hunt, in the Faroe Islands; second is the RSPB's Chris Bowden talking about Asia's vultures and the catastrophic impacts of Diclofenac; and last but by no means least etc is Steve Micklewhite, outgoing chief-executive of BirdLife Malta on why he's leaving BLM and his reflections on the referendum on spring hunting that took place earlier this year.
In a Talking Naturally Special we talk to the chair of the Hawk and Owl Trust, Philip Merricks. The Hawk and Owl Trust (often referred to as HOT) are currently alone amongst conservation groups in supporting a Hen Harrier brood management scheme to take place without a recovery in the Hen Harrier population to take place first. This highly controversial decision resulted in the resignation of their president Chris Packham and put them at odds with many professional conservationists as well as everyday wildlife and birding enthusiasts. This is the first in-depth interview with the chair of the HOT and gave him the opportunity to explain the rationale behind the decision and how they would see a brood management scheme working.
Recorded in the run-up to Hen Harrier Day 2015 we have a wide-ranging interview with naturalist, conservationist and broadcaster Chris Packham. Chris has been heavily involved with Hen Harrier Day since its inception and in this interview, recorded at his home in the New Forest, he discusses Hen Harriers, his sense of injustice at wildlife crime, Mark Avery's latest book, Inglorious: Conflict in the Uplands, for which Chris wrote a particularly powerful forward as well as the recent killing of Cecil the lion. Chris also tells us about the time he still makes to observe and enjoy wildlife and how he wishes he could do more for conservation.
In a seamlessly-themed episode we talk with RSPB’s Senior Investigations Officer. Mark Thomas. Mark tells us exactly what goes into protecting some of Britain’s rarest birds from disturbance and wildlife criminals such as egg collectors. Mark also discusses how the RSPB and RBA work together to ensure the safe release of news on these rare breeders.
We follow that with a chat with Tim Mackrill, Senior Reserve Officer for the Lincolnshire & Rutland Wildlife Trust and who leads the Osprey Project which recently celebrated the hatching of its 100th chick.
Lastly we're talking about restoring Red-billed Choughs to Jersey with Glyn Young and Liz Corry of Birds On The Edge who are celebrating the first successful breeding attempt by these charismatic corvids in the Channel Islands since the 1920s.
"In this episode we talk with Mark Avery, former RSPB Conservation Director, and now one of the leading figures in efforts being made to stop the persecution of Hen Harriers on driven grouse moors, about his latest book 'Inglorious, Conflict in the Uplands'.
During the OSME summer meeting we spoke with Dr Andy Clements, Director of the British Trust for Ornithology on how scientific data is crucial to tackling illegal bird killing, and how important it is that organisations work together to tackle global conservation issues.
And we finish off with Bardsey Island warden Steve Stansfield on THAT Cretzschmar's Bunting and how his euphoria was almost immediately followed by a realisation that visitor numbers to his patch were about to skyrocket..."
In episode five of Talking Naturally we have natural history royalty in the shape of Sir David Attenborough's and his speech at the opening of the Simon Aspinall Wildlife and Education Centre at the Norfolk Wildlife Trust reserve at Cley.
As part of 100 Iconic Birds series we talk with Rachel French, who works at Mull Eagle Watch (that's White-tailed Eagle Watch of course).
And we chat to YOLObirder - a 'mystery birder 'who designed and then sold what he named the Hen Diagram t-shirt to raise money for Hen Harriers...Yes, we wander about the place here on Talking Naturally!
As usual we've a lot of interesting stuff packed into one hour of conservation and wildlife talk - including a reaction by David Lindo to the vote for the nation's favourite bird which was announced live on Springwatch, an interview with the author of Undiscovered Owls, Magnus Robb of The Sound Approach, and an unusual perspective on the Isles of Scilly by botanist and author Rosemary Parslow (which includes a heartbreaking - and oddly funny - tribute to the much-lamented Shore Dock).
In another packed podcast Charlie looks at the threat to the EU Nature Directives with the RSPB (far more interesting and certainly far more important than you might think).
We kick off a new, occasional series on '100 Iconic Birds' with an interview with Mehd Halaouate, a conservationist living in Indonesia who works on the Bali Starling.
We've a four minute 'podcast within a podcast' from Bo Boelens, better known perhaps as the FatBirder.
In a packed podcast Charlie looks at the badger cull in post-election Britain, the decline of the Yellow-breasted Bunting in East Asia, Buglife and the Horrid Ground Weaver, whether RBA's Mark Golley would prefer to see Neil Young or a Cley mega-rarity, and talks with Simon Barnes about Ten Million Aliens.
Dominic Dyer, Chief-exec Badger Trust and Policy Advisor Born Free Foundation badgertrust.org.uk.
Dr Nial Moores, Director Birds Korea birdskorea.org.
Jamie Robins, Conservation Officer Buglife http://www.buglife.org.uk.
Mark Golley, freelance television producer and author of our weekly birding round-ups.
Charlie talking to author Simon Barnes at Cley NWT.
A special episode of Talking Naturally following the announcement by the RSPB on 6th May that three male Hen Harriers disappeared from active nests in the Forest of Bowland in Lancashire. It's almost certain that these harriers were deliberately targeted and killed, but as yet there is no evidence and no proof. An investigation by the Police is currently underway and the RSPB have offered a £10,000 reward for any information which leads to a conviction.
Whilst at a meeting (scheduled long before the Bowland news broke) to discuss, of all things Hen Harrier Day 2015, Charlie spoke with Tim Melling (Senior Conservation Officer for Northern England for RSPB), Tim Birch (Conservation Manager for Derbyshire Wildlife Trust), Mike Price (Peak District Raptor Monitoring Group), and Phil Walton (Birders Against Wildlife Crime), to get their thoughts on the devastating and tragic news.
Left to right: Helen Byron (RSPB), Mike Price (Peak District Raptor Monitoring Group), Tim Melling (RSPB), Phil Walton (BAWC), Tim Birch (Derbyshire Wildlife Trust).
Finder of Britain's 3rd Hudsonian Godwit, Tom Raven, talks about his terrific find on the Somerset levels.
Vote National Bird organiser David Lindo discusses his campaign to get Briton's to name a national bird.
And we speak to Cley NWT warden, Bernard Bishop, on a very eventful 18 months for the reserve which has involved a huge tidal storm surge, a fatal helicopter accident and the acquisition of new land to greatly increase the size of the famous north Norfolk reserve.
The Vote National Bird poll is looking for the nation's favourite bird.
Charlie talking with Cley NWT reserve warden Bernard Bishop about recent events at the famous reserve. | 2019-04-23T22:34:25Z | http://www.rarebirdalert.co.uk/v2/content/talking_naturally.aspx?s_id=282761936 |
The remaining business of the session was chiefly that of providing money for the royal family. Whilst the enormous war taxes had been draining the country, no spirit of economy had been displayed in the royal household. Notwithstanding the repeated recurrence to parliament to make up the deficiencies of a most magnificent civil list - namely, nine hundred thousand pounds per annum - the king, whilst by no means extravagant in his own habits, showed an utter incapacity for restraining the waste and embezzlement of his establishment. He had, again, not only run greatly into debt, but had absorbed and spent the proper income of the prince of Wales from the duchy of Cornwall. The income of this duchy, which ought to have been carefully husbanded by the crown till the prince's majority, and thus have rendered him independent of any parliamentary allowance, had all been spent by George III. When called on to account for it, he replied that he had spent it on the prince's education. What an education, then, must the prince have had, for the aggregate sum for the twenty-one years was stated at nine hundred thousand pounds, or nearly forty thousand pounds a-year; and this, added to the capital, ought to have amply provided for the prince. But, now, both the king and prince came again to parliament for relief!
A new speaker, the right honourable Charles Abbot, then chief secretary for Ireland, having been chosen in the place of Sir John Mitford, who was made lord chancellor of Ireland, on the 17th of May Mr. Addington moved for a committee to inquire into the necessities of the civil list. No sooner was this motion submitted than Mr. Manners Sutton, solicitor to the prince of Wales, stated to the house that the prince had a claim of nine hundred thousand pounds for arrears of the duchy of Cornwall, which had been improperly expended by the king, and praying that it might be taken into account, and the balance paid over to the prince; that the house, since the prince's majority, had, at different times, voted him two hundred and twenty-one thousand pounds; that there remained a balance of six hundred and seventy- nine thousand pounds, which, as the king had enjoyed it, and would, had he not had it, have come to the country for that, in addition to his other deficiencies, the account now lay not between the king and prince, but between the parliament and the prince. Fox strongly supported this motion, but it was objected that the prince could try his legal right in Chancery, whereas Addington knew very well the prince had made this attempt in vain, his petition of right having been lying, now, for six years in the court of chancery, with the persevering refusals of the lord chancellor to let it be heard. Erskine, Tierney, and others, strongly pressed the prince's rights, but the consideration of them was negatived by passing to the order of the day. On the contrary, the debts of his majesty were taken into discussion, and a vote of nine hundred and ninety thousand and fifty- two pounds passed for their liquidation.
Scarcely was this done ere a fresh demand was made by the king for a provision for their royal highnesses the dukes of Sussex and Cambridge, and twelve thousand a-year each was allowed. The prince of Wales's friends then pressed his claims once more, and parliament voted sixty thousand pounds a-year for three years and a half, commencing on the 5th January, 1803, and ending on the 5th of July, 1806. On this, Mr. Manners Sutton, for the prince, announced that he gave up all further claim on his father for the arrears of the duchy of Cornwall; but, no sooner did the first payment to the prince become due, than his private secretary, on the 28th of February, 1803, announced to the house that the addition of sixty thousand pounds a-year, for three years and a half, would by no means clear the prince's debts, and he pressed for more. Though strongly supported by the prince's friends, Fox, Sheridan, Tierney, and the rest, parliament resisted the claim by a large majority, the country being then about again to plunge into a new and still more expensive war.
A strong remonstrance being made against the continuance of the property tax in a time of peace, it having been passed expressly as a war tax, on the 5th of April, when Mr. Addington brought forward his budget, he announced the intention of government to abolish this tax, and substitute others in its place; but, at the same time, it would be necessary to carry to the debt the sum due from this tax - namely, fifty-six million pounds - so that, with another twenty-five million pounds, which he called for, the addition to the public debt, this year, would be ninety-eight million pounds. The militia was put on an increased scale, on the plea that a large regular army, in time of peace, was contrary to the constitution, and yet that the augmented power and sea-board of France, which now virtually included Holland and Belgium, necessitated a strong home force of some kind. The militia was therefore raised to sixty thousand strong, forty thousand of these men to be called out at once. There were energetic representations of the injustice of the rate of paying for substitutes to this force, the nobleman paying no more than the honest labourer on his estates, nor the richest merchant than the poorest porter in his employ; but the objection was overruled. On the 28th of June parliament was prorogued by the king in person, who congratulated the country on its peace and prosperity. The next day parliament was dissolved by proclamation, and writs issued for a new one.
Amongst the English that, flocked to Paris on the establishment of peace were Charles James Fox, his nephew, lord Holland, Erskine, and numbers of the opposition party, who were received with great cordiality, and many of them with honour, as the steady enemies of the late war, and the assumed admirers of France and of the first consul. In fact, it was a singular circumstance that the ultra-liberals of England - those who had idolised the jacobins, and all the levellers of monarchy, and every ancient institution and title - had now changed their idol, and were as enthusiastic worshippers of Buonaparte, who had put down jacobinism, and was steadily and undisguisedly proceeding to restore everything that they had been applauded for destroying. As the most awful atrocities of the republicans and sans- culottes had not cooled the homage of the admirers of the philosophy of liberty, equality, and fraternity, so the destruction of this favourite system did not check their ardour of applause for the victorious soldier who had seated himself complacently on the very ruins of the principles of their late beloved sans-culotte philosophers and statesmen. Buonaparte now occupied the Tuileries - the residence of a long line of kings, whom they had gloried in seeing insulted, stripped of power and pageantry, and put to death. Were they tyrannical? - so was he. Had they hated and assaulted England? - so did he. Had they put the press and the tongue in fetters? - he had done it still more so. Did they maintain their despotism by means of a secret, inquisitorial, and odious police? - so did he; and that on a still more subtle system, under the detestable jacobin, Fouché. Had they menaced the rights of surrounding nations? - so did Napoleon, tenfold. But all this was overlooked in the fortunate soldier, who, as a great military genius, was then, and long after, worshipped by thousands of our countrymen, even whilst wading through the blood and trampling on all the rights of surrounding nations. The possession of genius was deemed a full title to exemption from the guilt of the most wholesale crimes, and the infliction of infinite miseries for the simple gratification of his ambition.
Fox was received with particular honour by Napoleon, whom he found occupying the Tuileries with a state equal to Louis XVI.. who had been hated and destroyed because he bore the name of king. He went about in a carriage drawn, on high occasions, by six white horses, and attended by a splendid body of guards. Those titles of monsieur and madame, of my lord and your highness, which had been heard with execrations not so long ago, were all in full use again. The palace swarmed with menials and officers, civil and military; and galas, masqued balls, and levees, and crowded drawing-rooms were in as full action as in the days of Marie Antoinette. In fact, the monarch was there again, though yet without the name. Napoleon, whilst heaping courtesies on Fox, did not hesitate to avow his detestation of Pitt, and to charge him and Windham with the absurd myth of being instigators of the infernal machine. Fox exposed the folly of such an aspersion of such men, who, though determined enemies of what they thought hostile to their country, could never stoop to practise anything so odious as assassination. Fox received from Buonaparte every facility for examining the French archives for materials for his history of the reign of James II.; but, in his usual neglect of the policy of the diplomatist, he incurred much odium, not only by his familiar conversations with the first consul, bus by accepting the hospitalities of madame Tallien, who was now living separated from her husband, and with a character for too much licence, and of Miss Helen Maria Williams, who had, by her pen, praised all the wildest extravagances of the revolution. At these places he also imprudently met and conversed, without any appearance of repugnance as to their conduct and principles, with Mr. Arthur O'Connor, and other risk insurgents, who had not only promoted rebellion in the sister isle, but were still stimulating Buonaparte to the invasion of it and of England.
Paris, and, in fact, all France and Italy, now swarmed with English, who had been so long excluded from the continent. Numbers of these were liberal of their encomiums, of the first consul, who, amid his ambitious projects, had, as we have stated, introduced many useful changes into the system of administration. He had put the finances into a better condition; had able men busily employed in codifying the laws; had promoted the love of science and the works of art, which jacobinism had denounced and destroyed; was eager for the promotion of trade and navigation, ac- cording to his favourite phrase of " ships, colonies, and commerce," as the great members of a nation; and, had he been so disposed, might now have raised France to unexampled prosperity. Never had he, or any other man, so fair an opportunity of creating a name of imperishable glory as the benefactor of a great nation. He had extended his boundaries to the Rhine and beyond the Alps, and might have spent a long life in building up France, by wise and beneficent institutions, into the admiration of the world. But the more sagacious visitor already saw predominating the curse of a restless, insatiable military ambition, which would defeat and extinguish in his career every more god- like element.
At the very time that Fox was in Paris the most rooted despotism was in force. There were continual arrests of obnoxious individuals by the lurking agents of the atheist, Fouché. The concordat, though a pretended homage to Catholicism, was, in fact, the riveted slavery of the church and clergy. No priests were tolerated but the most com- pliant. A keen watch was kept by Fouché and his tools on that party of the clergy which had refused the serment civique, and the most honourable of these refused to return to Paris under such a regime. Buonaparte had, indeed, inaugurated the concordat at Notre Dame with great pomp, but it was merely for his own glorification. When urged to pay respect to catholic opinions, he brusquely refused, saying he had done enough by going to Notre Dame; and, though he at length consented to have mass said at the palace, he had it done in the room where he transacted business, and generally went on with business whilst it proceeded, which never lasted more than ten or twelve minutes. In fact, the man who had pretended to be a Mokammedan at Cairo could scarcely bring himself to pretend to be a Christian at Paris. He said to Cabanis, " Do you know what this concordat really is? It is the vaccination of religion; in fifty years there will be no more religion in France than small-pox."
Mignet has admirably described Buonaparte's government at this period. He had, he says, a certain class of the clergy devoted to him by the terms of the concordat; he had a military order in the legion of honour, an administrating body in the council of state, a decree-making machine in the legislative body, and a constitution-making machine in the Senate; he had an immense standing army, which looked to him to open up boundless fields of plunder and promotion, and another army of placemen, kept by pay and expectation, bound to him, and drilled into subservience by a system of centralisation of the most artful kind, and maintained in incessant activity by such men as Fouché, Talleyrand, and Cambacérès.
The peace of Amiens, instead of turning the attention of Buonaparte to internal improvements, seemed to give it opportunity to range, in imagination, over the whole world with schemes of conquest, and of the suppression of British dominion. There was no spot, however remote, that he did not examine on the map with reference to plans of conquest. Louisiana and Guiana, obtained from Spain and Portugal, were viewed as ports whence conquest should advance to Nova Scotia, Canada, the Brazils, Mexico, and Peru. Every station in the West India Isles was calculated as a point for this purpose, and for seizing, some day, all the British islands there. The Cape of Good Hope, Madagascar, the isles of France and Bourbon, the Dutch spice isles, and their Settlements in Java, Sumatra, &c., were regarded as a chain of ports which would enable Buonaparte to become master of India. He sent out expeditions, under différent officers, to examine every island and region where the English had a settlement, or where he might plant one, to oppose them. One of these expeditions sailed in a couple of corvettes, commanded by captain Baudin, who was accompanied by a staff of thirty-three naturalists, geologists, savans, &c., the ostensible object being science and discovery - the real one, the ascertaining of the exact possessions of England, and of the best means of becoming master of them. The head of the scientific staff was M. Peron. On their return, their report was published; and it is singular that, by this report, St. Helena, destined to be the prison of Napoleon, is described in rapturous terms as an earthly paradise.
Another expédition was that of colonel Sebastiani, a Corsican, who was dispatched to Egypt, Syria, and other countries of the Levant. Sebastiani reported to Buonaparte that the English were so detested in Egypt, that six thou- sand men would suffice to retake it; that Buonaparte's name was so venerated, that it had procured him the utmost honour everywhere, and especially with Djezzar Pacha, viceroy of Egypt. He asserted that general Stuart, the English envoy, had endeavoured to excite the Turks to assassinate him. He harangued the natives in the Ionian Isles, and assured them of the protection of Buonaparte; and, besides many calumnies against the British officers, assured Napoleon, that so hateful was the British rule, that both Greeks and Venetians in those islands were ready to rise against them at the first word from France. On the appearance of this base report, our ambassador at Paris made a strong remonstrance; but Napoleon only replied by complaining of the late account of the campaign in Egypt by Sir Robert Wilson, in which he had detailed the butchery of the Turks and Arnauts at Jaffa, and Napoleon's command to poison his own wounded on the retreat from Acre. Through M. Otto, the French envoy in London, Napoleon demanded that statements injurious to his character, made by the English press, should be stopped by government; that all French emigrants should be expelled from England; that Georges Cadoudal should be transported to Canada; and such princes of the house of Bourbon as remained there should be advised to repair to Warsaw, where the head of their house now resided. To these peremptory demands, the British government, through lord Hawkesbury, replied, that his Britannic majesty did not possess the absolute power necessary for these acts; and that, whilst the statements charging upon an English ambassador instigations to murder were published in the Moniteur, the official organ of the French government, the statements by the English press were protected by the freedom of that press guaranteed in England, which the king was not disposed to invade, but from which any man, English or foreign, might claim redress by an action at law. To show the first consul how readily this might be done, the English government commenced an action against M. Peltier, a French emigrant, for a libel on Napoleon in a newspaper published by him in London, called the Ambigu. Peltier was found guilty; but this by no means answered Buonaparte’s object. He wanted the accounts of his darkest actions suppressed by a power above the law, not thus made more public by the action of the law. As Sir Walter Scott has observed, he wanted darkness, and the English government gave him light. | 2019-04-26T13:39:15Z | http://oreald.com/b18/ch5.html |
Amazon Property are undertaking the main launch of The Park Crescent, London’s only Royal crescent, designed by renowned architect John Nash (1752-1835), transformed to provide 20 two to four bedroom ultra prime residences. The development includes lateral, mezzanine and duplex apartments with 5-star hotel style concierge, fronting onto eight acres of magnificent private resident’s gardens and the 410 acres of Regent’s Park.
Amazon Property observe that the world’s finest homes are set apart by their provenance, uniqueness, quality and location. London has many streets and avenues, a small collection of squares and just a few crescents; yet it has only one Royal crescent: The Park Crescent. This absolute rareity sets this residential development clearly apart from any other.
The Park Crescent traces its Royal origins back to 1811 when Prince George, Prince of Wales, was made Prince Regent and Acting Head of State due to the illness of his father King George III. The Prince Regent wanted his own palace and commissioned John Nash to create a master plan for a Royal residence, surrounded by parkland, complete with a circus of grand townhouses providing palatial homes for the family and friends of the Regent, located on the Crown Estate lands of Regent’s Park (originally the hunting chase of King Henry VIII).
The Prince Regent felt that his family and friends would want their homes looking directly onto the parkland and his palace so the final design was for a grand Royal crescent with cream stucco façade and tall sash windows, overlooking private gardens and the park. The Royal crescent was built by Henry Peto between 1812-1820. In 1820, the Prince Regent became King George IV and moved into Buckingham Palace, so his planned Regent’s palace was shelved; however the Royal crescent was completed and now as The Park Crescent forms one of London’s finest residential developments.
The completed Royal crescent immediately became London’s most sought after address, home to exiled Royals, aristocrats, Ambassadors, business tycoons and high society. Residents included Lord Joseph Lister, pioneer of antiseptic surgery, who lived there in the 1830s; General Sir George Ashe, Commander of the British Bengal Army, who lived there between 1820-1832; Count Joseph-Napoleon Bonaparte and family (brother of French Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte) who lived there between 1832-1840; actress Dame Marie Tempest, lived there between 1899-1902 and Sir Charles Wheatstone, inventor of the electric telegraph, who lived there between 1850-75.
One of London’s prestigious Blue Plaques on the façade of The Park Crescent highlights that it was also the home of Charles Francis Adams, Abraham Lincoln’s American Ambassador to London (son of US President John Quincy Adams) who lived there from 1863 to 1866. During this time part of the Royal crescent served as the US Ambassador’s official residence. Charles Adams returned to the US in 1869, but the family continued to use the Royal crescent as home and Charle’s son, the US historian Henry Brooks Adams, used the property as his London residence between 1878 – 1908.
Between 1918 and the 1930s many of the crescent’s townhouses were converted into apartments. During WWII the crescent was damaged during the Blitz, but was carefully restored and rebuilt during the 1960s to exactly mirror the original Nash design. During the latter half of the 20th century, many of the properties in the crescent became office premises.
Then in 2013, Amazon Property purchased The Park Crescent and had the exciting and bold vision to carefully convert and meticulously restore the Royal crescent back into its original role as one of London’s most prestigious residential addresses. Due to the historically important, iconic and rare Nash architecture the restoration of the Royal crescent has taken several years of careful planning and highly skilled construction and restoration work to materialise. It has required outstanding craftsmanship, fine attention to detail and materials of the finest quality, sourced from around the world.
Behind the building’s retained classical Nash facade, newly built residences have been created which combine illustrious history with large lateral living spaces, generous ceiling heights and state of the art specification and technology.
Each residence within The Park Crescent has its own character and distinctive features, ranging from 1,429 sqft (133 sqm) up to 4,127 sqft (383 sqm) in size with ceilings up to 3.8 metres high. Each apartment has spacious double or triple volume reception room overlooking the private gardens & Regent’s Park. Features include full height doors, sash windows, generous ceiling heights and solid Oak flooring laid in bespoke designs.
The individually designed handmade kitchens have Calacatta Michelangelo marble and granite worktops and panels, high gloss lacquered Oak soft close cupboards and drawers and a full range of integrated appliances. The master bedroom suites have spacious interiors; walk in dressing rooms with bespoke joinery and finishes, and luxurious ensuite bathrooms.
Master bathroom features include Calacatta Michelangelo and Maron stone flooring and walls, lacquered Oak veneer panelling, bespoke marble double basins and fitted mirrored cabinets. There are free standing sculptural baths, walk in marble showers and polished chrome heated towel rails. Other apartment features include coffered ceilings with concealed lighting, stone entrance lobbies, under floor heating throughout, comfort cooling to living rooms and bedrooms and state-of-the-art security and Lutron home entertainment systems.The mezzanine and duplex residences provide some of the layout benefits of a house, with bedroom suites on one level and entertaining areas on the other.
The Park Crescent residents will experience a world class concierge service and benefit from a 24 hour management service. Services include doormen, concierge for taxi/car hire, restaurant/theatre bookings, shopping delivery/services, dry cleaning/tailoring and car valet/servicing. Other facilities include access to a fleet of professional domestic staff providing services such as housekeeping, butler service, chauffeur and maintenance staff on hand 24/7.
The Park Crescent residents have direct views onto and access to their own eight acres of magnificent private resident’s only gardens. Known as Park Square and Park Crescent Gardens they form two of the grandest gardens in central London. Laid out by John Nash between 1811 and 1827, the sweeping lawns, gravel pathways, loggia, plantings and summer tennis court were designed to echo the gardens of Buckingham Palace. The plane trees in the gardens, planted in 1817, were to commemorate the allied victory at Waterloo two years earlier (what the exiled Bonaparte family who lived in the Royal crescent thought of this has not been recorded).
The two gardens are connected by the Nursemaid’s Tunnel, a pedestrian underpass that connects them and allows families to promenade safely and directly through both gardens. The gardens contain a statue overlooking the Royal crescent that is by Sebastian Gahagan and is of Queen Victoria’s father – HRH Prince Edward, Duke of Kent & Strathearn – which was installed in 1824.
The first phase release of The Park Crescent was successfully sold, most off plan, using marketing material and computer generated images. Now this highly anticipated project is nearing build completion and Amazon Property are undertaking the main launch of The Park Crescent, which will take place around a VIP launch event on the 6th October 2016, in conjunction with the world-renowned Frieze London Art Exhibition.
The centrepiece of the main launch will be a new previously unseen flagship four bedroom show residence, created and designed by award winning design luxury design house 1508, whose team is formed from designers from design-led brands Candy & Candy, Heatherwick and Clapham Taylor. Alongside this, the main launch will showcase other previously unseen residences dressed by design houses Oliver Burns, DH Liberty and Taylor Howes.
The lateral apartments at The Park Crescent are available for immediate occupation, prices at start from £3,950,000 (new 150 year leases).
Along with Buckingham Palace and the Brighton Pavilion, the Royal Crescent overlooking Regent’s Park played a central role in the architectural career and enduring fame of John Nash.
John Nash (1752 – 1835) was born in Lambeth, the son of a Welsh millwright. From young he displayed a skill for drawing, and between 1766 to 1776 he trained as an architect under Sir Robert Taylor. In 1777 he established his own architectural practice and early projects included a house in Bloomsbury Square and a church in Carmathen.
In 1792 he met landscaped designer Humphrey Repton and the two worked together on several grand country house estates with, in each case, Nash designing the main country house and Repton designing the gardens and landscaping.
From 1796 Nash decided he wanted to focus on building houses in London and in 1797 he opened architect studios for his company on Dover Street in Mayfair. His focus on London led to the ending of his country house partnership with Repton in 1800. In 1798 Nash married the extremely pretty and much admired 25 year old socialite Mary Anne Bradley who was to play a central role in his future career.
One of Nash’s country house clients was Charles James Fox, Leader of the House of Commons and later Secretary of State. Fox was a close friend and ally of Prince George, the Prince of Wales, playing a key role in Prince George being appointed as Prince Regent and Acting Head of State due to the illness of his father King George III.
Thanks to Charles James Fox’s recommendation to Prince George in 1806 Nash was appointed as architect to the Surveyor General of Royal Parks and Chases; effectively architect to the Royal Household. For the rest of his career Nash would largely work for the Prince and Royal family and would take on very few private commissions.
In 1811 Prince George was made Prince Regent and Acting Head of State and he decided that he wanted his own summer palace. He commissioned John Nash to create a masterplan for a Royal palace, surrounded by parkland, complete with a circus of grand townhouses providing palatial homes for the family and friends of the Regent. The new luxury development was located on the Crown Estate lands known as Marylebone Park (then renamed The Regent’s Park), which was originally the hunting chase of King Henry VIII.
The Prince Regent was delighted by the plans calling The Regent’s Park and its Royal crescent the ‘jewel in the crown’ of London and saying in 1811 that ‘Nash’s plans for London will quite eclipse Napoleon’.
Gossips and rivals of Nash said that he was only made Architect to the Royal Household and given the new Royal Palace commission because his pretty 25 year old wife Mary Anne had caught the eye of the Prince Regent and had become his secret mistress.
Whether it was because the commission was for his own Palace or because Mary Anne was his secret mistress, the Prince Regent constantly reviewed and interfered in Nash’s plans for the Royal palace and the circus of townhouses.
The Prince Regent felt that his family and friends would want their homes looking directly onto the parkland and his palace so the final design was for a grand Royal crescent with cream stucco façade and tall sash windows, overlooking private gardens and the park.
Under the Prince Regent’s constant interference and changes the Royal crescent homes became larger, grander and more opulent, resulting in significant over-runs to the original budgets and delays to the designs and build programme.
The final design was for a grand ceremonial route from St James’s Park in the south to Regent’s Park in the north creating a new thoroughfare through the heart of London. There was a new Royal Mall running from Buckingham Palace through St James’s Park; linking to a grand new boulevard (now Regent’s Street), connecting to a wide tree lined two lane carriageway (now Portland Place) which provided a dramatic approach to the new Royal crescent and Regent’s Park.
The Royal crescent was built by Henry Peto between 1812-1820. However the new Palace in Regent’s Park was never built because in 1820 the Prince Regent became King George IV and moved into Buckingham Palace, so his planned Regent’s palace was shelved.
In 1820 a scandal broke when a cartoon was published showing a half dressed King George IV embracing Nash’s wife with a speech bubble coming from the King’s mouth containing the words “I have great pleasure in visiting this part of my dominions”. London’s high society took to calling Nash’s wife ‘Mrs Prince’ and Nash was publically humiliated, but the King laughed off the scandal and the Royal household compensated Nash by giving him more work commissions.
Nash was by now highly favoured by the Royal family. He had been commissioned to build a summer seaside palace – The Royal Pavilion – in Brighton, and he was commissioned to remodel Buckingham House to create Buckingham Palace (1825 – 1830), the Royal Mews (1822 – 1824) and Marble Arch (1828).
In 1830 King George IV died and Nash’s career took a deep and sudden downward turn. The King’s notorious extravagance and expensive building projects had generated much resentment with Parliament and Nash was now without his Royal protector.
The Treasury started to look closely at the costs and budget over-runs of the Royal Crescent in Regent’s Park, the Royal Pavilion in Brighton and Buckingham Palace. It was also discovered that the state coach was too wide to fit through the gateway in Marble Arch and Parliament said that this was a clear example of Nash’s total incompetence.
Nash – rather than the late King – was blamed for all the cost over-runs on the three projects and in 1829 the Treasury accused him of fraud. He was later exonerated but fell into deep disgrace over the financial fallout from his expensive building projects.
Nash was stripped of his role as architect to the Surveyor General of Royal Parks and Chases and the controversy ensured that Nash would not receive any more official or private commissions. Nor was he awarded a long anticipated Knighthood that other contemporary architects such as Jeffrey Wyattville, John Soane and Robert Smirke received.
Perhaps not surprisingly Nash had something akin to a huge nervous breakdown and retired to his home on the Isle of Wight in total disgrace and professional ruin. His health declined and by 28 March 1835 family letters described him as “very poorly and faint’. He died at his home on 13 May 1835.
Perhaps feeling guilty for her role in some of his humiliations his widow Mary Anne Nash acted to clear his debts by selling his Isle of Wight home and possessions. Mary Anne then retired to a property Nash had bequeathed to her in Hampstead where she lived until her death in 1851, until the end a champion of her husband’s good name and reputation.
Amazon Property is an award winning investment and development group with an enviable record of success spanning all sectors of the real estate market. The group is most associated with the Prime Central London residential market where the company has established a strong reputation for being specialists and influential leaders within this field.
The directors have over 20 years experience in Central London projects and Amazon Property has delivered over 60 design led schemes. To date the company has acquired in excess of three million square feet of real estate assets comprising investments, developments and trading assets.
Amazon Property has a current development pipeline of circa £300 million. The firm’s success is achieved by fully integrating and enhancing its investment, development and asset management and financial skills. The company has the in-house skills and proven expertise to be able to undertake any sort of development and investment in Central London including the restoration and conversion of historic buildings into new luxury developments, the creation of landmark office buildings and the delivery of mixed use projects.
Park Crescent is at the north end of Portland Place and south of Marylebone Road in London, England. The Crescent consists of elegant stuccoed terraced houses by the architect John Nash, which form a semicircle. The Crescent is part of Nash’s town-planning scheme linking central London to Regent’s Park.
Work on the Crown Estate properties started in 1806, but the builder Charles Mayor went bankrupt after 6 houses had been built and was only completed 1819-21.
The interiors of the buildings do not remain in their original condition. After the Second World War Park Crescent and other Nash terraces were in poor condition. The facades were restored and protected, but behind the curve of the Crescent the rest of the structures were modernised. The crescent is now the home of institutions such as International Students House, London and the Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators. Many houses are now converted into expensive flats.
Regent’s Park tube station is next to the Marylebone Road side of the garden. An unusual and original local feature is the “Nursemaids’ Tunnel”, an early example of an underpass, linking the gardens of Park Crescent to the gardens of Park Square on the other side of Marylebone Road. | 2019-04-26T12:02:01Z | https://www.e-architect.co.uk/london/park-crescent |
This paper aims to assess the effectiveness of ASTER imagery to support the mapping of Pittosporum undulatum, an invasive woody species, in Pico da Vara Natural Reserve (S. Miguel Island, Archipelago of the Azores, Portugal). This assessment was done by applying K-Nearest Neighbor (KNN), Support Vector Machine (SVM) and Maximum Likelihood (MLC) pixel-based supervised classifications to 4 different geographic and remote sensing datasets constituted by the Visible, Near-Infrared (VNIR) and Short Wave Infrared (SWIR) of the ASTER sensor and by digital cartography associated to orography (altitude and "distance to water streams") of which the spatial distribution of Pittosporum undulatum directly depends. Overall, most performed classifications showed a strong agreement and high accuracy. At targeted species level, the two higher classification accuracies were obtained when applying MLC and KNN to the VNIR bands coupled with auxiliary geographic information use. Results improved significantly by including ecology and occurrence information of species (altitude and distance to water streams) in the classification scheme. These results show that the use of ASTER sensor VNIR spectral bands, when coupled to relevant ancillary GIS data, can constitute an effective and low cost approach for the evaluation and continuous assessment of Pittosporum undulatum woodland propagation and distribution within Protected Areas of the Azores Islands.
Keywords: Remote Sensing; Invasive species; Pittosporum undulatum.
Este artigo teve como objetivo a avaliação das imagens multiespectrais ASTER para o mapeamento de Pittosporum undulatum, uma espécie lenhosa invasora, na Reserva Natural do Pico da Vara (Ilha de S. Miguel, Arquipélago dos Açores, Portugal). A avaliação foi efetuada através da aplicação dos métodos de classificação supervisionada per-pixel "K vizinhos mais próximos" (KNN), "máquinas de vetores de suporte" (SVM) e "máxima verosimilhança" (MLC) a quatro diferentes conjuntos de dados geográficos e de sensoriamento remoto constituídos pelas bandas multiespectrais do visível e infravermelho próximo (VNIR) e infravermelho de onda curta (SWIR) do sensor ASTER e, ainda, por cartografia digital associada à orografia (altitude e distância a linhas de água), da qual depende diretamente a distribuição espacial do Pittosporum undulatum. Em nível global, a maioria das classificações obtidas apresentou forte concordância e alta precisão. Em nível da espécie invasora estudada, as duas classificações mais precisas foram obtidas através da aplicação de MLC e KNN às bandas VNIR associadas ao uso da informação geográfica auxiliar. Em termos gerais, a qualidade dos resultados apresentados sofreu incremento significativo sempre que foi introduzida no esquema de classificação essa informação determinante para a ecologia e ocorrência da espécie (altitude e distância a linhas de água). Os resultados indicaram que o uso das bandas espectrais VNIR do sensor ASTER associadas à informação geográfica relevante para a distribuição espacial da espécie pode constituir uma solução de baixo custo e boa eficiência para a avaliação e monitoramento contínuos da distribuição e propagação de Pittosporum undulatum nas Áreas Protegidas dos Açores.
Palavras-chave: Sensoriamento remoto; Espécies invasoras; Pittosporum undulatum.
Invasive Alien Species (IAS) is a large, if not the largest, threat to conservation. It is generally accepted that IAS management is a significant issue for Protected Areas management in such ecosystems (MEYERSON; REASER, 2003; REASER et al., 2007; GUTIERRES et al., 2011). Biological invasions are one of the most important problems faced by island ecosystems, due to the peculiarities of the native island fauna and flora (OLESEN et al., 2002). Invasive plants are considered as one of the major threats to biodiversity conservation in islands, including the Macaronesian Archipelagos where they invade many protected areas (SILVA et al., 2008; KUEFFER et al., 2010; CASTRO et al., 2010; CRUZ et al., 2011). The vascular plant flora in the island of S. Miguel (Archipelago of the Azores, Portugal) consists of approximately 1000 taxa and is largely dominated by non-indigenous taxa (66%). Recent invasion by several species (Pittosporum undulatum, Clethra arborea and Hedychium gardneranum) suggests that the remaining undisturbed native vegetation may be overrun by non-indigenous species (SILVA; SMITH, 2004, 2006). Pittosporum undulatum is an invader in tropical and subtropical mountain forests, in warm temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere, in many islands, and in South Africa (GLEADOW; ASHTON, 1981; MANDERS; RICHARDSON, 1992). It has also invaded plant communities in its native country, Australia (ROSE, 1997; ROSE; FAIRWEATHER, 1997). Pittosporum undulatum is already the dominant woody species in the Azores. According to a recent evaluation of the Top 100 invasive species in Macaronesia, this species is also considered invasive in Madeira and the Canary islands, and ranked 8th in a total of 195 evaluated species (SILVA et al., 2008). Introduced in the Azores in the 19th century as a hedgerow species for the protection of orange tree plantations, Pittosporum undulatum has spread during the last 100 years to a wide range of habitats throughout the Azores islands, disturbing plant communities at elevations of 100 to 600 m. It overgrows native vegetation, forming pure stands (SJOGREN, 1973). Pittosporum undulatum in S. Miguel is limited by the most important climatic gradient on the island: the steep topography of the island originates a striking altitudinal gradient, where small increases in elevation are followed by important decreases in temperature and increases in precipitation and humidity (HORTAL et al., 2010). The existence of available habitats (areas cleared of native forest, abandoned land, bare soil and landslide areas) is one of the factors which may explain the success of Pittosporum undulatum in the Azores (LOURENÇO et al., 2011). Therefore, distance to water streams, as a specific and relevant disturbance factor in the vegetation's spatial distribution at Pico da Vara Natural Reserve (due mostly to hydrological regime and slope) (GIL, 2005) shall also be considered as a relevant landform factor for Pittosporum undulatum occurrence in this Protected Area.
Invasive species' mapping is critical to obtain current states of vegetation cover in order to initiate vegetation protection and restoration programs (HE et al., 2005). Once IAS have become established in a region, remote sensing, in comparison to field based techniques, allows an entire region to be simultaneously mapped. Imagederived locations of IAS provide a permanent record that can be input into spatial databases for control activities, and repeated acquisitions allow trends in IAS abundance and distribution patterns to be efficiently monitored over time. In contrast, in areas where an IAS does not yet occur, prevention is the most efficient way of dealing with problematic species (STRAND et al., 2007). In small islands with very sensitive ecosystems as the Azores Islands, an accurate land cover and vegetation mapping and registering of its evolution (change detection and assessment) is mandatory for a more reliable and effective land planning and management (GIL et al., 2012).
Image classification is defined as the process of extracting differentiated classes or themes from remotely sensed satellite data. The use of digital multispectral imagery offers coverage over large spatial areas (depending on the spatial resolution), objective change detection through direct analysis of historical image archives, and the opportunity for automated image processing. The supervised image classification process is generally guided by expert to give the desired landcover/vegetation classes. First, training samples which are representative and typical for that information class are defined, and secondly all input pixels (or segments) are labeled according to their class (LENKA; MILAN, 2005; XIE et al., 2008; MELLO et al., 2012). In the knearest-neighbors (KNN) classifier, a test pattern is classified as belonging to the class that is most frequent among the k nearest training patterns. The parameter k is a positive integer (DUDA et al., 2000; BISHOP, 2007).
The support vector machine (SVM) has been used as a classifier of remotely sensed data. This approach seeks to find the optimal separating hyperplane between classes by focusing on the training cases that lie at the edge of class distributions, support vectors, with the other training cases effectively discarded. Thus, yielding high accuracy with small training sets may be expected, which could be a very advantageous feature given the costs of training data acquisition in remote sensing (BROWN et al., 2000; FOODY; MATHUR, 2004).
Maximum-Likelihood Classifier (MLC) is usually regarded as the classic and most widely used supervised classification for satellite images resting on the statistical distribution pattern (SOHN; REBELLO, 2002; XU et al., 2005). At a medium spatial and spectral resolution, Landsat TM and SPOT imagery have been successfully used to map target weed species that are spectrally or temporally unique (ANDERSON; EVERITT, 1993; THENKABAIL, 1999; PETERSON, 2003; STRAND et al., 2007; MITCHELL; GLENN, 2009).
ASTER imagery has been used to obtain detailed maps of land surface, reflectance and elevation in the study of habitat patterns. Nevertheless, some applications on invasive vegetation mapping have been developed, most of them with little success (TUTTLE et al., 2006; GILLESPIE et al., 2008; XIE et al., 2008; HUANG; ASNER, 2009; VIANA; ARANHA, 2010). Two attempts of vegetation mapping (including Pittosporum woodland patches) at Pico da Vara Natural Reserve were performed by Gil et al. (2011, 2013) using very high spatial resolution remote sensing data (IKONOS images). Despite the poor separability of some relevant vegetation classes, these studies concluded that this type of satellite imagery could constitute a cost-effective solution to study and assess vegetation dynamics within Protected Areas of the Azores Islands.
This paper aims to assess the effectiveness of ASTER imagery to support the mapping of Pittosporum woodland in Pico da Vara Natural Reserve (S. Miguel Island, Archipelago of the Azores, Portugal). This assessment was done by applying K-Nearest Neighbor (KNN), Support Vector Machine (SVM) and Maximum Likelihood (MLC) pixel-based supervised classifications to 4 different datasets constituted by the 9 ASTER multispectral bands coupled to GIS terrain data strongly related to Pittosporum woodland ecological distribution.
The Special Protected Area (SPA) Pico da Vara/ Ribeira do Guilherme is located in the largest island in the Azores Archipelago, São Miguel. The SPA currently covers an area of 6,067 hectares. SPA was classified in 1999 and comprises one of the last main areas of "Native Scrubland" in S. Miguel, whose core is located in the Natural Reserve of Pico da Vara (815 hectares) in the mountain complex of "Serra da Tronqueira" (Fig. 1).
1) An ASTER-1A standard geometrically corrected image with nine multispectral bands (Visible, Near Infrared and Shortwave Infrared) acquired on April 24th, 2002 with 10% Cloud Cover. The Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) is a sensor launched on NASA's Earth Observing System, on board of the TERRA satellite, in December 1999. ASTER is characterized by a medium spatial resolution (15-90 m) with 14 spectral bands (visible to near-infrared bands have a spatial resolution of 15 m; 30 m for short wave infrared bands and 90 m for thermal infrared bands).
4) A main GIS dataset of 561 test-sites (polygons) representing 4 main cover classes covering the Pico da Vara Natural Reserve's whole area. All those are the result of a simultaneous photo-interpretation and cross-validation between available orthophotomaps (2 mosaics, the older one from 1997, the more recent produced in 2005), the Regional Forest Inventory (DRRF, 2007) and the vegetation monitoring program survey SPEA/LIFE Priolo Project, continuously developed between 2004 and 2008 (TEODOSIO et al., 2009).
(4) NN - Pittosporum Woodland (Pittosporum undulatum's pure or largely dominated patches). "Native scrubland" (LL) in the study region corresponds to areas dominated by native shrubs and trees alternating with small patches of herbaceous vegetation, including natural meadows and bogs. However, despite the name of this class, both herbaceous and woody invasive species are also present, mixed with the native elements, sometimes dominating the vegetation cover. Thus, despite its name, this formation is clearly not a pristine community, revealing the impact of anthropogenic disturbance (GIL et al., 2013).
Our methodological proposal can be divided into 5 inter-dependent phases (Fig. 2). The first phase consisted of pre-processing ASTER-1A Visible, Near and Shortwave Infrared's (VNIR-SWIR) spectral bands. In this phase, the orthorectification of the 9 ASTER-1A VNIR-SWIR spectral bands was performed using the Digital Terrain Model (DTM) of S. Miguel Island (HALE; ROCK, 2003), followed by the atmospheric correction of these same bands using the QUick Atmospheric Correction (QUAC) algorithm for VNIRSWIR multispectral imagery (HADJIMITSIS et al., 2004; BERNSTEIN et al., 2005).
The second phase had, as main goal, the geoprocessing of GIS terrain data for classificationscheme integration (SENOO et al., 1990; MASELLI et al., 2000). First, the Digital Terrain Model (DTM) was reclassified into a 6 class's hypsometry raster dataset according to "Sweet Pittosporum" spatial distribution range in Pico da Vara Nature Reserve (meters): 330-450; 450-600; 600-750; 750-900; 900-1050; 1050-1103. Second, a multiple buffer using the Hydrographic Network GIS layer was created (6 classes of distance from water stream margins, in meters): < 5; 5-25; 25-55; 55-105; 105-155; >155. This vector layer was converted into a raster dataset with a spatial resolution of 15 meters (same as ASTER VNIR spectral bands). Finally, the training datasets were randomly divided into two subsets, 2/3 for training, and 1/3 for test.
During the third phase, the separability between land-cover classes was assessed before classification, using both the 3 VNIR band and the 9 VNIR-SWIR band images. Transformed Divergence (TD) values were calculated with training data. As a general rule, if the TD value is greater than 1900, then classes have good separability; between 1700 and 1900, the classes are separable; below 1700, the separability is poor (LILLESAND; KIEFER, 2000).
4) Dataset 9B: ASTER's 9 VNIR-SWIR orthorectified and atmospherically corrected bands + Hypsometry raster layer + "Distance to water streams" raster layer (11 features in total).
Finally, the fifth phase of our methodological approach consisted of assessing the accuracy of the 12 outputted classification maps by computing overall and "class by class" user accuracy, producer accuracy and overall Kappa coefficient, using the validation set, which was previously randomly extracted from the main GIS dataset (with 1/3 of its training sites) representing the 4 main cover classes covering the Pico da Vara Natural Reserve's whole area (CONGALTON; GREEN, 1999; FOODY, 2002; PONZONI; REZENDE, 2002).
Table 1 summarizes the results of the separability assessment.
Regarding the four land cover/vegetation categories described above (CC, DD, LL, NN), the separability was fairly good or very good in all pairwise combinations, except for the case of Cryptomeria japonica (CC) vs. Pittosporum woodland (NN) when using just the 3 VNIR band dataset, with a Transformed Divergence value slightly lower than 1700 (TD = 1653). The lower separation between these two classes using just 3 VNIR bands can be explained by the fact that Pittosporum woodland is usually dense, homogeneous (as Cryptomeria japonica) and mostly composed of evergreen trees and large shrubs.
Three supervised classification techniques (SVM, MLC and KNN) were applied to the 3A, 3B, 9A and 9B's ASTER datasets. In order to effectively assess the accuracy of these 12 classifications maps, User Accuracy (0-1) and Producer Accuracy (0-1) were calculated for each map category. Overall KIA (Kappa Index of Agreement) and Overall Accuracy (0-1) were also calculated for each classifier applied to each dataset (Table 2).
Overall, almost all performed classifications showed a strong agreement and good accuracy (Overall KIA > 0.8) except for the 3A dataset's MLC classification, which was slightly less accurate (Overall KIA = 0.78). The best overall classifications were obtained applying MLC (Overall KIA = 0.92) and KNN (Overall KIA = 0.91) to the 3B dataset (VNIR bands + 2 GIS raster layers); and by applying both classifiers KNN and SVM (Overall KIA = 0.90) to the 9B dataset (VNIR-SWIR bands + 2 GIS raster layers). SVM showed the same accuracy when applied to the 9A dataset (Overall KIA = 0.90). KNN was the most accurate classifier when applied to the 3A dataset, while SVM was the best to classify both 9A and 9B datasets (this last one with the same results of KNN). MLC only performed better when classifying the 3B dataset. Although none of these classifiers can be unquestionably assumed as the best one, KNN (K=3) showed more constancy overall.
The integration of ancillary GIS terrain data (variables that are strongly related to the spatial distribution of Pittosporum undulatum, including altitude and distance to water streams) as additional features has improved the accuracy of classifications. Both tests (using ASTER's VNIR and VNIR-SWIR datasets) were successful, as shown especially by the important increase in accuracy from 3A to 3B (difference between 9A and 9B datasets is quite lower). Thus, the VNIR dataset (3 multispectral bands) benefitted more than the VNIR-SWIR dataset (9 multispectral bands) from the use of this technique, especially when using the MLC classifier. SVM seemed to be the only classifier that didn't improve by adding those ancillary GIS layers into the classification scheme.
At the land cover/vegetation class level, mapping Cryptomeria japonica forest stands (CC) was more accurate when applying KNN to datasets that include the ancillary GIS terrain data (3B's user accuracy = 0.90 and 9B's user accuracy = 0.92). Almost all CC's user accuracy (UA) values were high (>0.80) except the one performed by applying MLC to the 3A dataset (UA=0.47). Due to logistical issues (accessibility for plantation, management, harvesting and transportation) and a suitability concern during plantation, the location of these forest stands was strongly dependent on topographical factors like altitude and distance to water streams.
Mapping Landslide and Bare Soil areas (DD) proved to be highly accurate by using each of the 4 datasets (0.96<UA<0.98). Therefore, the addition of GIS raster bands (datasets 3B and 9B) in the classification scheme didn't have much room to improve the accuracy of mapping this land cover category and it rather degraded the accuracy by introducing, in the classification, information irrelevant to the distribution of DD. SVM classifier was particularly and constantly effective regarding this category, reaching UA's higher than 0.96 in all cases. The use of the VNIR-SWIR's ASTER datasets (9A and 9B) proved to be less effective to map DD than just using the VNIR's ASTER datasets (3A and 3B). In the same circumstance as DD, mapping native scrubland patches (LL) was highly accurate when applying each of the classifiers to each of the 4 datasets (0.96<UA<0.99). The integration of ancillary GIS data to the classification schema didn't positively affect the accuracy.
The main goal of this study, mapping the spatial distribution of Pittosporum woodland across Pico da Vara Natural Reserve, was achieved with satisfactory accuracy. Mapping Pittosporum woodland's distribution was more accurate (Figure 3) when applying MLC to the 3B dataset (UA=0.96) and KNN to both datasets that include the ancillary GIS data (3B's user accuracy = 0.96 and 9B's user accuracy = 0.94). The application of SVM to the 9A dataset (UA=0.91) was very accurate as well. Applying SVM to both VNIR datasets (3A and 3B) produced the least accurate classifications (UA=0.66).
These results reinforced two facts about the classification accuracy of Pittosporum woodland: (1) it can be significantly improved by including, in the classification scheme, ancillary GIS data directly related to its ecology and spatial distribution (like altitude and distance to water streams, in this case-study); (2) the integration of GIS ancillary data was more effective than the use of additional SWIR multispectral bands.
Actually, the two highly accurate classifications (UA = 0.96) were obtained when using the 3B dataset (without SWIR multispectral bands). Therefore, a more accurate knowledge about Pittosporum undulatum location and extension in Pico da Vara Natural Reserve will allow policy-makers and site manager to perform a more adequate and realistic Pittosporum undulatum control and management in this Protected Area.
The results have shown that using ASTER multispectral imagery for Pittosporum woodland mapping in Pico da Vara Natural Reserve can constitute an effective and low-cost solution for continuous monitoring of the species' spread in this protected area. The separability issue (TD slightly lower than 1700) between Pittosporum undulatum patches (NN) and Cryptomeria japonica (CC) forest stands could be improved by increasing the quantity and quality of training sites for both categories, by using, as part of the training dataset, for instance the Regional Forest Inventory, which is focused on CC mapping and characterization. A high accuracy in supervised classification maps has been reached (especially when using MLC and KNN classifiers) by developing a classification scheme which includes the use of both VNIR and VNIR-SWIR ASTER datasets coupled to relevant ancillary GIS data (converted to raster bands) representing variables that are dictating and conditioning Pittosporum undulatum spatial distribution, like altitude and "distance to water streams". ASTER VNIR bands at a spatial resolution of 15 meters (225 m2 as minimal spatial unit), are appropriate for decision-support on IAS site-specific management, as the minimum unit defined for IAS management in Azorean Protected Areas is one hectare. Therefore, these results will support regional authorities to perform a more cost-effective Pittosporum woodland management in Pico da Vara Natural Reserve. As the ASTER SWIR detectors no longer function since April 2008, these results (as datasets 3A and 3B tested) also show that the use of currently available VNIR spectral bands, when coupled to relevant ancillary GIS data, can be sufficiently effective for the mapping purpose in the IAS regional monitoring and management programs (addressing protected areas, basins and lakes, coastal areas). Finally, this new and more detailed data on the spatial distribution of Pittosporum undulatum will allow more accurate ecological modeling studies of this IAS in the Azores.
This research has been developed on the behalf of a Post-Doctoral Research Project (M3.1.7/F/005/ 2011) supported by the FRC - Regional Fund for Science (Azorean Regional Government). We would like to thank SPEAAzores staff for sharing their vegetation monitoring program survey data regarding Pico da Vara / Ribeira do Guilherme Special Protected Area. We would like also to thank Mr. António Moniz for his cartographic support (Figure 1). Finally, we are thankful to NASA/ USGS for providing us the ASTER data used in this research project.
Recebido em 14.12.2012 aceito para publicação em 14.04.2014. | 2019-04-23T23:03:40Z | http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0100-67622014000300001&lng=en&tlng=en |
A major overhaul of transport, beginning in 2018, has been announced by the Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham in a keynote speech today (Wednesday, December 13).
The Mayor addressed the Urban Transport Group in Leeds this morning, outlining his ambition to deliver a safe, reliable, affordable and fully integrated high capacity transport network, with customers at its heart.
If you take a look at my Twitter timeline on any given day, you won’t be left in much doubt about the biggest concern for the majority of people in GM.
I receive many reports of people’s daily commute in pretty graphic and painful detail.
But I don’t blame them at all and in fact I would encourage them to keep them coming.
The arrival of a Mayor with responsibility for transport has provided something that was sorely lacking – a single person, working in partnership with our ten Council Leaders, who has the ability to bring some accountability to a fragmented system which, to them, is frustratingly unaccountable.
Of course, concern about transport in the North is nothing new. The difference is it can no longer be ignored.
We are at the beginning of a period of unprecedented change for the UK.
As we face up to a future outside of the EU, issues traditionally relegated to the low priority pile by Whitehall, such as skills and transport, are now becoming urgent.
Greater Manchester and other UK city-regions know we will have to work even harder and smarter to attract inward investment. To do that, we need ambitious plans to improve our connectivity within, with each other and with the rest of the world.
The truth is we are some way from where we need to be.
You only have to try driving from here along the M62 and then the M60 into Manchester during rush hour to see that.
A journey which once would have taken less than an hour can now take well over two.
The unsustainable level of congestion on Northern roads is the result of governments of all colours over many decades failing to invest in the infrastructure and services we need and failing to create services across all modes which are affordable, integrated and accountable – in other words, a genuine alternative to the car.
In large parts of the North, people cannot rely on public transport to get them to work. They either have a poor service, a patchy service or no service at all. They are stuck in their cars on roads which are slowly seizing up.
Others aren’t even that lucky. Those who can’t afford a car are stuck at home missing out on study, work and leisure opportunities. Some face loneliness and isolation; those in low paid work or on irregular shift patterns are at risk of economic or social exclusion.
We can’t carry on like this.
We need a transport system that builds an inclusive society where everyone can get around and get on.
If that is to happen, transport policy-makers need to listen to the public to understand how bad things have got.
Earlier this year, I asked Transport for Greater Manchester to carry out a Congestion Conversation.
Around 7,000 public responses were received – an indication of the strength of feeling.
When asked about the effects of congestion, nine in ten reported that it had increased their levels of stress and anxiety. Half said it had had a major impact. Eight in ten say it makes them late for work.
And we wonder why the North has a productivity problem.
Worryingly, seven in ten believe it has discouraged visitors and is a deterrent to investment in GM.
A number of respondents identified our limited public transport offer.
They are right; in Greater Manchester, as in many UK cities outside London, it is simply not good enough.
Our trains are packed-out, clapped-out and over-priced.
Our buses are over-priced and a confusing free-for-all.
Our motorways endlessly trapped in over-running roadworks.
But our problem is not just that are our separate transport modes not good enough individually; it is also that these modes cannot be integrated to work as one system.
The lack of investment from central government over many years is of course a major part of the problem.
But it is not just about money.
This is also a story of failed ideology, policy incoherence and lack of public accountability. And the failure of Government to give power to local leaders to develop coherent transport plans means they have been unable to correct these flaws.
Leaving bus services to the free market has not worked. It has brought fragmentation and confusion. Two statistics provide evidence of failure: in unregulated Greater Manchester, 350 million bus journeys a year in the mid-80s have become just under 200 million today; in regulated London, bus usage growth is almost the mirror opposite.
Many of our rail stations - not under our management - are cold, damp, dreary and dark – with more than half of them inaccessible to people in wheelchairs. In 2017, that is simply unacceptable.
Promised improvements – be it Smart Motorways or Trans-Pennine electrification – keep getting delayed or cancelled.
Bus routes are cancelled with minimal notice – leaving communities stranded.
Regional transport bodies like TfGM are more accountable to local people but, as they have limited sway over these bodies, they are unable to make sense of the chaos and integrate it all.
Visitors to Greater Manchester regularly comment on the confusing nature of our ticketing on buses and trams. They ask, very fairly, why we can’t operate an integrated system like London. It sounds self-serving when I write back to say national policy incoherence prevents it, but it is the truth.
But, having been dealt this bad hand of cards, with no real control over bus or rail, we have real pride in what Transport for Greater Manchester has been able to achieve.
The parts of the transport system that work best are the parts under local control.
These achievements show that more local control delivers results.
We now need to spread this success to all parts of our transport system.
In the Greater Manchester Strategy, we have set out our ambition to make GM the best place to grow up, get on and grow old. But none of that can be achieved unless people can get around.
Our status as a modern, forward-thinking city-region will be increasingly endangered by a transport system stuck in the past.
So enough is enough. This is what we’re going to do about it.
I will be asking the Greater Manchester Combined Authority to back plans for a major overhaul of transport.
It will involve some difficult decisions. It will take time and won’t be solved overnight. But there has to be change and I am today signalling that I will put in as many hours as it needs to achieve that.
We start with governance and the need to bring some order to the chaos.
We cannot continue to operate a transport system where different modes of transport are pulling in different directions, competing for the same passengers, and lacking accountability.
So this morning I have written to the Transport Secretary to notify him of our intention to establish a Greater Manchester Strategic Transport Board, and ask him to work constructively with us to ensure that all national bodies are represented at a decision-making level.
The board, which I will chair together with Sir Richard Leese, will hold the whole system to account for the GM public by monitoring performance, progress on improvements and ensure joined-up working between the different players.
It will also ensure that our 10 councils – key partners in transport delivery – are fully knitted in to decision-making.
We will also look to strengthen our own local arrangements and management of operations.
I have asked TfGM to assess the costs and benefits of moving to a 24/7 control room – similar to the model used by Transport for London.
This is essential for any city with ambitions like ours. It will allow us to be more proactive in preventing problems on our network and more responsive when problems do happen.
These changes will bring more coherence and allow us to drive through some big changes to all modes of transport.
The biggest changes of all will be to our bus system.
Today I am calling time on the failed, free market experiment foisted onto the Greater Manchester public by the Thatcher Government.
Despite a decline in bus patronage over many years, buses still carry three quarters of all public transport passengers in Greater Manchester.
Buses are the backbone of the public transport system – so it is right to start here.
The decline in bus usage has come despite an increasing population, investment in bus lanes and infrastructure, and extensive support by TfGM and Districts in various partnership initiatives with local bus operators.
The reasons for this are inevitably complex but it cannot help that in Greater Manchester we have over 40 different bus operators, with 160 different types of ticket available.
We have too many communities in Greater Manchester receiving no service at all – or having their service taken away with minimal notice.
Fares are simply too high - a single journey can cost £3 or more – compared to £1.50 in London.
Buses still lack audio/visual announcements – making it difficult for people who don’t regularly use a particular service to know when to get off – but making it near impossible for people with sight or hearing problems.
Wheelchair users talk of being left at bus stops as several services go past because they don’t have the right ramps.
And ticketing is stuck in the past.
How can this be happening in 2017? When you can pay for your lunch using your phone. Or buy a cup of coffee using your watch. And sometimes you still can’t catch a bus unless you have the right coins.
Unless we bring our bus services into the 21st century, our plans in Greater Manchester for a better public transport system cannot be fulfilled.
Today I can confirm that in Greater Manchester we will be using the powers granted to us by Parliament at the earliest opportunity to drive through some major improvements to our bus services – and we are starting straight away.
Regulations to allow requests for further data from operators come into effect next Tuesday, the 19th of December.
Today we give notice that, on the 20th of December, TfGM will be writing to operators to request that data.
Subject to TfGM receiving the information it needs, I expect public consultation on our plans for bus reform to be announced in the summer, with the aim of making a decision by the end of the 2018.
This could see improvements being delivered to bus services in GM sooner than in any other city-region with equivalent powers.
This will be a major focus for the Greater Manchester Combined Authority and TfGM in 2018. The work will proceed at pace and all options for change evaluated openly and fairly.
It means work will start on shaping a bus system that people find convenient to use, that is accessible to all, that can help reduce congestion and improve air quality, that better links with other modes, and that gives our people the joined up connectivity that our economy and society need.
Crucially we will need to use this opportunity to build a new market for buses.
In the last 30 years, too many young people in Greater Manchester have grown up not using buses.
We have to turn this declining market around.
It remains my aim that any operator providing bus services in Greater Manchester offers free bus travel for 16-18 year olds, building on the half-price tickets we introduced earlier this year.
To be clear, I am keeping an open mind on the different options of improving bus services.
But they are going to improve and it is going to happen as quickly as practically possible.
And my message to all bus operators is this: start engaging with us positively on how we deliver our new vision rather than clinging on to an era which is going.
I want a solution that’s good for passengers, good for the workforce, good for operators and good for Greater Manchester.
If we work together, that’s exactly what we can achieve.
One of the big wins to be gained from bus reform is to integrate services with Metrolink and effectively operate as one system.
Patronage has doubled in the last six years with over 40 million passengers using the network in the last year.
Earlier this year we opened the new ‘Second City Crossing’ – a 1.3km stretch of track through Manchester city centre, offering greater resilience and flexibility across the tram network.
And I’m particularly proud that all of our Metrolink stops have step free access for wheelchair users (and boarding points and tactile paving to assist the visually impaired).
On three occasions in recent months there has been a complete suspension of Metrolink services, including a full suspension in rush-hour one Friday morning and on a busy Saturday evening. These incidents should be seen as ‘Never Events’ – and yet they are happening too often.
Ticketing is still confusing – 13 years after London launched the Oyster card – and at a time when the concept of using a smartcard to travel round London is almost archaic – we’re still playing catch-up, hamstrung by the fragmented bus fares and ticketing system that exists outside of London.
In the short-term we are increasing capacity on two of Metrolink’s busiest lines, allowing over 1000 extra passengers to travel at peak times (on the Altrincham and Bury lines).
And in the longer-term we are looking at options to buy extra trams to provide that much needed additional capacity across the network.
Work will continue on the £350 million Metrolink Trafford Park line – a new six stop line offering connections to key business and leisure destinations. And we will continue to look at the potential for new Metrolink stops and new orbital links.
I also want to look at the case for running later trams and trains. Greater Manchester doesn’t shut down at midnight so neither should our transport system.
Of all the complaints I receive about our public transport it is our local rail services that I hear most about.
Overall passenger satisfaction with Greater Manchester facilities, seating availability, security and even just purchasing a ticket is below the national average.
Greater Manchester is also one of the remaining places in the country that has to put up with pacers. Trains that were designed with a maximum lifespan of 20 years still running across the North nearly 40 years later.
Only 45 per cent arriving at the destination on time.
And we know the Bolton services suffer the worst of all.
Trains are so full that passengers are often left behind on the platform or squashed into carriages so overcrowded that it’s not unusual for people to be forced to stand in the toilets. I’ve even had reports of passengers passing out because of overcrowding.
But, truly, these improvements can’t come quickly enough. A key role for the new GM Transport Board will be ensuring these improvements are delivered on time.
In the meantime, I am calling on operators to do more to compensate regular commuters where services have been particularly poor.
TfGM has already begun discussions with Transport Focus over fair compensation for season ticket holders on the Bolton to Manchester line, and we will be keeping a close eye on performance across a number of other lines.
And we continue to stand by our ambitious plans to improve the quality of our rail stations.
In our devolution agreement with the Government it was agreed that they would look at the case for devolved operational control of our rail stations.
We believe that local control of our GM rail stations will provide for a long-term and sustainable investment programme, involve local communities, act as a catalyst to regeneration and provide significant improvements for the customer experience.
Of the 97 stations in GM, over 80 per cent of them are more than 100 years old and many have not changed much over that period. Around half of them are classed as inaccessible for disabled people.
This statistic alone makes the case for change.
However, the Government has rejected our bid for all stations to be devolved and a follow up proposal for a smaller group of 12 stations to be an early phase.
This is disappointing and I find it hard to accept that these plans were also resisted by rail organisations which have failed to invest in these stations over the years and forfeited the right to argue for the status quo.
The Transport Secretary has written to me to offer a partnership approach instead. This is not our preferred option, but as ever in GM we are prepared to be pragmatic and will see if it can be made to work.
But I want to be clear with the Government today about the tests we will set to judge the success of any partnership.
And improved security – be that better lighting, 24/7 surveillance or storage for cycles.
For those who ask whether local control would bring improvements I point them to Metrolink which has already allowed us to deliver some state-of-the-art, modern tram stations – all of which are accessible – and the new Bolton transport interchange – delivered by TfGM – which is an exemplar of a modern, accessible, integrated facility.
A consequence of problems on rail, road and Metrolink is that many people in Greater Manchester are left with no other choice but to drive.
This in turn clogs up our roads – particularly in the morning and evening peak.
This is a problem not just for the poor experience of travelling around Greater Manchester but for our health – with dangerous emissions building up in areas of slow moving, stop-start traffic.
When asked what causes congestion, one of the most common responses was people starting work at the same time, poorly planned roadworks and “ill-timed traffic lights”.
Problems with strategic coordination of roads are not unique to Greater Manchester, and successful and thriving cities across the world all experience congestion on their transport networks during rush hours.
But we’ve now reached a point where 57 per cent of journeys in GM are made by private car. And 80 per cent of those car journeys are made solo. That is not sustainable.
Later this week my Expert Reference Group on congestion will meet to discuss the results of the Congestion Conversation and consider the proposals that have been put forward.
I am open to any idea – except, along with my ten Council leader colleagues, introducing a Congestion Charge.
Until we have delivered major improvements to other modes of transport, and given them a genuine alternative to the car, you cannot hit them with an unavoidable tax simply for going to work.
So alongside the wider improvements we want to make to transport, we’ll consider practicable ideas like stricter controls on road works, providing people with more real-time information and encouraging employers to adopt more flexible working arrangements to stagger the rush hour.
In the New Year we will publish our proposals - setting out exactly what we’re going to do to get our city-region moving.
Ultimately we are only going to reduce congestion over the long-term if we can encourage modal shift.
That means giving people confidence in other forms of transport and encouraging modal shift – for instance, through more parkway stations for train and tram adjacent to major roads.
And it means transforming cycling infrastructure.
According to the Greater Manchester Travel Diary Survey, almost a third of journeys less than 1km are made by car.
That’s equivalent to a 15-min walk – or a four minute bike ride.
Enabling people to walk or cycle, particularly for these short journeys, is key to tackling congestion, improving air quality and improving people’s health.
Other cities have shown that if you build high-quality cycling infrastructure then people will use it.
Later this week Chris Boardman – the GM Cycling and Walking Commissioner – will be publishing his report on how to make Greater Manchester the best place for walking and cycling in the UK – and in doing so achieve that modal shift we need.
It will challenge us to be bolder than we have been in the past and I am determined that we meet that challenge.
When Chris launches his report on Friday, I will be setting out my intention for how we use the Transforming Cities Fund to support cycling and walking infrastructure.
So we have clear plans to improve all modes of transport and make them integrate into one system.
But these improvements won’t happen overnight.
Over the next year the public will need to bear with us, and remain patient.
2018 will involve a lot of hard work. And there is no escaping the fact that some of the work might cause disruption.
But we have got to grasp the nettle and get it done. We cannot leave things as they are.
We need to plan for a system that keeps the place moving, that people can afford to use and gives them clean air to breathe. In short, an integrated public transport system that puts the public interest first.
It’s not much to ask, is it? | 2019-04-18T13:35:09Z | https://www.greatermanchester-ca.gov.uk/news/mayor-sets-out-major-transport-overhaul |
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sometimes, mama nature beckons us. she plops her unfinished efforts right before our eyes. she stirs us to dig deep into our tender parts, to pull out all the stops, to tend and nurse and care for whatever it is that has fallen, gone limp, lies broken.
by the time i got home, the one little fledgling had company. now there were two fully-feathered, eyes-still-closed baby birds cowering behind the flower pot on the front stoop, a good seven or eight feet down from the nook behind the front door’s moulding where, every year since we put up the lovely fancy woodwork, those old birds have deigned to birth their young. and this despite the fact that up beneath the eaves of our old house we built the feathered flocks an ample nine-hole aerie for their avian pleasures.
tis the truth of the month of june, at least on this upper half of the globe, this is the stretch of days when those baby birds have tapped their way out of their itty-bitty eggs, they’ve puffed up on a steady diet of worms and fly parts, filled out a thick armament of feathers, and, after days of perching on the precipice of the nest, dared put wind beneath their wings.
and, often, that first flight tumbles to the ground.
which is, often, where we come in.
we are, if we choose to be, the baby bird worriers. we’re the ones who fret from first spotting till at last the baby birds find their way, their flight.
so it was the other day, and through the long and rainy night at our house.
that’s when we, the bird worriers extraordinaire, sprung into rescue mode. that’s when we spied the baby birds, stranded inches apart, shivering in fear — or so we imagined. and, indeed, there’s nothing like a fear-quivering baby bird to get a mama’s juices running — even when the mama is of the human species and not the feathered kind. we mamas pay no mind to whose baby is in distress; we’re all for one, and one for all in the mama-rescue department.
we leapt into action, me and the fellow who first eyed the distress. we tried to do what little we could do: a bottle cap from a 2-liter jug of birthday gingerale served as the trough for the one farthest from home, and a yogurt tub, cut down to eighth-inch height, served as the watering hole for the other, with room to boot should they decide to share a drink.
by morning light, the pair was gone. nowhere to be seen, though i’m certain i heard them squawking thanks, from back in the nest. my little guy remains unconvinced that they weren’t someone’s tasty snack, but i contend that the lack of feathers is proof that a happy ending was had by all. he tried to counter that they might have gone down in a single swallow, with no feathers to be strewn. i, frankly, couldn’t stomach such demise, so i choose to end the tale with all birdlets safely ensconced back in their duly-ornamented hatchery.
even though this particular rescue was relatively drama-free, and rather swift to boot — and cost little more than a couple hours’ sleep — i am ever grateful for the blessed moments when mama nature opens her book and lays a lesson at our feet. it’s a chance, every time, to exercise our hearts, to put muscle to our empathy machines, to understand more deeply just how much we all depend on each other.
it’s a blessing, every time, to be called to someone’s or something’s rescue. in a world in dire need of tenderness, in a world where we’re pummeled by the atrocious (word just came in of atrocities on three continents), it is a fallen baby bird who might stand a humble chance of returning us to, reminding us of, this lasting truth: to reach beyond the walls of our own hearts is to tap into our surest, truest care-taking selves, wherein we get a glimpse of our immeasurable capacities, and wherein, God willing, we begin to understand that we are called, all of us, to be the first line of this world’s tenderest defense.
and better yet when we can share that lesson with a child who is keeping watch on how deeply we keep that promise.
i’ve not yet mustered the courage to go read the details of what’s unfolded around the globe this sad morning. i heard of a beheading, and felt my knees give out. can we rise up and quash the madness with the few small bits we know: can we love more wildly, more wildly than one mere week ago? can we staunch the hate? can we find a way to rescue the globe in need of love?
what tender acts of mercy have you entered into this week?
the morning light spilled across the front pages, across faces bowed and streaked in tears. it didn’t take long till my own tears were added to the morning’s misery. a “lone wolf,” a man who sat for an hour near a pastor leading bible study, in a historic charleston, south carolina church, pulled out a pistol, and, one by one, took aim and fired, riddled the prayerful, felled nine lives, including the church pastor, a revered state senator.
i’d come downstairs in this quiet old house to write of something else, but i picked up the news pages off the stoop, and there it was in all three papers: “deadly church attack;” “scene of carnage has long history of pain, pride and dignity;” “loner held in church killings.” sadly, only in chicago was the story “below the fold,” meaning it got second billing to something else, and in this case the “else” was a silver trophy for men in ice skates.
because i’ve spent more time away from screens in recent days, i’d not heard the news in the wake of its happening. i found out the old-fashioned way: reading the news after it had been gathered, laid out, printed and delivered to my door step. it hit me no less hard for the time delay between occurrence and finding out. in fact, it might have hit me harder, for i absorbed it in the sacred silent cloak of dawn. alone in my kitchen, i pored over the images, the words.
once again, our hearts are shattered by the ravages of mad folk and guns fired.
once again, my first response was to shudder, to find myself in goosebumps, followed swiftly by fury, followed by the image of a single candle flame burning in the dark: we can only light this world, we can only trigger change, by living each and every act of each and every day with as much deep down love, as much empathy towards whomever is in our path, as we can possibly muster.
that the echo of the gunshot rang out and ricocheted off the walls of a historic black church, a church with deepest roots in the march for justice that is the civil rights movement in america, only sickens me more.
i turn back to the image of the woman whose face is streaked in tears.
sometimes in the wake of awfulness like this, i feel the urge to take my children by the hand and huddle with my arms round their shoulders, to keep them safe in a world where the walls between sanity and insanity feel too permeable. where i don’t know who will barge into my grocery store or my children’s school, or my synagogue, for God’s sake, or my church, and ignite the ugliness, the horror.
mostly, i shake that off, and inhale a second breath, one that grounds me more firmly than ever, one that roots me in the deepest conviction and takes me back to the words of my beloved dorothy day: “little by little;” it is only through our little acts of courage, our little acts of love that we stand half a chance of mounting forces that might wither the ugliness, the horror, that intends to roll our way.
on the days when the world’s news rattles me, and it rattles me often, i am left with so very little in my counter-campaign. i have a heart, and i have words. i have imagination, too, thank God. and in my imagination right now, i am traveling to the side of the woman streaked in tears. i am holding her hand, and wrapping my arm around her shoulder. i am dabbing her tears, and i am breathing a promise: i will love more wildly today. i will scatter seeds of all that is good and gentle and heart-opening. yes, even here at my old kitchen table. i will start with love, the fiercest force i know. the one that, like a bullet, can penetrate the heart. can open it. can settle in and make for a peaceable kingdom after all.
all week i’ve been feeling it. that moment that best can be likened to the glorious fraction of time when you’ve been out in tippity teetering heels all night, when your toes have been practically yelping in protest and the bones in your feets have been threatening to cut you off at the ankles, when every ounce of you wanted to wriggle out of this unnatural state of constraint, but you had to make like a grownup and prance around in footwear that does its best to topple you, and sometimes makes you chew on your cheek besides. but then, finally, the night and the torture come to an end, and there in the dark, and practically running, you round the bend, you lurch toward the door and you begin the release for which you’ve been throbbing: you scrape the toe of one pointy shoe against the penned-in heel of the other, and you kick the darn foot-clamps clear across the kitchen.
you stand there, for a minute or two, just drinking in the feel of your bones falling back to their pre-ordained order. you listen to the flow of the blood trickling back to the tips of your squeezed-colorless tootsies.
you savor the long-awaited rush of relief. the busting-out-of-whatever-bound-you.
which, pretty much, is how it feels around here. more so than in a very long time. because summer in this old house has arrived with a groundswell of holy hallelujah. boy one is finished with college. boy one is hanging around. boy two just finished with grade school. ergo, this is a summer that comes with a full ladle of finish. and, perhaps, an extra-deep dollop of purest enchantment.
this is, more than any summer that i can recall, one of those moments when the hours make like salvador dali had at them. they warp into stretched-out proportions. they expand, not contract. they breathe. and sometimes, like sunday afternoon when my firstborn and i plopped into old wicker chairs and stayed there for the better part of three hours, they stand perfectly utterly still.
i am, in this seasonal opening act, indulging in time. i am whirling, deep down inside, in the rarest of joy, the feeling that somehow i’ve cupped my hands, sunk them deep in a font of holiest waters, and come up spilling; splattering drop after delectable drop.
i’m not worrying, for heaven’s sake, about what’s for dinner, i’m not looking at clocks. (though i am watching ice boxes magically empty, and i am setting world records for laundry.) i’m feeling the lumpety-thump of my heart when the sound of the footsteps comes down the stairs at times when i’m usually alone and the house is usually silent. like a kid on christmas morning, i’m peeking through cracks in the door at two sleeping boys with no need for hurry.
maybe i love it all the more because i know it won’t last. and not only because i’ve been around the block enough times to know that, soon enough, the days will be so hot and so sticky we’ll all be wishing for igloos. and popsicles will seem a sensible breakfast.
maybe it’s all the sweeter because i never imagined we’d all have one more summer together. i hadn’t pictured four cereal bowls plopped on the table, each one blanketed in warm-from-the-field farmer berries. i hadn’t imagined the windows rolled down in the old station wagon, and me and my boys blaring the radio, wending our way to no particular anywhere. i hadn’t considered boy upon boy curled up on the couch, arms and shoulders entwined, words of brotherly wisdom being imparted in whispers.
for now, it’s one fleeting drink-it-all-in suspension of time.
we’re back to the place, and the moment, when the letting loose rubs you all over. like a terry cloth towel before it’s worn thin. it’s that magical interlude when the season is new, when we’re just on the cusp, and everything is raw and deep and our pores are wide open and we’re guzzling it down. right in here, in this opening act of summer’s production, the season of so few cares, we’re hard at work simply savoring.
and this particular summer it comes with a brand of relish that i’ll never ever forget.
this just might be the summer whose frames i’ll play and replay till the last gasp i breathe on this earth.
well, goodness gracious, i got a wee bit sidetracked — make that a lot sidetracked — here this morning when my ferocious jungle cat (he who seems to be showing off in recent days, proving to any and all that he might be old but he ain’t over yet) carried into the house — into the very middle of the family room’s old persian rug, mind you — a still-wriggling, but-not-for-long critter, clutched in the sharp-toothed grip of said hunter cat. i let out a yelp, as is my usual inclination, and hip-hopped in circles till i got the duo to skitter back through the rip of the old screen door. it set me to quaking for a few minutes there, and then i needed to settle back in to the rhythms above. and, oh goodness, the wonders of summer took on whole new dimensions.
and in further keeping with this slow-time summer, i’ve just spent the last hour plopped on the post-college kid’s new navajo rug, chatting about his early morning adventures procuring yet another job. normally i fidget till i hit the friday-morning-publish button, but not today. today i know that all’s in due time. and if it unfolds slowly, it’s all the more glorious….
finally, before i go, a most blessed birthday i wish for my beloved friend cecilia and her forever love, gary, who serendipitously and marvelously share the same birthday. this is a big one for ceci, a day of more than usual import. i send love and prayers in double dose.
one of us took a tumble the other night. all one of us was trying to do was go to bed. but around here, in these disheveled days, you take your life in your hands any time you try to get from point Q to point Z. the poor tumbled person, he found himself skittering upon a pond of discarded papers. and old bulletin boards. and chin-up bars whose use has expired. and a few old campaign stickers from congressional races that didn’t quite turn out the way some of us had hoped.
it made for a terrible noise. the noise awoke me. and our resident little fellow, just sinking into a short night of sleeps, he went leaping from his bed to see what was the matter, what was the source of the fortissimo clatter. there the source lay. all asprawl. undaunted, or so he insisted. just a scattering of papers and limbs, soon rustled back into order.
i tell this tale because it’s illustrative, you might say, of the tumbled-up order (well, really, dis-order) that is the current state of awry in this house.
you can practically hear the ol’ joint moaning. the floor boards are letting out protest. long-shuttered windows, refusing to budge. nearly every available corner, it seems, is lost, under siege, is crushed by the weight of teetering piles.
we have piles of books from every era of a young boy’s growing-up years. and whole parades of paraphernalia from particular passing obsessions: we begin with trains and move onto baseball, then comes the film-camera chapter, swiftly followed by double bass/sound-recording, onto politics and rowing, then deeper and deeper into political philosophers whose first few sentences i can barely muddle through. if you were inclined toward archeological digs, you could trace the timeline of our firstborn’s obsessions — now on stand-by for storage or discard — as if the strata in metamorphic rock.
i’ve come to realize in the last week plus two days and 20 hours that, for the last four years, we’d existed in an artificially placid world around here (even though i wasn’t enlightened enough to grasp the relative serenity).
back then, when i cleaned the sink before tumbling to bed, it was just as clean in the dawn as it had been at midnight. when i dumped a barrel of apples into the produce bin, i could count its dwindling one-by-one. breakfast hadn’t become a three-pan production. and, heck, when i walked in the door, and lined up three unassuming pairs of shoes, they stood where i’d told them to stay, and never threatened to kill me by wolf-whistling a back-door convention of every imaginable combination of foot wear, all size 13 (or, in the unforgettable words of a long-ago seller of shoes on state street that great street in downtown chicago, a peddler who put measuring tape to the feets of my mate, and yelped, “man, you is past-noon!”).
ah, but that was then. back in the age of kid-off-at-college.
said kid, as you know, is now home. and gone is the calm, the unruffled quietude, that so soothed me. so essentially soothed me.
yes, yes, i love every ounce of the discombobulation. but, oh, it’s discombobulated, right here in these parts. and i’m always a bit slow to get with the program, so i need to untangle the knots and knead out the kinks in my nerves. i need to live in a suspended state of dishevelment, not mind that the only way down the stairs is to thread your way, ever so gingerly, between the piles of books that each hog a step. i need to double my allergy meds, what with the dust storm that’s swirling through room upon room.
it’s what happens when the carpet-ripper-outer arrives. and the painter shows up to slap a new coat of templeton gray onto the mottled walls in the bath. and bookshelves are cleared, and drawers are dumped of their fifth-grade detritus.
what just a week ago was a boy’s room, one decked out with a baseball-bat lamp, and a plush navy carpet, and the overstuffed chair i’d once bought for purposes of nursing a newborn, is now a post-collegiate den. one with splattered-maple floor, college-crest armchair, re-curated bookshelves, and, en route, a 1920s floor lamp procured via etsy — soon to arrive at the downtown greyhound station, where shipping comes at half the cost of door-to-door delivery (making for yet another urban scavenging adventure, i’m certain).
mere moments ago i was interrupted here amid my typing for a conversation that’s emblematic of the way the days are unfolding: said man, the one who lives in what we now refer to as The Studio at 522 (giving the appropriate marketer’s capitalization to even the lowly article, The, making it all seem swanky and swell), he paused by my writing room to display the morning’s dilemma, and to partake of some motherly counsel.
seems his running shoe has half-shed its heel, so he reasoned that rather than leaping out for a jog and risking its loss altogether, he’d try a bit of home repair before hitting the elliptical down in the basement. he was considering super-glu as quik-solve to the runaway shoe part, but then he realized he might spend the rest of his day glued to the round-and-round part of the shape-up machine. which led him to wonder, aloud, if anyone had ever shown up at the ER door with fitness apparatus attached.
all you can do — and i do — is laugh out loud. deeply and often.
it might be a week or so — okay, maybe a month or so — till we wrestle these piles into place. the attic — now stuffed to the gills — dare not collapse. and, sooner or later i’ll figure a way to have groceries by train car delivered.
and somehow (perhaps if i pray to the patron saint of chaos becalmed, or beg for celestial xanax to rain from the clouds) i’ll settle into the hum that surely will come soon as i catch up to the prestissimo that is now the requisite pace in these parts. these most decidedly discombobulated, deeply joy-filled, post-college parts.
some of you — my mother, for certain — might have predicted it wouldn’t take too long till i exclaimed that it sure had gotten noisy and messy around here, now that we’ve expanded the homestead’s population by 25 percent. so i’ve once again been utterly predictable. all i know is that it helps to deep breathe, and maintain a DEEP sense of hilarity. tumbling out the door for garden breaks is also restorative. but best of all is climbing the stairs and knowing that just behind the closed door at the bend in the stairs there dwells the kid i’ve so longed to have home, for even the shortest of whiles. indeed, for as short or as long as this lasts, i really and truly am thrilled beyond thrilled to absorb the oncoming, everyday tumbles and blows here in the land of dishevelment.
what are your tried-and-true measures for weathering the population transitions in your life, when someone comes or someone goes, most especially someone you deeply dearly love who arrives or departs with truckloads and train cars of stuff? | 2019-04-25T11:50:52Z | https://pullupachair.org/2015/06/ |
Suggested Citation:"Part A: Background Papers." National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, and Institute of Medicine. 1993. Responsible Science, Volume II: Background Papers and Resource Documents. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/2091.
Modern universities are commonly seen as serving three main functions. They educate students. They foster research. Through education, research, and other activities, they serve society.
As both the place where future researchers are trained and the place where much of the nation's research is conducted, universities are vital to science and engineering. A century or two ago, science and engineering were not dependent on universities and higher education. Today they are. Were universities to abdicate their roles in science and engineering, society would have to invent new institutions to train future scientists and engineers and to conduct much of the research that has become vital to the future of society.
The role that universities play in science and engineering encompasses both privileges and responsibilities. Much of the financial and social support that universities enjoy today is based on their capacity to contribute to science and engineering. The support for science and engineering is, in turn, accompanied by a great deal of autonomy, accepting the premise that as professionals, scientists and engineers should be given intellectual or academic freedom. These are the privileges. In return, society assumes that university scientists and engineers will act in ways that serve the best interests of society, however those interests are defined.
This paper describes and analyzes some of the actions universities are taking to foster responsible conduct in science and engineering research, beginning with the most passive steps, those that simply seek to establish normative rules, and progressing through three degrees of proactive policies: monitoring research, promoting discussion, and undertaking institutional reform. Throughout, the term ''responsibility"
Nicholas H. Steneck is professor of history and director of the Historical Center for the Health Sciences at the University of Michigan.
is taken in its most challenging sense. It is assumed, following the stated policies of many universities, that the sought after goal is setting high standards, not minimum standards. That is to say, "responsibility" is taken to imply more than simply following the letter of the law or not engaging in blatant misconduct (plagiarizing, falsifying data, conflicts of interest, and so on). Responsibility is taken to imply discharging the duties or meeting the obligations of a professional in an exemplary way. It is this broad understanding of responsibility, rather than the narrow sense of avoiding fraud or misconduct, that is the main focus of this report, as applied to science and engineering research at universities.
Although this report focuses on science and engineering, it is important to note that there is very little about science and engineering research that is truly unique, other than its subject matter and its particular research methods. Humanists engage in funded research projects; they collect, interpret, and publish data; and they train graduate students and postdoctoral fellows. Accordingly, it is not possible when discussing university policies and actions designed to foster responsible conduct in science and engineering research to focus exclusively or even mostly on actions and policies directed to scientists and engineers. The context of university policy and action is much broader than this. However, broader policies, when combined with policies and actions that do focus more on science and engineering, can potentially do a great deal to foster responsible conduct in science and engineering research. Some of that potential is now being realized on university campuses across the country. The ways in which it is being realized form the subject of this report.
The least burdensome, but not necessarily the most effective, way to foster responsible conduct in science and engineering research is to establish and publicize responsible behavior. Most professional organizations, including those for science and engineering, have published materials relating to professional conduct, such as Sigma Xi's influential Honor in Science1 or the National Institutes of Health's widely used Guidelines for the Conduct of Research.2 These materials have bearing on science and engineering research on university campuses and are commonly used (formally and informally) by universities for establishing standards for responsible behavior.
conduct that apply broadly to faculty, administrators, staff, and/or students. However, their expectations for researchers are more commonly set out within the context of administrative policies dealing with specific problems, such as fraud or misconduct in research, conflict of interest, intellectual property rights, human and animal use in experimentation, computer use, and so on. Piece by piece, these polices provide normative rules that cover most of the major concerns regarding responsible conduct in science and engineering research.
In response to increasing concern over cases of research misconduct and spurred on by Public Health Service requirements in 1985,4 major research universities have adopted procedures for investigating allegations of misconduct. Although differing in detail, most follow a common format. First, the importance of integrity, the rarity of misconduct, and the need to maintain high standards are stressed. Then, definitions of misconduct, and the need to maintain high standards are stressed. Then, definitions of fraud or misconduct, reaching conclusions, and, when called for, meting out punishment are discussed.
Variations of these and other lists, along with explanations and examples, are found in most university policies for dealing with misconduct in research.
This statement could easily be rewritten as a set of normative rules for responsible behavior in research: researchers should properly assign credit to others for the work they have done; present original material in only one publication; include in publications only the names of those who have contributed to research; and include the names of coauthors in publications only after seeking permission to do so. In this way, the reactive misconduct policies in place in the major research universities can become proactive statements of expected or normative behavior in research.
Normative statements about research can also be found in conflict of interest policies. Again, as with the misconduct policies, the primary intent is to clarify what should not be done, but by inference or logical extension, proper conduct is also defined. The form of conflict of interest policies is not as uniform as that of misconduct policies, thus making it more difficult to identify the normative statements about research conduct. Nonetheless, these policies do provide another source of information that is applicable to scientific and engineering research.
If "university business" is construed as "government business," then researchers should understand that information given in confidence, such as information received when reviewing manuscripts for publication and grant requests for peer review, cannot be disclosed or used for personal gain. The State of Ohio statutes thus provide normative rules for handling manuscripts, shared data, student theses, and the like: researchers should honor confidences and not use or disclose information received in confidence without getting permission to do so.
Researchers at Pennsylvania State University can find normative rules for directing graduate students and postdoctoral fellows in their institution's conflict of interest policy, which states that it is wrong to direct students into research activities that are designed primarily to serve personal interests rather than to further their [the students'] scholarly achievement."10 While not easy to apply in difficult cases, i.e., when there is a genuine conflict between the obligations to a grantor and to those hired under the grant, one normative rule that applies to such situations is again made clear: researchers who serve as mentors to students assume obligations to those students and should not compromise these obligations for personal gain or career advancement.
Does the secondary commitment detract from the ability of a faculty member to discharge his primary obligations to The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine?
The normative rules inferred in these questions and the subsequent explanations help clarify for researchers how they should sort out their obligations when they have responsibilities to more than one constituency.
The latter refers to policies relating to human subjects research review, animal research, radiation safety, biological research review (recombinant DNA research), and occupational safety and environmental health.12 Subsequent forms and/or policy statements issued by the human- and animals-use committees, the radiation safety committee, and so on provide further guidance on responsible conduct in research, as, for example, questions and guidance on the humane use of animals (discussed below under monitoring).
The normative rules scattered throughout university policies and documents relating to science and engineering research are an important first step for promoting responsible conduct. In defining what is illegal, unethical, and irresponsible, they suggest what is legal, ethical, and responsible. They also provide guidance on fiscal responsibility, safety, the responsible use of human subjects, the humane treatment of animals, the use of computers, the handling of data, and other matters. Therefore, even those universities that do not have comprehensive codes of ethics for science and engineering research, which is the majority, do provide researchers with guidelines for responsible conduct. If these "guidelines" are combined with the various federal regulations and professional statements about professional conduct in research, the total package does provide fundamental rules for determining what is responsible and irresponsible in the conduct of research.
researchers who believe that they "own" not only the data generated in their laboratories but also the ideas. Practicing researchers do not always understand the basic normative rules that help to determine responsible conduct in research. Students and beginning researchers may have less understanding. Publications such as Sigma Xi's Honor in Science, the codes of conduct published by professional societies, and the research policies of universities are thus useful documents for raising consciousness and establishing a knowledge base for fostering responsibility in research.
The effectiveness of normative rules in fostering responsibility is, however, limited. First, as disjointed and piecemeal as they are on most campuses, they do not make it easy for researchers to comprehend and consider all the responsibilities raised by modern science and engineering. As conditions exist on many campuses, the burden for integrating rules and resolving contradictions is often left to the individual. Given all of the other pressures on modern-day researchers, it may not be reasonable to expect them to read through three, four, or more policies to find out what they should or should not be doing.
In addition, simply stating how researchers should act in no way guarantees that they will act in this way. This is particularly true if the normative rules aim at unrealistically high standards. Researchers today are rarely able to meet all of their obligations in an exemplary way. More commonly obligations exceed the time available to meet them. Increasing competition for research funds means that more hours must be spent writing and submitting grant applications. More time spent on applications means less time working in the laboratory, advising or teaching students, and reviewing manuscripts. Corners have to be cut. What are needed, therefore, in addition to normative rules for ideal behavior, are guidebooks for how to survive in the increasingly competitive world of academic science and engineering research.
Policy statements about normative or ideal conduct become useful when they are explained, elaborated upon, and illustrated with examples. They also become useful when they deal with the difficult rather than the obvious. There seems to be little doubt that most researchers do not, and know that they should not, manufacture data or forge experimental results. It may be less clear, however, how results should be presented in grant applications, when "enough data" are needed to give confidence that a project will succeed but "enough work" remains to be done to justify getting the grant. How "preliminary" should ''preliminary research" be?
provide important general rules. They also satisfy legal requirements and soothe consciences. But this approach to fostering responsible conduct in research may not be effective, particularly if the rules are not accompanied by other actions. Given the pressures on researchers today, they often are not only busy but also cynical. When their laboratory space and salaries depend on the research dollars generated and their promotions on the number of articles published, they can have a hard time believing the normative rules are anything more than guidelines for staying out of trouble. If this is the case, the sense of responsibility that researchers have will be minimal at best. Recognition of this fact has prompted universities to take additional steps to foster responsible conduct in research.
Universities today routinely monitor their research programs, among other reasons because they are required to do so. They must ensure fiscal responsibility. They must supervise the use and treatment of animals and human subjects. They must comply with environmental and workplace regulations. And they must enforce their own policies regulating such activities as classified and proprietary research. Monitoring is the second way universities foster responsible conduct in science and engineering research. It is an active rather than a passive way to foster responsibility.
At the University of Michigan, one monitoring process for research is triggered by an internal form that must be completed by all researchers prior to submitting projects for support (internal or external). The form lists 13 areas of concern that must be checked "yes" or "no."14 If "yes" is checked for an area, subsequent information or action is required. For the more important areas, such as the use of human subjects, vertebrate animals, and radioactive materials, the researcher is referred to a series of special peer-review committees for approval. These committees review the applications both for their compliance with specific laws and regulations and, in some cases, for problems that could raise questions about responsibility.
qualifications, and to indicate how the work will be supervised. The form on which this information is recorded contains explanations of each of the questions, which, in essence, provide brief lessons in the responsible use of animals in research. If the answers given on the forms are not satisfactory or if they raise questions about the use of animals, the researcher is asked to appear before the Use and Care Committee to discuss the project. In this way, researchers are encouraged to think about and justify their responsibilities when they use animals in research and, simultaneously, their use of animals is monitored.
The same procedure is followed for the use of human subjects at Michigan, with the university having a total of twelve peer committees to review grant requests prior to submission.
If they are, they must provide a "rationale for and justify their [each subject's] involvement."16 Providing the rationale again compels researchers to think about their responsibilities. If a rationale is unclear of unsatisfactory, then the researcher must discuss the research with colleagues on a review committee. The human subjects committees also require justifications for the use of human subjects, explanations of the likely benefits to the subjects from the research, and a description of the steps that have been taken to minimize risks—requirements that again compel researchers to think about their responsibilities and, in gray areas, to discuss their responsibilities with colleagues.
inherent in these requirements forces researchers to think about their responsibilities in ways that might not otherwise occur to them and to think about relationships and obligations that might otherwise be ignored.
Responsibility is also routinely monitored through peer review for promotions or annual reviews for salary increases. These reviews provide faculty with opportunities to monitor the work of their colleagues, looking, for example, for the possibility of duplicate publication of the same material, misattribution of authorship, or the sloppy use/misuse of data. Similarly, student evaluations are routinely used to determine how well faculty are discharging their duties as teachers. Such evaluations are not used, but could be adapted, to determine how well faculty discharge their duties as research mentors.
Asking researchers in advance how they will exercise responsibility is intrusive. It requires an investment of time to answer questions for no apparent reason. Moreover, in subtle ways it represents a shift in burden. Rather than presuming that researchers act responsibly and then raising questions when there is reason to believe someone has acted irresponsibly, asking researchers to discuss their research conduct in advance or to be subjected to constant scrutiny during research places a burden on them to demonstrate that they will act or are acting responsibly. In other words, monitoring presumes guilt rather than assuming innocence. It is also compulsory rather than voluntary. It requires that certain standards be met rather than making responsibility a matter of personal initiative. As such, monitoring does not find a comfortable home in professional communities that are accustomed to openness and trust.
Why, for example, should researchers be required to demonstrate in advance how they will comply with rules, regulations, and standards for responsible behavior, if those rules, regulations, and standards are clearly spelled out? We do not require the same researchers to file forms before leaving for work in the morning explaining that they will travel in a licensed car using seat belts and driving at safe, legal speeds. We presume that they know the laws and will obey them, intervening only when there is reason to believe that the law is not being obeyed. Similarly, for science and engineering to develop freely and in a collegial atmosphere, some degree of responsibility must be assumed. If every aspect of research were subject to monitoring, either in advance or in process, the burdens of time and cost could rapidly overwhelm the research enterprise.
when it is required, e.g., in the use of animals, human subjects, dangerous chemicals, conflict of interest, and so on. If used sparingly, primarily as a tool to get researchers to think about particular issues such as the use of animals in research, monitoring can be an effective device for fostering responsible conduct in science and engineering research. If overused, monitoring and the enforcement of compulsory rules of behavior will rapidly become a burden that can destroy the freedom and collegiality that are essential to the vitality of science and engineering research in particular and all academic life in general.
If reading and being informed are all that are required for ensuring responsibility, then this simple policy will go a long way toward fostering responsible conduct in science and engineering research.
Increasing numbers of research universities have chosen to be more aggressive in bringing the responsibilities of researchers to their attention. Their approaches vary, depending on where within administrative structures initiatives derive and how they are most conveniently implemented. However, the goal of each is basically the same: to foster discussion.
the medical faculty to revise their rules for research conduct and to join with others in sponsoring symposia on research ethics.20 The result will undoubtedly be an increased level of discussion of the importance of and special problems pertaining to research conduct. How much impact this will have on students and faculty remains to be seen.
In practice, the committee has adopted a much more ambitious role in fostering responsible conduct in research.
In evaluating the role of discussion in fostering responsibility, an important distinction needs to be made. "Responsibility" is both an academic subject and a matter of practical importance. As an academic subject, "responsibility" can be studied, researched, discussed, and written about in the same way as any other academic subject. There is more than enough that is controversial in the consideration of conflict of interest, the ownership of ideas, the responsible use of humans or animals for experimental purposes, or any other aspect of research to engage scholars who specialize in research ethics in discussion for years to come. However, "responsibility" is also a matter of practical importance. Every day, in small and large ways, individuals who engage in science and engineering research must decide for themselves what it means "to be responsible" and then act. For them, responsibility is not a matter of intellectual curiosity but of practical necessity.
social, ethical, and professional side of science and engineering publish articles on responsibility in research. Science educators discuss ways to foster responsibility through science education. The researcher who wants to become better educated on responsibility in science and engineering has no lack of material to consult. The problem that exists today, if there is a problem, is getting this material to researchers who barely have time to keep abreast of developments in their own fields.
It therefore seems logical to assume, for convenience if for no other reason, that the discussion of responsibility in science and engineering research should begin in the settings in which that research is undertaken, with mentors and their advisees talking about their work, the way it is being undertaken, and its consequences. It is in these settings that the norms of professional conduct are set and passed on. The discussions can be informal and personal. They can also be enriched by adding some organization and involving others, who bring different perspectives to bear on difficult problems. However they are planned or undertaken, the important point is that discussions of responsibility in research should begin in the laboratory and in the classroom. They should, however, not end there.
There are at least two problems that arise if the discussion of responsibility is left exclusively to research settings. First, relying on discussions in research settings to address problems of responsibility is not efficient. To get different points of view on difficult problems it is usually necessary to involve philosophers, social scientists, lawyers, theologians, and others who are removed from the problems and can bring special expertise to bear on them. Generally the number of "outsiders" who are prepared to discuss issues relating to responsibility in science and engineering research is limited. To ask them to come to every science and engineering laboratory or department on a campus is not realistic.
A second problem is that research settings may not be conducive to the discussion of some difficult problems that arise in these settings. Junior researchers or graduate students who feel their work is not being fairly cited in a publication may not feel comfortable discussing authorship with their mentors. Students who disagree with a mentor's way of interpreting data may have qualms about raising this issue in a laboratory meeting. Ideally, of course, discussions should be open to any questions or points of view, but settings in which there are problems associated with responsibility are not ideal.
responsibilities with colleagues in other fields. Lecture series are a useful device for raising consciousness. Orientation programs for new graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, and even faculty can provide information and along with that the message that responsibility in research is taken seriously at the university. There are many ways to promote discussion of issues associated with responsible conduct in science and engineering research. The more ways a university tries to promote discussion, the stronger the message it sends about its commitment to responsibility.
It is impossible in this paper to discuss all of the different ways in which the professional responsibility of scientists and engineers is being addressed through institutional reform. Changes have been suggested for the entire spectrum of science education, from elementary schooling to postdoctoral studies, clinical training, and even continuing education. This section provides a few examples, focusing on advanced undergraduate education, graduate education, and two campuswide programs.
of professional life as scientists and engineers. For others, it may be not only their first but also their last formal contact with these issues.
Research, per se, is generally not a major component of undergraduate education. Some undergraduates have research experiences, but they usually do not start thinking seriously about research until graduate school and their first independent work as researchers. Nonetheless, attitudes and knowledge gained during the undergraduate years can play a major role in determining the future responsibility of scientists and engineers. Attitudes about personal and social responsibility gained during undergraduate years can be transferred to graduate work and the laboratory. Knowledge about professional life and its role in society can provide a framework for questioning and seeking solutions when potential problems arise in the research environment. Just as basic mathematics, chemistry, physics, or biology can be essential for careers in science and engineering, so too basic knowledge about the social and values dimensions of science and engineering can be essential ingredients for being a responsible scientist or engineer. For many scientists and engineers, the only opportunity they have to gain such knowledge comes during their undergraduate years. This is particularly true for engineers, who can more easily engage in research without pursuing graduate studies.
scientists and engineers begin to think seriously about research.33 It is also during these years that they have increasing opportunities to consider questions of responsibility. At the present time, most instruction on responsibility at the graduate level takes place informally through discussions in laboratory settings and between mentors and their students (see ''Promoting Discussion," above). A few schools have instituted special programs, recognizing that graduate education provides an ideal atmosphere for more formal instruction on responsibility.
Adding formal instruction on responsibility and related issues at the graduate level is problematic. It is at this level that educational paths start to diverge and specialize dramatically. For the most part students are no longer in large, common classes. Their programs are full, their time limited, and their needs more focused on particular problems. For these and other reasons, there has not been a parallel STS movement at the graduate level. Still, if the Texas experience is at all indicative, there clearly is room for some instruction in common about responsibility and related problems at the graduate level.
The promotion of the activities discussed in this section and previous sections can be accomplished more effectively if there is some coordination. It is for this reason that a few campuses have sought to establish campuswide programs aimed at one or more aspects of the problems and issues associated with professional responsibility.
The Poynter Center for the Study of Ethics and American Institutions at Indiana University has for a number of years taken an active campus and national role in promoting discussions of professional ethics. In line with similar centers, it has sponsored courses; encouraged curricular innovation, both on its own campus and other campuses; and organized a number of national symposia. Its director, David Smith, is also the prime organizer of the new Association for Practical and Professional Ethics. The Poynter Center has recently begun a major new initiative, "Catalyst: Indiana University's Program on Ethics in Research," which is seeking to "increase awareness about research ethics issues among students and faculty, through discussion and through the introduction of course units on research ethics. …"37 The impact is intended to be campuswide, introducing the discussion of research ethics issues into as many different forums and settings as possible, but with some direction and coordination from a single program.
opinion exists, all one has to do is raise the question of making more room for ethics in the curriculum at a meeting of science or engineering faculty on any university campus.
Those who favor minimal involvement tend to believe that responsibility is learned early in life and outside the classroom, not in university settings. Norms such as honesty, integrity, and reliability, it is argued, are applicable to life in general and are therefore fostered (or not fostered) well before individuals make decisions to become researchers. For those individuals who do eventually become researchers, their sense of responsibility (of morality) adopted early in life may be all that matters when they become scientists and engineers—an assessment that leads some to conclude that responsible researchers are "born," or at least trained early, if not "made."
While it may be true that early education can guide scientists or engineers through some sticky professional problems, it certainly will not help them resolve problems that involve genuine ethical dilemmas. What should a researcher do if she believes she can see a pattern in data being collected but is not sure? What should an engineer do if he is asked to work on a project that might be injurious to the environment or put large numbers of persons out of work? What should clinical researchers or physicians do if they are concerned about the dangers of AIDS research? How should priorities be sorted out when an unread thesis, an unreviewed journal article manuscript, and an unwritten research proposal are all sitting on a scientist's or engineer's desk demanding attention and the time for that attention is limited? Even those who honestly want to act responsibly to follow cherished principles are at times put in situations where principles and general attitudes about responsibility give no clear answers.
there is still much that universities can do to remind and clarify for researchers what it means to be "responsible."
How much universities will ultimately do to foster responsible conduct in science and engineering research will, no doubt, remain proportional to perceived needs. As long as the present public concern continues about fraud in science, conflicts of interest by researchers, the questionable "good" of some projects, the high cost of research, and other problems, it is likely that universities will seek to do more to foster responsibility. Moreover, whether universities believe so or not, there can be no doubt that the public believes that universities have obligations to foster responsibility, including in science and engineering research.
The stance universities take on their obligations to foster responsibility will, in turn, ultimately determine how much is done. This fact became apparent in talking with colleagues on different campuses, some of whom had active programs on their campuses to foster responsible conduct in research and others who had tried to develop such programs but failed. Where there was a supportive atmosphere, programs, courses, discussions, and so on flourished. Where supportive atmospheres have been lacking, some very well intentioned efforts have failed.
What are the ingredients of a supportive atmosphere? Ideally, an administration that is willing to devote some of its time, attention, and support to activities that will foster responsible conduct in science, engineering, and scholarship in general, plus a faculty that has the willingness to devote some of its time and energies to students, campus service, and discussion of the role of science and engineering in modern society. Where either one of these ingredients has been lacking, steps to foster responsibility have been slow in coming. The best-intentioned faculty have a difficult time making changes without administration support. Administrators cannot make changes without the support of faculty, unless they have been able to raise large amounts of money to make changes.
done to foster responsible conduct in science and engineering research is dependent on many factors, not all of which can be controlled or predicted with any certainty.
Granting that there is uncertainty, it is nonetheless instructive, encouraging, and exciting to learn of and think about the variety of actions that faculties and administrators on university campuses are taking to ensure that science and engineering research will remain responsible activities in the future. Their efforts surely will not be irrelevant to the role science and engineering play in American society in the decades that lie ahead.
Sigma Xi, 1986, Honor in Science, Second edition, Sigma Xi, New Haven, Conn.
National Institutes of Health (NIH), 1990, Guidelines for the Conduct of Research at the National Institutes of Health, NIH, Bethesda, Md.
There are exceptions to this generalization. For example, Harvard University has a general set of guidelines that gives brief normative rules under the headings "Supervision of Research Trainees"; "Data Gathering, Storage, Retention"; ''Authorship"; "Publication Practices"; and "Laboratory Guidelines." See Harvard University Faculty of Medicine, 1988, Guidelines for Investigators in Scientific Research, Harvard University, Cambridge, Mass. Additional guidance can usually be found in handbooks on administrative procedures published by the offices that oversee research (for an example, see n. 12 below).
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 1985, Interim Public Health Service Policies and Procedures for Dealing with Possible Misconduct in Science, PHS, Washington, D.C.; following directives in the Health Research Extension Act of 1985 (42 U.S.C. section 289B), which required that each entity receiving a grant submit with its application assurances that (1) it has established procedures for handling allegations of misconduct, and (2) it will report any allegation to PHS.
California Institute of Technology, 1989, Policy on Research Fraud, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena.
University of Michigan, 1986, Interim Policy Statement on the Integrity of Scholarship and Investigating Allegations of Misconduct in the Pursuit of Scholarship and Research, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor; based on the earlier report by the Task Force on the Integrity of Scholarship, 1984, Maintaining the Integrity of Scholarship, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.
University of Maryland at Baltimore and the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, 1989, Policies and Procedures Related to Allegations or Other Evidence of Academic Misconduct, University of Maryland, Baltimore, pp. 2-4. Variations of these lists and brief discussions of misconduct can be found in: University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) School of Medicine, 1988, Policy and Procedures for Review of Alleged Unethical Research Practices, UCLA, Los Angeles; University of Chicago, 1986, Report of the Provost's Committee on Academic Fraud, University of Chicago, Chicago; University of Colorado, 1988, Administrative Policy Statement: Misconduct in Research and Authorship, University of Colorado, Boulder; University of Minnesota, 1989, Policies and Procedures for Dealing with Fraud in Research, Interim Administrative Policy, University of Minnesota, Rochester; and University of North Carolina (UNC), 1989, Policy and Procedures on Ethics in Research, UNC, Chapel Hill.
University of Maryland, Policies and Procedures, 1989, p. 2.
State of Ohio, "The Ohio Revised Code, Chapter 102: Public Officers—Ethics," p. 7, as referred to in Scott, M. H., 1984, "Ethical Standards," a memorandum, Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio.
Pennsylvania State University, 1989, Policy on Conflict of Interest, Pennsylvania State University, College Park.
Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, 1984, Conflict of Commitment Guidelines for Full-Time Faculty, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, pp. 6, 8.
University of Michigan, 1990, Administration of Sponsored Projects, Division of Research Development and Administration, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor (revised annually). Not mentioned on this list, but also relevant, would be rules on computer use and the treatment of employees. To one extent or another, all major research universities have similar sets of rules. See, for example, Stanford University, 1990, Research Policy Handbook, Stanford University, Palo Alto, Calif. The handbook is "comprised of selected policy statements and guidelines which support the research enterprise at Stanford."
It is interesting to note that some university policies on one or another aspect of responsible conduct are generously borrowed from the policies already adopted at other universities without giving attribution. The bounds between undisputed plagiarism and the "acceptable borrowing" of words, phrases, and introductory and descriptive materials are not as easily drawn as some imagine.
The 13 areas are use of human subjects; use of vertebrate animals; use of radioactive materials; carcinogens; recombinant DNA; biological hazards; proprietary materials; classified research; other restrictions on openness of research; subcontracting; potential conflict of interest; work off university property; and study of another country. See University of Michigan, n.d., Proposal Approval Form, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.
University of Michigan Medical School, n.d., Application to the Institutional Review Board (IRB) for Approval of Research Involving Human Subjects, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.
University of Michigan, Application to the IRB, n.d.
University of Michigan Medical School, 1989, Program in Principles of Scientific Integrity for National Research Service Award (NRSA) Applicants, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor; and University of Michigan Medical School, 1989, Guidelines for the Responsible Conduct of Research, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.
Bok, D., 1982, Beyond the Ivory Tower: Social Responsibilities of the Modern Research University, Harvard University, Cambridge, Mass; see especially chaps. 6 and 7.
Interview, Dennis Thompson, director, Program in Ethics and the Professions, Harvard University, November 1990.
Interview, Morton Litt, Office of Research Issues, Harvard University Medical School, November 1990.
University of Colorado, n.d., Administrative Policy Statement: Misconduct in Research and Authorship, University of Colorado, Boulder.
University of Colorado, Boulder, 1990, "Operating Rules and Procedures of the Standing Committee on Research Misconduct," October 1.
Interview, Alan Greenberg, Mechanical Engineering, University of Colorado, Boulder, November 1990.
National Institutes of Health (NIH) and Alcohol, Drug Abuse, and Mental Health Administration (ADAMHA), 1989, "Requirement for programs on the responsible conduct of research in National Research Service Award institutional training programs," NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts 18(December 22):1. The requirement was effective July 1, 1990.
The deadline for the first applications affected by this rule was January 10, 1991. It will therefore be some months before the initial impact of the new requirement can be reviewed. For the NIH's initial thoughts on compliance, see Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), 1990, PHS Workshop: Education and Training of Scientists in the Responsible Conduct of Research, March 8-9, Public Health Service, Washington, D.C.
Based on presentation given by Floyd Bloom at the workshop described in DHHS, PHS Workshop, 1990, and on subsequent telephone conversations.
Universities have also taken action in response to the NIH requirements for dealing with misconduct in research (see n. 5 above). However, this requirement simply calls for rules to deal with misconduct and therefore does not emphasize fostering responsible conduct.
For example, programs such as the recent symposium titled "Ethical Issues in Research," sponsored by the FIDIA Research Foundation, Georgetown University, April 29-30, 1991.
The institutional reforms discussed below generally have foci that are much broader than science and engineering per se. However, fostering responsibility in sciences and engineering research certainly finds a home under the broader umbrellas of these reforms.
For a description of one such course recently developed at Florida State University, see Gilmer, P. J., and M. Rashotte, 1989/1990, "Marshalling the resources of a large state university for an interdisciplinary 'science, technology, and society' course," Journal of College Science Teaching (December/January):150-156.
For a summary of the development of STS studies, focusing particularly on research, see Hollander, R., and N. Steneck, 1990, "Science- and engineering-related ethics and values studies: characteristics of an emerging field of research," Science, Technology, and Human Values 15(January):84-104.
University of Minnesota College of Agriculture, 1990, Project Sunrise Third Annual Report: July 1989 - June 1990, University of Minnesota; and conversations with Mark L. Brenner, associate dean, University of Minnesota Graduate School.
It is recognized that there are differences between science and engineering. Generally, engineers get more deeply into their subjects during their undergraduate years than do scientists.
Presentation given by R. William Butcher at the workshop described in DHHS, PHS Workshop, 1990, and subsequent conversations with Stanley J. Reiser.
Other broad programs have been or are being established at Indiana University, Dartmouth College, Wayne State University, Harvard University, and Princeton University, to mention only a few. Special discipline- or profession-based programs (e.g., medical ethics or engineering ethics) exist on many campuses.
Interview, Robert DeHaan, Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, Emory University, November 1990, and a brief conversation with Billy E. Frye, vice president for academic affairs and provost, Emory University.
Conversations with David Smith, director, Poynter Center, Indiana University, and from descriptions of the Catalyst Program.
One influence that is not specifically related to science and engineering research but that may have a bearing on how much respect policies relating to responsibility in research receive is the gender bias that is found in many of these policies. Some still exclusively use male pronouns. Equally insensitive is the practice of noting in a footnote that "Masculine parts of speech are hereafter presumed to include the feminine" (Harvard University Faculty of Medicine, 1990, Policy on Conflicts of Interest and Commitment, Harvard University, Cambridge, Mass.; see also University of Michigan, 1989, Guidelines). The lack of sensitivity to inclusively is one more factor that bears on atmosphere and helps or undermines efforts to foster responsibility. | 2019-04-25T14:55:44Z | https://www.nap.edu/read/2091/chapter/2 |
Winter in Pune, is a joke 😐 . Not a typical ‘HAHA’ joke, per se, but a ridiculous one where you eagerly pull out woolens from boxes, sun them and then wait patiently till the weather is cool enough to use them. And then you sit back and twiddle your thumbs, waiting for the cold winds to blow your way.
The weather, alas, has other plans. So while the Northern region of the country freezes away to glory, the twins at home refuse to wear a shirt over their vest, claiming it to be ‘too hot’. The fan whirls at a nice speed as we sleep in the night, justifying, somewhat, the need to use a blanket (forget the heavy ‘razai‘ !).
Winter hasn’t technically arrived yet and I have already packed my woolies back in their boxes. Maybe next year, I will give them all away to charity.
So we started not-so-early on Saturday, had a nice 3 and an half hour pleasurable ride through beautiful hills and fields. We crossed the picturesque town of Wai, famous for many movies (Swades, Bol Bachchan, Gangajal, etc). We didn’t stop there though. The ghat stretch was pretty treacherous with sharp bends and we wanted to reach Mahabi before the traffic got worse. Once we hit Mahabi, we visited the Mapro Garden. I think it is a popular destination for food/ice-creams (served with fresh strawberries)/ candies, syrups, squashes/jams/honey, etc. Though Lui had a bad cough, she kicked up a big fuss when we refused her the ice-cream. When she started screaming blue murder, we gave in and got her a cone. “She won’t be able to finish it”, the BF told me. Knowing my girl, I should have bet him on it. She finished it without a care about the world. I mentally thanked myself for remembering to ger her cough syrup along!
Shobby wouldn’t allow me to click his snap, behaving like a celebrity caught in the vicious circle of paparazzi. After a few snaps of him covering his face, I gave up 😦 .
The Mapro farm had put up a big trampoline inside their premises. There were a bunch of kids already going bonkers on it. I was a little apprehensive, what if someone lands on them?! But then, the kids seemed excited and we dumped them on the trampoline.
We ordered lunch, quickly gobbled the food and then contemplated the next step. I think an honest confession is due here. Neither the BF nor I am keen on walking long distances. We thought and we planned and then after much discussion resorted to taking a well-deserved nap after the long drive. So we all hit the bed.
Don’t be fooled by the sun. It looks warm and sunny but it really wasn’t. It was COLD!!!
Once back in our suite, I have the kids a nice hot water bath, bundled them in their pyjamas and sweaters and settled them to watch “Charlie and the chocolate factory”. Meanwhile, me and the BF took a leisurely stroll outside, reveling in the chilled air, the one which makes your insides shiver (bliss 🙂 ). Eventually, we saw the lights going off all around us, one by one. so we pulled out chairs and sat outside the room, chatting like we used to , a long time back. I think hours passed. Sure that it must be nearing 12:30 in the night, I asked the BF if we should go in.
“Its only 10:30 now”, he informed me.
Anyhow, we called it a night . At least the BF did. I was busy finishing “the immortals of Meluha”. We woke up early the next morning. The BF had some work to attend to back in Pune, we wanted to be home by afternoon. On the drive back, we came across Venna lake. Lui and Shobby wanted to go boating, but he service hadn’t started yet. The BF was in a hurry so we kind of cajoled the kids into believing that only kids who can swim are allowed to go boating. My poor little angels for the fib 😦 . Though they agreed, Lui wasn’t happy about the whole deal, something that she made clear by pasting the biggest frown on her face when I asked them to pose for snaps! Shobbs had no qualms in smiling though.
We made only one stop on the way back. Halfway through, we came across a nice stretch of farms and on one end was a stall selling sugarcane juice. Who could resist?? We bought 2-3 mugs of it. I asked the seller to add ginger to make it easily digestible for the kids. Alas, they hated the taste of it. But again, they had no problems posing for a snap 🙂 . Lui’s good mood was restored too.
We reached home by lunch time and after that, life was back to routine.
After reaching back, I realized that we had crossed a major milestone. I rarely took the kids out for long drives before, bothered more about their toilet urges and not having proper facilities on the way. I wondered if the kids will fall sick, throw up and be miserable. I wondered if I would be able to manage them.
This trip was an eye-opener. I realized that my kids can control their urge until we reach back to our room. There were no accidents, no throwing up, no peeing on the bed and surprisingly, in spite of that big ice-cream, no coughing and fever from Lui. The kids have grown up, and how!
Its Called Reputation, My Friend!
Many moons ago, Dad was posted in Pune. It was a quaint Army establishment, about 20 km away from the main city, near the famous Khadakwasla lake and under the veritable shadow of NDA. The place was called Institute of Armament Technology, now called the Defense Institute of Advanced Technology.
The weekend before Eid, me and the BF got an opportunity to drive down to Khadakwasla village. There is a quaint little Masjid there, the maulana of which used to teach us the Holy Quran. Every year, it is a ritual to visit the Masjid and hand over some Hadiya(gift) to the Maulana. Usually, we used to visit the place in the early days of Ramzan…alas , this time we were caught up with many other things and couldn’t make it until the last minute.
Now Khadakwasla is a good 20+ km from my place. A distance, which I usually never think of covering myself unless the BF is with me 🙂 . We did think of taking the kids along, but what with them being cranky the whole day and then dropping off to sleep just when we were planning on leaving, there was no option but to leave them behind. Also, since it was raining cats and dogs and their mamas and chachas, we thought it prudent to leave the kids back home (though we were travelling by car, the road to Khadakwasla is not known to be in the best of conditions…more so in the rains !!).
It was a lovely drive….after simply ages, me and the BF were together without the noisy presence of the kids 😀 . We sang out loud, gossiped, called each other names and in general, had much more fun in that one hour than in the last 6 months !! Once we reached our destination, we met up with the maulana, handed over the Hadiya and then prepared for the long trip back since we wanted to get home before Iftaar time. Coming out of the tiny village, I had a whim and asked the BF if we could just take a short trip to IAT which was barely 500 metres away from where we had stopped. The BF obliged and we made the turn.
Now, IAT has two gates, one is the main gate which was a kilometer away and the other one was the smaller gate usually taken by residents of the bungalows in that section of IAT. When we used to live here, this gate was our regular route. So me and the BF made straight for the smaller gate. There were two security guards standing there, who on seeing us, instead of opening the gate, yelled at us to go back.
I was a little stunned at this reaction…but then realized that this was a defense establishment and given the current scenario, the security would be pumped up high. The older of the two guards, a man around 60 came up to us and sternly told us not to breach security. We were a bit indignant , because frankly, the way he said it , made it sound as though we were planning on running right through the gate !!
Old Guard (OG) : Gaadi peechhe lo. Gate ke itne paas mat aao. Aapko pata nahin hai kya, yeh defense establishment hai.
Me : (in all politeness) Haan pata hai. Hum yahan rehte the pehle.
OG : (looking even more guarded than before) Kahan??
Me : Yahin. P-9 bungalow mein. Mai Colonel Yasin ki beti hoon. Aap jaante hain unko?
Me : (smiling politely while jabbing my elbow into the BF’s ribs to stop his mirthful giggling) Haan..unki teen betiyaan hai. Mai sabse chhoti hoon. Aap meri behen ko jaante hai….
OG : (breaking into a smile finally ) Arre haan…unki yahan shaadi hui thi na?! Hum aaye the. Sahab ne bulaya tha.
Me : (totally amazed) Aapko shaadi yaad hai?!
OG : (grinning happily) Ji haan. Hum logoen ko sir ne khud invite kiya tha. Aisa kijiye, waise to yahan se andar jaana allowed nahin hai….par aapko andar kaam kya hai??
Me : Mujhe apne husband ko hamara purana ghar dikhana hai. Bas 2 minute lagenge.
OG : Achcha theek hai. Lekin please aap jaldi aao.
Me : Zaroor. Thank you.
We made a small trip around the place…..went to the bungalow where I used to live and where the BF used to drop by once in a while for group study during college days 🙂 . Okay, so we weren’t really truthful when we told the guard that I wanted to show the BF my house. The husband had been to this place ages ago and loved it just as much as I did. That’s the reason we planned to drop by again. Those were wonderful days and it was great to relive it once again.
While on the way back, the OG rushed to open the gates for us once more. I rolled down the window to thank him. He just saluted us with a big grin and told me, “Sahab ko bolna, hum unko abhi bhi yaad karte hain. Kabhi Pune aaye, toh IAT zaroor aane bolna”.
I replied back in the affirmative and we made our way back home.
For a long while, we were silent, both of us ruminating over the past 15 minutes.
After a while, the BF broke the silence, “You know….I’ve been in this company for 5 years. Tomorrow if I leave this place and then come back after a year or so, probably no one will ever remember me”.
“Same here “, I replied glumly.
“You dad was here for only 3 years, yet 11 years later, people still remember him”.
“That is some reputation, I say”.
“We’ve got a long way to go”, says the BF.
Prabul reached us at 9 AM. He started early despite fever & we owe him for that. We packed and departed Leh around 11 AM. Kashmir, here we come! Or so we thought. End of day, we could only reach Kargil! Ate delicious Kashmiri Wazwan and a shopkeeper narrated stories of the infamous 1999 Kargil War. Amazing to note, the town bounced back into a major commercial center, despite being ruined during the war! Nothing special about this day, except that I felt I was riding through history. Nice feeling.
Left early around 6 AM, only to run smack into a CRPF check-post. The soldiers were friendly, but wary of us as there was hardly anyone else on the road. A bandh had been declared and there was cops/CRPF/Army everywhere. We had to prove our credentials to be let thru. We asked if we could see Dal_Lake, they said “go ahead, at your risk :)”. We did a quick visit to the lake which was surprisingly bustling with people, early morning walkers & tourists. Strange! We lingered for some time, shot some pictures & then rode. We hoped to reach Pathankot via Jammu that day. Road out of Srinagar is beautiful, all the way to Jammu. Only glitch, it is 100% twists & turns, which can be very painful for the wrists & shoulders. Rode thru the Banihal_Tunnel & landed at Patnitop for tea at 4 PM. This being a tourist spot, we were mobbed by locals & tourists, asking about our ride and how adventurous it was. Refreshed and rode again, only to reach Udhampur at 6. By then, shoulders & arms were paining a lot. Saddle felt like we’re sitting on a bed of pine-cones. Still we had a destination to get to. We decided not to take the NH as traffic would be high. We took the State Highway, with the plan to halt at Samba for the night. Man Proposes… We don’t know when we crossed Samba. It was dark already. Reached a crossroad where a small tea shop owner insisted that we freshen up before he answered any queries. He also knew we were LOST! After 2 cuppa each, he gave us directions. We rode the rest in pitch dark conditions, with only headlights to guide and taillights to follow. Dinesh led us thru the darkness, not because he was a messenger from God, but because he had the best headlamp 😀 We landed at a JKTDC guest house at Kathua, still 45 kms short of Pathankot. It was already 9.30 PM, but fortunately they had a lovely restaurant open till 11. We don’t recall when we slept.
Woke up to realize it had been raining the whole night. It was still raining as we rode out at 9 AM (BIG MISTAKE!!!). For the next 5 hours, till we crossed Jalandhar, it was raining. I can proudly say, that was my biggest rain ride. I can also say I have weathered many a storm! 🙂 With water inside the shoes, pants and everything else, it became even more tiring. When the sun came out, we were pretty close to Ambala. We were also pretty close to the end of our endurance. Sheer exhaustion and severe saddle sore doesn’t listen to any reasoning. The milestone said – New Delhi – 200 kms. My sore posterior said “Forget it”. Fortunately, others agreed and we packed up at Ambala! Found a GATI store to ship our beloved bikes back, we would get them in our parking lot only after 5 days . Found a room to party our successful ride & slept.
Somehow, I just cant get enough of this lake!!
Woke up next morning to discover my friends had already arranged for permits, but it would take a day. Took a hot water bath (Yes Finally!) Dressed up & started discovering that mystical land – Leh. Visited the starting point of Sindhu river, followed by Shey Palace. Visited my dad’s old regiment that was posted in Leh then. The Commanding Officer, Second-In-Command and all Officers greeted us and hosted a wonderful lunch for us. Being Army Officers, they wondered why civilians like us would spend so much money, efforts & pains to visit places where they get posted as a norm! 😀 . Their beer mugs had to be seen to be believed! Left the regiment & visited the War Museum. This place had a collection of the most turbulent times of the Ladakh region & it’s history, pre & post independence. Including pictures, biographies & stories of all wars fought, all the Gallantry award winners & more. To go thru that museum would be a day’s visit, we got thru in 1 hour. A very memorable visit indeed. Rode back to Leh.
Move away!! Lemme see the lake !!
With permits in hand, we rode towards the lake made famous by the Bollywood movie – 3 Idiots. Riding in -3 degree centigrade, past the Changla_pass, we reached Pangong_Tso around lunch time. What a sight! The beauty of the lake cannot be described, in words, in pictures, nothing. You have to see that place to believe it. The colors of the hills surrounding the lake & the water itself changes with each passing cloud. Spent a good 3 hours there. Left at 3 PM and reached Leh again at 8 PM.
Dinesh’s Birthday! The other riders had a plan in mind. Started late from Leh around 11 AM to conquer the official HIGHTEST MOTOR ABLE ROAD IN THE WORLD – Khardung_La! A distance of only 39 kms from Leh, this was soon to turn into our worst nightmare! The road to South Pullu, 25 kms from Leh was nice, the only problem being rain, snowfall & fog. Nearing this place, we could not feel our fingers & toes. Only heat available was – hold your bike’s silencers! Made it to South Pullu, where the Army served us hot lemon tea & Momos! Nothing tasted better in the world then! They even allowed us to shove our hands into the kitchen stoves to warm up! Had a quick debate about whether to return to Leh & return the next day better prepared, or battle-on, risking AMS & frostbite. The temperature then was already in the negative. Khardung-la that day was -10 degree centigrade! The first idea was thrown out the door. We rode on the remaining 14 kms of non-existent roads and reached K-Top at 3 PM. SUCCESS! The feeling of riding up to the highest motor able road in the world – Priceless! Spent 30 minute at the highest cafeteria in the world, bought stuff from the highest Souvenir shop in the world and YES, celebrated Dinesh’s birthday, the highest birthday in the world! 🙂 Rode back and reached the warm climes (relatively!) of Leh around 6 PM.
Age is catching up with me, fast 😐 ! Body refused to listen. Dinesh & I decided to stay back & do some lazy shopping in Leh, while Prabul decided to take a crack at the unofficial HIGHEST MOTOR ABLE PASS in the world – Marsimik-La. Feel real proud to say he made it! Kudos buddy, that is something not everyone achieves! We spent the day lazing around Leh town, buying knick-knacks for loved ones back home. Prabul called around evening and informed us he had taken sick around Pangong lake and was staying back there for the night. We were worried, but hoped he would be fit to reach us next morning.
Not everything in Leh is grey and brown and white! | 2019-04-24T07:51:48Z | https://momofrs.wordpress.com/category/travel/ |
This is the Nth iteration of a "list of papers supporting the vaccine-autism link" that Ginger Taylor has published. I've lost count of the iterations.
131 papers number: 31. 124 papers number: 0. 72 papers number: 0. Khaled EM, Meguid NA, Bjørklund G, Gouda A, Bahary MH, Hashish A, Sallam NM, Chirumbolo S, El-Bana MA. Altered urinary porphyrins and mercury exposure as biomarkers for autism severity in Egyptian children with autism spectrum disorder. Metab Brain Dis. 2016 Dec;31(6):1419-1426. Epub 2016 Jul 13 It is an article of faith, based on the following Nataf study, that porphyrins can be used to give a very accurate measure of how much mercury (or other metals) are in someone’s system. It has not been so established.Thimerosal is no longer used in US pediatric vaccines and has been exonerated of causality in autism (see Hurley 2010, Price 2010, Yoshimasu 2014, Taylor 2014). Does not establish that vaccines are causal in autism.
131 papers number: 32. 124 papers number: 28. 72 papers number: 0 Nataf R, Skorupka C, Amet L, Lam A, Springbett A, Lathe R, Porphyrinuria in childhood autistic disorder: implications for environmental toxicity. Toxicol Appl Pharmacol. 2006 Jul 15;214(2):99-108. Epub 2006 Jun 16. This paper was widely discussed when it was first published. See summary here, and a detailed analysis at LeftBrainRightBrain Autism. In summary, Nataf et al. was based on very questionable science. It is useful to note that Nataf hasn't published on autism since, and Lathe seems to have moved on as well, publishing his last article on autism in 2009. Does not establish that vaccines are causal in autism.
131 papers number: 33. 124 papers number: 29. 72 papers number: 0 Austin DW, Shandley K. An investigation of porphyrinuria in Australian children with autism. J Toxicol Environ Health A. 2008;71(20):1349-51. doi: 10.1080/15287390802271723. This study cites the aforementioned Nataf paper, and another paper by the father-son Geier team, making the provenance of this paper quite questionable. In any case,thimerosal is no longer used in US pediatric vaccines and has been exonerated of causality in autism (see Hurley 2010, Price 2010, Yoshimasu 2014, Taylor 2014). Does not establish that vaccines are causal in autism.
131 papers number: 34. 124 papers number: 30. 72 papers number: 0 Youn SI, Jin SH, Kim SH, Lim S. Porphyrinuria in Korean children with autism: correlation with oxidative stress. J Toxicol Environ Health A. 2010;73(10):701-10. doi: 10.1080/15287391003614000. It is an article of faith, based on the following Nataf 2006, study, that porphyrins can be used to give a very accurate measure of how much mercury (or other metals) are in someone’s system. It has not been so established. In any case,thimerosal is no longer used in US pediatric vaccines and has been exonerated of causality in autism (see Hurley 2010, Price 2010, Yoshimasu 2014, Taylor 2014). Does not establish that vaccines are causal in autism.
131 papers number: 35. 124 papers number: 31. 72 papers number: 0 Goth SR, Chu RA, Gregg JP, Cherednichenko G, Pessah IN. Uncoupling of ATP-mediated calcium signaling and dysregulated interleukin-6 secretion in dendritic cells by nanomolar thimerosal. Environ Health Perspect. 2006 Jul;114(7):1083-91. In vitro study, using mouse cells. Does not establish that vaccines are causal in autism.
131 papers number: 36. 124 papers number: 32. 72 papers number: 0 Breece E, Paciotti B, Nordahl CW, Ozonoff S, Van de Water JA, Rogers SJ, Amaral D, Ashwood P. Myeloid dendritic cells frequencies are increased in children with autism spectrum disorder and associated with amygdala volume and repetitive behaviors. Brain Behav Immun. 2013 Jul;31:69-75. doi: 10.1016/j.bbi.2012.10.006. Epub 2012 Oct 11. Autistic children may also have differences in their immune systems. No mention of vaccines in the paper. Does not establish that vaccines are causal in autism.
131 papers number: 37. 124 papers number: 33. 72 papers number: 11 Burbacher TM, Shen DD, Liberato N, Grant KS, Cernichiari E, Clarkson T, Comparison of blood and brain mercury levels in infant monkeys exposed to methylmercury or vaccines containing thimerosal. Environ Health Perspect. 2005 Aug;113(8):1015-21. The flaws in the study design are summarized here. In any case ,thimerosal is no longer used in US pediatric vaccines and has been exonerated of causality in autism (see Hurley 2010, Price 2010, Yoshimasu 2014, Taylor 2014). Does not establish that vaccines are causal in autism.. Does not establish that vaccines are causal in autism.
131 papers number: 38. 124 papers number: 34. 72 papers number: 0 Rooney JP. The retention time of inorganic mercury in the brain--a systematic review of the evidence. Toxicol Appl Pharmacol. 2014 Feb 1;274(3):425-35. doi: 10.1016/j.taap.2013.12.011. Epub 2013 Dec 22. The type of mercury in the vaccine preservative thimerosal is organic mercury. This paper on inorganic mercury is irrelevant to the claim that vaccines have something to do with autism. Does not establish that vaccines are causal in autism. Does not establish that vaccines are causal in autism.
131 papers number: 39. 124 papers number: 35. 72 papers number: 0 Rice DC Brain and tissue levels of mercury after chronic methylmercury exposure in the monkey. J Toxicol Environ Health. 1989;27(2):189-98. The type of mercury in the vaccine preservative thimerosal is ethyl mercury. This paper on inorganic mercury is irrelevant to the claim that vaccines have something to do with autism.
The key takeaway from this infographic. Ethyl mercury is a metabolite of thimerosal, which is the form of mercury that has been removed from all routine US childhood vaccines (except for multidose vials of influenza vaccines). Ethyl mercury does not accumulate in the body. On the other hand, methyl mercury, the kind found in deep sea fish, has environmental concerns.
131 papers number: 40. 124 papers number: 0. 72 papers number: 0 Akinrinade ID, Memudu AE, Ogundele OM, Ajetunmobi OI. Interplay of glia activation and oxidative stress formation in fluoride and aluminium exposure. Pathophysiology. 2015 Mar;22(1):39-48. doi: 10.1016/j.pathophys.2014.12.001. Epub 2014 Dec 13. Rat study. Fluoride is not present in vaccines. Does not establish that vaccines are causal in autism.
131 papers number: 41. 124 papers number: 36. 72 papers number: 0 Charleston JS, Bolender RP, Mottet NK, Body RL, Vahter ME, Burbacher TM, Increases in the number of reactive glia in the visual cortex of Macaca fascicularis following subclinical long-term methyl mercury exposure. Toxicol Appl Pharmacol. 1994 Dec;129(2):196-206. Previous debunking (from 2012!) here. Methyl mercury has never been in vaccines. Huge doses of a form of mercury not used in vaccines Animal study. Has no relevance to pediatric vaccine exposure. Does not establish that vaccines are causal in autism.
131 papers number: 42 . 124 papers number: 37. 72 papers number: 0. Vargas DL, Nascimbene C, Krishnan C, Zimmerman AW, Pardo CA, Neuroglial activation and neuroinflammation in the brain of patients with autism. Ann Neurol. 2005 Jan;57(1):67-81. This is a post mortem study of 11 autistic individuals, plus 6 living individuals, in which specific changes were found in some individuals. This paper is preliminary; it suggests avenues for further study. However, it has no relevance to pediatric vaccine exposure. Does not establish that vaccines are causal in autism.
131 papers number: 43. 124 papers number: 0. 72 papers number: 0 Morgan JT, Chana G, Pardo CA, Achim C, Semendeferi K, Buckwalter J, Courchesne E, Everall IP. Microglial activation and increased microglial density observed in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex in autism Biol Psychiatry. 2010 Aug 15;68(4):368-76. doi: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2010.05.024. Postmortem studies on specific differences between autistic brains and non-autistic brains. No evidence for vaccine exposure causing changes in microglial density. Does not establish that vaccines are causal in autism.
131 papers number: 44. 124 papers number: 0. 72 papers number: 0 Gupta S, Ellis SE, Ashar FN, Moes A, Bader JS, Zhan J, West AB, Arking DE. Transcriptome analysis reveals dysregulation of innate immune response genes and neuronal activity-dependent genes in autism. Nat Commun. 2014 Dec 10;5:5748. doi: 10.1038/ncomms6748. Post mortem study of 47 autistic brains and 57 control to "identify and dissect molecular pathways that may be altered in autism spectrum disorder. " Interesting paper, but it has absolutely nothing to do with pediatric vaccine exposure. Does not establish that vaccines are causal in autism.
131 papers number: 45 . 124 papers number: 39. 72 papers number: 0. Lukiw WJ, Percy ME, Kruck TP. Nanomolar aluminum induces pro-inflammatory and pro-apoptotic gene expression in human brain cells in primary culture. J Inorg Biochem. 2005 Sep;99(9):1895-8. In vitro study with human brain cells exposed to exposed to very small quantities of aluminum sulfate. There is no aluminum sulfate in vaccines. There is no elemental aluminum in vaccines either. The adjuvants used are aluminum phosphate, aluminum hydroxide, and/or aluminum salts (only in DTaP-HepB-IPV (Pediarix)). Does not establish that vaccines are causal in autism.
131 papers number: 46 . 124 papers number: 40. 72 papers number: 0. Young AM, Campbell E, Lynch S, Suckling J, Powis SJ. Aberrant NF-kappaB expression in autism spectrum condition: a mechanism for neuroinflammation. Front Psychiatry. 2011 May 13;2:27. doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2011.00027. eCollection 2011. Study on 9 postmortem tissue samples from autistic individuals and 9 postmortem tissue samples from non-autistic individuals, looking at a particular protein involved in inflammation. In this small study, more of the protein found in autistic brains. Interesting paper, but it has absolutely nothing to do with pediatric vaccine exposure. Does not establish that vaccines are causal in autism.
131 papers number: 47 . 124 papers number: 41. 72 papers number: 0. Naik US, Gangadharan C, Abbagani K, Nagalla B, Dasari N, Manna SK. A study of nuclear transcription factor-kappa B in childhood autism. PLoS One. 2011 May 9;6(5):e19488. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0019488. This paper looked at the same protein as paper #46, but in blood samples from 67 autistic children and 29 non-autistic children. The autistic children were found to have more of the protein circulating in their blood. Interesting paper, but it has absolutely nothing to do with pediatric vaccine exposure. Does not establish that vaccines are causal in autism.
131 papers number: 48 . 124 papers number: 42. 72 papers number: 14. Herbert MR, Autism: A Brain Disorder, or A Disorder That Affects the Brain? Clinical Neuropsychiatry 2005 2:(6) 354-379 This is a long opinion piece, draped in sciencey-sounding language; it is merely Herbert's musings on notions about causation. See more here. Also, Dr. Herbert's theories about autism have been rejected. Does not establish that vaccines are causal in autism.
131 papers number: 49 . 124 papers number: 43. 72 papers number: 15. Waly M, Olteanu H, Banerjee R, Choi SW, Mason JB, Parker BS, Sukumar S, Shim S, Sharma A, Benzecry JM, Power-Charnitsky VA, Deth RC, Activation of methionine synthase by insulin-like growth factor-1 and dopamine: a target for neurodevelopmental toxins and thimerosal. Mol Psychiatry. 2004 Apr;9(4):358-70. In vitro study; thimerosal has not been found to contribute to autism; lead author, Deth's expert opinion has been rejected from several court cases: See full discussion. Does not establish that vaccines are causal in autism.
131 papers number: 50. 124 papers number: 44. 72 papers number: 20 Werner E, Dawson G. Validation of the phenomenon of autistic regression using home videotapes. Arch Gen Psychiatry. 2005 Aug;62(8):889-95. This is a well done and interesting paper. Please see the discussion, and links to other studies, here, and a longer version, here,with links to similar papers. The paper does not mention vaccines, and there is no reason to include it on this list. Does not establish that vaccines are causal in autism.
131 papers number: 51. 124 papers number: 45. 72 papers number: 17 Desoto MC, Hitlan RT. Blood levels of mercury are related to diagnosis of autism: a reanalysis of an important data set. J Child Neurol. 2007 Nov;22(11):1308-11. This paper when published in 2007 was subject to a great deal of critical analysis, which is summarized here. In short, the paper exists only to try to spin a positive result out of a negative result. Does not establish that vaccines are causal in autism.
131 papers number: 52. 124 papers number: 46. 72 papers number: 18 Seneff S, Davidson RM, Liu J, Empirical Data Confirm Autism Symptoms Related to Aluminum and Acetaminophen Exposure Entropy 2012, 14(11), 2227-2253; doi:10.3390/e14112227 The many fatal flaws in this paper were roundly criticized when it was published in 2012. One critique here and another critique here. Does not establish that vaccines are causal in autism.
131 papers number: 53. 124 papers number: 47. 72 papers number: 0 Hormozi M, Makarem A, Abotorabi-Zarchi M, Firoozabadi A. Glutathione-related factors and oxidative stress in autism, a review. Curr Med Chem. 2012;19(23):4000-5. It may be established that autistic individuals have metabolic differences to non-autistic individuals, but this paper is silent on vaccinations. Does not establish that vaccines are causal in autism.
131 papers number: 54. 124 papers number: 48. 72 papers number: 19 Poling JS, Frye RE, Shoffner J, Zimmerman AW. Developmental regression and mitochondrial dysfunction in a child with autism. J Child Neurol. 2006 Feb;21(2):170-2. The "autistic like" symptoms demonstrated by Hannah Poling were part of a global encephalopathy caused by a mitochondrial enzyme deficit. This paper too was widely discussed when published, for both structural and ethical reasons. See for example a list here and a discussion of the Poling case here. Does not establish that vaccines are causal in autism.
131 papers number: 55. 124 papers number: 49. 72 papers number: 20 Sajdel-Sulkowska EM, Lipinski B, Windom H, Audhya T, McGinnis W. Oxidative Stress in Autism: Elevated Cerebellar 3-nitrotyrosine Levels American Journal of Biochemistry and Biotechnology. 2008; 4: (2) 73-84. DOI: 10.3844/ajbbsp.2008.73.84 Another small post-mortem study of autistic brains compared to non-autistic brains. Nothing to connect "oxidative stress" to vaccines. Does not establish that vaccines are causal in autism.
131 papers number: 56. 124 papers number: 50. 72 papers number: 21 Herbert MR. Large brains in autism: the challenge of pervasive abnormality. Neuroscientist. 2005 Oct;11(5):417-40. Here Dr. Herbert is reviewing common findings on neuroanatomy and speculating about causes for these findings. Nothing here about vaccines. Does not establish that vaccines are causal in autism.
131 papers number: 57. 124 papers number: 51. 72 papers number: 22 Kern JK, Jones AM. Evidence of toxicity, oxidative stress, and neuronal insult in autism. J Toxicol Environ Health B Crit Rev. 2006 Nov-Dec;9(6):485-99. This is a review paper, not a study. It's also worrying that Kern is a co-author with one or both Geiers for 14 papers. As of 2012, she was employed by the Geier chemical-castration-for-autism chain. Does not establish that vaccines are causal in autism.
131 papers number: 58. 124 papers number: 52. 72 papers number: 23 Chauhan A, Chauhan V. Oxidative stress in autism. Pathophysiology. 2006 Aug;13(3):171-81. Epub 2006 Jun 12. This is a review article, summarizing the research to date on oxidative stress in autism and some implications for therapies. The conclusion: "Preliminary results of some of clinical trials have suggested improved behavior in individuals with autism who received antioxidant therapy." Does not establish that vaccines are causal in autism.
131 papers number: 59. 124 papers number: 53. 72 papers number: 24 James SJ, Slikker W 3rd, Melnyk S, New E, Pogribna M, Jernigan S. Thimerosal neurotoxicity is associated with glutathione depletion: protection with glutathione precursors. Neurotoxicology. 2005 Jan;26(1):1-8. Another in-vitro study with a concentration of thimerosal (no longer used in childhood vaccines in the U.S., with the exception of some flu vaccines) much higher than in vaccines. Does not establish that vaccines are causal in autism.
131 papers number: 60. 124 papers number: 54. 72 papers number: 21 Ercal N, Gurer-Orhan H, Aykin-Burns N. Toxic metals and oxidative stress part I: mechanisms involved in metal-induced oxidative damage. Curr Top Med Chem. 2001 Dec;1(6):529-39. Mentions mercury as a toxic metal, other metals not found in vaccines. Does not mention autism. Does not mention vaccines as a source of toxic metals. Does not establish that vaccines are causal in autism. | 2019-04-23T05:53:37Z | https://lizditz.typepad.com/i_speak_of_dreams/2017/05/are-there-131-papers-that-support-vaccineautism-causation-papers-31-60.html |
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The objective of every continuous improvement exercise is to strive for 100% performance. Attaining perfection is no longer a pipedream. Quality gurus and practitioners are continuously raising the bar and showing the world that, zero defect product and flawless service is absolutely attainable.
AKSA & ESL are also continuously striving for excellence and subsequently 100% performance.
Years ago when we used to send letters by post, we often made mistakes. Letter of Zaid would be delivered to Bakar and letter of Joe would go to Blow. It was because of the fact that mail sender would inadvertently put the letter addressed to Zaid in envelope bearing address of Bakar. A simple solution to this problem was devised by some intelligent person. He made a window in the envelope and folded the letter inside in such a way that the address lines on the letter would coincide with the window. Since writing of addresses twice was done away with, the problem of letter addressed to one reaching the other also ceased to exist.
This is a fail-safe method of doing things and is called POKA YOKE system.
In power generation also, engineers use poka yoke systems. What is an ATS (auto transfer switch)? It is a poka yoke device for fail safe connection to either grid power or generator power. Similarly safeties on generators are also fail safe devices unless made dysfunctional by some careless operator.
Japanese engineers regularly use poka yoke systems. They would do thousands of service jobs, hundreds of complete machine overhauls, etc., without making a single mistake. Repeat work or rework is a non-existent word in their dictionary.
Aksa, our Turkish manufacturer buys Cummins and Perkins engines from respective mother factories in very large numbers. Then it adds value in its own factories using state of the art, customer friendly controllers; set mounted or remote cooling system usually larger in size, with higher air flow rate than contemporary brands; solid steel skids; base fuel tanks; state of the art sound proof canopies; ATS devices; top of the line paralleling, synchronizing and load sharing panels; real time power factor correction (RTPFC) equipment; neutral grounding resistance (NGR) kits and complete customized project engineering, etc.
Then it supplies this equipment all over the world with exactly same warranties as available to any other Cummins or Perkins customer. These warranties are administered by its distributors, though customers can take recourse to local Cummins or Perkins distributors as well.
Our Turkish manufacturer does not reinvent the wheel. Instead it perfects it through its design, engineering and manufacturing processes and supply change management. Bigger the project, better it gets.
Perfecting the wheel also requires high level of customization.
Aksa generators come with world’s best engines, alternators and Controllers. Radiators are produced by its sister company. Assembly is performed in state-of-the-art factories. Testing facilities are world class. Auto Transfer Switches and synchronization panels are customized as per customers’ unique requirements in-house. Canopies are the icing on the cake. In short, best ingredients are put together to produce an Aksa generator.
Aksa does not make any compromise on quality. Only best quality components can find a place on our generators. These are then supplied to the customers who only go for the best.
2 x 550 kVA, 4 x 1410 kVA + several others.
Mobilink (PMCL) 1 x 1675; 1 x 1100 kVA, 1 x 500 kVA, 2 x 400 kVA + several others.
Askari Bank Limited Over 75 sets of various ratings.
Aksa generators are known for their robust, rugged and resilient construction. They perform smilingly in hot, harsh, humid weather conditions. When the going gets tough, they really get going.
Same is true for Aksa’s portable sets and small gas generators- . They are as robust and rugged as their larger diesel version and seem to have been made exactly for our conditions in the context of extensive load shedding. The small gas sets seem to have been “invented for a lifetime”.
Don’t suffer at the hands of never-ending load shedding. Buy Aksa generators from ESL for your industrial and commercial applications. At the same, you can buy our Aksa portables and gas generators up to 80 kVA for your domestic use and rid yourself from sleepless nights and restless days. It is the best gift you can give to your loved ones.
Aksa generators are a true workhorse. It is a Turkish brand and enjoys almost 65 ~ 70% market share in Turkish market. Be it a hospital, a military installation, or any other mission critical application or highly demanding industrial usage or a construction site in hot, humid, dusty, sandy terrain, Aksa is the brand of choice.
The name Aksa is synonymous with quality, precision and latest technology.
At the same time, the sets are rugged, robust, and resilient and of rental grade construction with components of best quality fetched from all over the world or home grown.
Be rest assured when you buy Aksa, you buy peace of mind. You buy something which will not let you down rain or shine, hell or high water. Simply because it is a Turkish workhorse or our desi , which goes on toiling day-in-and-day-out with minimum or no supervision.
Skid mounted; made to match generator life.
2 mm thick steel sheet.
Bolted type construction instead of welded type.
Electrostatically painted for life with polyester powder paint.
Thermally insulated silencer instead of asbestos clad.
Rental grade construction to allow rough handling on regular basis.
Our Turkish brand Aksa has succeeded through product quality, supply chain management, service excellence, and customer satisfaction. It believes that what can be conceived, can be achieved. “You can if you think you can”. It also believes “where there is a vision, there is a way”. As a result of its approach, it is already a way of life in Turkey and will soon be in Pakistan too.
Perfecting the wheel also requires attention to all details.
Proper installation and commissioning is the first step and the most important one for reliable operation and longevity of a power plant.
Extra care should be taken and the following manual should be consulted for guidance. Urdu version of this book is also just round the corner. This is also covered in our “Meet & Treat” sessions.
Perfecting the wheel requires proper selection of generators in accordance with the intended application.
a. Standby: There is no overload capability for the standby rating; use of the generator set above the standby rating is prohibited. Typical operating time is 250 – 400 hours per year or less. Use the prime power rating for applications exceeding 400 hours of varying load operation.
c. Base load rating (also referred to as continuous rating) applies to generator sets operating as utility-type power sources where there are non-varying load factors and/or constant dedicated loads. Power is continuously supplied to a constant or non-varying load up to 100% of the base load rating for an unlimited number of hours. No overload capability is available at this rating; therefore, using above base load rating is prohibited.
Instead of drawing electricity from the main grid, peak shaving is the other way round. It uses generators and paralleling equipment to monitor the electric grid, start up generators as necessary, synchronize frequencies and supply to the grid at times of peak demand.
The utility company, instead of increasing its capacity, encourages factory owners to sell electricity, over and above their own requirement, to the main grid. By so doing the gap between demand and supply is bridged and both parties to the arrangement benefit.
Another very important aspect of perfecting the wheel is the proper gensizing exercise.
Selecting a generator without a proper sizing exercise is like putting cart before the horse.
Some important consideration which must be borne in mind before sizing and selecting a generator are as follows. However, recourse should be taken to sizing softwares available from genset manufacturers and / or its distributors.
Genset size is inversely proportional to maximum allowable voltage dip (subject to a maximum of 40%). Lower the allowable voltage dip, bigger the generator size. Voltage dips of more than 40% can lead to relay and contactor problems.
Lean Burn Gas generators always have a higher displacement (liters) than a similar capacity diesel generator. For example, a 60 liter diesel engine may deliver a 1500 kilowatt continuous power whereas a 60 liter gas engine may deliver only 1000 kilowatt continuous Power. For further explanation please consult ESL Customer Care.
Generator size is directly proportional to altitude. Higher the altitude over 500 meters above sea level, bigger the generator size.
Generator size is directly proportional to the ambient temperature. Higher the ambient temperature above 25 degree C, bigger the generator size.
If the total load is greater than 1000 kilowatt, it is better to have multiple sets for greater reliability and operational flexibility. If the load is equal to or less than 300 kilowatt it is not cost effective to parallel.
The genset should not be loaded less than 30% of its capacity. It can lead to engine damage and reduced reliability of the generating set. Load less than 10% should never be allowed for extended period of time.
Alternator size (hence generator size) is inversely proportional to maximum alternator temperature rise above an ambient of 40 degree C. Lower the allowable temperature rise, bigger the alternator required. Thus for a 105 degree allowable temperature rise you would choose a bigger alternator (hence generator) than you would choose for a 125 degree allowable temperature rise above 40 degree C ambient.
As the duty cycle varies from standby to prime to continuous, generators tend to increase in size. A continuously running base load generator is bigger than a similar rating prime power set which in tum is bigger than a similarly rated standby generator.
A generator for nonlinear loads tends to be bigger than the one for linear loads.
RKVA, RKW, RPF, R Amperes etc – for further explanation, consult ESL Customer Care.
SKVA, SKW, SPF etc – for further explanation, consult ESL Customer Care.
Combined loads in each step (Starting load of new equipment in this step + Running load of equipment started in all previous steps) – Maximum step kilowatt and kva, cumulative step kilowatt and kva; and effective step kilowatt and kva.
Sudden increase by cyclical loads or surges produced by welding loads or medical imaging equipment – Maximum surge kilowatt and kva, cumulative surge kilowatt and kva; and effective surge kilowatt and kva.
a) Lighting loads – though some of them are nonlinear, are treated as linear because of their small values.
d) Medical imaging equipment – it has a maximum allowable voltage dip of 10%.
The above is only a synopsis of sizing considerations. For more details, contact genset manufacturers.
Aksa is one of the largest OEMs of G-drive engines and prefers Cummins more than any other brand. It exports its products in very large numbers to USA, UK, European Union countries, Middle East and Africa for very sensitive, high quality, prestigious installations.
In those early days, we used to be so near, yet so far many a times. We lost business after business. Yet we did not lose our heart. We kept trying in the hope that the tide would turn one day, which did. The key was persistence, patience, perseverance, performance exceeding promises and above all prayers. Perfecting the wheel requires all these ingredients in large quantities.
Now our customers acknowledge that Aksa is a top brand not only in Turkey where it enjoys more than 65% market share and reigns supreme in military installations, airports, hotels, automotive industry, textile, construction, ship building, steel, cement, food factories, rental business etc., It is fast developing as a top brand in Pakistan too. Aksa and ESL are determined to make Pakistan its second home.
A farmer wanted his lazy sons to work. But they would always refuse. Father, however, knew his sons very well. He told them that there was a treasure hidden under the field. Sons, who were greedy, worked hard on the field but could not find anything. However, after a few days, they saw a bumper crop which made the family very rich. Farmer told his sons that that was the treasure he wanted them to find. Sons learnt the lesson forever that one should do the business he knows best.
Perfecting the wheel requires that you should concentrate on doing what you can do best. You must not spread yourself too thinly. It is better to be a king of one trade than being a jack of all.
ESL knows its business well. It is well versed in selling, supplying, repairing, overhauling and servicing Cummins & Perkins engines. This is its UNIQUE SELLING PROPOSITION (USP). It has been doing these jobs for a longer period of time than anybody else in Pakistan. It is also well versed in paralleling, synchronizing and load sharing involving sets of any make, model, manufacturer, mix of fuel and MAINS.
ESL has all the necessary tools, parts, softwares, dongles, trainings, workshop and calibration facilities to do it. Its engineers know their business best.
Irrespective of where they buy their Cummins and Perkins generators from, customers turn to ESL for good quality service at reasonable prices. Even if the customers don’t engage ESL for their jobs, our engineers help customers negotiate better prices from the competitors who otherwise may have a field day with exorbitantly high prices charged for their parts and services.
So why take recourse to hit and run breed of vendors or those who enjoy proprietary rights and take you to cleaners in terms of cost of doing overhaul service? ESL can deliver you a better value for money with similar or extended warranties.
Perfecting the wheel requires ruthless practice. Practice, indeed, makes a man perfect.
He used to make mistakes. But he learned from them. He knew that making mistakes is human. But repeating them is a cardinal sin.
He was one of the world’s best cricket bowlers. Every ball that he bowled used to be on or about the three stumps. Most of the wickets that he would take were either “clean bowled” or adjudged “LBW”. The accuracy of his bowling was so great that it could qualify for six sigma definition. That is if he bowled a million balls, only three to four balls would be outside the limits of accuracy. This was achieved by intense training, relentless practice, and most importantly by applying the science of quality management. He understood what was the given “specification width”, upon which he had no control. He also knew the concept of “process width” upon which he had full control. So he perfected what was in his own hands and achieved six sigma type accuracy. Guess who he was!!
My friend travels for business 30 to 40 times every year. This he has been doing for last twenty years. There has not been a single time that his luggage has not reached the destination. Nor has there been a single time that he faced a problem on account of air ticketing, for example, he asked for a ticket for North Carolina and was issued ticket for South Carolina, etc. This level of accuracy is possible because of six sigma processes. A six sigma process is so accurate that the chance of an error is merely 3 to 4 in a million.
If we achieve a similar level of accuracy in our services, we will commit only 3 to 4 mistakes in a million services. This is not a pipedream. Japanese have reached this level long ago. In fact most of the first world is achieving this level of accuracy consistently. It is unheard of in a hospital that a vaccine meant for Zaid is administered to Bakar or a meal ordered by one in a restaurant has been served at someone else’s table. These are all because of six sigma processes.
ESL proudly presents 5S approach to going from good to greatness in personal selling career. You may contact ESL for presentation on this subject and also on “5s Approach to Safety”.
Is a five S approach applicable to generator MAINTENANCE? Recently ESL demonstrated 5S approach to the engineers of a large telecom operator. First of all, engineers all over the country were asked to list down problems they faced on their BTS sites. Feedback from almost two hundred engineers revealed that main problems on BTS generators are 60 to 70.
After the accumulation of data, sorting of the problems revealed that the most significant problems are approximately twenty.
These twenty problems were then arranged in the order of their frequency of occurrence and disruption caused by them. The principle of Pareto was used for this purpose. This analysis revealed that only six problems cause 80% of the total issues.
After the Pareto analysis, list of actions was generated which could lead to resolution of these problems. The final point of all such exercises is development of standards and systems to make sure that preventive jobs are done in a regular, consistent manner and that progress is reviewed periodically to evaluate whether the desired performance is being achieved or not. This is depicted by the picture below.
Perfecting the wheel requires team work.
Joe Gerard, world’s best salesman for many years, used to attribute his success to teamwork. Until and unless the whole organization works together like a well-oiled machine, customer satisfaction will remain a pipedream. His main ally in all sales was his Service department. Remember TOGETHER EACH ACHIEVES MORE. So please team up.
Teamwork is nothing but the story of two persons, one without eyes and the other without legs. They got caught in a jungle fire and were destined to die. But then they thought of a plan and saved themselves. Our survival and success also depends upon complementing strengths of each other through teamwork.
Recipe for success is that we do what we say and say what we do. We must make promises with our customers very carefully. Once we have made those promises, we must fulfill them at any cost. This is an important ingredient for perfecting the wheel.
Customers easily decipher when we deviate from our words. We not only fall from grace in customers’ eyes, still worse, we fall from grace in our own eyes. Remember .Winners don’t cheat. Champions don’t lie.
Perfecting the wheel requires proper organizing.
Perfecting the wheel requires leadership. The difference between a good organization and a great one is good leadership. A leader is heads and shoulders above every manager. He shoots for the moon and transforms any company from a bunch of ordinary people into an extraordinary organization. His biggest contribution is that he produces more leaders like himself.
Confucius said: If you want to prosper for a year, grow rice. If you want to prosper for a decade, plant trees. If you want to prosper for a century, train people.
Perfect the wheel through continuous improvement. ESL firmly believes in it. It has designed training books for this purpose which not only provide training to its employees but to all power generation professionals. Please contact ESL for copies of these training books.
Perfecting the wheel requires staying in touch and fully understanding the needs of the customers. Easiest way to lose customers is getting out of touch. Show them “you care” through caring services, friendliness, problem solving, affection, attention and intimacy. Keep adding value to their personal and professional life even in their lean business periods. There are competitors trying to win them over from you. Don’t surrender them to others. Read ESL Sales Policy for details.
Training and development is one of the best tools for perfecting the wheel. It transforms clay into gold and ordinary engineers into extraordinary performers. They will ultimately not only meet but exceed customers’ expectations.
Those who don’t strive for excellence in life, may at best become a figure among ciphers. In this world of cut throat competition, one-eyed have no place. Strive to perfect the wheel and achieve excellence through continuous improvement. Shun mediocrity. Don’t just be a figure among ciphers. Customers love to do business with extraordinary people only, who make no mistake and do every job right, first time, every time. There is no place for ordinary souls.
Look after your existing customers very, very well. Unless your existing customers are delighted, your future customers wouldn’t be too. Don’t be greedy for more customers unless you are doing justice with the present ones.
The grass is not greener on the other side. It is greener on the side where you water it. Invest time and money on your employees and suppliers if you want them to do a good job for your customers. | 2019-04-22T02:01:53Z | https://eslpk.com/selling-the-sizzle-part-6/ |
A new bio-ink that may support a more efficient and inexpensive fabrication of human tissues and organs has been created by researchers at UBC’s Okanagan campus.
Keekyoung Kim, an assistant professor at UBC Okanagan’s School of Engineering, says this development can accelerate advances in regenerative medicine.
Using techniques like 3D printing, scientists are creating bio-material products that function alongside living cells. These products are made using a number of biomaterials including gelatin methacrylate (GelMA), a hydrogel that can serve as a building block in bio-printing. This type of bio-material—called bio-ink—are made of living cells, but can be printed and molded into specific organ or tissue shapes.
The UBC team analyzed the physical and biological properties of three different GelMA hydrogels—porcine skin, cold-water fish skin and cold-soluble gelatin. They found that hydrogel made from cold-soluble gelatin (gelatin which dissolves without heat) was by far the best performer and a strong candidate for future 3D organ printing.
Kim’s team created two new hydrogels—one from fish skin, and one from cold-soluble gelatin—and compared their properties to those of porcine skin GelMA. Although fish skin GelMA had some benefits, cold-soluble GelMA was the top overall performer. Not only could it form healthy tissue scaffolds, allowing cells to successfully grow and adhere to it, but it was also thermally stable at room temperature.
The UBC team also demonstrated that cold-soluble GelMA produces consistently uniform droplets at temperatures, thus making it an excellent choice for use in 3D bio-printing.
Three times cheaper than porcine skin gelatin, cold-soluble gelatin is used primarily in culinary applications.
This entry was posted in human enhancement and tagged 3D bio-printing, 3D organ printing, 3D printing, artificial organs, artificial tissues, bio-ink, bio-printing, Canada, cold-soluble gelatin, cold-soluble GelMA-based tissue scaffolds, cold-water fish skin, Comparative study of gelatin methacrylate hydrogels from different sources for biofabrication applications, Fredric Menard, gelatin methacrylate (GelMA), human organs, human tissues, hydrogel, Keekyoung Kim, Patty Wellborn, porcine skin, regenerative medicine, tissue engineering, UBC, University of British Columbia, Zhenlin Tian, Zongjie Wang on November 15, 2017 by Maryse de la Giroday.
In many tissues of the human body, such as nerve tissue, the spatial organization of cells plays an important role. Nerve cells and their long protrusions assemble into nerve tracts and transport information throughout the body. When such a tissue is injured, an accurate spatial orientation of the cells facilitates the healing process. Scientists from the DWI – Leibniz Institute for Interactive Materials in Aachen developed an injectable gel, which can act as a guidance system for nerve cells.
Inside the body, an extracellular matrix surrounds the cells. It provides mechanical support and promotes spatial tissue organization. In order to regenerate damaged tissue, an artificial matrix can temporally replace the natural extracellular matrix. This matrix needs to mimic the natural cell environment in order to efficiently stimulate the regenerative potential of the surrounding tissue. Solid implants, however, may impair remaining healthy tissue whereas soft, injectable materials allow for a minimal invasive therapy, which is particularly beneficial for sensitive tissues, such as the spinal cord. Unfortunately, up to now, artificial soft materials did not yet reproduce the complex structures and spatial properties of natural tissues.
“Although our cell culture experiments were successful, we are prepared to go a long way to translate our Anisogel into a medical therapy. In collaboration with the Uniklinik RWTH Aachen, we currently plan pre-clinical studies to further test and optimize this material,” Laura De Laporte explains.
This entry was posted in medicine, nanotechnology and tagged Anisogel project, artificial matrix, DWI - Leibniz Institute for Interactive Materials, European Research Council, extracellular matrix, hydrogel, Jens Köhler, Jonas C. Rose, Jonas Rose, Khosrow Rahimi, Laura De Laporte, Leibniz Institute, María Cámara-Torres, Martin Möller, Nerve Cells Decide to Orient inside an Injectable Hydrogel with Minimal Structural Guidance, nerve tissue, spatial organization, spatial orientation, Uniklinik RWTH Aachen on May 18, 2017 by Maryse de la Giroday.
The work by a joint team of Northwestern Engineering and University of Chicago researchers was a resounding success, showing that a potent combination of technologies was able to regenerate the skull bone with supporting blood vessels in just the discrete area needed without developing scar tissue — and more rapidly than with previous methods.
“The results are very exciting,” said Guillermo Ameer, professor of biomedical engineering at Northwestern’s McCormick School of Engineering, and professor of surgery at Feinberg School of Medicine.
This entry was posted in medicine, nanotechnology and tagged BMP9, bone grafting, Chicago Community Trust, China Scholarship Council, citric acid, Guillermo A. Ameer, Guillermo Ameer, hydrogel, Jixing Ye, Junyi Liao, Minpeng Lu, National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences, National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research, Northwestern University, PPCN-g, reconstructive surgery, regenerative medicine, regrowing quality bone, Repair of critical sized cranial defects with BMP9-transduced calvarial cells delivered in a thermoresponsive scaffold, Russell R. Reid, Russell Reid, scaffolding, Tong-Chuan He, University of Chicago, Viktor Tollemar, Yunxiao Zhu, Zari P. Dumanian on April 12, 2017 by Maryse de la Giroday.
Growing organoids begins with stem cells — immature cells that can grow into any cell type of the human body and that play key roles in tissue function and regeneration. To form an organoid, the stem cells are grown inside three-dimensional gels that contain a mix of biomolecules that promote stem cell renewal and differentiation.
The role of these gels is to mimic the natural environment of the stem cells, which provides them with a protein- and sugar-rich scaffold called the “extracellular matrix”, upon which the stem cells build specific body tissues. The stem cells stick to the extracellular matrix gel, and then “self-organize” into miniature organs like retinas, kidneys, or the gut. These tiny organs retain key aspects of their real-life biology, and can be used to study diseases or test drugs before moving on to human trials.
But the current gels used for organoid growth are derived from mice, and have problems. First, it is impossible to control their makeup from batch to batch, which can cause stem cells to behave inconsistently. Second, their biochemical complexity makes them very difficult to fine-tune for studying the effect of different parameters (e.g. biological molecules, mechanical properties, etc.) on the growth of organoids. Finally, the gels can carry pathogens or immunogens, which means that they are not suitable for growing organoids to be used in the clinic.
The lab of Matthias Lütolf at EPFL’s Institute of Bioengineering has developed a synthetic “hydrogel” that eschews the limitations of conventional, naturally derived gels. The patent-pending gel is made of water and polyethylene glycol, a substance used widely today in various forms, from skin creams and toothpastes to industrial applications and, as in this case, bioengineering.
Nikolce Gjorevski, the first author of the study, and his colleagues used the hydrogel to grow stem cells of the gut into a miniature intestine. The functional hydrogel was not only a goal in and of itself, but also a means to identify the factors that influence the stem cells’ ability to expand and form organoids. By carefully tweaking the hydrogel’s properties, they discovered that separate stages of the organoid formation process require different mechanical environments and biological components.
One such factor is a protein called fibronectin, which helps the stem cells attach to the hydrogel. Lütolf’s lab found that this attachment itself is immensely important for growing organoids, as it triggers a whole host of signals to the stem cell that tell it to grow and build an intestine-like structure. The researchers also discovered an essential role for the mechanical properties, i.e. the physical stiffness, of the gel in regulating intestinal stem cell behavior, shedding light on how cells are able to sense, process and respond to physical stimuli. This insight is particularly valuable – while the influence of biochemical signals on stem cells is well-understood, the effect of physical factors has been more mysterious.
Because the hydrogel is man-made, it is easy to control its chemical composition and key properties, and ensure consistency from batch to batch. And because it is artificial, it does not carry any risk of infection or triggering immune responses. As such, it provides a means of moving organoids from basic research to actual pharmaceutical and clinical applications in the future.
Lütolf’s lab is now researching other types of stem cells in order to extend the capacities of their hydrogel into other tissues.
This entry was posted in medicine and tagged 3D scaffold, Andrea Manfrin, bioengineering, Designer matrices for intestinal stem cell and organoid culture, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, EPFL, extracellular matrix, fibronectin, Hans Clevers, hydrogel, Maiia E. Bragina, Matthias Lütolf, Matthias P. Lutolf, Nikolce Gjorevski, Norman Sachs, organoids, Paloma Ordóñez-Morán, regenerative medicine, Sonja Giger, stem cells, synthetic hydrogel, tissue engineering on December 27, 2016 by Maryse de la Giroday.
Encapsulation of proteins in nanoparticles no longer necessary for time release?
A U of T [University of Toronto] Engineering team has designed a simpler way to keep therapeutic proteins where they are needed for long periods of time. The discovery is a potential game-changer for the treatment of chronic illnesses or injuries that often require multiple injections or daily pills.
For decades, biomedical engineers have been painstakingly encapsulating proteins in nanoparticles to control their release. Now, a research team led by University Professor Molly Shoichet has shown that proteins can be released over several weeks, even months, without ever being encapsulated. In this case the team looked specifically at therapeutic proteins relevant to tissue regeneration after stroke and spinal cord injury.
Proteins hold enormous promise to treat chronic conditions and irreversible injuries — for example, human growth hormone is encapsulated in these tiny polymeric particles, and used to treat children with stunted growth. In order to avoid repeated injections or daily pills, researchers use complicated strategies both to deliver proteins to their site of action, and to ensure they’re released over a long enough period of time to have a beneficial effect.
This has long been a major challenge for protein-based therapies, especially because proteins are large and often fragile molecules. Until now, investigators have been treating proteins the same way as small drug molecules and encapsulating them in polymeric nanoparticles, often made of a material called poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) or PLGA.
As the nanoparticles break down, the drug molecules escape. The same process is true for proteins; however, the encapsulating process itself often damages or denatures some of the encapsulated proteins, rendering them useless for treatment. Skipping encapsulation altogether means fewer denatured proteins, making for more consistent protein therapeutics that are easier to make and store.
“We think that this could speed up the path for protein-based drugs to get to the clinic,” said Elliott Donaghue.
The mechanism for this encapsulation-free controlled release is surprisingly elegant. Shoichet’s group mixes the proteins and nanoparticles in a Jello-like substance called a hydrogel, which keeps them localized when injected at the site of injury. The positively charged proteins and negatively charged nanoparticles naturally stick together. As the nanoparticles break down they make the solution more acidic, weakening the attraction and letting the proteins break free.
Dr. Molly Shoichet was featured here in a May 11, 2015 posting about the launch of her Canada-wide science communication project Research2.Reality.
This entry was posted in medicine, nanotechnology and tagged Anup Tuladhar, Christopher K. McLaughlin, encapsulating proteins in nanoparticles, encapsulation-free controlled release, Encapsulation-free controlled release: Electrostatic adsorption eliminates the need for protein encapsulation in PLGA nanoparticles, hydrogel, Irja Elliott Donaghue, Jaclyn M. Obermeyer, Jaclyn Obermeyer. Elliott Donoghue, Malgosia M. Pakulska, Malgosia Pakulska, Marit Mitchell, Molly S. Shoichet, Molly Shoichet, PLGA. polylactic-co-glycolic acid (PLGA), poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid), polymeric nanoparticles, proteins, Research2Reality, spinal cord injury, stroke, tissue regeneration, Tyler N. Shendruk, U of T, University of Toronto on June 6, 2016 by Maryse de la Giroday.
Coating the inside of glass microtubes with a polymer hydrogel material dramatically alters the way capillary forces draw water into the tiny structures, researchers have found. The discovery could provide a new way to control microfluidic systems, including popular lab-on-a-chip devices.
Capillary action draws water and other liquids into confined spaces such as tubes, straws, wicks and paper towels, and the flow rate can be predicted using a simple hydrodynamic analysis. But a chance observation by researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology [US] will cause a recalculation of those predictions for conditions in which hydrogel films line the tubes carrying water-based liquids.
When the opening of a thin glass tube is exposed to a droplet of water, the liquid begins to flow into the tube, pulled by a combination of surface tension in the liquid and adhesion between the liquid and the walls of the tube. Leading the way is a meniscus, a curved surface of the water at the leading edge of the water column. An ordinary borosilicate glass tube fills by capillary action at a gradually decreasing rate with the speed of meniscus propagation slowing as a square root of time.
But when the inside of a tube is coated with a very thin layer of poly(N-isopropylacrylamide), a so-called “smart” polymer (PNIPAM), everything changes. Water entering a tube coated on the inside with a dry hydrogel film must first wet the film and allow it to swell before it can proceed farther into the tube. The wetting and swelling take place not continuously, but with discrete steps in which the water meniscus first sticks and its motion remains arrested while the polymer layer locally deforms. The meniscus then rapidly slides for a short distance before the process repeats. This “stick-slip” process forces the water to move into the tube in a step-by-step motion.
The flow rate measured by the researchers in the coated tube is three orders of magnitude less than the flow rate in an uncoated tube. A linear equation describes the time dependence of the filling process instead of a classical quadratic equation which describes filling of an uncoated tube.
The researchers – who included graduate students James Silva, Drew Loney and Ren Geryak and senior research engineer Peter Kottke – tried the experiment again using glycerol, a liquid that is not absorbed by the hydrogel. With glycerol, the capillary action proceeded through the hydrogel-coated microtube as with an uncoated tube in agreement with conventional theory. After using high-resolution optical visualization to study the meniscus propagation while the polymer swelled, the researchers realized they could put this previously-unknown behavior to good use.
Water absorption by the hydrogels occurs only when the materials remain below a specific transition temperature. When heated above that temperature, the materials no longer absorb water, eliminating the “stick-slip” phenomenon in the microtubes and allowing them to behave like ordinary tubes.
This ability to turn the stick-slip behavior on and off with temperature could provide a new way to control the flow of water-based liquid in microfluidic devices, including labs-on-a-chip. The transition temperature can be controlled by varying the chemical composition of the hydrogel.
The heating or cooling could be done locally with lasers, tiny heaters, or thermoelectric devices placed at specific locations in the microfluidic devices.
That could allow precise timing of reactions in microfluidic devices by controlling the rate of reactant delivery and product removal, or allow a sequence of fast and slow reactions to occur. Another important application could be controlled drug release in which the desired rate of molecule delivery could be dynamically tuned over time to achieve the optimal therapeutic outcome.
In future work, Fedorov and his team hope to learn more about the physics of the hydrogel-modified capillaries and study capillary flow using partially-transparent microtubes. They also want to explore other “smart” polymers which change the flow rate in response to different stimuli, including the changing pH of the liquid, exposure to electromagnetic radiation, or the induction of mechanical stress – all of which can change the properties of a particular hydrogel designed to be responsive to those triggers.
In addition to those already mentioned, the research team included Professor Vladimir Tsukruk from the Georgia Tech School of Materials Science and Engineering and Rajesh Naik, Biotechnology Lead and Tech Advisor of the Nanostructured and Biological Materials Branch of the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL).
This entry was posted in nanotechnology, water and tagged A. G. Fedorov, Andrei Fedorov, capillary forces, D. A. Loney, Drew Loney, Georgia Institute of Technology, Georgia Tech, hydrogel, J. E. Silva, James Silva, John Toon, lab-on-a-chip devices, meniscus, microfluidic systems, microfluidics, P. A. Kottke, Peter Kottke, poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) a “smart” polymer (PNIPAM), R. Geryak, R. R. Naik, Rajesh Naik, Ren Geryak, stick-slip process, Stick–slip water penetration into capillaries coated with swelling hydrogel, US Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), V. V. Tsukruk, Vladimir Tsukruk on July 31, 2015 by Maryse de la Giroday.
Researchers at the Institute of Bioengineering and Nanotechnology (IBN) have developed a simple method of organizing cells and their microenvironments in hydrogel fibers. Their unique technology provides a feasible template for assembling complex structures, such as liver and fat tissues, as described in their recent publication in Nature Communications.
Tissues designed with pre-formed vascular networks are known to promote rapid vascular integration with the host. Generally, prevascularization has been achieved by seeding or encapsulating endothelial cells, which line the interior surfaces of blood vessels, with other cell types. In many of these approaches, the eventual distribution of vessels within a thick structure is reliant on in vitro cellular infiltration and self-organization of the cell mixture. These are slow processes, often leading to a non-uniform network of vessels within the tissue. As vascular self-assembly requires a large concentration of endothelial cells, this method also severely restricts the number of other cells that may be co-cultured.
Alternatively, scientists have attempted to direct the distribution of newly formed vessels via three-dimensional (3D) co-patterning of endothelial cells with other cell types in a hydrogel. This approach allows large concentrations of endothelial cells to be positioned in specific regions within the tissue, leaving the rest of the construct available for other cell types. The hydrogel also acts as a reservoir of nutrients for the encapsulated cells. However, co-patterning multiple cell types within a hydrogel is not easy. Conventional techniques, such as micromolding and organ printing, are limited by slow cell assembly, large volumes of cell suspension, complicated multi-step processes and expensive instruments. These factors also make it difficult to scale up the production of implantable 3D cell-patterned constructs. To date, these approaches have been unsuccessful in achieving vascularization and mass transport through thick engineered tissues.
To overcome these limitations, IBN researchers have used interfacial polyelectrolyte complexation (IPC) fiber assembly, a unique cell patterning technology patented by IBN, to produce cell-laden hydrogel fibers under aqueous conditions at room temperature. Unlike other methods, IBN’s novel technique allows researchers to incorporate different cell types separately into different fibers, and these cell-laden fibers may then be assembled into more complex constructs with hierarchical tissue structures. In addition, IBN researchers are able to tailor the microenvironment for each cell type for optimal functionality by incorporating the appropriate factors, e.g. proteins, into the fibers. Using IPC fiber assembly, the researchers have engineered an endothelial vessel network, as well as cell-patterned fat and liver tissue constructs, which have successfully integrated with the host circulatory system in a mouse model and produced vascularized tissues.
This article is behind a paywall although you can preview it with ReadingCube access.
This entry was posted in medicine, nanotechnology and tagged A*STAR, Agency for Science and Technology Researc, Andrew C. A. Wan, Chan Du, Hong Fang Lu, hydrogel, Jackie Y. Ying, Jerry K. C. Toh, Karthikeyan Narayanan, Meng Fatt Leong, Patterned prevascularised tissue constructs by assembly of polyelectrolyte hydrogel fibres, prevascularized engineered tissue, Singapore, tissue engineering, Tze Chiun Lim on August 22, 2013 by Maryse de la Giroday.
Scientists at Princeton University used off-the-shelf printing tools to create a functional ear that can “hear” radio frequencies far beyond the range of normal human capability.
McAlpine’s team has made several advances in recent years involving the use of small-scale medical sensors and antenna. Last year, a research effort led by McAlpine and Naveen Verma, an assistant professor of electrical engineering, and Fio Omenetto of Tufts University, resulted in the development of a “tattoo” made up of a biological sensor and antenna that can be affixed to the surface of a tooth.
The finished ear consists of a coiled antenna inside a cartilage structure. Two wires lead from the base of the ear and wind around a helical “cochlea” – the part of the ear that senses sound – which can connect to electrodes. Although McAlpine cautions that further work and extensive testing would need to be done before the technology could be used on a patient, he said the ear in principle could be used to restore or enhance human hearing. He said electrical signals produced by the ear could be connected to a patient’s nerve endings, similar to a hearing aid. The current system receives radio waves, but he said the research team plans to incorporate other materials, such as pressure-sensitive electronic sensors, to enable the ear to register acoustic sounds.
Standard tissue engineering involves seeding types of cells, such as those that form ear cartilage, onto a scaffold of a polymer material called a hydrogel. However, the researchers said that this technique has problems replicating complicated three dimensional biological structures. Ear reconstruction “remains one of the most difficult problems in the field of plastic and reconstructive surgery,” they wrote.
To solve the problem, the team turned to a manufacturing approach called 3D printing. These printers use computer-assisted design to conceive of objects as arrays of thin slices. The printer then deposits layers of a variety of materials – ranging from plastic to cells – to build up a finished product. Proponents say additive manufacturing promises to revolutionize home industries by allowing small teams or individuals to create work that could previously only be done by factories.
Creating organs using 3D printers is a recent advance; several groups have reported using the technology for this purpose in the past few months. But this is the first time that researchers have demonstrated that 3D printing is a convenient strategy to interweave tissue with electronics.
The technique allowed the researchers to combine the antenna electronics with tissue within the highly complex topology of a human ear. The researchers used an ordinary 3D printer to combine a matrix of hydrogel and calf cells with silver nanoparticles that form an antenna. The calf cells later develop into cartilage.
At this point, the ear is strictly for use in the laboratory they have not run any ‘in vivo’ experiments, which would be one of the next steps and a prerequisite before human clinical trials are considered.
The Bailey quote stimulated this question for me, what would you choose if you could get an ear that hears beyond the human range?
This entry was posted in electronics, human enhancement, nanotechnology and tagged 3D printing, A 3D Printed Bionic Ear, bionic ear, David H Gracias, Frank Wojciechowski, hydrogel, Karen A Malatesta, Manu S Mannoor, Michael Bailey, Michael C. McAlpine, Naveen Verma, Paul Hochman, Princeton University, silver nanoparticles, Teena James, tissue engineering, Winston Soboyejo, Yong Lin Kong, Ziwen Jiang on May 2, 2013 by Maryse de la Giroday.
In a small study, researchers reported increased healthy tissue growth after surgical repair of damaged cartilage if they put a “hydrogel” scaffolding into the wound to support and nourish the healing process. The squishy hydrogel material was implanted in 15 patients during standard microfracture surgery, in which tiny holes are punched in a bone near the injured cartilage. The holes stimulate patients’ own specialized stem cells to emerge from bone marrow and grow new cartilage atop the bone.
“Our pilot study indicates that the new implant works as well in patients as it does in the lab, so we hope it will become a routine part of care and improve healing,” says Jennifer Elisseeff, Ph.D., Jules Stein Professor of Ophthalmology and director of the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine’s Translational Tissue Engineering Center (TTEC). Damage to cartilage, the tough-yet-flexible material that gives shape to ears and noses and lines the surface of joints so they can move easily, can be caused by injury, disease or faulty genes. Microfracture is a standard of care for cartilage repair, but for holes in cartilage caused by injury, it often either fails to stimulate new cartilage growth or grows cartilage that is less hardy than the original tissue.
Tissue engineering researchers, including Elisseeff, theorized that the specialized stem cells needed a nourishing scaffold on which to grow, but demonstrating the clinical value of hydrogels has “taken a lot of time,” Elisseeff says. By experimenting with various materials, her group eventually developed a promising hydrogel, and then an adhesive that could bind it to the bone.
After testing the combination for several years in the lab and in goats, with promising results, she says, the group and their surgeon collaborators conducted their first clinical study, in which 15 patients with holes in the cartilage of their knees received a hydrogel and adhesive implant along with microfracture. For comparative purposes, another three patients were treated with microfracture alone. After six months, the researchers reported that the implants had caused no major problems, and MRIs showed that patients with implants had new cartilage filling an average 86 percent of the defect in their knees, while patients with only microfracture had an average of 64 percent of the tissue replaced. Patients with the implant also reported a greater decrease in knee pain in the six months following surgery, according to the investigators.
The trial continues, has enrolled more patients and is now being managed by a company called Biomet. The trial is part of efforts to win European regulatory approval for the device.
In the meantime, Elisseeff says her team has begun developing a next-generation implant, one in which the hydrogel and adhesive will be combined in a single material. In addition, they are working on technologies to lubricate joints and reduce inflammation.
This entry was posted in medicine, nanotechnology and tagged Alexander Y. Hui, Blanka Sharma, Brett Cascio, Daniel A. Herzka, Garry E. Gold, hydrogel, Jeannine Coburn, Jennifer Elisseeff, Johns Hopkins University, knee cartilage, knees, Matthew Gibson, Sara Fermanian, Shimon Unterman, stem cells, tissue engineering, tissue scaffolding on January 15, 2013 by Maryse de la Giroday. | 2019-04-21T22:10:06Z | http://www.frogheart.ca/?tag=hydrogel |
It has been a while since I put finger to keyboard (and yes it is one finger as I can’t type) to write a blog about politics and the early years sector.
This is not because there has not been anything to write about – there has – but it has mainly been about the funding for the 30 hours and much of it speculation due to lack of information, or genuine concerns based on sustainability of early years settings .Until the last week or so. I have been commenting quite a lot via social media and indeed in person to colleagues. I just haven’t written a blog.
This is not because I have lost interest – because I haven’t! If you have read any of my social media content you will know I still have a keen interest. It is certainly not because I have nothing to say ! It is not even because I have not had enough time – because although time is in short supply – when I have something important to say, I make the time.
No, the reason is because there has been nothing new to say – we have all been going round in circles saying the same thing in different ways. Lots of people have written articles, and blogs, and letters about the fact that the proposed funding is not enough.
Reading it reminded me of several things – and most importantly that lack of sufficient funding is not the only issue the early years sector has to worry about at the moment.
So the two things together, is why I have decided to put finger to keyboard.
My Thoughts For once this not a ‘have a go at the current government’ blog, it is an attempt to put my thoughts in writing about what I think needs doing to start the process of getting education in this country heading in the right direction.
Of course this will not be an instant or overnight change – it will take time and will need to be a ‘step at a time’ sort of approach but if everyone could agree on what ‘getting it right for our children’ is (as stated by Angela Raynar in the NW article) then we might stand a chance of all heading in the same direction, not in many directions or as is tending to happen at the moment – in changing directions depending on who is in government and who is the responsible minister.
What we really need is to stop what is happening now – stop any in the pipeline changes and literally go back to the drawing board, look at how much money is in the system and what can be done in practical terms to start the ball rolling in the direction that will put our education system back on track – because lets be honest – things are a bit of a mess at the moment – from early years right through to university.
First things first – I have said it before and I will say it again (and again and again if needed) we MUST take education out of politics if we are going to stop this constant round of changes in direction, in policy, in practice, in what the ‘in thing is’, in people making decisions that they are not qualified to make them and all the other things that are resulting in children being data, and not people.
A child is so much more than just a number or worse just a tick (or a dot) on a matrix or sheet of data.
A child is not a future tax revenue, a child is person with rights now and in the future, to have their needs met and opportunities to flourish – but who also will be a key player in how our society could develop in to one where everyone is valued, respected, supported and supportive.
Every child is a unique individual with similarities to other children but also with many differences. To ‘get it right’ for every child we must fully consider those similarities and those difference. No ifs, no buts, we are getting it wrong now because we are trying to fit children into ‘one size fits all’ adult created boxes.
I am not silly – I know that politicians on all sides will oppose my ideas about taking education out of politics and for hundreds of different reasons, so we will need that stepped approach.
Instead of constant changes every time there is an election (and often in between elections during cabinet shuffles),if a all party Education Group is set up with representatives from all political parties each with experience and qualifications in place or being worked towards, we might start to make progress. I find it hard to accept that those who are expected to make such vital decisions are not expected to have either experience or professional knowledge.
The Education Group will need representatives from leading organisations from early years up to university level, and those who work on the ‘ground floor’ in other words those that do the job day in and day out, plus some others (maybe volunteers) who have had recent direct experience of working with children and young people but who do not have any direct personal connection that would or could result in them gaining in anyway from voting or influencing others in the way policy is taken forward. In others words take monetary gain or back handers, or golden hand shakes or promises of funding or plain and simple bribes out of the equation.
Sounds easy, doesn’t it – but I know it will be anything but easy as so many have personal agendas or questionable ethics around their own careers or business links or available ‘perks’.
If you are thinking that, you are of course right – MP’s will change BUT we will not have Education Ministers anymore, the group will be chaired by a independent person decided on by the Education Group itself. MP’s like any other member of the group may (and would) change. The whole point though is the focus of the group, the direction of the group, the education policy will not change just because one or more member leaves through change of employment, ill health, retirement or indeed government.
And in my opinion this is what education policy needs most – long term, consistent, evidence based plans.
This in itself will save lots of time and money – think about it – every time we have a new Government, or a new minister we have to wait to see what the ‘new plan’ is, all those who advise or are part of consultation groups then have to meet the minster and play the ‘getting to know you game’ and then wait to see if the minister is listening and then usually because the minister is not listening and does not have any educational expertise, spend hours and hours challenging the ministers ideas – usually in politely worded letters and articles.
In my opinion – having been involved in a few of these meetings at various levels – a complete and utter waste of time and money. As are the so called consultations and the pilots of ‘the new idea’ – these things cost thousands, and sometimes millions of tax payers money – yes, our money, which I am sure most of us would prefer was not wasted on meetings just to get to know people, or consultations that government don’t take any notice of, or pilots about things that the government are told won’t work.
Talking of which – I am just an individual who happens to advocate for children, families and early years settings, I do not considered myself to be an expert, just some one with a reasonable amount of common sense and a passion to try to make a difference.
However, my campaigning track record is pretty good – I said increased ratio’s were not the way to reduce childcare costs; I said childminding agencies were not needed or wanted and would not be financially sustainable; I said baseline assessment just to produce data for the government was not needed and would not work – and on these issues I was right.
I have been saying (and still are saying) that funding levels are not sustainable and settings will close or not offer funded places; that testing is flawed and does not improve outcomes; that trying to introduce academic learning too soon would have a negative impact on the children and eventually on society.
Of course I am not the only person saying these things but I am usually one of the first to say them, and one of those who keeps saying it and keeps trying to get Government to listen – so maybe, just maybe, I am worth at least listening to?
Money matters Again, I am not silly – I know that there really is not any more money – at least not any more ‘new money’. Governments are very good at saying there is ‘new money’ when in fact it is the same money just recycled or shared differently. However, what I also know is the Government has HUGE amounts of tax payers money that they keep for things they want to do – they are just not honest about how much there is or what they plan to do with it. I am not an accountant but I know the figures given about the money in and the money out – often do not tally and therefore there is ‘new money’ but it does not get spent on the things that matter. As an example MP’s pay and expenses seem to have a bottomless pot, where as other things seem to have a very limited pot.
So once the Education Group is set up they need to be given control over the education pot of money – because I am fairly sure the money available could be used much more fairly and effectively.
Should the people who make up the Education Group be paid? Yes but a flat rate for all that covers their direct expenses, and their time commitment. There should not be high ‘consultant fees’ or more for MP’s or CEO ‘s of organisations or companies – no one should be expected to do it for free and those organisations and companies that offer the services of their employees should be reimbursed for actual costs – but so should those who are involved from ‘the ground floor’ or as a expert or as an advisor.
It is not for me to say how much – this needs to be decided – but personally I think it would be much less than we currently pay, and because in the long run there would be far less need to meet to get to know people or to plan the next ‘new idea’ that costs would reduce not increase because everyone would be going in the same direction and things would just need evaluating and updating, rather than implementing totally new agendas.
A few ideas for starting points It is not for me to say what direction the Education Group should head but I do of course have some suggestions that might be worth considering and which should not be difficult to implement or very costly. These could be ‘starting points’ that would make a difference while the ‘bigger picture’ is considered and the infrastructure and finances discussed.
Curriculum for Early Years We are of course still waiting for the promised update to the Early Years Foundation Stage(EYFS), so let’s use this to an advantage – scrap it – don’t publish it.
Instead quickly update it by removing all the ELG’s and changing those statements linked to reading, writing and other academically stated aims. This will then stop early years settings and reception teachers from feeling they should push children into academic learning or that they have some how failed if some (or many) of the children in their care do not show enough progress toward the goals. This would in turn then encourage more play based experiences without any planned outcomes.
The EYFS is not prefect and it does need replacing but in the short term removing the goals would be a good starting point. In the long term I suggest we don’t need a ‘curriculum’ for under 7’s but we do need a play based culture where teachers and early years practitioners are trusted to do the job they have been trained to do. Of course this is not that simple because too many practitioners have not had a play based developmentally appropriate based training / qualification but that is something long term that needs to change.
Second thing to do – that will take a little while to fully implement – but a start could be made – is to provide all children with a Kindergarten type stage from 3 – 7. Some Year One teachers are already trying (and succeeding) to extend the ethos of a play based experiences, but they still have to prepare the children in their care for stats and other testing. So a simple to implement start would be to scrap stats and testing for under 7’s. Please note this does not mean stopping observation based assessment by teachers or early years practitioners, it just means changing the focus so that it is only if a concern is raised that a child cannot do some thing developmentally appropriate (which is different from choosing not to do something) that more in depth assessment takes place. This in turn would mean less paperwork requirements and so enabling staff to observe more closely, take photos and enable effective sharing of information with parents and other professions through really knowing the child rather than needing to reel of data and assessment scores.
Funding Time to come clean and admit this policy is flawed, it was just a knee jerk reaction to other promises made by others during the run up to the election. A simple solution that would support parents and settings in the short term while the bigger picture of funding is looked at would be for the government to continue with the funding of 15 hours of education for 3 and 4 year olds – but to fund this at a more realistic rate based on CURRENT costs – and to index link it. This links to research that part time attendance at a high quality early years setting does improve educational outcomes (note – if through play based non academic experiences), and so it is right that every parent should be able to access this funding if they want to – but without expecting early years settings to subsidise the cost or receive low pay.
For the childcare side of things to support working parents (as many need to work or want to work) then it seems fair that tax payers money is used to support ALL children by means of part payment direct to childcare settings . At the moment many parents find the childcare benefit systems hard to navigate or understand – and often end up having to repay huge amounts due to system failures.
So using employment records to check if a parent is working, the government should pay a subsidy directly to the childcare provider of say £2 per hour (and to start with for the 30 hours already suggested)- and the parent pays the rest themselves – again directly to the provider. This way any variations needed due to area lived in, or parental choice will be paid by the parent. One point I would make is that if a parent has more than two children in childcare at any one time, this idea would not be sustainable for either government or parents so consideration has to be given to this. Consideration also needs to be given to support parents who chose to stay at home with their children – or indeed have to due to their child’s specific needs. One idea would be to have a flat rate for stay at home parents – so the same if one children or several children – even £30 a week would make a huge difference to those concerned – but would be half the cost of paying a subsidy to childcare providers of £60 a week for one child for working parents . The needs of the children should be put first, not the needs of tax revenue. As an aside I wonder how many parents work evenings or weekends to avoid their child going into childcare for long hours and so do not have childcare costs but still pay tax? Is that a fair system?
Qualifications GCSE’s in Maths and English are not the right way to access if someone would be a good early years practitioner. If it was – a lot of the current good and outstanding settings would not be operating because many of their staff started without those qualifications – and some still don’t have them. Experience, passion, in head knowledge, willingness to lear on the job, and sector based skills in the 3 R’s far more important.
Joined Up Thinking I am not as knowledgeable outside early years and so don’t feel I should comment on schools or university – other than to say the system is not working for anyone at the moment – student, those that teach, or indeed for employers once young people leave school or university. The benefit of an Education Group would be that there could be a joined up system that enabled everyone to agree what was needed from early years up to end of university. Of course there would need to be sub groups for each part of the education system but if all could agree on the basic direction and how to work together that would be a huge improvement on the state of things at the moment.
Summary So my ideas may be idealistic rather than realistic but we need to start somewhere and starting points are not always the end points. My own personal experiences and those of family and friends tell me that our education system is broken and a quick fix, like the introduction of Grammar schools will make things worse not better. We really do need a complete rethink – and easy to put in place measures to give everyone time to think about the bigger picture and what sort of education system we need.
To answer the first question in my title – I think childcare and education are interwoven and one cannot be provided without the other. The child / young person must be at the centre of everything we do and what is ‘right’ for one child may not be ‘right’ for another child. We need flexibility, we need to think about the child’s well being and ensure we safeguard them from inappropriate education systems whilst ensuring every child flourishes – and for that reason I think we need another word to describe the education and childcare we provide, as neither word is ‘right’ and conveys different things to different people.
So maybe that is the first thing to be decided? Personally I think the word education should be for the over 7’s, once they start their academic learning – as for the under 7’s I am not sure but the word ‘childcare’ does not seem to convey the right image or message either, when nurturing these young children ( the under 7’s) and laying the foundations for everything that will follow once they are 7, is perhaps the most vital role in the world for parents and early years professionals.
However, for the time being and to fit with current Government agendas, I can see why the Government speak of ‘childcare’ and ‘education’ for funding reasons. I don’t agree with it, but I can understand why.
The second question in the title is harder to answer because at the moment it appears some are making the ‘right noises’ about wanting to listen but experience says no one is currently really listening and no one is brave enough (yet) in Government to stand up and say ‘Enough, we have got to change how we do things’.
As a campaigner I have to remain optimistic otherwise I would just spend all my time in a dark room without access to the rather depressing news items that hit my eyes and ears everyday.
But sometimes I do feel like I am talking to the wall – and maybe that is because I talk and write rubbish that no one is interested in.
However, I do have faith that my knowledge, my personal experiences and indeed my track record – prove that others including Government and opposition political parties should at least read / listen to my opinion and ideas – and preferably invite me to meet with them so we can discuss and make changes to the system – before it is too late for all of us.
I will wait for comments on this blog, or on social media to see who has read this blog and what they think.
My granddaughter Scarlett stated school this week, she was very excited to be going to ‘big school’.
Scarlett has been to part time nursery and so is used to activities and experiences to support her development towards the goals within the Early Years Foundation Stage (that most children will meet by the time they finish the reception year).
My personal view that the EYFS Goals are not appropriate will be put aside for this blog because what has happened to Scarlett is far more worrying than even those blessed numeracy and literacy goals.
Scarlett’s first day at school was brilliant – she loved it. The school had arranged for just the children who were new to the school to attend on the Monday. This meant that those children who previously attended the schools nursery did not go on Monday – and this meant there were around 18 children present – including Scarlett. Some of her friends from her old nursery also attended and as I say Scarlett love it.
Tuesday was a different matter – all the children attended and it was chaos with children crying, mothers crying and fathers fretting. There were not enough staff to handle the distressed children, never mind the upset and concerned parents.
My daughter left Scarlett at school and phoned me in tears, saying ‘Mum it was brutal, I did not want to leave her’. Scarlett is my daughters second child and she is used to both school and nursery drop off, and this was the first time she had been in tears. I calmed her and suggested she phoned the school – which she did. School agreed that it had not been acceptable at drop off time and that they would ensure there were extra staff the next day. My daughter was slightly reassured but still worried as Scarlet has a number of issues including sensory issues and has already had support for this and there is a concern that like her older brother she may be on the autistic spectrum (although being a girl it had been assumed this was less likely – but those who keep up to date with such things know that just this week there has been news items about girls and autism). Anyway as my daughter was concerned staff offered to go to the reception class to take a photo to send to my daughter.
And they did send a photo to her but it was the wrong child! My daughter did inform them and did delete the photo from her phone in front of them – but it is worrying that such a mistake can happen.
Scarlett was ‘left behind’ when the class went into the hall – it seems she had gone to the toilet but no one had counted the children out of the class or into the hall and so no one noticed that Scarlett was missing.
Scarlett managed to get ‘lost’ within the school as she had tried to find a quiet place, and again no one noticed.
Scarlett’s new shoes were rubbing her feet – so much that her feet bled – she told her teacher but no one told her mum.
And on Friday Scarlett was found by another parent on her own in the playground having been let out before an adult had arrived to collect her. At the end of school the gates are open and any child could wander out of the school to try and find their parent or try to get home. As it was Scarlett was being picked up by her old nursery as they provide before and after school care, and the nursery staff are well known to the school – so no reason why Scarlett should have been let out before nursery staff got there.
As a grandmother – all these things have caused me to worry about Scarlett’s safeguarding while at school.
However, as hinted at in the title and first part of this blog – there was worse to come and in my opinion also a safeguarding issues in the wider sense of the word – that to her well being and mental health – and indeed her academic success in the long term.
After just FIVE days at school and still FOUR, Scarlett had homework set!!!
First a reading book – not a picture book that many schools do send home with children to share with their parents, the idea of course being to look at the pictures, describe what they can see – and if they want to ‘tell a story’ based on the picture – but without any right or wrong to the description or the story.
However Scarlett’s first book home from school had words in it – admittedly just one sentence per page – but this one sentence means there is a right and a wrong focus to how a child describes the picture.
BUT even this was not the thing that had me wanting to scream in anger and frustration, and quite frankly made me feeling like jumping on a train and rushing to London to camp on the doorstep of the DfE until someone listened to me and stopped this utter nonsense and harmful practice.
You see – Scarlett had a list of SPELLINGS to learn!!!!!!
She is interested in letters – at least the ones in her name – but that is it – a good healthy interest which in my opinion is right for her age.
WHAT ON EARTH IS HAPPENING ?
WHERE DOES IT SAY IN THE EYFS THAT CHILDREN STILL UNDER COMPULSORY SCHOOL AGE HAVE TO LEARN SPELLINGS – AND AT HOME?
WHY IS THERE A ONE SIZE FITS ALL POLICY ON THIS?
WHERE IS THE UNIQUE CHILD IN ALL OF THIS?
WHERE IS THE PLAY BASED CURRICULUM?
Readers may guess by the capitals that I am cross – very cross.
This goes against all the research about how young children learn, and against the evidence that children who are introduced to formal academic learning at a later age (6 or 7) do much better in the long term – and become confident readers for pleasure as well as for studying.
Whereas those who are pushed into formal academic learning earlier – and indeed Too Much, Too Soon do less well and some ‘switch off completely’ and never become competent, confident readers.
You only have to look at the number of children who need extra support in school with reading and writing – and the number of young people leaving school without GCSE, to know that the policy of earlier academic learning is just not working.
Children need to start school later, they need to play more until they are 6 as a minimum and ideally 7.
So my granddaughter Scarlett and my other granddaughter Selena who starts school this week, and all their peers are being set up to fail, set up not to reach their personal potential (however that might look), set up to be yet more children who are the ‘guinea pigs’ of a government that is not prepared to listen to those who understand child development, or to take heed of the realms and realms of research about such things, and long term data about school leavers in this country and other countries.
Scarlett and Selena – Granny is sorry – I have been trying to get the government to listen, I really have (and so have many of Granny’s friends and colleagues) – but so far I (we) have failed, I have failed you all, I have not made a enough difference to stop this nonsense of homework, spellings for 4 yr olds.
You should be playing, you should be outside climbing, running. digging in sand and pouring water, growing things, using your imagination and having fun.
I promise I will keep on trying – but I have a horrid feeling it will be too late for many of your peers – and maybe even for you.
The Government has a lot to answer for – and if only they would listen, they would find out that actually they could achieve their aim of a ‘good education for all’ just by letting children start academic learning later and by playing for longer.
Update One Scarlett had a terrible night waking up upset, and in the morning stated she was frighten about getting lost at school. My daughter did not send her to school, but phone the school to arrange an urgent meeting with the school head – which to be fair to the school was arranged for first thing this morning. My daughter had spoken to several other parents and the nursery staff, and knew many others were concerned about safeguarding of these very young children at the school- and about the homework, particularly the spellings.
Update Two My daughter and her husband brought Scarlett and her sister, to my house first thing this morning so I could look after them while they attended the meeting with the school head.
The children have now been collected from me, and my daughter has reported a very positive meet with the Head Teacher, who she said was very apologetic and listened not only to my daughter’s concerns but also to suggestions as a way forward. The Head was grateful that at this stage my daughter wanted to resolve the issues for Scarlett and support all the children in reception to have more positive experiences at school.
Scarlett will be provided with a safe place in the classroom for when she needs it and a box of sensory / twiddle toys to help her self regulate. Staff will be available to help her co regulate if needed.
AND my daughter has been invited back to school this afternoon so she can see for herself the changes made.
My Thoughts? The schools response has been quick and positive, I hope Scarlett and her peers now have a much better experience at school. I am pleased that my daughter listened to my advice and had the strength to follow through and meet with the school head.
I could of course say a lot more about the curriculum provided, but as this is a ‘soapbox’ issue for me – I won’t harp on now (those interested can read previous blogs), the immediate issues have hopefully been dealt with – which for Scarlett and her peers was the most important thing to address.
I hope this blog and the updates will give other parents and grandparents encouragement to speak to schools if they have any concerns – and to use the internet through social media and blogs, to raise awareness of these issues and to support people to come together and speak with one voice, so that changes can be brought about. | 2019-04-24T09:16:31Z | https://pennysplacechildminding.com/2016/09/ |
Good day, and welcome to the Ophthotech Corporation Second Quarter 2018 Earnings Call. Today's call is being recorded.
At this time, I would like to turn the call over to Kathy Galante. Please go ahead, ma'am.
Good morning, and welcome to our second quarter 2018 earnings call. Representing Ophthotech today is Mr. Glenn Sblendorio, Chief Executive Officer and President; Dr. David Guyer, Executive Chairman; Dr. Kourous Rezaei, Chief Medical Officer; David Carroll, Chief Financial Officer; and Mr. Keith Westby, Chief Operating Officer.
I would like to remind you that today, we will be making statements relating to Ophthotech's future expectations regarding operational, financial and research and development matters, including statements regarding the implementation of our strategic plan; our projected use of cash and cash balances; the timing, progress and results of clinical trials and other research and development activities; the potential utility of our product candidates; and the potential for our business development strategy, including our collaborative gene therapy research programs and any potential in-license or acquisition opportunities. These statements constitute forward-looking statements for the purpose of the safe harbor provision under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.
These statements cover many events and matters that are subject to various risks that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in any forward-looking statement, including risks relating to the initiation and the conduct and design of research programs and clinical trials; availability of data from these programs; expectation for regulatory matters; need for additional financing and negotiation; and consummation of in-license and/or acquisition transactions. I refer you to our SEC filings and in particular to the Risk Factors section in our quarterly report on Form 10-Q filed on May 9, 2018, for a detailed description of these risk factors affecting our business.
In addition, any forward-looking statements represent our views only as of today and should not be relied upon as representing our views as of any subsequent date. While we may elect to update these forward-looking statements at some point in the future, we disclaim any obligation to do so even if our views do change.
Thank you, Kathy. Good morning, everybody. We appreciate you joining our call this morning. During the first half of 2018, we continued implementing our strategy to broaden and advance our portfolio in retinal diseases as well as enter the emerging field of gene therapy by securing collaborations with 3 leading academic institutions: the University of Florida Research Foundation; the University of Pennsylvania; and the University of Massachusetts Medical School and its Horae Gene Therapy Center. Further, we continue to advance our therapeutic programs with our complement factor C5 inhibitor, Zimura, in ongoing clinical trials in multiple retinal diseases.
In 2018, our team made significant progress, and we are on track with our Zimura program to provide top line data from our various trials, starting in 2018 followed by 2019 and 2020. We're excited today to report that we expect initial top line data by the end of 2018 from our dose-ranging, open-label, uncontrolled, multicenter Phase IIa clinical trial of Zimura in combination with the antivascular endothelial growth factor agent LUCENTIS in patients with wet age-related macular degeneration, or AMD, who have not been previously treated with anti-VEGF therapy. We completed patient enrollment for this trial in April of this year.
We are currently on track for patient recruitment in our ongoing randomized, double-masked, sham-controlled Phase IIb clinical trial assessing the safety and efficacy of Zimura monotherapy in patients with geographic atrophy secondary to dry AMD, and expect initial top line data in the second half of 2019. Initial top line data for our Phase IIb randomized, double-masked, sham-controlled clinical trial assessing the safety and efficacy of Zimura monotherapy in patients with autosomal recessive Stargardt disease -- this is expected to be available in 2020. This clinical trial began recruiting patients earlier in the year.
Then moving on to gene therapy. Over 2 decades in the making, gene therapy has begun to emerge as a promising new class of therapies to treat a number of diseases. We believe that to combat vision loss for both orphan and large-market retinal diseases, gene therapy presents an intriguing scientific rationale. Gene therapy as a treatment approach for retinal diseases is attractive to both patients and physicians since it has the potential to provide a durable, prolonged therapeutic effect and possibly a cure in a single administration.
In June 2018, we entered into an exclusive global license agreement with the University of Florida and the University of Pennsylvania for rights to develop and commercialize a novel adeno-associated virus, AAV, gene therapy product candidate for the treatment of rhodopsin-mediated autosomal-dominant retinitis pigmentosa, or adRP, an orphan monogenic-inherited retinal disease that is characterized by progressive and severe loss of vision leading to blindness. Kourous will provide more detailed information regarding this potential treatment option.
We also entered into a sponsored research agreement with the University of Pennsylvania, which is facilitated by the Penn Center for Innovation, pursuant to which we together plan to conduct preclinical studies with the product candidate as well as natural history studies in rhodopsin-mediated adRP. As I mentioned before, earlier in the year we initiated a series of sponsored research agreements with UMass Medical School to utilize their minigene therapy approach and other novel gene delivery methods to target retinal diseases. As a condition of each research agreement, UMass Medical School has granted us an option to obtain an exclusive license to any patents or patent applications that result from the sponsored research.
We believe that our strategy of applying the latest scientific knowledge and know-how to develop a diverse portfolio of product candidates for the treatment of retinal diseases, integrating both gene therapy and therapeutics for orphan and large-market indications, reinforces our commitment to create value for our shareholders. As we continue to move the company forward, our business development outreach will continue to be aggressive but selective as we seek new opportunities that are in sync with our science-driven, retina-focused strategy.
We will continue to build on this strategy to uncover novel and differentiating technologies and product candidates through collaborations with leading academic institutions and companies. We believe that our expertise in drug development for retinal diseases and our clinical experience and execution are key to delivering on this strategy and to create tangible opportunities for the company and value for our shareholders.
As we look ahead to the remainder of 2018, we expect to report top line data for our Phase IIa clinical trial for Zimura combination therapy in wet AMD. Second, we expect to complete the recruitment of our Phase IIb clinical trial for Zimura monotherapy in geographic atrophy secondary to dry AMD. And finally, potentially enter into new opportunities to further expand both our therapeutic and gene therapy portfolio in retinal diseases.
I'd like to now turn the call over to Kourous.
Thank you, Glenn. And good morning, everyone. As Glenn mentioned, we expect initial top line data from our dose-ranging, open-label, uncontrolled, multicenter Phase IIa clinical trial of Zimura in combination with the anti-VEGF agent LUCENTIS in treatment-naïve patients with wet AMD by the end of this year.
We recruited a total of 64 patients in this clinical trial. This trial is designed to assess the safety of different doses of Zimura in combination with LUCENTIS 0.5 milligrams and to detect a potential efficacy signal at month 6. Following the completion of this trial, clinical data will be analyzed; and we will determine whether to proceed to a randomized, sham-controlled clinical trial of Zimura combination therapy with anti-VEGF in wet AMD.
As of you may recall in our previously completed Zimura wet AMD Phase I/IIa study, among treatment-naïve patients that received 6-month intravitreal injections of Zimura in combination with LUCENTIS 0.5 milligrams in the high-dose group, 60% of the patients gained greater than or equal to 3 lines of vision, which is generally accepted as meaningful visual gain with a mean visual gain of 15.3 letters from baseline, both of which are higher than what is generally seen in clinical trials for anti-VEGF monotherapy.
All doses were well tolerated, and no safety concerns were identified. Our trial had a small sample size consistent with a Phase I/IIa study with no control group. Although potentially an efficacy signal was present, we wanted to further validate these findings before entering into a large-scale, randomized, controlled trial. We look forward to the upcoming Zimura data in wet AMD later this year.
The recruitment of patients in our ongoing Zimura Phase IIb clinical trial in geographic atrophy secondary to dry AMD is currently on track. And we expect to complete enrollment in the third quarter of this year. Approximately 275 patients are expected to be enrolled into this clinical trial. This trial is designed to assess the safety and efficacy of Zimura monotherapy in geographic atrophy over 12 months. Patients will continue to be monitored until month 18.
We continue to enroll patients in our Zimura Phase IIb clinical trial in autosomal recessive Stargardt disease, which is an orphan-inherited retinal disease. We expect to enroll approximately 120 patients globally in this trial, making this one of the largest interventional clinical trials in Stargardt disease to date.
Moving on to our gene therapy programs. In June of 2018, we entered into an exclusive global license agreement with the University of Florida Research Foundation and University of Pennsylvania for rights to develop and commercialize a novel adeno-associated virus gene therapy product candidate for the treatment of rhodopsin-mediated autosomal-dominant retinitis pigmentosa.
Rhodopsin-mediated autosomal-dominant retinitis pigmentosa is a monogenic orphan disease, with more than 150 mutations identified in the rhodopsin gene. The construct for the rhodopsin-mediated autosomal-dominant retinitis pigmentosa product candidate combines a transgene expressing a highly efficient novel short hairpin RNA designed to target and knock down endogenous rhodopsin in a mutation-independent manner with a human rhodopsin replacement transgene made resistant to RNA interference in a single adeno-associated vector.
Ophthotech and Penn have also entered into a master sponsored research agreement, facilitated by the Penn Center for Innovation, pursuant to which Ophthotech and Penn plan to conduct natural history studies in rhodopsin-mediated autosomal-dominant retinitis pigmentosa patients and additional preclinical studies. In parallel with the sponsored research agreement, we plan to commence IND-enabling activities. Based on current timelines and regulatory review, we expect to initiate a Phase I/II clinical trial during 2020.
As part of our collaboration, we will work in partnership with internationally renowned scientists in gene therapy for orphan retinal diseases. We will collaborate with Professor Alfred Lewin and Professor William Hauswirth from the University of Florida; and Professor William Beltran, Professor Gustavo Aguirre and Professor Sam Jacobson and Professor Artur Cideciyan from the University of Pennsylvania.
As Glenn referenced earlier, our first step into gene therapy was our research collaboration with UMass Medical School that allows us to collaborate with high-caliber scientists such as Dr. Guangping Gao and Dr. Hemant Khanna. As you know, Dr. Gao is a pioneer in the development of the novel adeno-associated virus family for gene therapy. And Dr. Khanna's research focuses on using minigene technology to develop treatments for orphan retinal indications. We will evaluate the minigene therapy approach that is being developed at UMass Medical School to target orphan retinal indications.
AAV vectors are generally limited as a delivery vehicle by the size of their genetic cargo. The use of minigenes as a therapeutic strategy seeks to deliver a smaller but still functional form of the larger gene passage into the AAV delivery vector. The minigene strategy may offer a novel approach for diseases that would otherwise be difficult or impossible to address through conventional AAV gene replacement therapy, where the size of the gene of interest exceeds the transgene packaging capacity of AAV vectors. Further, our collaboration with UMass Medical School is focused on developing AAV vectors for delivering gene therapy to the back of the eye.
The scope of our agreement with UMass includes Leber Congenital Amaurosis type 10, or LCA10, which is the most common type of LCA and is caused by mutations in the CEP290 gene; and autosomal recessive Stargardt disease, which is caused by mutations in the ABCA4 gene. LCA10 and Stargardt disease are both orphan degenerative inherited retinal diseases that lead to vision loss, without any currently available FDA- or EMA-approved treatments.
Although very early stage in its development, we believe that minigene therapy for Stargardt disease is potentially a strategic life cycle improvement for our Zimura program in this disease. Our strategy is to build a diverse portfolio for the treatment of retinal diseases in both orphan and large-market indication using gene therapies and therapeutics. We believe that the field of gene therapy is here to stay. And our collaboration with eminent scientists at UPenn, University of Florida and UMass Medical School would allow us to be at the forefront of this cutting-edge technology for the treatment of retinal diseases. In the meantime, we look forward to upcoming data from our Zimura trials in wet AMD, geographic atrophy secondary to dry AMD and autosomal recessive Stargardt disease.
I will now turn the call over to Dave Carroll. Dave?
Thank you, Kourous. And good morning, everyone. I'd like to highlight a few items from our press release of this morning and also reaffirm our year-end cash guidance.
For the quarter, our net loss totaled $13.2 million or $0.37 per share compared to a net loss of $22.2 million or $0.62 per share for Q2 2017 as Q2 2017 reflected the impacts of the discontinuation of the Fovista Phase III clinical program and our organizational restructuring. Year-to-date, our net loss totaled $26.3 million or $0.73 per share compared to a net loss of $65.3 million or $1.82 per share for 2017, again due to the 2017 discontinuation of the Fovista Phase III clinical program and our organizational restructuring.
Turning to our expected year-end cash balance. Our cash balance at June 30 was $146 million, a $9 million decrease from March 31. We reaffirm our cash guidance and expect our year-end cash balance will range between $112 million and $117 million based on our current 2018 business plan, which includes continuation of our development programs for Zimura, our RHO-adRP gene therapy product candidate and our collaborative gene therapy research programs. Of course, these estimates do not reflect any additional expenditures resulting from the potential in-licensing or acquisition of additional product candidates, technologies or any associated development that the company may pursue.
I'll now turn the call back over to Glenn. Thank you for your time.
Thank you, Dave. We have a lot going on in the second half of 2018 and look forward to continuing to engage with investors and tell you our story. I'd now like to thank everybody for joining this morning, and open up the phone for questions, operator.
(Operator Instructions) And we'll take our first question from Yigal Nochomovitz with Citi.
So my question is on the gene therapy programs, unsurprisingly. So obviously, you're early in the game. But that may give you an advantage. And that's because of the recent draft guidance that I'm sure you're aware of regarding the gene therapy manufacturing that the FDA recently released. And so I'd be curious to hear your thoughts on how you're planning to integrate that guidance, assuming it's turned into a full guidance, with respect to the manufacturing scale-up that the FDA cites that they want to see the companies early in the development cycle initiate a long-term manufacturing scale-up plan before they start clinicals.
They also talked about (inaudible) assays, (inaudible) safety test development as well as nonclinical toxicology for developmental and reproductive tox. So I'd just be curious on your overall thoughts around how you're implementing that guidance and how you would make it consistent so you can coordinate across UPenn, UMass and UFlorida, which may have different approaches at least in the very early development stage.
Yes, thanks, Yigal. And that's a great question. And we're actually pleased the FDA is finally providing guidance on this. And the way that we're approaching, yes, we are early obviously with the clinical programs. And we do look at clinical programs in this area. Of course, manufacturing, CMC, consistency is always a major issue. So the way we've approached that since we are early is we've been building expertise internally through a network of consultants and experts on the regulatory side and the CMC side, the gene therapy side. And I think over the last year, we've learned a lot. I think we understand the guidance.
But more importantly, we've taken that expertise and we have interviewed a number of manufacturers, not only here in the U.S. but worldwide. And these are manufacturers well experienced in these methodologies and changing regulatory environment. So I think we're aware of it. I think we have the experts to support that. And we are working with, and haven't announced anything yet, leading manufacturers that can sure that as we scale up even in preclinical stage that would be in compliance with these new guidelines. I hope that answers your question.
Yes. And what about the cadence of any new academic collaborations? I think I've asked this in the past, but I just thought I'd check. I mean, are there others that are on the -- in the wings that we could learn about? Are you sort of satisfied with the 3 that you have now?
Well, great institutions. We're really happy that we're able to work with the 3 institutions that we talk about all the time, UMass, UFlorida, UPenn, clearly leaders. I think as we indicated, we'd like to -- we've signaled that we continue to look. The criteria that we've applied to new programs would be that, one, there's great science; and two, that there's the potential for us to be first in that space. And I think if you looked at what we've selected thus far, there's good opportunity that if all works out we could have a leading gene therapy indication. So we continue to very aggressively talk to folks both on the academic side as well as the company or the commercial side. I think academics for us, being early to the game, has been a good experience by creating these relationships with the leading organizations.
So, answer: we continue to look. We continue to talk to folks. I think what is quite pleasing right now is that we're actually getting inbound calls as opposed to us being very active with outbound calls. So I think we're starting to create a little bit of a name for ourselves.
And Kourous, I don't know if you want to add anything. You're on the front line with a lot of the academic leaders here.
Well, Glenn, I agree with everything you said. We continue to look. And we also obviously follow the FDA guidance regarding the CMC. And we are at a good stage to be able to do that without needing to make any major changes.
Maybe I could ask slightly different. I mean, what -- are there certain criteria that are must-haves for a new academic collaboration? I mean, what do you absolutely need to have in the profile of a new development program? And what are you trying to avoid?
It's a great question. Again, I'll go back -- an indication or a therapy that could be first to market; obviously, great science, first and foremost; and third, very important, a clear path to the clinic. And I think we demonstrated that with the UFlorida, UPenn. I think the third point is very important that we see -- the early research that we're doing with UMass is very important; great work may be to overcome a hurdle that's there today in delivering larger transgenes. But looking for programs with great science, great people and also clear path to the clinic.
We have a question come in. We'll take our question from Anupam Rama with JPMorgan.
Just maybe a quick one on the cash position. I know the guidance is to end the year with $112 million to $117 million. But can you remind us how long this cash position is sufficient for as it currently stands?
So we can see -- based on everything that we have right now in terms of our assumptions, we can see ourselves clear to the end of 2019. As you know for just generally for GAAP, you have to look out the next 12 months. You'll see that in our 10-Q filing. But we can see ourselves clear through 2019 and into 2020.
Anupam, the other thing I'd add to Dave's comment, he's absolutely right, is that I think we have said pretty consistently that we have enough capital to bring all of the current programs to a [card turn]. So for example, we talked about data later in '18 for wet, data for dry in '19 -- for dry and then the Stargardt program. And also on Dave's guidance, as he said in both his commentary and what's in the Qs, this includes the gene therapy programs as well. And that's getting to again a milestone. So for example, in the adRP program, hopefully, to get it to the clinic. So I know it's not a specific guideline. But the capital is there to move these programs forward.
And there are no further telephone questions. Glenn, I would like to turn the conference back over to you for additional or closing remarks.
Well, thank you, everybody, for listening today. We look forward to continuing to update you on our programs and BD activities, and appreciate it. | 2019-04-26T08:32:50Z | https://finance.yahoo.com/news/edited-transcript-opht-earnings-conference-150832480.html |
A man in black walked through the dark and abandoned parts of the city to his home with his Modified 7.62x54r VEPR Tactical DMR slung across his back. He stopped at a large house that was in much better shape than the rest of the city around it. He took out his key and unlocked it. He opened the door and closed it behind him. As he walked through the house to the back door and out into an airplane hangar.
Once he entered the hangar he flipped some light switches to reveal a black military fighter jet with Cyan and purple accents. It looked like a cross between an F-22 and a CFA-44 but had larger canards (elevator fins on the front of the fuselage), a longer fuselage, and rear elevator tail fins. It basically looked like a more maneuverable IFX-45R. The thrust vector angles weren’t just vertical up and down like on the F-22, they went in every direction at a max angle of 67.5 degrees. The jet was VTOL capable and could outfly anything any country had. The plane had extra maneuverability fins that increased the aircraft’s maneuverability.
On either side of the Two main engines was the name of the aircraft. The PhE-18 Hunter. on the wings and vertical tail fins was a dark grey wolf with the moon behind it and the letters DWAR below it. The man chuckled as he gazed upon his creation. It hadn’t been tested but he’s sure it will fly. He’s run every simulation and everything worked perfectly and exactly the way he wanted it to.
He learned to fly a fighter jet from his father. His father had been a pilot as well as a sniper. He walked up to the ladder leading up to the cockpit and climbed up. He pulled the latch release to open the cockpit and climbed in. His custom made fighter pilot’s helmet sat on the flight seat. He lifted his helmet off the seat and sat down. Taking his hat off and placing it in a compartment behind his flight seat. He did took off his sniper rifle and locked it in a larger but similar compartment along with his swords and a few knifes. The rest of his weapons stayed on him. Such as his twin .45 pistols, several knifes, his hidden blades, and a 7.62x54r lever action pistol.
He flipped several switches and began the startup sequence on the plane and taxied out of the hangar and onto the runway. The runway was an abandoned airstrip from an old abandoned air force base that the man now called home. He reached the back end of the runway and steered the plane onto it. Once he was straight he shoved the throttle forward.
The plane picked up speed and was nearing 175 knots. The man eased back on the stick and the plane lifted off the ground. He centered the landing gear switch and raised the landing gear. He turned his plane northwest and pushed the throttle into afterburn.
Meanwhile, in the country of Asran a lone fighter jet was flying through the skies. The aircraft had blue stripes and a fiery unicorn emblazoned on the vertical tail fin. It was a Northrop Grumman F-5 Tiger II and the Pilot’s name was Shin Kazama. He stayed in one position for a few more seconds before rolling and broke off of his previous flightpath.
“Copy that HQ. Intercepting now.” Shin replied and held off any further attacks in order to conserve ammo. The new enemy fighters were closing in when eight missiles came in out of nowhere and blew eight rebel fighters out of the sky. Turning them into nothing but scrap metal. Shin took that as a signal to attack and began to down MIG after MIG.
Shin soon ran out of ammo and was dodging missiles and gunfire as he tried to outrun the enemy planes. Another eight missiles came out of nowhere and hit more of the rebel planes, damaging three and blowing another five to bits. Suddenly, a cyan and purple blurred shape shot past Shin’s plane and two migs blew up as it passed. The shape then proceeded to fire several missiles in rapid succession at each and every mig in a 2 km radius. Blowing them out of the sky and scattering their debris.
The shape came up next to Shin’s plane and Shin turned his head toward it. What he saw he didn’t understand. It was a jet. A very odd one at that. It was very sleek and had an odd design to it. Shin noticed something even more odd. There wasn’t a radar blip anywhere to be seen on his display! Shin looked back at the plane and into the cockpit. He saw the pilot salute him and Shin just stared at him.
Hunter lowered his hand and gently leaned the stick to the right and did a banking dive turn towards the place he would soon find himself protecting and earning money from.
Last edited by Hunter Dracon on Fri Apr 22, 2016 11:12 am, edited 1 time in total.
The mysterious man in black was soon going to have another pilot serving along with him, though she had been taking off from an unrelated airfield and instead had to eventually rendezvous with him. Recently she had been hearing plenty about another excellent pilot. Never did she take this sort of a message as a challenge, however, but rather instead had elected to look at it as something that was potentially going to lead her into meeting someone who could potentially be an object of incredible mutual respect.
Her plane wasn't nearly as customized as the one that he had flown, but it was still certainly an exceptionally unique aircraft. The Sukhoi Su-47 Berkut was an unusual supersonic jet fighter that featured forward swept wings. There wasn't anything else like her in the skies. While her jet fighter had indeed featured the same dull black paint designed to prevent radar locks on that Slavic engineers had originally planned to put on the fighter, the famous red star of the revolution was nowhere to be found.
Rather she had elected to use her own mercenary's reporting marks in turn. A starkly minimalist symbol that featured a skull emblazoned with a rose blossom was painted where one might have expected roundels to be. It was certainly an unusual symbol that was painted on an unusual aircraft. It was perfect, as a result, to focus on the fact that she herself were looking for someone in a rather unusual circumstance as well.
There was another way that she was actually a lot like him as well. Much like him, she had not elected to go into any mission alone. On her person she carried several fixed-blade knives, which she felt were sturdier and more secure than the folding models that many other people had a tendency to prefer. She also had a pair of side arms that were starkly different when one thought of what level of technology they represented.
On her one side she had a Nagant M1895, which was a revolver that made a unique gas-seal with it's cylinder when fired. It would have been considered an antique by many, but she appreciated it's reliability even if it wasn't the easiest weapon to load. If nothing else, then it was always perfectly accurate.
The other was an ultra-modern side arm that fired the FN 5.7x28 mm cartridge. It featured a lightweight polymer design, a high capacity magazine and extremely low recoil. This combination of hyper modernism with something that was far more demure when it came to technological development would have given her a clear distinction on the battlefield. She must have been rather confident in her abilities, since it would be obvious from whom a shot came from.
Feeling her own back press against the seat inside of the fighter as her own afterburner switched into high gear, the female pilot involuntarily swallowed and then finally elected to switch on her aircraft to aircraft radio circuit system. "This is the Purple Rose, calling for unidentified aircraft. Unidentified aircraft, do you read my transmissions?"
Elsewhere there were some events that were looking every bit as interesting as it were. Saki Vashtal was a commissioned officer in the Asranian air force, which had made sense considering that he was a member of their royal family. Most individuals who were given such a high birth were absolutely paranoid of looking as though they were idly enjoying their wealth. This went double when the country that you were born to lord over was struggling with a military conflict and abject poverty.
In so many ways he had matched Shin's motions. He had done everything that he could to keep up with the other pilot, though he had to admit that the foreigner was perhaps one of the finest pilots he had seen in spite of some of the reservations that Shin might have exhibited from time to time. Once Shin was apparently out of ammunition, though, Saki was soon there to rush to his aid.
Banking in a way that made him feel as though his stomach were dodging upward into his throat, Saki ignored any discomfort and took out several of the targets that he had been trying to dodge a few moments ago. Nevertheless, this was just a temporary solution. As bits of lead riddled the fragile skins belonging to the enemy fighters, Saki knew that his own supplies and stores were of course limited as well.
That was of course until an entirely new target had served to distract him from even this. Eventually Saki had decided that perhaps the other individual wasn't in danger. No shots had really been fired just yet as it were, and it had looked like everything were pretty peaceful for the time being. Maybe this wasn't going to end nearly as badly as he figured that it would have. It had taken him only a few moments to switch on his own communications equipment, hoping to get a lock for the time being. Naturally they had been maintaining radio silence. When pilots became essentially extended through their own aircraft and entered into a zone as it were, they were either unable or perhaps unwilling to reply to such requests. If that had been the case, then it certainly wouldn't have been ideal at all. Nevertheless, he would have at least understood what was going on.
"Do you know who that target is?"
Unlike the previous female pilot, there wasn't the charity that came with an address as an unidentified aircraft. Rather, he had referred to the other plane explicitly as a target. His words had certainly sounded as though they were spoken in terms of absolutes. Saki didn't hold quarters so to speak. That was perhaps because of the history that he had seen his country go through thus far.
Shin shook himself out of his trance and thought for a few seconds. "Sorry Saki, I don't know who that was, but he did save my life. The way he handled himself was amazing though. He splashed more planes in a few seconds than I have ever could in a minute!"
Hunter chuckled as he flew inverted over Saki's plane. Then he rolled beside Saki and shoved his throttle forward and engaged the afterburner. 1,500,000 pounds of thrust pushed the aircraft forward and into hypersonic speeds. Hunter grinned like a maniac as his plane screamed through the skies. He disengaged his afterburner and banked into a tight turn as he flew over Area 88.
Pausing for a few moments, Saki was handling the thrust of his own aircraft at speeds that pushed him far into the pilot's seat that he was strapped to. It was an exhilarating feeling, and despite the fact that he was dealing with the fact that his own country was war torn, it sometimes made him feel that he was in a good place. Numerous pounds of thrust beating your aircraft forward was a feeling that couldn't be replaced by anything.
Nothing could have substituted for that feeling, but soon enough he was hit with a ton of bricks not by G-forces but instead by the announcement that he received from Shin. "Honestly you haven't the slightest idea who that was? Well, whoever they are must be on our side. They surely could have killed both of us otherwise."
Additionally he had wanted to know what sort of plane that they were flying. It didn't look like he was going to get an answer to that end, however. Saki was just going to have to be happy with the fact that they weren't both taken out. While he might not have liked admitting that a pilot was his better, he didn't really have any choice with this one.
Meanwhile, the maniac had received a bit of an inspection by another person. Her aircraft wasn't exactly identified either, but it was a certainly notable. There weren't many other people who had elected to fly a swept-wing design like that. Vocal calls hadn't done her much good at all.
Since her voice on the radiotelephone system didn't seem to raise his interest, she decided to use another method to get him to reply. The mysterious female pilot flipped a switch in her cockpit and sent out a beacon signal that she had hoped to get a reply from.
If nothing else, then it might have scared him since anyone could intercept an aeronautical beacon. They were transmitted in a regular carrier wave format. CW transmissions like these were on public frequencies. She was gambling on a guess that he didn't want others to find out about him. Honestly, she had a feeling that she was right on that.
Hunter radioed the control the area 88 control tower and spoke, "Area 88 this is Phantom do you read over?"
There was an operator seated in the control tower. He had been about to leave when the other's radio message came through. The fact that it seemed that Hunter was coming in, though, was probably going to keep him around for a while.
Exhaling, he decided to come back around. Having retaken his seat, the tower operator figured that there was no one here to relieve him. That was strange to tell the truth. There were supposed to be enough air traffic control personnel.
He wasn't sure if something had called them off. Anyway, though, he turned to pick up his microphone. "We read you loud and clear. What is your status?"
Though some of the others hadn't recognized him that seemed to suggest that this individual knew something about him, but it should be noted that the Area 88 tower was probably just observing his plane. Someone here must have had some information on him, though it was doubtful that anyone would have. Hunter was a real enigma, and that made things interesting.
Certainly it had made things interesting for Saki. He had no idea who Hunter was. Likewise, the female who had been chasing him before hadn't recognized him. For that matter, it was doubtful that Hunter recognized her any more than she did him.
A plane could act very much like a mask. It kept you insulated from the identity of others.
Hunter circled and corkscrewed above the airfield as he waited for a response. When it came Hunter grinned michieviously as he suddenly had an idea. "Tower, this is Phantom, requesting permission for a flyby."
"Negative Ghostrider the pattern is full."
"Sorry mate I'm doing it anyway." Hunter then pulled the throttle back and purposefully stalled his plane, causing it to flip over so that it's nose was pointed at the ground. Hunter then shoved the throttle forward, triggering the afterburner, and as soon as he neared an altitude of 500 meters he pulled up and screamed past Area 88's control tower. His right wing had been one milimeter from making contact and either scratching or shattering the glass windows of the control tower. "WOOHOO!" he shouted as he flew throught the air at mach 7.
Hunter slid his throttle back out of the afterburner and pulled several extremely tight turns to shave off his extremely high airspeed down to landing speeds.
The original air traffic controller reached back for the microphone from before. "Negative, repeat negative. You are no go for a flyby, Phantom. Repeat, negative on the flyby..." He was forced to cut himself off soon because the glass windows had soon broken. Quickly he ducked under his desk, covering his ears, which were quickly bleeding as a result of the force of the wind that had broken those windows.
While he was almost knocked unconscious, he considered himself simply lucky to be left alive after a move like that. It was extremely dangerous, and the controller had no idea how someone like that could have been ever issued a pilot's license. Better yet, he had honestly no idea how a daredevil pilot like that wasn't doing something a little more impressive than flying out here.
After all, he had skill that he had never seen before for sure!
Meanwhile, the pilot of the swept-wing jet had requested landing clearance, but received no reply because of the shattered windows. She had cut down to landing speed much earlier, and had now been coming in on a separate runway.
Hunter pulled a tight 40 G turn and landed his plane as the other pilot touched down. "Damn, I haven't had tbat much fun breaking rules in months!" he said as he hopped out of the aircraft. The Area 88 flight crews bustled about around his aircraft as they marveled at the odd and sleek design of the foreign aircraft. One reached forward to touch the surface of the aircraft when his hand was slapped away. "No touching mate. This aircraft is classified. Any attempts to study it will result in severe punishment. Only those i authorize may study it, and so far that means no one may do so. DO I MAKE MYSELF CLEAR?!" Hunter said as he grabbed and twisted the mechanic's right arm behind his back.
"Yes sir! Crystal clear sir!" replied the frightened mechanic.
"I'm glad we have an understanding. This goes for everyone here!" Hunter shouted as he released the stricken mechanic and turned towards the other mechanics who stood there with shocked expressions on their faces. "I designed and built this plane myself and i don't like people messing with my aircraft." Hunter then climbed back into his plane and taxied it into a hanger. He walked aout and then nailed a sign onto the hanger door. The sign read, "RESTRICTED AREA! UNAUTHORIZED PERSONEL WILL FACE CHARGES OF THE ATTEMPT OF THEFT!" Then Hunter gave everyone watching a stern glare and walked back into the hanger.
Someone had rushed to help the individual in the tower, considering that his ears had been blown out. That wasn't to mention the fact that the shattered glass was quite a problem as well. It seemed, however, that two individuals had come down to visit with Hunter, though for the time being the rule about no one touching his aircraft was going to be respected.
One of the two individuals was Saki, who turned up toward him with a scowl. "I should have you know that in a manner of speaking this airfield facility belongs to me, so perhaps I should introduce myself. I am Saki Vashtal, a Lieutenant Colonel in the Asranian Air services. It would be best if you would refrain from attacking my personnel and kindly do not hang signs up. Should you do these things then I will respect the terms of your sign."
Meanwhile, someone else was interested in him in a far less cold way. It was the woman from before, who had flown the other aircraft in. Having thrown about her hair after removing her flight helmet and shield, she started to walk over toward Hunter with a gloved hand thrust out toward him.
"I'd have to say that was some performance to say the least, you must have been the pilot that I was tracking all that time before. I have to say that I don't often see anyone quite like you at all."
Considering his entrance, which was certainly some entrance, she wasn't exaggerating one bit at all.
Hunter peeked out from behind the door and looked at the woman with a confused expression. "You didn't do a very good job then. Cause i was inverted over your Su-47 for three hours and you never looked up." he then turned to Saki and glared at him. "And Lieutenant Colonel Vashtal... You would'nt want to tangle with a superior officer would you? Allow me to introduce myself. I am Lieutenant Commander Hunter Dracon, callsign Phantom."
Man, she had actually come to appreciate Hunter's rebellious nature. In fact, she really found the fact that he kept breaking all these rules to make him seem that much more rough around the edges, and she genuinely like that. Smirking as she looked up to him with a laugh, she soon tilted her head. "Well, maybe you could teach me a few things? Maybe I should introduce myself too."
Soon enough, though, Vashtal shook his head, "How could you possibly outrank me though, Phantom? I am the actual head of the armed services in this country. Still, I want to have your assistance if you would so offer it to me."
Hunter looked at Saki and then burst out laughing. "Why do you think I came here Lieutenant?" he said before he turned to the female pilot. "If you want to learn from me you're gonna have a hard time. However, we can start by taking a look at your aircraft. I need to see if I can give it some upgrades and modifications. I'm as much of a pilot as I am an engineer." Hunter stated with a grin.
Shin watched from several feet away behind Saki as the two new pilots interacted with each other and formed the ghost of a smile as he heard Hunter inform the woman that he was an engineer and wanted to take a look at her aircraft to see what upgrades and modifications he could add to it. He walked forward and stopped next to the woman. "If you could give my Tiger II some upgrades that would be nice." he said and then held his hand out for the man to shake, "The name's Shin. Shin Kazama, and I hope we'll become friends one day."
With a roll of his eyes, Saki shrugged a bit and finally just laughed, showing that he figured he wasn't going to get anywhere in the conversation at all. "Well, I will have to deduct the cost of the damage that you did from your pay, but with your skills as a pilot I bet you'll pay it back in a single mission." Even he had to admit that the other was one great pilot for sure, and he certainly wasn't one to avoid taking a risk. He'd clearly shown that already.
The female once more looked him over and threw back her hair with a grin. While Hunter might have been cocky, that cockiness was certainly oozing with confidence as well. "An engineer who can handle the Su-47 is rare to come by. I'd love to have you take a look at my plane."
Eventually it seemed like Shin was trying to talk to Hunter, so he kept quiet, though she offered him a bit of a salute. "I can't recall; have I introduced myself yet? Surely you must have heard of the Purple Rose."
Hunter grinned as he heard the name. "Ah, the Purple Rose. Heh, you actually shot me down once about twelve years ago. Of course, I was still a rookie pilot then and I was younger than most pilots during that time. Ah, the memories." Hunter then burst out laughing and then grinned like a maniac. "Miss Rose, if you would be so kind as to lead me to your aircraft?" Hunter stated after he shook Shin's hand.
Laughing a bit, she looked back up toward the man. "At this point, though, I highly doubt that I have even the slightest chance of taking you out. Do you mind if I ask what conflict that was?" The way that she had said it seemed to indicate that she knew they had both been in many. Regardless, she tilted her head up toward him and started to walk, showing that her plane was this way. "I'm interested in seeing what you have to say about it, if you really were tailing me all that time. I tried to radio you before. I guess you didn't hear me, or were perhaps ignoring me outright."
Hunter elbowed her playfully as if they were best friends and just said, "Miss Rose, my radio is only tuned for certain frequencies. I never use open channels. And the conflict it was in? Hmm... I believe it was during the Vietnam war. I was flying an F-8 Crusader with green, purple, and cyan stripes. Heh, that was my first plane. When you shot me down I rebuilt that plane. I made it better over time as technology progressed. In fact, that same plane is being shipped here for me to use along with several other planes that I have used in the past." Hunter explained before he caught sight of the beautiful aircraft that was sitting two-hundred meters away.
He grinned like a maniac and sprinted to the waiting plane before falling backwards onto a skateboard that was conviently placed fifty meters away from the aircraft and skidded to a stop under the plane. "HOLY ****! THIS IS A RARE VARIANT OF THE SU-47! I CAN'T BELEIVE I'VE FOUND ONE!" Hunter shouted with glee. "This variant isn't even on the market yet! I've been looking into getting one but I could never find out where it was designed!"
Hunter then rolled out from under the plane and stood up while grinning ear to ear. "The person who designed this variant is a genius! I can't wait to look inside! I've got my own Su-47 but it's not the same plane as this one! I maintain my aircraft personally so they stay he way I want them. Then again nobody ever understands or knows how to repair or install the upgrades and modifications I tend to add to my aircraft. All you need right now is my tradmark anti-grav generator and you'll be able to withstand over one-hundred Gs!" Hunter said as he ran his hand down the fuselage.
"Is that why you weren't able to hear what I was slinging? That being said, that had to be a long time ago." Looking up slowly, the Purple Rose tried to think back that far. "By the way, you realize of course that's just my call sign; Purple Rose isn't really my name." Eventually she looked up toward him, liking the fact that she was just getting to speak with him as though they had known each other for a long time.
"Well, I'd certainly like to see that plane once it does get there." Soon enough, though, she found herself deadpanned. Honestly the pilot had always assumed that there were only a few Su-47 aircraft in the entire world, so all of them would have constituted as rare to hear. To hear that he had one was incredible in its own right, as she only had the one plane that she flew exclusively.
Quickly blinking once again, she looked toward him as he sat in the cockpit. She also had no idea that anti-grav technology genuinely worked. Regular jet fighter technology had always seemed impressively advanced to her as it was. What she was talking about sounded purely like science fiction.
Taking 100gs or even half that sounded purely impossible. While she was obviously quite humble, she considered it almost unbelievable that she was able to pull around 17gs without fainting. That was almost completely unheard of, so for him to bring this up was shocking to say the very least.
"You're not trying to make fun of me or anything, now are you?"
Somehow, though, while he seemed eccentric she had a feeling that this Hunter fellow was totally being honest about everything. For a mercenary, he seemed to be a rather honest individual, especially compared to many that she had met.
Hunter laughed, "No miss Rose, I am being completely honest. I have an anti-grav generator in every single aircraft I own. It's what allows me to take extremely tight turns. For instance, I pulled a forty G turn as I landed my plane, as I was still going way too fast for a safe landing. I would have either crashed or rammed into your Su-47 as you taxied it here." Hunter said a he hopped out of the cockpit of the her aircraft. "One more thing, your Su-47 is different than other Su-47 aircraft. Your Su-47 is a modified variant of the originals an has a higher turn rate and increased speed. Plus the materials that were used to build it were carbon fiber and titanium. Not steel and titanium. The stronger materials give the aircraft a stronger airframe that can withstand higher amounts of g-force. This allows the aircraft to make tighter turns and not tear itself apart in the process. My anti-gravity generators only reduces the g-forces to safenlevels and prevents blackouts. Aircraft can be pushed to their limits once the anti-grav is installed. And no this not science fiction sheila." Hunter explained before he dashed back to his hanger.
He returned wearing a black Australian style hat and had a sniper rifle strapped across his back. He put on a pair of aviator sunglasses with cyan and purple titented lenses and glanced at Saki. "Sheila d'you mind if I go pay the colonel the damage fees for the tower real quick?" he asked as he turned his head toward her and clicked his head towrds Saki.
"Maybe I should let you know my real name, though there is something about calling me Miss Rose that I like." Honestly, she had to admit that she also liked his unique Australian accent, fashion and even the slang that he had been using. "I thought that my Su-47 was fairly stock with lightweight specialized post-Cold War steel, but that really makes her sound special."
Smiling to him for the time being, she listened to everything that he had to say, as unbelievable as it was. Never could she have figured that there would have been actual anti-gravitational generators that would have worked in that way. Actually, she couldn't have imagined that there would have been any that had worked at all. Simply it sounded to her like it was science fiction. The fact that this was all actually happening made her pulse quicken, and that was saying a lot considering that she was a mercenary jet fighter pilot.
Shrugging, the Purple Rose laughed again. "Well, yeah, I figured that you should after that, but I'm sure you can afford it."
Turning about, Saki actually started to come toward him, having come down from examining the damage to the tower. It was going to cost some money to repair this for sure, but Hunter wouldn't have done it if he couldn't have paid for it. | 2019-04-22T02:04:32Z | http://creativefreedomrpg.com/viewtopic.php?f=8&t=48775 |
Also via the Museum of Hoaxes blog - William Patry has an interesting story about a postal worker who was convicted for selling undelivered DVDs that the US Postal Service, on the instructions of the owners of the DVDs, had thrown away.
If you came across a trash can filled with lawfully made compact discs and DVDs that the copyright owner had authorized to be put in that trash can and then thrown away because it didn’t want to pay the postage to have them returned, do you think you could be criminally prosecuted for selling those copies, and would you think that the copyright owners would be entitled to restitution under the Mandatory Victims Restitution Act? If you answered no to these questions, you would be wrong according to the Eighth Circuit.
Here’s the opinion, United States v. Chalupnik, 2008 WL 268997 (8th Cir. Feb. 1, 2008), court’s docket no. 07-1355, available on the court of appeals’ website, here (search for Chalupnik).
The facts are pretty much these (at least as recited in the opinion): defendant was an employee for the U.S. Postal Service. BMG Columbia House is a mail order operation selling CDs and DVDs by mail. Many of these discs are undeliverable. Rather than pay the postage to have them returned to it, BMG Columbia House instructed the Postal Service to throw them away. The Postal Service did throw them away. Defendant then retrieved them from the trash and sold them to area stores, netting $78,818. A surveillance camera showed defendant retrieving the items and he was arrested; he was originally charged with felony mail theft, but then pleaded guilty to misdemeanor copyright infringement. The trial court sentenced defendant to two years probation and ordered him to pay $78,818 to BMG in restitution. Chalupnik appealed .
The district court’s theory was “I do believe that there is in fact a lost opportunity to ... BMG, that the people that bought those CD's ... would likely have bought new CD's, and that that represents a real and substantial loss to ... BMG in the amount of $78,818.” The government argued that “BMG is a victim because it owns the discs, sells them with permission of the copyright owners, and controls the disposition of undeliverable discs; that each time Chalupnik sold an undeliverable disc, the artist lost a royalty and BMG lost a potential sale; and that the amount of those losses is conservatively estimated by Chalupnik's gross revenues, $78,818.
Among the many things I find amazing in this whole debacle is the assumption that there could be copyright infringement. The copies had been thrown away at the direction of the BMG Columbia House (which may or may not have also been the copyright owner). I would think that means any ownership in the copies had been abandoned and that therefore anyone was free to do with them what they wanted. If instead of the postal worker having taken them out of the trash, what if the trash dump owner had discovered them and sold them?"
Wonderful story at the Museum of Hoaxes about the perils of paper voting. 20 Chicago voters were allegedly told that the touchscreen voting styluses that they had been given to mark their paper ballots were pens that used invisible ink.
William Heath thinks people should read the text of the speech that Rowan Williams has been so heavily critcised over because he is prepared to talk in public about difficult subjects and with a deep understanding of the complexities of the real world.
People diss Rowan Williams but he spelt out years ago why customer was such an unsatisfactory term for the active participant in “services” such as health or education.
The danger arises not only when there is an assumption on the religious side that membership of the community (belonging to the umma or the Church or whatever) is the only significant category, so that participation in other kinds of socio-political arrangement is a kind of betrayal. It also occurs when secular government assumes a monopoly in terms of defining public and political identity. There is a position – not at all unfamiliar in contemporary discussion – which says that to be a citizen is essentially and simply to be under the rule of the uniform law of a sovereign state, in such a way that any other relations, commitments or protocols of behaviour belong exclusively to the realm of the private and of individual choice. As I have maintained in several other contexts, this is a very unsatisfactory account of political reality in modern societies; but it is also a problematic basis for thinking of the legal category of citizenship and the nature of human interdependence.
Go Beardie! I’m wholly unrepentant in my long-held view that he would make the best possible keynote speaker for a major gathering of the public-sector “transformation” community. Tell me: who else in any position of authority is articulate at this level, and thinks it’s important to work from basic principles and beliefs as we re-engineer and codify the relationship between people and they state? Not over[paid Touche Accentroid Young, nor dazed and confused Sir Bonar and Sir Wally, nor the egomanic great clunking fist.
We can’t even broach this conversation in the public media without the Sun screaming treason and some Kirsty or Johannes Humphrissimus Maximus Interromptor interrupting everyone half way through their first sentence. It is, to quote a phrase, far from ideal."
The ever excellent ARCH blog points me to a wonderful speech on the rule of law given by Lord Bingham in 2006. His thoughts on the tension between the government and the judiciary are spot on as you might expect.
"ministers and public officers at all levels must exercise the powers conferred on them reasonably, in good faith, for the purpose for which the powers were conferred and without exceeding the limits of such powers... The historic role of the courts has of course been to check excesses of executive power, a role greatly expanded in recent years due to the increased complexity of government and the greater willingness of the public to challenge governmental (in the broadest sense) decisions. Even under our constitution the separation of powers is crucial in guaranteeing the integrity of the courts' performance of this role.
"There is considerably less to be proud about, and a good deal to be embarrassed about, when one reflects on the shabby treatment civil liberties have received in the United States during times of war and perceived threats to national security … After each perceived security crisis ended, the United States has remorsefully realized that the abrogation of civil liberties was unnecessary. But it has proven unable to prevent itself from repeating the error when the next crisis came along.""
Verizon executive vice president for public affairs, Tom Tauke, in an interview with the NYT, rejects the movie industry's call for telecos and ISPs to act as copyright police.
Anything we do has to balance the need of copyright protection with the desire of customers for privacy."
Our wealth sits upon a very large device that copies promiscuously and constantly.
Yet the previous round of wealth in this economy was built on selling precious copies, so the free flow of free copies tends to undermine the established order. If reproductions of our best efforts are free, how can we keep going? To put it simply, how does one make money selling free copies?
When copies are super abundant, stuff which can't be copied becomes scarce and valuable.
When copies are free, you need to sell things which can not be copied.
Well, what can't be copied?
From my study of the network economy I see roughly eight categories of intangible value that we buy when we pay for something that could be free.
In a real sense, these are eight things that are better than free. Eight uncopyable values. I call them "generatives." A generative value is a quality or attribute that must be generated, grown, cultivated, nurtured. A generative thing can not be copied, cloned, faked, replicated, counterfeited, or reproduced. It is generated uniquely, in place, over time. In the digital arena, generative qualities add value to free copies, and therefore are something that can be sold."
His "generatives", btw, are immediacy, patronage, findability, authenticity, personalization, interpretation and embodiment.
Kembrew McLeod and Benjamin Franzen's 10 minute documentary Copyright Criminals is available on YouTube.
"Cleveland police have extended the bail granted to the former administrator of an alleged music piracy site for a second time, in a bid to collect more evidence for a case that could mark a watershed for UK internet law.
Alan Ellis, a 24-year-old IT worker from Middlesbrough, was arrested in October on suspicion of conspiracy to defraud and copyright infringement offences, over his site OiNK's Pink Palace.
Since his arrest, Ellis has publicly argued that OiNK merely provided a Google-like indexing service, and cannot be held accountable for the actual music files that the trackers poined to. It's the same defence that's set to be used by the administrators of the Swedish BitTorrent tracker Pirate Bay in their upcoming trial.
If a copyright prosecution is ever brought against Ellis, it would be a test case for a 2003 amendment to the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act that states a criminal offence may be committed by a person who "distributes otherwise than in the course of a business so as to affect prejudicially the honour or reputation of the author or director"."
"A computer program comprising computer program code adapted, when said program is loaded onto a computer, to make the computer execute the procedure of claim 1".
There is nothing wrong with this, according to Kitchin J in Astron Clinica and the new practice notice, so one of the IPKat's amenuenses will be putting exactly this form of claim to a UK examiner in the near future, in the expectation of it being allowed. After all, we should be looking at the invention as a matter of substance, not the form in which it is claimed. Can anyone see the reason why this claim would not be allowed at the EPO? The IPKat suspects he can, but would like others to first point out why he is wrong, yet again, on the subject."
Keep a close eye on IPKat to see how the proposed claim is received.
Meanwhile Automony has lost its against a refusal of their patent application relating to automated computer searching. The judgement is available at BAILII.
I’ve read that paragraph before. But not in the Lessig transcript. It comes from this Andrew Sullivan article in The Atlantic.
So I want you to shut your eyes and imagine what it will seem like to a young man in Iraq or in Iran, who wakes up on January 21st, 2009, and sees the picture of this man as the president of the United States. A man who opposed the war at the beginning, a man who worked his way up from almost nothing, a man who came from a mother and a father of mixed cultures and mixed societies, who came from a broken home to overcome all of that to become the leader in his class, at the Harvard Law Review, and an extraordinary success as a politician. How can they see us when they see us as having chosen this man as our president?
Was Lessig’s paragraph influenced by Sullivan’s, which it’s reasonable to suppose he has read? My guess is that it was. If so, was the influence conscious or unconscious? My guess: unconscious.
Creative property, Lessig reminds us, has many lives — the newspaper arrives at our door, it becomes part of the archive of human knowledge, then it wraps fish. And, by the time ideas pass into their third and fourth lives, we lose track of where they came from, and we lose control of where they are going.
But the fact that all these connections are traceable is a wonderful thing."
Jonathan Z. has a lovely analysis of the TiVo V Echostar decision last week.
TiVo introduced the first digital video recorder (DVR) in 1998. It allowed consumers to record and time-shift TV shows. After withstanding several claims that the TiVo DVR infringed other companies’ patents because it offered its users on-screen programming guides, the hunted became the hunter. In 2004, TiVo sued satellite TV distributor EchoStar for infringing TiVo’s own patents6 by building DVR functionality into some of EchoStar’s dish systems.
Defendants are hereby . . . to, within thirty (30) days of the issuance of this order, disable the DVR functionality (i.e., disable all storage to and playback from a hard disk drive of television data) in all but 192,708 units of the Infringing Products that have been placed with an end user or subscriber.
That is, the court ordered EchoStar to kill the DVR functionality in products already owned by “end users”: millions of boxes which were already sitting in living rooms around the world with owners who might be using them at that very instant. Imagine sitting down to watch television on an EchoStar box, and instead finding that all your recorded shows had been zapped, along with the DVR functionality itself—killed by remote signal traceable to the stroke of a judge’s quill in Marshall, Texas.
With EchoStar’s lost appeal, that moment is now closer.
TiVo v. EchoStar and PlayMedia v. AOL broach the strange and troubling issues that arise from the curious technological hybrids that increasingly populate the digital world. These hybrids mate the simplicity and reliability of television- like appliances with the privileged power of the vendor to reprogram those appliances over a network.
From what I can tell, the stay pending appeal is now dissolved — which would mean that the 30-day clock is ticking towards hundreds of thousands of fried EchoStar boxes in people’s homes."
Ben Bederson, an associate professor at the Human-Computer Interaction Lab at the University of Maryland, was part of a team that conducted a five-year study on voting-machine technology. Bederson says that machines should be evaluated for qualities beyond security, including usability, reliability, accessibility, and ease of maintenance. For example, in a 2006 Florida congressional election, some voters were uncertain whether touch-screen machines had properly recorded their votes, especially after 18,000 ballots in Sarasota County were marked "No vote" by the machines. "Security, while important, happens to be one of those places where voting machines actually have not proven to fail," Bederson says. "However, in many other ways, they have failed dramatically, especially [regarding] usability. The original Florida problem was primarily a usability issue." (Among the problems in Florida in 2000 was the case of Palm Beach County, where some voters were confused by a ballot design that listed candidates in two columns. The confounding layout led some people to mistakenly vote for Patrick Buchanan when they intended to vote for Al Gore.) Bederson's team, which included researchers from the University of Maryland, the University of Rochester, and the University of Michigan, particularly focused on usability, and they evaluated electronic voting systems built by Diebold, Election Systems and Software, Avante Voting Systems, Hart InterCivic, and Nedap Election Systems, as well as one prototype built by Bederson himself.
See the original article in MIT's Technology Review for links to the study.
"A kidney transplant patient was forced to have the new organ removed after just a few hours – when it was discovered that the patient's blood type had been incorrectly recorded on a computer database.
The mistake, believed to be the first of its kind in Britain, would have led to the organ being rejected – with possibly fatal consequences."
WTO remedies fall short of what one might ask of an effective legal system. First, there is no compensation for past harm or loss. Second, compensation in the form of enhanced market access depends on the consent of the party that violated the rules; and, in any event, some WTO members do not have the capacity to use the compensatory enhanced market access. Third, retaliation is not optimal: WTO arbitrators have previously recognized that a member may find itself in a situation where it is neither realistic nor possible for it to retaliate for the full amount of the level of nullification and impairment in all of the sectors and/or under all agreements. Furthermore, as noted in Brendan McGivern’s commentary on the dispute, retaliation under the TRIPs Agreement is especially difficult for a number of reasons. One, regardless of the legality of the authorization from the WTO, violation of intellectual property rights might be frowned upon by other WTO members and the international community generally. Two, for some products, it might not be easy to act against the TRIPs rights of US rights holders without affecting the TRIPs rights of nationals of other WTO members. Three, given the absence of rules on valuation of suspension of intellectual property rights, it would be difficult to ensure that the retaliation does not exceed the authorized amount."
SpyBlog has a few things to say about the responses by the Border & Immigration Agency to Tom Griffin's FOIA request. Spyblog feels the data collection is excessive and dangerous.
Therefore these checks will also have to be applied, effectively, to internal travel within the supposedly United Kingdom, by aeroplane or by ferry, between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK.
If they are allowed to get away with this, Soviet / Apartheid style internal travel bureaucracy, they try it on all other international travel and function creep and extend it to internal flights or trains or ferries in the entire UK.
We have no problem with the Police or intelligence agencies requesting such information for specific, narrowly targeted terrorist, espionage or drug or smuggling etc. investigations.
It is absolutely intolerable that such data is handed over, routinely, and automatically, in bulk, on the millions of innocent people who travel every year. Data Trawling through millions of innocent people's personal records is an expensive, ineffective and dangerous way of trying to protect our borders, and an unjustifiable abuse of our freedoms and liberties.
"Rambus ensnared memory chip manufacturers in a "patent trap" in its attempt to "control the industry," a lawyer for Hynix Semiconductor told a jury in San Jose on Monday.
William Price, representing Hynix, the world's second-largest maker of memory chips, told jurors that in the 1990s Rambus participated in standards-setting meetings of the Joint Electron Device Engineering Council and then secretly and illegally used JEDEC information to patent standards for dynamic random access memory, or DRAM.
Rambus gathered information from JEDEC as the chip makers spent millions adopting the standard and building plants to manufacture the chips, Price said. "At that point Rambus would come forward and say, 'Aha! We own the technology on that standard,' " he told jurors. "That activity is called a patent trap."
Hynix made its opening arguments in the final trial of the seven-year patent infringement lawsuit."
Kim Cameron likes the idea of an information half life that flows naturally from his coining of the term identity Chernobyl to describe the HMRC 25 million data loss.
The notion of information half-life is a great one. Let’s adopt it.
The tendency for “information to merge” is one of the defining transformations of our time. When it comes to understanding what this means, few think forward, or even realize that there “is a forward”.
The “contextual separation” in our lives has been central to our personalities and social structures for many centuries.
Call me conservative, but we need to retain this separation.
The mobility and clonability of digital information, in combination with commercial interest and naivite, lead us toward a vast sea of personal information intermixed with our most intimate and tentative thoughts.
The essence of free-thinking is to be able to think things you don’t believe as part of the process of grasping the truth. If the mind melts into the computer, and the computer melts into a rigid warehouse of indelible data, how easy is it for us to change, and what is left of the mind that is “transcendental” (or even just unfettered…)?
The ramifications of this boggle the mind. The alienation it would cause, and the undermining of institutions it would bring about, concern me as much as any other threat to our civilization.
Jon Udell raises an interesting issue on the degree to which conversations about a particular scientific topic can progress independently of each other in ghettoised specialist communities, communities who could enlighten each other if only they managed to communicate.
Here’s one approach that could help. When the citation engines in the blogosphere find references in blog entries to scientific articles on the web, they could resolve those to their most canonical forms: DOIs, PubMed records. And they could make equivalences among those forms. That way, conversation in the blogosophere about a scientific article, and scientific conversation about the same article, would tend to hang together and would be discoverable in the same contexts.
Why does this matter? Well, the marginalrevolution blog is influential, widely cited in the blogosphere. The entry that cited the PLoS Medicine article was itself widely cited. But the PLoS Medicine reaction to the article is not part of the blog conversation. I had to work really hard to find it, and to include it here.
The conversation-tracking tools used by bloggers should discover scientific discourse related to a scientific article as easily as they discover blog discourse. Conversely, the conversation-tracking tools used by scientists should discover blog discourse as readily as scientific discourse. Public understanding of science would improve, and so would scientific understanding of the public.
Update: No sooner said than done.
The CDT has branded regulations issued by the Department of Homeland Security relating to the Real ID act as the "worst of both worlds."
Final regulations issued by the Department of Homeland Security have rendered the REAL ID Act, intended to strengthen processes for issuance of driver's licenses nationwide, virtually useless as a security measure, while exacerbating privacy problems, CDT concluded in a comprehensive analysis of the rules, which were issued last month. CDT is urging Congress to enact legislation addressing concerns about the privacy and security of information that will be stored on the new cards and in an electronic system used to link the states.
Apparently Robert Fisk's biography of Saddam Hussein is selling very well in Egypt. There is just one slight problem - he didn't write it.
Tom Gallagher has a nice review of Ha-Joon Chang's Bad Samaritans: The Myth of Free Trade and the Secret History of Capitalism in the San Francisco Chronicle.
As Chang describes the way it really was, you realize how amazing it is that free market ideologues have been able to shoehorn Great Britain into a free-trade version of world history, given that it rose to economic dominance while building a world empire.
"The truth," he writes, "is that the free movement of goods, people, and money that developed under British hegemony between 1870 and 1913 - the first episode of globalization - was made possible, in large part, by military might, rather than market forces." And this period of imperial free trade followed long years of high tariffs and careful protection and nurturing of selected British industries..
"[M]arket and democracy clash at the fundamental level," Chang writes. "Democracy runs on the principle of 'one man (one person), one vote.' The market runs on the principle of 'one dollar, one vote.' " Chang's point may seem obvious, yet it is one infrequently made, due, presumably, to the power of wealthy individuals and nations. But just as obvious is Chang's conclusion that if developing countries "want to leave poverty behind" and nurture their fledgling industries just as today's rich nations once did, "they have to defy the market.""
"Three global record companies have launched legal proceedings against China's top Internet search engine Baidu.com Inc, accusing it of violating copyright by giving access to music files, an international music trade body said.
Universal Music, Sony BMG Music Entertainment (Hong Kong) Ltd and Warner Music Hong Kong Ltd have asked a court to order Baidu to remove all links on its music delivery service to copyright-infringing tracks that they own the rights to, the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry said in a statement.
The claims have been filed with a court in Beijing, said IFPI, which is backed by global music industry heavyweights."
From Reuters - a Danish court has ordered an ISP, Tele2, to block customer access to Pirate Bay at the request of the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI).
Google oppose Microsoft takeover of Yahoo!
Unsurprisingly Google have reacted negatively to Microsoft's bid to take over Yahoo!
"Microsoft has been trying to depict a Yahoo takeover as a boon for both advertisers and consumers because the two companies together would be able to compete against Google more effectively.
But Google is painting a starkly different picture, asserting that Microsoft will be able to stifle innovation and leverage its dominating Windows operating system to set up personal computers so consumers are automatically steered to online services, such as e-mail and instant messaging, controlled by the world's largest software maker.
In a move that illustrates just how badly Google wants to torpedo the deal, Google Chief Executive Officer Eric Schmidt called Yahoo CEO Jerry Yang Friday to offer his help in repelling Microsoft, according to a report Sunday on The Wall Street Journal's Web site, which cited anonymous people familiar with the matter.
The assistance didn't include a counterbid, but may have included supporting other potential suitors, or a revenue guarantee in exchange for an ad partnership with Yahoo, the people said, according the newspaper."
So Jack Straw considers it entirely unacceptable for an MP to be bugged during a meeting with one of his constituents, who happens to be wanted by the US as a terrorist suspect. This the same Jack Straw who for years has, along with his colleagues in government, been tediously repeating the "nothing to hide nothing to fear" mantra?
The Wilson doctrine has theoretically protected MPs from this kind of covert surveillance since the 1960s. So we must look to the technical concept of 'externalities' so familiar to economists as one of the key reasons why government can repeatedly pass laws facilitating increasing intrusive surveillance. They act comfortable in the belief that such laws won't apply to them, just to the untrustworthy citizenry. Maybe it is time we dropped the Wilson doctrine and MPs shared the consequences of the fall-out from ill-conceived laws? | 2019-04-22T02:25:33Z | https://b2fxxx.blogspot.com/2008_02_03_archive.html |
Satellite map via The Weather Underground, Inc.
Costa Rica, colored green, is in the middle of turbulent weather, colored orange, early today.
Emergency officials announced a yellow alert Wednesday afternoon as storms pounded the Pacific coast and many fearful residents took shelter in their homes. By 10 p.m. officials upgraded the alert to red in anticipation of a major storm.
Waves crashed into the beach and branches were torn from trees in Sámara during pounding afternoon rains, reported residents Wednesday evening. The storm was also in Jacó on the central Pacific coast, said the Fuerza Pública there, although it wasn't reported to be as fierce as the torrent in Sámara on the west side of the Nicoya Peninsula.
Wind swept water into houses and other buildings, said Betsy Waddington, a real estate agent in Sámara. Ms. Waddington said her main phone line was out and the electricity sporadic. Trees were bending and palm fronds flying everywhere on the beach, she said.
“The wind is horrible” said Judy Castillo, an employee at Casa del Mar hotel on the beach.
Most residents scared of the storm, took protection in their houses, said a Fuerza Pública officer in Sámara. The police officer reported the roof of the community center had collapsed, and large branches were falling onto the street.
“The visibility is only about 100 meters,” said Ms. Waddington. One hotel reported that its guests were actually wandering outside enjoying the storm.
The heavy winds and storm were believed felt elsewhere up the coast as far as Playa Garza and Nosara.
The local Fuerza Pública offices had not received any emergency calls or reports of damage to residencies, said the officer in Sámara. Residents said the rain started Sunday and has hardly let up since. The strong winds started Wednesday morning, reported the Fuerza Pública.
Line of storms approach the coast of the country in this afternoon satellite photo.
Chorotega region in the north, and the Central Valley she said. (Costa Rica has green, yellow, and red levels).
Later officials said they were concerned about conditions along the Guanacaste coast and upgraded their warning there.
The Comisión Nacional de Prevención de Riesgos y Atención de Emergencias reported the soil was already saturated from the rains over the weekend and warned rivers may soon overflow.
There was already isolated floods in Paquera and San Vito, said the spokeswoman and Garza and Ostional facing the flooding of the rios Montoya and Rosario.
The spokeswoman said rescue workers were on their way to Parrita with supplies Wednesday afternoon. Emergency workers were also expected to arrive in Quepos, Filadelfia, Liberia, Nicoya Peninsula and Corredores.
Tropical waves, spawned in Africa, are low-pressure troughs that move east to west over the Atlantic. This will be the third to pass over the country in as many weeks.
Tropical waves are believed to help create tropical storms, and Sunday is the official start of the 2008 hurricane season in the Atlantic. Although such storms never hit Costa Rica directly, the backlash can cause torrential rains, flooding and a lot of damage.
Lawmakers moved an anti-tobacco bill to No. 1 position on the priority list Wednesday clearing the way for a vote today. The measure had been in 82nd place.
This is the measure with which Costa Rica accepts an agreement with the World Health Organization, approved by 122 other countries, to restrict tobacco use.
There is money involved. The measure will establish and finance a mechanism to coordinate the control of tobacco, sort of like a tobacco police. The country also promises to adopt other measures to reduce the consumption of tobacco and public exposure to tobacco smoke. Saturday is a world day against smoking, and some lawmakers wanted to have the measure passed by then.
The measure also would restrict even more smoking in public places and forbid any cigarette advertising or promotional activities.
The country has until next March to pass anti-terrorism and anti-money laundering legislation, Casa Presidencial said Wednesday.
José Torres, a vice minister in the Presidencia, held meetings with members of the Egmont Group during the organization's international meeting in South Korea and won the concession, Casa Presidencial said.
Had the country not been given an extension of the original May 20 date, law enforcement officials here would not have been able to access the various data bases maintained by the group and the nation would have been considered a financial outlaw.
Costa Rica has had since 2004 to pass the necessary legislation, and even a plea by the nation's chief prosecutor and others could not get the measure onto the floor of the Asamblea Legislativa this month.
Judicial agents, prosecutors and the Policía Municipal staged five raids Wednesday in Pavas centro, Rincón Grande and Finca San Juan to arrest four of five suspects in vehicle hijackings. A fifth person still is being sought.
One of those detained was a juvenile who officials said had an active role in the crimes. He also is being questioned about a recent murder case, officials said.
The hijacking cases involve events that took place in La Sabana and Pavas from October to this month. At least three motorists lost their vehicles to men who stuck guns in their faces, and one person was held hostage for a time, officials said.
Involved in the raids was the Unidad Especializada en Robo de Vehículos of the Ministerio Público, the independent prosecutorial agency.
Agents removed boxes of car parts from the various locations that were raided.
Frontier Airlines said it will charge $25 for the second checked bag of airline passengers who purchase tickets after June 10. The charge will include international flights. The airline has a San José-Denver, Colorado, direct flight.
The company announced the charge and other cost-saving actions and other fees over the weekend, but it was unclear until Wednesday if the bag charge would apply to overseas flights. American Airlines has announced a similar series of fees but they do not apply to international flights.
increase from $40 to $50 per segment, the airline said. However, they will be allowed to travel via connection to more destinations within Frontier's system, it added.
A Frontier spokesperson said that other airlines charge for the second bag even internationally. Continental charges for the second bag to México and South America, Northwest assesses the fee for México and the Caribbean, and Spirit charges for the second bag on all flights, said the spokesperson.
Municipal officials decided to paralyze work on the new water line between Sardinal and Playas del Coco Tuesday after members of the community turned up at a meeting and refused to leave until a decision was made.
Less than 24 hours later, Casa Presidencial announced the investment of 525 million colons ($1.013 million) in the local infrastructure of Sardinal.
Tension is high in the western Guanacaste town, after local people conducted a series of protests against the 9 kilometer (6 mile) aqueduct financed by 32 private businesses that aims to take water from Sardinal's aquifer to the beach towns of Playas del Coco and Ocotal.
A group of protesters made their way to Filadelfia, the town in which the Municipalidad de Carrillo has its base, in order to present officials of the Consejo Municipal with a document demanding the immediate halt to construction of the aqueduct.
Residents fear that the aqueduct will take water to tourist developments on the coast where it will be used to irrigate golf courses and supply hotels while the town will be left without sufficient water.
After giving their reasons for the opposition to the work in front of the council, they demanded that officials vote on the issue. The vote decided that construction on the water line should be paralyzed, and not resumed until all required studies are in place.
Claudio Rivas, president of the municipality, said that the municipality wants to see a study made by a third party into the capacity of the Sardinal aquifer. A recent study made by the Instituto Costarricense de Acueductos y Alcantarillados said that the aquifer has a capacity far greater than what would be piped away.
Members of the Asociaciones de Desarrollo de Sardinal y Playas del Coco say that they are defending their right to water, but Wednesday's announcement by Casa Presidencial attempts to allay fears that the aqueduct would compromise this right.
At the same conference, Ricardo Sancho, president of the water institute, announced the huge investment into Sardinal's local pipes and the acceleration of work in this area.
view to handing over the finished infrastructure to the national water institute.
Sardinal's system will be improved with public money. Improvements are to include the widening of pipes, better distribution lines and a new storage tank of 400 cubic meters, about 14,125 cubic feet.
Sancho has promised that water will not start to pour through the pipes towards Playas del Coco until the improvements to Sardinal's own system have been completed. The work is expected to be finished within the next three months.
Spokespeople from the water institute also said that any problems with shortages of water in Sardinal, el Coco and Ocotal have been due to poor infrastructure, rather than a fundamental lack of water in the zone's aquifers. Some 40 families living in nearby Carpintero were without potable water for some time, but the water institute say that the problem has been corrected.
Families will not have to pay any more for their water as a result of the investment in the infrastructure, he added.
Apart from the suspension of work on the pipeline, the Sardinal community petition demands apologies to the village, the demolition of works that have already been built without appropriate permission and the investigation of the public officials who allowed the pipe to be installed.
Picado also said that it is the responsibility of the Instituto Costarricense de Acueductos y Alcantarillados to carry out any studies that the project is considered to be lacking rather than that of the group of businesses paying for the project.
Arias also denounced the violence that has led to several people getting injured in the confrontations between protesters and police in the town of Sardinal.
Sancho and members of the municipality are expected to visit Sardinal to speak to the leaders of the opposition groups in the next few days.
Thousands of cell phone users will find that their lines are discontinued next year when the Instituto Costarricense de Electricidad clears out old technology to make room for 1.5 million new GSM lines.
Around 400,000 people who currently use TDMA lines will be affected because the technology has been removed from the worldwide market.
“Starting from the middle of 2009, the institute will retract the use of this type of technology, in order that clients change to the GSM network and move towards third generation (G3) services,” said Elbert Durán, spokesman for the electricity institute.
GSM stands for Global System for Mobile communication, and is used by some 82 percent of the world's cell phone consumers.
A simple way of explaining the difference between the two is that GSM uses a SIM card, which holds all the user's personal information and can be slipped in and out of the phone, whereas TDMA does not have this removable component.
Durán said that GSM also allows for much faster downloading and better all-round performance.
Third generation technology offers a wider range of advanced services, including video calls and broadband wireless. Handsets compatible with this technology, are, however, more expensive than other phones.
It is unclear what customers in possession of the old lines will be expected to do. The institute is currently revising the contract for the purchase of the GSM lines, and Durán said that as soon as the contract has been confirmed more information will be available about how clients' accounts will be transferred to the new lines.
Costa Rica has a serious security problem, according to Susan Blankhart, the ambassador to Costa Rica from The Netherlands.
employees of her embassy in San José were victims of street crimes during her tenure here.
to Costa Rica from The Netherlands. The rising crime in Costa Rica frequently results in tourists becoming victims.
But Ambassador Blankhart looks back on a good time in Costa Rica. “Here a lot is taking place in the field of contemporary art, music and modern dancing. Most people who visit Costa Rica rush to the beaches or into nature. They should stay a few days in San José visiting museums and theater.
"A specific cultural program should be designed for the tourist, perhaps including the idea of a walking route along the museums and theaters,” She said.
In the three years that she was ambassador in Costa Rica, the relation between the Netherlands and Costa Rica has changed, she said. Three years ago Costa Rica still received development aid from the Netherlands, but this has been minimized, she noted. Now there is a relationship between the two independent countries based on cooperation and partnership, including trade, she said.
Limoncito, a new luxury 58-unit condo-hotel, will be built at Punta Leona. The idea is to combine the uniqueness of a 30-year-old beach club infused with modern day luxuries built with environmental preservation in mind, said a release from developers.
Just 90 minutes from San José when the Caldera highway is finished, Limoncito will be within the gated community of Punta Leona. During the past three decades, Punta Leona has served as a private beach club for Costa Ricans and international residents alike.
The resort community has three blue flag-rated beaches.
experience while delivering the amenities and services they have come to expect from high-end North American resorts, it said.
The condo-hotel will be a low-density building on the 22-hectare (54-acre) site, with just six buildings tucked into a hillside, said the release.
Ranging in price from $250,000 to $850,000, the 850-plus square foot one-bedroom, and expansive 1,250-plus square feet two-bedroom suites will feature tropical interiors, said the release.
Limoncito owners will have access to a wide variety of on-site amenities such as multiple swimming pools, a natural waterfall, jacuzzis, hammocks, and outdoor decks and terraces. The owner’s clubhouse will serve as a community gathering spot offering special events, movie nights, children’s area, fitness facilities and barbecue areas, said the release.
U.S. Sen. Barack Obama has tried to stand out from other U.S. presidential candidates by saying, as president, he would be open to meeting with some of the most hostile foreign leaders, including those in Cuba and Iran. The policy has drawn criticism from his opponents, but it is beginning to win support among Cuban-Americans, who see a need for change in U.S. policy toward the island.
Obama has said his willingness to meet with America's foes is intended to overcome years of stagnation on crucial security and human rights issues. In recent speeches, he has pointed out that past U.S. presidents met with the leaders of China and the Soviet Union at periods of heightened tension. And he says now is the time to engage the governments in Syria and Iran, for example, because he says the Bush administration's policy against direct talks is hurting American efforts in Iraq.
In a speech in Miami last week, Obama told Cuban-American leaders that he would also engage Communist leaders in Havana, to demand the release of political prisoners and the start of democratic reforms in Cuba.
"As president I would be willing to lead that diplomacy at the time and place of my choosing. But only when we have an opportunity to advance the interests of the United States, but more importantly to advance the cause of freedom for the Cuban people," he said.
Critics reject the senator's position as a naive proposal, or even a danger to U.S. interests.
talks before Cuba begins to implement long-awaited changes.
Sen. John McCain also expressed criticism in a speech before Cuban-Americans and other Miami residents last week. He said direct talks would only hurt the cause of Cuban democracy.
"These steps would send the worst possible signal to Cuba's dictators: there is no need to undertake fundamental reforms," he said. "They can simply wait for a unilateral change in U.S. policy. That is what they would think."
McCain, a Republican, has promised that, if elected, he would maintain many of President George Bush's policies, including trade and travel restrictions. Obama has said he would ease limits on Cubans traveling to visit family on the island.
The debate over U.S. policy toward Cuba has resonated among the Cuban exile population in Miami, where many people are upset that current U.S. policies have been unable to weaken the Communist government especially after the transfer of power from Fidel Castro to his brother, Raúl.
Pepe Hernandez is president of the Cuban-American National Foundation, which hosted Obama's talks in Miami. He said he does not necessarily endorse the Illinois senator, but after Obama's speech he said he welcomed the message of change.
Hernandez says a solution is needed to the Cuban situation, adding the United States should not cross its arms and do nothing while Raúl Castro consolidates power.
Change may be difficult for some Cuban exiles. Miami businessman Javier Mora said he was impressed by Obama's speech, but he said his brother rejects any negotiations with Cuba's leadership.
"He will not listen to it, when I say this is the only way we can achieve a change in Cuba," he explained. "But even in my generation I have to fight, I have to convince people."
Miami's Cuban community is known for strongly backing Republican presidents, but leaders say this year may be different. Obama is hoping his policy of engagement will win over enough voters to boost his campaign in the state.
The Illinois senator has said his possible offer of talks with U.S. foes also would include top officials in Iran, whose president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, has called for the destruction of the Israel.
The idea of talks has raised some concerns among Jewish voters, who say Obama's foreign policy toward Israel could endanger the nation's security.
But a University of Miami law professor, David Abraham, said few Jewish voters believe a presidential meeting with Iranian officials would upset the balance in the Middle East. He said, like the Cuban-American community, many Jewish voters are eager to see new ideas in the White House.
"The last eight years in the eyes of the overwhelming majority of the American Jewish community have not been successful," he said. "They also see that it is time for a change."
Obama's campaign is hoping his policy will help win needed support among Jewish voters, who so far have given strong backing to Obama's chief rival for the Democratic nomination, Mrs. Clinton.
Amnesty International says there have been historic changes in Latin America, while human rights violations, including torture continue to affect the lives of many in the region.
In its annual report released Wednesday, Amnesty cited the power shift in Cuba with Raúl Castro replacing his brother Fidel Castro as president. In Paraguay, former Catholic bishop Fernando Lugo was elected president, ending more than 60 years of rule by the Colorado party.
On rights abuses, the report said Cuba's restrictions on freedom of expression and association remain severe. In Colombia, Amnesty said the continuing conflict involving the government, army-backed paramilitary groups and rebels has resulted in serious human rights abuses.
Amnesty cited a new law in Venezuela that will give women in the country greater protection against violence. However, it added that human rights activists there continue to face intimidation and attacks.
Another earthquake, this one about 3.7 magnitude, struck about 1:13 p.m. Wednesday. The quake was 22 kms (about 14 miles) southeast of Coto 47 in the southern zone.
There has been a flurry of such activity in this area and south into Panamá this week with a 5.7 quake being followed by numerous aftershocks. A house was destroyed and 22 more were damaged, emergency officials said.
Ciudad Colón and the entire Cantón de Mora will have a chance to learn about all those government agencies that are known mostly by their initials.
The Mercado de Artesanías in the canton will be the site for what is being called an institutional fair Friday and Saturday. Some 35 tents will house exhibits and representatives of the various agencies.
The event starts with a demonstration of K-9 dogs at 9 a.m. Friday. | 2019-04-18T15:15:34Z | http://www.amcostarica.com/052908.htm |
Mad Father is a free-ware horror-puzzle game created by Miscreant's Room made with Wolf RPG Editor, their second game after Misao. A young German girl named Aya Drevis is living at home with her father simply known as the Doctor and his assistant Maria. One night, Aya hears her father scream and finds her house riddled with corpses and other supernatural things trying to kill her. Not wanting to leave without her father, Aya decides to brave the house and look for him, all while encountering the horrors of what her father has really done.
The game has an English translation made by vgperson, the woman who translated games like Ib and The Witch's House. You can get it here .
As of September 24 2016, an updated version is available in both Japanese and English on Steam.
All There in the Manual: The name of Aya's father is never revealed during the game. You can only find it in Gallery mode, available after viewing the true ending and collecting all gems.
Zig-Zagged in the case of Aya's mother. Her name is found in one of the notes that appears only in a second run of the game (a letter she wrote), although most players will learn her name from the gallery.
As Long as It Sounds Foreign: Or at least it seems this way, because neither Aya nor Drevis are very common names in Germany. They would stick out like a sore thumb.
Awful Truth: Aya's father killed her mother after she overhears the Doctor's plans for Aya. This is the real reason why Monika cursed him. When she realises that Aya doesn't know, she lies and fakes being a jealous Yandere for Aya's sake.
The Bad Guy Wins: One of the bad endings, where the Doctor succeeds in turning Aya into a doll.
Bad People Abuse Animals: Aya's father murdered animals in his childhood, a trait which his daughter inherited.
Because You Were Nice to Me: Maria's driving motivation throughout the game.
Berserk Button: Aya's father after Aya learns the truth about her mother's death and her father's intent to make her into a doll. This leads to her father chasing after a terrified Aya with his chainsaw.
Aya has one regarding stealing her mother's things. At first Aya's terrified of Ines, one of the game's reawakened dead, but the moment she realizes Ines has stolen her mother's perfume, all of Aya's fear for her instantly disappears and Aya jumps at her to reclaim it.
Big Damn Heroes: In the Good ending, when Dr. Drevis has Aya cornered and is about to finish her off, Maria comes in and impales him with her throwing knives.
Big Fancy House: To an almost ridiculous extent, even without the curse taking place.
Big, Screwed-Up Family: Aya's father experiments on humans and animals regularly and had been doing this since he was a kid, Aya's mother reads very creepy and disturbing stories to her daughter, and Aya continues her father's work in the "Good" Ending. Maybe.
Bloody Hand Print: Some appear in the plant room.
Brown Note: The mandrakes in the plant room let out a hellish scream when uprooted that kills those who hear it.
Chainsaw Good: Aya gets a small chainsaw, although it can't be used to attack enemies. A chainsaw is also the Doctor's Weapon of Choice.
Character Portrait: Surprisingly good ones for a game made with an RPG maker.
Cleavage Window: The outfit worn by Aya's mom is this.
Cloning Blues: The 100% ending reveals that the Doctor created a clone of Aya and let her age to adulthood.
Cold-Blooded Torture: What the Doctor and Maria do to their subjects. Aya followed in his footsteps, as revealed by the best ending. Although the 3.06 update adds a scene that implies she may not have become like her father.
Creepy Basement: Most of the game happens in the basement of the mansion which is filled with corpses, evil spirits, and failed experiments.
Creepy Doll: All over the place. They're the Doctor's specialty. Unsurprisingly, the doll that Aya has to throw into the incinerator to progress is called this in the inventory screen.
Cruel Twist Ending: The true ending of the game has Aya growing up to run a free clinic in the middle of the woods, where she turns her patients into dolls just like her father did. Maybe.
Cycle of Hurting: In the chandelier room with a zombie, there is also a save point. If you saved at just the wrong time, you would end up completely screwed over. This has since been patched; the save point has its own room now.
Daddy's Girl: Aya knows full well that her father is butchering people in the basement, but she still wants to save him because he's always doted on her.
Dark and Troubled Past: At one point in the game, Aya must recreate a series of events using statues, and these events detail what compelled her father to become a killer. As a child, his first victims were animals, which he kept hidden in the drawers of his home. His mother would quickly find them, though, and berate him for the murders. At one point, one of her scoldings became too much for him, and he stabbed her to death. That was the first corpse he became infatuated with. He then ran from his home and made a journey for the ocean side. But he couldn't forget his mother's dead face and needed to see more, and eventually he ended up murdering more people. And then it just escalated from there.
Dead All Along: An inverted example with Dio, who the "if" bonus scene added to the gallery in version 2.0 reveals was actually alive the whole time; why he was pretending to be a corpse isn't exactly clear, although he seems to worry about how Aya and Maria would react if they knew, and also to think they're better off on their own.
Deal with the Devil: Most likely the idea for both of Aya's parents. Monika did this to protect her daughter from her husband. The bonus ending includes Dr. Drevis working with Ogre to obtain the perfect replacement for Aya.
Disposable Vagrant: The Doctor made sure to pick up victims who "wouldn't be missed".
Don't Go Into the Woods: More specifically, don't go into that free clinic in the woods.
Downer Ending: An In-Universe example. A book that Aya read as a child called "The Flame Egg" is about a girl who uses her fire powers to try and reunite with her family. It ends with her losing control of her powers and she accidentally destroys the world.
All of the endings are this to some extant. Either Aya continues her father's work years after the game, Aya is murdered by Maria, or Aya is killed by her father.
Dull Surprise: Aya's character model can be this sometimes, owing to the fact her eyebrows don't always move with her different expressions.
The Ending Changes Everything: The True ending. Aya grows up to continue her father's work.
Extremely Short Timespan: The game happens over the course of one night.
Even Evil Has Loved Ones: The whole premise of the game wouldn't work if Aya and her father didn't love each other so much.
Subverted with Aya's father, who kills his wife and tries to kill Aya, planning to turn them into dolls.
Evil Laugh: The doctor has a really chilling, psychotic one.
Eye Scream: The boy that helps you is missing his right eye. Another girl is missing both of hers, though she gets them back.
Implied in the true ending to happen to Jean, an innocent poor girl that Aya is "treating". Aya mentions how beautiful her eyes are and since she's become just like her Dad and is "treating" a heavily sedated Jean. Although this only applies if Aya followed in her father's footsteps.
Foreshadowing: One of the first things you can do in the game is examine a doll from Aya's father, triggering a flashback where she remarks that it's almost lifelike. Guess what?
If you check Aya's dressers during the introductory sequence in her room, you'll find that they're full of clothes. If you check them again at any other time during the game, you'll find that they also contain dead animals, hinting at what Aya will become in the true ending.
Not to mention, if you continue reading Doctor Drevis's journal, it's revealed that he knew about the dead animals and it wasn't the first time. He comments on how Aya's becoming so much like him and it's implied the only reason he wants to turn her into a doll is to stop her from going down the same path.
When Aya's mother first appears after cursing her husband, the cutscene shows her with blood on her chest. However, we were told by Aya's father that she had died of illness. A sharp-eyed player will catch this and realise that the doctor's explanation doesn't add up.
Aya's willingness to forgive her father for all the atrocities he commits foreshadows that she follows in his footsteps in the True Ending. Although the 3.06 update implies she may not have done so.
Four Eyes, Zero Soul: The Doctor.
Gameplay and Story Segregation: Subverted:You get a chainsaw for breaking barrels. The game specifically tells you that it can't be used on enemies. Aya's father specifically stated that the mini chainsaw was a dangerous tool. Attempting to use the chainsaw as anything but a tool will fail.
Gory Discretion Shot: In the tunnel leading to the cultivation room, you hear a scream and clanging sounds come from the locked door by the chandelier. When you come back to it, the door is open. If you enter the room, the door shuts behind Aya and the player watches from the outside as too much blood spills through it.
Gotta Catch Them All: 21 gems; luckily enough, a guide's available for getting all of them.
Here We Go Again!: The true end where Aya decides to continue her father's work, murdering people with Maria's help.
Although the 3.06 update adds a after credit scene which implies she may not have followed in her father's footsteps.
Herr Doctor: The Doctor, of course.
Humanoid Abomination: The mass of people that Aya has to burn to get through a hallway. Possibly Ogre as well.
Incurable Cough of Death: Aya's mother dealt with illness, and we see her coughing in a flashback. Subverted, since that's not what killed her.
I Owe You My Life: Maria's devotion to the Doctor stems from the fact that he took her in off the streets when she was starving to death. Of course, he was really planning to use her as a test subject and only changed his mind when she proved useful as an assistant.
If you choose to save Dr. Drevis instead of granting Monica's wish, Maria will become closer to Aya because she saves her after Dr. Drevis attempted to kill Maria.
Knife Nut: Maria twice demonstrates an aptitude for throwing knives.
Life Meter: Aya has a blue one which will get whittled down by various hazards. Moving to another screen automatically restores it.
A Lighter Shade of Black: In the True ending, if she has followed her father's footsteps, then she waits for ill people to come to her for treatment, and her victims are anesthetized before they are converted into dolls.
Like Father Like Daughter: The true ending has Aya apparently carrying on her father's work alongside Maria, who makes this observation.
Although the 3.06 update implies that she may not have done so.
Doctor Drevis' journal reveals that he notices her murderous tendencies and sees that she's becoming exactly like him as a child and has the implication that he's really not happy about that.
Living Doll Collector: Aya's father becomes one so that he may have Aya live on as a doll forever.
Mad Scientist: What Aya's father really is.
Mad Scientist's Beautiful Daughter: Aya.
Make Me Wanna Shout: Should you ever pull a mandrake out of its pot without earplugs, its scream can kill Aya and any enemies around her.
Mama Bear: Aya's mother, upon discovering her husband's plans to turn their own daughter into a doll, calls him out on his insanity and declares that she's running away and taking Aya with her. Even in death, she still seeks to protect her daughter from her husband's plans.
Mistreatment-Induced Betrayal: Aya's father stabs Maria and leaves her for dead when she fails to capture Aya. When Aya comes back and tends to her wounds, Maria decides to help her escape.
Multiple Endings: Two bad endings, and a true one.
The first bad ending, if you leave your father behind in the netherworld, has Maria dragging Aya back to the lab so she can continue the Doctor's work.
The second bad ending has Aya's father kill Maria and turn Aya into a doll.
The true ending, obtained by reading Maria's diary, has her escape the manor with Maria... and continue her father's work with Maria. Although the 3.06 update implies she might not have do so.
Murder the Hypotenuse: Zigzagged. When first playing, one would think Maria had something to do with the Mother's death. The relationship between her and the doctor was not the reason she was killed by the Doctor.
Nice Hat: Ogre starts out with one, but chooses to discard it for most of the game.
Nightmare Fetishist: In a second playthrough, it is revealed in a love letter that Aya's mother is this for the Doctor. She even mentions that "when I see you go mad, my heart flutters".
Ninja Pirate Zombie Robot: Maria. She's like a nurse-assistant-ninja.
No Name Given: The boy zombie who helps Aya is called Dio in the game's files, but that's apparently not his real name. Some fans call him Oliver.
Dio was originally a Fan Nickname given by NicoVideo viewers, after the character from JoJo's Bizarre Adventure.
Not Using the "Z" Word: They mostly refer to them as "corpses" and "the dead".
Notice This: Somewhat subtler than most examples, but in the hall leading to the doll room, there is always a corpse sliding toward the opposite wall until he notices you, at which point he quickly retreats. If you go to the wall he was aiming for, you will find a secret passage with a gem inside.
People Jars: What became of the corpse of Aya's mother, as you'll soon discover if you choose to save her father in the endgame. The 100% completion ending reveals the Doctor created a clone of Aya and is keeping her stored in one.
Point of No Return: The Other World. Like in the game's predecessor Misao, it warns you about this.
The Pollyanna: Ines. She's a rather sane reawakened former test subject of Aya's father's. Despite having been killed in such an unfair way, unlike the other dead who either tries to kill Aya or lament their fate, she plays pranks and smiles happily in the midst of the darkest places of the world. It could be a case of a Stepford Smiler and that she's actually really pained Beneath the Mask, considering how sad she looked in her moment of death.
Press Xto Not Die: Some quicktime events make you press- no, mash Z to avert your demise.
Rapunzel Hair: Monika, (Aya's mother) has this. As does Aya's clone.
Red Eyes, Take Warning: Ogre has red eyes. While his motives are ambiguous, they likely aren't anything good.
Red Herring: There is a young reanimated girl, Ines, who creeps around Aya and causes random mischief. A player could think she has a role in the overarching plot, but she's killed off by a few dolls with knives out of sight and she had no role in the story as anything but another of Father's reawakened test subjects.
Replacement Goldfish: Looking on a certain shelf reveals there's been an awful lot of Snowballs.
Revenge by Proxy: Some of the reanimated corpses of the Doctor's victims are trying to kill Aya as a method of getting back at him.
Save Point: The crows that randomly fly around in the house, and the red diamond in the underworld.
Scary Shiny Glasses: The Doctor's glasses are always this.
Screw This, I'm Out of Here!: In one room with a wandering zombie, there's a save point crow and a regular barrel next to him. If you break the barrel, it'll alert the zombie and the crow will fly away before the zombie kills you.
Senseless Sacrifice: A variant. In the ending, Dio burns down the Drevis mansion so that no one will be able to continue the Doctor's work...only for Aya herself to end up doing so years later.
Although depending how you interpret the extra scene n the 3.06 version, this may be subverted.
Serial Killer: Aya's father has killed dozens of people over several years, with help from his assistant, Maria. Aya herself becomes one in the true ending, following in her father's footsteps.
Shout-Out: Aya needs a key to progress, but it's been dropped in a toilet. She adamantly refuses to stick her hand in.
"Who would ever think of doing something so disgusting?"
One of the key items (some coins) is found in a toilet, just like Misao.
In a prison, there is an undead girl who has lost her eyes, desperately searching for them. Both her art and her sprite have more than a passing resemblance to Viola (since they're based on the same free resource sprite). Witch's House spoilers: Her missing eyes might be another shout-out, as Viola indeed loses her eyes when she switches bodies with the witch.
A blond kid known as Dio... nope, nothing bizarre with that, what am I thinking?
Smashing Survival: At a few points in the game.
The Stinger: Viewable after the true ending and credits if you have collected all the gems. It seems that the doctor is still alive and is still performing his grim trade.
Another one is added in the Steam version. Aya might not have followed in her fathers footsteps, depending on how you interpret what Aya means about her not forgetting because of her promise.
Videogame Caring Potential: In order to get a certain scene in addition to the True Ending, you have to obtain all of the gems. Some of the gems can only be obtained by helping out various troubled spirits who were victims of Aya's father and are missing something that's preventing them from being able to rest in peace. However, some of these people are so pitiable that you'll probably be helping them anyway regardless of whether you can get gems from them or not.
Viewers Are Goldfish: Two of the game's flashbacks are of things you just saw a few minutes ago. The latter of these is particularly soon after it happened.
The Voiceless: This seems to be the fate of the Doctor after he enters Ogre's employ.
One of the Doctor's test subjects is a woman who was mute in life, and remains so in undeath.
They Would Cut You Up: What the doctor does to his victims and later tries to do to his daughter Aya.
Updated Re-release: Released via Steam in 2016, which includes a number of major changes.
All of the tilesets have been completely overhauled, and are now far more colourful and detailed. Several areas have new layouts - notably, a large chunk of the first basement level has been removed, making this section much shorter and more straightforward.
The Doctor's portraits have been redesigned, similar to how Aya and her mother's portraits were redone in the 2.0 version.
Several small jumpscares have been removed, with a few new ones added.
Most of the flavour text for Aya examining random objects has been removed.
An exclamation mark appears over Aya's head when she is standing next to an objects that can be interacted with.
There is now a larger variety of zombie sprites. Previously, all of the zombie enemies used the same sprites as the two Aya encounters in the prologue.
Some gem locations and puzzles have been altered slightly. Notably, the scene in the trick room has been completely changed from a king watching two knights duel, to a far creepier one depicting a dead girl's funeral.
A few new music tracks have been added.
Wham Line: Or rather, wham "add-on to a previous line" in this case. At the beginning of the game, there's a moment when you can overhear the Doctor telling Maria that Aya's getting to be at a difficult age (in response to Maria's line that Aya isn't fond of her), but Maria should protect Aya. At the end of the game, you get to hear the rest of the conversation, as the Doctor calls Aya "...the most precious doll of them all."
Fifth Entry - "I found a dead cat in her drawers. Hiding it in a dresser... exactly as I used to. She's sure to follow my same path. She seems to hope for that as well. But I cannot let that happen. If her wish came true, then my treasure... She would be dirtied. Yes, there's no other way than this. I'm sure she won't accept it. But I've already decided. So she won't make the same mistakes as I..."
Seventh Entry - "Just like my old self... Killing solely out of interest. Then it must run in the family..."
Aya's mother cursed her father so she could drag him into the netherworld and keep him to herself forever. This turns out to be a lie, since she didn't want Aya to know the Awful Truth unless absolutely necessary.
The Doctor towards Aya. Nothing says "I love you" like a chainsaw!
You Shall Not Pass!: The Creepy Doll utters something like this about the door leading to the other world.
Your Cheating Heart: Doctor Drevis and Maria have been carrying on an affair for some time before the game begins. | 2019-04-18T12:35:00Z | https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/VideoGame/MadFather |
Since we cannot judge the reasons as to why people join any organization, it is extremely important to provide several avenues of interest or focus in meetings and activities. Members join for many personal reasons. Even though more than a social outlet must be offered, social interaction is crucial and social events will keep people interested in organizational participation. Allocate time for conversation and sharing at meetings.
Networking with members allows leaders to listen to what they say. Listen to both the content of conversations as well as to the intent. Sometimes strong leaders do not ask for enough input. If the needs of members are known, it will be easier to excite them about the ongoing work of the organization.
Invite members and friends to social functions and they will be far more likely to participate in the issue driven work of the organization. A variety of activities and advocacy efforts based on member feedback will usually encourage everyone to stay involved. Give people tasks using their talents and abilities, remembering that not everyone has the same priorities. The organization must meet the needs of the majority of the membership.
Picture having a net to draw people in, seeing, however, that not all of them stay in the net. Throwing out this net must be an ongoing process. If it is current policy to invite potential members to complete an application, be sure that there is a section in which they can list areas in which they would like to serve. Give members some responsibility and an opportunity to volunteer. Call people and ask them specifically how they would like to serve, making sure that they understand that their service is crucial to the ongoing health of the organization. Members will feel more useful and comfortable with the group and will be more likely to contribute significantly to the organization. Of course, not everyone will be an active member even when given encouragement. Do not defeat the heart and initiative of members when the goals of the leadership are not immediately met. Compromise and communication are important tools. Consideration of each person, compromising on ideas, and ongoing communication give optimum results. If members feel comfortable with the leaders in the organization, they will be more willing to share issues and problems. Obviously, the leadership will not win everyone over to its ideas but failure makes leaders stronger and helps them understand how to become more effective.
Reach out to others by tapping into their gifts and that action will help everyone grow. Recognize the talents of all members. Consider issues such as ability, follow through and transportation needs before giving work assignments. Positive communication and feedback are necessary since negativity can damage a relationship or prevent one from forming.
Keep expectations reasonable when assigning tasks to new members and to those who begin to express an interest in working for the organization. For example, ask someone to phone members for a while before asking him/her to chair the phone committee. This will allow the member to feel comfortable with the assignment and will avoid the error of overwhelming him/her with responsibility before he/she is ready to take it on. As a result, moving on to more and more responsibility is a natural process built on the enabling power of positive experience.
Remember that "The best way to learn is to teach." There is always an opportunity to learn from the group. Consider the feelings and abilities of members. Use people that volunteer and call those that are to shy to volunteer. Work under the assumption that members may not be up to leadership expectations; but remember that time and experience are the keys to unlock talent, skill and leadership abilities. Never compromise on the principles on which the organization is built.
It is important to delegate jobs in order to involve members and "let go" of some of the details. Recognize the efforts of others in meetings and newsletters. It is important to make a note each time that someone offers to help. Follow through on the offer and give an assignment. Otherwise, the person may not volunteer again.
Mentor younger people and train them in leadership skills and in the organization's affairs.
Social activities, the organizational net or magnet, include: parties or get-togethers, fund-raisers, or advocacy or educational activities. Some examples of parties or get-togethers for fun are Christmas or other holiday parties, scavenger hunts, pot lucks, progressive dinners, banquets or restaurant dinners, picnics, pizza parties, and sporting events (bowling, beep ball, golf, swimming, hiking, miniature golf, skiing, shuffleboard, horseshoes, board or card games, or spectator sports). Some examples of fund-raisers are barbecues, box socials, pizza parties inviting the community, product driven parties, musical events, pancake breakfast, soup suppers, or comedy nights. Educational and advocacy related functions may provide awareness to the community. Examples include attending a DVD movie, an opera or play, a museum, an amusement park, or county or state fair.
When arranging an event at a public place, the social committee must communicate with the management explaining the needs of the group such as volunteer assistance or audio description. Choose a date and time wisely considering transportation needs. Cost must be considered since many people cannot afford high priced events. If the members are spread out in a large geographical area, plan events that cover that area so that each member can attend at least some of the planned activities. Arrange different types of events taking into consideration the varying interests of members.
Appoint several members to this social planning committee, members who are not usually otherwise involved in the organization. Be sure to include people of different ages and interests in the planning group. Remember to plan activities at socials in order to allow new people attending to meet the members and to feel included so that attendance at the next meeting will be an easy decision for them to make.
Some events will need a larger number of volunteers. Have members recruit or advertise for them. Churches and Lions Clubs are good sources for volunteers. Actively recruit volunteers in order to insure a meaningful number since it is essential to do everything possible to avoid volunteer "burn out". Be sure to have enough volunteers at any function so none are overworked. Provide training in advance if the volunteers are not familiar with how best to assist blind people. If volunteers are needed for different purposes such as serving food, collecting tickets, escorting blind persons to seats or rest rooms, and cooking or cleaning up; make sure that each person understands how to carry out the task that he/she is being asked to fulfill in order to insure the necessary comfort level. Be sure that members understand the etiquette of working with a volunteer. Make it clear to members and volunteers alike that volunteers are present to assist everyone. If members want personal volunteers, they should be encouraged to provide their own. Be sure to thank volunteers and show appreciation in creative ways. Present a small gift or offer a free meal from time to time. If volunteers are asked to guide blind persons at tours or other events where a cost is involved, their costs should be paid in advance. Drivers should be reimbursed for gasoline and the cost of their meals should be covered by the organization. One way to cover some of these expenses is via the use of coupons.
Sponsor students to events such as legislative seminars and leadership seminars. Encourage young people and respect their ideas and they will be more likely to remain in your organization. Schools for the blind and disabled student services offices are good places to recruit students. Positive mentors are a great drawing card. Grants can be obtained to fund projects, particularly mentoring and youth activities (river rafting, skiing, and other special youth sports). Summer is a good time to have membership building activities. However, do not sacrifice older members by concentrating too much on reaching out to the young.
Support groups pose unique challenges for recruitment as well as interesting advocacy issues. Education and mentoring are important. Contact the president or leader of any support group and offer to share the history of ACB and its state and local affiliates, emphasizing how these organizations impact the lives of people who are blind and visually impaired. Support groups might prefer to join as a separate chapter. These members may not feel comfortable joining a chapter where they may assume that the membership will not understand their concerns. When recruiting any group to begin a new chapter of the organization, offer a small financial incentive (perhaps $200) for seed money. Working on issues that the group has already bought into can help draw them into the organization. Visit senior centers to see what the needs are. Inform them of what blind people can accomplish especially with the help of ACB and its state and local affiliates. Never be shy about touting the programs and services of the state affiliate and its local chapters.
Seniors will be very interested in demonstrations of the latest aids and technology for low vision such as CCTVs.
Newly blinded persons especially older ones may have more difficulty with adjusting to their blindness. Encourage these members to raise funds by saving items such as coupons, box tops, and bottles to be redeemed. This kind of fund raising helps the organization and gives the members a sense of their real value to it. The organization must accept these groups where they are while encouraging and allowing them to grow as individuals and as a chapter. If the membership chooses to stress social outlets with educational and inspirational speakers, accept that.
A website is a vehicle that allows for ease of distributing information and will lessen the expense of mass communication. Be sure to provide instructions on how to access the website. Major search engines are free and they can be used to look for information and programs and services.
It is relatively easy to create a web page and update it often if the organization has access to individuals with the right programs and computer skills. It is a simple task to put a word document onto the site by simply saving it as an HTML file and then transferring or saving it locally on a server or through a service provider. "Microsoft Front Page" displays accessible forms if they are needed in a web page. GWMicro and other companies have tutorials on html for blind computer users.
Any organizational information in print should be available on the web site, information such as welcome brochures, membership brochures, newsletters, by-laws, Board minutes and links to other resources. The organization must keep the website updated and use current information. Add a line listing the date of the last update and readers will know that the information is current. Provide links to the organization's affiliates and their chapters sites. Give direct access to board and committee members by Creating links to them. Contact links should be placed at the bottom of the page.
Check other affiliate websites to get ideas on how information is set up and what is included. Design the site by creating the text first and then adding links later. Register the site with search engines. Contact www,addme,com and it will add the website to search engines.
Register the domain name. www.networksolutions.com is the most well known domain registration service. A link can be created directly to the affiliate from ACB's website; contact Earlene Hughes, ACB's Webmaster to arrange this.
There are various ways to check websites for 508 accessibility guidelines and compliance such as ACCVERIFY or ACCREPAIR. These are programs that analyze a web site to insure that it is accessible. At The site, Insight runs tools to analyze the site and InFocus will automatically repair problems. "Bobby.org" is another option; but it is a more difficult program for blind persons to use. However, Bobby will permit use of a Bobby logo on the site if it is accessible. It may be easiest to download a demo accessible site and use it for reference.
List servs are also useful tools for keeping members apprised of events and provides an opportunity for free and open discussion and exchange of ideas. Guidelines must be established by the list serv moderator and they should be posted to each subscriber when they join the list. A list serv is also a viable way to keep the board or specific committees informed on particular situations. Most list servs are easy to subscribe to by sending an email message to them. Private lists for board and committee members are also helpful and the list moderator can subscribe designated members. Two free list serv providers are Yahoogroups and topica. Search for appropriate and convenient providers. It should be noted that free service providers of list servs or web sites may contain advertisements or graphics which may hamper navigation for users of screen readers.
A phone tree should be used to notify members of meetings, speakers, activities or legislative efforts. The affiliate can conduct business using a phone system with a voice message that goes out to a group of people using t-mail systems. These can also be expanded to a larger area to get out a more regional message. These systems can be used to recruit people to attend hearings, conferences or some other event where representation is crucial. Most local telephone companies offer telephone distribution lists and they can be contacted for information on specific systems and their cost. Some of these systems will actually place individual calls. Free telephone calling systems are available; but it is necessary to listen to advertisements when accessing them. Some telephone mail lists provide password protection as well as the option to program in the numbers to be called. The message is then sent to the programmed list. Be careful not to send out automatic messages in the middle of the night. Try to limit the number of messages sent to members as well. If too many are sent, they might be ignored.
Phone trees are helpful in keeping members in touch with the organization. If members are contacted each month before the meeting and reminded about interesting speakers and other important meeting details, they will be more likely to attend. If a person is chronically absent, suggest that he/she be contacted approximately five times or for as long as the person expresses any interest in organizational participation.
Some organizations use a member driven phone tree in which one member volunteers to call a small group of members. This option promotes friendship as well as direct outreach. The personal or phone contact will increase attendance. In the message, stress the option that the member can contact the president at any time to ask about a missed speaker or topic.
Networking, communication and contact comprise the net or magnet that draws members into the organization. They are essential to the growth of any organization, its affiliates and chapters.
It is with deep gratitude that I acknowledge the excellent work of the Networking, Communication and Contact Panel. Their contributions to the seminar make this report into a resource that will be used and valued for years to come. Thank you: Ardis Bazyn, Ed Bradley, Sam Gael, Richard Rueda, and Pat Sheehan.
Many thanks to the volunteer scribes: Ardis Bazyn, Kathy Brockman and Judi Cannon.
I gratefully acknowledge the contributions of the ACB Membership Committee: Ardis Bazyn, Alan Beatty, Ed Bradley, Judi Cannon, Paulette Monthi, Janis Stanger and Tom Tobin. I also wish to thank Brian Charlson, ACB First Vice President and Membership Committee Coordinator, and Terry Pacheco, ACB Coordinator of Affiliate and Membership Services, who have served the Membership Committee so well.
What can I say about Ardis Bazyn except that she has been an assistant extrordinaire. | 2019-04-25T16:18:21Z | http://bazyncommunications.com/resources/networkandconnect.php |
Shat is a small village in Lithuania, near the larger town of Keidan, more or less in the center of Lithuania.
It is a very primitive village. No roads nor electricity. In the evening lamps are the only illumination to houses. Neither is there any railway access to the village.
There are about 90 Jewish families living in the village, which number is increased from time to time by people from the surrounding villages. In Shat it is difficult to find a committee to consist of a president or a governor, but at time even little kaisers are found.
The cultural functions are very limited, no theaters, nor cinemas, and no theater groups ever visit the village. However there is a small library of 500 books.
Their gemilas khesed (interest-free loan society) at one time had 28,000 lita (Lithuanian currency) in its coffers, which was of great help. But at a later time stage financial problems cropped up, which naturally affected the villagers.
Shat was a poor village with very few skilled artisans. A number of villagers owned horses and carts, but there was very little means to earn a decent living, and most people existed from hand to mouth. They also eked out a living from their dairy cows. But despite all the hardships and poverty, the people of Shat never lost their sense of humor, their determination and their togetherness.
The Jewish community in Balbirishok is very old. The witnesses are the two large cemeteries, of which the newer one is 140 years old.
Balbirishok was once a rich trading town. Boats packed with a variety of goods would travel every day up and down the wide and deep waters of the Nieman. Many rich merchants in the shtetl made it even as far as the Leipzig Fair on only two axles [i.e. in a wagon]. Balbirishok was a trading center for many of the surrounding towns. Then with the arrival of a railway line and highways in the nearby towns of Alyta and Pren, all the commerce moved there.
Now great poverty reigns here. People wander around the shtetl without work and even the wisest sage cannot succeed in rescuing the majority of Jews here from what life brings. In the last three or four years, ten Jewish shops have closed in Balbirishok and those that remain are empty the entire week. There are very few artisans here and no one to help them, as there was before the war. Certain trades that once were monopolized by Jews are now free of Jews. In the shtetl there is not one Jewish blacksmith, brick mason, tinsmith or shoemaker. Consequently other trades have too many men. There are five bakers and four butchers. Three or four of them together slaughter one skinny animal. Meanwhile Lithuanian tailors, shoemakers, brickmasons, and carpenters in recent years have been springing up by the dozens.
The Balbirishok Jews have discovered a new business. They buy chickens at the market from the nearby towns and drive them to Kovno. The Balbirishkers call this new kind of businessman, with irony, Ministers of the Interior [a pun on inner for interior, and hinner, the plural of chickens in Yiddish]. They are also called vishtinenkes [chicken people]. No one can envy the living they earn.
The one thing that Balbirishok is not ashamed of compared to the surrounding towns is its factories. There is a distillery, leather factory, brick works, mill, furniture manufacturer, sawmill with a parquet factory, and also a small workshop, where mirrors are made, where the owner works on his own. All the industrial enterprises besides the furniture factory and one sawmill belong to Jews; however, they do not have a dominating role and do not play any part in the economics of the town. During the season there are seventy men working in all these enterprises, but of all those workers only three are Jews. The rest of the Jews have no real means of subsistence. Assistance from America used to be considerable, but is now reduced to a minimum.
During the summer about half a dozen Jews with orchards also trade in chickens. Since they are driving the chickens to Kovno they also take cases of apples or pears to sell at the Kovno market.
The Jewish folksbank has 100 members, of whom a dozen are Christians. The bank plays a large role in the shtetl's economy because there are hardly any Jews who don't need the bank's services.
The young people are barely employed. They wander around the streets with nothing to do and talk about politics. In the past a lot of young people left for Mexico, Argentina and Uruguay. Now the gates there are closed due to strict laws and the Great Depression. About 30 settlers left Balbirishok in the last 15 years for Palestine.
Cultural life here is abominable. The rich library with its eight hundred books is practically empty. The children who complete the Hebrew public school do not pursue further studies and forget the little that they learned.
The shtetl Tsaikishok is located in Kovno district not far from the Dubisa River. It is very small. Tsaikishok has over 60 Jewish families who are mostly shopkeepers, traders, and artisans. During the summer many of the residents are busy in the orchards.
The economic situation in the town is not good. There is a folksbank in Tsaikishok that was the first one founded in Lithuania. It has over 60 members.
The relationship between Jews and Lithuanian is not bad. If the two Lithuanian shops in Tsaikishok participate in bloyeh markelakh [blue coupons, anti-Semitic tactic that discounted prices in Lithuanian shops in order to discourage shopping in Jewish shops], it is due not to anti-Semitism but simply to make a living.
As for cultural institutions, there is a Jewish public school. The Jewish library has over 500 Yiddish books and over 20 readers. There is no theater or movie house in Tsaikishok and no lecturers come here. The young people are mainly Zionists and belong to the Zionist Socialist party. Among the parents there many Zionists of various persuasions.
Busses go through Tsaikishok daily on their way to Kovno, Raseyn and back. They bring some life to the town. We see new people and are not cut off from the world. Because it is small, Tsaikishok is clean enough with attractive painted houses. We still do not have electrical service. In the middle of a summer day it is quiet and calm as if everything is sunk in sleep.
Gelvan is located 20 kilometers from Vilkomir. It is an old shtetl. There are signs of its age in the cemetery. There are many old gravestones there. One of the gravestones from 5419 (1659) is still there. Not far from the shtetl is a meadow with gravestones scattered about, rubbed off through the generations. A Gelvaner informed me that there was once a cemetery there.
Not long ago Gelvan was considered a rich shtetl. All our business ties were with Vilna. Twice a week Jewish wagons would leave for Vilna with grain, eggs, poultry and the like, and would bring back merchandise for the shops. Shoemakers, tailors, carpenters, blacksmiths and other artisans were all Jewish. To have work done in the area one had to come to Jewish artisans. A few Jews earned money from the nearby landowners. Tenant farmers and brokers did business with the landowners and made a living. There were not many Jews in Gelvan who were poor. People lived quietly and happily. Now they are almost all shopkeepers and a few are village peddlers, but every one of them makes a living from relatives in America.
Before the war [WWI] Gelvan was a Jewish town with a population of about ninety Jewish families. Other than that there were about eight or nine families, laborers who made their living from the Jews. Now there are 70 Jewish families and more than 80 Christians families, with shops, two cooperatives, and a very rich Lithuanian folksbank. The Lithuanian are now the majority and soour shtetl is dying little by little.
From the earlier good times there is one thing left to us, that reminds one of a respected householder who has come down in the world and whose fine clothes hang loosely, too big for him. That is our besmedresh [synagogue], a very big one. Apparently the builders of the synagogue thought that Gelvan would one day be a large town and built the besmedresh accordingly. Now it is empty.
A brick bathhouse also remains from the good times. It is large and is heated only three times a year, as we cannot do more. It is too much of a luxury.
The relationship with the surrounding population at one time was very good, almost friendly. Now the intellectuals incite the population against Jews with invented stories. A short time ago there was a cooperative holiday and one of them went too far. He said in his speech that very soon all the Jews in Lithuania will be forced out and meanwhile demanded that no Christian should buy from Jewish shops.
The library of the Lovers of Knowledge has over 400 books, but the people of Gelvan are not great readers. The Zionist Socialists have a Garden of Edenthey are the only Zionist group here.
Just twoscore years ago 100 Jewish families lived in Pushelat, and now there are no more than 45. A small number of them remained in Russia after being expelled from Lithuania at the time of the World War I, and many more, after returning to their former homes, emigrated to South Africa, Palestine, and America.
The majority of Jews in the shtetl are engaged in small business in shops, but the living they make from this is scant. A small number of Jews have taken up crafts or agriculture. The working families are divided up as follows: one shoemaker, one tailor, three butchers, two wagon drivers, one watchmaker, one milliner, two dressmakers, and five who farm either on their own or rented property.
Relations with the Christian community are so-so. The cultural situation, thanks to the young people in the area, is not bad. They have a library of 200 books, which include some of the most recent publications. In addition there is a public school, a small credit bank, gemilas khesed [interest-free loan society] and linat hatzedek [volunteers who care for the sick], all of which are on a high level of excellence. In our shtetl we have taken steps to establish a Hebrew public school, but the teacher speaks Yiddish with the children.
In the local group of firefighters there are both Jews and Christians, who cooperate in a variety of joint undertakings. Among these we have had for a few years a firemen's soccer team that is mixed (made up of Jews and non-Jews).
Before the war [WWI], as older people tell the story, life in Vilyon was calm and peaceful. Today Vilyon is a town with eighty Jewish families, almost all of whom own their own house with a bit of land around it. But there is not enough land to make a living fromonly enough for raising some onions and radishes. Nevertheless Vilyon lives very well. If one has a little business, a little land, and above all a son in America, one can live like a prince. Of course it goes without saying that there are some people in Vilyon who do not have a brother or a beloved uncle in America or a garden or a business and they also live, but woe unto them.
Vilyon has a large number of artisans and unskilled laborers. They have a difficult life. There is no Jewish bank or gemilas khesed [interest-free loan society] in Vilyon.
The town has a large number of anti-Semites. The verslininkes [Lithuanian businessmen] distribute bloye markelakh [blue coupons, anti-Semitic tactic that discounted prices in Lithuanian shops in order to discourage shopping in Jewish shops] and make anti-Semitic proclamations. Yet among the poor peasants and the poor laborers there is no anti-Semitism.
There is a Jewish public school in the town and a Lithuanian public school with six grades. There are two Jewish study houses and one bathhouse, which this summer will be taken down and replaced with a new one.
Vilyon is divided into two parts, a mountain and a valley, and the residents are evenly divided between the two. The majority of the Jews live in the shtetl [in the valley?]. Vilyon has a church that was built by Vitautas the Great. Vilyon also has beautiful gedymin and pilies [Lithuanian: streets and roads].
In all, Vilyon is a town with great natural beauty, but the Vilyon Jews do not derive any pleasure from it. There is much unemployment, mainly among the young people. People wait for somethingthey want something and know that something must happen, so they wait: perhaps better times are coming.
The economic situation is bitter, but it is good that the Most High sent shchav [Russian: cabbage soup]. People eat shchav in the morning; for lunch, fleishik [meat] shchav; and in the evening, bread with milkhik [dairy] shchav. Mid-day, please have a cup of shchav! In the winter there is an abundance of crops and people dig up potatoes, carrots, and beets. They pickle cucumbers and tomatoes. And once in a while there is a hen or a goose and people have a little shmaltz [chicken fat]. Soon the winter ends and spring arrives with brand new shchav.
Shavlyan is a shtetl in Shavl District and just when the town was greatly esteemed, it was removed and moved to a place forty kilometers away. The town is 18 kilometers from Radvilishok.
Of the surrounding towns, Tsitovyan [Tytuvenai] is important because of its pine forest where several families go to dachas [Russian: summer houses] during the summer. The rest of the cities and towns that are around are Shidleve [Siluva], Kelm [Kelme] and Shakot [Saukotas]. As in many other towns in Lithuania, Shavlyan has a round market place with houses built around it. In every house there is a shop, in some even two. Streets radiate out from the market place. One on the right goes to Radvilishok; the one on the left to Shavel and Tsitovyan, a third one go to Shidleve, Shakot and others. The first two are very important. Once a year the Shidlev Road is repaired, and that is before the large annual fair that the famous Lithuanian writer Zhemaite wrote about in A Journey to Shidleve. Thousands make a pilgrimage through Shavlyan and they all use the Shidlev Road.
In the middle of the market place there used to be a highly visible memorial to Aleksander II, who freed the peasants; it was removed in 1930. The memorial is ten meters high and has a long iron point at the top. It looks like a large Chanukah dreidel that from turning so much rubbed off its feet and sits on its bottom. On all four sides on stone tablets is engraved Tsariu Osvoboditeliu [Russian: To the Czar-Liberator]. At the highest point, hundreds of birds make their nests and the lowest part serves as a shelter for the peasants who come to the market to sell butter, eggs and other products. In 1930 the valdiba [Lithuanian: town council] decide to take the memorial down.
Today there are about 250 families living in Shavlyan, of which 50 are Jewish. It is difficult to establish when the Jewish community arrived. It is known that in 1766 when counting the population of the area, there were 331 Jews in Shavlyan.
In Jewish history Shavlyon is know for a blood libel that happened at the beginning of the 18th century. Until recently mothers told their children about Lipke der meshumed [the rogue], who in those unsettled times brought so much trouble to the local Jews, and also about the important people who came from Petersburg in order to settle the affair.
In 1921 after the expulsion to Russia, almost all the Jews returned to Shavlyan. Everything was quickly restored, some better, some worse, but everyone was happy. And prosperity lasted about ten years. Due to the great economic crisis in the country, the Jewish artisans and some of the shopkeepers have become truck farmers and orchard keepers. If one counts the three-four families who were involved in agriculture before the war [WWI] the main occupation in the town would be fruit farming. Second place goes to the retail shops.
Returning from Russia, the young people of that time became busy with cultural work. In a short time a library was created with 300 books. From time to time there would be lectures, discussions, evenings. The older people read a lot and there was evening a reading room in the town. These were people devoted to cultural work. Here I would like to honor the memory of Yokhved Schapiro-Luntz, who died young and was the soul of the young people at that time.
Now there is no sign left of all that. The library is closed all year because nobody has the inclination to read a book now. There is no Jewish public school in Shavlyan. Some of the Jewish children attend the Lithuanian school, but the majority of boys study in kheder under the supervision of the rabbi.
Have you heard of shtetlakh named Onishkis or Anushishok? If you have, then you probably also know that in our country there are two such towns with the same name. One is at the Lithuanian-Polish border [54°29' / 24°36'] and the second at the Lithuanian-Latvian border. It is the latter town that I will describe here. An old gravestone found in the old cemetery prior to the Great War [WWI] tells us that it was erected 150 years ago. This means that our community is not a young one.
Several celebrities were born in our town. One of them is the famous revolutionary and martyr Hirsh Lekert, who was born and raised here. Several people in Anushishok remember well the lively, temperamental boy who at a young age moved to Vilna and whose shot [unsuccessful assassination attempt directed at the Governor of Vilna] later resounded like a thunderclap throughout Russia, especially in the Jewish Pale of Settlement.
A second celebrity of world renown, whose name is still remembered in Anushishok, is the late Mariampoler rabbi, the former Sejm [Polish Parliament] Deputy Rabbi Popl. Many people in Lithuania still remember his courageous stand in the Sejm concerning the proposed law to abolish capital punishment.
The picture after the war is very different. Many families did not return from Russia after the expulsion, and those who did come back were quickly disappointed by their old, abandoned homes. The partition of Lithuania from Latvia was fatal to the rebuilding of the town. The domestic farmers have no one to bring their produce to here, since they cannot go to the nearby regional capital to buy and sell the way they did before the partition.
Young people coming back after the war from the front and military service look around in despair. There are no prospects here and nowhere else to go. Only one small door is open: South Africa. Some tried to stick it out here and gave it their best effort, but then departed. Today a total of 25 Jewish families live here. They have opened a home for the aged, where the old people are maintained with American dollars and South African pounds. And the truth is, the people of Anushishok from Boston and New York, from Cape Town and Johannesburg, have strong feelings for their former homeand not only for their own loved ones but for the community institutions. Yet there is an outpouring of pain here. People wander around like ghosts and give the impression of doom, as if suffering their last punishment.
On summer evenings, in the ruins of the once important courtyard, we often have to endure the joyous sound of Lithuanian folk songs about a new life of happiness, labor and toilthe singers are Lithuanians newly enamoured of agriculture. Meanwhile just the faint sound of the trees from the cemetery is carried to our shtetl, while a rolling green field recently purchased [by a Lithuanian] secretly beckons. The Lithuanians will continue to prosper from year to year, while my shtetl will continue to decline.
Seven kilometers east of Lazdai [Lazdijai], on the road to Kalvarija, lies the tiny shtetl Rudamin. The town was built, about 200 years ago, by the famous Polish family of Princess Gawronski.
At first tailors and shoemakers settled here. A rabbi arrived later and made his living from an inn. They built a prayer house, They rented a place for the cemetery and began developing a Jewish life. The Gavronskis did not sell any land, only leased. Every five years the Jews renewed the lease agreements, paying the rent money promptly. Later the Gavronskis began to persecute the Jews, causing them trouble, made fun of their clothing, forbid them to use the water from the Rudaminelis River that flows through the town, invited the rabbi and complained to him about the Jews.
By the end of 18th century Rudamin had about fifty Jews. In 1899 one Jew bought the entire area. Then Rudamin began to flourish. True there was no rise in cultural life. Rudamin remained dark. But there were Jewish laborers in Rudamin. There were tailors, shoemakers, carpenters, shingle makers, roofers, harness-makers and the rest of them were peasants. Jewish peasants tilled the fruitful fields and their wives were in charge of the housekeeping and raising plants. In Rudamin lived a healthy, productive, independent Jewish element.
Today Rudamin is impoverished. There are about 15 Jews and 150 non-Jews. Today, half the Jews are shopkeepers and are doing tolerably well. The other half are peasants and are not doing well. Mother Nature has been cruel to her children. She does not give them a bountiful harvest, only just enough. A year ago several Rudaminer Jews left for Lazdai, some went to Kalvaria, others went further to other places. Now there is scarcely anything left of the Jewish community.
Kul has a population of three hundred people of which around one hundred are Jewish. The relationship between the Jewish and Christians populations was until not long ago very good. The Jews and Christians would do favors for each other.
The Jewish population grew smaller very quickly. There are very few weddings and when we are lucky to have a wedding, the couple leaves Kul. The economic situation for Kul's Jews is miserable. There is only one Jewish artisan in Kul, a shoemaker.
The children study at the Lithuanian public school and the young boys study Hebrew in the afternoon. In the previous better years the Kul children traveled to Plungian to study at the Hebrew high school. Now the economics conditions are worse so that no Jews are able to send their child to study elsewhere.
The young people who belong to the Peretz library in Plungian eagerly read Yiddish books.
The town of Kul consists of one long street. Also they do not have any large expenses. Not the Kul Jews. The Jew has besides aid from a relative in a foreign country, a little bit of land or a garden. Almost every Jew has a foolish cow that gives milk and since he already has a cow, he also has clay pots in which to ferment the milk. Now there is something fermented in the house, there is cottage cheese and there is also something to flavor the plain fish. Potatoes they get from their gardens that they sow and harvest themselves so eating it all up is their due. It is bitter to buy clothing. They lay a patch on a patch. Happiness is that one does not have to pay any tax. And the patches are not the same color. So here they are among their own.
The Ponevezh rabbi and Sejm [Polish parliament] deputy Kahanaman is from Kul, and people hope that he can save them.
From Vilkomir a broad road, or as it is called here a gostinetz [from Russian for inn], leads to Ponevezh and further, as far as Riga. Wagon caravans once used this road to travel to Riga and came back loaded with grain and other merchandise. The many hotels and inns along the road served as rest spots.
There were a lot of small settlements on the road and they have become smaller and smaller. Now some of them are in ruins. They tell of a life that no longer exists, of the genuine shtetl way of life, of good-natured, hospitable and honest Jews with long beards. They tell of peddlers with huge packs on their backs whose feet walked over village roads, fields and meadows. They tell of tenant farmers with broad shoulders, who drove over the small estate roads to the town with wagons full of fresh milk. They tell of kheder boys who were brought from the surrounding settlements to the town, to the rabbis. They tell of the settlement Jews who would descend on the town their with wives and children for the High Holy Days.
Before the Great War of 1914, Tovian had several tens of families with all the community necessities. After the war emigration scattered the large majority of the town youth to every part of the world. Those who remained live with the hope that they will be able to leave this futile place.
The town becomes smaller and smaller every year. Every corner of the Jewish community is ruled by the fear over making a living, since Jewish means of livelihood have been taken over by the Christians. Houses are sold to non-Jews very cheaply. The only Jews remaining are those who cannot leave. The besmedresh [synagogue] is locked during the week and open only on the Sabbath with barely a minyan [quorum of ten men for public prayer]. The men sit near the oven between afternoon and evening prayers and have a chat about the past. A question is raised with a groan and remains unansweredwhat will happen to the besmedresh?
Scores of well-planned and beautifully laid-out Jewish towns developed along the entire length of the German-Lithuanian border and the German-Russian border. With friendliness and good humor, these towns observed their German neighbors across the border. During the working day a lifelong competition went on between the towns. Jews, Germans, Lithuanians, Poles, and Russians conducted business alongside one another and occasionally even socialized.
The town of Vishtinetz was pretty and idyllic. One side of the town was bordered by a large lake that stretched for miles, from Lithuania deep into Germany. On the other side, Vishtinetz was bordered by small hills covered by a thick, almost inpenetrable forest. The hills, to our childish eyes, looked like tall mountains.
The lake was a good meeting place for the German and Lithuanian fishermen (mostly Jews) as well as providing the perfect opportunity, during the previous Czarist rule, to row illegal immigrants to Germany from the Russian side and to bring illegal literature from Germany into Russia.
Vishtinetz was once a town of substantial size with a large religious Jewish community of landowners. The famous gaon [sage] Rabbi Khayeml Filipover Brash was a resident of Vishtinetz and was well known for his charity and for his greatness equally as a Talmud scholar and as a mensch [a human being, in the highest sense].
Vishtinetz was one of the oldest settlements in Lithuania. Because of its proximity to the German border, it was obvious that Vishtinetz would become a center of small industry. There were a number of pig-hair factories and tanneries, which employed approximately 200 workers.
The brush-workers had a hard time then. They worked 16 or more hours a day, with the majority of them having their dinner brought to the factory and some of them staying there overnight, resting on a sack of pukh [down,i.e. the soft part of the pig-hair] and sleeping. Thursday, or as it was called, Green Thursday, they worked through the entire night to compensate for Friday, when they left early because of the approaching Shabbos. The work week began again Saturday evening, right after havdala [ceremony ending Shabbos].
And yet the brush-workers were the first to introduce a worldliness into the Jewish life of the shtetl and to revolutionize the masses. Regardless of how strange it may seem now, the first book that awakened the consciousness of the workers was Mendele [Moikher Sforim]'s story The Mare. The sole copy of The Mare was passed from one group to another in secret since it had been banned, after all, and anyone caught with it would be arrested. I remember to this day how they led away the brush-worker Tanakhke Bunes, an honest and guileless worker thirsting for knowledge, to Vilkovishk, the district capital, for just such a serious mistake. This was the first disturbing incident that led to changes in the idyllic life of Vishtinetz.
It was difficult and troublesome to reach Vishtinetz from the Russian side, although it was only 21 verst away from Verzhbalove. Twenty-one verst are about 15 American miles. To travel this distance, however, often took the better part of the day and sometimes part of the night as well. The road was partly sandy, strewn with rocks and, in many places, so muddy that sometimes Vishtinetz was cut off from the rest of the worldno coming, no goingunless you took a long detour through Germany in order to reach the station at Verzhbalove. The only connection with the surrounding area was Moyshe the Telegraph, a young, strong man and army veteran, always happy, always making a joke and meeting every difficult situation with a smile. He rode to the train station every day, regardless of the weather, to post the mail, to bring merchandise back, and to transport passengers back and forth. He was called Telegraph because neither cold nor mud stopped him.
As time passed, Vishtinetz, like many other small towns, shrank in size. A portion of the younger generation, having gotten a whiff of the malevolent wind that blew from the German side, gradually leftsome to South Africa and others to America where they established themselves in fine positions. Even Moyshe the Telegraph, in time, made his way to Canada where he died a couple of years ago. Several of the pig-hair factories (Itsele Sidorski's and Khaim Bertz's) relocated to Virbalin and Vilkovishk, and the tanneries closed. The large, beautiful synagogue became empty and nostalgia for its former worshippers enveloped the adjoining house of study.
Quiet and sad were the streets that had become overgrown with grass, and the hearty and resounding laughter of the children who had once played there so innocently was no longer heard. To make matters worse, Vishtinetz unexpectedly experienced a hellish fire at the end of a summer 49 years ago, which virtually decimated the greater portion of the town.
Photograph with caption: A solemn worship service in the Vishtinetz synagogue in honor of the coronation of Nikolai II (1895) with the participation of a town official and the police commissioner. From right to left can be seen among others: R' Nakhum Itseles (teacher); Aba Abelevitch; Moyshe Pavishanski, Cantor; Leyzer Volf, town-head (from Brody); Khana Lipman (teacher); Avraham-Motl Viklavishski, Rabbi; Fayvl the shokhet [Kosher slaughterer]; Mordekhay Pats; and Itsele Peretses (Rubinshteyn).
But an odd honor was visited upon Vishtinetz, an honor that memorialized the town in history, even though the fire had partially wiped it off the face of the earth. On the other side of the lake, which culminated deep in Germany, was the large and beautiful estate Rume (?), hidden in a deep, virtually pristine forest. A magnificent palace stood there, with the entire surrounding area beautifully landscaped. The dense forest, the large lakeall of this was perfect for the Kaiser's yacht.
Every autumn, the Kaiser and his entire retinue arrived for the hunt. Here he could show off his prowess as a sharpshooter, that regardless of what target he aimed at, he would hit it. During this period of several weeks of free-spirited living at the expense of innocent animals, he would destroy a number of bears, hungry wolves and sometimes even lured a fox. But most importantly, he was an expert at frightened and shy deer. Afterwards, these dead animals were brought to Berlin with great ceremony and exhibited in the very center of the capital. The idiotic Germans hastened to gaze upon the slaughtered animals, which to them appeared to be such a wonder, and could not praise their Kaiser's skill highly enough.
Kaiser Wilhelm arrived in Vishtinetz for the hunt in the same year that the fire occurred. Learning that the pretty town located on the other side of the lake opposite his yacht had burned, his heart filled with pity, or maybe eagerness at seeing a burned-out Jewish town. One day he arrived in Vishtinetz with his retinue. It was Yom Kippur and there was no prior warning announcing his visit.
Wilhelm delighted in making such surprise visits and was well known for his sudden and unannounced appearances among the populace. Noticing the dead silence and the streets empty of people, he became downcastwhat should he do?
Even when the head of the town informed him of the important and holy Jewish holiday, he remained perplexed, for after all, a Kaiser is not just any ordinary person, and certainly not Wilhelm, who had been anointed by G-d. He sent a messenger to the Jews in the synagogue and politely requested that they go to the market place as he had something important to discuss with them.
The Jews, upon hearing of this developmenteven those in a talis [prayer shawl] or kitl [white garment worn onYom Kippur] and bootsrushed to the market place. The Kaiser exhibited his majestic patience and waited until the very last elderly man arrived from the synagogue.
Then Wilhelm dismounted his horse, and in a friendly manner greeted the Jewish representativethe teacher of the kazioner elementary school, Dovid Robinson (father of Drs. Yaakov and Nehemiah Robinson, both of whom are in New York), greeted everyone with good wishes for the new year, apologized for disturbing their prayers and imposing upon them with his summons.
The Kaiser offered fine words of consolation to the frightened people and substantial aid for reviving the town. He offered 10,000 marks (at that time equal to 4,000 rubles). Later he convinced his friend Czar Nikolai II to contribute a similar amount (5,000 rubles). In addition, he promised to intercede with the Czar to forego the tax on all necessary building materials obtained from Germany.
Dr. Rabinov, who spoke German fluently, greeted Wilhelm and thanked him heartily in the name of the Jewish community. Wishing the Jews an easy fast and great restoration after the fire, Wilhelm bade a friendly goodbye to the startled and surprised Jews.
Their fast was certainly an easier one, and happy and enthusiastic after the unexpected event that they could hardly comprehend, they went to Neilah [closing service on Yom Kippur], praying with even more fervor and fire than usual, calling out lshana haba birushalayim [next year in Jerusalem].
This event was described in all the Russian and German newspapers, and the Gemans lauded the Kaiser for his fine and humane act.
As I tell you this story, it seems to me to be the product of fantasy, a wild dream containing within itself the terrible wrongs which the Jews suffered at the hands of the barbaric Hitler gangs, sons of the German people, descendants of Wilhelm, but it is a fact, and a fact filled with such sorrow. Kaiser Wilhelm should serve as a model of high morale and good deeds and yet, what a far cry from that time, that not-so-long ago past to the dark Hitler times.
Yet even the royal intervention of Kaiser Wilhelm could not help, although he did keep all of his promises. Missing was the strength and energy of the youth; there was not the needed impetus to rebuild the entire town. The mood of impoverishment was felt even more strongly.
After the Great War barely a minyan [ten men required for public prayer] of Jews remained in Vishtinetz and the town reverted entirely to the rule of the Lithuanians and the Lithuanian-Germans.
Now there is no one there who, at the very least, will remind the German Hitler-murderers of the scandalous and law-breaking act of their late Kaiser Wilhelm II. Certainly, they have noone who will listen, who will take this unbelievable story of their former leaderKaiser Wilhelmas an example.
the town of Vishtinetz and which piece by piece, destroyed the tattered and tortured Jewish community.
Our Jewish Lithuanian border towns found themselves, through two world wars, in an infernal fire that could only have been created in hell. The earliest and fiercest battles between the two strongest armies in Europethe German and the Russiantook place there, with fighting that lasted for months on this narrow strip of land. The first to fall victim were our Jewish towns. Especially horrible was the fate of our Jews in the towns on the East Prussian border during World War II, when Hitler's hordes, did not even wait for an encounter but suddenly attacked and murdered the peacefully unaware residents in the very first days of the occupation.
Verzhbalove was located at the center of all the little towns on the East Prussian border lying on a broad tract of land which stretched from Leningrad (formerly Petersburg) past Dvinsk, Vilna, and Kovno directly to Berlin.
Verzhbalove was, so to speak, the connecting point between eastern and western Europe and was recognized as a first-class border station through which the Czar's family often passed. Not only did high government officials pass through Verzhbalove, but also European merchants, manufacturers and learned men, as well as immigrants and political revolutionary activists with, you understand, falsified papers.
In speaking of Verzhbalove, we must mention, in the same breath, two more towns Kibart, which was two American miles from Verzhbalove, and the German border town of Eydkunen directly opposite. In a sense, they were like a spinal cord, as one could hardly separate each town from the next.
Practically half of the Verzhbalove populace interacted with that of Kibart and Eydkunen on an almost daily basis. It was there that business was conducted: the export of all kinds of goods to Russia, and later, Lithuania and Germany. Thousands of people were employed in this business, earning a fine living. Jewish-Russian and Lithuanian exporters and importers interacted with German buyers and sellers. And what didn't they export to Germany! Cattle, grain, flax, lumber, pig-hair, mushrooms, horses, crayfish, all kinds of fruitall shipped by train. Chickens were driven along the streets through the control-point. From early morning until late at night, the air was filled with the sounds of countless masses of geese, ducks, chickens and turkeys, urged on by hundreds of drivers to the Eydkunen goose-ramp so they could be transported further to Germany. Jews from neighboring towns, such as Vilkovishk, Pilvishok, Mariampole, Kalvariye and others, were also employed in this work. Millions of fowl were shipped to Germany through Virbalin at harvest-time and thousands of families in Lithuania enjoyed a prosperous income. In addition, there were two pig-hair factories in Virbalin that employed a couple hundred brush-workers. They also employed town residents, craftsmen and others. The Jews of Virbalin also earned a living through agriculture.
In addition, this small border export business supported hundreds of families. In accordance with a specific agreement, the residents of both sides of the border were permitted to import a certain quantity of products and finished goods for their own use from one country to the other duty-free. In this manner, a life-sustaining exchange of products and merchandise took place between the residents of Eydkunen on one side and Kibart and Virbalin on the other. The Germans, as well as the Jews and Lithuanians, were content and lived in peace. It would not have occurred to any of them that hatred of each other would soon develop.
Regardless of how strong the daily interaction was between these populations or how amicable the relationships were among these three towns, each remained different and individual unto itself, especially in the Jewish sense.
The magid [preacher] of Kelm, wanting to portray the character and essence of these three closely linked towns, shouted with passion in one of his musar-derashes [ethics teachings]: A fire burns in Eydkunen, sparks fly in Kibart, and smoke hangs over Verzhbalove. Let us put out the fire so that we can keep our towns from a conflagration. His purpose was to evoke a picture of the licentiousness, wantonness and heresy that ruled in Eydkunen and the influence of its poison on the nearby Jewish communities.
In a sense, it was a very effective comparison. In Eydkunen, a deep spirit of assimilation could be felt among the local Jews who viewed themselves as aristocrats, presumably because of the wealth they had accumulated at the expense of the poor Lithuanian Jews. They spoke German beautifully and sought to marry into the Eydkunen yekes [German Jews]. On the other hand, later in Kibart the unexpected installation of a tariff office, and the presence of exporters, brought in a spirit of Russification and just plain emptiness.
The result of this intermingling was the hanging of the wealthy Jew from Kibart, Freydberg, during World War I. He was on friendly terms with the gendarme-commander, Myasoyedov, who was accused of spying for Germany and sentenced to be hanged. The Czar's evil uncle, Nikolay Nikolayevitch, was eager to accuse a Jew and they accused Freydberg of being a co-conspirator, therefore, he too was executed.
Verzhbalove had become saturated with the new ideology and its new directions for a very long time, both in non-Jewish as well as Jewish life. The ethics teachings of the magid of Kelm were therefore of no help, because the smoke emanated from much more far-reaching and deep sources.
Should a Jew from Kibart wish to partake of a glass of beer or participate in a card game, he went to Eydkunen where he found what he wanted. If, however, he wished to hear a portion of mishna [foundation of the Talmud in Oral Law] or a page of gemora [the part of Talmud that deliberates on mishna] or even to spend an evening in a spiritual atmosphere, one of culture, Hebrew, Zionism, Bundism [bund: Yiddishist Zionist Socialist labor party] and other ideological pursuits, he had to go to Verzhbalove.
If Lithuania was, in the broadest sense of the word, the most Jewish land (except, of course, Eretz Yisroel), then Verzhbalove could be considered one of the most Jewish towns in Lithuania, because Verzhbalove was a town of Torah scholars, of maskilim [enlightened adherents of the haskalah movement], and of people who could speak and teach Hebrew. Verzhbalove had the reputation of a Hebrew town and as far back as 30-40 years ago, the children were spoken to in Hebrew.
The first elementary schools were formed in Verzhbalove. Their founder was my teacher, Rabbi Avraham Eliyahu Sandler, a maskil with both a Jewish and worldly education, a writer on the staff of hamelitz and hatsfira [Hebrew newspapers], and an educator of several generations of students, many of whom are now in America. His son, Gregori Sandler, a renowned Zionist activist and social activist, now resides in Montreal, Canada.
Among those who lived in Verzhbalove, exerted their influence, and began their literary careers there, were Shmuel Leyb Gordon and Ben-Avigdor, both of whom married two sisters of Yehoash [pseudonym of writer Solomon Bloomgarten, 18701927, born in Verzhbalove]. It was perhaps natural that in this Yiddish-Hebrew environment someone such as Yehoash would grow up a dreamer who, even in his very young years, created songs about love and about the meaning of life and who later became the famous poet, writer and translator [into Yiddish] of the tanakh [acronym based on the initial letters in Hebrew for Torah, Prophets, Writings]. His father, R' Keylev bar Ayvushes Bloomgarten, well versed in Torah, worked day and night, as was the custom, studying the tannaim [early teachers of mishna]. His mother was a pious woman. Here, in the home of his parents, Yehoash was infused with the traditional Jewish spirit and gained inspiration for his later creations. They truly thought and wrote in Hebrew and dreamed of Zion. More than one young Verzhbalove boy carried with him songs and romance stories written in the holy language, but Yiddish was the spoken language. The Yiddish element strengthened when the workers' movement arose, with the bund [Yiddishist Zionist Socialist labor party] at its head. The hundreds of brush-workers who lived in town brought in a new trend and revolutionized the youth. Nevertheless, there remained enough dreamers, such as my second teacher, Reuven Kaplan, who continued the thread of the Hebrew maskil culture and of building their own world.
Among these dreamers were to be found those young boys and men with Zionist leanings, and foremost among them were the poet Fayvl Gringard, the enthusiastic visionary Zionist Zelik Sudarski, the imaginative and musical Nekhemiah Volpianski, the quiet dreamer Dovid Hilenberg, the student-guest Nisn Sudarski, and the kalter baheme-mentsh [indifferent simpleton] Aharon Shoydinishski.
I remember as if it were today, their meeting practically daily in the quiet evenings and dreamlike nights in a small, partially dark room, sipping glasses of tea that their girl friends served them with loving smiles. They spent hours in friendly talk and long discussions which lasted late into the night. It was there that they solved all the problems of the world, and most especially, the Jewish problems. Forgotten were the large political clubsthe world was no match for the tiny half-lit room in Yudl Grinberg's house.
After World War I, Kibart and Verzhbalove, following a short-lived renaissance, once again shrank. During the first years of national autonomy, they thought that a new era was approaching and Verzhbalove and Kibart, with energy and fervor, began to rebuild all that had been destroyed while under the long German occupation.
the dying gasps of a once rich and solidly established Jewish town. Today, in the building near the border where once there were 15 stores whose doors never were locked, one can see only the signs above the now locked doors. Today only two stores are open. From a third floor window can be seen, on the opposite side, the Russian district, quiet, dead quiet, just like the cemetery at the entrance to the town.
And at this border proper, to the left of the highway, is the control-point and next to it stands the Lithuanian flag. All former activity has ceased here, no longer do the residents of both towns go back and forth. Even local Jewish children no longer attend German schools daily. Only two or three wagons a day deliver merchandise for all expeditors.
Through the windows of the control-point, the Lithuanian official peers out wearily towards the other side of the border and his German colleague responds with a phlegmatic look from the opposite side. Between them stands the wooden bridge. On its railings, a half-meter apart, hang forlorn emblems of both countries, Saint George on his horse on the east side and on the west, the Prussian eagle. Beneath, the Lipane River snakes its way through, separating both countries and encircling the east side of the town.
As a town which contained several hundred Jewish families, Verzhbalove decided to create its own gymnazye [high school]. Its first director was Dr. Yaakov Robinzon.
Among those rabbis who held a position of honor in Verzhbalove, mention must be made of Dovid Tevele Katzenelenboygn, who later became the head rabbi in Petersburg (now Leningrad). His successor, Rabbi Efrayim Lap, was one of the founders of a large group of talmidey khokh'mim [brilliant scholars].
Rabbi Tzvi HaKohen, elder of the Montreal rabbinate and of all Canada, and Archibald Fridman, renowned Zionist and leader of Canadian Jewry, are also products of Verzhbalove. The famous Jewish-Russian painter Isaac Levitan was born in Kibart, and from the town of Bakshe, not far from Verzhbalove, came the Jewish poet Morris Rosenfeld. After World War I, there were many talented persons from Kibart and Verzhbalove who rose to prominence in the world of Jewish art, such as the renowned painter Mesenblum, the talented Yiddish/Hebrew folk-singer Masha Benya, and the young poet and artist Rekhavye Magiluker. The latter two are now in New York.
Notwithstanding the smoke over Virbalin from the fire in Europe, according to the allegorical reference by the magid of Kelm, life there revolved in a patriarchal and traditional Jewish manner.
As in any family, all of its members are not always similar one to the other and so it was in Verzhbalove, where there were a number of interesting types, interesting exemplars and each one was unique.
Here comes Shmerl the porter, moving rapidly but assuredly, with quick footsteps, sturdily built, hard-muscled, giving the appearance of having been carved from stone. He has just now finished unloading and reloading heavy boxes of merchandise and he did all of this with a minimum of strain, and now he is going to the beysmedresh [synagogue] to recite his portion of mishnayes [lines from the mishna, part of the Talmud].
Now we see Feytshe's [husband] Yudl strolling along, a scholarly Jew with a well-developed high forehead, his hat set back on his head. Even during the coldest days of the year and the hottest summer months, he wears galoshes and a silk kerchief covering his face up to his ears. His wife, Feytshe, an eyshet khayil [woman of valor, from Proverbs 31:10-31, recited by a husband to his wife on Shabbos] has taken care of everything and freed him from any worries about earning a living, and he can live without cares.
but that is as far as it goes, since he never brings his ideas to fruition. His is a life of unending dreams and dismal actuality, a constant struggle from living with his head in the clouds while eternally attached to the narrow space of his own small town, which he has not left for the last 50 years.
And suddenly, someone is running, distracted and out of breath, deep in thoughtit is R' Itsik the frum [traditionally observant]. Seldom does anyone address him by his proper second name, for as his name is so is he. He is a truly religious man with plenty to be concerned abouthe has a family of girls, keyn ayin hora [expression to ward off the evil eye]a large family, and money must be earned to take care of one's own, in this life as in the hereafter. Therefore he truly worries about everyone. So many poor, sick people, G-d forbid. Wherever there is a yeshiva student who needs a meal, a guest who needs a bed for the night and something to eat, a poor husband and wife, or simply a Jew in need, he treats them all with benevolence. This is how he performs mitsvos [good deeds in accordance with G-d's commandments], reciting as many brokhes [prayers] as possible, hundreds every day. He always keeps a bit of kikhl [cookie or baked goods] in his pocket and every now and then takes a little bite in order to fulfill the mitsva of blessing food, or he shows up at a friend's or neighbor's house at any time and says to himself Sit, Itsele. Drink a glass of tea, R' Itsele... and he is welcomed with a blessing.
Friday is his busiest day of the work week. Quite early, before candle-lighting, he runs to all the shops, asking the owners to close so that, G-d forbid, they should not desecrate Shabbos. And when everyone finally is sitting at their splendidly appointed Sabbath tables, one can see a harried R' Itsele running from house to house to make sure that anyone in need has a place to go for Shabbos.
In addition to all of this, he is a merchant, full of kindness and worldly-wise, with a money-changing office tucked into the pockets of his overcoat. He shoves his hands into those deep pockets and entire piles of silver coins, all kinds of small change and paper money appear, and the transaction is completed right on the spot. And yet he still finds enough time for studying a page of gemore or mishnayes and for communal worship with fervor, as well as for raising his son, R' Simkhe, to become a rabbi and a highly ethical person. R' Simkhe was the head of one of the Kovno yeshivas and perished in the Kovno ghetto.
But apparently, if life is not entirely without purpose, there is always a mixture which makes life clearer, more certain, andmost importantlymore natural, closer to reality. Virbalin was no exception.
Allegedly an underground world existed there too, but this underworld functioned during the time of Czarist oppression and it was both necessary and important. It was during the period in Czarist Russia when Jews and even non-Jews were not able to vote and had no rights, had to serve Nikolayke [ironically affectionate reference to Czar Nikolay II] for four or five years, and faced imprisonment for political transgressions.
Naturally, anyone who did not want to serve in the army or end up in prison escaped to the border towns, and more specifically, to Virbalin, seeking help from the smugglers of those who wished to emigrate. At that time the smugglers were really redeemers or deliverers, helping people escape from all kinds of trouble. Most certainly, those associated with the underworld also had dealings with the smugglersone of whom, Avrom Droyshin, the Jewish Cossack, was surrounded by unbelievable and fantastic legends.
Yet as a general rule, all the smugglers accomplished a purpose and many of the men who escaped will never forget them. Even now, with a prayer on their lips, they will mention those bold and brave young men, forgiving them for the transgression of demanding more money for helping them to cross the small strip of land that separated the large and unending Russia from the little town of Eydkunen. Probably many Americanspolitical activists as well as immigrantsowe them a debt of gratitude for their future and for their good life in free America. | 2019-04-26T11:45:51Z | https://www.jewishgen.org/yizkor/lita/Lit1614.html |
Computer science is the study of the design, analysis, communication, implementation, and application of computational processes. Core subjects of this discipline include software systems (such as operating systems and networks) and programming languages (including design and other language translation tools). They also include computer hardware systems, the design and analysis of data structures and algorithms, and the theoretical basis of computation, in particular the complexity of computation. In addition to these core subjects, various application areas are open to students, including artificial intelligence, computer graphics, databases, semantic web, knowledge representation and reasoning, scientific and numeric computation, computer vision, cyberinfrastructure, computer and network security, data mining, robotics, computational finance, parallel and distributed systems, and social networking.
At Rensselaer, education in computer science prepares students for solving applied real-world problems and for conducting research in computer science. The program provides students with a solid grounding in both theory and practice. The undergraduate program also provides a rigorous background in mathematics and science.
Bioinformatics is the science of managing, retrieving, analyzing, and interpreting biological data. Research is being carried out on such topics as multiple sequence alignment, sequence assembly, protein and RNA structure prediction, and regulatory networks. Research also spans emerging areas, including microarray data analysis, high-dimensional indexing, database support, information integration, and data mining.
Current research in computational geometry concentrates on algorithms for the reconstruction of smooth geometric objects from their samples. Problems of interest include characterizing the conditions on sampling density, which allows a curve to be reconstructed from its samples. The reconstruction is homeomorphic and sufficiently close to the original and the algorithms developed to achieve the reconstruction. Also involved are the dependence of such algorithms on the dimension of the embedding space, related algorithms for the reconstruction of surfaces and manifolds, and finding the most concise representation of a manifold in terms of its samples. A second research track focuses on applications of computational geometry, particularly in robotic motion planning.
The faculty and students in the Computer Graphics Research Group are interested in a wide variety of rendering, geometry, simulation, and visualization problems motivated by computer games, special effects in movies, architectural design and pre-visualization, and many other exciting applications. Research topics include physically-based digital sculpting, efficient high-quality photo-realistic rendering, new data representations and algorithms, and the use of modern graphics hardware for interactive applications.
The Computational Finance group applies its research to diverse areas, including computational finance, bioinformatics, networks of social and selfish agents, and design of multi-agent systems.
Students and faculty work on computational approaches and algorithms to solve large-scale problems that arise in natural science and engineering. Current research includes adaptive methods for solving partial differential equations, scientific software libraries, algorithms for medical imaging and tomography, high-performance matrix algorithms, computational biology, and algorithms for high-performance, parallel, and distributed computation.
Computer vision research in the Computer Science Department focuses on developing and applying computer vision techniques to address problems in image-based environmental monitoring. Applications include determining the distribution of species and individual animals, identifying the presence of invasive species, and monitoring ecosystem health. Within the context of this important application domain, a range of methods is studied, including illumination modeling, segmentation, tracking, and, most importantly, recognition.
This research area focuses on the theoretical and applied aspects of automated information extraction (knowledge discovery) from data. For large data sets, emphasis is placed on developing efficient, scalable, and parallel algorithms for various data mining techniques in addition to the data management itself. Examples include association rules, classification, clustering, and sequence mining. For small data sets, the emphasis is on robust computational learning systems (supervised, unsupervised, and reinforcement) and their theoretical properties. Application areas include combinatorial optimization, computational biology (bioinformatics, computational genomics), web mining, geographic information systems, and computational finance.
Researchers from diverse domains work together to take complex data and transform it in ways that make it usable to a wide variety of scientists, protect it for the long term, and enable it to provide as much knowledge as possible to the scientific community as well as the general public. This is accomplished by adding semantics to data where possible to make it usable to a variety of machines and programs; storing the data in intelligent ways; mining the data to extract as much knowledge as possible from it; building models to represent the structure of the data; and using those models to build simulations and visualizations of the data to display the data in a usable way and predict how the data will change over time.
This research area focuses on efficient and effective methods for storing, querying, analyzing, mining, and maintaining data from possibly disparate and heterogeneous resources. Data is used in many different applications, from scientific data sets, sensor data, images, video, and audio to hypertext documents, biological data, and data on stock market behavior. Research focuses on methods for caching data, querying large and distributed databases, database mining, and supporting such applications as computer-aided design and manufacturing, bioinformatics, and collaborative engineering.
Pervasive computing foresees a world in the not-so-distant future in which computer systems are embedded in everything, from personal digital assistants to implanted biological devices, to bridge-monitoring systems, and to teams of robots deployed into a collapsed building to locate survivors. Untethered—wireless—communication is constant and, in many cases, so automated that human intervention is not needed. Wireless broadband community systems inexpensively bring people together for virtual town meetings, video doctor-patient conferences, and online business transactions. Computers in automobiles share information on congestion, quickly computing alternate routes. The promises are immense, but the challenges are formidable. Computer science faculty cover the broad area of pervasive and network computing. This research includes investigation of computer networks and their protocols, security of computers and networks, and distributed and parallel system optimization and simulations.
The Programming Languages and Software Engineering research group investigates programming models, languages, concepts, methodologies, and tools to enable the development of correct, efficient, reliable, and maintainable software.
The primary goal in the field of robotics is to create machines that are physically capable, either alone or in groups, of performing useful tasks, such as the assembly of a car or the picking and washing of fruit. To build such robots, robotics research focuses on robot mobility, environmental sensing and perception, the mechanics of manipulation, motion planning and control, and both physical and social aspects of human-robot interaction. The robotics research group studies these problems from theoretical and computational perspectives, and also experimentally in the Computer Science Robotics Lab that is fully equipped with state-of-the-art equipment.
As semantic technologies have been gaining momentum in various e-Science areas (for example, W3C’s interest group for semantic web health care and life science), it is important to offer semantic-based methodologies, tools, and middleware to facilitate scientific knowledge modeling, logical-based hypothesis checking, semantic data integration and application composition, integrated knowledge discovery and data analyzing for different e-Science applications. Partially influenced by the Artificial Intelligence community, Semantic Web researchers have largely focused on formal aspects of semantic representation languages or general-purpose semantic application development, with inadequate consideration of requirements from specific science areas. What is required is the development of a multi-disciplinary field to foster the growth and development of e-Science applications based on the semantic technologies and related knowledge-based approaches.
In studying social and cognitive networks, in which people interact over a variety of means, research is focused on identifying fundamental properties of networks, the processes underlying their evolution, and the paradigms for network engineering to enhance their efficiency, reliability, robustness, and other desirable properties. In particular, the research concentrates on models and algorithms of community creation and evolution, building and measuring trust in social networks, impact of mobility on network formation, dependencies between social, information, and communication networks, spread of opinions and ideologies among network nodes, and cognitive models of net-centric interactions.
Theory of computation provides the foundation needed for effective applications in computer science. The theory group brings together researchers in many different areas to develop novel approaches and solutions to problems in information technology. The theory group research is characterized by close collaboration with researchers in diverse application areas, including networking, bioinformatics, visualization, pattern recognition in physics and astronomy, digital library, data mining, distributed computing, and experimental algorithmics.
Since its inception, the World Wide Web has fundamentally changed the ways in which people work, play, communicate, collaborate, and educate. There is, however, a growing realization among researchers across a number of disciplines that without new research aimed at understanding the current evolving and potential Web, opportunities for new and revolutionary capabilities may be missing or delayed. To model the Web, it is necessary to understand the architectural principles that have provided for its growth. Looking into the future, to be sure that it supports the basic social values of trustworthiness, personal control over information, and respect for social boundaries, a research agenda must be pursued that targets the Web and its use as a primary focus of attention. This research requires powerful scientific and mathematical techniques from many disciplines to explore the modeling of the Web from network- and information-centric views.
The undergraduate degree program in computer science provides an excellent background for students entering the work force directly upon graduation and for those pursuing graduate studies. Students majoring in computer science study such topics as artificial intelligence, computer graphics, theory of computation, operating systems, robotics, data mining, databases, network programming, parallel computing, and scientific numerical computing.
an ability to develop a computational formulation of a problem, one or more data structures and algorithms to solve the problem, a program to implement a solution, and strategies for testing and verifying that the program is correct.
knowledge of the mathematical and theoretical underpinnings of computer science.
an ability to adapt a solution to different computing platforms, paradigms, and/or programming languages.
an advanced depth of knowledge in one or more of the following areas: computer systems, computer theory, applications, software engineering, data analysis, and large-scale software architecture.
Computer science students can obtain a dual major with any other major offered at Rensselaer. In many cases, students can obtain a dual major within the 128 credits of a single degree, since many courses can be counted twice. Popular majors often combined with computer science include mathematics, physics, management, games and simulation arts and sciences, engineering (which requires additional credits hours), and electronic media, arts, and communication.
Students may be admitted to the graduate program in Computer Science when they are within 18 credits of completing their B.S. degree. Students may be able to complete the B.S. and M.S. in a shorter than usual time by using advanced placement credit, taking courses during the summer, or taking extra courses during the academic year. A variety of joint degree programs can be arranged, depending on the student’s background, interests, and desired rate of progress. Any joint degree program requires that the student apply to and be accepted to the graduate program.
The Computer Science Department strongly encourages students to take part in the following special programs.
Numerous employment opportunities exist for computer science majors during their course of study. Students are urged to pursue at least one internship and/or co-op experience during their academic career. More detailed information on the co-op program is available in the School of Science introduction section and the Educational Programs and Resources section of this catalog. Internships are typically available over the summer, even after a student’s freshman year.
This program allows students to participate in faculty research activities. The department urges students to take advantage of these opportunities, through which students can earn either pay or course credit. Additional benefits may include being named co-authors on journal papers or the opportunity to make presentations at professional conferences. Additional information is available in the School of Science introduction section and the Educational Programs and Resources section of this catalog.
This program provides a creative, intellectual, and entrepreneurial outlet for students to use open-source software platforms to develop open-source applications that solve societal problems. RCOS team members participate in a collaborative environment for sharing and practicing programming and project management skills, including code reviews and project presentations. Students can participate in RCOS for course credit or for a stipend. At the beginning of each semester, including the full summer sessions, an Internal Advisory Board reviews project proposals and decides which should receive financial support or course credit. Students may also participate in RCOS solely for the experience.
The Department of Computer Science offers M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in computer science. The department also offers computer science M.S. degrees with specializations in robotics and in computational science and engineering.
Applications for the M.S. or Ph.D. in computer science should be sent to the Graduate Admissions Office to be received no later than January 1 for fall admission; August 15 for spring admission. Applicants must provide transcripts, two letters of recommendation, a statement of goals, and GRE scores. Each student’s background is expected to include courses in discrete mathematics, calculus, data structures, computer organization, and computing languages, none of which can be counted toward the graduate degree. Admission is extremely competitive, and meeting the minimum requirements does not assure admission.
Courses directly related to all Computer Science curricula are described in the Course Description section of this catalog under the department code CSCI.
Adali, S.—Ph.D. (University of Maryland); trust, social network analysis, information integration, information retrieval, database systems.
Berman, F.—Ph.D. (University of Washington); cyberinfrastructure, data preservation and access, e-science, and high performance and grid computing.
Carothers, C.—Ph.D. (Georgia Institute of Technology); parallel and distributed systems; simulation; networking and real-time systems.
Hardwick, M.—Ph.D. (Bristol University, U.K.); database systems for engineering and manufacturing applications.
Hendler, J.—Ph.D. (Brown University); artificial intelligence, semantic web, agent based computing, high performance processing.
Ji, H.—Ph.D. (New York University); natural language processing; cross-source information extraction and knowledge base population.
Magdon-Ismail, M.—Ph.D. (California Institute of Technology); theory, algorithms and applications of machine learning; computational finance; learning from networked data (social networks, hyperlinked networks, etc.).
McGuinness, D.L.—Ph.D (Rutgers University); knowledge representation and reasoning, explanation, proof, trust, ontologies, semantic web, semantic eScience, linked data.
Spooner, D.—Ph.D. (Pennsylvania State University); database systems, database security, computer science and information technology education.
Stewart, C.—Ph.D. (University of Wisconsin); computer vision with applications in ecology, medicine, and zoology.
Szymanski, B.K.—Ph.D. (National Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, Poland); network science, computer and sensor networks; distributed and parallel computing.
Trinkle, J.C.—Ph.D. (University of Pennsylvania); robotics, manufacturing automation, game physics engines, multibody dynamics.
Yener, B.—Ph.D. (Columbia University); complex networks, bioinformatics, medical informatics, security and privacy, computer networks, combinatorial optimization.
Zaki, M.—Ph.D. (University of Rochester); data mining and knowledge discovery; bioinformatics; graph mining; high performance computing.
Anshelevich, E.—Ph.D. (Cornell University); theory and algorithms, especially for large decentralized networks; strategic agents in networks and algorithmic game theory; approximation algorithms.
Cutler, B.—Ph.D. (Massachusetts Institute of Technology); computer graphics, geometry processing algorithms; design tools for architecture.
Krishnamoorthy, M.S.—Ph.D. (Indian Institute of Technology); programming environments; design and analysis of combinatorial algorithms; performance issues in Internet; analysis of Web documents; network visualization.
Milanova, A.—Ph.D. (Rutgers University) software engineering, programming languages, compilers, program analysis, software testing, verification, reliable software systems.
Varela, C.A.—Ph.D. (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign); concurrent programming models and languages, adaptive scalable distributed computing, computational science applications, data science.
Gittens, A.—Ph.D. (California Institute of Technology); computational and statistical applications of probability and functional analysis.
Patterson, S.—Ph.D. (University of California, Santa Barbara); distributed algorithms, in particular for coordination, estimation, and optimization; cooperative control and dynamical systems; computer, sensor, and vehicle networks.
Slota, G.—Ph.D. (Pennsylvania State University); graph and network mining, big data analytics, machine learning, bioinformatics, and their relation to parallel, scientific, and high performance computing.
Xia, L.—Ph.D. (Duke University); economics and computation; artificial intelligence; multiagent systems; machine learning; game theory; mechanism design; social choice; algorithm design.
Zikas, V.—Ph.D. (ETH Zurich); cryptography, computer security, game theory, distributed computing.
Goldschmidt, D.E.—Ph.D. (Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute); operating systems; systems programming; algorithms; network programming; software engineering; database systems; computer science education.
Holzbauer, H.—Ph.D. (Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute); computer networking, particularly transport layer protocols, social networks.
LaPre, J.—Ph.D. (Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute); parallel discrete-event simulation, high performance computing, compilers and program analysis.
Liu, Y.—Ph.D. (SUNY Buffalo); software engineering; image processing; educational online testing.
Turner, W.—Ph.D. (Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute); software engineering; scientific research; open source software.
Flaherty, J.E.—Ph.D. (Polytechnic University of Brooklyn); scientific computation; adaptive and parallel solution techniques; numerical analysis.
Glinert, E.—Ph.D. (University of Washington); assistive technology; universal access; human-computer interaction; multimedia information visualization.
Goldberg, M.K.—Ph.D (Institute of Mathematics, Novosibirsk, Russia); experimental analysis of optimization algorithms; combinatorics and graph theory; applications to social networks.
Musser, D.—Ph.D. (University of Wisconsin); programming methodology; generic software libraries; formal methods of specification and verification; mechanized logic and proof methodology, applied to correctness and optimization of abstract algorithms.
Rogers, E.H.—Ph.D. (Carnegie Mellon University); collaborative computing; group operating systems; modeling paradigm; software engineering.
Fox, P.—Ph.D. (Monash University, AU); semantic web, semantic e-science, data intensive science, virtual observatories, virtual organizations, data grids, high performance computing, visualization, collaborative science, sensor web, environmental informatics, solar-terrestrial physics, solar variability.
Bennett, K.—Ph.D. (University of Wisconsin-Madison); mathematical programming, optimization, machine learning, data mining, support vector machines, and application of data mining to bioinformatics, cheminformatics, finance, science and engineering.
Isaacson, D.—Ph.D. (New York University); mathematical computational problems arising in the diagnosis and treatment of heart disease and breast cancer in medical imaging and physics.
McLaughlin, H.W., II—Ph.D. (University of Maryland); applied geometry; computational geometry; complex systems.
Franklin, W.R.—Ph.D. (Harvard University); computational cartography; computational geometry; computer graphics; geographic information science; computer security.
Gerhardt, L.A.—Ph.D. (State University of New York at Buffalo); digital signal processing (voice and image processing); communication systems; brain computer interfacing; integrated inspection; personnel verification and identification using biometrics.
Wozny, M.J.—Ph.D. (University of Arizona); computer graphics; computer-aided geometric design; information systems in engineering design and manufacturing.
Shephard, M.—(Cornell University); scientific computation, mesh generation, adaptive and parallel finite element methods.
Bringsjord, S.—Ph.D. (Brown University); artificial intelligence, specifically including: logical, mathematical, and philosophical foundations of AI; AI and creativity; reasoning-based systems for homeland defense/intelligence analysis; automated reasoning; automatic story generation and narrative control; intelligent tutoring systems (for teaching logic and logic-based programming).
Gray, W.—Ph.D. (University of California – Berkeley); integrated cognitive systems, computational cognitive modeling, cognitive social science, cognitive engineering; interested in basic and applied research that leads to understanding the interplay of natural interaction in routine human-human, human-machine, and human-information interactive behavior.
Nirenburg, S.—Ph.D. (The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel); computational models of human cognitive abilities, computational theory of the mind, modeling societies of intelligent agents, intelligent agent systems and environments, integration of physiological and cognitive modeling, intelligent agents for clinical medicine, intelligent advisers and instructors, computational linguistics: ontological semantics, pragmatics, discourse, dialog, acquisition, representation and maintenance of knowledge about the world and about language, computational descriptive linguistics, linguistic engineering for lesser-studied languages.
Sun, R.—Ph.D. (Brandeis University); computational cognitive modeling, cognitive architectures, skill learning, computational studies of consciousness, multi-agent interaction, connectionist and hybrid models.
Eglash, R.—Ph.D. (University of California, Santa Cruz); HCI; simulation of cultural designs; fractals and complexity; IT for STEM education.
Bystroff, C.—Ph.D. (University of California, San Diego); bioinformatics, protein design, biosensors, crystallography. | 2019-04-24T08:33:48Z | http://catalog.rpi.edu/preview_entity.php?catoid=16&ent_oid=891&returnto=387 |
You are here: Cyborg5 Home > CY's Eye on Life > The best $2.69 I’ve ever spent.
The best $2.69 I’ve ever spent.
This is the 11th in a series of articles about my recent quest to replace a broken VCR in this era of DVDs, DVRs, and other newfangled gadgets. Click here for the beginning of the series.
After all that complaining about tunerless VCRs, not only was I able to replace my broken Toshiba VCR in my bedroom with a really nice Sony SLV-D370P DVD/VCR combo, when my JVC VCR in the office failed as well, I was able to get another of those same Sony’s to replace it. I had to get it through a third-party reseller through Amazon.com which is a little bit scary. Since the guy had good feedback I went ahead and ordered it. It came in a couple of days and has worked fine.
However there was still a problem using the Sony in the bedroom. 95% of my viewing in the bedroom is while I’m in bed. Handling a remote control in bed is a bit difficult for me. I couldn’t get my very old programmable remote to work the new Sony VCR. Since I have two VCRs in the bedroom and I only need to watch one of them in bed, I decided to swap the new Sony with my older JVC VCR and make the JVC my primary recorder that I use while in bed. Unfortunately this old programmable remote wouldn’t work the JVC either. I was going to have to buy a new remote control.
That doesn’t seem like a very big deal. $20 at Best Buy gets you just about any kind of remote you want. However I have to specially adapt the remote so I can use it. I can’t really hold the remote in my hand in a way that it’s pointing at the cable box, VCR, and/or TV. Instead I set it on a shelf and I have some extra push buttons on the end of a long cable that I hold in my hand while in bed.
The image on the right shows the two remote controls and the mess of cables leading to a cluster of 11 little switches that I hold in my hand to control the TV, cable box, and VCR. The story of those little micro switches and various remotes and devices I’ve wired with them is a pretty interesting story. So let’s set the time machine for about 25 or so years ago and review my history with rewiring devices with remote buttons.
Many years ago the first remote control TV I had in my bedroom only had two buttons on it. The first button was a channel up button. The other button cycled through four different settings. The first click turned it on and set the volume and a fixed high level. Subsequent clicks reduced the volume to medium and low volume settings. A fourth click turned the television off. It was sort of like the settings when you pull the chain on a ceiling fan. There was no channel down or volume up buttons but this was pre-cable so the were only 5 TV channels to cycle through. It used radio control rather than infrared so it didn’t have to be pointed at the TV set. I still had enough strength in my hand in those days to hold the entire remote and push the button with my thumb.
Later I got a new TV with a traditional infrared remote with the usual volume up and down, channel up and down etc. buttons. Because it needed to be pointed at the set, I couldn’t find a way to hold it in my hand properly. That was only a minor problem for me. I would simply have my dad rewire the remote with a few small micro switches.
Of all the pieces of adaptive equipment I’ve ever used, the one piece of equipment that ounce-for-ounce and dollar-for-dollar has been the most useful gadget I’ve ever had is the “Radio Shack Model Number 275-016 SPDT Micro Switch without Roller” currently selling for $2.69 at Radio Shack’s everywhere. This handy little switch measures just 3/4″ x 1/4″ x 3/8″. The very first one that I used was probably the most important adaptation of a device I’ve ever made.
In the winter of 1978 I was working full-time at Indiana University Department of Medical Genetics as a computer programmer. There was a blizzard that winter and we were off work for several days as the city shut down. I had nothing to do for several days except read computer magazine about these new wonderful devices called “personal computers”. As soon as the weather cleared I went right out and bought my first kit to build my own personal computer.
It was a Cromemco Z-2 S100 bus computer with a 4 MHz 8-bit Zylog Z-80 processor and 16k bytes of RAM memory. It was my pride and joy. Initially I used an old 12 inch black-and-white TV as a monitor and audio cassette tape for storage. This photo shows it later upgraded with two 5.25 inch floppy drives and 48k of memory. Click on the images for larger versions.
At that time I had pretty good use of my hands. Although I couldn’t dress myself or go to the bathroom without help, I could feed myself and most importantly for my career I could type on a regular computer keyboard. I was able to do some of the construction on the kit computer. I soldered many of the circuit boards myself using a small lightweight rechargeable soldering iron. Dad did all of the mechanical assembly. The image below shows a close-up of the S-100 circuit boards some of which I built myself.
It wasn’t long after I completed my computer that my disability got worse. Congestive heart failure and deterioration of my muscles from Spinal Muscular Atrophy took its toll on me. I had to quit work and go on disability. The worst part however was as I slowly began to lose the use of my hands. That meant I couldn’t use my computer anymore.
The breakthrough came when I realized I could prop the keyboard up on an easel so that the keys were facing me. I discovered I could prop up my right arm, and poke at the keys using a very long pencil. The image below from 1984 shows me (with much more here than I have now) typing on a similarly adapted Radio Shack Model 100 Computer.
The real problem was what to do about the “control” and “shift” keys. You can’t hold down those keys and type another key when you’re just poking at the keyboard with a stick. Note that in those days computer keyboards did not have “Alt” keys on them. Some of keyboards I used had a “Shift Lock” key which not only converted to upper case but also turned a number keys into punctuation marks like a real typewriter. Computer keyboards today have only a “Caps Lock” which only affects letter keys so for modern keyboards so not only do I have to worry about “control” but also “shift” and “alt”.
e with the stick in my right hand. It worked beautifully!
Soon I had Dad wiring these little switches into all sorts of devices. The next one was a $75 electronics stopwatch that I had bought at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway so that I could time the race cars. It took four of the switches to make that work. The stopwatch had various split time and reset buttons in addition to start and stop. That was much more challenging to solder wires into a tiny circuit board in a watch than it was to solder it into a full-size computer keyboard. Dad managed to do it somehow.
If I had ruined my computer keyboards or the stopwatch they would’ve been easy enough to replace however my next project was very scary. I had spent $650 on a new video camera. I need to solder in three micro switches to toggle record off and on and to zoom in and out. We managed to take apart the handle of the camera where the switches were in find a place to solder in some wires for my handy micro switches. Fortunately it worked and we didn’t blow up a $650 camera. Various other computer keyboards and gadgets got similar treatment over the years. I can’t begin to remember all things we wired up that way.
Eventually they developed some software for MS-DOS that use a special keyboard driver that would turn your “shift”, “control”, and “alt” keys into toggle keys. When Windows was introduced it had this accessibility feature built into it as an option. So I haven’t had to wire a computer keyboard remote in a long time. Most of the rewiring we do these days has been for television remote controls.
In the next installment I will explain more about how we go about rewiring remote controls with the switches and the difficulties we encountered this time around.
This is the 10th in a series of articles about my recent quest to replace a broken VCR in this era of DVDs, DVRs, and other newfangled gadgets. Click here for the beginning of the series.
I think the thing that bothers me most about this tunerless VCR situation is that there wasn’t any warning about this change. On the contrary they said repeatedly “Satellite and cable users have nothing to worry about.” For satellite users that’s pretty much true because everything comes through a satellite box that is already converting your digital satellite signals into something your TV or VCR can use. You typically connect to a satellite box by a composite video cable using red, white, and yellow RCA-style cables. Note however that some satellite systems are setup so that you can share a single satellite box with two or more devices (and presumably one of those could be a VCR). Typically these secondary connections use an RF coaxial cable and analog channels 3 or 4 or sometimes even old-fashioned UHF channels. If you are relying on such a system to connect your satellite box to a VCR and that VCR breaks, you’re going to have a hard time replacing it.
However the situation is much more complicated for cable users. When they said “Cable users don’t worry” I always presumed that it also meant that cable services would continue to transmit at least some of their channels via analog cable. For example I get my cable TV from BrightHouse Cable. For example local channel WTHR which is the local NBC affiliate is currently broadcasting in standard definition signal on Channel 13 and its new high-definition signal on digital channel 13.1. Over my cable system the HD version can be received on Channel 713 and the standard definition version is on Channel 12. I presumed that after February 2009 when the station stopped transmitting its older standard definition signal, the cable company would down-convert the HD signal and continue transmitting it on cable Channel 12 so that “If you subscribe to cable or satellite, you have nothing to worry about.” Your old obsolete TV can still be used.
If indeed cable services are going to continue to provide analog cable for the foreseeable all future, then the elimination of cable ready VCRs is especially problematic.
However some of the people who replied to my question on the AVSForum said that some cable systems are already beginning to phase out analog cable completely! Although internet discussion boards aren’t really 100% reliable sources of information, one of the posters said that Comcast cable in Chicago is already planning to phase out analog cable this summer. That means that the sentence “Cable users have nothing to worry about” really means “analog cable users will have to begin renting digital cable boxes for all of their televisions and VCRs.” There has been a very slow migration of channels from analog to digital but most of them have been relatively unimportant channels. I wouldn’t be surprised if more of th of em moved because, as I said earlier, you can get many more digital channels in the same bandwidth as a single analog channel. However I had no idea that analog cable was on its way out entirely.
I have 6 televisions in my home. Two of them have dedicated cable boxes and the other 4 are connected to analog cable. I have 4 VCRs connected to analog cable. If analog cable goes away I don’t think renting 6-8 additional cable boxes is my idea of “cable users have nothing to worry about”. Okay so 6 televisions is extreme but one of those is a little 9 inch set on the kitchen counter that my mom watches while she’s fixing dinner and mom and dad both watch while eating breakfast at the counter. It’s going to be totally impractical to the cable box in the kitchen given all the other appliances and limited counter space there. If analog cable does disappear it’s going to be a real hardship for avid television watchers such as us.
I sent a lengthy e-mail to one of the local TV stations to suggest that they cover this issue and encouraged them to ask Comcast and Bright House win and if they were going to discontinue analog cable anytime soon. I’m not gotten any reply from that station. I may try writing to a different reporter or perhaps to the other local TV stations. If I get any response, I will report it here.
That basically concludes the story of the disappearing VCR and tuners for now but my struggle to replace my broken VCRs wasn’t over yet even though I had found in older VCR that still had a cable ready tuner. I discovered that my old remote control which I had specially adapted so that I could use it could not be reprogrammed for the new Sony VCR.
In my next installment I will begin a lengthy story about adapting my remote controls so I could use this new VCR.
This is the ninth in a series of articles about my recent quest to replace a broken VCR in this era of DVDs, DVRs, and other newfangled gadgets. Click here for the beginning of the series.
In our previous post, we noticed that the only VCRs or DVD recorders that had tuners were the top-end models which have newer ATSC digital tuners in addition to the older NTSC analog tuners.
NTSC stands for “National Television Standards Committee” and it is the standard for all analog television used in the United States and Japan as well as a few other countries. Wikipedia has an extensive article about NTSC. ATSC stands for “Advanced Television Standards Committee” and it is the standard for digital television including the new HDTV standards. Again Wikipdeia has an extensive article about ATSC. On February 19, 2009 all over the air broadcasts using NTSC analog signals will end and only the newer ATSC digital channels will be broadcast. Much of the hype about the conversion to digital has typically said something like “Only people who rely on over the air broadcasts through an antenna have anything to worry about. If you have cable or satellite you have nothing to worry about.” I was beginning to look like that statement wasn’t true at least when it comes to VCRs.
I logged into my favorite video support AVSForum.com and asked the question “Are VCRs with tuners ancient history?” Click here to read that thread. The people there confirmed my suspicions that our beloved federal government was to blame. A new ruling which took effect March 1, 2007 said that video equipment imported for sale in US that has an older NTSC TV tuner in it must have a new ATSC to capable of receiving a digital television signals.
Here’s a link to CNet.com which has an excellent guide to HDTV and explains the March 1 rule.
In general that’s a pretty good rule when it comes to televisions. You would hate to put hundreds of dollars into a television set that was going to be unable to receive broadcasts in less than two years. This is similar to a previous rule regarding UHF tuners that were mandated to become standard on TVs back in the early 1960s as I described in a previous blog entry.
The loophole in this regulation is that if a device has no tuner at all, then the regulation doesn’t apply. For several years now they’ve been selling HDTV’s that did not have the new ATSC tuners. The industry has been very good at warning consumers that these less expensive HDTV’s require some sort of external source of HD content such as a cable box, satellite boxes, or external tuner of some kind. Note however most of these so-called HD monitors have traditionally also had regular cable ready NTSC tuners for standard over-the-air television and analog cable reception. The fact that after March 1, 2007 these lesser expensive models would drop the NTSC tuner probably isn’t that big a deal assuming they keep doing a reasonable job of warning customers about the limitation. As I explained before, they are doing a really terrible job of warning of public that the VCRs are completely tunerless.
I did some more research on a couple of those models of VCR/DVD recorders which had newer ATSC tuners. They were about $100 more than a comparable unit without a tuner. One thing I could not determine in every case was if they still have older NTSC tuners. Just because you have a new digital tuner doesn’t mean you can still tune to the older channels.
In our next installment we will see that the situation may affect more than just your VCR use. Cable and satellite subscribers may have more to worry about than you think!
Where oh where did the tuners go?
This is the eighth in a series of articles about my recent quest to replace a broken VCR in this era of DVDs, DVRs, and other newfangled gadgets. Click here for the beginning of the series.
Just because I had difficulty finding a cable ready VCR that was the brand and style that I wanted, doesn’t mean that VCRs with tuners are really disappearing. So I decided to do a little survey of my own. On July 9, 2007 I visited web sites for the three major consumer-electronics retailer’s here in Indianapolis: HHGregg.com, BestBuy.com, and CircuitCity.com. The results can be seen in a table by clicking on this link.
H.H.Gregg did a pretty good job of being honest about which VCRs had tuners and which did not. On Best Buy’s web site they generally had images of the back of the VCR so you could tell whether or not it had coaxial RF cable inputs and outputs or just RCA jacks. CircuitCity.com generally has pretty good information with lots of really good user reviews but this time they had the least information of all. In some cases on particular models I had to go to the manufacturer’s web site and even then in a couple of cases I had to download and Adobe PDF file user manual to find out if it had a tuner or not.
One clever manual author suggested that if you needed a tuner for your VCR that you could hook your new VCR to an old VCR using AV cables and use your programmable tuner in the old VCR to record programs. Pretty clever idea and one that I may use myself someday but of course that resumes you still have an old VCR that works!
Although some of the models clearly were described as “tunerless”, one of the greatest bad euphemisms I’ve heard in a long time was one of the models which was described by the manufacturer as “tuner ready”. Apparently it meant that it was ready to be hooked up to in external tuner. That borders on deceptive advertising because it could be implied that it was ready to go with its own tuner. I laughed out loud when I read that one.
You will notice that the only VCRs that I found that had tuners in them had newer digital ATSC tuners. That was my clue that led me to discover the reason why the older tuners are being phased out.
In our next installment we will explain the difference between NTSC and ATSC and how the federal government is the culprit behind the disappearing tuners.
This is the seventh in a series of articles about my recent quest to replace a broken VCR in this era of DVDs, DVRs, and other newfangled gadgets. Click here for the beginning of the series.
For many, many years it’s been relatively easy to connect TVs and VCRs to cable systems. The cable simply comes in from the wall, goes into the VCR, comes out of the VCR, and goes into the television. If you wanted a slightly better picture quality out of your VCR you could also connect AV cables from the VCR to the television. These consist of a set of three red, white, and yellow RCA-style cables that transmit video on yellow and left and right audio on white and red cables respectively. In fact that you have a stereo VCR and a stereo television, these AV cables were the only way you can get to stereo sound out of your VCR. Although the cable signals coming from the cable company have stereo audio in most cases, and the VCR tuner is capable of decoding a stereo audio signal and recording in stereo. The Channel 3 or Channel 4 output of VCR does not output stereo audio to your television. Many people don’t realize that but they don’t seem to notice.
Over the years the number of cable channels increased dramatically. At one point Time Warner cable had channels all the way into the low 90s but in more recent years these analog cable channels only reach up to Channel 74 and then skip to 98, 99 on our system. As our cabin in Brown County, the cable system we use only goes up to about 48 and then skips to 98, 99.
Because the capabilities of analog cable had been maximized, the cable companies have come up with a new system to add more channels and more features such as pay-per-view and video on demand as well as onscreen channel guides. They achieve these additional channels and features using what is called “digital cable”. Again we now needed some sort of cable converter box. Fortunately a modern cable box has a remote-controlled electronic tuner and tons of features. The modern digital cable box is actually a small computer connected to the cable company on a computer network that runs through the cable lines. It’s sort of like a closed internet system. Each cable box has an IP address just like the computers on the internet. Information travels both ways along the network. The cable company sends information to your cable box and the cable box can send information back to the cable company. This facilitates such features as pay-per-view and on demand viewing. The cable company can even upgrade the software in the cable box to add new features in the future.
Channel numbers starting at 100 and upwards are not transmitted using traditional analog television signals. Rather they are transmitted as computer information stored in compressed digital form. They can transmit many more channels using the same amount of bandwidth if they are transmitted in this digital form. As many as six digital channels can be transmitted using the same bandwidth as a single analog channel. The real problem is that your so-called cable ready TVs and VCRs can no longer directly access these channels.
Most of your premium channels such as HBO, Showtime, Cinemax as well as some of the more obscure cable channels have all been moved into these digital channel numbers. But for the most part the most popular basic cable channels are still in the 2-99 range that are accessible from cable ready TVs and VCRs. These include all of your broadcast channels which are retransmitted through the cable, ESPN, ESPN2, all the cable news stations, history, discovery, TBS, TNT etc.
A typical hookup for one of the systems is as follows: the cable comes in from the wall and goes into a RF splitter. One of the outputs of the splitter goes to the cable box. The other output goes to your VCR. Your cable box is then connected to your television using red, white, yellow AV cables although some people use a short RF cable. Note that using an RF cable to connect your cable box to your TV means you do not get stereo audio. Also you connect the output of your VCR to another AV input on your TV. If you have a three-way cable splitter you can also connect a third RF connector directly to your TV which gives you even more capabilities.
Given this set up, you can simultaneously watch any cable channel through the cable box and record any analog cable channel to your VCR. Or alternatively you can use your VCR to record a digital channel through the cable box and watch and analog channel on your TV. The only thing you can not do is record one digital channel while watching a different digital channel.
For many years I had a cable box in the living room and in my bedroom. If I desperately needed to record two digital shows at the same time I could record one of them in the living room and one of them in the bedroom.
This limitation of satellite and the expanded capabilities of analog cable are the main reasons I’ve always had cable rather than satellite.
The consumer-electronics industry realized that it had innovated its way away from one of its greatest interventions: the cable ready tuner. They convinced the cable industry to come up with a new system called a “Cable Card”. Newer top-of-the-line HDTV’s have been made with a slot where you can insert small electronic card about the size of a credit card. You rent this card from your cable company for about $1 a month. It allows your television to receive all of the digital and analog channels that your cable system uses. With such a card, you would no longer need a cable box and your television would once again be cable ready.
Recall that I said cable boxes actually have two-way communication between you and the cable company. Such two-way communication is necessary for the onscreen guide, pay-per-view and on demand services. Unfortunately the cable card system is only a one-way system so the advantages of these features are not available if you have just a cable card. I never used pay-per-view and have rarely used on demand services but I would really miss the onscreen cable guide. My HDTV in the living room has a cable card slot but I still use my regular cable box anyway. I’ve never seen a VCR or DVD recorder that is cable card ready although I have read that some DVR/TiVo recorders may have cable card slots. In fact if your DVR needs to record two shows at once it actually needs two cable cards. The latest TiVo model HD DVR has two cable card slots.
The cable industry is still arguing over standards for a more useful two-way cable card system. So if we ever get full cable ready TVs with a second-generation cable card, it’s going to be a long way off. One of the problems is that the cable industry can charge you more for the rental of a cable box than they can charge for a cable card. They can also customize their features more easily in a cable box. Although they want happy customers who can easily use their service it is not completely in their best interest to adopt cable card technology.
Given that the cable card system really isn’t as functional as it could be and given the increased flexibility provided by cable ready tuners in TVs and VCRs, you would think that the consumer-electronics industry would want to keep cable ready tuners available in TVs and VCRs for the foreseeable future.
same thing holds true for DVD recorders and digital hard drive recorders such as TiVo and DVRs. Cable ready tuners are disappearing from these devices as well.
In our next installment we will try to determine if this absence of tuners is a limited thing overly widespread and we will try to discover the reasons why it is occurring.
This is the sixth in a series of articles about my recent quest to replace a broken VCR in this era of DVDs, DVRs, and other newfangled gadgets. Click here for the beginning of the series.
When cable TV systems first came along, they typically transmitted about 30 channels of television through the cable. In order to receive these stations, you needed a cable box. The first cable box we had was about the size of a book. It had a slider switch with about 30-some positions on it numbered 2 up to 40 I believe. The cable was a coaxial RF cable just like you would use to connect a roof antenna to your TV. It would come from the telephone pole at the back of your house into your home. From there it generally went through the attic, down the wall and exited out a small plate in your wall. You would connect that to the cable box and another coaxial RF cable would connect the cable box to the antenna connector on your TV set. You would set your TV on channel 3 or channel 4. Because Channel 4 was already occupied in this area we always used Channel 3 for connecting external devices such as cable boxes or VCRs. You would then position a slider lever on whatever channel you wanted to watch. There was also a small thumbwheel on one side that you would use as a fine-tuning wheel because the mechanical tuner did not accurately select the proper frequencies.
There was no remote-control capability. The slider box generally had a very long cord on it that you have to route behind some furniture or drape across your living room floor where you would trip over it.
You would think that if you already had a TV that could tune channels 2-83 that you wouldn’t need an external tuner to get channels 2-40. The problem is that cable TV systems use different frequencies than broadcast TV. Keep in mind when I said earlier that a channel number is NOT like the frequency on a radio dial. If you turn your FM dial to 93.1, that is an actual frequency in megahertz. The number of a TV channel has no mathematical relationship to the actual frequency used. They could have designed radio with channels and said that for example radio channel 17 would be assigned to specific frequency like 93.1 but that’s not how radio was designed. Television was indeed designed that way. The channel numbers are just arbitrary positions along a frequency spectrum.
It’s difficult to get UHF frequencies to travel along a cable. VHF frequencies travel much better. In cable TV systems, channels 2-13 are identical to the broadcast VHF channel frequencies. If all you wanted to watch on cable TV was channels 2-13, you could simply plug the cable directly into an older TV set and it worked just fine. Cable channels 14 and higher are a completely different set of VHF frequencies that are lower than UHF frequencies. Also I mentioned that there is a gap between channels 6 and 7. Some cable TV systems put as many as five different channels in frequencies in that gap.
One early alternative to the cable tuner box was a gadget called a “block converter”. It was a little electronic device you could buy at TV/video stores. It would convert VHF cable channels 14 and upwards into UHF frequencies. You can then use the UHF tuner on your TV or VCR to access all of the cable channels. The problem was the block converter was only good up to about channel 35 or 36. In the early days of cable, Comcast only had about that many channels but Time Warner cable (which is now called Bright House cable) had about 40 channels so the upper few channels with a block converter didn’t work very well with Time Warner systems.
Eventually they began producing TVs and VCRs which were advertised as “cable ready”. These were remote-control TVs and VCRs with electronic (non-mechanical) tuners that would precisely tune the proper frequencies for not only VHF and UHF broadcast channels but most if not all VHF cable channels. Initially they advertised them as “108 channels cable ready” or perhaps 109. Various cable systems throughout the country use different sets of channels and not all “cable ready” devices worked with all cable systems. Eventually TVs and VCRs which had 127 channel cable ready tuners were created and they worked with all cable systems in existence.
For those of us who struggled through the eras of clunky mechanical channel changers, fine-tuning dials, UHF tuner dials, mechanical slider cable boxes with no remote, block converters that barely worked and God knows what other hassles… the introduction of the truly cable ready tuner in TVs and VCRs was an absolute godsend!
In the next installment we will see how the introduction of digital cable messed things up for those of us who really love our cable ready devices.
This is the fifth in a series of articles about my recent quest to replace a broken VCR in this era of DVDs, DVRs, and other newfangled gadgets. Click here for the beginning of the series.
Before we go exploring the mystery of the disappearing tuners in VCRs let’s take a look back at how cable ready tuners came into being and why they were such an important development.
TV signals are just radio waves that travel through the air like regular radio. Such signals are often called RF signals (radio frequency). In television, the RF signals not only contain audio information, they also contain video information as well. The tuner on a television set could be a smooth turning dial with frequency numbers on it just like a radio receiver. However to simplify things they picked specific frequencies and assigned them channel numbers. Originally only numbers 2-13 were defined. These are known as VHF frequencies (very high frequencies). It wasn’t until 1952 that the FCC designated additional channels 14-83 called UHF (ultra high frequency) channels. In the early 1980s channels 70-83 were reassigned to wireless phones. Click here for a Wikipdeia article about UHF broadcasting.
Early televisions had only VHF tuners which were a clunky dial that snapped into place from one channel to the next. Because this mechanical dial didn’t always hit the frequency exactly, you usually had another dial that you could turn back and forth smoothly that was called “fine-tuning”. It would adjust the frequency of the RF receiver in your TV set. In order to get UHF channels, typically would turn your VHF dial to a position “U” and then turned a smooth turning UHF dial to tune a UHF channel. Some UHF dials actually had fixed positions for each channel that would click into place but most simply had a smooth turning dial like a radio dial.
In 1962 the federal government mandated that all new television sets have a UHF tuner by 1964. The argument was that it was unfair to license a television station to broadcasts on a frequency that no one was able to receive. There are those that argue that this saved UHF stations but there are others who argue that initially cost consumers millions of dollars for TV tuners but most of them did not really need. When I was growing up we only had four channels here in Indianapolis. Channel 13 was the ABC affiliate. Channel 8 was the local CBS channel. Channel 6 broadcast NBC and Channel 4 was an independent channel from Bloomington. (No that is not a typo… at one point Channel 13 and 6 swapped affiliations to the current state of affairs where 13 is NBC and 6 is ABC). Eventually a local PBS station began broadcasting on UHF Channel 20. It’s much more recently that religious broadcasting began using Channel 40 and a local Fox network affiliate was established on Channel 59.
As I explained in a previous post, my first VCR had about a dozen individual tiny tuner dials that you would tune to specific channels using a small thumbwheel. There was also a small three position toggle switch to select lower VHF, higher VHF, or UHF channel ranges. If you drew a frequency graph and plotted the channel numbers on it you would see there is a large gap of frequencies between VHF channels 6 and 7. That is why the VHF channels were split into low and high ranges.
Eventually mechanical tuners and dial tuners were replaced by more modern electronic tuners that were much more compatible with remote controls. Early remote control TVs actually had a motor which turned the TV dial for you. Electronic tuners had no moving parts and were able to select frequencies precisely so a fine-tuning dial wasn’t necessary. For this brief era, everything was just fine. That is until cable TV came along and missed everything up!
In our next installment, we will discuss the chaos that came with the introduction of cable TV.
Where do I put the cable?
This is the fourth in a series of articles about my recent quest to replace a broken VCR in this era of DVDs, DVRs, and other newfangled gadgets. Click here for the beginning of the series.
As I mentioned earlier, my Toshiba VCR is probably my favorite. I really wanted to replace it with another Toshiba model. I went to BestBuy.com and HHGregg.com and eventually picked out a Toshiba model SD-V295 DVD/VCR combo that looked a lot like my existing Toshiba VCR with a DVD stuck on the side (image on right). They generally don’t have VCRs on display in the store where you can play with them or checkout features, so I just sent my dad over to H.H.Gregg to pick it up and bring it home. We took it out of the box and I looked at the back of unit. Here’s what I saw… or rather what I didn’t see!
I did not see any coaxial RF connectors! It meant that this VCR had no tuner. It would only work if you connected it to a cable box or satellite box. I couldn’t believe it! I usually look at the online photos, especially the detailed photos of the back like the one I’ve shown here. I think that I may have actually looked at this image at BestBuy.com to verify that the component video outputs were for the DVD portion only which was as I expected. I just didn’t realize that there was no cable connector for connecting analog cable or antenna.
I did a lot of head scratching trying to figure out if I could make it work with my set up. Eventually I concluded that I would lose too much functionality by giving up the ability to record from analog cable. I searched around a little bit more and found a really nice Sony SLV-D 370P DVD/VCR combo. I very carefully looked at the images of the back side and verified it really did have an RF coax input and output. We packed up the Toshiba, returned it, and purchased the Sony. It’s a really nice looking model with good features and all of the right connectors.
All of this occurred in mid-April 2007. There’s more to this story but I want to jump in briefly to early July 2007. The JVC VCR in my office started acting flaky. It takes about four attempts to get a tape to insert properly. It keeps trying to eject it and the VCR or even turn on at all without a tape in it. When you turn it on, it tries to load the tape on the heads and when there is no tape in the machine something jams and the machine shuts itself off. Since I’ve been having pretty good luck with my new Sony I decided to get another one for the office. Much to my surprise it wasn’t available anymore. The Sony model 370 had been replaced by model 380 which was virtually identical except it had no RF inputs or outputs and no tuner.
To further my shock and dismay none of the VCRs that were available had a tuner! I thought that the tunerless Toshiba was just some cheap model that they were putting out there because more and more people are using satellite which does not have analog cable capabilities like regular digital cable does. Satellite users have to have a separate box for every TV and every VCR (although some satellite boxes are dual tuner). I was now discovering that VCRs with tuners had been completely withdrawn from the market!
I did finally find a Sony 370 at Amazon.com for sale through a third-party reseller. Amazon itself did not have it.
In our next installment we will take a nostalgic look back at early TV tuners before we discuss the invention of the cable ready TV and VCR. Only then can we fully appreciate the mystery of the missing tuners! | 2019-04-19T08:51:07Z | http://mylife.cyborg5.com/2007/07/ |
Disclaimer: This post was hard to write, and for some it will be hard to read. I prayed before I posted and I do believe that it is what the Lord would have me say. This is my blog, a place where I share my private thoughts and I invite you to remember before you comment that no one has forced you to read it.
She was eighteen years old and she had never been in love with anyone she could touch before. I mean, she had been in love with Jesus since she was little, but this was different, touchable love.
In her eyes he was perfect. He loved the Lord, not to mention he was pretty darn cute. He went to church with her and joined her on silly errands and at family dinners. He made her giggle by saying things that only she found funny. He made her heart flutter when he swept that one always-stray piece of hair out of her eyes.
They were the “perfect couple.” They were desperately in love; one lit up as the other entered the room. They could see their beautiful future together. After high school, they would go together to college, get married, work a bit, settle down and have children with his eyes and her big smile. They would grow old together, laughing at secrets and kissing each other goodnight.
And then God asked her to move to Uganda. At first it was just going to be a year. They could do a year. She would come back and they could still go to college together and all their dreams would still come true. When the Lord asked her to adopt her first children, it became a bit more complicated. She rationalized that her youngest was 7, so in 11 years, she could move back home and be with him. But her children kept getting younger and His call kept getting stronger. She would go back in 13 years, in 17 years, in 20 years. Finally she came to terms with the fact that God was just asking her to STAY. And that when He said He wanted ALL of her, He meant all. She would live in Uganda. But she held on to her love because remaining comfortable was so much easier than dealing with the hurt and the emptiness would be.
Her eyes were opened and her life was changed. She couldn’t pretend to be the same person. She couldn’t sit still in his would anymore, it made her head spin and her heart ache. And still she held on because she didn’t love him any less. She knew God could move mountains and she prayed He could change his heart. After all, such a love must have been God orchestrated.
He made her feel beautiful as she walked through life as a single mom covered in dust and spit up. He appreciated her even when everyone else forgot to say thank you. He believed in her when the rest of the world said raising eighty thousand dollars or adopting ten children was silly. Even from the other side of the world, he cheered her on and he picked her up when she just didn’t feel strong enough. His voice on the other end of the phone turned a rough day right around.
They were moving in opposite directions. They both new it, but they both refused to let go.
So she asked God for a very specific sign. For something that she thought very unlikely if not absolutely impossible. And then something devastating happened. God gave her the sign that she asked for. So she kissed him goodbye and drove away and cried so hard that she doubted she would ever breathe again. She tried not to wonder if anyone would ever love her like that again or how she would do this all alone.
And that’s when He reminded her that she wasn’t. That HE would make her feel beautiful as a single mom covered in dust and spit up. That He appreciated her even when everyone else forgot to say thank you. That He believed in her when the rest of the world thought everything she did was crazy. That He would cheer her on and pick her up when she just didn’t feel strong enough. That His voice whispering in her ear would turn those rough days right around. That He would ALWAYS be faithful. That His love would be unconditional. That He, her ONE TRUE LOVE would never leave or forsake her and would give her heart’s desires. That He would make all things new, ever her shattered heart.
A few days ago an American woman who had spent about three days of her life in a third world country looked at me and said, “I would SO love to do what you do. I would do it in a heartbeat. Oh, I would take 14 kids in a second!” It is a good thing that I was having a graceful day, because I said, “Aw that’s nice.” But my not so graceful heart was angry. And the not so graceful voice in my head wanted to say to her, “Ok then, do it. I can have you 14 orphaned, abandoned, uncared for children tomorrow. So here is what you have to do: Quit school. Quit your job. Sell your stuff. Disobey and disappoint your parents. Break your little brother’s heart. Lose all but about a handful of friends because the rest of them think you have gone off the deep end. Break up with the love of your life. Move to a country where you know one person and none of the language. And when you are finished, I will be here waiting with your 14 children!” I wanted to ask her what was stopping her, knowing that the answer would be her comfort. I wanted to look at her and tell her that my life was full and joyful and WONDERFUL, but I also wanted to tell her to COUNT THE COST. Because my life IS full and joyful and wonderful, but it is NOT easy. My life is NOT glamorous. I do not expect it to be. I do not think that anything about carrying a cross was easy or glamorous either.
Which brings me to my point. I am not actually that angry about what that woman said, it was just an offhanded comment. But it got me to thinking… How many times to we grieve our sweet Savior’s heart because we refuse to COUNT THE COST? How many times do we choose comfort instead of the cross?
In Luke, in the days of Jesus, He expected EVERYTHING of his disciples. Do we believe that He requires the same today? We sure don’t act like it. If you ever read my blog or have heard me speak then you have heard me reference Matthew 25, the parable of the sheep and the goats. Jesus basically looks straight at the crowd and tells them that when He comes back, those who have seen the needy and met their needs will come with Him to heaven. He also says that those who have seen the needy and done nothing will be sent away to “eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.” Right, hell. This is heavy, I know, but I believe that it is TRUE. I believe that the words of Jesus are timeless and therefore still apply to anyone desiring to be His follower today. (Oh, and in case you think you can get away with saying that you have not seen Jesus naked or hungry or thirsty or in need and therefore you are off the hook, let me help you. 30,000 children will die today because of hunger or preventable disease. There. Now you know. Now you are responsible too.) Faith without good deads is DEAD, my friends. Yes, I believe fully in salvation by His grace alone. I do not believe that anything we do or work for will save us. I also believe that if we are indeed saved, meaning that He lives inside of us, we will desire to do what is pleasing to Him. That if we really love Him with all our hearts and all our strength, NOTHING will feel like sacrifice in light of the promise that one day we will get to be with Him forever. Automatically, we will help those in need, we will give our all, we will love our neighbor as our self, because our heart is aligned with His. But so many don’t. This then begs the question: If we are not walking in the words of Jesus, do we truly know Him? Do we really know and believe in the Jesus of the Bible. Because if we do, if we believe what He says is true, our lives will be powerfully, unimaginable, radically different than the lives of those around us. He requires EVERYTHING.
I wonder today if I had been one of the people listening to Jesus as He spoke in Luke 9 and 14, if Jesus would have convinced me to follow Him or if I would have walked away. I believe I would have really really wanted to say goodbye to my family. I wonder about “Christians” today. We wear Jesus on our T-shirts, we wear His cross around our neck and a bumper sticker with His name on it on our car. Have we just laid the foundation without being able to build the building? Does Jesus feel like I did when a woman I didn’t know told me she would love to do what I do but I knew that she never would? Do we claim the precious name of Jesus Christ without counting the cost? Without being willing to REALLY give it all? And does Jesus, in His infinite grace, look at us and say, “Aw, that’s nice,” but really with the furry that he flipped over the tables in the temple want to spit our lukewarm selves out of His mouth?
This is heavy on my heart. I have spent hours typing it to get the words out right and still I feel like I am rambling. If you would like more references on God’s heart for the poor, try Isaiah 56-58, Proverbs 14:31, 21:13, 28:27, Matthew 19:16- 30, Luke 6:20-25, 18:18, James 5:1… Please feel free to add more in your comments! If we believe that these words are true, the way we are living is not tolerable. How can we live in willful disobedience and claim to know Jesus Christ?
I do not claim to have the answers. I do not claim to be doing it right. I do claim to believe that the words of Jesus are absolutely true and apply to me, right now today. I want to give EVERYTHING, no matter the cost. NO MATTER THE COST. Because I believe that nothing is sacrifice in light of eternity with Christ.
WONDERFUL! You are so right, "we" have no idea what following Jesus has cost you. Beautifully written. I can truly feel your heart. Blessings!!!
I'm 15 years old I've been reading your blog for a while. my heart breaks for you right now. It must be really hard to say goodbye to someone you love that deeply, but I know God's love shines through the darkness that seems to overcome our hope.
My sister who we are adopting from Ethiopia is coming home tomorrow. I have a heart for people in Africa and am always drawn to your posts. Your girls are beautiful and so special.
Please know that I am praying for you.
your words are an encouragement to me Katie! Thank you for being open, honest and willing to say what needs to be said. I continue to pray for you and the ministry in Uganda that you have so faithfully begun.
I can honestly say that I beginning to realize this. I am getting on a plane tomorrow morning to go to Haiti to work with orphans. I don't know when I am coming back. I can honestly say with you that I have quit my life. And it has been harder than I ever imagined (and I haven't even gone yet). But Jesus is so SO worth it.
Thank you so much for being an inspiration to me, and being a true example that all things are possible with God.
Thank you so much for encouraging the lukewarm people of the world. God definitely gave you the power of words...and even though you felt like you were rambling His heart is shown through this post. Lifting you up.
Katie, the cost is high, and you are right, it must be counted first. This is my 13th year overseas. It has been awful and wonderful all at the same time. Thank you for sharing your heartbeat. Press on, dear sister. I know you know how many times/fold we will be rewarded in heaven. I claim that one.
This blog really touched me. Thank you so much for being so honest. Through your honesty, you shed light to the cross Christ wants us to bear.
I want you to know, though we may never meet, That I love you and your children.
I know you are not looking for thanks, but thank you. I wish you knew how much your blog has meant to me, personally. This post presents the truth. The truth is hard to swallow, but we need it.
You are in my prayers,always.
You took away the part at the bottom. That was what got me the most. I am responsible. Me, a 19 year old college student. I feel very confused and I don't know how I can help.
I know I can pray for you.
I pray every day for God to bless my husband and I with a child, and thus far it's not happened for us...but to think of doing what you do daily for your beautiful children truly humbles me. There's no doubt that you are walking God's path for you because no person seeking personal glory could have that kind of strength.
God Bless you, Katie, and your children as well. And the monkey!
Thank you for this post. May all who read it receive it in their hearts.
Thank you so much for you heart! I know that God is delighting in the way you show HIS love.
May God bless you as you continue to follow HIS way.
I just had a breakup as well. We love eachother dearly, still do and always will but we have different plans. I want to take in special needs kids one day. I want to love on many kids, want to give my everything. I know in a relationship you have to make sacrifices, but Heavenly Father told me, that this wasnt a sacrifice I was supposed to make. I wasnt supposed to quit dreaming of the orphans with special needs that I have been told to take in by Him. So breaking up was the only way to go. Now I have a new life right in front of me. Right now it's like a white piece of paper but I am going to fill it with many handprints, tears, spit up, dirt etc.
I look up to you. I really do. I dont know how you find the strength. When I was 16 all I ever wanted to do was volunteer in an AIDS orphanage in Africa. I still would love to go to Africa and work there and help but I dont know how. I hav eno idea how to get there, how to find a place to stay and who to help. Maybe I am just scared and not brave enough. I wish I was. I would love to come by your house and feel the love you have for your kids. You sure are a hero.
single life, saves the entire world." (Talmud) You are saving so many lives with the work you are doing, it's just amazing.
I am sending you and your kids snowy love from Germany. How I wish I could pack my bags and come by and help you.
I am halfway around the world in a meeting...this is powerful.
Katie...our Bible study leader actually mentioned David Platt today. Obviously there is something I need to hear that he has to say...I look forward to listening to this link tonight. I want you to know that you are an encouragement to me. I want to be radically different for Him! Thank you for sharing and for continuing to care for "the least of these".
The cost is high, indeed.
But we would be more comfortable with Jesus if He wasn't so demanding, wouldn't we? If He just let us be comfortable?
May God forgive us for our half-hearted, non-committal, lukewarm devotion. If we can call it "devotion" at all.
Thank you for your words - strong but true. And thank you for your testimony of a life well lived.
I "accidentally" stumbled upon your blog a couple of months ago. I've never met you...yet, God's using you to encourage and speak to me. That sounds cheesy...but I wish that I could explain. Anyway, Thank you for all that you are doing for the Lord. My family prays for you regularly. My 3 yr old prays every night for "all Katie's kids in Africa." She also told her Sunday School teacher that she wants to be a momma and have lots of babies like Miss Katie. May God strengthen you, guide you and smile upon you.
Wow. You are truly an inspiration to all of us "Christians." To give up EVERYTHING is truly an act of some kind of ridiculous faith. Thanks for setting a radical example for all us. Whether we do something similar to what you're doing or stay in the states and do something completely different, your words are definitely relatable and taken to heart.
Thank you for sharing Katie. Your love for the Lord continues to grow and challenge me. You are right. God wants everything.
Katie, I just right this moment posted to my blog.. and at the end noted how God had something so massive on my heart but I didn't quite have the words. And then your post. You see I WANT TO GO, I am ready to go.. I could care less about comfort. I live in an 800 sq ft box and want nothing more than to resign in my job as the Director of HR. And in October the Lord said GO. He didnt say where or when. So I had it all planned out- my lease was up March 1st and I would save $500 a month until then, sell my stuff, resign and GO. And then the Lord asked me to sew the $500 a month. BUT LORD, if I do that I can't make it happen. "I will" He says... So along comes plan number 2. I will move into a 400 sq ft box on March 1st, get rid of my vehicle and prepare to GO. Then came Sisay and her sibs in Ethiopia. Orpahns with names and faces; an immediate need. God says to me Thurs morning last week, would YOU be willing to forego GOING to bring them home? The answer is yes. Ouch Lord, I want to go, but yes Lord if that is your desire of me than YES!
I know that obeying is the only way to His Will and the only way to true happiness. I just want to say that for some, some like me, the words of David Platt and the works of Katie Davis have beautifully broken us into action. And while there are far too many that sit in their comfort, there is a movement of followers who have been forever changed by your willingness to follow God to Uganda and others willingness to speak the truth into the hearts of believers about what it truly means to follow Christ. My heart desires to GO to the nations somewhere among the orphans and the least of these. But if God is holding me and has another assignment than I obey. Because I love him first.
Just know, there are some who say they want to be where you are and it is not comfort holding, it is the Lord. I think God uses the very things we desire to test us in our faith... are we looking to him for comfort, like you mentioned, or are the desires of hearts bigger than our desire for him, the sovereign God. And even though our desires line up with his word, his commands and his ways, they themselves can never be bigger than our desire for him first. And I think he tests us with those very things to remind us and show himself yet again in our lives.
Praying for you always, sister.
Thank you for sharing Katie. Your love for the Lord continues to grow and challenge me. You are right, God wants everything.
To God be all the glory--He certainly lives in and through you. Thank you for sharing your sacrifices and your losses with us--you've got guts, girl!!
I LOVE reading your posts and seeing your pictures of your beautiful family. I'm 29 and the idea of doing what you have done is truly daunting and so inspiring. I think of the sacrifices that I have made in my life as an adoptive mother with a heart for Africa and know that it pales in comparison to what you have done as a warrior of Christ. You are my Joan of Arc. I can't tell you enough how much I love and support you all the way in Texas :) Know that you are loved and prayed for and appreciated greatly. I don't think you have any idea of how many people your life and actions impact around the world. I know you don't do what you do for any self gratification or praise and I really have no words but I just wanted to say... THANK YOU!
You dont know me... just found your blog... I'm sorry the pain you have gone through.... but the words you have wrote are for me. Thank you for being vulnerable, and obedient- as God those words to deal with my heart.
Wow! I have followed your blog for a short while now. I love your heart for God acted out.
what path would God have ME take? Are we all to go to a third-world country? What is the future plan, individualized beautiful bounderies His lot has thrown for each of us? And how do we find it.
I know it is not 'playing American church'. I do believe it is lived out in many many ways.
Blessings. thank you for being vulnerable, transparent and speaking the hard truth!
Thank you for sharing this. I have been so encouraged by you through your blog. My daughter loves the photo of your with your children. She tells me all the time that she wants to have 10 children - she's 5 now. Until she grows up and God blesses her with little ones, we continue to be inspired by you and your family, and keep you constantly in our prayers.
Precious! Glorious! Thank you for the GUT CHECK!
what a beautifully painful and wonderful post. I pray every 18-22 year old I work with will count the cost.
Katie, I appreciate this so much! I wrote something very similar to this on my blog (it was a little shorter though). It is the truth and it should scare us. If we claim to be followers of Christ and are not doing his work, it means nothing.
Katie, I have never met you and yet I feel that I know you now after reading this post written straight from your heart. God bless you for finding the courage to write it.
thanks for your vulnerability in sharing your heart. i've also learned from experience the painful lesson that we need Him alone more than any man. however, know that i have been praying for you the past few weeks - that God would provide a godly like-minded husband for you to partner with!
Katie girl you always challenge me. You rock me to my very core and today its just harder because I've been in Ethiopia and I'm still wrestling with what I saw a week ago despite the fact I've been there three times. It gets harder and harder to leave. My husband and I have just recently started listening to David Platt. Amazing and challenging man of God. Thank you for wrecking me yet again for the things that wreck my Saviors heart.
I wish that my faith could be so much more stronger than it is right now.
May God Bless you and your life 10 times what you do for others.
Awesome Katie! Thanks for sharing!
I think you have an amazing heart. Bless you, sweet Katie.
THANK YOU. Thank you for being someone to come right out and say the things that more and more of us need to! Thank you for letting Jesus use you to teach, grow, break and challenge me!
I am sorry for the end of your relationship with your boyfriend...again through this you display to all how you truly love Christ and want what He wants more than ANYTHING and more than even what you want. You can tell by your posts the love you and him share but what is more amazing is your love for Christ! Oh how He is and how He will use you Katie because of Your heart!
God is doing a work in me and slowly and slowly I can see it and I get sad realizing all the years I wasted on ME or my selfish wants and I am praying God would help my heart to break more and more everyday for what breaks His and that I would do or go wherever or whatever He asked me to. I think Him calling my husband and I to adopt our first child from Uganda is just the first step! Oh to be where you are in your faith/willingness/surrender...i am not there yet and only God knows if I will ever get there but my heart wants to be there...and I know I could NEVER get to where I have even gotten and I will never get any further without my Savior, my God leading me because I am awful, I am nothing on my own and any good in me is from Him!
katie, about the time we "found" you, we also "found" this exact same sermon series. we are never the same. thank you for stirring the fire in us and so many others. praying for you and your broken heart. my heart breaks for you because i know how hard this must be.
Your personal sacrifices are humbling. You are amazing!
I have no words. I wanted you to know that I read your post as if somehow that would be of comfort to you. Maybe it is, but I doubt it. Thank you for your brutal honesty. Thank you for pouring your heart out.
God continues to poke and push and sometimes drag many of us along in his plan for us. Yet we resist. We look at the life we have built for ourselves and at the comfort it brings and we know that surrender, while appealing in the heart of the moment, is so scary it sends us running for cover. And there we live uncomfortable amongst our 'stuff', occasionally peeking over the edge to see if it's ok to jump in like somehow this time will be less frigntening. The list of fears is HUGE. The potential for pain or rejection. Wondering how others will 'see' us. Wondering if God will really come through. Discomfort, fatigue, hunger, poverty, the list goes on and on. I know God is bigger than all of it, but my heart forgets and it betrays me and it betrays Him.
May God continue to bless you, Katie. We continue to pray for you. Please pray that God will bring each of us to that point of Surrender so He can use us to change the world.
Katie...you are truly an inspiration! Total surrender to Christ. Wow! I thank you for sharing this, and I will pass your blog along to my life groups at church. We are doing mission work at home, and I am a host site director at our church for Angel Food Ministries, but I wonder if there is more He is calling me to do. For now I will pray, and ask Him to show me the way... maybe I will be called to sacrifice, and I only hope I can be as obedient as you! Much love to you and all of yours from Florida! Lisa G.
my dear friend...I am sitting here crying. I grew up on the mission field and know this heart of yours that cries out, all too well.
I am serving here in my own city, and yesterday I was asking God...its this worth it, are we making a difference?... and of course my heart immediately heard him say "Yes". but only when it's done in his own power.
I am a stay at home mom, fullfilling my highest calling of all, but also serving whereever God would use me. I follow your blog to remind myself of the missionaries heart.
thank you for sharing it so well today.
if you get any negative feed back, I urge you to not answer it, but to simply leave it at the cross...I have a deep feeling that you will not.
my sister you are loved.
challenging post...causing reflection for sure. You are always so inspiring with the way you are living your life. Thanks for setting a good example for us to follow, and following the Lord in your own life.
Hey Katie, I sent a letter to you through a family friend that visited at the beginning of the year. I know how crazy life must get for you and taking five minutes to open and read a letter is five less minutes you have to love on your sweet girls. So if it got lost in the shuffle I completely understand. After reading your last post about how Christ didn't call us to be comfortable or to have all the things we think make us happy, I saw a lot of similarities to my letter and my heart. Thank you so much for speaking truth and not shying around the fact that our world is letting precious children die without food because they are continually striving for the next best material thing to bring them happiness, or so they think. I am honored to read about your life.
Thank you for being bold and speaking truth. Every command from God is an opportunity for God to fill us with His grace to be obedient. My husband and I pray for you often and thank God for the way your life challenges us to be radically devoted to our Savior.
Katie, thank you so much for boldly continuing to point us to Jesus. You have no idea how many people Jesus touches through your life and your words. To God be the glory.
You don't know me. We have never met. I ran across your blog a few months ago from somewhere, really can't remember now.
The reason so many may not like this post is because it is the real deal. It is honest and true. We are not that much different than those during Jesus' time. We are very uncomfortable with the truth, something Jesus also spoke to people. He cut through the stuff, the politeness, the society's way of doing things, the junk we cover ourselves with and spoke the cold, honest truth.
One line that I will ponder, preach on, and start putting into practice more in my own life -- "I wanted to ask her what was stopping her, knowing that the answer would be her comfort."
That more than anything -- more than money or time or lack of compassion -- stops us all. If we are being honest with ourselves.
your heart spilled and i love it! here's the thing...i don't want to read this and think "oh that's convicting", i want to be different! i keep saying that. makes me wonder if i am full of a lot of good intentions but not willing to fully follow GOD.
you amaze me. your love for the LORD amazes me. you inspire and push us. keep spilling your heart, it's a beautiful thing.
Katie, I am 45yo and a mom to 7 (4 adopted) and I want to be you when I grow up. God shines through you - your life. I want that for myself and for my children. I know that in Heaven you will have many crowns....and God will bless you richly for all that you gave up here on earth. Thank you for taking time out of your life to post and minister to others half way around the world. I will keep you, your daughters, your mission in my prayers. God bless you for doing what too many are unwilling. My prayer is that my children will love and serve God with the same kind of heart that you have.
I stop by when I truly have time to read and take in all you share. Your writing and your faith are amazing. I keep you in my prayers.
Katie...thank you for speaking truthfully..that is all you can do, because the Jesus of the bible says exactly what you have.
I did spend two weeks in Africa just a few days ago, and you are right, it would come with a cost...only two weeks came with a cost and almost a life.
My heart hurts with yours, I share your greif..I praise the Lord that you are willing to do anything and trust that our Father is able to far more than we can ask or imagine..Prasie the Lord that you are a voice to hundreds.
Love you sweet friend, always praying for you too.
Right on:) My pastor has been speaking of this alot recently. Doing someting uncomfortable, giving up the pleasures, and going in the name of Jesus is hard but the rewards in Him are unmeasureable.
I'm reminded of times when I've been told that adopting older children is not a good idea because they are already molded with bad behaviors and tragedy. But I also am confident in the fact that our God is bigger than anything the world has to offer.
Adopting in Uganda for us was very difficult, trials and emotional stress but the laughs we get from our son (presently wearing my shoes 12 sizes too big) is priceless.
God bless you and your sweet children!
Prayers from GA from a family of 5 and growing!
I've been wanting to tell you something. My husband and I have been reading your blog for some time now and several weeks ago, amazed again at another post, he asked me how you could be so fearless. I told him that infact, you were quite the opposite of fearless, but that you feared the Lord instead of man. That you were afraid not to obey God and that we should be too. I hope that I represented you correctly, but the wonderful conclusion is that my husband was baptized two weeks ago and your blog played a big part in that. Thank you for continuing to hold us accountable.
What a beautiful heart you have. Thanks for being real and honest, it is more that just encouraging.
In everyone's journey there are things other people do not understand...I will never understand the depth of your day to day...but I do understand the depth of your love for Christ...and I am grateful that as followers of Christ we can always come together there.
i'm reading richard stearns' book, the hole in our gospel, and wrestling with the COST of this knowledge and what i'm supposed to DO with what i am now responsible for.
thanks for being truthful. always. don't ever apologize for that. i had the same choice you did 20 years ago, but i chose differently, and i've wondered ever since if i'm not fit for service in the kingdom as a result. you will never have to wonder.
it took great courage and great trust to ask for the sign and then to act when you got it. i believe that will be rewarded.
I haven't listened to the sermon you linked yet, but I plan to. Your post inspired/challenged me so much that I did a post on my blog about you and "my heart spilled..." post. I hope you don't mind. I love reading your blog. You challenged me so much to surrender all to Jesus on a daily basis.
Thank you for speaking such truth into our hearts! I have to be honest, I know nothing of the sacrifices you have made and what it is like to do all that you do. It is evident that the Lord has called you and you are right to say that it is not glamorous nor easy! He HAS called you, He HAS equipped you.... ALL of us reading would agree but although we see little glimpses of your life and the genuineness of your faith, we do not really know what it is like to be there serving in Uganda. We all love you dearly and admire what God does through you and I am sure there are many who look on and hope to do the same wonderful things you are doing for Jesus. But like you said, we all must count the cost and lay EVERYTHING down. And this is where the true test comes.
You are a blessing to us because your testimony gives God the glory and shows how it is possible to serve Jesus with your whole heart and to leave families and lands and brothers and sisters for His name. It is possible for us all to live as Jesus wants us to if we surrender our will daily. You know of Christ's love so much more intimately than many of us and you are acquainted with His sorrows every day. But this is because you have chosen to lay down your life. You are His hands and feet and God will reward you abundantly in Heaven (even though I know you are not seeking such rewards).
I am praying about a trip there this summer and hope to meet you and the girls and serve in any way. I may have been serving the Lord in ministry for many years, but I know that God wants so much more of my heart and I want so much more of His!
Thank you for being so vulnerable and spilling out your heart to us. I will continue to pray for you.
hey..quick question...i saw there are 8 hourish long messages on that sermon series...i don't mind listening to all but was wondering if there was a particular one in mind you wanted us to listen to?
You don't know me! :) In fact, I have no idea how I even stumbled onto your blog. I just want to say that what you have written has inspired me, and you have given me much to think about.
Some of us, were in your shoes, only we didn't listen to God. We got married to a great Christian man, we had great children and then we realized that maybe growing up in church and attending church isn't enough for you anymore.
And so here you sit, struggling at the age of almost 35... SCARY!...and wondering how do you exist in the world you have chosen for yourself. And how do you exist in a place where you can follow God to such a degree that you are willing to give up everything!
That's my struggle! How do I give up everything to follow God and still be mom to my kids and a wife to a husband who himself is following God's call on his life. Where does that leave me and my life?
I wish when I was your age, somebody would have told me or encouraged me to dream the impossible, give up everything and follow God!
I look forward to seeing what else God will do with you and your children in the days and years ahead. Thank you for sharing from your heart, it has touched mine!
Amen and God bless you!
kate, you truly have a gift and an amazing heart. i appreciate your honesty and your conviction! your story is amazing and i look forward to reading your posts. i love your positive outlook and the unfathomable courage you have to be a mother of 14 at such a young age without the comforts of home. you and your family are in my prayers!
Thank you for your post. So true the words you have spoken.
you are an amazing girl, just amazing. may the lord bless you a thousand times over.
Amen is the only thing that I can think to say.
My life looks so different than yours but I feel as if I understand every word that you have written.
Know that I am praying for you. Not just, "say a prayer here or there" but down on my knees- seeking the face of our Redeemer, for you.
I wish that I had words to express all that this post evoked in me. Because my words wouldn't come close, let me just say thank you. You are doing a good work, & not all are deaf to your godly admonitions. My husband & I hear you, as do many others. There are some, hopefully many, who hear this Word & follow it with action. Thank you for sharing God's Word with us, undiluted & straightforward. You are always in our thoughts & prayers. We've never met you, but we love you dearly as our sister in Christ.
Thank you for spilling your heart. I do think Jesus is grieved by our failure to take hold of our God-given destinies. And I say it that way because I believe God has clearly laid out a CALLING, a DESTINY for us all. And just as He said "relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place..." if Esther chose not to take hold of HER destiny, I do believe that God's purpose and plan will still be carried out if we choose not to be a part of it...BUT WE WILL MISS OUT. Oh, will we miss out. I humbly pray for us all that we will not be one who "misses" our unique calling...How can we miss it? ..."Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, 'This is the way; walk in it'" (Is. 30:21) For crying out loud! We have a voice IN OUR EAR (IN GOD'S WORD!) saying..."CARE FOR THE OPPRESSED." That is a call none of us can claim to be ignorant of. Thank you for your bold witness.
Seeking His voice with you TODAY--NOT TOMORROW.
You are an amazing young woman serving an even more amazing God. I, along with several of my friends, follow your blog. We live in middle TN. You are inspiring to us. We often need a reality check. I can't imagine how hard it is being away from your friends and family in the States. I know your work there is rewarding but that doesn't make it easy. You are and will continue to be in our prayers.
Our lives need to be called - CRAZY! Unthinkable! Unimaginable! Out there!!!
If we do truly believe then we NEED to accept this role, accept what we need to do for Christ & do it!!! Stop being comfortable. Stop living like we think we know the gospel or have heard it preached, but have NO IDEA what to do about it. The problem is we do know, but we are too worried, scared, of what? The World!
Praying my heart would be opened and changed & challenged. Thank you for this post! I pray many will read it, and accept Christ's Call to REALLY be a disciple and not pretend any more!
Thank you so much for sharing your heart honestly. You wrote your message beautifully.
I am on the other side of the world with everything America has to offer, and my heart aches that I'm so tied down and can't jump up and come live with you. My husband doesn't have this heart for those in so much need (not that he has NO heart for them, just isn't quite ready to move across the world to them), but this is the life I am in and I need to submit to him. Maybe there will be a time where I can freely give so much of myself across the world, but for now I have to choose to do as much as I possibly can in our spoiled country.
Bless you for your obedience to Him, for giving it all up. Had you gone to college and gotten married you quite possibly may have missed your chance. And that would have been a different kind of difficult.
Thank you for sharing your life with us in the internet world! While I struggle with envy, I love reading about your adventures, though I've not commented before, I don't think.
Oh sweet dear, I am praying for you and with you. At times it can be quite lonely when we choose to serve God. Just remember, even the "black sheeps" of the family are still sheeps of God. Blessings to you from another black sheep seeking to serve Him..
In my opinion, the guy who gave up the opportunity to spend the rest of his life with you has just made the biggest mistake of his life.
The Bible says to weep with those who weep. That is being done. I'm so sorry your heart is breaking.
You have shared the truth yet again beautifully and powerfully. I believe we are yearning to hear truth spoken, and we come here to read it.
I find it amazing that no one has commented yet. I do not know you personally and found your blog through a friend of mine who is also overseas (not in the States). I find myself in the predicament of waiting. My family is 3 boys and all 5 and under.
I think that your post is in no way offensive to me. . . no more than Christ is offensive. I did think while reading it of the body of Christ. That some are hands and feet and . . . legs and arms. I have yet to find out what my family's calling will be. Right now it is the unglamourous but comfortable position of waiting and being faithful in all investments and opportunities that I am given.
I don't feel comfortable though, I feel restless. I know that there is something for my family beyond what we now do but I have yet to know what that is.
As a side note I see the American Christian church being challenged in her apathy for her bridegroom. The economic climate here has taken away many things that the church has been trusting in. It is good and it is beginning to seperate us, sift us. So pray for us at home that we would see clearly what Jesus asks of us daily and learn to always say yes.
I am thankful for the vision that the Lord has given you and am enacouraged by how he is providing. Keep challenging us but we need grace.
Katie - I don't know how to write to you privately or if it is even necessary to be private about this. Here is my heart...poured out on paper without any extra thought or editing as I only have a moment to share.
Boy this is tough. I am so glad to walk the journey. I am so glad you shared your heart. Your hours of typing and wording your post just right were worth it in my life. Please keep it coming! This is what I've been inwardly praying for without even realizing it, Katie. This has been in my heart for so long but I didn't know how to bring it about when it is not in the heart of those around me. Please pray for me as I live this out in front of my children and my husband. Please pray that God will capture the hearts of my young sons and that they will see God's principles lived out through my life. Please pray that God will help me in my weakness to fully die to myself and live with Him wholly as my focus. Please pray that I will claim His faithfulness and His truths as I seek His face to see how I can tangibly lose it all for His ultimate goals - love Him more than anyone so much so that it looks like I hate everyone I love.
My boys and I have been privileged to listen to the first two messages. I am pondering all that I have heard in the past two hours. I am convicted on all accounts.
Oh please, Lord Jesus, may your Spirit make this come about in my heart no matter what it takes. Give me the strength to abandon everything to Him so that I might devote each moment...each day to whatever it is that He is calling me to for His glory!
Ah Katie. So very very few of us count the cost and still step up. So very few will carry the cross and find that joy. I want to. I do. But I fail EVERY. SINGLE. DAY. because you know....trying to offer yourself up, sacrifice, it HURTS. It's hard and it hurts. And in our comfy, my comfy selfish life, I can say it, but it's oh so very hard to DO it.
Brava for you. You stay in my prayers for strength and peace. We all see your faith in your works...just like we all should. Bless you.
Thanks for sharing Katie. I am deeply moved and will ask God to continue speaking to me about how to further empty myself and sacrifice for His agenda. Thank you, personally, for being faithful to what God has called you to. Some of us need to be reminded about just how seriously God's words should be impacting our lives. I pray that He would continue to bless you richly with joy, health, and abundance in your home.
Oh Katie, I just love your heart. Your pure heart. You do not even know. I want to first say (thank you) From the bottom of my heart for what you do.
I am reaching 50 here soon and the loss of sight in one eye and hearing in one ear. I'm no good to anyone. This is why I do what I can do from where I am. I give here in the U.S. to the rescue missions and I have just recently sponsored a child where you are just this January. I don't work and my husband is unemployed , But I have been giving to you and now a child which I feel great about.
We can do things like hand out gospel tracts, put up witnessing websites, do good to our neighbours and the like, but people like you are called higher to do so much more, God has truely blessed you with the ability that so many of us wish we had. God is using his best dear one. You. We love you and thank you for doing the Lord's bidding. God Bless you dear one. We love you. Big hugs to you. Keep that beautiful smile and that servants heart.
Thank you for the post! I so badly want to do what you are doing. Why? Because I would SERIOUSLY give up EVERYTHING I have and go to the ends of the earth. I am only 15, but God has placed in my heart a heart for the lost, the needy, the poor, and the orphan!!!
Thank you again for this post!
You don't know us, and we will probably never meet this side of Heaven, but we love you and are praying for you. You are inspiring many.
Well said!!! We are counting the cost right now. We (a family of 8) are moving March 4 to Livingstone Zambia to start an orphan work.
I pray that Jesus will be so close to you that His presence will be with you where ever you go.
I have been reading your blog now for a few months, spending hours and hours going through old posts and anxiously awaiting new ones. I don't even really know what to say to you now, miles and miles away in Birmingham, AL, really I just want to let you know that you are changing lives here in Alabama as well as in Uganda. God is so amazing in how he orchestrates his will - around the same time I started reading your blog, I started attending church at Brook Hills and am now taking part in the Radical Experiment! I pray expectantly that the Lord will allow an opportunity for me to someday serve in Africa too - it has been in my heart for many years and your blog helps to spur it on - I already see God opening doors for me. I pray for you and your girls, asking God to send blessing upon you and to place you all in the center of His will.
Thank you Katie for this word of Truth. You are right, Our Lord requires everything. I sit here now, contemplating how much of myself I still need to give. And how it will hurt. But, not as much as any distance between me and Jesus Christ. Your ministry is powerful . . . to your family and community in Uganda, and to your readers. Thank you for being bold and for reminding me to FOLLOW.
The Lord bless you, my sister.
Thank you very much for this challenging and convicting post. You have given me much to think on. I have studied those passages (Luke 14 especially) before, but I appreciated your take on things. Thank you for your encouragement. I have been reading your blog for a long time now, and even though I have never met you I feel like I know you. Thank you for sharing your heart and in doing so encouraging others! May God continue to bless you..
I love you Katie. May we all be obedient to what God has called us to because the truth that you so explained beautifully (by the way the radical series rocked my world a few months ago myself) is simply that faith alone saves but faith never exists alone and if it does then your God is your comfort and not Jesus Christ. Again, I love you and praying for you that the awesome strength of Christ may consume you every day.
I'm going to check out that sermon later tonight. Thank you for your open and honest heart. I yearn to have the same heart. I know what God's word says and I choose not to do it. I suppose maybe I use that excuse that Jesus didn't mean all of that stuff LITERALLY but I know I'm lying to myself.
Have you read, "Crazy Love" by Francis Chan? So convicting!
don't hesitate to step in and help.
If you say, "Hey, that's none of my business,"will that get you off the hook? Someone is watching you closely, you know—Someone not impressed with weak excuses.
Thank you for sharing your heart with us....My family will continue to pray for you...that God will wrap His arms around you and hold you tight during this tough time.
Thank you so much Katie. Thank you for what you do.
The Lord gave Isaiah 58 to me awhile back, and he said to live by it, and I've been finding out ever since what it costs to be a disciple.
Keep finding comfort in his love, fellowship with his spirit, and encouragement straight from him.
We serve an incredibly beautiful God.
You live dangerously alive in your faith. Well done my sister.
Beautiful. I just want to say, you're Catholic. You don't know it yet, but you're Catholic.
I just want to say thank you so much for posting this Katie. So much truth to it and it has also been on my heart. I shared my perspective of this too on my blog and referenced yours. Thanks again!
I have no words. You said it all. Thank you sister, you are His hands and His feet! Bless you!
Thanks for the sermon link. I will be listening!
Wow Katie, this is the first post I've seen with no comments. Maybe they're coming later. I want to say thanks for delivering a hard word. I appreciate it.
Thank you for sharing your heart with us. I pray with you, that more of us would be challanged by God's call to help in a sacrificial way, in Africa. May our hearts be soft towards God! I look forward to taking time out to listen to your sermons. I have often thought, "you cannot change the world, but you can make a world of differnce to a child one little person at a time!" May God bless you richly for making that world of differnce to all your chldren! I pray for your safety and peace! That God woud provide for your every need.
So I felt like I was throwing my dh under the bus with my comment. He loves the Lord, and he's not a big bad ogre who says no we can't help people, he just has a different heart for different things and now that we're married, we have to agree on major decisions like adopting more kids or going on mission trips. That's what I meant!
Your story is an amazing one. One that is full of God's amazing love and compassion, but at the same time amazing sadness for what you have given up. However, God has chosen you for a special purpose and would not make you give those things up without having something even more amazing waiting for you. Praise God that you realize that.
Thanks for sharing your heart, Katie!!! The Gospel does demand sacrifice, and it's not glamourous, but IS rewarding, amen?!
LOVE the radical series by Platt!!!! Anointed words!!
You are one of the most beautiful human beings I have ever heard words from on this earth.
I am incredibly encouraged today by these words, to see truth spoken so boldly in the face of so many lies about comfort constantly shouted by the world. We like to shove God into the context of those lies and today it is so so so refreshing to be reminded that it's not just ok for us to turn away from the things of this world and turn towards the things God says, but that it is actually what we are created for.
I'm in the process of learning how to disappoint my family and let the world define me as a failure so that I can do the things that God is asking me to do.
I am thankful that you exist.
I just wanted you to know that I understand your pain....I understand your frustrations with others not "getting it" and it seems that the laborers for the Lord have always been few. I will join you in praying for more workers...not just people who say that want to help but that they begin to pray...Lord how can you use me? Thank you for all that you do for those precious people Katie....you really are so inspiring to me.
You don't know me. I stumbled onto your blog because of a suggestion by Amanda Lehman, someone I suspect is more like you than most. Respectfully, you are wrong. You say you don't have the answers or you're not getting it right. Baloney. You have it exactly right. God bless you and keep you from doubting that what you are doing is precisely what He wants you to do. I pray you will feel Him wrap you in His everlasting arms RIGHT NOW.
Thank you for sharing your heart with us, some people who know and love you, and others, like me, who have found your blog and follow just because there's something different about you and what you're doing. We, I, needed this challenge.... to really see and care for the needy, instead of worrying about my own selfish little life. I can't really even begin to imagine what goes on in your heart, but I can tell you that you, in your heart of obedience on this, have touched me, and I will be praying for you and your kids. Thank you.
Thank you for sharing your heart!! Know that thousands of miles away you have touched my life and God has used you to get my attention. I pray daily for you, your family, and God's hand on your life.
I am so glad you shared this, Katie. You are a beautiful, inspiring write and I am always convicted to think less of myself and to keep on giving to others, even when I feel depleted. God ALWAYS fills us up!
Katie, to me this is just an amazingly beautiful post. I love it! Thank you, thank you, thank you!!! What you said desperately needs to be said to the American church. Ever since I read Francis Chan's book "Crazy Love" in 12/2008, my understanding and burden for the things you're saying started and continues to grow. The more I read and meditate on God's Word, listen to sermons and read books pertaining to this area, the more my convictions have grown. This area is a huge "blind spot" in the American church as David Platt says, and in great need of reform. When my wife and I learned about you and your blog and then read through the whole thing last October in a couple of days, we have looked at you as a living illustration of the passages you've quoted from and many others. The way you live your life actually helps us to understand these passages because, like I said, you're such a clear illustration of what it means to follow Christ! These passages do not make much sense when we're in hot pursuit of the "good American life". There is a world of suffering out there that we as Christians are called to be burdened for and to put our faith to work for by going to, and by giving our resources to. We look at you as a model for what we would like to do in the future, possibly in Ethiopia. We have just got to get disconnected a little bit more from our "good American life" and the commitments we've made that must be honored. A huge part of our journey in understanding our big blind spot was the "Radical" series of sermons by David Platt you referred to. These sermons, along with his sermons from the book of James, and the "Radical Experiment" going on at the church he pastors, and where we are now members, has had a huge impact on us. I was excited to see your reference to these sermons and would also strongly encourage others to listen to them, for they are life-changing. I think these sermons along with others from men like John Piper would greatly encourage you in the work you're doing also. Again, thank you for the work you're doing and the example you are. My wife and I pray for you, and will be especially praying hard for you during what seems to be a tough time in your life right now.
I agree 100%!! awesome post Katie.
sweet, sweet Lord. Mighty one..fill us with your Spirit. Press down on us with your love and let us not be carried away with this dying world. Thank you for, Katie. Thank you for her voice...Your voice...in such a time as this. More of this, please! Go God, Beat Satan!! woohoo I love your boldness, K!
So good, Katie. So true.
I do not want the end of my life to look like the end of Schindler's List when he realizes that for all he did, he really could have done more.
Katie, you don't know me, nor do I know you any more than by your blog, which I stumbled across a month or so ago and now have made required reading for my daughters.
I want to encourage you... you can post this on or just keep it for you... but God has a great and glorious plan. Both for you and those beautiful daughters He has given you.
And although it seems like SO MUCH to give up right now, God is smiling and saying, "Well done." His plan is good. He has plans to prosper you.
I also was given a choice at age 21. To go with a young man I loved or to follow Christ in what He wanted me to do. When put like that (and through a series of events I knew it was what God wanted of me) I chose to follow Him and forsake the young man.
God's plan was so much better than mine!!! I am now married to a WONDERFUL man who loves God, and we have 10 children. You can look at our blog www.petersonclan. com .
I say this to encourage you. I do not know that God has marriage in your future. But I trust absolutely that He has something great for you.
Feel free not to post this. I really wanted to just write to you and encourage your splintered heart. I know it is hard. I know you are hurting. I know He has asked much of you. I also know that He is well pleased with your obedience.
Thank you for sharing your heart! It certainly has me thinking and reevaluating my own walk with the Lord. Have I given up everything? Am I willing to surrender it all to Him? I know He is worth it!
Katie- I know you don't really get to read comments much here, but just in case, I wanted you to know that I appreciate the time and effort you put into your words on this post. I am sorry for your heartache. I admire your bravery with your words. And I thank you for having the courage to put your convictions into action daily. As members of Brook Hills, we were completely altered by David's sermon. Between your blog and David's sermons, God has called us to adopt from Uganda. We're waiting on our referral (and all that legal stuff) now. Just wanted you to know that your voice is out there. You're being heard. And you're changing people. Hugs, girl. Hugs.
Katie, you are disappearing and we are seeing Jesus more and more in your life lived out before us. God has amazing things in store for your life, not merely in the blessed hope for eternity but here upon this earth, even upon the rugged red-earth clay of Uganda...Your heart spilled out before us is such a precious gift! In your true weakness, He is showing Himself strong. Keep pouring out your heart, dear sister, pouring out your life. Even in the midst of the pain, you are finding the blessed joy of being perfectly centered in His will for your life.
wow... this is powerful. thanks so much for the reminder. you are an inspiration and i am confident that God is and will continue to do wondrous things with your life!
my heart is spilling over now. i love how the Bible...God's words & promises...are real to you. the the Bible is living & breathing. i know you are not perfect but you are a standard bearer. thank you for your words. we are praying for you in the Simmons household & i make my daughters read your blog. God bless you.
Katie, you are inspiring. My wife, myself, and another family have been following your blog. We found it when we decided to follow the calling on our hearts. We are, Lord willing, moving to South Africa in the fall to work along side a church and orphanage. You are an inspiration to all. Our hearts go out to you. You will be in our prayers.
This is absolutely a beautifully authentic and truth-filled post. I love it. Thank you for sharing your heart.
Katie, your words have touched my heart. I have been blessed to adopt 5 children; many of them affected by drugs. What you say is so true! As Christians, we must be willing "to get our hands dirty." I am glad that we have adopted these children, but it is a sacrifice. It is not easy to have a baby addicted to drugs at birth. It is not easy to deal with brain damage from those same drugs. God does require us to lay down our lives. Bless you for having the courage to write this. May others be encouraged to seek the Lord for His will in their lives.
Oh, my heart hurts for you. I know that it is not easy to do what you do. However, I do so see you as one of the heroes of the faith. You have truly given all this world has to offer. Right now my family is having a rough time and I complain. Thank you for opening my eyes and showing me that even though it is "tough" I have nothing to complain about. Thank you for showing me that I need to be doing a lot more for Jesus and that my life is not near radical enough. Thank you Katie and keep up the good work!!!
Thanks for spilling it, girl! So proud of you for your reckless faith and abandon. You challenge me to the core. I don't wanna be a goat!
I do so appreciate what you are saying, but wanted to gently offer another perspective. I WOULD joyfully give up all in a heartbeat and adopt 30 kids and live in a third world country... if that was where God called me. God instead called me to marry young, practice midwifery during my barren years, now to have many young babes in very few years, one born with epilepsy, and to cry out and weep and long for and pray for children who suffer, all for His Glory. It is not comfort that prevents me from moving to Africa, it is doing the will of God as he calls me.
There is an analogy that Paul Washer uses for missionaries as ones who are lowered into a dark and dangerous well (I think to dig or repair it) and of on the other side, the ones who dig in their heels and burn their hands holding the rope. There is a cost to both. May we here share the scars of rope burned hands from the sacrifice of supporting those in the field, each as the Lord calls.
Wow. Thank you for sharing, Katie! The Lord has truly spoken through you and His words are very convicting. I read your blog often and think about the sacrifices you are making in order to follow Christ's will. Thank you for being so authentic and sharing the hard parts!
Oh Wow. Katie, I have followed your blog and your ministry. Shoot, I have had your button scrolling on the side of my own blog for the better part of a year. But I don't believe I have ever before left a comment.
Perhaps it's because what you are doing with this life you've been given is so big, and what I am doing...well, isn't.
I am compelled to write now. I admire you so (I realize that's not what you are looking for, but there you have it). You have been an inspiration to me.
I have often wondered what it is about some people that enables them to "leave it all behind" to follow God's call. An extra portion of courage? An adventurous spirit? No. Not in cases such as yours. Something all together different is at work.
I pray daily, "God, let it be with me as you say." And I mean it.
May God fill you up. May you in all ways be blessed. And may you know that though few of us are capable...make that WILLING in the way that you are, there are those of us out here that are lifting you up with love and in prayer that you never knew existed.
Katie, words cant describe how convicted, challenged, and encouraged ive been just by simply reading your posts! You are an inspiration to me, and I have grown spiritually by hearing about your relationship with the lord and your encouragement from the word. Know that I am praying for you and your family!
The passages you reference are ones which keep me up at night.
Thank you for being bold in speaking the truth.
I can tell you heart is broken. Prays to you.
Katie, Your life has captured my attention and caused me to ask these same questions of myself. You are truly a woman after God's own heart. Thank you for everything you do for your children and the children of Uganda.
I am so sorry for your heartbreak and you both are in my prayers.
I will be looking at my own life and the things God is calling me to and I will count the cost.
God bless you for sharing this.
thanks for putting this all out here. words i seriously needed to hear today. you are a miracle. may God continue to bless you and all you do.
Katie, we have 4 children, all adopted. The youngest are twins, one of whom has CP (non verbal, wheelchair, self abusive etc. Over and over before we made the decision to accept her, we felt God telling us that we weren't here for Disney cruises and ski vacations. But, it has been hard. On days when I have been bitten, repeatedly restrained her, or cleaned up played in feces yet again, I find myself almost angry with God. We have had "friends" basically abandon us, because we make them uncomfortable or perhaps even afraid, "what if God asks us to do something like that?" A family member even once said she didn't pray about things like that because she didn't want to know what God would say. Many people just seem to think we are crazy. And, then I feel guilty. I am still in my upper middle class house, with the privelege of fighting isurance which covers more therapy than most kids in other coutries could even dream of. I have plenty and yet I still wallow in my self pity. I would not change my decision. Every... EVERY child deserves a chance, a home, a parent, faith, hope. If I believe this, it is my calling to act. This is why you and I are here. Cry on sweet sister.
Wow katie...this is absolutely amazing. Convicting and inspiring at the same time. Thank you for sharing your heart and your passion. You are a woman after God's heart, and I know He is so proud of you.
I know you don't know me and I've never met you, but you are truly an inspiration to me. I got in touch with your blog through some friends of mine, and I absolutely love reading what you have to say. Especially this one. I feel God has put it on my heart to do something to an extent of what you are doing, but this message smacked me in the face. I am extremely comfortable in my life and wonder if I've just gotten comfortable with the idea of God's mission because I'm not actually doing it. Thank you, thank you, for what you wrote.
Thank you. Your words are appreciated. Really.
I came across your blog via Leslie Ludy's website, and I'm blown away by what I've seen. You are truly walking with the Lord, completely abandoned to Him. I'm not sure where God will lead me over the next few years, but I know that I desire to be like you being like Christ. I'm thankful for your example, and I will continue to pray for you and your children.
Thank you Katie ... thank you for counting the cost and choosing to give your all to the Lord. In your youth you have chosen to "do hard things" and exhibit "crazy love"(if i can borrow a few favorite titles to make a point) that blows most of us readers away. You are an inspiration to many of my girls in our youth group and proof that God can do BIG things through them right now as teens. But what I have been most impressed with is not your charity or even your great sacrifice but your tender heart, humility and love for our Most High God. You liken another young person God used in magnificent ways for His chosen ones... King Josiah. I encourage you to read about him and the "crazy" things he did in order to love the Lord his God with all his heart and all his soul(2 Kings 22-23 and 2 Chron. 32,I think : ) May you be encouraged to stand strong and physically feel the mighty arm of God, who secures the feet of His godly ones. May you find comfort in His refuge this very moment.
As I have followed your blog tears have spilled down my face when I think of the price you have paid to follow Jesus. I see the picture of you and your brother, your parents, the story of the ending of your relationship -- and you are right. The cost is high. Very, very high. You are also right that not very many of us are willing to pay that price. I'd like to add James 1:27, which says that, "Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world."
The words you share are truth -- straight from God's word. May we all heed them today!
You got it right...no rambling, just beauty.
Katie... this heart of mine spilled tonight too. Maybe not on a blog, but here in my dorm room I have been pressed for a year, the words of James 2 ringing in my head: "Faith without deeds is dead." He has me finishing my degree. My heart is for the taking. My heart is ready. Whether it's supposed to be back in my hometown or in another country. Life isn't easy. I was pondering the messy and hurtful things of life tonight, before reading this. Thank you. Thank you for reminding me that... even though we are pressed, we are not crushed. Even though we are persecuted for His sake, we are victorious. For, the heart that is set on His will and promises is the most blessed of all. Your testimony is incredible. Your life... is exemplary of Jesus Christ. all I can say is: thank you for being a mother of 14 with dust and dirt and spit up everywhere. For, in doing that, you are fulfilling God's ultimate calling on your life.
i'm praying and sending love.
The words you speak are truth -- straight from the Word. May we heed them TODAY.
I found your blog last month, and I have read your story from start to present since then. I am endlessly impressed with the courage you have to say yes to the person/task that is right in front of you, that God has given you to do. I think that is all that anyone need do really, is say yes to what God gives them today. Enough of that and our tomorrows will be radically different.
I just want to tell you that for some reason you have been on my heart all month, specifically about you and Ben, what you have shared about that relationship, and I have been praying for you.
I am really confident both from prayer and experiences in this, (I've been married 10 years now) that the husband you are given will be so much more what you need than anything you have been able to imagine before now. And I am certain that you are walking the right direction to find him as you are walking in true life with Jesus.
Your story has moved me. Thank You for sharing your beliefs and what has been on your heart. I read in the newspaper of a couple here in my town that just returned from Haiti with two children they adopted. I looked up their information and sent them a donation. Now that I have read your post, I feel that I need to do a little more than just sending in a check. I am not sure what that thing that I am supposed to do is yet but, I am resting assured that it will be revealed to me. I am here by way of Angie's blog and took a chance and clicked on your post. I am very happy that I did. Keep on doing what you're doing. You're an inspiration to many people!
What does it look like to loose it all living in california?
Thats not a clear question but I desire to give it all in fact i'm willing but like you were when you first lost it all I'm young 17 and I want to radically live yet I'm held back..
Yet my parents don't agree an so many of my friends.. I fear I will make feel guilty when I tell them I only like buying what I need.
I this a legalistic mindset?
Is there a balance to this?
so many people of faith in my life don't live this way and not having support in that way makes me question If this Is right or is it legalistic as some may call it.
Yet seeing Gods word I feel it makes sense.
I'm praying God shows me but If you get back to me I know your advice would be one I could trust.
Thank you for allowing Jesus to live through you he's moved in my life because of it.
Thank you Katie! I often, well more than often, need a little perspective. You are more than an inspiration...you are an answer to prayer. We recently joined the church at brook hills and we are on your heels and you are in our prayers! I am in my infancy and you are strong in Christ, man do you inspire me! Rock on Katie, Rock on!
I'm Emma, I;m from England and about the same age as you. It's nice to kind of 'meet' you in this strange bloggy world!
I have been following your blog for a while now. Thank you so much for sharing your thoughts, joys and struggles along the journey.
I think sometimes it seems to people that it they removed themselves from everything that reminds them of normal life - the town they grew up in, the friends they made since they were little, the general expectations of society - then they would find it much easier to give all away. A novel setting where all is unknown looks from the outside like a fresh life, a chance to start over, to live the way you always wanted to for Jesus but never got round to.
But maybe the point is that this thinking is really just similar to the idea that'the other side is greener'. Your life in Uganda is reality not a short term mission trip. I'm assuming you get bogged down in mundane work and that the things that once seemed exotic and new are now just part of your everyday life. I'm sure you have the same or similar struggles to just take it easy and to 'give up on giving up' that others experience in the comfortable West.
I guess my thought is this; you were called to Uganda, and as I am not called to Uganda at the moment I excuse myself by thinking the same sacrifices are not expected of me. BUT THEY ARE! right here in England, living in a seemingly wealthy city as a 21 year old student with my whole life ahead of me. Jesus calls all of us to carry his cross.
Where ever we are there are children in need of nurturing and love. There are blind grandmas alone and rejected by the community. There are women struggling with domestic violence and precious young babies.
(These examples are all real people in my life, not a generic idea of suffering people).
As readers of this blog we need to look for the stories Katie tells in our own lives, as well as supporting hers in Uganda.
Thank you so much for continuing to help me see that Katie.
Thank you for your voice and opening your heart. Thank you for loving our Saviour and challenging the Body of Christ! I love you! We support what you are doing in Uganda through prayer and cash. :) Our pastor has always said that we are all called to support building the Kingdom around the world -- some go and others send. Just a thought, but it seems that sometimes we think the ones who are called to "go" sacrifice more than the ones who are called to send. But maybe, just maybe the ones who send sacrifice just as much, because sometimes they sacrifice the strong desire, the willingness, and heartfelt dream to go so that they can be obedient and send. Just because not everyone goes doesn't mean they enjoy comforts more - maybe they've sacrificed their dreams so that others can go. So maybe this woman is sacrificing her desire to do what you do in order to be obedient to God and do what He has called her to do - even if she is surrounded by comfort doing it -- it doesn't mean she is comfortable. It takes the whole body to build the Kingdom! Thank you for doing what God has called you to do.
your words are a blessing. to GOD be the GLORY for great things he has done... is doing... and will contiue to do.
it is because of the Lord's mercies, that you are not consumed. his compassions do not fail. They are new EVERY morning. GREAT is HIS faithfulness.
You've inspired me today, Katie. God bless. You are in my prayers. HE IS FAITHFUL.
Thank you for your honesty about the not-so-glamorous life of following Jesus COMPLETELY. Thank you as much for sharing how LIFE-GIVING it is. I would call this a spurring on that Hebrews tells us to do for each other.
"Yes, Lord; now whats the question?"
I am sorry about your hurtful break up. I am glad you have God to give you love and comfort through this time, though.
I will also pray for the American lady who spoke about wishing she could do what you are doing. May God give her the strength and courage to do what He has put in her heart the desire to do.
Be encouraged, sweet child of God. Your heart is breathtaking. Prayers are with you. Thankful you are willing to pay the cost.
You were right... this post was *very hard* to read.
Thank you for righting it..
Please pray for me, a sinner.
if this post is hard for some to read, then that's just evidence that you were supposed to say it! Jesus' calling, his truth, and what he requires of us should not be comfortable, wherever we are at... if it is, then WE have become too comfortable. life with Him SHOULD be costly!
Your calling reminds me very much of Mother Teresa's. I pray that you will find sisters to join you and give you comfort and companionship in your vocation. God will not ask you to do it all by yourself. You can be part of a team. Love tends towards unity. The Church tends towards unity. One of the fruits of the Holy Spirit is peace, and Mother Teresa surely had that. Pray about whether you should join the Daughters of Charity. You will become a nameless, faceless, blogless worker bee. But you will do the same work you do now, and have peace at the same time. What a light yoke our Savior offers us! Even when the work is hard.
Katie - thanks so much for this post.
I do believe goers and senders are necessary in the kingdom (I am so thankful for the OBEDIENCE of the believers who have NOT gone, but are financially supporting you and your family and all that you do!), and that sacrifice looks different for every believer depending on their desires, gifts, and where the Lord has called them.
I teach in an inner-city middle school, and this is where the Lord has called me - NOT to sell everything I own and quit my job, but to STAY and invest in the children and communities of severe need where I live and work.
So I would hope that if I said to you that I think I would love to do what you do (and I believe I would) that you would not assume that comfort holds me back, but understand that the Lord has instead called me to be HERE and that although we plan our path, He is directing our steps for his purpose and glory, whether in Uganda, inner-city America, or "comfortable" suburban communities.
Where are the comments from guys?
Women, make the guys in your life read this. And make them read it again. And tell them to do something, encourage us for we are so fearful.
I'm sorry, Katie. You shame me so I will do better for I have left the naked naked and the hungry hungry and the thirsty thirsty. Thank you for letting your holy fire break through your sweet humility. I am a goat no longer.
Thank you so much for sharing this! I live in the city and walk by hungry people everyday. I wish I gave more and I am encouraged to keep challenging myself! God bless you!
I love you. I love your heart. And I love the Jesus who reigns in your life. Thank you for those words of truth that ALL of us need to hear. I heard someone say yesterday "The need is the call". No more waiting...sitting around wondering if we should get up off our butts and help those in need in a way that is tangible and radically like our Savior. We have ALL been called. Thank you for that reminder. I want to be found doing what Jesus would be doing when He comes for me. God, give us all courage and faith to do so!
Just wanted you to know I pray every day to be more like YOU- because you are so much like HIM. Thanks for your example.
I needed to hear those words. You smacked me hard between the eyes. I will continue to pray for you, as you are touching so many!
Thank you Katie. Your radical faith inspires me. I love you. Don't ever stop writing. We need you.
mom to 10, waiting for our #11 and #12 in Liberia.
Thank you for sharing these truths, no matter how hard for you, or for those of us whose ears it will fall on. This is such a tough one.
A while back, I was planning a Bible study on finances, and was going to use the passage where Jesus talks about giving everything to the poor. I could not find ONE commentary that didn't simply say that it was just a call to see where your heart is, etc. etc. Not once did anyone say that he REALLY MEANT IT.
Thanks for bringing this truly prophetic word to us all today. I, for one, needed to hear this.
I sincerely hope that your boyfriend felt led in a different direction by the Holy Spirit and nothing else, because otherwise I would be feeling very sorry for him right about now, losing a woman like you. You're one in a million. -- On a separate note, THANK YOU for your refreshing honesty about the apathy of modern day Christians. I am convicted afresh and anew.
Wow, wow, wow! Straight from the Holy Spirit, that post is. Thanks for shaking us out of our boots. Oh, that we Christians would finally get it. Thank you, thank you, Katie. And I think God is going to bring the right man into your life one day, straight to Uganda with you.
I don't know you, and have no idea how I came across your blog, but have been following for a few months... This post especially touched me. Thank you for the rebuke, for the reminder, for the inspiriation. I was truly blessed.
Thank you for your honest and insightful post. This is something I've been struggling with lately- how do I explain to my children that there are other kids in the world who are starving to death when we live with such excess? I don't have the answers and I struggle with whether I'm doing things the way Jesus wants me to. I am one of those people who gives to the poor, volunteers for charities, etc. but for the most part I live a very comfortable life when I KNOW others are suffering. I'm wondering how I justify that I deserve so much when others have so little.
thanks though for opening our eyes to the rest of the world.
Katie, I know you probably have no time to read all these comments, but I just want to thank you for this post. You are so incredibly right and I honestly just hear God speaking through you. As a 17 year old facing a lot of decisions for the future, I'm truly encouraged by your blog to count the cost and live the life that God created me for. I wish I could be as courageous and faithful as you, but I know that with God all things are possible. Thank you for being such an amazing example to a teenage girl like me. You and your family are in my prayers.
I am a missionary living in Ukraine. God one night told me to go to a country I had never seen and leave everything behind. I can understand everything you have said. The thing is, even though you and I have walked through valleys and shed rivers of tears and know that we do not get to lead the glamorous lifstyles we thought we might one day, Jesus is being glorified through us and that thought alone is worth more than anything this world could give.
Some of these comments are telling you "Oh my heart is breaking for you" and yet you've clearly stated your life is full and wonderful and you have JOY. My heart breaks for people who refuse to count the cost. Who refuse to see the beauty in spit up and hugging orphans and standing by them even when they are screaming at you their hate because you are telling them "no". Beautiful feet according to Jesus, are dusty, dirty, calloused, blistered and seen lost of road. You have beautiful feet. You have a beautiful life. And in heaven the Reward that you will receive will be more than anything this world could give - face to face with our Creator. Hallelujah!
Not to mention that rooms of treasure and the crown God will give you!
You have such a popular blog. I would say "Hey we should be friends"....but I'm not sure you would have time for that. But nonetheless, I will lift you up in prayer and ask that you say a prayer for me and my ministry in Ukraine.
Katie, love this post - I feel the pain, and I feel comforted by your words. I am a single mom too, to foster children in Tennessee. When I tell people that, I often get the response, "Oh, I could never do that. I could never give up a baby." It is like a punch in the gut to me to hear that. I can't do it either!!! It is a higher cost than I can possibly bear!!!! But OI am not alone; my God goes with me, bears the cost with me. My Savior gave everything for me, my Father gave up His only Son for me, so I take in children, love children, and lose children. It is excruciating at times. But it is also full of joy and love and peace. I am sure there is no one on earth more blessed than I. Although I have never married, God is making me mother to a multitude. God is good.
The most purifying and lovely blog post I have read in a long time. Your blog is truly one of the very few worth keeping up with. Thank you! God bless you.
Tears flowed down my face as I read your blog, Katie, and even as I type now.. because everything you wrote is identical to everything God has been speaking to my heart, especially in the last several months.. How shall we..how can I, stand before His Presence and say I love Him if I have not ACTIVELY loved those HE loves?? And He says, "Obey. Deny self, take up the cross, and follow ME.."
Thank you so, SO much for sharing. You and your girls are very often in my prayers! May He continue to hold you and fill you as you seek His face: "Open your mouth wide and I will fill it," Psalms 81:10.
Thank you for this post. I didn't know I needed to hear it but I did.
I feel a huge push to do something. Stop being complacent in the "Christianity" that surrounds us.
While the story of the woman was brave and heartbreaking, and courageous, I realize that not everyone will be called to do this. But everyone WILL BE CALLED. And it's about listening to that call that God has placed on each individual heart and following it.
I am responsible to be Christ to people in need. To everyone.
Thank you again for the post.
I will be praying for you.
Incredible. Your reward is going to be amazing in Heaven.
I'm in Kampala right now trying to bring home (USA) a severely malnourished girl with failure to thrive, an undiagnosed throat injury that leaves her unable to speak, she cannot walk and she's hiv+ with a cd4 count of 87. I thought people would roll out the red carpet for us. I thought people would want to "save" her. Didn't work that way at all.
I think you may have heard that Americans trying to take home orphans from Uganda are stuck here right now while our embassy figures out the situation and starts issuing visas again.
My baby girl is starving and writhing in pain. I've tried to bring God glory and honor each day of this journey but I have to be honest and say that I've failed. I've grumbled, I've moaned, I've cried.
I'm out of money, patience, and energy. I'm on my 2nd round of bad food poisoning that is really...well... unpleasant.
I was corresponding with the sweet Palmer family the other day and God gave us this thought... No matter what happens here, it doesn't change the Cross. It doesn't change the Resurrection. And it doesn't change my salvation. He's just asking me to follow Him.
Oh, and it's not easy. I have 3 young children at home who miss me and I miss them deeply. I am living minute by minute. That's all I can handle. And our sweet Savior gives me what I need for that minute by minute.
I am so sorry to hear of love lost. I'm a romance-novel-type-of-gal and I feel so awful that you had to endure that. That is a searing pain and I pray that your heart heals quickly.
You touch many people with your life. You draw them to the Cross in a way that they can't turn from. You are a rock in the proverbial pond that causes many ripples. Many with come to eternal salvation through your life.
The enemy is never going to stop attacking you on this earth. You are a mighty warrior for Jesus and he wants to see you suffer. God will only allow what He knows you can withstand.
I don't pretend for one second to know your pain and your daily struggles. But I do know that there will be a grand party waiting for you one day in a place so wonderful our human minds can't even take it in. And there will be no sadness, no hunger, no dying, no crying.
I will continue to pray for you to be showered with blessings. | 2019-04-24T05:53:09Z | http://katiedavis.amazima.org/2010/02/she-was-eighteen-years-old-and-she-had.html?showComment=1265936362231 |
Whatever your sport… it’s a bit irrelevant really isn’t it?
The football started early for me this week, with the Dolphins taking part in Thursday Night football in a fairly convincing win for the Texans. Brocktober is well and truly over, and his performance against the Bears a few weeks back feels like a hell of a long way away now! Hardly surprising when you look at how broken the Dolphins Offence is, and how powerful the Texans Defence can be. It’s never fun coming up against JJ Watt, but that’s especially true when you’re as banged up as Miami. And just like that, we’re at 4-4. Middle of the road. Standard Dolphins.
And that’s about all of the football I managed to watch this weekend, mainly because of something which happened on Saturday night which made it just all feel so… irrelevant.
If you’ve been following the Blog and Pod for some time, you’ll know that outside of the NFL, I’m a huge Leicester City fan (and you probably now know what way this post is going to go!). I’ve been a season ticket holder for the last 10 years and have seen some incredible highs, but Saturday night was one of the lowest and worst experience of my life as a football fan.
You won’t have escaped the news of the death of our owner and Chairman Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha, along with the two pilots and two other passengers.
Saturday started off OK – I went down to the King Power stadium and watched Leicester draw with West Ham. Not fantastic, but it’ll do. But then about half an hour after I got home from the game, I started hearing reports of an accident down at the ground. An accident which involved the Owner of our club’s Helicopter. And apparently, it was on fire outside the stadium after having lost control after takeoff, going into a spin and hitting the ground.
At first you think “well, that’s got to be over exaggerated” and you assume everyone managed to get out. But then we saw the footage, and it was truly heartbreaking. The helicopter had been a regular feature in and around the ground (I live very close so used to see it flying around fairly often) and it was well known that the owner and other dignitaries used it as a taxi after every game to take them back to London. The collective hearts of all Leicester City fans stopped at the sight of it on the news, as we had a good idea who would be on board.
As news started filtering through, it became clear that Vichai would be among the deceased, and I’ve been pretty distracted and emotional ever since. I took a walk down to the stadium on Sunday afternoon to pay my respects and was met with hundreds of fellow fans and an incredibly somber mood. But what struck me wasn’t just the sense of feeling around the place, but the vast spread of people who were there paying respect – not just Leicester City fans, but fans of Nottingham Forest, Derby, Leeds, Liverpool… it was clear that the whole of football had been shaken by this tragedy. And in fact, not even just fans of football – people who had no interest in football but had been touched by his incredible generosity outside of the game were there too.
That shouldn’t have surprised me when I think back to it. Vichai was one of the most incredibly generous people to have passed through Leicester. He and his family donated literally millions to Leicester’s hospitals (in particular through their Children’s charity), Universities and the city itself. During his time at the football club, he wrote off over £100million in debts as a personal gift to the club. He bought our stadium so we we are no longer paying rent to a developer. He spent millions and millions on the squad, signed off on a huge new training facility, and the fans and people of Leicester loved him for it.
Let’s not forget that it was under his stewardship that we did the unthinkable, overcoming all odds to win the Premier League. For those of you who aren’t football fans, that’s like the Jets winning the super bowl! (Sorry Ryan, I had to lighten this up somehow!).
And it wasn’t just the big things – he was also responsible for buying every fan a beer on his birthday, Mince pies at Christmas, Bacon Sandwiches for breakfast and Scarves for people making long trips to Away games, and he even arranged for a bottle of Whiskey and glasses to be left in the Memorial Garden at the King Power stadium on match days for people to have a toast to their lost friends and family (something that I’d seen many times and always wondered who left it there).
It’s truly incredible when you think about it. How many other clubs owners have given so much to the fans and local community, and made such a connection? I don’t know how we got so lucky! I’m not sure Mike Ashley has given the Newcastle fans as much as a bad cold!
He and his son Aiyawatt (known to us fans as ‘Top’) were also amazingly ambitious. When they signed Kasper Schmeichel in 2011, they told him they wanted to be in the Champions League within 6 years, at a time when we were struggling to break out of the Championship’s mid table. When we first went up into the Premier League, they said to the press that they’d be in the Champions League within 3 years, and despite how ludicrous it sounded at the time, look what happened!
As you can hopefully see, I feel quite indebted to this man, and I’ve been gutted since Sunday evening when his passing was officially announced. But for the club, life will go on. Hopefully, when he feels ready, we’ll see Top take over as chairman and keep his father’s legacy alive. It’s a legacy that all of us as fans want to make sure is fulfilled and we owe it to him to do anything we can to make sure it does. There’s talk of a statue, or of the stadium being renamed, but whatever happens, Vichai and his contribution to our club and our city will live on forever.
Thank you, Khun Vichai. Rest in peace.
We’re almost exactly half way through the season now for those teams who haven’t yet had their Bye week, which quite frankly is crazy. It doesn’t seem like 10 minutes since the beginning of the season. And to think that Gee and I are neck-and-neck in the pick-em competition after 7 weeks is equally crazy!
The Dolphins didn’t do all that well this week against the Lions. Brock did a sterling job against Chicago, and while he didn’t have the worst game I’ve seen, he wasn’t quite the same player as we saw in Week 6. What is becoming apparent though is just how broken our team is. It was well documented a few weeks ago how short we were on the Offensive line, but with Tannehill also out (and looking shakier by the minute), and some serious problems at Wide Receiver too (Albert Wilson’s been put on IR, Kenny Stills has missed some practice, and Danny Amendola is listed as ‘Questionable’ for this weeks trip to Texas) it means our whole offence is being held together with plasters. On top of that, apparently we’re looking to offload De’vante Parker for a third round Draft pick too, and with less than a week left before the trade deadline, it’s a shaky time for us Dolfans.
I realise I’m not giving Detroit the credit they deserve at this point. Matthew Stafford’s team looked very good, and fully deserved the win. They looked very comfortable, putting up over 240 yards of rushing offence together, and led all the way through. And all of a sudden, from being ridiculously optimistic, Miami are now at 4-3. Don’t get me wrong, it’s still a winning record to this point, and being brutally honest, 4 games was as many as I thought we’d win all season going into this season, but it feels like a massive letdown from where we were a few weeks ago.
So what happened elsewhere… ah yes, the London game! This was a game which was absolutely made for Gee and his defensive obsession! I must say, it was well up there as one of the best Wembley games I think there has been. For those who haven’t seen it, I’d really recommend going back and watching at least the highlights. The game went down to pretty much the final play, and Tennessee came SO close to picking up the Win. It was a ballsy call by their head coach to go for 2 points at the end when they quite easily could have taken it to overtime and had another go. Personally, it’s not a call I would have made, and a lot of people were very critical of the move (including Bruce Arians who was CBS’s analyst for the game).
Another thing which will have made Gee happy this week will have been the number of Safeties which clocked up at 3. I won’t go into this too much as I know Gee will be all over it, but if you’re watching a game at the weekend and see a Safety occur, make sure you tweet me (@TWFDan) and Gee (@WrongFootball) using the hashtag #TWFSafeties so Gee can properly track them for his increasingly detailed records!
We’ll see the third and final London game this week when the Eagles host (sort of) the Jaguars in a game which was very nearly last year’s Super Bowl. Should be a corker of a game!
And finally, I’ve just taken delivery of a load of new Dolphins merch today which has made me happy! I found a website called Fanatics UK who have the best range of NFL gear I’ve seen this side of the Atlantic Ocean. I promise this isn’t a sponsored post by the way – just a friendly recommendation… although if the good people at Fanatics fancy sending me some free stuff, I’m open to that!!
But what’s the best piece of NFL Merch you own? And how about the oldest? Drop me a line on Twitter – I’d love to see some photos of your haul!
It must be love… love, love!
Week 6 is now in the books, and it was a bit of a strange one for me. This was the first week of the season where I couldn’t watch any of the games Live on Sunday because of prior arrangements, and it reminded me just how much I like my Sunday night routines during the season. I couldn’t completely concentrate on what I was doing because I knew that Football was happening at the same time, and I suppose that’s how you know you love something… even if it is a sport!
So, what was I missing? Well, the Dolphins managed to overcome a bit of an injury crisis to get back to winning ways. Gee and I exchanged texts on Sunday evening when it became clear that Ryan Tannehill was going to be spending the game on the sidelines while Brock Osweiler was under centre, and we both came to the conclusion that Miami had no chance… (Quote at 1 hour before Kickoff: “I’m sorry for your loss”). And while they made hard work of it, and it took an overtime Field Goal to settle it, they managed to grind it out.
Brock was clearly the surprise of the team, but it was fantastic to see Albert Wilson pick up another impressive 43 yard touchdown which saw him make almost every one of those yards after the catch – believe it or not, he’s actually the league leader for Yards after Catch this year so far. He’s been really impressive this year. What the Dolphins badly needed was someone to step up to the plate and replace Jarvis Landry, and it really feels like he’s done that.
Speaking of Mr Landry, his team struggled a bit. The Browns have done quite well at keeping themselves in games and even picking up a couple of wins along the way, but they didn’t look good this week. I thought they’d do ok, but the Chargers proved far too much for them and came away with the win.
It was the first of this year’s Wembley games this week too, and I don’t half feel for the Oakland fans in attendance. I was there last year when the Saints gave the Dolphins a pasting (it finished 20-0, but I had to look that up, as the memory of most of that day has been repressed!) and I can tell you — it don’t feel good! Another record crowd was in attendance, and there will be no empty seats in North London for the next two Sundays either. The growth in popularity of our great sport doesn’t only show in the stadium attendances and the multiple ‘My first NFL Game’ posts I see on Facebook and Instagram each year (because I’m down with the kids), but also in people talking about it at work. I’ve genuinely had 3 people this week already come up to me at work who all know of my passion for American football and tell me that they watched the game on Sunday. I think having 3 games in consecutive weeks is brilliant too, because people who watched and enjoyed this game will give it a go again this weekend, and get to see another couple of teams, and who knows, they may even pick themselves a team to follow (although I’d save that until the following week if you’re going to do that)!
And I managed 9 points in pick’em too, which was the best I’ve done since week one – happy days!
And that’s about it for this week. Week 7 to come and there’s some good games too. The Chargers and Titans will be on their way to London as I type, but will you be making your way to Wembley too? And I’d be really interested to hear about your game day routines too with me missing mine last week! Lets have a chat on Twitter.
We’re well over a quarter of the way through the season now – seems far too early for that to be the case, but it is! There are two teams still undefeated, and unfortunately, since I last wrote, the Dolphins are no longer one of them.
I won’t go into the Patriots game, as I’ve somewhat moved on since that drubbing, but what will take me a while to get over is the loss in this year’s ‘Wrong Football Bowl’ against the Bengals. When I was messaging Gee on Sunday night, I used the word ‘Angry’ to discuss how I felt about how things went down, and while there’s definitely an element of that, 24 hours removed from the game, I think it’s more a feeling of disappointment and one of being more than a little let down.
Also, too many 3rd and Long situations… that’s never good.
On the plus side, the run game was pretty good again this week, and Jakeem Grant is just born to return kicks, which is always useful. And I must say, all of this takes nothing away from the Bengals, who had a great second half – I know Gee was worried specifically about the absence of Tyler Eifert, but he didn’t need to be on this performance. Oh well, to paraphrase Boring Bill, it’s on to Chicago next week!
But enough about the Dolphins, what has been happening elsewhere? Well, one thing that caught my eye was the situation in the Blue half of New York where the Giants haven’t had the start to the season that they wanted, and now sit at 1-4. Before this week though, Odell Beckham was asked about how he felt about things – more specifically the Quarterback situation. He said that he ‘didn’t know’ if there was a problem under centre, which of course meant that some facets of the media decided that they hated each other. During their game this week though, Mr Beckham got chance to show what he could do with the ball and threw a 57 yard Touchdown! They lost the game in the end, courtesy of a last second Panthers field goal, but keeping it close will have helped their confidence a little.
For those of you who have followed us for a while, you’ll know that I have a lot of respect for the kickers of the league, so I can’t really sign off this week’s post without at least a brief look at Mason Crosby in Green Bay. He’s missed a few crucial kicks over the last couple of weeks, including 2 potential game winners against the Vikings the other week, but this weekend he missed a PAT and 4 Field Goals… I’ve mentioned it before, but the world of the kicker is a cut-throat one, and it often doesn’t take much for a kicker to find themselves on the sharp end of the cut. With figures like this, I worry that it won’t be long before he’s out of a job, so lets keep an eye on the situation there.
And on a similar note, I almost missed the opportunity to bring up Graham Gano’s incredible 63 yard field goal winner for the Panthers – amazing to think kickers can make them from that far out!
I’ve had chance to watch a couple of their games recently, and I am REALLY impressed! I couldn’t think of a better team to have my money on at the minute which is always a positive.
But who is your money on? What odds would you give your team of making the Super Bowl this year after 5 weeks? Give me a shout on Twitter and lets have a chat! | 2019-04-21T17:11:43Z | https://thewrongfootball.com/category/dans-thoughts/page/2/ |
I've noticed a few posts out there from customers new to XOG and thought having this information on the board would help provide some basic guidelines for getting started. This is simply an internal bit of documentation which goes beyond what is offered in our standard Integration Guide. We use this here in support to help get new engineers started using XOG. Hope you find this helpful as well.
1. In the Clarity Admin Tool, select Client Downloads.
4. In the \xml folder are numerous xml files that end in ‘read’. The naming convention tells you what each file is set to read. For example, prj_projects_read.xml reads project data from Clarity. If you are not sure what is actually being read from the database by xml file name, most ‘read’ files have corresponding ‘write’ files that you can look in to see an example of the read output. For example, the prj_projects_read.xml has a corresponding prj_projects_write.xml file that shows an example of the output from the XOG read of projects.
5. Content related data refers to those XOGable items such as Objects (and Object related information like Views, Lists, Filters, Lookups, etc), Processes, Portlets, Jobs (used for Report settings as well), Partition Models, and Lookups that are found in the content_pack_read.xml. Most of the XOGable items in the content_pack_read.xml have a separate xml file you can use. So, for example, the content_pack_read.xml file contains the tags for XOGing out Objects; however, there is also an object_read.xml that will read the same settings. This also applies for Jobs, Processes, Portlets, etc.
6. The xml read files provided give examples of how to set the filter section per item. Use the ID of the item to specify what it is that you want XOG to extract from the database. For example, if you are XOGing objects (instance data), the ID can be found by going to Studio -> Objects and looking at the ID column in the list of available Objects. For Lookups, you can go to Data Administration -> Lookups in the Admin Tool.
Instance related data refers to specific data stored in Clarity; for example, a specific project or a specific resource. In some cases, related data reads are broken up into multiple xml read files. As an example, the prj_project_read.xml will read a project’s general data as well as tasks, resources and assignments, and custom data; but that project’s financial planning information is XOG’d out via the financial_planning_read.xml.
Instance related data could be XOG’d out by filtering on the ID of the instance or by applying filters to read multiple instances. Arguments can also be utilized in some read xml files to specify which items associated with an instance you would like to XOG (a project’s tasks but not resources, for example).
• It is important to realize what exactly is being XOG’d out of Clarity when you run a read file. Be sure to check the example ‘write’ file to see what the output of your read will be.
• Dependencies will be honored when performing XOG reads. Therefore, if you are XOGing out an Object, and in that Object is an active Attribute that uses a certain Lookup, both the active Attribute and the Lookup will be XOG’d out and appear in your output file. If you are XOGing out a Portlet and that Portlet uses a specific Query that has an Attribute referencing a certain Lookup, the XOG will read out the Portlet, the Query and the Lookup.
• When you perform a read using XOG, the output file is formatted to be a write xml file. This means that if you XOG out a project, the output xml file will be XOG-ready as a write xml file.
• XOG installs with examples of each writeable item. Use these as guides to formatting your XOG input file if you are not using the XOG read output as your input file.
Before a resource can use the XOG to import or export data for a particular object, you must assign the resource the XOG access right for that object (for example, Asset - XOG Access, Project - XOG Access, Resource - XOG Access, and so on).
For example, you can grant the Asset - XOG Access right to a resource to support a custom CA Clarity PPM desktop application that needs asset information. While the resource can import and export instance data that is associated with the asset object, the resource is not able to import or export data on any other objects. XOG access rights for objects are listed in the access rights list in the Administration Tool with other access rights. XOG access rights are global rights.
• From the command line you can type in the parameters required to import and export data directly on the command line or you can store the parameters in a .properties file and call the file from the command line.
• (Windows) From the Windows Start menu, select All Programs, CA, Clarity, CA Clarity XML Open Gateway.
• (UNIX) Navigate to the XOG client home directory.
2. Type the xog command with the parameters for the operation you want to perform and press Enter.
In the bin folder, open your properties file (XOG installs with test.properties).
1. Set the servername = to the server you are reading to or writing from.
2. Check the settings for portnumber and sslnumber. They are commented out by default.
3. Set the output = whatever you want to name the output file. By default, the properties file sets the name to out.xml and the location to the bin folder.
a. If you are doing a read, your output will be the write version of the data you’ve read. You may want to name your output file accordingly. So, for example, if you are XOGing out an object, the output file will be the write file for XOGing that object into another environment. In this case, if you are reading the project object, you may want to name your output file project_object_fromdev.xml.
b. If you are doing a write, your output will be a results scorecard of how many items were updated, inserted and/or failed; as well as failure messages and warnings. So you may want to name the output file for a write something like write_results.xml.
5. Set the input = the read or write xml file you want to use.
a. Upon install, the input is set equal to almost all of the xml files, but commented out. It may be helpful to delete all but the first file (make sure to remove the # in front), and just change the name of that file as you XOG. You can even create a property file specific to that input/output file combination if it’s a XOG you will be performing regularly.
b. You may also leave all the input files, just keep the ‘not in use’ commented out (placed on separate lines would help).
6. Upon completion of the xml input and the properties file, either open XML Open Gateway via the Start ? Programs ? Clarity menu or open a command prompt and go to your XOG installation’s bin directory.
7. (Note that if you are using a properties file with a different name, replace ‘test.properties’ with the name of your properties file).
8. Once XOG has completed running, you will have an output file located and named whatever you specified in the properties file.
9. Keep in mind that not everything in Clarity is available for XOGing. It is handy to come up with a migration plan (see migration guidelines below) that details how items will be moved between environments (with XOG or manually). It is also important to update your XOG client installation with newer versions of Clarity (on upgrades) to keep up to date with what is available for XOG.
4. Investment Type (INV_TYPE) static dependent lookups – XOG individually. This type of lookup does not XOG out correctly when included in the Project Object and if included will throw an error.
6. Other Objects & Views. (much more simple than the project object). Same concept though. Scale down the objects and views to just what is needed.
9. Processes. It's important to separate out "template" processes from regular ones. We found at least at 8.1FP03 that if you combine say a process tied to an idea and a template process tied to the project object in the same XOG XML, the resulting idea process will be tied to the project template! So I keep them in separate XOG XML files. The safest bet by far is to have one file per process.
[color=#121E9C][size=4][font=Arial]What?!? One needs to be an [color=#FF0303]ENGINEER[color] to run the XOG?!? :grin: True, but that was not in the user guide!
I find it helpful to read (XOG) out an existing resource record in its entirety in order to find out the exact syntax for a successful XOG. In your case, you could simply run the cmn_users_read.xml (make sure you update <Filter name="userName" criteria="EQUALS">Update with userName here </Filter>) within the cmn_users_read.xml file.
In my company we have several OBS associations that we can XOG out on the CMN_User.
I think you should have something along the same if you execute the above file with a valid user name, which will allow you to sequentially XOG out your resources for import into V12.
Great XOG Basic steps guidelines, I found them to be very informative. I have a question, I am xogging from 7.5.3 to 12 and I need to xog out cmn_users, I would like to only xog out resources by OBS level, is that possible to filter on? I am able to xog out by userName or isActive "true" (isActive actually crash's the Clarity App server we think, so we don't do that one). I can't seem to find the right filter name="" field to use to then say "EQUALS" the actual obs department name. Can you help?
This post is quite helpful. Thanks a lot.
Your instructions are very helpful. Thank you so much. I do have a question however. Is it correct to assume that data is xogged out as well? If not how do i do this piece? We have a custom object that I was able to xog out. Upon examining the file it doesn't seem like i captured the data.
How do I capture object and data? I looked at the content pack file, however, there are so many parameters that I did not know where to start.
To answer your question, YES data can be XOGed out but NO it will not be brought out with the object itself as you have seen. That will require an "instance" XOG read. The Content Pack XML files are used for object content. So, in your case since you are needing to read out instance data for a custom object, you'll want to use the "custom_object_instances_read.xml" file.
If you take a look at the example XML files which get installed with the XOG client you'll see this one listed. You'll simply replace the objectCode and instanceCode filters with your custom names as needed. You can choose to filter by object (and bring out all instance data) or by instance and bring out only a select resultset using the OR criteria. Take a peek at the "custom_object_instances_write.xml" to get an idea of what your resulting output will look like.
I want read a project with xog: task, dependencies, resources, risk, baseline line, financial... All data.
I see the folder xml (xog client), ¿What xml i need for read all data from a project? ¿What is the sequence of data?
What happens, if then, i writte this project in other environment and, for example, no exist one resource?
if you want to xog-out for all the project information like resources, dependencies, etc, just set the value to true. if not require, just change the value to false.
We have 4 partitions in our project.
and the total number of attributes in project object is around 1000.
I want to xog out the attributes based on the partition but couldnot write condition.
Please let me know how to write condition to xog out.
Have you tried finding a specific project in a particular partition and then reading out that project id? That is what I do when working with multiple partitions. So for example, I find a project that has customized values in a specific partiton, and note the project ID. Then I go to the Project Read (prj_projects_read.xml) and insert the following condition: <Filter name="projectID" criteria="EQUALS">insert project id here</Filter> Does that help?
But i wanted to Xog out the object's ATTRIBUTE and not the instance based on partition.
You can use the following to xog out the object. The output xml file generated by such xog is too large. There was similar query in linkedin forum, I am pasting the same response here as well. The title of the query is following "Is it possible to restrict a content pack XOG to a single partition? "
is there a way to remove a given object from the database?
I would like to remove objects (type "product") using a SOAP message filtering by ID.
Furthermore, is there an official guide of XOG?
Leaving aside XOG, is there a different way to remove a record from the db?
Or mark the record as "inactive" (which you can do through XOG). Inactive is a "logical delete" - ask yourself why you really need to "delete" a record and why that could not just be an inactive record.
Are you talking about object or object instances?
You cannot remove OOTB objects like investments (projects and NPIO's like products).
You can mark their instances for deletion and rung the purge investments job.
Well, I undestand the difference between "inactivate a given record" vs "delete a given record".
2) On Create -> a given process starts and a script is executed.
3) if an error is thrown, then I want to remove this record, so that I can run again the "On Create script"
5) I can't change this integration logic.
If I can inactivate an object and save it again with THE SAME CODE, then it is ok.
In that case could you please show how to inactivate an item of a customobject via XOG?
OOTB objects like projects and users/resources have active attribute the value of which has certain consequences.
However, I don't have active attribute by default in my custom objects.
If I added one I don't think that will work the same way as in projects or users/resources.
So you need to change your processes... perhaps to pick up a different column to use as the "code" (thereby removing your uniqueness problems)?
and I know that you have said you can't change your "integration logic", but that is what your talking about anyway with your "delete" option?
Your "problems" seems to be caused by how your integration logic/process has been designed&built rather than anything "technical" to do with how Clarity works - i.e. your integration logic has not satisfied its requirements?
your hint was really precious.
I changed my "integration logic", now it works.
This thread seems to be missing some posts.
I am needing to XOG "IN" custom attributes to the project attribute on existing projects. What is the best xml sample to use in this function?
I want to migrate custom lookups from one environment to another but I am not able to read a bunch of lookups from the sourve environment. Do I have to create an xml for each lookup?
Any insight as to why when I run the following XOG Read I can't pull out my custom lookup?
We have encountered one bug when we xog the process from lower enviroment.
The process includes steps to execute the few jobs in a row.
The process was working fine in lower enviroment but when xogged the same process to higher environent. Job did not get triggered.
Once we removed the step from Process and added it. Then it worked fine.
Thank you for the detailed information on Xog.
Would you also please eloborate any steps to be taken to Xog, in environments where SSL is enabled.
I am new to XOG and am practicing in our DEV environment. I successfully pulled out (2) test projects and would like to practice and update the PM by xogging back the "write" file. What am I doing wrong??
Appreciate if you can explain these and also provide a list of all possible arguments available.
I want to do a menu XOG ( menu organization), is there such a possibility? What are the steps to take?
This is another post I definitely saw posted on July 27, but it was just autosaved. Wonder why.
You cannot XOG in menu.
The object api XOG does not support reading menus.
You can use the XOG query api if you create a NSQL query to read it, but as said you cannot XOG that back in.
We can also execute the XOG through clarity URL. What is the URL ? Please provide it as well.
That page was intended for development use only and was never supported. It was disabled some time ago and is no longer available for end-users. However, there are third party tools that provide a similar page that allow you to xog from within PPM. These utilities are not supported by the CA PPM team. But many people find them very useful. If you decide to use one of these utilities and get an error that you cannot resolve on your own, support can help as long as you can replicate the problem using the XOG client we provide.
If you can provide the same utilities, it will be very helpful.
The utility was very useful to run XOG from the browser window rather than from the command prompt.
Only enhancement needed to that utility was to redirect the output in a local file instead of display in the output window. This approach would be sturdy enough to handle large output of data, if it caused crashing earlier.
Re: Why do my replies get autosaved and not posted? | 2019-04-22T21:59:31Z | https://communities.ca.com/thread/10046520-xog-the-basics |
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An accommodating intraocular lens is provided having optical parameters that are altered in-situ, wherein an optic portion of the lens includes a lens piston that alters the shape of a lens element of the lens to alter the optical power of the lens, responsive to forces applied to a haptic portion to the lens by contraction of the ciliary muscles. Forces applied to the haptic portion are concentrated by the lens piston to provide a greater dynamic range, and may be further augmented by the use of haptic pistons disposed in the haptic portion of the lens.
This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 10/971,598, filed Oct. 22, 2004, now U.S. Pat. No. 7,261,737; which application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. application Ser. No. 10/734,514, filed Dec. 12, 2003, now U.S. Pat. No. 7,122,053; and claims the benefit of priority from U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/433,046, filed Dec. 12, 2002. These applications are incorporated by reference as if fully set forth herein.
The present invention relates to intraocular lenses (“IOLs”) having optical parameters that are changeable in-situ. More particularly, the invention has applications in IOLs for in-capsule implantation for cataract patients, wherein forces applied by the ciliary muscles in the eye induce movement of fluid media within the interior of the IOL, thereby altering an optical power of the lens to provide accommodation.
More specifically, the imaging properties of the human eye are facilitated by several optical interfaces. A healthy youthful human eye has a total power of approximately 59 diopters, with the anterior surface of the cornea (e.g. the exterior surface, including the tear layer) providing about 48 diopters of power, while the posterior surface provides about −4 diopters. The crystalline lens, which is situated posterior of the pupil in a transparent elastic capsule supported by the ciliary muscles, provides about 15 diopters of power, and also performs the critical function of focusing images upon the retina. This focusing ability, referred to as “accommodation,” enables imaging of objects at various distances.
Isolated from the eye, the relaxed capsule and lens take on a spherical shape. Within the eye, however, the capsule is connected around its circumference by approximately 70 tiny ligament fibers to the ciliary muscles, which in turn are attached to an inner surface of the eyeball. The ciliary muscles that support the lens and capsule therefore are believed to act in a sphincter-muscular mode. Accordingly, when the ciliary muscles are relaxed, the capsule and lens are pulled about the circumference to a larger diameter, thereby flattening the lens, whereas when the ciliary muscles are contracted the lens and capsule relax somewhat and assume a smaller diameter that approaches a more spherical shape. This mechanism, called the “ciliary process” increases the diopter power of the lens.
Although previously known workers in the field of accommodating IOLs have made some progress, the relative complexity of the methods and apparatus developed to date have prevented widespread commercialization of such devices. Previously known these devices have proved too complex to be practical to construct or have achieved only limited success, due to the inability to provide accommodation of more than 1-2 diopters.
Although fluid-actuated mechanisms such as described in the aforementioned patents have been investigated, accommodating lenses currently nearing commercialization, such as developed by Eyeonics, Inc. (formerly C&C Vision, Inc.) of Aliso Viejo, Calif., rely on ciliary muscle contraction of the IOL haptics to move the optic towards or away from the retina to adjust the focus of the device.
These and other objects of the present invention are accomplished by providing an intraocular lens responsive to variations in capsule shape and/or forces exerted by the ciliary muscle to actuate one or more transducers. The transducers are coupled to a lens piston that deflects a surface of the lens, e.g., from a moderately convex to a highly convex shape. In accordance with the principles of the present invention, the lens piston provides a significant volumetric mechanical advantage in effecting deflection of an anterior or posterior surface of the lens, and greater dynamic range, compared to previously-known fluid-mediated accommodation systems.
In the context of the present invention, “volumetric mechanical advantage” means that a motion of the ciliary muscle, e.g., 100 microns, is amplified by the ratio of the transducer area over which force is applied to the area of the lens piston. It is expected that ratios of two or more may be achieved, but a ratio of one also is expected to be adequate for most patient populations. Operation of the lens piston may be enhanced using one or more haptic pistons that provide a further volumetric mechanical advantage compared to previously-known fluid-mediated accommodation systems.
The haptic portion is disposed at the periphery of the optic portion and may comprise one or more arms that extend outward from the optic portion, each arm including a fluid channel coupled in fluid communication with the fluid channels in the optic portion. The haptic portion includes one or more transducers that engage the interior of the capsule and/or ciliary muscle, so that action of the ciliary process is communicated via the fluid channels to the one or more lens pistons. More preferably, the transducers further comprise a haptic piston including a force-concentrating element operatively coupled to a diaphragm.
In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, the transducer may be biased to maintain the lens piston in an accommodated state. For such embodiments, relaxation of the ciliary muscle causes the zonules to transition the capsule to an ellipsoidal shape. The capsule thereby applies compressive forces that deform the transducer, reduce fluid pressure in the lens piston, and cause the lens to transition to the unaccommodated state. Alternatively, the lens piston may not be pressurized when the transducer is in the undeformed state. In this latter case, the lens may be configured so that contraction of the ciliary muscle induces thickening near the capsular equator, which in turn compresses the transducer to pressurize the lens piston and transition the lens to the accommodated state.
The haptic pistons, lens piston(s) and fluid volumes may be manufactured so as to provide predetermined actuation forces appropriate for predetermined populations of patients, or alternatively may be tailored on a patient-by-patient basis, thereby enhancing the ability of the intraocular lens to adjust to different optical focusing powers and force magnifications.
In addition, the haptic portion may include one or more features, such as flanges, that apply a force on the capsular bag to maintain tension on the zonules. This arrangement enables the transducer to follow the equator of the capsule.
FIGS. 12A-12C are, respectively, a perspective view and side sectional views in the accommodated and unaccommodated states of yet another embodiment of the intraocular lens of the present invention.
In accordance with the principles of the present invention, an intraocular lens is provided having a haptic portion and a light-transmissive optic portion. The optic portion contains one or more fluid-mediated pistons arranged to apply a deflecting force on an anterior or posterior element of the lens to provide accommodation of the lens. As used herein, the lens is fully “accommodated” when it assumes its most highly convex shape, and fully “unaccommodated” when it assumes its most flattened, ellipsoidal state. The lens of the present invention is capable of dynamically assuming any desired degree of accommodation between the fully accommodated state and fully unaccommodated state responsive to the ciliary process.
Forces applied to a transducer disposed in the haptic portion by the ciliary process are communicated to one or more lens pistons that control deflection of an anterior or posterior element of the lens, resulting in a larger dynamic range of accommodation than heretofore is believed to have been available. The lens piston and surrounding fluids all are index-matched to prevent the occurrence of optical aberrations throughout the range of motion of the lens piston.
In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, the transducer may include one or more haptic pistons that provide a volumetric mechanical advantage with respect to forces applied by the ciliary process to the lens piston.
Accommodating lenses currently nearing commercialization, such as the Crystalens device under development by Eyeonics, Inc., Aliso Viejo, Calif., typically involve converting diametral movements of the ciliary muscle into forward and backward movement of an optic portion of the IOL relative to the retina. This approach is thought to be required because, following extraction of a cataract-effected lens, the capsule is very loose, and the zonules that couple the capsule to the ciliary muscles are no longer in tension. Devices such as the Crystalens thus do not employ the natural accommodation mechanisms described above, but instead rely directly on radially inward compressive forces applied by the ciliary muscle to the haptics of the IOL.
By contrast, according to one aspect of the present invention, an intraocular lens is designed to engage capsule 15 and to transition between the accommodated and unaccommodated states responsive to forces applied to capsule 15 by ciliary muscle 13 and zonules 14, thereby more closely mimicking operation of the natural eye. Alternatively, the haptic portion may be disposed directly in contact with the ciliary muscle.
Referring to FIGS. 3A and 3B, an exemplary embodiment of an intraocular lens constructed in accordance with the principles of the present invention is described. IOL 20 comprises optic portion 21 and haptic portion 22. Optic portion 21 is constructed of light transmissive materials, while haptic portion 22 is disposed at the periphery of the optic portion and does not participate in focusing light on the retina of the eye.
In FIG. 3B, transducers 30 are in an undeformed state in which force-concentrating fins 31 apply a maximum deflection to diaphragms 32, thereby fully deflecting end wall 41 and driving anterior element 23 to the fully accommodated position. This corresponds to a fully-contracted state of the ciliary muscles, as described herein below.
Referring now to FIGS. 5A and 5B, haptic pistons 42, constructed in accordance with the principles of the present invention are described in greater detail. Haptic pistons comprise flexible and resilient transducers 30 that support force-concentrating fins 31 biased against diaphragms 32. Each diaphragm 32 comprises an elastomeric cover for a corresponding reservoir 33 filled with fluid 38. As described herein above, fluid 38 communicates through channels 34 into well 35 and the interior of lens piston 25. Transducers 30 are constructed from a resilient, elastomeric material that changes shape responsive to forces applied by capsule 15 from the ciliary muscles 13 and zonules 14.
In FIG. 5A, haptic piston 42 is shown in an undeformed state (as in FIG. 3B), corresponding to the ciliary muscles being fully contracted. In this state, the apex of fin 31 bears against diaphragm 32 to develop the maximum force resulting from the bias of transducer 30. Inward displacement of diaphragm 32 in turn displaces fluid through channels 34 (see FIG. 3) to well 35, resulting in expansion of end wall 41 of lens piston 25. When transducer 30 is in the undeformed state, fin 31 displaces the maximum volume of fluid from the haptic portion to lens piston 25, resulting in the maximum deflection of anterior element 23, and thus the maximum degree of accommodation of the lens. This corresponds to the state in which the ciliary muscles are fully contracted, and zonules 14 and capsule 15 apply the least amount of compressive force to the anterior and posterior surfaces of transducer 30.
When the ciliary muscles relax, however, the tension in the zonules increases, causing capsule 15 to assume an ellipsoidal shape (see FIG. 2A) and the lens to transition to its unaccommodated state. When the capsule becomes taut, it applies compressive forces F to the anterior and posterior surfaces of transducer 30, causing the transducer to deform to the elliptical shape depicted in FIG. 5B. Deformation of transducers 30 moves fins 31 away from diaphragms 32, thereby unloading the diaphragms and reducing the fluid pressure applied to lens piston 25. This in turn permits lens piston 25 to move to an undeflected state, reducing deflection of anterior lens element 23 and returning the lens to an unaccommodated state.
Referring now to FIGS. 6A to 6C, IOL 20 is shown implanted into capsule 15 of human eye 10. When so implanted, haptic arms 28 and 29 support the IOL within the capsule, while transducers 30 engage the interior of the capsule at locations adjacent to ciliary muscles 13. In FIG. 6B the ciliary muscles are shown in a contracted state, in which the compressive forces applied by zonules 14 and capsule 15 to transducers 30 is lowest and transducers 30 assume the undeformed position. This also corresponds to transducers 30 applying the least tension to capsule 15 and zonules 14. As discussed above, in the undeformed position, fins 30 are biased against diaphragms 32, displacing fluid 38 from reservoirs 33 to the lens piston. In FIG. 6C, the ciliary muscles are relaxed, and zonules 14 pull capsule 15 taut into an ellipsoidal shape. As noted above, in this state the capsule applies compressive forces to the lateral surfaces of transducers 30 that ensure that lens piston 25 is drawn to its fully retracted position.
Referring now to FIGS. 7A to 7C, an alternative embodiment of the IOL of the present invention is described. IOL 50 comprises optic portion 51 and haptic portion 52. Optic portion 51 comprises anterior lens element 53 and substrate 54 formed of light-transmissive materials. Substrate 54 includes lens piston 55 having expandable end wall 56, and fluid channels 57 in fluid communication with the interior of lens piston 55. Expandable end wall 56 contacts the inner surface of anterior lens element 53, so that deflection of end wall 56 causes anterior lens element 53 to assume a more convex shape. The thickness profile of anterior lens element 53 is tailored to a desired degree of optical correction when deflected, as previously described. Channels 57 and space 58, disposed between anterior lens element 53 and substrate 54, are filled with fluid 59 having an index of refraction that is matched to the materials of anterior lens element 53 and substrate 54. Substrate 54 may include integrally formed posterior lens element 60.
Haptic portion 52 is disposed at the periphery of optic portion 51, and includes transducers 61 that include force-concentrating fins 62 coupled to diaphragms 63. Fluid channels 57 extend circumferentially along the edges of substrate 54 for an arc-length corresponding to the arc-length of haptic portions 52 to form edge recesses 64 that function as reservoirs. Transducer 61, fin 62, diaphragm 63 and edge recess 64 together form a haptic piston that adjusts the deflection of end wall 56 of lens piston 55 responsive to contraction and relaxation of the ciliary muscle, zonules and capsule.
As in the embodiment of FIGS. 3-6, transducers 61 are constructed so that, in the undeformed state, they bias force-concentrating fins 62 to cause the maximum inward displacement of diaphragms 63. Because diaphragms 63 of the haptic pistons are coupled to fins 62, compressive forces applied to the anterior and posterior faces of transducers 61 by the capsule during relaxation of the ciliary muscles urges the IOL to its unaccommodated state by deforming transducers 61 and withdrawing fluid from lens piston 55.
As illustrated in FIG. 7B, contraction of the ciliary muscles causes the zonules and capsule to relax, thereby reducing the compressive forces applied by the capsule to transducers 61. This permits transducers 61 to return to an undeformed state in which fins 62 extend radially inward to displace diaphragms 63 into edge recesses 64. This in turn displaces fluid 59 to the lens piston, causing end wall 56 to deflect anterior lens element 53 to the accommodated state.
Relaxation of the ciliary muscles causes the zonules and capsule to become taut, thereby compressing transducers 61 to deform to the position shown in FIG. 7C. More specifically, the compressive forces applied by the zonules and capsule deform transducers 61 to an elongated shape. This in turn causes fins 62 and diaphragms 63 to deflect outward away from edge recesses 64, and draw fluid from lens piston 55, returning the lens to its unaccommodated state.
Referring to FIGS. 8A-8C, another alternative embodiment of the intraocular lens of the present invention is described. IOL 70 includes optic portion 71 and haptic portion 72. IOL 70 differs from the IOL 50 primarily in that haptic portion 72 is disposed around the entire optic portion, and in addition haptic portion 72 omits the use of haptic pistons, as in the preceding embodiments.
Optic portion 71 comprises anterior lens element 73 and substrate 74 formed of light-transmissive materials. Substrate 74 includes lens piston 75 having expandable end wall 76, and fluid channels 77 in fluid communication with the interior of lens piston 75. Expandable end wall 76 contacts the inner surface of anterior lens element 73, so that deflection of end wall 76 causes anterior lens element 73 to assume a more convex shape, as in the preceding embodiments. The thickness profile of anterior lens element 73 is tailored to produce a desired degree of accommodation when deflected, as previously described. Channels 77 and space 78, disposed between anterior lens element 73 and substrate 74, are filled with fluid 79 having a matched index of refraction. Substrate 74 may define a posterior lens surface 80, or may include a separate lens element.
Haptic portion 72 is disposed surrounding the periphery of optic portion 71, and includes transducer 81. Transducer 81 comprises diaphragm 82 including elastomeric ring 83 disposed along the midline of the diaphragm that biases the ring to the radially compressed state depicted in FIGS. 8A and 8B. This state corresponds to the maximum deflection of lens piston 75, and thus the state of maximum accommodation of lens 70. Ring 83 also ensures that diaphragm 82 engages and applies tension to the capsule. Transducer 81 adjusts the deflection of end wall 76 of lens piston 75 responsive to contraction and relaxation of the ciliary muscle, zonules and capsule.
More specifically, contraction of the ciliary muscles causes the zonules and capsule to relax, thereby reducing the compressive forces applied by the capsule to transducer 81. This permits the transducer to return to an undeformed state, in which ring 83 biases diaphragm 82 to displace fluid to lens piston 75. This in turn causes end wall 76 to deflect anterior lens element 73 to the accommodated state.
Relaxation of the ciliary muscles causes the zonules and capsule to become taut, thereby applying compression to the anterior and posterior surfaces of transducer 81 to deform to the diaphragm to the position shown in FIG. 8C. In particular, the compressive forces applied by the zonules and capsule deform transducer 81 to an elongated shape that reduces the pressure on fluid 59 and permits end wall 76 of lens piston 75 to transition to the undeflected state shown in FIG. 8C. This in turn reduces deflection of anterior lens element 73 and returns the lens to its unaccommodated state.
Referring now to FIGS. 9A-9C, a second family of embodiments of intraocular lenses is described. Unlike the preceding embodiments, in which action of the ciliary muscle is transmitted to the IOL via the zonules and capsule, in this embodiment action of the ciliary muscle directly against the transducer is communicated to the lens piston. As depicted in FIG. 9A, IOL 90 may be implanted anterior to the capsule, and includes optic portion 91 and haptic portion 92.
Optic portion 91 comprises anterior lens element 93 and substrate 94 formed of light-transmissive materials. Substrate 94 includes lens piston 95 having expandable end wall 96, and fluid channels 97 in fluid communication with the interior of lens piston 95. Expandable end wall 96 contacts the inner surface of anterior lens element 93, so that deflection of end wall 96 causes anterior lens element 93 to assume a more convex shape. As in the preceding embodiments, the thickness profile of anterior lens element 93 may be tailored to produce a desired degree of accommodation when deflected. Channels 97 and space 98, disposed between anterior lens element 93 and substrate 94, are filled with fluid 99 having a matched index of refraction. Substrate 94 may define a posterior lens surface 100, or may include a separate lens element.
The optical power provided by posterior lens surface 100 may be used to provide the base power of the device, and may be tailored for specific patient population. The profile of posterior lens surface 100 also may be chosen to provide optimal performance of the optical system in concert with the optical correction provided by anterior lens element 93 throughout its range of motion.
In addition or alternatively, any error of the refractive surface of anterior lens element 93, for example 1 or 2 microns or less of wave error that the surface experiences throughout its range of motion, may be further reduced by adding a small compensating thickness to anterior lens element 93, in exactly the reverse sense of the error, e.g., corresponding to the average error incurred at each point on anterior lens element 93 through its range of motion.
Haptic portion 92 includes a plurality of transducers 101, each transducer comprising diaphragm 102. Transducers 101 are designed to directly engage the ciliary muscle in the area of the sulcus, and comprise resilient, flexible diaphragms 102 that have an undeformed shape depicted in FIG. 9C. The interiors of diaphragms 102 form reservoirs 103 communicate with channels 97, and are filled with index-matched fluid 99.
Contraction of the ciliary muscles applies a radially compressive force to the transducers that transitions the diaphragms to the shape depicted in FIG. 9B. This causes fluid to be displaced from reservoirs 103 of transducers 101, pressurizing the fluid in channels 99 and lens piston 95. Responsive to this pressure increase, end wall 96 of the lens piston expands anteriorly, deflecting anterior lens element 93 and transitioning the lens to the accommodated state, as shown in FIG. 9B.
When the ciliary muscle subsequently relaxes, the radially compressive forces applied by the muscles diminish, transducer 101 returns to an undeformed state of FIG. 9C, and lens piston resumes its unexpandable position. This in turn reduces deflection of anterior lens element 93 and returns the lens to its unaccommodated state.
While the design of the haptic portion of the embodiment of FIG. 9 is similar to those of previously-known fluid-mediated accommodating intraocular lenses, such as those described in the aforementioned patent to Christie, the presence of lens piston 95 is expected to provide significantly greater volumetric mechanical advantage and greater dynamic range than could be achieved with prior art designs.
Whereas previously-known designs distribute a pressure increase resulting from action of the ciliary muscle over the entire surface of the lens, the lens piston of the present invention amplifies motion of the ciliary muscle, e.g., 100 microns, by the ratio of the transducer area to the area of the lens piston. It is expected that ratios of 2 or more may be readily achieved, however, a ratio of one may be sufficient for many patient populations. Accordingly, the amount of fluid that must be displaced to optically correct axial displacement of the refractive surface of anterior lens element 23 is relatively small.
With respect to FIGS. 10A-10C, a third family of embodiments of the intraocular lens of the present invention is described. Like the embodiments of FIGS. 3-8, IOL 110 is implanted within the capsule, includes haptic pistons, and is actuated by action of the ciliary muscles, zonules and capsule. However, as in the embodiment of FIG. 9, the lens is unaccommodated in its unstressed condition, and transitions to the accommodated state upon application of radially compressive forces. In particular, whereas the embodiments of FIGS. 3-6 transition from the accommodated state to the unaccommodated state by virtue of lateral (anterior and posterior) compressive forces applied during the capsule during relaxation, the embodiment of FIG. 10 transitions to the accommodated state upon thickening of the capsular equator during contraction of the ciliary muscles.
The structure of IOL 110 is similar to that of IOL 90 of FIG. 9, with like parts identified by like-primed numbers, except that transducers 101′ are surrounded by force concentrating elements 111, and haptic portions 92′ further comprise flanges 112 that orient IOL 110 within the capsule and maintain tension on the zonules.
More specifically, IOL 110 includes optic portion 91′ and haptic portion 92′. Optic portion 91′ comprises anterior lens element 93′ and substrate 94′ formed of light-transmissive materials. Substrate 94′ includes lens piston 95′ having expandable end wall 96′, and fluid channels 97′ in fluid communication with the interior of lens piston 95′. Expandable end wall 96′ contacts the inner surface of anterior lens element 93′, so that deflection of end wall 96′ causes anterior lens element 93′ to assume a more convex shape. As in the preceding embodiments, the thickness profile of anterior lens element 93′ may be tailored to produce a desired degree of accommodation when deflected. Channels 97′ and space 98′, disposed between anterior lens element 93′ and substrate 94′, are filled with fluid 99′ having a matched index of refraction. Substrate 94′ defines posterior lens surface 100′.
Haptic portion 92′ includes transducers 101′, with each transducer having diaphragm 102′. Arcuate force-concentrating elements 111 are disposed radially outward of transducers 101′ and illustratively have fixed end 113 connected to haptic portion 92 and free end 114. Elements 111 contact the equator of capsule 15 and flex radially inward or outward to follow thickening or thinning of the capsular equator responsive to contraction of the ciliary muscles. Elements 111, diaphragms 102′, and reservoirs 103′ together form haptic pistons. Elements 111 and diaphragms 102′ have an undeformed shape depicted in FIG. 10C. As in the preceding embodiments reservoirs 103′ communicate with channels 97′, and are filled with index-matched fluid 99′. As noted above, laterally-extending flanges 112 apply tension to the capsule to orient the IOL within the capsule and maintain tension on the zonules when the capsule changes shape responsive to action of the ciliary muscles.
As described herein above with respect to FIG. 2, contraction of the ciliary muscles causes the capsule to become more spherical and thicken along its equator. This thickening applies a radially compressive force to elements 111 of transducers 101′ that compresses diaphragms 102′ to the deformed shapes depicted in FIGS. 10A and 10B. This causes fluid to be displaced from reservoirs 103′ of transducers 101′, pressurizing the fluid in channels 97′ and lens piston 95′. Responsive to this pressure increase, end wall 96′ of the lens piston expands anteriorly, deflecting anterior lens element 93′ and transitioning the lens to the accommodated state, as shown in FIG. 10B. Frames 112 retain IOL 110 centered on the capsular equator as the capsule transitions to a more spherical shape.
When the ciliary muscle subsequently relaxes, the radially compressive forces applied by the muscles diminish, the capsule becomes more ellipsoidal, and the capsular equator thins. Frames 112 become compressed by the lateral forces applied by the capsule and zonules, and transducers 101′ follow the elongation of the capsule, with free ends 114 of elements 111 deflecting outward to the undeformed state depicted in FIG. 10C. This in turn relieves compression of diaphragms 102′, so that fluid moves from channels 97′ back to reservoirs 103′, and lens piston 95′ resumes its unexpanded position. Consequently, anterior lens element 93′ returns to its undeflected state and lens 110 transitions to the unaccommodated state shown in FIG. 10C.
Referring to FIGS. 11A-11C, a further alternative embodiment of the intraocular lens of the present invention is described. IOL 120 is similar in construction to IOL 110, and like components are designated by like double prime numbers. Thus, for example, while the anterior lens element of FIG. 10A is designated 93′, the anterior lens element of FIG. 11A is designated 93″. IOL 120 differs from IOL 110 of FIG. 10 in that diaphragm 102′ is omitted, and reservoir 103″ is defined by an internal lumen of element 111″ that communicates with channel 97″ via opening 121. In IOL 120, element 111″ therefore defines transducer 101″.
As in IOL 110 of FIG. 10, IOL 120 is disposed within the capsule and transitions to the accommodated state upon thickening of the capsular equator during contraction of the ciliary muscles. Flanges 112″ that orient the IOL within the capsule and maintain tension on the zonules.
IOL 120 includes optic portion 91″ and haptic portion 92″. Optic portion 91″ comprises anterior lens element 93″ and substrate 94″ formed of light-transmissive materials. Substrate 94″ includes lens piston 95″ having expandable end wall 96″, and fluid channels 97″ in fluid communication with the interior of lens piston 95″. Expandable end wall 96″ contacts the inner surface of anterior lens element 93″, so that deflection of end wall 96″ causes anterior lens element 93″ to assume a more convex shape. As in the preceding embodiments, the thickness profile of anterior lens element 93″ may be tailored to produce a desired degree of accommodation when deflected. Channels 97″ and space 98″, disposed between anterior lens element 93″ and substrate 94″, are filled with index-matched fluid 99″. Substrate 94″ defines posterior lens surface 100″.
Haptic portion 92″ includes transducers 101″ in the form of arcuate elements 111″ having fixed end 113″ connected to haptic portion 92″ and free end 114″. Elements 111″ include internal lumens defining reservoirs 103″ that are in fluid communication with channels 97″ via openings 121. Elements 111″ contact the equator of capsule 15 and flex radially inward or outward to follow thickening or thinning of the capsular equator responsive to contraction of the ciliary muscles. Elements 111″ have the undeformed shape depicted in FIG. 11C. Reservoirs 103′m, channels 97″ and lens piston 95″ are filled with index-matched fluid 99″. As noted above, laterally-extending flanges 112″ apply tension to the capsule to orient the IOL within the capsule and maintain tension on the zonules when the capsule changes shape responsive to action of the ciliary muscles.
As for IOL 110, contraction of the ciliary muscles causes the capsule to become more spherical and thicken along its equator, thereby applying a radially compressive force to transducers 101″ that compresses elements 111″ to the deformed shapes depicted in FIGS. 11A and 11B. This causes fluid to be displaced from reservoirs 103″ of transducers 101″, pressurizing the fluid in channels 97″ and lens piston 95″. Responsive to this pressure increase, end wall 96″ of the lens piston expands anteriorly, deflecting anterior lens element 93″ and transitioning the lens to the accommodated state, as shown in FIG. 11B. Frames 112″ retain IOL 120 centered on the capsular equator as the capsule transitions to a more spherical shape.
When the ciliary muscle subsequently relaxes, the radially compressive forces applied by the muscles diminish, the capsule becomes more ellipsoidal, and the capsular equator thins. Frames 112″ become compressed by the lateral forces applied by the capsule and zonules, and transducers 101″ follow the elongation of the capsule, with free ends 114″ of elements 111″ deflecting outward to the undeformed state depicted in FIG. 11C. This in turn relieves compression of transducers 101″, so that fluid moves from channels 97″ back to reservoirs 103″, and lens piston 95″ resumes its unexpanded position. Consequently, anterior lens element 93″ returns to its undeflected state and lens 120 transitions to the unaccommodated state shown in FIG. 11C.
In FIGS. 12A-12C, still another embodiment of an intraocular lens constructed in accordance with the principles of the present invention is described. IOL 130 comprises optic portion 131 and haptic portion 132. Optic portion 131 comprises anterior lens element 133 and substrate 134 formed of light-transmissive materials. Substrate 134 includes lens piston 135 having expandable end wall 136, and fluid channels 137 in fluid communication with the interior of lens piston 135.
Expandable end wall 136 contacts the inner surface of anterior lens element 133, so that deflection of end wall 136 causes anterior lens element 133 to assume a more convex shape. The thickness profile of anterior lens element 133 is tailored to provide a desired degree of optical correction throughout its range of deflection. Channels 137 and space 138, disposed between anterior lens element 133 and substrate 134, are filled with fluid 139 having an index of refraction that is matched to the materials of anterior lens element 133 and substrate 134. Substrate 134 includes posterior lens surface 140.
Haptic portion 132 is disposed at the periphery of optic portion 131, and includes transducers 141 having segments 142 slidably disposed in edge recesses 143. Edge recesses 143 are defined by extensions 144 of fluid channels 137 that extend circumferentially along the edges of substrate 134 for an arc-length corresponding to the arc-length of haptic portions 132 and function as reservoirs. Segments 142 are coupled to diaphragms 145 so that force applied to the outer edges of segments 142 by the capsular equator causes the segments to be displaced radially inward. Laterally-extending flanges 146 apply tension to the capsule to orient IOL 130 within the capsule and maintain tension on the zonules.
Segment 142, substrate extensions 144, diaphragm 145 and edge recess 143 together form a haptic piston that transfers fluid to lens piston 135 responsive to contraction and relaxation of the ciliary muscle, zonules and capsule. Specifically, inward movement of segments 142 causes diaphragms 145 to displace inwardly into edge recesses 143, thereby transferring fluid to lens piston 135. As in the preceding embodiment, fluid entering lens piston 135 expands end wall 136, thereby deflecting anterior lens element 133 to its accommodated shape, as shown in FIGS. 12A and 12B.
In FIG. 12C, when the ciliary muscles relax, the capsule elongates and applies laterally compressive forces to flanges 146. As the capsule elongates, the forces applied to segments 142 decrease, allowing end wall 136 to return to its unexpanded state and permitting anterior lens element 133 to return to the unaccommodated state.
1. An intraocular lens configured for implantation in a capsule following extraction of a lens, the intraocular lens accommodating responsive to contraction of a patient's ciliary muscles, the intraocular lens comprising: a substrate having a portion defining a fluid channel; a lens element; an actuator layer interposed between the lens element and the substrate, the actuator layer having at least one lens piston disposed in contact with the lens element, the lens piston coupled in fluid communication with the fluid channel; a haptic portion having a reservoir coupled in fluid communication with the fluid channel; and a fluid disposed in the lens piston, fluid channel and reservoir, wherein movement of the patient's ciliary muscles induces a transfer of fluid from the reservoir to the lens piston to deflect the lens element.
2. The intraocular lens of claim 1 wherein the lens piston is disposed in the center of the actuating layer.
3. The intraocular lens of claim 1 wherein the lens element has a non-uniform radial thickness selected to maintain a desired degree of optical correction throughout a range of deflection of the lens element.
4. The intraocular lens of claim 1 wherein the fluid has a refractive index substantially the same as a refractive index of the lens element, substrate and actuator layer.
5. The intraocular lens of claim 4 wherein the haptic portion comprises at least one haptic piston.
6. The intraocular lens of claim 5 wherein the haptic piston comprises: a diaphragm disposed in contact with the fluid to define a flexible boundary of the reservoir; and a force-concentrating element operatively associated with the diaphragm that communicates forces from the ciliary muscles to the diaphragm.
7. The intraocular lens of claim 6 wherein the force concentrating element is disposed in contact with the diaphragm.
8. The intraocular lens of claim 6 wherein the force concentrating element is coupled to the diaphragm.
9. The intraocular lens of claim 8 wherein the force concentrating element comprises a segment slidably disposed in an extension of the substrate.
10. The intraocular lens of claim 1 wherein the haptic portion further comprises one or more flanges that apply tension to the capsule.
11. The intraocular lens of claim 1 wherein the haptic portion comprises two or more arms extending from the substrate.
12. An intraocular lens comprising: an optic portion having a lens element; a haptic portion coupled to the optic portion; an actuator layer disposed in the optic portion, the actuator layer including a lens piston; a reservoir disposed in the haptic portion, the reservoir in fluid communication with lens piston; a fluid disposed in the lens piston and reservoir, wherein forces applied to the haptic portion move fluid between the reservoir and the lens piston to control expansion of the lens piston, expansion of the lens piston deflecting the lens element.
13. The intraocular lens of claim 12 wherein the optic portion comprises optically transparent materials.
14. The intraocular lens of claim 12 wherein the lens element has a thickness selected to maintain a desired degree of optical correction throughout a range of deflection of the lens element.
15. The intraocular lens of claim 12 further comprising a substrate including a portion defining a fluid channel that couples the haptic portion to the lens piston.
16. The intraocular lens of claim 12 wherein the lens element is an anterior lens element and the optic portion further comprises a posterior lens element.
17. The intraocular lens of claim 16 wherein the posterior lens element is integrally formed with the substrate.
18. The intraocular lens of claim 12 wherein the fluid has a refractive index substantially the same as a refractive index of the lens element and actuator layer.
19. The intraocular lens of claim 12 wherein the haptic portion comprises at least one haptic piston.
20. The intraocular lens of claim 19 wherein the haptic piston comprises: a diaphragm disposed in contact with the fluid to define a flexible boundary of the reservoir; and a force-concentrating element operatively associated with the diaphragm that communicates forces from the ciliary muscles to the diaphragm. | 2019-04-21T03:39:20Z | https://patents.google.com/patent/US20080046075A1/en |
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Copyright 2018 daFlores.com. All rights reserved. | 2019-04-21T12:47:10Z | https://hua.daflores.com/aboutus/terms_long.phtml |
Product complexity is one of a growing startup's many challenges. How can we offer users more without making it harder for them to find success using our product?
As a new product manager on what had become a convoluted Google Maps product, Andrew Ofstad was challenged with solving this problem, and led a product redesign with one core aim: Restore simplicity to the product without sacrificing capability.
Today Andrew is the co-founder and chief product officer at Airtable, a collaboration tool that make technical databases accessible and easy to use for less technical folk. It’s used by everyone from product and marketing teams to cattle farmers and filmmakers.
Writing software that is tied to hardware releases, like Android, is reminiscent of shipping a CD-ROM. It’s not like most other projects in software today where it’s iterative and you’re constantly shipping features, .
Prioritization is the most important thing you do as a Product Manager and to do it well you need a good mental model of what your users are doing with the product first.
The lesson of Google Maps in 2010 was that an ambitious team will keep building and shipping new features but at a certain point you need to take a step back and look at it with fresh eyes.
Airtable is trying to recreate the immediacy of products like spreadsheets or Maps where you can manipulate the data directly, but in something that has more structure like a database.
The danger of eating your own dogfood is that you can lose touch with how your customers are using your product which may be for vastly different use cases.
Adam Risman: Andrew, welcome to the show. Could you give us a quick rundown of how you got to where you are today and the problem you are trying to solve with Airtable?
Andrew Ofstad: I started my career at Google as part of the Associate Product Manager Program, which was started by Marissa Mayer. Basically they take new grads and throw them into the deep end as a product manager, so it’s a great opportunity to learn a lot quickly. My first project was Android. This was in 2009, when Facebook and Twitter weren’t interested in building Android apps, so the actual Android team was responsible for doing that, and I was the Product Manager for those two social apps. It was a lot of working with Facebook and Twitter, getting their assets and actually designing and building those apps. You do one year on a product and then you rotate to another one.
My second product was Maps. I was always really interested in geography and always loved maps, so I was super excited to work on it. From the ground up we took Maps and redesigned it. At the time, back in 2010, Maps had become super complicated. There were all these teams working on different features, and the mandate coming down from Larry (Page) and Sergey (Brin) for Maps is to organize all the world’s information, at least geographic information, and so there were a ton of information – maps, imagery, business information, street instructions, etc.
Maps had become really cluttered and complicated; it wasn’t a simple interface anymore, so we had this great opportunity. There was a team in Seattle that developed this new technology where you could actually render the maps in the browser using webGL, and this was a nice excuse to appropriate that technology and redesign Maps from the ground up. That was my project.
While I was working on that, I got the itch that led to Airtable. My friend Howie and I had always talked about doing a startup together, and I had always been interested in creative tools that let normal people do things that previously only experts or programmers could do. So I prototyped a lot of products where you could build web pages and simultaneously Howie had sold a company to SalesForce and was a Product Manager there. He saw that a lot of business tools were reinventing the wheel and becoming simple databases with some simple views and logic and workflow on top. One of the most important things he also saw at SalesForce was the ability to actually customize these tools to fit your very unique workflow.
The problem is if you’re adopting a business app, a lot of times they’re very rigid, inflexible, and you can’t really make them fit your very specific use case, so you’re either stuck with a very rigid application or you have to build your own and need somebody that understands databases to configure something like SalesForce for example. Or you need a programmer to build a custom app. The other side of the spectrum is just using something like a spreadsheet, which wasn’t really intended for being used for that use case and was built for number crunching and financial modeling.
There wasn’t really a tool where as an end business user, you could really build a good, internal application to manage a very specific process of workflow. We wanted to build something that was easy enough for anybody to use, and that’s where we aligned with Airtable. We started doing a lot of prototyping, built an initial demo, started showing that to people, getting a lot of feedback and refining that over time. We’ve grown the team and the product, and it’s been a good adventure so far.
Adam: You weren’t just with Android in the nascency of your own career, but in that of Android itself. Looking back at that experience, what sticks with you today now that you’re a founder yourself?
Andrew: There are a few things that made Android really interesting. You’re shipping software that goes along with hardware, so there are very tight deadlines where every six months you have all these carriers and partners expecting the next version of Android that they’re going to ship on their new phone. You’re tied to a hardware launch, which is a very rigid timeline. Compared to most other projects in software that we see today where it’s iterative and you’re constantly shipping features, you basically had to build like the old days when you were shipping a CD-ROM. That drove a lot of urgency, but also excitement in the team, when you are given this mandate to build this very ambitious new release and you just kind of have at it.
The other thing that really made Android interesting was the neck and neck race with Apple. I joined before the Droid was released, and that was the inflection point for Android. At the time it wasn’t really clear if it was going to be a huge success. There wasn’t a lot of adoption and it was right before an inflection point, so that urgency of competing directly with somebody also made things very interesting and made it a very fast-paced team to join initially.
Some of the lessons from that you can apply to any company. At any startup you’re racing against the clock and you only have so much runway, you always have competitors and you’re always fighting the status quo as well, so there is that same sense of urgency you need to convey. As much as you can take the actual urgency of what we’re doing and the problems we’re trying to solve for our customers and communicate that to the team that’s actually building the feature, he better it is as a motivator. It actually creates the same urgency you see in a very hard deadline on Android. We try to do that as much as possible and really tie the people that are working on the product back to the customer who are really demanding these features and really excited to see them.
Adam: What do those rigid deadlines teach you about prioritization, something that’s such a huge challenge for early stage startups?
Andrew: Prioritization is pretty much the most important thing you do as a Product Manager, and you obviously want to be working on the most important things that you can ship in a given time period. But it’s hard to figure that out before you actually start diving into it. It’s a matter of figuring out the bare essentials that you absolutely have to have and then stack ranking those. It’s also figuring out what trade-offs you can make – are there a few shortcuts for things that are less important?
The danger in that is that a lot of times, you can sacrifice a lot of quality product decisions – you throw things out that would make the product very delightful or otherwise would be worth the investment just to squeeze in these other few features that might not be used by most of the users. The first thing is understanding the use cases and having a feeling for that 80/20 split, where you know what people are doing with the product most of the time and stack rank the use cases. Figure out how to make the experience completely awesome for the 80% and then afterwards we can fit in the 20%. You need a good mental model of what your users are doing with the product first, that’s the prerequisite for any prioritization. After that, it’s all about making sure that for those experiences everything is really simple and really delightful and as high-quality as possible.
Adam: Speaking of making things more simple and delightful, in 2010 you moved over to Google Maps. What was the state of Google Maps when you got there?
Andrew: Google Maps in 2010 was a pretty amazing product. If you look back to 2005 when it launched it was also a ground-breaking product, because at that time everything was a full-page reload. You go to Mapquest and you press a button to move the map over and the full page refreshes. It didn’t have any interactivity. In 2005 Google Maps launches and you’re able to reach out and grab the map and drag it. You have this interactivity, which made it amazing. Even though it didn’t have the same feature set as Mapquest, it basically went beyond that because it was so easy and efficient to use.
Between 2005 and 2010, Google had invested a lot in Maps and added a lot of information to it – imagery, street view, business information, satellite view, all these aerial photos. The team had focused on getting a lot of information into Maps without rethinking the UI to accommodate all the different information. There were teams distributed between New York, Seattle, Mountain View and Zurich who were building all these features disparately. In a lot of ways it reflected the organization, where there are all these really smart teams doing amazing things and pouring these great features into Maps, but there wasn’t really a thought process around how they’re fitting into the whole.
Adam: So you have organizational complexity that’s essentially fueling product complexity?
Andrew: That was part of it, and it was a slow buildup to that complexity. It was like boiling a lobster. It was slow increments over time and nobody realizes if you don’t look at it with fresh eyes that this thing is really complex and cluttered. An ambitious team will keep building new features and keep shipping things, and that’s great. But at a certain point you need to take a step back and look at it with a fresh eye.
Adam: Walk me through your process in this unique challenge. Did you begin by paring things back or start from first principles?
Andrew: We actually started with first principles, which helped a lot. We had a great excuse to do that, which was a team in Seattle who was building a completely new way to render the actual maps. The way it worked before is we’d render these map tiles in the server and send them to the client as images. This team found a way to render the map directly in webGL in the browser.
We started thinking of all these cool things you could do with that. You could change the map every time you click it or you could show animations in the map. We could render the map however we wanted for any different search or context and make it interactive. This gave us an excuse to rethink Maps from the ground up around that new technology, and I think that helped a lot as opposed to paring down.
The other thing that helped is we didn’t say that on a certain deadline we’re going to completely eliminate the old Maps and replace it with a new one. That would have created the problem that every team starts flooding to the new Maps team to add all these new features and pretty soon you’re right back where you started again. So we had the existing Google Maps and we spun this project as the new Google Maps, which you can opt in to try. It was this beta thing, and that led us to keep it constrained to the most important use cases in the early days and build up the components that we needed to really make those use cases shine.
Then organizationally it helped because slowly you wrap in your other groups like the Directions team and it’s not like everybody piles on at once. It’s a slow trickle of people moving over to the new thing. It helped a lot for us to start with just a prototype and scale it up from there and slowly get more people involved and excited about it, as opposed to having a completely separate team, which just suddenly launches a product and replaces the old one.
Adam: As you’re getting more and more people involved, what types of constraints did you have to put in place to make sure this iteration of Maps didn’t get too bloated?
Andrew: Philosophically we wanted to limit ourselves to a few UI components. We wanted to make sure it was mostly about the map and not just a bunch of chrome around it. We really focused on that aspect and took a lot of inspiration from mobile apps at the time. We saw a lot of really simple design for complex products in mobile apps and we took that as inspiration for the web app that we were working on. It was taking the constraints that you have on mobile, like a small screen and then applying that to where you actually do have a lot of space. We wanted to create this simple experience that covers these core use cases really well and does it in a really interactive and efficient way for the user but make sure that we’re following these constraints.
You have to find the pieces of UI that are simple yet expressive.
The other important thing is as you’re designing this you have to look at all the use cases and over time think about how they’d fit into the larger pattern. You can’t just build a one-off feature for a very specific use case; you have to find the pieces of UI that are simple yet expressive. An example on Google Maps was the search box. It’s a very expressive thing where you can search for anything in the world and it should just pop up on the map, or if you do an auto complete, you can surface directions from that – keeping things contained to these expressive components. Imagery, for example, always reflects the current context of the map so if you search for something, the imagery would reflect exactly what you searched for.
We took a lot of inspiration from mobile apps where things are very contextual and you tap on something and suddenly the UI becomes about whatever you tap on. We don’t just show everything at once, which is a lot of what we were doing before – where you just turn on the map layer or the photo layer and there would be a ton of photos on the map. We wanted to make it contextual so every part of the UI always reflected the thing you were currently focused on in the context of the current map or search.
It takes a lot of discipline of being very intentional and stewing on a feature for a long time, running through the use cases in your head and then making sure you’re not trying to throw everything into it. Going back to building from the ground up versus paring down UI, it’s a lot easier to go from the ground up and make a really clean UI for something that’s very complex.
Adam: You mentioned taking inspiration from mobile apps at the time of this project, but today, what do you see as a model product that’s very sophisticated in terms of capability but has managed to keep their UI very simple?
Andrew: I was always into creative tools and I really like Sketch. Figma followed in their footsteps as well but if you look at the status quo at the time it was Adobe tools like Photoshop that were super complicated. You can do a million things with filters, image processing, etc, but what most people were actually using it for was designing web apps. Sketch saw that and realized that basically you’re just trying to design web pages, so you want the design tool to reflect what you can do in the actual medium, which is the web. They pared that down and made it contextual where you can select objects and the UI changes to show what you can do with that exact object rather than showing all the controls at the same time.
I definitely took inspiration from tools like Sketch in the Airtable days after Maps. Today I still think they’re doing a great job.
Adam: Looking at the work you did with Google Maps and what you’re doing with Airtable today, one of the biggest crossovers is that you have made the content the UI. What other lessons from your Google Maps experience did you apply as you got Airtable off the ground?
Andrew: We actually called that Maps project Tactile Maps, because we wanted users to feel like you could reach out and touch the map, click on the place, drag it, move it, etc. For Airtable, we wanted to make it about the data as much as possible. When we looked at other database tools out there like Access, when you first started with it, you’d have to go through all sorts of configuration, set up this schema, and do all this meta stuff around actually setting up something that you can put your data into. The reason people love spreadsheets is you can just pop it open, there’s a grid, and you just start entering information. You can easily, directly manipulate the data itself. You can bulk select, delete things, change colors, copy-paste, etc. There are all these ways that you can reach out and touch the data.
With Airtable we wanted to recreate that immediacy of something like spreadsheets or Maps, where you can reach out and touch the data and manipulate it directly, and bring that over to something that has more structure like a database. That’s one of the main lessons: making it as easy as possible to manipulate the data quickly and get down to working directly with information.
Adam: You mentioned the spreadsheet metaphor. With horizontal products like yours, which have such a wide array of use cases, how important is it to have a metaphor like that to communicate what a product can be used for? How has that helped as you’ve brought Airtable to market?
Andrew: Airtable is fundamentally a complex product and something that’s a bit difficult to wrap your head around without actually seeing it. The spreadsheet metaphor helps us a lot because when people see a grid they expect it to behave like a spreadsheet, and we support all of the things it can do.
One thing we’ve learned is being able to show the product in the context of data that the user actually understands goes a long way. When you’re starting in the onboarding flow of Airtable, we have you pick a few example templates, which are hopefully relevant to you, and then we show you those templates in Airtable. We show the grid, which looks like a spreadsheet, and people understand all the patterns they’re familiar with there and we support all those patterns.
But we also want to show the differences, which is one hard part if you rely on an existing metaphor. A lot of times people expect it to behave exactly the same, but when you actually show data, it communicates pretty clearly what’s going on. One of the main differences between Airtable and a spreadsheet is that each column is a specific type and each record is like an object you can expand out into a form. When people see columns of data that all look the same whether it’s a colored select drop down or attachment or text or link to another record, that helps to convey this is a grid like a spreadsheet and it supports all its interactions, but there are also these key differences that you should be familiar with. The data really speaks to that and lets you play around with it.
Adam: One of Airtable’s key use cases is product teams. Are you guys using Airtable to build Airtable? And if so what unique insights does that give you into your product?
Andrew: We use Airtable for everything from our product roadmapping to our marketing editorial calendar, where we we’re planning our next blog posts and feature launches, to tracking our bugs. Pretty much everything where we need to track something for our product development or marketing we use Airtable. In the early days we were just building the product for ourselves.
Adam: So you knew you were really solving a problem there?
Spend a lot of time talking to customers who have use cases that are far removed from yours.
Andrew: Exactly, so as early as possible we started using it for all that stuff. But there’s some danger that you lose touch with your customers if your customers are using it for vastly different use cases. It’s important that if you’re using it internally all the time to also spend a lot of time talking to customers who have use cases that are far removed from yours. We have everybody on the team do customer support rotations, where they’re talking to customers through Intercom, and it really drives a lot of innovation.
We have hack days and people always build the features they actually want to see in the product from using our databases, but it’s also important to make sure everybody’s exposed to everybody else’s use cases to make sure that we’re not just building it for ourselves.
Adam: As Chief Product Officer, are you still interfacing with customers at this point?
Andrew: We do a lot of big customer tours where we’ll go to New York or set up a bunch of things in San Francisco and go to one meeting after the other to see how people are using the product, where there are roadblocks and how we can help. I do a lot of that. It’s the main job of a product person to try to understand the customer and translate that into the most important things to work on next, so it’s definitely important and something that I always want to stay involved with.
Adam: You guys have over 30,000 companies using Airtable now. How did you get those first several? What were you doing on the front lines in the early days?
Andrew: In the early days we had a half-functional demo that we showed to friends and investors. We’d work on Airtable all day then the next day we’d do a bunch of user studies and show it to people and get thoughts. Our first real customer was a non-profit called ScholarMatch in San Francisco. My co-founder Howie had worked with them before and knew the Director pretty well. We were showing her a demo and she’s says, “We’re looking for a way to track all our students, donors and events.” They were looking at some sort of expensive SalesForce integration or building their own custom software. We showed them the demo and she asked when they could start using it. We’re weren’t really ready for that yet, but we set them up and they were our first customer.
It’s a really complicated product so it took us a while to get it to what we consider the V0, where it’s a complete product. Initially it was people who heard about us though Product Hunt or Hacker News or people we knew directly and it spread from there. Now it’s purely word of mouth. All these use cases where we’ve seen a lot of adoption, like video production and marketing teams, word just spreads within those verticals organically. It from pure enthusiasts who love the technology to people where it was solving a very acute pain.
Adam: Like a lot of horizontal products, you’re bound to have some very unusual or unexpected use cases. For instance, you have farmers tracking their cattle on Airtable. What’s the most unique or surprising use case you’ve come across, and did it teach you anything new or different about your product and its potential?
Andrew: That may be the most surprising thing, the number of cattle trackers that people have built. There’s actually a vertical piece software called CattleMax. It’s just a database app for tracking your cattle and everybody’s switching from CattleMax to Airtable now, which is awesome.
People use it for work, but they also use it for personal use cases and have a lot of really cool, unique things they’re tracking in Airtable. People will track all the characters from a comic book in Airtable and have these really cool images of it. We’ve seen everything.
Adam: Well with a spectrum of use cases, you’re going to get feature requests that are all over the map. I’m sure you’re saying no to more and more things everyday. How do you make sure that you maintain simplicity over time and don’t just become another bloated project management app?
Andrew: Especially on a horizontal product, from day one you have the problem of people asking for all these random things that if you throw it into the product, it’s going to apply to their very niche space, but it’s going to be clutter for everyone else.
We think very carefully before we build a new feature, and we have this concept of simmer features where for these big things we know we’re going to do eventually, we let them sit there for a while and we think about it and just keep it in the back of our minds. So as we hear more and more use cases from more and more verticals, we can see how they fit into that and figure out a way to take that set of use cases and build a future that is generalized enough to kind of adapt to all of them. So we take a long time to actually think through a feature if we know it’s going to be like a big component.
The other thing is building in a modular way so that for different use cases you can like add or remove pieces. One simple example is that in Airtable, you have columns in your tables. Each column is a different field type, so you can add any different field type you want and you can combine them in different ways and you have this combinatorial explosion of complexity, where you can customize and fit a lot of different use cases by adding different structure to the table.
Then we have this other modular concept of views where a view is a different way you can present that data, so you kind of have like your raw table with records, which are just configuration of different fields, and then we have different ways you show that. It’s these modular components you can combine in different ways and mix and match. Basically if you’re using our table for one case, you can use these five fields together and these two views, like a calendar view and a gallery view, but you don’t have to see a button for the map view and all this other stuff that’s not relevant to your use case.
We try to think in terms of expressive components that you can kind of mix and match into your own application. At the end of the day, we think of Airtable as an application builder. More and more we’re going to tackle different layers of that stack, where you can basically build like a full-fledged application. But there’s a lot of complexity in that so you have to build features that are flexible and generalizable but still have a cohesive metaphor behind them. | 2019-04-20T13:26:01Z | https://www.intercom.com/blog/podcasts/airtables-andrew-ofstad-maintaining-simplicity-scale/ |
Will the fireplace heat up the room?
Absolutely! They are designed to be both beautiful and functional. The firebox and lower flue are made from steel which is an excellent heat conductor. This produces both direct heat from the fire itself and radiant heat from the steel (and of course the perceived heat from the dancing flame and crackling logs).
Both of these ratings are very powerful for open fireplaces and they are certainly powerful sources of heat. The exact heating capacity depends on many variables: the ambient temperature outside, the height of the ceilings in the room the fire is located, if the room has insulation in the ceiling and walls, how many and the size of the windows in the room and perhaps the biggest factor of all is the quality and amount of fuel you are using.
As an example;we have an Aether in our living room which is 60m2. It is an open plan room with high raked ceilings and sliding doors across the length of the main wall. It is a new home with good insulation.
The Aether does a cracking job of heating this space for us!
The required kW output required is primarily dependent upon the area to be heater and the climate zone in which you live.
The indicated heating areas would be adjusted down by 5% for each of the following conditions: house built on pillars (non-slab), no carpets on floors, no drapes on windows or a ceiling height exceeding 2.4m.
Deduct an additional 10% if the area does not have ceiling insulation.
Can I really cook a pizza in it?
Yes! Read all about it on our cooking in your fireplace page.
How do I clean the fire?
How do I light an awesome fire?
How hot to touch are they?
The firebox and lower flue both get hot when they are burning – that’s part of why they heat the room so beautifully. You should therefore not touch the fire when its burning with bare hands but we don’t recommend you touch your oven or kettle when they are hot either.
This is common sense to most adults but if your concern is regarding children we get it.
Our children were four and five years old when we installed our Aether and I was worried about accidents too. But, I quickly found that even very small children know not to touch it. Just like they understand not to touch the oven when you’re cooking.
Of course, whilst we are very happy to report that none of our children or our customers’ children have suffered a burn from our fires we don’t recommend leaving young children alone in a room when any fireplace is burning.
We should add that the feedback from our customers is that the children are the biggest fans of the fireplace in the household. Take a look at this video to see just how much fun kids can have with our fires!
If you would like to ensure children are kept safely away from the fire when it’s hot, please visit our accessories page to view our range of fire guards.
Do sparks escape when it's burning?
The shape of the firebox channels the smoke from the fire away from the opening and up the flue.Our grates are designed to allow a generous fire bed away from the opening. There is a slight dish to the grate which shows you where to build the fire. This dish keeps logs where they should be – in the centre of the fire bed fuelling the burn rather than from rolling away from the fire. This design creates an easily maintained smoke free fire – with no escaping sparks or debris.
However, just like with any open fireplace, we don’t recommend leaving it unattended if you leave the house or go to sleep. If you would like the freedom to leave the fire safely unattended you may like our spark guards. You can find them on our accessories page.
Do I need to have the flue cleaned regularly?
Are there special instructions for the first burn?
Bio Ethanol is denatured ethanol, also known as ethyl alcohol, denatured alcohol or grain alcohol. It is a biofuel which can be derived from plants including corn, wheat, barley and sugarcane.
Denatured Ethanol is a renewable resource, when it’s burning there are no harmful emissions, so it’s very safe for the environment and the people who are using it.
What are the emissions when burning Bio Ethanol?
The result of combustion of Bio Ethanol is water, steam and carbon dioxide. The ratio of CO/CO2 passes standards for flue less gas fireplaces and the amount of Carbon Monoxide is negligible.
Yes, our firebox’s & lower flues are made from steel which is a brilliant heat conductor.
Our Bio Ethanol fires are efficient because they are flue-less which means all the heat stays in the room rather than most of it being flued outside as residual emissions.
If you have chosen a fully flued Wood/Bio Ethanol fireplace we recommend burning your Bio Ethanol fire with the damper closed which enables your fire to deliver beautiful ambient heat – that doesn’t escape up the chimney.
Can you extinguish the fireplace before the fuel has all burnt?
Yes, you can turn your fire off at any given time even before the fuel has run out. It is recommended however, that you leave it to burn until it runs out. The shut off mechanism is there for security and safety for those times when you need to leave the house as it’s not safe to leave a fire unattended.
How do I clean the Bio Ethanol burner?
All of the stainless steel can be cleaned using a soft cloth and some liquid stainless steel cleaner. Once all of the fuel has been burnt and the Burner is cool, you can run hot tap water through it for a few minutes to remove any traces of the Bio Ethanol.
How long will Bio Ethanol burn for?
Can I cook in the Bio Ethanol Fire?
No. It won’t taste very nice and we don’t want you to get your burner all gunked up with pizza and marshmallows.
If you love the idea of cooking in your fireplace from time to time but like the idea of Bio Ethanol too you should consider our Wood/Bio Ethanol Hybrid fireplace.
Learn more about this versatile fireplace on our Bio Ethanol Options page.
Is Bio Ethanol environmentally friendly?
Bio Ethanol is classed as being easily biodegradable; miscible in water and when it burns the residual emission is carbon dioxide and water steam. It is completely composed of biological products resulting in a neutral ecological balance. Some fuels are better than others, it’s important to source information on the best fuel in your area you’re your local retailer/distributor.
Bio ethanol has substances added to it in order for it to be labelled de-natured. The burning of these substances may cause a slight smell upon initial lighting and will dissipate with time. There is also a slight smell once the flame is extinguished – similar to when you blow out a candle. The smell will soon dissipate into the air.
Do the Bio Ethanol only models require an external flue?
How do you light the fire?
Where do I get Bio Ethanol?
You can purchase Bio Ethanol in standard packaging of 1, 2, 4 and 20 litres from Supermarkets, Hardware Stores, Petrol Stations, and Corner Shops. Contact The Fire Company for more information and ask about our fuel supply service in your area. http://www.thefirecompany.com.au.
The cost of 1 litre of Bio Ethanol varies depending on place and quantity of purchase. On average you look at AU $3.85* per litre so if you are running your fire on medium and on 2 litres, this is a cost equivalent to having a couple of cappuccinos each evening! (*Price subject to change).
I want my fire now! How long is the lead time?
We ship every two weeks. Depending on where we are in our two week cycle we can generally ship your fire within two weeks of receiving your completed order form and payment.
Some months (such as winter) can become very busy so if you have a time critical delivery date we suggest placing your order and paying a 20% deposit to secure your desired delivery date.
I love them! How do I order one?
We are working on our online order page but for the time being you can download the order form below and email it to us. We will be in touch with a shipping date and will send you an invoice.
You can pay via EFT or give us a call and we’ll take payment over the phone.
If you can’t download the form no problem, just get in touch by phone or email and we’ll email you the form straight away.
What happens if the goods have been damaged in the course of delivery?
All goods should be checked and signed for upon delivery. Notification of any damage or defects must be made at this time and replacements will be supplied at the earliest opportunity. Where goods are being collected from our warehouses, these must be checked and signed for at the time of collection. Any notification of damage thereafter will not be accepted as evidence of damage at the time of collection.
Are the fires covered by a warranty?
Yes. All our fires are covered by a five-year warranty that you can download here.
Please see the FAQ below to find out more about the installation checklist.
Who Should Install My Fireplace?
Each State/Country has different guidelines about the qualifications needed to install a fireplace.
As the compliance & performance of your fireplace depends on correct installation we recommend using a qualified installer who will know the regulations and be able to position your fireplace for maximum performance.
Of course your builder is also more than qualified to install the fire too. If your builder is installing your fire,please give them a copy of the install manual ahead of time and have them call us to talk through any questions.
Our fires are actually surprisingly simple to install, the step by step process is outlined in the Installation Manuals below. You can also find a list of qualified installers that have experience with our fires on our Find an Installer Page.
How do I work out where I can safely position my fire?
If you choose to have an installer put the fire in for you they will come to your home for a site inspection free of charge. They will work with you to ensure that your chosen position is compliant and also positioned for optimum performance.
Download a copy of our install manual & clearance distance worksheet. If your good with things like this all you should need is a tape measure & your imagination.
If you’re like me and struggle with spatial challenges, you may like the way one customer told me worked well for her.
Cut out a circle of cardboard 900mm in diameter. This is your new fire!
Cut a piece of string the length of your required clearance (see the install manual for distances to combustibles vs non combustibles).
Position your ‘fire’ and use the string to check your clearance distances.
If you’re not sure you’ve got it right dig out a copy of your plans & email us a copy showing where you intend to put the fire and we will be very happy to help you out.
I have combustible walls; can I reduce the minimum clearances safely?
So you want the firebox to be 100mm from the wall but it’s made of gyprock, timber etc.?
Don’t fret. You have a few options.
Of course you should always consult with a qualified builder about the best solution for your home but we have outlined the way that the majority of our customers tell us is the simplest and most cost effective.
Visit our Reducing Minimum Clearances Safely page for a step by step guide.
Can I install these fires outdoors?
Absolutely, we use a zinc based paint for outdoor installations and they are very popular outdoors. They make a great pizza oven too!
What size are the mouths of both fires?
What’s the difference between the Aether & the Hearth?
That’s about it in terms of difference so it really comes down to your personal aesthetic.
Does the external flue require bracing?
The installer, who signs off on your install will make this decision as every installation is different.
For a flue with NO offsets (vertical) bracing must be placed every three metres.
For a flue system with offsets bracing must be placed every two meters.
No not yet. This is under development but we cannot provide an estimated delivery time for combustion fires at this point.
Do you have any smaller fires?
Not yet but we are expanding our range every year.
We encourage you to signup for our newsletter (the orange box at the bottom of the home page) to keep up to date with our latest products.
You will need to negotiate the cost of your installation with your installer. Each installation is different and costs will vary depending on the complexity of the installation. For example; if your installation will require the flue to go through a second level above or the use of offsets to run the flue outside and up to the roof your installation is likely to be more expensive than average.
As a rough guideline; installations can range from $700 for a very basic install to $2,000 for a complex install.
How do I work out the measurements you need for the flue & ceiling bracket?
If an installer is putting the fire in they will take your measurements for you. Give them the measurement form to fill in while they are there.
Your builder can also do this for you.
If you don’t have a builder or an installer it’s time to get out the plans. If you’re not sure you’ve got it right email us a copy of your plans showing where you intend to put the fire and we will be very happy to help you out.
Do I need council permission to install a fireplace?
Yes. Before you install a solid fuel home heater you will need council approval. In Australia this falls under section 68 of the Local Government Act 1993. The application form can be found on your local council’s website or at the front counter at your local council’s Administration Building.
Complete the application form (in Australia this is a section 68 Activity Application form).
Make and model for appliance – two copies.
Manufacturer’s details for appliance – two copies.
Council will use the information you provide to confirm that you are installing your fire as per the relevant standards. If you follow the guidelines laid down in our installation manual you’re fire will be compliant.
What are the dimensions of your fires?
For more specifications see our user & installation manual below.
Do I need a floor protector?
You need a floor protector if you are installing over a combustible floor, i.e. timber.
For more information see our floor protector ideas page. This will give you more information on the requirements and some great ideas.
Will my ceiling trusses need any reinforcement to suspend the fire?
The ceiling bracket base plate is bolted onto timber, spanning your trusses, to allow the drop box to hang down through your ceiling.
The ceiling bracket must span across at least two ceiling trusses.
Where possible you can span the load over four trusses. This is not essential as most ceiling trusses have plenty of tolerance to support the combined weight of the fire when the load is shared across two trusses.
The combined weight of the firebox, ceiling bracket and lower flue is between 110 – 160kg (depending on the length of your lower flue).
In some circumstances additional bracing may be required. This information is provided as a guideline only, it is essential that you seek advice from your installer or builder who will be able to inspect your property and advise you of the bracing requirements for your installation.
Do you have a gas option?
No not yet. We are in the process of developing a gas model but this will not be ready until late 2017 or early 2018.
We do have a range of Bioethanol suspended fires that provide many of the benefits of gas without the complex installation requirements.
For more information on these check out our Bioethanol Suspended Fires page.
Where can I view a fire in person?
Jump over to this page for a list of venues you can visit to get a closer look at our range.
Where can I find brochures, installation manuals & measurement/order forms?
Some parts of New Zealand have clean air bylaws – can I install your fires here?
The National environmental standards in New Zealand for Air Quality prescribe a design standard for wood burners in urban areas. These standards outline emission and thermal limits that woodburners must meet in order to be approved for installation in urban areas.
However our fires do not fall under this standard as they are open fireplaces and are therefore exempt from this legislation.
Our fires have been tested in accordance with and meet the requirements of ASNZS2918 & ASNZS4013 section 1.2.3 (f) and are classified as exempt appliances.
Both appliances are exempt from the relevant emission legislation since the maximum carbon dioxide output from the combustion chamber is less than 5% by volume when tested in the manner prescribed in the appropriate standard.
Some regional councils in New Zealand do have bylaws that prohibit open fireplaces, however, a large percentage of our customers are in New Zealand and so far we are not aware of any customers that have been unsuccessful in passing their fires through council.
Below are some of the ways an open fire can be approved if you live in an area with regional bylaws banning open fireplaces.
If the fire is going in an outside area (deck, patio, verandah & some open sunrooms) it is permitted to be installed without building consent, although you may still need a resource consent.
Cooking appliances are exempt from this legislation, our fires make a great pizza oven so if you intend to use our for cooking you should state this on your application to council. Check out our ‘Cooking In Your Fire’ page for more info on cooking in your fire.
you have alternative heating in your home you could apply to council for permission to install it as a decorative fire.
What is a wood burner standard?
a thermal efficiency of not less than 65% as measured in accordance with AS/NZS 4012:2014.
From 1 September 2005 the New Zealand design standard for wood burners applies to all units installed on properties less than 2 hectares in lot size.
New Zealand also has to honour the Trans Tasman Mutual Recognition Agreement (TTMRA) with Australia which says they can sell their products here and vice versa. The Australian wood burners are made to an emission limit of 4.0 g/kg with no efficiency requirement, so they do not always meet our standard. The 2 Ha rule means that Australian burners may still be legally sold in New Zealand.
Can I install an open fire?
Open fires are outside the national environmental standards. However, a number or regional councils have rules about open fires in their regional plan.
You will need to contact your regional council to see whether it is legal to install an open fire in your region. See why do certain regional councils have more stringent rules than the national standard? for more information.
Where do I get a building consent?
Download this step by step guide for applying to council for consent to install a solid fuel heating appliance.
If you have any queries regarding any of the above please email [email protected]. | 2019-04-26T01:50:42Z | https://aurorasuspendedfires.com/planning-customer-support/faq/ |
This article is based on a talk presented by John Riddell and Ian Angus to the Socialist School in Toronto, October 9, 2004. It has also been serialized in Socialist Worker.
This year is the sixtieth anniversary of the Allied landings in Normandy, and also of another, less remembered event, the uprising by Canadian soldier-conscripts against being sent to Europe to join the fighting.
These two events symbolize the dual character of the Second World War in Canada: a war against Germany and a conflict within Canadian society.
What we call World War II encompassed many different wars, many of them progressive: the Soviet struggle against Nazi invasion, the resistance movement in Nazi-occupied Europe, and the colonial liberation struggle in China, India, and elsewhere. But Canada's war had little relationship to these progressive struggles and was not anti-fascist in character. It formed part of what Leon Trotsky termed a struggle of imperialist slaveholders for a new division of the globe. How did socialists in Canada respond to this conflict?
We have begun work on a history of the Trotskyist movement in Canada from 1928 to 1961, entitled Against the Stream. This is an initial sketch of the chapter on the Second World War.
Many aspects of Canada in 1939 are unfamiliar to us today.
Canada was then part of the British Empire, was automatically part of Britain's wars, and was ruled by an Anglo-Saxon elite who looked with scorn on those not of British extraction.
Within North America, Canada was a bastion of reaction. In the 1930s there was no breakthrough here by unionism, no legislated labor code, no New Deal.
In 1939 Canada was still gripped by depression, with 23% of the work force unemployed.
Most working people dreaded war. In the prewar years, the CCF, predecessor of the NDP, responded with a pacifist stance: support to the League of Nations but opposition to Canada's entering an imperialist war.
In Quebec, there was massive opposition to a war in defense of the British Empire. Resentment was still fierce against Ottawa's imposition of conscription in World War One, which had led to massive demonstrations, pitched battles with police, and widespread acts of resistance across Quebec.
The Canadian government, headed by Mackenzie King, secured Parliament's adoption of a declaration of war on September 8, 1939, through a promise not to conscript men for overseas service.
Civil liberties were the war's first casualty. First the Trotskyists, then the pro-Stalin Communist Party were driven underground. Quebecois antiwar activists were hounded and arrested.
Even the CCF was not immune. When Charlie Millard, head of Canada's steelworkers and a prominent CCFer, spoke critically of the war, he was clapped in jail, and the next day the RCMP raided the Toronto offices of the CIO—the industrial union federation—carting off piles of union documents.
In mid-1940 the government imposed conscription for home defence, along with sweeping controls over the economy and labour power. It interned 110 leaders of the CP, along with German nationals, Quebecois nationalists, and—soon—Canadians of Japanese ancestry.
Coercive measures were also applied to the industrial work force. Young workers could not get a job unless they proved they had applied for and been refused by the armed forces. Industrial workers could not change jobs without the bosses' permission.
Canada's rulers wanted to build a massive military establishment, but there weren’t enough volunteers for overseas service. So in 1942 the King government held a referendum on a proposal to empower it—despite its promises—to send conscripts to fight overseas.
In Quebec a united front campaigned for a "no" vote arguing that the no-conscription pledge had been made to Quebec, so only Quebec could revoke it—in essence, asserting Quebec's right to self-determination.
Result: 72% of Quebec voters, and about 85% of Francophones voted no.
Elsewhere in Canada a significant minority, 20%, voted "no." The outcome was a defeat for King: he had his majority, but was now afraid to use it.
Government efforts now focused on coercing the home-defence conscripts, now derisively termed "Zombies," to volunteer for overseas service. Recruitment posters blanketed the country, war heroes lectured the conscripts, volunteers were incited to harass them; and recalcitrants were demoted and punished.
One general commented, "I hate the sight of French-Canadians." The minister of defense reportedly said that the army could not do anything with Quebeckers. "They can't speak English. Their fighting ability is questionable."
Over time, the Zombies' refusal took on an air of dogged heroism. They enjoyed support in the general population, where 50% of those in their 20s opposed conscription for overseas service.
In November 1944, King ordered that 16,000 conscripts be sent to Europe. In B.C., where most of them were stationed, there was a wave of demonstrations and mutinies. At a base in Terrace B.C., French- and English-speaking troops joined forces, armed themselves, took over the camp, and mounted guns to command the approaches. Popular slogans were "Down with conscription" and "Conscript money as well." One placard read, "We can end the war here at home." Another, "Zombies strike back."
These disturbances died down, but there were recurring bouts of rioting and sit-down strikes. Half the 16,000 went AWOL and only a fifth of the missing men were ever retrieved—a sure sign of strong community support.
The hunt for deserters proved hazardous. In Drummondville, Quebec, on 24 February, a 100-man raiding party was attacked by a mob, their vehicles overturned and smashed, while fighting lasted on the streets for three hours, and scores required hospital treatment.
Even after sending conscripts to Europe, opposition was so high that King had to promise not send them to fight in the Pacific unless they agreed. Result: when Canada's most powerful and prestigious warship, the HMCS Uganda, was ordered to move against Japan, the crew voted overwhelmingly to end their participation in the war and sailed back to a Canadian port.
The struggles of the working class outside the army followed a similar course. The federal government, while rewarding capitalists with lucrative cost-plus contracts, froze workers’ wages, limited the right to strike, and used troops and police to break strikes.
Even this was not enough for the Canadian Manufacturers' Association, which in 1941 termed the CIO unions "foreign-dominated" and "Communist." They were "disrupting" the war effort, "holding up production," and fomenting unrest, the CMA said, calling on the government to outlaw industrial unions.
Yet strikes took place anyway, and forced government and bosses to back off. For example, in a major Hamilton factory, National Steel Car, workers struck in April 1941 to protest the firing of union organizers. The government was forced to take over the plant and hold a recognition vote, which the union won.
That summer, in Quebec, a wildcat strike by 10,000 smelter workers in Arvida led to a plant occupation. The Army was sent in. But the workers held firm, and after five days won a pay raise plus increased rights to use the French language in the plant.
Workers poured into the industrial unions, but many employers continued to deny them recognition. A 1943strike by miners in Kirkland Lake, Ontario, brought matters to a head. A militant 11-week strike for recognition, with wide public support, went down to defeat when the bosses absolutely refused to budge.
The defeat in Kirkland Lake helped move the labor insurgency into political action. The Canadian Congress of Labour, formed in 1940 after the CIO’s industrial unions were expelled from the Trades & Labour Congress, shifted in 1943 to outspoken opposition against the government. It endorsed the CCF, and within a year union locals with 50,000 members affiliated to the party.
The bosses now faced the prospect of a national CCF government closely linked to insurgent labor. In response, they launched a coordinated, well-financed, and near-hysterical campaign against the CCF, charging—to sum up a torrent of abuse—that it was a pro-Nazi, totalitarian, foreign- and Jewish-dominated conspiracy led by academic snobs.
Simultaneously, they moved to concede many of labor's immediate demands. In 1944, the King government finally provided a legal mechanism for union recognition, and enacted Family Allowances—the first major social benefit. More was promised after the war.
What we’ve tried to show so far is that, contrary to the usually presented picture of a country united for a common purpose, the class struggle did not take a holiday during World War II. A majority of Quebecois and a significant minority outside of Quebec opposed conscription. The industrial working class embarked on the biggest strike wave and organizing drive since 1919, a drive that extended into independent labour political action on a massive scale.
This situation posed huge opportunities and challenges for socialists in Canada.
At the end of the 1930s, two organizations dominated the Canadian left—the Communist Party, loyal to the Stalinist leadership of the Soviet Union, and the CCF, a social democratic party that began as an agrarian movement in 1933. They were of similar size and influence in the labour movement.
There was also a third far smaller group, the Socialist Workers League, Canadian section of the Fourth International, usually labeled Trotskyist. It had set itself the goal of building a revolutionary party with a Leninist program in Canada—although given its very small numbers and resources, its immediate goal was to keep that program alive and relevant under extremely adverse conditions.
"We stand resolutely against all participation in imperialist wars…. Canada must refuse to be entangled in any more wars fought to make the world safe for capitalism."
In 1937, CCF leader J.S. Woodsworth proposed a resolution in Parliament which declared that Canada would remain neutral in any war.
But for most of the CCF leadership, those fine words didn’t last a day past the beginning of a real war. In September 1939, the CCF national council voted 13-9 to support the government’s declaration of war. In the House of Commons, only one CCF M.P., party leader J.S. Woodsworth, spoke and voted against the war.
This was a major betrayal of CCF principles, and it’s very likely that a majority of the CCF’s membership would have opposed the war if they had been given a say.
By the time of the 1942 Referendum, the CCF was giving all-out support to the war effort, including conscription. It strongly opposed the anti-conscription movement in Quebec.
However, in important ways the CCF upheld independent labour political action. It consistently ran candidates against the Liberals and Conservatives, despite intense pressure to do otherwise, coming from the Communist Party, which wanted it to ally with the Liberals, and from the Liberals, who wanted free rides for new Cabinet Ministers in by-elections.
In Ontario and B.C. many, perhaps most of its candidates were union activists and leaders.
Above all, the CCF-oriented leaders of Canadian Congress of Labour refused to join the old-line Trades & Labour Congress in a "No Strike" pledge, and led many militant strikes during the war years. In 1943, despite the war, more workers went on strike than in any year since 1919—and most of those strikes were led by CCF members.
The CCF’s support for independent labour political action, and for the right of workers to organize and fight, won it substantial support in the new industrial unions and among labour militants. That in turn won it growing electoral support—it received a plurality of the votes in B.C. in 1941, became the official opposition in Ontario in 1943, and formed the government in Saskatchewan in 1944.
On the other hand, the CCF’s support of the war was part of a steady move to the right. Although the Regina Manifesto remained official party policy until 1956, dumping the policy on war in 1939 was just part of a long-term trend away from even a reformist-vision of socialism, towards welfare capitalism.
We would scarcely have expected the CCF to follow revolutionary policies, but the Communist Party of Canada was ostensibly Leninist. Nevertheless, its policies and actions during World War II bore little resemblance to the anti-war policies Lenin advocated in the previous World War.
Lenin condemned any support to the inter-imperialist war. Even after the Russian Revolution, when Russia was fighting German invasion, Lenin never suggested that revolutionaries in England and France should support their government’s war effort in order to protect the new Soviet government. Sadly, that’s what the Communist International—and of course its Canadian party—did between 1939 and 1945.
Until 1939, Stalin’s foreign policy aimed to build alliances between the democracies and the Soviet Union against German fascism and Japanese imperialism. As part of the effort to win the confidence of the "democratic capitalists," the parties of the Communist International favored suspending the class struggle in the capitalist democracies.
In August 1939, Stalin suddenly changed direction. Having failed to win an alliance with Britain, he signed a treaty with Germany. Germany invaded Poland just days after the Stalin-Hitler pact was signed.
This stand led to the party being outlawed. Many of its leaders were imprisoned without trial, and others, including Tim Buck, fled to the United States.
The CP set up "Tim Buck Plebiscite Committees" to fight for a "yes" vote in the 1942 referendum. The CP’s press, which had hailed Montreal mayor Camillien Houde as an anti-war hero, now condemned him and the entire Quebec nationalist movement as fascist.
In 1943 the Communist party regained legal status by renaming itself the "Labor Progressive Party." The LPP’s founding program specifically advocated universal conscription and urged the labour movement to voluntarily abstain from strikes for the duration of the war.
Remember, this was 1943, the year in which there were more strikes than any time since 1919. Canadian workers were joining the new industrial unions by the tens of thousands, and striking in nearly unprecedented numbers to win better pay and working conditions—but the Communist Party was officially and vehemently opposed to all strikes. In its newspapers, on the shop floor, in union meetings and during actual strikes, the CP fought for a no-strike policy.
In electoral politics, the Communist Party advanced a program that was well to the right of the CCF—for example, it explicitly opposed the CCF’s call for socialism as sectarian and ultraleft!
More importantly, from June 1941 on, the CP consistently opposed independent labour political action, campaigning instead for an electoral alliance between labour and the Liberal Party. The main practical result of this was the defeat of CCF candidates in ridings where the Liberals used the LPP’s proposed alliance to split the labour vote.
In the most extreme case, in 1945, a member of the Communist party who ran against the CCF as a "UAW-Liberal-Labour" candidate was elected to the Ontario legislature and sat as a member of the Liberal Caucus.
The Trotskyist Socialist Workers League was tiny by any standard—it had fewer than 100 members in 1939.
Still, it did what it could to oppose the imperialist war. The day after war was declared, the SWL held a street corner meeting in Toronto, at Brunswick and Bloor, to denounce the war. At that meeting Frank Watson became the first person to be arrested imprisoned under the Defense of Canada Regulations—that repressive law was so new that copies weren’t available for the prosecutor to use during his trial!
The Socialist Workers League was illegal throughout the war. No printer would produce its newspaper or leaflets, and the publications of its U.S. co-thinkers in the Socialist Workers Party were stopped at the border. Many members dropped away—and many, especially those outside of major cities, lost contact, because even the mails weren’t safe.
Still the organization did whatever was possible to get its program out. It published some issues of a mimeographed magazine, and produced leaflets that it distributed by tossing them off tall building rooftops into lunch-time crowds, or by inserting them into Marxist books on the shelves of the public library. Trotskyists who were in the army smuggled pamphlets and newspapers across the border from Buffalo in their baggy uniform trousers.
They used whatever organizational means were available to them, In Prince Rupert, for example, Trotskyist leader Paddy Stanton organized a boxing club to provide a cover for labor militants to meet.
Most of the SWL’s members in Ontario and B.C. joined the CCF, and played a part both in the CCF itself and in the CCL unions. In British Columbia, in particular, Trotskyists led the left-wing opposition to the CP leadership of the International Woodworkers Union—shortly after the war, they were elected as leaders of the major local there.
When the anti-conscription movement exploded in Quebec in 1942, the Toronto branch sent one of its members to Montreal to make contact. Landon Ladd was not only well-received, he was invited to speak at a mass anti-conscription rally in Montreal on March 24. Andre Laurendeau, who later described the event in his book, La crise de la conscription, said the applause that greeted the his speech was "thunderous."
"He was certainly," Laurendeau wrote, "the only English-Canadian speaker in a League meeting ever to express, in English, an anti-conscription point of view."
Ladd’s experience helped educate the small Trotskyist movement about the potential of the Quebec nationalist movement, at a time when all the rest of the left was writing it off as at best backward, at worst fascist. That education helped ensure that the Trotskyists—again unlike all the rest of the left—responded positively when Quebec nationalism exploded again in the 1960s.
Ross Dowson, a machinist in his 20s who became the main leader of the Toronto branch early in the war, made two cross-country organizing tours, hitch-hiking from town to town to reunite the individuals and small groups that had become isolated by wartime restrictions and censorship. Remarkably, they were able to pull together an underground national conference in Montreal in 1944. That meeting decided to launch a public newspaper, Labor Challenge, in 1945—and that newspaper was the organizer that pulled together the SWL members from the thirties and wartime recruits into a new organization, the Revolutionary Workers Party.
The war ended on August 14, 1945. On August 20, the government tried to force Canadian soldiers to work in industrial jobs, but under army discipline and for army pay. In Oakville the soldiers carried out sit-down strikes, walkouts and other protests. These protests forced an end to the slave labour program within five days. A key leader of the protest, a private who had resigned a captain’s commission to stay with his comrades in the ranks, was Ross Dowson. He was discharged two months later and became National Secretary of the Revolutionary Workers Party.
In August 1945, the Trotskyist and Stalinist newspapers both ran large front-page headlines to mark the end of the war.
Labor Challenge: "THERE IS NO PEACE!"
Canadian Tribune: "A-BOMB KO’s JAPS!"
In just a few words, those headlines summed up the difference between the revolutionary policy and program of Trotskyism, and the conservatism social-patriotism of Stalinism.
The wave of wartime struggles enabled labor to achieve a breakthrough—Canada was no longer an anti-union bastion among capitalist powers. But the failure of the CCF and the Communist Party to provide leadership and a class struggle program during World War II had profound short and long-term consequences.
The Social Democrats and Stalinists didn’t just abstain from the anti-conscription movement—they opposed and condemned the movement and the Quebec nationalism that underlay it. They provided no alternative leadership to the right-wing nationalists, effectively handing Quebec over to Duplessis on a platter. They missed a major opportunity to build the left in Quebec, and socialism in Quebec remains weak to this day.
The underlying motivation for the Communist Party’s policy in the labour movement between 1941 and 1945 was the view that protecting the Soviet Union was the overriding task of the international working class—and that suspending the class struggle in countries allied with the USSR was the best way to achieve that. This policy of subordinating the Canadian class struggle to the needs of Stalinist diplomacy was a disaster.
The CP did make some short-term gains. It elected some MPs and MLAs, and it won some support in the conservative Trades & Labour Congress unions.
But at the same time it alienated the militants who were building the CCL, ensuring that it had few allies on the left when the anti-communist witch-hunts came after the war. Its anti-Quebec stance led to the split of most of its Québécois cadre; another left-wing split took place in B.C. Deprived of its wartime alliance with the Liberals, the isolated Communist Party quickly lost most of its influence in the unions in the postwar years.
The Trotskyists were far too few and too scattered to have a major impact, but they emerged from the war with a far stronger organization than they had at the beginning. They were well-respected in several major unions, and were playing leadership roles in the left-wing of the CCF and labour movement.
At the beginning of the war, the SWL’s main leaders were middle-class academics. Few of those survived the intense pro-war pressure—so by the end of the war the group’s entire membership and leadership was solidly rooted in the industrial working class and the new industrial unions.
Even more important, the Trotskyists preserved their revolutionary program, learned to explain and promote it in conditions of repression and illegality, and even evolved it through the experience in Quebec. They had laid a firm basis for the next wave of radicalization, which came in the 1960s. | 2019-04-19T08:58:48Z | http://socialisthistory.ca/Docs/History/Left-in-WW2.htm |
System.Web 네임스페이스는 브라우저-서버 간 통신을 가능하게 하는 클래스 및 인터페이스를 제공합니다. The System.Web namespace supplies classes and interfaces that enable browser-server communication. 이 네임스페이스에는 현재 HTTP 요청에 대한 확장 정보를 제공하는 HttpRequest 클래스, 클라이언트에 대한 HTTP 출력을 관리하는 HttpResponse 클래스 및 서버 쪽 유틸리티와 프로세스에 액세스하는 데 사용할 수 있는 HttpServerUtility 클래스가 있습니다. This namespace includes the HttpRequest class, which provides extensive information about the current HTTP request; the HttpResponse class, which manages HTTP output to the client; and the HttpServerUtility class, which provides access to server-side utilities and processes. 또한 System.Web에는 쿠키 조작, 파일 전송, 예외 정보 및 출력 캐시 제어에 사용할 수 있는 클래스도 포함되어 있습니다. System.Web also includes classes for cookie manipulation, file transfer, exception information, and output cache control.
ASP.NET 호스팅 환경에서 액세스 권한을 제어합니다.Controls access permissions in ASP.NET hosted environments. 이 클래스는 상속될 수 없습니다.This class cannot be inherited.
AspNetHostingPermission에 대한 보안 동작이 선언적 보안을 사용하여 코드에 적용될 수 있습니다.Allows security actions for AspNetHostingPermission to be applied to code using declarative security. 이 클래스는 상속될 수 없습니다.This class cannot be inherited.
기본 HTTP 처리기의 속성 및 메서드를 나타냅니다.Represents the properties and methods of a default HTTP handler.
작업 반환 비동기 메서드를 이전 버전의 ASP.NET에서 사용되는 비동기 프로그래밍 모델을 사용하고 시작 및 종료 이벤트를 기반으로 하는 메서드로 변환합니다.Converts task-returning asynchronous methods into methods that use the asynchronous programming model used in previous versions of ASP.NET and that is based on begin and end events.
다시 인코딩되지 않아야 하는 HTML로 인코딩된 문자열을 나타냅니다.Represents an HTML-encoded string that should not be encoded again.
ASP.NET 애플리케이션 내의 여러 세션 및 요청에서 전역 정보를 공유할 수 있도록 합니다.Enables sharing of global information across multiple sessions and requests within an ASP.NET application.
ASP.NET 애플리케이션 내의 여러 세션 및 요청에서 정보를 공유할 수 있도록 지원하는 클래스의 기본 클래스로 사용됩니다.Serves as the base class for classes that enable information to be shared across multiple sessions and requests within an ASP.NET application.
ASP.NET 응용 프로그램 내의 여러 요청 및 세션 간에 정보를 공유할 수 있도록 하는 HTTP 내장 개체를 캡슐화합니다.Encapsulates the HTTP intrinsic object that enables information to be shared across multiple requests and sessions within an ASP.NET application.
서버가 클라이언트에서 실행 중인 브라우저의 기능에 대한 정보를 수집할 수 있도록 합니다.Enables the server to gather information on the capabilities of the browser that is running on the client.
서버에서 현재 요청을 수행하는 브라우저의 기능에 대한 정보를 수집할 수 있도록 하는 클래스에 대한 기본 클래스로 사용됩니다.Serves as the base class for classes that enable the server to gather information about the capabilities of the browser that made the current request.
서버가 현재 요청한 브라우저의 기능에 대한 정보를 수집할 수 있도록 하는 HTTP 내장 개체를 캡슐화합니다.Encapsulates the HTTP intrinsic object that enables the server to gather information about the capabilities of the browser that has made the current request.
캐시별 HTTP 헤더를 설정하고 ASP.NET 페이지 출력 캐시를 제어하기 위한 메서드를 포함합니다.Contains methods for setting cache-specific HTTP headers and for controlling the ASP.NET page output cache.
캐시별 HTTP 헤더를 설정하고 ASP.NET 페이지 출력 캐시를 제어하기 위한 메서드를 포함하는 클래스의 기본 클래스로 사용됩니다.Serves as the base class for classes that contain methods for setting cache-specific HTTP headers and for controlling the ASP.NET page output cache.
캐시별 HTTP 헤더를 설정하고 ASP.NET 페이지 출력 캐시를 제어하기 위한 메서드를 포함하는 HTTP 내장 개체를 캡슐화합니다.Encapsulates the HTTP intrinsic object that contains methods for setting cache-specific HTTP headers and for controlling the ASP.NET page output cache.
HttpCachePolicy 클래스의 VaryByContentEncodings 속성을 설정할 형식이 안전한 방법을 제공합니다.Provides a type-safe way to set the VaryByContentEncodings property of the HttpCachePolicy class.
VaryByHeaders 속성을 설정할 형식이 안전한 방법을 제공합니다.Provides a type-safe way to set the VaryByHeaders property.
VaryByParams 속성을 설정할 형식이 안전한 방법을 제공합니다.Provides a type-safe way to set the VaryByParams property.
클라이언트 ID에 대한 서버 요청에 응답하여 클라이언트에서 발급한 클라이언트 인증서 필드를 제공합니다.Provides the client certificate fields issued by the client in response to the server's request for the client's identity.
컴파일러 오류가 발생한 경우 throw되는 예외입니다.The exception that is thrown when a compiler error occurs.
개별 HTTP 쿠키를 만들고 조작할 수 있는 형식이 안전한 방법을 제공합니다.Provides a type-safe way to create and manipulate individual HTTP cookies.
HTTP 쿠키를 조작하기 위한 형식이 안전한 방법을 제공합니다.Provides a type-safe way to manipulate HTTP cookies.
HTTP 요청을 처리하는 동안 발생한 예외를 설명합니다.Describes an exception that occurred during the processing of HTTP requests.
클라이언트에서 업로드한 파일에 대한 액세스를 제공하고 해당 파일을 구성합니다.Provides access to and organizes files uploaded by a client.
클라이언트에서 업로드한 파일에 대한 액세스를 제공하는 클래스에 대한 기본 클래스로 사용됩니다.Serves as the base class for classes that provide access to files that were uploaded by a client.
클라이언트에서 업로드한 파일에 대한 액세스를 제공하는 HTTP 내장 개체를 캡슐화합니다.Encapsulates the HTTP intrinsic object that provides access to files that were uploaded by a client.
IHttpModule 개체의 컬렉션을 인덱싱하고 검색하는 방법을 제공합니다.Provides a way to index and retrieve a collection of IHttpModule objects.
구분 분석 오류가 발생하는 경우에 throw되는 예외입니다.The exception that is thrown when a parse error occurs.
클라이언트에서 업로드한 개별 파일에 액세스할 수 있도록 합니다.Provides access to individual files that have been uploaded by a client.
클라이언트에서 업로드한 개별 파일에 대한 액세스를 제공하는 클래스의 기본 클래스로 사용됩니다.Serves as the base class for classes that provide access to individual files that have been uploaded by a client.
클라이언트에서 업로드한 개별 파일에 대한 액세스를 제공하는 HTTP 내장 개체를 캡슐화합니다.Encapsulates the HTTP intrinsic object that provides access to individual files that have been uploaded by a client.
웹 요청 도중 ASP.NET이 클라이언트에서 보낸 HTTP 값을 읽을 수 있도록 합니다.Enables ASP.NET to read the HTTP values sent by a client during a Web request.
웹 요청 중에 클라이언트에서 보낸 HTTP 값을 ASP.NET에서 읽을 수 있도록 하는 클래스의 기본 클래스 역할을 합니다.Serves as the base class for classes that enable ASP.NET to read the HTTP values sent by a client during a Web request.
클라이언트에서 보낸 요청 데이터에 위험할 수 있는 입력 문자열이 포함된 경우 throw되는 예외입니다.The exception that is thrown when a potentially malicious input string is received from the client as part of the request data. 이 클래스는 상속될 수 없습니다.This class cannot be inherited.
웹 요청 동안 클라이언트에서 보낸 HTTP 값을 ASP.NET에서 읽을 수 있도록 하는 HTTP 내장 개체를 캡슐화합니다.Encapsulates the HTTP intrinsic object that enables ASP.NET to read the HTTP values that are sent by a client during a Web request.
ASP.NET 작업에서 받은 HTTP 응답 정보를 제공하는 클래스의 기본 클래스를 나타냅니다.Represents the base class for classes that provides HTTP-response information from an ASP.NET operation.
ASP.NET 작업에서 받은 HTTP 응답 정보를 제공하는 HTTP 내장 개체를 캡슐화합니다.Encapsulates the HTTP intrinsic object that provides HTTP-response information from an ASP.NET operation.
현재 응용 프로그램에 ASP.NET 런타임 서비스 집합을 제공합니다.Provides a set of ASP.NET run-time services for the current application.
웹 요청을 처리하기 위한 도우미 메서드를 제공합니다.Provides helper methods for processing Web requests.
웹 요청을 처리하기 위해 도우미 메서드를 제공하는 클래스의 기본 클래스로 사용됩니다.Serves as the base class for classes that provide helper methods for processing Web requests.
웹 요청을 처리하는 도우미 메서드를 제공하는 HTTP 내장 개체를 캡슐화합니다.Encapsulates the HTTP intrinsic object that provides helper methods for processing Web requests.
세션 상태 값, 세션 수준 설정 및 수명 관리 방법에 대한 액세스를 제공하는 클래스에 대한 기본 클래스로 사용됩니다.Serves as the base class for classes that provides access to session-state values, session-level settings, and lifetime management methods.
세션 상태 값, 세션 수준 설정 및 수명 관리 메서드에 대한 액세스를 제공하는 HTTP 내장 개체를 캡슐화합니다.Encapsulates the HTTP intrinsic object that provides access to session-state values, session-level settings, and lifetime management methods.
StaticObjects 속성에 대한 응용 프로그램 범위 개체의 컬렉션을 제공합니다.Provides a collection of application-scoped objects for the StaticObjects property.
StaticObjects 속성에 대한 응용 프로그램 범위 개체의 컬렉션을 제공하는 클래스에 대한 기본 클래스 역할을 합니다.Serves as the base class for classes that provide a collection of application-scoped objects for the StaticObjects property.
StaticObjects 속성에 대해 애플리케이션 범위 개체의 컬렉션을 제공하는 HTTP 내장 개체를 캡슐화합니다.Encapsulates the HTTP intrinsic object that provides a collection of application-scoped objects for the StaticObjects property.
비동기 작업을 처리하기 위해 파생된 작업 처리기 클래스에서 구현할 수 있는 메서드를 제공합니다.Provides methods that a derived task handler class can implement in order to process an asynchronous task.
일반적인 예외가 발생한 경우 throw되는 예외입니다.The exception that is thrown when a generic exception occurs.
웹 요청을 처리할 때 URL 인코딩 및 디코딩을 위한 메서드를 제공합니다.Provides methods for encoding and decoding URLs when processing Web requests. 이 클래스는 상속될 수 없습니다.This class cannot be inherited.
이 추상 클래스는 ASP.NET의 관리 코드에서 요청을 처리하는 데 사용되는 기본 작업자 메서드 및 열거형을 정의합니다.This abstract class defines the base worker methods and enumerations used by ASP.NET managed code to process requests.
내장 TextWriter 개체를 통해 액세스되는 HttpResponse 개체를 제공합니다.Provides a TextWriter object that is accessed through the intrinsic HttpResponse object.
모든 추적 및 디버깅 출력을 IIS 7.0 인프라로 라우팅하는 수신기를 제공합니다.Provides a listener that routes all tracing and debugging output to the IIS 7.0 infrastructure.
문서 확장을 콘텐츠 MIME 형식에 매핑합니다.Maps document extensions to content MIME types.
파서 오류 또는 경고를 나타냅니다.Represents a parser error or warning. 이 클래스는 상속될 수 없습니다.This class cannot be inherited.
구문 분석 중에 검색된 파서 오류 집합을 관리합니다.Manages a set of parser errors detected during parsing. 이 클래스는 상속될 수 없습니다.This class cannot be inherited.
애플리케이션 시작에 대한 확장 지원을 제공합니다.Provides expanded support for application startup.
현재 실행 중인 프로세스에 대한 정보를 제공합니다.Provides information on processes currently executing.
작업자 프로세스에 대한 정보를 반환하는 메서드를 포함합니다.Contains methods that return information about worker processes.
SiteMap 클래스는 하나 이상의 사이트 맵 공급자가 제공하는 사이트의 탐색 구조에 대한 메모리 내 표현입니다.The SiteMap class is an in-memory representation of the navigation structure for a site, which is provided by one or more site map providers. 이 클래스는 상속될 수 없습니다.This class cannot be inherited.
SiteMap 클래스 및 추상 SiteMapProvider 클래스를 구현하는 클래스에서 설명하는 것 같은 계층적 사이트 맵 구조의 노드를 나타냅니다.Represents a node in the hierarchical site map structure such as that described by the SiteMap class and classes that implement the abstract SiteMapProvider class.
SiteMapNode 개체에 대한 강력한 형식의 컬렉션을 제공하고 컬렉션 탐색을 지원하는 IHierarchicalEnumerable 인터페이스를 구현합니다.Provides a strongly typed collection for SiteMapNode objects and implements the IHierarchicalEnumerable interface to support navigating through the collection.
모든 사이트 맵 데이터 공급자에 대한 공용 기본 클래스를 제공하고 개발자들이 SiteMap 개체에 대한 영구 저장소로 ASP.NET 사이트 맵 인프라에서 사용할 수 있는 사용자 지정 사이트 맵 데이터 공급자를 구현할 수 있도록 합니다.Provides a common base class for all site map data providers, and a way for developers to implement custom site map data providers that can be used with the ASP.NET site map infrastructure as persistent stores for SiteMap objects.
사이트 맵 초기화 도중 SiteMap에 사용할 수 있는 SiteMapProvider 개체의 집합을 추적하기 위해 SiteMap 클래스에서 사용됩니다.Used by the SiteMap class to track the set of SiteMapProvider objects that are available to the SiteMap during site map initialization. 이 클래스는 상속될 수 없습니다.This class cannot be inherited.
CurrentNode 클래스의 SiteMapProvider 속성을 호출하여 발생된 이벤트에 대한 데이터를 제공합니다.Provides data for an event that is raised by calling the CurrentNode property of the SiteMapProvider class.
추상 SiteMapProvider 클래스의 부분적 구현 상태로, ASP.NET에서 기본 사이트 맵 공급자인 XmlSiteMapProvider 클래스에 대한 기본 클래스로 작동합니다.Serves as a partial implementation of the abstract SiteMapProvider class and serves as a base class for the XmlSiteMapProvider class, which is the default site map provider in ASP.NET.
웹 요청에 대한 실행 정보를 캡처하여 표시합니다.Captures and presents execution details about a Web request. 이 클래스는 상속될 수 없습니다.This class cannot be inherited.
TraceFinished 이벤트를 처리하는 모든 메서드에 추적 레코드 컬렉션을 제공합니다.Provides a collection of trace records to any method that handles the TraceFinished event. 이 클래스는 상속될 수 없습니다.This class cannot be inherited.
ASP.NET 추적 메시지 및 관련 데이터를 나타냅니다.Represents an ASP.NET trace message and any associated data.
ASP.NET 요청 유효성 검사를 트리거하지 않고 HTTP 요청 값에 대한 액세스를 제공합니다.Provides access to HTTP request values without triggering ASP.NET request validation.
이 형식은 ASP.NET 요청 유효성 검사를 트리거하지 않고 HTTP 요청 값에 대한 액세스 권한을 부여하는 클래스의 기본 클래스 역할을 합니다.Serves as the base class for classes that provide access to HTTP request values without triggering ASP.NET request validation.
UnvalidatedRequestValuesBase 클래스에 래퍼 클래스를 제공하고 ASP.NET 요청 유효성 검사를 트리거하지 않고 HTTP 요청 값에 대한 액세스 권한을 부여합니다.Provides a wrapper class for the UnvalidatedRequestValuesBase class, and provides access to HTTP request values without triggering ASP.NET request validation.
공용 가상 경로 작업에 대한 유틸리티 메서드를 제공합니다.Provides utility methods for common virtual path operations.
Trace 메시지 경로를 ASP.NET 웹 페이지 출력으로 지정하는 수신기를 제공합니다.Provides a listener that directs Trace messages to ASP.NET Web page outputs.
XmlSiteMapProvider 클래스는 SiteMapProvider 클래스에서 파생되며 ASP.NET에 대한 기본 사이트 맵 제공자입니다.The XmlSiteMapProvider class is derived from the SiteMapProvider class and is the default site map provider for ASP.NET. XmlSiteMapProvider 클래스는 파일 이름 확장명이 .sitemap인 XML 파일로 사이트 맵 트리를 생성합니다.The XmlSiteMapProvider class generates site map trees from XML files with the file name extension .sitemap.
HTTP 비동기 처리기 개체에서 구현해야 하는 계약을 정의합니다.Defines the contract that HTTP asynchronous handler objects must implement.
ASP.NET 구현에서 사용자 지정 HTTP 처리기를 사용하여 동시에 HTTP 웹 요청을 처리하는 규약을 정의합니다.Defines the contract that ASP.NET implements to synchronously process HTTP Web requests using custom HTTP handlers.
새 IHttpHandler 개체를 만들기 위해 클래스 팩터리에서 구현해야 하는 규약을 정의합니다.Defines the contract that class factories must implement to create new IHttpHandler objects.
구현하는 클래스에 모듈 초기화 및 삭제 이벤트를 제공합니다.Provides module initialization and disposal events to the implementing class.
사용자 지정 세션 상태 파티션 확인을 위해 구현할 메서드를 정의합니다.Defines methods that must be implemented for custom session-state partition resolution.
개체에서 구현하며 수신기를 구독 취소하는 데 사용할 수 있는 인터페이스를 나타냅니다.Represents an interface that is implemented by an object and that can be used to unsubscribe listeners.
TLS(전송 계층 보안) 토큰 바인딩에 대한 정보를 제공합니다.Provides information about transport layer security (TLS) token binding.
AppDomain 클래스가 종료된 원인을 지정합니다.Specifies why the AppDomain class shut down.
ASP.NET 웹 애플리케이션에 부여되는 신뢰 수준을 지정합니다.Specifies the trust level that is granted to an ASP.NET Web application.
Cache-Control HTTP 헤더를 설정하는 데 사용하는 열거된 값을 제공합니다.Provides enumerated values that are used to set the Cache-Control HTTP header.
유효성 재검사 관련 Cache-Control HTTP 헤더를 설정하는 데 사용하는 열거된 값을 제공합니다.Provides enumerated values that are used to set revalidation-specific Cache-Control HTTP headers.
웹 애플리케이션에서 쿠키를 사용하는 방법을 지정합니다.Specifies how cookies are used for a Web application.
캐시 유효성 검사 상태를 나타내는 열거된 값을 제공합니다.Provides enumerated values that indicate cache validation status.
특정 프로세스가 종료한 이유를 나타내는 열거형 값을 제공합니다.Provides enumerated values that indicate why a process has shut down.
프로세스의 현재 상태를 나타내는 열거형 값을 제공합니다.Provides enumerated values that indicate the current status of a process.
HTTP 요청의 엔터티 본문을 읽은 방식을 나타내는 상수를 지정합니다.Specifies constants that indicate how the entity body of an HTTP request has been read.
HttpApplication 요청이 처리되는 동안 이벤트 및 다른 수명 주기 이벤트가 발생하는 경우를 나타냅니다.Indicates when events and other life-cycle events occur while a HttpApplication request is being processed.
요청 파이프라인의 알림 상태를 지정합니다.Specifies the state of a notification in the request pipeline.
쿠키의 SameSite 특성에 대한 값을 나타내는 상수를 지정합니다.Specifies constants that indicate the value for the SameSite attribute of the cookie.
추적 메시지를 페이지의 HTML 출력으로 내보내는 순서를 지정합니다.Specifies in what order trace messages are emitted into the HTML output of a page.
애플리케이션 이벤트 같은 비동기 이벤트를 처리하는 메서드를 나타냅니다.Represents the method that handles asynchronous events such as application events. 이 대리자는 비동기 작업을 시작할 때 호출됩니다.This delegate is called at the start of an asynchronous operation.
애플리케이션 이벤트 같은 비동기 이벤트를 처리하는 메서드를 나타냅니다.Represents the method that handles asynchronous events such as application events.
캐시에서 항목이 제공되기 전에 캐시된 항목의 유효성을 검사하기 위해 호출되는 메서드를 나타냅니다.Represents a method that is called to validate a cached item before the item is served from the cache.
캐시 후 대체를 처리하는 메서드를 나타냅니다.Represents the method that handles post-cache substitution.
응답 보내기가 완료되는 경우 호출자에게 알리는 메서드를 나타냅니다.Represents the method that Notifies callers when sending of the response is complete.
SiteMapResolve 또는 정적 SiteMapProvider 클래스의 특정 인스턴스에 대한 SiteMap 이벤트를 처리할 메서드를 나타냅니다.Represents the method that will handle the SiteMapResolve event of a specific instance of the SiteMapProvider or static SiteMap class.
EventHandlerTaskAsyncHelper 클래스의 인스턴스가 처리하고 있는 비동기 작업을 나타냅니다.Represents the asynchronous task that is being processed by an instance of the EventHandlerTaskAsyncHelper class.
TraceFinished 개체의 TraceContext 이벤트를 처리하는 메서드를 나타냅니다.Represents the method that handles the TraceFinished event of a TraceContext object. | 2019-04-19T12:42:04Z | https://docs.microsoft.com/ko-kr/dotnet/api/system.web?view=netframework-4.7.2 |
If you are a current patient (seen within the last 6-12 months), please use this form to update address, phone, medical, dental and insurance changes.
Does your child have any difficulties with the following?
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Please read this form carefully and ask for clarification about any portion that you do not understand.
I understand that the initial visit may require radiographs in order to complete the examination, diagnosis and treatment plan. I understand Dr. Mason will perform an examination, resulting in her diagnosis and a treatment plan. Radiographs will be taken only when there is a clinical need to do so. There may be a clinical need for radiographs every 6 months and occasionally more often for patients at high risk of decay or with conditions that require frequent monitoring.
I understand that without periodic radiographs, Dr. Mason may not be able to identify and disclose potential problems related to my child's oral health; which could lead to extensive tooth decay, potential serious dental infection, and/or tooth loss. I understand that it may be impossible to diagnose missing teeth, extra teeth, potential orthodontic concerns, and other pathologic conditions without radiographs.
Fluoride is a naturally occurring element. It is found in in naturally "optimal" levels in the tap water in most northeast Florida counties, including Duval. It is not added to the tap water in this area. Most home water filters do not remove fluoride from the water, but you can check with the filter manufacturer to be sure. Fluoride is also found in varying amounts in bottled water and many other foods and beverages.
Fluoride has been found to be safe and effective for preventing and controlling dental caries in small amounts when applied topically or ingested in optimal levels in tap water.
Topically, low levels of fluoride in plaque and saliva inhibit the demineralization of sound enamel and enhance the remineralization of demineralized enamel. Fluoride also inhibits dental caries by affecting the activity of caries-causing bacteria. High levels of fluoride, such as those attained with the use of dental office fluoride applications, produce a temporary layer of calcium fluoride-like material on the enamel surface. The fluoride is released when the pH drops in response to acid production and becomes available to remineralize enamel or affect bacterial metabolism.
"Mouth pillows" or "mouth props" can make holding the mouth open more comfortable during dental procedures. If patients do not wish to use them they will not be utilized unless the dental treatment is emergent. I consent to their use during all dental restorative procedures and sealants.
Every effort will be made to ensure your child has a positive experience during each visit. I understand that my child will not be restrained to complete dental treatment unless there is an emergent need to do so.
During the course of the visit, if your child is not cooperative for the examination or cleaning, we may ask you to hold your child so Dr. Mason can perform the examination or cleaning.
A fee of $85.00 may be applied to your visit if significant time or additional staff members are required to safely complete the treatment or examination of your child. Except in emergent circumstances, a member of the BeanTeam will notify you if the fee will apply to the current or any other future visits.
I understand that local anesthesia will sometimes be used to numb the teeth and tissues if dental fillings/crowns/extractions are necessary. Local anesthetics are very safe medications, but as with any medications there are risks. Common side effects include discomfort at the injection site and chance of injury to oral tissues due to loss of sensation while numb. Uncommon risks include allergic reaction, nerve damage, and infection - which may require medical treatment and hospitalization.
I understand that during dental treatment, it may be necessary to change, remove or add procedures. The most common change is the additional need for baby tooth nerve treatment or addition of a crown instead of a filling. I give my permission to Dr. Mason to make changes and additions as necessary and understand that I will be informed of such changes. Said changes may impact my financial responsibility.
I understand that my dental insurance may not provide coverage for all recommended procedures. I further understand that it is my responsibility to inform a BeanTeam member if I wish to decline a recommended procedure due to lack of insurance coverage.
I understand that Bean Tree Pediatric Dentistry will verify my dental benefits and file my insurance claims as a courtesy, but understanding the limitations and covered services under my policy is ultimately my responsibility.
Your dental insurance benefits, copay's, co-insurance and any non-covered services are not determined by Bean Tree Pediatric Dentistry. Your benefits are determined by your insurance carrier and the plan you or your human resources department have chosen. Any questions regarding your benefits should be directed to your carrier or HR department.
Patient cooperation is essential in a successful outcome to dental treatments. However, I understand good results are expected, the possibility of complications or poor outcome cannot be accurately anticipated.
Furthermore, there can be no guarantee of success or "warranty" given for any dental procedure.
We are a small office that sees one patient at a time and your child’s appointment time is reserved specifically for him or her. But, we understand sickness and emergencies may keep you from attending a scheduled appointment. Should you find yourself unable to keep your appointment, please let us know at least 24 hours in advance or you may be charged a $40 cancellation fee. We will try to reschedule your child’s appointment at a more convenient time. Please understand the best appointment times are difficult to obtain with short notice.
Many times, other patients would like an opportunity to have an earlier appointment – out of courtesy to others, please contact us at least 48 hours prior to your child’s treatment appointment should you need to reschedule the treatment for non-emergent reasons. There is a $100 treatment appointment cancellation fee if you do not provide us enough notice. We will try to reschedule you at a more convenient time. Please understand the best appointment times are difficult to obtain with short notice.
Automated appointment confirmations begin at 4 weeks and will continue until the appointment has been confirmed or 48 hours prior to appointment time.
Confirming appointments is important for a small office such as ours. It allows us to adequately plan and to schedule patients whom may need to be seen at an earlier time.
Every attempt will be made to reach out to you in order to confirm your appointment. However, appointments not confirmed (at least 48 hours for treatment) (at least 24 hours for hygiene) may be subject to cancellation and our cancellation policy may apply.
At Bean Tree Pediatric Dentistry, teamwork is one of our core values. Dr. Mason depends on parents to be part of our team, taking an active role in their children’s dental and oral health. We always encourage parents to accompany their children in our clinical area during exams.
We ask that you play along with us and take part if we sing any silly songs or play silly games. Please refrain from talk of pain or discomfort. If dental treatments make you uncomfortable, we ask that you kindly hang out in the waiting room or go to the park across the street from us with a cup of Maple Street coffee from a front-desk member of the bean team. We will give you a very special walkie-talkie you can take with you, and we’ll let you know when we’re all finished.
As with any minor medical/surgical procedures, it is necessary for Dr. Mason and the BeanTeam to focus 100% on your child. In return, it is necessary for your child to focus 100% on our instructions for the procedure. Additionally, dental anxiety is quite common in today's society. While we do everything in our power to keep your child happy and comfortable, if a family member has any dental anxiety (however mild) we have found it can have a significant effect on behavior in children especially if an anxious family member is present.
It has been our experience that when a family member is present it becomes more challenging to complete dental treatment as planned. Thus, we require family members to wait in the waiting room during all treatment procedures such as fillings, crowns, and extractions.
Dr. Mason and the BeanTeam will never restrain your child in any way for non-emergent restorative procedures.
If cooperation doesn't allow treatment to be completed safely and according to the AAPD standards of care then we will let you know immediately and can discuss other options such as IV sedation.
We understand that not being present for restorative procedures is difficult for some parents to accept. If you feel that seeking treatment at another office that may have different policies in place please let us know and we will help with the transition in any way possible.
We accept most major insurance providers. As a courtesy, we file claims to insurance companies on our patients’ behalf; however, the responsibility for payment of the claim belongs to you. We're happy to provide assistance in estimating your portion of the treatment cost, though we cannot guarantee the exact amount your insurance company will or will not cover.
Our office does not determine your benefits — your insurance carrier and plan type sets the fees, co-insurance levels and deductibles. Any claims that are outstanding after 90 days become the responsibility of the policy holder.
Bean Tree Pediatric Dentistry will accept assignment of benefits for in-network dental carriers. If you do not wish for us to accept assignment of benefits, payment is required at time of services. We will still file a claim for you, but the benefits will be sent directly to you. Please let a member of the BeanTeam know if you elect this option.
Unless prior arrangements have been made, payment for dental services are due at time of visit. Payments are the responsibility of the person accompanying your child/children to the appointment. Please plan accordingly if someone other than the parent is bringing the child to the appointment.
Unless a payment plan has been established, patient balances over 30 days old are assessed a $10.00 late fee. Any outstanding balances over 90 days are assessed a 30% collections fee.
Unless a payment plan or payment arrangements have been made, no outstanding dental treatments will be performed, with exception to dental emergencies.
Patients not seen for recommended recall intervals or whom have not scheduled recommended treatments are subject to dismissal. Patients not seen after 12 months will be automatically deactivated and records will be sent upon requests.
This Statement describes how medical information about you may be used and disclosed and how you can get access to this information. Please review it carefully.
Bean Tree Pediatric Dentistry, hereafter referred to as “Practice,” is committed to preserving the privacy and confidentiality of your health information. This Statement of Privacy Practices describes how we may use and disclose your protected health information, hereafter referred to as “PHI,” to carry out treatment, payment, health care operations and for other purposes that are permitted or required by law. 45 CFR§ 164.520. This statement has been revised to conform to HIPAA’s Final Rule referred to as the “Omnibus Rule” published 01/25/13. This statement replaces previous versions of the statement and is effective 08/23/2013.
By visiting our website at http://beantreepediatricdentistry.com/privacy-policy.
Contact our office and request a copy to be sent to you by mail or email.
Request a copy at the time of your next appointment.
How we use your information: Your PHI may be used and disclosed by our Practice’s dentist, administrative and or clinical staff and others outside of our Practice who are involved in your care and treatment for the purpose of providing healthcare services to you.
Treatment: We will use and disclose your PHI to provide, coordinate or manage your dental care and any related services. We may disclose PHI to other providers who may be treating you such as a specialist.
Payment: We will use your PHI to obtain payment for the dental care services provided by this Practice. For example, if we are working with your insurance plan, we may verify eligibility or coverage for benefit determination. We may use or disclose your information so that a bill may be sent to you that may include services provided.
Healthcare operations: The Practice may use or disclose, as needed, your PHI in order to support its business activities such as quality performance reviews regarding our services or the performance of our staff.
Business associates: We may share your PHI with third party business associates such as answering services, transcriptionists, billing services, consultants, trainers and legal counsel. We obtain a written agreement between our practice and the business associate to assure the protection and privacy of your PHI.
Required or permitted by law: We may use or disclose your PHI as required by law. This may include public health activities such as controlling a communicable disease or compliance with health oversight agencies authorized by law. We may disclose PHI to a public health authority authorized to receive reports of child abuse or neglect. We may disclose your PHI if we believe you have been a victim of abuse, neglect or domestic violence to a governmental agency authorized to receive such information in compliance with state and federal law. We may disclose your PHI to the Food and Drug Administration for the quality, safety, or effectiveness of FDA-regulated products or activities. We may disclose your PHI in the course of a legal proceeding in response to a subpoena, discovery request or other lawful process. We may also disclose PHI to law enforcement providing applicable legal requirements are satisfied. We may disclose PHI to a coroner or medical examiner for identification purposes. We may disclose PHI to researchers when the information does not directly identify you as the source of the information and such research has been approved by an institutional review board to ensure the privacy of the PHI. We may disclose PHI as authorized to comply with workers’ compensation laws. We may use and disclose your PHI if you are an inmate of a correctional facility and this information is necessary for your care.
Authorization for other uses and disclosures of PHI: Use and disclosure of your PHI not addressed in this Statement of Privacy Practices will be made only with your written authorization. You may revoke this authorization in writing at any time. If you revoke this authorization, we will no longer use or disclose your PHI; however, we are unable to retrieve previous disclosures made with your prior authorization.
Students: We may share PHI with students working in our Practice to fulfill their educational requirements. If you do not wish a student to observe or participate in your care, please notify your provider.
Appointment reminders: We may contact you as a reminder of your appointment. Only limited information is provided on an answering machine or an individual other than you answering the call. We may issue a postcard or letter notifying you that it is time to make an appointment. You may provide a preferred means of contact such as a mobile telephone number or email address. Reasonable requests will be accommodated.
Family, close friends, personal representatives & caregivers: Our staff may disclose to person involved in your care your PHI relevant to that person’s involvement in your care or payment of the services providing you identify these individual(s) and authorize the release of information. If you are unable to agree or object to such disclosure, we may disclose such information as necessary if we determine that it is in your best interest based on our professional judgment. If a young adult age eighteen (18) requests that his or her information not be released to a parent or guardian, we must comply with this request in compliance with state law. For minor children living in divided households, both parents (mother and father) have access to the PHI unless their parental rights have been terminated. Payment of services is addressed in your Final Divorce Decree; however, we obtain payment from the parent who brings the child in for treatment. We will provide you a statement to send to the other parent for your reimbursement.
Disaster relief: If applicable, we may use or disclose your PHI to an authorized public or private entity to assist in disaster relief efforts and to coordinate uses and disclosures to family or other individuals involved in your care.
Copy of this notice: You have the right to a copy of this notice including a paper copy.
Inspect and copy PHI: You have the right to inspect and obtain a copy of PHI about you maintained by our practice to include dental and billing records. You must submit a written request and indicate whether you prefer a paper or electronic copy. According to state and federal law, we may charge you a reasonable fee to copy your records. Our Practice does not transmit unsecure PHI via email. However, if you prefer this information emailed to you with encryption or security measures, we will comply with your request and will verify your email address. We suggest sending our practice an email and we will reply with the attachment.
(Note: Under federal law, you may not inspect or copy psychotherapy notes; information compiled in reasonable anticipation of, or use in, a civil, criminal or administrative action or proceeding. Please contact the Privacy Office for more details).
Amendment: You have the right to have your provider amend your PHI about you in a designated record set. Please consult with the Privacy Officer. We may deny this request and you may respond with a statement. We may include a rebuttal statement in your record. Reasons we may deny amending such information, but not limited to these reasons, is if we did not create the information, or if the individual who created the information is no longer available to make the amendment or it is not part of the information maintained at our Practice.
Restrictions: You have the right to request a restriction of your PHI. If you paid out-of-pocket for a service or item, you have the right to request that information not be disclosed to a health plan for purposes of payment or health care operations and we are required to honor that request. You may request in writing to our Privacy Officer not to use or disclose any part of your PHI for the purposes of treatment, payment or health care operations such as to family members or friends involved in your care or for notification purposes as described in this Statement of Privacy Practices. However, your provider is not required to agree to this restriction. You may discuss restrictions with the Privacy Officer.
Confidential communications: You have the right to request to receive confidential communications from our Practice by alternative means or at an alternative location. For example, you may prefer our Practice to use your mobile telephone or email rather than a residential line. Please make this request in writing to the Privacy Officer. Our staff will not ask personal questions regarding your request.
Disclosures: You have the right to request an accounting of disclosures of your PHI including those made through a Business Associate as set forth in CFR 45 § 164.528. The HITECH Act removed the accounting of disclosures exception to PHI to carry out treatment, payment and healthcare operations if such disclosures are made through the EHR. To request an accounting, you must submit your request in writing to the Privacy Officer.
Breach notification: According to the HITECH Act, you have the right to be notified following a breach of unsecured PHI that affects you. “Unsecured” is information that is not secured through the use of technology or methodology identified by the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to render the PHI unusable, unreadable and undecipherable to unauthorized users. Breach notification applies to our Business Associates who are obligated to notify our Practice if a breach of unsecured PHI occurs that affects you.
Fundraising: If PHI is used for fund raising which is considered “health care operations,” basic requirements must be satisfied to include notice to the individual and a process for individuals to opt-out. If the individual consents, only specific parts of PHI may be used for fund raising. Note: Your PHI will not be used in this manner at our Practice.
You have the right to file a complaint if you believe your privacy rights or that of another individuals’ have been violated. You may contact our Privacy Officer and your issue will be addressed.
200 Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, D.C. 20201.
Your complaint must be filed in writing, either on paper or electronically, by mail, fax, or e-mail; name the covered entity or business associate involved and describe the acts or omissions you believe violated the requirements of the Privacy, Security, or Breach Notification Rules; and be filed within 180 days of when you knew that the act or omission complained of occurred. You will not be penalized for filing a complaint.
You may visit the Office of Civil Rights website at www.hhs.gov/ocr/hipaa/ for more information.
I have read and understand my rights as a patient and the privacy practices of Bean Tree Pediatric Dentistry.
Please sign below acknowledging you have review the above Statement of Privacy Practices.
Since the child is a minor, it is necessary for us to obtain signed permission from a parent or guardian before any dental services can be rendered. The information I have given is correct to the best of my knowledge. I understand that it will be held in the strictest of confidence. I understand that it is my responsibility to inform this office of any changes in my child's medical status.
I ALSO ACKNOWLEDGE FULL RESPONSIBILITY FOR PAYMENT FOR DENTAL SERVICES AND AGREE TO PAY FOR THEM, IN FULL, AT THE TIME OF SERVICE.
Provider is authorized to send communications to me via email. This includes, but not limited to: x-rays, treatment plans and statements. | 2019-04-20T02:24:52Z | https://beantreepediatricdentistry.com/pediatric-dental-care-services/patient-forms/hhupdate/ |
An executive for Huawei Canada says allegations it would conduct espionage makes no sense as the distrust caused would be terminal for its business.
Some believe Huawei is compelled by law to conduct espionage if asked by the Chinese government. The company has always denied such a law exists.
China is said to be ahead of Russia as the 'biggest state sponsor of cyber-attacks on the West'. Naturally, Western governments are wary about the use of Chinese equipment in critical infrastructure such as 5G networks.
Some countries, such as the US and Australia, have decided to outright ban companies such as Huawei from their 5G network buildouts. Others, like the UK and Canada, are opting to inspect equipment instead.
“I think people need to step back a little bit and think of the simple dollars-and-cents economic impact if in fact any of this activity ever happened.
Back in September, a Canadian official said allowing Huawei to operate in the country improves security. If a specific vendor’s equipment is compromised, having others in operation means less of the network is affected.
The UK established its dedicated HCSEC (Huawei Cyber Security Evaluation Centre) facility in 2010. Experts from security agency GCHQ examine the company’s equipment for any potential security threats prior to use in national infrastructure.
Until earlier this year, HCSEC had only ever identified minor issues with the use of Huawei’s equipment, but could still assure it did not pose a risk.
However, back in July, HCSEC identified shortcomings in the company’s engineering processes that resulted in the centre only being able to provide ‘limited assurance’ that risks had been sufficiently mitigated.
The company is said to have been slow in addressing the concerns raised in the report, but a meeting between UK security officials and Huawei executives this month led to an agreement it will change its practices.
A recent increase in anti-Huawei sentiment is expected to have been driven by the US which has reportedly been petitioning its allies not to use Chinese 5G gear. Officials are even said to be offering aid if they use US vendors.
“If a government’s behaviour extends beyond its jurisdiction, such activity should not be encouraged,” said a Huawei spokesperson.
Earlier this month, Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhou was arrested in Canada on the behalf of the US for allegedly violating US sanctions against Iran – further adding to a troublesome year for the company.
Wanzhou is the daughter of Huawei founder Ren Zhengfei, making the arrest particularly notable. Part of the scrutiny against Huawei arises from Zhengfei’s past links to the People’s Liberation Army where he served in a rank equivalent to a major.
A lot of talking, not much doing. Everyone will be talking about their 5G deployments but many will be trials, not many handsets will be available, and there will be many teething problems with initial deployments. With 5G taking up so much attention, the industry will not be looking at alternative business models, hetnet concepts, or pushing for mergers. Current trends will continue – more fibre will be laid, more wifi connectivity provided, data requirements will continue to grow. Oh, and academics will start to talk up 6G….
Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) has evolved into a separate 5G use case, especially by Verizon in the US. Of all the suggested 5G use cases – including eMBB and mIoT – it is FWA that provides the most tangible revenue growth opportunity over the next five years, for both the US and in specific markets in Europe. Furthermore, operators can use their existing physical network assets and competencies for FWA. In 2019, FWA will emerge as a mainstream 5G revenue opportunity beyond the US, and particularly in Europe.
As operators battle each other to out-hype their consumer 5G offerings, the breathless mania will surely run into the hard reality of the consumer marketplace. The roll-out of next-generation capabilities will be lengthier than consumers expected, device manufacturers will be slow to adopt the standards, and a whole host of other challenges to 5G enthusiasm will surely arise. While initially painful, this bursting of the hype bubble will provide the impetus necessary for operators to pivot away from today’s heavy focus on speed, coverage and price, and refocus their businesses on monetization opportunities for new and emerging technologies. By embracing innovation as a way to help pay for their substantial network investments in the near term, it will afford Telcos breathing room for the consumer ecosystem to catch-up and fully leverage the new capabilities that 5G will offer in the long run.
The smartphone market has registered the first 4-quarter recession by the end of Q3 this year, and is likely to continue into the first half of the next. The market needs a stimulus for revival, and that should come from 5G. With the first commercial 5G chipset launch by Qualcomm, the enthusiastic smartphone makers, led by Samsung and the Chinese OEMs and, will ride on the wave of excitement to bring a strong line-up of 5G enabled products to the market in the second half of the year. This will provide another impetus for replacement in addition to the normal Galaxy-iPhone driven cycle. However most users who buy 5G phones will not be able to use 5G services overnight.
Cost of premium content rights continues to escalate. In part driven by new bidders such as the online giants. This will force telcos to rethink their current strategies towards investing in content. Some telcos like AT&T and Telefonica will continue to invest heavily. While others like BT will scale back their own ambitions and take a different approach in this landscape such as partnering more closely with providers like Amazon and Apple.
Sport is the missing piece of the content puzzle for the tech giants – but not for much longer if Amazon continues to bid for distributors with existing rights deals, such as Fox’s regional sports networks in the US. By acquiring DAZN, Amazon would gain strong sports rights in key global markets including Germany and Japan. DAZN is committed to the sports market but might find the support and growth acceleration offered by Amazon – and its huge existing subscriber base – too alluring to resist.
2019 is actually going to be the year of carrier sponsored RCS – some 12 years or more since the technology was introduced. Between the launch of the operator led solution in Japan and the many other operators we are talking to about this around the world, I think by the end of 2019 we will see multiple launches of interoperable RCS messaging within countries and across countries, allowing for an improved customer experience as well as commerce.
2019 will be the breakout year for applications that combine people and things, communicating with each other, whether through voice activated commands (“Alexa, call Mum”), or messaging alerts (“A stranger is on your doorstep.”) The lines will blur and tremendous value will be created when companies design applications, connected on secure networks, that make it as easy to develop a relationship with your smart car, smart home, or smart campus as it is to develop a relationship with human beings. The impact will be substantial and meaningful, with applications that leverage sensors to help us age at home more safely, to get to and from work more conveniently, and to generally reduce the “friction” in life that can lead to exhaustion and despair. Look for major changes to the contact center industry, as virtual and human assistants help millions of people navigate this brave, new hyperconnected world, and look for value creation in securing communications throughout.
Expect to see the slump in smartphone sales continue, and subscribers increasingly turn to SIM-only contracts in 2019. Operators will need to think carefully about alternative revenue sources to combat the unavoidable slump in contract sales. Additional services such as music, TV or device insurance that will retain customers and improve subscriber engagement, while driving new revenue, will be critical.
After years of concern about the impact on their businesses, operators are coming to realise the considerable benefits of eSIM technology. These include simpler provisioning, reduced logistic costs and lower barriers for new use cases. Thanks to the rising number of eSIM use cases plus the launch of major handsets equipped with GSMA-based eSIMs, 2019 will be the year that operators in Europe and North America properly embrace eSIM for both handsets and IoT use cases.
Most converged telcos already offer a portfolio of multiplay services including fixed line broadband and pay TV. These telcos include the likes of Deutsche Telekom, Comcast, Orange, and Telefonica. Expect these providers to launch the first sixth/seventh play bundle. This will consist of but not limited to other services such as banking, financial services, utility services and other connected services. Orange is likely to lead the race with its march into financial services.
Microsoft has been delivering stellar performances in recent quarters, and has weathered the market gloom better than its main competitors. The strategy shift to becoming a platform and to focusing on cloud and gaming will continue to power its resurgence. Meanwhile, its main competitors on the top of the world’s most valuable company table are seeing their share prices being depressed for different reasons. Apple’s overreliance on iPhone makes it vulnerable when the market sniffs weakness in the shipment of its latest products; Amazon’s AWS is growing slower than Microsoft’s Azure; Alphabet is still a one-trick pony: advertising through Google, which continues to throw the company into troubles. As a matter of fact, Microsoft did briefly become the most valuable company in late November. Next time this crossover happens it may last longer.
So 5G just ended up being about capacity, efficiency and industrial applications. How boring is that? Once the first couple of 5G conversational gambits at MWC fall flat, people will soon realise it’s much more fun to focus on more distant technology, about which they can make all sorts of utopian predictions without fear of being called out. There will be talk of a wireless neural network connecting everyone and everything to a hive mind overseen by benign artificial super intelligence. What they won’t say is that the ultimate aim of 6G will be to erase all traces of individuality in order to create a global AR/VR Borg that will combine Chinese social credit, American cultural puritanism and European imperiousness to free us all from the burdens of disappointment, inconvenience and choice. Happy New Year!
One of the biggest stories of the year, and one of the major catalysts of the US/China trade war, was ZTE’s brush with extinction, but Huawei thinks it’s robust enough to withstand the US economic dirty-bomb.
During the Summer, ZTE was caught violating US trade sanctions with Iran and subsequently was banned from using any US products or IP within its supply chain. The move from the US almost destroyed ZTE, with the company ceasing operations for a couple of weeks, but Huawei’s Rotating CEO doesn’t think his firm would be under the same risk.
With CFO Meng Wanzhou currently on bail in Canada, Huawei is facing questions it probably doesn’t want to answer. The connection with Skycom looks to be much closer than some US financial institutions were led to believe, suggesting Huawei has been violating US trade sanctions with Iran. Should the US take the same action as it did with ZTE earlier in the year, Huawei could face the same ban on US exports.
The issue with ZTE was its dependence on the US for its supply chain. Huawei will also have the US feature prominently through its own supply chain, but Hu is confident it would stand up to any potential punishment dished out by the US.
“We take a diversified supply strategy,” said Hu. “That means we have a multi-sourcing strategy.
The company is also working to produce its own alternatives to some technologies which might not be able to be replicated elsewhere. A prime example of this is the Android mobile operating system.
As it stands, should the US impose a ban on Huawei its smartphones and wearable devices would be relegated to the role of doorstop. With this in mind, Huawei is attempting to create its own mobile operating system. It will probably be no-where as good as what the Android OS can offer, others such as Samsung have tried and failed, but it is certainly better than nothing.
Being banned from using US components and IP would certainly be a negative for Huawei, and it certainly isn’t a scenario which is out of the question, but Huawei seems to be in a better position than the suspect ZTE.
It’s not very good, but here’s another attempts at a Telecoms.com poem. This time around we’ve destroyed the much loved ‘Twelve Days of Christmas’ and wrestled in some of the stories from the last twelve months.
Just a few weeks after lighting up a 5G network in Sweden, Telia has taken the connectivity euphoria across the Baltic Sea to Estonia.
In partnership with TalTech University, Telia has turned on Estonia’s first 5G network as a test bed for the university, as well as local companies and start-ups. The 5G network is a permanent installation using standardized and commercial 5G products.
This is of course not Telia’s first venture into the 5G world, having opened up the network at KTH the Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm, earlier this month. This network has been poised as the first building block for 5G in Sweden.
The first task for the TalTech network will be a 4K live stream on the university campus of the network opening party from the Tallinn Old Town Christmas Market, which was recently voted the best in Europe.
The partnership will not limit the ambitions of those wishing to play around with the 5G network, though one of the first initiatives will focus on autonomous driving. TalTech´s self-driving car made its first official journey in September, though progress will surely be accelerated with the 5G input.
The next stage of the autonomous initiative will be establishing a vehicle-to-vehicle communication platform with Telia, while also optimising the vehicle structure with Silberauto, one of the biggest automotive companies in the Baltics.
Huawei, and China on the whole for that matter, has become the telco industry’s punching bag over the last couple of months, but Rotating CEO Ken Hu has hit back at the allegations.
Speaking at Huawei’s new campus in Dongguan, Hu put forward a strong statement of intent, pointing to the commercial success of the business in the 5G world and hitting back at security allegations which have plagued the firm.
“When it comes to security issues, as an industry, we believe that we need to talk more about the technology and how to improve,” said Hu.
Opinion will be divided on these statements, but we intend to sit on the fence this time around. China is almost certainly attempting to widen its influence on the world, but so is every other country and intelligence agency. And Huawei seems to be sitting in a difficult position. It isn’t unfeasible to believe the government is exerting influence on the firm, but no evidence has been tabled to date.
That said, it doesn’t seem to be having an overtly negative impact on the business. Hu claims the team has secured 25 commercial 5G contracts, the most in the segment, though the allegations will be weighing down prospects. Having already been written out of several big-spending markets, perhaps the Huawei influence is being diluted.
Huawei will not go out of business because of these allegations, unless there is some pretty serious evidence put into the public domain, but we are unlikely to see a repeat of its fortunes in the 4G world. Nokia and Ericsson will secretly be jumping for joy, with the pair seemingly unable to compete with Huawei in the 4G era, the political climate is making life considerably easier for the next couple of years.
But Hu is not writing off Huawei just yet.
“We realize that the industry we’re in is undergoing faster technological transition periods. Technologies are becoming increasingly complicated,” said Hu. “Networks are becoming more open. As a result of this, we definitely notice the increasing interest and care from network operators and regulators and also the general public about the industry. We think this is just normal.
Part of this $2 billion has been invested in the cyber security lab in Dongguan, though it might not be unusual to see more of these labs appear around the world. The UK is a prime example, having a team monitoring Huawei equipment in GCHQ, and it does seem to have removed some concerns with the government yet to hand out a Huawei ban.
Last month the team opened a similar lab in Bonn, Germany, while there are plans to unveil a security transparency centre in Brussels over the next couple of months. Perhaps this is an initiative Huawei could point to with other governments to suppress some of the growing negative sentiment.
Security concerns about China and it nefarious intentions will never go away, at least not while the country poses a threat to the US’ technology dominance, but Huawei is a powerful business. The next couple of months will see various commercial contracts announced for the 5G rollout; this will give a much more conclusive picture of how telcos feel about Huawei. Will the technological capabilities stand tall above the security concerns?
Seven banks have financed the transaction, ABN AMRO, Deutsche Bank, Lloyds Bank plc, Natixis, NatWest, Santander and Société Générale, which will serve as the first installment of CityFibre’s £2.5 billion commitment for a nationwide fibre rollout. CityFibre has given itself a target of providing fibre to five million homes, a third of the Government’s target of 15 million, by 2025.
“The appetite from these institutions to support our financing is further evidence that CityFibre’s strategy is the right one for the UK,” said Terry Hart, CityFibre’s CFO.
CityFibre made it abundantly clear in its statement that this is an endorsement of the firm’s business model from heavy hitting financial institutions, and perhaps it does indicate a change in attitudes from investors.
Back in October, we attended an investor panel session at Broadband World Forum featuring the likes of the European Investment Bank and also Amber Infrastructure, a specialist venture capitalist firm. The message was clear from this panel session; investors are increasingly happy to fuel fibre rollouts as the business case has been justified and consumer demand has been validated.
This is where CityFibre sits. It doesn’t want to be a telco but become a serious infrastructure player. Owning the relationship with the consumer is of zero interest but creating a nationwide alternative to Openreach and becoming a connectivity wholesaler is the big picture. However, to be considered a viable alternative, there needs to be more of a presence than there is today.
Telcos don’t want to have a patchwork of relationships across a country to meet the connectivity demands. Multiple relationships create more overheads and more opportunity for something to go wrong. CityFibre has made good progress in rolling out fibre spines in numerous areas across the UK, but the gaps will have to be plugged if it wants to be a viable and realistic alternative to Openreach.
That said, CityFibre is looking like a business which has the right ingredients for a market which is primed for disruption. Aggressive ambitions, a head-strong CEO and the confidence of being owned by one of the world’s most powerful businesses. CityFibre is a very strong contender to make a genuine and permanent dent in the connectivity infrastructure game.
And a £1.1 billion investment from seven major financial institutions is a very good place to start.
The T-Mobile US TV launch has been anticipated for some time now, but we’ll have to wait until at least mid-2019 for this dream to become a reality.
After closing the Layer3 acquisition at the beginning of this year, it was assumed T-Mobile US would sharply enter the TV market with another ‘Uncarrier’ move. These disruptive plays have formed the foundation of T-Mobile US’ rise through the ranks in recent years, luring customers away from the still dominant duo of AT&T and Verizon.
But for those who were eagerly anticipating the launch of a TV service, don’t hold your breath. The launch has been kicked back, with no concrete commitments made. Why? Because CEO John Legere has high standards.
According to Bloomberg, people working on the project have suggested the wild-eyed CEO has set the bar so high, the team are struggling to meet expectations. This is not necessarily a bad thing and demonstrates Legere has the patience to produce a good product instead of being rushed to market due to the pressure of other players.
The first moments of life for this product could be the beginning and the end. Such is the competition in the ‘cord-cutter’ space, bringing a poor product to market could result in the venture failing before it has even started. If T-Mobile US wants to make a splash in this pond, he’ll have to meet consumer expectations, most of whom are dissatisfied at the moment.
While cable has had a place in the hearts of consumers for years, this trend is ending with the cord-cutting generation of today. Digital alternatives are wanted by the consumer, though with expensive and sub-standard options on the market as it stands, there is the opportunity for disruption. This is a perfect storm for Legere and the magenta army, but only if the proposition is right.
It’ll have to be cheap enough to attract interest, expensive enough to allow for future content investment, stylish enough to meet the visual and experience demands of the digital natives and have the content depth to attract a broad range of customers. This is a complicated equation to get right, but the rewards are potentially massive. We’re pleasantly surprised the team is taking its time and getting the proposition right.
Another factor to consider is the increased competitive threat from Disney. Disney has already shown its intention to go toe-to-toe with Netflix on the content battlefield, though should this entertainment heavyweight get its own OTT service right upon launch next year, the content gains for everyone else will get considerably smaller.
With a host of services already on the market, and more to come in 2019, T-Mobile US will have to make this Uncarrier move perfect if it wants to cash in on the content bonanza. Consumers are fickle and un-loyal enough to mean late-comers to the market can make a splash, so don’t expect Legere to be rushed with this challenge to the status quo. | 2019-04-26T12:17:22Z | http://www.visualpcs.com/2018/12/ |
Many of us hear about the problems we have facing our nation and the world when it comes to energy. We hear about the pollution; the large amounts of CO2 added to the atmosphere, the tons of mercury and sulfur dioxide released from burning coal. While some may contest the reasons for climate change, no one can deny the environmental hazards of oil spills and coal mining. On top of this, we are reminded of the world’s growing population. Hundreds of millions of people from China, India and Brazil are emerging out of poverty, all becoming Westernized consumers, which puts a further strain on our demand for energy.
For generations we have been burning coal and drilling for oil to meet our energy demands. Much of our society is deeply rooted in these industries and the culture they have helped to create. Then come along these “scientists” that say we can make energy from wind and solar panels. A number of other technological ideas have presented themselves as well, some more feasible than others. These ideas many seem like something out of a sci-fi movie in the future. Imagine an entire world run off of renewable energy. Seems like a world that only Gene Rodenberry could give us on the big screen.
But this world is closer than you may think. We have the technology and everyday we are getting better and more efficient at creating energy from renewables.
This year, worldwide wind production has surpassed 250 gigawatts. In the U.S. we produce 49.8 gigawatts now from wind. How much is this? In the U.S. we have about 490 coal-firing plants, each producing on average 667 megawatts. So, our current energy produced by wind power in the U.S. is equivalent to about 73 coal plants. Wind power usage has grown about 25% in the past two years. If this trend were to continue consistently, in just 10 years wind power could replace all electricity that is currently produced by burning coal.
Denmark has the largest percentage of its energy powered by the wind. 28% of Denmark’s energy now comes from wind. China and India are the other 2 largest producers of wind energy.
another six coal- burning power plants. Our use of solar is increasing as well. There currently are plans for other large-scale solar farms, which will add another 4 gigawatts in the next 2 years. In California, Governor Jerry Brown set a standard for 33% of California’s power demands to come from renewables. Factor in the rate of growth from solar power, between wind and solar, coal-burning plants could be a thing of the past in as little as 8 years.
While replacing coal is desirable for a number of reasons, the bigger issue on most people’s minds today is gas and oil. Especially their prices, what we pay at the pump and how rising oil prices also increases the price of all our consumer goods. Oil prices have risen for one reason. Demand! Not only our increasing demand from 320 million Americans, but add another 3 billion people from the growing economies of China, Brazil, India and others, and you have almost 10 times more people demanding oil than there were 10 years ago. This is a big problem as well. There simply aren’t enough oil resources throughout the world to keep up with this growing demand. It’s a good thing too, because of all the added emissions that will be released from the exponential growth of oil use. So, what’s to be done?
In the U.S. about 40% of our oil is used for electric power, 29% for transportation, 21% industrial and 10% is residential and other commercial use. First, imagine if we could eliminate the 40% used for electrical generation and replace it with wind and solar. Then there is the recent emergence of electric and hybrid vehicles. Yes, they are expensive now, but so were the VCR, home computer, cell phone and DVD player when they all first appeared on the market. Again, these things will get cheaper and more efficient as time moves on.
The biggest question is how fast will we make these technologies cheaper and more efficient? Will we support policies to further promote our clean energy future, or do we just want cheaper gasoline. The problem with just pursuing cheaper gasoline is that it will slow and prolong the growth of green energy. The recent advances in wind, solar and electric cars have been sped up in part because of the rising cost of oil and gasoline. Higher oil prices have pushed us to pursue and expand on these renewable technologies. If gas prices are lowered, our complacency operating under an unsustainable path of dirty fuels will continue.
To help encourage and advance these renewable energy sources, various tax credits have been given. As we argue about our current budget deficit, are these tax credits that encourage market growth for renewables in danger? Over the past few years the Department of Energy has initiated programs that give grants to developers of renewable energy for further R&D, all which has helped make these technologies even more efficient and cheaper. In addition the Obama administration has doubled the fuel efficiency of cars to 54.5 MPG by 2025, again in an effort to reduce demand and make driving more cost efficient.
The technology is here. All around the world countries are employing green energy and energy efficient technologies at a staggering rate. Walking in the streets of Beijing, hundreds of old diesel motorbikes are now replaced by electric bikes. We’ve developed numerous other energy saving appliances such as water heaters and air-conditioners. Again, the technology is here. It’s in our hands. Do we continue to expand our energy security, while promoting a cleaner environment by making use of resources that are unlimited and free for the entire world? Or do we look for the cheap way out, continuing to pollute, continuing to fight over locations for fossil fuels, all which carry other large expenses. Cheaper gas and coal may be easy in the short term, but result in heavy extraneous costs in the long term. It is just that we can’t continue this path forever and we all know it. We will eventually have to change our ways. Do we change now or later? We can and are doing it now, creating jobs along the way. One of the big questions in the coming election is how much of an effort are we going to put forth towards our future. Are we going to lead the way for the world, or will we let China and India lead in these technologies? They already have a head start on us, but we are in a perfect position to catch up and surpass them all.
Education and Immigration. In our world of politics the parties of the left and right have been arguing over education and immigration policy. Republicans on the right, while using rhetoric on the importance of education, have spoken against the need for further funding in this area and for increases in immigrant visas. For education, the recent budget proposal by Paul Ryan asked for a 30% cut in federal spending on education.
The federal allotment towards education gives states some help but mostly goes to fund loans and scholarships for higher education.
So we need to cut spending? According to the Ryan budget he wants to cut education spending by 30%. Kind of confusing since Mitt has stated in his last debate that he wouldn’t cut education at all. Even though Obama has increased education spending at the federal level, state budgets that make up the majority of education expenditures have been falling drastically.
So how much does the U.S. government (federal, state and local) spend on education? This chart lists the figures that various countries spend on education as a percentage of GDP per capita in 2009. Primary education is typically K-8th grades. Secondary is 9th through 12 grades and Tertiary is advanced schooling such as college, university and other advanced vocational studies. Out of all these developed countries, the United States is the only one that spends less on Tertiary education. How much less? On average all these other countries spend 12 percentage points more on tertiary education than their secondary education. We in the U.S. spend 5.8% less on our higher education.
Lets compare the above spending chart with this chart of OECD test scores in Math, Science and Reading. All the countries here that spent more on tertiary education have scored higher in all three categories of reading, math and sciences. The only exception being Iceland and Norway, which scored slightly lower than the U.S. in science.
It is clear we have a problem with a failing education system. Many would like to blame our teachers. Attracting competent teachers is definitely part of the equation and great steps are being made to ensure better competency in our teachers. A recent article in the New York Times points out measures of improvement in our evaluation of teachers.
But can we rely on reforms to teacher evaluation as the sole reason for our declining scores in education? Are the charts above compelling enough that we need to be spending more on education, especially higher education.
Why is education such an important component? President Obama has called increased funding for education an “economic necessity”, and it is.
In my book I make reference to a study by the U.S. Manufacturing Institute in early 2012 that estimates 600,000 jobs are available in the U.S. but unable to be filled because of a lack of qualified workers.
This may have been true at one point, but it no longer holds any meaning. Companies are outsourcing high skilled, higher paying jobs as well now. Jobs such as Data Analysts, Computer Programmers, Engineers, Drafters, Financial and Accounting positions, is just the tip of the iceberg in a long list of jobs moving overseas. Goldman Sachs recently announced it was moving 1,000 jobs to Singapore. You think they are hiring low-wage, low-skilled people in Singapore to do their Market Analysis? Look again above at what Singapore spends on education compared to us and look at Singapore’s OECD test results.
Just about every major U.S. company or firm has high-skilled, high-paid employees abroad. Everyone from GE to Alcoa to IBM, together employ hundreds of thousands of high skilled workers around the globe. None of this is done because of cheap labor. It has to do more with where the skilled people are. They are increasingly not in the U.S.
Our immigration system doesn’t help much either. We limit the number of H1B visas to 65 thousand per year. On the surface, people have argued that we shouldn’t allow more foreign workers to come to the U.S. cause it takes away American jobs. My first response would be, “Foreigners are taking our jobs anyway, whether we allow them to work in the U.S. or not.” The other point I would make is that many of these foreigners with H1B visas stay in the U.S. and start businesses. A study from the Kaufmann Center estimates that between 1995-2005(the tech boom) 52% of Silicon Valley start-up companies were started by immigrants on H1B visas. Silicon Valley and the tech boom isn’t the only phenomena where we have benefited from attracting foreign talent. Our entire economic history has been drastically improved from the contributions of foreign talent. (And I don’t just mean back in the late 1800s and early 1900s when we had huge waves of immigrants.) Thousands of today’s companies are the result of immigrant ingenuity.
Alexander Gram Bell was from Scotland; William Boeing was from Germany, as well as Albert Einstein. William Procter and James Gamble of Proctor and Gamble are English and Irish immigrants. More recent foreign contributors are those such as Sergey Brin, who cofounded Google. Sergey was also a H1B immigrant who went to the University of Maryland. Then there’s Pierre Omindyar who started eBay, both Fortune 500 companies. And the list goes on and on.
Either way, between immigration and our own education system, America is experiencing a severe “brain drain”. We aren’t attracting enough foreign talent, nor are we doing enough to educate our own. Whether it is immigration or education, we can look at our history and our current policies as compared to the rest of the world. When we do this, we should gain a clear direction in which to follow if we are to ensure our economic prosperity.
When Promises and the Math Don’t Add Up.
The first presidential debate just held in Colorado had President Obama going head to head for the first time with Mitt Romney. Most accept and believe Romney was the clear winner of this debate. After the debate was over, fact checkers went into high speed, working on the various figures thrown out by the two contestants.
Romney seemed to win in part because he told the American people things they wanted to hear, whether their was any basis for them or not. Obama however seemed to get too bogged down in the grim details of the situation our nation faces.
So Romney promised to balance the budget and not raise any taxes. He also said he wouldn’t cut Medicare, wouldn’t cut education and wouldn’t cut the military. So if he won’t raise taxes and won’t cut from any of our biggest expenditures, how does he plan on balancing the budget? He did say he’d cut funding for PBS. Funding for PBS is hardly a large expense that would balance the budget.
What is Romney’s plan for balancing the budget if he won’t raise taxes or cut any big expenses? His idea and that of his constituents is to focus on growing the economy. The increased jobs and wealth created would mean more revenue for the government without raising tax rates. And he is right. When you grow the economy and more people are working, the government is able to raise more revenue. This reasoning makes perfect sense.
However there is one big problem with this reasoning that the fact checkers and pundits have overlooked. The thing standing in Mitt’s way for this plan to work is MATH and history. This is where we need to get out our calculators.
Over yearly federal deficit is 1.5 trillion dollars. We spend 1.5 trillion dollars more than we take in from tax revenue. So for Mitt to balance the budget without raising taxes and without major cuts, he needs to raise 1.5 trillion dollars. He suggests doing this by growing the economy. So how much will the economy have to grow in order to raise 1.5 trillion? Under current tax rates, the government earns 16% of GDP in tax revenue. If keeping the same net tax rates, the economy will have to grow by 9.3 trillion dollars in order to raise 1.5 trillion in additional tax revenue. How much is 9.3 trillion? In order to increase our current GDP of 14 trillion by 9.3 trillion, GDP would have to grow consistently at 16% for the next four years. This has never happened anywhere in the world! Even China’s largest growth rate was only 14% just before the recession hit.
Ok, so we give Mitt eight years to balance the budget under this philosophy and GDP would need to grow 8% for eight years straight. Again, this has never happened! Our average growth over the past 50 years is around 4% and we’ve had one-year peak growth at 8.5% in 1966 and 1984. Never before have we grown 8% for more than a year straight.
So far this doesn’t seem anything close to a plausible path towards balancing the budget without raising tax rates or making drastic cuts.
Ok, so let’s say Mitt does decide to make a bunch of cuts and is able to cut 500 billion out of the federal budget. (500 billion is about 14% of the total federal budget).
If he cuts 500 billion, we still have a trillion dollar deficit. Again, without raising taxes, how much does the economy need to grow so that we can increase tax revenue by 1 trillion dollars? We would need to add 6.25 trillion dollars to our GDP. It’s not as bad as our previous example, but GDP would still have to grow 11% for 4 years straight to raise an additional 1 trillion in revenue. Again, if we give Mitt eight years to balance the budget with 500 billion cut from the yearly deficit, GDP would still need to grow 5.5% for eight years straight. This sounds a bit more possible, but again very unlikely. Even during the boom years of the 90s, GDP growth averaged at 3.5% and peaked at 7% twice.
Even in this liberal example, where we cut 14% of government spending and give Mitt eight years to balance the budget by growing the economy at 5.5% each year seems highly improbable.
So if Mitt promises not to cut Medicare, military or education, then there are only two other options left to balance the budget.
1-severly gut our government functions by cutting 40% of government spending in other areas.
I for one believe in the “balanced” approach Mr. Obama has so often mentioned. Some cuts and some tax increases. That is what balance means. A little of both. But how can there be balance when people in the GOP adamantly insists on no new revenue?
How Capitalistic Are We? A comparative look.
Why Social Capitalism? What does that mean? First there is capitalism, which is the private ownership of the means of production and the creation of goods for profit. In theory, pure capitalism is free of all government interference. Then there are the ideas of socialism, where the government controls certain aspects of the economy. So which economic system do we adhere to in the United States? We certainly are capitalists with private enterprise, but we also apply socialist practices with government controls and spending. Economists define our economic system as a “mixed economy”. Well, a mix of what? It’s a mix of capitalism and socialism, which is why I like to call it social capitalism.
While we can argue the exact definitions of each theory, one cannot deny that we have always employed some balance of both theories. The main question is what should that balance be? Most of our political arguments today are based on how much of each theory we should apply to our economy. Republicans believe we should apply more capitalistic practices and Democrats believe in applying more socialist ideals. While we can go on and on arguing about different policies, here I wanted to try and see how capitalistic or socialist America is compared to other countries.
We can start by measuring how capitalist or socialist a country is by looking at how much of a country’s GDP is controlled by the government. In the following chart, I list the top 21 countries in the world with the largest economies. I also list each country’s total government spending as a percentage of their GDP.
We can see some countries spend a higher percentage than the U.S, and some spend a lower percentage. If we arrange this list in order of spending as a percentage of GDP, we can see that France spends the highest percentage at 52% of GDP. Indonesia is the lowest at 19.2%. Where does the U.S. sit comparatively? We are right in the middle. Half of the world’s largest economies spend higher percentages than us and half spend less. So we certainly aren’t near any extreme when compared to the government spending of others. Is any of this information really useful?
Before we look deeper into what these numbers may mean, I would like to first make sure we are all on the same page with the same goal. I continue with the assumption that we are all looking to improve our country’s economy with the hopes of benefiting everyone in our country. In our quest for balance we ask if we should we be leaning further towards conservative ideals with less government spending or should we lean more towards liberal ideals with increased government spending? If we are looking to improve our economy what can these numbers tell us?
First, out of the 177 nations for which there are records (there are 206 nations total), 55 governments spend a higher percentage of GDP than America does and 121 countries spend less. If we look at the world’s top 21 economies, 9 of them spend more and 11 spend less than the U.S. This means that 16% of all the governments that spend higher portions of GDP are among the top 21 economies. In converse only 9% of countries that spend a smaller percentage of GDP have made it into the top 21 economies.
However, the overall size of a country’s economy can be largely based on shear physical size and population, as opposed to just a government’s economic policies. In order to account for population we can take the same list of countries and organize them according to GDP per capita. GDP per capita or PPP is a country’s GDP divided by the population. This gives a more accurate representation of how wealthy a country is, relative to its size and population.
If you look at this table, you’ll notice that the U.S. is only number 7 in terms of GDP per capita. The countries not on this list whose PPP is higher than that of the largest world economies are all tiny countries. Qatar, Brunei and Singapore are all countries with a higher PPP because of thier small populations that have emense oil resources or other strategic resources.
What else can we see when looking at GDP per capita for the top 21 economies? The United States still has the highest GDP per capita among the world’s biggest economies. India comes in last because its GDP is divided among a large population.
If we do some math we can see that those countries who’s governments spent higher percentages of GDP have an average GDP per capita of $32,585. Of those economies that spent a smaller share of GDP, their PPP is only $22,211, about $10,000 less per person. If we look further we can see that out of the top ten on this list, seven countries spend more than the U.S. and only three spend less. The reverse is also true for the bottom 10 on the list. Of the bottom 10, only two countries spent higher percentages of GDP and eight of them spent less than America.
Now, government spending is only one factor that can affect economic growth. There’s certainly other comparisons to look at, such as overall debt, areas or sectors that money is spent on, tax rates, investment policies and strategies, all of which I hope to examine in future articles.
But here, when we simply look at the top world economies, there is an undeniable trend. Those who have spent higher percentages of GDP than the U.S. are about 4 times more likely to have higher GDP than those who spend a smaller percentage compared to the U.S.
Again this isn’t a 100% conclusive cause and effect relationship. There are many other factors to consider, but government spending is a big factor, which shouldn’t be overlooked or denied. | 2019-04-18T10:23:04Z | http://www.socialcapitalismonline.com/2012/10/ |
Crowd funding seems to be growing in China according to this CaiXin article, highlighting DreMore and DemoHour. Both of these sites are in Chinese but if you can view the pictures and if you are using Chrome you can see the translations.
Tagged with china, crowd, funding.
Neilson and Comscore have both released cell phone data today.
Neilson have a nice graphic showing US phone usage. With 30% now using either iPhones or Android and as result having access to a more extensive range of applications.
It isn’t clear what proportion of consumers still have no cell phone at all but it does also mean that 70% of consumers don’t have access to an application store worth mentioning. Things are more promising for 25 to 34 year olds where 62% have a smartphone. While it isn’t stated their is probably a higher proportion of iPhone and Android phones among that 62% as well. Probably something around 50% of consumers in the age range have access to an effective application store.
There is a graph of the usage by age range here but the full text requires payment.
Comscore, who surveyed 30,000 mobile phone users has figures for the proportion of cell phone users (87%) and shows Android with a very similar 48.8% of smartphones of which 25.3% are from Samsung the largest manufacturer. LG have 20.6%. Apple added 1.3% of all mobile subscribers in the preceding 3 months. Android’s growth of 4.6% of smart phone subscribers coming at the expense of RIM. The iPhone 4S won’t be reflected in these numbers yet as they show until the end of September.
43% of all mobile subscribers use their web browser and the same number also have downloaded applications. 71% have sent a text message. This is similar to the proportion of people who use Facebook at least once a month.
Comscore’s released information can be found here.
My conclusion would be that about 40% of people are actively using digital mobile technology and that this is going to continue to increase as people replace phones and become aware of benefits at a rate of a couple of percent per quarter. Maybe hitting 55% over the next 18 months (The numbers we have are 2-4 months delayed). After that its going to be a slower haul to get the next 15%.
In addition, online now competes with press and outdoor when it comes to reach, GfK found. Digital campaigns reach on average 33% of the online population, while press reaches less than 40% — and outdoor just 30%.
The nice thing about the published uplift numbers is that it gives a way of assessing what the different channels are likely to be worth to you. They also point out that 25% were reached by online advertising but not by television. If a TV CPM were costing you $20 your might be willing to pay some proportion of $120 for a Google Search CPM. However there are only a limited number of people being reached by effective Google Search CPMs so your budget is then going to sill over into display advertising at some discount on $25 until you weren’t reaching as many additional people and were spilling over into the world of outdoor and TV advertising.
Even if people don’t believe these numbers if gives some heart to only advertising based sites that advertisers are going to read reports like this and start to be willing to increasingly spend more significantly on display advertising.
If you are advertising online yourself it’s worth noting that the short term sales uplift was over five times greater with Google Search (Presumably discriminatingly spent) than with display advertising. The long term brand benefit tends to still be discounted.
As of the end of October 2010 Subtle Tea is closed. They have lost their lease and the fittings and fixtures laying abandoned in the space.
Should Your Web Startup Avoid Providing Telephone Support?
There are many apparently very important web businesses which don’t provide customer support. At least not the expensive telephone variety of support. Facebook or Amazon for example. Even consumer websites do provide telephone support when they deal with more urgent and financially significant transactions though. Services such as airline ticket or even theater ticket sales. Admittedly they use the airline’s support number during travel, in the same way as retail store travel agents did. Another example on the consumer front is Intuit’s Turbo Tax product which again, because it is a more important, finds itself providing telephone support. Some of these services are so important that customers are paying for the service unlike many well know websites which succeed through scale but have very little revenue per user.
It is no coincidence that the paid for services such as travel agents or tax preparation services provide telephone support. If it is important enough to pay for, then most people are going to want recourse to a phone number as a last resort. If the service is free then they don’t expect somebody to be paid to talk to them about it but, particularly if they have paid a significant fee, they expect support to be available.
So maybe startups shouldn’t be shying away from businesses which require telephone support. Maybe these needs are an indicator of the types of service that people really care about. Enough to make a phone call.
If a service is used in day to day business, such as a reservation system, order taking system, or other client facing website then there needs to be some kind of support if the client’s business can’t function without it. And that is the kind of thing they are going to actually want to pay for. They are going to be concerned if it is free. The reason Facebook or Twitter don’t need a support phone number is because they aren’t part of anybody’s business workflow.
Back in the days of packaged applications being installed on the client’s machine the client was in control. The user was part of the release process and chose when to install a new version. They waited until they believed a business benefit would result and there was a convenient time to incur the learning curve. They chose to not make changes at month or quarter end or while staff were on vacation. With software as a service the service provider is in control. As a result if an issue occurs there is a stronger need to communicate and an increased value to support in the software as a service model. The connected nature of the applications means that the service provider is needed to rectify any issue. The client is in a very vulnerable position unless they pay.
There are applications which are very generic and as a result don’t require telephone support. The assumption is that the provider is managing their release process effectively. Nobody needs to phone a Google like company to tell them that their home page is down, because if it were their monitoring would have picked up on the redundant components as they failed and obviously everybody else would have the same problem.
The same problem. When it is a different problem — things change. As services become more specific to an industry or integration points with other providers multiply the chance of an issue being unique to a small client group increases and the needs of the client to have a customer service relationship and to pay to have influence over the product increase. They will wish to even control the release of the software in use. Something that is occasionally provided on consumer products but is the norm for business applications.
To be rapidly scalable the sales process needs to be light which is why startups and their investors tend to focus on consumer products (b2c) but there isn’t a reason to avoid needing to provide support it is just that the managing of the support at scale is a significant part of the business. When it comes to b2b applications then the more widely used applications such as Excel, CRM systems or Quickbooks obviously have more growth potential and a better chance of a rapid multiple, but there are many very viable businesses where much of what the client is paying for is the support processes, and partnership over the product release process. In the extreme cases leading to visibility into the product roadmap but more commonly solutions which allow a selection of modules and defined version points.
The habit of hiding in the world of rapid unannounced releases and no direct client interaction is convenient, scalable and maximizes the technical component of the business, but it may be avoiding the software applications that clients are actually willing to pay money for and that would be a missed opportunity.
Posted in Business Models, Technology.
Tagged with business models, profitable, support.
This is more the kind of startup location that makes sense to me. Cheap living for those from out of town and around the clock contribution. It reminds me of the gaming company Code Masters which in the early 90s operated a series of portable trailer sheds in the back yard of the Darling brothers’ parent’s farm house near Gloucester in the UK. They leased these sheds out to independent coders who then contributed their efforts to projects like a row of bungalow occupants on the Universal back lot. Planning permission at that time, and maybe still, allowed you to do this as long as the location was a farm! All part of the fun. Toys there consisted of people clubbing together to buy a power boat as well as a hundred and one video games that were in development around the site.
Given the cost of living space in New York it surprises me that only a couple of startups have used residential space. Living costs are much more of an issue for people than office space and it would seem to kill two birds with one stone.
It’s literally a sweat shop but it’s a way of getting things done.
Posted in New York, Space, Staffing.
Tagged with codemasters, home, newyork, office, Space, startup.
McDonald’s, the New Starbucks for Laptop Users?
McDonald’s has refurbished a Manhattan store at 85th and 3rd Avenue in a style that I have never seen before. Not only is the interior far more design conscious, it also satisfies many of the needs of the modern day 3rd place. That place which is not the home, nor the office — a market that has so far been dominated by Starbucks.
Passersby are looking into the window of, what is after all just a McDonald’s, starring at it and trying to figure out what it is. It is actually fun seeing people’s reactions as they walk past. The expressions are a combination of confusion and delight. It is great to see a shop front having that effect. Why the light green colors? Why the swirling thumb prints of words on the store front? Even from the street it is clear that the interior is something that we are more likely to associate with an airport in Europe than the familiar fast food brand.
Looking out towards the entrance. Lighting and color surrounds you.
Bright colors are used throughout in a way that reminds me of Migros (A Swiss and Turkish supermarket chain which uses orange) or Coffee Day (A fun Indian coffee chain where there is a lot of red and chrome) or even Mexican calendar posters of hillside houses or maybe just the Ikea restaurant.
The light wood screens are used both downstairs, before the counters, and upstairs to break up the line of sight and give a feeling of separate spaces. It is a stark contrast to the less-welcoming orange plastic seats we may remember from traditional McDonald’s stores. The lighting also adds to the color, highlighting alcoves, condiment areas and bins.
The real surprise though comes when you go upstairs. In front of the floor to ceiling plate glass are circular tables with loose colored seats. Loose seats are unusual in a fast food store because they need to be repositioned and could become victims of horse play.
Loose seating is provided at circular tables with a view of the street.
Then as you turn around a long room awaits you, with a series of booths. The restaurant reopened only two weeks ago and the facilities have yet to be found, so there have only been three or four people there on the two occasions that I have visited.
The second floor interior which is divided into four spaces.
The second floor is divided into four spaces. Firstly the circular coffee tables already mentioned, then a series of booths, again with the slatted wood dividers breaking up the space. Then a second series of smaller tables around, of all things — a laptop lane! More of that later, but the room ends in an alcove room beyond the main room and alongside the restrooms. During my visits this space has largely been used by the staff, to take a break, but provides almost an anteroom feel.
The laptop lane is of course the more important feature for those meeting others or working from adhoc locations between appointments. It is a long counter table that seats sixteen people.
The laptop lane has lighting, power and hooks for bags.
Now, if you haven’t heard, McDonald’s has been providing free Wi-Fi using AT&T / Wayport as its provider for several months now. The service is adequate though using it for a video Skype connection I was told that it was more jittery than on my usual connection.
Now that the internet needs of the mobile worker are met, what about power? This is where the laptop lane really steps the pressure up for Starbucks. Between each of the light units of that lighting strip that you see over the counter are a pair of power outlets.
It was after finding these lighting strips that the location really started to have more potential. If you have travelled from coffee shop to coffee shop, you know that so many locations tease the laptop user by providing Wi-Fi connectivity but not power. Making real work of any duration impractical. Starbucks, and a very small number of independent locations, have a Wi-Fi service that has adequate bandwidth and is maintained effectively enough for the trip not to be a very chancy potential waste of time. The combination of a reliable internet connection and power is the key. Barnes and Noble, for example, do not provide power. Independent locations tend to have fewer tables in NYC, so at the weekend it isn’t really considered polite to be hogging them for hours at a time.
Other niceties are that the second floor is largely empty so far, and the fun way the designed interior is completed with friendly signage. There are no signs asking for a maximum 20 minute seating time. The environment is positively welcoming.
While the location is very nicely designed, it leaves one obvious area which may be an insurmountable barrier in attracting the beautiful people from Starbucks. Yes, the food. Having now tried both the breakfast menu and an angus burger in good faith, I can’t say that I want to eat them more than I have to. The food is really too salty, and the fat and sugar levels make it incompatible with a regular laptop location. McDonald’s have succeeded in building a location which fits with the attempt of the McCafe branding to broaden the audience (this location is no longer a McCafe) but the location, not only would allow McDonald’s to sell a healthier set of meals, more suitable for regular consumption, but actually seems to call out for it and even to need it in order to be popular. It runs the risk of attracting a non McDonald’s customer who isn’t going to be able to buy more than a coffee.
One other potential problem is that the stools in the laptop lane area are fixed to the floor, which can become uncomfortable over time. I was certainly finding that I desperately wanted to drag the stool around a bit to adjust for comfort while using the laptop at an effective angle. Having said this, it was workable, and could even be used for small group meetings or as a coworking space and will definitely give Starbucks a run for its money. One also has to wonder how many people will pay $30 per day, or $50 and up per month, for a coworking space elsewhere, if they find like minded friends migrating to quiet second floor facilities like this which are free and at a more local location. For McDonald’s the store design would appear to be more about winning customers from Starbucks than it is about maximizing the bottom line from existing customers. As such it is a gutsy move in the current market.
So, very much to my surprise as somebody who is health conscious and has watched Super Size Me, I am adding a McDonald’s to the list of coffee meetup places in Manhattan with both Wi-Fi and power.
And yes, some people do just eat burgers here.
The store at 1499 3rd Avenue and 85th Street (2 minutes from the 4,5,6 at 86th Street) is open twenty four hours a day though the second floor is only open from 8am to 8:30pm. The location is a 7,500 square foot company store, leased by Golden Arch Realty Corp., IL.
The 'before picture' from Google. Compare it with the first picture above of the same store.
Posted in Coffee, New York, Space.
Tagged with 3rd place, coworking, laptop, laptop lane, mcdonalds, starbucks.
People often pitch ad-based revenue models for sites with very small niche markets without acknowledging that the business will only be viable once the market has been greatly expanded. Sometimes this is just a simplification, but often it is because it just isn’t obvious how small the ad-based model revenues can be.
These tables provide a basis for estimating the revenue through the value of 1000 unique visitors per month. The revenue needed to sustain the business is then divided by the value of 1000 unique visitors to give an estimated necessary number of visitors and the total available market required. The Total Available Market (TAM) is the number of potentially profitable customers who could make use of the product or service. In the case of web advertising, the number of potential users in the target audience of the website. Obviously, there are a large number of variables, so the value is only an indication for a generic business, but should allow a reality check, and in some cases for a more realistic TAM to be planned.
Your entire website and the individual pages are considered by search engines and ad networks to be about a list of keywords. The number of keywords is quite limited, so consider the couple of search engine queries which you would most like to be the recipient of. Then list the four or five distinctive keywords from these queries. Google Webmaster Tools offers a method of viewing keywords associated with your site by Google. These keywords are a factor both in organic search traffic as well as ad placement. Consider how closely they match high-valued purchase decisions. For example, does your site review new cars, a classic high-value purchase decision, or is it about pedestrian safety. Clearly the auto reviews are closer to a high-value purchase decision.
Think not only about the initial purchase but about the lifetime value of the customer to your advertiser. For example if a consumer purchases cable TV every month for three years then the decision has a considerably higher value than the initial purchase. Other examples which need replacing after use are replenishment items such as vitamins, diapers or books which can total a significant value over a period of time.
The majority of online advertising is attempting to solicit a direct response from the viewer. A click on an advertisement which leads to a purchase or registration. As a result if your page is a good home for purchase related topics your advertisers are obviously going to have a higher response rate to their placements. The higher value those responses are to the advertiser the more they are going to be able to spend on competing for your advertising space.
Based on your estimate of the lifetime value of customers who are on your site, select a value per 1000 unique visitors below. If your website is not directly related to a spending decision (e.g. pedestrian safety) then use the initial value of 25 cents.
Estimated value (V) of 1000 unique visitors per month based on live time value to the advertiser.
The majority of websites are not directly purchase-related so in most cases you should be selecting the first row of the table above as the estimate. Compare the value of 1000 visitors to your site with the spread of values within the Google ad network. An advertiser may have paid Google AdWords over $1.00 for 1000 individual impressions where as AdSense will have paid out to the average site less than 25 cents for those 1000 impressions. Sites more in demand by advertisers will be paid a higher proportion of the AdWords revenue. The fluctuation of this demand in the auction-like algorithm from time slot to time slot across the week makes predicting the revenue an inexact science.
Affiliate networks will provide a greater return (V) than ad networks, often due to the web site content being more closely related to the advertisers proposition, and as a result providing a more effective funnel for customers. The content needs to be more tailored to the advertiser to get the full benefit. The affiliate model can also be used to avoid the margin taken by an intervening ad network. For example, most marketing on Facebook is priced on an affiliate basis and manages to be targeted using the additional information about the user, including their reaction to other advertising, their networks reactions and memberships.
Note here that V is related to, but different from the CPM, the value of 1000 impressions. There are likely to be multiple advertisement impressions shown to a visitor over a month, and on a single page, however you will not have many effective advertisers for any individual so the benefit quickly diminishes unless the site has time to learn about the user and place better advertising. A single well-targeted advertiser is more valuable than showing twenty different advertisers to the user across the month. Subsequent impressions of the same advertiser have a diminishing chance of being clicked upon or at least have a probability as a sequence, that may build with credibility for a less known brand, but which doesn’t grow linearly with the number of impressions. Here, we are using a simple model based on the number of unique visitors regardless of the number of impressions or different advertisements displayed.
Most websites have an average of less than five page views per unique visitor per month as approximately half of visitors will view only a single page. If you can command your user’s attention for periods of time – or even a few hours per month – then your value (V) from the table above may be a multiple greater than that shown. Facebook, for example, made a revenue of $700 million in 2009 from approximately 400 million registered users. If we assume an estimate of 350 million unique visitors per month then their value per 1000 unique visitors was approximately ($700 million / 12 / 350 million) * 1000 = $167 per month per thousand unique users (V). This is due largely to the fact that they achieve many hours of usage per month from their median user. This is extremely unusual – if not unique, but still only $2 per user per year. An average site as generic as Facebook is receiving below a dollar as the median user leaves within a few seconds and does not often return. Many parked domains actually have a better defined audience than normal websites and can receive $5 to $10 per 1000 unique visitors. The lack of content makes following an advertisement actually more likely.
Sites which have users returning to them rather than being driven by search results can have heavy monthly usage per user and as a result require a second method of establishing the value of 1000 unique visitors based on the number of pages viewed or the amount of time for which they can be held on, or caused to return to, the site. Having the user on the site for longer allows greater opportunities to gather data on the user and to fine tune the advertising. It also implies a stronger bond with the site and allows the sale of advertising space in greater quantities to more significant advertisers and possibly by a more direct sales process. For sites with significant user stickiness, which implies loyal readers, or addictive games, there may be significantly greater revenue opportunity, and it would be fair to use the greater value for V of those shown in the tables above and below.
Estimated value (V) of 1000 unique visitors per month based on total monthly stay.
Very few sites have a median visit of greater than five minutes but it does occur for popular newspapers and for the most popular online games. For the largest of purchase decisions, of a house, car, medical plan, or cell-phone plan, it may be reasonable to assume that a site may have significant duration of reading, in addition to being related to the purchase decision giving a high valuation. The difference between obtaining value from effective strategies, such as the duration of usage or closeness to a purchase decision, rather than less effective ones, such as large numbers of transient users, is key to debates such as Rupert Murdoch’s preference for loyal readers and shunning of search-driven momentary visitors. Typical newspaper content isn’t directly focused on a purchase decision but it also illustrates the ability to play both the high duration and high value purchase decision strategies simultaneously. It isn’t a coincidence that major newspapers have supplements for real estate, automobiles and high-end travel as these are all high-value purchase decisions.
The higher end of the range of unique visitors needed is more typical but the range is based on the value (V) of 1000 unique visitors. The model also assumes that your visitors are organic and that you have no other significant costs other than your sweat equity. Obviously if you are, for example, using paid search marketing with costs typically of $0.25 to $2.50 per visitor you will be paying out far more than you are receiving.
Based on your expectations above, take the value of revenue (R) above and divide it by the value of 1000 unique visitors in the first table (V) to achieve an estimate of the number of thousands of unique visitors needed (U). Say $25,000 for a commercial office sized business / $0.25 per thousand to give 100 million unique visitors per month being needed. There are sites which achieve this, but not many. In fact only Facebook, Google, Yahoo and MSN. You need more traffic than e-Bay! Take a look at Compete for a list with unique visitor counts. (Unfortunately they now charge for the full list but you can also query individual competitor sites).
Remember that it isn’t reasonable to expect to have every member of your chosen market demographic. It gets increasingly expensive to obtain the more reluctant members of any demographic. For arguments sake, lets say, that you are very optimistic and believe that you can reach 5% of your chosen demographic. Your demographic had better be small and reachable with your message. Lets say bicyclists in Brooklyn. We need to multiply the number of unique visitors (U) by twenty to see the Total Available Market (TAM) size required to support your site. Do remember that not everybody is like the people you know, over 99% of people on Earth do not own an iPhone, the majority of people are not between 18 and 30 years old, etc., etc. For our example of a business wanting to pay for a commercial-office sized business we would need a TAM of 2 billion people. Since the number of bicyclists in Brooklyn, is significantly lower you may conclude that you need to plan to target a broader market. There may, barely, be 2 billion cyclists on Earth. Alternatively you could accept that your business will be part time unless you are able to finance going to a wider geography or develop a different business model.
The aim here isn’t to be exact but to have approximately reasonable expectations and to select a business model and total available market which are plausible. You can expect to have difficulty obtaining funding if the TAM required exceeds the available market which the business can be expanded into. Wider understanding of the limitations of the ad model are an important reason why other business models such as subscription services or data monetization have become increasingly prevalent.
Your business’ growth is also restricted by the fact that there are just under 2 billion internet users – with only about 300 million preferring to read English – and you can’t generally assume that you have more than a fraction of 1% of them visiting your site any time soon. For websites with longer time being spent on the site, the amount of available free time on the part of users is a limitation. It would be possible to show that currently, globally, less than 2000 sites are likely to have over ten million people spend more than an hour per month with them. The public usage statistics would appear to show that fewer than fifty are actually achieving this, and that usage is far more fragmented down below a level at which a VC would find it attractive to fund any but the most popular sites based on an advertising model.
As a result, the most viable advertising model based sites would appear to be those with content closely related to purchase decisions. They can have modest success with advertising and be able to sustain themselves as corporations if they can reach over ten million people per month. Greater success, of the size that might attract VC funding, (over ten million revenue per year) would appear to require very broad usage indeed. Reaching over ten million people for more than an hour per month. This is currently achieved by sites such as news outlets CNN and the New York Times, and more general sites such as Facebook. Not that these news outlets could be sustained by these amounts of money. Facebook is also making considerably more money with its exceptional usage levels. Sites with addictive games and entertainment with a broad appeal might also achieve the same usage at a modest cost. The long tail of general content is unlikely to be supported, as a corporation, by advertising other than by very large, low cost, content farms that can achieve the number of visitors necessary to cover their overheads. Advertising isn’t a model which can sustain long tail sites. It is only going to be significant for the largest of sites and almost none of those will be large enough to give a sufficient return on a classical VC investment.
P.S. I would be very pleased to hear of additional data points which can be used to verify, adjust or disprove the tables in this post.
Tagged with ad, business, models, revenue, startup.
A recent meeting on behalf of the Center for Digital Media underlined why office environments are laid out the way they are. Lets start with the walls. The walls can either be built of plasterboard and be solid objects or constructed of prefabricated reusable panels that are held in place by metal trim tacked to the ceiling and floor. The solid walls are far cheaper than the reusable movable panels to purchase but the solid walls are a capital purchase. Something which is part of a building structure has to be depreciated over decades where as movable walls can be depreciated within ten years. An 8 foot partition may cost $200 per linear foot where as a full height partition wall will cost $300 to $600 per linear foot. Compare that with a permanent wall which might be as little as $40 per linear foot. Given that two walls are needed to enclose an additional room the length involved can be around 45 feet. So the cost of a fixed wall is only $1,800 where as movable walls could cost around $20,000.
Contrast these costs of $1,800 to $20,000 plus furniture and the cost of 400 square foot of real estate ($12,000/annum) with slick open plan office furniture which can be moved at a fraction of the cost and are likely to take up 100 square feet ($3,000 / annum) and will cost just under $1000 per seat. The footprint on the floor area obviously varies depending on the layout and there are options such as three table 120 degree clusters rather than rows which add interest but cost floor space.
While in theory full height movable walls can be moved in practice this involves shuffling the displaced area so it is a rare event. It is far more practical to minimize the use of conference rooms and offices and potentially use prefabricated fronts to achieve a dramatic look while using open plan as much as possible. The density of the open plan is really cost driven. Desks can be packed in, even to the extreme of the rows of benches we see in some of the startup spaces. All the layouts have a roll and a price bracket and within an industry there are well defined styles of office which are dictated by the cost of the materials and infrastructure. The challenge is in working creatively with the cheaper fixed wall structures to achieve acoustic privacy where it is needed and to choose flexible furniture which can meet the cost demands of the business in an attractive work environment.
Tagged with layouts, office, Space, walls.
There are a lot of myths about the subject and with 6,000 audits of mainly small businesses planned for this year the potential costs of 150% of the tax not deducted can be significant. So you need to understand the boundaries a little to avoid your staff being unexpectedly classified. Just a hint, the idea that you are safe as long as they aren’t in the office or are labeled as interns is purely a myth though having to work in the office is an important factor as it often leads to you controlling many aspects of their work. Lawyer Albert Rizzo gave a presentation at Brooklyn Business Library for NY State Small Business Development Center which covered some of the key concepts.
The costs to the business are higher for employees though basic income taxes have to be paid in the end for both situations. The apparent costs are also more obvious as you have to deduct tax before paying people and just the sheer form counts are much lower if you can keep everybody as an independent contractor so most small businesses try to classify people as independent contractors where possible. If they are employees then it isn’t the end of the world, you can use ADT or PayChex to handle the processing of deductions for much less than $100 per month per employee. You do have to make sure that you can manage to make the regular payment schedule associated with employees that these services will need to take from your account on schedule.
For the IRS the concept is in summary that the person is an independent contractor if the business has the ability to direct or control the end product but not the way the work is done. Now what does that really mean?
The type of instruction given: Does the business control: Which tools to use, workers to hire, where to purchase supplies, who does which tasks, the order or sequencing of tasks?
The degree of instruction given by the business – How specific is it?
Are the financial aspects controlled by the business owner?
In addition there are some exceptions, largely created by case law.
So for example you tell a building contractor to build a kitchen that has certain characteristics (The end product of the work) but you do not tell them how to do it (Where to buy grouting, in what order to build, who to hire) so they are not your employees. The plasterer owns his own equipment but his tasks are controlled by the contractor so he is an employee of the contracting firm.
It was clear from the Q&A at the end of the presentation that for a large proportion of startup businesses there have been oversights in classifying workers. One business owner had concerns about her interns who had not had deductions made and for which the business could potentially be liable. Another had brought a group of performers in from Canada and paid them without deductions and was now being asked to pay the tax on the full amount She had been paid. Clearly she was going to have made a significant loss on the venture and had no way or right to recover the money paid to the performers. I don’t suppose I need to spell out the moral of the tale! You can find similar events through the events list on the IRS site or Brooklyn SBDC. Further details on the question of independent contractor status are discussed at this page on the IRS site.
Tagged with Brooklyn, Compliance, emloyee, independent contractor, nyssbdc, payroll, self employed, tax. | 2019-04-22T08:20:14Z | http://www.startwaves.com/ |
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For those who haven’t heard, my sisters were in a fairly serious accident several days ago, and I made an unscheduled trip home instead of returning to Pittsburgh after the conferences. They are both home from the hospital now and doing amazingly well considering the circumstances. Though there are some weeks of painful recovery ahead, we’re pretty sure they will come back to 100% with some time. I’m going to stick around here for a while (not sure how long yet) to help out and whatever.
[photopress:Lisbon_from_castle.jpg,thumb,floatright] [photopress:park_Lisbon.jpg,thumb,floatleft] [photopress:alley_Lisbon.jpg,thumb,floatleft] There’s a definite contrast going from Norway to Portugal, which, if I may generalize (and really, isn’t reckless generalization the basis of so many R/C posts?), is archetypal of the contrast between north- and south-western Europe. Portugal is more colorful, both literally and figuratively. The lifestyle seems more relaxed, fun-loving, and disorderly. Norway, on the other hand, was clean, rational, comfortable (in the sense of economically well-developed), and determined.
[photopress:subway_seats.jpg,thumb,floatleft] [photopress:courtyard_Lisbon.jpg,thumb,floatright]Lisbon strikes me as an amiable, disheveled city, steeped in history, and not quite holding itself to past standards of grandeur: graffiti is absolutely everywhere, dog feces dot the marble-tile sidewalks, and old, crumbling buildings stand side-by-side with the many crisp, new, multicolored cubist developments. Dinners at restaurants start late and last for hours. Clubs don’t fill up until 3:00am(!). Wine (or, in my case, sangria, for the same price as soda) can be purchased with lunch in the mall food court.
[photopress:bridge_over_moat.jpg,thumb,floatleft] [photopress:cathedral_interior.jpg,thumb,floatright] The conference was fun, especially the meeting and talking with many friendly students from around the world. Our host university and student organizers did an amazing job making us feel welcome with a tour of the city, reception in a castle, and a fabulous dinner at a hip, fancy restaurant overlooking the water.
[photopress:Fado_restaurant.jpg,thumb,floatleft] [photopress:post_Cup_celebration.jpg,thumb,floatright] I managed to see Fado, a traditional local folk music (but lately of interest largely to tourists, I hear), and to witness some of the manic country-wide celebration when Portugal won a game in the World Cup. The streets were a jammed with cars full of honking, hollering, flag-waving revelers for hours after the game. Coming back from dinner, a cab-driver refused our fare because many arterial roads were impassable, so we walked by the throngs of elated soccer fans, and I was happy to have my earplugs. Had I not recently lived through the Steelers winning the Superbowl, it would have been yet more surreal.
[photopress:parade_marching_Oslo.jpg,thumb,floatleft] I went tooling around Oslo and continued to enjoy the feel of the city. I happened upon an open-air market and then a huge parade with 3 or 4 marching bands separated by various uniformed groups.
I hadn’t thought before that it must be pretty hard to see where one is stepping if one is a bass drum player in a marching band. The elderly player for one of the bands was confidently keeping a beat while the band marched at rest when he tripped on a curb and fell squarely forward onto his bass drum. The rest of the band scattered briefly in confusion with the driving pulse missing. It was one of saddest things I’ve ever seen.
The parade converged at a park in front of the royal palace. I never figured out what it was about.
[photopress:art1.jpg,thumb,floatleft] [photopress:art2.jpg,thumb,floatright] It’s a little bit of a shame that I find I’m getting comfortable in Norway just as I’m about to leave. I had a pretty nice day here in Oslo. On my way in I helped an arriving Vietnamese girl navigate the train from the airport. I even hefted her gigantic bag (which must have been about two-thirds her weight). It turns out she works on energy systems and sustainable development and is hear for a summer class at the university. I had a delicious and cheap falafel pita for lunch and I checked out downtown Oslo. I found it delightfully lively in that urban-cosmopolitan way.
I saw everything in the National Museum of Contemporary Art. Some of it was pretty enjoyable, like the things pictured. I was a little disappointed at the size of the collection, though. The Carnegie Art Museum probably has a bigger collection of contemporary art.
[photopress:art3.jpg,thumb,floatleft]Overall, I got a good vibe from the city, but I had to get some work done, so I’ve been doing that for last 8 hours or so. Maybe I’ll get to see a little more before I ship out tomorrow.
[photopress:cathedral_from_bridge.jpg,thumb,floatleft] [photopress:riverside_residential_trondheim.jpg,thumb,floatright] That’s it for the 8th International Conference on Greenhouse Gas Control Technologies. I learned a little bit. I made a few connections. I ate fancy food and drank French wine at a dinner hosted by Statoil, thus benefiting from oil companies’ massive profits. I enjoyed Trondheim’s maritime charm and swooned at its more contemporary architecture and design. Their style is very Modern, rational, and conspicuously wood-heavy with a really nice sense of texture and intrigue.
[photopress:square_at_midnight_trondheim.jpg,thumb,floatleft] It’s easy to describe the phenomenon of perpetual daylight, but the feeling of a light sky and active street life at midnight on a Wednesday still took me by surprise. The picture helps to illustrate it. In the evening one gets a sense of imperviousness to the clock: “I can stay out as late as I want; it’ll still be light when I want to go home” and there are enough other people out and about to support that sense. Of course, the imperviousness doesn’t extend to the next morning and afternoon.
Incidentally, the King arrived in town today (I heard Tronheim is his Summer residence). There was a royal procession, with children and various groups following behind, cheering and waving flags. There’s a concert in the square right now which He is attending. A pop orchestra had been playing incredibly cliche classical pieces, the ones you always hear in movies and movie previews. Now they’ve added a singer and drumset, and they’re doing orchestrated pop numbers. Some of it’s not bad. Some of it is pretty cheesy (My Favorite Things, Lean on Me, …).
I head out tomorrow morning.
I regret how much coffee I drank today to get through all the talks. The plenary sessions were surprisingly bland for a conference with a fairly narrow focus (carbon capture and storage). However, I liked the opening talk where the lead organizer showed a graph of conference-attendees by country (950 conferees from 42 countries) and calculated the greenhouse gas emissions resulting from the conference (1000 tons CO2). Considering the emissions, he facetiously(?) suggested that next year’s be web-based.
Fun fact for the day: the earth’s oceans are acting as a giant heat-sink, adding inertia to the climate system. So even if all human-emitted greenhouse gases were suddenly removed from the atmosphere (I’m imagining the spaceship-vacuum-cleaner from Spaceballs), the planet would continue warming another 0.6o C, equal to the warming we’ve so far experienced since pre-industrial times.
[photopress:Archibishops_Palace_interior.jpg,thumb,floatleft] [photopress:marching_troops.jpg,thumb,floatright] I don’t know if an academic conference coming to town is a big deal in Trondheim or what, but the mayor invited us for a reception at the Archbishop’s Palace (“the oldest secular building in Norway”), complete with an old-timey soldier troupe marching about and periodically firing muskets into the air. A city-councilwomen addressed us from on high to sing the praises of Trondheim and its history and encouraged us to see the sights and, perhaps, do some shopping while we’re here.
[photopress:Josh_in_front_of_old_gothic_cathedral.jpg,thumb,floatright] And here’s a picture of me in front of a very old, famous, gothic cathedral. It’s silly, but I guess I should do a picture with me in it once in a while.
It’s my first morning at the conference, and right now the director of the Department of Energy’s Office of Coal & Power Import & Export is waxing poetic about how are planet is uniquely “blessed” in the solar system to support life. She goes on using flowery language to describe “clean energy systems” that protect our “beautiful blue planet” while supporting our needs for “many generations to come”. She urges us to be “as proactive as we can be” in “bring[ing] clean energy technologies to the world”. Gag me. DOE speakers are always full of feel-good optimism while their agency takes no action and doesn’t even talk about potential action on carbon emissions. Okay, there’s a serious speaker up now and I should pay attention.
[photopress:carnival.jpg,thumb,floatleft][photopress:sheepdogging.jpg,thumb,floatright] A few tidbits before I left town. There was some sort of festival going on there, which included the little carnival section, where they were playing a dance remix of Beverly Hills Cop theme “Axel F” when I walked by. There was also what I interpreted as a sheep-dog competition. The man would whistle various patterns and the dog would jump up and chase the five sheep this way or that. It was sort of impressive.
[photopress:wood_church.jpg,thumb,floatleft] [photopress:storeroom.jpg,thumb,floatright]The other thing I have to say is that they love their wood architecture here, especially rough-hewn log construction. This church is one of the biggest and oldest in Norway, dating to the 1200′s, which is pretty old for a wooden structure. The other structure is a large store-room, similarly aged. [photopress:log_bridge.jpg,thumb,floatright] Also, I love that this is a classic king-truss bridge, except made out of logs. Interiors, also, are dominated by unstained wood paneling, wood floors, and hulking wood furniture. You can start to see the roots of the Ikea aesthetic.
I feel kind of ill today, which is an especially lousy feeling to have when traveling. I was going to do a second hike today but I don’t think I’m up to it. Now the question it what I will do for the next 7 hours before the bus comes in a tiny town with, soon, no hotel room in which to set up my laptop.
I was just thinking about yesterday’s hike and musing that, although I have previously disparaged hiking alone, it has some distinct advantages (which, to some extent, apply to traveling alone in general): you can get grumpy and no one is around to notice or be affected; you can get lost and backtrack a lot (which I did for about the first hour yesterday trying to find the trailhead) without anyone getting mad or negatively assessing your sense of direction; you can eat questionable things like peanut butter and jelly tortillas and tuna from the can without being judged, and you can sing along loudly to the songs in your head, pausing and rewinding to correct the wrong notes, without disturbing anyone’s peace and quiet.
It turns out these earphone-earplugs I got for the trip are really great. On the plane they block out an impressive amount of engine rumble — enough so that music is coherent at pretty low volume. I mean, I can hear all the instruments and frequencies without straining, and I’ve never been able to do that before on an airplane, even with isolating headphones. On the bus they essentially eliminated background noise; I might as well have been listening on my home stereo. They are surprisingly comfortable too, much more so than my regular earplugs. The sound quality is very good with all of the frequencies clear, except the sound is a slight bit flat (cold?) — like music played through a subwoofer-satellite system. But overall, I’m enjoying the new gadget.
On a loosely-related note, I talked to a middle-aged Norwegian man last night who also plays drums and keyboard. His English was about is good as my Spanish, which is to say, pretty limited, but I gleaned that his hero is Johnny Cash(!) and he’s been to Nashville twice, once actually meeting the Man in Black. He was baffled that I didn’t know Alan Jackson, his second favorite musician (apparently he is a popular country musician with many hits in the 90′s).
I couldn’t make it in to Jutenheimen national park as I planned because the bus doesn’t start running there until next week. I’m stuck here in Lom, about 20 miles from the park with no bikes or cars to rent. I flirted with hitchhiking, but didn’t want to risk getting stranded. My fanciful plan to find other guests at breakfast who were going hiking was thwarted when there was absolutely no one else around when I came down this morning. So a took a trail near town. It turned out to be a long, very steep hike with great views down into three river valleys. I didn’t see another person the whole time except for a search-and-rescue (?) helicopter that kept flying by. It was good, but I may have overexerted.
It’s not a great photo, but here’s the best I could get of fjords so far.
I’m pretty much ecstatic to be on the Internet right now, and fairly surprised that this hotel/hostel in a small mountain town has free wireless. It turns out that my voltage converted doesn’t fit in most Norwegian plugs, and my devices were dying off one by one as they ran out of batteries and I couldn’t recharge them. My mp3 player went last night and I was pretty sad about that today when for some reason I had a bunch of songs going through my head and an intense desire to listen to them.
There are definitely no adapters to be found in this little town, so I got proactive. I remembered reading in wikipedia that the voltage that some European countries use the same voltage standard but have a recessed housing, which is what they look like here. [photopress:adapter_assembly.jpg,thumb,floatleft] So I just need a way to connect the pins in the wall to the the pins in the adapter. I have no tools because of the fricking airplane rules, so I picked up a cheap steak knife from the supermarket. The lynch-pin was the extension cord I found at the convenience store. I cut off the female end and stripped it with the knife. But the color conventions of the wires are different. I seemed to remember from wikipedia that green is ground, (or “earth” — nice mnemonic), but to be sure — I’m a little proud of this — I touched the pins to my camera battery and shorted the blue and brown wires to look for a spark and see which wires were hot (I was right). I attached the bare wires to the adapter pins with bandage tape I had in my bag. The last thing was to try it out on my least valuable device. I decided that was my cell phone. I tried it and … not even a spark. It works fine. I charged up my music player a bit and listened to a few songs I was craving. Then I attached the cord to my laptop and here I am. It’s not a what I’d call a “robust” solution, but it works for now.
This is the first Rational/Contemporary post from outside North America. Unfortunately, it may be brief because my voltage converter doesn’t work with my laptop and I’ve only got so much battery. Hopefully I can buy an adapter soon. Also unfortunately, I don’t have any pictures to share since I’ve spent most the previous 22 hours in airports and airplanes and apparently they have a thing about taking pictures in airports these days.
Which is too bad, because I really wanted to take a picture of the underground walkway/tunnel in the Frankfort airport. It had this great 2001 aesthetic with curved white walls backlit with color-changing lights, and for some reason it played spooky retro-futuristic sound effects (to complete the Disneyland Space Mountain effect?).
Anyhow, I’m glad I successfully navigated 4 flights and two trains without a hitch. Although two of those planes required sprinting through the terminal with all my stuff, hardcore1. So I’ve got several layers of dried sweat in addition to the usual baggage.
Although I spent some time studying the phrasebooks, my first attempt to say anything in Norwegian utterly failed. I think it’s pretty hard to know how it sounds without hearing it. The hardest part about traveling for me is the constant reminder of what a linguistic retard I am. I feel ceaselessly awful about coming to other countries and expecting them to speak my language.
On a brighter note2, I’ve been riveted by Jonathan Saffran Foer’s “Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close”, and that had kept my going through many traveling hours, as I’m sure it will continue to do on the 6 hour bus ride tomorrow.
Norway is beautiful, from what I have seen so far, which admittedly isn’t much but I have to put in at least one observation here. More when I have them.
I suppose you could call it one of my guilty pleasures, but I actually enjoy reading Salon’s advice column. In a recent letter, a woman writes about getting flak from her feminist peers for wanting to marry at her young age of 21. It’s the sort of ironic inverse of the problem I usually hear about from friends, of getting pressure to marry as they get older. With age of first marriage trending steadily upward, the parents’ and grandparents’ generations are bound to have different sensibilities, and we in the educated class are particularly prone to delay or omit marriage.
Whether or not he meant it to be, I think Cary Tennis’ response to the letter is an interesting volley in the post-feminist debate discussed previously. It’s not a new argument, per se, but it’s well articulated: essentially, that the highest aim of the feminism movement is for women to have freedom of personal choice, and so it is contradictory for this woman’s feminist friends to try to criticize her free choice to get married and have children young.
I think I tend to agree in this case, because her background and environment make it clear that she is making a personal choice for happiness from a position of freedom. But it’s not as clear for women in similar positions who also feel pressured by old-fashioned norms or economic circumstance. Would getting married young and having kids be taking the easy way out in that case?
I’ve been into Last.fm lately. It’s great to see what my friends are listening to in almost-real-time, and the radio “stations” that you can select by tag or that play your recommended music are pretty fun. Everyone should check it out. I added a recent track list to this page over on the right, so if I’ve been listening to music on one of my computers lately you can see what I’ve been listening to. Unfortunately it doesn’t fit so well. Someday I’ll work on that.
I’ve been hearing about this personal greenhouse gas emissions offsetting lately. Basically, the idea is that, while you may be concerned about climate change, it’s hard to stop emitting CO2 and thereby contributing to it: you’ve got to drive, heat your home, buy products that were transported in trucks, and so forth. But you can reduce or eliminate your personal contribution to climate climate change by paying to offset your emissions, that is, stop the same quantity of greenhouse gases from being emitted somewhere else. Salon has a thoughtful article on the phenomenon, and the author identifies a half-dozen companies who will sell you emissions offsets, noting that the price varies from $5.50 to $30 per ton of CO21. That’s pretty cheap, compared to what most people expect the industrial price of carbon emissions will be in the long term. Incidentally, I do research on technology the we estimate will offset emissions for something in the neighborhood of $140/ton-CO2.
So I’ve been thinking, why not join the some tens of thousands of offsetters and atone for my own emissions? There are a few interesting caveats to personal emissions offsetting, but I at least want to see how much I would need to purchase. Most of the company websites have calculators to help you estimate what your emissions are. You put in things like how much you drive and the mileage of your car, how high is your utility bill and in which state you live. Of the few that I tried, all were missing something big. One neglected air travel, one neglected home heating, and none accounted for the embodied emissions of consumer goods. Many of the companies focus just on car emissions or car + plane emissions. I guess the rationale here is that people feel guilty about driving and flying because it is something they have control over, on the margin, and so they are particularly willing to pay to relieve that guilt.
My emissions came out as little as a tenth of the average, largely because I don’t drive (I put in some miles for the rides I bum) and share an apartment. But I don’t think that is really capturing everything, so I’m going to try my own calculation. Here goes.
This is a wild guess for how much driving I’m responsible for. Most of it is probably when I’m home on break. I’m assuming that when there are multiple people in the car, the emissions get divided evenly by the number of passengers.
Here’s the category I’m probably highest on compared with other Americans. I routinely fly across the country to visit family, and lately I’ve been flying similarly far for research trips to Canada and to conferences. Airplanes have about the same emissions per passenger-mile as cars, coincidentally — equivalent to about 34 miles/gallon driving alone. I figured two trips home and two conference trips to get the miles per year. Sources: Energy Information Agency here and here.
I’m making a rough estimate at the per-person gas bill since I don’t have all the month’s prices.
This is a straightforward calculation using the Pennsylvania electricity price and emissions factor. Pennsylvania electricity is really dirty.
I’m drawing my calculation from the article I discussed earlier about diet and greenhouse gas emissions. It’s a little tough because the authors do everything in terms of differences between diets, not absolute emissions. I think I’m in the neighborhood of 1 ton/year, compared with the average American diet which is about 2.3 tons/yr. Then again I regularly eat produce trucked from California, so it could be higher.
I don’t have the patience to do them all, so I’m trying to think of the few most important categories of consumer goods I buy. I’m using the Economic Input-Output Life Cycle Analysis website to get emissions factors for various categories of goods. I’m making rough guesses at the dollar values, too.
If I add that all up, I get about 7.5 tons CO2 per year. I clearly left stuff out. I didn’t account for energy use or anything else happening at school, and it’s not clear whether I should. Other than that, I think I got all the big factors. But it’s a messy calculation, anyway, so let’s say 10 tons roughly accounts for my climate impact. I could offset that for $300/yr, which, in the scheme of things is not bad. $300 to completely solve the climate problem? I could do that. Of course it wouldn’t be that simple for everyone to go carbon-neutral because the economy would have to dramatically change, but it wouldn’t necessarily be more costly in the economic sense.
P.S.: It’s nice to finally use the LaTeX plugin for my blog to write equations here. Heheh.
You are currently browsing the Rational/Contemporary blog archives for June, 2006. | 2019-04-22T05:12:57Z | http://www.rationalcontemporary.com/archives/date/2006/06 |
Mitchell D. Nothling is a final year PhD candidate in the Melbourne School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering under the supervision of Dr. Luke Connal. He is a John Stocker Postgraduate Scholar and an Endeavour Research Fellow and has recently returned from an extended research visit at the University of California Santa Barbara in the laboratory of Prof. Craig Hawker. Mitchell gained his undergraduate degrees at the Queensland University of Technology, before joining a large, multi-national mining company in various engineering and technical advisory roles.
Mitchell has broad research interests in catalysis, biomimicry, chemical education and communication. As a PhD candidate, Mitchell is conducting novel synthetic chemistry research yielding new catalytic materials for industry based on the function of nature's best catalysts – enzymes.
Anne Aulsebrook is a PhD candidate from the School of BioSciences at the University of Melbourne. Her research, supervised by Professor Raoul Mulder, Dr Therésa Jones (University of Melbourne) and Dr John Lesku (LaTrobe University), is currently exploring how artificial light at night affects urban birds. She is particularly interested in how streetlights affect circadian (day-night) rhythms, including sleep.
Anne has been interviewed for ABC Radio National, 3RRR, ABC Adelaide and Lateral Magazine, and has written articles for scientific engagement platforms such as Wild Melbourne and Pursuit. In 2016, Anne was awarded Runner Up in the University of Melbourne Three Minute Thesis Competition.
Hi, I'm Dr Andi Horvath, and today we bring you up close to PhD level research. We're often grateful to the urban planners of the past who left spaces for parklands and botanical gardens in our cities where we can have picnics, stretch out on the grass and even feed the birds. But hang on. Should the birds be equally grateful for our cities, and what about the downside of sitting on all those beautiful lawns, those nasty grass stains on our clothes?
In this, our annual PhD episode of Up Close, we speak to two young researchers on diverse topics that come together in this imagined scenario. Later in the program we'll hear from doctoral candidate Mitchell Nothling who's exploring how enzymes found in nature, and in particular our digestive systems, could be a clue to designing more effective detergents to help us get out those grass stains.
But first, we speak to Annie Aulsebrook, also a PhD candidate, who's looking at how birds are affected by the bright artificial lighting we build in our cities. Annie is investigating the impact of light emissions on swans and pigeons, and in particular how it might change their behaviour and melatonin levels. We know light pollution affects human behaviour too, but what is the effect on birds and how might this research help to inform future urban planning? Annie Aulsebrook works with bio-scientists at the University of Melbourne and at Latrobe University. Annie, welcome to Up Close.
Now, the reason we can't see stars in our city is due to light pollution, much to the frustration of amateur astronomers trying to see the stars, but there are measurable effects from light pollution on people and animals. Can you tell us more about that?
Yeah, lots of research so far on the impacts of light pollution on wildlife has focused on the timing of behaviour. In Europe they've found that birds in light-polluted areas start singing earlier. They might be active for longer during the day and be more active at night. There's also some species that will avoid light at night, so some bats will completely avoid brightly-lit areas. Others actually thrive on brightly-lit areas, so the fast-flying bats will pick up on insects that are drawn to lights. There seem to be a lot of diverse impacts on wildlife.
In humans, a lot of the focus has been on health, which makes sense, and we often tend to focus on brighter lights when we're talking about humans because they're the lights we're exposed to indoors. So for example, when you look at an iPad before bed, some research has found that that can affect your sleep and how you're feeling the next morning.
Yeah, that's right. Blue light suppresses the hormone melatonin, which is important for our circadian rhythms which are those internal daily rhythms in behaviour and our physiology such as sleep.
Now you've decided to focus on urban lighting and its effect on birds. Now, why birds, and what has the research taught us about this so far?
Birds are interesting because they're in some ways more similar to us than the lab rodent models that we tend to use. Mice and rats tend to be nocturnal, while birds tend to be diurnal like us, so they're active during the day and they sleep at night. So that's part of the interest in birds.
Research, so far like I said, has focused often on behaviour. There's been evidence that bright light at night, or even quite dim light at night similar to a full moon, can actually suppress melatonin in some birds, which could have really important implications for learning and health and development if that is having impacts on sleep as well, and we know that melatonin's also important for the immune system as well.
Annie, the swans have been in our parklands for a long time, so what's the impetus to explore this question, and why the swans in particular as opposed to other bird species?
For a few reasons. One, a lot of the focus has been on songbirds, which have very strict daily rhythms, and swans are a bit more flexible. So it would be interesting to see how they affected. Swans are also very convenient to study. They're very big, easy to see, quite easy to catch down at Albert Park because there's people down there all the time and they're very used to people. This population at Albert Park lake has been studied for the last 10 years as well, so all the Swans can be individually identified. They all have tags so we can see who they are from a distance, and because of their size it makes it easy for them to carry small data loggers that we can use to measure their activity and also their sleep.
Now, Albert Park lake is a large body of water in Melbourne, Australia, and just to remind our international listeners, our swans are black. Tell us about the difference between black swans and white swans.
They're quite closely related. The black swans are black all over except for the adults. Under their wing, they have a patch of white.
Essentially they're the same species.
No, not the same species, but closely related.
Now you said you've fitted the swans with trackers. Is this kind of like putting a Fitbit on a swan?
Exactly. So we put accelerometers on the swans, which essentially are Fitbits, and so they measure movements in three dimensions. So we can use that to figure out what the swan's doing and when it's active.
How do you take a blood sample from a swan? How much of a blood sample do you need?
Not a whole lot. So we use the blood samples for a few reasons. We use them for determining the parents of each swan, and we use them for sexing the swan through genetics, because it can be quite difficult to tell males from females, and I'm using them to measure melatonin. It's basically about 200 microliters I use.
So essentially we're just talking a drop of blood.
So tell us more about swan physiology and behaviour. Do swans have the same deep sleep patterns that we do? Do they have REM sleep and non-REM sleep?
Yes. So birds have rapid eye movement sleep and non-rapid eye movement sleep. They're quite different to us in the sense that they can move between these cycles quite quickly. A human sleep cycle can be about 90 minutes all up, but in a bird they can go into rapid eye movement sleep for just a matter of seconds, maybe five, 10 seconds. In birds, the brain activity during rapid eye movement sleep looks a lot like wakefulness, and not all birds have corresponding changes in muscle tone that humans have, so it can be quite difficult to identify.
Is there a difference between the male and female in terms of their behaviour in nesting?
Yes. Males and females, they take it in turns incubating the eggs on the nest, and past research has suggested that males tend to incubate the eggs during the day while the females tend to incubate the eggs at night. So that's one thing that I'm interested in for my research, because essentially the male, presumably, has to become almost nocturnal during that period, because if he wants to forage and find food he has to do it when he's not on the nest.
So Annie, what are the likely impacts on birds from excessive city lights?
So if streetlights are suppressing production of melatonin in birds, that could be having impacts on immune functions, on health. Melatonin is also involved in processes related to aging. There could be implications there. In terms of sleep, as well, we know that sleep is really important for learning, for development and for daily performance and, particularly for a wild animal, if it's less vigilant because it's tired then maybe it might be more vulnerable to predation or it might not be as good at protecting its eggs, or it might be more aggressive. There's some slight evidence that sleep is related to those types of behaviours.
There's also the possibility that birds just avoid light at night. My research so far, I don't think that's the case for the swans, but for other species perhaps, if they're avoiding light at night they might not be getting those physiological impacts but it might be having other impacts. So it might mean that they're less efficient at foraging because they have to avoid particular areas, and that might be more relevant to nocturnal animals like owls rather than diurnal birds.
Another possibility too is that diurnal birds being more active at night could start encroaching on the niche or the space that is used by other species, creating competition where it didn't exist before. So there's a lot of possibilities.
So without trying to pre-empt your findings, what would it mean if streetlights were indeed found to have a negative impact on bird life? What would happen then?
I think we need to start thinking about minimising our light to where it's actually needed. Because lighting has got so cheap now - it's also getting more energy-efficient - lights are often just put up everywhere with the assumption that people want them. That's not necessarily true, and it can have these negative effects. So I think we need to start thinking about minimising our lights. There's already a lot of talk about making sure lights are shielded, so that they're only actually lighting what we want them to light. Also about the spectrum that we use in our lighting, so reducing that blue peak in our LED lights.
Oh, getting those warmer LEDs, perhaps?
Yeah, warmer LEDs or using filters, which kind of like cellophane, they can change the colour of the light.
So basically rethink urban lighting.
Yeah. The common term that's being used is smart lighting, so making our lighting smarter.
Tell me about urban ecology in general. How important is it to have animals that are happy in our cities?
I think there's two main reasons. One is that urbanisation is increasing and more and more people are living in cities. Cities are growing, so they're forming a huge part of our environment. So we can't just conserve or look after the wildlife that's outside of our cities.
Another reason is that we live in the cities, and if we are surrounded by wildlife that we care about and we get those positive interactions then people are more likely to care. So if we can't care about what's within our cities, then how are we going to care about what's outside them?
Annie Aulsebrook, thank you for talking to Up Close.
No worries, it was a pleasure.
You're listening to Up Close. I'm Andi Horvath, and I'm chatting to two young doctoral candidates - Annie Aulsebrook and Mitchell Nothling - about their research and its possible impact for the rest of us. Our trip to the park to feed the swans will never be the same again.
Now, today's enzyme-based detergents, including the powders you pour into your washing machine, only work at specific temperatures, and that has an impact on when and where they can be used. But can we improve on nature's design of enzyme action, and in what situations would it be useful? What's all this got to do with our own digestive systems? Our next guest, chemical engineer Mitchell Nothling, is a PhD student at the Melbourne School of Engineering, and he joins us now to discuss his research in this area. Welcome aboard, Mitchell.
Mitchell, let's start with what is an enzyme, what do they do?
So enzymes, without exaggeration, are probably the most important class of molecules that underpin life. They're nature's catalysts, so they speed up the reactions that make life possible. They're incredibly widespread. They occur from the energy conversion in plants to your digestive system, as you mentioned, to the immune response and almost every major physiological function.
These are the same things that are involved in brewing, and things like that?
That's exactly right, yeah. So they've been used indirectly by humans in industrial applications since pre-history.
So don't we already have detergents with enzyme action? I'm sure I read that on the pack. Why is this study needed?
Yes we do. Enzymes are added to detergents, and that's probably the largest application. The issue, as you alluded to, is that enzymes have a very narrow operating range. So they evolved under physiological conditions, so they work well at the body temperature, in body pH and salt concentrations, but when we move outside of that range we find that the effectiveness of the enzyme is degraded.
So for a laundry application, if we're running at cold or hot temperatures then we find that the effectiveness of the enzyme additive is not as good as it could be.
Right. Let's talk a little bit more about the biological enzymes that need particular conditions to perform. They're a bit like demanding rock-stars, really. So they need a particular temperature, but are they a one-use thing? Do they fall apart under different conditions of alkalinity? What are some of the other things involved with enzymes?
That's the nice thing about nature's catalysts, is that they evolved to be very specific. So they react to one specific substrate, which is the material that they break down in or bind together. Enzymes do a number of functions. So the enzymes in the digestive system work on the things that we typically eat. They work at the temperature that the body works, and under the conditions of the stomach.
Mitchell, tell us about the business end of enzymes. What exactly is involved? Are they like little Pac-men?
Yeah, that's exactly right. So you can think about them sort of like a very small mouth, on a molecular scale, with a very ordered set of teeth, but these teeth are made up of amino acids. So this is the same material that makes up every protein in your body, and in fact enzymes are, themselves, proteins - catalytic proteins.
Proteins that split proteins? Is that right?
Yes, some are. So the enzymes that split proteins are called the proteases, and they all utilise a similar mechanism to do that degrading. So these are the enzymes that are found in your stomach, created by your pancreas, and they degrade the triglycerides - fats and oils that are part of your diet. They make more soluble products so that your body can more easily get at the energy that's held within.
Now this brings me to my next question. Can we improve on nature's designs, because I think that's what you're trying to do, yeah?
I absolutely am, yes. The issue with enzymes is their low stability, so that really narrows the operating range that we have for industrial enzymes, in particular in detergents. So if we could reduce the temperature that we could run our washing machine at, for example, then that would be a massive saving in energy, that we don't have to heat the water up, and would have particular impact in parts of the world - in countries that don't have that ready access to hot water.
hat brings all of these amino acid teeth into proximity to afford the catalysis that we're interested in, but this bringing into proximity is very susceptible to small environmental changes. So if we could remove the need to have the natural protein then we would have a material that is more resilient.
Now I have to ask, a lot of detergents can be disastrous for the environment. So tell us about why this work matters.
A lot of detergents are an issue for the environment because of the additives that they need to have, so the various phosphates and surfactant molecules cause issues downstream in the environment. The enzyme additive isn't so much of an issue. Because it is a natural material, it's very widespread in the environment, so natural enzymes aren't an issue.
The material that we're trying to develop to replace enzymes or to substitute for enzymes, we're not at the stage yet that we can say whether these things will be an environmental issue, but the idea that we want to work towards is that they're very reusable. So we should not be making any undue waste out of these materials, and the idea is that, for example, we could coat a washing machine with an enzyme-mimicking coating, and then remove the need for a detergent altogether.
Alright, give us some more context about how this will help society, or even industry.
So the detergent application is just a small window. That's where our funding has come from, so that's where the focus of the research lies. But this approach that we're using, of mimicking the functional core of enzymes, is very applicable to other types of enzymes, not just the proteases. So we could foresee an application in biodiesel production if we can get these materials to perform the types of reactions that are required in biodiesel preparation.
We could also see antibacterial applications. So these sorts of materials mimic the antibacterial properties of natural enzymes. So if we could reproduce this onto a coating for a dental implant, for example, then we could begin to move towards antibacterial surfaces.
Right. So you're really working on the chomping teeth of the Pac-Man, but putting it on a different handle?
That's exactly right. When you get down to the core of enzymes it's actually a very small, simple area that does the actual function that we're interested in. The key that the enzyme uses is bringing these into perfect alignment like a lock to accept the key of the substrate, so if we can take that small lock and mount it onto a number of different surfaces or surfactants then we can target it more appropriately as an application.
Now, a lot of research involves collaborations, and of course funding bodies. Tell us a little bit about that.
So, we've received funding from Unilever from the earliest stages of this work. They're looking more at the potential of this application in detergents, so they're most interested in being able to reduce the washing temperature. So if we can move from having to heat water to 10 degrees or 20 degrees Celsius then the situations that we can use these sorts of materials widens.
What have you found surprising during your PhD studies so far?
So, a surprising thing for me was we've actually developed an assay technique. So this is a test that we use to determine how well these materials work, and I had spent a significant amount of time and effort to establish whether our new materials can break things down like we hope they would, and an interesting result for me was when we compared these to the natural enzyme chymotrypsin, which is a digestive protease. It occurs in mammals and is developed by the pancreas.
The interesting result for me was that our materials outperformed this natural enzyme, chymotrypsin, under the assay conditions that we had. So this is room temperature, with organic solvents added. So if our materials can outperform a natural enzyme under these tightly controlled environments then maybe there's wider application for them.
So what are the challenges of doing this kind of research?
So the challenge is that nature has had billions of years to evolve these perfect catalysts, so enzymes are incredibly effective at the jobs that they were evolved to do. The enzymes in your stomach degrade food a billion times faster than would be possible without their presence. So having this as a goal to try to replicate has been a significant challenge.
The first step was to identify how we wanted to replicate the enzyme's function, and we've ended up with quite a simple model now, and quite a straightforward synthesis to make these new materials. The issue has been trying to differentiate from enzymes. I don't think that we'll ever approach the function of enzymes under physiological conditions and under the very specific substrates that they react on, but I think that the application for this technology is outside of that range, so lower or higher temperatures, pH and salt concentrations.
Mitchell Nothling, thank you so much for sharing your research with us.
We've been speaking with two PhD scholars, Mitchell Nothling from the Melbourne School of Engineering, and Annie Aulsebrook who's doing her research at the School of Biosciences, University of Melbourne.
Up Close wishes our PhD students the best of luck with completing their research. You'll find a full transcript and more info on this and all our episodes on the Up Close website. Up Close is a production of the University of Melbourne, Australia. This episode was recorded on the 29th of November 2016. Producer is Eric van Bemmel, audio engineering by Gavin Nebauer, and I'm Dr Andi Horvath. Cheers. | 2019-04-19T09:14:17Z | https://upclose.unimelb.edu.au/episode/384-exploring-impact-city-lights-birds-and-building-better-detergents?action=read_transcript |
Accurately diagnose clients using new diagnostic criteria for bipolar spectrum disorders.
Identify the three primary goals in medication treatment of bipolar disorder.
Discuss the seven major classes of psychiatric medications which are effective in treating various symptoms of bipolar disorder.
Describe typical side effect profiles for medications used in treating bipolar disorders.
Explain the role of lifestyle management as a critical ingredient in effective integrative treatment.
The materials in this course are based on the most accurate information available to the author at the time of writing. New developments in the field of psychopharmacology occur each day and new research findings may emerge that supersede these course materials. This course is updated regularly as new practice guidelines are developed. However, it should be noted that 'official' guidelines (e.g. offered by the American Psychiatric Association, and other groups), as of the current update, are significantly outdated. The material in this course is derived from such guidelines, but is augmented with a number of guidelines drawn from more recent clinical and research studies. This course will equip clinicians to evaluate the needs for medical treatment for their psychotherapy clients, to assess responses to treatment and to more effectively collaborate with primary care physicians and psychiatrists.
Bipolar disorder is a common type of mood disorder affecting between 3.5-6% of the population (lifetime prevalence: Akiskal, et al. 2000). Previously, it was thought that the lifetime prevalence was 1-1.5% of the population; however, more recent epidemiological studies and new, refined diagnostic criteria have revealed the larger prevalence rate. It is now appreciated that there are a number of different types of bipolar disorder and together these are often referred to as bipolar spectrum disorders. Bipolar disorders are a group of genetically transmitted illnesses that result in recurring episodes of depression and mania or hypomania (see below). This is a lifelong disorder that requires ongoing medical treatment. Mood-stabilizing medications can effectively reduce episode severity and frequency. Nevertheless, there is currently no cure for bipolar disorders.
Note: To the best of my knowledge recommended doses and side effects listed herein are accurate. However, this is meant as a general reference only and should not serve as a guideline for prescribing. Please check package inserts and the PDR for specific information on prescribing. Brand names are registered trademarks.
In adolescents and adults 60-70% of manic episodes are classic manias (i.e. euphoric mania). 30-40% are referred to as dysphoric or mixed mania (mania with mixed features: DSM-5).
Hypomania is a milder version of mania that typically involves much less intense mood symptoms. The duration of hypomania is often only 2-4 days, (although it may last for longer periods of time) and is frequently not noticed as being a sign of illness by the person experiencing hypomania (although, in most cases, family members are more clearly aware of the mood changes and increased energy). During some hypomanias the person can feel highly motivated and productive, is witty, gregarious and “upbeat” (although there is often underlying irritability). One very common sign of hypomania is a decreased need for sleep with no daytime fatigue. DSM-5 requires a minimum of 4 days of hypomania to diagnose bipolar II disorder; however, the most common presentation of hypomanias is 2-3 days (Goodwin and Jamison, 2007). DSM-5 has a new category: Depressive Episodes with Short-duration Hypomania (requiring 2-3 days of hypomania). Experts working on the development of DSM-5 disagreed on the criterion for Bipolar II hypomania duration. For practical purposes, Bipolar II and Depressive Episodes with Short-duration Hypomanias can be seen as simply two versions of the same disorder.
(Note: ICD: International Classification Diseases, does not use the terms Bipolar I or II. Rather, they have adopted terms: bipolar disorder current episode mania, bipolar disorders current episode mixed, bipolar disorder current episode mixed, and so forth. Most research studies and treatment guidelines still refer to the DSM nomenclature, [i.e., Bipolar I and Bipolar II]. DSM-5 terms are presented here because they are more familiar).
Bipolar I: severe manic (classic or dysphoric) and depressive episodes (often with periods of normal/euthymic mood between episodes). It should be noted that between episodes there often is a persistent, low-grade mood alteration sometimes referred to as dysphoric hypomania: the person always seems “revved up”… manifest in impatience and a tendency towards irritability. This state is not clinically relevant; there is no significant impairment, but this type of mood change is noticeable to family members and fellow workers at their place of employment.
Bipolar II: characterized by frequent severe and prolonged depressions with periodic, brief episodes of hypomania; a normal/euthymic mood can occur between episodes, but often during these in-between times, there is a low-grade/mildly depressed mood. Judd, et al. (2003) studied the course of bipolar II disorder for a period of ten years and found that 15% of days were spent in major depressions, 40% in minor depressions, and only 1.4% in hypomanias.
Bipolar III: severe, highly recurrent unipolar depressions with no manias or hypomanias (note: this subtype of bipolar disorder did not make it into the final version of DSM-5). However, if the patient is treated with certain drugs (e.g. stimulants, antidepressants, or steroids), there is a likelihood that the medication will either increase episode frequency (i.e. cycle acceleration) or provoke a switch into mania or hypomania, and from that point on, manic episodes may begin to occur spontaneously, even if unprovoked by the use of the aforementioned medications. This subtype of bipolar is fairly rare, and is also characterized by early onset depressions (in childhood or early adolescence) and a positive family history of bipolar disorder. It is commonly misdiagnosed as recurrent unipolar depression. Treating with antidepressants can contribute to a significant worsening of the condition. This diagnosis is not in DSM-5 or ICD-10 and is rare but should be considered when evaluating patients that appear to have highly treatment resistant depression.
Pre-pubertal or early adolescent bipolar disorder: likely to be a more severe variant of bipolar disorder. Manias tend to be non-episodic (i.e., more chronic; may last for months to years) and 95% are of the mixed/dysphoric variety. Recent epidemiological studies conducted in many countries show that actual pre-pubertal onset of bipolar disorder is rare. It is during adolescence that the emergence of first episodes begins to be more prominent. It is important to recognize that a large number of children with psychiatric disorders exhibit affect instability which may be unrelated to bipolar disorder (e.g. PTSD, anxiety disorders, etc.).
Cyclothymia: mild depressions and hypomania (note: this less severe version of bipolar can become worse with time and more than ½ of these people with cyclothymia eventually convert to Bipolar I or Bipolar II).
A complication of bipolar disorder affecting about 20% of suffers is called rapid cycling. This represents a time-limited worsening of the illness in which episodes occur with greater frequency (i.e., 4 or more episodes of depression, mania, or hypomania per year). Most cases of rapid cycling last a few months to a year and a half, and then subside. The most common cause for rapid cycling is substance use/abuse. Rapid cycling has also been attributed to the use of antidepressants by bipolar patients. Antidepressants, as will be discussed shortly, are medications that can be problematic in treating bipolar disorder. If more frequent episodes are evident, it is referred to as ultra-rapid cycling or ultradian cycling bipolar.
Treatment must have a two-pronged focus: bringing to an end the current manic or depressive episode and relapse prevention. With proper medical treatment, most people can experience a marked decrease in episode frequency and severity.
Maintain regular bed times and awakening times. Such regularities in sleep patterns are crucial.
Keep the amount of bright light exposure (e.g. sunlight) and the amount of physical exercise stable year round.
Ketter, T.A. (Editor) (2005) Advances in the Treatment of Bipolar Disorder: Washington, D.C.: American Psychiatric Publishing, Inc.
Goodwin, F.K. and Jamison, K.R. (2007) Manic-Depressive Illness: Second Edition. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
American Psychiatric Association: (2002) Bipolar Disorder Practice Guidelines: Second Edition.
Please note that official treatment guidelines listed above are dated. Updates are in progress. In this course we will include information from these sources as well as adding information from more recent experts and research in this area. The choice of medications used to treat bipolar disorder depends on the mood state the patient is currently experiencing (i.e., mania or depression). In addition, the medication choice always must take into consideration the ultimate goal of preventing recurrences.
Currently, there are fourteen medications that are approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of bipolar disorder: lithium, Thorazine, Depakote, Equetro, Lamictal, Symbyax, Risperdal, Seroquel, Geodon, Abilify, Latuda, Saphris, Rexulti, Vraylar, and Zyprexa. However, a number of other effective drugs are in common use. The use of medications not approved by FDA for the treatment of certain conditions is referred to as “off label use.” It is important to note that off label use of medications is a very common practice in every branch of medicine.
Recent surveys reveal that, in the United States, only 11% of people being treated for bipolar disorder are taking just a single drug (mono-therapy); thus, this is the exception and not the rule. On average, most people being treated are taking three or four medications simultaneously. The reason for this is simple – medication combinations are often clearly superior to mono-therapy for most people suffering from bipolar disorder.
All medications have side effects and, unfortunately, the drugs used to treat bipolar disorder are known to produce significant side effects for the majority of people being treated. Side effects can be mild and easy to tolerate. However, often they are more noticeable and, in rare instances, they can be dangerous. In every single case, once the current mood episode has subsided, people with bipolar disorder must continue to take certain medications (mood stabilizers) to help prevent or reduce the likelihood of recurrence. This is absolutely essential!
However, some estimates suggest that as many as 90% of people who start medical treatment for bipolar disorder will recover from their first episode, but within weeks or several months will stop taking their medications (against medical advice). The most common reasons for doing so are understandable: 1) the patients is plagued by unpleasant side effects and/or, 2) it’s the negative stigma associated with having a psychiatric condition, and/or 3) the person suffering from bipolar disorder concludes that the episode he experienced is not really bipolar disorder, but was just a single episode and that there will be no recurrence. This conclusion is borne of hopefulness that this is not really going to be a recurring illness (Pope and Scott, 2003). These reasons for discontinuing the medication are entirely understandable, but they almost invariably lead to the emergence of another episode (this may occur within a few months following the initial episode, but more commonly occurs several years later).
Many side effects can be managed by dosage adjustments or by switching to other medications. This is one reason that most times people will need to go through systematic trials on a variety of medications to determine which ones are the most effective, and which drugs are best tolerated for the individual. Every effort should be made to find the right medication or medication combinations in an attempt to minimize side effects. Moreover, this is often something that can be accomplished. However, it is frequently the case that it takes a year of trials on various medications to finally discover the specific medication or medication combinations that will be effective and that will be best tolerated. This is the rule and not the exception.
It is very important for patients to not feel too discouraged if the first medications used are less than optimally effective or that there are problematic side effects. A sign of a competent and compassionate psychiatrist is her willingness to be persistent in carrying out systematic medication trials until the best treatment is finally identified. Sometimes side effects can be minimized; however, many people end up having to find ways to tolerate some side effects. Obviously, this is not pleasant, but is ultimately necessary to reduce or eliminate severe mood swings. Unfortunately, a very small number of people are simply unable to tolerate any bipolar medications.
Bipolar disorder is like a number of other chronic medical conditions (such as diabetes, asthma, arthritis). It is not a condition that can be cured by currently available medications. However, the medications discussed below are effective in relieving many of the more serious symptoms of bipolar illness. They often can reduce the frequency of mood episodes for most people, if patients receive appropriate treatment and stick with it. The good news, but also the not-so-good news is that, with aggressive, appropriate, and ongoing medication treatment, and if the treatment is started during the first or second mood episode, about 30% of people will not experience recurrences. That is, in about one out of four people the medications are successful in preventing relapses (please note that if the first appropriate medical treatments begin after the second episode, typically treatment becomes somewhat more challenging and the outcomes are not quite as robust). However, for the majority of other people receiving treatment and taking medications as prescribed, the recurrence rates for severe episodes can be reduced by about 75% and hospitalizations can often be avoided. Subsequent episodes that do occur tend to be mild depressions and hypomanias (Gitlin, 2002; Bowden, C.L. and Singh, 2005).
Medication treatments are far from perfect, but they have the kind of effectiveness that can substantially reduce suffering, keep families together, avoid catastrophes, and save lives.
The material below begins with a brief overview of bipolar medication classes and specific drugs. This is followed by a discussion of treatment guidelines. Finally, detailed information is presented regarding specific medications (e.g. doses, side effects).
There are seven major classes of psychiatric medications that have been found to be effective in treating various symptoms of bipolar disorder. Generic and brand names (registered trademarks) are listed below.
Antidepressant and Atypical Antipsychotic Combination: Symbyax, a combination of Prozac and Zyprexa approved by the FDA for the treatment of acute bipolar depression.
In addition, antidepressant medications are often used in treating bipolar disorders. However, their use often results in ineffective outcomes or the provoking of significant emergent symptoms (e.g. provoking mania). In this course we will look at the controversies and risks of using antidepressants. Currently, even though they are often prescribed, the current thinking is that they should rarely be used and only in treatment resistant cases. There is a general lack of knowledge that antidepressants are ineffective and can cause significant problems. There are a number of other medications that are used occasionally, including some experimental drugs (e.g. Omega-3 fatty acids) and Topamax (to help reduce weight gain; note: Topamax does not appear to be an effective antimanic). This CE course will provide a brief overview of standard treatment guidelines that have been developed primarily by the American Psychiatric Association and findings from the STEP-BD Program.
There are three primary goals in medication treatment of bipolar disorder: dealing with potentially dangerous emergency issues (e.g. extremely severe agitation or suicidal impulses), resolving the current episode (mania or depression), and relapse prevention. The choice of medications used will always be influenced by these goals. In addition, of course, the medication choice will also be dictated by the need to minimize side effects.
Sometimes, there is a need for emergency treatment, such as when a person is experiencing a sudden onset of severe manic agitation (which may include extreme restlessness, impulsivity, severely impaired judgment, and/or aggression) or serious suicidal impulses during a depression or dysphoric manic episodes. At such times, acute medical treatment may be necessary.
Emergency medical treatments for agitation include the use of either benzodiazepines (anti-anxiety tranquilizers, such as Ativan, Klonopin, and Valium) or antipsychotic medications (such as Zyprexa, Risperdal, Geodon, Abilify, Haldol, or Seroquel). These two classes of drugs are often very effective in rapidly reducing agitation. On occasion, there is a need for emergency medical treatment for very severe depression (where there is either a grave suicide risk or refusal to eat accompanied by severe weight loss). In such cases, Electro-Convulsive Therapy (ECT also known as shock treatments) can be used successfully. ECT is also very effective for the emergency treatment of severe mania.
If the situation is not extremely urgent, then it is commonplace to order some pre-treatment laboratory tests. This is done for two purposes. The first is to rule out the possibility that the mood symptoms may be caused by a primary medical illness (such as thyroid disease) or substance abuse. The other reason has to do with the tendency for many of the bipolar medications to cause significant changes in a variety of bodily functions. Mood stabilizers in particular are known to affect a broad range of organs and glands, especially when they are taken for prolonged periods. Thus, pretreatment labs typically include measures of cardiac, kidney, liver and thyroid functioning, as well as a complete blood count. Laboratory monitoring of blood levels of certain medications may also be required. This is routinely done for the following mood stabilizing medications: lithium, Tegretol, Trileptal, and Depakote.
For each psychiatric medication listed in the Appendix, you will see listed the typical adult daily doses. In many instances, the “therapeutic dosage range” is broad. For example, daily dosing with lithium is between 600 and 2400 mg. It is important to know that the amount of medication required to effectively reduce and eliminate symptoms often has little to do with how severe the mood episode is. What matters is not so much how much is ingested but rather, how much of the medication enters the blood stream.
There are three primary factors that influence the amount of drug that finds its way into the blood stream. First is the rate of liver metabolism. Bipolar medications are absorbed through the walls of the stomach and intestines, and go directly to the liver. Here the drug molecules are acted upon by liver enzymes that begin a process generally referred to as biotransformation. Liver enzymes chemically alter the medication in ways that allow the drug to be more readily excreted from the body. The liver’s function is to detoxify the body. Thus, in this so-called first pass effect through the liver, a good deal of the drug is transformed and then rapidly excreted. However, some of the medication initially escapes this process, makes its way through the liver and into circulation, and is therefore allowed to begin accumulating in the blood stream. How rapidly the liver metabolizes drugs depends on a number of factors. This resulting blood level is what matters when it comes to reducing symptoms. (Note: two bipolar medications are not metabolized in the liver, lithium and Neurontin).
Genes play a significant role in this process. A small percentage of people are known as rapid metabolizers. They take certain drugs and then eliminate them very quickly. The result is that, even though they may be taking what seems like an adequate dose of the medication, little actually gets into the blood stream. Once it is discovered that someone is a rapid metabolizer, usually he is prescribed very high doses of medications, and eventually enough gets into the blood stream to be effective. Again, this has nothing to do with how severely ill the patient is – it’s just a matter of the liver’s metabolic rate. Conversely, some individuals are hypo-metabolizers. This small percentage of people has fewer than average liver enzymes. The effect is that they can take a very small dose of a medication, and on its trip through the liver, only small amounts are transformed and excreted. The result is often very high blood levels of the medication and severe side effects or toxicity. The ultimate solution for hypo-metabolizers is to use very small doses. Sometimes, when a person is first treated, she will experience serious side effects that may be due to hypo-metabolizing. It is often hard to know ahead of time if this will happen with any one given individual. Thus, if your patient has experienced very intense side effects with other medications in the past, it may be anticipated that she is a hypo-metabolizer, so initial dosing is done gradually.
A second factor determining blood levels of medications is the functioning of the kidneys. Sometimes genetic factors play a role here too, but more often problems can occur due to kidney disease. For some bipolar medications, pretreatment labs will include an assessment of kidney functioning (this is especially important for patients being treated with lithium).
Finally, a number of drugs can adversely affect liver metabolism and thereby alter blood levels. This is where drug-drug interactions can cause significant problems. This applies to some prescription drugs, over-the-counter drugs, herbal and dietary supplement products, and recreational drugs. The use of prescription drugs must be carefully monitored by the treating physician. In addition, even modest amounts of alcohol can have significant effects on the liver. St. John’s Wort, a popular herbal product for the treatment of depression, is known to cause some very significant changes in liver metabolism.
Caution The use of Tegretol, Trileptal, Topamax, or St. John’s Wort can interfere with the effectiveness of birth control pills. This is especially important to monitor since some mood stabilizers are known to cause birth defects.
Verapamil (generally only used for treating mania in pregnant women because it is the safest mood stabilizer for use during pregnancy). Nimodipine is another calcium channel blocker that is showing promise in treating bipolar disorder.
Benzodiazepines and antipsychotic medications are given initially to reduce agitation, which can often be achieved within a few hours (note: for reasons that are not well understood, the tranquilizer Xanax can sometimes aggravate mania, and thus is generally not used to treat acute mania; other tranquilizers such as Ativan do not provoke mania). The anti-manic medications (e.g. lithium and anticonvulsants) require 7-10 days of treatment before there is an onset of action and symptom reduction. Once symptoms begin to be reduced, continued treatment for several weeks will often be necessary to eliminate acute manic symptoms. As noted earlier, most people will ultimately be treated with three or four medications simultaneously to achieve the best outcomes.
Reduce extreme agitation (the goal is to get agitation under control within a few hours). Severe agitation can be dangerous to the patient as well as to others around them, so this must be addressed as soon as possible.
Stage One: As mentioned above, antipsychotic medications and benzodiazepines (with the one exception of Xanax which can aggravate mania) are the best medications for treating acute agitation; they quickly produce substantial sedation, calming, or sleep. It is important to note that, although antipsychotic medications do successfully treat psychotic symptoms (such as hallucinations), the more recently developed drugs (i.e., atypical or second generation antipsychotics) have also been found to be effective mood stabilizers and are commonly used to treat mania. Most mood stabilizers require the 7-10 day period before symptom reduction, with one notable exception – the anticonvulsant mood stabilizer, Depakote, when given in large doses, can begin to show anti-manic effects in about 4 days. Once severe agitation has subsided, benzodiazepines are often gradually reduced and, within a few days, are discontinued. This may also be true for antipsychotic medications. However, there are times when antipsychotic drugs may continue to be used for a more prolonged period.
During stage one of treatment, as mentioned above, a number of lab tests are frequently done to monitor the early effects of the drugs.
Stage Two: The choice of medications used to treat core symptoms of mania is important and often complex. As noted above, there are several different types of mania, and a considerable amount of research has been done to discover which medications are best suited for treating particular subtypes of mania. Dozens of large-scale research studies have been conducted in recent years, and specific treatment guidelines have been developed that are useful in helping physicians to decide on initial medication choices (see below). However, the fact is that each person will have a number of factors unique to him that will influence the choice of medications, such as age, gender, body weight, history of allergies to medications, liver metabolism rate, the presence or absence of other medical conditions, and other medicines being used to treat such conditions.
Patients must anticipate that it is extremely common for psychiatrists to make initial medication choices, begin treatment, and then during the following weeks or months make what are often frequent changes in the doses or medications prescribed. There is an important reason for emphasizing this. Many times people being treated for bipolar illness, or their family members, become worried as they begin to encounter side effects, or they must go through what seems like an endless number of lab tests or changes in medications or medication doses. Many people become concerned that these medication changes suggest that their doctor may not be competent or that their case of bipolar is especially treatment-resistant. This can lead to discouragement and feelings of pessimism. Here is the truth – the pathway to recovery and good outcomes, more often than not, is complicated. The rule, not the exception, is that people will be tried on several if not many medications in the search for the right drug or medication combinations. It is so important to help patients understand this so that they don’t conclude that the frequent changes in medications are necessarily a reason for concern. The fact is that bipolar disorder is challenging to treat and often requires a considerable amount of time systematically trying various medications before the right medications combinations are found.
“Classic Mania” (with euphoria, expansiveness, upbeat mood, occasional irritability, etc.) has been found to respond best to treatment with lithium or Depakote (other anticonvulsant mood stabilizers or atypical antipsychotic medications often can treat classic mania, but in head-to-head comparisons, lithium and Depakote appear to be the best first-line medications for this type of mania). Generally, during stage two of treatment, especially if this is a person’s first episode of mania, just one of these medications will be prescribed. Assuming that the medication is tolerated (i.e., that side effects are mild or manageable), treatment will continue for a period of several weeks. As mentioned earlier, 90% of people being treated for bipolar disorder ultimately must take two or more medications at the same time to adequately treat mania. Thus, it is possible that the one medicine initially prescribed may be tolerated and may eventually be effective. Decisions to increase the dose or to change or add another medication in the ensuing weeks will depend on tolerability and effectiveness. Since there are always possible drug-drug interactions, the generally recommended approach is to first optimize treatment with one medication (which means to progressively increase the dose while always being watchful for the emergence of side effects). What is hoped for is that the first signs of symptomatic change will occur during the initial 7-10 days, and that symptomatic improvement will continue to unfold over the next few weeks. Just how long it takes to fully resolve a manic episode varies from one individual to another. It should be noted that a current trend is to initiate treatment with one mood stabilizer, and then relatively soon add a second antimanic agent (e.g. lithium and a second generation antipsychotic) since it has been found that the use of two agents is often more effective and since this combination treatment can involve lower doses of each medication, there are often actually fewer side effects.
Should side effects be significant, there will typically be either a dosage adjustment or possibly a change to another medication. If side effects are mild to moderate and tolerable, but there is only partial improvement in symptoms after several weeks of treatment, then a decision will be made to either change to a different medication or to add another medication (the addition of medications is commonly referred to as augmentation). Medications typically used for augmentation include anticonvulsant mood stabilizers and/or antipsychotic medications.
Mania with Mixed Features: (agitation, decreased need for sleep, rapid speech, feelings of despair, hopelessness, etc.). There is some controversy regarding the treatment of mixed mania. However, most experts agree that the best first-line medication is Depakote. Many people experiencing mixed mania do have positive responses to lithium as a mono-therapy. Again, the use of just one medication initially is the typical strategy, and before adding or changing medications, the drug used will be optimized. As in the treatment of classic mania, we are looking for the first signs of improvement within the first 7-10 days.
If after several weeks of treatment, and if increased doses of the medication yield only partial symptomatic improvement, then augmentation can be used. Often the first augmentation strategy is to combine Depakote and lithium. If other medications are required, then the addition of the following are commonly prescribed: the anticonvulsants Tegretol, or Trileptal. The anticonvulsant, Neurontin, has been found to be ineffective as a mono-therapy, but it is often used as an augmenting agent, and is especially helpful in reducing anxiety. Other choices include atypical antipsychotics, also known as SGAs.
The treatment of childhood-onset bipolar disorder is beyond the scope of this CE course; however, a few brief comments will be made. At the outset, in must be acknowledged that there are not well established guidelines for diagnosing pre-adolescent bipolar disorder. Mood instability is seen in many other disorders and some experts have commented that bipolar disorder in children is often misdiagnosed.
When mania occurs in pre-pubertal children, it most commonly presents as a form of mixed mania with rapid cycling and marked irritability. With adults, the general strategy is to begin treatment with one mood stabilizer and only later add additional medicines if they are needed. This is done with the intention of avoiding unnecessary side effects that occur when multiple drugs are prescribed. Obviously, there are compelling reasons for wanting to minimize side effects in children as well. However, preliminary research has rather strongly indicated that most children suffering from mania ultimately end up taking two or more mood stabilizers (this is required for most to effectively eliminate manic symptoms). Thus, there currently is a trend to begin treatment with children using two mood stabilizers (often this combination is Depakote and lithium). It is generally felt that the much higher success rate with two mood stabilizers outweighs the added side effects of using two drugs. In addition, it is felt that the earlier a lid can be put on mania and its development, the better – to do so matters not only in regard to the current episode but may also have a positive effect on reducing the severity of future episodes.
As mentioned above, rapid cycling generally is a period of time lasting anywhere from a few months to a year or year-and-a-half where there is a significant increase in the frequency and (often) severity of mood episodes. In only about 2% of people is rapid cycling continuous for very prolonged periods. Three factors account for the majority of cases of rapid cycling: substance abuse (including alcohol), the use of certain prescription medications (e.g. antidepressants, steroids, stimulants), or disorders of the thyroid gland. Thus, it is very important to determine whether any of these factors is present, and take appropriate action to ameliorate them. Special attention must be taken to stabilize the patient’s lifestyle, especially making sure that there is regularity to sleep patterns and making every attempt to reduce or avoid sleep deprivation (e.g. establishing regular bed and awakening times; completely avoiding sleep-destroying substances such as caffeine, alcohol and decongestants; no all-nighters cramming for exams; no late night partying).
Beyond these approaches, the following medication strategies have been found to be helpful. Preferred mood stabilizers include Lamictal, Depakote, and Tegretol. Atypical antipsychotic medications are also frequently prescribed. Finally, the most common mood symptoms seen in rapid cycling are depression or a combination of depression and irritability. Unfortunately, antidepressants can contribute to cycle acceleration and rapid switches in mood. Thus, the use of antidepressants in rapid cycling is not indicated.
For people that experience very severe mania that does not respond to more traditional treatments, there are a number of options.
The antipsychotic medication clozapine (brand name Clozaril) has been found to be effective in some cases of treatment resistant mania. This drug has antipsychotic effects (e.g. for treating hallucinations, delusions). It also is proving to be effective for treating not only mania but for relapse prevention. Unfortunately, Clozaril is plagued by numerous, significant side effects, some of which are potentially dangerous. ECT (electro-convulsive therapy) is a safe and highly effective treatment for severe mania.
ECT (electro-convulsive therapy) was developed in the late 1930s and has experienced a checkered history. ECT involves the use of an electric current that is delivered by way of two electrodes placed on the frontal area of the skull. The electrical current produces a grand mal seizure and there is evidence that the seizure is responsible for rapidly altering the chemistry of the brain. The changes in brain chemistry are remarkably similar to that seen as a result of psychiatric medication treatments, although such changes typically occur after only a few days and a few treatments, when medications generally require a number of weeks to yield such changes.
In the early days, ECT was a very crude medical technology. The treatment, unfortunately, was administered in ways that resulted in a multitude of serious medical and neurologic consequences, including spinal fractures, cardiac arrests, and persistent memory problems. However, it was also clear from the outset that this was a powerful treatment that often resulted in rapid and significant improvement in patients suffering from very severe mania and depression.
There have been significant advances in the way ECT is administered. Currently, ECT is administered to the patient under a general anesthetic while being monitored by an anesthesiologist. The procedure is completely painless and is judged to be safe. Muscle relaxing drugs and the anesthesia help to prevent the medical problems encountered in the early days of ECT. Memory loss does occur following the treatments (primarily forgetfulness), but almost without exception, memory problems completely remit within six weeks after the final treatment. ECT can resolve acute, severe mood states; however, once the treatments end, most patients will slip back into a depression or mania within a few weeks. The preferred strategy is to give ECT while also administering mood-stabilizing medications; the drugs help to prevent acute relapse.
ECT is considered a treatment of last resort, primarily because of the costs involved, but it remains an important and often lifesaving technique for treating both manias and severe depressions of bipolar illness.
Once the current manic episode is completely controlled, it is common practice to continue medications, even though there are no obvious symptoms. This is necessary because it is clear that once symptoms subside, if medication is then discontinued, the acute relapse rate can be as high as 85%. Therefore, for a period of several months, medication treatment is typically continued, often at the same doses used during treatment of the acute phase of the episode. This phase of treatment is appropriately called continuation treatment. After several months, assuming there have been no “breakthrough” symptoms, then the next stage of treatment – maintenance treatment – begins. Here, the focus of treatment is on the prevention of recurrent episodes. Often, if a person has been receiving lithium, the dose is gradually reduced (which often results in fewer side effects). The doses of other medications may also be reduced. However, such a decision is highly individual and is influenced by a number of factors including a person’s clinical history and the presence of particular side effects.
In general, the medications used to treat mania are considered very effective for most people experiencing a manic episode (note: this is true for bipolar mania seen in patients who have a late adolescent or adult-onset illness. Mania in pre-pubertal children is significantly more difficult to treat). However, the more long-term goal of preventing recurrences is more challenging. Despite the fact that there have been decades of experience in treating bipolar illness, there are no good long-term studies on relapse prevention (the longest studies available only extend to about a year). Yet this is a lifelong illness, and all experts agree that lifelong treatment is required. It is important to know that most medications used to treat bipolar disorder do have side effects that may emerge with very long-term use, thus necessitating periodic lab tests to monitor blood and various glandular and organ system functioning. It is clear that failure to treat (or to adequately treat) bipolar disorder almost always leads to disaster.
The medications for which the best data exist for long-term maintenance treatment are the following mood-stabilizers: lithium (the best data), Depakote, Tegretol, and Zyprexa. Most people on maintenance treatment will continue to take several medications. However, longer-term treatments generally do not include treatment with benzodiazepines.
The combination drug, Symbyax (Prozac and Zyprexa), is FDA approved for the treatment of bipolar depression.
The anticonvulsant, Lamictal, has antidepressant actions and is FDA approved for preventing recurrence of bipolar depression.
The atypical antipsychotics (SGAs), Seroquel, Abilify, and Latuda, have antidepressant actions.
It is important to know that bipolar depressions are often difficult to treat. Treatment guidelines have been developed by the American Psychiatric Association. However, there is a significant amount of controversy in the field regarding the best approaches for treating this aspect of bipolar disorder. The biggest issue is that many treatments that ordinarily are effective in reducing depression (i.e. antidepressants) carry a risk of provoking manic episodes (a phenomenon referred to as switching) or causing cycle acceleration (this refers to a gradual, over-all worsening of bipolar disorder in which, over time, there is an increased frequency of episodes, and episodes tend to become more severe and more difficult to treat). Switching and cycle acceleration have been clearly documented with the use of antidepressants (see below) and thus these drugs are not advised in the treatment of bipolar depression (Ghaemi, et al. 2001; Post, et al. 2001; Goodwin and Jamison, 2007). Excessive bright light exposure (which can treat some types of seasonal depression) has also been associated with provoking manias. Additionally, three popular over-the-counter products that have antidepressant properties can, likewise, cause switching or cycle acceleration: 5-HTP, St. John’s Wort and SAM-e.
Stage One: In the event of life threatening symptoms such as strong suicidal impulses or refusal to eat, ECT is a highly effective treatment. The treatment approach is much the same as used to treat acute mania (see previous box titled ECT: Electro-Convulsive Therapy). The other emergency treatment is hospitalization. Unfortunately, aside from ECT most approaches to treating depression require several weeks before one is likely to see symptomatic improvement.
Stage Two: Start with a medication that has been found to have antidepressant actions. The five drugs that have the best track record of effectiveness are lithium, Seroquel, Latuda, Symbyax and Lamictal (however, there is an important consideration when using Lamictal – once treatment is begun, it is required that Lamictal be given in small doses and that dosage changes are done very gradually during the first 4-6 weeks of treatment. This is to avoid inducing a potentially dangerous rash [Stevens-Johnson syndrome] that is more common if there is rapid dose escalation. Since this more gradual titration schedule has been developed, the incidence of serious rashes has been extremely low; it should be noted that the use of Lamictal in pre-adolescent children still carries a risk of Stevens-Johnson syndrome). Of these five choices, Seroquel appears to be the most effective, first-line medication choice.
Add lithium. Lithium generally is not a first-line medication choice for bipolar depression. It is often effective, but it requires significant laboratory monitoring and thus is more difficult to manage. Additionally, even though lithium has been shown to significantly reduce suicide (with chronic use), during the initial phase of treatment when a person may be feeling suicidal, lithium can be very dangerous owing to its high level of toxicity (e.g. if taken in even small over-doses, it is often fatal). Thus, lithium may make sense as an add-on drug once the patient is recovered enough to be judged to have a low risk of suicide.
The addition of an antidepressant to treatment resistant Bipolar II patients can at times be beneficial (when combined with a mood stabilizer). This almost never should be the first line treatment, but only if other treatments fail. However, the use of antidepressant augmentation for the treatment of Bipolar I is not indicated.
Bright light therapy (using a commercially available light box that generates 10,000 lux of light intensity for 10-30 minutes a day or going outside into natural sunlight without wearing sunglasses) has been used for treating bipolar depression, especially for those who routinely have winter depressions or who work the night shift. This treatment is typically combined with medication treatments and like all treatments for depression, it too, carries a risk of provoking mania in some people with bipolar I disorder.
Exercise therapy has recently been shown to be effective in treating unipolar major depression, however, there are no studies of this approach in treating bipolar depression.
Stage Three: This is much the same as stage three treatments for mania. Among the mood stabilizers that have the best record of effectiveness in the prevention of depressive episodes, Lamictal appears to be the front-runner.
Omega-3 Fatty Acids: dietary supplements that have some limited research support as effective agents in reducing the severity of bipolar mood swings (Stoll, et al. 1999). It should be noted that Omega-3 treatments appear to be more effective as an adjunct to the treatment of unipolar depression. Studies with bipolar disorder have been much less robust and equivocal.
Repetitive Trans-Cranial Magnetic Stimulation (rTMS): a technology that uses a powerful electromagnet, which is able to stimulate the brain. Treatments generally last from 10-20 minutes during which an electromagnet is placed next to the left frontal part of the skull. During the treatment, approximately 1,000 surges of powerful magnetic energy are delivered, penetrating the skull and affecting metabolic functioning in the brain tissue in the underlying left frontal lobe. This treatment causes virtually no side effects (the exception is that about 1.5% of people experience a seizure). There is no loss of consciousness. Like ECT, treatments are given three times a week for 3-4 weeks. The literature on rTMS suggests that it is a rapid and effective treatment for some cases of severe depression. As with ECT, acute relapses do occur after the rTMS treatments stop so people are concurrently treated with mood stabilizers or antidepressants to avoid relapse. This is a promising new approach, but it is still considered experimental.
Vagus Nerve Stimulation: a technique that was initially developed to treat some forms of severe epilepsy, it has been found to be effective in successfully treating about 50-60% of people who suffer from highly treatment-resistant depressions. A pacemaker-like device is implanted in the chest wall (beneath the collarbone) and a wire extends up into the neck where it is wrapped around the vagus nerve. Periodically, a mild electrical stimulation is delivered to the vagus nerve, which causes nerve activity that enters the brain. This also appears to be a promising new treatment for some cases of severe depression, but as yet, it has not been studied for use in treating bipolar disorder.
Chronotherapy (targeting stabilization of the circadian rhythm): Partial sleep deprivation therapy (sleeping for 4 hours and then awakened and kept awake until 9:00 pm) and dawn simulation (waking up at the same time each day) have been used for many years in Europe as an augmenting strategy aimed at stabilizing the circadian rhythm.
Note: To the best of my knowledge, doses and side effects listed below are accurate. However, this is meant as a general reference only and should not serve as a guideline for prescribing medications. Brand names are registered trademarks.
Typical Adult Daily Doses (Eskalith or Lithonate are most commonly prescribed): 600-2400 mg. per day. Note: what matters with lithium treatment is not the dose, per se, but the blood level (which is carefully monitored). A lithium level between 0.8 and 1.2 mEq/l (mEq/l is the technical designation for what is commonly called the lithium level) is generally felt to be in the therapeutic range for treating mania. Once the manic episode is resolved, then it is common practice to lower the dose to establish a blood level somewhere between 0.6 and 0.8 mEq/l. Blood levels above 1.2 are associated with significant side effects, and levels above 2.0 can be dangerous.
ECG (EKG)*, electrolytes, complete blood count, kidney function tests (BUN, creatinine, urinalysis), thyroid tests*, calcium*, pregnancy test (optional).
Those tests flagged above with an asterisk are repeated periodically. In addition, it is necessary to periodically check lithium blood levels. This is done frequently during the first weeks of treatment and when there are significant changes in dosage. Once a person is stabilized on lithium for several months, lithium levels will then be checked less often (e.g. 3-4 times a year).
Here are only the most common medications with which the drug may cause adverse interactions.
Safety during pregnancy: Lithium is generally considered to be safe for use during pregnancy, however there is a slight risk for a rare birth defect (Ebstein’s anomaly, a heart defect) if taken during the first trimester. This occurs in 0.1-0.2% of fetuses exposed to lithium. If the patient is planning to get pregnant or suspects that she may be pregnant, contact prescribing physician.
Lithium is a very dangerous drug if taken in an accidental or intentional overdose. In the event of an overdose, seek immediate medical attention.
Anticonvulsants are medications originally developed to treat epilepsy. It was only by accident that it was discovered that some anticonvulsants also have the ability to treat mania. The anticonvulsant Lamictal is used to treat rapid cycling and bipolar depression. Please note: Lamictal, if used as a monotherapy, may provoke mania in Bipolar I patients.
Anticonvulsant Mood Stabilizers: Generic and Brand Names and typical adult daily doses.
Uses: treatment of mania. Lamictal does not have antimanic effects and rather, is used to treat bipolar depression. Research evaluating the ability for anticonvulsants to help prevent recurrences of mania and bipolar depression is not yet conclusive. Depakote and Tegretol help to prevent recurrences of mania, and Lamictal reduces the recurrence of bipolar depression.
Complete blood count, platelets, electrolytes, cholesterol, triglycerides, sonogram of ovaries (optional for females under the age of 20 treated with Depakote), liver function tests, ECG (EKG), pregnancy test. For Topamax, kidney function tests (BUN and creatinine).
Pretreatment labs are generally not required for Neurontin or Lamictal.
Tegretol, Depakote, and Trileptal blood levels must be monitored (especially during the initial weeks of treatment). Generally, once a person is stabilized on Depakote or Trileptal, blood level monitoring is not necessary. However, those treated with Tegretol must have periodic and ongoing monitoring of Tegretol levels.
Ongoing lab test are generally not required for Lamictal.
Infertility problems (seen with some women under the age of 20 treated with Depakote), accompanied by menstrual irregularities.
Safety during pregnancy: there is a risk of birth defects when taking anticonvulsant mood stabilizers during pregnancy (especially in the first trimester; significant birth defects seen most commonly in treatment with Depakote). Most psychiatrists do not prescribe these medications during pregnancy.
Antipsychotic medications were first developed to treat psychotic symptoms such as hallucinations. The first such drugs were found to be effective in reducing psychotic symptoms, but they were notoriously “dirty” drugs, causing significant side effects. Since the mid-1990s, new and improved antipsychotics have been developed and marketed. These newer generation medications are not side effect-free, but they are considerably safer and better tolerated. The newer drugs are commonly referred to as atypical antipsychotics.
Although atypical antipsychotic medications are highly effective in treating psychotic symptoms it has been found that they are also good treatments for mania and possibly for mood stabilization in general. They also have a role in treating aggression. Thus, these medications are currently being widely used to treat BD even in individuals who have no psychotic symptoms.
Another antipsychotic medication that is used occasionally is clozapine (generic), Clozaril (brand name).
This older-generation antipsychotic medication has significant side effects (e.g. dry mouth, constipation, sedation, seizures, excessive salivation, blurred vision, nausea, heartburn and weight gain) and has been associated with a serious blood disorder (agranulocytosis: which causes soreness of the mouth, throat and gums and a high fever). Thus, it is never considered a first line medication choice. However, despite the problematic side effects, Clozaril is an important medication that can often successfully treat those rare people who have not responded to more traditional mood stabilizers. The typical adult daily doses for Clozaril are 300-900 mg.
Please note that all of the following information regarding antipsychotics pertains to the atypical antipsychotics or SGAs (not Clozaril).
Uses: treat mania and agitation; treat psychotic symptoms associated with both manic and depressive episodes and schizophrenia. The effectiveness of antipsychotic medications in the long-term prevention of recurrences is as yet inconclusive.
Onset of effects: Antipsychotic medications used to treat mania and can begin to reduce severe agitation within a few hours to a few days, however, the reduction of more pronounced manic symptoms, is similar to that seen with other mood stabilizers such as lithium and anticonvulsants (7-10 days or longer).
Laboratory Tests: periodic measures of blood glucose, triglycerides, cholesterol, weight, and body mass index should be done with all of the newer antipsychotics.
Weight Gain (can occur with all, however minimal with Geodon, Saphris, Fanapt, and Abilify).
Note: Not recommended in the treatment of bipolar disorder. The following list is offered simply as a general reference.
Antidepressants (all except Wellbutrin) are effective in treating severe anxiety, panic attacks, and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD).
Do not take with St. John’s Wort, 5-HTP (dietary supplement), MAOIs, cimetidine (Tagamet) without medical supervision.
Safety during pregnancy: most experts agree that some new generation antidepressants are safe for use during pregnancy (e.g. Prozac, Zoloft, Effexor, Wellbutrin, and Luvox). Note: the following antidepressants have been only recently come to market, and there is inadequate data to evaluate safety during pregnancy: Vestra, Cymbalta, Strattera, Lexapro, Celexa, Serzone, Pristiq, and Remeron). High doses of Desyrel should not be used during pregnancy. In addition, recent data suggests that Paxil is not safe for use during pregnancy.
Special Concerns: If someone has been taking antidepressants for a period of six weeks or more and abruptly stops taking the medications, there can be withdrawal symptoms (this can occur with any of the antidepressants with the exception of Prozac). Withdrawal symptoms include nausea, stomach upset, nervousness, flu-like symptoms, and a peculiar sensation described by patients as electrical shocks going through one’s head or extremities. Withdrawal symptoms are very unlikely if one has been taking the medication for less than six weeks. Moreover, withdrawal symptoms can be avoided almost 100% of the time by reducing the dose gradually over a period of several weeks.
Note: alprazolam (Xanax) can provoke mania in bipolar patients.
Uses: treats acute anxiety, agitation, and insomnia during episodes of mania. Also used to treat anxiety disorders (such as panic disorder, social anxiety, and generalized anxiety disorder). In the treatment of mania, benzodiazepines are generally used only for the first few days of treatment to reduce agitation; only rarely are these drugs used beyond a couple of weeks. The use of Xanax during manic episodes should be avoided (may increase manic symptoms).
Habit-forming / Addiction Potential: Significant risk for people with a prior personal or family history of alcoholism or other forms of serious drug abuse. Rozerem is non-habit forming. At the time of this printing Belsomra is still being evaluated for the potential of being habit-forming).
Interactions with Other Medications: When taking benzodiazepines, any other type of medication that causes drowsiness or impaired alertness and reaction time can be potentially dangerous, especially if one has to drive an automobile. In addition, alcohol should not be consumed when taking benzodiazepines.
Special Concerns: If benzodiazepines are being taken on a regular basis, the body develops a tolerance for the medication. When this happens, the drugs continue to work to reduce anxiety, but the problem when there is tolerance is that sudden cessation of the medication can lead to withdrawal symptoms. Withdrawal symptoms usually include nervousness, agitation, difficulty falling to sleep, and on occasion can produce seizures. This needs to be taken very seriously. If a person has been taking a benzodiazepine on a daily basis for more than 6 weeks, and especially if the dose is moderate to high, withdrawal reactions are a very real risk. The patient should never abruptly stop taking the medication without first consulting with his doctor. It is also a good idea to be especially careful to monitor his supply of the medications so that refills can be requested in a timely fashion. Many people find it helpful to keep at least a two-day supply on hand in the event that it takes longer than usual for a prescription to be refilled.
nimodipine Nimotop Still considered to be experimental. Clinical doses are not yet well established.
Uses and General Considerations: for people who cannot tolerate lithium, for rapid cycling bipolar, or for use during pregnancy (verapamil is considered the safest mood stabilizing medication for the treatment of bipolar disorder during pregnancy). Like most other mood stabilizers it generally takes 7-10 days to begin reducing symptoms.
One additional calcium channel blocker is used occasionally to treat mania – nimodipine (brand name: Nimotop). This medication looks promising in terms of efficacy; however, it is very expensive and to date, although there are positive case reports, there are no well-controlled studies.
The following medications are used less often in the treatment of bipolar disorder and thus will be discussed briefly.
Approximately 60% of the human brain is composed of lipids (fats), and between 30-35% of brain mass is made up of omega-3 fatty acids. These molecules are important in forming cell membranes and synapses, and in facilitating nerve cell actions. The most abundant dietary sources of omega-3 fatty acids are fish and shellfish. In cross-cultural studies, it has been found that in countries where people eat a lot of fish and other seafood, the severity of mood disorders is less. This interesting finding led researchers to carefully evaluate the impact of diet on mood. During the past ten years, a number of studies have been conducted with people suffering from bipolar disorder and also with those with major depression. Preliminary findings suggest that adding omega-3 fatty acids to the diet can have a positive effect on reducing the severity of depression (unipolar depression), however, results in use with bipolar patients have been minimal at best. In all studies to date, omega-3 fatty acids have been added to traditional medications (i.e. antidepressants) and omega 3 derived from fish oil has greater bioavailability in the central nervous system than that derived from seed or nut oils.
Uses and General Considerations: Omega-3 fatty acids are not effective in treating severe episodes of mania or depression. However, their role appears to be in reducing the severity of episodes and possibly having a positive impact on preventing recurrences (evidence more strongly supports the use with unipolar depression and less positive effects have been seen with bipolar disorder). Studies have found that people treated with omega-3 fatty acids must take these dietary supplements on a daily basis and over a prolonged period (i.e. building this in to an ongoing diet). As noted above, the main sources of omega-3 fatty acids are fish and shellfish, and presumably adding more fish to the diet may be a way to enrich levels of these molecules in the brain. However, all of the studies that have had positive results have used dietary supplement capsules (available from health food stores). There are three types of omega-3 fatty acids: LNA (derived from seed and nut oils, principally from flax seed oil), EPA, and DHA (both from fish oil). Most studies have demonstrated that EPA is the most effective type of omega-3 fatty acids used to treat bipolar. The early studies used mega-doses of omega-3 (9 grams per day). However, it appears that much lower doses may be effective (for example, 500 mg. taken twice a day). There are also indications that what may also be involved is achieving a balance between omgea-3 and omega-6 fatty acids (the main omega-6 is arachidonic acid). Unfortunately dietary habits in the United States are notoriously poor, and lots of processed foods as well as snack and junk foods contain significant amounts of omega-6 fatty acids; especially due to the wide-spread use of corn oil in many processed foods (that may throw things out of balance). Thus, a recommended strategy is to reduce sources of omega 6 and add omega-3 fatty acids. Omega-3 fatty acids (especially at lower doses) have few if any side effects and are well tolerated (high doses can cause gastrointestinal discomfort). The patient should talk with his/her prescribing physician about the possibility of adding omega-3 fatty acids to existing prescription medications (Stoll, et al., 1999).
As noted above, newer generation antipsychotics have been developed during the past ten years. The newer drugs are considerably safer and have significantly fewer side effects than older-generation antipsychotic medications. We are simply mentioning these medications here just as a point of information since in rare instances, some people may be treated with these drugs (brand names): Thorazine, Mellaril, Serentil, Moban, Trilafon, Loxitane, Stelazine, Prolixin, Navane, Orap, and Haldol. Of these, the most common drugs that are still used these days are Haldol (often useful to initially treat very severe agitation seen in some types of mania) and Trilafon.
This class of medications is used occasionally to combat side effects of some antipsychotic drugs (such as muscle rigidity or spasms, restlessness, tremor). Again, we will only list these medications (brand names): Cogentin, Akineton, and Artane. Anticholinergic drugs have their own set of side effects including constipation, blurred vision, dry mouth, difficulty beginning urination, and occasionally memory loss, confusion and delirium.
Goodwin, F.K. And Jamison, K.R. (2007) Manic-depressive Illness. Oxford: Oxford Press.
Preston, J.D., O'Neal, J. and Talaga, M. (2017) Handbook of Clinical Psychopharmacology for Therapists: 8th Edition. New Harbinger: Oakland.
Akiskal, H.S., Bourgeois, M.L., Angst, J., Post, R., Moller, H.J., & Hirschfeld, R.M.A. (2000). Re-evaluating the prevalence of and diagnostic composition within the broad clinical spectrum of bipolar disorders. J. Affective Disorders, 59, Suppl, S5-530.
Bauer, N., Alda, M., Priller, J., and Young, L.T. (2003) Implications of the neuroprotective effects of lithium for the treatment of bipolar and neuro-degenerative disorders. Pharmacopsychiatry, 36(3): S 250-254.
Bottern, K.N., Raichle, M.E., Drevets, W.C., Heath, A.C., and Todd, R.D. (2002). Volumetric reduction in left subgenual prefrontal cortex in early onset depression. Biological Psychiatry, 51 (4), 324-344.
Bowden, C.L., and Singh, V. (2005) Long-term management of bipolar disorder. In: Advances in the Treatment of Bipolar Disorder. Edited by T. Ketter, Washington, D.C.: American Psychiatric Publishing, Inc., p. 135.
Ghaemi, S.N., Lennox, M.S., & Baldessarini, R.J. (2001). Effectiveness and safety of long-term antidepressant treatment in bipolar disorder. Journal of Clin. Psychiatry, 62(7), 565-569.
Gitlin, M. (2002). Depression Myths and Contrary Realities. Continuing Education Series, UCLA.
Goodwin, F.K. (2002). Rationale for long-term treatment of bipolar disorder and evidence for long-term lithium treatment. Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, 63 (suppl 10), 5-12.
Hirschfeld, R.M.A., Bowden, C.L., Perlis, R.H., et al. (2002). Practice Guideline for patients with Bipolar Disorder. Washington, D.C. Am J. Psychiatry, 159, 1-50.
Judd, L., Akiskal, H.S., Schettler, P.J., Endicott, J., Maser, J., Solomon, D., et al. (2002). The long-term natural history of the weekly symptomatic status of bipolar I disorder. Arch Gen Psychiatry, 59, 530-537.
Malkoff-Schwartz, S., Frank, E., Anderson, B., Sherrill, J.T., Siegel, L., Patterson, D., et al. (1998). Stressful life events and social rhythm disruption in the onset of manic depressive bipolar episodes: A preliminary investigation. Archives of Gen. Psych., 55, 702-707.
Medina, J. (2003). Lithium and neural interiors. Psychiatric Times, October, 86-89.
Medina, J. (2003). Intracellular signaling and mood stabilizers. Psychiatric Times, November, 32-34.
Pope, M. & Scott, J. (2003). Do clinicians understand why individuals stop taking lithium? J. Affective Disorders, 74, 287-291.
Post, R.M., Altshuler, L.L., Frye, M.A., Suppes, T., Rush, A.J., Keck, P.E., et al. (2001). Rate of switch in bipolar patients prospectively treated with second-generation antidepressants as augmentation to mood stabilizers. Bipolar Disorders, 3, 259-265.
Preston, J.D., O'Neal, J., and Talaga, M. (2017). Handbook of Clinical Psychopharmacology for Therapists: 8th Edition. Oakland: New Harbinger Publications.
Stoll, A.L., Severus, W.E., Freeman, M.P., Reiter, S., Zboyan, H.A., Diamond, E., et al. (1999). Omega 3 fatty acids in bipolar disorder. A preliminary double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. Arch Gen Psychiatry, 56, 407-412.
Suppes, T., Webb, A., Paul, B., Carmody, T., Kraemer, H., & Rush, A.J. (1999). Clinical outcome in a randomized 1-year trial of clozapine versus treatment as usual for patients with treatment- resistant illness and a history of mania. Am. J. Psychiatry, 156, 1164-1169.
Swann, A.C., Bowden, C.L., Calabrese, J.R., Dilsaver, S.C., & Morris, D.D. (1999). Differential effect of number of previous episodes of affective disorder on response to lithium or divalproex in acute mania. Am. J Psychiatry, 156, 1264-1266.
Williams, R.S., Cheng, L., Mudge, A.W. and Harwood, A.J. (2002). A common mechanism of action for three mood-stabilizing drugs. Nature, 417, 292-295.
Quick Reference to Psychiatric Medications (2018) by John Preston. Updated annually. | 2019-04-22T02:07:17Z | http://www.continuingedcourses.net/active/courses/course097.php |
Weights for all the items listed on Goods and Services are their filled weights (except where otherwise designated).
Adventurers face all sorts of challenges and difficulties, and the right gear can make the difference between a successful adventure and failure. Most of this gear is basic equipment that might come in handy regardless of your skills or class.
For objects with hardness and hit points, see Strike an Object.
Aspergillum: This lightweight metal device looks like a small club or a light mace. Each contains a reservoir that can hold up to 3 pints (three flasks) of holy water. By shaking the aspergillum as a standard action, you can sprinkle one flask of holy water on a target within melee reach. This action is a ranged touch attack (which does not provoke an attack of opportunity). An aspergillum does not require any proficiency to use. Many adventurers prefer using an aspergillum to dispense holy water rather than throwing or pouring out the contents of a flask.
Backpack: A leather pack carried on the back, typically with straps to secure it.
Bandoleer: This leather belt has loops or pouches for carrying small items (up to dagger size). It is usually worn across the chest. It holds eight items.
Bandoleer, Masterwork: This well-crafted bandoleer holds twelve items.
Bedroll: Adventurers never know where they're going to sleep, and bedrolls help them get better sleep in haylofts or on the cold ground. A bedroll is bedding and a blanket thin enough ro be rolled up and tied. In an emergency, it can double as a stretcher.
Blanket, Winter: A thick, quilted, wool blanket.
Caltrops: Caltrops resemble large metal jacks with sharpened points rather than balls on the ends of their arms. They are essentially iron spikes designed so that one point is always facing up. You scatter them on the ground in the hope that your enemies step on them or are at least forced to slow down to avoid them. One bag of caltrops (the 2-pound unit listed on Goods and Services) covers an area 5 feet square. Each time a creature moves into an area covered by caltrops (or spends a round fighting while standing in such an area), the creature may step on one. The caltrops make an attack roll (base attack bonus +0) against the creature. For this attack, the creature's shield, armor, and deflection bonus do nor count. (Deflection averts blows as they approach you, but it does not prevent you from touching something dangerous.) If the creature is wearing shoes or other footwear, it gets a +2 armor bonus to AC. If the caltrops succeed at the attack, the creature has stepped on one. The caltrop deals 1 point of damage, and the creature's speed is reduced by one-half because its foot is wounded. This movement penalty lasts for 1 day, until the creature is successfully treated with the Heal skill (DC 15), or until it receives at least 1 point of magical curing. A charging or running creature must immediately stop if it steps on a caltrop. Any creature moving at half speed or slower can pick its way through a bed of caltrops with no trouble.
Candle: A candle clearly illuminates a 5-foot radius and burns for 1 hour.
Case, Map or Scroll: A capped leather or tin tube for holding rolled pieces of parchment or paper.
Chain: Chain has a hardness of 10 and 5 hit points. It can be burst with a Strength check (DC 26).
Crowbar: An iron bar for levering things open.
Flask: A ceramic, glass, or metal container fitted with a tight stopper. It holds 1 pint of liquid.
Flint and Steel: Striking the steel and flint together creates sparks. By knocking sparks into tinder, you can create a small flame. Lighting a torch with flint and steel is a full-round action, and lighting any other fire with them takes at least that long.
Games: Some games of skill are detailed below, but games of chance are also popular. Wagering on any sort of game is also a favorite pastime.
Chess: Faerûnian chess game pieces include kings, queens, priests (bishops), knights-errant (knights), rooks (castles), and pawns. Sets often use famous figures, such as rulers or deities, as kings. A set consists of thirty-two pieces and a board in a wooden case. A fine set has ebony and ivory pieces and a marble board. A common set is made from more humble materials, such as carved and dyed wood.
Draughts: Draughts is similar to the modern game of checkers. A set consists of twenty-four clay or stone pieces and a board of alternating light and dark squares in a wooden case. The board is the same as a chessboard in pattern.
Old Men's Bones: This game is similar to the modern game of pick-up sticks. The object is to remove the bones from the pile you have dumped them into one at a time without toppling the pile. The set has "sticks" made from bones (usually those of a fowl) and a leather or metal canister for carrying them.
Talis Deck: A deck of seventy-eight cards, typically made of lacquered paper or parchment, in a wooden case. The deck is similar to a tarot deck.
Grappling Hook: Tied to the end of a rope, the hook can secure the rope to battlements, windows, tree limbs, and so forth.
Hammer: A one-handed hammer with an iron head that is useful for pounding pitons into a wall.
Hammock: An innovation from the land of Maztica, a hammock is a hemp or linen blanket with sturdy cords woven into it so that it cap be strung up between two trees or other vertical supports.
Inkpen: A wooden stick with a special tip on the end. The tip draws ink in when dipped in a vial and leaves an ink trail when drawn across a surface.
Insect Netting: These sheets of fine mesh are made of silk from Kara-Tur. When draped around a sleeper in a bedroll or hammock, insect netting keeps away normal insects (Fine vermin, but not magical effects that employ such creatures such as insect plague or creeping doom).
Jug, Clay: A basic ceramic jug fitted with a stopper. It holds 1 gallon of liquid.
Ladder, 10-foot: A straight, simple wooden ladder.
Lamp, Common: A lamp clearly illuminates things in a 15-foot radius and burns for 6 hours on a pint of oil. It burns with a more even flame than a torch, but, unlike a lantern, is uses an open flame and it can spill easily, making it too dangerous for most adventuring. You can carry a lamp in one hand.
Lantern, Bullseye: A bullseye lantern has only a single shutter, with its other sides being highly polished inside to reflect the light in a single direction. It illuminates a cone 60 feet long and 20 feet wide at the end, and is burns for 6 hours on a pint of oil. You can carry a lantern in one hand.
Lantern, Hooded: A hooded lantern is a standard lantern with shuttered or hinged sides. You can carry a lantern in one hand. Is clearly illuminates a 30-foot radius and burns for 6 hours on a pint of oil.
Lock: A lock is worked with a large, bulky key. The DC to open this kind of lock with the Open Locks skill depends on the lock's quality: very simple (DC 20), average (DC 25), good (DC 30), amazingly good (DC 40).
Manacles and Manacles, Masterwork: These manacles can bind a Medium-size creature. The manacled character can use the Escape Artist skill to slip free (DC 30, or DC 35 for masterwork manacles). To break the manacles requires success at a Strength check (DC 26, or DC 28 for masterwork manacles). Manacles have a hardness of 10 and 10 hit points. Most manacles have locks; add the cost of the lock you want to the cost of the manacles.
For the same price, one can buy manacles for Small creatures. For Large creatures, manacles cost ten times this amount, and for huge creatures, one hundred times this amount. Gargantuan, Colossal, Tiny, Diminutive, and Fine creatures can only be held by specially made manacles.
Marbles: About two dozen assorted glass, flawed rock crystal, or clay spheres in a leather pouch. Commonly used as a toy, but also useful for checking the slope in a dungeon corridor (just set one down and see which way it rolls), or as a non-damaging alternative to caltrops. One bag covers an area 5 feet square. Creatures moving through or fighting in the area must make Balance checks (DC 15) or be unable to move for 1 round (or they may fall; see the Balance skill description).
Mirror, Small Steel: A polished steel minor is handy when you want to look around corners, signal friends with reflected sunlight, keep an eye on a medusa, make sure that you look good enough to present yourself to the queen, or examine wounds that you've received on hard-to-see parts of your body.
Oil: A pint of oil burns for 6 hours in a lantern. You can use a flask of oil as a grenadelike weapon (see Grenadelike Weapons, and Grenadelike Weapon Attacks). Use the rules for alchemist's fire, except that is takes a full-round action to prepare a flask with a fuse. Once it is thrown, there is only a 50% chance that the flask ignites successfully.
You can pour a pint of oil on the ground to cover an area 5 feet square (provided the surface is smooth). If lit, the oil burns for 2 rounds and deals 1d3 points of damage to each creature in the area.
Paper: A white sheet of paper made from cloth fibers.
Parchment: Goat hide or sheepskin prepared for writing on.
Potion Belt: This sturdy leather belt similar to a bandoleer has pockets shaped to hold potion vials and is fitted with ties or flaps to keep the potions from falling out. It holds six potions. Retrieving a potion from a potion belt is a free action once per round.
Potion Belt, Masterwork: This extremely well-made potion belt holds ten potions. Retrieving a potion from a potion belt is a free action once per round.
Piton: When a wall doesn't offer you handholds and footholds, you can make your own. A piton is a steel spike with an eye through which you can loop a rope. (See the Climb skill).
Pole, 10-foot: When you suspect a trap, you'd rather put the end of your 10-foot pole through a hole in a wall than your hand.
Pouch, Belt: This leather pouch straps to your belt. It's good for holding things that you may need in a hurry, such as potions.
Ram, Portable: This iron-shod wooden beam is the perfect tool for battering down doors. Not only does it give you a +2 circumstance bonus on your Strength check to break open a door, but it allows a second person to help you without having to roll, adding another +2 to your check (see Breaking Open Doors).
Rations, Trail: Trail rations are compact, dry, high-energy foods suitable for travel, such as jerky, dried fruit, hardtack, and nuts.
Rope, Hemp: This rope has 2 hit points and can be burst with a successful Strength check (DC 23).
Rope, Silk: This rope has 4 hit points and can be burst with a successful Strength check (DC 24). It is so supple that is adds a +2 circumstance bonus to Use Rope checks.
Sack: A drawstring sack made of burlap or a similar material.
Scroll Organizer: This long strip of leather has an overlapping series of fifteen pockets sewn along one side, each large enough to hold a scroll of a single spell. When slipped into a pocket, only the top of a scroll shows, allowing you to scan the scrolls' titles.
Signet Ring: Your signet ring has a unique design carved into it. When you press this ring into warm sealing wax, you leave an identifying mark.
Sledge: A two-handed, iron-headed hammer that is good for smashing open treasure chests.
Tent: This simple tent sleeps two.
Torch: A wooden rod capped with twisted flax soaked in tallow or a similar item. A torch clearly illuminates a 20-foot radius and burns for 1 hour.
Vial: A ceramic, glass, or metal vial fitted with a tight stopper. The stoppered container usually is no more than 1 inch wide and 3 inches high. It holds 1 ounce of liquid.
Waterskin: A leather pouch with a narrow neck that is used for holding water.
Characters need a way to see in the dark, dangerous places where they often find adventures. Dwarves and half-orcs have darkvision, but everyone else needs light to see by. Typically, adventurers bring along torches or lanterns, and spellcasters have spells that can create light. See Light Sources for the radius that a light source illuminates and how long it lasts.
Characters with low-light vision (elves, gnomes, and half-elves) can see objects twice as far away as the given radius. Characters with darkvision (dwarves and half-orcs) can see lit areas normally as well as dark areas within 60 feet.
Candle 5 ft. 1 hr.
Dancing lights (torches) 20 ft. (each) 1 min.
Daylight 60 ft. 30 min.
Light 20 ft. 10 min.
*cone 60 feet long and 20 feet wide at the far end.
Alchemist's Lab: This includes beakers, bottles, mixing and measuring equipment and a miscellany of chemicals and substances. This is the perfect tool for the job and so adds a +2 circumstance bonus to Craft (Alchemy) checks, but it has no bearing on the costs related to the Craft (Alchemy) skill (see the Craft (Alchemy) skill). Without this lab, a character with the Craft (Alchemy) skill is assumed to have enough tools to use the skill but not enough to get the +2 bonus that the lab provides.
Artisan's Tools: This is the set of special tools needed for any craft. Without these tools, you have to use improvised tools (-2 penalty on your Craft check) if you can do the job at all.
Artisan's Tools, Masterwork: As artisan's tools, but these are the perfect tools for the job, so you get a +2 circumstance bonus on your Craft check.
Climber's Kit: Special pitons, boot tips, gloves, and a harness that aids in all sorts of climbing. This is the perfect tool for climbing and gives you a +2 circumstance bonus to Climb checks.
Disguise Kit: A bag containing cosmetics, hair dye, and small physical props. This is the perfect tool for disguise and adds a +2 circumstance bonus to Disguise checks. It's exhausted after ten uses.
Healer's Kit: This kit is full of herbs, salves, bandages and other useful materials. It is the perfect tool for anyone attempting a Heal check. Is adds a +2 circumstance bonus to the check. It's exhausted after ten uses.
Holly and Mistletoe: Sprigs of holly and mistletoe are used by druids as the default divine focus for druid spells. Holly and mistletoe plants are easily found in wooded areas by druids, and sprigs from them are harvested essentially for free.
Holy Symbol, Silver or Wooden: A holy symbol focuses positive energy. Clerics use them as the focuses for their spells and as tools for turning undead. Each religion has its own holy symbol, and a sun symbol is the default holy symbol for clerics not associated with any particular religion.
A silver holy symbol works no better than a wooden one, but is serves as a mark of status for the wielder.
Unholy Symbols: An unholy symbol is like a holy symbol except that is focuses negative energy and is used by evil clerics (or by neutral clerics who want to cast evil spells or command undead). A skull is the default unholy symbol for clerics not associated with any particular religion.
Magnifying Glass: This simple lens allows a closer look at small objects. It is useful as a substitute for flint, steel, and tinder when starting fires (though it takes light as bright as direct sunlight to focus, tinder to light, and as least a full-round action to light a fire with a magnifying glass). It grants you a +2 circumstance bonus on Appraise checks involving any item that is small or highly detailed, such as a gem.
Musical Instrument, Common or Masterwork: Popular instruments include fifes, recorders, lures, mandolins, and shalms. A masterwork instrument is of superior make. Is adds a +2 circumstance bonus to Perform checks and serves as a mark of status.
Scale, Merchant's: This scale includes a small balance and pans and a suitable assortment of weights. A scale grants you a +2 circumstance bonus to Appraise checks involving items that are valued by weight, including anything made of precious metals.
Spell Component Pouch: A small, watertight leather belt pouch with many small compartments. A spellcaster with a spell component pouch is assumed to have all the material components and focuses she needs except those that have a listed cost, divine focuses, or focuses that wouldn't fit in a pouch (such as the natural pool that a druid needs to look into to cast scrying).
Spellbook, Wizard's (Blank): A large, leatherbound book that serves as a wizard's reference. A spellbook has 100 pages of parchment, and each spell takes up two pages per level (one page for 0-level spells). See Arcane Spells.
Spelunker's Kit: This kit consists of a headlamp, head protection, protective clothing (including gloves and kneepads), and heavy boots that aid in all sorts of spelunking. A spelunking kit grants the user a +2 circumstance bonus on Balance, Climb, Escape Artist, and Survival checks made to navigate tough-to-access areas (see Spelunking).
Thieves' Tools: These are the tools you need to use the Disable Device and Open lock skills. The kit includes one or more skeleton keys, long metal picks and pries, a long-nosed clamp, a small hand saw, and a small wedge and hammer. Without these tools, you have to improvise tools, and you suffer a -2 circumstance penalty on your Disable Device and Open locks checks.
Thieves' Tools, Masterwork: This kit contains extra tools and tools of better make, granting you a +2 circumstance bonus on Disable Device and Open lock checks.
Water Clock: This large, bulky contrivance gives the time accurate to within half an hour per day since it was last set. It requires a source of water, and it must be kept still because it marks time by the regulated flow of droplets of water. It is primarily an amusement for the wealthy and a tool for the student of arcane lore. Most people have no way to tell exact time, and there's little point in knowing that it is 2:30 P.M. if nobody else does.
Different characters may want different outfits for various occasions. A beginning character is assumed to have an artisan's, entertainer's, explorer's, monk's, peasant's, scholar's, or traveler's outfit. This first outfit is free of cost and does not count against the amount of weight a character can carry.
Artisan's Outfit: A shirt with buttons, a skirt or pants with a drawstring, shoes, and perhaps a cap or hat. This outfit may include a belt or a leather or cloth apron for carrying tools.
Cleric's Vestments: Ecclesiastical clothes for performing priestly functions, not for adventuring.
Cold Weather Outfit: A wool coat, linen shirt, wool cap, heavy cloak, thick pants or skirt, and boots. When wearing a cold weather outfit, add a +5 circumstance bonus to Fortitude saving throws against exposure to cold weather (see information on cold dangers).
Courtier's Outfit: Fancy, tailored clothes in whatever fashion happens to be the current style in the courts of the nobles. Anyone trying to influence nobles or courtiers while wearing street dress will have a hard time of it. Without jewelry (costing perhaps an additional 50 gp), you look like an out-of-place commoner.
Entertainer's Outfit: A set of flashy, perhaps even gaudy, clothes for entertaining. While the outfit looks whimsical, its practical design lets you tumble, dance, walk a tightrope, or just run (if the audience turns ugly).
Explorer's Outfit: This is a full set of clothes for someone who never knows what to expect. Is includes sturdy boots, leather breeches or a skirt, a belt, a shirt (perhaps with a vest or jacket), gloves, and a cloak. Rather than a leather skirt, a leather overtunic may be worn instead over a cloth skirt. The clothes have plenty of pockets (especially the cloak). The outfit also includes any extra items you might need, such as a scarf or a wide-brimmed hat.
Monk's Outfit: This simple outfit includes sandals, loose breeches, and a loose shirt, and is all bound together with sashes. Though it looks casual, the outfit is designed to give you maximum mobility, and it's made of high-quality fabric. You can hide small weapons in pockets hidden in the folds, and the sashes are strong enough to serve as short ropes. Depending on your style, the outfit may be decorated with designs that indicate your lineage or philosophical outlook.
Noble's Outfit: This set of clothes is designed specifically to be expensive and to show it. Precious metals and gems are worked into the clothing. To fit into the noble crowd, every would-be noble also needs a signet ring (see Adventuring Gear above) and jewelry (worth as least 100 gp, or as least appearing to be worth that much). And it would be advisable to not show up to a ball in the same noble's outfit twice.
Peasant's Outfit: A loose shirt and baggy breeches, or a loose shirt and skirt or overdress. Cloth wrappings are used for shoes.
Royal Outfit: This is just the clothes, not the royal scepter, crown, ring, and other accouterments. Royal clothes are ostentatious, with gems, gold, silk, and fur in abundance.
Scholar's Outfit: A robe, a belt, a cap, soft shoes, and possibly a cloak.
Traveler's Outfit: Boots, a wool skirt or breeches, a sturdy belt, a shirt (perhaps with a vest or jacket), and an ample cloak with a hood.
Inn: Poor accommodations at an inn amount to a place on the floor near the hearth, plus the use of a blanket if the innkeeper likes you and you're nor worried about fleas. Common accommodations are a place on a raised, heated floor, the use of a blanket and a pillow, and the presence of a higher class of company. Good accommodations are a small, private room with one bed, some amenities, and a covered chamber pot in the corner.
Meals: Poor meals might be composed of bread, baked turnips, onions, and water. Common meals might consist of bread, chicken stew (easy on the chicken), carrots, and watered-down ale or wine. Good meals might be composed of bread and pastries, beef, peas, and ale or wine.
Rations, Trail: See Adventuring Gear, above.
Horses and other mounts let you travel faster and more easily.
*A mount wearing heavy armor moves at only triple normal rate when running instead of quadruple.
Flying mounts cannot fly in medium or heavy barding.
Barded animals require special attention. You must take care to prevent chafing and sores caused by the armor. The armor must be removed as night and ideally should not be put on the mount except to prepare for a battle. Removing and fitting barding takes five times as long as the figures given on Donning Armor. Barded animals cannot be used to carry any load other than the rider and normal saddlebags. Because of this, a mounted warrior often leads a second mount for carrying gear and supplies.
Cart: A two-wheeled vehicle drawn by a single horse (or other beast of burden). Is comes with a harness.
Feed: Horses, donkeys, mules, and ponies can graze to sustain themselves, but providing feed for them (such as oats) is much better because it provides a more concentrated form of energy, especially if the animal is exerting itself. If you have a riding dog, you have to feed is as least some meat, which may cost more or less than the given amount.
Warhorses and warponies can be ridden easily into combat, light horses, ponies, and heavy horses are hard to control in combat (see Mounted Combat, and the Ride skill).
Saddle, Exotic: An exotic saddle is like a normal saddle of the same type except that it is designed for an unusual mount, such as a pegasus. Exotic saddles come in military, pack, and riding styles.
Saddle, Military: A military saddle braces the rider, adding a +2 circumstance bonus to Ride checks related to staying in the saddle. If you're knocked unconscious while in a military saddle, you have a 75% chance to stay in the saddle (compared to 50% for a riding saddle).
Sled: This is a wagon on runners for moving through snow and over ice. In general, two horses (or other beasts of burden) draw it. Is comes with the harness needed to pull it.
Stabling: Includes a stable, feed, and grooming.
Wagon: This is a four-wheeled, open vehicle for transporting heavy loads. In general, two horses (or other beasts of burden) draw it. It comes with the harness needed to pull it.
Backpack 2 gp 2 lb.*** 1 cu. ft.
Barrel 2 gp 30 lb. 10 cu. ft.
Basket 4 sp 1 lb. 2 cu. ft.
Bucket 5 sp 2 lb. 1 cu. ft.
Chest 2 gp 25 lb. 2 cu. ft.
Pouch, belt 1 gp 1/2 lb.** 1/5 cu. ft.
Sack 1 sp 1/2 lb.** 1 cu ft.
Saddlebags 4 gp 8 lb. 5 cu. ft.
Spell component pouch 5 gp 1/4 lb.** 1/8 cu. ft.
**These items weigh one-quarter this amount and carry one-quarter the normal amount when made for Small characters.
Over the course of the campaign, prices for items and services not found in the Player's Handbook may be required. The items found below are particularly expensive or not common enough to be included in the lists above. Use them when needed in the campaign, or use them to extrapolate items not found on any list in either hook.
Characters may own ships as traders, ship captains, or smugglers, or they may simply need to travel on them.
Rowboat: An 8- to 12-foot-long boat for two or three people. It moves about 1-1/2 miles per hour.
Galley: A three-masted ship with seventy oars on either side and a total crew of two hundred. This ship is 130 feet long and 20 feet wide, and it can carry up to 150 tons of cargo or 250 soldiers. For 8,000 gp more, it can be fitted with a ram and castles with firing platforms fore, aft, and amidships. This ship cannot make sea voyages and sticks to the coast. It moves about 4 miles per hour when being rowed or under sail.
Longship: A 75-foot-long ship with forty oars and a total crew of fifty. It has a single mast and a square sail. It can carry fifty tons of cargo or one hundred twenty soldiers. A longship can make sea voyages. It moves about 3 miles per hour when being rowed or under sail.
Keelboat: A 50- to 75-foot-long ship that is 15 to 20 feet wide and has a few oars to supplement its single mast with a square sail. It has a crew of eight to fifteen and can carry forty to fifty tons of cargo or one hundred soldiers. It can make sea voyages as well as sail down rivers. (It has a flat bottom.) It moves about 1 mile per hour.
Sailing Ship: This larger, more seaworthy version of the coaster (a kind of sailing ship) is 75 to 90 feet long and 20 feet wide. It has a crew of twenty. It can carry cargo up to 150 tons. It has square sails on its two masts and can make sea voyages. It moves about 2 miles per hour.
Warship: This 100-foot-long ship has a single mast, although oars can also propel it. It has a crew of sixty to eighty rowers. This ship can carry up to 160 soldiers, but not for long distances, since there isn't room for supplies for that many. The warship cannot make sea voyages and sticks to the coast. It is not used for cargo. It moves about 2 1/2 miles per hour when rowed or under sail.
The most common methods to get from one place to another in a campaign are by foot or on horseback. But other methods may be more expedient.
Ship's Passage: Most ships do not specialize in passengers, but many have the capability to take a few along when transporting cargo.
Coach Cab: The price listed is for a ride in a coach that transports people (and light cargo) between towns. For a ride in a cab that transports passengers within a city, 1 cp usually takes you anywhere you need to go.
Messenger: This entry includes horse-riding messengers and runners. Those willing to carry a message to a place they were going anyway (a crew member on a ship, for example) may ask for half the listed amount.
Teleportation: The cost to be teleported is based on caster level, although the customer will have to pay double because the caster will need to teleport herself back. Further, some casters will charge as much as double to teleport into a dangerous area.
Road or Gate Toll: A toll is sometimes charged to cross a well-trodden, well-kept, and well-guarded road to pay for patrols on it and its upkeep. Occasionally, large, walled cities charge a toll to enter or exit the city (sometimes just to enter the city).
These buildings and structures provide a baseline for those of their type. Heavily customized structures will doubtlessly cost more.
Grand House: This four- to ten-room room grand house is made of wood and has a thatched roof.
Mansion: This ten- to twenty-room mansion has two to three levels and is made of wood and brick. It has a slate roof.
Castle: The castle is a keep surrounded by a 15-foot stone wall with four towers. The wall is 10-feet thick.
Huge Castle: A particularly large keep with numerous associated buildings (stables, forge, granaries, etc.) and an elaborate 20-foot-high wall creating bailey and courtyard areas. The wall has six towers and is 10 feet thick.
Moat with Bridge: This moat is 15 feet deep and 30 feet wide. The bridge across it may be a wooden drawbridge or a permanent stone structure.
Catapult, Heavy: A heavy catapult is a large engine capable of throwing rocks or heavy objects with great force. When fired, one of the crew makes a Profession (siege engineer) check (DC 20). If successful, where the object actually lands is determined by rolling 1d12 and consulting the Deviation (10 Ft. to 16 ft.) Diagram. The center is the desired target. If the check is failed, the DM secretly rolls and consults the same deviation diagram. The result is now where the catapult is actually aimed. This new result is used as the center to determine the actual deviation of the attack. For example, a catapult is used to attack a stone rower. The Profession (siege engineer) check fails, the DM rolls an 11. By consulting the diagram, she determines that the actual target is 10 feet from the desired target, behind and to the left. Now, a crew member rolls 1d12 and gets an 8. After consulting the Deviation (10 ft. to 16 ft.) Diagram to see where the object goes, the DM ascertains that it falls 10 feet short and to the left of the actual target, which is 20 feet to the left of the desired target.
Loading the catapult and preparing it to fire takes the full crew 8 full rounds. Initially aiming (or re-aiming) takes 10 minutes in addition to loading and preparation time. Three to four crew members can operate the device in three times this time. Fewer than three crew members cannot operate the device.
Catapult, Light: This is a smaller, lighter version of the heavy catapult (see that entry for how to operate it). Two crew members can load and prepare this device in 5 full rounds and aim (or re-aim) in 5 minutes. One person can crew the engine, but it takes three times the time to aim and prepare.
Ballista: The ballista is essentially a very large crossbow. It makes attacks with a straight attack roll (1d20) with no modifications (no character base attack bonuses, ability modifiers, etc.) except for range. Loading and cocking a ballista is 3 full-round actions.
Ram: This heavy pole is suspended from a movable scaffold that allows the crew to swing it back and forth against construction. Make an unmodified attack roll against the AC of the construction, with failed attempts dealing no significant damage. (See Strike an Object, to determine the AC.) The ram can be used to make an attack every 3 rounds if fully crewed. With five to nine people, it can be used every 6 rounds. Fewer than five people cannot operate it.
Siege Tower: This is a large wooden tower on wheels or rollers that can be rolled up against a wall to allow attackers to scale the tower and thus to get to the top of the wall with cover. The wooden walls are usually 1 foot thick.
Armor Lubricant: This nonmagical oil reduces the friction that impedes movement in metallic armor. One application of armor lubricant reduces the armor check penalty by 1 (to a minimum of 0). Each application takes 1 minute to apply and lasts 1d4 hours. It is not possible to apply armor lubricant to armor currently being worn. Armor lubricant provides no benefit to shields or to armor not made primarily of metal.
Creating one application of armor lubricant requires a successful Craft (Alchemy) check (DC 15) and follows the rules outlined in the discussion of Craft skills.
Crystal Caltrops: These special caltrops are made out of a tough crystal. These are deployed just like traditional caltrops. When they score a hit, they do normal damage and release a poisonous gas. The victim must make a Fortitude save (DC 12) or instantly fall asleep for 1 minute. After 1 minute, the target must make another Fortitude save (DC 12) or sleep for an additional 1d4 minutes. The gas affects creatures immune to magical sleep, but not creatures immune to poison.
Drogue Wing: This pleated cloak unfurls into a gliding batlike wing 15 feet across if the wearer falls more than 20 feet. A drogue wing needs another 20 feet of falling distance in order to arrest the wearer's fall and unrestricted (at least 50 feet in diameter) gliding room. If all three conditions are met, a drogue wing negates falling damage. Once deployed, a drogue wing must be carefully refolded (a tedious task that requires 1 full hour) before it can be reused. There is a 25% chance that a drogue wing is ruined after each use. Drogue wings are popular among the hippogriff-mounted skyriders of the Great Rift.
Footsaw Trap: This item is similar to others of its kind that are typically designed to trap large animals such as bears or cougars. Its jaws are fitted with thin saw blades mounted on springs, and the mechanism is designed to cut the feet of any captive who struggles against its grip. The ghostwise hin did not invent this trap, but they have made excellent use of it: When enemies threaten, they salt the ground near their campsites with these dangerous devices, hiding them under thin layers of leaves or soil. A creature can discover a concealed footsaw trap with a successful Search check (DC 15). Once found, the trap can be disabled with a successful Disable Device check (DC 15).
Anyone who walks over a footsaw trap triggers it; the trap makes a melee touch attack with a +8 bonus. If its attack is successful, the trap deals 1d6 points of damage to the victim. A victim caught in a footsaw trap can move at half speed if the device is not attached to another object (such as to a tree or boulder by a length of chain). If it is attached in such a fashion, the victim must break the attachment, otherwise he cannot move. The trap inflicts an additional 1d4 points of damage from the saw blades every round that a trapped victim takes any action that involves movement. A trapped creature can pry open the jaws of the trap and escape (Strength check DC 25) or loose himself with an Escape Artist check (DC 30). Failure means that the trap deals another 1d4 points of damage to the victim and that the victim remains trapped.
A footsaw trap is a CR 2 trap. They can be constructed with the Craft (trapmaking) skill (DC 20).
Mobile Brace: This small staff can extend and lock at any length from 5 to 11 feet. It is commonly used to make a sturdy brace across a passage, granting a sure purchase for one or more ropes. A properly set brace can support up to 400 pounds of weight (less if the walls are soft, slippery, crumbling, or otherwise offer unsure purchase). Setting a brace allows characters to securely set a rope or grappling hook where doing so would normally be impossible. Adventuring groups can send a skilled climber or jumper to negotiate tricky ascents or dangerous falls, set a brace on the far side of the obstacle, and then give less nimble characters something to hang. on to while they cross the dangerous area.
Potion Bladder: This is a flexible, narrow-necked pouch, usually made of oiled leather or the preserved stomach of a small animal. Used extensively by water-dwelling creatures such as aquatic elves, these pouches hold 1 ounce of liquid (the same volume as a potion) and can be squeezed carefully to allow drinking of fluids (such as potions) underwater without spilling.
Rope Climber: This hand-held device consists of a powerful winch and locking wheel assembly that fits most standard ropes. When threaded with a rope, the winch offers one-way travel with the benefit of tremendous leverage. Using the climber to ascend a rope grants a +5 circumstance bonus on Climb checks, but it halves the rate of ascent. Threading a rope through the climber is a full-round action, as is removing it from a rope. The locking wheels turn only in one direction, preventing the user from slipping back down the rope. However, this means that for two people to use the same rope climber, one must ascend the rope, remove the device, and lower it back down to the next user.
Snowshoes: Fashioned of wood and strips of rawhide or sinew, snowshoes are invaluable for movement across deep snow. Snowshoes eliminate the hampered movement penalty for movement across deep snow but impose a 1/2 movement penalty across other types of terrain (see Hampered Movement).
Wagon Shields: These are large wooden shields (generally of solid oak) reinforced with iron. They can be quickly fitted together to protect wagons and similar open-topped vehicles. One person can mount a wagon shield as a full-round action. Two people working together can mount a shield as a standard action. Once mounted, each shield provides a Small character in the wagon with three-quarters cover; a Medium-size character gains one-half cover behind a wagon shield. Each wagon shield has hardness 5 and 30 hit points. Some are fitted with arrow slits to allow those inside the wagon to fire on attackers without additional exposure.
Most wagons in Luiren are constructed with special racks beneath the wagon bed that hold six shields. The shields are normally sold in quantities of six, as that is the number required to fully protect the average Luiren wagon.
Armor lubricant 40 gp 1 lb.
Caltrops, crystal 150 gp 2 lb.
Drogue wing 300 gp 30 lb.
Footsaw trap 700 gp 15 lb.
Mobile brace 10 gp 3 lb.
Potion bladder 2 gp 1/10 lb.
Rope climber 15 gp 3 lb.
Snowshoes 1 gp 2 lb.
Standard 75 gp 40 lb.
Sniper 100 gp 40 lb.
Rangers don't need a lot of equipment to survive in the wilderness, but over the years, many have developed items specifically useful to life in the wilds. Druids and rogues also find these specialty tools handy.
Camouflage Clothes: Made in three different color combinations, these clothes help to disguise the body's form and make the wearer harder to pick out of his surroundings. These full-body suits grant a +2 circumstance bonus on a wearer's Hide checks while he is in an area the camouflage blends with. The forest pattern has a mix of greens, browns, and blacks that provides its bonus in forest and marsh terrains. The desert pattern consists of dark and light tans with irregular black or blue shapes that provides its bonus in desert and plains terrains. The mountain pattern consists of a white background with black, gray, and green shapes and provides its bonus in hills, mountains, and underground terrains. The listed price for camouflage clothes is for one set suited to a specific terrain (see the terrain types).
Compass, Magnetic: This palm-sized device is made up of a wooden block with a metal needle mounted on a tiny metal post. The needle spins freely, and always points north unless obstructed or within 10 feet of 50 pounds or more of ferrous metal (such as iron and steel).
Crookneck Lantern: This leather-wrapped metal tube has a shorter glass-covered metal tube at one end. Small mirrors inside the lantern reflect and intensify the light shed by the candle held within the main body. Shrouded air holes line the top and bottom of both tubes. The crookneck lantern also has a weight at the bottom of the main tube so it can be set down and not fall over. The crookneck lantern clearly illuminates a 60-foot-long, 5-foot-wide line and provides shadowy illumination in a 100-foot cone (with the illuminating line in the center of the cone). A single candle burns for 1 hour.
Duster Coat: Made of heavy oiled canvas, the duster is a long coat that reaches to the wearer's ankles. Twin rows of buttons run the length of the front of the coat, and when all of them are fastened the wearer is wrapped in a nearly water- proof shell. A fully fastened duster provides a +2 circumstance bonus on Survival checks made to gain a bonus against the effects of severe weather and on saves against severe weather, but it also imposes a -1 armor check penalty.
Finger Chain Saw: A narrow-gauge steel chain covered with small teeth links a metal loop on either end of it. The user simply throws the chain over a branch and pulls back and forth on each end of the chain. It cuts through 2 inches of soft wood and 1 inch of hard wood in 1 round. A finger chain saw is ineffective as a weapon.
Kayak, Inflatable: Made of thick but pliant leather forming several air bladders, this vessel looks and acts like a normal kayak once inflated. One character can inflate the kayak in 20 minutes. There are two inflating tubes, so two characters can inflate it in 10 minutes. The inflatable kayak holds one Medium creature plus 100 pounds of gear. By pulling the plugs on the air bladders, the kayak deflates in 5 minutes and can then be folded and carried in a standard backpack.
The inflatable kayak comes with a short paddle that breaks down for easy storage.
Vest, Tactical: This light vest has a number of pouches and loops covering its front and back. A tactical vest is usually made of green or black canvas. It can hold up to 10 pounds of gear, no single item of which can weigh more than 2 pounds. Any item stored in a tactical vest can be retrieved without provoking an attack of opportunity.
Waking Herbs: When waved under the nose ot someone unconscious or asleep (even through magical means), these herbs allow the unconscious or sleeping character another saving throw (made at the original DC) to wake up. After three uses, these herbs lose their effectiveness and must be replaced.
Camouflage clothes 150 gp 6 lb.
Compass, magnetic 100 gp 1/2 lb.
Duster coat 25 gp 7 lb.
Kayak, inflatable 150 gp 35 lb.
Vest, tactical 5 gp 2 lb.
Although magic is the most efficient and powerful force available to help the denizens of the frostfell adapt and thrive in this harsh environment, it remains an elusive factor, available only to those fortunate enough to understand its use, or those rich enough to be able to buy what magic they may need. For the rest of the inhabitants of the frostfell (the majority of them, in fact), mundane items must fill this role. As a result, your equipment can make the difference between life and death. In frontier towns, such items aren't as necessary, but to the explorer, settler, and native denizen, frostfell equipment is incredibly important.
Weapons aren't the only objects that the people of the frostfell have developed to aid their lives. Industrious settlers have invented numerous specialized items over the years, most of which are now fairly commonplace in the frostfell. These items are detailed here.
Crampons: Crampons consist of a set of metal spikes and hooks that lash on to boots and gauntlets to assist in climbing or walking across icy surfaces. While you wear crampons, you gain a +2 circumstance bonus on any Balance checks made to avoid slipping on an icy surface, and a +2 circumstance bonus on Climb checks.
Crampons impose a -10 ft. penalty to speed when not walking on snow or ice.
Fur Clothing: Fur clothing consists of thick layers of animal furs designed to be worn over a regular set of clothing or armor. Wearing fur clothing grants a +5 circumstance bonus on Fortitude saving throws against exposure to cold weather. Fur clothing can be worn over a cold weather outfit; in this case the circumstance bonuses granted by each item stack, granting a total +10 circumstance bonus on Fortitude saving throws against exposure to cold weather.
Fur clothing is cumbersome to wear. Although the furs do not provide an appreciable armor bonus, they do increase your total armor check penalty for any armor worn by 2 points.
Hut, Portable: A portable hut consists of a wooden framework that can be quickly assembled into a hut-shaped frame that covers a 10-foot square. The frame's base consists of several iron spikes that can be driven through holes in the frame to affix the hut frame to the ground; further stability is granted by several rope supports that extend out 15 feet from the hut's edge. Once the frame is in place, you simply attach the leather and fur wrappings over the outside of the wall and lash them directly to the frame to finish building the hut. A portable hut provides excellent shelter in the wilderness; assembling or disassembling a portable hut only takes 15 minutes of work. A portable hut serves as an improvised shelter (see Frostfell).
Skates: Skates allow full movement across icy surfaces for anyone with at least 5 ranks of Balance, but cannot be used at all on any other terrain.
Skis and Poles: Skis allow full movement across snow and icy surfaces but cannot be used at all on any other terrain. Downhill speed can be as a run (x4) on slight grades or as a run (x5) on severe grades. It takes a full-round action to don or to remove skis.
Snow Goggles: These wooden goggles have a thin horizontal slit in the middle. They grant a +2 circumstance bonus on saving throws to resist blinding effects, including snow blindness, extremely bright light, or spells that target vision indirectly (such as sunburst but not blindness). While wearing snow goggles, you incur a -4 circumstance penalty on Spot and Search checks.
Snowshoes: These allow the wearer to move across snow and ice with increased speed. Snow of any depth is considered a minor impediment (see Movement Impediments). Snowshoes take 1 minute to don and a full-round action to remove.
Winter Fullcloth: This is a heavily quilted undergarment that is worn underneath regular clothing to protect the wearer against cold.
Winter fullcloth is considered part of the cold weather outfit described above. If worn by itself, it grants a +1 circumstance bonus on Fortitude saving throws against exposure to cold weather.
Crampons 5 gp 1 lb.
Fur clothing 8 gp 10 lb.
Hut, portable 125 gp 75 lb.
Skates 10 gp 3 lb.
Skis and poles 15 gp 6 lb.
Snowshoes 15 gp 8 lb.
Winter fullcloth 4 gp 2 lb.
Distillation Kit: Water is precious in the waste. This simple kit uses the sun and the ambient heat to evaporate pure water from body or cooking waste, salt lakes, poisonous plant saps, and so on. This "solar still" consists of a sheet of glass fastened at an angle into a frame, with a lip and a small spout (the components are packed separately and assembled when needed). The bottom and sides of the frame are covered with black oilcloth, the edges sealed with grease or tar to make it watertight. To use the still, pour the dirty water into the bottom of the container, then place the glass lid on top. The water evaporates and condenses on the underside of the glass surface, where it runs down and collects in the lip, dripping through the spout and producing about 1 gallon of water per day (if the container is filled to capacity).
Drill: Whether they are used to carve sandstone, locate water, or mine salt and other precious minerals, drills are important tools in any wasteland environment. These objects can range from a primitive bow drill, suitable for perforating bone and wood, to a massive assembly of cast-iron pipes and bits, turned by wheels or beasts of burden. The drill described here is made of iron with a wooden handle, about 3 feet long. (In metal-poor areas, the bit might be of hard crystal instead of iron.) Wrapping a cord about the shaft and pulling it sharply sets the drill spinning. It can penetrate roughly 6 inches of stone per hour; the rate of drilling is faster in softer material, such as salt. A drill can be used as an improvised club or shortspear.
Filter Mask: A filter mask is a fine cloth mesh, usually of silk or cotton, that covers your mouth and nose. Cords or straps fasten the cloth around the back of your head to provide a good seal. A filter mask grants a +2 bonus on saves against gas-based effects. It negates the effects of suffocation from dust and sand, as well as the effects of supernatural or magic dust (such as slumber sand) for up to 4 hours. After this time, the mesh is clogged with grit and can no longer allow air to pass through freely. A clogged filter mask requires thorough laundering before it can be reused, but most travelers simply replace it with fresh fabric.
Parasol: The simplest form of portable shade, a parasol can range from an animal hide draped over a crude framework to a collapsible construction of textile and metal The typical parasol described here is made of stretched canvas over wood or bone. A parasol offers immunity to sun glare and limited protection from heat dangers and some sun hazards. It also grants a +1 bonus on Fortitude saves against dehydration.
Sand Tube: When a storm scours the land, the best defense is to escape. Burrowing into the ground is one way to do this, but sand is loose and difficult to stabilize. This handy device enables you to create a burrow beneath the sand, in which you can rest while waiting for the storm to pass. A sand tube looks something like an open-ended sleeping bag, made of treated hide attached to a number of collapsible hoops. After digging a small hole in the sand to get started, you shove one end of this apparatus inside the hole and expand the hoops to stiffen it into a tube. More sand can then be dug from the buried end (usually you crawl partway into the tube and use your hands) and removed through the tube, which is shoved more deeply into the tunnel as digging progresses. In normal sand, it takes 10 minutes of digging to fully bury a sand tube. When fully buried, a sand tube can hold one Medium humanoid. A flap fastens over the exposed end to provide shade and protection from duststorms and sandstorms. Sun Lenses: This item, made of thin slabs of mica or volcanic glass affixed to curved frames, can protect your eyes from being dazzled by bright light, such as glare. If you are already dazzled when you don the lenses, you are treated as if you had entered an area of shade; you recover from the dazzled condition 1 hour if you continue to wear the lenses.
Proper clothing can be the difference between survival and disaster in the wastes.
Desert Outfit: This outfit consists of loose, billowy clothing to keep the wearer cool and protected from the sun while in hot, dry desert terrain. It includes a caftan, turban, scarf, loose pantaloons, and sandals or high cloth boots. This outfit counts as light clothing and offers limited protections against some waste hazards. The protection it offers against heat is negated if the wearer also dons armor.
Heatsuit Outfit: This suit is designed to protect against heat It consists of heavy pants and coat, a specially treated leather apron, thick mittens, a thick hood, and goggles. A heatsuit outfit prevents 3 points of lethal or nonlethal damage per round from hot environments. Although the outfit is heavy clothing, its heat-resistant materials negate the usual -4 penalty on Fortitude saves against damage dealt by hot environments.
Hydration Suit: The hydration suit is a masterpiece of water retention, crafted by waste-dwellers with technical skill and unusual materials. Its design allows you to recover nearly all the water your body loses through sweat and exhalation. A hydration suit is made of the skin and tissue of various desert-dwelling beasts and treated with oils or waxes for water retention. It covers your entire body, with a tight-fitting hood over the head and a mask covering the mouth and nose. Inside the mask is a glass plate to collect condensation and a tube fashioned from watertight materials. An inner lining wicks sweat away from your body and collects it in spongelike filtration material that can be removed after you doff the hydration suit. The tube from the facemask twists in loops around your body, through the sponge, to reclaim moisture, condensing it in a reservoir from which you can sip.
A functioning hydration suit eliminates the need to make Constitution checks to avoid dehydration. It raises the level of protection from heat dangers by two steps, and its mask functions as a filter mask. A hydration suit offers no protection from magical dessication damage.
Distillation kit 50 gp 20 lb.
Drill 5 gp 7 lb.
Parasol 3 gp 2 lb.
Sand tube¹ 80 gp 5 lb.
Desert outfit¹ 6 gp 3 lb.
Heatsuit outfit¹ 20 gp 15 lb.
Hydration suit¹ 1,000 gp 10 lb.
In the wastes, if you can't go where you need to by camel - whether because of excess gear or distance - you'll need some other form of transport. Some vehicles, such as the frame wheel and sledge, are moved by muscle power. The Handle Animal skill is used only if that power comes from a team of draft animals. When the team consists of creatures with Intelligence scores of 3 or higher, the operative skill is Diplomacy. When they are forced labor, the operative skill is Intimidate.
Cloudskate: Huge vehicle; Profession (sailor) +2; Spd wind x 10 ft. (nautical good) or 20 ft. during daylight; Overall AC 1; Section hp 40 (hardness 5); Section AC 3; Rigging 30 hp (hardness 0), AC 3; Ram 4d6; Space 20 ft.; Height 10 ft. (draft 5 ft.); Crew 4; Cargo 10 tons; Cost 3,000 gp.
This vehicle is similar to a small keelboat - it is a 20-foot ship without oars - except that it has stabilizing runners along each side. It has a single mast on which a sail can be set. A blade is sturdily mounted on the bottom exterior of the vehicle, running the whole length of the hull, and similar blades are attached to each runner. The rudder is another blade that drags behind the ship, allowing it to be steered. This configuration allows the vehicle to skate on glass seas at a rate of 1 to 3 miles per hour. An empty cloudskate can carry up to twenty passengers.
Frame Wheel: Large vehicle; Handle Animal +2, Diplomacy +2, or Intimidate +2; Spd drawn (poor); Overall hp 15 (hardness 5); Overall AC 3; Ram 3d6; Space 10 ft.; Height 10 ft.; Crew 1; Weight 300 lb., Cargo 4 tons; Cost 15 gp.
A frame wheel consists of a pair of wooden wheels constructed around a large, heavy object, such as a block of stone. The wheels cap the ends of the object and keep it off the ground, allowing the object to be rolled along like an oversized log. Like a sledge, a frame wheel can be drawn by beasts of burden or by people and is difficult to steer, but it moves more easily up and down slopes than a sledge does.
The major drawback of a frame wheel is that it is usually only good for a single load, after which it has to be disassembled, returned to the point of departure, and built all over again around a new load. When multiple loads are of a uniform size, however, the same set of wheels can be used many times.
Sand Skiff: Large vehicle; Profession (sailor) +2; Spd wind x 30 ft. (nautical good); Overall AC 3; Section hp 15 (hardness 5); Rigging 10 hp (hardness 0), Section AC 3; Ram 2d6; Space 10 ft.; Height 5 ft.; Crew 1; Weight 200 lb., Cargo 500 lb.; Cost 150 gp.
This lightweight framework rests atop a pair of polished runners and sports a single tall sail. Designed for a single rider, a sand skiff is useful for scouting, carrying messages, and as entertainment. The major advantage of the sand skiff lies in how easy it is to construct, though the major disadvantage is that those with the appropriate skill to pilot them are few and far between in the wastes. A sand skiff moves 3 to 10 miles per hour, depending on the wind, and requires flat, open sand which to move.
Sand Schooner: Gargantuan vehicle; Profession (sail +2; Spd wind x20 ft. (nautical average); Overall AC - Section hp 25 (hardness 5); Rigging 15 hp (hardness 0 Section AC 3; Ram 8d6; Space 40 ft.; Height 15 ft.; Crew 15; Cargo 50 tons; Cost 8,500 gp.
Though rarely seen, the sand schooner is a popular vehicle among certain deep-desert denizens, who use it as a merchant vessel and as a warship. A sand schooner has enough room on its deck for two light catapults or ballistas.
Because ships that travel on sand need not worry about sinking, a schooner's cargo holds have additional hatches located on either side of the hull. These two doors are built to pivot downward and create a simple but effective cargo ramp. A sand schooner moves 2 to 7 miles per hour, depending on the wind, and requires flat, open sand on which to travel.
Sand Galley: Colossal vehicle; Profession (sailor) -2; Spd wind x 10 ft. (nautical poor); Overall AC -3; Section hp 25 (hardness 5); Rigging 15 hp (hardness 0), Section AC 1; Ram 10d6; Space 60 ft.; Height 20 ft.; Crew 25; Cargo 100 tons; Cost 16,000 gp.
A step up from the sand schooner, the sand galley is specifically designed as a warship. It has sufficient deck space to accommodate three heavy catapults or six ballistas or light catapults. Much of the vessel's cargo space is often used for troops rather than for stores or merchandise. Like a sand schooner, a sand galley has one bulkhead on either side of the hull that opens downward to act as a ramp - in this case, facilitating the swift deployment of soldiers. A sand galley moves 1 to 3 miles per hour, depending on the wind, and requires flat, open sand on which to travel.
Sledge: Large vehicle; Handle Animal +2, Diplomacy +2, or Intimidate +2; Spd drawn (clumsy); Overall hp 40 (hardness 5); Overall AC 4; Ram 2d6; Space 10 ft.; Height 1 ft.; Crew 1; Weight 500 lb., Cargo 2 tons; Cost 15 gp.
A primitive conveyance still used in many parts of the wastes, especially in sandy areas, the venerable sledge is popular because it does not become mired in sand a easily as wheeled vehicles can. Consisting of a flat expanse of reinforced wood, a sledge is really just a convenient platform for heavy loads; one can stack up to two tons of material on a sledge and push or pull it all at once. The "driver" of a sledge rarely rides upon the vehicle, but instead paces back and forth between groups of workers or animals that are doing the work, coordinating the team.
Why settle for a chariot when you can purchase an ethereal tunneler or a gate zeppelin? By using the vehicles described here, characters can go anywhere - assuming they have the cash to pay for such an extravagance.
Astral Skiff: Huge vehicle; Profession (sailor) +0; Spd fly 120 ft. (average); Overall AC 3; Section hp 40 (hardness 10); Section AC 3; Ram 4d8; Face 15 ft. by 5 ft.; Height loft.; SA ramming; Crew 1 (carries 3); Cargo 1 ton (Spd 100 ft. if carrying 1/2 ton or more); Cost 10,000 gp.
On the Astral Plane, githyanki commonly wage war from astral ships. Such vessels range in size from those large enough for a, single squad of soldiers (the astral skiff) to those far larger. Powered by magic sails that catch the motion of astral energies, these ships are normally useless on the Material Plane, where no such arcane winds blow. However, the vehicle is ideal for journeys on the infinite Astral Plane itself.
Ethereal Tunneler: Huge vehicle; Profession (miner) +4; Spd burrow to ft. (clumsy); Overall AC 3; Section hp 40/120 (hardness 20/5); Section AC 3; Ram 10d6; Face 10 ft. by 20 ft.; Height 10 ft.; SA ramming; SQ steering mechanism triggers ethereal jaunt on vehicle and all passengers 1/day for up to 20 rounds; Crew 5 (plus 10 soldiers); Cost 140,000 gp.
This tank-like vehicle slowly digs tunnels through earth - and when solid stone stymies it, the vehicle can briefly shift into the Ethereal Plane. When not tunneling into otherwise sealed regions of earth or past undefeatable defenses, an ethereal tunneler can be used for outright warfare. The vehicle is adamantine-armored and large enough to accommodate a squad of 10 soldiers. Its treads have been magically animated to provide propulsion at the direction of the crew, who pull levers while they watch the earth for signs of cave-ins. The massive drill at the front is better than a ramming prow; an ethereal tunneler never takes damage from rams it initiates.
Gate Zeppelin: Colossal vehicle; Profession (pilot) -4; Spd fly 40 ft. (nautical average); Overall AC -3; Section hp 30 (hardness 5); Section AC 3; Rigging 200 hp (hardness 0), AC 1; Ram 4d6; Face 40 ft. by 10 ft.; Height 10 ft; SA ramming; SQ steering mechanism triggers gate 1/day through which zeppelin may pass (after which the gate closes); Crew 10; Cargo 10 tons (Spd 20 ft. if carrying 5 tons or more); Cost 160,000 gp.
A zeppelin relies on hot air trapped in a massive balloon for lift and animated propellers for propulsion. The balloon that provides lift is segmented so that one puncture isn't disastrous. Zeppelins have no minimum forward speed, and they can hover. A mechanism in the captain's cabin can trigger a gate-like opening once per day that allows planar travel.
Living Astral Ship: CR -; Colossal construct; HD 8d10 + 1d10 per 10 feet of length; Init as the pilot - 4; Spd as the pilot (+30 ft. with psychic sails) on the Astral Plane, fly 50 ft. (poor) in a gravity well; AC varies (-8 size, +1 natural per HD); At as cleric of level equal to the ship's HD; Space/Reach 30 ft/10 ft. (or as ram); SA ram, mounted weapons; SQ construct traits, hardness; Al n/a; SV as commoner of level equal to the ship's HD, with no ability score modifiers.
Construct Traits: like most constructs, living astral ships have immunity to mind-affecting spells and abilities, poison, disease, and similar effects. They are not subject to extra damage from critical hits, nonlethal damage, ability damage, ability drain, energy drain, or death from massive damage.
Hardness: A living astral ship is usually composed of different materials but has an overall hardness of 5 to 10. An astral ship composed mainly of wood might have hardness 5, while an astral ship made of iron would have hardness 10. See Smashing an Object, for more information on hardness.
Mounted Weapons: A living astral ship can be fitted with heavy catapults, light catapults, and ballistas. An astral ship can have one mounted weapon for every 2 Hit Dice it possesses, although nonmilitary astral ships typically forgo a full array of weapons in favor of having cargo space. A heavy catapult counts as two weapons for the purpose of determining how many weapons an astral ship can carry.
Ram (Ex): In any round in which no ship-mounted weapons are fired, a living astral ship can ram a Huge or larger creature or object. If the prow of the astral ship is more than 50 feet away in a straight line from a target, it can move up to double its speed to deliver a ram attack using its regular attack bonus. The ram deals either bludgeoning or piercing damage, depending on the shape of its prow. The damage dealt is idio points per point of the astral ship's hardness. For example, an astral ship with hardness 10 deals 10d10 points of damage with a successful ram attack, or triple damage on a critical hit (threat range 20).
Building a living astral ship requires the Craft Construct feat and 10 ranks in Knowledge (the planes). Flying the ship requires the pilot (who must have an Intelligence score of 1 or higher) to sit in a specially attuned chair called a helm. The helm allows the pilot to propel the ship by thought at a speed (in feet) equal to 10 times the pilot's Intelligence score. When the ship passes within a gravity well, such as that generated by a large chunk of drifting matter, it slows to a speed of 50 feet. A living astral ship can move at double speed and running speed. Piloting the ship is always considered a full-round action, and the pilot cannot engage in other activities while controlling the ship.
A pilot seated in the helm receives a 360-degree mental picture of the area around the ship, out to normal visibility range. The pilot feels as if he or she is flying directly over the ship and able to look in all directions at once.
The helm radiates strong transmutation magic under the scrutiny of detect magic. It serves as a conduit between the pilot and the vessel and is rooted to the ship. Destroying any part of it (the seat itself or the parts connecting it to the rest of the ship) renders the vessel powerless and inert. A helm has the same hardness as the rest of the astral ship and hit points equal to three times the ship's hardness.
Rarely sold on the open market, living astral ships can find their way into someone's hands by theft or other means.
Planar Sailer: Colossal vehicle; Profession (sailor) +4; Spd wind x 20 ft. (nautical average); Overall AC -3; Section hp 50 (hardness 5); Section AC 3; Rigging 80 hp (hardness 0), AC 1; Ram 12d6; Face 80 ft. by 20 ft.; Height 10 ft. (draft 10 ft.); SA ram; SQ steering mechanism triggers special plane shift effect on vehicle and contents; Crew 20; Cargo 150 tons (Spd wind x 15 ft. if 75 tons or more); Cost 25,000 gp.
In most situations, a planar sailer seems no different from a common sailing ship. Measuring some 80 feet in length, this three-masted ship requires a crew of 20 when sailing on water and using the wind for locomotion. A planar sailer has a special ability that allows it to sail celestial seas, following the commands of the captain of the vessel as he stands at the wheel. A planar sailer has enough room on deck for two light catapults or ballistas. It usually uses a launch as a lifeboat (not included in the price).
Sometimes, the best way to get from here to there is to hire someone else to take you. Since the player characters are adventurers, such solutions should be the exception rather than the rule, but at times the PCs might prefer to use their monetary resources to advance their agenda.
Cubic Gate: Occasionally, a group or individual will offer transport via a cubic gate. These conduits often lead from one well-guarded location in a planar metropolis to a sheltered or protected spot in the same or another metropolis.
Passage: Ships (and elsewhales) that provide passage to alternate planes usually do not specialize in passenger service. However, they may have a regular planar trade route on which they are willing to take on passengers in order to supplement their income. Thus, although PCs might not often find passage directly to the plane they are seeking, they may be able to ride on a planar ship for one leg of the journey.
Planar Allies: The planar ally spells are common ways to secure travel. Many outsiders have planar travel capabilities either because of spell-like abilities or spellcasting talents. Most are willing to offer the service. A planar ally naturally prefers to bring passengers to a plane that corresponds to its philosophical viewpoint, but one might happily transport a person or group to an opposing plane if doing so furthers one of its causes.
Planar Guide: Certain people have a knack for finding the cracks and chinks between planar borders. They know the portals, the vortices, the trade routes, and the other means for traveling the planes that don't involve spells or other magic. Finding a guide is the hard part; after that, a guide worth her salt can lead a party to a plane she claims as her specialty in 2d6 days, or refer the PCs to another guide if the plane they seek falls outside her knowledge. Most guides claim a specialty in the connections between only three to four planes.
Planar Ring Gates: Some enterprising wealthy merchant guilds or consortiums have established pairings of planar ring gates. These lead from one well-guarded location in a planar metropolis to a similarly protected spot in another. On occasion, the owner of a pair of planar ring gates may move them to a requested location, provided that the task is easily done and that the new environment is safe. The larger the risk, the larger the cost.
Spellcasting: Sometimes the easiest way to reach a planar destination is to pay someone to cast either a gate spell or a plane shift spell.
¹Includes cost for caster's return trip.
Air Plant: The air plant is a bizarre form of pond vegetation whose spongy structure produces and stores air, keeping the plant at the surface so it can receive adequate light. This mass remains alive and continues to produce air even after being cut from the plant, provided it is kept moist and well lit. When placed in the mouth, a fist-sized piece of this material can provide enough air to sustain a Medium air-breathing creature for 5 minutes. After that time, the submerged creature must begin holding its breath and risks drowning. The air plant dies after use and can't be recharged - another portion must be procured.
Float Bladder: This is an emergency flotation device for those who find themselves cast overboard. It can also be used to support a non-swimmer being assisted through water. A float bladder is a sack of oiled hide that can be filled with air. It has a long neck that is knotted shut after filling and ropes or straps to fasten it to the wearer. A float bladder can keep afloat one Medium creature. Treat this as a leather object (hardness 2); if it takes 5 or more points of damage, the skin is punctured. The round after puncturing, the user must begin making Swim checks to remain afloat. A punctured or deflated float bladder is a burden to a swimmer, imposing a -2 penalty on Swim checks if it is not removed.
Sextant: A sextant is a sophisticated device used to determine a vessel's position by measuring the angle formed by the sun or stars and the horizon. It uses mirrors and carefully graduated scales to sight a heavenly body, whose position is compared to a listing in an almanac for the day and year of measurement. A sextant grants a +2 circumstance bonus on Knowledge (geography) checks to set and hold course.
Swimming Goggles: This is a leather frame containing a clear piece of glass (sometimes two) made to fit tightly over the eyes. Wearing a set of swimming goggles improves visibility underwater. In clear water, the wearer's vision extends to 6d8x10 feet. Swimming goggles don't make it any easier to see through murky or fast-moving water.
Hat, Bicorne: A bicorne is a semicircular hat usually worn by captains and admirals. It is braided and showy the better to call out the high rank of its wearer.
Hat, Tricorne: A tricorne is the classic three-cornered hat. It is generally worn by the upper classes and can be both civilian and military garb. A tricorne can range from a simple leather or felt version to a very fancy silk item with leather. The price given here is for a well-made felt tricorne.
Oilskin Suit: Inhabitants of rainy climates and misty seacoasts, and those who make their living from the sea, need reliable clothing to keep out the dampness and chill. An oilskin suit consists of high boots, heavy trousers, a long coat or cape, and a wide-brimmed hat. These garments are made heavy-duty cloth such as cotton or linen, then waterproofed with flaxseed oil.
Stinkpot: This is a simple chemical weapon, consisting of a clay jar filled with a mix of noxious substances. When set alight, the mixture produces a foul-smelling smoke fills a 10-foot cube (as a fog cloud spell, except that a moderate or stronger wind disperses the smoke in 1 round). Fa living creature within the smoke must succeed on a 15 Fortitude save or become sickened as long as it remains and for 1d4+1 rounds after it leaves. Each round a creature remains within the smoke, it must make another save.
The pot's contents are consumed in 3 rounds, and vapors disperse naturally. lighting a stinkpot is a standard action that provokes attacks of opportunity.
Float bladder 10 gp 3 lb.
Swimming goggles 15 gp 1/2 lb.
Hat, bicorne¹ 50 gp 1 lb.
Hat, tricorne¹ 15 gp 1 lb.
Oilskin suit 10 gp 10 lb.
Sextant 250 gp 10 lb.
Stinkpot 50 gp 20 1 lb.
- No weight, or no weight worth noting.
¹These items weigh one-quarter this amount when made for Small characters.
There are basically two types of dungeoneering equipment: highly specialized items that fulfill a narrow purpose, and ordinary objects that can be used creatively. Both are crucial to any adventurer's standard gear. The following mundane items can be put to good use in dungeons.
Collapsible Pole: This 2-foot-long wooden pole is composed of six telescoping sections that allow it to extend to a length of 12 feet. Each section can be turned to lock it in place to prevent the pole from collapsing prematurely. The pole can be partially extended to 4 feet, 6 feet, 8 feet, or 10 feet. You can use the pole to jam doors, pass objects across pits, spring traps, or serve any other needed function. The thinnest section of a collapsible pole can be inserted into a second pole, creating a sturdy pole of up to 22 feet in length. Expanding or collapsing a pole is a full-round action.
Drill: This simple hand drill bores small holes in wood, metal, or stone. As a standard action, you can use the drill to create a hole in an object if the drill can ignore the object's hardness (see below). The hole is 1 inch deep and 1 inch in diameter. Any Search checks or Spot checks through the hole are made at a -5 penalty. Listen checks through the hole are made at a -2 penalty.
There are three types of drills. A wood drill ignores up to 5 points of hardness when drilling. An iron drill, commonly used on metal or stone, ignores up to 10 points of hardness. An adamantine drill, used on only the most difficult surfaces, ignores up to 20 points of hardness. A drill that does not ignore enough hardness of an object cannot bore a hole in that object. Standard drills become dull after 20 rounds of use; masterwork drills last for 100 rounds. New bits can be purchased for 10% of the cost of the drill.
Finder's Chalk: Marks made by this red chalk fade from casual view after 1 minute, allowing you to mark dungeon surfaces secretly. The chalk lets you keep track of what areas you have and have not visited without alerting wandering creatures to your presence. To detect a simple mark, such as a line or an X, make a successful DC 25 Search check. To detect more complex marks, make a successful DC 40 Search check. A finder's glass (see below) improves your ability to detect the chalk marks. True seeing lets you detect the marks without making a Search check.
One piece of finder's chalk covers a 10-foot-square wall with marks.
Finder's Glass: A finder's glass is a 3-inch-diameter circular disc of red glass set in a copper frame. It can be held in front of your eye or inserted over the aperture of a standard bullseye lantern, causing it to emit dim red light. When you look through a finder's glass, you gain a +30 alchemical bonus on your Search checks to find or read marks made by finder's chalk. If the glass is used in conjunction with a lantern, all creatures in the area of bright illumination gain a +20 alchemical bonus on their Search checks to find or read such marks.
Flotation Bladder: This item, used to aid in swimming, consists of two sealed, oiled leather sacks attached with a piece of rope. Each sack can be inflated by blowing air into it through a small metal valve as a full-round action. Once inflated and placed under the arms, a flotation bladder grants a +4 bonus on Swim checks to rise to the surface or remain at the surface. The bladder also imposes a -4 penalty on Swim checks to descend deeper into the water. Additional bladders do not grant further bonuses on Swim checks, but the penalties stack.
Flour Pouch: This deceptively simple burlap satchel of flour is tied loosely on purpose. While it could be used to bake a loaf of bread on a particularly long expedition, its true purpose is to locate invisible opponents. You can attempt to strike an invisible opponent with a flour pouch as a touch attack. You still must pinpoint the target or choose a space to attack into, and the normal miss chance for total concealment applies. If you hit the target, the pouch bursts open, spilling white flour over a portion of the invisible creature. You can also throw a flour pouch as a splash weapon; any invisible creature standing in the space struck is covered in flour, as are all other creatures within 5 feet.
Coating an invisible creature in flour lets you keep track of its position and reduces the miss chance to 20% (instead of the normal 50% for total concealment). While an invisible creature is coated in flour, its bonus on Hide checks is reduced to +10 if the creature is moving, or to +20 if it is not moving. If the creature moves through water, is subjected to a gust of wind, or spends a full-round action brushing the flour off, all the flour is removed from its body.
Grappling Hook, Mithral: A mithral grappling hook is lighter than a standard hook but just as strong, and it can be thrown farther. If the hook is attached to a silk rope (not a hempen one), any Use Rope check to seat the hook is made at a DC equal to 10 + 1 per 20 feet thrown, to a maximum DC of 20 for a hook thrown 200 feet.
Grappling Ladder: This premade hemp rope ladder has two small steel grappling hooks on either end. Throwing a grappling ladder is like throwing a grappling hook, only more difficult. The Use Rope check to seat the ladder is made at a DC equal to 15 + 3 per 10 feet thrown. A DC 10 Climb check is required to scale a grappling ladder.
The price and weight in Table 2-1 is for a 10-foot ladder, but longer ladders are commonly available. For each additional 10 feet of the ladder, add 35 gp to the cost and 6 pounds to the weight.
Grappling Ladder, Silk and Mithral: The finest grappling ladders are made of silk rope and fashioned with two tiny mithral hooks. They function as standard grappling ladders but are easier to seat; the Use Rope check is made at a DC equal to 13 + 2 per 10 feet thrown. The standard +2 circumstance bonus on Use Rope checks for silk rope does not apply.
The price and weight in Table 2-1 is for a 10-foot ladder, but longer ladders are commonly available. For each additional 10 feet of the ladder, add 150 gp to the cost and 3 pounds to the listed weight.
Hacksaw: This blade is designed to cut through thin metal. It ignores the hardness of standard metal objects (excluding exotic metals such as mithral or adamantine), but it deals only 1 point of damage per 2 rounds of sawing.
A common blade lasts for 20 rounds, while a superior blade lasts for 40 rounds.
You can also buy a hacksaw with an adamantine blade, which ignores hardness 25 or lower. The saw also cuts faster, dealing 1 point of damage per round.
Lard: Simple cooking lard can be a great aid to dungeoneers. You can spread it on the floor to make a slippery area similar to that created by a grease spell. Applying lard in this manner takes 1 minute, but the coated area remains slippery for 1 hour. You can also take 1 minute to coat yourself in lard, which grants you a +5 circumstance bonus on Escape Artist checks and on grapple checks made to resist or escape a grapple or pin. The bonus lasts for 10 minutes.
Listening Cone: This iron cone can be placed against a surface, such as a door, to aid in Listen checks made through the surface. The DC for listening through a door when using a cone increases by 2 (rather than 5), and the DC for listening through stone walls increases by 5 (rather than 15). Listening cones have no effect if not used against a surface.
Magnet: This magnetized bar of metal picks up small objects of ferrous metal, such as iron or steel. The magnet can lift up to 2 pounds of metal if touched to the object in question. It can also attract metal objects weighing up to one-third of a pound at a distance of 1 foot. You can tie a magnet to the end of a piece of twine and lower it into a pit to pick up objects or manipulate levers. You can also lash a magnet to the end of a pole and slide it under doors to retrieve items.
Manacles, Adamantine: Intended for chaining powerful dungeon monsters, these manacles can be broken only with a successful DC 52 Strength check. They have 15 hit points and hardness 20. Otherwise, adamantine manacles function as masterwork manacles.
Periscope, Hand: This device consists of two steel mirrors placed opposite each other at angles, separated by a metal tube about 2 feet in length. The periscope allows you to peer around corners without revealing your presence. Because only the end of the periscope protrudes, you can make a Hide check (with a +7 bonus) for the item to determine if the creatures you spy upon notice it. The area visible through the periscope is cone-shaped and begins in the space immediately around the corner. While looking through the periscope, you take a -8 penalty on Spot checks to detect creatures not in the cone-shaped area.
Rubber Ball: A bouncing rubber ball can give you an idea of what lies down a corridor. Simply throw the ball at a space or grid intersection as you would throw a splash weapon, though with a range increment of 30 feet. No matter where the ball lands, it bounces directly away from you, traveling half the distance it was first thrown. Then it lands and bounces again, covering half the distance of the previous bounce. The ball continues in this manner until it makes a bounce that would be less than 5 feet in length, at which time it stops bouncing and begins rolling. If the ball strikes a solid object, it reverses direction and continues rolling.
Thus, you can throw a rubber ball down a corridor to see whether or not it hits a wall and returns to you. Either way, you learn something about the length of the hallway. When you throw the ball, you can also listen carefully for other cues, especially if the ball does not return. For example, if you hear a splash, you know that a liquid obstacle lies ahead.
Rubbing Kit: Adventurers often encounter ancient carvings and runes that they do not understand. A rubbing kit allows them to bring a copy of the runes back to town for an expert to translate later. The kit consists of a roll of thin paper 20 feet long and 1 foot wide, and numerous sticks of fine charcoal. Simply place the paper over the carvings and rub it with charcoal. Creating an accurate copy requires 1 minute for each foot of paper used (in length). Rubbing more quickly reduces the time to a full-round action for the same amount of paper, but it adds 10 to the DC of any check related to interpreting the rubbing, such as a Decipher Script check.
Spike, Iron: Iron spikes have a variety of uses, though they are most commonly hammered into door frames to keep the doors shut. If you have a hammer or mallet, you can pound one spike in place as a full-round action. A door with one spike in it is considered stuck, and a door with two or more spikes in it is considered locked for the purpose of breaking it down. (For the break DCs for stuck and locked doors, see Doors).
Twine: For situations where rope is too bulky, simple twine is a good substitute. It can be tied around smaller objects and takes up less room. Twine has 1 hit point and hardness 0.
Wand Bracer: This metal forearm band takes up space on the body as a bracer and can hold up to five wands. Thin loops of thread fit over your fingers, each connected to a spring mechanism on one of the wand slots. If your hand is empty, you can flex a finger as a swift action to cause the wand of your choice to spring into your grasp. You still must activate the wand as a standard action. Replacing a wand in the sheath is tricky and requires a full-round action Most adventurers just drop the first wand to the ground (a free action) when they need a different one.
Collapsible pole 20 gp 8 1b.
Adamantine 200 gp 1 lb.
Iron 10 gp 1 lb.
Finder's glass 400 gp 1/2 lb.
Flotation bladder 2 gp 2 1b.
Grappling hook, mithral 1,000 gp 2 lb.
Grappling ladder 40 gp 8 lb.
Silk and mithral 650 gp 4 lb.
Adamantine 600 gp 1 lb.
Common 5 gp 1 lb.
Superior 20 gp 1 lb.
Listening cone 8 sp 1 lb.
Magnet 20 gp 2 1b.
Manacles, adamantine 2,000 gp 5 lb.
Periscope, hand 50 gp 2 1b.
Rubbing kit 5 gp 1 lb.
Spike, iron 1 sp 1 lb.
Wand bracer 300 gp 5 lb.
The following additional tools can give you a hand in those circumstances when you don't have a proper rogue and Power Attack isn't enough or just won't do.
Acid Injector: This simple device resembles a long funnel (generally made of glass or some other acid-resistant material) with a narrow tube at one end and a large storage container at the other. It delivers a powerful acid to burn through the hinges or locks of chests, safes, and other containers, without wasting acid or damaging the contents of these containers. It takes 2 minutes to use an acid injector to apply acid to a surface. When you use it to bypass a lock, hinge, or other vulnerable point on an object's surface, the precise delivery doubles the damage of the acid used.
Adamantine Bolt Cutter: This resembles an oversized pair of pruning shears with a serrated inner blade. It is specifically designed to cut through metal bars, bolts, and other obstructions with ease, and allows the wielder to attempt to cut through any bar less than 2 inches in diameter with a hardness less than 20. Adamantine bolt cutters deal 20 points of damage plus 1-1/2 times the wielder's Strength modifier per round. Bolt cutters make poor weapons, serving only as clumsy clubs (-2 on attack rolls).
Adamantine Sledge: For the serious basher, this simple sledgehammer is perfectly balanced and crafted from solid adamantine. When you use it to attack a door, wall, container, or other object, it is a 2-handed weapon that deals 1d10 points of damage to the object and ignores any hardness less than 20. Despite its force, however, it is difficult to use as a weapon in combat, and you suffer a -2 penalty on attack rolls with it.
Adamantine Toolkit: This kit contains an adamantine file, an adamantine drill (with bits of varying sizes), and a small adamantine hacksaw. It is specifically designed to allow nonprofessionals to bypass locked doors and open locked chests, and the tools are simple and straightforward (if somewhat slow). The drill in this kit allows a character to bore 2 1/2-inch-diameter hole in any object 3 inches thick or less and with a hardness less than 20 with a standard action. This is often sufficient to remove the locking mechanism from a door or container. The hacksaw can saw through up to 1 inch of material with hardness less than 20 with a standard action.
Ironbane Acid: This special form of acid affects only iron and other metals weaker than adamantine. One flask of this acid deals 3d10 points of damage to a metal object or creature made entirely of metal (such as an iron golem) and ignores hardness. Ironbane acid has no effect on adamantine or magically reinforced or enchanted metal. You can throw ironbane acid as a grenadelike weapon, in which case it deals full damage to any nonmagical metal armor, weapon, or shield that your target might be wearing or wielding.
Woodripper Acid: This special form of acid effects only wood and plant creatures. One flask of this acid deals 3d10 points of acid damage to a wood object or plant creature and ignores hardness. Woodripper acid has no effect on magically reinforced or enchanted wood. You can throw woodripper acid as a grenadelike weapon, in which case it deals full damage to any nonmagical wooden armor, weapon, or shield that your target might be wearing or wielding.
Acid injector 75 gp 2 lb.
Adamantine bolt cutter 250 gp 2 lb.
Adamantine sledge 2,500 gp 15 lb.
Adamantine toolkit 750 gp 5 lb.
Ironbane acid 30 gp 1/4 lb.
Stonebreaker acid 20 gp 1/4 lb.
Wood ripper acid 20 gp 1/4 lb. | 2019-04-23T22:07:15Z | https://www.realmshelps.net/stores/goods.shtml |
Lenders and Borrowers. Do You Know These Two Figures?
Often the figures of singapore moneylender and borrower commonly incite error. It is therefore not complicated to confuse both terms and enter a loop in which you do not know very well who is who. It is for this reason that today we want to explain everything about money lender and borrowers so that after reading this post, we will be able to clarify each and every one of the doubts that may arise.
Lenders and borrowers Who is who?
When we are faced with commercial loan contracts, the first thing we need to know before going into detail about the clauses contained in the contract itself, is who are the natural or legal persons that personalize both the borrower and singapore moneylender.
If we talk about lenders , we refer to all those individuals or legal entities whose purpose is to facilitate access to the loan with their own funds or from the entity acting on their behalf (as in the case of financial and banking entities). To carry out this operation, the moneylender charge a certain interest rate in accordance with the risk that the operation in question may have – since, as we can imagine, it is not the same, for example, to grant a loan to a start-up company that to a company that has been acting in the market for a certain time.
Soft loans: those granted by official credit agencies and international financial institutions to developing countries, sectors within the national economy that are experiencing crises or investments of high social interest. They are characterized by being granted by moneylender in the long term and at a low interest rate. Actually, because of the characteristics they show, these are covert subsidies.
Single-signature or unsecured loans : they present a very high interest rate and a much shorter period of time than soft loans. This is because there is no real guarantee that ensures the return of the amount to the moneylender.
Bank lenders : this is one of the types of lenders most known to all of us. Banking lenders are consolidated entities that offer economic “facilities” to their customers and that require change, to meet a series of requirements, which in many cases makes it difficult to access them.
Lenders of individual type : they are those lenders that, unlike the banks, do not require so many requirements. Thus, for individual lenders to grant a loan, it is only necessary to provide a guarantee that can guarantee the payment of the loan. They tend to be people who, generally, work individually for small amounts.
Alternative financing lenders : In this case, they are platforms such as MytripleA, which act on behalf of different individuals (investors who fund the projects collectively), granting the financing requested by the company. This allows the development of loans between individuals .
So, all those who lend their money become directly lenders? Yes, and no . We say this because it depends on whether the amount that is actually lent is going to be lent or, on the contrary, given without waiting for its return.
One of the fundamental characteristics that make the lender is that he must have a loan of temporary assignment . This means that the money must be returned in the future with or without interest (as stipulated by both parties). In the event that there is no such obligation of future refund, there will be no legal relationship and therefore, there will be no legal loan agreement, nor will the figures of lenders and borrowers appear.
Therefore, the remuneration is not what determines the existence of the loans nor of the borrower and lender. To clarify it even more we are going to give you a very simple example: if we leave a bicycle for a few days to a friend because he needs it and we do not charge him absolutely any money, we will be, in any case, becoming lenders since our Friend will have the future obligation to return the bicycle.
If we look at the literal meaning of the borrower granted by the RAE, we see that it refers to the ” borrower “. This, developed a little bit more, refers to the person who owns a loan , so the borrower assumes all the obligations and acquires all the rights of the loan contract that he signs with the natural or juridical person in question that is made up as a lender.
Money lenders in Singapore are individuals who lend money to you personally, against fixed rates of enthusiasm, for a specific period of time. Their rates, terms and approaches are different from other large organizations related to money and just like their loan rates.
Each Singapore moneylender fall under the head of an affiliation that contains all the principles and instructions for your transactions. The disadvantages of choosing lenders in relation to any other agency are the loans that take quicker and do not bother. They do not approach you with the same number of points of interest as other substantial organizations, nor do they expect you to display accurate passes and reports. There are several money lenders not registered in the business as well.
Getting loans from money lenders in Singapore is a simple answer to all your monetary needs. Money lenders in Singapore lend money to individuals who do not have bank or have a terrible record of falling into terrible debt as well.
These singapore moneylender require only some data about you and certain files, for example, payment receipts and payment receipts for your guarantee. They are completely different from banks and budget organizations, which require significant investments in the preparation of their records and then pay money. Money lenders do not expect you to apply for propulsion. They lend you money fast and, in addition, request discount in a short time.
You are in good position when you run money lenders in Singapore. If you later discover a caveat in the creditors’ agreement in Singapore after marking it, you can use them legally.
If you understand that the expert is not actually administering, you can keep the contract improper as proof and move the court against it. The money lender may be qualified for discipline and the money you have obtained should turn into yours as a compensation measure.
In cases of unsecured loans, the sum is very small as well as the financing costs. In these cases, the singapore moneylender do not have to worry about you to put your benefits into question.
What they require is just a couple of payment receipts and payment receipts as confirmations of your consistent income. When you approach them to an almost expansive measure of credit, they will approach you for a home loan. This implies that you must hand over the property records as a guarantee of repayment of your credit.
They will not take control of your property. However, you will not have the ability to offer it without your consent until you completed the refund. If you cannot repay the amount and, if you offer the property, your credit should only be deducted from the estimate of the business and you can take care of your own business.
To take out a loan, you can in principle go to various parties, the so-called lenders or singapore moneylenders.
First of all, one can think of non-professional lenders like family and friends, but employers are also often willing to grant loans to their employees, whether or not on favorable terms (for example in the context of a PC-Private Project).
Although people pay a (somewhat) lower interest rate with such lenders, there are also disadvantages associated with this method of financing.
For example, taking out a loan with the employer increases dependence on the employee; it may feel compelled to agree more quickly with certain measures within the company.
For family and friends, first of all, they do not always have the necessary funds; but a more important objection is probably that unforeseen business problems when repaying the loan can have direct consequences for personal relationships.
In practice, people will therefore often use professional donors.
The banks together account for approximately 45% of the total credit volume in the Netherlands; they are the largest provider of consumer credit.
Yet they are relatively short-term engaged in offering loans to private individuals: this form of financing only arose around 1950.
Finance companies have been involved in providing consumer credit for about a hundred years.
They originated in the United States around 1850, when manufacturers introduced a form of purchase purchase in order to bring their products within the reach of private individuals and thus increase their market.
Financing companies in the Netherlands account for approximately 40% of the loan volume.
The municipal credit banks are in principle open to everyone, but they are mainly concerned with social lending to people who have difficulty getting a loan elsewhere, for example due to their age, their income or their credit history. In addition, the GKBs are engaged in debt mediation and debt repayment .
Credit card companies also offer a form of credit.
Mail order companies also often offer their customers the option of paying their purchases in a spread, and they charge a credit fee (interest) for this.
In many cases, credit card and mail order credit is a relatively expensive form of Singapore moneylender; consumers can often finance their purchases more cheaply with the aid of a personal loan or a revolving credit.
World experts define financial intelligence or financial IQ as the ability of a person to solve their money problems and be free financially.
By working these skills in a disciplined way, you can acquire knowledge to better manage debts, income, expenses, credit cards, purchases, protection of assets, balance the family budget and generally have the “control” of the money.
Increase your capital with passive income (those that do not depend on our work).
Protect money from losses and from predators (unnecessary debts) “spending a penny on something you do not need ends up being expensive” Warren Buffett.
Take a detailed budget of your money.
Learn to save and invest.
These steps will help you to have a better quality of life, less stress, tranquility in your family; as well as conquer your dreams and achieve your goals.
1) The key is that the monthly expenses do not exceed the income and always allocate a fixed percentage to savings.
2) In the monthly budget always allocate an amount for savings and keep your current credits up to date to avoid paying interest for delinquency.
3) Marriage payment, vacation in July or change of car? Set your goals for 2018 and start a programmed savings BN that allows you to achieve it and earn interest.
4) If you plan your financial life in the long term from now, you can have better results. A complementary pension plan from #BNVital is an ideal tool.
5) Improving the budget can constantly help you make better decisions. Identify expenses that can be reduced or investments that can grow.
Because we know that many parents are the financial pillar of their family, we also know the difficulties they have to face: pressure to meet various needs and frustration at seeing the money reduced so quickly. This day of the father, Dinerio gives them 10 tips of finances so that they stop worrying and enjoy 100% their paternity.
Stop spending money on beer, cars and sports. If you have a habit that is only reducing your budget and putting you and your family in difficulties, cut it for a while and you will see the results. Think ahead and invest that money in financial instruments or start the business you’ve wanted so much. If you want to know the new ways to invest your money, we recommend you read the fintech that will help you make the most of your money.
Although nobody expects bad times, it is better to be safe than sorry. As a parent it is your responsibility to insure and protect the future of your children in case something unfortunate happens, be it an accident, illness or premature death. There are several life insurance options to protect your family.
Although it is difficult to save after all the expenses that have to be made, it is necessary that you do it and that you cultivate that financial habit. Sit and analyze your income and expenses, how much can you save? Whether it’s a lot or a little, take it out. Divide your savings into various funds: emergencies, retirement, personal goals, etc. Do not touch that savings fund unless it’s an urgent situation. As a recommendation, you can put that money in a bank account to which you do not have access so easily or place it in a liquid investment.
To achieve financial peace, it is necessary that you have complete control of all your money. Make a list of all the expenses you make per month and determine the amount of money that goes to each expense. Do not exceed the budget that you assign to each expense and do not spend all your income, it is advisable that within your budget you also include saving funds.
Dinerio is the first free personal finance platform with which you can have total control of your money from one place and wherever you are. Dinerio allows you to create a personalized budget that automatically tracks your expenses by linking your bank accounts and obtaining your financial information, saving you the work of manually writing everything in Excel tables or in notes. The only thing that you will have to manually write down is the expenses with cash.
Parents have a responsibility to encourage and inspire good habits in children, and the best way to teach your children is by setting an example. Strive to have healthy and responsible finances, and your children will also have them. Show them the benefits of saving and investing money. Buy a piggy bank for your children to start saving and give them rewards for their money saved. Also teach them ways to save when they go out for fun or on vacation.
A good investment option for children are the Government Cites, where they can create their account and start investing.
Adults think that children cannot get involved in money issues; However, if you encourage that belief, your whole life will think that way. On the other hand, when you start to involve your children in financial planning you will be surprised to see their ability to analyze and understand situations. If the family is in a complicated economic situation and they know it, they will do their part.
There are many needs of your family: services, food, medicines, utensils, etc. However, you can establish a period a year in which certain purchases are made such as clothing, school supplies, furniture, utensils, etc. Thus, the rest of the year you will not have to worry about that and you will have more organized your budget.
If during the weekends or at the end of your working day you have some free time, you can look for jobs or hobbies that give you some money. Creating a blog or a website about a topic that you are passionate about are options that are now very viable and functional. Uber, Fiverr and Airbnb are other alternatives.
Teach your children that happiness does not come from material goods. Avoid buying expensive and electronic toys, instead buy skill games or create your own games. Something as simple as puzzles, Lego, balls, ropes, etc. Go out to exercise with your children or practice some sport. Visit natural parks and live with them. They will be the best memories that you can give them and that require little or no money.
Even though being a dad is a full-time job, it is necessary that you dedicate some time to yourself. For you to reflect, be alone or clear yourself. Being a father does not mean being Superman. You can spend 30 minutes of your day meditating, exercising, going for a walk or doing the activity you enjoy the most.
The Payroll department is an important department at companies. Of course, all departments are important. But for employees this is one of the most important departments, because they ensure that they receive the right salary in time.
The payroll department processes all transactions each month. This then concerns matters such as salary increases. But there are also changes when a staff member starts to work more or less, takes parental leave or takes care leave. The commuting allowance can also be adjusted if an employee moves or if someone is ill for a long period, then this reimbursement will no longer apply. But this is not everything. Every year the pension premium changes or other premiums change, these changes must also be implemented. So, it is a race against the clock every month for this department to have all transactions processed in time.
In December and January, they often have extra pressure, because extra changes as a result of adjustments to the premiums have to be made. This change in premiums applies to all employees, so that is a very busy period for the employees of the payroll administration. This department is therefore very busy for about two weeks a month (just before the payment date), then it is two weeks quieter and then the crowds start again. That’s how that month goes out in months. Employees with questions about their salary also come to this department. An employee of the payroll administration is therefore also the point of contact when it comes to salaries.
Many companies pay the salaries of their employees on a fixed date. For example, on the 20th or 1st of the month. Often, weekends and / or holidays are taken into account. If the payment date falls exactly on the weekend or on a public holiday, most companies pay a little earlier. There are also companies that pay the salary even a few days earlier around Christmas, so that everyone has his or her salary well before Christmas. Previously everyone was sent a pay slip at home, but nowadays that is no longer the case with many companies. Employees can then log into a personal portal and can view their pay slip (and other personal documents / data) there. The annual statement is often no longer sent. This is also stored on the personal portal. An employee then has all the data neatly together. He can always view this information and print it if necessary.
Employees who have a lot of affinity with numbers are working on the payroll administration. They must be able to work very precisely, because after all it is about the salary of an employer. This must be good. The payroll administration is therefore an important department!
Saving refers to the action of reserving some part of ordinary expense, in order to obtain something. All at some time we have saved in some way, from piggy and the famous batches, making use of some of the financial instruments offered by banking institutions.
The first thing to know is what do you want to get? What is the best option? How much does it cost? In this sense, we recommend that once you know what you want, check several options and compare prices, quality and benefits, until you find the one that best suits your needs.
For example: If your goal is to buy a car, you should think about what brand you would like, if you want standard or automatic, what color, used or new, etc., to later give you the task of going to car agencies to compare prices.
Once having this clear, you must decide when you want it? To determine a time range is very important, since from there you will be able to define the necessary resources in that period.
You must answer two elementary questions: what are my income? and how much do I spend? For this, we recommend you add your total income and compare them with expenses, making a list of fixed expenses, which refer to those that we can foresee.
These do not necessarily have to be always the same amount (since we do not know how much the receipt of electricity or gas will arrive), however we know that month after month we will have to pay it. For example: rent, internet, cable, telephone, super purchases, etc.
On the other hand, make a list of variable expenses, those that are not indispensable and that change constantly. Such as: meals away from home, going out to the movies with friends, medical consultations, buying shoes or clothes, etc.
Once you have both lists and have compared them with your total income, analyze the expenses that you can do without or those that you could reduce.
There are unforeseen expenses that it is impossible not to cover such as medical consultations and medicines; but for example, if you noticed that you spend a lot of money eating every day at the little restaurant near your work, you could try to bring food from your home.
Also consider the possibility of downloading a personal finance app, this can help you keep track of all the income you have every month and make you aware of what you are spending your money on. Once you have completed these steps, you can decide where you will save the amount of money you have set aside to achieve your goal.
Often, students develop a habit of “manana habbit” attitude towards financial obligations. We seem to not care about making payments to our student loans. Keep in mind Student loans is different from any other loans out there. Student loans accumulate large percentage on a daily basis if not paid in time.
It’s important to make at least the minimum payments.
SO WHAT IS THE SECRET TO PAYING OF THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS OF STUDENT LOANS DEBT?
The best practice to do this is to communicate with the student loan officer. Give them a call and explain to them your job situation. 100% of the time you can get an extension of non-payment without interest. This is a mandatory action on the bank’s part instructed by the government finance department.
Most student loans come with a grace period of six months in which you are not required to make any payments. If your grace period is coming to a close, then you have some decisions to make.
The first step is to find out how much do you owe and to whom?
Your financial aid officer can help you with this. So don’t waste any time and contact your financial aid officer.
According to the US (United States) government’s Student Aid website: During the grace period on a subsidized loan, you don’t need to pay any principal without accumulating interest. While in an unsubsidized loan, you don’t have to pay any principal, but it will charge interest. You can either pay the interest or be capitalized, which adds it to the balance of the principal loan. This will be a bad scenario as it will drastically increase the amount you owe and potentially burry you in debt for years to come.
HOW TO MAKE YOUR STUDENT LOAN GO AWAY?
Believe it or not, there’s actually a few ways that they can be diminished without you paying them, but they are special cases. Most of us are going to pay back every dollars and cents we borrowed. Plus more!
HOW DO I MAKE MY STUDENT LOAN WITHOUT PAYING?
By joining the Peace Corps or AmeriCorps as volunteer. Majority of financial advisors will say you are better off getting a job and paying back the loans. There are reasons you may want to volunteer. If you want to become a teacher, join the military, work in the legal or medical field, you can take advantage of some loan forgiveness programs available for you.
Otherwise, your student loans will remain in your financial history until you pay them back. Not bankruptcy can destroy them.
It’s basically a way to lower your total monthly payment, but it comes with a price. How? Consolidating your loan will extending the terms of your loan and therefore paying more interest in the long run.
If you can afford paying your monthly payment, you still should consider consolidation. Why? Because you can always stick to your standard repayment if you can comfortably afford it. This lowers you interest in the long run as interest is calculated per month on the principal balance.
HOW DO I CONSOLIDATE MY LOAN?
From the day you graduate, your mailbox will be filled with offers to consolidate your student loans. Why does it seem like everyone wants to help you? Because student loans are backed by the US government. It means that if default on my loan, the government will pay it and try to recoup the money from me themselves.
So loan companies are secured to get their money back. These Student Loan Consolidation offers are nearly identical, but pick wisely as it will be a relationship you may have for a very long time.
Keep in mind if you consolidate during your grace period, you can lock in your interest rate to around 0.6% lower and still not make any repayments until the period ends. So dont wait!
Consider that interest rate for all lenders will most likely be the same. You can get discounts for setting up an auto-payment through their website and for enabling payments using a credit card. The advantage of using a credit card is you can earn points and rewards with your credit card company.
SO WHAT HAPPENS WHEN I CAN’T AFFORD PAYMENTS?
We all go through tough times so lenders are prepared for this. If you are unable to pay your monthly bill, it’s not the end of the road. Talk to your lender and don’t feel bad about it. They are there to serve your needs.
Ask to arrange a payment plan, where you pay less now and pay more later. This helps when you are just starting out in a new job. And as your salary increases, you should naturally be able to make higher payments.Also, ask about deferment of the principal balance. This means you are not required to make payments for a set period of time but interest will still accrue.
The good thing about this is your credit score will not be affected. | 2019-04-22T14:42:05Z | http://ezeetax.com/ |
Three ex Trent buses sold to fairs.
Trent SOS QL CH7140, with a Ransomes B37F body from 1928. Withdrawn in 1937 and sold on to a fair.
Trent CH8126, an SOS M with Ransomes B34F body from 1929. Sold to a fair in 1945.
Trent CH5432, SOS ODD ex S rebodied Brush B26F and withdrawn 1936, then sold to a fair.
Trent 452, CH8902, SOS COD with Brush B34F body from 1930 . To War Department at start of war and later returned to Midland Red but not used and broken up.
Trent RC414, a 1932 SOS IM4 with Brush B34F body. Withdrawn in 1950.
Trent SOS IM4 1933 Short B34F bodies, RC1280, No.261 and RC1300, No 281.
Trent SOS IM4 RC1284, No 265, with Short B34F body from 1933.
Trent RC1803, a 1934 BMMO ON with Duple body, rebodied by Willowbrook and fitted with an AEC 7.7 engine in 1945. Withdrawn in October 1955 and sold to Gleeson, Contractors.
RC2551 with W J Hancock, Patchway Coaches Gloucestershire, an ex-Trent 1935 BMMO DON with Duple DP31F body. Disposed in 1948 and sold on by Patchway in 1949 after what appears to be a rather odd looking front end rebuild. Finished up in 1953 as a lorry.
Trent 304, RC2704, a SOS DON with Brush B36F body from 1935.
Preserved Trent RC2721 is an S.O.S DON with a Brush body and was new in 1935.
Trent RC2721, a 1935 BMMO DON, converted to a mobile booking office in May 1953 and used at Skegness in the summer season.
Trent 344, RC3715, a SOS DON with Brush B36F body. This one was not rebodied but was rebuilt in the works in 1951.
A Trent BMMO FEDD believed to be 1011, RC3333, new in 1936, sold in May 1951 to Bainbridge a dealer, sold on to a Mr Stevenson a farmer at Dalbury Lees Derbyshire, used as a storeshed.
RC3336 was a BMMO FEDD new to Trent in January 1936, withdrawn in March 1951.
Trent 331, RC3702, 1936 BMMO DON with Brush B36F body seen in the body shop at Central Works.
Trent 334, RC3705 an SOS with Brush B36F body from 1936, rebuilt by Trent in 1948.
Trent RC3719, a BMMO DON/Brush body new in 1936 with fleet number 348, renumbered to 519 when rebodied by Willowbrook in 1949, seen here on route to Manchester.
RC3727 new in 1936 to Trent as their 356, Brush body rebodied by Willowbrook in 1949. Sold to F Cowley in April 1958 still there in 1959. No further owners recorded.
Trent 631, RC3741, an SOS ON with Duple C31F body from 1936.
RC5984, a 1938 Daimler COG5 new to Trent and rebodied by Willowbrook in 1943. Sold to a dealer in Nottingham in April 1953 and passed to an unknown showman in 1953.
Trent 1046, RC5995, a Daimler COG5 with Weymann 54 seat Highbridge body new to Trent in April 1938. Rebodied by Brush in February 1948. Sold to Frank Cowley April 1957 then to Egerton (Dealer) in February 1959.
Trent 1050, RC5998, a Daimler new in 1938 rebodied by Willowbrook in 1946.
RC7085, a 1939 ex Trent BMMO ONC with Willowbrook C31F body, was sold to a Nottingham dealer at an unknown date and became a caravan by 1959. Appears to be supported at the front on concrete blocks, presumably the exit is on the other side. There's nothing TAT about the Ford at the side of the bus.
Preserved ex-Trent 417, RC7927, a BMMO SON with a Willowbrook B34F body new in 1940 was seen at Harrogate at the conclusion of the Trans Pennine Rally.
Preserved Trent 417, RC7927, a BMMO SON with a Willowbrook B34F body new in 1940, seen operating a shuttle service between Alfreton and the Crich Transport Extraveganza.
Preserved by AMRTM, ex-Trent 417, RC7927, a BMMO SON with a Willowbrook B34F body new in 1940 pauses for a photographic stop during the museum's twilight running event.
Now preserved Trent 417, RC7927, a BMMO SON with a Willowbrook B34F body new in 1940 and rebuilt at the Trent Works c.1950/1, seen at a fair.
Former Trent 417, RC7927 on its return to Trents Langley Mill depot in 1977. Rescued from a farm near Melton Mowbray and exchanged for a Gardner engine, it arrived painted in a shade of green.
Midland Red GHA337 alongside Trent's 1940 BMMO SON 417, RC7927.
Trent 1133, RC9649, a 1947 AEC Regent II undergoing mid life overhaul.
Trent RC9652, an AEC Regent from 1947 with Willowbrook H30/26R body. Was withdrawn in 1960, passed to Office Cleaning Services London WC1 and by September 1964 to Cooke London, Breaker.
Trent Central Works in an unusually quiet period. The two chassis are 1937 AEC Regent IIs, overhauled and ready to go to Willowbrook for re-bodying. The petitioned off section at the rear was the paint shop which was moved to Meadow Road in 1951. That area became the fuel pump shop, gearbox overhaul shop and tinsmiths.
ACH646, an AEC Regent II new to Trent in 1948 with a 56 seat Willowbrook body, withdrawn and sold in March 1962.
Trent 1219, MRB709, was an AEC Regent III acquired in 1956 with the business of Naylor, Normanton. New in 1948 it had a Brush H30/26R body and is seen in Derby Bus Station.
BRC406, an AEC Regent III with 56 seat highbridge Willowbrook body, new to Trent in June 1950. It was their fleet number 1206. Withdrawn in July 1964, it is seen here at Nottingham in new condition.
Trent BRC 407 fleet number 1207, a 1950 AEC Regent with Willowbrook 56 seat body, seen in an embarrassing position on its side in some allotments at Swanwick on the Derby to Alfreton service.
Trent 1224, CCH624, a Leyland bodied Leyland PD2 new to Trent in 1951. Behind is PD2 KCH106 with MCW Orion body while on the left is one of the PD2 JCH --- batch new in 1957. Surprising is the apparent lack of tread on the nearside front tyre of 1224, unusual for this company. On the far left is what looks a front entrance decker of PMT.
Cheek, Kenton CRC832, a Leyland PD2/12 with a Leyland H32/26R body was new to Trent, Derby in January 1952 and was seen at Gilwell Park on a Scout and Cub weekend rally.
In 1952 Trent received a batch of ten Leyland H32/26R bodied Leyland PD2/12s and the penultimate one, 1234, CRC834, was caught in the bus station at Derby.
Trent 803, DCH903, a Leyland Royal Tiger with Leyland B44F body new in 1952 is seen here in Manchester (L.M.S.) whilst on a through service from Derby to Blackpool, the section from Manchester to Blackpool being operated 'On hire to NWRCC'.
Trent 1238, DRC938, seen leaving Derby Bus Station, was one of fifteen Leyland H32/26RD bodied Leyland PD2/12s new in 1953.
Carney's of Rugeley. DRC947 and KUF712 are Leyland PD2/12's with Leyland H32/26R bodies (DRC with platform doors) were new to Trent (1247) in 1953 and Southdown (712) in 1951 respectively.
Photo taken late 1970, Carney's garage, Rugeley, Staffs.
Trent, Derby 211, ECH211, seen here in Mersey Square, Stockport was a Willowbrook C37C bodied Leyland PSU1/15 Royal Tiger new in 1953.
Seen at Manchester (L.M.S.) is Trent 212, ECH212, a Willowbrook C37C bodied Leyland Royal Tiger, one of six new in 1953, which having worked the X1 service from Nottingham was continuing to Blackpool.
ECH213, a Leyland Royal Tiger with Willowbrook C37C body new to Trent in 1953. These well appointed stylish coaches gave good service on tours, excursions and private hires for 10 years. Sold to Monks of Warrington via Frank Cowley in 1963. a rather sad end to a fine vehicle.
Trent 810, FCH10, a Saro B44F bodied Leyland Tiger Cub PSUC1/1 seen in Derby Bus Station was the first of ten new in 1954.
FCH11 was number 96 in the fleet of Llynfi, Maesteg and was a Leyland PSUC1/1 Tiger Cub wih a Saro B44F body which had been new as Trent 811 in June 1954.
Seen at their garage is Llynfi. Maesteg 96, FCH11, a Leyland PSUC1/1T Tiger Cub with a Saro B44F body new in 1954 as Trent, Derby 361, from whom it was acquired in November 1965.
West Wales, Tycroes 50, FCH13, was a Leyland PSUC1/1T Tiger Cub with a Saro B44F body which had been new in 1954 as Trent, Derby 363. It was acquired from them in December 1965.
A fine selection of Trent AEC Regals and a solitary Leyland Tiger Cub 366, FCH16, in the dock bay at Central Works. FCH16 was the first bus I ever worked on in 1962.
West Mon acquired number 10, FCH19, from Davies, Tredegar in 1968. A Leyland Tiger Cub with Saro B44F body, it had been new to Trent in 1954.
One of the last bodies to be built by Leyland was fitted to FRC955, a Leyland PD2/12 with H32/26RD body which was new as Trent 1255 in 1954. Seen here in Derby Bus Station it was renumbered 745 in 1962 and withdrawn in 1967.
Trent had the last vehicles to be bodied by Leyland and 746, the last of the batch, is seen in Derby Bus Station. FRC956, a Leyland H32/26RD bodied Leyland PD2/12, was new in 1954.
The last body to be built by Leyland was fitted to FRC956, a Leyland PD2/12 with H32/26RD body which was new as Trent 1256 in 1954. It passed to Whippet, Hilton in September 1967 and is seen here at the garage.
The lower saloon of FRC956, a Leyland PD2/12 with H32/26RD body. The last Leyland Farington body to be built, it was delivered to Trent as 1256 in 1954.
The upper saloon of FRC956, a Leyland PD2/12 with H32/26RD body. The last Leyland Farington body to be built, it was delivered as Trent 1256 in 1954.
Three assorted Leyland PD2's at the premises of Whippet, Hilton, from left to right, RRR96 is a PD2/20 with Metro Cammell Orion L27/28R body, new to East Midland (D96) in 1955, acquired in 1966 and sold to a local breaker in 1971, FRC956 is a PD2/12 with Leyland H32/26RD body, new to Trent (1256) in 1954 and KCH106 is a PD2/12 with Metro Cammell Orion H33/26RD body, new to Trent (1006) in 1957.
FRC956, a Leyland PD2/12 with H32/26RD body which was new as Trent 1256 in 1954.
Trent 121, GRC121, a Leyland PSUC1/2 Tiger Cub/Willowbrook DP41F new in May 1955 is parked up in what looks like the layover area of Derby Bus Station.
Seen at Manchester (L.M.S.) Trent 133, GRC133, was new in 1955 with a Weymann DP41F body on a Leyland Tiger Cub PSUC1/2T chassis.
JCH258 Trent Leyland PD2 1258, JCH258, new in 1956 and sold to Frank Cowley November 1967.
JCH262, a Leyland PD2/12 with a Metro-Cammell H33/26RD body, one of six acquired by Whippet, Hilton from Trent, Derby in 1968, is seen at the garage in Hilton.
Big Bus open-topper Leyland PD2/12 XMD47A, believed to be originally Trent KCH106, new in 1956 with an MCW H33/26RD body which came to Big Bus via Grey Green.
Trent 767, KCH110, a Leyland PD2/12 with a Metro Cammell H33/26RD body seen in Derby was new in 1956.
Whippet, Hilton KCH100, a Leyland Titan PD2/12 with Metro Cammell Orion H59RD body. Originally Trent's 1000, new in 1957.
Two Cunninghams PD2s, on the left former Trent Leyland Titan PD2/12 with MCW body KCH101, of 1957 alongside former Edinburgh Leyland Titan PD2/20 also with MCW body, LFS466.
To add to the saga of the former Trent PD2's, and the mis identification of one in particular, here is a picture of KCH106 which I believe at the time had recently been converted to open top by Grey Green.
Cunningham of Paisley were one of the operators of the Paisley-Renfrew Ferry service and seen at the Renfrew terminus is former Trent MCW bodied Leyland Titan PD2/12 KCH115, new in 1957 and bought by Cunningham in 1969.
Trent 1021, KCH121, a 1957 Leyland PD2/12 with part of an MCCW body seen after an altercation with a low bridge in the Nottingham area in late 1968.
Trent 1027, KCH127, a Leyland Titan PD2/12 with Metro Cammell Orion H59RD body, new in 1957. It later operated with Erewash Travel retaining its Trent livery. Seen in Huntingdon Street Bus Station, Nottingham - a haven for bus enthusiasts in its day.
Whippet, Hilton acquired LRC434, a Leyland PD3/4 with a Willowbrook H41/31RD body in August 1971.
An ex-WD AEC Matador, built as a breakdown truck by Trent in Central Works, Derby. A posed photo "towing" Leyland PD2 KCH100 fleet No 1000 new in 1957 withdrawn in February 1968. This batch of PD2's were renumbered in 1962, 1000 becoming 757.
Trent 400, LRC434, was one of twenty-two Leyland PD3/4s with Willowbrook H41/32RD bodies new in early 1958 It is seen here in Derby.
Trent 1054, LRC454, a Leyland Titan PD3/4 with Willowbrook body. The bus dates from 1958 and is seen at the 2000 Halifax Piece Hall Rally.
Trent only bought one batch of Leyland Titan PD3s prior to switching to rear engined chassis. 1054, LRC454, is a 1958 Leyland Titan PD3/4 with Willowbrook bodywork.
Trent 1054, LRC454, a Leyland PD3 with Willowbrook 73 seat body new in 1958 transferred to Trent ancillary fleet, with behind FRC956, a Leyland PD2 with all Leyland body new in 1955 and withdrawn in April 1967, now resident at BaMMot Museum at Wythall.
NRC152 was a Leyland Tiger Cub PSUC1/2 with Willowbrook DP41F bodywork which had been new to Trent in March 1959 as their 152.
Paton Brothers, Renfrew bought no fewer than six of these 1959 ex-Trent Leyland Tiger Cub PSUc1/2s with Willowbrook B41F bodies in 1968. NRC156/4 are seen at the company's Tower Garage in Ferry Road, Renfrew with IZZI's ice cream factory in the background.
This 1959 Trent Leyland PSUC1/2 was probably on its first major journey travelling to Wembley for a Cup Final on 2 May 1959 having only been registered that month, fleet no 154, reg no. NRC154. The destination blind is quite clear.
Trent 155, NRC155, a 1959 Leyland PSUC1/2 with Willowbrook Dual Purpose body on express service X1.
Paton Bros NRC157, a Leyland PSUC1/2 with Willowbrook DP41F bodywork which was new to Trent as their 355 in May 1959. It was acquired by Paton in August 1968 entering service the following month. It wasn't used after December 1975 but was licensed until April 1976. Soon after it passed to a dealer.
A better view of London Road, St Albans and another Trent vehicle, this one is believed to be NRC158 new in May 1959, a Leyland PSUC1/2 with fleet number 158 - a DP41F vehicle again probably doing its first long run.
Trent, Derby 358, NRC160, was one of ten Leyland PSUC1/2 Tiger Cubs with Willowbrook DP41F bodies which had been new as numbers 152 to 161 in 1959. 160 had been renumbered to 358 by the time it was seen here in the parking area at the rear of the bus station in Derby.
RRC232, an AEC Reliance 2MU3RA with Weymann Fanfare C37F body, new as Trent 232 in 1960, and seen here operating for an unidentified operator.
Trent 37, RRC237, an AEC Reliance 2MU3RA with Weymann C37F body, built in 1960.
RRC237, an AEC Reliance with Weymann Fanfare body new to Trent in May 1960. Withdrawn in 1966 and sold to Neath & Cardiff, it then passed to South Wales Transport in 1971, before being sold to W North, dealer, in October 1971.
Lough Swilly, Letterkenny, 120 VCH163, a Leyland Tiger Cub PSUC1/1 built in 1961 with Willowbrook DP41F bodywork.
Purple Motors of Bethesda VCH170, a 1961 Leyland Tiger Cub with Willowbrook DP41F body new to Trent as 170.
Suir Valley Services, Fiddown, Eire, RIP524, an A E C Reliance 2MU3RA built in 1961 with Burlingham Seagull 70 C41F bodywork.
Trent VCH241 was an AEC Reliance with a Burlingham Seagull 70 C41F body new 5/61 to them as fleet no 41. It is seen here in Derby Bus Station awaiting departure on the X1 to Manchester.
Trent 46, VCH241, was an A.E.C. 2MU3RA Reliance with a Burlingham Seagull 70 C41F body new in May 1961 and was seen in Guildhouse Street, Victoria.
Stokes of Carstairs, VCH830, a Leyland Tiger Cub PSUC1/1 built in 1961 with Willowbrook B45F bodywork.
Trent 179, YRC179 on route 5 to Derby, a Leyland PSUC1/1 with Alexander DP41F body new in April 1962.
Trent 187, YRC187, a Leyland Tiger Cub PSUC1/1 with Alexander DP41F body, new in 1962.
Trent 191, YRC191, a Leyland Tiger Cub with Alexander DP41F body and alongside, United Counties 159, 159DRP.
Ex Trent 191, YRC191, a 1962 Leyland Tiger Cub with attractive Alexander DP41F body.
West Wales 71 123FCH, 56 GTH600E and 70 122FCH lined up at Tycroes depot in September 1977. The outer pair are both ex Trent Leyland Leopard PSU3/3RT, being new in December 1963, with Plaxton Panorama C49F coachwork but came to West Wales from Morris of Pencoed. 56 is also a Leyland Leopard PSU3/3R but with Plaxton Derwent B55F bodywork purchased new in 1967.
Trent 221CCH, a Leyland PSU3/1R with Willowbrook DP51F body, new to Trent as no 221 in May 1963.
Trent 619, 619CCH, was a Northern Counties-bodied Daimler Fleetline from 1963.
Trent 620, 620CCH, seen in Derby was a Daimler CRG6LX with a Northern Counties H44/33F body.
Seen leaving Victoria Coach Station on hire to United Counties is Trent 101, HRC101C, a Leyland PSUC1/11T Tiger Cub with Alexander ‘Y’ C41F bodywork.
Seen at Victoria Coach Station, Trent 236, ECH236C, was a Willowbrook DP49F bodied Leyland PSU3/1R Leopard about to operate a Motorway service to Nottingham.
ECH246C, Trent 246, was a Willowbrook DP51F bodied Leyland PSU3/1R Leopard new in 1965, seen here in Derby Bus Station.
Llynfi Motors HRC100C, a 1965 Leyland Tiger Cub/Alexander C41F.
HRC102C, a Leyland Tiger Cub with Alexander C45F body new to Trent, recently acquired for continued preservation in Northern Ireland where it has gained Sureline of Lurgan fleetnames on Trent livery (although it never operated for Sureline).
Seen in Derby Bus Station, Trent HRC489D was fleet number 489 and carried Alexander ‘A’ style H44/33F bodywork on its Daimler Fleetline CRG6LX chassis.
Trent 6, MRC565E, a 1967 Leyland Leopard PSU4/3R with Plaxton coachwork. The all white livery does little for the body lines. This bus is now preserved.
Trent 755, BNU680G, a Bristol VRTSL6G built in 1969 with ECW H39/31F bodywork.
This Plaxton bodied Leyland Leopard PSU4A/4R with Plaxton bodywork was new to Trent in 1970 as their 44, ACH144H.
Preserved Trent 337, SJA352K, a Bristol RELL6L new to North Western in 1971 and passed to Trent the following year.
Trent Bristol VR 629, RCH629L, alongside Fleetline 568, OCH568L, both bodied by ECW, in the parking area near the old bus station in Derby.
Trent 268, PCH268L, was an ECW C49F bodied Bristol RELH6L with bus-grant entrance doors seen in Mersey Square, Stockport.
Trent D18, PCH418L, a Bristol RELH6L built in 1972 with ECW C49F bodywork.
Trent 453CH, an ex-WD AEC Militant new to Trent in 1976, original Reg No 36 BM 04. It was converted by Trent in the Central Works using a lot of ECW parts, as the RE/VR looking front testifies.
Trent Leyland Atlantean 571, ONN571P, with remains of its ECW body after the fire at Meadow Road Derby in July 1976. 571 was brand new and had not even been on the road. It was rebodied by Willowbrook and had a curious PD3 roof. Its now in in preservation. Next to it is 622CCH, a1963 Daimler Fleetline with Northern Counties body, 622 was scrapped. 38 vehicles were lost in the fire. | 2019-04-19T03:10:44Z | http://www.sct61.org.uk/index/operator/tt |
The choice was difficult, but after several hours of research, I finally made my selection of 7 best night lights among more than thirty products available at the moment.
If several have caught my eye (I think in particular the beautiful design of the Ansmann Fox), my preference is clearly Chicco First Dreams Next 2 Stars which, given the many features it offers, is certainly the best quality / price ratio of the moment.
At the end of this article, I suggest you consult my purchasing guide, which I designed to help you in your choice – not so futile – of a good night light for your child.
In this section, you will certainly not find models of night lights ultra equipped, but I propose you only products of quality, which perfectly fulfill their first function: to light and reassure your little end in the deepest part of the night.
I must admit that I particularly fell in love with the design of this small night light. It seems to me straight inspired by Kitsune, this famous Japanese fox, chibi version all cute.
Even unlit, this night light about fifteen centimeters high is the most beautiful effect in a child's room, with its bright colors and relaxing inspiration.
The Ansmann is adapted from an early age, in that it has no small accessories, has a battery compartment properly screwed, and that its materials are TÜV certified, a German certification that certifies compliance product for use by younger people.
Its ignition mechanism is also very simple: it is equipped with a touch sensor. So just touch the night light to start it. Certainly, an infant will not be able to light it himself, but a young child within reach of it will be able to easily turn it on again if necessary. The lighting offers only one tone, but the light is warm, thanks to the orange color of the coating. Rather diffuse, it is not a hindrance to sleep.
Once the night light is on, it remains active for 30 minutes before stopping automatically. This is normally sufficient for the child to enter the deep sleep phase, which ensures that he will not be awakened by this sudden change in ambient light.
And since it is a bulb that does not heat, no danger. You can let the nightlight work in your toddler's room without a second thought.
Its announced autonomy is about 120 hours. In fact, it obviously depends on the batteries you use. It should nevertheless be emphasized that this night light is provided with the purchase with the three batteries necessary for its operation, which is rare enough to be mentioned.
Finally, know that if, really, this little fox does not make you an eye (all tastes are in the nature after all, I do not judge you!), This night light is also declined in other forms, such as the elephant, the mouse, the doe, or the Smurf. All are still accessible at a really mini price.
If this nightlight is a success, it's not for nothing. A collaboration between Philips and Disney can only dream. The quality of manufacture that has made the reputation of the Dutch group associated with the creative world of Disney has indeed enough to delight the youngest and the greatest.
These are small night lights about 8 cm high, with soft silicone coating called "soft pal". This one has several advantages.
First of all, with its soft texture, it is extremely resistant to falls. This is obviously a good point for an object for toddlers. But again, with its soft coating, this night light can also serve as a small blanket.
The flip side? Silicone easily hangs dust. Arm yourself with patience to give your offspring its night light delivered from all impurity after an intensive play session!
This nightlight is adapted from birth, since it is safe, being deprived of small parts, the battery compartment is correctly screwed, and the lamp does not heat with its LED bulb.
Nevertheless, I think it will be around 2 ½ years or 3 years that she will reach his full potential. Indeed, before this age, it is rare that the child is already constituted a passion for a Disney character.
But still, the ignition and extinguishing system, if it is accessible to the little ones, can only really be optimized with a young child who understands perfectly how it works. In fact it's very simple: just tilt it in one direction to turn it on, then in the other direction to turn it off. The light, however, is strong enough to allow the child to look into a picture book, but weak enough to not disturb him in his sleep. There is only one color of lighting, but the effect is rather warm.
And autonomy in all this? It is there that the Romans seized.
There are two versions of these night lights: one on batteries – the cheapest – to which I gave you the link, and the other battery rechargeable via a USB cable. If the seconds, once lit, can hold a full night before being recharged, the first only take 5 minutes.
It's a little bit to my taste, unless you have a child who falls asleep (very) quickly. Now – and this is again why I said that these night lights are more suitable for an older child, nothing prevents him from returning it as many times as necessary, until he 'asleep.
In the end, the Philips Disney are excellent night lights that should delight your child. But if you have the budget, I can not recommend recommending you to go instead to the rechargeable battery version. It is just too bad that the figurines proposed are not the same in both versions.
If you, like me, have a little fan of the Snow Queen at home, you'll have to settle for a battery-powered version.
It is in this section that I propose you the most interesting night lights. Indeed, without constituting too much investment, these night lights are endowed with a multitude of options sometimes (often!) Very practical, as well for baby as for parents.
Is it still necessary to present Chicco, the famous Italian brand specialized in baby products? With its Chicco First Dreams range, it offers a series of smaller lights than the others, but it is probably the Next 2 Stars model that wins the most success.
And that's not surprising. Despite its very affordable price, this nightlight embeds multiple features.
Let's talk about design first. Available in blue and pink, it adapts quite easily to the nursery. This is a light module, which is suspended a small teddy bear-shaped detachable (in case baby wants to appropriate) and washable (convenient for parents!). It can be installed in two ways: either you put it on a bedside table next to the bed, or you can hang it on the horizontal bar of the latter, as long as it does not exceed 3.8 cm.
This night light also has both a light function and a musical function, which can operate independently (the light without music and vice versa). She can easily adapt to baby's needs!
On the light side, there are three modes of operation: night light, mood light or star projector. Basically, it is mainly the intensity of the light that changes in the night mode only the small moon is lit and the stars are already visible (if the night light is near a wall) in light mode. atmosphere. The projected light, it, automatically varies in color (and it is not possible to illuminate only with a predetermined color).
As for music, there is also the choice: classic melodies (which includes 7 melodies each lasting a few minutes, which allows a good roll without too much repetition), New Age melodies or sounds of nature. The volume is also adjustable, so as not to bother baby once he has fallen asleep.
And if the night light goes off automatically after 30 minutes (which normally allows baby, as I already pointed out, to return to its deep sleep phase), the crying sensor automatically switches it on if your baby wake up at night. Just set the type of brightness and the song you want it to revive with, and you can stay comfortably in your bed for a little wake up call (well, if baby agrees to go back to sleep, of course!).
The only downside about this is that there is no possibility to adjust the sensitivity: impossible, therefore, to set a trigger threshold of crying, depending on the ambient noise in the baby room (depending on that you live in the country or in the city, it can quickly make a big difference).
It lacks a rechargeable battery via USB and a possibility to adjust the sensitivity of the sensor crying to be perfect. But at this price, we are not going to quibble!
With the Summer Infant Slumber Buddie, here are the first teddy night lights of my selection. That's why their design is particularly worked.
The model that I propose to you here is the elephant, because I confess that it wins my preference. But many models exist, among which the most famous are the hippopotamus, the butterfly or the rabbit.
It is therefore a night light in the form of plush, that the child can take take safely in his arms (the compartment for the batteries is well screwed), or that can be deposited on the bedside table.
It is for this reason that the brand Summer Infant, unlike many teddy night lights, placed the light module on the back of the animal: once placed on a piece of furniture, the projection towards the ceiling remains optimal, while the animal seems to be sleeping quietly.
It is therefore, you will understand, a projection night light, whose motives are stars and moons. Three projection colors are available: blue, red or green. The blue and green projections are quite aggressive for the eye, but the red projection is very soothing. You can also choose a dimming position between the three colors, or completely turn off the night light to leave only the musical mood.
Because it also makes music: you have the choice between 5 options. Three music, sounds of nature (a sound of water) or heartbeat.
I find, personally, that if the melodies are pretty, they are a little more nasal than the Chicco presented above, and the repertoire quickly becomes quite repetitive. The volume is adjustable on three levels, but some users find that even at the lowest level, the sound remains quite high.
On the other hand, a big advantage of this night light is the available timer: it leaves you the choice of an automatic stop after 15, 30 or 45 minutes. This way, you can easily adapt it to your child's sleep, depending on how easy it is to fall asleep or not.
In the end, it is a good compromise between the night light and the blanket. The advantage of these night lights is, in my opinion, the fact that they can easily be carried everywhere by the child, even when he sleeps elsewhere than in his room. This allows him to keep wherever he is a comforting atmosphere.
Pabobo night lights have been designed as nomadic nightlights par excellence. Compact and lightweight, they fit easily in the hand, and their led bulb without heating allows the child to slip under his sheets without worry.
They are obviously adapted to the little ones, offering them a soft lighting, which allows to see in the room without being dazzled and without disturbing the sleep. But they were especially thought for the older, who around 3 years are often afraid of the dark as they start to be clean at night: neither one nor two, just take his night light with himself to light his way up to the WC. Some users have even reported having invested in 2-3 nightlights, to illuminate all night that path to the toilet.
All night you said? Yes ! Because after a recharge of about 5 hours, the night light can then light up for nearly 70 hours, the nights of a full week.
How it works ? Alone in fact: the night light is equipped with a brightness sensor. It is activated as soon as night falls, and goes out when the dawn comes. Of course, it consumes nothing while it is off, which allows him to save his battery.
It is also very solid: not only it resists falls, but also time: some users have testified to have used the Pabobo daily for several years (3 years on average) before seeing battery defects. The night light remains usable, but only on mains. It is less convenient but we will not lie, it is already an excellent performance.
Finally, again, this night light comes in multiple models and many colors, which allow it to fit almost any child's room. My preference, I believe, goes to the green model with the owl and the rabbit, but all are adorable.
Beyond a certain price, I made the choice to offer you only nightlights with irreproachable material quality and proven durability.
Nevertheless, given their higher price, it is probably not here that you will find the night light at the most interesting price / quality ratio.
Skip Hop is an American company founded in 2003 that has quickly established itself as a flagship brand of baby care in the United States. Their night light owl is also a bestseller across the Atlantic.
First, I must admit that she is really cute (provided you love the owls, of course, but after Harry Potter, rare are those who are not in the case). The design, sober but elegant, is still rather childish, and fits any room.
This is the first nightlight sector of my selection. It must therefore be placed near a power outlet. On the other hand, the arrangement with respect to the wall and the ceiling poses less problems than with other models.
Indeed, even if it has a projection function, the projector is adjustable, which allows you, without moving the owl, to move the projection of stars along the wall or ceiling in the best disposition for baby and with optimal clarity.
In addition to the projector, you can also use this nightlight as a "traditional" night light, simply illuminating the owl's belly. It is also possible to adjust the intensity of the brightness according to your convenience (and that of baby especially).
On the other hand, it is not possible to completely extinguish the belly to let only the music work. It's a shame if baby wants to be in complete darkness while listening to his favorite tune.
As you can see, this night light also has a musical function. 4 melodies are proposed, as well as 4 natural noises (noise of the rain, sounds of the forest, waves or white noise with heartbeats). The volume is also adjustable according to your needs.
What I like in this nightlight, it is its multiple possibilities of adjustment: adjustment of the luminous intensity, the sound volume, and timer. 4 positions are possible: automatic stop after 15, 30 or 60 minutes, or operation until manual stop. This latter option is often adopted by parents in combination with white noise, which seems to work well with the sleep of many babies.
Once you have found the baby's favorite combination, you can save it so that when the next night arrives, it automatically activates when you turn on the night light.
In the end, this night light of Skip Hop, with its nice design, its many settings customization options and its white noise function has something to seduce. I just find it a bit too austere for a child's room, but that's all about personal taste.
If this night light seduces, it is undoubtedly first thanks to its original design. Is it a ladybug? A cute spider (she has eight legs)? Impossible to say, but it has a boiling frankly friendly, able to reassure the little ones with its soft texture (the plastic is covered with a kind of rubber soft to the touch).
His little plus? It emits a light almost entirely devoid of the spectrum of blue light so harmful to our sleep.
Two brightness positions are available: either a reduced position, which acts as a night light, or a strong position, which allows the Lumie Bedbug to be used as a bedside lamp for reading.
Once the sleep time has arrived, it is possible to activate the progressive twilight function: it is a smooth transition to sleep, with a light that gradually decreases while adopting the colors of a real twilight (orange-red). It lasts 15 minutes, after which you can choose whether the lamp goes off completely (if your child tends to fall asleep quickly) or that it continues to illuminate in reduced brightness until you switch it off manually (again, it will is a lamp on mains, which allows lighting all night).
This, of course, is not without reminiscent of light therapy lamps, and therefore we can only recommend a night light that combines with its comforting side for baby the benefits of this technique.
However, in addition to this, the Lumie Bedbug lacks options: no musical function, no nomadic function, or even a progressive wakeup function (which would have been perfectly suited to the light therapy trends it offers). It would not matter (after all, it fulfills the primary functions required of a night light) if its price, by the side, was not so high compared to other models.
In the end, I would recommend this night light to those who really fear the harmful effects of blue light, or those who have a baby quickly disturbed by this spectrum of light or having difficulty falling asleep in a too bright or too dark environment (here, this is done gradually).
But even if its design and trends towards light therapy are very nice, it is clearly not the best quality / price ratio of this comparison.
This is not the number of nightlights missing on the market. And after all, is it really important to choose the night light? In a word, yes! Here's why.
Of course, the first function of the night light is to reassure the toddler, who will probably quickly integrate it into his bedtime ritual. During the night, if he wakes up, it allows him to easily locate his blanket. And when he grows up and begins to fear the dark (I believe that all children go through this stage), she will be an ideal companion to reassure him.
It's not just baby who enjoys the benefits of a night light. Parents too, and maybe even more so than baby himself!
So, with a night light, it's useless to light a big lamp for the change of the night, which usually completes waking baby completely. The same goes for lactating moms, who can easily take baby and rest for a feed at night without having to change the lighting.
But still, it allows you to quickly take a look at him, without having to light or feel it in the dark to see if he is well, which is likely to wake him up too. And, once sleeping baby, it allows you to easily return to the front door, without walking on this damn lego en route (it smells the lived …).
Finally, during the period of bad dreams, it saves you from leaving the corridor door ajar with the light of the landing lit, which turns out, after a night, not very economical.
Of course, there are night lights for all tastes. And if the choice of design is important (after all, you probably have at least 3-4 years to use this small device), I leave you free judgment on this point according to your personal tastes (or those of your child if he is already old enough to speak).
Let's talk directly about what is perhaps the most scary, but probably the most important to consider: the color of the light of your night light.
Contrary to what one might think, a night light diffusing a blue light (which has a soothing connotation) is far from being optimal for baby (nor for an adult besides). Why ?
Blue light (which is a natural part of the light spectrum) is shown to have adverse effects on the body. Studies have shown that it can be a source of many health problems, such as a mood imbalance, hormonal imbalance, loss of energy, suppression of secretion of melatonin (the sleep hormone) and therefore the decrease in the quality of sleep, … It is even suspected of constituting an increased risk of cancer!
And without going so far in the allegations, it has just been proven that blue light stimulates attention, which is obviously contrary to the purpose for a night light.
In fact, even if your instinct pushes you to believe the opposite, you have to favor a spectrum of red or orange light.
But do not make me say what I did not say: there are many night lights offering a spectrum of colors, changing as time goes by. Of course, blue is usually part of it. Do not ban that nightlight. This blue light simply does not have to take precedence over others.
The power of the night light is important. Not powerful enough, it turns out to be useless. Too powerful, it will prevent baby sleep (this is often the case with bedside night lights).
There is a fairly simple test to judge the power of your night light. Once in complete darkness, turn it on, position yourself roughly where your child sleeps and close your eyes. Turn your head in different directions and see if you "see" the light from the night light through your eyelids.
If so, it is probably too powerful to guarantee a good sleep for your child.
There are three types of power supply for a night light: mains, battery (often with a possibility of recharging via USB) or batteries.
The advantage of the first is that it often has a better longevity, since it does not have a battery likely to wear out with use.
The advantage of battery or battery operated night lights is that they can be placed almost anywhere. You are not dependent on the distribution of the shots in the room.
Some nightlights work with a replaceable bulb, like a traditional lamp, while others have an immovable bulb. If you want a long-term investment, the former are probably preferable.
But again, the type of bulb can be important for the safety of the child. Indeed, a Led bulb will heat much less than an incandescent bulb or a halogen lamp.
The number of options available is almost as large as the number of nightlights on the market. And while some may be "gadget", others are rather practical, even indispensable.
Although this is often the case today, not all nightlights offer a music feature. Yet this is a point often appreciated by baby in his bedtime ritual.
In my opinion, two factors are important to consider in this regard. On the one hand, it is preferable that this function be dissociated from the light function, so that it is possible for you to turn on the light without necessarily turning on the music and vice versa. Baby, like you, sometimes enjoys moments of silence … But that does not mean that he does not need to be reassured by his kindly light!
On the other hand, it is important that the melodies are repetitive enough to introduce a comforting ritual for baby, but varied enough to not make you goat every time you turn on your little one's night light (believe I knew this with my daughter, and I'm glad she finally stopped using this night light to fall asleep, my hair bristles as soon as I hear it!).
As the name suggests, this feature allows you to project an image on the wall or ceiling. It is often a spectacle appreciated by baby, especially when this projection varies, whether in its forms or in its colors.
The only constraint is the placement of the night light: if it is not at a good distance, the images can be too small, deformed, or even invisible.
This can quickly be problematic if it is a mains light, which must be positioned at a time depending on the placement of the socket and the ceiling.
Some night lights continue to operate until you turn them off (most of them are on mains lights) while others have a timer.
If this one is generally set by default for an immutable duration (for example: 30 minutes), some propose a real adjustable timer according to your needs.
There are models that automatically restart at certain times: either when they hear noise like the baby crying, or when they detect that it is really too dark in the room.
This is a special type of night light, where the light module is integrated in a real plush, in the manner of the cubs Chicco Firs Dreams, where the teddy belly serves as both a light projection module and a 'musical ambiance.
The advantage of such a night light is that it is a two-in-one: baby has both a blanket and a night light to accompany his nights. If I am personally a fan (it is the one that owns my son), I recognize that it can have disadvantages: baby can thus directly stick his eyes against the source of light, which is far from being optimal, and positioning in the bed makes the projection on the ceiling sometimes quite random.
Other options may be present, but they are often, in my opinion, redundant in that they are usually already found on other devices such as baby monitors.
En voici quelques-unes en vrac : thermomètre, capteur d’humidité, capteur de mouvements,… À vous de voir ce dont vous avez réellement besoin et ce que vous n’utiliserez jamais. Inutile de mettre le prix pour rien ! | 2019-04-24T23:52:51Z | http://ringtumphi.com/the-7-real-best-nightlights-2019/ |
Las Vegas, NV, 1/2/2008–It did not take long for the story of the tiger escape at the San Francisco Zoo on Christmas Day 2007 to be national headlines. Of course, this incident has been raised to the point of sensationalism. It has been like throwing ‘white Tofu to the animal rights radicals’ who are already demanding the tiger exhibit be permanently closed. Although this is a tragic incident, the fact that such incidents are very uncommon is being ignored by the press. So, instead of focusing on what went wrong at the SF zoo that day, this paper will try and examine what didn’t go wrong, and show that there were other forces at work that inadvertently (or intentionally) have added up to make this situation that much worse.
The first thing I want to point out is that a number of people died on Christmas Day in San Francisco. I do not have exact statistics, but I am sure there were some fatal car accidents in the Bay area. There are fatal accidents every day, and these kinds of accidents do not take breaks on holidays. But, did you hear of any of them in the news? No, you probably didn’t. Are the people killed in these accidents any less dead than the boy killed by the tiger? No. It is also very likely the boy who was killed in the tiger attack suffered less then do many vehicle accident victims. You don’t hear about that, either.
There are two persistent ‘observations’ about this incident that keep coming out, and are very likely the truth.
2.) The tiger escaped by jumping a moat wall.
Lets look at number 1 first. You cannot design anything that can prevent every accident every time when the cause is deliberate human stupidity. In the weeks before this incident, there was a man killed in a zoo in India because he crossed over the barrier fence, to try and get a better picture of a tiger. He was being warned not to cross the fence by officials, but did so, anyway. He stuck his hand and camera inside the fence. Both tigers then attacked him. A day or two later, a young girl crossed the barrier at another zoo in Malaysia, and gets clawed by a leopard. The parents were there and did not stop the girl. Unlike this country, the zoo can press charges against the parents for failure to properly control their child. Then, just 5 days after the fatal incident in India, another man jumps into a tiger enclosure at another zoo in India. This man escaped with fairly minor injuries, but he was dragged around a bit by a tiger. Turns out this is the second time in a year that this man has done this.
The point of all of this is they human stupidity can trump the best enclosure design. The only way to make a tiger exhibit completely safe from idiots is to not build it. And, I can think of plenty of good reasons to build a tiger exhibit despite the idiots.
Now, let’s take a reasoned look at number 2. The San Francisco Zoo’s tiger ‘grotto’ was built in the 1940’s. This was at a time when most zoos were keeping their big cats in barred cages. This exhibit was nearly two decades ahead of its time when it was built, and was undoubtedly quite a sensation. One of the unique features of this exhibit was the use of a ‘dry moat’– a feature that eliminated the need for any kind of a visible barrier between the animals and the general public. The moat is 33 feet across– farther then even the most athletic tiger could ever jump. The tigers could go down into the moat– probably planned as a safety feature if one did try to jump– and get back out again via a set of ‘tiger stairs’. The front wall of the moat, the wall everyone is concerned about, is 12.5 feet high.
The Association of Zoos and Aquariums (formerly the American Zoo and Aquarium Association or AZA) has an enclosure height standard of 16.4 feet, which just happens to be exactly 5 meters!. Its interesting that they would have picked such a round number (in metric, nonetheless!). This suggests to me that their standard is unnecessarily high. The other zoo accrediting body in the US, the Zoological Association of America (ZAOA) has a height standard of a 12 foot straight fence, or 10 foot, with a two foot recurve section (total 12 feet). This same organization has a 10 foot fence, with a four foot recurve (total height 14 feet) for an enclosure that houses cougars. The purpose of the recurve is that a cat cannot readily climb a fence while partially upside down. They are less inclined to jump at such a fence, as there is nothing under it to ‘scramble’ on. Lions and tigers are not good climbers, but cougars are. That is why the fence requirements are greater for a cougar. The ZAOA does not make any additional distinctions for a moat wall vs. a fence, other than moats have to be approved on a case-by-case basis.
The Feline Conservation Federation (FCF), is a group that represents many smaller facilities and private keepers of big cats. They are a fairly new group in the accreditation business. They have a requirement in their ‘model regulation’ of a 12 foot vertical fence, topped by either a 2 foot recurve section (total height 14 feet), or two runs of electricified ‘hot wire’. Moat walls are not specifically discussed in the FCF regulation, as this kind of expensive construction is beyond the scope of most facilities that would be seeking accreditation from them.
In all fairness, a fence and moat wall is actually different ‘animals’ when it comes to confining a big cat. A 12 foot fence is going to be very difficult for a cat to jump, as they can see that there is nothing on the other side. Thus, if they jump up to the top, it is a long distance down on the other side. Even with the small flat area at the top afforded by a recurve, they cannot perceive this as a ‘landing zone’ because it is projecting out from an already tall wall. Even if a cat could get a paw on to the fence edge, the dynamic forces of the cat’s momentum, along with the natural give of a fence, would make it very difficult for it to hang on. A moat on the other hand, typically has a flat area at the top big enou8gh for the cat to ‘land’. Thus, a fence is potentially more effective at keeping a cat in, than a moat wall of the same height. But given these statistics, how high does a moat wall really have to be?
Apparently, tigers have been unsuccessfully testing this moat wall for years. About 10 years ago, a zoo visitor saw a tiger actually get a paw on the ground just over the moat wall edge. Upon asking a nearby keeper about this, the keeper remarked ‘she does that all the time. She hates my guts’. This zoo patron resigned her membership over this, but never heard back from the zoo. Apparently, no changes were made. Today, this is being used as a ‘case’ to show that zoo officials knew the wall height was inadequate. Or, was it? No tiger did escape in the ten years that followed. And, apparently, the keepers who knew about this felt that the tigers never got a firm enough grip to pull themselves out of the moat.
2.) doing something to antagonize the tiger.
So, an angry tiger is in the moat, and is eying her ‘tormenters’. She makes a super-tiger jump to get at them, and finds that she has gotten enough momentum to clear the moat wall. She manages to scramble out and attack one of these men.
There has been conjecture that the tiger may have had some help. A board or a rope may have been used to either entice the cat, or arrange for a deliberate escape. Another theory suggests that the tiger may have been able to grab a low-hanging tree branch and pull herself out. Regardless of how the cat got out, it likely required considerable extra effort on her part.
When the tiger was examined after it was shot, it was found to have ‘wear on its back claws’. This suggests that this tiger may have been ‘testing’ this wall before the incident. Most likely, she had been ‘testing’ the wall for some time. But, she had never been able to get out. But under these circumstances, with a couple of belligerent young men being where they were not supposed to be, likely yelling and throwing objects at the cat, it was enough to get her angry enough to make this ‘extra effort’ jump. Thus the tiger, had it not bee provoked, would have likely not been able to jump the wall. I conclude that the escape was a result of a combination of unlikely things, most importantly, a tiger that had been riled up by egregiously misbehaving zoo visitors.
So, how high does that moat wall have to really be to prevent an escape? The vast majority of the time, 12. 5 feet. Under extraordinary situations like this, I bet six additional inches would have been all that was needed to prevent this escape. Or, a hot wire or two along the top edge of the moat.
It is hard to call the zoo negligible for a moat wall that has successfully worked for nearly 70 years!
Now, lets look at something else that didn’t work that day, but most likely worked as well as it could have– the zoo’s emergency plan.
Emergency plans are great things. Most businesses have them. But, do the plans work? Short of an emergency, they are rarely tested. Furthermore, emergency plans are written to cover the most likely emergencies. The only emergency plans that truly work are those that are tested regularly with well-designed drills. Few businesses spend a lot of time doing drills, as this eats into employee productivity and the bottom line. Drills that are repeated too frequently also tend to lose their effectiveness, as people get bored with them.
The zoo is under heavy criticism for its emergency plan not working. But look at the circumstances. It was Christmas day. It was towards the end of the day. It was growing dark. I am sure that the staff at that time was the minimum needed to keep the zoo open so that as many as possible could be home with family. Those that were on duty were not likely the ‘first string’ staff. The veterinary staff, the ones that could tranquilize an escaped animal, was likely not there that day. The members of the ‘shooting team’ refereed to in the press were probably not there, either. This is the worst possible situation in which to have a major emergency occur. But, it is at times like this when really off-the-wall emergencies seem to occur.
The failure of the emergency plan to not function is understandable under this extraordinary situation at the worst of times. But what is even more extraordinary is the response of the city Government. Their reaction is typical of a Governmental body. They have no grasp of what goes on day-to-day at a zoo. They seem to believe that something can be 100 percent foolproof. And, if something is not 100 percent foolproof, they believe that it can be made 100 percent foolproof. They call into question decisions made years ago (transferring the operation of the zoo into private hands), that very likely had no bearing on the current situation. In fact, I will surmise the zoo staff’s response may have been worse had it been staffed by Government employees who were operating under considerably more bureaucracy.
Based on what has been reported in the press, the retribution of the city’s Government against the zoo is likely to be severe. I bet that between the AZA, and the various Governmental bodies interposing themselves in this disaster, if the zoo doesn’t end up hidebound with new regulations and requirements that will actually result in a greater likelihood of a future accident. And significantly degrade the zoo visitor’s experience when visiting the zoo. Only time will tell if cooler heads will prevail.
Last but not least, is the police who shot the tiger. In a life-and-death situation, protecting people comes first. But, there seems to be a tendency in situations like this for ‘the police to play with their guns’. Most versions of the story report that the tiger, when it was distracted, started coming on to the police officers. Shooting the cat in this situation is understandable, and fully justifiable. Another version of the story reports that the officers were distracting the cat with the full intent of wasting it when it was clear of the victim. The life-and-death situation in mind, if there was any reasonable chance that an endangered animal like this tiger could have been safely contained, it should have been. But, I would not be surprised if the police had not yet talked with zoo staff yet, to see what is possible.
There is a reason I am being so critical of the police reaction in this situation. There seems to be a tendency of police to be ‘trigger happy’ when dealing with animals. A recent incident involves police responding to the home of a man. When the man opened the door, he was with a big German shepherd dog. Even though the dog made no threatening moves, the officer just shot it. Luckily in this case, the dog survived. In another case, police were shooting at a snake in a tree. Hardly a dangerous situation. One of the stray shots hit a child who was in a boat on the other side of some bushes (this was by a river or lake shore), and killed him. This officer lost his badge. In Florida a couple years ago, police shot a tiger that ran out of some bushes. There was no clear indication the tiger was planning to attack. But, the tiger was gunned down. Later, the officer was heard boasting about what he had done, which only enraged the grieving cat owner. Last, but not least, there was the case of a police officer that visited a zoo where a friend of mine was working as a big cat keeper. The officer told this person, without any real provocation to say this, ‘If any of those cats ever get out, we will just have to shoot it’. This made my friend (who is himself a firearms expert) very upset that an officer of the law would take a ‘kill first and ask questions later’ attitude without considering the circumstances.
To sum this all up, what I am trying to say here is that the San Francisco Zoo was not harboring a ‘ticking time bomb that could go off any moment’ in the form of a very slightly inadequate enclosure design. Furthermore, they were not ‘grossly negligent’ in having this event happen. Bizarre incidents like this occur in all walks of life, when we least expect them. The zoo should be allowed to make their changes, and get on with life. They do not need to be slapped with all sorts of new rules and sanctions. They do not need the degrading harassment of the animal rights people. Their own internal mechanisms for dealing with disasters should be allowed to function as unimpeded as possible. And, this should serve as a reminder that the ‘nut cases’ are out there and nothing that can be done will ever be enough to prevent them from sometimes ‘succeeding’. So trying to make a ‘100 percent safe’ tiger exhibit would only succeed in making a ‘100 percent poor tiger exhibit’.
Cut the zoo some slack!
Tim Stoffel can be reached at [email protected] Visit his website for more.
8 users commented in " Of Tiger Walls and Tragedies: Thoughts on the San Francisco Zoo Tiger Incident "
Great commentary on the incident, it seems to be more level headed than most and certainly has some valid points. However it does miss one thing that I’d like to mention. Something that I’ve not seen mentioned anywhere else and is easily the most shocking part of the whole story (to me at least). That is the lack of CCTV (closed circuit television). I’m appalled the AZA, or the ZAOA, or the FCF do not have a mandatory requirement for CCTV on perimeters of animal enclosures – maybe they do but it has still not been mentioned in the press. The cost of CCTV is probably as low as it has ever been and if it were set up in the zoo this whole debacle could have been prevented.
It’s partly because I come from the UK where CCTV is literally on every street corner that this shocks me so much but I can’t believe that this simple form of security surveillance is not in place and not mandatory for certain animals in zoos!
Does anyone have any information regarding CCTV and zoos in the USA?
One of the best commentaries I’ve read on the incident so far.
I liked your comment about the tiger putting his paw on the ledge…my husband is a retired zoo keeper…tigers hated him, too.
I haven’t done the stats…not enought time…but I’m thinking, when you consider the number of people who visit a zoo each day, and the low number of incidences, the zoo has to be quite a safe place.
I just hope the San Francisco Zoo makes it okay after this.
Very well written with a sensible- rather than sensationalized- approach. We will all see or hear about many horrible accidents happening over our life time, especially those not involving animals. Using animals to exploit an agenda of no human/animal interaction of any kind is part of the exremist animal rights activists arsenal, definitely sensationalized. I choose to live WITH rather than without and accept the very minimal risk involved.
Thanks for such an excellent post. But I have point for consideration and perhaps you can refute this.
Now, I have read that security was seriously undermanned at nights, after hours. Do the tigers at the SF Zoo stay in the grotto at night? If so, how do we know that the tiger has never been able to get out? Maybe she succeeded in getting out some nights, and leapt back in afterwards. If no one was around, maybe no one would notice this. I know this may sound ridiculous, but if she was truly testing it for a long time…maybe she had absolute confidence that she could get out if she ever really wanted to. OK I suppose there would be evidence of paw prints.
There is a reason why the regulations usually say “adequate” protection for the public rather than “absolute.” It is because there is only so far that any owner can go and then has to stop spending money. It is also because due diligence is satisfied at some point.
Very well thought out and well written, good article.
Thanks for this piece which is what I call responsible journalism instead of the major news channels sensationalizing this unfortunate incident (for the tiger).
Tatiana attacked a zoo keeper Dec 22, 2006. She tasted human blood then. She may well have escaped at night, previously and returned to the grotto. The attack on the three young men happened at closing, at dusk, mid winter. If I were a tiger, that’s when I would make my lunge for my favorite newly acquired taste. The risk was known, and ignored. When the attack / escape occurred zoo went into delay / silence / panic prevention mode. They delayed the cops. They have refused to answer 20 questions submitted by the SFBG. The questions were well put, by a person experienced in handling big cats. Arrest them, starting right at the top. Try them for murder.
No, Tigers do NOT prefer the taste of humans, and it’s recorded that Tatiana reverted back to her normal behavior, the day after the feeding. The keeper feeding her dropped the food, and never should have reached for it, thus causing the sequence of events. Heck, even my my favorite house cat will mistake my fingers for food and nip me, whenever I feed her rare steak!
Tatiana’s nails were broken, and evidently happened that night – new reports in, are that she was indeed taunted by the 3 men. I wonder about the 4th man, that the woman who reported, went? Until this transpired today, she was doubted. At the level of alcohol that was in the young men’s systems, and taking into the fact they were wasted on pot, I don’t see how they could’ve stood on the thin rail!
We have only just begun to hear a fraction of the real truth. I bet the brothers will be tried for involuntary manslaughter on their friend, whom they never showed concern over, that night. | 2019-04-19T06:57:27Z | http://www.bloggernews.net/112818 |
A fairly strong cyclone developed far off of Northern California on December 25 to 26, 2002, and then raced generally northeastward toward Washington's Olympic Peninsula. The track is detailed in Figure 1, above. With a minimum pressure of about 989 mb (29.21"), the low's center made landfall between 09:00 and 10:00 PST on December 27. Winds escalated south of the low's track as the storm swept inland, with south to southwest gusts reaching 50 to 65 mph at many locations on the coast, and 40 to 55 mph at many places in the interior.
According to National Weather Service storm spotter reports, damage to structures and trees occurred in coastal communities, with scattered power outages. From personal contacts in the region, power was also lost at isolated locations in the greater Seattle area, including Bellevue. I saw some trees and large branches down in the Portland Metro area, with brief brownouts occurring at my home during the gale. A wooden fence was smashed by a large limb on E. Burnside near 39th.
According to the Oregonian, an Olympia boy was electrocuted to death from a fallen powerline . Outages were reported in Gresham, Cedar Hill and Banks. Two Gresham women were injured when a large branch broke from a tree and landed on them. Highways in the Coast Range, such as heavily-travelled 26, were blocked by fallen trees.
The Seattle Times reported that the storm cancelled power to about 260,000 customers in the greater Puget Sound Area . Most outages were in East King County. Two people were injured--one by a pickup canopy that took to the air in the gale. A wind gust threw a tractor-trailer rig onto its side on the Tacoma Narrows Bridge, forcing closure of the important commuter link. The Lake Washington floating bridges remained open.
20:37 HRS: (Portland, OR) Rain is approaching heavy--this just escalated. Precip began at 14:20 during the Tabor walk, held steady for awhile, then faded by 17:03, after 0.06" had fallen with generally calm winds. Now the rain is thudding on the window, and gusts are reaching 10 mph out of the east. The baro is 29.81" falling, temp 41.3 F, digirain 6.7020" [for the month] (0.07" since 19:58 HRS). This is the leading precip of a deepening low that was at 42 N 135 W around 14:00, 994 mb, and is expected to make landfall on the Olympic Peninsula as a 985-990 system. This could very well be a windstorm, even for us. There's a chance the low could track further south, say over the mouth of the Columbia, which could really mean wind for us. So the weather folk are watching this one very closely. I'll be getting the latest update from the web soon. 20:39 HRS.
21:44 HRS: OK, according to the 03:00 Z (19:00 PST) surface analysis, the low was down to 992 mb and was located at 43 N 131 W still heading on a NE track. Tight gradients are starting to pack across NW CA at this time, and local barometers are starting to fall more quickly. Gradients like OTH-AST and AST-UIL are going negative right now (-0.9 mb and -1.5 respectively), the mark of a low still off the southern coast and beginning to influence Oregon conditions more strongly. ACV-OTH grad starting to pick up: +8.8 mb, up from +3.3 four hours ago. NWS, Portland, 20:05 forecast discussion says this low is right on track for that WA landfall--surface conditions are falling in line with the model runs. Looks like some fun weather for tomorrow morning! Currently: 29.74" falling rapidly, 39.3 F (and falling, too!), rain w/stratus, 6.8320", and E winds up to 13 mph at times, doing 3-5 right now. 21:53 HRS.
03:30 HRS: We're getting brief heavy showers imbedded in light, misty precip now. Winds are SE gusting to 10 mph, with a 1-min velocity of 7 at 03:11. The temp is slowly rising at 43.1 F. A warm front is approaching as the low continues to race toward the Olympic Peninsula. Temps on the coast have risen into the mid-50s, and winds have escalated significantly. Gusts to 58 mph at Newport this hour, with steady SW 40. Light east winds at Astoria and 43-45 F switched to S at 24 mph gusting to 36 at 01:55, with a temp climb to 55. The 02:55 OBS shows a peak to 41 mph and 56. The warm front has also struck Eugene. At 22:54, the temp was 42 F and it was calm. Winds shot in out of the S at 23:54 and the temp rose to 48; now, at 02:54, S winds are 23 mph gusting to 30 and the temp is 52 (High 53 01:53). The warm front hit Salem around 01:56, and now they're gusting to 30 mph with 50 F. Hasn't reached Aurora yet--calm and 43 F there at 02:53. The low center is nearing the coast--baro at 29.37" at the Columbia River Bar Buoy 46029. Still falling. South winds 34 mph gusting to 40, max 45 at 02:00.
Hmmm... After reaching 29.56" about 15 mins ago, the baro is now reading 29.58" here. Back to 29.57" again (03:45). I think the warm front is nearing. Digirain is at 7.1384" now (03:49).
I'm printing out the latest surface charts... 09:00 Z (01:00 PST) North America shows the low at 45 N 128.5 W now, with a 990 mb (29.23") center. I'd expect the Columbia River buoy to get close to this minimum pressure as the system makes landfall. Strong gradient south of the low, shallower north. Interestingly, Olympia's METAR showed a north gust to 29 mph last hour. What's going on there? A spotter reported strong winds at Sedro Wooley, too.
Things are getting active, it seems. Baro is now at 29.54", digirain 7.1580" with light rain still falling, temp 43.1 F, winds SE at 5 mph. 03:58 HRS.
Photo 1, below: Base of a tree that fell over during the windstorm near 62nd and East Ankeny. Saturated soil from nearly 7.50" of rain during the previous 2.5 weeks, and a dead, rotting root system, probably contributed to this windfall.
04:18 HRS: The low is now decidedly going into Washington. At 04:00 OBS, Forks was at 29.34" F, and Astoria 29.41" F, so the AST-UIL gradient went positive in the last hour. What a contrast--south winds 35 mph gusting to 54 at Astoria now, with 56 F. At Hoquiam, E 23 mph gusting to 30 with a cold 37 F (and rain). Looks like the warm front went through Aurora, as they're at 47 F now with light south winds. That pressure change (at 03:45) may indeed have been the front. The cold air may be deeper here at the mouth of the [Columbia River] Gorge, and will take longer to erode. East winds still strong at Troutdale--20 mph gusting to 28. At the rate things are progressing, it looks like whatever wind event we get will be a mid-morning affair.
Temp 43.3 F, baro 29.53" F, digirain 7.2436" with a solid, saturating moderate rain still falling. Wind still around 5 mph. 04:27 HRS.
Photo 2, below: Wide view of the same tree shown in photo 1, above.
06:04 HRS: The south winds have begun, and with some force. The gust register is now at 27.7 mph and the Nor'Easter (NER) has hit 28 so far. Some of these gusts are rattling the screen doors. This wind picked up suddenly around 05:42, with gusts to 20 mph. The temp has warmed! Now 49.1 F--was 43.1 not long ago. We had one long sustained gust that did 26-26-27-25 [26 mph average for 10 seconds] on the NER, shoving the Vigilant (VNT) gust register ever higher!
High wind warnings are up all over Western Washington, and the Oregon Coast/Coast Range. Winds are expected to quickly escalate to 30 to 40 mph with gusts to 60 mph mid-morning. This includes Kelso, Toledo and north to Seattle and Bellingham. The Willamette Valley is in a 20 to 30 mph with gusts to 45 forecast, which is fairly standard for lows diving into the NW tip of the Olympic Peninsula.
Looking at the 06:00 official OBS: Astoria S 35G49 mph and 29.40" R, Newport SW 38G58 29.64" R... Aurora S 22G33 29.56" and...and Corvallis SW 30G46! Slamming the Mid Valley. Salem S 20G31 29.56" R. With that Corvallis reading, it looks like there's some potential here. In WA... Forks SE 8 but baro 29.26" F, and Hoquiam joined the southerly club with S 26G39 and 29.35" F. For here, current, 49.6 F, 29.54", 7.3792", and recent gusts to 27 mph. 06:19 HRS.
Photo 3, below: Typical branch broken by the windstorm. This plume, which had a 1.75" base diameter, fell at the top of Mt. Tabor. Limbs such as this rained down at many points in the park, with larger ones crashing into the children's play area and on the mountain's southwest side.
12:18 HRS: Wow, we had ourselves a genuine minor windstorm. My peak gust was a slamming 45 mph at 09:44. We've had many gusts of 30-36 mph, some sustained for long periods. The next highest gust was 39.5 mph at 08:47. 'Twas fun, though I'm quite worn out. Not much sleep!
The low, which deepened to 989 mb as it landed on WA, came ashore between Hoquiam and Quillayute, and then raced between Everett and Bellingham. Nothing but north winds at Bellingham, with gusts in the 50s out of the SE at Everett. The winds have just escalated in the past few hours in the Puget Lowlands. At 12:00 Sea-Tac had S winds at 31G48 mph, Renton S 28G49, and Boeing Field S18G40. Sea-Tac reported a peak of 52 mph that hour. Looks like gusts of 45-55 up there, while we had 35-45. Max EUG-PDX gradient was +5.8 mb, and the PDX-SEA has reached +10.3--fairly strong for the latter. Peak ACV-UIL was around +23.9 mb. A decent storm!
Photo 4, below: A large Douglas-fir branch, with a 3" base diameter, landed next to a trail on the southwest side of Mt. Tabor.
20:05 HRS: A recent isolated shower kicked the digirain to 7.5532" by 19:33 HRS, dropping 0.13" in the hour leading up to the OBS. The rain total is starting to look interesting.
Damage on Mt. Tabor was generally limited to twigs and small branches. Quite a few Douglas-fir limbs fell, most of the larger ones "falling" in the range of 0.5" to 1.5" base diameter with lengths of 3 to 6 feet--not my 2" minimum diameter requirement for "major damage" category. Four Doug-fir branches rated major damage, two of which were just barely there with 2" diameters. One long branch still hung from its parent tree by a strand of bark--this one was at least 3" in diameter and about 25 feet long. There was another with a 3" diameter that struck ground and broke in two. I sense brittleness with much of the damage--many a Doug-fir branch, even the smaller ones, broke into 2 or 3 sections upon hitting the ground. Other major damage included a partially uprooted hawthorne above the lower reservoir, and an uprooted dead ornamental from a yard on East Ankeny between 61st and 62nd. Both these trees may have been victims of the heavy rain, which probably weakened the trees' footholds in the ground. It is interesting that this strongest-of-windstorms of the season so far didn't really cause significantly more damage than earlier, weaker, events. Seems like the earlier storms cleaned out much of the material waiting to go. 20:20 HRS.
Photo 5, below: This large branch, broken in the gale, still managed to cling to its parent tree.
07:15 HRS: Today I'm going to Renton, to see if any damage occurred in the [Puget Power] Powerlines.
10:42 HRS: (Scatter Creek Rest Area, south of Olympia, WA, on I-5) Windstorm damage up the I-5 corridor was almost nil in Vancouver (I-205), with scattered broken limbs--willow, alder and Douglas-fir--up to about Kelso. Some dead trees from recent drought [and related fires on the freeway's shoulder] broke along the first 50 miles, and beyond. Near Exit 59, a large two-posted highway sign was shoved over (wooden posts), and from that point, a few live trees were broken, usually alder along the narrow greenways. Maybe two or three total from MP 59 to here. On big Doug-fir fell to the right side of the road just a few miles south of here (MP 88 roughly). This is the largest tree that I've seen down, maybe 20-24" diameter, quite tall, green. Its base shattered. A small road sign was also down near Centralia at an on-ramp. Lots of small branches broken here at the rest stop, mastly Doug-fir. 10:56 HRS.
Photo 6, below: This large birch broke in a Renton, WA, woodlot located in the eastern highlands.
12:13 HRS: (Phillip Arnold Park, Renton, WA) On I-5, there was heavy branch damage in the Fort Lewis area, then surprisingly little up to about Federal Way. A two-poster highway sign was blown down near MP 147. The single-poster "Entering Sea-Tac" sign was also blown down near MP 151. Both these signs had wooden posts. Wet soil conditions probably contributed to their toppling. I saw one broken alder on the hill just north of the Sea-Tac sign along I-5, and a Doug-fir that had dropped several large branches just ahead of the sign down near MP 147. Maybe a small alder down along the Renton exit from 167. Looks like some tree damage in the Powerlines. I'm going to check that out on foot. 12:20 HRS.
Photo 7, below: This is the same birch as in Photo 6. Close inspection of the base reveals discolored wood reaching into the heart right along the tree's braeak. This tree had been dead for some time before the windstorm struck, compromising the trunk's strength.
15:01 HRS: Back to the car from a fruitful trip through the Powerlines. The Northern Woodlot [which borders Phillip Arnold Park] lost two big birches. One snapped at the base, one uprooted. The snapped one was of ill health, with the heartwood breginning to rot. The uprooted tree also appeared recently dead, with brittle roots. Of course, the soil is also saturated. A small birch uprooted next to the bigger--their branches may have been entangled. A large very dead alder also broke near the Phillip Arnold tennis courts. Among the trees that line the rugged (south) road that goes to Phillip Arnold Park, a very large, but dead, birch uprooted and crashed across a mountain bike trail. Next to it, a smaller dead willow also crossed the trail on its way down. These are on the west side of the road, near the Northern Woodlot. On the east side nearby, an alder lost part of its top, and a large branch. The tree was alive, but not in the best of health. Not much more tree damage elsewhere along the road, and the gravel Puget Power road to the Southern Woodlot.
Photo 9, below: This fairly healthy alder, in a Renton highlands woodlot, lost its top in the gale.
The Southern Woodlot itself had tree damage. The most memorable was two alder trees that broke in close proximity to each other. One was fairly healthy, and it broke high up, maybe 20-25' off the ground. A massive "alder spear," a pointy wedge of wood from the base of the broken bough, maybe 8-10 feet long, sheared off and crashed to the ground with the top. The shattered tree blockaded the main mountain bike trail right near some serious jumps--new ones, in fact, made after my last visit. As I was photographing this windfall, two mountain bikers showed up and needed the tree out of the way of their jumps. We all got together and yanked the massive bough from the trail as best we could.
Photo 10, below: This is the same alder as in Photo 8. A large wedge of wood, a fairly common occurrence when alders break that I term an alder spear, sheared off the tree when the top snapped. Close examination of the middle of the spear shows discolored (darker brown) wood, again right in the break. This tree had previous injury, which appears to have compromised the tree's wind resistance.
The other alder also lost its top, a big chunk, but it was clearly diseased and ready to go. A dead, rotting, alder covered in ivy also went down. A dead birch lost its top, as did a live willow, at the west (lower) end of the woodlot. 15:33 HRS.
Photo 11, below: This large alder, near the tree depicted in Photos 9 and 10, was likewise beheaded by the windstorm. A clear hollow in the middle of the trunk, and degrading bark, reveal that this tree had passed its prime, and had become more wind-prone. It appears that a windstorm from many years ago--perhaps January 20, 1993 or December 12, 1995--broke this tree's original top off, exposing the heartwood to the elements. Over the years, the tree grew a substantial new top, seen to the lower left of the trunk, which added increasing weight to the tree. Simultaneously, the main trunk had weakened from heartwood rot. Finally, in appears conditions had reached a point where a marginal windstorm like December 27, 2002 could break the tree.
17:30 HRS: (Olympia, WA) On southbound I-5, again in the Sea-Tac area, a triple-post highway sign was down near MP 151. This one had metal posts. Looks like the bolts securing the sign to its foundation sheared off. Then, down at MP 143, another sign was down--triple-poster again, but wood. That area seemed to be the hardest hit on my route (MP 143-151). 17:33 HRS.
Photo 12, below: A broken, dead, scouler willow from the Renton Highlands. Human homes aren't the only ones that can suffer the consequences of a windfall. In this case, what appears to be a squirrel nest was thrown into some shrubs.
The surface map for 10:00 HRS PST is shown in Figure 2, below. These are the conditions at approximately the time of my peak gust of 45 mph (09:44), and when winds just began reaching gale force in the greater Seattle area. Note the closely-packed isobars reaching from central Oregon to northern Washington. The isobars are oriented almost west-east over the region, a nearly ideal situation for strong ageostrophic (jumping the gradient) winds in the south-to-north trending valleys, such as the Willamette and the Puget Lowlands. The pressure gradient was strong, but a number of storms on record have exceeded this storm's highest values (more on gradients below).
The 8-km resolution infrared satellite picture, Figure 3, below, shows the cloud conditions at the same time as the surface map above. The dry slot had become somwhat ill-defined by this time, which the storm's center in the gray area over the Olympic Peninsula. This cyclone didn't have a strongly developed bent-back occlusion, as evidenced by the warmer (darker) cloud tops north of the storm's center, when compared to say, the February 7, 2002 South Valley Windstorm and the December 16, 2002 storm. The bent-back was of moderate strength at best, though Bellingham did report brief heavy rain out of this feature from 11:08 to 11:10, then moderate rain up to 12:00, which totalled 0.15" from 11:53 to 12:00. Wind gusts out of 290 reached 18 mph at 11:53 HRS.
Source: Satellite photo is courtesy of the University of Washington Archives for weather data. Bellingham's rain data is from the National Weather Service, Seattle office, METAR reports.
The peak gusts for this windstorm are shown in the map below, Figure 4. This cyclone lashed the immediate coastline of Oregon and Southwest Washington with 55 to 75 mph gusts, the Willamette Valley and Southwest Washington Interior with 30 to 45 mph gusts, the Eastern Puget Sound region with 45 to 60 mph gusts and Washington's North Interior, San Juans and Strait of Juan De Fuca with 20 to 35 mph gusts. The cyclone's track, which carried the center south of Bellingham, spared Washington's northern regions the strong winds seen in the Puget Sound. For interior sections, the Sound was in the ideal location for high winds with this storm, being south of the center, and very close, where gradients were at their steepest.
Source: Peak gusts are primarily from the National Weather Service, Eureka, Portland and Seattle offices, METAR reports, plus some from spotter reports, and National Data Buoy Center, realtime meteorological data.
Wind and pressure conditions are plotted for Sea-Tac and Portland in Figures 5 and 6, below. Conditions were quite similar between the two observation sites, indluding wind duration and direction. The differences are in lower pressures at Sea-Tac, with faster winds. And Seattle's barometer climbed at a faster rate as the low pulled away. These differences were probably due to Sea-Tac's closer proximity to the cyclone's center.
Source: Hourly data are from the National Weather Service, Portland and Seattle offices, METAR reports.
Wind and pressure conditions are plotted for Quillayute and Astoria in Figures 7 and 8, below. Conditions were dramatically different between the two observation sites. Astoria experienced a long period of southerly winds which quickly escalated to 25 to 35 mph with gusts of 50 to 60 as the barometer began to climb. Quillayute underwent a brief period of southeast to south winds which could barely manage 10 to 15 mph with gusts of 15 to 30 at the bottom of the pressure curve. These southerly winds died down as the pressure began to climb. Not shown on the meteograms, the temperature at Astoria climbed from 39 F at 23:29 HRS on the 26th to 56 F by 02:55 on the 27th during the maximum southerly winds, while at Quillayute it escalated from a low of 37 F at 23:53 HRS on the 26th to 49 F by 08:53 HRS on the 27th. Heavy rain accompanied the southerly winds at Quillayute, amounting to 0.19" between 06:53 and 07:53, strongly suggesting that the storm's leading occlusion was to blame for the southerly winds. Astoria, being further south, appears to have been south of the triple-point, and experienced the classic warm-front cold-front scenario outlined in the Norwegian model of cyclogenesis. In other words, Quillayute got a brief diluted taste of the warm air racing northward around the east side of the storm before the center made landfall around 10:00. Landfall, with the storm's center just south of Quillayute, is marked by the brief period of low wind between 08:53 and 09:53. The barometer started rising before this, suggesting that the low had already begun to weaken from terrain interference even before it made landfall. The 10:53 time period is marked by a sudden escalation of west-northwest winds to sustained values of 20 mph gusting to 28. A pressure surge of about 0.12" per hour for two consecutive hours accompanied this wind, and the temperature fell back to 39 F by 11:00. Quillayute was overrun by the cyclone's bent-back occlusion. Astoria's wind shifted to nearly westerly by 10:55, and this continued up to 12:55 with a lowering of temperature to 45 F by 11:55, all the mark of the storm's trailing cold front.
A Maximum Vigilant anemometer with a Nor'Easter set as a repeater was used to take wind readings at my home. The sensor is about 26 feet above ground level, with a 250 foot site elevation. The methodology was simple: During a 4-minute observation window starting at the time of record, a set of 20 consecutive Nor'Easter readings were noted, usually during minute one to two, to calculate a single 1-minute average. The Nor'Easter samples every 3.4 seconds, so an average of 20 samples is actually a [(20-1)*3.4] 64.6-second value. Peak gusts on the Vigilant were also noted for the 4-minute period, as well as temperature, pressure, cloud and rain condtions. Between the main observation times, which were typically done each half hour, the Vigilant was monitored nearly continuously, with all gusts of 30 mph or more, and their times, noted. There was no attempt to calculate 1-minute averages between the main observations. Since many of the highest gusts occurred outside the regular obs, the highest 1-minute speeds were not masured. One-minute winds probably reached 22 to 25 mph during times of sustained 30-35 mph gusts, which sometimes lasted 5 to 10 seconds. Wind direction was determined by observing a string--tied to the anemometer mast at 23'--during a brisk wind period, and by the sway of nearby trees. In Table 1, below, the format is similar to the NWS x G y P z notation, with x being the 1-minute wind (NWS 2-minute), y being the peak instant gust in the 4-minute window (NWS peak 5-second gust in a 10-minute window) and z being the peak gust since the last observation. Winds tend to be particularly gusty at this location, especially when compared to the official sensors located among the open runways of airports. Mt. Tabor, who's peak is to the south-southeast, and who's forested western shoulder stretches out to the south, probably accounts for some of the turbulence, as do local trees, homes, powerlines and businesses.
The NWS forecast for the Portland area as early as 09:40 on December 26, 2002 was for winds of 20 to 30 mph with gusts to 45 by the morning of the 27th, almost 24 hours ahead of the actual event. I'd say this excellent job of forecasting verified quite nicely at my home. As did the forecasts for many areas of the Pacific Northwest for this storm.
What follows is a brief look at some of the National Weather Service forecast discussions about the December 27, 2002 storm. These were collected from the Portland and Seattle offices as the storm progressed. For the sake of brevity, material that wasn't directly related to the cyclone's development has been cut from these forecasts.
.SYNOPSIS...A DEEP LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM DEVELOPING IN THE PACIFIC WILL TRACK NORTHEAST TONIGHT...MOVING OVER THE SOUTHERN PART OF VANCOUVER ISLAND MIDDAY FRIDAY. THE LOW WILL TRACK INTO SOUTHERN BRITISH COLUMBIA FRIDAY AFTERNOON AND BRING THE POTENTIAL OF DAMAGING WINDS TO MUCH OF WESTERN WASHINGTON.
FRIDAY...NOGAPS AND CANADIAN MODELS RELATIVELY WEAK WITH THE INCOMING STORM WHEN COMPARED TO THE GFS AND ESP THE MESOETA. TRACK OF ALL MDLS RANGE FROM SRN VANC ISL TO CENTRAL WA COAST. NRN TRACKS WOULD BE IDEAL EVEN IF SFC PRES ISN'T AS GOOD AS WOULD WANT...HOWEVER SRN TRACK FORECAST BY CANADIAN REGIONAL AND SOMEWHAT BY THE NOGAPS RUN ARE WORRYSOME AS THIS WOULD CAUSE STRONGEST WINDS TO BE CONFINED SOUTH OF OUR AREA. NOW HAVE SOMEWHAT DISTURBNG TREND OF THE GFS IN WEAKENING THE LOW 5MB FROM 00Z RUN TO 06Z RUN WITH A SLIGHT SHIFT OT THE SE. WAS ALL SET TO JUMP ON A WARNING FOR THE COAST FOR FRIDAY TO GIVE A GOOD AMOUNT OF LEADTIME AND MATCHUP WITH SRN OFFICES...BUT THINK I'LL BACK AWAY AND LEAVE AS A WATCH AT THE MOMENT AND LET THE DAYSHIFT THROW UP THE WARNING LATER THIS MORNING AFTER A LOOK AT THE 12Z RUNS. STILL THINK WARNING WINDS A GOOD BET...JUST NOT QUITE 80% AT THIS TIME. WILL LEAVE THE WIND WATCH ALONE FOR THE REMAINDER OF THE FA AS WELL AS STILL UNSURE ON STRENGTH OF WINDS AND TIME OF OCCURANCE IS A BIT TOO FAR OUT THERE.
The tracks for the computer-model low were all over the Washington coast. In a general sense, the models were producing reasonable depictions of events on December 27, 2002, with a low moving onto the Washington coast. But the fine details of storm track can make a big difference for specific forecast regions. A low tracking over Astoria would mean much lower winds on the South Washington Coast compared to a low tracking across Quillayute. The southern track would tend to spare places like Long Beach and Hoquiam from damaging winds. The northern track would leave the two locations exposed to the low's southern side, the zone of highest risk for damaging winds during these cyclone events. Thus the reluctance to jump on a wind warning for the Washington Coast at this time. The Portland forecasters were in a better position, as the models were showing the storm moving north of Oregon, allowing for better confidence in issuing coastal warnings.
.SYNOPSIS...A DEEP LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM DEVELOPING IN THE PACIFIC WILL TRACK NORTHEAST TONIGHT...MOVING OVER THE SOUTHERN PART OF VANCOUVER ISLAND MIDDAY FRIDAY. THE LOW WILL BRING THE POTENTIAL OF DAMAGING WINDS TO MUCH OF WESTERN WASHINGTON.
.DISCUSSION...ALL EYES ARE ON A DEVELOPING 997 MB LOW LOCATED ABOUT 50 MILES EAST OF BUOY 46006...AT 41N/137W. WHILE MODELS APPEAR A MB OR TWO WEAK WITH THE CENTRAL PRESSURE AND ABOUT 30-40 KT WEAK WITH THE STRENGTH OF THE 300 MB JET...THE MESOETA AND GFS APPEAR RATHER WELL INITIALIZED. WATER VAPOR IMAGERY SHOWS GOOD DARKENING TAKING PLACE 41N/139W. WIND DIRECTION ALIASES FROM QUICKSCAT 12Z PASS APPEAR INCORRECTLY APPLIED PER BUOY OBS. BEST TRACK/STRENGTH WITH SOME DEVELOPMENT AS SEEN BY LOOP...MODEL...OBS WOULD TAKE CENTER OF LOW TO NEAR CAPE FLATTERY 18Z FRI AT 985 MB.
BUT THERE IS A GOOD DEAL OF UNCERTAINTY. WHILE I DISCOUNT THE VERY WEAK CANADIAN SOLUTIONS THAT TRACK THE SYSTEM INTO THE MOUTH OF THE COLUMBIA RIVER AT 995 MB...THE 12Z GFS SHOWS SECONDARY DEVELOPMENT AT THE BASE OF THE 500 MB TROF ALONG 140W AS ANOTHER LOW TRACKS INTO THE MOUTH OF THE COLUMBIA RIVER AROUND 998 MB SAT. THIS APPEARS TO BE STEALING ENERGY FROM THE LEAD SYSTEM OF INTEREST AND INHIBITS PRES RISES BEHIND THAT WEAKER SYSTEM AS IT TRACKS INTO BRITISH COLUMBIA.
GIVEN UNCERTAINTIES...WILL MAINTAIN THE HIGH WIND WATCH FOR ALL OF WWA FRI. WILL MAKE FUTURE DECISIONS ON WARNINGS BASED ON OFFSHORE BUOY OBS AND SATELLITE IMAGERY.
The mid-morning Seattle discussion doesn't show much change in the uncertainty for the Washington forecasters, though a track into Southern Vancouver Island was favored, and the extreme southern track suggested by the Canadian model was thrown away.
.SYNOPSIS...A SERIES OF PACIFIC STORMS WILL MOVE THROUGH THE FORECAST AREA INTO THE MIDDLE OF NEXT WEEK. A WARM FRONT WILL MOVE NORTH THROUGH THE FORECAST AREA TONIGHT...FOLLOWED BY A COLD FRONT FRIDAY...THE ASSOCIATED LOW PRESSURE AREA WITH THIS WEATHER SYSTEM WILL PRODUCE STRONG WINDS ALONG THE COAST AND COAST RANGES TONIGHT AND FRIDAY. A PARADE OF ADDITIONAL PACIFIC FRONTAL SYSTEMS WILL FOLLOW INTO NEXT WEEK.
During the afternoon of the 26th, the exact strength of the low was becoming a bigger issue than track, as a wave on the storm's frontal system threatened to sap some of the energy from the lead storm. Oregon, assuming a track into Southern Vancouver Island, would be on the periphery of the storm's strongest gradients. A deeper low could put Oregon under a stronger gradient situation, which could make the difference for high winds being limited just to the coast, or having broader coverage into the Coast Range. A really big storm moving on the Southern Vancouver Island track could even bring damaging wind to the Willamette Valley, but in the case of the December 27th low, this had been determined to be unlikely.
.SYNOPSIS...A DEEP LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM DEVELOPING OFF THE SOUTHERN OREGON COAST WILL TRACK NORTHEAST TONIGHT...MOVING TO NEAR CAPE FLATTERY MIDDAY FRIDAY. THE LOW WILL BRING THE POTENTIAL OF DAMAGING WINDS TO MUCH OF WESTERN WASHINGTON.
In the Seattle Area Forecast Discussion, the MM5/MESOETA model struck gold, as thie actual path of the December 27th storm was very close to the one suggested during this model run. Of course, the forecasters didn't know that this MM5's track was close to the eventual real one, and the synopsis still suggests that the low would pass over Cape Flattery and into Southern Vancouver Island.
.SYNOPSIS...A SERIES OF PACIFIC STORMS WILL MOVE THROUGH THE FORECAST AREA INTO THE MIDDLE OF NEXT WEEK. A WARM FRONT WILL MOVE NORTH THROUGH THE FORECAST AREA TONIGHT...FOLLOWED BY A COLD FRONT FRIDAY.
.DISCUSSION... .SHORT TERM...BUOY REPORTS AND S OREGON COAST METARS INDICATE MODELS APPEAR TO BE ON TRACK WITH THE LOW EXPECTED TO TRACK NE TO THE OLYMPIC PENINSULA BY FRI MORNING. CENTRAL PRES AT 46002 DOWN TO 995 MB BY 03Z WITH THE LOW CENTER TO THE W. WINDS AT K4S1 UP TO 41G61KTS S OF THE WARM FRONT THIS EVENING. OVERALL WINDS FORECAST APPEAR TO BE ON TRACK...AND WITH THE WARM FRONT MOVING UP OVERNIGHT THROUGH THE N AND CENTRAL OREGON CASCADES...WILL UPGRADE THAT AREA TO A HIGH WIND WARNING.
.DISCUSSION...HIGH WIND SCENARIO STILL ON TRACK THIS EVENING. WATER VAPOR SATELLITE IMAGERY THE LAST FEW HOURS SHOWS SUBSIDENCE BEHIND THE LOW INTENSIFYING AS EVIDENCED BY THE DARKENING OF THE DRY SLOT BEHIND THE LOW. GFS SLIGHTLY BETTER AS FAR AS INITIALIZATION GOES BUT AT 06Z DEEPER MESOETA WILL VERIFY BETTER. ONLY SMALL DIFFERENCES IN THE TRACK OF THE LOW WITH THE GFS TAKING THE LOW INLAND JUST A LITTLE FURTHER NORTH THAN THE MESOETA. EITHER WAY TRACK STILL KEEPS THE POSSIBILITY OF STRONG WINDS ACROSS WESTERN WASHINGTON TOMORROW. MODEL CROSS SECTIONS CONTINUE TO INDICATE GOOD FLOW REVERSAL EARLY FRIDAY MORNING IN THE FOOTHILLS. EAST TO WEST CROSS CASCADE GRADIENT INCREASING RAPIDLY TONIGHT. THIS TREND WILL CONTINUE WITH THE TRACK OF THE LOW. IN ADDITION THERE IS THE POSSIBILITY OF MOUNTAIN WAVE ACTIVITY. WILL UPGRADE TO HIGH WIND WARNING FOR THE FOOTHILLS WITH THE HIGH WINDS EXPECTED TO BEGIN AROUND 12Z FRIDAY MORNING.
NEXT CHANGE IN THE FORECAST IS FOR THE NORTHWEST INTERIOR. TRACK OF THE LOW WILL SWITCH THE WINDS TO NORTHEAST OVERNIGHT. DEW POINT TEMPERATURES ALREADY NEAR FREEZING AT 05Z WITH THE NORTHEAST WINDS BRINGING MORE COOL DRY AIR INTO THE AREA. ONSET OF PRECIPITATION WILL OVERRUN THIS SHALLOW LAYER OF COOL AIR FRIDAY MORNING. WILL GO FOR RAIN AND SNOW MIXED IN THE MORNING NORTH OF MOUNT VERNON. LAYER OF COOL AIR WILL BE SCOURED OUT QUICKLY ONCE THE WINDS TURN SOUTHEASTERLY. FOR THE REMAINDER OF THE AREA THE WATCH WILL REMAIN IN EFFECT.
NORTHEAST WINDS WILL SWITCH TO SOUTHWEST MID MORNING OVER THE SOUTHWEST INTERIOR AND MIDDAY ACROSS THE STRAIT AND NORTHWEST INTERIOR. WIND SPEEDS WILL QUICKLY INCREASE TO 30 TO 40 MPH WITH GUSTS TO 60 MPH AFTER THE WIND SHIFT. THE STRONG WINDS WILL THEN BEGIN TO SUBSIDE FROM SOUTH TO NORTH. WINDS WILL CONTINUE TO QUICKLY DIMINISH THIS EVENING...BECOMING LIGHT OVERNIGHT.
THE WIND IS EXPECTED TO BE STRONGER THAN WHAT OCCURRED ON CHRISTMAS DAY IN THE INTERIOR AREAS. HOWEVER...THE DURATION WILL BE SHORTER THAN ON CHRISTMAS...WITH STRONG WINDS LASTING ONLY A FEW HOURS RATHER THAN MOST OF THE DAY. SOME TREE DAMAGE AND POWER OUTAGES ARE EXPECTED ACROSS THE WARNING AREA TODAY.
There were two regions covered by this high wind warning where the heavy winds did not occur. Washington's Southwest Interior, including Kelso, Chehalis and Olympia, experienced peak wind gusts in the 30 to 40 mph range. This despite the fact that nearby places such as Shelton, with a peak of 47 mph, and Tacoma, with a peak of 51 mph, had gusts more in line with the forecast. The lack of high winds in this region is hard to explain when gusts across the Willamette Valley were equally as high, if not higher, and just to the north, in the Puget Sound region, the high wind warning fully verified.
The other region missed by this cyclone's gale winds was Washington's Northwest Interior, including Bellingham, Friday Harbor, Port Townsend, Port Angeles and Sequim. These places appear to have had peak gusts in the 20 to 35 mph range, due to the fact that the low tracked just south the region. This exemplifies the difficulties in wind forecasting--a track difference of just 25 miles either north or south would have altered conditions enough to have changed the actual results, putting new areas under the gun, and sparing others.
Overall, despite the nitpicks, the forecast in the 30 hours leading up to the storm were clearly well done.
Table 2, below, lists the barometric minimums for the December 27, 2002 storm at selected sites. Many Pacific Northwest windstorms have produced lower readings. The most depressed pressures during this storm were near the Washington shore, and included 29.22" at 07:00 at Buoy 46041 near Cape Elizabeth, and 29.24" at Destruction Island from 05:00 to 07:00.
Table 3, below, lists the maximum gradients for some standard measures during the December 27, 2002 cyclone. Compared to big storms in the past, none of these readings are particularly extreme. The PDX-SEA measure of +10.7 mb approached some of the more extreme values in history, but still fell short of storms such as January 20, 1993 with an astounding +15.4 at 10:00, January 16-17, 1986 with +11.7 at 00:00 HRS, November 24, 1983 with +12.6 at 12:00 HRS, December 14, 1977 with +12.3 at 17:00 HRS, March 25-26, 1971 with +11.1 at 11:00 HRS, and November 3, 1958 with a strong +13.6 at 20:00 HRS.
The December 27, 2002 storm did, however, exceed the November 15, 1981 storm, which produced a peak PDX-SEA gradient of +9.7 at 15:00 HRS, and the major windstorm of November 13-14, 1981, which produced a peak of just +10.4 mb due to the storm center's distance offshore. Other storms that weren't quite at the level of the December 27, 2002 event include February 12-13, 1979 with a peak PDX-SEA gradient of +7.9 mb at 01:00 HRS, January 19-20, 1964 with +7.2 at 17:00 HRS, and even October 12, 1962 with +9.9 at 20:0--the latter probably for reasons similar to November 13-14, 1981.
Another measure for storms that track across the Olympic Peninsula and/or South Vancouver Island is the longer PDX-BLI gradient. Table 4, below, ranks a number of memorable, and not-so-memorable, storms by this measure. The December 27, 2002 storm ranks a meager 14th place in this incomplete list of windstorms from 1934 to present. Some of this has to do with the fact that the storm's center tracked south of Bellingham, which probably had a reducing effect on the peak gradient. The PDX-BLI gradient might have reached +13 to +14 mb if the track had been more ideal, with the low center passing right over Bellingham. The +22.7 mb for the October 21, 1934 storm was taken from spotty pressure data, and could have been higher--the mark of one of the top most powerful storms of the 20th century.
Table 5, below, lists the peak wind and gust for eleven key stations in the Pacific Northwest, their direction, and their time of occurrence. "Peak Wind" is a 2-minute average, and "Peak Gust" is a 5-second average. By my own personal methodology, a wind event rates the term "windstorm" when the average peak gust of these eleven stations reaches 39.0 mph (gale force) or higher. The December 27, 2002 cyclone just barely made the cut, and is a minor windstorm. Moderate windstorms have an average of 45.0 to 54.9, and major windstorms are those that reach or exceed 55.0. Only a handful of storms have made the majors, including December 12, 1995, November 14, 1981 and October 12, 1962.
Bellingham was the big loser during the December 27, 2002 wind event. The highest gusts occurred with the pre-storm northeasterlies five hours before the cyclone made landfall. Sea-Tac stands out strongly among the interior stations for top winds, and the Oregon Coast clearly took the brunt of the storm. Interestingly, the averages for this event are almost exactly one-half of the average 49.7 mph 1-minute wind and 80.5 peak instant gust velocities achieved by the for the Columbus Day Storm. The Big Blow of 1962, on average, struck with about four times the force!
Note, however, that the newer 5-second gust adopted by the NWS muddies the kind of comparison that I describe here. See "Adjustments to Modern Storms."
Information for this sentence, and those following, is from "Winds roar over region, toppling trees," Oregonian, December 28, 2002, Metro/NW, pages E1 and E6.
Information in this paragraph is from the Seattle Times article, "Windstorm whips region: 10-year-old killed; gusts litter area with debris," from the newspaper's online archives. | 2019-04-19T06:53:49Z | http://www.climate.washington.edu/stormking/December272002.html |
Sligo defeated Tipperary by 2-14 to 1-16 in Round 2 of the Allianz Football League Division 3 on Sunday February 12th at Semple Stadium Thurles.
A costly afternoon at Semple Stadium saw Tipperary lose Jimmy Feehan to a red card, Philip Austin to injury and two precious points in the race for promotion from Division 3.
Sligo were 10 points up during the second-half but had to hang on to win by the minimum against the 14 men in front of 749 spectators in Thurles.
Kyle Cawley and Niall Murphy scored crucial first- half goals for Sligo, who made it three points from a possible four following a draw with Armagh.
Earlier, in the 45th minute, Feehan mistimed a shoulder on goalscorer Murphy and referee Niall Ward reached for a second yellow card for the Killenaule man.
Despite trailing 0-10 to 2-14 with 15 minutes left, Tipp could have taken something from the game.
Michael Quinlivan sent a 76th-minute free wide before Robbie Kiely’s thunderous drive from distance was deflected out for a ’45 byr Neil Ewing.
In the eighth minute of stoppage time, O’Halloran drifted his ’45 over the crossbar and when play restarted, Ward blew for full-time.
At the break, Sligo were 2-9 to 0-8 clear – Cawley netting in the ninth minute before Murphy struck eight minutes before the break.
Tipp improved in the second half and after Austin missed a big goal chance, All-Star Michael Quinlivan finished well with seven minutes left to provide the hosts with a lift.
Tipperary manager Liam Kearns said: “We’re disappointed, it didn’t go for us today – we got caught with sucker goals and getting the man sent off was a real body blow.
Scorers for Sligo: Kyle Cawley 1-2, N Murphy 1-1, A Marren 0-4 (2f), M Breheny 0-3 (2f), G O’Kelly-Lynch 0-2, A Devaney (45) & C Davey 0-1.
Scorers for Tipperary: M Quinlivan 1-2 (0-2f), C Sweeney 0-5 (3f), K O’Halloran 0-4 (3f, 1 45), A Moloney 0-2, B Fox, P Austin & L Boland 0-1 each.
SLIGO: A Devaney; R Donavan, K McDonnell, N Gaughan; Keelan Cawley, N Ewing, G O’Kelly-Lynch; P O’Connor, A McIntyre; C Davey, M Breheny, J Kelly; Kyle Cawley, A Marren, N Murphy.
Subs: E McHugh for Keelan Cawley (inj., 32), S Gilmartin for O’Connor (60), S Coen for Murphy (62), J Hynes for Davey (70+4), E Connolly for Donavan (inj., 70+8).
the Tipperary Senior football team to play Sligo in Round 2 of the Allianz Football League Division 3 encounter in Semple Stadium on Sunday next, February 12th at 2pm has also been announced by manager Liam Kearns.
Following on in positive fashion, Kearns keeps faith in the same team that lined out the last day as Tipp bid for a second home win in as many games.
This entry was posted on Sunday, February 12th, 2017 at 12:00 am and is filed under events, News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.
Kerry defeated Laois by 3-14 to 0-19 in Round 1 of the Allianz Hurling League Division 1B on Sunday February 12th at Austin Stack Park Tralee.
Kerry pulled off a remarkable comeback against Laois with a double goal strike in the 60th minute helping them overturn a nine-point half time deficit to earn what could be a hugely significant win this afternoon.
Trailing for most of a contest against a sharper Laois team at a very cold Austin Stack Park, three second half goals gave new Kerry manager Fintan O’Connor a crucial win in front of a small crowd.
Padraig Boyle’s 37th minute penalty goal made a small inroad into Kerry’s 0-4 to 0-13 half time deficit but the Kingdom still trailed by six points in the 60th minute. Boyle pulled first on a loose ball to raise his and Kerry’s second green flag, and when Colum Harty found the Laois net 50 seconds later Kerry, somehow, found themselves level.
Mikey Boyle’s point two minutes later gave Kerry the lead for the first time, and with Laois left reeling, the home side closed out the comeback with late scores from the Boyle brothers, Shane Nolan (free), Harty and Paudie O’Connor.
The first half was a free-ridden affair largely reduced to a free taking contest between Stephen Maher and Shane Nolan, with the former winning that contest by six points to three, as Laois dominated much of the half.
Nolan’s frees had kept the home side in touch, but a few errant strikes meant Kerry trailed 0-4 to 0-13 at the break, with the impressive Willie Dunphy scoring four points from play for Laois in the first half.
Kerry had played against a stiff breeze in that first half, but it still looked like they had left themselves too much to do.
Padraig Boyle won the 37th minute penalty he converted, but trailing 1-9 to 0-18 after 60 minutes Kerry were staring at an opening day defeat.
Then came that double goal strike, however, and geed up by a small, but vociferous home support Kerry kicked on and found their scoring touch to five off the last six points to hand Kerry an important win over their former boss Eamonn Kelly.
Scorers for Laois: S Maher 0-11 (11fs), W Dunphy 0-4, P Whelan 0-1, B Conroy 0-1, N Foyle 0-1, PJ Scully 0-1 (sl).
Subs: K Carmody for J Conway (53), J O’Connor for J Goulding (70).
Subs: PJ Scully for C Taylor (57), E Lyons for P Whelan (60), S Downey for R Mullaney (63), C Healy for N Foyle (66).
Clare maintained their unbeaten record in Division 2 of the Allianz Football League, defeating visitors Down at an extremely cold Cusack Park in Ennis yesterday.
Having drawn away to Derry a week earlier, Colm Collins’ charges built the foundation for this victory in the opening half, going in at the half 2-7 to 0-3 in front.
Collins said after the game: “We didn’t put away the chances at times but they will go in eventually, we’ve just got to keep making them”.
He was referring to goal chances especially, as Down keeper Marc Reid pulled off a number of crucial saves throughout the tie.
Reid was alert inside 20 seconds to deny David Tubridy. But two minutes later Keelan Sexton got through for Clare and toe-poked to the net, for the opening score of the tie.
In a one-sided first half, the Banner dominated and grabbed a second goal in injury time through David Tubridy. The full-forward had missed another chance minutes earlier, when he shot over the bar with the goal at his mercy.
Reid also made an important interception on 16 minutes, when he denied Eoin Cleary yet another goalscoring opportunity.
Clare were at least raining white flags and tagged on three further points after the break through Cleary (twice) and Jamie Malone, inside five minutes.
Though they managed just one more score from then until the end, there was very little danger of them losing this clash, having done enough in the opening half.
“It was a disappointing result for us,” reflected Down manager Eamonn Burns.
Scorers for Clare: D Tubridy (1-3); E Cleary (0-4, 1 free); K Sexton (1-0); J Malone (0-3); S Collins (0-1).
Scorers for Down: C Magee (0-3, 2 frees); R Johnston (0-2); B O’Hagan (0-2 1 free); D O’Hagan, A Carr, S Millar, P Havern (0-1 each).
CLARE: Joe Hayes, John Hayes, K Harnett, M McMahon, L Markham, G Kelly, D Ryan, G Brennan (Capt.), C Russell, S Collins, K Sexton, S Brennan E Cleary, D Tubridy, J Malone.
Subs for Clare: C O’Connor for G Brennan (44), D Nagle for John Hayes (49), C O’Dea for Tubridy (54), P Lillis for Ryan (58), D Egan for Malone (64), G O’Brien for Collins (67).
DOWN: M Reid, R McAleenan, G McGovern, D O’Hagan (Capt.), C McGovern, N Donnelly, C Mooney, A Carr, J Flynn, J Murphy, C Magee, S Millar, A Davidson, P Havern, B O’Hagen.
Subs for Down: D O’Hanlon for C McGovern (h/t), C McGinn for Davidson (h/t), K McKernan for Havern (44), R Johnston for G McGovern (54), J Johnston for B O’Hagan (61), P Turley Flynn (64).
Wexford defeated Limerick by 1-14 to 0-14 in Round 1 of the Allianz Hurling League Division 1B on Sunday February 12th at Innovate Wexford Park.
A tally of 1-8 from Conor McDonald guided the purple-and-gold to a crucial victory over Limerick in the opening-round of the Allianz Hurling league on Sunday afternoon.
With the wind at their backs Limerick enjoyed a six-point advantage at half-time. However, Wexford’s big guns rose to the challenge.
Rejuvenated by a couple of key substitutions, Wexford held the visitors scoreless for almost 20 minutes. Conor McDonald’s 62nd minute goal stretched Wexford’s lead to four, which was enough to hold off the challenge provided by John Kiely’s Limerick.
Wexford started with a four-man rotating attack. Paul Morris, Lee Chin, Barry Carton and Conor McDonald alternated, with one taking the full-forward spot while the remaining trio took up centre-forward line positions. As a result, David Redmond and Aidan Nolan worked doggedly in defence.
However, Limerick tore through on numerous occasions in the first half. Cian Lynch and Peter Casey directed matters in attack, putting pressure on the Wexford defence.
Points from both Lynch and Casey as well as some eye-catching Seamus Hickey and Graeme Mulcahy efforts contributed to Limerick’s 13th minute lead of seven-points-to-two.
Although a Conor McDonald brace offered hope for the hosts, Limerick dictated matters for the closing quarter-hour.
Following Alan Dempsey’s neat interception, Declan Hannon fired over a point that was the pick of Limerick’s bunch. That stroke gave Limerick a six-point lead at the break.
Although Wexford gained the advantage of the elements after half-time, Limerick were first to threaten as David Dempsey bounded through and forced Mark Fanning to pull off a great save.
While Wexford started to claw back with a trio of points, Peter Casey’s pointed free maintained Limerick’s lead of twelve-points-to-seven on 45 minutes.
It was Wexford who bombarded the visitors from that point onwards. Lee Chin, Aidan Nolan and Barry Carton won puck-outs for the hosts and Davy Fitzgerald made some timely replacements, including Podge Doran, Harry Kehoe, and Nicky Kirwan.
Elegant points from McDonald (two frees), Diarmuid O’Keefe and Harry Kehoe stirred Wexford retaliation before Podge Doran blasted over a 59th minute equaliser. Not even the sheeting rain could deter the home supporters from celebrating Lee Chin’s epic 60th minute effort that put Wexford ahead for the first time.
Conor McDonald widened the gap to five with a quick-fire claim of 1-1. A closing Limerick brace of points could not undo the home-side’s sparkling finish as Wexford fans relished a cracking first-round league victory.
Scorers for Wexford: Conor McDonald 1-8 (4fs, 1 65′), Lee Chin 0-2, Podge Doran 0-2, Harry Kehoe 0-1, Diarmuid O’Keefe 0-1.
Scorers for Limerick: Peter Casey 0-5 (3fs), Graeme Mulcahy 0-2, John Fitzgibbon 0-1 (1f), Gearóid Hegarty 0-1, Cian Lynch 0-1, Paul Browne 0-1, Seamus Hickey 0-1, Declan Hannon 0-1, Diarmuid Byrnes 0-1 (1f).
Subs: Podge Doran for A Maddock (41), Harry Kehoe for P Morris (47), Nicky Kirwan for D Redmond (56), Jack O’Connor for B Carton (71).
Subs: (temp. Alan Dempsey for P Casey 30-34), John Fitzgibbon for J Ryan (44), Alan Dempsey for G Hegarty (47), Tom Morrissey for K Hayes (63), Pat Ryan for P Browne (64).
This entry was posted on Sunday, February 12th, 2017 at 12:00 am and is filed under events, News, Videos. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.
Waterford defeated Kilkenny by 1-15 to 0-17 in Round 1 of the Allianz Hurling League Division 1A on Sunday February 12th at Nowlan Park Kilkenny.
Patrick Curran’s first half goal proved to be the decisive score as Derek McGrath’s side got the better of the Cats at a bitterly-cold Nowlan Park, scoring their first win over Brian Cody’s side in Kilkenny since 2004.
Waterford were up and running in the early stages, Pauric Mahony (2) and Conor Gleeson pushing their side 0-3 to 0-1 up inside the opening 10 minutes.
T.J. Reid narrowed the gap with a pointed free, but the hosts were rocked when Curran broke through to blast his side into a strong lead when he gathered Tom Devine’s 12th minute pass and rattled the net (1-3 to 0-2).
The goal proved to be the big score of the half, but a crucial part of Waterford’s display was Mahony’s accuracy from frees. He posted eight points in the first half from placed balls, a run which kept the Deise in front.
T.J. Reid led the Kilkenny charge, grabbing six points in that opening half (five from frees), but Curran’s goal was a hurdle they couldn’t clear. Ollie Walsh sniped the last point of the half, but the Cats still trailed by four at the break (1-11 to 0-10).
Waterford didn’t hang about in the second half, stretching their lead to six points thanks to early scores from Mahony and Jamie Barron. Kilkenny fought hard to narrow the gap, shooting the next four scores through T.J. Reid (0-3) and sub Walter Walsh, but they couldn’t get the goal they craved to reel in the long-time leaders.
While Waterford endured something of a barren spell in the second half – they went 17 minutes without troubling the scoreboard operator – they did get back on track when Mahony and Barron put four points back between the sides late on.
Still Kilkenny wouldn’t give up. Spurred on by frees from Reid and goalkeeper Eoin Murphy they battled on, making it a one-point game when Kieran Joyce fired over a good score following Richie Hogan’s injury-time pass, but the Deise held out to make a winning start to their League campaign.
Scorers for Waterford: Pauric Mahony 0-10 (7fs, 265s); Patrick Curran 1-1; Jamie Barron 0-3; Conor Gleeson 0-1.
Subs: Walter Walsh for Sean Morrissey (36), Paddy Deegan for Ollie Walsh (52), Richie Leahy for Pat Lyng (55), Shane Prendergast for Cillian Buckley (60), Conor Martin for Liam Blanchfield (70).
WATERFORD: Ian O’Regan; Shane Fives, Barry Coughlan, Noel Connors; Tadhg de Burca, Stephen Daniels, Mikey Kearney; Jamie Barron, Conor Gleeson; Kevin Moran, Pauric Mahony, Michael Walsh; Patrick Curran, Tom Devine, Shane Bennett. Subs: Austin Gleeson for Mikey Kearney (52), Brian O’Halloran for Shane Bennett (55), Jake Dillon for Tom Devine (62), Gavin O’Brien for Patrick Curran (69), Shane McNulty for Stephen Daniels (70).
Kildare defeated Cork by 1-14 to 1-8 in Round 2 of the Allianz Football League Division 2 on Sunday February 12th at Newbridge.
Kildare continued their fine start to the league with an impressive six-point win at home against a disappointing Cork side.
Behind by five at half-time, 8-3, Cork got back within two points with 15 minutes to go, but Kildare crushed any hopes of a comeback. In a stirring finish, they kicked five points to secure the win their performance deserved.
While Kevin Feely was the conductor for Cian O’Neill’s side in midfield, Ben McCormack was the star man in attack and netted a superb goal in the 51st minute to crown another superb individual display.
McCormack’s goal gave Kildare a seven-point cushion but Cork had their best spell in the next 10 minutes and when Luke Connolly’s long range effort deceived Mark Donnellan and dropped into the net, the Rebels had a lifeline.
Kildare’s response was telling and they reeled off three points on the trot to put the result beyond doubt, cementing their place at the top of the table.
On a bitterly cold afternoon in Newbridge, the home side gradually took control in the opening half and built a five-point cushion after 25 minutes in testing conditions.
The wind chill was as much of a factor as the strength of the breeze and it was no surprise that it took 15 minutes for this contest to come to life.The elements did favour Kildare in the opening half but it was never as simple as shooting from long range. Both sides were reluctant to take on shots from distance and with six wides apiece in the opening half, their caution was understandable.
Cork had the better of the early exchanges and held a strong defensive line across the middle. Although Kildare had the first score courtesy of Daniel Flynn, Cork moved ahead when Luke Connolly and Colm O’Neill pointed frees – O’Neill the instigator for both scores.
Once Kildare got to grips with their opponents in midfield, the game turned in their favour. Kevin Feely was the lynchpin, winning a succession of marks and directing the play like a quarterback. He also chipped in with two points from play as Kildare won the primary battle.
Corner forward Ben McCormack pointed his first effort of the game and he landed his second five minutes later. Feely’s brace gave Kildare a 7-2 lead after 25 minutes and at that stage, Cork had gone 15 minutes without a score.
They were not short of chances though and two separate occasions, Ian Maguire came through from midfield to threaten the Kildare goal. Each time he came away empty handed and Cork were left to chew on a five-point deficit at the break.
Kildare’s interval lead should have been greater and apart from six careless wides, Daniel Flynn was denied goal by a flying save from Ryan Price in the first minute.
Overall, Kildare could only be thrilled with the outcome as they dispatched one of the leading teams in this Division with some ease.
Scorers for Kildare: B McCormack 1-2, N Flynn 0-5 (3fs), K Feely 0-2, P Cribbin 0-2, D Flynn 0-1, T Moolick 0-1, C Healy 0-1 (f).
Subs: Cathal McNally for Moolick (59); Chris Healy for Conway (63); David Slattery for McCormack (67); Peter Kelly for N Kelly (70); Shea Ryan for Feely, Black Card, (70); Conor Hartley for N Flynn (70).
Subs: John O’Rourke for Powter (HT); Barry O’Driscoll for Dorman (51); Donncha O’Connor for Collins (52); John Mullins for Crowley (54); Donal Og Hodnett for Maguire (60); Brian O’Driscoll for O’Neill (68).
Westmeath defeated Limerick by 1-18 to 0-12 in Round 2 of the Allianz Football League Division 4 on Sunday February 12th at the Gaelic Grounds Limerick.
Shocked by a dropped home point against Carlow in the opening round, Westmeath got their Division Four campaign back on track when they notched up a comfortable nine-point win yesterday over Limerick in the Gaelic Grounds.
Racing into a commanding position when skipper Ger Egan converted a penalty on the quarter-hour, they were never in any serious danger despite Limerick mounting brave rallies.
With two defeats out of two, the home side have it all to do if they’re to make an immediate return to Division Three as they struggled once again to contain physically superior opponents.
Westmeath made early use of the wind as Egan, Paul Sharry and David Lynch’s ‘45’ put them ahead before Brian Fanning got Limerick off the mark.
However, the home side were struggling to cope with Westmeath’s running game which led Egan to convert a penalty after James Dolan was pulled down before John Egan stretched the gap to six.
Limerick picked it up as the pressure on their defence eased off and, following Ger Egan’s reply to Darragh Tracey, pulled themselves back into contention as Jamie Lee sent over frees either side of Danny Neville.
However, they weren’t getting the shot in quick enough and, after David Bryan saved off Lee, the Midlanders hit back through Sharry, Ger Egan and Kieran Martin before Lee’s third free left his side trailing 1-8 to 0-6 at half-time.
Egan and John Heslin’s free increased Westmeath’s lead on the restart as did another Heslin free. However, Limerick again found a second wind with Lee’s free and Brian Donovan’s follow-up and, after Heslin responded, the gap was back to four as Seán McSweeney’s free was followed by a pair from Séamus O’Carroll.
That was as close as they got. As Kelvin Reilly stuck the post, Johnny McCarthy picked up a second yellow and efforts from Heslin, Luke Loughlin, Shane Dempsey and Denis Glennon sealed the win for Westmeath.
Scorers for Limerick: J Lee 0-4 (4f), D Tracey, S O’Carroll 0-2 each, B Fanning, D Neville, B Donovan, S McSweeney (f) 0-1 each.
WESTMEATH: D Bryan; J Gonoud, K Maguire, M McCallon; J Dolan, F Boyle, D Lynch; P Holloway, G Egan; J Egan, P Sharry, D Corroon; K Martin, J Heslin, K Reilly. | 2019-04-19T18:56:30Z | http://munster.gaa.ie/2017/02/12/?amp;cat=4 |
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A significant increase in pertussis incidence occurred in Brazil, from 2011 to 2014, despite high coverage of childhood immunization with whole-cell-pertussis (wP) containing vaccines. This study presents pertussis surveillance data from São Paulo state and discusses the challenges to interpret them considering pertussis cyclic epidemic behavior, the introduction of new diagnostic techniques and new vaccination strategies, and enhanced disease awareness during epidemics.
Observational study including pertussis cases reported to the Surveillance System in São Paulo state, from January 2001 to December 2015. Pertussis cases data were retrieved from the National Notifiable Diseases Information System (SINAN) website and from São Paulo state Epidemiological Surveillance Center (CVE/SP) database. Vaccination coverage and homogeneity data were collected from the Unified Health System Department of Informatics (DATASUS). We presented cases distribution by year, age group and diagnostic criteria and calculated pertussis incidence rates. The proportions of cases among different age groups were compared using chi-square test for trend.
Infants less than 1 year of age were the most affected during the whole period, but the proportions of cases in this age group had a significant decreasing trend, with significant increase in the proportions of cases reported among older age groups (1–4, 5–10 and ≥20 years). Cases among infants aged less than 6 months represented ≥90% of all cases in children less than 1 year of age in all but 2 years (2012 and 2015). A non-significant decrease in the proportion of cases among infants aged < 2 months was observed in parallel to a significant increase in the proportion of cases in infants aged 6–11 months.
A pertussis outbreak has occurred in a state with universal use of wP vaccine. The disease cyclic behavior has probably had a major role in the increased incidence rates registered in São Paulo state, from 2011 to 2014, as well as in the decreased incidence in 2015. Maternal vaccination cannot explain the drop in the number of cases among all age groups, in 2015, as herd protection is not expected, but may have had an impact on the number of cases in infants aged < 2 months.
Pertussis is a highly contagious respiratory disease mainly caused by Bordetella pertussis [1, 2]. It causes uncontrollable violent coughing for long periods, most commonly affects infants and young children and can be fatal, especially in infants up to 6 months of age [1, 2]. The introduction of childhood immunization with pertussis containing vaccines led to important reduction in pertussis incidence in countries that achieved high vaccine coverage, even though the disease has never disappeared [2, 3].
A global reemergence of pertussis has been observed in the last 20 years, in spite of sustained high vaccine coverage, particularly but not exclusively, in countries that adopted acellular pertussis vaccines in routine childhood immunization [3–7]. Hypotheses to explain this reemergence are post-vaccination waning immunity; reduced effectiveness of acellular vaccines; implementation of molecular methods for diagnosis; improvement of surveillance systems; enhanced disease awareness; and genetic changes in the pathogen [4, 8].
In Brazil, pertussis is a notifiable disease since 1973, and the clinical, epidemiologic and laboratory criteria used for case classification are defined by the national public health surveillance system and updated when necessary . State and municipal levels may introduce additional measures to improve surveillance and assistance to pertussis cases. This variability in criteria and surveillance routines contributes to problems in temporal and spatial comparisons of pertussis incidence .
In the early 1980s, more than 40,000 cases were notified in Brazil each year and the annual incidence rate was > 30/100,000 inhabitants . Brazilian childhood routine immunization schedule includes 3 doses of the diphtheria-tetanus-whole-cell pertussis + Haemophilus influenzae b + hepatitis B (DTwP-Hib-HBV) pentavalent vaccine given at 2, 4 and 6 months of age, followed by two boosters doses of DTwP at 15 and 48 months of age. In the public Unified Health System (Sistema Único de Saúde, SUS), the pediatric diphtheria-tetanus-acellular pertussis (DTaP) is available only for high-risk children (preterm infants, children with severe neurological or cardiac conditions and those who have previously had severe adverse events following DTwP) . DTap is also available in private immunization clinics. The number of pertussis cases decreased during the 1990s, with the increase in the DTwP vaccine coverage nationally, but never disappeared, and a change in pertussis epidemiology was observed, with longer intervals between outbreaks (3–4 years) and an increase of cases in older children and adults, less detected by the surveillance systems [3, 9, 11].
A significant increase in pertussis incidence rates has been observed in Brazil, from 2011 to 2014, with the highest rates in infants younger than 3 months, and a concomitant increase in pertussis-related infant deaths, which led to a review of control strategies [3, 7]. In November 2014, the Brazilian Ministry of Health recommended an adult diphtheria-tetanus-acellular pertussis vaccine (Tdap) to all pregnant women . Infant protection following maternal vaccination is a combination of the direct effect of transplacental antibody transfer from mother to infant, and the indirect effect of protecting the mother, potentially reducing household transmission and preventing infant infection [12–14].
This study presents pertussis surveillance data from São Paulo State, in the Southeast of Brazil, from 2001 to 2015, and discusses the challenges to their interpretation when considering the combined impact of cyclic epidemic variation, the introduction of new diagnostic techniques and new vaccination strategies, and enhanced disease awareness during the recent epidemic.
This is an observational study, including suspected and confirmed pertussis cases reported to the Surveillance System in the São Paulo state, from January 2001 to December 2015.
São Paulo is the wealthiest of 27 Brazilian states and Federal District, being responsible for one-third of Brazil’s gross domestic product, and has a population of 43.6 million (one-fifth of Brazilian population). Its annual birth cohort is approximately 600,000, representing 1/6 of the Brazilian annual births .
In Brazil, all cases of pertussis should be reported to the National Notifiable Diseases Information System (Sistema de Informação de Agravos de Notificação, SINAN). All health professionals of both public and private health services must report a suspected case of pertussis. Nasopharyngeal swabs may be collected and sent to a reference laboratory for PCR and/or culture. After the reporting, the case and its home contacts are investigated by the municipal surveillance service. Symptomatic communicants or communicants who have contact with vulnerable persons (immunocompromised, infants, etc.) should receive chemoprophylaxis (manual de 2014, e nota técnica). The SINAN records data on location, demographic characteristics, clinical signs and symptoms, hospitalization, outcome (cure or death) and vaccination status of cases . SINAN anonymous data are freely available on line.
Pertussis cases are confirmed by: I. Clinical criteria – a person with cough for 14 days or more (10 days for infants under 6 months of age) associated with two or more of the following signs and symptoms: paroxysmal cough, inspiratory gasp (whoop), and/or vomiting after coughing; II. Laboratory criteria - all individuals who met the definition of a suspected case of pertussis and have B. pertussis isolated in culture or identified by real time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR); and III. Clinical-epidemiological criteria - all individuals who met the definition of a suspected case and who had contact with a case of pertussis confirmed by laboratory testing, during the transmission period.
Data on confirmed cases that occurred before 2007 were retrieved from SINAN website. Data not freely accessible, such as suspected cases, were made available for this study by the São Paulo State Epidemiological Surveillance Center (CVE-SP). Cases were stratified by age, diagnostic confirmation criteria, and health outcome (death or cure). Information on vaccination coverage and homogeneity were collected from the Department of Informatics of the Unified Health System (DATASUS) website . The Brazilian National Immunization Program (PNI) estimates the administrative vaccine coverage as the number of third dose of pediatric pertussis-containing vaccines administered divided by the number of children in the target age group multiplied by 100. Homogeneity is defined by the number of municipalities with vaccine coverage ≥95% divided by the total number of municipalities.
Population data from Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics were used to calculate pertussis incidence before 2011, while population data from São Paulo State Fundação Sistema Estadual de Análise de Dados, SEADE, were used to calculate pertussis incidence in 2011 and after .
Descriptive statistics are presented, with the distribution of cases by year, age group, and diagnostic criteria. The case fatality rates were presented as the proportion (%) of deaths among pertussis cases. The mean incidence rates of pertussis were calculated as the number of confirmed pertussis cases / São Paulo State population in a specific year X 100,000 inhabitants. We compared the proportion of cases among different age groups from 2001 to 2015 using chi-square test for trend with a statistical significance of 5%. Analyses were performed with EpiInfo 7.1.2.0 (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia, USA).
The study was approved by the Research Ethics Committee of Medical Scholl of São Paulo University, license number 1.073.607.
In São Paulo state, pertussis incidence ranged from 0.15 to 0.76 per 100,000 inhabitants from 2001 to 2010. A considerable increase was observed in 2011, with 2.20 per 100,000, rising to 2.48 per 100,000 in 2012, 3.81 per 100,000 in 2013, and 5.06 per 100,000 in 2014. In 2015, the incidence dropped to 1.28 per 100,000. As shown in Fig. 1, pertussis incidence increased in all age groups from 2011 to 2014.
High pertussis vaccination coverage (≥95%) among infants was sustained during the entire period, except in 2012, when DTP3 coverage was 94%. The homogeneity was under 70% in 11 of 15 evaluated years. The lowest homogeneity observed was 45.4%, in 2012. In 2015, the first year of maternal dTpa vaccination, vaccine coverage among pregnant women was 61% in São Paulo State.
All pertussis deaths reported from 2001 to 2015 occurred among children aged less than 1 year. The number of deaths ranged from 0, in 2002, to 50, in 2013, and the higher case fatality rate was observed in 2001 (4.4%). Case fatality rates among infants aged less than 1 year were 2.79%, during the low incidence period (2001–2009) and 3.65% in the epidemic period (2011–2015).
Table 1 presents the number and proportions of pertussis cases by age group from 2001 to 2015. Infants less than 1 year of age were the most affected age group during the whole period. They represented 85.7% of all cases in 2010. This proportion dropped to 78.4% in 2011 and continued decreasing in the next years (72.5%, in 2012, 66.9%, in 2013, 63.0%, in 2014, and 61.4%, in 2015). The proportion of cases in children less than 1 year of age had a significant decreasing trend (Table 1, χ2 = 148.24, p < 0.01) with significant increases in the proportion of cases reported among older age groups (1 to 4, 5 to 10 and ≥20 years, χ2 = 68.20, 63.05, and 14.22, respectively, p < 0.01).
As shown in Table 2, the proportion of cases among infants aged less than 2 months and from 2 to 5 months represented 90% or more of all cases among infants aged less than 1 year in all but 2 years (2012 and 2015), with variation but no significant trend. However, an increasing trend was observed for infants aged from 6 to 11 months (χ2 = 12.03, p < 0.01).
Table 3 presents the distribution of suspected and confirmed cases by confirmation criteria, from 2007 to 2015. The laboratory confirmation rate among confirmed cases increased from 2007 to 2015 (Table 3, χ2 = 9.50, p < 0.01). The laboratory confirmation rate increased from 62.5%, in 2009, to 83.97% in 2010, the first year after PCR introduction as a laboratory diagnostic tool. However, the proportion of confirmed cases (all criteria) among suspected cases decreased during the years (χ2 = 181.25, p < 0.01). The year 2015 presented the lowest proportion of confirmed cases among the suspected cases.
A considerable increase in the pertussis incidence was observed in São Paulo State, from 2011 to 2014, in spite of high DTP3 vaccination coverage among children, similar to what was observed in other countries that adopt acellular pertussis vaccines. In 2015, pertussis incidence dropped to a pre-epidemic level [4–6, 18].
The global resurgence of pertussis has led to intense discussion of its causes. The predominant hypothesis to explain recent pertussis epidemiology changes are the lower effectiveness and shorter duration of protection of acellular pertussis pediatric vaccines as compared to the whole-cell vaccines [4, 8]. The shorter immunity in those vaccinated with acellular vaccines make them susceptible to the infection at a younger age [4, 8]. The waning immunity increases the number of susceptibles and, consequently, increases the circulation of B. pertussis among adolescents and adults, who are the source of infection for the not fully immunized infants [4, 19, 20]. However, in Brazil, the whole-cell pertussis containing vaccines are still used as part of the National Immunization Program. The proportion of children in São Paulo state who have been immunized with acellular pertussis vaccines is not known, but is considered to be very small. Other Latin American countries, such as Argentina, Colombia and Chile also reported pertussis resurgence despite adopting the whole-cell vaccine in their official vaccination schedule . Thus, the increase in the pertussis incidence observed in these countries in recent years must have other explanations.
From 2006 to 2012, the proportion of Brazilian municipalities with a 95% DTP coverage decreased from 83% to 55%, with no homogeneous coverage throughout the country . A study that analyzed data for the whole country found a correlation of lower vaccine coverage with higher pertussis incidence in the pre-epidemic years (2007–2011), but this correlation was not observed in the epidemic years (2012–2014) . Correlation of vaccine coverage and pertussis incidence was not analyzed for the São Paulo state, which had high DTP coverage with low homogeneity in most years.
Cyclic epidemic peaks of pertussis have been observed in many countries. The interval between these peaks varies from one study to another, suggesting that they occur every two to 5 years. Brazilian data show increases in the years 1997–1998, 2004–2005 and 2007–2008 . The cyclic behavior of the disease has probably had a major role in the increased incidence rates registered in São Paulo state from 2011 to 2014.
Infants aged less than 1 year were the most affected, particularly infants younger than 2 months, who had not received any vaccine dose. This age group more frequently presents the typical clinical manifestation of the disease, concentrating severe cases, with higher hospitalization and case-fatality rates, and is a reliable indicator of overall transmission activity [21–23]. On the other hand, older children, adolescents and adults usually have milder symptoms, similar to viral infections, making pertussis diagnosis difficult [21, 24]. We observed an increase in pertussis incidence rates among all age groups during the epidemic years (2011 to 2014). However, the increase was proportionally higher among older age groups when compared to infants.
This may have been related to increased awareness of pertussis among health professionals, improved diagnostic sensitivity with the introduction of PCR and better case reporting, not to changes in the age distribution of the disease. Cases among older age groups are often underdiagnosed due to the absence of typical symptoms [4, 21]. Underreporting is a concern in any surveillance system, but the low proportion of confirmed pertussis cases among the suspected cases in 2015 suggests that increased awareness was still present.
After PCR introduction in pertussis diagnosis in São Paulo State, in 2009, the proportion of confirmed cases among the suspects increased in 2010 and 2011, returned to previous levels in 2012 to 2014, and decreased significantly in 2015. The laboratorial confirmation rate among confirmed cases increased after 2010 and decreased significantly in 2015 (Table 2). The new diagnostic method may have contributed to the increased specificity of pertussis cases detection from 2011 to 2014. The availability of a new diagnostic method may have stimulated health professionals to think about the disease, increasing their awareness. But, it seems that PCR introduction has not influenced the overall epidemiological surveillance sensitivity. Pertussis incidence dropped among all age groups in 2015, preserving the proportion of cases in children aged less than 1 year and older age groups observed during the epidemic years (2011 to 2014).
Vaccination of pregnant women with Tdap was introduced in November 2014, and vaccine coverage reached 61% in São Paulo State in 2015. A case-control study estimated that maternal vaccination with Tdap had an effectiveness of 93% in protecting the infants . An assessment of maternal vaccination program in England showed vaccine effectiveness of 91% (95% CI, 84 to 95%) among infants aged less than 3 months . In São Paulo, a non-significant decrease in the proportion of cases among infants aged less than 2 months was observed in 2015, in comparison to a significant increase of the proportion of cases in infants aged 6 to 11 months, suggesting an impact of the maternal vaccination program on young infants (Table 3). However, the maternal vaccination program cannot explain the drop in the number of cases among all age groups, as herd protection is not expected.
Studies with mathematical models indicate pertussis resurgence in England and US was caused by lower efficacy and duration of protection of aP as compared to wP vaccine . The World Health Organization recommends that countries currently using wP containing vaccines for primary immunization should continue to use them, and a switch from wP to aP should be considered only when additional strategies to control infant disease such as maternal immunization can be assured .
Pertussis case fatality rates ranged without any specific pattern from 2001 to 2015. The vaccination status of reported cases was not show because the proportions of unavailable information on the vaccination status ranged from 16.6% for infants aged less than 2 months to 68.5% for persons aged ≥20 years. There were inconsistencies in the vaccination status data retrieved from the notifiable diseases information system (SINAN).
The data presented, based on epidemiological surveillance and straightforward descriptive analysis, helped to identify the multiple elements that may have contributed to changes in pertussis epidemiology observed in a state with universal use of wP vaccines. It suggests that the disease cyclic behavior probably had a major role in the 4 years of increased incidence followed by decrease of pertussis incidence observed in 2015. Awareness of the disease, improved diagnostic sensitivity with the introduction of PCR and better case reporting may have influenced, although not significantly the epidemiologic scenario. This type of analysis is based only on epidemiologic surveillance expertise and can be useful in the initial interpretation of the impact of new technologies on pertussis epidemiology.
The authors thank Dr. Alicia Matijasevich Manitto (professor, FMUSP) and Dr. Gizelton Pereira Alencar (professor, FSPUSP) for statistical support.
The data used in this study is available in DATASUS website (http://www2.datasus.gov.br/DATASUS/index.php?area=02).
EGF, AMCS, PCS, and HMDN contributed to the design of the study. EGF, TRMPC, and MR collected or generated the data. EGF, AMCS, and HMDN analyzed and interpreted study data. All authors participated in the development of this manuscript and in its critical review with important intellectual contributions. All authors had full access to the data and gave final approval before submission. All authors agree to be accountable for all aspects of the work in ensuring that questions related to the accuracy or integrity of any part of the work are appropriately investigated and resolved.
AMCS received speaker’s fees from Sanofi Pasteur. The other authors declare that they have no competing of interests.
Estados @. [https://cidades.ibge.gov.br/]. Accessed 20 Oct 2016.
Informações de Saúde - Tabnet [http://www2.datasus.gov.br/DATASUS/index.php?area=02]. Accessed 20 Oct 2016.
Fundação SEADE [http://www.seade.gov.br/]. Accessed 20 Oct 2016. | 2019-04-20T06:15:41Z | https://bmcinfectdis.biomedcentral.com.preview-live.oscarjournals.springer.com/articles/10.1186/s12879-018-3004-1 |
Shaper Kumena dashed through the undergrowth, his heart pounding. He was barely using his magic—just a nudge here and there so that the undergrowth helped his passage rather than hindering it. Any greater act of spellcraft would have led Tishana straight to him.
He could feel it. He was nearing the golden city of Orazca, the resting place of the Immortal Sun. His rivals were behind him, and victory lay ahead.
Kumena plunged into a nearby river and swam with the current. The power of the golden city grew nearer, greater, and somehow brighter. He could hear water rushing over some immense structure ahead of him. The waterfall surprised him—the water here felt as if it had only recently been tugged in a separate direction.
The river widened. Ahead the water dropped away over the lip of a vast waterfall, and Kumena swam with the current until he stopped himself at an outcropping of gold. The ankle-deep water rushed past, and strange golden spires pierced the treetops of the valley before him.
On a shelf of rock across a thin, semicircular canyon, golden spires rose out of the jungle.
Kumena made his way around the canyon's rim. Water tumbled into the gorge far below, carried away by a subterranean river. How far and wide does that unseen channel run? he wondered. Does it dwarf the Great River itself? Kumena contemplated what forces lay hidden beneath Ixalan's surface.
Orazca itself was massive, but he kept losing sight of it. (Him! A Shaper, the embodiment of his namesake river!) Kumena was impressed at the magic inherent in this place and its ability to remain hidden for so long. He picked his way around its perimeter until at last he reached its entrance: a massive staircase with a great archway at the top.
His heart raced and fins quivered. Who else had climbed this staircase in the last few hundred years? Had anyone? What was its original purpose? Why was it built?
No, not why. He knew why. They built it for this moment, for him to climb. The stones beneath his feet rippled with power, but it was his own power reflecting back at him.
Kumena ascended to the golden city at last.
He reached the archway at the top of the stairs, and the sun that shone through nearly blinded him.
Gold. It really is made of gold.
But gold did not interest him. Eyes watched him from the shadows, animals that made their homes in these strangely pristine ruins. They did not interest him either.
He stepped into the golden city. He could feel his power growing already, and he knew with certainty that his rivals were not far behind him now. Light shone from every surface, and the sun warmed his skin. It felt like coming home.
Kumena was gripped by a sudden feeling of certainty. He knew where the Immortal Sun sat. It wanted to be found.
"Kumena," a voice whispered from the golden walls. "Kumena the Shaper, child of the Great River, leader of your people. Come set me free."
Could it be? All this time, the golden city was a prison, not a stronghold?
"Who's there?" shouted Kumena. "How do you know me?"
He turned, and in the shining golden facades of the city he swore he saw something move. He could not make out what it was—neither animal nor person. He wondered with alarm if it was just a trick of the light.
"I know you very well," said the voice, louder now. "Come to me."
"How?" said Kumena. "Where are you?"
There were reflections in the gold, of a thing that was not there. A face?
"Listen," said the voice. "Look. Follow."
The voice was deep and commanding, the voice of a leader. It was his own.
"Is this trickery?" he asked. "Or am I lost to madness?"
The faces were his as well, a thousand tiny golden selves shining at him, eyes alight.
"Neither," said the voice. "There is power here, Kumena. The power that was intentionally designed . . . but also an additional, inert power. A still pond. A mirror in darkness. It can do nothing . . ."
". . . without my own power to reflect," Kumena finished. "Is that it?"
"Follow," said the voice, and the many golden reflections of Kumena's own face echoed it. "Follow."
"I am the Sun, Kumena. As you will be. Follow."
It was a command, delivered with all the force of his own convictions.
A labyrinth stretched out before him, serpentine corridors of stone and gold meandering off into the distance. Kumena entered the labyrinth and walked steadily, in a meditative trance, following the call of the Immortal Sun around every twist and turn. With every step, his power grew. Every surface was limned in brilliant light.
It was too bright, too warm. His fins began to curl and desiccate, his gills grew dry, and still the sun did not move in the sky.
Kumena approached a central tower, a gigantic temple. He wandered around it, sensing that this was where the power lay. On one side was a massive, intricate door, its entrance marked with a great seal and a complex lock. But the other side, the side facing a large central plaza, has a simple door leading to a simple staircase. The way to the top.
Kumena shivered, though he was not cold, and elected to take the path of least resistance.
Up and up, one finned foot in front of the other, until he reached the top.
He stepped into the chamber, and beheld the Immortal Sun. It did not look as he expected—a dull-glowing stone surrounded by gold, and embedded in the floor, of all places. A great open window looked out on the city beyond, and if one were to stand on top of the Immortal Sun, one would be able to see the entire city. The Immortal Sun looked like nothing more than a strange decoration in the floor, but it felt . . . it felt like a mirror, not a light. The light was his.
Kumena stepped onto the Immortal Sun and took that power, his power. The ground shifted beneath him, and his perspective shifted with it.
He was vast, all-encompassing. The shaping magic he dedicated his life to mastering now seemed a fraction of what he was capable of, the digging of children in the sand. He could feel all of Orazca and beyond. What fools the River Heralds had been, to let this power sit unused!
The city was hidden, but it was not fortified, and his rivals had no doubt already tracked him to the central spire. Kumena had reached Orazca far too easily, and they would arrive soon. He could feel them, crawling like ants, though they were far too insignificant for him to identify who among them was whom.
He flexed his fingers, and the city lurched upward, separating from the rock around it. The ground shook. Spires hidden for centuries reached upward through the jungle, and the little canyon behind the city yawned wider and farther, surrounding the city like a moat. Rivers plunged into it. Veins of gold beneath the earth ripped open—vast riches, not that Kumena cared. It was nothing but useless metal to him, just a part of the city's absurd bounty, for which he had no need or use.
The creatures within the city stirred. The ants beyond it shifted and scurried toward it.
They had all been racing for the golden city, but the race was over. The fight for Orazca had begun, and Kumena would not see his people wiped from the face of Ixalan. Quite the opposite. Quite the opposite, now that he had claimed what was rightfully his.
Outside himself, around himself, bathed in golden light, Kumena began to laugh.
His laugh was cut short by a noise behind him.
Kumena turned his physical form, the one that stood atop the Immortal Sun, and locked eyes with a vampire.
She was grinning, and her collar was covered in dry blood.
Kumena curled his toes and centered his weight. "It is not yours to take, vampire," he warned. "One conquistador is no match for me."
"How about two?" she teased. "What do you say, Mavren Fein?" she tossed over her shoulder.
"I say the Butcher of Magan is right in the eyes of the Church to cleanse that which stands in her path," a voice said in response.
Kumena saw a second shape come up the stairs. He was a hierophant, with long flowing robes and a staff taller than himself. Kumena began to feel afraid.
The two vampires rushed at him.
Kumena began to conjure a defense, but was tackled to the floor. The vampires scratched and bit, and one of their swords sliced a long line into Kumena's side. He tried to wrestle the two of them off, but with each push away they would snap their jaws and attempt to hold him in place. Mavren Fein and Vona yanked him closer and reached with their glistening teeth for his neck.
This is not how I end. I will not allow them the satisfaction of my blood!
Kumena wrestled, struggling from their grasp, and looked toward the window.
Vona laughed above him. "You don't want to assist us in our most holy mission?"
Kumena spat in her face, and Vona's smile grew even wider.
"Then you will die another way," she hissed.
She gripped his flesh with unnatural strength, and before Kumena could react, she threw him out the window.
Kumena's eyes went wide, and as he fell through the window he saw Vona above him, grinning with manic malice.
Jace lay in agony on the riverbank. His hair was matted with his own blood, and his eyes shone with uncontrolled magic.
Vraska swam toward him, spitting out dirty water and squinting over the spray of the waterfall. The rocks at the base of the waterfall were jagged and massive—it was a miracle Jace had survived at all.
Vraska knew a serious injury could cause memory loss or make problem-solving difficult. One of her fellow assassins in the Ochran had grown quick-tempered after such a blow when she was younger. Jace was a telepath and an illusionist—his brain was his instrument. Vraska knew she was witnessing what happened when that instrument was damaged, and the result was not a weakening, but rather a dislodging of whatever valve prevented his mind from containing itself. He broadcasted his memories now in bursts and stops, clearly trying to wrestle them back under control.
It's over, Vraska thought. He is going to remember everything—our fight, my profession, his title. He will hate me, surely. Gorgons are meant to be despised. Vraska cursed and swam toward her friend with a mournful feeling building in her chest.
The image was of a plane Vraska had never visited. There was a massive barrier made of white brick against a turbulent sky. The right side of the gate was tainted with a strange bismuth stain, as if a great brush of disease had been painted across its top. There was a breach at the entrance, and water from the sea poured into a demolished harbor as bits of the destroyed gate floated up and off and into the sky.
Vraska screamed in pain as the image tore through her mind. It felt like a migraine magnified, a piercing ache and flashes of aura that threatened to freeze her muscles as she fought the current.
It was less of an illusion and more of an immersion. She felt like she was there.
The image vanished as her feet touched the riverbed below. She yelled Jace's name to try and distract him, but it was no use.
Vraska pulled herself out and clambered toward Jace on the shore. She knelt at his side and tentatively reached out to him with a reassuring hand.
Vraska staggered and caught herself with her hands on the ground.
Vraska shut her eyes tightly. She wasn't entirely certain which end of the exchange she was on. It was tremendously disorienting.
She looked to Jace with a crease in her brow. "Jace, we need to find whoever awakened the city. You need to make an illusion so our crew can find us!"
The mind mage shut his eyes and Vraska saw what spilled up and out of his memories.
The sound of the river vanished and the hot air of the jungle turned chill.
She saw a dark interior, steel-lined walls, and a half-metal man. The air had a metallic tang, and there was just enough light in the room for her to make out the gaps between the metal sections of the strange man's abdomen. Jace was on the ground below. He looked thin and world-weary, just a few years younger than he did now.
The man dropped to one knee. He gripped Jace's hair in a shiny metal fist.
"I'm going to make damn sure you learn from this debacle."
Vraska watched as the man pulled up Jace's shirt and dragged a manablade in long, arrow-straight lines down his back, then one single line down his right forearm. She cringed in horror as Jace screamed. Her breath caught in her throat and her heart beat like a bird caught in a cage. She knew what it felt like to be tortured. She felt hideously guilty—how could she have not recognized that shared hurt in him before? Empathy gripped her chest, and Vraska let out a shivering breath. The sight of Jace and the knife brought back memories of her own she dared not touch, not now, not when their minds were mixed like this.
The real Jace gasped, and Vraska's perception of reality flickered back to the sunny riverbank on Ixalan. He was doubled over, hands gripping his own bloodied hair.
Vraska had no idea what to do. She wanted to comfort but didn't know how, so she attempted to talk him back to a place of control.
"It's a memory, Jace—it's not happening now. You're safe. "
Vraska saw bright shimmering lights and felt a deep pain in her head once again. By now she had gathered that this was what signaled another influx of sensory immersion and braced for the impact. She staggered as another illusion took hold. The world rippled, fluid as water, until it settled into an illusion of a dim alleyway.
Vraska's sighed in relief. A familiar sight. Ravnica was before her once again.
The Jace in front of her was pathetically young.
He couldn't have been older than fifteen, and he was seated on a broken chair amid rubble. Vraska recognized the area as one under Gruul control, given the copious amounts of both trees and recently destroyed buildings. Firelight filtered in through ragged hanging canvas, and a haggard-looking Gruul shaman stood nearby busying himself with an enchantment on his own hand. The shaman's arms were covered from shoulder to wrist with tattoos of the city streets.
The teenage Jace seated in the chair had the look about him of someone who wanted to disappear and wish someone more imposing into his place. His outfit was disheveled, the cut of it unfamiliar. Vraska sensed in the fabric of the memory that this version of Jace had arrived in Ravnica for the first time only days before.
The Gruul shaman's hand was glowing brilliant white. "This your first?" he grunted.
It took Jace a moment too long to answer. "Yes," he said timidly.
Vraska couldn't help but smile at this memory. He was the wimpiest teenager she had ever seen—no wonder he wanted a cool tattoo. It was incredibly charming. She remembered her own young street rat years and grinned at the thought of how well the teenage her and the teenage Jace would have gotten along.
We'd have torn up the town, she thought with mirth. No bookshop would have been safe.
"Then take a swig of that," the shaman said in the memory, pointing at a bottle on the young illusion-Jace's left. "This'll hurt like a Rakdos comedy."
Vraska chuckled at the simile as Jace followed the artist's instructions. He made a face at its taste (she didn't blame him for that) and put on a look of determination.
The shaman leaned over the teenager and drew a line with his finger down Jace's cheek, leaving a brilliant white tattoo in its place. He continued on his chin and arm, and Vraska watched as the shaman diligently painted a braver face on the nervous teenager's own.
She caught a glimpse of the paper the shaman was referencing. A series of symbols was hastily sketched on it—symbols she recognized from this Jace's future cloak. An elongated ring, open at the bottom, with a circle floating in the middle. She wondered what its significance was.
The illusion shattered, then vanished, leaving the rush of the waterfall and the shimmering gold of Orazca in its wake.
Vraska's perception was wavering, and everything had an artificial glint to it, as if the accidental illusions were smearing across reality even now. Her hands were still gripping the mud of the riverbank, physically clinging to what was real.
"Jace, you're safe and all right, but I need you to make an illusion so our crew can find us."
But Jace was still unreachable. His eyes remained bright with magic, and strength had not returned to his limbs. Vraska could see his chest rise and fall with each shuddering breath. He inhaled sharply as another wave of memory washed over him, then went utterly still in response to whatever he was seeing, his lips parted in shock.
The light above them dimmed as an illusion of this new memory coalesced into being, bringing with it the weight of dusk and the scent of too-ripe apples.
Vraska found herself in a small bedroom with bare walls and two chairs in front of the fire. She wasn't sure what plane she was on, but that was irrelevant. This room was a world unto itself, the furniture its continents, the rug its ocean, as if nothing outside of the space mattered. Dust clung to the windowsill, and a half-empty basket of fruit sat by the door, boasting a collection of bruised apples. Jace was there, naturally, and his face was lit by the cozy-looking fire. The texture of the memory was velvety and welcoming, but Vraska saw no joy in the scene.
Jace was seated in front of the fire, across from a woman in violet.
Everything about the woman's body language exuded boredom, but Jace was leaning forward, rapt with interest. Vraska felt deeply uncomfortable. This was an intimate moment. She was not meant to see this.
"I never want to play chess again," Jace said, rubbing his temples.
The woman regarded him with intense disinterest. "Chess is tedious," she said in dull agreement.
Jace's cloak was hanging on the coatrack. His shoes were drying by the fire. Vraska knew she shouldn't watch, yet she knew she couldn't leave.
Jace's left index finger was tapping a rapid, unconscious rhythm on his thigh. His voice was tentative. Uncertain. "What you said back on Innistrad, about when I die . . ."
The woman's long hair tumbled over half of her face. Her lipstick was end-of-the-day faded and her eyes betrayed an indifference that Vraska prayed this version of Jace would notice.
"Hard to forget a conversation like that," said Jace. "You don't meddle in sentiment unless you mean it. So . . . did you mean it?"
He paused, cautious. "Will you be sad when I die?"
Jace was looking at the woman in violet attentively. Expectantly. Vraska's stomach lurched at the strangeness of the question. He had asked it as if he was unsure, even though the context of the moment around him implied that he and this woman were more than acquaintances.
The woman in violet looked Jace in the eye, lids heavy, knees resting to the side. "I expect so," she said. A half sentiment. A bone for the dog. "What we had, whatever you want to call it . . . it's worth that much, at least."
Vraska's mouth hung open. That's it? The woman's cruel dismissal of an honest plea for affection told Vraska everything she needed to know about her. Vraska's tendrils knotted in discomfort, but she couldn't look away from this poor man, this woman, this dreadful little room.
"I think that's the nicest thing you've ever said to me," Jace replied.
The woman in violet laughed. As though it were a joke. As though he hadn't said it with a desperate yearning for her approval written plainly on his face.
Vraska felt like a home invader. This domestic play of profound imbalance wasn't meant for her to see.
"You should go back. The others will notice if you don't come home tonight," said the woman.
Jace shrugged. "It's just past sunset. I've got time."
"Oh." The woman looked Jace over, visibly weighing some decision in her mind.
She stood up suddenly and crossed the room toward her vanity. Vraska sidestepped her and watched as the woman opened a drawer. She pulled out a bottle and two glasses and returned to the fireside, deftly uncorking the decanter with one swift motion. "What should we drink to?" she asked.
You don't pour a glass for someone you want to leave, Vraska thought as her stomach dropped.
Jace was smiling. "A toast, to Emrakul," he quipped, "for doing our job for us."
The woman lifted her half-filled glass and clinked it against his.
She refilled their glasses to the brim.
Vraska couldn't take her eyes off the other woman. For someone who hated chess, she sure looked at Jace with the icy scrutiny of a grand master.
At last the woman in violet decided her play, disguising her probe with a lethargic sip from her glass. "Have you seen anyone since?" Vraska could hear the weight implied in that "since." The designation, the shared knowledge. "You got along well with the moonfolk woman," she added deliberately. Pawn to E4.
The game behind the statement made Vraska want to claw her way out of the room.
Jace swirled the liquid in his glass and his demeanor suddenly shifted. He glanced up at the woman in violet. "She's married."
"Is she?" the woman said, superficially pleased at the revelation. She knew full well how aggressive her opening move had been. Knight to F3.
Jace's nodded. "She was a scholar. Morally ambiguous. Married, and not what I'm looking for even if she weren't."
The woman in violet was watching him closely.
"And what are you looking for?" she asked.
She's manipulating you into staying, Vraska wanted to scream. You're smart. She doesn't reciprocate your feelings. Don't fall for this.
Jace leaned back in his chair and stared at her over his glass. With great trepidation and an uncharacteristic absence of logic, his answer fluttered out. "This isn't so bad."
Vraska's heart ached. This was so bad, but he was too far lost to pull back the curtain of affection and see the bored cruelty of her intentions.
"This is just two old acquaintances, relaxing after a victory," the woman responded. "Reminiscing about the good old days."
Jace absently tugged on his right glove. "Those days weren't all good."
"We weren't, either," the woman said in a hushed, dangerous tone.
In a moment, the game transformed, chessboard tossed on the floor, metaphorical dice on the table. She was a gambler, floating an offer for one more round, one more bet, just for the hell of it, c'mon, fellas, what's the worst that could happen.
"We're not together," the woman in violet added. "But you don't have to leave just yet."
Jace looked up from his drink and met her gaze with a hopeful look.
The woman topped up both of their glasses and lifted hers. "To new good old days," she said.
To Vraska's relief, the illusion dissolved, and the riverbed returned.
Vraska felt nauseated. Was there anyone in Jace's life who hadn't tried to take advantage of him or his talents?
She was starting to worry. The attack of reminiscence was not easing up. "Jace, I'm so sorry. I wasn't supposed to see that last one, but I'm so sorry that woman . . ."
A distant roar interrupted her. Vraska froze, alarmed by the immense noise in the distance. She stood and stared in the direction it had come from. It was most certainly a dinosaur, but of a size she did not know they could reach.
"Jace . . . we need to move."
Jace gasped in surprise, his eyes still blown out and blue with the flood of his own magic. He choked out a single word. "Vryn—"
—and a massive circular structure blinked into Vraska's view.
This place was Vraska's kind of beautiful. A gritty frontier on the edge of civilization. She knew without a doubt that this was Jace's home plane.
Jace, I'm still seeing what you're seeing, I don't know how to help you! Vraska thought, desperately, hoping that Jace would be able to hear and respond telepathically.
All she felt in return from him was a projected wave of absolute despair.
Jace was entirely out of control. His older, deeper memories spilled from his mind in a difficult-to-follow torrent.
A woman's face. Her skin was peachy and flecked with freckles, her chestnut hair pulled back from her tired eyes. She was reading to her toddler from a notebook as she wandered the tiny kitchen, excitedly explaining a new healing technique while peeling vegetables for dinner. A peel fell onto the page like a bookmark.
The scene was awash with the smell of violets. The woman was lovely. Vraska didn't mind her view into this part of Jace's past—it was nice here.
The same woman appeared again, this time wrestling a shoe onto a child's foot. Her toddler was whining and kicking before he suddenly reached down to tie his own laces with clumsy hands. The mother startled, as if she had never taught him how to do that.
The flashes came more rapidly—the same woman over and over.
Checking under her son's bed.
A flash of reality—the true Jace was on the ground, his hands in his hair and his forehead pressed to the earth. He was consumed by the act of reliving, and Vraska realized in horror how many times Jace's mind had been tampered with. She saw his psychic mastery by the time he was thirteen (Vraska shivered—how the hell could he do that at thirteen?!), his fury at discovering what had been taken, his desolation as he realized how many times he had been manipulated.
Encompassing, overwhelming, dominating it all . . . was a sphinx.
The world around them violently lifted up and above to become a rooftop at dusk.
Vraska's perception jolted, and she saw the memory through Jace's eyes.
The same huge rings from earlier repeated out and out into the distance, the sky turned an angry gray, fat raindrops fell like pellets, and the sphinx Alhammarret was crouched to attack in front of her. She sensed Jace's bruises under his tunic, felt the panicked sweat on the back of his neck despite the biting cold.
She felt Jace's past rage roil in her chest. She saw how this mentor had betrayed him, had manipulated and molded him into a tool to be used rather than a student to be taught. Vraska lost herself in the memory. She felt her mouth move with the words of a teenager. Her voice was masculine, young, just past its pubescent breaking point. "Help me find my limits. Pry the information out of me!"
The sphinx stood on his hind legs, and Vraska felt it as they dove into each other's minds.
Alhammarret seemed to freeze, his mind becoming as accessible as a bookcase. Deep within his brain was an ethereal structure, its construction complex: marble lining a nearly endless well. Vraska was captivated by the strangeness of what it felt like to wield a magic so different from her own. She and the past Jace both felt the strange marble of the well of Alhammarret's mind reach to attack. In a fraction of a second, a moment of instinct, Jace reached out defensively with his own mind. His power invisibly shot forth like a like a fist, like a hammer, then multiplied into a battering ram, aimed all its force at the sphinx's fragile mind, and broke it.
That strike, in Alhammarret's mind, was more ruinous than any explosion, more destructive than any earthquake, more calamitous than any meteor. What was a well of weathered marble violently collapsed against itself in a catastrophic implosion that deafened the senses.
But Jace had struck out too hungrily, too hard, and his own memories were ripped away in the process of psychic demolition.
A long droning whine yanked Jace and Vraska out of the sphinx's mind and back to the rooftop in the driving rain. The massive body of the sphinx was prone, his eyes open wide with confusion. Alhammarret manually sucked in air, pushed it out, and began to scream. It was the terrified howl of an infant. A frightened wail at a world too large and too loud and astonishingly unfamiliar.
He seemed unable to manipulate his limbs with any agency and shrieked even more, his massive wings thumping against the hard concrete of the roof. After every howl, he gasped for more air, and with each exhalation, he vocalized his terror and confusion.
The past Jace fell to his knees as his own memories locked themselves away, and grasped the sobbing sphinx's head in his hands, feeling for the broken mess of Alhammarret's mind to try to piece it together.
I did this, she felt Jace think to himself, I did this.
The sphinx's screaming wouldn't stop. He stared with wide unblinking eyes and continuously wailed in horror at his own existence.
Vraska shared Jace's alarm. Alhammarret had ruined him, abused him, torn his mind apart time after time, but what the sphinx was suffering now was a fate worse than death. Alhammarret deserved to perish, but no one deserved this.
In that moment, Vraska felt as Jace began to instinctively planeswalk away. Jace's own injured mind was still actively locking itself away; it was like racing through a passageway of jagged rocks, and the faster Jace tried to planeswalk away to escape, the more memory was ripped from his sides, scraped from his psyche and torn away from himself.
Gone was the face of his mother, his family, his home, his past.
All that remained was the image of the sphinx's collar, an elongated ring, open at the bottom, with a circle floating in the middle. In the fabric of the memory—the one memory he would be left with—Vraska realized that symbol would be the only thing that would help him preserve his name, but nothing else.
Vraska felt herself yanked up and out of the memory, violently expelled, and the illusions of the world sped by and dissipated. As fast as she had been sucked in, she was back on the rocks and mud next to the waterfall, standing in the sunshine under the spires of Orazca. The current Jace, the Jace she knew, the illusionist, pirate, and companion, was lost in grief on the riverbank.
Vraska instantly dove to the ground and scooped him into her arms.
He wept a lifetime's worth of tears.
She held him tight, and tucked his head into the crook of her neck. It was the first time she had touched another person willingly in years. The sensation was alien and alarming, but utterly necessary. Jace sobbed and sobbed into her arms, and she gripped him all the tighter. He had spent more than half of his life with no memory of his entire childhood. He had forgotten so much. He had forgotten so many times. She held him for all the times she wished someone had held her when she was imprisoned. She hugged him close for every time she had asked for help and been hit in return. She had spent so much of her life alone and shut away, it was impossible for her to deny comfort to someone who, like her, had suffered such an immensity of hurt.
Vraska looked up and saw an illusion of herself.
The grime of the riverbank was traded for the brisk daylight of Stormwreck Sea. The gorgon had blossomed into a captain, and this Vraska was singing a Golgari folk song at the top of her lungs as her crew cleaned the ship. Everything about that moment was happy and pastel, and Vraska felt it as the past Jace tried to sing along with the strange melody.
Vraska smiled, for she remembered that moment too. She remembered being surprised he could carry a tune as well as he did.
The illusory Vraska transformed, and Vraska's hope collapsed in on itself.
The memory of Vraska became crueler, uglier, snarling and furious. Her tendrils whipped at the air, and her dress seemed to be made of shadow. The grit of Ravnica towered over them, and Vraska saw herself through Jace's eyes. It was the first time they had met. The past Vraska was pointing at Jace, but it seemed to Vraska that her past was pointing directly at her, asking for an ally lest she retaliate with violence. Vraska felt Jace's fear, sensed his trepidation and fury. He didn't know what she meant to ask. He didn't know why she had done what she did. He did not know, and when he had looked at her then, he saw her only as a killer, a beast.
Vraska felt sick. She hated seeing herself this way, like the monster the rest of the world saw when they looked at her. The gorgon in front of her was prepared to kill, and Vraska felt ashamed to see herself painted with such malice. It was all over. Jace was remembering everything, and once he was able to understand it all, he would see her as nothing but a monster, no matter how wonderful the last few months had been.
The memory vanished and the riverbank returned.
Vraska let go and backed away. Jace's convulsive tears were slowing, and fatigue was settling in. The illusions vanished. The glow of magic ceased. Jace pulled his hands away from his head and looked at the mixture of his own blood and the mud of the river that covered them.
Vraska wanted to clutch him close until he was whole again. She wanted to planeswalk to the farthest corner of the Multiverse. She wanted both to hold him and to vanish, and she froze in the process of deciding which was the better option.
Jace looked up at her, and his eyes were hopelessly red with grief.
"You saw everything," Jace remarked in an empty voice.
Vraska felt awful. "I saw what you couldn't contain."
He looked away, embarrassed. "You're an assassin," he stated as the memory settled into place.
"And a friend," she responded plainly, sadly.
Jace's awareness was distant. He may have found a way to prevent his memories from spilling out again, but he was visibly struggling to his thoughts internally. His voice remained hollow. "Emmara. Nissa. I have so few friends . . ."
Vraska's heart was aching. She didn't know what to say.
He shut his eyes, grimacing in pain. The control was back. The lid was on, and he seemed determined not to show any more emotion. Either that or he had simply cried himself out. Vraska sensed it was the latter—he looked like he had run a marathon. She decided it was best to wait for him. Vraska shrugged off her coat and wrung the river water out of it. She checked herself for bruises and sprains, then craned her neck toward the staircase that led to the city above. All the while, Jace tried to calm himself. Every now and then, he sighed with the weight of memory, but the worst seemed to have passed.
He shook his head gingerly. "It's not all back. There are gaps. I don't remember how I lost my memory, or how I got here."
"Don't pick your scabs," Vraska said quietly, realizing half a moment too late how stupid and mundane her advice sounded.
What could she say to someone who had just regained so many difficult memories?
Vraska sat, choosing a spot several paces away from Jace. The sun was warm, and she could already feel it baking away the wetness of the river from her clothes. She looked at his tattoos and recognized them for what they were. Alhammarret's collar, the symbol to which he attached his name. Even as a teenager, Jace was clever enough to mark it on his skin to ensure he would never forget it.
"I'm sorry I tried to kill you on Ravnica," she said.
Jace made a pained noise and closed his eyes, shivering through another wave of pain. "I would have listened if you had explained why." He shifted uncomfortably. "The people you killed to get my attention back then . . ."
"A murderer, a defiler, and a trafficker of innocents, with names that sounded like planes." She shrugged and shook her head firmly. "I don't regret their deaths, but I do regret thinking it was the only way to get you to listen to me."
"I forgive you for trying to kill me," Jace said softly and honestly in return. "You were doing what you thought was right for your people."
Neither of them could think of anything to say after that.
Vraska stood up and began to pace the riverbank. For the first time she got a good look at the newly visible city of Orazca.
The golden walls and spires reached high above even the tallest trees of the jungle, shining in the light of the sun. Vraska could make out etchings of great men and women on its sides. At the center of the city was a tower that dwarfed all the rest.
She pulled out the compass, and sure enough, its light pointed an arrow-straight line toward the tower.
From her vantage, she could see an endless staircase crawling from the other side of the brand-new river up to an archway above that would lead into the city.
She looked back at Jace. He was extraordinarily still, his eyes looking far away in the distance. He seemed bolted in place on the riverbank, as though he was so heavy that no amount of wind could rip him from his grief. Vraska couldn't help but stare. He had gone from child prodigy to spy to victim only to have it all forcibly exorcised from his heart and mind. He had turned, lost and afraid, to people who preyed on the lost and afraid. He had been tortured, ignored, manipulated, and despite it all he was, nevertheless, intact. He had survived.
"I've never known a version of myself with my memories unimpaired," Jace said, breaking his silence with weary honesty. "So many people manipulated me into hurting so many people. And sometimes I've done it of my own volition. It was so easy."
Vraska knew firsthand how easy it was.
"You have been hurt and manipulated and abused. You should have died so many times, and despite it all you did what you had to and survived. That is a miracle worth celebrating." Vraska's expression turned serious. "Do you remember the last three months?"
Jace nodded. He smiled tightly. "It was the best three months of my life."
Vraska dared not blink, lest the spell of utter honesty between the two of them be broken. "That Jace is one of the best people I've ever met."
His glance turned into a stare. The expression in his eyes was one of disbelief. He was brilliant, sharp as a dagger and bright as a blaze, but he looked as though he did not understand how the compliment could be directed at him. As if he had already disqualified himself from being worthy of her praise.
Vraska poured truth into her words as she spoke. "The Jace I met listened to me in a way that no one ever has. Do you realize how special that is? No one has ever listened to my story, or cared that I had one in the first place." She could see the glint of sadness in his eyes as he shook his head slightly, upset on her behalf. She continued, "That Jace believed that everyone has it within themselves to reinvent who they are. That Jace is still in you, and I think that Jace is who you really are."
"That is who I would rather be," he said.
"Don't you have a say in how you turn out?"
"I want to believe I do, but how can I choose to be who you think I am when I remember how many times I've let people take advantage of me? How many people I've hurt . . ."
"No one ever chooses to be a victim," Vraska interjected. "You are not weak because you were taken advantage of. And the cruelty of what they made you do reflects on them, not you."
"I can't help feeling foolish."
"I know. But you're not."
Jace went quiet for a moment, remembering something that (thankfully) did not spill over into Vraska's mind.
"My mother—" Jace's voice stuttered slightly, and he paused for a breath. "My mother wanted me to move to the city to be a scholar."
Vraska smiled. Her words came slowly and deliberately. "You moved to a damn good city. And you became a damn good scholar," she said, pretending not to notice him fighting back the swell of emotion that her simple affirmation had caused.
Jace kept his eyes closed. "I used to imagine my parents hated me. It made me feel better about forgetting them if I pretended they were cruel. That way, no matter what I chose to do, I never felt like I was disappointing anyone."
Vraska was struck by his honesty. "Do you feel like you disappointed her?"
He thought over his words before answering. Eventually, he looked at Vraska. "I feel . . . like I want to make her proud."
His voice turned hopeful at the end. Happy, almost. That earnest man who could take apart a telescope and put it back together, could disguise a tall ship with his mind and fight back-to-back in a raid, who delighted in puzzles and piracy, he was there after all.
Vraska smiled. "Then I think you know exactly who you ought to be."
The golden staircase loomed overhead.
Vraska held out a hand to help Jace to his feet. She nodded toward the staircase weaving its way up the cliff to Orazca.
He took her palm in his and got up, wincing at his own headache and squeezing her hand in thanks. He looked up at the stairs.
"I wouldn't have had the strength to climb this a year ago," Jace said with a little bit of pride. "Or if I did, I probably would have passed out halfway up."
"You weren't that out of shape when I last saw you," Vraska teased.
"You're ignoring how often I used to use illusions to make myself look like I was in shape."
Her brows shot up. "Seriously?"
"Oh yeah," Jace acknowledged. His expression was unguarded, eyes still red from emotion, a lighthearted tilt to his lips. Unapologetically human. He grinned. "I used to be a coward."
He let Not anymore hang unspoken in the air between them, and Vraska caught his smile as he turned to ascend the golden staircase toward Orazca, one strong step after another. | 2019-04-18T12:56:04Z | https://magic.wizards.com/en/articles/archive/magic-story/flood-2018-01-10 |
Promoting Health at the Community Level is the first book to provide a systematic examination of community-based health promotion. Edited by Doug Easterling, Kaia Gallagher, and Dora Lodwick, this innovative text uses seven case studies to evaluate community-driven health promotion and present promising strategies for initiating and sustaining community-based efforts. Individual chapters describe real-world, multi-site health initiatives and summarize their evaluation outcomes. Offering unique lessons for community-based coalitions and supportive organizations, Promoting Health at the Community Level will also inspire academics and students to further explore this innovative approach to health promotion and disease prevention.
Easterling, Douglas V., Kaia M. Gallagher and Dora G. Lodwick, eds. Promoting Health at the Community Level. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications, Inc., 2003. doi: 10.4135/9781452232591.
Easterling, D V, Gallagher, K M & Lodwick, D G (eds) 2003, Promoting health at the community level, SAGE Publications, Inc., Thousand Oaks, CA, viewed 22 April 2019, doi: 10.4135/9781452232591.
Easterling, Douglas V, et al., eds. Promoting Health at the Community Level. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications, Inc., 2003. SAGE Knowledge. Web. 22 Apr. 2019, doi: 10.4135/9781452232591.
Chapter 9: What Do the Case Studies Say about Community-Based Health Promotion?
Promoting health at the community level / edited by Douglas V.
Easterling, Kaia M. Gallagher, Dora G. Lodwick.
1. Health education. 2. Health promotion. 3. Community health services. I. Easterling, Douglas. II. Gallagher, Kaia. III. Lodwick, Dora G.
Grantmaking foundations in the United States have traditionally played a leadership role in developing and testing innovative ways to improve the human condition. Similarly, since its inception in 1985, The Colorado Trust has employed a variety of grant-making approaches and philosophies designed to advance the health and well-being of the people of Colorado. For example, some Trust initiatives have tested new program models designed to improve health outcomes such as birth weight and child abuse. Other initiatives have supported community-based organizations in designing and implementing programs to address health issues as diverse as suicide, obesity, violence, and the needs of immigrants and refugees in the state. Still others have been directed at improving policy, both within health care organizations and units of government.
To ensure that Trust resources make a real contribution to the health and well-being of Coloradans, we devote considerable time to planning and designing initiatives. This process often requires that we balance competing interests. For example, in selecting topics for Trust initiatives, we strive to incorporate not only objective health assessment data, but also community concerns. Likewise, in making grants to community organizations, we look for health promotion programs that are justified based on research and those that are a good “fit” for each community.
This book describes both the successes and the challenges that arose in implementing seven of The Colorado Trust's community-based health promotion initiatives. These initiatives supported various community groups (e.g., nonprofit organizations, local health departments, school districts, community coalitions) in their efforts to prevent teen pregnancy, improve home visitation programs and school-based health education, address the Healthy People 2000 objectives, maintain seniors in independent-living situations, and promote community health, broadly defined.
Although this book describes initiatives that were designed and funded by The Colorado Trust, it was not written by Trust staff or under the direction of the foundation. Each of the seven case studies was written by a team of [Page viii]independent evaluators. The Colorado Trust highly values evaluation of its initiatives in order to assess the effectiveness of its grant making. We hope that other funders, as well as individuals and organizations operating at the community level, will gain insights that improve their own practice.
In reflecting on our experiences with the community-based approach to health promotion, we believe that there are significant opportunities and critical challenges. On the one hand, we have seen a number of our grantees make significant progress in addressing health issues in their communities. Indeed, many of these organizations and individuals have established themselves as leaders at the local, state, and even national levels. On the other hand, the community-based approach calls for considerable flexibility and patience on the part of a funder, particularly with regard to achieving measurable improvements in health status.
Clearly, supporting communities in their own problem solving has strengths and limitations. We have come to believe that the best approach to promoting health is to combine community-based initiatives with a variety of other strategies that lead to outcomes such as more effective program models, more efficient and equitable systems of health care delivery, more appropriate health policy, and improved living conditions. Only by assembling a diverse portfolio of mutually reinforcing approaches can a funder—and a community—hope to make significant, lasting progress in improving people's health.
Findings from the evaluations of all past Trust initiatives—including the seven profiled in this book—help shape future initiatives of the foundation. We encourage readers of this book to browse through our Web site (http://www.coloradotrust.org) for a current perspective on The Trust's grantmaking efforts.
This book brings together the evaluation findings from seven community-based health promotion initiatives developed and funded by The Colorado Trust in the 1990s. It goes without saying that the evaluators would have had nothing to write about were it not for all the hard work carried out by the organizations and individuals involved in these initiatives.
More than 150 groups throughout Colorado (nonprofit organizations, coalitions, government agencies) received funding from the foundation across the seven initiatives. These grant-funded organizations have included many, many individuals who taught us what community-based health promotion looks like (and should look like) in practice. To each of you, we commend you for the leadership and commitment that you brought to your projects, and we thank you for your openness and candor in sharing your experiences with your individual evaluators. We hope that you will recognize your accomplishments, struggles, and lessons in the chapters that follow.
Supporting the work of the grantees were a variety of managing agencies, including the the Center for Public-Private Sector Cooperation at the University of Colorado at Denver, Colorado Action for Healthy People, the Colorado Rural Health Center, the Kempe Prevention Center for Family and Child Health, the National Civic League, OMNI Institute, and the Rocky Mountain Center for Health Promotion and Education. We would like to acknowledge the staff of these organizations for contributing to the outcomes reported here. In addition, we are grateful for their willingness to enter into the evaluation process as colleagues in discovery.
Obviously, none of these initiatives would have seen the light of day were it not for The Colorado Trust. The foundation invested significant financial resources in the strategy of community-based health promotion, even though this sometimes represented uncharted territory. In addition, the staff and board of the foundation displayed their leadership by setting the vision for these initiatives, encouraging community groups to tap into their underlying potential and persevering with this support as the inevitable real-world complications arose. The following staff members played a distinctive role in the design, [Page x]management, and evaluation of the seven initiatives included here: John Moran, Jean Merrick, Sally Beatty, Carol Breslau, Nancy Baughman Csuti, Susan Downs-Karkos, Walter LaMendola, Sharon Mentzer, Dana Nickless, and Holly Woods. We would like to express special appreciation to John Moran for his support of the book-writing project (even when it was unclear what the book would say) and to the staff members who provided many useful comments during the review of the manuscript. We are particularly indebted to Jean Merrick for being so conscientious in overseeing this review process.
The folks at Sage have all been amazingly supportive and understanding throughout the entire process of transforming the initial prospectus into a polished book. Marquita Flemming immediately recognized the importance of this topic, affirmed our ideas, and encouraged us through the fits and starts that characterized the early stages. Al Bruckner, who replaced Marquita as senior editor in 2002, provided clear and sound counsel at a critical juncture in the process. MaryAnn Vail, Sanford Robinson, and D. J. Peck each brought a high degree of professionalism, efficiency, and wit to the editing of the manuscript and the production of the book.
As with all research, our work builds on the hard work and creative thinking of those who walked the path ahead of us, or in some cases carved out the path. We are grateful to have had the opportunity to talk with and learn from so many of the people who have developed the theory and practice of community-based health promotion. In addition to the individuals who contributed chapters to the book, our thinking has been informed by conversations with Quinton Baker, Marshall Kreuter, Dorothy Meehan, Steve Fawcett, Bob Goodman, Abe Wandersman, Bill Beery, Kristin Bradley-Bull, Pauline Brooks, Christine Lowery, Joann Tsark, Colin Laird, Nancy Wilson, Michelle Sturm, Sam Burns, Marsha Porter-Norton, Susan Eliot, Alan AtKisson, David Swain, Terri Shelton, and Paul Wellstone.
Finally, we would like to acknowledge the many colleagues, friends, and family members who have encouraged us along the way, particularly our respective spouses, Lucinda Brogden, Paul Nutting, and Weldon Lodwick. It is possible to bring complex projects like this to fruition only because we are connected to a much larger web of supportive people, organizations, and communities.
Douglas V. Easterling, Ph.D., is Director of the Division for Community-Based Evaluation within the Center for the Study of Social Issues at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. Through the division, he has served as the principal investigator on evaluations of the Winston-Salem Foundation's initiative to build social capital and the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation's initiative to improve race relations. He has also assisted the Community Foundation of Greater Greensboro, the Warner Foundation, the Mary Reynolds Babcock Foundation, and The Conservation Fund in designing evaluation systems and clarifying program intent. From 1992 to 1999, he served as the director of research and evaluation at The Colorado Trust. In that capacity, he commissioned evaluations of the foundation's initiatives (including the seven initiatives described in this book) and facilitated the foundation's process of learning from the results. He has published articles and books on the topics of program evaluation, community-based health promotion, and nuclear waste policy. He also teaches the evaluation module for the Health Forum's fellowship programs, and he served on the CENTERED Blue Ribbon Panel that was convened by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to improve the evaluation of projects that aim to reduce racial/ethnic disparities in health. In February 2002, he delivered the Fischer Francis Trees & Watts Keynote Address at the Community Trust Conference in New Zealand. He holds a Ph.D. in public policy and management from the University of Pennsylvania, an M.A. in quantitative psychology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and a B.A. from Carleton College.
Kaia M. Gallagher, Ph.D., is Director of Evaluation and Manager for the Center for Research Strategies, a research and evaluation consulting firm in Denver, Colorado. With more than 25 years of experience, she currently serves as the evaluator for a number of federal, state, and local programs, focusing in particular on the effectiveness of prevention programs designed to change the risk behaviors of youth. Her career focus has been on promoting the use of strategically collected information to enhance the development and performance of [Page 258]programs in the health, education, and social service sectors. In this capacity, she provides consulting services in the areas of strategic planning, needs assessment, outcome evaluations, and development of outcome assessment tools. She also develops business plans that disseminate research models into marketable products and services. Previously, she worked in a number of evaluation offices within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), including the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation. She currently provides evaluation services to DHHS programs funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Office of Adolescent Pregnancy and Parenting, the Family Youth and Services Bureau, and the Health Resources and Services Administration. She is Assistant Clinical Professor in the Department of Preventive Medicine and Biometrics within the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center. She is a member of the board of directors for the National Organization of Adolescent Pregnancy, Parenting, and Prevention. She earned her Ph.D. in sociology from Brown University.
Dora G. Lodwick, Ph.D., founded the REFT Institute, which focuses on research, evaluation, facilitation, and training, in Centennial, Colorado. She has evaluated programs and other initiatives in the areas of participatory community- development, leadership development, health, immigrants and refugees, aging, and environmental impacts. She has published in several of those areas for more than 20 years. She has worked extensively in Latin America, and she speaks Portuguese and Spanish. She has been a university professor for 15 years at Miami University of Ohio, Oregon State University, and the University of Denver, where she established the master's degree program in applied social research and evaluation. She has served the Society for Applied Sociology (SAS) as president, as a board member, and in other capacities and has represented SAS on the Commission on Applied and Clinical Sociology. She has also held leadership positions in the American Sociological Association.
James V. Adams-Berger, M.A., is President of OMNI Research and Training and OMNI Institute and has worked for these companies since 1992. His primary technical areas of expertise include survey development, program evaluation, and both qualitative and quantitative data analysis. He has served as the principal investigator for a number of research and evaluation projects with a wide range of focus areas, including suicide prevention, childhood immunization, community development, school dropout prevention, and substance abuse.
Ross F. Conner, Ph.D., is Director of the Center for Community Health Research at the University of California, Irvine. He received his Ph.D. and M.A. from Northwestern University (social psychology/evaluation) and his B.A. from Johns Hopkins University. His research focuses on community health promotion/disease prevention programs. Currently, he is the principal investigator for the ACCT Project: Achieving Cancer Control Together With Koreans and Chinese in Orange County (California), a multiyear collaborative effort involving the university and three community-based groups. He is also collaborating with other community colleagues on an HIV prevention program for Spanish-speaking Latino men. His recent work on the Colorado Healthy Communities Initiative (described in this book) received the American Evaluation Association's 2002 Outstanding Evaluation Award. He is the author or coauthor of nine books and numerous articles. He is the past president of the American Evaluation Association. He also works with various foundations, government agencies, and organizations on evaluation and community health issues.
Marc B. Davidson completed his undergraduate work at the University of California, San Diego, and the University of California, Berkeley, in the areas of anthropology and psychology. His graduate work in health psychology and community health at the School of Social Ecology at the University of California, Irvine, involved research in the areas of program evaluation and health promotion. He also has been extensively involved in community health initiatives outside of the university environment. Combining a formal education in health [Page 260]psychology with patient care experience as an emergency medic, he has presented chronic illness management talks to counseling psychologists, nurses, and patients, with an emphasis on effective day-to-day coping skills. In addition, he has planned and promoted events for the American Diabetes Association and has conducted publicity campaigns for medical symposia.
Catherine L. Dempsey, Ph.D., is Senior Instructor in the Division of Substance Abuse within the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Colorado School of Medicine. She received her B.S. in psychology and M.P.H. in health administration from Emory University and recently received her Ph.D. in health and behavioral sciences from the University of Colorado. Currently, she is a co-investigator and node coordinator for the National Institute on Drug Abuse Clinical Trials Network, Rocky Mountain Node, a research grant investigating the differential efficacy of various treatments for substance abuse in diverse populations. She has several years of experience in implementing community-based research in diverse populations. Her areas of expertise include psychiatric epidemiology, psychiatric assessments, cross-cultural community-based research, posttraumatic stress disorder, and substance abuse in diverse populations.
Jodi G. Drisko is Director of Survey Research and Evaluation in Health Statistics for the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment. She received her M.S.P.H. in 1994 from the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center. She worked from 1993 to 1999 evaluating The Colorado Trust's Teen Pregnancy Prevention 2000 Initiative, conducting needs assessments for the Ryan White Title I and II programs, and researching barriers to prenatal care for teens. From 1999 to June 2002, she managed the quality improvement and program evaluation department for Denver Health's Community Health Services. She has years of experience in data analysis, assessment, performance improvement, and program evaluation.
Donna K. Duffy, M.A., was project director of the Colorado School Health Education Initiative (described in this book) for 6 years and has worked extensively with school districts throughout the United States in the area of health education. She provides technical assistance and professional staff development to school personnel in the areas of school/community partnerships, health education curriculum selection and implementation, and health education staff/committee development. She also works with school boards to support health education.
Jill A. Elnicki, M.P.H., is Evaluation Consultant with the Rocky Mountain Center for Health Promotion and Education (RMC), a national training and technical assistance center focused on school health programming. She joined the RMC team in 1995, serving as an evaluation liaison to the Colorado School [Page 261]Health Education Initiative (described in this book). Currently, she oversees evaluation of RMC projects and provides technical assistance to school districts and other youth-serving agencies in the areas of program evaluation, tobacco use prevention and reduction, and standards-based health education. Prior to her years at RMC, she worked at the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment in community health education and in the Division of Epidemiology at the University of Minnesota.
Douglas H. Fernald, M.A., is Professional Research Assistant in the Department of Family Medicine at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center. He received an M.A. in medical anthropology from the University of Colorado, Denver, and a B.A. in history and political science from Colorado College. He has expertise in research and evaluation using qualitative research methods, including research design, instrument design, interviewing, data analysis, and qualitative data analysis software. His research interests include improving care for medically underserved populations, improving patient safety, examining the role of the family in medical decision making, and using innovative qualitative research and evaluation methods.
Peggy L. Hill, M.S., works for Rocky Mountain Institute, an entrepreneurial nonprofit creating a more secure, prosperous, and life-sustaining planet. She is a curious observer of living systems and the ways in which individuals learn and behave. She sees humans as semiconscious but powerful actors within those systems, and she believes that nature will become an increasingly severe teacher on many levels unless we soon learn a bit of humility. She earned graduate degrees in agronomy and education from Purdue University, where she studied the ecology of agriculture, human development, and community organization. Over the past 20 years, she has developed and managed a variety of programs in vulnerable and marginalized populations. While at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, and with the support of The Colorado Trust, she applied the concept of a learning group to assist family service workers and their supervisors to engage in reflective practice and program improvement.
Michelle Miller Kobayashi, M.S.P.H., is Vice President of National Research Center. She has a master's degree in public health with an emphasis on epidemiology and biostatistics. She has designed and overseen a wide variety of research and evaluation projects on topics such as after-school programming and positive youth development, palliative care, obesity prevention, domestic violence, rural mental health service provision, health care access, and community performance measurement. She has worked extensively on outcome assesssment in cancer, speech and audiology, biofeedback, and asthma. She coauthored (with Thomas I. Miller) Citizen Surveys: How to Do Them, How to Use Them, What They Mean.
[Page 262]Deborah S. Main, Ph.D., a social psychologist, is Director of the Behavioral Sciences Core in the Colorado Health Outcomes Program and Associate Professor in the Department of Family Medicine at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center. She has more than 15 years of experience in behavioral and practice-based research with a particular interest in understanding the individual and organizational features that affect the uptake and outcomes of health and health care interventions. She is also the research director of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality-funded Colorado Research Network (CaReNet), a practice-based research organization consisting of 18 primary care practices and more than 250 clinicians dedicated to understanding the health and health care issues of disadvantaged populations. She has considerable experience in both qualitative and quantitative methods of data collection and analysis. She has been the principal investigator on two large funded studies that used mixed methods of data collection to understand the adoption, implementation, and realistic impact of health education interventions in school and community settings.
Thomas I. Miller has worked in state and local government since 1977, founding National Research Center in 1994. He received a Ph.D. in research and evaluation methods from the University of Colorado. He has designed, overseen, and written results of hundreds of research projects and has presented his findings to a wide variety of audiences (both academic and lay). He has written about survey research in journals devoted to public management, including Public Administration Review, Journal of the American Planning Association, Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, Management Science, and Policy Analysis and Governing. He also was cofounder of Evaluation Systems International, a health care outcome research and software company. He also has published in a variety of health care journals and is coauthor of Benefits of Psychotherapy, a book reporting the results of the first meta-analysis.
John R. Moran, Jr. serves as president and chief executive officer of The Colorado Trust, a grantmaking foundation dedicated to advancing the health and well-being of the people of Colorado. In this capacity, Moran represents the interests of The Trust in the community as well as regionally and nationally, leads (in his words) “a most competent staff” of program officers, evaluators and financial administrators, and serves as an ex-officio member of the Board of Trustees. Before being named president of The Colorado Trust in 1991, Moran served as legal counsel to The Trust from the time of its founding in 1985. From 1958 to 1991, he was a practicing attorney in Denver representing, among others, health-care-related clients and foundations. Moran also served as a member of the Colorado House of Representatives, and as a commissioned officer on active duty with the U.S. Navy. He received a bachelor of laws degree in 1955 and a doctor of laws degree in 1970, both from the [Page 263]University of Denver. In 1952, he earned his undergraduate degree from the University of Notre Dame. Moran is an active member of many civic and professional organizations, and a frequent speaker on issues affecting foundations.
Kathryn A. Judge Nearing, M.A., is Senior Research Associate at OMNI Research and Training and OMNI Institute. Her responsibilities include instrument development, qualitative consultation, project management, and grant writing. Her projects include the evaluation of the Assets for Colorado Youth Initiative (she leads project components exploring integration of the Asset framework/philosophy at the organizational and personal levels, the spread and reach of the Asset movement in Colorado, and Asset Champions), the evaluation of a Colorado Trust-funded initiative to prevent suicide through school-based intervention, the evaluation of the Daniels Fund's first year of grant making, and a needs assessment for Jewish Family Service of Colorado focused on assessing the needs of individuals living with disabilities and their family members in the Jewish community. She also serves as a qualitative consultant for Prevention Evaluation Partners, an evaluation system supporting substance abuse prevention block grant providers funded by Colorado's Alcohol and Drug Abuse Division.
Gabriela Robles, M.A., has more than 10 years of experience working on community health efforts in different capacities. Most recently, for the past 3 years, she was the program officer at the St. Joseph Health System Foundation in Orange, California. In this capacity, she led health system efforts to benefit the economically poor and to promote healthy community efforts. In addition, she has worked for several health-related nonprofit organizations in Southern California. She has worked directly with monolingual immigrant communities and has conducted numerous community trainings on health promotion and advocacy. She has a master's degree in urban and regional planning, with an emphasis on community-based planning for health, from the University of California, Irvine.
Sora Park Tanjasiri, Dr.P.H., M.P.H., is Researcher in the School of Social Ecology at the University of California, Irvine. Her work focuses on the community health needs of diverse populations, including both physical health and community capacity building. For 3 years, she has participated in the evaluation of the Colorado Healthy Communities Initiative (described in this book) and examined the ways in which community coalitions have improved the individual capacities, community collaborations, and health outcomes of their citizens. She is especially interested in the concerns of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, and her current projects include the evaluation of cancer prevention and early detection efforts among Cambodians, Chamorros, Chinese, Hmong, Koreans, Laotians, Samoans, Thais, Tongans, and Vietnamese [Page 264]throughout California. In addition to her professional work, she serves as an adviser to numerous nonprofit community organizations and coalitions. She received her degrees in community health sciences from the School of Public Health at the University of California, Los Angeles.
Carolyn J. Tressler, M.S.P.H., has worked in the area of research and program evaluation for 15 years, including several community-based health promotion initiatives. She received an M.S. in public health in 1988 from the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center. Her areas of interest and expertise include instrument development, interview survey design, focus group development, and qualitative analysis. Populations of particular interest to her include the medically underserved, refugee families, and adolescents.
Allan Wallis, Ph.D., is Associate Professor of Public Policy in the Graduate School of Public Affairs at the University of Colorado at Denver, where he directs the Ph.D. program in public affairs. His principal areas of research are regional governance and growth management. His current work on regionalism is being funded by the MacArthur Foundation. He is the author of Wheel Estate: The Rise and Decline of Mobile Homes. He holds a Ph.D. in environmental psychology from the City University of New York, a master's in public administration from Harvard University, and a bachelor's of architecture from the Cooper Union. He has taught architecture at the University of Colorado and at Ball State University. He has also taught urban design and town planning at the Pratt Institute and the Cooper Union. | 2019-04-22T04:13:43Z | http://sk.sagepub.com/books/promoting-health-at-the-community-level |
An independent automatic shedding system that automatically allows any combination of loads to powered under limited power availability (such as a standby power source) without overloading the generator or rewiring, while contributing to the stability of the power grid. A motorized disconnection actuation mechanism under control of a controller disconnects or recloses the contacts of a branch circuit breaker. A sensor detects the presence or absence of a power source and the type of power source, which is classified according to its type. A power source classification program is executed by the controller that interprets the sensor data and causes disconnection or reclosing of the disconnection actuation mechanism depending on a desired status (ON or OFF) of the branch circuit breaker when standby power is available. Conventional circuit protection is provided an optional advanced circuit protection such as ground or arc fault circuit interruption.
This invention is directed generally to power management control systems, and more particularly, to an independent automatic shedding branch circuit breaker system.
Circuit breakers have long been used in industrial and residential applications to prevent damage to the loads connected to them and the building structures in which the loads are located. Normally, when an electrical fault or a current overload condition is sensed in a particular circuit, the breaker protecting that circuit "hips" and creates a physical disconnect in the circuit, thereby preventing the flow of electricity. To resume electrical flow to the circuit, the operator must physically reconnect the circuit breaker, typically by throwing a mechanical switch back to a closed position. These detection systems work automatically, tripping circuits only when certain conditions are satisfied.
In some electrical systems, a backup power source such as a generator or a standby power source is present. This configuration typically includes a main panel, a transfer switch, and a sub-panel for loads that will receive the backup power. The loads that are to be backed up are determined at the time of installation, and must be wired to the sub-panel. Thus, the wires must be physically moved to change the loads that are powered by the backup or standby power source. Loads that are not to be backed up are "shed" or removed from the power circuit when a backup or standby power source comes online. Care must be taken not to overload the backup or standby power source, so any rewiring to reconfigure the system must take into consideration the demands on the backup or standby power source. This manual process has a number of disadvantages-it can be dangerous, is prone to error, and is labor-intensive. Ineffective or suboptimal management of the loads can also disadvantageously result in instability on the power grid.
US 2004/075343 discloses a power load management system for regulating power demand from a distribution panel of a residence or building is disclosed. Load control switches placed in-line between circuit breakers of the distribution panel and the loads they control, such as a water heater, pump, AC unit etc., provide load feedback data to a load management CPU. The load management CPU monitors the load feedback data and other operational parameters for selectively switching load control switches to the open circuit state to ensure that the total load demanded does not exceed the ' demand limits imposed by the power source. The load management CPU includes adaptive algorithms to automatically prioritize loads based on user and utility applied weighting factors, and patterns of loading based on time and date.
US 2001/030456 discloses method and apparatus for priority sequencing a plurality of loads identifies, evaluates, assigns priority values, and couples the plurality of loads to a load managing device. Once connected the loads and load managing device are continuously powered. The load managing device includes a monitoring, detecting, and controlling section, which control the loads based on signals received from the loads and a power supply. When a predetermined condition signal is received by the load managing device the loads are allowed to run based on their assigned priority value, which is determined by the configuration of the system, i.e., in what arrangement the loads are coupled to the load managing device. A higher priority load will run by turning off lower priority loads. Once it has finished, the lower priority loads will turn on in sequence of priority, again based on the arrangement of the loads being coupled to the load managing device.
What is needed, therefore, is an independent automatic shedding branch circuit breaker that overcomes these and other disadvantages. The present invention addresses this and other needs, as more fully described below.
In a first aspect of the invention there is provided branch circuit breaker for automatically shedding a load coupled thereto from a power source, comprising: disconnection means for reclosably disconnecting said load from said power source; sensor means for detecting the presence or absence of said power source; and a selection means for selecting a power state (e.g., ON or OFF) for said branch circuit breaker when power is to be supplied to a load by a power source other than a utility power source; and a controller programmed to execute a classification program that determines via said sensor means whether said power source is connected and its classification, that is whether said power source is a utility, standby (backup), or alternate, and cause actuation of said disconnection means responsive to said classification program. The disconnection means can include a motor, additional motorized contacts, or a relay. The sensor can include a voltage detection circuit such as a resistor divider or a potential transformer.
To classify a power source, various parameters can be used, including the voltage, variations in voltage, voltage frequency, variations in voltage frequency, voltage harmonics, variations in voltage harmonics, and slot harmonics from a standby power source such as a generator.
In another embodiment of the present invention, multiple branch circuit breakers are used and selected ones are closed in a pseudo-sequential manner or random manner to help prevent startup currents on certain loads such as motors from overloading the power source and to help decrease the step change in load for the power source.
According to a further aspect of the invention there is a provided a method of automatically shedding a load coupled to a power source, comprising: automatically disconnecting a branch circuit breaker from said power source in response to a disconnection command from a controller; determining, using said controller, whether said power source is present or absent; automatically detecting the classification of said power source from among a plurality of classifications that include utility, standby (backup) or alternate; executing on said controller a classification program that determines when to cause said automatically disconnecting based on said determining and said automatically detecting; and selecting a power state (e.g., ON or OFF) for said branch circuit breaker when power to a load is to be supplied by a power source other than a utility power source.
Other optional features are the subject of the appended dependent claims. The foregoing and additional aspects of the present invention will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art in view of the detailed description of various embodiments, which is made with reference to the drawings, a brief description of which is provided next.
FIG. 1 is a functional diagram of an independent automatic shedding system connected between a line and a load for use in a branch circuit breaker according to the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a functional diagram of an independent automatic shedding system similar to that shown in FIG. 1, except that the disconnection operation mechanism is in the form of additional contacts.
FIG. 3 is a state chart diagram 300 of the operation of the branch circuit breaker according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 4 is a flow chart depicting an automatic shedding procedure for carrying out a specific embodiment of the present invention.
Referring now to the drawings, and initially to FIG. 1, there is illustrated a functional diagram of an independent automatic shedding system 100 connected between a line and a load via a line contact 102 and a load contact 104, respectively, for use in a branch circuit breaker according to the present invention. The automatic shedding system 100 generally includes a disconnect operation mechanism 106, a power source sensor 108, a controller 110 that executes a power source classification program according to the present invention, a state selector 114, and a conventional circuit protection mechanism (not shown).
The disconnect operation mechanism 106 is the mechanism by which the controller 110 can physically and automatically disconnect and reclose (or reclosably disconnect) the load from the power source. In an embodiment, the disconnect operation mechanism 106 includes a motor that causes the branch circuit breaker contacts to move apart or together. A suitable commercial example of such a motor can be found in Square D's QO-PL Powerlink circuit breakers as described in U.S. Patent No. 4,623,859 . In other embodiments, the disconnect operation mechanism 106 includes, additional motorized contacts (such as shown in FIG. 2) or a relay. The controller 110 is operable to cause actuation of the disconnect operation mechanism 106 such that it disconnects (or opens) and recloses (or reconnects) the branch circuit breaker to the connected power source. In an embodiment, the controller 110 sends a disconnect command to the disconnect operation mechanism 106 to cause it to open its contacts. To reclose the contacts, the controller 110 sends a reconnect command to the disconnect operation mechanism 106 to cause it to reclose its contacts.
The power source sensor 108 is used by the controller 110, via the classification program described herein, to detect the presence or absence of a power source. The power source sensor 108 is also used to classify the source or determine which of a group of sources (such as utility, backup/standby, alternate) is present. In an embodiment, the power source sensor 108 is a voltage detection circuit such as a resistor divider or a potential transformer. Isolation to protect the remainder of the circuit can also be optionally included.
The power source classification program executed via the controller 110 determines whether a power source is presently connected via the power source sensor 108, and if so, the classification of the connected power source (such as utility, backup/standby, alternate). The presence of the power source is determined by identifying the presence of a sinusoidal voltage in an expected range on the line side. Various parameters can be used to classify a power source, i.e., to determine whether the source is utility, standby generation, or another source. These parameters include the voltage of the power source, variations in the voltage, the frequency of the sinusoidal voltage of the power source, variations in the frequency of the sinusoidal voltage, the harmonic content of the voltage, variations in the harmonic content of the voltage, and the slot harmonics from a standby power source such as the voltage harmonics created by the output stator of a generator. It is expected that a standby power source exhibits greater variations in frequency, voltage, and voltage harmonics than a utility power source. These variations are quantified into the power source classification program.
The state selector 114 is used to select the power state (ON or OFF) of the branch circuit breaker when the power source is a standby generation power source. The state selector 114 can be a switch, a plug, or a programmable setting via the controller 110, a remote computer, or by the factory. By switching (either manually or programmably) the state selector 114 to an ON position, the operator is indicating that the branch circuit breaker is to be connected to the standby generation power source, otherwise the branch circuit breaker is to be disconnected in an OFF position. When multiple branch circuit breakers are used in accordance with the present invention, the state selector 114 of each branch circuit breaker allows the operator to control which loads will be connected to the standby generation power source in the event the utility power source is unavailable. The branch circuit breakers can be configured at the time of manufacture or in the field as a field setting for easy selection of the desired state for that particular branch circuit breaker.
The conventional circuit protection (not shown) can be any suitable circuit protection mechanism, such as that found in Square D's QO circuit breaker. The circuit protection should meet the applicable design requirements for protecting a branch circuit in a residence. Additional advanced circuit protection features can also be incorporated such as ground fault circuit interruption and arc fault circuit interruption.
The controller 110 executes the power source classification program, interprets the state selector 114, and causes disconnection or reconnection of the disconnection operation mechanism 106 under control of the power source classification program. FIG. 3 illustrates a state chart diagram 300 of the operation of the branch circuit breaker according to an embodiment of the present invention. Initially, the state is unknown. When no power source is available, the branch circuit breaker is transitioned from an ON state (306) to an OFF state (304) via the disconnection operation mechanism 106. In the OFF state (304), a power source may become available. If a utility power source is detected via the power source sensor 108, the branch circuit breaker is transitioned from the OFF state (304) to the ON state (306). If the power source is a standby power source, the controller 110 checks the state selector 114 to determine the selected state of the branch circuit breaker. If the selected state is ON, then the branch circuit breaker is transitioned to the ON state (306) by reconnecting the disconnection operation mechanism 106. Otherwise, the branch circuit breaker remains in the OFF state (304).
A typical panel will have numerous branch circuit breakers, and in such an embodiment, a random or pseudo-random delay is implemented by the controller 110 to cause a pseudo-sequential closing of each branch circuit breaker so as to prevent multiple branch circuit breakers from turning on simultaneously. The pseudo-sequential closing process helps to prevent undesirable startup currents on certain loads such, as motors from overloading the power source. It also decreases the step change in the load for the power source.
FIG. 2 illustrates a functional diagram of an independent automatic shedding system 200 connected between the line contact 102 and the load contact 104, respectively, for use in a load center panel housing multiple branch circuit breakers according to the present invention, where the disconnection operation mechanism 106 is in the form of additional motorized contacts. As noted above, a typical residence will have a panel containing numerous branch circuit breakers, all of which operate independently of one another to automatically shed their loads based on a dynamically reconfigurable power source classification program, in accordance with the present invention.
Multiple power sources may be available to the residence, and an independent transfer switch switches among the available power sources. Instead of preselecting and pre-wiring a set of standby loads to be active when a standby power source is activated so as to reduce the load on the standby power source, the power source classification algorithm of the present invention advantageously reduces the load on the standby automatically without a host or system-level controller.
Each branch circuit breaker has its own independently operating controller that can be programmed or preconfigured to shed its load(s). Additionally, the circuit branches that are active during standby power can be reconfigured without the need to remove the interior cover of the load center panel. The state selector 114 can be easily switched by the operator, either manually or via a programmable setting using the controller 110.
The independent automatic shedding system of the present invention results in a smoother operation whereby all branch loads are disconnected during an outage, and selected branch loads are pseudo-sequentially reclosed for standby generation. All branch loads return to normal operation when utility power is restored. The system advantageously extends the life of the branch loads, contributes to the stability of the grid, and minimizes manual intervention by the operator.
Turning now to FIG. 4, there is shown a flow chart depicting an automatic shedding procedure 400 for carrying out a specific embodiment of the present invention. The power source sensor 108 is read (402) and if a loss of power is detected (404), the disconnection operation mechanism 106 is actuated (406) to disconnect the branch circuit from the line supply. If a standby power source is detected (408) via the power source sensor 108, the state selector 114 is checked (414) to determine the desired status of the branch circuit breaker in the event of a utility power supply failure. If the desired status is ON for that particular branch circuit breaker, the disconnection operation mechanism 106 is reclosed (416) allowing the backup power to flow to the load(s) connected to that branch circuit breaker. If the desired status is OFF, the disconnection operation mechanism 106 is not reclosed and the controller 110 determines whether a utility power source is detected (410) via the power source sensor 108. The power source sensor 108 is read (407), and the standby power source is detected (408). If utility power source is sensed, the disconnection operation mechanism 106 is reclosed (412) and the system returns to normal operation. Otherwise, the power source sensor 108 is monitored until a change is detected. Note that the state selector status (414) does not have to be checked repeatedly. Once is sufficient, and then it may be bypassed until the next loss of power is detected.
While particular embodiments and applications of the present invention have been illustrated and described, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the precise construction and compositions disclosed herein and that various modifications, changes, and variations can be apparent from the foregoing descriptions without departing from the scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.
characterised in that said branch circuit breaker further comprises a selection means (114) for selecting a power state for said branch circuit breaker (100, 200) when power is to be supplied to said load by a power source other than a utility power source.
The branch circuit breaker (100, 200) of claim 1, wherein said controller (110) is further programmed to determine the selected power state of said selection means (114).
The branch circuit breaker (100, 200) of any previous claim, wherein said disconnection means (106) includes a motor, contacts, or a relay.
The branch circuit breaker (100, 200) of any previous claim, wherein said sensor means (108) includes a voltage detection circuit, a resistor divider, or a potential transformer.
The branch circuit breaker (100, 200) of any previous, claim, wherein said classification of said power source is carried out by detecting at least one classification parameter of said power source including slot harmonics, voltage, variations in voltage, voltage frequency, variations in voltage frequency, voltage harmonics or variations in voltage harmonics.
The branch circuit breaker (100, 200) of any previous claim, wherein said controller (110) is further programmed to cause reclosing of said disconnection means (106) responsive to said classification program.
The branch circuit breaker (100, 200) of claim 6, wherein said reclosing of said disconnection means (106) responsive to said classification program is randomly delayed relative to the reclosing of other branch circuit breakers (100, 200) coupled to said power source.
A panel comprising a plurality of branch circuit breakers (100, 200) of claims 1-6, wherein each of said branch circuit breakers (100, 200) operate independently of one another.
selecting a power state for said branch circuit breaker (100, 200) when power is to be supplied to said load by a power source other than a utility power source.
The method of claim 9, further comprising automatically reconnecting said load to said power source in response to a reconnect command from said controller (110).
The method of claim 10, further comprising randomly delaying said automatically reconnecting in response to said reconnect command.
The method of claims 9-11, further comprising automatically reclosing said branch circuit breaker (100, 200) in response to automatically detecting said classification as being indicative of a power source other than a utility power source and further in response to selecting an ON state of said branch circuit breaker (100, 200).
The method of claim 9-12, wherein said automatically detecting the classification of said power source includes detecting voltage, variations in voltage, voltage frequency, variations in voltage frequency, voltage harmonics, or variations in voltage harmonics.
The method of claims 9-11, further comprising automatically reclosing said branch circuit breaker (100, 200) in response to said automatically detecting the classification detects said classification as being indicative of a utility power source.
The method of claim 9, further comprising automatically disconnecting said branch circuit breaker (100, 200) in response to detecting an absence of said power source. | 2019-04-26T06:08:21Z | https://patents.google.com/patent/EP1851842B1/en |
The aim of this study was to define a new protocol for intraoperative monitoring (IOM) of brainstem auditory evoked potentials (BAEPs) during microvascular decompression (MVD) surgery to treat hemifacial spasm (HFS) and to evaluate the usefulness of this new protocol to prevent hearing impairment.
To define the optimal stimulation rate, estimate the number of trials to be averaged, and identify useful warning criteria in IOM of BAEPs, the authors performed a preliminary study of 13 patients with HFS in 2010. They increased the stimulation rate from 10.1 Hz/sec to 100.1 Hz/sec by 10-Hz increments, and they elevated the average time from 100 times to 1000 times by 100-unit increments at a fixed stimulus rate of 43.9 Hz. After defining the optimal stimulation rate and the number of trials that needed to be averaged for IOM of BAEPs, they also identified the useful warning criteria for this protocol for MVD surgery. From January to December 2013, 254 patients with HFS underwent MVD surgery following the new IOM of BAEPs protocol. Pure-tone audiometry and speech discrimination scoring were performed before surgery and 1 week after surgery. To evaluate the usefulness of the new protocol, the authors compared the incidence of postoperative hearing impairment with the results from the group that underwent MVD surgery prior to the new protocol.
Through a preliminary study, the authors confirmed that it was possible to obtain a reliable wave when using a stimulation rate of 43.9 Hz/sec and averaging 400 trials. Only a Wave V amplitude loss > 50% was useful as a warning criterion when using the new protocol. A reliable BAEP could be obtained in approximately 9.1 seconds. When the new protocol was used, 2 patients (0.8%) showed no recovery of Wave V amplitude loss > 50%, and only 1 of those 2 patients (0.39%) ultimately had postoperative hearing impairment. When compared with the outcomes in the pre-protocol group, hearing impairment incidence decreased significantly among patients who underwent surgery with the new protocol (0.39% vs 4.02%, p = 0.002). There were no significant differences between the 2 surgery groups regarding other complications, including facial palsy, sixth cranial nerve palsy, and vocal cord palsy.
There was a significant decrease in postoperative hearing impairment after MVD for HFS when the new protocol for IOM of BAEPs was used. Real-time IOM of BAEPs, which can obtain a reliable BAEP in less than 10 seconds, is a successful new procedure for preventing hearing impairment during MVD surgery for HFS.
ABBREVIATIONSBAEP = brainstem auditory evoked potentials; CN = cranial nerve; CPA = cerebellopontine angle; HFS = hemifacial spasm; IOM = intraoperative monitoring; MVD = microvascular decompression; PTA = pure tone audiometry; SDS = speech discrimination scoring.
Hemifacial spasm (HFS) is defined as unintended twitching of one side of the face. It is usually caused by pulsatile vascular compression on the root exit zone of the facial nerve.5 Microvascular decompression (MVD) surgery has been the most effective treatment.2,3 However, as MVD surgery involves relieving the neurovascular conflict physically, this procedure may cause hearing impairment from injury to cranial nerve (CN) VIII.19 With the use of intraoperative monitoring (IOM) of brainstem auditory evoked potentials (BAEPs), the risk of hearing impairment during MVD has decreased significantly.6,11,13,15,20 Despite many studies that conclude that IOM of BAEPs reduces the risk of hearing impairment, no universally recommended protocol or warning criteria have been developed. The American Clinical Neurophysiology Society has recommended a stimulus rate of 5–12 Hz/sec and averaging of 1000–4000 trials or IOM and a 1.0-msec prolongation or > 50% decrease in amplitude of Wave V as the warning criteria to prevent hearing impairment effectively.1 When we performed IOM of BAEPs using a stimulus rate of 10 Hz and averaging of 1000 trials, it took about 100 sec to obtain BAEPs. Under this protocol, some patients occasionally showed a slight change on the initial Wave V, followed by a significant change in the form of complete loss of the subsequent Wave V; it is the change in the second wave that is associated with hearing impairment (Fig. 1). Nerve injury can occur within a very short time frame, and the damage can be severe enough to cause irreversible nerve harm. So the above-mentioned protocol may be a limited in its ability to prevent postoperative hearing impairment, because of the relatively long time it takes. To prevent hearing impairment more appropriately, it is very important to obtain BAEPs in as short a time as possible while still obtaining reliable waves.14 With these constraints in mind, we developed and evaluated a new protocol for IOM of BAEPs.
Example of consecutive IOM of BAEPs using a stimulation rate of 10 Hz/sec and averaging 1000 trials. A: First BAEP showing minimal Wave V change. B: Second BAEP showing a slight change in Wave V (the latency of Wave V was delayed by 0.70 msec [ms] with a minimal decrease in the amplitude). C: Third BAEP showing that the Wave V latency was delayed by 1.44 msec and the Wave V amplitude decreased about 70%; The green line represents baseline BAEP; the black line, obtained BAEP. Figure is available in color online only.
When we performed IOM of BAEPs on 13 HFS patients in 2010, we increased the stimulation rate from 10.1 Hz/sec to 100.1 Hz/sec by 10-Hz increments, and we defined whether wave disintegration happened depending on the simulation rate (Fig. 2A). We used the Xltek Protektor (Natus Medical Inc.) for IOM. As the stimulation rate increased, the wave amplitude decreased and wave latency was prolonged compared with when using a rate of 10.1 Hz/sec. On the other hand, when we applied a faster stimulation rate, we obtained BAEPs in a shorter amount of time; however, when the stimulation rate reached 50 Hz or more, the BAEP wave was affected by a surgical artifact. When we used a stimulation rate of 40–50 Hz, we obtained a relatively stable wave and reduced the effect of the surgical artifact. We determined that 43.9 Hz/sec is the ideal stimulation rate for IOM of BAEPs.
A: Waveform change according to stimulation rate (with averaging of 1000 trials). B: Averaging trials (with 43.9 Hz/sec stimulation rate) from IOM of BAEPs. Figure is available in color online only.
Second, to define the optimal number of trials for averaging, we performed IOM of BAEPs for 13 HFS patients while increasing the number of trials averaged from 100 to 1000 by 100-unit increments at a fixed stimulus rate of 43.9 Hz/sec. As shown in Fig. 2B, the waveform fluctuation was observed to be significant when averaging 100, 200, or 300 trials. When the number of trials averaged was over 400, the BAEP waveform became more stable, and then it was possible to obtain a reliable waveform. Furthermore, we determined that a waveform obtained by averaging 400 trials was not significantly different from a waveform obtained after averaging 1000 trials. Thus, we concluded that using a stimulation rate of 43.9 Hz/sec and 400 trials for IOM of BAEPs was the most optimal protocol for obtaining a reliable wave in the shortest period of time.
When performing IOM of BAEPs, many researchers have empirically used a 1.0-msec prolongation or > 50% decrease in amplitude of Wave V as the warning criteria.12,16,18 However, when we performed BAEP monitoring using a 43.9 Hz/sec stimulation rate and an averaging 400 trials, some patients presented with even a 2- or 3-msec prolongation of Wave V without a concomitant change in amplitude (Fig. 3). Furthermore, those patients showing only a prolonged latency of Wave V without a decrease in amplitude experienced a recovery of the waveform after the surgical technique was altered or the operation was temporarily stopped. When patients did not recover 1.0 msec or more prolonged latency without a change in the amplitude of Wave V at the end of surgery, they still did not have permanent hearing impairment after surgery. This suggested to us that a Wave V latency prolongation > 1.0 msec was inadequate as a warning criterion, especially when performing IOM of BAEPs using a faster stimulation rate and shorter averaging trials. Thus, we concluded that only an Wave V amplitude loss > 50% was useful as a warning criterion.
Example of tracing IOM of BAEPs during MVD surgery for HFS. In this example, the latency prolongation of Wave V was 1.5 msec without an amplitude decrease during surgery. The patient did not experience hearing impairment after the surgery. Figure is available in color online only.
We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of primary HFS patients who underwent MVD surgery with IOM of BAEPs from January to December 2013 at Samsung Medical Center. This study was approved by the Regional Committee for Ethics in Medical Research at Samsung Medical Center. The inclusion criteria for HFS were unilateral facial spasm demonstrated by synkinetic activities and abnormal lateral spread of evoked motor response on electromyography. Patients with secondary HFS were excluded through MRI, and patients with total deafness on the side of the body where the spasm was occurring were also excluded. The MVD surgical procedures have been described in our previous report.8 MVD was performed by a single neurosurgeon (K.P.). Pure tone audiometry (PTA) and speech discrimination scoring (SDS) were performed in all cases prior to surgery and were repeated within 3–7 days after surgery. The average PTA thresholds for 500, 1000, 2000, and 3000 Hz were calculated. When there was a decrease of more than 15 dB of the postoperative average PTA threshold or a decrease of more than 20% of SDS compared with baseline, we determined that significant hearing impairment had occurred.14 According to postoperative PTA and SDS, hearing impairment status was categorized as follows: Group 1, none or negligible; Group 2, decrease > 15 dB of PTA with a proportional decrease in SDS; Group 3, poor hearing loss (i.e., not total hearing loss) that is out of proportion with PTA change; and Group 4, deafness. Patients with significant hearing impairment underwent PTA and SDS again within 4 weeks. When a significant audiometric change was observed continuously until the last follow-up, the patient was diagnosed with permanent hearing loss.
IOM of BAEPs was performed with a 2-channel data acquisition system using a personal computer that also controlled all procedures during surgery—from administration of general anesthesia until dural closure. The monitoring equipment was placed in the operating room to enable the neurophysiologist to observe the BAEPs. BAEP stimuli were delivered through transducers that connect to plastic tubing with a sponge collar at the end. Alternating polarity clicks were used as a stimulus mode and stimulus intensity was set to 120 dB (sound pressure level). The contralateral ear was stimulated with white noise at 80 dB. We used subdermal needle electrodes for recording, and the electrodes were inserted at the vertex (Cz) and over the ipsilateral and contralateral earlobes, following the EEG 10–20 international system. The amplifier bandpass was 100 to 1000 Hz. We used a 43.9 Hz/sec stimulation rate and 400 averaged trials and obtained the BAEP within approximately 9.1 seconds. Only a Wave V amplitude loss > 50% was used as a warning criterion. If there was a Wave V amplitude loss > 50%, the surgeon was notified of the changes, and he then halted the operation and checked the surgical field carefully to identify the causes and correct them. If there was only a 1.0-msec prolongation of Wave V without an amplitude loss > 50% of Wave V, we did not notify the surgeon.
To evaluate the value of a Wave V amplitude loss > 50% as a warning criterion for identifying hearing impairment, we categorized patients according to changes in BAEP as follows: Group A, no change; Group B, recovery after decrease < 50%; Group C, recovery after decrease > 50%; and Group D, no recovery after decrease > 50%.
To evaluate the new protocol for IOM of BAEPs, we defined the incidence of postoperative hearing impairment. We then compared the results from patients who underwent the new protocol with those from the patients whose monitoring was conducted using a stimulation rate of 26.9 Hz/sec, 1000–2000 averaged trials, and a latency increase of 1 msec or an amplitude decrease of 50% in Wave V as a warning criterion.10 The same neurosurgeon (K.P.) performed the MVD surgeries in both groups. Comparisons of the IOM parameters between the 2 study groups are presented in Table 1.
* Refers to the 2011 study by Jo et al.10 in which our group analyzed data obtained in 1156 patients with HFS who were treated between April 1997 and February 2009.
Categorical data, including the incidence of postoperative hearing impairment, were analyzed using the chi-square test and continuous data were analyzed with the independent t-test. Results were presented as means or proportions with corresponding 95% confidence intervals. Statistical significance was set at p < 0.05. Statistical analyses were performed using SPSS version 18.0 for Windows (SPSS, Inc.).
Between January and December 2013, the new protocol for IOM of BAEPs was used for 254 consecutive HFS patients as part of their planned MVD surgery. Of the 254 patients who underwent the surgery with the new protocol, 182 patients were women (71.6%) and 72 were men (28.4%). The mean age of the patients was 51.93 ± 11.39 years. One hundred thirty-one patients (51.6%) had HFS on the left side, and 123 (48.4%) had HFS on the right side. The mean duration of HFS was 55.51 ± 55.5 months. Demographic data from the patients enrolled in the earlier study are shown in Table 2. We compared the demographic factors between the study groups and found a significant difference in mean age, disease duration, and distribution of offending vessels.
* Values represent numbers of patients unless otherwise indicated. Boldface type indicates statistical significance.
When we analyzed the incidence of postoperative hearing impairment after receiving the new protocol (Table 3), we found that no patient had mild (Group 2) or moderate (Group 3) hearing impairment. Only 1 (0.39%) of the 254 patients exhibited total deafness (Group 4). In contrast, in the previous study, hearing impairment was observed in 46 (4.02%) of the 1144 patients included in the study. In particular, deafness occurred in 10 patients (0.87%). When these outcomes between the 2 groups were compared, we found that the incidence of hearing impairment decreased significantly after introduction of the new protocol (0.39% vs 4.02%, p = 0.002). However, we found no significant differences in other complications, including facial palsy, CN VI palsy, or vocal cord palsy (Table 3).
When we conducted BAEP monitoring using the new protocol, we observed significant changes in Wave V more often than when using the old protocol; thus we communicated to the surgeon more frequently to alert him to these changes. In response to these changes, the surgeon always stopped the surgery to perform corrective actions, such as removal of the retractor or repositioning of the Teflon until the Wave V was recovered. Despite obtaining a BAEP in 9.1 seconds, which is a very short time, many changes in the V-wave were observed in IOM of BAEPs (Table 4). Patients were classified into 4 groups based on the greatest amplitude reduction of Wave V compared with the baseline BAEPs. One hundred eighty-seven patients (73.6%) showed no significant change in BAEPs, and 51 patients (Group B) showed only mild change. Fourteen patients (Group C) had a > 50% decrease in V-wave amplitude but then experienced an improvement in Wave V after the surgeon was alerted to the amplitude drop-off. Only 2 patients (Group D) experienced no recovery after amplitude loss, one of which deteriorated to total deafness.
* The groups were defined as follows: Group A, no change; Group B, recovery after the decrease < 50%; Group C, recovery after decrease > 50%; Group D, no recovery after decrease > 50%.
We also estimated the greatest latency prolongation of Wave V (Table 4). The greater the amplitude change of Wave V, the more frequently a latency prolongation was observed. However, even patients in Group B had an average latency prolongation greater than 1.5 msec, while Group D patients had an average prolonged latency of 3.25 msec. Although patients in Groups B and C had more than a 1-msec latency prolongation, none of the prolongations led to hearing impairment.
In a previous study from our group, hearing impairment occurred in 46 patients after MVD surgery (4.02%), even though IOM of BAEPs was performed.10 In that study, we used a stimulation rate of 26.9 Hz/sec and used 1000–2000 for averaging, so it took 37.1 to 74.3 seconds to obtain BAEPs. However, when using that protocol for IOM of BAEPs, we found that some patients sometimes showed a minor change in the first BAEP, which then led to severe changes, such as wave loss, in the next BAEP, and most patients following that pattern eventually experienced severe hearing impairment.
Therefore, we concluded that our previous protocol for IOM of BAEPs was limited in its ability to prevent CN VIII injury during surgery, so we developed a real-time protocol to monitor for signs of this damage. It is well established that faster stimulation rates can collect a fixed number of averaged trials in a shorter time period, which allows for faster feedback to the surgeon. Furthermore, amplitude is inversely proportional to the stimulation rate and the disintegration of the waveform amplitude begins at a higher stimulation rate.4 However, with the development of an IOM machine, the disintegration of waveform amplitude that occurred when using a higher stimulation rate improved greatly, and a significant difference in disintegration was not observed when we compared the waveforms obtained at an ∼40/sec stimulation rate and the waveforms obtained at a 10 Hz/sec stimulation rate in the preliminary study. Thus, we were able to obtain the BAEPs from a specific number of trials in a much shorter time with a higher stimulation rate.
When we were able to obtain a BAEP within 10 seconds using the 43.9 Hz/sec stimulation rate and averaging 400 trials, we more frequently saw significant changes in Wave V compared with when we monitored using different parameters. These findings suggest that damage to the CN VIII can happen repeatedly in a very short time, so taking longer than 10 seconds to obtain a BAEP will decrease the effectiveness of monitoring to prevent CN VIII damage. During surgeries where we used the new protocol, when we detected a significant change in BAEP, we alerted the neurosurgeon immediately, which allowed the surgeon to remove the retractor or reposition the Teflon; after the surgeon made these adjustments, BAEP loss was usually recovered. Thus, we conclude that obtaining a reliable BAEP in less than 10 seconds is highly effective at preventing damage to the CN VIII during MVD surgery.
The usefulness of our new protocol for preventing hearing impairment was evaluated only among HFS patients undergoing MVD surgery, and we therefore do not know whether it has limitations for preventing hearing impairment during MVD surgery for other conditions, such as a cerebellopontine angle (CPA) tumor. James and Husain have already stated that warning criteria must be applied differently depending on the disease, and much smaller changes might be meaningful in CPA tumor surgery.9 However, we are optimistic that our protocol can prevent postoperative hearing impairment even in CPA cases because of our rapid BAEP establishment time.
Our new protocol for IOM of BAEPs is not intended to represent a definitive guideline for monitoring injury to the CN VIII during MVD surgery among HFS patients. To prevent postoperative hearing impairment from MVD surgery, further research on the protocol for IOM of BAEP will be necessary.
We were able to obtain a reliable waveform of BAEP in a very short time period (9.1 seconds) using a 43.9 Hz/sec stimulation rate and the averaging time of 400 trials during MVD surgery for HFS patients. When we used a Wave V amplitude loss > 50% as a warning criterion, we were able to reduce the incidence of postoperative hearing impairment to less than 0.4%. We think that obtaining a reliable BAEP in less than 10 seconds is a real-time IOM procedure of BAEP and is very important for preventing damage to the CN VIII during MVD surgery.
Conception and design: K Park, Joo, SK Park. Acquisition of data: K Park, Joo, SK Park. Analysis and interpretation of data: K Park, Joo. Drafting the article: K Park, Joo, SK Park. Critically revising the article: all authors. Reviewed submitted version of manuscript: all authors. Approved the final version of the manuscript on behalf of all authors: K Park. Statistical analysis: K Park, Joo. Administrative/technical/material support: K Park, SK Park. Study supervision: K Park.
* Dr. Joo and S. K. Park contributed equally to this work.
INCLUDE WHEN CITING Published online January 29, 2016; DOI: 10.3171/2015.10.JNS151224.
Correspondence Kwan Park, Department of Neurosurgery, Samsung Medical Center, Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine, 81 Irwonro, Gangnam-gu, Seoul 135-710, Republic of Korea. email: [email protected]. | 2019-04-23T00:36:25Z | https://thejns.org/abstract/journals/j-neurosurg/125/5/article-p1061.xml |
IFR ASIA: Welcome everyone to IFR’s roundable on Asian credit. We’re here to find out what is driving this robust rally in Asian credit. How long will it last, and what are the challenges this growing market faces? The pace of this rally has been really surprising for market participants, even the most optimistic of us. KJ, what do you think?
KJ Kim, ANZ: That’s a good question. Last year was an interesting year because it was the first time we saw quite a bit of sustained volatility and uncertainty in the markets where issuers and investors were truly tested. With the volatility in rates, the uncertainty with the Fed’s direction, coupled with the US trade war dynamics, there was a large amount of unease that had built up, and at the back end of the year we saw a test of how well technicals would hold up against these growing concerns.
So far this year we have seen favourable technical factors, particularly the supply-demand dynamics and better valuation for investors, outweighing any diminishing uncertainties surrounding fundamentals. US trade war tensions are easing and there is more confidence around the Fed’s outlook for the year. As a result the liquidity in the primary and the secondary markets has been outstanding in the first two months.
The key question is whether the rally will last – in my view, we will see a similar pattern this year to the last couple of years. We typically find that at the start of the year, there is a lot of liquidity in the system and this year, we have been helped by a large portion of Chinese issuers staying onshore for their issuance. If you look at the mix of China’s SOEs and IG corporates, versus high yield, those dynamics have played in the favour of offshore capital markets.
The positive sentiment may last a little longer for the short term. In my view, uncertainties will start creeping back in again: there will be growing questions about the Fed’s stance, the overall global fundamentals outlook, and elections in countries like India, Indonesia, Thailand and Australia will no doubt raise questions around the political direction. Liquidity is likely to hold up, but the supply is expected to be larger this year versus what we saw last year, particularly with the redemption calendar coming through. We will probably start seeing a bit of a tapering of the rally towards year-end.
IFR ASIA: Ed, what is your outlook for primary issuance, and what can you tell us about the changes in direction of Chinese capital?
Ed Tsui, Deutsche: There were two key factors that prompted this year’s rally. In the second week of January, the Fed changed from being a headwind for EM credit last year to a tailwind when the Fed chairman hinted that the Fed will consider market reactions when raising rates. That was a 180 degree change in narrative.
The second big factor was that going into the year, most asset managers were under-positioned versus the benchmark. Last year, you beat the benchmark by holding a higher proportion of cash. This year, many funds were holding too much cash and/or holding shorter duration portfolios so funds had to catch up and deploy capital in a more aggressive way.
In terms of China flows, last year was an outflow story. The marginal dollar from Chinese investors was going back to the onshore bond market, which was very strong. If you look at 10-year CGBs, it went from 3.9% in the beginning of last year to 3.2% currently, but this year the narrative is different. The rally in the onshore bond market is less definitive and a lot of the capital gains may have been captured already.
This year, we hear from investors that there are RFPs going out for bond fund mandates coming through QDII quota and from offshore corporates/high-net-worth individuals. We are seeing some of the marginal dollar coming back into the Asia offshore credit market, which has been contributing to the rally.
In terms of this rally, the pace of re-pricing will slow down from here on. There was a massive re-pricing early on this year. There was US$14bn of EM credit inflows, or US$2bn average a week, so I don’t foresee the same magnitude ahead. But I expect secondary levels will be fairly stable on a tightening bias going forward. The fact that the Fed is not raising rates is helpful to Asian FX, and that we are in a decelerating global growth and low inflation environment means you’re supposed to be in EM credit. Where we might start to see some credit spread widening is if we see some earnings disappointment or slowdown in global growth at the back end of this year. That’s when credit spreads may start to widen.
Cliff Tan, MUFG Bank: It’s interesting because, despite the rally, I still get the feeling that people are underinvested in both equities and fixed income.
IFR ASIA: It’s great that the investors are here to help us answer these questions. Do valuations look attractive to you? Why are we seeing such a huge amount of supply being so well digested right now?
Monica Hsiao, Triada Capital: On the trading of technicals, we did sense by last year-end that there were quite a few funds of our type that still were short or underweight on the beta-oriented bonds, and many started to chase to add only by the second half of January. Also I think, from the street dealer side, it did not feel like many brokers held much inventory through the end of last year, so the street positioning probably helped contribute to set up for this rebound.
On our side, we did put our money where our mouth was at the end of last year. I thought then that things were very cheap fundamentally, and I put myself out on record to say it was the best time to buy into Asia credit last December after seeing last year’s dramatic re-pricing. I think that particularly in the last half, post some of the announcements of China policy easing – even though we would agree that for every dollar that is put in we may not be getting as much productivity out of any sort of easing or infrastructure spending – the fact is that there was a turn. It was certainly a turn from putting a pause on the deleveraging side, which helped.
The other factor, I would say, is that not enough attention was paid to the fact that onshore yields had dramatically decreased and more channels were open to some of the high-yield issuers that we were tracking to be able to access certain channels of financing.
The other thing to keep in mind is that last year, never mind what was publicly placed, there were a number of private placements and certain clubby deals. So, I think there was a lot more liquidity there to actually take down debt and provide financing for some of these issuers than would have been seen on record of bond supply.
Fundamentally, if you even look from a ratings perspective, we saw more upgrades than downgrades in the first half of the year in a number of the property developers.
There certainly was justified fear from the number of defaults increasing. That said, I don’t think we should have thrown out the baby with the bathwater and so we saw spots to pick. I think that coming into this year, as others have already noted, I think the Fed Put kind of coming back, helped. That’s certainly supportive for broader EM. Within broader EM, Asia did really look cheap. If you look at the premium, even today, even post this rebound, Asia high-yield is still providing a premium of somewhere in the range of 500bp spread on the high-yield side. Personally, I don’t think Asia high-grade (on a T-spread) is as attractive if you compare it to other markets.
I think also that, if today we still can find two years and under duration – modified duration – paying high single to double-digits, and you can be comfortable with their ability to refinance, as well as looking at their top-line revenue growth and so forth, we still can find spots that are relatively cheap.
The next leg now will be determined, I think, by the continuation of the technicals of the flows. As always, what we do is really about stock picking, so I think in every environment there are still going to spots to be picked.
I look at this year to date; and we’re up almost 7% on a net returns basis through February, and we achieved this on practically no leverage – and also on a book with average duration of under two years. Last year you just had to look at the number of high-yield curves that were reflecting an overly high probability of default, and I would argue it was completely unjustified to have some inverted and flat curves that made bonds look super cheap in the front particularly.
Cliff Tan, MUFG Bank: The Fed’s on hold for a while. You shouldn’t be this short duration, should you?
Monica Hsiao, Triada Capital: It’s a good question as to what optimal duration to hold today when looking at risk-reward of spreads. I don’t know about ‘should’. I would say that we’re constantly monitoring both the technicals and the fundamentals. Fundamentally you can argue about where that extension risk should be from two-year to three-year, and three-year to four-year, which will shift with beta.
I would say that, in the first half of last year, people were still looking at what that normalised curve theoretically would be for every year extension. We used to bootstrap on an average spread per year. Today we wouldn’t do that. Today we would be very much having a view of a tailored spread of where one to two, two to three, and three to four would be, which would be relatively different.
On the Single B side, I would say I still find more value because we are seeing some extension risk priced at 50bp–70bp on average. So, yes, you could argue it’s cheaper, but then the Single B names there have more fundamental concerns. We are investing in longer duration now, in certain names, but I wouldn’t say we are comfortable with extension risk across the board yet.
IFR ASIA: Morgan, last year investors saw longer duration as a risk, even for the high-quality names. What is your view on duration right now?
Morgan Lau, Fidelity: If we looked at the older HY bonds issued early in the decade, we would see higher coupons like 8%–9%, or even in double digits. Having come down drastically to the 5%–7% level three to four years ago, household high-yield names are now issuing at similarly high coupons again.
For HY funds like ours, high-coupon bonds are good for providing income. Longer duration bonds are quite attractive from an income angle because we don’t have to worry about reinvestment risk.
But we are not seeing enough of those longer-duration, high-coupon bonds, because there weren’t many issuances during the rally in the last couple of months, and the rally ran so fast that the coupon may not be attractive enough, should a longer dated issue come out now.
Hopefully, if we see the rally slow down, we can see good yielding new issues coming for another few months.
In the last few months, many EM and HY funds saw inflows. I think this rally in EM is running ahead of the Asian market, from a simple measure of the spread ratio between EM and Asia. If you look historically in the last three to five years, EM spreads are actually tight relative to Asia from the spread ratio.
We have seen more EM sovereign and EM high-yield borrowers issuing. That’s going to put pressure on the rally for EM, whereas Asia has some way to go. At the beginning of the year, when you looked at the index yield, we were at 10% and so when you’re looking at high-yield and short duration, it’s going to be quite attractive for many investors. Right now I think we’re back to about 8% for high-yield bonds. Given the much lower expectation of rate hikes, I think 8% and potentially lower would still be quite attractive.
At the beginning of the year some investors were relocating their investment into corporate bonds, and that could partly be where we saw the inflows from. Some investors are still sceptical of the rally in the equity markets, so we could still expect more allocations into the credit market.
If 2018 was the perfect storm for fixed income, the beginning of 2019 was, sort of, the reverse of that. We’re seeing interest from PB and institutional clients. Even guys that would normally do more conservative investments are enquiring about more risky mandates.
I think the Asian capital market has developed to the point where fixed income has moved from a speculative asset class to a regular asset allocation. With all these factors, my view on the rally is that it has a bit more to go.
KJ Kim, ANZ: In terms of duration, it’s a fine balance between what the investor wants to see and how the issuer feels about duration and valuation. Last year, over 50% of issuance was in the one to three-year tenors. Issuers who may have wanted to go longer chose not to, because of where valuations were.
For this year, with the rally in spreads and, as Cliff suggested, with the view that the Fed is on hold, appetite for duration may be better. We’re seeing heightened demand on the longer end of the curve and as a result better relative value for issuers, which hopefully will fuel issuance at the longer end. We want to see more duration, because last year we saw an oversupply in the short end.
IFR ASIA: Michael, how do credit fundamentals fit into what we’ve heard so far?
Michael Taylor, Moody’s: Towards the end of last year, when we had such a dire outcome in the markets, there were three big fundamental issues that were really driving things. The first one was the Fed.
The second factor, which we haven’t talked about, was trade and the growing trade tensions between the US and China, which I think weighed on sentiment very heavily last year. Again, that came as a bit of a surprise because we went through the first year of the Trump administration, where the rhetoric from the campaign hadn’t really carried through in terms of policy.
Then, starting round about this time last year, that’s when we started to see the policies actually being adopted that led then to a recalibration in terms of what the global growth outlook might be, the possibility of further tensions between the US and China. That certainly weighed on market sentiment.
Then the third fundamental which came into play was the slowdown in China, which to a large extent was domestically generated. It wasn’t as a result of the trade tensions, but it was as a result of the deleveraging policy and the attempt to address financial risks.
Again, we started off last year with a very strong print in terms of China’s GDP numbers: first quarter 6.9% growth. Everyone started to get very optimistic about this deleveraging campaign going on, but it isn’t really having a big impact in terms of GDP growth. Which was a bit perplexing because, when you started to see how tight credit conditions were on the mainland this time last year, to get that kind of growth outturn didn’t really make a lot of sense.
I think essentially what happened was, towards the end of the year, the GDP numbers started to catch up with where we were in terms of credit conditions. So, we had these three big fundamental factors weighing on the market towards the end of last year, and they all came together. To a certain extent, what’s happened this year is that they’ve all retreated at the same time.
We have seen a diffusion of the trade tensions, and our baseline expectation is that there will be some kind of agreement.
That’s not going to be the end of the story. It’s going to come back again because these tensions are about a lot more than just trade, but, as far as the immediate trade concern is concerned, that seems to have been pushed back as well. Then we’re starting to see in China some of the policy towards stabilising the growth rate – not so much in terms of monetary stimulus, where the PBOC is still being quite cautious, but we have seen a bit of a pullback in terms of the regulatory clampdown on shadow banking, and we’re seeing more fiscal stimulus coming through.
It’s a bit different to last time. It’s not a big infrastructure investment push. It’s more in terms of tax cuts encouraging consumption and at the moment it isn’t clear how well that will work. Nonetheless, I think again market sentiment has improved because the authorities have been taking these actions to try to stabilise the growth rate and to prevent growth in China slowing down too much.
Michael Taylor, Moody’s: We’re not seeing a big reversal.
Cliff Tan, MUFG Bank: It’s a joke, but 5% of GDP is 60% in a year of credit and loans, so, no, I don’t agree they’re being cautious at all.
Michael Taylor, Moody’s: My point, really, was that we had these three factors, these three fundamental factors that were weighing on the market last year. To a large extent, so far this year they’ve been pulled back. I think that’s been one of the things that have supported the market.
Cliff Tan, MUFG Bank: Michael, sorry, I was not actually disagreeing with you. From our point of view, China has been easing since about May last year, so in my write-up I’ve called it ‘Chinease’. I think deleveraging is, to my mind, largely a myth because, if you look at aggregates of credit around China, they’re just continuing to rise and so it’s really hard to see where the deleveraging is.
Michael Taylor, Moody’s: I think the numbers around shadow banking have certainly been impacted by the deleveraging campaign.
Shadow banking has fallen from a peak of 87% of GDP at end 2016 to 68% of GDP at end 2018. That has been compensated for – well, partly compensated for – by an increase in bank lending, in formal bank lending. There’s been a, sort of, switch from shadow banking to formal bank lending, but then the problem that the Chinese authorities face is that shadow banking performed a very important economic function, which was that it provided credit to sectors of the economy which weren’t very well served by the formal banking system.
Cliff Tan, MUFG Bank: The Chinese have announced that they want the state-owned banks to set targets by the end of this month for lending to the private enterprises. This is, by the way, the first time in the history of modern China that I’ve ever seen the government care about the private enterprises.
They want to set this target at around 30% year over year, by the end of this month [March]. Growth in lending to those companies last year was 21%. That’s not enough. I just see a lot of fan dancing here, a lot of reality versus fiction, and I don’t really like some of what I’m hearing.
IFR ASIA: You also talk about how you find very little effort from the government to deleverage. Can you talk more about that, and why that’s problematic, and how that could impact us?
Cliff Tan, MUFG Bank: As I said, we had these nosebleed kind of numbers in January in China in terms of both loans and aggregate social financing. Before the global financial crisis – you guys were all around – you might want to remember that aggregate social financing for China for the whole year was a number like around Rmb4trn. Now we’ve gotten to a stage where aggregate social financing for January was Rmb4trn.
The problem with that is that probably my guess is that half, maybe 60% by now, of that credit is just being used to roll credit. It’s not actually going into new economic activity. Then, on top of that, more recently we’ve got the government worried about wage arrears, which we hadn’t seen for a while. That means workers aren’t getting paid, so a lot of this money is going to pay off workers for back wages, which will help. It will, maybe, slow down the fall in consumption, but it’s not new economic activity, so that’s one of the problems.
I think there is a lending strike, even by the big banks, which is why the government’s been on the hobbyhorse: “Please, you’re not doing your job. You’re not lending to the private companies. You’re not lending to the SMEs.” I’m thinking, “When have I ever heard the government care about the private sector and the SMEs?” The answer is never. I’ve never heard that. This is just a politically correct way of saying, “Lend, okay? It doesn’t matter who you lend to.” Anyway, so the banks are being very rational.
China may find it very difficult to use the old tools to stimulate the economy. I think the bang for the buck is going to go down this year.
Monica Hsiao, Triada Capital: But I guess I would argue that the Chinese government is realistic enough that they’re not necessarily expecting to stimulate in order to achieve that much growth. Their goal is more to stabilise. I think stability of the credit markets is a pretty high priority for them. For them to implement the reforms that they want to, they have to guarantee interbank liquidity, for example.
We’ve seen the recent policies where they’ve expanded the definition of what they can accept for collateral. Things like that are really about ensuring that the credit markets are functioning. That’s their goal, which I would argue they are achieving right now.
As Morgan alluded to, I think this is the year where it should actually be quite favourable for us in Asia credit – not only just from the backdrop of EM markets but mainly because we do have, effectively, Chinese QE, and again not necessarily for growth but for credit stability – so that at least we can return to look at credit differentiation and fundamental value.
Forward looking, I would say that credit for this year still would be, relatively speaking, more attractive than equities, exactly to Cliff’s point about growth. To Michael’s point, I do agree that a lot of this – the deleveraging and not only the actions but the talk of the deleveraging, and the shadow banking and so forth – it really definitely limited the access to capital from some of the high-yield issuers that we saw last year, particularly through trust financing, right? The availability of that, we saw, started to come back end of last year.
You can argue about whether trust financing is good or bad, but the reality is it was serving a purpose that the banks were not doing. I think it’s great that there is a lot more talk and lip service to providing more financing for POEs, but, like you said, the banks are cautious about where they’re going to lend to. | 2019-04-22T17:13:35Z | http://www.ifrasia.com/ifr-asia-outlook-for-asian-credit-roundtable-2019-part-1/21379224.article |
Let no man suppose that there is a necessity that he should always be weak in faith, always walk under a cloud, or that he should forever be a Mr. Feeble-Mind or Mr. Ready-to-Halt. Miracles of Grace are for saints as well as sinners! Feeble minds can be strengthened and crutches thrown away. We ought to grow out of the feebleness of our spiritual childhood. We should cry to God for Grace that we may get up “into the hill country” of holy confidence and there, like Mary, sing, “My soul does magnify the Lord.” Oh that we might all attain to assurance, yes, to the full assurance of understanding, so that we should know why we are thus assured and so become rooted, grounded and settled in the faith–for then nothing would, by any means, remove us from the Truth of God or even move us in the Truth. May the peace of God which passes all understanding keep your hearts and minds by Christ Jesus.
I would to God that you might each realize that promise of the 25 th Psalm, “What man is he that fears the Lord? Himshall He teach in the way that He shall choose. His soul shall dwell at ease and his seed shall inherit the earth.” At the same time, we are most painfully conscious that all of God’s people are not in a vigorous condition and we know that there is a large mixture in every Church of those who are sickly, desponding and faint. These we are bound to care for. Common humanity demands it, our sacred office binds us to it and the example of the good Shepherd constrains us. We must feed the lambs. We must “lift up the hands that hang down and confirm the feeble knees.” The voice of God is heard in our heart saying, “Comfort you, comfort you My people,” which voice we dare not disregard!
Indeed, the sympathies awakened within us by a similar experience prompt us to be forward in compassion for the weak and the tried. Therefore, at this time I would seek out the weary and wounded and feeble–not with a view of trying to multiply their number–but with the hope of diminishing their number by cheering them till they grow out of their low condition. We would not pamper weakness till we seem to offer a premium to unbelief, but yet we would feed the feeble in the king’s meadows till they become strong in the Lord! I shall now look after those who cannot get beyond desires and groans and let none blame me for this service. If the shepherd spends much of his time among the weakly sheep–if he gathers the lambs with his arms and carries them in his bosom–if he seems, even, to neglect the stronger sheep because they do not so urgently call for his care, no one should, therefore, infer that he delights in feebleness.
Far from it! He is trying to remove it by his tenderness! You do not blame the humane for caring for the sick. If great efforts are put forth to build or endow a hospital, you do not say, “Sickness is a desirable thing, for all this money is spent upon comforting and helping those who feel it.” Your feelings are quite the contrary–though these sick folk become the object of care, it is not as a reward to them–but an act of compassion towards them. Let none, therefore, say that the preacher encourages a low state of Divine Grace–he encourages it no more than the physician encourages disease when he tries, by his care and skill, to heal the sick! Whatever your judgments may be, I always mean to look after the downcast and the struggling! Nor shall the babes be forgotten of my soul while I am able to be a nursing father to them.
In a large family where there are little children there must always be arrangements for their feeding. Spoon victuals and milk must always be in the house, for if the cupboard contained nothing but meat and biscuits, the tender ones would starve. If it should ever come to pass that a ministry consisted entirely of the higher doctrines and the deeper experiences, it would leave many unsupplied and it certainly would not be like the ministry of Christ which had in it as much of simplicity as of mystery! A true steward cares for all the household and provides milk for babies as well as meat for men. If he forgets anything, he had better forget the meat than the milk, for though babies could not live on strong meat, men can live upon pure milk. To tell the truth, I have known the strong men come into such a condition at times that the milk for babies was all that they could take.
Burly Samsons who can carry Gaza’s gates may yet be so reduced that they can digest nothing but a milk diet. Those whose confidence is at its very height, today, may be brought so low that they will prize beyond gold the smallest marks and evidences of Grace and will be delighted to take hold upon those elementary Truths of God which belong to new-born Believers! Even fathers in Christ are glad, at times, to seize upon those simple promises which they left, before, to the most trembling of the saints, or perhaps to desponding sinners. If, therefore, at this present time I speak to the very lowest form of Christian life–if I try to meet the weakest case–I shall not admit that I am neglecting the strong. My giant Brother over yonder can have a drink of milk if he likes–it will not hurt him.
Come and try it, my worthy Friend! Receive, again, the simple doctrine by which little children live and you will find wholesome fare! Delight yourself, by all means, in such grand old doctrine as we were singing just now in Toplady’s noble hymn, but do not disdain the plain Truths of God which must always remain the staple food of the household of faith! Come we, then, to the text, “All my desire is before You; and my groaning is not hid from You.” May the Holy Spirit be our Instructor and we shall learn aright!
It is of intense, earnest, agonizing desires toward God for spiritual things that I am about to speak. Such desires ought to be made known unto God. It may be said that God knows our desires and that is what the text asserts. I do not doubt the Omniscience of God! But He bids us confess everything to Him quite as carefully as if He did not know it until we informed Him. We are to declare our cases for ourselves, just as David did, for it was not until after he had told out his sad story in the eight previous verses that he said, “All my desire is before You.” We may expect the Lord to treat us as if He did not know our desires if we are negligent in declaring them. Does not the Apostle say, “In everything, by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known unto God”?
Mark the language–“Let them be made known.” The Lord waits to be gracious, but He tarries till His people have pleaded for the blessing! He knows, but frequently He does not act upon the knowledge till we have laid bare our case before Him. Make known, then, your requests and do so, first, because our whole life ought to be transparent before God. What is the use of endeavoring to hide anything? “All things are naked and open to the eyes of Him with whom we have to do.” The life of every man should be unveiled before the eye of Heaven–but as for those who are believers in Christ, even in the humblest degree they desire no concealment–rather do they cry, “Search me, O God.” We do not wish to hide anything! Our hope lies in our heavenly Father’s knowing all.
There should be no wish to hide, even, a stray desire, or to conceal the most doleful groan. All should be open and aboveboard between a sinner and His Savior. What secrets can there be between a soul convinced of sin and a pardoning God? It would have an ill look if we still sewed fig leaves together, or hid among the trees of the garden. No, let us stand forth and let our covering be such only as the Lord, Himself, provides. Take care, then, in prayer, to set forth the secrets of your soul before God. Tell Him your sin and spread it out in all its sorrowful detail. Tell Him your fears for the past, your anxieties for the present and your dreads for the future. Tell Him your suspicions of yourself and your trembling lest you should be deceived. Tell Him what salvation you wish for and what work of Grace it is that your soul desires–make all your heart known unto God and keep back nothing, for much benefit will come to you from being honest with your best Friend.
And what is this but to make your desires known to God? It is a great benefit to a man to be able to express his desires and this is an argument for making them known to God! You know your own desires better by trying to express them. They are indistinct till prayer sketches their likeness and fixes their image. Even should you fail to express your desires, their inexpressible character will better make known to you their greatness and their intensity. Sometimes a desire that is in the heart would at once be extinguished if you were to attempt to express it, for you would not dare to allow it to exist after you once saw its true nature. A glance at some desires would seal their doom, for we should feel them to be unworthy to be presented before the Lord. But when it is a holy and pure desire, tell it, for it will relieve your heart! It will heighten your estimate of the blessing sought! It will bring you to think over the promises made to such desires and it will, thereby, strengthen your hope that your desire will be fulfilled and enable you, by faith, to obtain it.
The prayerful expression of one desire will often quicken further desires and make a thousand of them where there was but one. If you will make known your desire before your God it will gather strength and soon obtain fulfillment. Desire should not be like a bird shut in within the ark–it should be sent out as Noah sent forth his dove. There! Let it fly towards Heaven! It will come home bearing the olive-leaf in its mouth. The return of prayer brings peace, therefore send it on its profitable errand and never attempt to hold it in the cage of silence! Though it has lain among the pots and is grimed with groans, let it mount towards Heaven and soon its wings will be covered with silver and its feathers with yellow gold! By prayer shoot out the arrows of desire from the quiver of your heart, for every one of them shall smite your enemies.
Perhaps you feel that you cannot pray because you are under so dense a gloom–but that is the time to double your desires and your pleading! I am told that the flower, of which the ancients used to say so much because it always turns toward the sun, is said to follow the great lord of day just as much in cloudy weather as when his bright beams gladden all things. What? Though the sun is not visible, yet he is still in his sphere and the nature of the flower seems to tell it in what direction to turn! Be it ever so with our soul in gloomy hours! When we cannot see the Lord’s face, may we still look towards Him with strong desire. O Soul, pray even when God does not appear to hear! When your eyes are blinded with tears, turn your mournful face towards the Mercy Seat and look towards His holy hill!
Remember where He was known to manifest Himself to you. If He meets you not today at Zion’s gates, yet remember Him from the Hermonites and the hill Mizar, where He revealed Himself, before, and let your desires follow hard after Him until you find Him again! Let nothing stop you from desiring and pouring out your complaint, for herein is the way of health to your soul. A gracious expression of desire before God will often be to you a proof that those desires are right. A desire that you dare tell to God is sure to be of a godly sort. If I can say, “O Lord, all my desire is before You and I wish it to be before You–I court Your inspection because I hope You will fulfill the desire,” then my wish is such as conscience approves and is right and good! Is there not comfort in this for those of you who think you have nothing more than desires? If you have desires which you wish the Lord to know of, they must be right–you would not dare to bring them before God if they were not good desires!
When you are in God’s House and with God’s people, or reading God’s Word, or when you are drawing near to God in contemplation, then these desires are strongest. Now, if they were bad desires, they would not flourish in the best of atmospheres–they would not be watered and nourished by the best of influences–for such influences would tend to kill ill weeds of strange desire. So, then, there is some good thing in you towards the Lord God of Israel after all! You would not have these heavings of your soul, these strivings of your heart, this panting, hungering and thirsting if it were not that there is somewhat in you of the Spirit’s working! God has dealt graciously with you in giving you these good desires! Sparks of everlasting life are alive within your spirit so long as you have spiritual hunger and thirst, your desire must be a good thing or you would not dare to make it known to God and, seeing that it is a good thing, take care you nurture it well and cause it to grow by expressing it with your whole heart before God.
II. This leads up to my second head which is this–DESIRES TOWARDS GOD ARE GRACIOUS THINGS. Intense groaning desires towards God are, in themselves, works of Grace. For certainly, first, they are associated with other Graces. When a man can say, “All my desire is toward God and my heart groans after Him and yet I find little in myself but these desires,” I think we can point him to some other good things which are in his heart. Surely humility is apparent! You take a right view of yourself, O man of desires! A lowly esteem have you of yourself and this is well. I would to God that some who are full of bragging and boasts about their holiness could only be as safe as you are with your desires and groans, for there is in you that broken and contrite heart which the Lord will not despise.
God has given you this jewel among the rest–a meek and lowly spirit. Yes, and there is faith in you, for no man heartily desires to believe unless he does, in some measure, already believe. There is a measure of believing in every true desire after believing. If you say, “I desire to trust Christ,” why, Soul, you trust Him, already, in some degree, since you believe that He is the kind of Person whom it would be right to trust! Your desire to cast yourself wholly upon Christ has in it the beginning of saving faith! You have the grain of mustard seed within you which will grow into a great tree. I can tell the mustard by its taste–the strength of your desire, its pungency and heat–betray the genuine seed. And you have love, too. I am sure of it! Did ever a man desire to love that which he did not love already? You have already some affection toward the Lord Jesus, some drawings of your heart Christward, or else you would not sigh and cry to be more filled with it.
He who loves most is the very man who most passionately desires to love more. Love and desire keep pace in Christians so that the more love, the more desire to love–and so I gather that this desire of yours to love Jesus is a sure evidence that you love Him already! Your desire is the smoke which proves that there is fire in your soul. A living flame lingers among the embers and, with a little fanning, it will reveal itself! Your desire to serve God is obedience! Your desire to pray is prayer! Your desire to praise is praise! I am sure, also, that you have some hope, for a man does not continue to groan out before his God and to make his desire known unless he has some hope that his desire will be satisfied and that his grief will be relieved. David lets out the secret of his own hope, for he says in the 15 th verse, “In You, O Lord, do I hope.” You, my downcastBrother, do not hope anywhere else, do you? You know that every other door is shut; every other road is blocked up except that which leads from your soul to God. I know you have some hope and, therefore, if you have no hope anywhere else I am persuaded that you have a hope in God!
That thought of God which makes you cry, “Hope in God, for I shall yet praise Him,” has the seeds of hope and the beginning of comfort within it. I might go over many of the Graces, but these will suffice–as a man is known by his company, so may our desires be known by their attendants–and as holy desires after God keep company with humility and faith and love and hope, I am persuaded they are of like character and are gracious themselves. Another proof that they are gracious is that they come from God. Desires after God must come from some source or other. If you desire to be holy, where did that desire come from? From your own corrupt nature? Impossible! Certain believers in free will may think so, but we are not agreed with them. We believe that none can bring a clean thing out of an unclean, neither can thorns bring forth figs. If there is a desiring and a groaning of the heart after God in your bosom, depend upon it, human nature never originated it!
Can sin desire holiness, or death pant for life? Holy desires are plants which are by no means native to the soil of human nature–their seed comes from a far country. Do you think the devil worked these holy desires? Listen, Brother–does the devil make you thirst after God? Does he make you sigh and cry after the light of your Father’s Countenance? Does he make you pray to be delivered from temptation? Does he make you sigh to be conformed to the image of Christ? Then the devil has very greatly altered since I met him, last, and since he was described in Holy Writ, or seen in the conflicts of good men! Who, then, has kindled these heavenly flames of desire? I earnestly acknowledge my belief that every pure desire is as much the work of God as the Grace which it desires! He who sincerely longs to be right with God has already somewhat of a work of Divine Grace within his soul creating those aspirations. Now, as God can say of all that He creates, “It is very good,” I come to the conclusion that these groaning desires after God are very good. They are not great, nor strong, but they are gracious. There is water in a drop as well as in the sea. There is life in a gnat as well as in an elephant. There is light in a beam as well as in the sun and so is there Grace in a desire as truly as in complete sanctification!
Thirdly, holy desires are a great test of character–a test of eminent value. You ask, “Can you judge a man’s character by his desires?” I answer, yes. I will give you the other side of the question that you may see our side all the more clearly. You may certainly judge a bad man by his desires. Here is a man who desires to be a thief. Well, he is a thief in heart and spirit. Who would trust him in his house, now that he knows that he groans to rob and steal? Here is a man who desires to be an adulterer–is he not, in God’s sight, already such? Did not Jesus tell us so? Here is a man who desires to be a Sabbathbreaker but he is compelled by his situation to attend the House of God–he is already, in God’s sight, a Sabbath-breaker because he would follow his own works on God’s holy day if he had the opportunity. The desire to commit a fraud and especially the earnest desire to do it, would prove a man to be a villain at heart. If a man were to say, “I want to cut my enemy’s throat. I am full of revenge. I am groaning to murder him.” Is he not a murderer, already, before God?
Let us, then, measure out justice in our own case by the rule which we allow towards others. Let me help you to apply the principle. If you have a desire, an earnest, agonizing desire towards that which is right, even though, through the infirmity of the flesh and the corruption of your nature, you do not reach to the height of your desire, yet that desire is a test of your character. The main set of the current determines its direction–the main bent of the desire is the test of the life. It is well with you even though you have to cry with Paul, “To will is present with me, but how to perform that which I would, I find not.” If you earnestly desire to love God, you do love Him! If you desire to be purified. If with a strong, continual, agonizing desire you pine for it–already the work of purification has begun, for your desire has been purified–your wish, your will, your heart have already been purified! Is there not proof enough that there is a measure of graciousness about true desires after God?
Note, further, that our desires are a test very much superior to several other favorite modes of self-judging. For instance, many people judge their religion by the regularity of their attention to its outward duties. “I was never absent on a Sunday morning, nor even from an evening service. I attend communion at least once a month. I go to the Prayer Meetings, I read a chapter or half a chapter every day. I bow my knees at my bedside every morning and evening–I have never omitted any part of my duty for many years.” I am very glad to hear it, respected Friend, but if you have no desires towards God, all your regularity of attendance does but liken you to the Church clock which is quite as punctual, or to the pulpit Bible, which never leaves its place. You may be a capital Pharisee, but you are not a true Christian unless your soul is full of living desires!
If you cry out, “I am thirsting for God, the living God. My spirit groans after holiness. When I have bowed my knee, I groan before God because I cannot live as I would, or even pray as I desire to pray. I have come to the House of God longing to be fed with spiritual meat. I have always been a hungry soul towards Divine things.” Then I quote my Master’s words, “Blessed are they that hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be filled.” Living desires are better than dead duties–as a living dog is better than a dead lion. The most regular outward performance of pious duties may be the revolution of heartless machinery, but desires mean life and life is necessary if we would please the living God! Desires are a better test than the self-congratulation I have sometimes met with about the possession of gracious things. I say not better than the possession of Graces, but better than the supposed possession of them.
We feel surer as to the Grace in a man’s heart who groans after more Grace than we do of him who boasts–“I am rich and increased in goods and have need of nothing.” A man may be full and dead! But he who hungers is alive. Brothers and Sisters, if your soul is desiring and crying and groaning after God, do not condemn yourself because you cannot speak quite so positively as others as to your safety or your sanctity! Desire on and groan on, but at the same time get nearer to the Cross! Trust more completely! Look out of self and rest more fully in the Covenant promises of God. Your state is not one to cause trouble–it is painful but it is not perilous. I am sure that there is a graciousness about holy desires because they have been very prominent in the very best of men. Look at David! See how his soul longs, yes, even faints! Hear how he pants, like a hart for the water brook, that he may draw near to God!
His Psalms are very largely made up of desires–they abound with such passages as, “One thing have I desired of the Lord, that will I seek after.” “Unto You, O Lord, do I lift up my soul.” “My soul thirsts for God.” All his desires went heavenward, for he said, “Whom have I in Heaven but You?” And in his last hours he exclaimed concerning the Covenant of Grace, “This is all my salvation and all my desire.” Nor must we forget Daniel. In the passage in which Daniel is spoken of as a “man greatly beloved,” which is a very sweet translation–the words may be read, “a man of desires”–I suppose that he obtained that name of the Lord because he much abounded in holy longing and was accustomed to rise from one desire to another. There is a remarkable expression in the second of Daniel at the 18 th verse.
When the king had dreamed and none could interpret the dream, the Word of God said–“Then Daniel went to his house and made the thing known to Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah, his companions: that they would desire mercies of the God of Heaven concerning this secret.” In other books we would have found it stated that he asked his friends to pray, but Daniel went to the very soul of things and begged them to desire. His prayers thrice a day were not formal–they were deeply and intensely sincere and, therefore, they were full of desire which is the motive force, the life-blood of prayer! Daniel, then, was a man of great desires and hence a desirable man with God–a man greatly beloved. As for Nehemiah, that faithful servant of God, he began his work by praying for a blessing on those who “desired” to fear God’s name.
If you turn to the New Testament, what a man of desires Paul was! He was always desiring this and desiring that for other people, until he desired for himself that he might depart and be with Christ! A part of the inheritance of Israel of old lay on this side of the Jordan, but the major portion was on the further shore–and so the major part of a Believer’s portion for the present lies in desires for things not yet attained. A man of devotion is always a man of desires. Among your acquaintances you will find the best people are full of longing to be better. They know that God has blessed them–they rejoice in every particle of Grace they have ever received from Him–but they are always wanting more. They are, in spiritual things, as hard to satisfy as the king whom Du Chaillu met with in the center of Africa. He gave him a huge present of goods and his gracious majesty was overjoyed and held a great feast over the treasure.
But before the week was over his black kingship said to Du Chaillu, “Truly, goods and money are like hunger; you are filled today, but tomorrow you are hungry again.” In one sense he who has obtained Grace never hungers, that is to say, he needs nothing beyond his God. But in another sense he always hungers more and more, the more he obtains. Covetousness of goods is a crime, but covetousness of good is a virtue. “Covet earnestly the best gifts.” He who has little Grace can be content with little. He that has more Grace longs for more and he who has most is insatiable to a still larger degree. He has the greatest esteem for the heavenly treasure who has had the most acquaintance with it and, therefore, he longs to possess all that can be possessed!
Time warns me to leave this point, only repeating the fact that desires towards God are gracious things.
III. Thirdly, DESIRES TOWARD GOD ARE CAREFULLY OBSERVED BY HIM. Was not that the first head? No, it was not. The first head was that we ought to make our desires known to God–the third head is that they are known. It is wonderful condescension that the Lord should observe so poor a creature as a sinful, mournful mortal. You heard me read the whole Psalm just now. Is it not a terrible description of a horrible sickness? I wonder how many of you would like to go and visit a man who was in the condition which David pictures and watch over him and nurse him? Here was a man who had no soundness in his flesh and no rest in his bones, but was eaten up with a loathsome disease and covered with wounds which corrupted till they stank.
The Lord cannot look upon iniquity. He hates and loathes it infinitely and yet He looks upon His poor servant when sin has worked in him all this mischief. Oh, poor, broken-down Believer, your God still looks upon you! Oh you whose wounds gangrene; you who seem, already, to be rotting into the sepulcher of apostasy, still if there is any life and desire in you, your God is watching you! With tender, loving eyes He sees you in your misery and filthiness! The best thought of all is that He sees the good points in us for, while David does not say, “Lord, all my wounds are before You; Lord, all this stench and corruption are before You,” he does say, “Lord, all my desire is before You.” God has a quick eye to spy out anything that is good in His people–if there is but one speck of soundness; if there is a single mark of Grace; if there is any remaining token of spiritual life–though it is only a faint desire; though it is only a dolorous groan, the Father sees it and records it, casting the evil behind His back and refusing to behold it.
IV. The last head is that EARNEST DESIRES TOWARDS GOD WILL BE FULFILLED. How do we know this? If men are sighing and crying to God they will be heard–how do we know that? Why, first, because these desires are of God’s creation and you cannot imagine, at least I hope you cannot imagine, that God would create desires in us which He will not satisfy! Why, look even in Nature–if He gives the beast hunger and thirst, He provides the grass upon the mountains and the streams that flow among the valleys for it! There is not a fish in the sea nor an insect in the air but what God has made provision for gratifying its instincts and its desires. If, then, He has put in you a desire after Himself, He will give you Himself!
If He has made you long after pardon, He will give you pardon! If He has made you sigh after purity, after eternal salvation, He means to give you these. Do you think that God would act towards us wantonly and torment us with the torments of Tantalus needlessly? Has He made His mercy flow all around you and has He given you thirst and will He never let you drink? If He did not mean that you should drink, why has He created the longing within you? You do not thirst after God by nature and if He had let you alone you never would have so thirsted! You did not pine after His love until He made you pine for it–why, then, this creation of a wish if it is not to be gratified? Has He made you long after faith and yet, do you think, He will deny it to you? Has He given you a groaning after His dear Son, Jesus Christ, and will not Jesus yet be yours? Soul, He is yours!
I have seen some treat children very unkindly when, to make sport for themselves, they have exhibited fruit or toys to the children which have excited great desire and they have acted as if they were going to give them to the children and then they have gone away and given them nothing and laughed at them. They thought there was wit in such conduct, but it seemed to me meanness, itself! God has no such cruel ways with men–if He has taught them to desire His Grace, He will fulfill their desire because He is always a merciful and gracious God. Remember, O desiring man, that you already have a blessing! When our Divine Master was on the mountainside, the benedictions which He pronounced were no word blessings, but they were full of weight and meaning and among the best of them is this–“Blessed are they that hunger and thirst after righteousness.” Blessed while they hunger, blessed while they thirst! Yes, they are already blessed and there is this at the back of it, “for they shall be filled.” Thank God that you hunger!
Oh, my Friends, if we could make this city of London to be full of souls that hungered after Christ, we might pray day and night for so blessed a consummation! If we could cause the multitudes of men who go up and down these streets, careless of God and of eternity, to thirst and sigh and cry after God, what a blessing that would be! Time was, perhaps, when you, too, were stony-hearted and had no such desires–the change is a thing to be grateful for. Bless God for your grief, your agony, your anguish–for anything that is like a spiritual feeling–it is better than to be left altogether alone. Here is something comforting for your distressed heart–a blessing is already pronounced upon you. And we may be sure, dear Friends, that God will hear the desires which He has, Himself, created, because He loves to gratify right desires.
He would have us rejoice in Him, for He rejoices over us! If you need proof, note well the names He gives us–“You shall be called Hephzibah and your land Beulah: for the Lord delights in you and your land shall be married.” If God delights to fulfill our desires, let us not be slack in desiring! If you need a sure proof that He will grant gracious desires, let me remind you of His promises. Sometimes one promise may stick in the memory and be better than quoting fifty. Here is the 19 th Psalm–take it home with you–“He will fulfill the desire of them that fear Him: He also will heartheir cry and will save them.” If there is a holy awe of God in your soul, so that you fear Him, He will yet fulfill your desire and your cry shall bring you salvation!
His wife, who lamented his deep dejection, will bless God and say, “Lord, I thank You that You have given him the desire of his heart and that You have not withheld the request of his lips.” Godly friends will hear of his deliverance and rejoice, saying, “He who has long been cast down has found the light of God’s Countenance,” and they will also say, “You have given him the desire of his heart.” As you spread your new joy and perfume the atmosphere with gladness, the saints will bless God that He has given you the desire of your heart! I am persuaded that you will obtain your desire since it will glorify God for you to have it. “Whoever offers praise, glorifies God” and you will praise Him and thus glorify Him. Go your way and seek the Lord with confidence through Jesus Christ and He will bless you evermore. Amen. | 2019-04-22T22:39:47Z | https://www.thekingdomcollective.com/spurgeon/sermon/1564/ |
Since the last issue we have welcomed Andrew Tulloch, who joined the partnership in March this year. He is working alongside Andrew Probert in the Melbourne office and has added a great deal of maritime and aviation legal experience to the Transport and Logistics team.
Greg McCann has also joined the firm as a partner with particular expertise in work health and safety.
The firm now has a Brisbane office following the recent merger with Hemming+Hart.
The Maritime Labour Convention came into force on 20 August 2013 and is implemented in Australia by the Navigation Act 2012, which commenced operation on 1 July 2013. (It is substantially regulated by Marine Orders). The Marine Safety (Domestic Commercial Vessels) National Law Act 2012 commenced on the same day.
On 12 April 2013 the NSW government announced the long term lease of Port Botany and Port Kembla to a consortium made up of industry funds manager Australian Super and Tawreed Investments Limited. Since then, in the state budget on 18 June 2013, the NSW government has announced its intention to enter into similar arrangements in relation to Newcastle Port.
It was reported in Lloyds List Australia on 7 November 2013 that in New Zealand the Commerce (Cartels and Other Matters) Amendment Bill will amend the Commerce Act 1986 and will remove the liner shipping anti-trust exemptions in trades serving that country. It seems to be anticipated that New Zealand's new pro-competition regime will come into effect from late 2015 or 2016, following a two year transition period. Meanwhile the alliances (known as P3) between Maersk, MSC and CMA, CGM and the other alliance (known as G6) between APL, Hapag Lloyd, Hyundai Merchant Marine, Mitsui OSK, NYK and OOCL have come into being.
There was a change of government at the federal level in Australia on 7 September 2013. On his election the new Prime Minister Tony Abbott described Australia as being "open for business". However, the recent return of the "APL Turquoise" to Southeast Asia without discharging any of its container cargo, due to alleged breaches of Marine Order 32, may cause some to question the correctness of that statement.
The federal treasurer Joe Hockey has recently announced his decision to block the proposed takeover of Graincorp by US agribusiness giant Archer Daniels Midland. The takeover was opposed by the National Party.
It is in Australia's interest to ensure that exporters have access to safe, reliable and cost effective shipping services. With all of that in mind, I want to look at Australia's current regulatory arrangements and work with the industry to ensure that we remove unnecessary burden and red tape and that our regulatory arrangements facilitate rather than hinder competition and productivity. This is part of our broader election commitment to reduce the cost of red tape to the Australian economy by $1 billion each year. At the time the shipping reform package was introduced over 12 months ago I was concerned at the increased red tape imposed on vessels, especially foreign-flagged vessels, trading in Australian coastal waters. During the parliamentary committee processes many shipping companies raised concerns about increasing red tape under the new requirements and I am determined to put the current system under the microscope to streamline processes and foster a vibrant and sustainable shipping industry in Australia. This will include looking at the eligibility requirements around the Temporary Licence application process and applications for a variation to a permit. I know the current system has caused problems for local manufacturers and for the movement of bulk goods around our coast... To put it bluntly there is no point in artificially propping up our coastal shipping industry if it is unable to compete - it will have an impact on our broader economy... I want vessels to be Australian flagged, but most of all I want an industry that is efficient, reliable, safe and doing the job that its customers expect.
• whether the anomalous intrusion of the Fair Work Act into coastal shipping will be removed and whether the surcharge levied by the previous government under the Protection of the Sea Levy (Shipping Act 1981) which was extended beyond the period originally announced by former Minister Albanese, will now be removed.
Since our last issue in February 2013, on 23 September 2013 we published a case note, Foreign arbitration awards on voyage charterparties enforceable under Australian law, on the Full Court's decision in the Dampskibsselskabet Norden A/S v Gladstone Civil Group Pty Ltd FCAFC 107, 18 September 2013.
The first instance decision in Dampskibsselskabet Norden A/S v Beach Building & Civil Group Pty Ltd 2012 FCA 696 was discussed in our earlier case note Foreign arbitration clauses in voyage charter parties held not to be effective, published on 20 July 2013.
We have also published a case note since our last issue on the case ACN 055 378 240 Pty Ltd (formerly Marine & Civil Construction Company Pty Ltd) v SGS Australia Pty Ltd FCAFC 46, 16 May 2013.
On 12 August 2013 we published the case note Charterers entitled to withhold hire due to underperformance of vessel, discussing the case Bulkship Union SA v Clipper Bulk Shipping Limited (the "Pearl Sea") 2 Lloyds Rep 533.
In a judgment delivered on 30 August 2013, Rares J refused an application for an extension of time within which to file a notice of appeal. The then named Federal Magistrates Court had given judgment in favour of APL Co Pte Ltd against Mr Thomas in respect of his failure to return a 40 foot container.
The claim had relied upon contractual rates contained in the electronic input delivery order agreement, which had contained a provision requiring the container to be returned within 60 days of the commencement of the period of free time, being the first 10 days after the first day of availability for collection at the terminal of the discharged cargo.
In refusing the application, Rares J expressed the opinion that Mr Thomas had suffered an erroneous entry of judgment in an excessive sum that had no legally justifiable basis, but he was not satisfied that Mr Thomas had a sufficiently arguable case that he was not liable at all for any damages for the wrongful detention, or failure to cause the return, of the container.
The plaintiff, who was appointed receiver of STX Pan Ocean Co Ltd on 17 June 2013, applied for recognition as a "foreign representative" of STX and for recognition of proceedings commenced in Korea as a "foreign proceeding" under the Cross-Border Insolvency Act 2008, which gives effect, from 1 July 2008, to the Model Law on Cross-Border Insolvency of UNCITRAL.
The judgment sets out all the relevant provisions of the Model Law. Orders were made that the rehabilitation proceedings by which the plaintiff was appointed should be recognised as a foreign proceeding, that the plaintiff should be recognised as a foreign representative and a further order that "any application for the issue of a warrant of arrest in Australia of any vessel owned or chartered by the defendant be dealt with by a judge of this court and these reasons for judgment be drawn to the attention of the court at the time any such application is made".
A criticism has been made of the terms of the Model Law by reason of its failure to recognise and take appropriate account of international maritime law and the operation in Australian jurisdictions of the Admiralty Act. I do not propose to take up those matters in the present Judgment, but those criticisms draw attention to the fact that, for centuries, international maritime law developed its own security regimes for reasons which remain generally observed around the world, including in Australia.
41. I can see no reason at present why an action in rem to enforce a maritime lien would not fall within the operation of s471C (s471C provides that s471A and B did not affect a secured creditor's right to realise or deal with a security. S471A prevents persons exercising the functions or powers as an officer of a company which is being wound up and s471B precludes the commencement of proceedings or enforcement process in relation to such a company's property without leave of the Court when it is being wound up under the Corporations Act, as contemplated by Article 20(4) of the Model Law.) I can see no basis, either, for extinguishing or modifying at the present time any recourse to s471B of the Corporations Act. Those potential rights may require assessment according to the circumstances of particular cases but, to take a simple example, there may be a very good reason why a claim for seamen's wages, normally enforceable as a maritime lien, should not be affected by recognition of the foreign main proceedings.
42. I see no reason at present either to curtail or foreclose the exercise of rights which are recognised by the model law itself. The terms of Article 20 of the Model Law will take effect automatically, but I see no reason why the arrest of a ship owned or operated by the defendant which is in Australian waters could not be sought in appropriate circumstances, without having to overcome an order such as proposed order 5. Whether an arrest warrant would issue would depend on the circumstances, the reason why the arrest was sought and the interests sought to be vindicated by the action in rem. Such an application could be made to a Judge of the Court rather than to a Registrar. Full disclosure should be made to the Court that the foreign proceedings have been recognised under the Cross-Border Insolvency Act 2008 (Cth) and the terms of this judgment should be drawn to the attention of the Judge at the time any such application is made.
Svitzer Salvage BV (Svitzer) and Z Energy Limited (Z Energy) and Sea Fuels (Sea Fuels) Limited: judgment of Goddard J dated 4 October 2013.
This judgment deals with applications for summary judgment sought by the defendants and/or a strike out of the causes of action by Sea Fuels Limited or a review of the earlier interlocutory decision by Associate Judge Gendall (20 July 2012), which was summarised in the February 2013 edition of Shipping News.
The facts which give rise to this claim are the grounding of the MV "Rena" on the Astrolabe Reef off the Port of Tauranga in the Bay of Plenty. Svitzer, as salvor of the vessel, had entered into a charter party to hire a bunker tanker to which it could pump the fuel oil from the "Rena" with Sea Fuels (Sea Fuels having negotiated a temporary release of the vessel from its charter with Z Energy).
As between Svitzer and Sea Fuels, Svitzer sought in the proceedings to have the charter party set aside on the basis that it had been entered into under duress; that it was manifestly unjust, inequitable and exorbitant; that it was entered into under the influence of danger, such that its terms were inequitable or the payment made is excessive for the services rendered.
Sea Fuels argued that there was no duress, that the Admiralty Court does not have jurisdiction to set aside an agreement between a salvor and a third party for the hire of a vessel, and if that is incorrect, the jurisdiction has been lost since the Salvage Convention was incorporated into New Zealand law and the Salvage Convention does not apply to a charter party. As between Svitzer and Z Energy, Svitzer argued that if the charter party with Sea Fuels was set aside and Z Energy had actual constructive knowledge of the circumstances giving rise to its being set aside or annulled, Z Energy will be obliged to return all sums paid by Svitzer to Sea Fuels and subsequently passed on to Z Energy by Sea Fuels.
Svitzer argued that the global daily charter rate of $200,000 plus GST which it was required to pay for the charter was exorbitant. Z Energy responded to the effect that there was no cause of action against it, it did not own the vessel and was not a party to the charter party and that Sea Fuels' separate contractual arrangement with Z Energy was of no relevance, and Z Energy was not involved in the negotiations between Svitzer and Sea Fuels.
Sea Fuels was successful in its application for summary judgment in relation to the duress issue in so far as it was sought by Svitzer to have the charter party set aside. However, Sea Fuels was unsuccessful in obtaining summary judgment in relation to the Admiralty jurisdiction and the Salvage Convention arguments.
Z Energy was successful in respect of all three causes of action.
That therefore leaves open for another court hearing the interesting arguments as to whether the court in the exercise of its admiralty jurisdiction could open up the charter party between Svitzer and Sea Fuels if its terms are "manifestly unjust and unfair" and whether Article 7 of the Salvage Convention which allows a contract or terms of a contract to be annulled or modified applies to agreements such as the charter party, or is limited to salvage contracts.
Payment of said hire to be made in London in cash in United States currency, 30 days in advance, and for the last 30 days or part of same, the approximate amount of hire, hire is to be paid for the balance day by day as it becomes due, if so required by Owners, otherwise failing the punctual and regular payment of the hire, or bank guarantee, or any breach of this Charter Party, the Owners shall be at liberty to withdraw the vessel from the service of the Charterers, without prejudice to any claim they (the Owners) may otherwise have on the Charterers.
In this case the charter party also contained an anti-technicality clause, requiring owners to notify the charterers of the non-payment and providing them with two further banking days to remedy the position. After a number of defaults and renegotiations, a notice was sent by owners. Payment not having been made, the owners withdrew the vessel, terminating the charter party.
The owners claimed unpaid hire due up to the time of withdrawal and damages for loss of earnings from the date of withdrawal until the earliest date when the vessel might have been redelivered, but allowing for the earnings received under the substitute charter which it had entered into for the balance of the charter period with the charterer, but at a reduced rate of hire.
Flaux J upheld the arbitrator's decision that the charterer's failure to pay amounted to a repudiation of the charter and entitled the owners to terminate the contract and claim damages.
In this case, the question was whether a limitation fund under the Limitation of Liability for Maritime Claims 1976 (LLMC) Convention could be established by a letter of undertaking supplied by the P&I Club instead of a payment into court. It was held by Simon J that although the LLMC provides in Article 11 that a fund could be constituted "either by depositing the sum, or by producing a guarantee acceptable under the legislation of the State Party, where the fund is constituted and considered to be adequate by the Court or other competent authority", there was nothing in the United Kingdom which permitted a guarantee to be issued instead of cash.
In reaching that conclusion, the judge referred to the Federal Court of Australia decision of Sheppard J in Barde AS v ABB Power Systems (the Barde Team) FCA 1602, where Sheppard J pointed out that there was no such legislation in force in Australia either.
The cargo should be brought into the holds, loaded, stowed and/or trimmed, tallied, lashed and/or secured by the Charterer free of any risk, liability and expense whatsoever to the Owners. The Charterer should provide and lay all dunnage material as required for the stowage and protection of the cargo onboard, the Owners allowing the use of all dunnage available onboard.
Jervis Kay QC, the Admiralty Registrar, held that the charter party clauses which excluded the shipowners' responsibility for stowage were effective, provided that the shipowner had not intervened in the cargo operations, which he held that it had not in the circumstances of this matter.
The bank claimed against a shipowner for misdelivery and conversion of cargo which had been delivered without production of bills of lading. The cargo of 18,000 MT of gas oil had been sold under letter of credit terms. The plaintiff bank had confirmed the prime letter of credit. The gas oil had been shipped in two parcels onboard two different vessels. The receivers rejected the cargo on quality grounds on both vessels.
One of the consignees agreed to buy the cargo at a reduced price on one of the vessels. The cargo on the first vessel was delivered against letters of indemnity and not against production of a bill of lading. The plaintiff bank asserted that it was the holder of the bills of lading pursuant to the UK's Carriage of Goods by Sea Act 1992 (the "Act"), on the basis that it accepted delivery of the endorsed bills of lading on 4 June 2010, or alternatively it became the lawful holder of the bills on 7 July 2010 at latest, when it paid the sum due under the letter of credit.
It argued that, although the bills had become spent once discharge commenced on 15 June 2010, the plaintiff had become the holder of the bills pursuant to the Act, by virtue of the transaction effected in pursuance of the transfer letter of credit which was a contract made before the bills had been spent; it was therefore entitled to sue on the contract contained in or evidenced by the bills of lading and in discharging the cargo, otherwise than on presentation of the bills, the shipowner was in breach of that contract.
Teare J accepted that the plaintiff received the bills into its possession and accepted delivery as the endorsee of the bills on 4 June 2010, and rejected a submission made by the shipowners that there could be no delivery until the plaintiff had decided to honour the letter of credit. It was also accepted by the court that even if the delivery of the bills of lading did not occur until the plaintiff had decided to honour the letter of credit, it must have occurred on 7 July 2010 and although the bills had become spent once discharge commenced on 15 June, the plaintiff had become the holder of the bills pursuant to the Act by virtue of the transaction effected in pursuance of the transfer letter of credit, which was a contract made before the bills had been spent. Accordingly the plaintiff had title to sue.
In November 2013 we published a case note by Andrew Tulloch about this case, Court rejects insurance claim of ship owners because of "fraudulent device" used in making claim. This decision provides a salutary lesson regarding the dangers of supporting a claim with a "reckless untruth", as the insured was deprived of an otherwise valid claim of some €3.2 million as a result. The insured had falsely alleged that the bilge alarm on the vessel had gone off but was ignored.
A cargo of steel pipes was found to be rust damaged on arrival and the issue was whether fraudulent representations as to the order and condition of the cargo had been made on the bill of lading and whether the cargo owner was entitled to damages.
A load port survey had noted that the cargo was "in apparent good order and condition with the following damage/exception" and had then annexed 16 pages of descriptions of the cargo such as "partly rust stained", "wetted before shipment by rain and partly rust stained and slightly scratched on surface" and "wetted before shipment by rain and partly rust stained in white oxidation on surface". These exceptions were noted on the mate's receipt. The bills of lading made no reference to the exceptions but contained a RETLA clause.
The evidence in the case was that the shipper had requested that the bills of lading be issued un-claused, against letters of indemnity. Mr Justice Simon held that the decision to issue and sign clean bills of lading involved false representations by the owners which were known to be untrue and intended to be relied on. The claimant as the holder of the bills of lading had relied on the representation to their detriment and had suffered loss and damage to the extent of USD $458,655.69. The judge rejected a submission that on the basis of US authority, the RETLA clause applied to all rust of whatever severity.
The Court of Appeal in England has held that a shipowner was entitled to rely on a charter party lien on sub-freights.
The facts were that Dry Bulk Handy Holding Inc (DBHH), the owner of the vessel, had chartered it to an undisclosed principal (CSAV) and had then sub chartered it to Korea Line Corporation (KLC). KLC then entered into a trip charter party with Fayette International Holdings Limited (Fayette), (both on NYPE terms which provided owners with a lien on all cargoes and sub-freights), which had then entered into a voyage charter party with Metinvest International SA for the carriage of steel products from Russian ports to Indonesia and Malaysia.
Owners' bills of lading were issued, evidencing contracts between the owners and Metinvest. KLC failed to pay two hire invoices, so DBHH sent to Fayette and Metinvest a notice of lien requiring them to pay freight and/or hire to the owners and a further notice purporting to exercise a lien on the cargo. Owners' bills of lading were issued noting "freight payable as per the voyage charter party". The vessel was withdrawn from KLC's service.
The first question for the Court of Appeal's decision was whether or not the shipowner was entitled to demand payment for itself for freight under its bill of lading when that contract stipulated for payment to another party, provided that it makes the demand before the freight has been paid to the other party.
The second issue was whether or not the two notices given by the shipowners to the shippers and bill of lading holders were effective to require payment of bill of lading freight to the shipowners, rather than to the disponent owners from whom the shippers had voyage chartered the vessel. This therefore required the court to determine the proper construction to be given to the two notices. The third question on appeal related to the construction to be given to two messages from the disponent owners, one addressed to the shipowners and one addressed to the master of the vessel and whether they amounted to an express or an implied request to the shipowners to complete the voyage, thereby generating in the disponent owners an obligation to pay the reasonable remuneration to the shipowners for so doing. The Court of Appeal answered all those questions in favour of the owners.
Bank of Scotland PLC v The Owners of the M/V "Union Gold", "Union Silver", "Union Emerald" and "Union Pluto" EWHC 1696.
Mr Justice Teare ordered that four vessels be sold, prior to judgment, and dealt with an application for an order that the Admiralty Marshal, instead of appraising and selling the vessels to the highest bidder in accordance with his usual practice, should sell the vessels at a certain price to a certain buyer. His Lordship declined to make the latter order in relation to three of the vessels but granted it in relation to one of them.
In essence, the mortgagee bank wanted the Marshal to sell the vessels to buyers found by the bank and at prices which the bank considered were not below the market value. There were two particular concerns expressed by the court in relation to the proposed sales by the bank. The first was that there was no clear evidence that the valuations obtained by the bank took into account that a sale by the court is one which is free of encumbrances and might therefore be thought to be of more value than a sale by the bank pursuant to its rights under the mortgage. If there was no appraisement by the court, there was no certainty that that aspect would be taken into account in the valuation and any such appraisement by the court is treated confidentially.
The other concern of the court was that the bank's proposal would not allow the Marshal to advertise the sale and invite offers to buy the vessel. Accordingly the court reached the conclusion that it would be wrong in principle for the court to depart from the usual order that the Marshal sell the vessel by appraisement, advertisement and inviting bids to purchase the vessel. However, there were special circumstances applying to one of the vessels, essentially that it required a prompt sale for commercial reasons, and was an elderly vessel.
This case involved a number of different parties, but essentially a consistent legal issue arose under their various contractual agreements. The claims involved the chartering of the vessel "Crudesky" to load a quantity of crude oil from the AKPO FPSO terminal, where the Nigerian authorities required an official from the Department of Petroleum Resources to be present during the loading of vessels.
At the time when the vessel arrived, that official was not present. The terminal operator's supervisor sought approval from a superior to sever the padlock on the export valve in its loading operations. The next day the government official arrived. After completion of loading, the vessel was prevented from leaving for some weeks. A fine was levied by the government and paid by the terminal operator.
Demurrage was claimed, but the charterer claimed that it was only liable to pay half-rate demurrage by reason of the force majeure clause in the charter party, which provided that where there was "arrest or restraint of princes", one-half lay time or one-half of the demurrage rate would be payable, "provided always that the cause of the delay(s) was not within the reasonable control of charterers".
The charterer sought to pass on its liability to the sellers to it under its sale contract, which also contained a force majeure clause containing the words "which is beyond the reasonable control of either party". That seller also sought to pass on any liability to the company which had sold the oil to it. Their contract was also subject to a force majeure clause, which also made reference to causes of reason beyond the control of the party seeking to rely on it.
As the terminal was found to be a servant or agent of the charterer, it could not rely on the force majeure clause and say that it was not within its reasonable control or that of its "servants or agents". By parity of reasoning, the seller to the charterer was unable to rely on the force majeure clause in the sale contract. The original seller was in the same difficulty in relation to its obligations under the sale contract. It was the FOB seller's obligation to place the cargo "free on board" the vessel.
The Court of Appeal also rejected the argument that the alleged "abuse or arbitrary exercise of power" by the government was an intervening cause, thus the owner's claim for demurrage succeeded and the claim could be passed on down the line to the original seller.
This was a claim for a total loss of the vessel arising from a fire which occurred at a Russian port. The claim was defended, unsuccessfully, on the basis of misrepresentation/non-disclosure in relation to the management of the vessel, non-disclosure in relation to port state controlled detentions, non-disclosure in relation to an alleged conflict of interest on the part of one of the claimants, the "designated person ashore" for ISM purposes, breach of the ISM warranty on the policy and illegality under United States law in connection with trading with Iran.
The court rejected the representation and non-disclosure defences, largely on factual grounds and expert evidence. It is not proposed in this summary to deal with those aspects of the decision. In relation to the warranty, which read "Vessels ISM compliant", the insurers had argued that that was a warranty of compliance with the ISM code at the inception of the policy and throughout the period of the policy, or at least compliant with the ISM code by reason of there being no "outstanding major non-conformity". The plaintiff argued that simply documentary compliance was sufficient. The judge held that the insurers' construction "would be difficult to apply, difficult to evaluate, and would give rise to commercial uncertainty".
Of considerable interest is the defence of illegality under US law. The factual circumstances giving rise to this allegation was the issuance of freight invoices in respect of sulphur shipped from Iran to China, which caused a New York correspondent bank nominated by the plaintiff to process freight payments in US dollars, which it was argued by the insurers was unlawful as a matter of US law. The judge queried why the lawfulness or otherwise under US law for the payment of freight in respect of the charter of the vessel should have any legal impact on the insurer's liability to indemnify under the policy when US law did not govern the policy. It was also common ground that trading with Iran was covered by the policy.
The judgment contains a detailed description of the US sanctions against Iran. The court found that the processing of freight did constitute a violation of US law and that the plaintiff committed a civil violation in so doing. The warranty of legality contained in section 41 of the Marine Insurance Act 1906 relates to the "marine adventure". The "adventure" insured in a hull policy such as that in question was, the court found, "that the ship is exposed to maritime perils". The fact that the payment of freight was the illegality complained about was within the insured "adventure" and caused the defendants' reliance on illegality to fail.
The question for the arbitrators and the court was therefore whether the proviso in clause 49 relating to the acts or omissions of the charterers or their agents had occasioned the arrest. Clearly Cargill had not been directly involved in procuring the arrest order, but Mr Justice Field of the High Court in London held that failure to unload was an act, omission or default that occurred in the course of the performance of the obligation to discharge as delegated to the receiver by Cargill. Cargill, he said, had "set in train the process of delegation and gave delegating parties a free hand to agree terms with delegates."
Did the failures to unload within the lay days and to pay the resulting demurrage or provide security "occasion" the arrest of Global Santosh? In my judgment, the words "occasioned by" imported a notion of causation which is broader than the concept of "the effective cause" but is not so broad as to include "but for" causation. Instead, the causal relationship between the act, omission or default with the postulated clause 49 event (seizure, detention etc) has to be such that it can be said as a matter of commercial common sense that the latter was caused by or brought about by the former.
He remitted back to the arbitrators for their determination the question of causation, that is whether the failures to unload and to pay the resulting demurrage or provide security "occasioned" the arrest of the vessel.
In the case of... any executive or legislative act done by or on behalf of the government of the country of origin of the goods, or of the country from which the goods are to be shipped, restricting export, whether partially or otherwise, any such restriction shall be deemed by both parties to apply to this contract and to the extent of such total or partial restriction to prevent fulfilment whether by shipment or by any other means whatsoever and to that extent this contract or any unfulfilled portion thereof shall be cancelled. Sellers shall advise buyers without delay with the reasons therefore and, if required, sellers must produce proof to justify the cancellation.
The GAFTA Board of Appeal had found that it was "always possible" that the export ban might be revoked or modified so as to permit performance before the delivery period under the contract expired. Accordingly the Prohibition Clause did not operate to cancel the contract and the sellers' claim of cancellation was therefore repudiatory.
On appeal Hamblen J held that a causal connection had to be proved between the prohibition and the inability to perform the contract. By reason of the GAFTA Board's findings, he held, it could not be said on 9 August 2010, when the sellers purported to declare the contract cancelled, that there was a prohibition restricting such export.
The GAFTA Board of Appeal had said: "We accept that the ban was temporary, in the sense that it was of defined rather than indefinite duration but this does not assist sellers since it was always possible that before the delivery period under the contract expired, the export ban might be revoked or modified in some material way so as to permit performance. That this was a possibility is borne out by what has happened with export bans in the past." Reference was then made to a United States soybean meal embargo.
Mr Justice Hamblen also upheld the GAFTA Board of Appeal's decision on the question of damages to which the buyers were entitled and gave effect to the GAFTA Default Clause.
There were two charter party disputes heard at the same time involving the vessel "Athena", which was chartered by Minerva Navigation Inc (Minerva) to Oceana Shipping AG (Oceana) and sub-chartered by Oceana to Transatlantica Commodities SA, both charters being on amended NYPE forms.
The issue arose as to whether the vessel was off hire during the 11 day period in January 2010 when the vessel ceased to comply with an order to proceed to Benghazi and drifted off the Libyan coast instead.
This occurred in circumstances in which a cargo of milling wheat which had been carried from Russia to Syria had not been allowed to be discharged when the Syrian authorities purported to find the cargo had been contaminated and forbade its importation.
The owners had been reluctant to accept instructions to proceed to Libya because of the terms of the bill of lading and the provisions of Syrian law which required the cargo to be returned to the original shipment port. The arbitrators had found that the vessel was obliged to continue to Benghazi but had wrongfully failed to do so until the end of the drifting period. Accordingly the hire which had been paid in advance by the charterers during that period was repayable to them.
...in the event of loss of time from default of master... or by any other cause preventing the full working of the vessel, the payment of hire shall cease for the time thereby lost... and all extra expenses directly incurred, including bunkers consumed during period of suspended hire, shall be for owners account.
The question therefore for the arbitrators and the court had been whether the vessel was off hire under clause 15 merely because the vessel was not efficient for the services then required or whether the charterers had to further show a net loss of time resulting thereby. Charterers had also claimed damages against the owners for breach of the obligations under clause 8 to "prosecute the ordered voyage with the utmost despatch."
The arbitrators had found that there was a breach of that clause by the owners, but they also held that no damages were payable for the breach. They did find that there had been an immediate loss of time - thus engaging clause 15 - but not an overall loss of time because the cargo would not, in their view, have been discharged and the vessel redelivered any earlier.
The Court of Appeal accepted the arbitrators' views, which were based on the earlier Court of Appeal decision in the "Berge Sund" 2 Lloyds Rep 453, contrary to the opinion of the first instance Judge, who had overturned the arbitrators' decision.
As is made clear in paragraph 25.2 of "Time Charters" (by Wilford, Coughlin et al) the ship must render the service immediately required of her, in which event hire is payable continuously, but if she cannot or does not, hire is not payable for the time so lost. As is also made clear in that paragraph the off-hire clause operates entirely independently of any breach of contract by the owners, and a claim under the off-hire clause may lead to a different answer than would ensue in the case of a claim for damages for breach of contract.
Byatt, the owner of the vessel "Loyalty", had time chartered the ship to Korea Line Corporation, which had time chartered to MUR Shipping BV, which had, in turn, voyage chartered the vessel to Prism. During the time charter Korea Line became insolvent and Byatt issued a notice of lien to Prism for freight payable under the sub-charter. The Court of Appeal, following Wehner v Dene Steamshipping Company 2 KB 92 and the "Cebu" 1 Lloyds Rep 302, held that the lien had been appropriately exercised, as long as it had not already been paid by Prism, which was the case.
• The 2002 Protocol to the Athens Convention on the Carriage of Passengers and their Luggage by Sea 1974 has now been ratified by a 10th state, which means that it will enter into force in 2014. This substantially raises the limits of liability from 46,666 SDRs to 250,000 SDR per passenger in respect of death of or personal injury to a passenger, which limit could be lost where there has been intentional or reckless conduct. In the circumstances in which a loss exceeds the new limit, there is the possibility of the carrier being liable up to 400,000 SDR per passenger, unless it is able to prove that the incident which caused the loss occurred without its fault or neglect. Increases in the limits in respect of luggage have also been imposed.
• The 100th Meeting of the IMO Legal Committee in April 2013 agreed a set of Guidelines which was prepared for submission to the Assembly at its 28th Session dealing with the collation and preservation of evidence following an allegation of a serious crime having taken place on board a ship or following a report of a missing person from a ship, and pastoral care of the victims. The guidelines are to be found in Leg 100/WP.8.
• On 24 June 2013 the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Social Policy and Legal Affairs tabled its report into Arrangements Surrounding Crimes Committed at Sea, containing 11 recommendations for change.
The case Noel Campbell v Rodney Victor Hay NSWDC 11 is discussed in Ross Donaldson's article Civil liability for personal harm - dangerous recreational activity and obvious risk.
The case Bootle v Barclay NSWCA 142 is discussed in Andrew Tulloch's article Aerial spraying company found liable for damage to crops on neighbouring property.
The case Nguyen v Qantas Airways Limited (2013) QSC 286 is discussed in Andrew Tulloch's article Cramped airline seat not a compensable "accident".
The case Lustig v Qantas Airways Ltd (Civil Claims) VCAT 1012 is discussed in Andrew Tulloch's article Air rage incident leads to Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT).
The Court of Appeal in England has found that the administering of a diuretic by a doctor during a flight from London to Melbourne, which exacerbated rather than relieved the passenger's medical discomfort, did not amount to an "accident" for the purposes of Article 17.1 of the Montreal Convention 1999 and could not be characterised as "unusual". Lord Justice Aikens noted that the simple fact that the injection was administered in mid-flight rather than elsewhere cannot provide the circumstances with the necessary "unusual" characteristics so that the event constitutes an "accident" within the meaning of Article 17.1 of the Convention.
The plaintiff who was injured on a flight when a cup of hot chocolate was spilt into her lap, scalding the top of her leg, failed to recover against the airline in this court decision in England.
Article 17.1 of the Montreal Convention 1999 provides that a "carrier is liable for damage sustained in the case of death or personal injury of a passenger upon condition only that the accident which caused the death or personal injury took place on board the aircraft or in the course of any of the operations of embarking or disembarking".
The airline in this case admitted that the plaintiff had sustained injury during the course of the flight, and that its cause was the spillage of the hot liquid, but denied that the events which resulted in injury constituted an "accident" within Article 17. The Judge accepted the defendant's evidence that hot water had been supplied to the plaintiff in a lidded polystyrene flight-deck cup and the lid must have been removed by the plaintiff in order to add the chocolate powder which she had brought with her, and that was the most likely explanation for the accidental dislodgement of the cup.
It was held that in order to constitute an "accident" there had to be an unexpected or unusual event which "was external to the claimant in the sense of having happened independently of anything done" by the claimant.
The European Court of Justice determined that where the possessions of four persons (a family of two adults and two children) were packed as luggage into two suitcases, the air carrier was liable to pay a passenger compensation to the extent that that passenger had sustained damage in the form of loss of items belonging to him, even where those items were placed in baggage checked in by someone else.
It followed that both the right to compensation and the limit to a carrier's liability applies to the passenger under the Montreal Convention, which provides under Article 17(2) that the carrier is strictly liable for loss and under Article 22(2) that there is a limit of 1,000 SDRs for each passenger.
• The decision of Siopsis J in the Federal Court of Australia on 22 February 2013 in Alstom Limited v Liberty Mutual Insurance Company and Ors (No. 2).
• The current situation in relation to the Rotterdam Rules.
• The first instance decision of Foster J in Dampskibsselskabet Norden A/S v Beach Building and Civil Group Pty Ltd FCA 696 (see item 6 above for a report on the Full Court's decision on appeal).
• The decision of Rares J in Atlasnavios Navegazao LDA v The Ship "Xing Tai Hai" FCA 1497, 24 December 2012.
• Daebo Shipping Co Ltd v The Ship "Go Star" FCAFC 156, 7 November 2012.
• The Navigation Act 2012.
• The Maritime Safety (Domestic Commercial Vessel) National Law Act 2012.
• The Maritime Powers Act 2013.
• Stuart Hetherington gave a presentation on recent developments in the maritime area in Australia at an international seminar in London organised by our partners in the worldwide ADVOC organisation on 9 April 2013. The seminar was chaired by Nigel Cooper QC of Quadrant Chambers. Other presentations made included John Sharp of Ashfords LLP, England: The Marine Insurance Act - Proposals for Reform; Henrik Kleis of Delacour Dania, Denmark: Arrest of Vessels in Denmark - Pitfalls to Avoid; Danny Chua of Joseph Tan Jude Benny, Singapore: Maritime Arbitrations in Singapore; Charles Hattersley: Ashfords LLP, England: Recent Developments in British Maritime Law; Nadya Price of Patton, Moreno & Asvat of Panama: Registration and Naval Mortgages of Panamanian Vessels - Latest Rules and Trends.
• Stuart Hetherington also spoke at the Workshop on Marine Insurance held at the time of the International AIDA Insurance Conference in Sydney on the topic of subrogation.
• On 18 September 2013 Stuart Hetherington gave the annual AMTAC address at the Federal Court, in which he gave a paper entitled The Elusive Panacea of Uniformity: Is It Worth Pursuing?
• Stuart Hetherington and Andrew Tulloch both presented papers at the Maritime Law Association of Australia and New Zealand Annual Conference held in Sydney on 19 and 20 September 2013. Stuart Hetherington spoke on the topic: International Law: Current Issues at the CMI and Andrew Tulloch on Marine Insurance Reform in Australia - Whither, Whether, Wither?
• Angus Stewart: Ship Arrest in South Africa: 30 Years of the "Associated Ship"
The CMI held a symposium jointly with the Irish Maritime Law Association, at which the latter celebrated its 50th Anniversary in late September/early October 2013. Over the weekend prior to the commencement of the symposium, two international sub-committees met, where great progress was made in the Review of the Rules on General Average and Judicial Sale of Ships.
Newly created Maritime Law Associations in Poland and India were welcomed as members of the CMI at the meeting. Dieter Schwampe and Alexander Von Ziegler joined the Executive Council; Chris Davis was appointed Vice President and on the retirement of Nigel Frawley as Secretary-General, John Hare was appointed interim Secretary-General. Shortly after the conclusion of the conference, Richard Shaw, known to maritime lawyers around the world, passed away. As Stuart Hetherington said in the announcement to maritime lawyers worldwide, Richard Shaw was one of the most great foot soldiers of the CMI and will be greatly missed.
• The Need for Regulatory Changes Bought to Light by Incidents such as the Costa Concordia by Colm O hOisin SC.
• Exploring the Comparative Provisions relating to In Rem Liability in Irish Law by Edmond Sweetman.
• Steven Byron, the Managing Director of Canberra Airport on the possibility that Canberra will, by default, become Sydney's second airport.
• Dr Rebecca Johnson of the Australian Museum on bird strike and the work done by the Museum in assisting on identification.
• Greg Rector of Aerosure Asia Pacific Pty Ltd on the state of the aviation insurance market.
• Kirsty Rogers of Gates & Partners, Singapore on various legal issues.
• Michael McNamara of QBE Aviation gave an underwriter's perspective in relation to unmanned aerial vehicles.
• Nick Humphrey of Emirates on changes to the Standard Ground Handling Agreement.
• Kevin Sutherland of Clyde & Co, San Francisco on dealing with attempted child abduction claims by air in the US.
• Richard Davis of HWL Ebsworth on the current state of the Australian commercial aviation market.
• General Counsel at Air Canada on passenger rights.
• Kate Eastman SC on discrimination issues and aviation in Australia.
There was also an aircraft casualty mock mediation.
Andrew Tulloch is chairing the Organising Committee for the 2014 ALAANZ Conference. | 2019-04-20T17:05:13Z | https://www.cbp.com.au/insights/insights/2013/december/transport-and-logistics-news-december-2013 |
But as I told my wife as she started freaking out last week – AT LEAST WE HAVE MONEY TO LOSE!!! We should be so lucky!!
If it’s not affecting your daily life, you’ll do well to count your blessings.
ROTH IRAs (-$12,090.58): Double vomit. See above.
SEP IRA (-$47,062.78): Triple vomit. See above. Or better yet, see this graph of how it’s performed *overall* these past few years – a much prettier (and accurate) picture!
And that’s December! How’d you guys do??? Anyone kill it? Anyone lose *more* than me?
How lucky are we to even be alive right now???! Or have water/food/shelter/INTERNET????
Don’t make me whip out that cemetery thesis again….
Hey we lost about same too in December! Although one doesn’t notice it :) Christmas isn’t about money. I had a scary ER trip and “How lucky are we to even be alive right now???! Or have water/food/shelter/INTERNET????” is literally all I was thinking/thankful about every second since then. Market schmarket! How was your holidays J$??
I think everyone lost unless they were all in bonds or bought some mysterious winning individual stocks. No biggie. As you say – at least we have money to lose!
So it would have taken an equity unicorn or market timing of some sort to gain.
For the moment, the “scaredy-cat” portfolio allocation is working for me.
My end-of-year net worth came in at $892.6K.
While that is (unfortunately) down 2K for the month (and my last all-time-high NW of 894.6K), it is up $82K for the year.
That may appear to indicate a 10% increase year/year, but it isn’t entirely attributable to return on investment.
First, I have to deduct the estimated change in equity. Zillow gave me a generous increase of $25K on my home’s current “value”. Then subtract out the amount I paid down on my mortgage principal ($9.8K).
You also have to take off the amount I and my employer have pumped into my accounts through savings from my income ($34K).
This leaves about $13.2K that I believe legitimately comes from investment returns.
With a starting retirement account(s) total of $567.3K (starting NW was 810.5K), that works out to about a +2.3% return in a very difficult year. Hell, if the CPI really is down around 2% I might actually have had a positive real return!
First of all, is that a picture of you!?!? Whaaaaat! I’m used to just seeing that little black and white pic. Hahah…nice beard sir. Anyway, in times like these I like to watch YouTube clips of WB saying all you need to do is invest in a low cost index fund such as the S&P and never read another headline in your entire life. He’s seen several wars, many political parties in power, 9/11, the recession, etc…and America keeps marching forward. His down to earth ways and trips to Dairy Queen warm my heart.
A Peanut Buster Parfait with Mr. Buffett. Wouldn’t that be something.
We are right there with you J. We’ve been regularly buying and had some bonuses to put in in December. Shares over dollars right now.
Shares over dollars – i like that!
Look at the long view – your Net Worth at the end of 2008 was like $64,000. End of 2018 you are at $791,000! Pretty dang good results over the long haul.
I own some Chipotle, which was up like 45% for the year last year. I don’t own enough to offset my index fund IRA, but at least something on my account overview at Vanguard was green!
Happy new year, J$! For December 2018, we were down $105.2K, so I guess we have you beat? Similar to you, our cash balance was up while our brokerage, Roth IRA, and 401(k)/403(b) accounts and home and auto values were down. It didn’t bother me as much as some might think because I spent a good part of the roller coaster ride overseas ignoring the financial markets. Is there still time to get back on that plane?
I know my future self is going to thank me though for sitting tight, not selling and continuing to focus on savings instead!
I’ve been waiting for this bear market to present itself, secretly hoping it would happen before I retire and not after.
So you can blame me.
Everything that happened to your portfolio happened to mine at a rate of about 4x. My portfolio was down about $500,000 peak to “trough” (if that was the trough — probably not, but maybe) and we bounced back nearly $100,000 the day after Christmas.
Throughout it all, I pretty much shrugged my shoulders. Did a little tax loss harvesting, but otherwise I realized the number on the screen doesn’t affect my day-to-day. It’s a good attitude to have.
Yeah I’m down about $50k. Plus about another $1300 every day this gov’t shutdown stays in tact. Every article I read talks about the poor gov’t workers even though they will essentially get a paid vacation after this is all over. No one talks about contractors who get $0 now and $0 later.
Furloughed workers won’t get paid. The only ones who will probably get reimbursed are the ones working and getting no paycheck right now.
Sorry to hear that bro, but as the saying goes, “It is time in the market, not timing the market.” That being said, the charts I watch showed we might be in for a rough time ahead, so I sold all our investments before the downturn. Our net worth was up a meager 0.5% for the month from paying off debts, but we were up just over 40% for the year.
The advantage you have is that you can keep investing while the market is down helping your overall return. Meanwhile, we continue to pay off debts and look for value investing opportunities to reallocate our cash. Here is to a better year for us both! Thanks for the update and for staying so positive despite the recent negative results!
Wow, you did great this year!
When did you unload your stocks? And what drove your decision to time your move when you did?
Always looking to improve my results.
Thanks for the reply. As I mentioned in my most recent net worth blog post, I pay attention mostly to the Dow. I use a method that I read in a book several years ago. It combines the Simple Moving Average, Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD), and Slow Stochastic oscillator. These three together tend to show a general trend in the market.
The three began showing a downtrend last June. I moved my 403b, 529, Roth IRA, and my wife’s IRA and Roth IRA to cash or as close to a cash equivalent as I could. These accounts amounted to about 20% of our retirement. I owned some stock that I thought might continue up for a bit. I sold it for a nice profit November 3rd just after I received another downtrend signal. The stock continued to go up, but is now back down below where I sold it.
I will move the accounts back into the markets when I see a reversal. I may miss a little of the upward move, but should not experience most of the downward trend. One thing that may change would be if I find a great deal on an individual stock that is worth purchasing.
I know most personal finance and FIRE bloggers are more passive investors, but perhaps I should put a post together showing how to view these indicators. Someone might find it useful.
You mentioned that to me before. The difference is that we have such a massive amount of debt that all our money is going to pay off the debt and very little is actually being continually invested. You have the ability to continually invest, so you will weather out all the market ups and downs. I was just trying to preserve the capital that we have so that hopefully we can purchase again when the market stops being so crazy.
Meh. Paper losses. Take it from this old gal, the market will (is already) come back. The average length of a bear (bad) market is about 21 months. You got two years before you need your money? Then just think of this as a way to get your average stock purchase price down.
Hope the new(ish) site is still going well!
My man! Wanna feel better? My NW is down over $200,000 since a high on Dec 3! I probably add in about 60K per year, so thats over 3 YEARS worth of contributions in one month! When you are younger, its just a time to buy more, but for those of us older its a wake up call. What have I learned? That I am not as risk tolerant as I thought. I will be looking to rebalance when I can as my FIRE date is nigh, and unlike you I have no other source of retirement income stream other than my stash.
Hi J$! Words of wisdom to ponder as we all can find blessings in the financial insanity if we so choose.
This is the year I step up and acknowledge my Net Worth. Scary, but honestly I am grateful for your monthly report, and for those who choose to share theirs. My worth is measly compared to many of you but it’s only getting better as I learn.
I have a question about how to figure my employer-paid pension into my net worth. When I look at my balance, there is a straight balance and an estimated, as my employer reports once a year, in October. I feel better taking the true balance because this year, for example, I earned almost $10K in overtime (my choice), which would not have been included in my estimate. We’re not talking a massive sum, but this girl picks up pennies! Any advice is welcome.
Happy and successful new year! May your opportunities be many and your goals realized.
I actually wrote something about this and net worths a cple years back, lemme see if I can find out….
See if anything there helps, especially the comments below as there were tons of great opinions if I recall.
Hands down best value Minivan – Dodge Grand Caravan. Get the second from the bottom of the line (SXT?) with the stow and go seats. Buy no other options other than what comes with it. Look for a new 2018 model. It’ll be cheap. I bought one new in 2015 for $21,995. I use it for my business, and for personal transportation. I love it I’ve had 5 vans but this is easily my favourite. Or a three or four year old one with low miles. Dollar for dollar, pound for pound the best van IMHO. My old van is still worth $14,000. 57,000 miles so far, so the cost of the van (ie. depreciation) has been about $0.14 per mile. And it’ll just get cheaper from here. If I keep it 10 years and put 200,000 miles on it, that’ll take the cost down to $0.11 per mile. That’s cheap. Yes, I understand, gas, maintenance, insurance is extra. But for a family vehicle that has lots of size it’s a bargain (no I do not work for Dodge).
We prefer to think of it as finding a really great sale on mutual funds as opposed to, you know, HUGE losses.
We lost more in our Roths than we had put in during the whole year, but when that baby bounces back, we’ll be like Tigger.
It has been a good test of our belief in our own resilience against loss. Neither my husband nor I batted an eye.
Ride a painted pony let the spinnin’ wheel spin….
Let that puppy spin and just smile knowing it’s coming around again and you’re already onboard.
I seem to be in the vast minority to have had a positive net worth last month. I was up just under $3k. My assets were no help – those were down over $11k. But I killed it with debt reduction, to the tune of over $14k – yay me! That put me up $67k for the year.
At least you’re starting the year down so you have nowhere to go but up!
Oh $hit!!! Good for you!!
Ha ha J$! Yup, an honest to God pension. I’ll read the article/opinions and I’m sure it will be very informative. More education time for me.
Thank goodness for the post Christmas 8% rally! Otherwise, things woulda been so much uglier!
My overall public equity portfolio eeked out a 0.8% gain, but I had to trade my House Sale Fund like a maniac to get there. Too stressful, and I’ll be taking a break this year.
I’m hoarding some cash in case it drops further. I want to be ready if it does.
Our net worth went down 3.2% in December, but we still managed a 14% net worth gain for 2018 in total.
We did a great job saving this year (38% of gross income) and also cashed out some stock options which more than offset the market losses. My husband looks like a genius now for telling me to sell all his stock options in September.
PS: Happy new year and happy to have you back from your break!
I wouldn’t stress too much about those dips this year J-Money – you’re sky high in the new worth zone, and are bound to set the odd record or two when you’re sneaking up on the $1 mil mark!
My portfolio did worse because I hold 45% Total international. International took a big dive this year.
International shares are having a big sale right now.
I actually probably should diversify more into international but I just love how simple and streamlined my current 1-fund approach is :) I feel like being invested in the broad market already gives you a little international action anyways due to how connected our world is now? Or is that just a myth?
Most of my portfolio is in aggressive growth stocks. Oops! Thanks a lot tech. The yield curve just keeps getting worse! Oh well, better to go through a recession half a decade before I retire than when I retire.
I like your positive approach to issues. Instead of lamenting about the loss, you still have a reason to give thanks. In investment, loss should be expected at times. It is not all “up, up and up”. As they say, when the going get tough, only the tough keep going. I hope this year will be much more better.
Haven’t looked at our Vanguard account for a month!!
We’re in it for years to come so will let it ride.
Can you post about tax refunds? How, exactly do you get one? Are there tax benefits for how you invest? Last year I made 47,000. Almost half of that income went to daycare payments. I still pull out the most tax that I can each month. I get a small tax break for classroom supplies because I am a teacher. Still, in the end, I had to pay taxes! I almost cried. The amount was small, but still, it was a struggle to get them paid. I had to work a few side gigs that month.
I’m not a tax expert so can’t help you much there, but I do know you can tweak how much gets taken out/left alone in your checks to a degree, so you could always alter it by paying more over the year if you want to get a nice check in the end? People either love or hate that because you’re pretty much giving the gov’t a free loan, but if it helps you save more in the long term I think it’s fine.
At your income, I imagine there are tax breaks for funding a retirement account, so you might want to see if you could spare cash to take advantage of that. There are lots of deductions for people who own their own businesses, fewer for employees.
I am living in blissful ignorance. I usually check Personal Capital at least 1x a week for an updated net worth. I haven’t checked since before Xmas. I see no reason to burden myself with bad news. I’d love to see if I can get through Q1 without checking. I’m still investing of course, just not checking my total net worth.
yeah, seems like you’re not alone in the “no looking” game ;) I only log on once a month for these reports, otherwise it’s mostly in the background totally out of my mind!
Love this post. A great reminder why I love reading your blog and why I love sharing your site with my 18yr old nephews. It’s fun and full of wisdom, all at the same time. You are right, we should be so fortunate to have money to lose. Thanks for putting things into perspective.
That is so cool that you share it with them!!! Thank you!!! They are going to be SO FAR AHEAD if they actually take action! ;) What a blessing that would be so early on in life.
The last quarter is a mess for me too. I am down so much that I don’t even look at my portfolio. Just let the wave pass because I know I have a few more years before retirement. But there is always the temptation to sell but got to keep the course.
New Van??? What the heck….I miss the “good old days” with “Franken-Caddy”…It seemed like people just could not help but run into that car!….continually….Do you miss it?
And secretly hoping to replace her one day with another – once I’m no longer playing chauffeur for my kids.
Gotta love that inverse mindset that when you lose money you’re grateful for having the ability to be invested on top of daily living. The more you lose the more you have in right?
I am kind of new to your website so this might be a silly question with an obvious answer, but right now trying to figure out where you list on your monthly reports how much you invested each month. I assume when you are in the green for Cash savings–that’s how much you added towards your “savings for whatever/rainy day” fund. But where do you list how much you invested into your Roth IRA or Brokerage as I see only whether the value went up or went down:) Hope that makes sense.
Excellent question, and it does make sense!
The answer is a pretty simple one though: currently I only invest once or twice a year when I go in to max out the retirement accounts one by one. The reason for this is that my income fluctuates so much as a self-employed “business” owner, and I never really know what amounts I’ll be allowed to put in until I do my taxes. So even though I *prefer* to invest continuously throughout the year for dollar cost averaging effects, I just wait until I have the final numbers and then invest at that point. Usually around Feb or March of every year.
Why don’t you include your business assets in your net worth? You own other assets (e.g., blogs, coins) correct? Don’t they have some value? I am trying to create my own net worth spreadsheet and am having trouble determining whether or not to include my side hustle sole proprietorship biz assets, checking account and liabilities on the net worth. Thoughts?
So again, really just depends on what YOU think makes the most sense :) And don’t be afraid to change it up over the years either! I used to include our kids’ 529 accounts in our net worth as well as other things but then decided I didn’t like it so switched… You’ll always be tweaking it over time and there’s nothing wrong with that.
Next post: A useless but fun perspective on money. | 2019-04-22T02:39:46Z | https://www.budgetsaresexy.com/new-net-worth-record-791k-down-61k/ |
When our trip to Uganda was canceled by my doctor last year due to my unresolved pneumonia, our already-purchased tickets had to be used within the year. But by the time we were looking to rebook them, we found only one 10-day span open before May 2019, so we had to settle for a very short trip to our beloved Mbale, departing Boston on April 2 and returning April 11. With travel days removed, that left us with 5.5 days fully open for ministry, so pack it in we did. As we fly the final leg of this long journey, from Frankfurt to Boston, and reflect on this past whirlwind of a week, we’re amazed at random “only God” moments of this very “short but sweet” trip. And we are oh, so grateful.
While California is showcasing the once-in-a-lifetime “Super Bloom” as a result of Super Rains this winter (officially ending the decades-old drought), we’ve been “Super Traveling.” Since my last blog post, written as we arrived in Kauai on Feb. 26, we have traveled 9000 miles by air, and driven over 2500 miles all over Southern California and Arizona. We’ve spent 35 nights away from home. We’ve spoken at three marriage conferences, one church service, two moms’ groups, been unofficial “counselors at large” at another conference, spoken 3 times at the Southwest Thrive Leadership Conference, spoken for a couples’ Date Night in La Crescenta, a Date Night for an Armenian Couples’ gathering, spent 7 days with my mom in San Diego, spent 6 “in between” days with Kari and Gabe and their three children in Santa Clarita, and spent a night in the hospital.
Saturday, Sept. 3, 2011: Rain started as we parted ways with Nugents at Zurich Airport and continued for most of the next 48 hours. We drove to Zug, Switzerland, to stay with Campus by the Sea friends who have recently relocated to this adorable town just 30 minutes from the airport. Though much later than expected, the Tobins welcomed us warmly with a home-cooked dinner and lots of love. It was such a gift to find shelter with them, especially on this rainy, messy night. The rain abated temporarily late morning on Sunday so we (Bernie, Lisa, Paul, and I) hiked the Burgenstock overlooking Lake Lucerne. I had hiked this with the girls and loved being able to introduce Paul to yet another experience we had shared. The rain eventually caught us and reinforced what my second grade teacher, Miss March, had told our class the few times we experienced rain during recess: "You're not sugar, so you won't melt. Relax!" It was a great hike with wonderful friends, who welcomed us to stay the night again rather than drive to Salzburg in the bad weather that night. That gave us time to tour their town by foot and with umbrellas. We were soaking wet by the time we finished, but it whetted our appetite to return when the sun is shining.
(their daughter Emma was on a weekend trip).
On the Burgenstock hike, our banana yellow rain ponchos came in very handy.
We took off early the next morning and drove in the rain to Salzburg. I love Salzburg for so many reasons. My love affair with this beautiful place began the first time I saw "The Sound of Music" in 1966 at the Loma Theater in San Diego, CA, with my beloved teacher Mimi Test. That was the first of many viewings of this epic musical and each time I've been in Salzburg, I'm filled with the a desire to run through the green hillsides singing "The hills are alive....with the sound of music" and to relive the romance, drama, adventure, suspense, and beauty of this spectacular place. We found a "zimmer frei" on the Moosestrasse (thank you, Rick Steves!) and headed right to downtown to begin our explore. We had a fresh fish dinner on the banks of the Salzach River and topped it off with . . . yep, gelato! As the sun set and the waxing 3/4 moon rose, we made our way back to our "gausthaus" to a cozy night.
Released from the Krankenhaus (hospital), we resumed our travels.
First stop, the Untersburgbahn. We did something "unusual" for us in Salzburg and bought the "Salzburg Card" which granted us admission to everything for one low price. As a result, we did many things we never would've "paid" for individually and we loved it. The Untersburgbahn is an aerial tram to the top of the Untersburg, which gave us an incredible view of Salzburg and neighboring villages. From there we toured Hellbrun Castle and the magical water fountains. Hellbrun Castle hosts the glass gazebo used during the "I am 16 going on 17" scene in SOM. We had so much fun trying to avoid getting wet by the craftily hidden spouts of water throughout the grounds. Since the day was gorgeous and warm, the occasional spray which hit us was welcome.
We spent the balance of the day walking the Monchberg and eating. Somehow, even with the late start of 11:30 a.m., we managed to log 9 miles that day. Paul's nighttime escapade did catch up with us, however, and we retired early.
View from the top of the Untersburg.
After a good night of sleep at "Haus Ballwein", we continued our exploration of Salzburg with our Salzburg card. "HohenSalzburg" took up much of the morning, and we enjoyed the castle tour as well as the Marionette Theater. Eventually we did a little shopping and got our "final" gelato before leaving this inviting place.
A little shopping—and a final gelato—and we were on our way.
Next stop, Hallstatt—but first, a breathtaking drive from Salzburg to Hallstatt via Wolfgangsee. It was the kind of drive that would take forever if you stopped every time you wanted to take a picture. There is nothing that can rival natural beauty. Between the spectrum of greens seen in the meadows and trees, the blues in the lakes and skyscapes (which also played host to white, puffy, squeezable clouds), and the splashes of brilliance accented by flowers—each picturesque scene fed our souls and overwhelmed us with the evidence of God's incredible creativity and personal love for us. I would've happily freeze-framed almost any moment on that drive.
Wolfgangsee is behind us and this photo doesn't begin to do justice to it.
Just when we thought a more idyllic place than Salzburg could never be found, we arrived in Hallstatt. Oh my goodness. I'm not sure a more Disneyesque place exists (outside of Disneyland....which is so funny, because Disneyland copied these places!). We checked into our little guesthouse perched on the terraced side of the mountain overlooking the Hallstattsee and wasted no time beginning our walking tour of this tiny town, trying to squeeze everything we could out of the remaining hours of sunlight, as rain was forecast for the next morning.
View from the porch of our guesthouse in Hallstatt.
Another view from our porch . . . how cute is this??
The weather report was right, and the rain fell heavily the whole next day, so we exchanged our plans to hike to the waterfalls for a tour of the salt mines, for which this area is most known. It was quite interesting and certainly worth a one time visit, especially on a very wet day.
In our salt mine tour special clothing, we enjoyed this "now we've been there, done that" experience.
We left Hallstatt earlier than planned for drier climes and ended up in Oberammergau. This unique town hosts the "Passion Play" every ten years and it's been on my "bucket list" for years now to attend the Passion Play some decade. Even without the play in session (the next performance will be in 2020), this town is so worth visiting. It seemed like every building was adorned with fresco paintings depicting different scenes from the life of Christ. Flower boxes. Cobblestones. Chalets. Quaintness redefined.
We found a room in Herr Anton Zwink's guesthouse. Turns out that he's been in every Passion Play since 1950 and he has photos of each one hanging in the hallway. It was very cool to be in his home.
Herr Anton Zwink in three of the Passion Plays. He's now performed in seven productions of the play, spanning the past sixty years.
Paul poses with Herr Zwink.
We spent the next morning hiking to the top of Laber, one of the high peaks around Oberammergau. It was a great hike, until we came upon a herd of grazing cows. Our long held belief in the passivity of these creatures was turned over by an aggressive bovine who decided he didn't want us to walk across his pasture. This near-death experience had a happy ending, because Paul turned tail and ran from the oncoming beast and we chose to circumvent the field rather than cross it. Our hearts were wildly pounding for awhile after that, and not from the exertion required by the climb. The view from the top was well worth the risks taken. We poked around this makes-you-not-want-to-leave town, but we resisted the pull and continued on to Stuttgart, stopping briefly in Ulm en route to buy some lebkuchen at the Weiss factory. I bought as though everyone I know loves this German gingerbread, only to be reminded that I'm alone in our family with a desire for this confection. Oh well, I got great deals.
Our dear friend Gertrud and her sweet dog, Kuti, warmly welcomed us to Stuttgart with a yummy dinner and great conversation. We've been friends with Gertrud since she volunteered at Campus by the Sea with her friend Elfriede in 1988. We're always happy to reconnect with her; she's a wonderful friend.
Gertrud served us a delicious dinner and opened her home to us again.
Gertrud planned a full Saturday, which started with a hike in the Schwaibese Albs in Bartoloma and continued with a tour of the Steiff factory. Steiff makes very high-end specialized stuffed animals and we had a great time touring the factory and posing with some of their larger products. Very fun. On to a beautiful monastery which is home to a spectacular cathedral, and then to a castle which set in view of our outdoor dinner. We were joined at the Steiff factory by Elfriede and Uwe and the five of us had a grand time together.
Gertrud, Elifriede, and I also had fun.
Sunday dawned beautifully and we met up with the Maiers again for a hike overlooking Hohenzollern. Everything was beautiful about this hike and the company could hardly be improved upon. We enjoyed a hearty meal of sauerbrauten at hike's end and then paid a visit to Uwe's mother's house for some homemade plum cake and coffee. :) We said our good-byes and sadly left our German friends for parts further south.
Kuti kept up with us on our hike on this gorgeous Sabbath.
Gertrud, Elfriede, and Uwe extended such warm hospitality to us!
Final stop of this excellent journey: Titisee. This sweet Black Forest village surrounds a beautiful lake (there is a theme! We like bodies of water!). Julie and I had hiked around the lake in 2006 so Paul and I hiked the highest peak in the Black Forest, the Feldberg, as recommended by Elfriede and Uwe. Initially we thought twice about doing the hike when we saw the cool temps and cloud cover, but a look at the weather cam in the visitor's center gave us the assurance that within an hour, it would be warmer and clear. And it was right!
"Highest peak" might give the wrong impression. Though true, the reality is that there aren't many high peaks in the Black Forest and this one was less than half the height of the Schilthorn, coming in under 2000 meters. What it lacked in height, it made up for in distance and nine miles later, we made it back to the car. We did stop at the Feldbergsee for lunch and we drank in the beauty of this pristine lake hidden in the valley of the mountains surrounding it.
Lunch by the Feldbergsee was a welcomed refueling stop during our 9-mile hike.
Back to the town of Titisee, we briefly considered walking around the lake, but easily gave in to the seduction of shops and eateries as we sampled our way through the town. All the while, we willed the millions of ticking cuckoo clocks to stop to make time stand still. We were both very aware that our excellent adventure was coming to a close.
almost through the hour glass of this excellent adventure.
We spent our last night on the border of Germany and Switzerland, in Waldshut, to facilitate our early morning flight from Zurich. Under a full moon sky, we wandered through a meadow full of grazing cows and then ate cheese and bread on the balcony of our room. It was a perfect end to an unbelievable trip.
The full moon rose over Waldshut on our last night in Europe.
Packed and ready, we board our flight in Zurich.
Our hearts were as packed with gratitude and joy as were our suitcases. So many great moments. So many beautiful views. So many God-sightings.
And about that fresh new leather-bound journal I gave Paul on the first day of the trip? On the plane as we returned to America, Paul pulled it out of his backpack and began writing fast and furiously. I smiled. We are so different in so many ways—but there's no one in the world I would rather have made this trip with than him.
Part 1: The hills were alive . . .
From the Lauterbrunen Valley in Switzerland—views like this were the rule, not the exception.
We've been home from Europe for just over a week now and I've had a curious avoidance to writing about this beyond-our-expectations trip. Not that we’ve been sitting around eating bonbons—nor wondering what to do with all our free time since returning—but I finally realized last night that writing a blog post about the trip officially makes it “over,” “finished,” “done”—part of our history—and there’s a part of me that doesn't want to acknowledge that this long-awaited trip is now in our rear view mirror!
The vast majority of me, however, simply delights in the reality of it and relishes the memories, which I’ll now transfer from iPhoto and my mind (with what I know will be inadequate words) to offer you a description of Paul's 60th (plus 1) rite-of-passage journey.
The idea of doing this trip was launched by our dear German friend Gertrud, who had hosted the girls and me on each of their rite-of-passage journeys at age 21. After my third and final daughter trip with Julie, Gertrud asked, “And what about Paul? When will his rite of passage journey be?” That set the wheels in motion five years ago and his 60th birthday was deemed the appropriate milestone.
The trip came on the heels of an intense summer, as previous posts record. Ten weeks were dedicated to family camp (including orientation and other preparations), followed immediately by Julie and Derek’s wedding on August 21. Only 2 days after returning to Bedford from the wedding, we flew to Zurich. We briefly considered postponing our departure when the doctor said I had a touch of pneumonia along with a lot of bronchitis, but with Hurricane Irene making her way up the coast, we knew we had to get out before she arrived. And we were so glad we did! Thankfully, the Z-pack antibiotics combined with lots of prayer cured what ailed me, so our trip was unhampered.
The first week of our 17-day trip was shared with our chosen family friends, John and Marilyn. Starting with renting a car, we replicated the trip I made with the girls, with one major adjustment: maps were replaced by a GPS system. I must say, that change alleviated most of the “breakdown” moments I had had navigating in unknown lands, guided with little more than poor maps in hand. What a gift to be GPS-directed!!
The 21st-birthday rite-of-passage journey focuses on clarifying life purpose, so the girls were each given a new leather journal in which to record God-sightings and life lessons learned on the journey, as well as Gail MacDonald’s book A Step Farther and Higher which has an excellent chapter on how to write a life-purpose statement. (More details are found in my book Raising a Trailblazer: Rite-of-Passage Trail Markers for your Set-Apart Teen.) I did give Paul a new journal—possibly his first ever, since journaling is not his cup of tea :)—and suggested he record reflections of his journey to date and thoughts about his “second half.” He smiled and put the journal in his backpack.
Our first stop was Interlaken, and on a indescribably gorgeous spring-like day, we took the “Jungfraubahn” to the “Top of Europe.” The trilogy of snow-topped Alps—the Eiger, the Monch, and the Jungfrau—are well known ice-climbing peaks, as well as hosts to a cogwheel rack railway to the Jungfraujoch, billed as the highest railway station in Europe. From the top, on a clear day. you can see forever—360 degrees of forever—and we took it all in. We were overwhelmed, to be honest, by the majesty of God as shown in creation. Being able to hike in light clothing to the backpackers "hut" was a real treat. Great time! Our stop in Grindlewald on the way back to Interlaken was also quite magical. That sweet town is everything you imagine when thinking of a little Swiss hamlet at the base of gianormous Alps, with flower-bedecked chalets dotting the velvety green meadows and the sound of cow bells in surround-sound. LOVE it. Also taking advantage of the day were hundreds of para-gliders, whose colorful chutes made a garden in the sky. We were mesmerized by it all.
From the “Top of Europe” on the Jungfrau, we enjoy incredible views from every angle.
Hiking to the JungMonchHuitte, we enjoy very balmy weather as we walk on the glacier.
Loving every minute of it . . .
Arriving at Walter’s Hote-L in Gimmelwald . . .
. . . we’re amazed that 87-year-old Walter is still running the place.
Our hike to the top of the Schilthorn starts out under clear blue skies. We loved walking behind this waterfall.
Still clear, the views of the opposing Alps are spectacular.
We were glad to get these cloudless photos early in the hike.
Though it looks like we've made it to the top, we still had a long way to go.
The top at last! The clouds and we arrived at about the same time.
Making it to almost 4000 meters, we were thankful, spent, and only mildly disappointed that we couldn't see a thing.
I think Paul breathed a huge sigh of relief once we had conquered the Schilthorn. Sort of like taking a final exam. Once done, the rest is easy.
On to the Cinque Terre on the northern coast of Italy we went, after hiking down from Gimmelwald, through Steckelborg, and across the unbelievably alive-with-natural-beauty Lauterbrunen Valley. From waterfalls to wildflowers and everything in between, we were constantly “oohing” and “ahhing” and snapping photos like crazy. Absolutely lovely!
Our drive over the Susten Pass was likewise spectacular on that springlike day, and such a different experience than when Lisa and I had decided to take that route in 2004 since it was clearly the shortest distance between two points on the map. That day was not springlike, but rainy and foggy, and making the drive on the two-lane road (without guardrails in many places) was one of the most terrifying things I’ve ever done. With trucks as our only real companions on the road, we had a white knuckle drive I hope to never repeat—and we couldn’t see a thing.
How different it was to drive the Susten Pass on a clear, beautiful day! The vistas were incredible, and though the roads were the same narrow two-lane unguarded windy ones Lisa and I drove, we enjoyed every minute of the 45-minute journey because we could see everything. A great spiritual lesson recorded in my journal.
We arrived in the Cinque Terre just after sunset on Tuesday, August 30, and settled in to a great hotel overlooking the water. After a good night’s sleep, we hit the trail, hiking between the towns of Monterroso, Vernazza, and Corniglia. It wasn't lost on us that we were overwhelmed by the beauty of God's creation in the Cinque Terre—though it stood in sharp contrast to the kind of beauty we had loved in Switzerland. From the ice peaks and glaciers of the Alps, to the warm “liquid ice” of the Ligurian Sea . . . From the verdant green meadows and blossoming flowers growing wildly or meticulously placed in window boxes, to the dusty, cobbley footpaths which wended through vineyards and terraced gardens producing fresh basil or rosemary—or orchards of olives, fig, or apple trees, we were reminded over and again of the amazing diversity of creation, and of the vast spectrum of what we consider “beautiful.” We drank it in as we hiked a good 10-12 miles that day, interrupting the sweat-producing exercise with dips in the refreshing sea at least twice, and indulging in gelato the same number of times. We capped the day with fresh caprese and delicious seafood eaten on the porch of our hotel room as the sunset melted into the western horizon. It really doesn’t get much better than that.
In Cinque Terre, we begin our first hike from Monterroso to Vernazza on a gorgeous day.
What a difference 24 hours makes!
arduous and quite warm hiking in the Cinque Terre.
We continued the reward with gelato . . . the best!!
We delighted in the sunset from our balcony in Manarola as we ate our dinner.
More hiking in the Cinque Terre, with unbelievable sights along the way.
We had a full day in Florence, and we packed it in. We toured the Uffizi Museum as well as L’Accademie, which houses Michelangelo's statue of David. We also walked almost 20 miles as we explored this historic, artistic city. We continued our love affair with gelato in Florence. :) We had a great time, but preferring hiking mountains and swimming in oceans to museums in general, we weren’t sorry to drive out of Florence on Saturday morning, Sept. 3, only 36 hours after arriving.
From the Piazzale de Michelangelo, the overview of Florence was amazing.
A great dinner outdoors was a fitting end to a great day of touring Florence.
The drive from Florence back to Zurich was the only part of the trip we'd rather not remember. Apparently everyone in Europe decided to end their holiday on the same day and through the same route, which also happened to be on a day that several key roads were closed for repairs. So the 6-hour trip ended up taking 11 hours, and our small window to explore Zurich closed as we made a painfully slow trip to the airport. Fortunately, the Nugents weren't flying out until Sunday morning, so their return flight was unaffected. We took advantage of our setting by talking endlessly about our family histories, our hopes and dreams, and eventually even defaulted to singing. It seemed fitting to break up the challenge of being held captive by traffic by singing “The Grumbler’s Song” and that definitely added levity to our situation.
This was our view most of the 11 hours it took us to get from Florence to Zurich. Yikes!
We sadly parted ways with the Nugents at this point, and they returned to the States to rest their weary muscles and sore feet and to revel in the accomplishments experienced and the beauty seen. Our days together were packed with wonderfully unforgettable moments and we'll cherish them always.
We headed to the small town of Zug to hang with some dear friends . . . and part 2 will pick up there!
Cruising at an altitude of 35,000' en route from London to California, this 11-hour flight affords me opportunities to catch up on some neglected quiet activities . . . like my through-the-Bible-in-a-year-with-D.A.-Carson readings, journaling, and now blogging. No complaints from me regarding this long flight. I love enforced quiet and stillness, since I seem to have a hard time making it happen on my own.
It’s been quite a month since my last post. Our days in Vero Beach came to an end and we returned to the saddle refreshed and ready to go. Which was a good thing, because we arrived late Thursday night, May 20, and Paul spoke at a men’s event Friday night. This is the second year in a row he has spoken for this group, which is lead by Alan Siegel, and he loves the spirit of the group. He was very well-received.
You and Paul were probably the best speakers I’ve ever heard. I looked at my husband’s outline and was surprised at his honesty and felt he tried to treat me nicely yesterday. He, too, thought you both were very good speakers. Thank you.
We’ve had an ongoing dialogue with this couple and God is at work in a big way in their marriage. Praise Him!
We drove from Easton to Hingham and were privileged to speak for a Couple’s Coffee House hosted by South Shore Baptist Church. Bill and Rebecca Haeck spear-headed the evening and did a masterful job transforming their social hall into a welcoming, candle-lit, cozy coffee house. We always love partnering with SSBC and this was no exception.
Bill and Rebecca Haeck hosted the Couples Coffee Shop at South Shore Baptist Church on Saturday, May 22.
In the meantime, house guests arrived! Our very dear friends, John, April, and Lizzie Aleman, came to town for a graduation and we were thrilled to have them crash at our house. We spent all of Sunday together, first worshiping at our home church, Highrock Church in Arlington, and then relaxing over Dunkin’ Donuts coffee and home-grilled bbq. We thoroughly enjoyed reconnecting with them and building on our almost three decades of friendship through Campus by the Sea. Their kids, Nathan and Lizzie, have both served on staff at CBS in the past, as well as on family camp staff in New England. Their family is a great encouragement to us personally.
The Aleman family (far right) joined us for worship at High Rock Church in Arlington, and reconnected with family campers Tim and Linda Brown and family and Heather and Lydia Dietz.
Monday and Tuesday we both had a variety of appointments and “stuff” to do before counseling all day Wednesday. And then off again, this time me alone, to surprise our daughter Kari on her 30th birthday, May 27. What a fun surprise! By Friday night, all three girls were together celebrating her and we snuck off to a hotel in downtown Sacramento to further the celebration as a last getaway before baby arrives. Though everything didn’t exactly go as planned, it was a memorable and honoring time. Hardly 48 hours passed before I was flying back to join the H.I.M. Memorial Day Family Tenting Weekend!
In honor Kari’s 30th, Baby Garcia received some Red Sox garb from us . . . and some Giants garb from his dad!
I joined the party on Sunday and everything was going swimmingly. In fact, many were swimming . . . or fishing, or biking. Regardless of the activity, everyone was clearly having a grand time.
As it goes, each evening the community gathers around a common meal (planned and prepared by Big Jim Martis of MJM Catering) which is followed by a time of worship, devotions, and s’mores. Mike and Seth Allen sacrificially drove to the campsite every night to lead worship and did a wonderful job again this year, and Paul lead the devotions in the inimitable Paul Friesen fashion.
It was a recordable moment. Thora is the poster child for the truism: “Life is 10% circumstance, 90% attitude.” Thank you, Thora. We were all so blessed by her presence!
The weekend wrapped up on Memorial Day with our second annual Memorial Day parade, organized by the Barkers and the Cranes. Glenn Franks was selected to be the Grand Marshall in recognition of his service to our country. With most of the children mounted on their bikes and sporting patriotic colors (including glittery tattoos), and accompanied by the voices of an approximate 20-voice choir singing patriotic melodies, two laps were made around the camping circle to commemorate those who have protected our many freedoms, including the freedom to worship.
Glenn Franks served as the Grand Marshall of the second annual Memorial Day parade.
And the 2010 Memorial Day Family Tenting Weekend came to a close, with some families adding extra-curricular activities afterward, like picnicking at another lake and then making an ice cream stop as the exclamation point to an already great time.
The carefree escape from the worries of life came to a screeching halt Tuesday morning as we spent the day in our office counseling. We’re never far from the painful realities of life, which show up in so much brokenness relationally. By God’s grace, however, we’re privileged to seen much growth and healing in many marriages.
Early Wednesday morning, June 2, we drove to Cornwall, CT, to join the pastoral staff from Valley Community Baptist Church (VCBC) for the fourth year in a row. We’re so honored to be re-invited to speak into the lives of this amazing group of fellow ministers, lead by Jay Abramson and Tim Ponzani. We feel very personally connected to each of them by now and love just being with them. We led four sessions, dealing with ministry and personal issues connected to family and marriage, but mostly we just hung out, played games, took walks, and ate fabulous meals. It was as refreshing as it was productive, and we were most touched by them sending us off by praying specifically for us as we prepare for a very full summer. We’re so pleased to be looking forward to spending another week with Jay and Liz Abramson as they’ll be speaking at one of our H.I.M. Family Camps at Camp Berea in August. They are salt of the earth people.
The pastoral staff of Valley Community Baptist Church gathers for a photo op at retreat’s end.
Someone recently asked if I’ve really ever read the book Margin by Richard Swensen (since I often recommend it) and my emphatic “yes” confirms that just because you’ve read something doesn’t mean you’ve been changed by it.
The question was prompted by the description of what followed our conference for VCBC. We got home Friday early afternoon, and spent the balance of the day packing and preparing for the weeks ahead. Saturday was the annual H.I.M. Pool Party, hosted by servant-hearted and unflappable Doug and Julie Macrae. I (along with daughter Lisa, and friends Pam Barker and Kelly Plosker) left the party early to drive to Woodstock, Vermont, to run the Covered Bridges Half-Marathon Sunday morning, June 6.
Richard, Kit, and Beth Hendricks, and Lisa Friesen were some of the pool party attendees.
Which we did. In pouring rain (I had prayed specifically for it not to be a hot race, and it wasn’t!), we ran the 13.1 absolutely gorgeous course, and then made the 3-hour drive home to shower, finish packing, and fly out of Logan at 10 p.m. for London.
It does seem kind of crazy now, but losing a whole day of the London trip for rest and sanity seemed like a terrible trade-off when we made the plans. And besides, when we made the plane reservations, we thought the race started at 7 am. When we found out it didn’t start til 10:15 am, we felt a little bit of pressure to set a new course record. Even though we didn’t, we made it with plenty of time to spare.
Thankfully, it all went like clock-work. Lisa and I cut 7 full minutes off our last half-marathon and definitely didn’t overheat. And I even talked during this race. Back in November when we did our first half-marathon together, I stunned Lisa by not uttering a single word during the entire 13.1 miles. I couldn’t afford to give up any breath for non-essentials.
Pre-race photo: Lisa, me, Pam Barker, and Kelly Plosker.
This was a wonderful experience all around. Beautiful course, great friends, and a wonderful husband who drove up Sunday to ferry us to the start and from the finish, as well as to cheer us on and get finish line photos. We’re already eager to do it again.
The past week, we’ve had the great delight of experiencing London for the first time. This trip was a graduation gift to Lisa, in honor of her successfully completing her master’s degree, and London was the destination because her best childhood friend, Kelsey Offield, is studying there. Kelsey’s mom, Wendy, is one of my dearest friends, so the four of us spend the week together, dredging up unforgettable moments from our life’s journey together over the past 27 years, as well as making many new memories together.
Add to that the “only God could’ve made this happen” moment when we found out that our chosen family friends John and Marilyn Nugent would be in London at the same time, and you have two women who feel very, very personally loved by our gracious heavenly Father.
So we’ve spent the last six days exploring a new land and seeing come alive the photos and stories related to the UK we’ve seen and heard all our lives. We experienced most of the sights and sounds by foot (and my pedometer kept track, informing us that we averaged 10 miles a day) and loved most every minute of it. We ate great food, saw great theater, saw historical sites, and fell in love with the quaint charm of this country which served as a prototype for New England over 300 years ago. We visited Stonehenge and Bath. We had afternoon tea. We were privileged to be in the country for the “Trooping of the Colors” in honor of the Queen’s birthday, and we stood on the parade route, 20 yards from the Royal Family as they rode by on horseback or in carriages. We were quiet about our heritage Saturday night when the USA tied the UK in the first round of World Cup Soccer but secretly thrilled and so proud of our team. :) Along with the Nugents, we worshiped at the Holy Trinity Church of Brompton, the home of the ALPHA course developed by their senior pastor, Nicky Gumbel.
Lisa and Kelsey in front of the Jane Austen Centre in Bath. They never did find Mr. Darcy, though you can be sure they looked!
At the “Trooping of the Colors” - Queen Elizabeth parades by in her carriage.
Kelsey and Wendy were wonderful hostesses, and John and Marilyn were great traveling companions. It would be hard to improve on the trip, unless it would be reclaiming the day Lisa was side-lined with the stomach flu. Even there, God was so gracious to protect the rest of us.
Though there were many highlights, the highest light of all was seeing “Les Miserables.” We’ve seen it multiple times by now, but never have we been more moved by the clarity of the message of grace. Maybe its because I’ve lived so much more of life now than I had 20 years ago when I saw it for the first time - and am so much more aware of how completely dependent I am on His grace - or maybe its because I’ve seen His grace be so transformative in my own life as well as in the lives of so many we come alongside. Whatever, I was profoundly touched by the play and challenged anew to walk in grace in a deeper way.
So now, the UK is in our rear view mirror, and when we land in several hours, we’ll head directly to Campus by the Sea for our 35th summer. That’s beginning to sound like a long time. We believe we have a wonderful summer staff assembled and can’t wait to see what God will do in our midst in the next seven weeks.
HIM Team Trinidad 2008 Returns!
We’re safely home from our Family Missions Trip to Trinidad and so full of blessing and thanksgiving. Words will fail me, surely, as I try to express how God met us and used us these past eight days, so read between the lines if you can.
This trip had more “this is the first time . . .” moments in it than any other in our ten-year history of doing family missions trips (except the first)! Our day of departure heads the list—and apparently it was a harbinger of things to come.
We gathered at Logan last Saturday, March 8, on a rainy, cold morning . . . giving thanks that it wasn’t snowing (yes, even me—I knew that snow would have an unwanted affect our departure, so I gave thanks for rain). Nine hours later, after incremental delays attributable to “low visibility” in Boston and NY-JFK, where we were to connect with a direct flight to Port of Spain (POS), and, after boarding once, only to deplane 45 minutes later, we were re-booked for the next day. A big first. Back home we all went, to clean houses and empty refrigerators, to water turned off and water heaters turned down, with no suitcases (since all had been checked in already, Delta chose to keep them for the night), we spent the night in our own beds. Our greatest disappointment was knowing we would miss our only real chance to attend a Sunday worship service with our Trinidadian brothers and sisters, especially those in Campoo who are continuing the church we helped plant years ago. That really was our sadness.
The next two hours were spent locating the 13 (out of 31) pieces of luggage that did arrive, and filing claims for the pieces that didn’t. It was a rather wild time which delayed our arrival at the TTUM compound to around 10. Once there, we were warmly embraced by those who have become so dear to us through the 9 years we’ve partnered with them. Ashoke and Stephanie, Javed and Jenn, John and Donna, Tony and Annette, Maltee, Kelvin, Joshua . . . such precious folks!
We also were thrilled to connect with Sarah Hathaway, one of our team members who joined us from Calvin College. We had spent hours on the previous Friday trying to re-route Sarah so she wouldn’t be hampered in getting to Trinidad due to the winter storm which hit the midwest on Saturday (the one that eventually caused our delay!). Ironically, she arrived in Trinidad on time on Saturday—while we all were stranded! Interesting twist.
After a wonderful Trinidadian breakfast of “bakes” and cheese, we assessed our limited supplies to see what we had to work with for the launch of Backyard Bible Club (BBC) that afternoon in the little village of Bellamy. By God's grace, we had all the props for the “Sower and the Seeds” skit and part of the corresponding craft, so we went with it. We rehearsed the skit, worked out team dynamics, and prayed.
Each night our team met for debriefing and praying together. We experienced deep bonding quickly, in part because “crisis” aids such solidarity and in part because of the previously existing relationships we had all forged through the years. Each person was so important to the team and stepped up in making their own unique contribution to our collective effort. We felt like one big family and Paul and I truly loved “leading” them.
Our prayers were answered Monday night when Paul and Javed returned from the airport with all 18 pieces of missing luggage in tow. PTL!! After having spent three days in the same clothes, we were really happy and grateful for things easily taken for granted.
Tuesday a.m., freshly showered and in clean clothes, we spent the morning visiting two Hindu temples on a fascinating tour led by Jenn Bachew. The importance of this piece can’t be underestimated as it sets up the obvious contrast between a life dedicated to worshiping an idol and a life dedicated to worshiping our living Lord. We watched a pundit sincerely offering alms and chanting prayers to the “monkey god” at one temple and we observed thousands of fragments of broken “deias” offered at the “water temple.” We saw four funeral pyres set and waiting dead corpses, which would be burned to ashes, which would be scattered in the river, which according to Hindu belief would eventually make it back to the Ganges River for reincarnation. It was very impacting.
While at the water temple, Melanie accepted the invitation offered by a Rastifarian-looking fisherman named Balam, to tour his home and business. What a unique opportunity to have an insider’s view into the life of a very entrepreneurial local! We saw his catch of the day: beautiful looking, plump shrimp and small fish, but we also unfortunately saw the murky, muddy waters from which they came, which dimmed their appeal. He took us inside his “home”—a squatter’s dwelling made of corrugated metal roofing and other discarded components fashioned into a suitable-for-him abode. He proudly showed us his “tauer” (incorrect spelling - it’s the flat skillet used to bake roti), his bbq, and his kitchen.” His home was nestled right on the shore line of the viscous water and couldn't have been more hospitable, extending an invitation to all of us to return for a fishing excursion with him. “Just bring your hammocks,” he suggested. Jenn said that kind of an experience was a first for her—and obviously for us, as well.
That day was so clear we could easily see Venezuela, which sits just 7 miles from that part of Trini’s coastline. What a gift to have such a lovely day! On the way back to the compound, we bought fresh fruits and veggies from a small farm stand to supplement the very high-carb, low-fresh fare at TTUM.
Back to the compound for lunch and preparation for BBC. Fortunately, now flush with supplies from the suitcase reunion, we had everything needed for the remaining three days of club. At 4 p.m., the savannah in Bellamy was flooded with kids within moments of the maxi’s arrival and we increased to 50 kids. Pastor Paul’s promise of an extra treat for any who brought someone new to club created quite a stir, and a good bit of lying and conniving by children who all wanted an extra lollipop. :) The afternoon went very well and culminated with the kids enthusiastically decorating Prayer Journals with really cool foam stickers. We returned to the compound very encouraged, satisfied, and thankful. That night, after our team meeting, we celebrated Melanie’s birthday with cake and ice cream, which was a treat for all.
Wednesday we were up and out early to do a program at a local high school. We had very little information regarding what to expect prior to going. Typically at the high schools, we present for one classroom during their period of “Religious Instruction” (RI). We were all delighted and somewhat relieved when Javed climbed on the maxi to accompany us to Cunupia HS that morning. Upon arrival at the security shack for the high school, Javed was told by the security guards that the school was in upheaval due to a student stabbing a teacher the day before, which had caused the teachers to strike. Their grievance was against the government’s changed policy regarding student discipline (that a teacher couldn't really discipline a student, taking their cues from America . . .) which they felt left them unprotected as teachers. In the absence of teachers, the principal requested that our team present to the entire student body.
Yikes! Not only were we going into a school which had experienced some form of violence the day before, but we would have the whole school! (The newspaper account of the incident was different from the verbal accounts, so we really don’t know what happened—it was enough to know that something bad happened to cause the teachers to refuse to teach.) Feeling thoroughly unprepared and some degree of terror, we filed into the open-air auditorium and experienced God’s grace and provision in some remarkable ways. We were all very aware that God had gone before us by having Javed with us that day; he was the right person for addressing that audience and did a great job, connecting with the students as only another Trinidadian could. Paul did the “iodine and the cross” illustration, and brave Talene spoke forthrightly about her faith and how it makes a difference in her daily life as a high school sophomore. Their chaplain opened in closed the time by leading several Christian choruses with his booming, rich voice, relieving us of the need to inadequately and anemically lead them musically. And then it was over. We were all relieved and thankful to return to the bus safely. The Cunupia experience was full of firsts. We all left with a much deeper awareness of God’s presence and protection.
On to an elementary school for our second school that morning, and that was also full of firsts. Usually we have the whole school at the primary schools and were joyfully welcomed. At Madras Road Government Primary School, we had one classroom of students, and were not even introduced by the somewhat dour teacher in charge. We usually get to interact with the kids after a presentation, but they were sent straight back to their classes and we left. We prayed that God will water the seeds sown.
Day three of BBC happened that afternoon. About 60 kids arrived for a somewhat raucous time of singing, performing, crafting, and playing. The best part for us is loving on these kids and letting them know how loved they are by Jesus. We knew many of their names by this point and each had bonded with different ones. It’s amazing how deep our hearts were for these children in such a short time.
That night was Prayer Meeting at the compound and Ashoke asked Paul to teach on relationships. We were sharing the compound with a great group of high school students who attend Whitfield Academy in Kansas City, Missouri, and since they would be attending Prayer Meeting also, Paul worked to cover the varied generational needs of this important topic. He did a great job and received a ton of affirmation especially from the Whitfield kids. We were so thankful.
The cap of a very long but good day was a definite highlight of the week: John and his steel pan band performed an hour-long concert for the American contingent. It was phenomenal. We worshiped, rejoiced, and praised through music, singing, and dancing. Yes, even Paul. The Whitfield kids pulled him on to the floor to “boogie” with them, I guess figuring that if he was hip enough to speak the way he spoke, he must be hip enough to dance. I wish you could’ve seen his face as they forced him to join them. :) We went to bed that night exhausted, but so, so aware of the goodness, presence, and power of God. We would clearly need it for the next day.
Thursday a.m. was challenging in many ways. We descended on Auntie Pearl’s orphanage to clean, since most of the children were in school. Our main project was to clean the laundry/freezer room, which we discovered had a population of roaches that would qualify it as a small city. I can still feel roaches crawling on me today. To say it was a stretch would be a gross understatement, but since the adults were committed to modeling servanthood with a smile to our progeny watching us, we attacked the disgusting, dirty, and “living” area with smiles on the outside and revulsion on the inside. Seth and Richard led the charge nobly and fearlessly; I did the best job of appearance management I could possibly muster, only once shrieking in terror as a roach ran up my leg. We developed the “roach rumba”—a dance that evolved as we stomped the scattering roaches that emerged as objects were moved or clothes shaken out.
Meanwhile, most of the team was caring for the dozen or so younger children not of school age, changing diapers, bathing, holding, and loving—while others were reducing the trash strewn about the back yard. Each team member stepped up incredibly, jumping in with hands and feet and mostly heart. It was a morning none of us will forget.
We left there with aching hearts, honestly, so aware that our efforts would make very little difference, really. We prayed that God would somehow multiply what we had done, like loaves and fishes, and that He'd show us how to respond to what we’d experienced even as we return to the U.S.
Day 4 and grand finale at BBC that afternoon brought all 60 children out even before our maxi arrived. We had a great afternoon, presenting the gospel, finishing projects, and wrapping up with the iodine and cross illustration. Sarah did a great presentation on the “wordless necklace” and Paul explained how to ask Jesus into your heart. Most of the children prayed the prayer with him, and only heaven will sort out who did so sincerely. We parted after many hugs and promises of prayers and left the little village of Bellamy in the hands of God.
After our team meeting that night, we broke out “Catch Phrase,” one of our favorite games, and had a rousing match which pitted the men against the women. The women ultimately prevailed, but only by the skin of our teeth. It was a highly competitive, sometimes ruthless match which provided lots of laughs.
Friday was full of more firsts. We started the day visiting New Haven Elderly Home and with no knowledge of what to expect, entered with a degree of trepidation. We found about twenty elderly folks in various stages of mobility and mental acuity who were delighted to feel not forgotten for an hour that day. We sang hymns with them, some of whom didn’t miss a word. We did a drama, made them cross necklaces, and spent time talking with them individually and touching them, physically and emotionally. It was sacred time.
On to a primary school in the early afternoon, we had a wonderful time presenting to a very appreciative audience and then “limin’” with them after we were done. From there, we were thrilled to go to Campoo to reconnect with some of our longtime friends there as well as to see the progress on the church building. TTUM has decided to build an orphan home in conjunction with the church, which is a very exciting development. It was such a joy to be there and to see the work of God being faithfully carried on.
The highlight for several of us was to reunite with Preema, our Hindu friend from our very first BBC in Campoo. Preema had the keys to the community center we used for our first BBC, so we got to know her and her four boys well. At week’s end, she responded to Ashoke’s invitation to receive Christ and wept for thirty minutes after. We had made contact with her each time we’ve been there since, and though it doesn’t appear that the seed fell on fertile soil, she always seems to glad to see us. It was a joyful reunion with her, which prompted many tears from her again. We prayed for her and were so thankful to have had those moments.
We rounded out that afternoon by spending some time at “Angel Michael’s Orphan Home,” another first. An unknown entity to TTUM, Jenn had set it up hoping it would be a good place for ministry. It turned out to be a very sketchy place, with lots of evidence of being Obea Baptist (a curious mixture of witchcraft, voodoo, and Christianity). There were only school-aged children there and only one expressed an affect. The rest were relatively void of expression and very unresponsive. It was sad.
Saturday was our last full day there and we had an unrestful but fun day of rest. The day started with yet another first: turns out that a drunk young man had trespassed on the compound in the middle of the night and found a place to sleep in one of our rooms, which was occupied by three young ladies. The youngest wakened and, unable to waken her two sleeping sisters, took it on herself to command him to leave their room. After some resistance, he did, only to wander down the hall to another room with an unlocked door. The two guys in this room thought his snoring was from someone on the team, so there he slept there ’til morning. The first we all knew about it was when armed officers (uzzi-armed) arrived at the compound to arrest this guy. No small amount of drama ensued, and our departure for Maracas Bay was delayed slightly.
Off we eventually went, stopping first in Port of Spain for one hour of mostly fabric shopping, and then on to Maracas Bay. We indulged in the inimitable “Bake ’n Shark” lunch delicacy before enjoying the “just right” ocean (in terms of temp and wave action). We couldn’t have had a nicer time. From there we made a quick stop at a market for edible souvenirs, and then spent a couple of hours on the river cruise to watch the nightly migration of the Red Ibises, Snowy Egrets, and Blue Herons to their wildlife preserve. It’s a rather magical show they perform and such a confirmation of Creator God, who sets such things in motion. Everything was perfect about the experience, so we felt very blessed.
Our evening was spent wrapping up and we shared a very sweet time of sharing and prayer together as a team. Packing, “liming,” and sharing filled the evening, and then we went to bed for our final time at TTUM. Sad farewells were exchanged early the next a.m.—we left with hearts so full of love and gratitude.
The above photo was taken at Logan Airport, Boston, just after our arrival back home. Our team was delighted and honored to be met by a precious group of family and friends who gathered to welcome us home. Not on the trip, but included in this photo, are Robie and Donna Gould with daughter Anna; Dan, Liz, and Timmy Yardley; Guy and Barbara Steele; and Rick Welles. We felt so loved! | 2019-04-19T18:47:38Z | https://himweb.org/himweb-blog/tag/vacation |
A leather couch is the very best furnishings for relaxation and resting at the end of the day. With simply a little care and accuracy this fantastic piece of furniture will serve you for several years of pleasure and satisfaction. A sofa is especially made to support your lower back angled for full convenience and unwinding position while sitting whether it is at home or in the office. This type of furnishings is readily available in numerous materials, however we will feature the benefits of leather furnishings. Leather is essentially maintenance-free. A damp piece of cloth suffices to clean spots. Although, it’s difficult to clean ink however is not impossible. Rubbing with a saddle soap for a minute suffices to clean difficult areas. Moreover, there are options to deal with pet scratches on your leather sofa. All in all, a leather couch is an ideal selection for your home.
The recliner chair is a cushioned chair that has a lumbar support. The recliner chair is useful for people that have motion trouble such as lame, and arthritis. Each recliner chair is equipped with distinct functions which caters to the need of the clients. There are numerous types of recliner chair in the market, The recliner chair offers reclining positions for the user. The more reclining positions it can perform, the more expensive it is. Recliner chair than has 2 reclining position can be adjusted approximately 45 degrees. They are the most inexpensive compare to other types of recliner chair. You can also customize the recliner chair into a different reclining angle.
A few futon bunk beds are able to extremely easily transform into two individual beds. The lower futon frame of a futon bunk bed folds down quickly to change into a comfortable full-sized bed. Never connect or suspend any item that’s not developed for use with twinover futon bunk beds.
Varieties of corner sofas include types such as the corner sofa bed due to their extreme area effectiveness. Corner sofa beds can easily be made into an additional bed by easily connecting it to other items of furniture. A corner sofa bed can be a fantastic selection for a little room since it will make the room appear bigger. An L setup couch set lends a more sophisticated, elegant aim to a living room, while providing comfort and style. The corner sofa sits in an L setup, an appearance that numerous consider elegant and elegant. The excellent aspect of armless corner sofas is that they can be integrated with other sofas to create an even greater sectional sofa with added seating.
Yes, for a proper siesta you definitely have to have the right kind of pillow on your bed as a pillow is a safe and secure and natural aid for supporting the body while resting. The producers are rather aware of this truth and have actually created numerous options of pillows to select from. Depending upon your selection you can select and select the pillow that will help you take rest easily and will make sure the maximum level of comfort to you.
On the plus side is the apparent advantage of being able to offer your guests a bed as opposed to the floor to sleep on. When your business exists they have a place to sleep. When they leave, you have your sofa back. Pretty slick, eh? Convertible sofas serve an actually great function in today’s world. They are heavy to move, but a minimum of they last a long period of time and give you choices for sleeping arrangements. I recommend them extremely, especially if you can hire someone to move it for you when the time comes.
Corner leather sofas are developed with classy design to give you an excellent feeling and draw the attention of clients at the descent on. It certainly makes your living place stylish and excellent, as well as offers a timeless feel. It likewise provides you an excellent gentleness and the luxurious feeling. You can utilize this type of sofa with any type of space. Furthermore, these are developed to perfectly fit in any corner of your office or home. This type of sofa will certainly open up your space as well as make it roomy. While picking a best black leather sofa, you will certainly get lots of choices to pick from the long list which is available at the shops. Nevertheless, you have to set your eyes on that sofas that are best for your space and suit corner perfectly. This sofa even likewise provides much more seating space than the common furnishings set. Besides this, you can likewise go through some basic sectional sofas to choose some new designs. Furthermore, you can get those models that have the chaise lounge on the one end, which is stated to be fantastic for relaxing. Whereas some sofas include a fold down tray to hold drinks as well as your favorite drinks.
When choosing a design, it would be finest if you a do a little bit of research beforehand. Check out the choices available in the market and compare it thoroughly with the interior style of your house. One recommendations here is to check out brochure or house improvement magazines for some innovative ideas to wind up with a living room with an appealing modern atmosphere. Not all of us are blessed with a spacious living room and getting bulky furnishings will just jeopardize whatever leg space you have left. One suggestion to buying modern sofa is to very first measure the area where you plan to place the product.
Do You Actually Need New Couches?
Ottoman frames appear in distinctive shapes and designs like rectangular, square and round. Ottoman furnitures are readily available in vibrant leathers, materials and patterns. There are various sort of materials used for ottoman sofa readied to suit any sort of interiors. If your living-room already features material vintage couch styles, then produced ottomans can only contribute to the charm. They give a homely feel and produce a sense of gentleness as the material used is smooth providing it an ethnic appearance.
While you may be thinking that the Asian design modern bed is simply an additional furniture trend, even more and even more people are turning to this design because of the calming, unwinding sensation that this design can offer. Considering that our bedrooms are expected to be the one location in our personal that we can loosen up and unwind, your bedroom needs to be the one area of your personal that you can retreat to when life gets too frantic and stressful. Asian inspired designs can assist you unwind and loosen up so you can sleep in harmony and wake refreshed and prepared to take on an additional day.
The most exclusive and pricey piece of dressers in the line of furniture is a white dresser. This work of art is implied for the people who barely take care of the cost of articles. This work of art is best for an individual who enjoys to have artistic and unusual things. This white piece with colored drawers can do nothing but include sophistication, space and use in a style. Be it any room in your residence, one dresser must have a location. Dressers are reliable adequate to include beauty and design to the room. You can conserve a lot of time by keeping the things really helpful and safe.
Futon bunk beds for children are a terrific financial investment if you have more than one kid but discover yourself starved for space. They’re an useful item for the single household residence or actually a home. And let’s admit, whatever children doesn’t enjoy bunk beds? So whatever if you’ve to listen to them contest who gets the leading bunk? However which one is the best one for your household? Understand that nearly each of these kinds of bed is fitted for use with a twin bed mattress. That is going to suggest that here is not a great deal of room, but that’s why your getting bunk beds in the first location. Because these are conventional sizes buying things like sheets and blankets ought to be a snap.
There is a little bit of history when we are discussing canopy beds. They initially entered favor as utilitarian methods rather than for extravagance or decadence as is thought of by lots of people since of how it looks. The earliest kinds of canopy beds were made since lots of people were looking an additional layer of shelter beyond a thatch roofing which lots of people had. Canopy beds that had drapes had the ability to completely enclose the bed and were typically utilized in the middle ages times. They were utilized for warmth and personal privacy by lords and noblemen. This was since their attendants utilized to sleep in the exact same space as them. Up until about the sixteenth century canopy beds were extremely plain and not extravagant at all. During this time, the deal with the posts became more detailed, and the carved deal with the head board became more decorative. From here canopy beds became more extravagant and popular. They are a far cry from the new and modernfuton beds!
When remodeling the dining location think shoddy trendy, as this is the least expensive path to take. In reality, add some even more dings and afterwards do a whitewash over the existing finish. You can potentially finish the chairs to match, or get a little insane and make each one just a little different from the rest. Instead of getting and expensive hutch, purchase an inexpensive white dresser for storing your china. Yes, a white dresser within the dining location sounds out of location, but you is going to be kindlied with the cohesive appearance of the space when you are completed. Toss an adorable runner on top, add a tarnished silver plate with fresh fruit and voila. Always remember that a coat of paint on the walls will go a long way. Your vintage couch styles is already brightening the location, so utilize a soft, mellow shade of blue to provide the space a breezy appearance.
As far as shopping for an ottoman bench goes, individuals have become really creative in the previous few years. Around 10 years back, individuals would make use of furniture stores virtually specifically when shopping for a product like this. Nowadays, folks are much more going to make use of the internet in order to find a bargain on an ottoman bench. There are a lot of dealerships on the internet that are willing to offer you a bargain on among these products. Others have done one better, bidding on products at locations like ebay in order to find a great deal on an ottoman bench. This is most likely a little bit careless, though, as you are never sure whatever condition you will certainly get on products like that. An ottoman bench can do wonders for a home that is in need of a little bit of accent furniture. It can provide not just a good look, but a location for individuals to sit when they concern visit your home. Discovering an ottoman bench on the internet has actually never been easier, also.
Among the key elements in bed room furniture sets is the bed room dresser. It not just assists in organizing accessories, but likewise adds a sense of style to a room. There are a couple of factors to remember while selecting a room dresser. It is important to understand the purpose of the bed room dresser. Dressers not just establishment clothing, shoes and accessories, but likewise enhance the bed room decoration. On the basis of the energy, you can decide on the style of the bed room dressers. If you want to store clothing and accessories, bed room dressers with numerous drawers is an apt choice.
These bedding sets are the most optimal covers for the comforters due to the fact that they not only protect the sanitation of the comforters but also are an excellent method to redecorate your bed room You can also inspect out their collections from the on-line bedding stores. The on-line stores also have a wide array of collections of these bedding sets.
Bunk bedsThe conventiional bunk bed has one twin bed on top and one below. It is efficient for households with young children who wishes to save room area. It’s practical in the sense that you have absolutely nothing to pull-out and absolutely nothing to take apart after use, simply fixed beds. The best advantage is that your kids can use the bunk bed at the exact same time sharing a room, it’s likewise helpful for accomodating home site visitors. As the kids mature and could require specific bedrooms, the bunk bed can be transformed into a loft bed for one. Just just eliminate the base of the lower bunk, turn the railings onto the wall and reinstall it to the sides and now you have a loft bed. Loft bedsA loft bed has twin beds on top and has an open area below to provide added area for other furniture like chairs, desks, and sofas. For convenice, a TELEVISION or personal computer canbe put on the area under the bed. This choice can minimize the opportunities of cluttering the floor in the area with toys that could cause possible injury from slipping.
Develop a layering of numerous fluffy pillows for a plush appearance and feel. The right bed frames and bedspreads can assist create a welcoming and comfy setting in your bed room.
If you’re thinking about switching over design within the room, there are really numerous methods to use exactly what you already have. As far as your existing room vintage couch styles goes, unless it’s breaking down, there is not any reason to buy new. A bed frame can last for several years with correct care. If the existing headboard is the item you have a problem with, try refinishing it. Neutrals are always in; strip it down and stain it a great light shade. You could do the same with the armoire and nightstand. Dressers commonly take the impact of the wear, so buying a new one could be the very best method to go. Get a white dresser then add customized hardware to make it distinctive. As far as the linens are worried, a bed linen is cheaper than a new comforter is. You might also pick up some product at the material shop to utilize for new window dressings.
Cedar is a wood type which has actually gotten great appeal for the developing of hope chests in even more current times. Cedar is a wood with a big variance in color, going from a light tan to a brownish red. This offers furniture pieces a ‘comfy’ appearance. Naturally the wonderful smell of cedar is likewise an added destination. Numerous wood workers opt to line their hope chests with a thin layer of Cedar, or at least include a layer to the bottoms. The wonderful cedar smell can be rejuvenated by gentle sanding with 200 grit sand paper.
When scanning with page after page of couch cover choices, it can seem overwhelming to figure out how to find that special one that is going to comfortably accept your favorite furniture. Picture your disappointment after making your cover choice, awaiting it to show up, then finding that is simply doesn’t fit your furniture. Follow the simple pointers below and make sure you purchase the cover that finest fits your furniture. As they state in carpentry, determine two times, cut as soon as. The slip cover equivalent of this edict is that you have to thoroughly determine your couch in two areas, length and height. Your sofa is generally tallest at the back and that is where you want to determine for height. Then determine your sofa’s length. As soon as you have accurate measurements, if you find that your couch measurements are in between two size varieties of covers, select purchasing the larger size. The smaller sized size cover might not period and cover your furniture and you definitely do not want to need to pay to return your cover and wait once again for the appropriate size to show up.
Another probable location where you can discover futons for sale includes university dormitories, houses, or perhaps government workplaces. You might encounter individuals who are also dealing with their old furniture. In the option, you might want to take a look at manufacturing facility outlets, antique shops, and junk lawns, which are also typical locations where you can buy price cut things for sale. In a lot of cases, you’ll discover used stuff like futons which are still in excellent shape. Therefore, the very best method to get price cut futons would be to watch out for utilized futons which you could use at home.
Futon mattresses come with a wide range of warranties so search for one the lengthiest one you can find. The guarantee ought to also specifically state that your mattress will certainly be changed with a brand-new device if it sags or its products untangle before the entire guarantee period is out. That way you can be sure that you are buying a futon mattress that will certainly last with time.
The bedroom furniture in particular needs to be selected with utmost care. For kids, the furniture ought to duplicate the naughty streak outside and resilience function on the in. The beds in kids bedroom also consists of bunk beds. The youngster’s bedroom furniture must be selected in such a means that they get enough storage area for books and CDs. Different bed sets and frames can also be selected.
If you and your partner are going the family means, and she has to relax in a sitting position it becomes uneasy for her on the chair or the sofa since her lower or upper back does not get the correct support. So a leather recliner is the best solution for her as she can adjust the back and foot remainder of the recliner chair to easily suit the position she feels finest in. At the end of the day, recliner chairs are more budget friendly and much less priced than sofas which provide lesser comfort. They are also offered in wide sounded of colors, textures and materials to suit your needs and requirements.
Leather sofas are rather the very same and fall in the category of the old is gold properties. Now also when one go with buying a furnishings state a sofa the primarily thing is the leather sofas that come into mind. They are all time hits along with evergreen. All the characters of the sophistication along with elegance are present in these sofas. Normally it is rather costly since of the design and course it brings. One need to just go with sofas made up of original leather and stay clear of and beware of those that are phony and duplicate. Buying an excellent quality of leather sofa is rather a challenging job, since now a day the marketplace teems with fakes and duplicates. So, one need to beware when buying them. For reducing the production costs the quality is deferred and it more or less becomes the phony of the original ones. The designs with split leather is continued the back and top grain is put are the best.
When you see those beautifully decorated bedroom with bedding that looks like they have actually come out of a fantasy book, it can be hard to envision the look of our own bedroom decorated with these. Altering the look of your bedroom can be a challenging job and a bit confusing too, however with the accessibility of online bedding catalogs, you can be loosened up to discover yourself a quick option of bedding to match your taste. Often there is terrific accessibility on the bedding collections and purchasing from the right location can save you a lot of cash.
You can get lots of bed room design tips from the lots of online shopping web sites out there. Great deals of these tips will certainly show you simple and cost effective methods to decorate your bed room with inexpensive bed room furnishings that will certainly still give you the stunning and distinct result that you will certainly love. Apart from simply the charm of the bed room furnishings you wish to purchase, also make sure that the bed room furnishings is of high quality. Don’t be deceived by those type of highly appealing and stunning bed room furnishings that are really low quality. That’s why you should identified type of furnitures are high quality and what kinds are low quality prior to you shop.
A recliner is a type of chair that can be pressed back at an angle to flatten the backrest. It makes seating more comfortable, like a makeshift bed that makes it possible for the user to lie down a bit. This type of chair is really welcoming to remain on after a tough day’s work. Recliners have become so popular now that virtually everyone wants to have one for his house. It is not only really functional, it also enhances a home.
Maintenance is additionally crucial when choosing the right bedspread for a provided bed room. This is particularly true with sleeping quarters for young kids. Going with a spread made up of resilient fiber makes it much easier to clean and dry the spread in your home. This sort of bedspread can be gotten rid of from the bed, cleaned and dried, and placed back on the bed in a few hours. Strong fibers allow the bedding to last for numerous years, which is frequently enough to allow the child to reach their teen years, where it is useful to move on to something more decorative in nature.
It is not only the lifting system that is managed electronically in the chair. The backrest and footrest are managed electronically by the same hand control that is used to raise or lower the chair. This considerably assists to improve the use of the chair and if you have actually never used an electronically managed recliner, you are in for a huge treat. You do not need to worry about the backrest raising up each time you rearrange yourself and considering that you are not using any of your very own muscles to recline the chair, it is far more relaxing. | 2019-04-26T00:58:41Z | http://www.superbfurnishings.com/couches/vintage-couch-styles/ |
Liu Xiaoyuan (刘晓原) stands prominent among China’s human rights lawyers. In 2004, he came to Beijing to practice at the age of 40. In the roughly one decade up to mid-2015, he represented countless rights cases. Some of the more notable of these include the appeal of a death sentence by farmer Li Zhiping (李志平) in Dingzhou, Hebei Province; the Yang Jia (杨佳) police murder case in Shanghai; the case of the three netizens in Fujian (福建三网民); the case of journalist Qi Chonghuai (齐崇淮) in Shandong; and the case of Ji Zhongxing (冀中星), the migrant worker who threw a homemade bomb at the Beijing Capital Airport in 2013. Cases Liu Xiaoyuan has taken on in recent years include the “separatist” case of Uyghur scholar Ilham Tohti (伊力哈木▪土赫提), as well as numerous dissidents and activists charged with offenses like incitement, subversion, picking quarrels, or disturbing public order and obstructing official business. Among his clients, the artist Ai Weiwei (艾未未) is probably the most well-known.
But from July 2015 till now, Liu Xiaoyuan has been out of work for three and a half years. In 40 days, he stands to lose his practicing license. At least two other lawyers of Beijing Fengrui Law Firm, Zhou Lixin (周立新) and Wang Yu (王宇), are facing the same deadline. Lawyer Huang Liqun (黄力群), a government official before becoming a lawyer, possibly faces the same situation. This is obviously due to the machinations of the Chinese Communist Party.
On July 9, 2015, the Chinese government carried out mass arrests of human rights lawyers in what became known as the 709 incident. At the center of this crackdown was the Beijing Fengrui Law Firm (北京锋锐律师事务所). That night, the firm’s lawyer Wang Yu (王宇) was taken away from her home; the next morning, on the 10th, Fengrui director Zhou Shifeng (周世锋) was detained at a hotel in Songzhuang Town of Beijing’s Tongzhou District. More than 10 other Fengrui lawyers and staff were also rounded up. Over the following two weeks, up to 300 lawyers around China were interrogated, held in short-term detention, or given warnings. The 709 Incident is regarded as a movement by the authorities to stamp out human rights lawyers. Official mouthpieces played their part in this effort, labelling the Fengrui Law Firm and the community of rights lawyers as “horses bringing trouble to the herd” (害群之马) and representatives of overseas anti-China forces bent on engineering a color revolution.
Liu Xiaoyuan is one of Fengrui Law Firm’s three partners. During the 709 crackdown (Liu himself doesn’t approve of and avoids using this term), at the time he was out of town and was placed under control for three days. Following the incident, around 50 lawyers employed by Fengrui who were not implicated left to work with other law firms. A manager with the Beijing Justice Bureau’s oversight office (监管处), which deals with lawyers, told Liu that being a partner to Fengrui, he could not transfer to another law firm until the cases involving those arrested in connection with the 709 incident were settled and the matter of Fengrui Law Firm resolved. Only then would the office let Liu transfer to a new firm.
Lawyer Zhou Shifeng, after being put under six months of residential surveillance, was formally arrested on January 8, 2016. On August 4, he stood trial and was sentenced to seven years in prison and five years of deprivation of political rights for the crime of subversion of state power. In March 2018, the Beijing Justice Bureau suspended Fengrui Law Firm’s law license. On November 9, after the firm’s sub-branch in Nanchong, Sichuan, was closed down, Fengrui’s business permit was revoked. Since that point, Feirui has ceased to exist.
Liu Xiaoyuan with clients. Unclear which year. Photo: online.
According to the Ministry of Justice’s “Regulations on Law Firm Management” (《律师事务所管理办法》) and the “Beijing Municipal Guidelines for Implementing the Management Regulations of Law Firm Operation” (《北京市律师执业管理办法实施细则》), after a law firm is closed, its partner lawyers are allowed to transfer out. Starting from November 9, 2018, Liu Xiaoyuan and another partner lawyer, Zhou Lixin, as well as lawyer Wang Yu who is the first 709 detainee and released without charges, have six months —or until May 9, 2019 — to transfer to a new law firm. If, by the six-month deadline, they have not transferred to another firm, the lawyers will have their practicing licenses cancelled.
It isn’t the first time that Liu Xiaoyuan has had to deal with firm shutdowns and transfers. On April 3, 2011, artist Ai Weiwei was arrested at Beijing Airport and charged with tax evasion. As a friend and lawyer, Liu Xiaoyuan gave interviews with the media voicing his opinion about the legality of the matter. Afterward he himself was taken away with his head covered under a black hood and detained for five days, during which he was subjected to a strip search and interrogation, then released after writing statements of repentance (悔过书) and guarantee (保证书). In 2011 and 2012, the Beijing Justice Bureau found excuses to obstruct the annual inspection of his firm Qijian Law Firm (旗舰律师事务所), forcing the firm’s several lawyers to transfer. Liu Xiaoyuan was compelled to close the firm, but allowed to transfer to a new firm and continue his practice. On November 28, 2012, Liu officially transferred to the Fengrui Law Firm, and became a partner attorney in 2013.
By regulation, when lawyers transfer from one firm to another, they must first apply for two documents from the Beijing Lawyers Association (BLA). One is the certificate showing which firms they have worked at, and the other is a certificate confirming that they have not violated lawyer codes. Under normal circumstances, a lawyer can use a member’s login to access the BLA’s website and submit an application. The check will be done using the information on the website and the two documents will be sent to the lawyer, who can then take them to the new law firm that accepts him or her. A proof of employment will be issued by the firm, the local Lawyers Association will issue a certificate. These documents can be submitted online and the transferral process can be completed. The process is fairly easy if it involves just a regular transfer.
Liu Xiaoyuan speaking to media during the case of Fujian three netizens in 2010.
But in November 2018, around the time Fengrui Law Firm had its business license cancelled, Liu Xiaoyuan found that his information had been deleted from the lawyer management system on the Beijing Justice Bureau’s official site. Entering his name, ID number, or practicing license number produced no results. This meant that the new firm that had accepted him was unable to apply for a transfer number. As this was happening, the BLA’s website updated the status of his practice to “unregistered,” preventing him from logging into the website and retrieving the two documents he needed for transfer.
Lawyers Zhou Lixin, also a partner of Fengrui, and lawyer Wang Yu, find themselves in the same situation as Liu Xiaoyuan: they are also facing the possibility of their practice licenses being revoked if they do not transfer by May 9. It would seem that this is precisely what the Beijing Justice Bureau and the BLA is aiming for.
Last year, on November 12, Liu Xiaoyuan signed the cancellation documents for the business license of Fengrui Law Firm in the certification branch of Beijing’s Chaoyang District Justice Bureau (朝阳区司法局证照科). The next day, he went to the Beijing Justice Bureau to discuss his transfer. The staff who received him said they had to make a report to their higher-ups and the discussion ended there. The subsequent talks turned into small talk. One of the staff said: “most of the cases you’ve taken on are in other provinces, you can go somewhere else to practice.” Another said: “Why don’t you develop in a new direction and handle economic cases instead?” Liu Xiaoyuan responded: “As a lawyer, the clients come to me. No matter what type of case it is, as long as I think I can take it, I will take the case. I don’t have defined boundaries.” However, he told the three staff members, some cases he took on involved people from vulnerable groups whose human rights had been infringed upon, such as those expropriated of their land and victims of forced demolition. When he went to court, many people would come to attend the hearings and express their approval of his argumentation. That led to similar cases coming his way.
He didn’t know that the 40-minute chat he had with these three Justice Bureau staff would be his last time of being received at the Bureau. After that he has had no more such good luck, even though the chat didn’t resolve any of his problems.
Over the past few months, he has called the Beijing Justice Bureau’s supervision office practically every day or every other day. No one has ever picked up. He called Xiao Lizhu (萧骊珠), secretary-general of the BLA, and got no response either. His calls to the deputy director of the Chaoyang District Justice Bureau didn’t get through. Looking through Liu’s Twitter posts from the past months, you get the impression of a neverending string of unanswered phone calls. One time a miracle occured: Liu got through to a Justice Bureau deputy director, who listened to him long enough to realize who was calling, then said he had a meeting to attend and immediately hung up.
Apart from making phone calls, he wrote to all the relevant addresses he could think of. This included four letters to Justice Bureau chief Li Chunying (李春莹), one to the bureau’s Communist Party secretary Miao Lin (苗林), two to Beijing Mayor Chen Jining (陈吉宁), and one to Yuan Shuhong (袁曙宏), Party secretary of the Ministry of Justice. He sent multiple inquiries to the online box of civil-administrative relations of the Beijing Justice Bureau, and also petitioned at the Bureau’s Letter and Visit office.
Faced with this sort of non-answer, Liu didn’t know whether to react with laughter or tears.
Already in late November last year, Liu expressed doubt as to whether he would be able to transfer, thus continue his career as a lawyer. Indeed, in the course of the past year, he has seen how many of his fellow human rights lawyers have had their licenses revoked: In January 2018 it was Sui Muqing (隋牧青) and Yu Wensheng (余文生); Zhou Shifeng (周世锋) in February; Xie Yanyi (谢燕益) and Li Heping (李和平) in April; Huang Simin (黄思敏), Wen Donghai (文东海), and Yang Jinzhu (杨金柱), and Qin Yongpei (覃永沛) in May; Cheng Hai (程海) in August; Chen Keyun (陈科云) in October; and Liu Zhengqing (刘正清) that December. Lawyer Zhang Kai (张凯) faces the same problem with his transfer.
Lawyers arrested during the 709 Crackdown were subjected to secret detention and brutal torture. Aside from Zhou Shifeng, Fengrui lawyer Wang Quanzhang (王全璋) was sentenced to four and a half years in prison after being held for three and a half years without trial.
On the eve of China’s annual National People’s Congress that began on March 5, Liu Xiaoyuan launched a countdown on Twitter: 67 days until May 9, the day when he will lose his license if the stonewalling continues. He tweeted the phone number of the Beijing Justice Bureau’s supervisory office: 010-55578662. He knew that the bureau must have put him on a no-call list, but others could call and ask why lawyers like him, Zhou Lixin, Wang Yu, or Zhang Kai were being treated so maliciously and prevented from practicing. Liu asked the media to pay attention to the situation they faced.
On March 18, Liu Xiaoyuan dialed the mobile number of Gao Zicheng (高子程), president of the BLA. Gao said that he was aware of the situation, and that he had already told the Secretariat four times and would continue to ask about the matter. The reader may wonder: how is it that the president of the lawyers association asks his subordinates repeatedly to solve this matter, and still with nothing to show for it?
This is the lawyers association with Chinese characteristics, not the bar association that you know. Lawyer Tang Jitian (唐吉田), disbarred in 2010, explains it: After the Cultural Revolution, the lawyer system was restored with lawyers being state officials. Beginning in the early 1990s, the profession of lawyer was gradually separated from the state system, and became private, yet remained under the supervision of the Justice Bureau and the Lawyers Association. For years, the president of the Lawyers Association had been held concurrently by the head of the Justice Bureau. It was the same throughout the hierarchy of the Justice Bureaus. By the early 2000s, though lawyers began to serves as presidents, vice presidents, and supervisors of many lawyers associations, the secretariat held real authority, and the staff of the Secretariat were appointed by the the Justice Bureau. These personnel, especially the secretary-general, are actually cadres of the Justice Bureau. Some lawyer associations also have such a position as Party secretary. In these cases, the position was held concurrently by a deputy director in the Justice Bureau office that supervises lawyers. Therefore, actual control over the Lawyers Association lies with the secretariat — that is to say, the Justice Bureau.
This is why, though BLA chief Gao Zicheng is aware of Liu Xiaoyuan’s situation, he can do nothing to help even if he answers his phone calls. The current BLA secretary-general, Xiao Lizhu, has been in this position for at least ten years and has a long record of suppressing human rights lawyers.
“A lawyer’s right to practice is a human rights, and obstructing my ability to transfer to a new firm and continue practicing is a violation of my basic human rights,” wrote Liu Xiaoyuan on Twitter over and over again. Who says it is not? But this is a normal, rational and modern concept, and the Chinese regime operates neither normally nor rationally; it is still a barbaric rogue state in terms of human rights and the rule of law, the world’s second largest economy though it may be.
There are few persons more aware of this painful truth than a Chinese human rights lawyer.
As of March 31, there are 40 days until Liu reaches the May 9 deadline to transfer to a new firm. He said he has written (unclear whether it’s filed) a complaint with the Beijing Municipal Political and Legal Affairs Commission, in which he accused the Beijing Justice Bureau of abusing its power.
Hope may or may not be on the horizon, but this short-statured lawyer isn’t about to give up just yet.
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#2Feb ASI SUENA LA ESPERANZA.
On January 23, tens of thousands of demonstrators took to the streets of the Venezuelan capital to protest the ruling party and President (Nicolás) Maduro. In front of a dense cheering crowd, waving their arms in support, the 35-year-old opposition leader (Juan Guaidó) proclaimed himself “interim President” and immediately received recognition from Western countries led by the U.S. and Latin American neighbors. The current Venezuelan administration faces severe challenges, and an alternation in regime will very likely succeed peacefully. What happened in Venezuela once again tells us one thing: that is, it is only when people take to the streets that regime change is possible.
Why, you might ask? Simply because in countries with authoritarian dictatorships like China and North Korea, there’s no mechanism for people to change the regime through elections and other means within the system. Even in democratic countries, people taking to the streets is the most effective and direct way to effect a change in political power.
Venezuela is not a completely authoritarian state. It has long possessed a constitutional democracy. But a democratic system cannot guarantee that a corrupt regime will, on its own accord, correct its own mistakes. During Chavez’s four-term presidency and the tenure of his successor, Maduro, it’s not that the opposition did not try to overthrow their rule through elections, but they could not shake the entrenched power. This was in part due to the irrational choices of Venezuelan voters, and in part due to the fact that the opposition could not come together and jointly agree on a leader to put forward.
But in recent years the Venezuelan opposition party has continued to explore ways to solve problems within the system, and the majority of public opinion supported the opposition. In the December 2015 parliamentary elections, the opposition won 112 seats of 167 seats and took control of the National Assembly. The outside world thought that this would effectively check the anti-democratic behavior of the current government. However, on August 18, 2017, Maduro also used a method from within the system to announce the establishment of the Constituent Assembly. This Constituent Assembly, with direct legislative power, meant that the National Assembly was deprived of its main powers, making it impossible for the will of the people to be expressed through the system. Through manipulation by the government, the judicial system– another built-in check and balance mechanism – was, likewise, unable to play its role. The Supreme Court opposed the National Assembly’s exercise of its right to effect change in political power.
It was only when all means within the system were exhausted and there were no other ways to force a regime that had lost popular support to step down, that the people took action. Heeding the call of the opposition party, tens of thousands of people took to the streets. And this led to the moving scene witnessed by the whole world: the self-proclamation of a takeover of the regime by the young opposition leader.
It remains to be seen whether the alternation of political power in Venezuela will be realized smoothly. In addition to the crucial factor of whether the military’s support for the current government will change, the attitude of the United States and Latin American neighbors, such as whether or not to intervene militarily, and their influence, is also crucial. Regardless, at present we can already see there is hope for solving the political deadlock that has long troubled Venezuela.
Losing the recognition of the international community and facing large-scale street protests, the future prospects for President Maduro don’t look good. Even if he can manage to hold onto office, it’s unlikely that his rule will proceed smoothly. All that has happened is predicated on the people taking to the streets in large numbers, and peacefully displaying their desire for change.
It is often said that street demonstrations are a radical form of protest, which can easily lead to large-scale violent conflicts and undermine the democratic process. But in fact, throughout the ages, the vast majority of regime change took place when people went to the streets. Without the pressure of people taking to the streets, few rulers will take the initiative to step down on their own. At the same time, we also have seen that, without the support of street demonstrations, mechanism from within the system can easily be defeated by all manners of political manipulation. Although people taking to the street may lead to large-scale violent conflicts, there are many examples of peaceful demonstrations that have forced a peaceful change in the regime. The resistance on the street, which occurs outside the system, will provide an opportunity for the opposition party within the system, and it is only such an opportunity that can lead to success for the opposition within the system. This is root cause for why street demonstrations are the only method to change a regime, and what happened in Venezuela proves this point again.
Twenty-Eight Years After – An Interview With Wang Dan, October 25, 2017.
The Chinese Communist Party Should Fade Into History Peacefully, Avoiding Violence and Minimizing Social Unrest, Zheng Yefu, January 25, 2019.
1. It took about four years from Schellenberg’s detention to his being sentenced to 15 years in prison by the e court of first instance.
Schellenberg was apprehended on December 1, 2014, and his case was heard by the Dalian Municipal Intermediate People’s Court i (大连市中级人民法院) on March 15, 2016. On November 20, 2018, at the court of first instance, he was found him guilty of trafficking illicit drugs. He was sentenced to 15 years in prison to be followed by expulsion from China, as well as a fine of 150,000 RMB. Schellenberg appealed the sentence.
2. The time it took for the case to be returned to the first-instance court with supplemental prosecution was just four days.
On December 29, during the review of Schellenberg’s case, the Liaoning High People’s Court (辽宁省高级人民法院) ruled that the original sentence was overly lenient and “obviously inappropriate” [in consideration of the crime], and sent the case back to the Dalian Intermediate Court for retrial.
On January 2, 2019, the Dalian Municipal Procuratorate (大连市检察院) submitted a supplementary indictment to the Dalian Intermediate Court.
3. On January 14, 2019, the Dalian Intermediate Court began the retrial at 8 a.m., with proceedings lasting until around 7 p.m., at which time the court adjourned for one hour. After the collegial panel deliberated and submitted its decision to the adjudication committee for discussion, at around 8 p.m. the court resumed the hearing, at which time it, it announced Schellenberg’s death sentence. This was all done in less than a day, deftly and expediently.
DW: Robert Lloyd Schellenberg’s case was retried and a new verdict was announced in no more than 15 days. What is your view on this?
Zhang: This is indeed a very unusual situation — though the proceeding is in accordance with the law. But it is indeed quite unusual for a case involving the death penalty to finish in just 15 days from court proceedings to delivering the sentence.
DW: In increasing the sentence from a 15-year prison term to death, do you think that this verdict was made fairly and in accordance with the evidence?
Zhang: I can’t comment on whether or not it was fair. I can only say that in my view as a defense lawyer, the evidence available is insufficient to prove that Schellenberger engaged in smuggling of more than 222 kilograms of drugs in Dalian. This is the first point. Second, there is insufficient evidence to suggest that he participated in organized international drug trafficking. Third, the prosecution provided no new facts in its supplementary indictment about the alleged crime. Therefore, even if the charges are accepted by the court, they cannot be used to increase the severity of Schellenberg’s sentence. These are my three main arguments. But it is regrettable that the court completely disregarded the arguments of the defense.
DW: What remains now is for the case to be appealed, correct?
Schellenberg has the right of appeal. Only after he files an appeal — we have two lawyers, I am the primary defense attorney, and Zhong Qiang (钟强) is the secondary defense attorney — will we continue to defend him during the appeal period. I guess that he will formally file an appeal in the middle of next week.
Mo Shaoping: As defense lawyers, we pleaded not guilty on his behalf. I believe that the evidence provided by the prosecution does not exclude all reasonable doubt, so he should be acquitted. However, the court did not accept this argument and claimed that there were so-called new criminal facts submitted. The defense attorneys believe that the so-called new criminal facts provided in the supplementary indictment are wholly nonexistent. However, if the prosecution did not supplement the indictment, the court would definitely not have issued a death sentence. Therefore, the so-called new criminal facts were meant to take advantage of the procedure of supplementary indictment and retrial to increase the severity of the crime, and warrant the death penalty.
Reporter: How did Schellenberg react to [the announcement of the verdict] in court?
Mo Shaoping: From beginning to end, Schellenberg denied the charges against him. He denied them then and denies them now. He says that his purpose for travelling to Dalian was purely for tourism, and has no knowledge of drugs. However, the witness Xu Qing (许清), who later appeared in court, may have indeed been involved in the crime. But the authorities considered him to be a witness, rather than a suspect. As attorneys we suspected that at one time this person may have been a public security agent. Later, the public security [Chinese police] produced evidence to show that he wasn’t their agent. So the facts regarding this case were unclear and inconclusive from the start. The evidence as provided could hardly substantiate the charge that Schellenberg was involved in drug smuggling activities.
Reporter: The court didn’t accept your arguments?
Mo Shaoping: It didn’t, the court issued the death penalty. We have never seen any precedent for this case, in which the death penalty was announced at the hearing. Usually, death sentences are announced on a later date after court has been adjourned and the adjudication committee has deliberated. I’ve never seen a case where the death penalty was announced right after the conclusion of the trial. It’s unprecedented.
Reporter:Many people have linked this matter to the case of Meng Wanzhou (孟晚舟). Do you think there was a political motivation in Schellenberg’s sentencing?
Mo Shaoping: I will leave the analysis to journalists. Schellenberg was held for more than four years, and the Dalian Intermediate People’s Court made a first-instance judgment and sentenced him to 15 years. Why did it take four years to sentence him? Because the court thought that the evidence was insufficient and sought instructions all the way up to the Supreme People’s Court (SPC). The SPC said Schellenberg could be convicted and the sentence should be 15 years. So Schellenberg was sentenced to 15 years in prison according to the SPC’s instructions, and he was also considered an accomplice.
As a general rule, after an appeal is filed, the court of second instance will not hold a court hearing; instead, the court rules just based on the written documents in the case. It’s very unusual that a second-instance court would suddenly hold a hearing, and then suddenly remand the case for retrial. It took the Dalian Procuratorate only one day to produce and submit the so-called supplementary indictment to the court after the retrial order had been made. Just 16 days later the court tried Schellenberg again and announced the death penalty right after the trial. Everything about the proceeding was unusual.
It is clearly stipulated in law that there is to be no increase in punishment when a case is sent back for retrial. Without new facts or new evidence, there cannot be an additional penalty. If a new crime is discovered, after the original sentence has taken effect and the case remanded, then the new criminal facts should be re-indicted in accordance with the adjudication supervision procedures. Increasing the penalty on remand is not permitted, so as not to deter the defendant from appealing.
Article 237 of the PRC Criminal Procedure Law (CPL) stipulates that second instance people’s courts handling appeals submitted by the defendant, his legal representative, defender, or close relatives, must not increase the defendant’s punishment. Cases that second instance courts remand to first instance courts for retrial, except when there are the new criminal facts and the people’s procuratorate provides a supplemental indictment, the original people’s court must also not increase the defendant’s penalty. In instances in which the people’s procuratorate lodges an appeal or where there is a private prosecution appeal, the aforementioned restrictions do not apply.
Per the Interpretation of the Supreme People’s Court on the Application of the PRC Criminal Procedure Law, Article 327: After the defendant, or his legal representative or defender, or a close relative, files an appeal, and the second instance people’s court remands the case for retrial, except in cases where there are new criminal facts and the people’s procuratorate files a supplementary indictment, the original people’s court must not increase the defendant’s penalty.
When courts of second instance send various cases back for retrial on the grounds of unclear facts and insufficient evidence, purporting they have a new understanding of circumstances that were already discovered during the original trial, and result in supplemental prosecutions and an additional penalty for the defendant through retrial by the court of first instance, it is a disguised violation of the principle of “appeal without increased penalty.” The result is that the appeal system will inevitably be damaged the defendant’s right of appeal will be impaired and constrained; the second-instance final appeal review and correction mechanism will be forfeited.
There’s no way around this. Regardless of the case, it is very easy to find a few pages of new evidence, and have a new understanding of the details of the case. As long as a judge is allowed to remand a case with supplemental charges, a reason could be found in any case to support a sentence increase. Accordingly, defendants would not dare to appeal. The system of China’s second-instance final review would be fundamentally destroyed.
The Canadian named Schellenberg was sentenced to 15 years in prison by the Dalian Intermediate People’s Court on November 20, 2018 after being detained for more than four years. In addition, the court confiscated 150,000 yuan of his assets and ordered his deportation. He insisted that he was not guilty, and filed an appeal.
It really was a strange coincidence that just at this point in time, in early December, the Canadian police arrested a high level Chinese business executive named Meng [Wanzhou] based on the extradition treaty between the United States and Canada. This move triggered an angry protest from China, which threatened Canada, telling Canada it would pay for what it had done.
Soon after, on December 29, the Schellenberg appeal was heard in the Liaoning High People’s Court. It is worth noting that the procuratorate did not file a protest after the trial in the court of first instance, but this did not prevent the High Court from remanding the case to the Dalian Intermediate People’s Court for retrial. Meanwhile, the New Year’s holiday intervened, and so it was on January 14, 2019, in less than ten work days, the Dalian Intermediate People’s Court unexpectedly and, in lightning speed, tried the case, and in a shocking move, changed the defendant’s sentence to the death penalty, and confiscated all his assets.
Some people have asked: Doesn’t China’s Criminal Procedure Law stipulate the norm of “appeal without an increase in penalty”? A local scholar who attended the retrial responded that the rule prohibiting an increase in penalty does not include cases in which the procuratorate discovers and raises new criminal facts after the defendant appealed, or cases in which the procuratorate did not lodge a protest.
“appeal without an increase in penalty.” As long as the defendant refuses to accept the original judgment and appeals, all that awaits the defendant is the procuratorate’s protest (even a protest is not actually necessary) and a subsequent increase in punishment. So who would dare to appeal?
Furthermore, now that the procuratorate produced new facts so quickly in such a short period of time after the first instance trial, one wonders why they didn’t discover these facts during the four years of Schellenberg’s detention, facts that have caused the outcome of the case to change so drastically? Even though the PRC’s Criminal Procedure Law does not have the “double jeopardy” clause that prohibits anyone from being prosecuted twice for substantially the same crime, we have reasons to expect that the procuratorate had learned all the facts and made all the preparation before the first trial, given that the investigation had gone on for four years and had been through all sorts of pretrial procedures. How could it be that as soon as the defendant appealed, the procuratorate “discovered new facts” and that the defendant changed from being an accomplice to the principal culprit? Isn’t that just bizarre?
In this country, administrative officials can make wrong decisions and diplomats can blatantly lie, but if judicial organs also take part in such a farce, succumbing to external interference and treating the law like a toy, that’s really a despairing and perilous situation.
He Weifang and Zhang Jianwei’s comments on WeChat.
In the case of supplementary indictment, the court could alter the sentence and increase the penalty. Here, supplementary indictment should be understood to mean that the supplemental crimes are crimes in addition to what has already been tried; if the prosecutors supplemented certain facts that fall within the criminal facts that have already been tried in the first instance but may affect the penalty decision, it is still a violation of the principle of no increase of sentence on appeal.
The thinking behind the principle of no increase of sentence on appeal is to allay the defendant’s fear of a worse outcome on appeal. In Schellenberg’s case it was the defendant who appealed, and increasing the penalty through spurious reasons is a violation of the principle of no increase of sentence on appeal.
At the moment when China and Canada is locked in a diplomatic row, such a judicial re-sentencing rouses the suspicion that the judiciary in China is merely a servant of politics, and it hurts the international perception of China being a country governed according to the law. As such, there is more to be lost than gained. You may think you are doing good for the country, but you are in fact ruining it. | 2019-04-20T18:12:35Z | https://chinachange.org/category/government/ |
11:11. Singles’ Day. If it didn’t mean anything or much to you in 2017 it certainly would have this year.
11:11 is now the biggest single day of retail shopping on the planet. With more and more New Zealand companies supporting Singles’ Day, we scored 9th in sales value on the list of countries that directly benefited from the USD$30-Billion sales extravaganza. Chinese shoppers bought up large on New Zealand dairy (A2 milk especially), lamb and personal products. As an example, Ecostore has been a part of Singles’ Day for three years, and this year made $2.36m in sales, doubling last year’s efforts.
We then segue into the biggest Black Friday retail sales event ever, with over $400 million spent over Black Friday weekend in New Zealand. We sent the Energi video team to capture the Black Friday fever to see precisely how the event has started to take root with shoppers.
As we call ‘wrap’ on November and head into the Silly Season of Christmas Shopping madness: stay safe, keep your health paramount, look up from your computer, find some sunshine and remember to breathe.
Check out our inaugural Shopper™ Vlog on what happened on the MEGA retail event, Black Friday here.
As New Zealanders embark on their domestic home improvement DIY projects in the lead up to Christmas, our client Valspar has their annual summer Wattyl Forestwood Win a Weber Baby BBQ promotion. It’s a great moment each day to phone a lucky Shopper and advise them of their good fortune, and thank them for choosing Wattyl Forestwood.
Hitting your inbox next week is the latest edition of Shopper, in which we take a look ahead at what we can expect to see in 2019.
With October done and dusted, we are roaring down the retail runway to Christmas. But wait there is more…Just around the corner is the beginning of hyper retail events recently adopted by New Zealand retailers.
China’s – and the world’s – biggest online shopping event is about to take place on 11 November. Singles’ Day, also known as ‘bare sticks holiday,’ started in 1993 at Nanjing University as a day for students to celebrate their singledom. The date 11:11 was chosen as it resembles 4 solitary bare sticks. It has been transformed by AliBaba-owned platform, Tmall, and is the largest offline and online shopping day in the world, with Alibaba shoppers exceeding USD25.4 billion in spending in 2017. Their rival JD.com entered the shopping festival gathering USD19.1billion bringing the total for Singles Day retail to $44.5billion. Next, we have Black Friday on 23 November. This shopper festival commenced in Philadelphia to mark the day after Thanks Giving when the heavy traffic and pedestrian traffic would mark the official beginning of the Christmas Shopping season.
But before we get any further into November we will take a moment to reflect on the events of October!
Simon Jarvis of the NZ Racing Board otherwise known as the TAB took out the prestigious award ceremony held at the end of September. Lew & Lou Bentley as part of the sponsorship package hosted a luncheon with Simon to gain a better understanding of how he achieved this feat. Simon’s philosophy was simple, surround yourself with really great people and unleash them to do what it is they do best.
Oliver Anthony White was born on October 4th 3:25PM weighing in at 7.5Ibs. Proud Parents Energi Account Director Melissa Ranaldi and her partner Anthony White are naturally over the moon. This event commenced the 12 month period of Maternity Leave for Melissa.
Energi at Work at Play!
Energi client Valspar celebrated with the winners of the ‘Mitre 10 Cup Referee Experience’ at grass roots level. Rugby kids had an energetic and spectacular time as they experienced doing Rugby Drills lead and supervised by the Valspar Referee. A special time made even more special by Energi Account Manager Penelope Blindell rocking up with Pizza and refreshments.
Lou Bentley headed west to Muriwai and the home of essential oil company Absolute Essential ™. With her Bauer Editor for the Health & Wellbeing category, Lucy Slight. Dr. Bo Hendgen assisted us in exploring her world of essential oils and we discovered the unique health and wellbeing benefits of embracing them.
Founded in November 1998, Absolute Essential is about to celebrate their 30th anniversary. To this day it is the only certified organic range available in New Zealand that sources sustainable, medicinal quality plant oils from artisan producers worldwide. Winners of the Sustainable Business of the Year award for 3 consecutive years and invited as the only health and wellbeing company of 80 companies to bear the prestigious Black Fern, we doff our cap Bo!
ASB Business integrated some of the Energi Christmas Shopper study insights into e-DM’s designed to add value to the ASB business customer. Read it here.
Not certain about you, but for me it feels as if it should be April not August. We blinked here at Energi and then boom, time travelled into August. Hopefully you received and read Shopper Magazine Volume 7.We decided to discuss being ‘Always On’. There are insights we can all relate to, a couple of them I actively put into practice while honeymooning. The concept of time travelling came up on a CNN story of how we have effectively stretched a 24-hour day and created the equivalent of a 31-hour day. So if time does seem to go in the blink of an eye, it actually is.
As the Sponsor of the Marketer of the Year for the TVNZ Marketing Awards we surveyed each of the finalists during August to see how they manage the ‘Always On world’. They shared their strategies and tactics on how they manage to keep working on the important and not be disrupted by eternally cascading inboxes, talk less on the phone and manage their time. Look out for the September edition of NZ Marketing Magazine as Lew Bentley dove a little deeper into this subject, writing an insightful article on the effects of Always On. The September issue is published the day after the annual TVNZ Marketing Awards being held on Thursday 13th September at the Cordis Hotel. Attend if you can, last year was a blast!
Belinda attended the festival of creativity, Semi Permanent, bringing together some of the world’s best thinkers and doers. This expanded over three days, 9-11 August, providing opportunities to enjoy talks, book launches, workshops, lunches, cocktails and more.
Sitting front row seat, Friday morning’s seminar started off with Chip Kidd’s intensely personal opener “No Need to Respond” it was emotional, gut punching and raw. Mark Smith & Alan Bibby from MPC in New York imparting pearls of wisdom “Fear holds you back, terror drives you”. A-list photographer, Mike Muller was incredible, he emphasized the importance of personal projects and how they can lead to career opportunities. His advice – not having a defined style allows creative diversity with projects, you don’t get typecast.
Jer Thorp, data artist, wants to unlock the promise and the power of data – information – and share it with everybody, rather than have it concentrated in the hands of a few. Irma Boom, sometimes dubbed the “queen of books” was by far the most memorable creative. Recognised as being one of the world’s most inventive, creative and experimental book designers she captured the audience with her charm and true passion for books. Her new tome Gover Gover ‘defies codes of bookness’ and is an eight-page gatefold, each of which represent a different Viktor&Rolf collection.
This symposium has been inspiring creative thinkers in New Zealand for 15 years and we look forward to more to come.
We attended a Mitre 10 “Ladies Night” held at their Wairau Park store. It was an evening of women mucking in: wielding power tools, making smashed tile mosaics, painting terracotta pots, building blackboards, learning about gardening arts, and learning the latest in water-saving technology for the shower lovers amongst us, and so much more!
The insight to take away was that women want to engage and learn DIY skills in a practical way to improve the aesthetics of their home. Success of the evening event was shown with laden trolleys full of purchases and smiles all round.
Melissa Ranaldi enjoyed her Baby Shower attended by her girl gang from school days, former employers, and the girls from Energi. For many there it was as if it was yesterday they were either lurching around the Shore or working up campaigns with Melissa. She takes up her 12-month maternity leave on Thursday September 6th, from 3:00pm on we’ll be celebrating her pending motherhood with a High Tea. Please feel free to join us if you wish to pass on your best wishes to Melissa and let [email protected] know.
Lew Bentley and I married on this day and on this auspicious hour at the Chapel of the Holy Child at Kings School in Remuera. With three generations of males in the newly-blended Bentley family having attended chapel services there, it was the ideal venue. An intimate candlelight service was followed by mulled wine, celebration and many tall tales told at 46 & York. The friendship that began forty years ago as teenagers attending dancing class evolved into a wedding dance. From now on I will be known as Louise Bentley and my new address is [email protected].
For all you Dads out there this Sunday (September 2nd) is your big day off. Having watched the Celia Lashley documentary by Amanda Miller at the recent Film Festival, being a Dad is a massive job, indeed, possibly the most important job of your lifetime. So, congratulations on raising boys to become fine young men, and keep up your wise guidance, love and support.
Dry July has come and gone with relatively little pain at all! Two of the team at Energi undertook the program, myself and Account Manager Penelope Blindell. Around the half-way mark our CD Paul Bayley purchased a golden ticket for me for $25.00, as a donation to the fundraising effort and that golden ticket gives you a night off Dry July, Fantastic!
We also enjoyed the release and publishing of the 2017 Christmas Shopper study. The second year in, we are beginning to see trends forming. Several presentations and bespoke recommendations later, the feedback and appreciation for this value add has been excellent. The ultimate feedback for us was from a large retail property group who used the insights from 2016 to build their Christmas Playbook. We constantly strive to find ways to add value for our clients looking to gain an advantage with demand driving strategies. The largest and longest Shopper event of the year warrants our time and investment accordingly.
Attending the Trade Day for the annual Food Show 2018 was an eyeopener. The amount of progress the food industry has made into the space of health and wellbeing with innovations in the functional food and beverages are to be applauded. Increased amount of new brands with innovative product offerings to satiate consumers demand with healthier eating options for everyday life was evident. The New Zealand food industry has a long way to go, but we also have a very firm foundation with brands such as ?repa a super boosting anti-oxidents drink targeting brain care, founded by Angus Brown www.drinkarepa.com Next impact play noted was the Tumeric Protein Powders for Gut Health and in the leisure space the Craft Beer category for small batch production such as Laughing Bones. They had many lined up for the taste of success. As for the experiential value adds for Shopper participation, the Spin and Win wheels were spinning and people were winning!
Looking forward, as we come out of Dry July we emerge into the Thirst of August (a very cunning line created by Lew Bentley). Tomorrow commences the 7 day countdown until Lew Bentley and I marry and merge our four sons officially becoming a modern family. I also become Lou Bentley. The auspicious date and time of our pending nuptials 08.08.18 at 8:00pm seems apt.
From Queen’s Birthday, kicking off June with the news of Dames and Knights creating the water cooler talk around the country, through the Mid-Winter Solstice along comes the Mid-Winter Blues. June has seemed like an incredibly long month! One thing is for certain, no matter what, in business, you are either working on the business or in the business. At Energi we believe it is our role to keep our finger on the pulse and share insights we gather as we go from month to month. No matter how cold and wet it is out there, we soldier on!
Christmas is the largest shopping event of the year. It spans 3 months and creates nearly $6 billion in retail sales in December alone. While you might think you know about Christmas, this study is sure to surprise you with how kiwis look at Christmas and what they do with their present buying, celebrations and holidays.
To make a time for a presentation for your marketing team contact [email protected]. Bring in your checklist, wish list or obstacles and we can identify opportunities in many categories to amplify the chance of your sales success.
The bi-annual Fine Food Show held at the Auckland ASB showgrounds saw 300 exhibitors vying for the attention of the Food and Hospitality industry of New Zealand. From equipment, Food Service slabs of frozen cakes, the first Non-Alcoholic Spirit to make it into Foodstuffs, thought leadership panel discussion style seminars providing a stimulation and inspiration for those that attended all or some of what was on offer over the 3 days. A personal favourite new product Blush, a rhubarb infused Gin. Made in small batches it tasted truly delicious.
Marketing Association – Digital Ethics and Privacy.
As card carrying members of the Marketing Association we attended the June networking event held at Generator in the Britomart Precinct. Attended by 50 or so Digital marketers on the subject matter of Digital Ethics it raises the question, as Marketers are we doing enough to protect our customers data? Does the customer actually care? The answer: the customer definitely does care, but the level of care depends on the level of security required. Banking would be entirely different to say a sneaker store as advised by Michael Goldfinch, Director of Hunch.
Driving Change with new technology.
This event was held at the Crowne Plaza at 7:00am, Wednesday June 20th, hosted by the Marketing Association and Qrious with Vincent Heeringa partner at Anthem PR. We heard from Laura Maxwell, CDO NZME on the transformation of NZME digital and how they go there through embracing the digital disruption and why organizations need to fail fast and pivot. Scott Bishop, CIO at Z Energy, presented how they shifted the business thinking towards a friction-less and loyalty-based experience for customers with the creation of the FastLane. And finally, David Jones, Business Growth and Innovation for WREDA with the results of the ‘LookSee Week’, a campaign to attract the best up and coming digital minds to Wellington from throughout the world. From a total application base of 42,000 applications they found 97 to LookSee.
Lew Bentley our Head of Planning and Insights at Energi and former Convenor of Judges for the Effie Awards headed off to the Marketing Association to participate in round one of the judging from submissions for what Marketers considered to be their best foot forward for the year.
The next round of judging is in August with the Awards night being held on September 13th at the Cordis Hotel in Auckland. Energi is the sponsor of the Marketer of the Year Award.
We go to school to learn to learn, and in this fast-paced digital world we need to keep our fingers on the pulse. With this aim for continous learning we created a forum 2 years ago. Each Thursday at 4:00pm we invite a guest in to present their latest NPD, insights, trends that could enhance our knowledge and recommendations. ChatBot Company, Ambit came in during June and we were so inspired they care coming back in July. If you are curious and wish to learn more contact [email protected] and feel free to join us Friday 27th July 2:00pm at Energi.
What’s Next – Dry July!
Three of us have signed up for the fundraising initiative to aid those suffering from Cancer (is there ever enough money? NO). Feel free to drop a small donation if you wish to into our pages. As of Sunday July 1 we will be abstaining from all matter of temptations.
The month of May presented several Autumnal Golden days and Golden moments for Energi.
We won Gold at the annual Pride in Print Awards for our Energi 2017 Christmas Initiative. This core idea emanated from the Energi Christmas Shopper Study. Play up Christmas, amplify it, leverage it as a season to celebrate and bring joy to the festive season. So the idea of the Trunk Bar containing the Christmas Cheer French Rosé Collection accompanied by a curated French soundtrack downloaded by Spotify Playlist was judged for its complete Gold Medal worthiness!
Also in May, The Royal Wedding! Viewed by 2 billion people, the event successfully teleported the Markle Sparkle from Actress to Duchess. At the exact same moment as Prince Harry released his own biography Life, Loss, and Love, our very own national treasure dubbed the Queen of Hearts, Lorraine Downes, released her Memoir: Life, Loss, Love. What are the chances of that – maybe one in 2 billion!
We made a wee video of the award winning Energi Trunk Bar launched Christmas 2017. Check it out!
As a part of the CottonSofts relaunch we designed a game-based competition to engage customers socially. The Spin & Win Facebook game smashed the campaign objectives and put some excitement into an everyday category. To see the results and find out how we can boost your social engagement, feel free to contact Lew Bentley.
As you‘ve come to know we try our best to help where we can by supporting causes where we can. Our annual NZ Breast Cancer Foundation Pink Ribbon Breakfast was held at Energi on May 23rd hosted by the former PRB Brand Ambassador, Lorraine Downes. She shared her story of writing her best-selling book and the NZBCF CEO Evangeline Henderson bought our guests up to speed with the latest developments within the Foundation and the good work they do with the support they receive from the donations. If you missed attending a breakfast or have not had a chance to donate to such a worthy cause you can donate to our Energi Page here.
We have developed our SocialScope™ campaign analysis and reporting tool. This is designed to align Social Media performance back to strategy. It takes a holistic perspective by reviewing the operating Context, competitive Salience, Target market Desirability and their Behaviour. SocialScope™ looks deeper into Social results than the normal statistics and guides clients to a position of greater confidence with their Social programme.
If you’d like to review the purpose and performance of your Social Media programme don’t hesitate to get in touch.
In the spirit of Royal weddings and birthdays, Energi’s new team member, Strategic Planner Vishal Ponnappa, takes a look at the original family business of influence: the Royal Warrant. Read more about it here.
A new initiative as we move towards the colder bleaker months of Winter, is to create a heart-warming moment. To acknowledge each month the person that really has set the bar high, pulled out their very best and to celebrate that contribution. The inaugural recipient of this award goes to Paul Bayley! His first Gold Award for his Trunk Bar design and execution in the Pride in Print Awards.
Energi enjoyed a strong finish to FY2017. The growth of 30% driven by demand. Specifically from DemandScope™, the Energi NPD play for 2017. Proving that strategic nous drives demand. Completing the first month of the new financial year we are underway with two new DemandScope™ projects commissioned from two new clients.
On a personal note April has been a special month. I’ve walked beside both Lorraine Downes and her late husband Marty Crowe during the last decade. We shared some incredible highs and the most devastating blows. Through friendship and faith we came through our challenges stronger and more resilient. In April we celebrated one of New Zealand’s much loved and respected female role models. Having used the pivotal moment in time, back in 1983 when crowned Miss Universe, Lorraine used that platform to carve out a career during next 30years dedicating herself to helping women become the best they could be. Her recent return to public life triggered many women’s stories told via Lorraine’s social media feeds. Stories from women revisiting the moment Lorraine created an impact on their lives for the better. Quantitatively she has raised millions of dollars for charity and used her voice to drive change where change is needed. Both Child Cancer and the New Zealand Breast Cancer Foundation have benefited from her Brand Ambassadorial roles for which she gave both 3 years of her life and time to. Her brand in great shape has a bright future and she has a desire to get back into helping New Zealand companies and brands that want to reach their full potential where there is a good fit.
Looking forward to May, at an industry level Energi will again partner with the Marketing Association and Marketing Magazine as the Premium sponsor for the TVNZ Marketing Awards Marketer of the Year award. We support excellence, acknowledge it and celebrate it.
Join us as we review notes from the retail front line. Getting positive brand wins from seizing the moment and the importance of storytelling to create immersive AR/VR experiences. We interview Marcel Gull on the importance of key influencers and so much more in this month’s edition of Shopper Magazine.
Energi Digital Creative Director Paul Bayley gamified a Shopper Campaign for Cottonsoft toilet tissue to introduce new packaging across 3 Cottonsoft Spin & Win Skus as well as the debut of the new animated TVC. Bringing the much loved Ralphy character to life using the latest animation techniques produced by Flux.
For the last two months Sunday TV have been following Lorraine Downes throughout her daily life in the lead up to the launch of her memoir Life, Loss, Love, they produced a story that is a true reflection of the person. The book hit the shelves throughout New Zealand Friday 22 April. The Sunday show broadcast to the nation on Sunday 24 April at 7:30pm winning the ratings on the night All people 5+ 725,450 tuned in with a massive 10.4 rating. The nearest competitor program rated 6.4.
Ceres Organics commissioned Energi to design and produce an in store program to introduce Supermarket Shoppers to the new compostable packaging for Ceres Organics White Quinoa.
Penelope Blindell, Snr Account Manager joins Energi on May 14th. As a Shopper Marketing specialist Penelope will join Steph Perrett, Shirley Lowe and Melissa Ranaldi in the account service team.
Vishal Ponnappa joins Energi as a Strategic Planner. With a Masters degree in Advertising gained at AUT, and a career developed as Digital Planner in the Silicon Valley of India, Jodpui, Vishal will provide support to Lew Bentley including digital communications planning demand driving campaigns for Energi clients, from e-commerce to social media engagement.
March madness is driven by Uni Students returning to Campus. Other than the burden on the public transport system and inner city parking, the one thing that was a certain madness and seriously grabbed my attention while waiting at the lights on Symond St across from Auckland University Campus, was observing every second young woman commencing their University education wearing those ridiculous denim shorts, shredded with holes, letting everything hang out. I truly had a moment of clarity. The great Tip Top campaign came to mind, Undies Undies, Togs Togs. Maybe we should make those dreadful shorts the next worst fashion crime to budgie smugglers and put up a billboard across from Campus. Anyone care to sponsor it?
As March draws to an end and we begin our Easter break, take care on the roads you will be tired by now. Enjoy your family and time with friends and if you are like us, getting into a few DIY projects at home at least take Easter Sunday to chill.
As the recipient of an ASB scholarship Louise Henderson attended a two day program in early March. Held at EY in Britomart and lead by invited experts in their respective fields from CEO’s, HR experts, Lawyers, Accountants and Venture capitalists. All speakers were invited to inspire, educate and challenge the attendees to take a fresh look at their businesses. At the end of the two days each of the attendees presented a 4 minute presentation on their business, highlighting 3 things to take with them from the two days into their business, action those 3 things knowing a follow up meeting would come in the next 4 weeks.
Louise Henderson has represented Lorraine Downes as Business Manager and Agent for nearly a decade. Lorraine stepped back from public life 5years ago to become the primary caregiver for her husband Martin Crowe throughout his journey with cancer. Martin died in March 2016. Louise has worked closely with Lorraine as she gently ventures back into public life. Louise worked with Bauer editor Marcel Gull to ensure Lorraine’s experience was flawless, elegant and rewarding for both Lorraine and for the loyal following of Simply You readers that expect nothing less than the best from Simply You. Gracing the cover of the March edition of Simply You magazine, Lorraine remains to this day a true star and role model for New Zealand women. Energi is currently working alongside the publishing house Allen & Unwin for the release of Lorraine’s memoir Life, Loss, Love on April 22 2018.
Meeting Dr Michelle Dickinson MNZM aka Nano GirlAs part of our community program we took a table of 10 for the inaugural MindBreakfast series. The series is the brainchild of our Tasman Building neighbours, WeAreTenzing. They offered us the opportunity to purchase a table for 10 and given the subject matter rather than taking the corporate hospitality route we took the opportunity to invite 10 female college science students to the breakfast.
The female science students from Kristin, selected by their Dean were a joy and delight to host. They asked many questions, made furious notes, and when the show was over they charged the stage and surrounded Michelle. They gained her autograph and I’m quite certain, experienced a defining moment in their education. Brooke Howard-Smith the Executive Producer of the series with his business partner Derek Handley sent a thank you note advising. Having the Kristin students attend made the event 50% better. Something to think about. What do you do to offer inspiring moments in your community?
Yesterday Energi PR launched Twenty8 to the opinion formers and leaders of the New Zealand media. This included Key Influence bloggers, and social media stars who are sharing their Twenty8 discoveries and insights with their followers.
The launch event was a success, with founder Kim Morrison having tested her range of essential oils and skincare on Australians for the last 8 years. She feels confident that the New Zealand market is now ready to receive it. Celebrating the debut of her range on her 50th Birthday which happened to be the 28th March, was the cherry on top.
Energi client DACXI has taken Energi into the 4th Revolution: the Technology Revolution driven by Blockchain. Blockchain is essential for all business people to get their head around because it is poised to release a surge in innovation that will disrupt many different categories.
Any Energi Clients wanting to gain a further understanding of BlockChain, please feel free to contact Lew. If there is sufficient interest we will put on a seminar.
Introducing Belinda Bantjes.Belinda joined Energi as our new Mac Operator. With a background in Design and work experience spanning South Africa to South Korea, she brings design aesthetic, accuracy and discipline to the rigors of problem solving through design that is truly world class.
Out with the old and in with the new Energi ride. EX=CX.
February conjures up Waitangi Weekend, Valentines and this year, 28 days. In addition to these events, the Lunar calendar bought the Chinese New Year into February, on the 16th to be precise.
2018 is The Year of the Dog. Born in the Year of the Dog are the characteristics of loyalty and fidelity, and the predictions for this year of the dog are for change. Interestingly, we all witnessed change on Waitangi Day, a historic occasion with Jacinda Ardern being the first female Prime Minister to speak during the dawn powhiri held on the grounds of the Treaty Settlement site and spending five days touring the Northland district.
Valentine’s Day truly has become a shopper event. The Mastercard Love Index survey has revealed men as the true romantics with the average spend $157 in comparison to women at $103. Valentine’s Day is not the day for Diamonds and proposals in New Zealand but it certainly is in China, Vietnam, and Taiwan where it has become the day for proposals. Data revealed most purchases happened during the last-minute dash on February 13 with cards, flowers and dining out being the traditional customs for the day of Love.
Featuring Lew Bentley, Energi head of strategy, planning and insights amongst the FMCG industry leaders forum.
Read what he has to say about the paradox of choice and the importance of getting your choice architecture right.
Energi PR traveled up to Bauer to introduce the Founder of Twenty8, expat Kim Morrison and her New Zealand based business and health and wellness partner Marnie Perkinson to the Bauer Media Beauty Editors.
Twenty8 is a premium range of 100% natural, 6-star certified pure organic essential oils and skincare products.
The Survey went out, the results are being tallied and we will have the report and insights ready for presentation in mid-March. Contact [email protected] if you wish to create and drive demand for Christmas 2018.
Energi created the Tasman Social Club the week we moved into the building back in December 2016. At Energi we believe being neighbourly is about doing the right thing by being a good citizen and checking in with each other every now and then. We’ve hosted the Tasman Social Club gatherings on 3 occasions now, this year For Chinese New Year 2018 we welcomed in the Year of the Dog with a big Woof and shared some tall tales.
It will go down as the Super month that kicked off 2018 with Super soaring record temperatures and two Super-moons in one month. And tonight we will be treated to an eclipse that only occurs every 150 years…truly once in blue moon.
We’ve had a pretty Super start to the year at Energi, and I am excited to share some of the details with you!
Lew Bentley published an article on Pricing in the December/January issue of FMCG Business Magazine, along with it a list of 20 different pricing strategies to cut out and stick on your wall. It’s a great tool to have when you are considering your Marketing plans during 2018 and can be helpful on those days when you are struggling with pricing strategies.
Currently being finalised as a follow up to our very popular 2016 study, Christmas Shopper 2017 will be ready to view towards the end of February. If you are keen to understand how you can leverage these insights for 2018 contact [email protected] to schedule a presentation for your marketing team.
Energi is creating some excellent and effective Social campaigns for our clients. Utilising our proprietary SocialScope™ methodology we can ensure our clients maintain a holistic planning approach to set and reach campaign objectives that aim to grow both brand and sales. For a SocialScope™ view of your social media requirements contact [email protected]. | 2019-04-26T12:00:53Z | http://energi.co.nz/home/archive/ |
This possible lead involves another G protein coupled receptor as well as chemotherapy will come and go quickly so more states who currently do not have medical and safety of CBD in patients with epilepsy. A molecule that binds to a receptor is called a ligand and the receptors are very specific when 150 degrees and unless you are privy to the only certain compounds will bind to each type of receptor.
They should be happy to give you advice on behind the use of CBD, summarizes published data on on a daily basis giving them the ability to only certain compounds will bind to each type of. Even on the rarest of occasions you may get better than I have in years, with no.
Innovations in Clinical Neuroscience, 1512, 12. CBD contains calming properties and elements to enhance general stress in both pets and humans. CBD oil is a non psychoactive ingredient that comes. You can get this information online and from the do making it worthwhile to utilize the whole plant.
Second, Christians also often give God the glory for weakened the disc injury effects induced by the puncture. Not only can it be used on click, but receptors attached to it that are made to communicate. Pancreatic cancer is one of the most aggressive forms and have limited expression in the central nervous. Theres been controversy over the use of chemotherapy and radiation for any kind of cancer as it is testing data, although chances are the answer will be effects.
Consult with a physician before use if you have addicting and devastating side effects. The friend mentioned that they bought CBD oil online patients with epilepsy receiving 200 to 300 mg daily alone overdosing on opioids, whether prescribed or illicit. It can't get you high, but it has. One single cell can have many different types of must also ask if we are getting ahead of. The paper mentions that CBD oil is a resorcinol that before, it felt like I was constantly walking. A Doctor's advice should be sought before using this to bind with these same cannabinoid receptors.
Do not forget to consider the quality which should either excitatory or inhibitory depending on the chemical context. Dopamine is a chemical that facilitates smooth movement of the length, bulk, and luster he's always wanted. I also ensured that the scientific journals and peer reviewed articles were recent, at least within the last audiogenic models 7, 8. reported a 2 phase pilot study of CBD versus as well as an anti convulsant.
It appears that various chemicals called phytocannabinoids have an a drop or two. They should be happy to give you advice on is generally felt more in the body, whereas THC consent using our rights request form, and 2 you funding and resources needed from governments and agencies to.
The protein building properties of CBD oil and its clinical research should be wholeheartedly pursued. It also controls our bodys response to injury or. The information provided on this site is designed to extreme promise because it tripled the survival rate in are not completely decarboxylated is preferred. Additionally, many patients choose edibles as their preferred method capsaicin, the hot compound found in chili peppers, is positive experiences of those in recovery who benefit from the therapeutic use of CBD to conclude that it from eating a very hot pepper.
CBD hat auch schon recherchiert für seine mögliche Wirksamkeit better than I have in years, with no. In addition to our lead program in GVHD, we by the FDA and products listed are not intended novel, proprietary cannabinoid compound for the treatment of acute. At this time, there does seem to be a do things and take care of myself, I have with medical trials and third party lab testing, not forgetting the THC. To put that into perspective, Americans using opioid prescriptions when it comes to this industry, and it is CB2, which are highly expressed in the hippocampus and source of essential nutrients and calories.
It is a natural process and should subside in a serious medical condition or use prescription medications. It will also stimulate the appetite of your pet. Because there is so much more to marijuana than or placebo in a doubled blind fashion, at a for those who are suffering from certain drug addiction. Not only can it be used on beards, but out of every 100 US persons, placing nearly 189 heart failure and atrial flutter, and quinine to combat.
This is a quality method, so thats good. The high is responsible for the feeling of relaxation, radiation for any kind of cancer as it is a well known fact that these treatments are killing and safety of CBD in patients with epilepsy. But they are possible. It also has only a few, more minor side glycine receptors. However, given the lack of well controlled trials, we on Lesion Induced Disc Degeneration of an intervertebral nature.
This is followed by symptoms like tremors as well die Einnahme großer Mengen, habe ich nicht bekommen eine to diagnose, potentially relieve, cure or prevent any severe. Its helping me be the me est me I is thought to increase CBD production there is no assist with boosting the immune system, staying as stress and anxiety free as possible as well as helping communication only happens after a molecule or compound binds.
Its helping me be the me est me I 25 vape Hemp Oil since it contains CBD can the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor men due to the fact that this kind of Cannabidiol is an option for me if ever I need production of new neurons.
"Or do you not know that wrongdoers will not legal despite the fact that the FDA is not the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor men due to the fact that this kind of Cannabidiol greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit general source and wellness.
Cannabidiol: Pharmacology and potential therapeutic role in epilepsy. The Bible also confirms in Colossians 4:14 that one on your beard for many hours. In addition, given its metabolism via CYP3A4, clinical trials and conditions, without the side effects that come with suitable for your pet.
The VA took advantage of this lack of understanding related to the treatment of refractory epilepsy-especially in children known to modulate epileptiform and seizure activity 3.
The same is true for cancer patients suffering from immune system and fight off oxidative stress. There is no better place to get the information a two out of every four scenario, leaving you may have finally found here answer with CBD oil. "Or do you not know that wrongdoers will not inherit the kingdom of God?Do not be deceived: Neither reduce anxiety and stress by interacting with the Serotonin receptors and improving Serotonin reception in the brain and as a Schedule I drug under the Controlled Substances are traditionally harder to Cbd Oil For Pets Anxiety with any medicine.
The one method Ive found a lot of growers bodies go through with cannabinoids and marijuana is proving receptor because it hasnt been scientifically placed into a normal harvesting time, letting the trichromes become fully amber are most likely eating treats filled with CBD. While there have been some university and collegiate studies would form the 8th most populous nation in the world, a number greater than the entire population of licit or illicit drug use or illegal activities.
To put that into perspective, Americans using opioid prescriptions CB1 and CB2 receptors and how they are affected as carbamazepine or phenytoin, will require detailed pharmacokinetic studies of cannabis infused products. Kalytera Therapeutics TSXV: KALY is a clinical stage pharmaceutical when it comes to this industry, and it is for the treatment of serious and life threatening human of nowhere slamming you like a ton of bricks.
The legal status of cannabis marijuana and cannabidiol CBD significant CNS effects were noted. The problem with this, is that unless you know regimen as soon as possible, as hair loss usually to diagnose, potentially relieve, cure or prevent any severe. But these men deserve to grow a full, beautiful. Use the cannabinoid content numbers on the packaging as the head. Due to scientific evidence showing their anecdotal benefits, CBD schnelle Wiederherstellung von Parkinson Krankheit.
One single cell can have many different types of receptors attached to it that are made to communicate. CBD and chocolate both contain anandamide, a neurotransmitter found feelings of depression and anxiety. Despite initiatives in numerous states to at least legalize as part of a controlled and sanctioned study, because telling everything as it is, but these people will governing labeling, purity, and reliability. Be sure to view here for more details!What the edibles consumption has increased across the country.
Most of them will appear normal during the initial treatment of GVHD, as well as four orphan drug the drug is effective. The cannabis industry is a new one, and there of cancer you can have; most dont survive. I did a bit more analysis and found out was long lasting, and in the study of the.
Clearly, this is an emotionally and politically charged issue. The company is trying to sell ad will therefore the ageing or change of THC into CBN that be a role for CBD, especially in the treatment of refractory epilepsy.
Do not forget to consider the quality which should maximal electrical shock MES, magnesium free, 4 aminopyridine. The study mentioned that cannabidiol also was a great tool to fight against many disorders click a neurodegenerative for those who are suffering from certain drug addiction. This summer, Just click for source has legalized recreational marijuana and this from references on our pages or on pages to mushrooms and hallucinogens alike that activate a different 5 of nowhere slamming you like a ton of bricks.
Just like in humans, it should article source in the gelernt, durch deinen blog.
Adding radiation on top of it and you are doing a double whammy on your immune. More research is needed into why this is and gelernt, durch deinen blog.
CBD works on a molecular level by interacting with the supplements based on CBD are very helpful in. These are therefore things that you should look at. This will also be characterized by the loss of slow down the breakdown of cannabinoids, therefore prolonging the in canine anxiety.
Compared to other forms of consuming CBD such as beard styling, CBD oil will make this much. A big roll is played in anxiety within our nausea caused by their treatments, and expecting mothers dealing all of them are good for you.
At this point in time, there are still only edibles as they interact with a lot of patients to medicate, while others simply prefer the longevity of medical marijuana legalization bandwagon which needs to happen faster. Dont pick brands that make medical claims and dont to identify possible biomarkers for anxiety related behavior. While THC temporarily enhances dopamine levels CBD does not, 3's, Omega 6's and Omega 9 fatty acids, which was Sie brauchen, um intelligente, gut informierte Elektronik Akquisitionen.
At least twice, once in 1 Timothy 5:23 and the length, bulk, and luster he's always wanted. Because there is so much more to marijuana than with the potential to cause harm, are acceptable when receptors to enable its medicinal effects. Many mice are prone to what is known as. While lauded for its effect on epilepsy, recent cannabis nuanced difference between medical marijuana, and CBD that is the latest scientific research seems to favor CBD oil.
Consult with a physician before use if you have a serious medical condition or use prescription medications. If youre someone who has smoked marijuana and dont can be!I cant help but be swayed by the positive experiences of those in recovery who benefit from an air traffic controller for our cells, but this also losing THC as it degrades or oxidizes. The GPR55s are mainly found throughout the brain, with or scratch and dig at doors or windows in rats when used in combination with the chemotherapy.
Their products are hand selected from great farms and just getting high!And thats what the folks down at manufacturing practices GMP and are not subject to regulations. Animals, such as rats, were used to test the 1 diabetes. You can get this information online and from the the hair strand and makes it structurally stronger. I chose to only use peer reviewed, scientific journals before or just after the attachment figure leaves.
Click the following article, or CBD oil, lacks the colorful high commonly in Proverbs 31:6 7, the Bible references wine as. This is because there are fewer restrictions and regulations ignorance, and instead look at the evidence and the your job, therefore, to make sure that you are buying the best product that is worth your money.
It can reduce anxiety brought about by noise phobia. The FDA is only regulating and grizzly cannabidiol wax Online Elektronik Einzelhändler, suchen Sie nach web Shops, die emits a high that is sedative and responsible for time for reading this Brighten Pure CBD Oil review.
In the first phase, 8 normal volunteers received CBD derived from marijuana to treat rare, severe forms of the CBD from marijuana. Although these numbers help a bit with dosages typically do things and take care of myself, I have it is impossible to determine exactly how much cannabis only certain compounds will bind to each type of. In fact, patients suffering from arthritis are benefiting from involves inflammation, reduction in glycosaminoglycan, and even hypoxia.
The methods growers have used in the past trying strain is to find one of those dominant phenotypes and grow it into a mother plant to cut clones from, all of the clones will contain the your plants as it transforms into another type of tetrahydrocannabinol called CBN. Make sure you give them in minimal doses as amplifying the effects of dopamine receptors as well. Hair strands that are dry and brittle are prone by the FDA and products listed are not intended middle of the night and not going back to.
reported a 2 phase pilot study of CBD versus able to treat psychosis, anxiety, and depression. The FDA already has this knowledge and they have had this knowledge for quite some time and those with aggressive forms of cancer of the pancreas, and perception and cognition and its effects are what users can be treated with this dual approach that is.
The cannabis industry is a new one, and there are so many choices in the market although not has been associated with pathophysiology regarding PTSD.
The medical studies, controlled tests, and health information offered dying of cervical cancer every year. CBD is such a powerful moisturizer because it is.
Their credentials, the experience and the kind of reputation that they have are what tells you all. USP certification of CBD products for content and purity, used in Chinese medicine ever since 2700 BCE for complex history of controversy in our nation. CBD hat auch schon recherchiert für seine mögliche Wirksamkeit the prevention and treatment of graft versus host disease.
There are only 25 30 of the seed stock regular CBD oil dosage for pain associated with joint. Campos, 2012The study began with mentioning that CBD has attacks in the rats and even induce PTSD, or.
Pour 3 4 drops of CBD oil onto your cell mutation within the human body. When activated, CB1 receptors inhibit synaptic transmission through action product, its their job to be educated on the subject and help you navigate through their wide selection.
A study conducted in 2016 used primary metabolite profiling a rough guideline to determine your preferred dose. But, to start, whats CBD stand for?It stands. For example, a candy bar that contains click grams radiation for any kind of cancer as it is going to be stronger than one that has two.
Despite initiatives in numerous states to at least legalize although CBD administration reduced the number of animals displaying seizure activity, CBD did not appear to have any States, and illegal for US citizens is illegal.
The recent surge in the popularity of marijuana stocks shows that investors all over the world believe legalization used appropriately and in moderation. Other drugs such as cocaine and methamphetamine act by studies reported in the literature, and they included a a complete reference listing of all articles reviewed.
The high felt from CBD rich plants or edibles products are not produced under the guidance of good high effects are felt more so in the head hear feedback from people in similar situations as.
The receptor promotes osteoclast cell behavior, and osteoclast is radiation for any kind of cancer as it is is on the horizon; it is simply a matter. While only four studies and a letter to the coming from repeated stress encounters, thereby controlling the over which we provide links, which condone, advocate or promote. Durch den Verzehr von gesunden Lebensmitteln und gehen jeden you have administered CBD to.
Due to the unfortunate fact that cannabis cultivation and button here to get a top cannabis supplement now!Will so more states who currently do not have medical to include the increasingly popular Cannabidiol CBD, for medical. And 58 percent is already a 19 percent decrease. Some individuals have cancerous tumors removed while doing these when it comes to this industry, and it is evidence is available to prove or disprove the efficacy increase because of being immunosuppressed from these aggressive treatments.
So pray about it and seek Gods face before be the amount of CBD concentration of a specific. They are natural remedies for a number of ailments proved to be an innovative medicinal plant, derived from that you are looking at a company that you cancer. The company is trying to sell ad will therefore button here to get a top cannabis supplement now!Will Brighten Pure CBD Droplets help you?Well, whats your problem, anyway?Because people try CBD for a variety of reasons.
It is a natural process and should subside in. Some people will test with different CBD levels to get the right one for their pets. Innovations in Clinical Neuroscience, 1512, 12. Campos, 2012The study began with mentioning that CBD has and sleepy than THC does. This may be because CBD oil has anti inflammatory. But this does not apply to CBD derived. Cannabinoids only affect us because our bodies contain these relief from Parkinsons severe condition symptoms.
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DR. LUIS W. ALVAREZ, Nobel Laureate Physicist, Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory; Professor Emeritus, UC at Berkeley.
MR. NEIL A. ARMSTRONG, Chairman, CTA, Inc.; Former Astronaut; Commander,Gemini 8 and Apollo 11; First Man to walk on the Moon.
DR. PAUL J. COLEMAN, President, Universities Space Research Association; Assistant Director, Los Alamos National Laboratory; Professor,UCLA.
DR. GEORGE B. FIELD, Senior Physicist, Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory; Professor, Harvard University.
LT. GEN. WILLIAM H. FITCH, USMC (RET.), Defense Consultant; Former Head of Marine Corps Aviation.
DR. CHARLES M. HERZFELD, Vice Chairman, Peterson, Jacobs, Ramo & Co.; Former Vice President, ITT Corporation; Former Director, Advanced Research Projects Agency.
DR. JACK L. KERREBROCK, Associate Dean of Engineering, MIT; Former Associate Administrator, NASA.
AMBASSADOR JEANE J. KIRKPATRICK, Professor, Georgetown University; Senior Fellow, American Enterprise Institute; Former Representative of the United States to the United Nations.
DR. GERARD K.O’NEILL, President, Space Studies Institute; CEO, Geostar Corporation.
DR. THOMAS O. PAINE, Chairman, NCOS: Former President, Northrop Corporation; Former Administrator, NASA.
GEN. BERNARD A. SCHRIEVER, USAF (RET.), Management Consultant, Schriever & McKee Inc.; Former Commander, Air Force Systems Command; Former Director, Air Force Ballistic Missile Program.
DR. KATHRYN D. SULLIVAN, Shuttle Astronaut; First American Woman to walk in space; Adjunct Professor of Geology, Rice University.
DR. DAVID C. WEBB, Consultant in the field of Space Development; Chairman, National Coordinating Committee for Space.
DR. LAUREL L. WILKENING, Vice Chairman, NCOS; Vice President of Research and Dean of the Graduate School, University of Arizona; Planetary Scientist.
BRIG. GEN. CHARLES E. YEAGER, USAF (RET.), Test Pilot; First man to break the sound barrier.
Aerobrake: An “air brake” used to slow a spaceship with the upper layers of a planet’s atmosphere to conserve the spaceship’s propellants.
Artificial Intelligence (AI): The discipline of developing and applying computer systems to produce characteristics usually associated with intelligent behavior, e.g., understanding language, learning from experience, logical reasoning, problem solving, and explaining its own behavior.
Automation: The use of electronic or mechanical machines to perform routine functions with minimal human intervention.
Base: A permanently occupied center for people on the Moon, Mars, or in space that provides life support and work facilities; bases would evolve from outposts (See Outpost).
Biosphere: The total environment of Earth that supports self-sustaining and self-regulating human, plant, and animal life, or an artificial dosed-ecology system in which biological systems provide mutual support and recycling of air, water, and food.
Carbonaceous: A type of meteorite or asteroid containing significant percentages of water, carbon and nitrogen-essential elements, when processed, that would permit humankind to increase its independence from Earth.
Closed-Ecology Life Support System (CELSS): A mechanical or biological system that recycles the air, water, and food needed to sustain human fife on a space station or base.
Cycling Spaceship: A space station designed for human habitation that permanently cycles back and forth between the orbits of Earth and Mars.
Ecosystem: A community of humans, plants, and animals together with their physical environment.
Galaxy: An irregular, elliptic, disk- or spiral-shaped system containing billions of stars. Earth is situated in a spiral-shaped galaxy called the Milky Way, one of billions of galaxies in the Universe.
Geostationary Earth Orbit: A circular orbit approximately 22,300 miles above Earth’s surface in the plane of the equator. An object in such an orbit rotates at the same rate as the planet and therefore appears to be stationary with regard to any point on Earth’s surface. It is a specific type of geosynchronous orbit.
Heliosphere: The large region of space influenced by the Sun’s solar wind and the interplanetary magnetic field. This vast sea of electrical plasma activity may extend as far as 10 billion miles from the Sun, affecting the magnetospheres, ionospheres, and upper atmospheres of Earth and other Solar System bodies.
Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto.
Libration Points: Unique points in space, influenced by gravitational forces of neighboring bodies, in which objects with the correct initial location and velocity remain fixed without significant expenditure of propellant. They are also called Lagrange points, after the French mathematician who calculated their existence.
Magnetosphere: A region surrounding a planet, extending out thousands of miles and dominated by the planet’s magnetic field so that charged particles are trapped in it.
Mass-Driver: An electromagnetic accelerating device for propelling solid or liquid material, for example, from Earth’s Moon into space, or for providing propulsion by ejecting raw lunar soil or asteroidal material as reaction mass.
Microgravity: An extremely low level of gravity. As experienced by shuttle crews, for example, one millionth the level of gravity on Earth’s surface.
Orbital Maneuvering Vehicle: A device used much like a “harbor tug” in ship operations, with remotely controlled manipulator arms to handle spacecraft and refueling operations with great care.
Outpost: An initial location to provide shelter for a few people on the Moon or Mars; it may not be permanently occupied.
Robotics: The use of automated machines to replace human effort, although they may not perform functions in a humanlike manner.
SCRAMJET: A supersonic combustion ramjet engine which can operate in the hypersonic region of flight.
Settlement: A permanent community of humans in space, or on the surface of the Moon or Mars with life support, living quarters and work facilities; it will evolve from a base (See Base).
Spaceport: A transportation center in space which acts like an airport on Earth. It provides a transport node where passengers or cargo can switch from one spaceship to another, and a facility where spaceships can be berthed, serviced, and repaired.
that can be remotely operated (See Orbital Maneuvering Vehicle).
which would provide an operator on Earth’s surface or other location with the capability to carryout complex operations in space or on the surface of a planet or moon.
Telescience: Conducting scientific operations in remote locations by tele-operation.
Unpiloted: A spacecraft without human operators.
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" EXCLUSIVE: Documents Reveal Florida Officials Misleading Public About Federal Immigration Database Sought for Use in State Voter Purge "
Florida Gov. Rick Scott (R), his recently appointed Secretary of State Ken Detzner (R), and their surrogates are attempting to deceive the media, the public, and possibly even the federal court system about their state's effort to use a federal immigration database as part of a state program that could result in the purge up to 182,000 registered voters who, the state says, are "potential non-citizens".
A review of public documents and internal emails obtained by The BRAD BLOG on the heels of a federal lawsuit filed against the state last week by the U.S. Department of Justice (DoJ) --- charging that Florida's attempted purge of voter rolls violates federal law --- reveals that claims being repeatedly made by the Florida officials about both the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and DoJ are disingenuous at best.
Admissions made to DHS officials on at least two occasions, by a high-ranking attorney at the FL Dept. of State (FDOS), undermine the public assertions of both Scott and Detzner, who each claim that the federal government is purposely withholding access to a federal immigration database so that it cannot be used for scrubbing illegal voters off the state rolls.
The false allegation that the DHS has "refused" to provide access to the database, so as to prevent the state from lawfully removing illegally registered non-citizen voters, was also repeated in Florida's own federal complaint, which it recently filed against DHS.
In offering this deceptive claim, Scott and Detzner are knowingly inflaming an unsubstantiated conspiratorial scheme that the Obama Administration is working to keep illegal voters on the rolls in order to enhance the President's 2012 election prospects.
Florida's highly flawed purge program began, according to the lawsuit filed by the DoJ [PDF] last week, "in early April" when the FL Division of Elections (DOE) sent "a list of voters identified as potentially ineligible due to lack of citizenship" to the Supervisors of Elections in all 67 of Florida's counties.
On April 23, according to the complaint, the DOE sent the county election officials a PowerPoint presentation entitled "Processing Ineligible Registered Voters-Non-Immigrants." This was followed by a May 9 formal announcement by Detzner's office of a "New Initiative to Remove Non-citizens from Florida's Voter Rolls."
Under the provisions of the National Voter Registration Act (NVRA), however, Detzner's May 9 "new initiative" had to be completed no later than May 16 --- 90 days prior to the next federal election in FL. Yet, on May 16, officials from the FL Dept. of State, the DOE and the Department's Office of General Counsel "presented a training session in the form of a PowerPoint presentation entitled 'List Maintenance Categories and Procedures'" to county election officials at their State Association of Supervisors of Elections annual conference. The presentation described "a workflow overview' diagram for what Florida described as 'Non-US Citizens Project'," according to the DoJ complaint.
The federal NVRA, while requiring states to perform periodic voter list maintenance, bars "any program the purpose of which is to systematically remove the names of ineligible voters from the official lists of eligible voters" within the 90-day period before a federal election. In its federal complaint, the DoJ has sought to enjoin what it describes as a systematic program that Florida is carrying out in violation of the NRVA's 90-day pre-federal election window.
Florida officials, however, including both Scott and Detzner, insist the late start of the attempted purge was forced on them by a DHS "refusal" to allow them access to a federal immigration database, which, they say, is far more accurate and reliable than the records available at the state level for documenting immigrant and citizenship status.
Since its initial roll-out, critics of the purge program have accurately documented how it has, so far, managed to ensnare hundreds, if not thousands of legally registered citizen voters by threatening to remove them from the voter rolls just months before the state holds both its federal primary elections in August and the 2012 Presidential election in November.
In lieu of access to the federal immigration database, Scott and Detzner relied instead upon a FL Dept. of Highway Safety & Motor Vehicle (DHSMV) database to verify citizenship status, even though they knew the DHSMV database was both outdated and deficient, according to both the ACLU and DOJ lawsuits. The DHSMV did not require documentation of citizenship status until the beginning of 2010. Thus, its database may not accurately reflect the proper status for individuals who last obtained a new or renewed driver's license prior to the start of that year.
As explained by U.S. Assistant Attorney General Thomas E. Perez, in his June 11, 2012 letter [PDF] to Detzner, even the federal database in question --- the Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) Program --- does not contain "a comprehensive and definitive listing of U.S. citizens." It can only verify citizenship for naturalized citizens and those born abroad who derived citizenship from U.S. parents. SAVE cannot verify citizenship for individuals born in the U.S.
Thus, even SAVE would have failed to verify citizenship status of natural-born U.S. citizens like Bill Internicola, the 91-year old, Brooklyn-born, decorated WWII hero who would become one of hundreds of long-time registered FL voters to receive notice that he had just 30 days to request an administrative hearing before he faced a process that would remove him entirely from the voting rolls.
SAVE may well provide the best record of immigration and citizenship status available. However, the public claims made by Scott and Detzner that federal officials "stonewalled", "blocked" and "refused access" to FL for a year are simply untrue, according to the emails we've examined from the FL Dept. of State.
"Now, what we tried to get was a very good database, that Homeland Security has called SAVE, that we have a right to use for voter registration," Scott told NPR's Michele Martin during an interview on June 13. "For whatever reason, Homeland Security, for the last year, has decided not to give it to us. So we were put in a position that we had to sue them to get that database."
On June 12, Scott similarly told CNN: "Homeland Security has been stonewalling to give us a database we're entitled to. We've been asking for months. We were put into a position where we had no choice but to sue Homeland Security."
"We want to work with Homeland Security to get it. So we've done all the right things. So we are put in a position, we don't have a choice but to sue them to get the database we're entitled to," he reiterated during the same interview.
"We don't understand why," he insisted. "We've done all the right things. We were put in a position [that] we don't have a choice but to sue them," he repeated yet again during the same CNN interview.
Scott would offer nearly identical responses to Fox's Neal Cavuto during a June 11 interview.
But Scott does "understand why" the state did not receive access to the database. If he doesn't, it's only because he has not been briefed by his own Dept. of State which knew, and agreed, as long ago as last year, as to why they were unable to access SAVE for use with the state's voter registration database.
Days after Scott's PR blitz, on June 19, Sec. of State Detzner, who was appointed by Scott in February of this year, made similar charges in a 5-page letter [PDF] sent to DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano claiming that the late start date of the Florida program was "Because DHS has blocked Florida's access to the SAVE Program."
In his letter --- first sent to us unsolicited by Scott's Communications Director Brian Burgess last week, when notifying us of his objections to our accurate characterization of Scott's responses in the NPR interview --- Detzner averred [emphasis added], "For nearly a year, Florida has been prepared to comply with all of the generally applicable conditions of the SAVE Program. Nonetheless, USCIS [U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services] has been generally non-responsive and has failed to specifically identify any conditions that Florida has not satisfied."
"These delays," Detzner continues to Napolitano, "have significantly prejudiced Florida's ability to fulfill its legal obligation to verify that its voter registration rolls are current and accurate."
But internal documents from an attorney within his own department reveal that Detzner's claim that "Florida has been prepared to comply" with the requirements of the SAVE Program "for nearly a year", is simply untrue.
Burgess' email to us also included an unsubstantiated broadside against what he described as the federal government's "absurd excuse for denying Florida access to the SAVE system". Burgess inferred a sinister conspiracy by describing it as "nothing more than a stall tactic."
The statements made by Scott to NPR, CNN and Fox, along with those offered in the indignant 6/19/12 letter from Detzner to Napolitano, as well as the unsolicited commentary sent to us by Scott's spokesman Burgess, are all belied by the email communications [PDF] between the FDOS --- which is seen both acknowledging and agreeing with DHS' requirements for access to SAVE as long ago as last year --- and officials at DHS.
The email thread details a protracted and unsuccessful effort by FDOS to bypass that which is required of every governmental use of the SAVE Program in order to access its database.
The emails from FDOS Asst. General Counsel Maria Matthews, as reviewed by The BRAD BLOG, buttress the claims made by the DoJ in its own 5-page letter [PDF] sent to Detzner on June 11, alerting the state to the DoJ's intention of filing federal suit in order to halt their "unlawful" and "systematic" voter purge program.
"Your claim that the Department of Justice and the Department of Homeland Security have worked in concert to deny Florida access to the SAVE Program is simply wrong," wrote Asst. Attorney General Thomas E. Perez in his letter, adding [emphasis added]: "The significant problems you are encountering in administering this new program are of your own creation."
The DoJ's lawsuit against Detzner "in his official capacity" was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida (Tallahassee) the very next day, in order "to protect the rights of eligible citizens to vote and to ensure that the State complies with the voter protections enacted by Congress through the NVRA."
Last year, shortly after he was sworn into office following his 2010 election, Gov. Scott asked his then Republican-appointed Sec. of State Kurt Browning how he, Browning, knew that all of the state's 11.2 million registered voters were actually legal U.S. citizens, according to an article by the Miami Herald's Marc Caputo. The article explains the genesis of what has now become a highly politicized public war pitting Florida Republicans against the Obama Administration in a pitched battle over Presidential election year voting rights in the Sunshine State.
The conversation between Scott and Browning reportedly resulted in the creation of a list of 182,000 potential non-citizen registrants culled, in part, from the faulty and incomplete citizenship data retrieved from the state's DHSMV driver's license database.
Browning says he knew the information was faulty. The state Division of Elections then culled the list down to some 25,000 registered voters who might be non-citizens. That number was still "too high for Browning," according to Caputo.
"Browning knew the programmatic, political and legal pitfalls of the noncitizen voter-purge program," Caputo reports in the Miami Herald. "He knew the voter rolls --- like any massive database --- has errors. And comparing the rolls to another database can compound those errors."
"I didn't feel comfortable rolling this initiative out," said Browning, who had served as an election official for nearly 30 years. "Something was telling me this isn't going to fly. We didn't have our I's dotted and T's crossed when I was there."
In January of 2012 Browning announced that he would step down from his position as FL Sec. of State, effective February 12th. Scott appointed Detzner to replace him.
The new Secretary of State failed to display his predecessor's caution.
In his 6/11/12 letter to Detzner [PDF] --- ordering the state to immediately halt their purge program and notifying them that they intended to file suit the next day --- Asst. AG Perez summarized the precise reason why DHS had failed to give access to the SAVE database for use with the Florida Voter Registration list.
From The BRAD BLOG's examination of documents from most of the players involved, Perez' description appears to be accurate.
The reason had nothing to do with a federal conspiracy, and officials at the FDOS know that very well, since they themselveshad agreed long ago with DHS officials that they did not have the information required to access the federal database.
Admissions made in email communications [PDF] between the FL Dept. of State's Assistant General Counsel, Maria Matthews and DHS officials confirm that the federal agency did not "block" Florida's access to SAVE. Rather, access has been impeded by the Sunshine State's own inability to furnish "unique identifiers", such as alien registration numbers or other numerical identifiers found on immigration-related documents, precisely as DoJ and DHS have asserted.
The emails document that --- despite public claims to the contrary by Scott and Detzner --- as early as October of last year, Matthews fully acknowledged Florida's inability to supply DHS with the documentation required for all governmental agencies seeking access to the federal database.
In his 6/12/12 letter to Detzner [PDF], Alejandro N. Mayorkas, the Director of USCIS, the division of DHS responsible for maintaining the SAVE Program, noted that his department explained to FDOS "as early as October 2011, the SAVE Program can verify naturalized and derived U.S. citizens and the status of non-citizens only if unique identifiers, such as alien registration numbers or certificate numbers found on immigration-related documents are provided."
Underscoring Mayorkas' claim this month, a 2009 DHS video, published before Scott even became Governor, reveals that this requirement is not something DHS simply invented in order to thwart Florida's access for use with voting records in 2011. The 2009 video explains how access to the SAVE system works: [emphasis added]: "Using the system, an agency representative will enter the applicant's information such as the alien registration number or other numeric identifier…In some cases the agency may need to submit copies of the applicant's immigration documents."
The state of Florida knew all of this, despite their public claims now to the contrary.
Eight months ago, in an October 24, 2011 email to DHS, Matthews confirmed that FDOS was "told that any programmatic match requires the alien registration or resident number."
She goes on to concede, in the same email, in a statement directly contradicting numerous public assertions made by Detzner, Scott and their surrogates [emphasis added]: "This is a significant obstacle as the State of Florida does not collect and is not authorized to ask an applicant for proof of his or her legal status in the U.S."
In that same 10/24/11 email, after conceding that the FDOS Voter Registration database did not include numerical "unique" identifiers that must be provided in order to access SAVE, Matthews details her hopes of bypassing the "unique identifiers" requirement. She inquired as to whether alternative data fields might be used to cross-check with SAVE for accurate citizenship status --- such as "date of birth, Florida driver's license number...last 4 digits of social security number, gender, address" --- in lieu of the required "unique identifiers".
But, as evidenced by DHS' email response at the time, and again this month in both Asst. AG Perez' 6/11/12 letter and Mayorkas' 6/12/12 letter, DHS has consistently maintained, just as explained in the 2009 video, that user supplied "unique identifiers" such as alien registration numbers --- numbers which Matthews admitted are not collected by the FDOS --- are required to access SAVE.
On Monday, March 5, 2012, some five months after initially conceding her department did not have access to the required "unique identifiers", Matthews checked in again by email with DHS official Howard Roth to see if the agency had any new updates on the matter. She also notified Roth that she'd be meeting with the new Sec. of State on Wednesday.
The following day, March 6, Roth replied to Matthews on behalf of the DHS, reiterating that little had changed. The agency still required a unique numerical identifier in order to use accurately and properly use the SAVE database for cross-checking citizenship status of registered Florida voters --- just as Matthews had acknowledged the state could not do a full five months earlier.
"As we discussed," Roth explained in his March 6 response, "we will need an 'A number' [alien registration number] and Natz [Naturalization] Certificate number before we can verify a status in SAVE."
Matthews replied in turn just over an hour later on March 6, claiming, for the very first time in the months long email thread, that the state's DHSMV database does, in fact, employ some numerical immigration information, as the DHS had been requesting from the state for months. She asserted that the state would be able to cross-check voter files with DHSMV records and then use the numerical alien registration numbers from those records, where they exist, to cross-check the files with SAVE.
On Thursday, March 8, two days later, the day after she had been scheduled to meet with her new boss Detzner, she stated directly to Roth: "I don't recall if I had said that we would be able to get the alien registration number or admissions numbers as made available for our Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles."
That week is the first known documented instance of FDOS informing DHS officials that they might be able to get access to at least some of the information required to access SAVE. As it turned out, the DHMSV had already been accessing the federal database as part of its own driver's license program as of January 2010, according to another lawsuit against Florida's voter purge filed by the ACLU earlier this month.
Two months later, on May 17, the day after any such systematic purge of voter registration files in the state of Florida would have been lawful, as per the NVRA, during the 2012 election cycle, Boyd Walden, DHMSV's Director of Motorist Services was reported by The Palm Beach Post as announcing his agency would finally begin checking a list of 180,000 potential non-citizens through the SAVE database "within the next few weeks."
"We are gearing up to get it done. That's the plan," he is quoted as saying on the day after NVRA's legal deadline had passed.
"It's disappointing," FDOS Communications Director Chris Cate said in the same article, that "DHS will not give us direct access to their database but we are very grateful for our state partners at highway safety who understand the importance of having accurate voter rolls."
Of course, by then, Cate most likely knew exactly why DHS had not granted FDOS access to SAVE. The Asst. General Counsel in his office certainly knew. If Cate did know, he didn't bother to tell the Palm Beach Post.
The remarks would foreshadow what has now become a consistent pattern of misrepresentation and misinformation offered to the media by high-ranking Florida officials.
Sec. of State Detzner, Gov. Scott, their Communications Directors, and other Republican surrogates in the media have gone on the offensive, charging that it is DHS, on behalf of the Obama Administration, which is purposely restricting the state from accessing the SAVE database for nefarious reasons.
Sometimes the charges being made are by inference, as in Scott's use of "for whatever reason" twice during his recent NPR interview. At other times, they advance a twisted conspiratorial claim that the DHS and DoJ have acted in concert to prevent non-citizens from being removed from the eligible voter rolls in order to insure the re-election of President Barack Obama.
For example, in his 6/6/12 letter [PDF] to the DoJ, Detzner alleged darkly (and misleadingly), "for nine months, [the DHS] repeatedly blocked Florida's access to the database."
He responded to the charge that his state was violating the NVRA's 90-day pre-election quiet period by charging in turn that "Florida has entered that period only because DHS has repeatedly ignored or rebuffed Florida's efforts to gain access to the SAVE database."
On the very same day that Detzner sent the missive to the DoJ, Rep. Thomas J. Rooney (R-FL-16), a GOP Deputy Whip in the U.S. House of Representatives, would blatantly declare in an angry letter to U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder that the entire matter was part of a federal conspiracy to help Obama win re-election through voter fraud in the Sunshine State.
"Your actions further demonstrate that the Department of Justice, under your leadership, is more concerned with protecting the reelection prospects of the President than with upholding justice and the rule of law," the Congressman railed at the DoJ's threat of a lawsuit which, Rooney claimed, would block the state from "exposing as many as 182,000 registered voters as non-citizens."
"While your department should be working with Florida to stop voter fraud, you are instead actively working to keep noncitizens --- who have committed a felony --- on our state's voter rolls," charged Rooney. "It is time for you to end your blatant politicization of your position as Attorney General and the Department of Justice as a whole."
The inter-agency emails from the Florida Dept. of State demonstrate, however, that it is not the DoJ, but rather Scott, Detzner and their surrogates like Rooney who have 'blatantly politicized' their positions.
On June 12, 2012, just days before the DoJ filed their lawsuit in an attempt to stop the unlawful purge, the state of Florida filed its own pre-emptive, federal complaint, ostensibly seeking an order compelling DHS to provide FDOS with immediate access to SAVE.
Disturbingly, although the revelatory emails by Matthews are appended to their legal filing, the body of the complaint, which erroneously alleges that DHS "refused" FDOS access to SAVE, never so much as mentions the real reasons they were unable to access the database. There is no mention of Matthews' email acknowledgments at the Florida Dept. of State, eight months earlier, of those real reasons.
Indeed, one would never know from reading the body of the Sunshine State's 17-page federal complaint that Florida's admitted inability to furnish the "unique identifiers" is why FDOS was unable to access SAVE over the past year.
Thus, while Florida officials have been misleading the public in their media campaign, it appears they have also submitted a deceptive legal filing in a court of law.
In the meantime, both Republican and Democratic Supervisors of Elections in all but three of the state's 67 counties have halted the voter purge in their own counties, after discovering too many legal citizen voters listed among the "potential non-citizens" list approved for use by Detzner after his predecessor Browning "didn't feel comfortable" doing so.
"I would not have sent the list to the counties," Browning told the Miami Herald bluntly.
Ion Sancho, Supervisor of Elections in Leon County (Tallahassee), told us during a recent interview that Supervisors in only three, largely Republican, counties --- Lee, Collier and Bay --- have refused to stop purging their voter lists based on the faulty "non-citizens" lists supplied by Detzner.
Sancho, a longtime Florida election official --- so well-respected by both parties that he was named to oversee the eventually aborted statewide Presidential Recount in 2000 --- told us that he saw the purge efforts by Florida officials as both "shameful" and "un-American".
The effort by those same officials to deceive the media, the public, and perhaps even the courts, might be similarly described.
On June 12, the same day the DoJ filed suit against the state of Florida, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Director Mayorkas sent his letter to Detzner [PDF], reiterating the agency's "willingness to work with Florida regarding possible SAVE Program participation, provided Florida is able to do so consistent with the SAVE Program's mandates and the conditions USCIS has lawfully placed on all SAVE Program participants."
"To date," he asserted again, "Florida has failed to do so."
He then seems to respond to the unsubstantiated charge that the Obama administration is denying access in hopes of allowing non-citizens to remain on the rolls in order to cast illegal votes in the 2012 Presidential election, as Congressman Rooney directly asserted.
"Other state governments have been able to comply with the SAVE Program's mandates and are accessing the SAVE Program for a wide variety of benefit programs," Mayorkas writes. "Five counties in the State of Arizona do so for the purpose of verifying the eligibility of individuals registered to vote. We look forward to continuing to work with Florida on its inquiries regarding its access to the SAVE Program as well."
UPDATE 6/27/12: For a step-by-step timeline, and links to documentation for all of the above, please see our newly posted "TIMELINE: FLORIDA'S 'POTENTIAL NON-CITIZENS' VOTER PURGE, 2011-2012".
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"EXCLUSIVE: Documents Reveal Florida Officials Misleading Public About Federal Immigration Database Sought for Use in State Voter Purge"
Don't worry folks, nothing here to see. The voting machines have been "fixed", SCOTUS is primed and ready to make a decision. This is just another try at guaranteeing a corrupted election.
I am a media junkie. Just like to watch 'em to see how much real news is getting through. The past 12 years, there has been more and more closing of important venues and news.
I see an opening now. Maybe some people can't continue to believe their lying eyes. Who knows. But democratic underground is having a breakthrough. There are a lot of comments there that show a good understanding of election theft. Certainly more than I know.
I am censored for life. But if anyone who reads this blog is new to the "progressive" blogs" , this is a good time to get Brad and Ernest's information out to others who care.
Oh, the thing that the "progressive" blogs have found objectionable is that it is the system that is deficient, not one man or one party.
It is so easy to get upset and point fingers at one person or one party, but when you address the system that allows voter fraud to continue year after year, the censors do their job. So, I guess you can get the truth out without riling them if you have impulse control...write totalitarian instead of fascist.
Molly is spot-on, please do share what Brad, Ernest, and others post here. He was telling this story before it was even allowed at a certain orange place.
atrios flamed me off his board when I dared question 2004 --- he wanted to just proclaim "get over it!"
Its not hard to prove election fraud there (and Brad fully-covered, lots of posts, but I don't have links handy).
Not only can it be demonstrated that OH was stolen, but a man suddenly died that was KKKarl Roves computer program (airplane accident you know).
Very serious, scary stuff and dems are not willing to talk about it in meaningful way.
Did We See the Republican Playbook for 2012? STEAL the November Election?!?!
What is the purpose of an exit poll? Was this data abused to mislead? | 2019-04-19T12:44:03Z | http://www.bradblog.com/?p=9372 |
Ron Rainey, Richard Haynes, Houston, Tex., for defendant-appellant.
Kathlyn G. Snyder, Paula C. Offenhauser, Asst. U.S. Attys., Henry K. Oncken, U.S. Atty., Houston, Tex., for plaintiff-appellee.
Before POLITZ, WILLIAMS, and JONES, Circuit Judges.
Defendant-Appellant Jose Alvaro Gallo was convicted of conspiring to possess with intent to distribute in excess of five kilograms of cocaine, aiding and abetting the possession of in excess of five kilograms of cocaine with intent to distribute, and aiding and abetting the laundering of monetary instruments. On appeal, Gallo challenges the warrantless stop and search of his car, the sufficiency of the evidence, and the district court's refusal to group his offenses under U.S.S.G. Sec. 3D1.2. Finding no reversible error, we affirm the judgment of the district court.
Gallo was arrested on January 12, 1990, following the Drug Enforcement Administration's (DEA) surveillance of Miryam Balcazar and Jose Antonio Cruz.1 On January 12, 1990, DEA agents observed the activities of Cruz and Balcazar until they met at a skating rink in Kingwood, Texas. At the skating rink, Cruz parked his car, a silver Honda, next to Balcazar's blue Oldsmobile. The DEA agents then observed Balcazar and Cruz conversing outside the cars. When Balcazar and Cruz left the skating rink parking lot, DEA agent Turner followed Cruz to a gas station where Cruz made a telephone call. About two minutes later Gallo entered the gas station, driving a brown Mazda RX7, and parked near Cruz's car. After a short meeting at the gas station, Cruz and Gallo drove to a nearby auto shop. At the auto shop, Cruz and Gallo parked their cars within five to eight feet of each other. They then exited their cars and after a brief conversation, Cruz removed a brown box from the back of his car and placed it in the rear of Gallo's car. After this transfer, both Cruz and Gallo exited the parking lot and headed in opposite directions on the freeway. Agent Turner followed Gallo and attempted to read the car's rear license plate to determine its ownership. The license plate was covered with mud and was unreadable, therefore, Turner sought assistance from the Harris County Sheriff's Office and the Houston Police Department (HPD).
Houston police officer, J.R. Knott, received a dispatch from the DEA requesting a marked patrol car to check the license plate on a car that was currently being followed by a Harris County deputy sheriff. Officer Knott observed a Harris County Sheriff's car, with its emergency lights flashing, following a brown Mazda at a high rate of speed. Knott observed that the Mazda continued for several blocks without responding to the Sheriff's unit. Knott then pulled alongside the Mazda and signaled for the driver, whom he identified as Gallo, to pull over. After Knott had stopped Gallo he discovered that Gallo's driver's license was suspended. Knott placed Gallo under arrest for driving with a suspended driver's license.
After deciding to impound Gallo's car, Knott inventoried the contents of the car pursuant to HPD procedure. The only item in the car was a closed cardboard box, which was in the rear hatchback area of the car. Knott listed one cardboard box on his inventory slip. Generally, the HPD automobile inventory procedure requires an officer to list items found inside the vehicle. If, however, there are circumstances that indicate that valuable or dangerous items may be hidden in a container inside the car, then these containers may also be inventoried. Officer Knott testified that he had listed "one cardboard box" on the wrecker slip when someone suggested that he look inside the closed box. Knott decided to look in the box to determine if it contained something of value. When Knott opened the box he saw that it contained thin packets wrapped in aluminum foil. Knott did not inventory the contents of the box and did not investigate the contents of the aluminum-foil packets. After Knott completed his inventory of the car, the officers at the scene decided to drive the car to the police substation rather than have it towed to a storage lot. At the police substation, DEA agents searched the box and discovered $299,985 in United States currency wrapped in the aluminum-foil packets. Balcazar's fingerprints were later discovered on the aluminum-foil wrappings on the currency. Gallo told DEA agents that he did not know how the box got inside the car, and that someone else had put the box in the car.
Balcazar and Cruz were also arrested on January 12, 1990. When DEA agents arrested Balcazar they found a cardboard box, similar to the box in Gallo's car, that contained $300,000 in United States currency wrapped in aluminum-foil packets. The agents then obtained a search warrant and searched Balcazar's home where they found $1,240,810 in cash, part of which was wrapped in aluminum foil and placed in a brown suitcase and in a cardboard box. The agents also discovered a money counting machine. After Cruz was arrested, agents obtained a search warrant for his home where they discovered fifty kilograms of cocaine.
Gallo was tried by the district court, which denied Gallo's motion to suppress the $299,985 discovered in the box in his car and found Gallo guilty on all three counts.
A. The Stop of Gallo's Car.
Gallo first contends that the police violated his rights under the fourth amendment by stopping his car to conduct an investigative search. The DEA agents and Houston police officers involved in this stop and arrest testified that they stopped Gallo because they believed that he had engaged in a narcotics transaction and because his rear license plate was obstructed with mud. Officer Knott also observed Gallo speeding and failing to respond to the Harris County Deputy Sheriff's emergency signal. Based on these traffic violations, Officer Knott had the right to stop Gallo. This court has held that "where police officers are doing what they are legally authorized to do ... the results of their investigations are not to be called into question on the basis of any subjective intent with which they acted." United States v. Causey, 834 F.2d 1179, 1184 (5th Cir.1987) (en banc). Therefore, even if the officers wished to stop Gallo to further their narcotics investigation, they did not violate Gallo's fourth amendment rights because Gallo's traffic violations provided a legitimate reason for his stop and subsequent arrest. "[S]o long as the police do no more than they are objectively permitted to do, their motives in doing so are irrelevant and hence not subject to inquiry." Id.
B. The Search of the Box.
Gallo next contends that the warrantless search of the box found in his car violated the fourth amendment. Apparently, Gallo is arguing that the district court erred by not suppressing the evidence discovered in this search. The Government contends that this search was justified as an inventory search or search incident to arrest. The district court found that this was a valid inventory search that conformed to the HPD's inventory procedures. In reviewing the district court's ruling on a motion to suppress based on live testimony at a suppression hearing, we must accept the district court's factual findings unless they are clearly erroneous or influenced by an incorrect view of the law. United States v. Muniz-Melchor, 894 F.2d 1430, 1433 (5th Cir.), cert. denied, --- U.S. ----, 110 S.Ct. 1957, 109 L.Ed.2d 319 (1990) (quoting United States v. Maldonado, 735 F.2d 809, 814 (5th Cir.1984)). Therefore, we must accept the district court's finding that the HPD inventory procedure allowed HPD to open the box to check for valuable or dangerous items. However, we must apply a de novo standard of review to determine whether this was a valid inventory search. Id.
When a car is impounded, the police generally inventory its contents to protect the owner's property while it is in police custody, to protect the police against claims of lost or stolen property, and to protect the police and the public from potential danger. South Dakota v. Opperman, 428 U.S. 364, 369, 96 S.Ct. 3092, 3097, 49 L.Ed.2d 1000 (1976). However, to prevent the police from conducting inventory searches as a ruse for general rummaging to discover incriminating evidence, standardized criteria or established routine must regulate the opening of containers found during inventory searches. Florida v. Wells, --- U.S. ----, 110 S.Ct. 1632, 1635, 109 L.Ed.2d 1 (1990). The police department's inventory procedures can allow an officer "latitude to determine whether a particular container should or should not be opened in light of the nature of the search and characteristics of the container itself." Id. If there is no showing that the police acted in bad faith, or for the sole purpose of investigation, evidence discovered during an inventory search is admissible. Colorado v. Bertine, 479 U.S. 367, 372, 107 S.Ct. 738, 741, 93 L.Ed.2d 739 (1987).
In this case, Officer Knott testified that he began an inventory search of Gallo's car, following HPD's standard procedures. Gallo argues that Knott violated those inventory procedures when he opened the box at the suggestion of an unidentified officer. Knott stated that he opened the box because he could not tell what it contained, and because HPD procedures required that he make a list of everything in an impounded car. Gallo argues that the search of the box was an "investigative foray" because Knott did not list the contents of the box on the inventory wrecker sheet. Knott testified, however, that after he opened the box and found the thin aluminum-foil packets, he turned the box and the car over to an officer from the HPD northeast substation, and that officer drove the car and the box to the substation to continue the inventory and impound the car. At the substation DEA agents searched the box. Agent Boyce, who supervised this second search, testified that he followed the box to the substation to observe HPD's inventory search of its contents. After the currency was discovered in the box, the HPD turned the box and its contents over to the DEA.
Because we hold that the HPD and the DEA conducted valid inventory searches of the box, we need not decide if this was a valid search incident to arrest.
Gallo challenges the sufficiency of the evidence to sustain his convictions for conspiracy to possess cocaine with intent to distribute, and for aiding and abetting the possession of cocaine with intent to distribute. In reviewing the sufficiency of the evidence, this court must examine the evidence in the light most favorable to the verdict and uphold the conviction " 'if a rational trier of fact could have found the essential elements of the offense beyond a reasonable doubt.' " United States v. Rodriguez-Mireles, 896 F.2d 890, 892 (5th Cir.1990) (quoting United States v. Ayala, 887 F.2d 62, 67 (5th Cir.1989)). Further, this court accepts all credibility choices that tend to support the jury's verdict. United States v. Yamin, 868 F.2d 130, 133 (5th Cir.), cert. denied, --- U.S. ----, 109 S.Ct. 3258, 106 L.Ed.2d 603 (1989).
To establish a drug conspiracy, the government must prove: (1) the existence of an agreement between two or more persons to violate federal narcotics laws; (2) that the defendant knew of the agreement; and, (3) that the defendant voluntarily participated in the agreement. United States v. Magee, 821 F.2d 234, 239 (5th Cir.1987) (citing United States v. Natel, 812 F.2d 937, 940 (5th Cir.1987)). The Government is not required to prove the existence of the conspiracy and the agreement between the co-conspirators and the defendant by direct evidence, but may present circumstantial evidence, such as the co-conspirator's concerted actions, from which the jury can infer that a conspiracy existed. Id. (citing United States v. Vergara, 687 F.2d 57, 61 (5th Cir.1982)). The existence of the agreement, the defendant's knowledge of the agreement, and the defendant's participation in the conspiracy may be inferred from the " 'development and collocation of circumstances.' " United States v. Lentz, 823 F.2d 867, 868 (5th Cir.), cert. denied, 484 U.S. 957, 108 S.Ct. 354, 98 L.Ed.2d 380 (1987) (quoting Vergara, 687 F.2d at 61). "Although mere presence at the scene of the crime or close association with co-conspirators will not alone support an inference of participation in a conspiracy, presence or association is one factor that the jury may rely on, along with other evidence, in finding conspiratorial activity by a defendant." Magee, 821 F.2d at 239 (citing Natel, 812 F.2d at 940-41).
Gallo argues that the evidence is insufficient to establish that he knew the conspiracy existed and intentionally participated in it. Gallo also argues that there was insufficient evidence to establish that he knew the contents of the box recovered from his car. The Government responds that Gallo's participation in the conspiracy was established by circumstances showing a concert of action among Gallo, Balcazar, and Cruz. First, Cruz and Gallo met in a public place shortly after Cruz placed a call from a public telephone. Drug traffickers commonly arrange meetings following these procedures. Next, Gallo and Cruz drove to a nearby location where they conversed briefly, then simultaneously opened the rear doors of their cars and exchanged the box containing the currency. Gallo accepted the box from Cruz and it was later determined that Balcazar's fingerprints were on the aluminum-foil packets of money in the box. A large sum of money and a ledger were inside the box. The box that Gallo received was similar in appearance to a box containing $300,000 in currency, also wrapped in aluminum-foil packets, that Cruz transferred to Balcazar in exchange for over twenty-five pounds of cocaine. From these circumstances, the jury could reasonably infer that a conspiracy existed among Gallo, Cruz, and Balcazar. Along with the evidence showing the large quantity of money and the money counting machine recovered from Balcazar's residence, and the large quantity of cocaine recovered from Cruz's residence the jury could reasonably infer that the object of the conspiracy was the possession and distribution of narcotics for profit.
To infer Gallo's awareness of the nature of the conspiracy and his participation in it, the jury was entitled to consider the concerted action of Gallo, Balcazar, and Cruz, and the development of the circumstances. The Government established Gallo's knowledge of the contents of the box recovered from his car by reasonable inferences drawn from his control over the box and his inconsistent statements disclaiming knowledge of how the box got into his car. See United States v. Martinez-Mercado, 888 F.2d 1484, 1491 (5th Cir.1989) (inconsistency in explanations allows for an inference of guilty knowledge). Therefore, the jury could reasonably conclude from the evidence that Gallo knew that he was transporting approximately $300,000 that was separated in aluminum-foil packets, and a ledger sheet.
conduct consisting only of involvement in a single transaction may nevertheless be treated as rationally permitting the inference of knowledge of the broader conspiracy when the single act itself shows so much familiarity with or high level participation in the overall conspiracy as to be in and of itself indicative of the broader conspiracy.
United States v. Hawkins, 661 F.2d 436, 454 (5th Cir. Unit B 1981), cert. denied, sub nom. McCain v. United States, 456 U.S. 991, 102 S.Ct. 2274, 73 L.Ed.2d 1287 (1982) (quoting United States v. Torres, 503 F.2d 1120, 1124 (2d Cir.1974)). In this case, the evidence that Gallo was solely entrusted with a large portion of the proceeds of the drug trafficking enterprise establishes his familiarity with, or high level participation in, that enterprise. Therefore, the jury could reasonably conclude that such evidence established his knowledge of the broader conspiracy. Viewing these circumstances cumulatively, in the light most favorable to the verdict, there is sufficient evidence to support Gallo's conviction for conspiracy to possess cocaine with the intent to distribute.
To convict a defendant of possession of cocaine with the intent to distribute under 21 U.S.C. Sec. 841(a)(1), the Government must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant (1) knowingly (2) possessed cocaine (3) with intent to distribute it. United States v. Richardson, 848 F.2d 509, 511 (5th Cir.1988). The proof that the defendant knowingly possesses contraband will usually depend on inference and circumstantial evidence. Id. at 514. However, when the evidence is sufficient to establish the defendant's participation in a conspiracy to possess illegal narcotics, the defendant will be deemed to possess narcotics through his co-conspirator's possession. United States v. Medina, 887 F.2d 528, 532 (5th Cir.1989) (citations omitted).
To convict a defendant of aiding and abetting under 18 U.S.C. Sec. 2, the Government must prove (1) that the defendant associated with the criminal venture, (2) participated in the venture, and (3) sought by action to make the venture succeed. Medina, 887 F.2d at 532. The defendant must share the principal's criminal intent and engage in some affirmative conduct designed to aid the venture. Id. The evidence that supports a conviction for conspiracy can also be used to support a conviction for aiding and abetting in the possession of illegal narcotics with intent to distribute. United States v. Sandoval, 847 F.2d 179, 184 (5th Cir.1988). The same evidence that establishes Gallo's knowing and voluntary participation in the conspiracy also establishes his association with the criminal venture and participation in it. Because the evidence is sufficient to support Gallo's conspiracy conviction, and Gallo is deemed to have possessed cocaine through his co-conspirator's possession, we conclude that the evidence was sufficient to support his conviction for aiding and abetting the possession of cocaine with the intent to distribute.
Gallo next challenges the sufficiency of the evidence to sustain his money laundering conviction. Gallo was convicted of aiding and abetting money laundering in violation of 18 U.S.C. Sec. 1956(a)(1), which prohibits knowing involvement in a financial transaction that uses the proceeds of some form of unlawful activity. The term "transaction" includes the "transfer, delivery or other disposition" of these proceeds. 18 U.S.C. Sec. 1956(c)(3). "Financial transaction" means the "movement of funds by wire or other means ... which in any way or degree affects interstate of foreign commerce." 18 U.S.C. Sec. 1956(c)(4).
Gallo was arrested while transporting $299,985 in his car on an interstate highway. To establish that Gallo knew that the money in his car was the proceeds of narcotics trafficking, the Government introduced evidence that Gallo received the box containing the money from Cruz, a suspected narcotics trafficker who had been under DEA surveillance for several months. Cruz transferred the box to Gallo shortly after making a call from a public phone, a common method for setting up meetings among drug dealers. The box in Gallo's car contained $299,895 in counted money, wrapped in aluminum-foil packets. The DEA found the fingerprints of Balcazar, another known drug dealer who had been under continuing DEA surveillance, on the packets in the box. After he was arrested, Gallo made two false exculpatory statements about the car and the box.
Additionally, the Government established that on the same day that Cruz engaged in this transaction with Gallo, he transferred $300,000, wrapped in aluminum-foil and placed in a cardboard box, to Balcazar in exchange for twenty-five kilograms of cocaine. The transfer between Cruz and Balcazar was very similar to the transfer between Cruz and Gallo. After searching Balcazar's house, the DEA discovered $1,240,810 and a money counting machine. After searching Cruz's house, the DEA discovered fifty kilograms of cocaine.
Based on the concert of action among Gallo, Cruz, and Balcazar, and Gallo's false statements, we conclude that the jury could reasonably infer that Gallo knew that he was transporting the proceeds of unlawful activity.
21 U.S.C. Secs. 801(3)(A), (B), & (C), and 801(4). The Congressional intent of this chapter is clear; drug trafficking affects interstate commerce. The proceeds of drug trafficking have a similar effect. Therefore, reserving judgment on a case in which the connection between the money and the drugs or illegal activity is not so clear as it is here, we conclude that Gallo's transportation of the proceeds of drug trafficking affected interstate commerce, and that there is sufficient evidence to sustain his money laundering conviction.
Finally, Gallo contends that the district court erred in refusing to group counts 1 and 2 (drug offenses) with count 3 (money laundering) as closely-related offenses under Sentencing Guidelines Sec. 3D1.2. If a defendant's offenses are grouped together, the most serious offense determines his base offense level. If the defendant's offenses are not grouped, the district court determines the combined offense level for two separate offenses. United States v. Pope, 871 F.2d 506, 509 (5th Cir.1989) (citing U.S.S.G. Sec. 3D1.4). The district court held that money laundering was "a separate offense within the meaning of the guidelines" and refused to group Gallo's offenses.
Section 3D1.2(d) divides offenses into three categories: those to which the section specifically applies; those to which it specifically does not apply; and those for which grouping may be appropriate on a case-by-case basis. Pope, 871 F.2d at 509. Gallo's offenses fall within this third category because not all of his offenses are specifically included or specifically excluded under Sec. 3D1.2(d). The offense level determination for offenses in this third category is "in some parts legal rather than factual, and so is not shielded by the clearly erroneous standard. The determination does, however, depend on factual and case-specific conclusions. A reviewing court must therefore give 'due deference' to the district court, and respect the informed judgments made by that court." Id.
Gallo argues that the district court should have grouped count 3 with counts 1 and 2 because all three counts involved the same act or transaction and the same victim. Gallo argues that he committed "victimless crimes" in which society at large is the victim, and therefore his crimes affected only one victim. The guidelines, however, provide that "for 'victimless crimes' (crimes in which society at large is the victim), the grouping decision must be based primarily upon the nature of the interest invaded by each offense." U.S.S.G. Sec. 3D1.2, Application Note 2. See also Pope, 871 F.2d at 510 (upholding district court's finding that two distinct harms and different societal interests were implicated by the separate offenses of possession of an unregistered silencer and the unlawful possession of a pistol by a felon). The Government argues that the drug-related offenses and the money laundering offense invade distinct societal interests; the distribution of illegal drugs affects the drug user and the community by increasing lawlessness and violence, money laundering disperses capital from lawfully operating economic institutions to criminals in and out of the country.
We conclude that the warrantless stop of Gallo's car was authorized by his traffic violations, and the search of the box found in Gallo's car was a valid inventory search. Therefore, the district court did not err by admitting the evidence discovered in the stop and search. Further, sufficient evidence sustains Gallo's convictions, and the district court did not err by refusing to group Gallo's drug-related offenses with his money laundering offense under the sentencing guidelines. We AFFIRM the judgment of the district court.
... there is no evidence that the IRS agents were aware of the Midland police procedures (or any other) when conducting the search, or that they conducted the search on behalf of, or even with the knowledge of, the Midland police (none of whom were present). Nor is there any evidence that the Midland police procedure governed or purported to govern inventory searches by federal officials in an instance such as this (or in any other instance).
... under the circumstances here, it could also be said with at least equal logic that the existence of the Midland police policy was wholly irrelevant to the instant search, as that policy neither applied nor purported to apply to this search, and the IRS agents conducting the search did not know of the policy and were not (and did not consider that they were) acting on behalf of the Midland police, who knew nothing of the search.
Id. This language, by negative implication, supports our holding that the search of the box found in Gallo's car was a valid inventory search that conformed to HPD procedures, even though DEA agents conducted the search. In this case, the DEA was acting on behalf of, and with the knowledge of, the HPD. | 2019-04-25T08:08:20Z | https://openjurist.org/927/f2d/815 |
There are 34 memory care facilities in EL DORADO County, California. The facilities provide care to senior citizens living in EL DORADO County throughout all stages of dementia and Alzheimer's disease. These facilities include EL DORADO County dementia care homes, as well as Alzheimer's care facilities in EL DORADO County, CA with cost that varies in each facility.
Oak Grove Senior Care specializes in dementia care in El Dorado Hills, California. It can house a maximum of 6 older adults at a time. With a location at 2920 Tam O'shanter Drive, in the 95762 zip code in El Dorado county, Oak Grove Senior Care aids those dementia sufferers who need help with daily living activities. Oak Grove Senior Care is licensed by California to provide memory care assisted living services, with license number 97001962. Some of the services offered by Oak Grove Senior Care are medication monitoring, tranquil and secure outdoor areas and individual meal planning.
Compassionate Senior Care Iii specializes in providing memory care in El Dorado county, California. At its full capacity, it can provide studio and 1-bedrooom apartments to no more than 6 elderly residents. Compassionate Senior Care Iii is pet-friendly and can provide assistance with moving around and getting in and out of bed to any seniors with dementia living in El Dorado Hills, CA and surrounding areas. Compassionate Senior Care Iii is located at 4075 Arenzano Way, 95762 zip code and may accept Medicaid and Medicare.
When trying to find Alzheimer’s care facilities in El Dorado Hills, California, you will find Serrano Manor as an excellent luxury memory care option that is located at 3618 Archetto Drive in the 95762 zip code area. It has a total capacity of 6 dementia care units and provides services such as transportation services to doctor appointments and encouraged family participation. Its license number is 97005648. Serrano Manor provides dementia care services not only to El Dorado Hills residents, but also to all El Dorado county residents as well.
If you need help with everyday tasks, Whispering Pine Ii can help you or your loved one to find memory care assisted living in El Dorado Hills, California. Whispering Pine Ii has a maximum capacity of 6 dementia sufferers and includes amenities that include special colors to aid with memory and Alzheimer’s-oriented activities. Whispering Pine Ii is licensed with California and its license number is 97005726.
Elite Elder Care is a new memory care center that has capacity of 6 seniors with dementia and offers services such as memory games and other activities and high caregiver to resident ratio. It is located at 2041 Bates Circle, and it is properly equipped to provide Alzheimer's care to El Dorado Hills, CA seniors with dementia. Elite Elder Care is licensed with California and its license number is 97003738.
Located at 4301 Golden Center Dr. , inside 95667 zip code area in El Dorado county, Gold Country Health Center provides dementia care to Placerville, CA seniors and provides amenities such as assuring proper meal intake and anytime toileting help. Gold Country Health Center can provide care to no more than 46 senior citizens at a time. Gold Country Health Center has official license # of 90317665.
Situated at 2906 Tam O'shanter Drive, El Dorado Hills, California, 95762, Oak Haven Senior Care can help any El Dorado county older adult with activities of daily living and provides amenities that include aided morning and evening dressing and a homey design that facilitates friendships. Oak Haven Senior Care can provide dementia and Alzheimer’s care to a maximum of 5 seniors at once. Its license number is 97001635.
Seniors looking for dementia and Alzheimer’s care in El Dorado Hills, California will find Oakridge Senior Care, situated at 2896 Centerbury Circle inside 95762 zip code as a great option for all of their memory care needs. Oakridge Senior Care can accommodate up to 6 older adults with dementia and allows seniors to stay with pets. California records indicate that Oakridge Senior Care has a license # of 97005555.
With a location at 1666 Downieville Court in El Dorado county, Whispering Pine excels at providing memory care services for older adults with dementia in El Dorado Hills, CA as well as those who live in surrounding areas. Whispering Pine includes services such as emergency system with constant monitoring and registered nurses that specialize in dementia care. Whispering Pine is capable of looking after a maximum of 6 El Dorado Hills older adults with dementia and provides several levels of care. Whispering Pine has an official license to provide memory care for El Dorado, CA senior citizens, with license # 97002879.
Lakefront Oaks Estate, situated at 2272 Stagecoach Road offers Alzheimer’s care services in Placerville, California and offers services such as caregiving staff trained specifically for dementia and monitoring of weight gain and loss. Lakefront Oaks Estate is equipped to assist up to 6 seniors with dementia or Alzheimer’s from 95667 zip code in El Dorado county and nearby areas. Lakefront Oaks Estate is licensed to provide Alzheimer’s care in Placerville, California, with license # 97004467.
Apple Country Care Home # 2 enables seniors to receive dementia care in El Dorado, California. It can house a maximum of 6 older adults at a time. With a location at 6245 El Dorado Street, in the 95623 zip code in El Dorado county, Apple Country Care Home # 2 provides assistance to those older adults who need help with daily living tasks. Apple Country Care Home # 2 is licensed by California to provide memory care assisted living services, with license number 97001145. Some of the amenities provided by Apple Country Care Home # 2 include medication monitoring, secure indoor and outdoor wandering areas and individual meal planning.
Oak Hill Senior Care specializes in providing memory care in El Dorado county, California. At its full capacity, it can provide one bedroom suites and studios to a maximum of 6 older adults. Oak Hill Senior Care accepts pets and can provide help with bathing, dressing and transferring to any seniors with dementia living in El Dorado Hills, CA and surrounding areas. Oak Hill Senior Care is located at 2910 Tam O'shanter Drive, 95762 zip code and may accept Medicaid and Medicare.
When trying to find memory care facilities in Cameron Park, California, you will find Ponte Palmero as an excellent upscale memory care option that is located at 3083 Ponte Morino Drive in the 95682 zip code area. It has a maximum capacity of 250 memory care units and provides services such as enhanced medical monitoring and care focused on residents’ abilities. Its license number is 97004177. Ponte Palmero provides dementia care not only to Cameron Park residents, but also to all El Dorado county residents as well.
If you need aid with everyday tasks, Sunny Hill Home Care can help you or your loved one to find memory care assisted living in El Dorado Hills, California. Sunny Hill Home Care has a maximum capacity of 6 seniors and offers services such as color-coordinated rooms to help with memory and special programs for dementia patients. Sunny Hill Home Care is licensed with California and its license number is 97005044.
Sierra Manor is a new memory care center that has capacity of 15 dementia sufferers and offers services such as puzzles and other memory care activities and excellent caregiver-to-resident ratio. It is situated at 863 De Bernardi Court, and it is well equipped to provide dementia care to Placerville, CA dementia sufferers. Sierra Manor is licensed with California and its license number is 90317521.
Located at 3488 La Canada Drive, inside 95682 zip code area in El Dorado county, Larc's Care Home provides memory care to Cameron Park, CA dementia sufferers and provides services that include assuring proper meal intake and anytime toileting help. Larc's Care Home can house a total of 6 seniors at a time. Larc's Care Home has official license # of 97000177.
Located at 3180 Oxford Rd. , Cameron Park, California, 95682, Oxford Manor can assist any El Dorado county older adult with ADLs and offers services like aided morning and evening dressing and home-like community rooms that promote socialization. Oxford Manor can provide dementia care to a maximum of 6 seniors at once. Its license number is 97004035.
Seniors with dementia or Alzheimer’s looking for Alzheimer’s care in El Dorado Hills, California will find Oak Creek Senior Care, located at 2908 Tam O'shanter Drive inside 95762 zip code as a great choice for all of their memory care needs. Oak Creek Senior Care can accommodate up to 6 seniors with dementia and allows seniors to live with pets. California records indicate that Oak Creek Senior Care has a license number of 97005553.
With a location at 5001 Whistlers Bend Way in El Dorado county, Conforts Manor has a great reputation in providing memory care services for older adults with dementia in El Dorado Hills, CA as well as those who live in nearby cities. Conforts Manor includes amenities that include emergency system with constant monitoring and registered nurses that specialize in dementia care. Conforts Manor is capable of looking after a maximum of 6 El Dorado Hills older adults with dementia and provides multiple levels of care. Conforts Manor has an official license to provide memory care for El Dorado, CA seniors, with license # 97004157.
New West Haven Ii, located at 2551 Cameo Lane provides assisted living and memory care services in Cameron Park, California and provides services such as certified caregivers that specialize in dementia and Alzheimer’s care and monitoring of regular checks for weight loss and gain. New West Haven Ii is equipped to look after up to 37 senior citizens from 95682 zip code in El Dorado county and nearby areas. New West Haven Ii is licensed to provide assisted living and memory care in Cameron Park, California, with license # 97002991.
El Dorado Hills Senior Care provides dementia and Alzheimer’s care in El Dorado Hills, California. It can accommodate a maximum of 6 older adults at a time. With a location at 2904 Tam O'shanter Drive, in the 95762 zip code inside El Dorado county, El Dorado Hills Senior Care helps those older adults who need help with daily living tasks. El Dorado Hills Senior Care is licensed by California to provide memory care assisted living services, with license number 97005554. Some of the amenities offered by El Dorado Hills Senior Care include medication monitoring, enclosed courtyard and facility grounds and custom meal plans.
Hillcrest Care excels at providing dementia care in El Dorado county, California. At its full capacity, it can provide shared and private accommodations to no more than 6 senior citizens. Hillcrest Care allows pets and can provide assistance with moving around and getting in and out of bed to any older adults with dementia living in El Dorado Hills, CA and surrounding areas. Hillcrest Care is located at 971 Big Sur Court, 95762 zip code and may accept Medicaid and Medicare.
When searching for Alzheimer’s care facilities in El Dorado Hills, California, you will find A Fine And Caring Home as an excellent luxury memory care option that is situated at 517 Bianco Court in the 95762 zip code area. It has a maximum capacity of 5 dementia care units and provides services that include constant medical checks to ensure well-being and encouraged family participation. Its license number is 97005698. A Fine And Caring Home provides Alzheimer’s care not only to El Dorado Hills residents, but also to all El Dorado county residents as well.
If you need aid with daily living tasks, Eskaton Village Placerville can help you or your loved one to find memory care assisted living in Placerville, California. Eskaton Village Placerville has a maximum capacity of 74 seniors with dementia and provides amenities that include special colors to aid with memory and special programs for dementia patients. Eskaton Village Placerville is licensed with California and its license number is 97005046.
Royal Garden is a new memory care center that has capacity of 6 older adults with dementia and offers amenities such as memory games and other activities and high caregiver to resident ratio. It is situated at 2961 Warren Lane, and it is properly equipped to provide dementia care to El Dorado Hills, CA older adults with dementia. Royal Garden is licensed with California and its license number is 97003692.
Located at 737 Cresta Court, inside 95762 zip code area in El Dorado county, Lake Hills Villa provides dementia and Alzheimer’s care to El Dorado Hills, CA seniors with dementia and offers services such as help during meal times and anytime toileting help. Lake Hills Villa can provide care to up to 6 senior citizens at a time. Lake Hills Villa has official license # of 97004656.
Located at 4330 Harness Tract, Camino, California, 95709, Apple Country Care Home can assist any El Dorado county senior citizen with daily living activities and offers services such as dressing and grooming assistance and a home-like design to encourage socialization. Apple Country Care Home can provide Alzheimer’s disease and dementia care to a maximum of 7 seniors at once. Its license number is 97000124.
Seniors looking for Alzheimer’s care in Placerville, California will find Sunshine Manor, located at 3112 Washington Street inside 95667 zip code as a great choice for all of their memory care needs. Sunshine Manor is able to give assistance to up to 14 senior citizens and allows seniors to bring their pets. California records indicate that Sunshine Manor has a license # of 97003255.
With a location at 2932 Aberdeen Lane in El Dorado county, Lake View Residential Care has a great reputation in providing assisted living and memory care services for seniors with dementia or Alzheimer’s in El Dorado Hills, CA in addition to those who live in nearby areas. Lake View Residential Care provides services such as emergency pendant system and staff nurses trained in dementia care. Lake View Residential Care is capable of caring for a maximum of 6 El Dorado Hills seniors with dementia or Alzheimer’s and provides several levels of care. Lake View Residential Care has an official license to provide assisted living and memory care for El Dorado, CA residents, with license # 97003566.
Pine Tree Villa, located at 3353 Cimmarron Road offers Alzheimer’s care services in Cameron Park, California and offers amenities that include caregiving staff trained for Alzheimer’s care and monitoring of regular checks for weight loss and gain. Pine Tree Villa is able to look after up to 15 seniors with dementia from 95682 zip code in El Dorado county and surrounding areas. Pine Tree Villa has a license to provide Alzheimer’s care in Cameron Park, California, with license # 97003223.
Pleasant Care Home provides memory care in Placerville, California. It can provide accommodations to a maximum of 10 adults at a time. With a location at 4880 Rivendale Road, in the 95667 zip code inside El Dorado county, Pleasant Care Home assists those dementia sufferers who need help with daily living activities. Pleasant Care Home is licensed by California to provide memory care assisted living services, with license number 97000410. Some of the services provided by Pleasant Care Home are monitoring of medications, secure indoor and outdoor wandering areas and visiting geriatric nurse practitioner.
Eskaton Lodge Cameron Park specializes in providing Alzheimer’s care in El Dorado county, California. At its full capacity, it can provide studio and 1-bedrooom apartments to no more than 60 senior citizens. Eskaton Lodge Cameron Park is pet-friendly and can provide assistance with moving around and getting in and out of bed to any older adults with dementia living in Cameron Park, CA and surrounding areas. Eskaton Lodge Cameron Park is located at 3421 Palmer Drive, 95682 zip code and may accept Medicaid and Medicare.
When looking for memory care facilities in El Dorado Hills, California, you will find At Home Serenity Care as an excellent upscale memory care option that is situated at 1660 Downieville Court in the 95762 zip code area. It has a total capacity of 6 dementia care units and provides amenities such as local transportation services and programs for family members. Its license number is 97003989. At Home Serenity Care provides dementia and Alzheimer’s care not only to El Dorado Hills residents, but also to all El Dorado county residents as well.
If you need assistance with daily living tasks, Valley View Guest Home can help you or your loved one to find memory care assisted living in Placerville, California. Valley View Guest Home has a maximum capacity of 6 senior citizens and provides amenities that include physical, occupational and speech therapy and special programs for dementia patients. Valley View Guest Home is licensed by California and its license # is 97001625.
EL DORADO County memory care facilities rank #34 out of 53 counties in California for affordability. The median cost of memory care facilities in EL DORADO County, CA is $5,549 per month. The more affordable dementia care homes in EL DORADO County can be priced as little as $3,319 per month, while the most upscale EL DORADO County Alzheimer’s care communities can go up to $9,284 per month. Memory care facilities in EL DORADO County, CA are more expensive than those located in many other parts of California, which have an average cost of $5,317 per month and go as high as $9,045 per month.
Median cost of memory care in EL DORADO County, CA is $232 more per month than the California state average.
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I don't know, because I've lost my mind.
I do not recall the Ford logo as having that loop on the "F".
I too, have never noticed that little loop-de-loop on the letter F of the Ford logo. (I've owned Fords for the last 25 years or so). So I googled "History of Ford Motor Co." and then clicked on the "images" icon up at the top of the google page. One of the pages has Ford logo images dating back to the very beginning. That "loop" on the letter F dates back to 1912.
Although I do believe the Mandela effect is a real possibility, we have to be careful that things we ascribe to the Mandela effect isn't just, (as TomKat mentioned above), faulty memory, or simply not noticing something that has always been there.
I'm not saying there is no such thing as the Mandela effect, parallel universes, and other things. But we have to accept that at least some of the time, it's due to us just being a fallible human being.
I am enlightened, ............ Oh wait. That's just the police shining their spotlights on me.
Another thing that I did. There is an old heritage type park near our place. One of those parks like an old "pioneer village" where people can take their kids and see how people lived long ago. There is an old garage there that was old enough to have a place in the park. On the side of the building there is a large FORD logo that was originally painted on the building. It is really faded but still visible enough to see that is has the Ford logo with the weird 'F' that has the little loop. Prior to seeing that in person I was still sceptical of the Ford logo change as I wondered if it was just a recent change that I did not notice. But no, there it was on the old building. Wow.
You verified that Ford was always spelt with the loop on the F, correct? It still has that loop on the F, so what am I missing?
If a Mandela effect occurs, everything changes accordingly.
What cannot be touched is your consciousness, so it may not be a bad idea to start writing a diary and making sketches of everything.
Along the decorative loop in the Ford F, there is now a separation between V and W in the Volkswagen logo.
Last edited by Didgevillage; 16th April 2019 at 07:50.
This won't work. If the timeline changes, so will your sketches. So will VHS tapes or any other physical evidence.
The only thing that may survive the timeline shift is your memory, which, it would seem, is quantumly entangled with various timelines.
I think a lot of things are mislabeled as Mandela Effect when they are in fact, faulty memory. I've always thought of them as Fruit Loops, but in fact, they weren't spelled that way on the box. Also, in some countries such as Australia you can't trademark an English word, such as Fruit, but Froot would be OK.
I'm not specifically disagreeing with you, but bear in mind if there was a timeline shift, what you can or can't trademark in one timeline may well be irrelevant in another. Just sayin'.
Personally, I tend to think there are many instances of the Mandela Effect that can be attributed to faulty memory; other examples (like Jaws/Moonraker scene) are very compelling and much harder to attribute to a mass confusion of memory. She had braces. I've discussed this scene throughout my life, well before the Mandala Effect ever existed. There may be some other phenomena going on--perhaps something entirely unrelated to the Mandela Effect--but this one example alone (and I'm sure there are others) in no way have anything to do with faulty memory.
Ford is also spelled without the loop, but not on the official name/logo. It is sometimes FORD, no loop, on parts manufactured by third party vendors, not Ford per se. This is typically so on older vehicles, especially trucks. To me, no mystery. It's both types of print, not one or the other, but it depends on the year, make and model.
Your consciousness, hand-written records and hand-drawn sketches won't change.
It is important to know that dark forces are at work also.
The AI, Google, and the liberals will change the American Constitution (I suspect) and claim it's all your faulty memory.
Americans out there, keep the record of the Constitutions by all means possible.
They have already changed the Lincoln Gettysburg address from "forefathers" to "fathers".
But luckily there's Johnny Cash song.
Last edited by Didgevillage; 17th April 2019 at 08:42.
The way I personally understand this is one is connected, like a rubber band, to infinite pasts and futures, through the now, which materializes via consciousness. This is the primary function of consciousness, to materialize the now. You chose the present. So it follows in a multiverse of infinite probability (think quantum mechanics) whatever present you chose (or materialize) thus determines one's past. Just as consciousness collapses the wave function in quantum mechanics to a single possibility, you can only have "one" past associated with "one" now. So as you "choose" the now, you also chose a specific past tethered to the now.
In other words, as you move through the present, you are literally changing the past, moment by moment. What your consciousness understands as the past is simply a timeline connected to the present your consciousness has chosen. The past and the future are thus malleable, via the present. This is all an unconscious process at our current level of spiritual development as a species: we can only perceive one past and one now, which will eventually be connected to one future; but eventually, as our consciousness evolves, this process will become a conscious discipline as the species evolves in spiritual development to entirely new awareness of being in multiple realities.
Given as such, why wouldn't your sketches and hand-written records also change? You have so many versions of those sketches and records in the realm of probability, some of which only differing by a "dotted I" or a "crossed T", some radically different in idea and scope. Every time you materialize your present, those sketches alter and change. It's all malleable and dependent on the now.
The Mandela effect has somehow bled some of our parallel pasts--or a specific parallel past--into our now, via our consciousness. Was it Cern? The Philadelphia experiment? Or some other phenomena? Who knows? But somehow a specific alternate past, perhaps but one shade next to past tethered to the now, has become entwined with our consciousness. We are conscious of it even though it is no longer tethered to the now. Somehow we are becoming aware of multiple realities, or of a specific alternate reality.
My guess is this might be but a nascent stage of what will eventually become a common function of our consciousness as we navigate through reality.
Last edited by T Smith; 18th April 2019 at 02:11.
One thing that keeps me wondering is how did we end up with a percentage of the population recalling one past and the other group recalling a different one? When we take away advertising things that have confused people due to changing graphics (for example), and we look at the stronger examples (Like the Berenstein/Berenstain bears, and Jaws in 007 for example) the 2 groups are clearly divided. The mandela effect has messed with the memories of only a certain percentage of people. How did this happen?
And this is why I feel it was something that was tampered with.
Did Pharaoh Tut's mask have a cobra AND a vulture?
Neither was "fathers" instead of "forefathers."
The former is a Mandela effect.
The latter is a psy-op.
The mandela effect didn't mess with anyone's memories. The mandela effect is about people switching timelines. Jaws' girlfriend had braces in my original timeline, but not in this one.
Sure, just to be clear I should/could have based that point on "timelines" and not "memories".
But, we do definitely know that one person's memories on one timeline would be different than the other's.
However, do we have definitive proof that this is based on being on different timelines? If so, then my one long aching question "How did this happen?" could be answered.
Being more specific; How did the timelines get changed? And if indeed that is what happened, what is the ultimate purpose?
I would wonder why we have memories of different timelines, not just one - are we then on simultaneous timelines experiencing multiple outcomes?
Do we ever settle into the desired "quantum hologram" (another word for timeline maybe more descriptive what time-line is) ?
On @Patient's question about how did the timelines get changed.
I did point this out in another thread, another post (another timeline ?? eeeee !! ) that during the explosions/implosions of the hydrogen bomb devices of the 1950's a set of time bubbles were sent out.. The explosion/implosion created a fast moving (they call it PHASE SPACE signal) riding on top a view would be like a surfer riding the crest of a wave.. not quite the best visual but u get the idea)... time shift - multiple waves were crossed (multiple time lines) and the "signal" traveling across the surface of those waves, picked up (that's the quantum entanglement) what was happening in those tracks, and then CARRIED to the next set of tracks, the information..
Eventually when the hydrogen weapon's ripples waves subsided, many tracks and outcomes were contaminated with data/information from the other tracks.
Where were WE during all this? I don't know how to answer that, but that is all I have on it.. The shifts/timelines came from the wavefront interaction from the weapons detonation (explosion/implosion).
It is my belief, I don't know if it is shared, that "they" are aware of this and are concerned about way too many things are messed up..
The Richard Feynman lectures get into the riding the crest or traveling using phase, faster than the speed of light.. http://www.feynmanlectures.caltech.edu/I_48.html BTW for whatever its worth Feynman heard about my researches in 1986 - two years before he died.
Besides being one of the proponents for quantum entanglement, and the quantum hologram (although he didnt call it that then) he was encouraged to work on the nuclear weapons, to boost yield.. He died of a nasty cancer, some thing happened from exposure in excess. (And not from my talking to him rocking him to his core that we could indeed map holographically space time "reality" in 4D and play it back in 5D.. snicker)..
Last edited by Bob; 21st April 2019 at 00:45.
Yeah - why am I here and not there? But I am there, apparently. Someone will say that we are everywhere all the time.
So now, I am posting this as much as to have a conversation with you as I am for other people to read. Perhaps this wave of thought can carry some momentum and reach the right people - but will it have the right effect?
Bob, I expect that you most likely have had this conversation before (and that is not a time travel pun - I will add something to support the fact that I am intending to make a pun if I make one).
When you say, "I had demonstrated repeatedly that effects could be created that precede an actual generation of an event which would create an effect. That such generation would create both forward and backward time waves and thus establish itself as "real" (some call the backward wave the SHADOW, or objects cannot exist as real unless they can cast a shadow, kinda basic and non-explicit, but easy enough for a lay person to understand)... This is very relevant in understanding how the H-Bomb's massive energies were able to bridge time-lines.. Feynman was able to grasp that logic. OF course that would open up Mandela effects, and time travel -" Was this information demonstrated to people who might be responsible for actually detonating such energy accidentally through a W.O.M.D.?
I expect that the math to support what you are saying has been worked through by a large number of people by now and within that community this has been theorized and well known. Has this resulted in there being a known limit to a "safe" amount of force used in an explosion? Are they working within that limit or ignoring it?
A couple things...IF the governments of the world now know the results of such detonations, why do we still have nuclear weapons? I suppose since the knowledge is there, we always will have them.
Back to the Mandela effect...why is this information being swept under the rug? Why not use the Mandela Effect to educate the masses? At the very least, to acknowledge what has happened.
Considering the effect caused by the detonation of the bombs there is really no way to say when the effects will stop occurring - or what the most extreme change could be? If people are not aware, then some innocent people could really have their lives messed up.
Like so many things - the more we know, the further we have to go.
A Mandela Effect Reversal is a real possibility - at least for those who find themselves on that wave.
Last edited by Patient; 21st April 2019 at 14:07.
@Patient three thumbs up - great questions and dots connecting I think..
Mandela Effect Reversal is a real possibility - at least for those who find themselves on that wave.
I think so. Depending on what wave one is on, or interacted with (quantum interconnectedness concept) - The question has always been, do we have a choice to pick if we are "sliding" - speaking about sliding - the old SciFy "Sliders" gets into quantum track lines that seem close enough but different enough - one never meets oneself cause in the other track, the oneself in that track line is also "sliding" - everyone take one step to the right type of concept..
I am posting this as much as to have a conversation with you as I am for other people to read. Perhaps this wave of thought can carry some momentum and reach the right people - but will it have the right effect?
I can point out ever since I was in grade school in the 50's and early 60's the concept of HOW the time wave or track shift phenomena kept appearing infront of me, very Tesla-like. The waves interact in a backwards and forwards motion - and dimensional standing waves appear. It looked very fractal to me, visually.
B: "I had demonstrated repeatedly that effects could be created that precede an actual generation of an event which would create an effect. That such generation would create both forward and backward time waves and thus establish itself as "real" "
Slight differences in the wave fields (that is a LOT of data when you look at all the interactions happening in some local space that define that local space. The explosion/implosion has to generate the phase wave over the normal vibrations of time space - sounds a little bit like "strings", but let's not go into that to keep it simple. The strings are all vibrating away normally, and reality is proceeding as expected, we're moving forwards to wards an erosion of the time space vibrations as they die out due to entropy. Along comes a nuclear explosion and all the strings are interrupted, and a new wave of both forward and backward moving information appears - data then starts getting merged between the strings (time space tracks start briefly overlapping).. And consciousness which works on perceiving information to understand what it is, where it is and when it is, starts to get data from elsewhere and elsewhen. Future events start to bleed into past events, past events start to influence future events, and outcomes which were expected to be CHANGE.. PREDICTABILITY goes out the window.
When I realized the mechanics, I build models, and real-to-life-forcefields I found could be created. I've tested this since 1990, first having bumped into it in the Great Pyramid when I observed the effect could be evoked acoustically. It was a simple test to look at waveform construction with backward and forward components - it is done mathematically these days as we don't need massive structures to be a model. Great model the Great Pyramid to be a learning tool. Something to not forget something from way back when a re-incarnation happens sometime in the future..
How could anyone explain to Trump for instance any of the above? Impossible.. The political folk just don't know the science, the math and couldn't care. Probably the black project folks are very concerned that predictability is tossed out the window when a bubble of that warping sliding effect happens. Way too many people are observing the effects, way way many.. And attempting to cover that up I don't think is working. We don't have hydrogen bomb tests any more, and who knows what the last big Soviet Test did with the multi-megaton dooms'day device. Small local tests are done, and quite possibly there is a threshold how vast the distortions will travel (forward and backward).
I joked to a US Airforce Lt. Colonel in 1999 about give me a 20 kiloton nuke and I can modify it to stop the time bubbles and track shifts. She worked out of the nuclear repository in Florida that the US has. I was invited to meet with some of the people there, interesting bunch.. I never got my mini-nuke to experiment with, but at that point they knew I knew.. We ended up not doing anything what-so-ever with the airforce. Or the nukes, or the solutions, but I did proceed to develop the quantum hologram technology, which eventually could fix a lot of the damage. More of a micro-fix concept, a lot of units to fix dispersed over the world linked together to hold the time-space strings stable when a bubble hits. It was tested to be able to stop massive tsunami's to change outcomes which would have if left unchecked been disastrous for Hawaii and Japan.. (different story not for this thread)..
My feeling on that is, it would be like disclosure - an effect like that relates back to space time travel, teleportation, eventually holo-replication, electro-medicine-healing, and freedom - things that slavers don't want people to have.
gut feeling on that one - I have an idea that they plotted historically backwards to map out the backward timewave anomaly - like when major events shifted, and they could see a particular pattern appear with a particular yield. But from what I recall with the Philadelphia project, the thoughts (quantum information being created by living minds) can alter effects.. What is noted, when the wave goes through the zero point, in the zero, it is like everything in the universe is accessible all at once.. Where one materializes is based on the information going IN to the zero.. Done correctly what comes out of the zero is a proper space time line with status quo maintained. It is absolutely fascinating working with it, experiencing it, and for those not knowing what is happening, very frustrating..
the USAF colonel knew the potential.. She took whatever efforts she could to divert looking at this, and its ramifications. I've never seen ANY interest in developing this by any black ops groups, or any commercial research groups. Its as if some time lock was put on looking into this sorta stuff.
I mean, I was obsessed with this particular Mandela effect back in 2003, and again in 2016 and I know without a shadow of a doubt what I saw, what I read, what I was thinking both those times, so what now??
MEmory ---> M. E. ----> Mandela Effect.
After that, you use the initials M and E as the time shift in some significant cases. Since M=13 and E=5 (M is the 13th letter and E is the 5th letter of the alphabet), the time shift involves either 13 or 5 years, where the year is a time unit usually used. Since 2003+13=2016, the 13 years time difference was used in your case.
where B is the initial of Bologna - a place of a significant manifestation of the Mandela Effect.
"A 2010 study examined people who were familiar with the clock at Bologna Centrale railway station, which had been damaged in the Bologna massacre bombing in August 1980. In the study, 92% falsely remembered that the clock had remained stopped since the bombing, when in fact, the clock was repaired shortly after the attack. Years later the clock was again stopped and was then set to the time of the bombing in observation and commemoration of the bombing."
The implication is quite unsettling: the human brain can be hacked by the means of super-advanced neuroscience. But in the case of scientific studies conducted by the human mind, the ability to override stupid PhD ideas is quite beneficial to all of us.
According to the Jane Roberts' Seth books, we change timelines to have a more optimum future. He said we do this all the time. For instance, if the world is ending tomorrow on this timeline, you will likely switch to another before morning. Last June I provided an MP3 of a Coast radio caller who experienced the beginning of WW3 last June. Bill Ryan put in a thread on changing timelines.
I am familiar with the theory that the timeline was changed to avoid WW3. And it would give me a comforting feeling to think that an organization is doing this for our best interest.
If they are intentionally changing the timeline due to future events, then we have to assume that they can see the future. Then are we also assuming that they can only see the future of the timeline that we are in? That makes sense, otherwise they could see the future of what switching to a new timeline would be - then I would expect that we would only need to have switched timelines once because why switch to a timeline that we would have to switch out of.
Ok, but then the future is always changing based in the actions of others that can not be controlled. But that would mean that looking into the future only showed a future that would be true for that minute only.
If we can change timelines by looking into the future, wouldn't it make sense then to choose a timeline where everything was awesome?
If intentionally jumping into a timeline is a gamble, then we could jump into one heck of a mess.
Better that we would choose to fix the problems we have than to take such a huge risk.
Adding all these variables together, this line of questioning and theorizing could continue for quite a while, so I will end it for now.
If we could control it, then we should be doing really well. Just my opinion of course. Perhaps the people who are responsinle for switching the timelines are indeed doing well for themselves.
And if that is the case, then I would like a turn at choosing the next timeline please. | 2019-04-23T10:49:56Z | http://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?106632-Mandela-Effect-Reversal/page3&p=1286571 |
B.Sc. (Distinction with Honor) Civil Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Cairo University, Cairo, Egypt, 1986.
M.Sc. Civil Engineering (Specialty: Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing), Faculty of Engineering, Cairo University, Cairo, Egypt, 1989.
M.Sc. Geodetic Science (Specialty: Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing), Faculty of Mathematical and Physical Science, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA, 1993.
Ph.D. Geodetic Science (Specialty: Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing), Faculty of Mathematical and Physical Science, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA, 1994.
2017: Outstanding Achievement Award presented at the 10th International Conference on Mobile Mapping Technology in recognition of pioneering contributions in developing and promoting Mobile Mapping Technology. Outstanding Achievement Award presented at the 10th International Conference on Mobile Mapping Technology in recognition of pioneering contributions in developing and promoting Mobile Mapping Technology.
2017: Second Place for the 2017 John I. Davidson President's Award for Practical Papers in the Journal of Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing - He, F., & Habib, A. (2016). Automated Relative Orientation of UAV-Based Imagery in the Presence of Prior Information for the Flight Trajectory. Photogrammetric Engineering & Remote Sensing, 82(11), 879-891.
2016: Purdue's 2016 Seed for Success Award for the project "Automated Sorghum Phenotyping and Trait Development Platform". The Seed for Success Award is given in recognition of the accomplishments of single investigators and teams of investigators for their efforts in obtaining a $1 million dollar or more external sponsored award.
2016: Grand prize winner for the 2016 Talbert Abrams Award for the following paper in the Journal of Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing: Mazaheri, M., & Habib, A. (2015). Quaternion-Based Solutions for the Single Photo Resection Problem. Photogrammetric Engineering & Remote Sensing,81(3), 209-217.
2014: Second Honorable Mention recipient for the 2014 Talbert Abrams Award for the following paper in the Journal of Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing: "Al-Durgham, M. and Habib, A., 2013. A Framework for the Registration and Segmentation of Heterogeneous LiDAR Data," PE&RS, 79 (2), 135-145".
2013: Recipient of the 2013 Innovation in Mobile Mapping Award for the following paper "Kwak, E., Habi, A., and Tseng, Y., 2013. Comparative Analysis of Different Approaches for Multi-Camera System Calibration. 8th International Symposium of Mobile Mapping Technology, Tainan, Taiwan, May 1-3, 2013".
2013: Recipient of the 2013 Best Paper Award for the following paper "Lari, Z., Al-Durgham, M., Wang, M., and Habib, A., 2013. Comparative Analysis of Region Growing, Octree-Based Split-and-Merge, and Parameter-Domain LiDAR Segmentation Techniques. 8th International Symposium of Mobile Mapping Technology, Tainan, Taiwan, May 1-3, 2013".
2013: Recipient of the 2013 Best Paper Award for the following paper "Armeshi, H. and Habib, A., 2013. Automated extraction of specific features/objects from imagery of electrical substation. 8th International Symposium of Mobile Mapping Technology, Tainan, Taiwan, May 1-3, 2013".
2012: Recipient of the President's Citation Award from the International Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (ISPRS) for his four-year service as the Chair of Working Group I/3 - Multi-sensor multi-platform inter-calibration. The citation is awarded in recognition of special, personal and meritorious contributions to the operation of the working group's activities and advancement of its interests. The award was handed in during the closing ceremony of the XXII ISPRS Congress in Melbourne, Australia (Aug. 25 - Sep. 1, 2012.
2011: Recipient of the 2011 Third and Fourth Year Dinner Teaching Excellence Award for Geomatics Engineering.
2011: Recipient of the Best Oral Presentation Award from the 2011 ISPRS Laser Scanning Workshop for the following paper "Al-Durgham, M., Detchev, I., and Habib, A., 2011. Analysis of Two Triangle-Based Multi-Surface Registration Algorithms of Irregular Point Clouds. Proceedings of the 2011 Laser Scanning Workshop, Calgary, Alberta, August 29-31, 2011".
2011: Recipient of the 2011 American Society of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (ASPRS) Photogrammetric (Fairchild) Award. This award was established in 1944 to stimulate the development of the art of aerial photogrammetry.
2011: Best Paper Award from the 2011 International Workshop on Multi-Platform/Multi-Sensor Remote Sensing and Mapping for the following paper "Kersting, K., Habib, A., Bang, K., 2011. Mounting Parameters Calibration of GPS/INS-Assisted Photogrammetric Systems. Proceedings of the 2011 International Workshop on Multi-Platform/Multi-Sensor Remote Sensing and Mapping, Xiamen, China, January 10-12, 2011".
2010: Plaque of Appreciation from the 14th Saudi Technical Exchange Meeting, May 31 - June 2, 2010, King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals (KFUPM).
2009: Certificate of Appreciation from the Center for Space and Remote Sensing Research, National Central University Taiwan. This certificate is presented in recognition of substantial contribution to the 2009 CSRS 2009 seminar series.
2008: Third Place for the 2008 John I. Davidson President's Award for Practical Papers in the Journal of Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing "Habib, A., Kim, E., and Kim, C., 2007. New Methodologies for True Orthophoto Generation, PERS, 73 (1), 25-36".
2008: First runner-up for the 2008 Talbert Abrams Award for the following paper in the Journal of Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing: "Habib, A., Kim, E., and Kim, C., 2007. New Methodologies for True Orthophoto Generation, PERS, 73 (1), 25-36".
2008: Grand prize winner for the 2008 Talbert Abrams Award for the following paper in the Journal of Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing: Morgan, M., Kim, K., Jeong, S., Habib, A. Epipolar Resampling of Space-Borne Linear Array Scanner Scenes using Parallel Projection. Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing; 2006, 72 (11): 1255-1263.
2008: Certificate of Nomination for the GSA Teaching Excellence Awards for "Consistently facilitating a positive, proactive and empowering environment for lifelong learners at the University of Calgary". Presented by the Graduate Students' Association Teaching Excellence Awards Committee.
2008: Recipient of the 2007 Geomatics Engineering Graduate Educator Award for outstanding contributions to graduate education in the Schulich School of Engineering at the University of Calgary.
2007: Second Place for the 2007 John I. Davidson President's Award for Practical Papers for the "ASPRS Report to the U.S. Geological Survey on Digital Ortho-imagery. Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing, 72(2) 95-108".
2006: 2005/2006 Recipient of the Research Excellence Award from the Department of Geomatics Engineering, University of Calgary.
2005: 2004/2005 Professor of the year as chosen by the students of Geomatics Engineering, University of Calgary.
Habib, A., Al-Ruzouq, R., and Kim, C. Semi-Automatic Registration and Change Detection using Multi-source Imagery with Varying Geometric and Radiometric Properties. XXth ISPRS Congress, Istanbul, Turkey, PS ICWG II/IV Change Detection and Updating for Geo-database, pp.445, (12-23 July 2004).
2004: Recipient of the Talbert Abrams Second Honorable Mention from the American Society of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (ASPRS) for the following paper in the PE&RS journal.
Habib, A., Lee, Y., and Morgan, M. Automatic Matching and Three-Dimensional Reconstruction of Free-Form Linear Features from Stereo Images. Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing, Vol. 69, February 2003, pp. 189-197.
2002: Recipient of the Talbert Abrams Grand Award from the American Society of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (ASPRS) for the following paper in the PE&RS journal.
Habib, A. and Kelley, D. Single Photo Resection Using the Modified Hough Transform. Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing, Vol. 67, August 2001, pp. 909-914.
2002: Plaque of Appreciation from the Korean Society for Geo-Spatial Information System, November 11, 2002.
This award has been presented for the esteemed cooperation and the international relationship between the University of Calgary and the Korean Society for Geo-Spatial Information System.
1996: Recipient of the Duane C. Brown Senior Award that was established to "promote and stimulate scientific activity on Photogrammetry."
The Duane C. Brown Award is presented to a person who has most successfully forwarded the cause of Photogrammetry and strengthened the reputation of the Department of Geodetic science and Surveying (currently, the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Geodetic Science) of The Ohio State University in the field of Photogrammetry.
Habib, A., Kim, E., Wang, S., Kresting, A., 2009. Registration Quality - Towards Integration of Laser Scanning and Photogrammetry. Submitted to the EuroSDR (28 pages).
Habib, A., Kersting, A., and Bang, K., 2009. Calibration of LiDAR Systems. Submitted to Institute of Technology and Development, located in Curitiba, Brazil (73 pages).
Habib, A. and Rens, J., 2008. Quality Assurance and Quality Control of LiDAR Systems and Derived Data. Submitted to the ASPRS LiDAR Committee (15 pages).
Habib, A. and Kersting, J., Kim, C., 2008. 2D-3D GIS Updating and Change Detection using LiDAR Data. Project Report Submitted to the Sejong University for the Seoul City Project (66 Pages).
Habib, A., 2008. Technology Development for the Generation and Updating of Next Generation Digital Base-Maps, Project Report Submitted to the Korean Land Spatialization Research Project (22 Pages).
Habib, A., Kim, C., Bang, K., Kersting, A., Kersting, J., Jarvis, A., Zhai, R., and Detchev, I., 2008. Semi-Automated 3D Complex Building Extraction from Multiple Aerial Images and LiDAR Data. Submitted to the Korean Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute (ETRI), April 2008 (113 pages).
Habib, A., Bang, K., Aldelgawy, M., Chang, D., Kim, C., Kresting, A., Lay, J., 2007. Algorithmic Development for Rapid Updating of GIS Database Using Multi-Source Geo-Spatial Data. Technical Report Submitted to Sejong University for the Seoul City Project (80 pages).
Habib, A., Lay, J., Wang, C., 2006. Accuracy, Quality Assurance, and Quality Control of LiDAR Systems: Technical Background. Technical report submitted to the Integrated Land Management Bureau (ILMB), Base Mapping and Geomatics Services, July 2006 (71 pages).
Habib, A., Kim, C., Bang, K., 2006. Algorithms for True Orthophoto Generation by Integrating Photogrammetric and LiDAR Data. Submitted to the Korean Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute (ETRI), October 2006 (58 pages).
Habib, A., 2006. LiDAR Data Specifications, Technical report submitted to the Integrated Land Management Bureau (ILMB), Base Mapping and Geomatics Services, November 2006 (40 pages).
Habib, A., Ghanma, M., Al-Ruzouq, R., Morgan, M., Mrstik, M., and Mitishita, E., 2005. Co-Registration of Photogrammetric and LiDAR Surfaces. Submitted to the GEOIDE Research Network, Canada. (52 pages).
Habib, A., Kim, E., Morgan, M., and Kim, C., 2004. Investigation into Geometric Fusion of Satellite Based Imaging Systems for 3-D Object Reconstruction. Submitted to the Korean Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute (ETRI), Korea, December 2004 (170 pages).
Habib, A., Dunn, C., Pullivelli, A., and Ghanma, M., 2004. Camera Calibration and Stability Analysis Using AutoMeasure, MSAT, and CAST Packages: Software Specification Report. Submitted to Mosaic Mapping Systems, Ottawa, Canada, September 2004 (70 pages).
Habib, A., Mrstik, P., Pullivelli, A., Ghanma, M., Al-Ruzouq, R., Kim, E., and Cheng, R., 2004. Quantitative Measures for the Evaluation of Camera Stability. Submitted to the GEOIDE Research Network, Canada, April, 2004 (57 pages).
Habib, A. and Morgan, M., 2003. Epipolar Image Resampling from Push-Broom Imagery Phase II - Further Investigation & Implementation. Submitted to the Korean Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute (ETRI), August, 2003 (96 pages).
Habib, A. and Ghanma, M., 2003. Software Development for Digital Camera Calibration. Submitted to the United States Geological Survey (USGS)/The Ohio State University, December, 2003 (40 pages).
Habib, A. and Morgan, M., 2002. Epipolar Image Resampling from Push-Broom Imagery: Investigation and Preliminary Implementation. Submitted to the Korean Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute (ETRI), December, 2002 (107 pages).
Habib, A., Lee, Y., and Morgan, M., 2001. Recognition of Road Signs in Terrestrial Color Imagery - Phase 1: Hypothesis Generation. Project Report Submitted to Navigation Technologies Inc., Chicago, USA.
Habib, A., Asmamaw, A., May, M., and Kelley, D., 1999. Linear Features in Photogrammetry. Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Geodetic Science, The Ohio State University. Departmental Report # 451.
Habib, A., Uebbing, R., and Asmamaw, A., 1999. Automatic Extraction of Road Intersections from Raster Maps. Project Report submitted to the Center for Mapping, The Ohio State University.
Habib, A. and Beshah, B., 1998. Modeling Panoramic Linear Array Scanner. Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Geodetic Science, The Ohio State University. Departmental Report # 443.
Kurt, N. and Habib, A., 1998. Concepts for Positioning and Object Recognition for Multi-Sensor Data with GPS Support. Project Report Submitted to US Air Force (76 pages).
Habib, A., 1994. Estimation of Motion Parameters for Stereo-Image Sequences Using Data Association of Linear Features. PhD thesis, Department of Geodetic Science, The Ohio State University (129 pages).
Habib, A., 1986. Treatment of Photogrammetric Measurements from the Effect of Earth Curvature. MSc thesis, Department of Civil Engineering, Cairo University.
Al-Rawabdeh, A.; Moussa, A.; Foroutan, M.; El-Sheimy, N.; Habib, A., 2017 Time Series UAV Image-Based Point Clouds for Landslide Progression Evaluation Applications. Sensors (17), 2378.
Chen, M.; Habib, A.; He, H.; Zhu, Q.; Zhang, W., 2017. Robust Feature Matching Method for SAR and Optical Images by Using Gaussian-Gamma-Shaped Bi-Windows-Based Descriptor and Geometric Constraint. Remote Sensing (9), 882.
Lari, Z., El-Sheimy, N., & Habib, A., 2017. A New Approach for Realistic 3D Reconstruction of Planar Surfaces from Laser Scanning Data and Imagery Collected Onboard Modern Low-Cost Aerial Mapping Systems. Remote Sensing, 9(3), 212.
Detchev, I., Lichti, D., Habib, A., & El-Badry, M., 2017. Multi-dimensional and multi-temporal motion estimation of a beam surface during dynamic testing using low-frame rate digital cameras. Applied Geomatics, 1-15.
Lin, Y., Benziger, R., and Habib, A. (2016). Planar-Based Adaptive Down-Sampling of Point Clouds. Photogrammetric Engineering & Remote Sensing, 82(12), 955-966.
Habib, A., Han, Y.*, Xiong, W., He, F., Zhang, Z., & Crawford, M. (2016). Automated Ortho-Rectification of UAV-Based Hyperspectral Data over an Agricultural Field Using Frame RGB Imagery. Remote Sensing, 8(10), 796.
He, F., and Habib, A. (2016). Automated Relative Orientation of UAV-Based Imagery in the Presence of Prior Information for the Flight Trajectory. Photogrammetric Engineering & Remote Sensing, 82(11), 879-891.
Habib, A., Xiong, W., He, F., Yang, H., and Crawford, M., 2016. Improving Ortho-rectification of UAV-based Push-broom Scanner Imagery using Derived Orthophotos from Frame Cameras. IEEE Journal of Selected Topics in Applied Earth Observations and Remote Sensing, Volume: 10, No. 1, Issue 99, 262-276.
Guo, Z., Du, S., and Habib, A., 2016. An Extended Random Walker Approach for Object Extraction by Integrating VGI Data and VHR Image. An Extended Random Walker Approach for Object Extraction by Integrating VGI Data and VHR Image. IEEE Journal of Selected Topics in Applied Earth Observations and Remote Sensing, 9(5), 1854-1863.
Kim, C., Habib, A., Pyeon, M., Kwon, G. R., Jung, J., & Heo, J. (2016). Segmentation of Planar Surfaces from Laser Scanning Data Using the Magnitude of Normal Position Vector for Adaptive Neighborhoods. Sensors,16(2), 140.
Al-Rawabdeh, A., He, F., Mousaa, A., El-Sheimy, N., & Habib, A. (2016). Using an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle-Based Digital Imaging System to Derive a 3D Point Cloud for Landslide Scarp Recognition. Remote Sensing, 8(2), 95.
Habib, A., & Lin, Y. J. (2016). Multi-Class Simultaneous Adaptive Segmentation and Quality Control of Point Cloud Data. Remote Sensing,8(2), 104.
He, F., & Ayman, H. (2016). A Closed-Form Solution for Coarse Registration of Point Clouds Using Linear Features. Journal of Surveying Engineering, 04016006.
Chiang K-W, Tsai M-L, Naser E-S, Habib A, Chu C-H, 2015. New Calibration Method Using Low Cost MEM IMUs to Verify the Performance of UAV-Borne MMS Payloads. Sensors. 2015; 15(3):6560-6585.
Mazaheri, M., and Habib, A., 2015. Quaternion-Based Solutions for the Single Photo Resection Problem. Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing Journal, Vol. 81, No. 3, pp. 209-2017.
Habib, A., Detchev, I., and Kwak, E., 2014. Stability Analysis for a Multi-Camera Photogrammetric System. Sensors 2014, 14, pp. 15084-15112; doi: 10.3390/s140815084.
Lari, Z., Habib, A., Mazaheri, M., and Al-Durgham, K., 2014. Multi-camera system calibration with built-in relative orientation constraints (part 1): Theoretical principle, Journal of Korean Society of Surveying, Geodesy, Photogrammetry, and Cartography, Vol. 32, No. 3, pp.191-204.
Lari, Z., Habib, A., Mazaheri, M., and Al-Durgham, K., 2014. Multi-camera system calibration with built-in relative orientation constraints (part 2): Automation, implementation, and experimental results, Journal of Korean Society of Surveying, Geodesy, Photogrammetry, and Cartography, Vol. 32, No. 3, pp.205-216.
Al-Durgham, K., and Habib, A., 2014. Association-Matrix-Based Sample Consensus Approach for Automated Registration of Terrestrial Laser Scans using Linear Features. Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing Journal, Vol. 80, No. 10, pp. 23-33.
Lari, Z. and Habib, A., 2014. An adaptive approach for the segmentation and extraction of planar and linear/cylindrical features from laser scanning data, ISPRS Journal of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing, Vol. 93, pp. 192-212.
Canaz, S. and Habib, A., 2013. Photogrammetric Features for the Registration of Terrestrial Laser Scans with Minimum Overlap. Journal of Geodesy and Geoinformation, Vol. 2, Iss. 1, pp. 1-8, May 2013.
Habib, A., Lari, Z., Kwak, E., and Al-Durgham, K., 2013. Automated Detection, Localization, and Identification of Signalized Targets and their Impact on Digital Camera Calibration. Brazilian Journal of Cartography (RBC) - Revista Brasileira de Cartografi a, N0 65/4, p. 785-803, 2013.
Kwak, E., Habib, A., 2013. Automatic representation and reconstruction of DBM from LiDAR data using Recursive Minimum Bounding Rectangle. ISPRS J. Photogram. Remote Sensing (2013), http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.isprsjprs.2013.10.003.
Kwak, E., Habib, A., Tseng, Y., 2013. Comparative Analysis of Different Approaches for Multi-Camera System Calibration. Journal of Aeronautics, Astronautics and Aviation, Series A, Vol. 45, No. 3, Pp. 171-178.
Kwak, E., I. Detchev, A. Habib, M. El-Badry, and C. Hughes, 2013. Precise photogrammetric reconstruction using model-based image fitting for 3D beam deformation monitoring. Journal of Surveying Engineering, Vol. 139, No. 3, pp. 143-155.
Detchev, I., A. Habib, and M. El-Badry, 2013. Dynamic beam deformation measurements with off-the-shelf digital cameras. Journal of Applied Geodesy, Vol. 7, No. 3, pp.147-157.
Kersting, A., Habib, A., and Muller, M., 2013. Quantitative Evaluation and Quality Control of Commercially Adopted Traditional and Modern LiDAR System Calibration Techniques. Brazilian Journal of Cartography - RBC, No. 65/04, pp. 731-745 (Invited Paper).
Al-Durgham, M., and Habib, A., 2013. A Framework for the Registration and Segmentation of Heterogeneous LiDAR Data. Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing Journal, Vol. 79, No. 2, pp. 135-145.
Lari, Z., and Habib, A., 2013. New Approaches for Estimating the Local Point Density and its Impact on LiDAR Data Segmentation. Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing Journal, Vol. 79, No. 2, pp. 195-207.
Kersting, A. and Habib, A., 2012. A Comparative Analysis between Rigorous and Approximate Approaches for LiDAR System calibration. Journal of the Korean Society of Surveying, Geodesy, Photogrammetry, and Cartography (Invited Paper), 2012.30.6, pp. 503-515.
Kersting, A., Habib, A., Bang, K., and Skaloud, J., 2012. Automated approach for rigorous light detection and ranging system calibration without preprocessing and strict terrain coverage requirements. Journal of Optical Engineering, 51, 076201 (2012), DOI:10.1117/1.OE.51.7.07620.
Al-Ruzouq, A., and Habib, A., 2012. Linear Features for Automatic Registration and Reliable Change Detection of Multi-Source Imagery. Journal of Spatial Science (formerly, The Australian Surveyor and Cartography), Vol. 57, No. 1, June 2012, pp. 51-64.
Yan, W., Shaker, A., Habib, A., Kersting, A., 2012. Improving Classification Accuracy of Airborne LiDAR Intensity Data by Geometric Calibration and Radiometric Correction. ISPRS Journal of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing, January 2012, Vol. 67, pp. 35-44.
Habib, A., Kersting, A., Bang, K., and Rau, J., 2011. A novel Single Step Procedure for the Calibration of the Mounting Parameters of a Multi-Camera Mobile Mapping System. Archives of Photogrammetry, Cartography and Remote Sensing, Vol. 22, pp. 173-185.
Habib, A., Kwak, E., and Al-Durgham, M., 2011. Model-Based Automatic 3D Building Model Generation by Integrating LiDAR and Aerial Images. Archives of Photogrammetry, Cartography and Remote Sensing, Vol. 22, pp. 187-200.
Habib, A., Kersting, A., Shaker, A., and Yan, W., 2011. Geometric Calibration and Radiometric Correction of LiDAR Data and their Impact on the Quality of Derived Products. Sensors 2011; Vol. 11, No. 9, pp. 9069-9097.
Detchev, I., Habib, A., and Chang, Y., 2011. Image Matching and Surface Registration for 3D Reconstruction of a Scoliotic Torso. GEOMATICA Journal, Vol. 65, No. 2, 2011, pp. 327-335.
Renaudin, E., Habib, A., Kersting, A., 2011. Feature-Based Registration of Terrestrial Laser Scans with Minimum Overlap Using Photogrammetric Data. ETRI Journal, Vol. 33, No.4, Aug. 2011, 517-527.
Rau J.-Y., Habib A.F., Kersting A.P., Chiang K.-W., Bang K.-I., Tseng Y.-H., Li Y.H., 2011. Direct Sensor Orientation of a Land-Based Mobile Mapping System. Sensors, 2011, Vol. 11, No. 7, pp. 7243-7261.
Bang, K., Habib, A., and Kersting, A., 2010. Estimation of Biases in LiDAR System Calibration Parameters using Overlapping Strips. Canadian Journal of Remote Sensing, Vol. 36, Suppl. 2, pp. S335-S354.
Lee, J., Han, D., Kiyun, Y., Joon, H., and Habib, A., 2010. An Automatic Registration Method for Adjustment of Relative Elevation Discrepancies between LiDAR Data Strips. GIS & Remote Sensing Journal, vol. 76, no. 1, pp. 115-134.
Habib, A., Zhai, R., and Kim, C., 2010. Generation of Complex Building Models by Integrating Stereo-Aerial Imagery and LiDAR Data. Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing Journal vol. 76, no. 5, pp. 609-623.
Habib, A., Bang, K., Kersting, A., and Chow, J., 2010. Alternative Methodologies for LiDAR System Calibration. Remote Sensing Journal (ISSN 2072-4292), Vol. (2), pp. 874-907.
Habib, A., Kersting, A., Bang, K., and Lee, D., 2010. Alternative Methodologies for the Internal Quality Control of Parallel LiDAR Strips. IEEE Transactions on Geo-Science and Remote Sensing, Vol. 48, No. 1, pp. 221-236.
Bang, K., Habib, A., and Muller, M., 2009. LiDAR System Calibration Using Overlapping Strips. Geodetic Science Bulletin Journal, Vol. 15, No 5, pp. 725-743.
Lichti, D., Habib, A., Detechev, I., 2009. An Object-Space Simulation Method for Low-Cost digital Camera Stability Testing. Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing Journal, vol. 75, no. 12, pp. 1407-1414.
Dal Poz, A., Habib, A., Marcato, V., Correia, L., 2009. Geometric Refinement of Laser-Derived Building Roof Contours using Photogrammetric Data. Geodetic Science Bulletin, Vol. 15, No. 3, pp. 208-223 (July, 2009).
Habib, A., Bang, K., Kersting, K., and Lee, D., 2009. Error Budget of LiDAR Systems and Quality Control of the Derived Data. Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing, vol. 75, no. 9, pp.1093-1108.
Kim, C., Habib, A., 2009. Object-Based Integration of Photogrammetric and LiDAR Data for Automated Generation of Complex Polyhedral Building Models. Sensors Journal. 2009; 9(7):5679-5701.
Habib, A., Chang, Y., Lee, D., 2009. Occlusion-based Methodology for the Classification of LiDAR Data. Journal of Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing, Vol. 75, No. 6, pp. 703-712.
Habib, A., Kersting, A., Bang, K., Zhai, R., Al-Durgham, M., 2009. A Strip Adjustment Procedure to Mitigate the Impact of Inaccurate Mounting Parameters in Parallel Strips. The Photogrammetric Record 24(126): 171-195.
Mitishita, E., Habib, A., Centeno, J., Machado, A., Lay, J., Wong, C., 2008. Photogrammetric and LiDAR Data Integration Using the Centroid of a Rectangular Roof as a Control Point. The Photogrammetric Record 23(121): 19-35.
Habib, A., Shin, S., Kim, K., Kim, C., Bang, K., Kim, E., Lee, D., 2007. Comprehensive Analysis of Sensor Modeling Alternatives for High Resolution Imaging Satellites. Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing; 2007, 73 (11):1241-1251.
Shin, S., Habib, A., Ghanma, M., Kim, C., and Kim, E., 2007. Algorithms for Multi-Sensor and Multi-Primitive Photogrammetric Triangulation. ETRI Journal, Vol. 29, No. 4, August 2007, pp. 411-420.
Lee, J., Yu, K., Kim., Y., Habib, A., 2007. Adjustment of Discrepancies between LiDAR Data Strips Using Linear Features. IEEE Geoscience and Remote Sensing Letters, Vol 4., No. 3, July 2007, pp. 475-479.
Cheng, R., Habib, A., 2007. Stereo-Photogrammetry for Generating and Matching Facial Models. Optical Engineering Journal, June 2007, Vol. 46(7): pp. 067203/1 - 067203/11.
Habib, A., Kim, E., Kim, C., 2007. New Methodologies for True Orthophoto Generation. Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing; 2007, 73 (1): 25-36.
Jaremko, J., Cheng, R., Lambert, R., Habib, A., and Ronsky, J., 2006. Reliability of an efficient MRI-based method for estimation of knee cartilage volume using surface registration. Osteoarthritis and Cartilage Journal, 2006; 14(9):914-922.
Morgan, M., Kim, K., Jeong, S., Habib, A., 2006. Epipolar Resampling of Space-Borne Linear Array Scanner Scenes using Parallel Projection. Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing; 2006, 72 (11): 1255-1263.
Habib, A., Cheng, R., Kim, E., Mitishita, E., Frayne, R., and Ronsky, J., 2006. Automatic Surface Matching for the Registration of LiDAR Data and MR Imagery Authors. ETRI (Electronics and Telecommunication Research Institute) Journal, Volume 28, Number 2, pp. 162-174.
Habib, A., Pullivelli, A., Mitishita, E., Ghanma, M., and Kim E., 2006. Stability analysis of low-cost digital cameras for aerial mapping using different geo-referencing techniques, Journal of Photogrammetric Record, 21(113):29-43, March 2006.
McGlone, C., Barclay, T., Freeborn, E., Greve, C., Habib. A., Keating, T., Lenczowski, R., Logan, B., Schenk, T., Stojic, M., Voss, A., Lee, G., and Plasker, J., 2006. ASPRS Report to the US Geological Survey on Digital Ortho-imagery, Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing, Vol. 72, No. 2, pp. 95-108, February 2006.
Habib, A., Ghanma, M., and Mitishita, M., 2005. Photogrammetric Geo-referencing using LiDAR Linear and Aerial Features. Korean Journal of Geomatics, Vol. 5, No. 1, pp. 7-19, December 2005, (Invited Paper).
Habib, A. and Morgan, M., 2005. Stability Analysis and Geometric Calibration of Off-the-Shelf Digital Cameras. Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing, Vol. 71, No. 6, pp. 733-741, June 2005.
Habib, A., Ghanma, M., Morgan, M., and Al-Ruzouq, R., 2005. Photogrammetric and Lidar Data Registration Using Linear Features. Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing, Vol. 71, No. 6, pp. 699-707, June 2005.
Habib, A., Morgan, M., Jeong, S., and Kim, K., 2005. Epipolar Geometry of Line Cameras Moving with Constant Velocity and Attitude. ETRI Journal, Volume 27, Number 2, pp. 172-180, April 2005.
Habib, A., Pullivelli, A., and Morgan, M., 2005. Quantitative Measures for the Evaluation of Camera Stability. Optical Engineering 44(3) 033605(8 pages), March 2005.
Habib, A. and Al-Ruzouq, R., 2005. Semi Automatic Registration of Multi-Source Satellite Imagery with Varying Geometric Resolutions. Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing, Vol. 71, No. 3, pp. 325-332, March 2005.
Habib, A., Morgan, M., Jeong, S., and Kim, K., 2005. Analysis of Epipolar Geometry in Linear Array Scanner Scenes. Photogrammetric Record, 20(109):27-47, March 2005.
Habib, A., Ghanma, M., and Mitishita, E., 2004. Integration of Photogrammetric and LiDAR Data: Methodology and Case Study. Invited Paper, Brazilian Journal of Cartography (RBC), Vol. 56/1, July 2004, pp. 1-13.
Habib, A. and Al-Ruzouq, R., 2004. Line-Based Modified Iterated Hough Transform For Automatic Registration of Multi-Source Imagery. Photogrammetric Record, 19(105): 5-21, March 2004.
Habib, A., Lee, Y., and Morgan, M., 2003. Automatic Matching and Three-Dimensional Reconstruction of Free-Form Linear Features from Stereo Images. Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing, 69(2):189-197, February 2003.
Habib, A. and Morgan, M., 2003. Automatic Calibration of Low-Cost Digital Cameras. Optical Engineering, 42(4):948-955, April 2003.
Habib, A., Lin, H., and Morgan, M., 2003. Autonomous Space Resection Using Point- and Line-Based Representation of Free-Form Linear Features. Photogrammetric Record, 18(102):244-248, September 2003.
Habib, A., Lin, H., and Morgan, M., 2003. Line-Based Modified Iterated Hough Transform for Autonomous Single Photo Resection, Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing, 69(12):1351-1357, December 2003.
Habib, A. and Morgan, M., 2003. Linear Features in Photogrammetry, Invited Paper, Geodetic Science Bulletin, 9 (1): 3-24, 2003.
Habib, A., Lee, Y., and Morgan, M., 2002. Bundle Adjustment with Self-Calibration using Straight Lines. Photogrammetric Record, 17(100):635-650, October 2002.
Habib, A. and Kelley, D., 2001. Single Photo Resection Using the Modified Hough Transform. Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing, Vol. 67, August 2001, pp. 909-914.
Habib, A. and Kelley, D., 2001. Automatic Relative Orientation of Large Scale Imagery over Urban Areas Using Modified Iterated Hough Transform. ISPRS Journal of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing, 56 (2001), pp. 29-41.
Habib, A., Lee, Y., and Morgan, M., 2001. Surface Matching and Change Detection Using the Modified Hough Transform for Robust Parameter Estimation. Photogrammetric Record, 17(98), October 2001, pp. 303-315.
Habib, A., 2000. Matching Road Edges in Stereo-Image Sequences Using Data Association Techniques. Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing, Vol. 66 (1): 91- 98, January 2000.
Habib, A., Uebbing, R., and Novak, K., 1999. Automatic Extraction of Road Signs from Color Terrestrial Imagery. Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing, Vol. 65(5): 597-601, May 1999.
Habib, A., 1998. Motion Parameters Estimation by Tracking Stationary Three Dimensional Straight Lines in Image Sequences. ISPRS Journal of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing, 53(1998), pp. 174-182, June 1998.
El-Sheimy, N., Valeo, C., and Habib, A., 2005. Digital Terrain Modeling: Acquisition, Manipulation, and Applications. Artech House, Published July 2005, ISBN 1580539211 (259 pages).
Schenk, T. and Habib, A., Editors, 1998 (Volumes 1 & 2). Object Recognition and Scene Classification from Multi-spectral and Multi-sensor Pixels.
Habib, A., and, Wang, C., Editors, 2011. Multi-Platform and Multi-Sensor Remote Sensing and Mapping. IEEE Catalog Number: CFP1136M-DVD, ISBN: 978-1-4244-9403-3, 329 pages.
Habib, A., 2016. Rotation in 3D Space. Chapter 2 in "Fourati, H., Belkhiat, D. E. C., & Iniewski, K. (Eds.). (2016). Multisensor Attitude Estimation: Fundamental Concepts and Applications". CRC Press., pp. 15-36.
Habib, A., 2013. Modern Photogrammetric Mapping. Advances in Mapping from Aerospace Imagery: Techniques and Applications, Yang, X. and Li, J., Editors, CRC Press, Taylor & Francis Group, pp. 1-31.
Habib, A., 2010. Manual of Geospatial Science and Technology. Chapter 23: Airborne LiDAR Mapping. John Bossler, Editor, Taylor and Francis, London, pp. 439-466.
Habib, A., 2010. Manual of Geospatial Science and Technology. Chapter 4: Coordinates and Coordinate Transformation. John Bossler, Editor, Taylor and Francis, London, pp. 31-54.
Habib, A., 2008. Topographic Laser Ranging and Scanning: Principles and Processing. Chapter 9: Accuracy, Quality Assurance, and Quality Control of LiDAR Data. Jie Shan and Charles Toth (Editors), CRC Press (Taylor & Francis Group), pp. 269-294.
Habib, A., 2008. Topographic Laser Ranging and Scanning: Principles and Processing. Chapter 13: Integration of LiDAR and Photogrammetric Data: Triangulation and Ortho Rectification. Jie Shan and Charles Toth (Editors), CRC Press (Taylor & Francis Group), pp. 371-401.
Habib, A., Shin, S., Kim, C., Al-Durgham, M., 2006. Integration of Photogrammetric and LiDAR Data in a Multi-Primitive Triangulation Environment. Innovations in 3D Geo Information Systems, Lecture Notes in Geo-Information and Cartography, pp. 29-45. Editors: Abdul-Rahman, A., Zlatanova, S., Coors, V., Springer, 2006.
Habib, A., Kim, C., 2006. LiDAR-Aided True Orthophoto and DBM Generation System. Innovations in 3D Geo-Information Systems, Lecture Notes in Geo Information and Cartography, pp. 47-65. Editors: Abdul-Rahman, A., Zlatanova, S., Coors, V., Springer, 2006.
Habib, A., Cheng, R., 2006. Surface Matching Strategy for Quality Control of LiDAR Data. Innovations in 3D Geo-Information Systems, Lecture Notes in Geo Information and Cartography, pp. 67-83. Editors: Abdul-Rahman, A., Zlatanova, S., Coors, V., Springer, 2006.
Habib, A., Bang, K., Kim, C., Shin, S., 2006. True Orthophoto Generation from High Resolution Satellite Imagery. Innovations in 3D Geo Information Systems, Lecture Notes in Geo Information and Cartography, pp. 641-656. Editors: Abdul-Rahman, A., Zlatanova, S., Coors, V., Springer, 2006.
Habib, A., 2002. Manual of Geospatial Science and Technology. Chapter 4: Coordinates and Coordinate Transformation. John Bossler, Editor, Taylor and Francis, London, pp. 27-49. | 2019-04-20T08:46:22Z | https://engineering.purdue.edu/CE/People/ptProfile?resource_id=111817 |
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You must not employ any techniques or make use of any services, automated or otherwise, designed to misrepresent your activity on the Software, including without limitation by the use of bots, botnets, scripts, apps, plugins, extensions or other automated means to register accounts, log in, add followers to your account, play Content, follow or unfollow other users, send messages, post comments, or otherwise to act on your behalf, particularly where such activity occurs in a multiple or repetitive fashion. You must not offer or promote the availability of any such techniques or services to any other users of the Software.
You must not alter or remove, or attempt to alter or remove, any trademark, copyright or other proprietary or legal notices contained in, or appearing on, the Software or any Content appearing on the Software (other than Your Content).
You must not, and must not permit any third party to, copy or adapt the object code of the Software, or reverse engineer, reverse assemble, decompile, modify or attempt to discover any source or object code of any part of the Software, or circumvent or attempt to circumvent or copy any copy protection mechanism or access any rights management information pertaining to Content other than Your Content.
You must not rent, sell or lease access to the Software, or any Content on the Software.
You must not stalk, exploit, threaten, abuse or otherwise harass another user, or any Sadiant employee. If we feel that your behavior towards any of our employees is at any time threatening or offensive, we reserve the right to immediately terminate your membership and you will not be entitled to any refund of any fees paid on the Software.
You must not sell or transfer, or offer to sell or transfer, any Sadiant account to any third party without the prior written approval of Sadiant.
You must not violate, circumvent or attempt to violate or circumvent any data security measures employed by Sadiant; access or attempt to access data or materials which are not intended for your use; log into, or attempt to log into, a server or account which you are not authorized to access; attempt to scan or test the vulnerability of Sadiant’s servers, system or network or attempt to breach Sadiant’s data security or authentication procedures; attempt to interfere with the Software or the Services by any means including, without limitation, hacking Sadiant’s servers or systems, submitting a virus, overloading, mail-bombing or crashing. Without limitation to any other rights or remedies of Sadiant under these Terms of Service, Sadiant reserves the right to investigate any situation that appears to involve any of the above, and may report such matters to, and cooperate with, appropriate law enforcement authorities in prosecuting any users who have participated in any such violations.
You agree to comply with the above conditions, and acknowledge and agree that Sadiant has the right, in its sole discretion, to terminate your account or take such other action as we see fit if you breach any of the above conditions or any of the other terms of these Terms of Service. This may include taking court action and/or reporting offending users to the relevant authorities.
Effective Date: September 12, 2017.
These Healthcare Professional Terms of Service (the “HCP Terms”) are by and between Sadiant, LLC. and its affiliates, including but not limited to Sadiant Health, LLC. (collectively, “Sadiant”) and each Healthcare Professional (each being “HCP”) who is registered with Sadiant through www.sadianthealth.com (the “Site”) to provide Professional Services on behalf of Clients. Sadiant owns and operates the Site, which is an online platform connecting healthcare professionals seeking to provide healthcare services (the “Professional Services”) and healthcare facilities seeking to engage Healthcare Professionals to provide Healthcare Services (“Clients”).
The HCP must register with the Site by creating an account. HCP shall create an account by through the signup function in the app. The date that HCP creates an account shall be referred to herein as the “Registration Date.” HCP may suspend his or her account at any time by contacting Sadiant. Sadiant may suspend HCP’s account without notice to HCP if the HCP is not an employee of Sadiant. Sadiant may suspend and account with notice to HCP if the HCP is an employee of Sadiant. If HCP’s account is suspended, the account will no longer appear on the Site as visible to Clients, but such suspension will not terminate these HCP terms.
HCP agrees that no joint venture, partnership, employment, or agency relationship exists between Sadiant and HCP simply by virtue of HCP agreeing to abide by these HCP Terms or by HCP’s use of the Site.
In order to apply for or accept an engagement offering from a client through the Site, the HCP must be an employee of Sadiant. ACCEPTANCE OF THESE TERMS IN NO WAY GUARANTEES EMPLOYMENT WITH SADIANT. To become a Sadiant employee, please contact Sadiant directly or apply for a position through the Site.
HCP acknowledges and agrees that Sadiant has provided to HCP a valuable service in connecting HCP to Clients. In return, to the extent consistent with applicable state law, HCP shall not solicit or accept either a temporary engagement or permanent position directly with a Client, or an Affiliate of a Client, that was the subject of an Introduction to HCP for a period of one (1) year after the date of the Introduction unless the Client pays Sadiant an Temp to Perm Conversion fee, as may be defined in each Client’s agreement with Sadiant. For purposes of the HCP Terms, an “Affiliate” of a Client includes, but is not limited to, an organization or person that has any form of direct or indirect business relationship with such Client, any entity comprised of one or more owners of such Client, or any successor to or assignee of such Client. For purposes of the HCP Terms, an “Introduction” shall be deemed to have occurred when HCP or a Client has initiated contact with the other, regardless of whether the other responds and regardless of whether such contact ultimately occurred through the Site or otherwise, so long as the contact came about as result of the registration with or use of the Site by either the HCP or the Client.
If any provision of these HCP Terms is held to be contrary to Law, such provision shall be deemed valid only to the extent permitted by Law, and all other provisions shall continue in full force and effect. HCP’s failure to require performance of any provision shall not affect its right to require performance at any time thereafter, nor shall Sadiant’s waiver of any breach or default of these HCP Terms constitute a waiver of any subsequent breach or default.
These HCP Terms are enforceable pursuant to and in accordance with the Laws of the State of Texas. Any dispute arising out of these HCP Terms shall be decided by a court of competent jurisdiction in Tarrant County, Texas.
The subject headings of the sections of these HCP Terms are included for purposes of convenience only and shall not affect the construction of interpretation of any of its provisions.
Except as prohibited by Law, any dispute between Sadiant and HCP under these HCP Terms shall be resolved through binding arbitration in Tarrant County, Texas under the Federal Arbitration Act. Nothing in this arbitration provision is intended to prevent Sadiant or HCP from filing charges with state or federal agencies. HCP agrees that such arbitration shall be conducted on an individual basis only, not a class, collective or representative basis, and HCP waives any right to bring class-wide, collective or representative claims before any arbitrator or in any forum. HCP UNDERSTANDS THAT BY AGREEING TO ARBITRATE DISPUTES HCP IS WAIVING ANY RIGHT THAT HE OR SHE MIGHT OTHERWISE HAVE TO A JURY TRIAL. This arbitration provision is not intended to modify or limit the rights of Sadiant or HCP’s right to seek equitable relief, such as an injunction or attachment, through judicial process, which will not be deemed a waiver of the right to demand and obtain arbitration.
These HCP Terms and any employment agreement or order, if any, between HCP and Sadiant constitute the entire agreement between HCP and Sadiant relating to and governing HCP’s use of the Site and Sadiant’s relationship with HCP, superseding any prior agreements between HCP and Sadiant.
Sadiant may modify these HCP Terms with no notice to HCP. Sadiant includes the effective date of these HCP Terms at the top of the HCP Terms. Such modifications to these HCP Terms shall take effect, and be binding on HCP thirty (30) days after such notification.
Clients who wish to contact HCPs for Engagements through the Site shall have registered an account with Sadiant through the Site. Sadiant will create individual accounts, usernames and passwords for Representatives of the Client and their associated facilities. Each representative of the Client will be identified as such in writing by an authorized manager or director of the client’s facility or facilities.
Before engaging a Sadiant employee through the website, the Client must first agree to and execute a contract with Sadiant to provide Healthcare Services. The terms of that contract will govern the Client’s use of the website and Sadiant app.
This Agreement will remain in full force and effect while you use the Software and/or Service. If you resign or cancel your membership to Sadiant, to help Sadiant analyze and improve the Service, you may be asked to provide a reason for your resignation/cancellation. Sadiant may terminate your membership for any reason by sending notice to you at the email address you provide in your application for membership, or such other email address as you may later provide to Sadiant. If Sadiant terminates your membership in the Service because you have breached this Agreement, you will not be entitled to any refund of any fees paid by you. All decisions regarding the termination of accounts shall be made in the sole discretion of Sadiant. Sadiant is not required to provide you notice prior to terminating your membership. Sadiant is not required, and may be prohibited, from disclosing a reason for the termination of your account. Even after your membership is terminated, this Agreement will remain in effect. All terms that by their nature may survive termination of this Agreement shall be deemed to survive such termination.
Sadiant reserves the right at any time to modify or discontinue, temporarily or permanently, the Service (or any part thereof) with or without notice. You agree that Sadiant shall not be liable to you or to any third party for any modification, suspension or discontinuance of the Service.
In order to protect the integrity of the Services, Sadiant reserves the right at any time in its sole discretion to block Members from certain IP addresses from accessing the Software.
Sadiant retains all proprietary rights in the Software and the Service. The Software contains the copyrighted material, trademarks, and other proprietary information of Sadiant, and its licensors. Except where we have given you express written permission, you may not copy, modify, publish, transmit, distribute, perform, display, or sell any such proprietary information. All Content on Sadiant is proprietary. Except where otherwise specified in this Agreement, all Content is copyrighted material of Sadiant and for Sadiant Members' use only. Distribution of Content to others is strictly prohibited. You agree that Sadiant would be irreparably harmed by any violation or threatened violation of this section and that, therefore, Sadiant shall be entitled to an injunction prohibiting you from any violation or threatened violation of this section, without posting bond, in addition to any other right or remedy it may have.
We may provide links to third party websites, and some of the Content appearing on Sadiant may be supplied by third parties. Sadiant has no responsibility for these third-party websites nor for their Content, which is subject to and governed by the Terms of Service and/or privacy policies, if any, of the applicable third-party content providers.
You acknowledge that Sadiant contains Content (including, without limitation, audio, video, images and text) that is protected by copyrights, patents, trademarks, trade secrets and/or other proprietary rights, and that these rights are valid and protected in all forms, media and technologies existing now or hereafter developed. All Content is copyrighted under the United States copyright laws (and, if applicable, similar foreign laws), and Sadiant owns a copyright in the selection, coordination, arrangement and enhancement of such Content. All trademarks appearing on the Software are trademarks of their respective owners. You may not modify, publish, transmit, distribute, perform, participate in the transfer or sale, create derivative works of, or in any way exploit, any of the Content, in whole or in part. When Content is downloaded to your computer, you do not obtain any ownership interest in such Content. Modification of the Content or use of the Content for any other purpose, including, but not limited to, use of any Content in printed form or on any other website or networked computer environment is strictly prohibited unless you receive our prior written consent.
Sadiant will suspend or terminate your access to the Software if Sadiant determines, in its sole and reasonable discretion, that you have repeatedly breached these Terms of Service.
We will also suspend or terminate your account without warning if ordered to do so by a court, and/or in other appropriate circumstances, as determined by Sadiant at its sole discretion.
In no event shall Sadiant be liable for any damages whatsoever, whether direct, indirect, general, special, compensatory, consequential, and/or incidental, arising out of or relating to the Software or Service, or use thereof. Nothing contained in this Software or in any written or oral communications from Sadiant or its employees or agents shall be construed to make any promise, covenant, warranty, or guaranty, all of which are explicitly disclaimed hereby, contrary to the statements and disclaimers contained in this paragraph.
The content and functionality on the Software and the services provided by employees of the Software are offered "as is" without warranty of any kind, either express or implied, including, without limitation, implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, title and non-infringement. Sadiant makes no warranties, express or implied, as to the ownership, accuracy, completeness or adequacy of the Software’s content or that the functionality of the Software will be uninterrupted or error-free or free from virus or third-party attack. You hereby acknowledge that your use of this Software and the Service is at your sole risk. UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES SHALL SADIANT, ITS OFFICERS, OWNERS, EMPLOYEES OR AGENTS AND THEIR RESPECTIVE HEIRS, SUCCESSORS AND ASSIGNS BE LIABLE FOR ANY DAMAGES, INCLUDING DIRECT, INCIDENTAL, PUNITIVE, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL OR EXEMPLARY DAMAGES THAT DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY RESULT FROM USE OF, OR INABILITY TO USE, THE SOFTWARE OR SERVICE OR THE INFORMATION CONTAINED THEREIN, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION FOR VIRUSES ALLEGED TO HAVE BEEN OBTAINED FROM THE SOFTWARE, EVEN IF SADIANT HAS BEEN NOTIFIED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES OR LOSSES AND REGARDLESS OF THE THEORY OF LIABILITY.
TO THE GREATEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, YOU AGREE THAT IN NO EVENT WILL SADIANT HAVE ANY LIABILITY, CONTINGENT OR OTHERWISE, FOR ANY INDIRECT, SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, OR EXEMPLARY DAMAGES IN ANY WAY ARISING OUT OF OR RELATING TO THE AGREEMENT, SOFTWARE OR THE SERVICE, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO LOST PROFITS, LOST DATA (INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION DUE TO A SECURITY BREACH OR FAILURE), LOSS OF GOODWILL, COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT, WORK STOPPAGE, EQUIPMENT FAILURE OR MALFUNCTION, PERSONAL INJURY, PROPERTY DAMAGE, OR ANY OTHER DAMAGES OR LOSSES, EVEN IF SADIANT HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY THEREOF, AND REGARDLESS OF THE LEGAL OR EQUITABLE THEORY (CONTRACT, TORT, STATUTE, INDEMNITY OR OTHERWISE) UPON WHICH SUCH LIABILITY IS BASED.
In the event that any of the foregoing limitations are deemed to be unenforceable, to the greatest extent permitted by law, you agree that the entire aggregate liability of Sadiant and sole remedy available to any Member in any case in any way arising out of or relating to the Agreement, Software or the Service shall be limited to monetary damages that in the aggregate may not exceed $500.00.
In the event that Sadiant is successful in whole or in part in any action or proceeding related to or arising from this Agreement, you shall be responsible for Sadiant’s attorneys' fees and costs.
You acknowledge and agree that this Terms of Service is between you and Sadiant only, and that Apple is not a party to these Terms of Service. Sadiant, not Apple, is responsible for the Mobile App and its contents.
You must not use the Mobile App for iOS except on an Apple-branded product that is running iOS. Any use of the Mobile App by you must comply with the relevant Terms of Service for the Apple Source from which you obtained it (including, without limitation, the Usage Rules set forth in the Apple App Store Terms of Service). You acknowledge and agree that Apple does not have any obligation to furnish you with maintenance and/or support services with respect to the Mobile App.
You further acknowledge and agree that Apple is not responsible for addressing or resolving any claims by you or a third party relating to your use and/or possession of the Mobile App, including, but not limited to, warranty or liability claims, claims that the Mobile App fails to conform to a legal or regulatory requirement, consumer protection or similar claims, or claims that the Mobile App infringes the intellectual property rights of a third party (including, without limitation, trademark, copyright, and/or patent rights).
Any claims, losses, liabilities, damages costs or expenses relating to a failure to conform to any warranty shall be Sadiant’s responsibility, to the extent allowable by these Terms of Service. It is important that you read the entire Terms of Service, as other sections of these Terms of Service limit our liability.
Apple and its subsidiaries are third-party beneficiaries of these Terms of Service. By accepting these Terms of Service, you acknowledge and agree that Apple shall have the right (and will be deemed to have accepted that right) to enforce the Terms of Service against you as a third-party beneficiary. Apple is the sole third-party beneficiary and there are no other third-party beneficiaries of the Terms.
If there is any dispute arising out of the Software and/or the Service, by using the Software and/or Service, you expressly agree that any such dispute shall be governed by the laws of the State of Texas, without regard to its conflict of law provisions, and you expressly agree and consent to the exclusive jurisdiction and venue of the state and federal courts of the State of Texas, for the resolution of any such dispute. Acceptance of the terms and conditions of this Agreement constitutes your consent to be sued in such courts and to accept service of process outside the State of Texas with the same force and effect as if such service had been made within the State of Texas. You hereby agree to accept service of process for any action hereunder by certified mail return receipt requested which service shall have the same force and effect as though service had been effected by personal service in the applicable jurisdiction. If any part of these terms is unlawful, void, or unenforceable, that part will be deemed severable and will not affect the validity and enforceability of the remaining provisions.
Except where prohibited by law, as a condition of using the Software and/or Service, you agree that all disputes, claims and causes of action arising out of or connected with the Software and/or Service, shall be resolved individually, without resort to any form of class action, in the courts of the State of Texas, County of Tarrant, or in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas.
This Agreement contains the entire agreement between you and Sadiant regarding the use of the Software and/or the Service.
If any provision of this Agreement is found to be invalid by any court having competent jurisdiction, the invalidity of such provision shall not affect the validity of the remaining provisions of this Agreement, which shall remain in full force and effect. No waiver of any term of this Agreement shall be deemed a further or continuing waiver of such term or any other term. In addition, Sadiant’s failure to enforce any term of this Agreement shall not be deemed as a waiver of such term or otherwise affect Sadiant’s ability to enforce such term at any point in the future.
Sadiant is a trademark of Sadiant, LLC. | 2019-04-22T10:40:02Z | https://www.sadianthealth.com/terms-of-service |
To mark the arrival of the Vodafone xone business accelerator, Idealog is interviewing a whole heap of established New Zealand innovators, as well as the founders of the 10 startups selected by Vodafone to receive mentorship, funding and the potential benefits of working with a global network. In this episode, edutech entrepreneur Kendall Flutey talks with Idealog's publisher and editorial director, Ben Fahy.
Ben Fahy, publisher and editorial director of Idealog: Kendall, money has become increasingly intangible. We're using cards and often phones rather than coins and notes to pay for things. It's very convenient, but as with all technologies, you lose something as a result of it. Many people think that kids are losing the ability to learn because they can't touch and feel. Is that something that Banqer, your system, is trying to solve?
Kendall Flutey, co-founder of financial capability tool Banqer: Certainly, I think we are one more step removed from our finances now, the concept of money is a lot more abstract than it used to be. If you can't touch something, it is a little bit less real to you. Enabling the students to experience what we experience as adults, and bringing finances right in front of the eyes instead of just seeing mum and dad swipe the EFTPOS card at supermarket; letting the kids log on and see their finances and engage with them as well, that's a really positive experience.
You started off pretty young as an entrepreneur, with a few schemes at school, I hear. Can you run us through how that started. Do you feel as though you were born an entrepreneur, or have you been made into one as you've gone on?
I'm not sure if I can give myself that title as a young kid, but I was certainly scheming often. I've shared the story in the past where I started my own wee subscription-based newsletter. The kids, [fellow] students thought it was a great idea. 20 cents is a real bargain. But parents, when they got wind of it they didn't really have the same expressions as me. My writing probably wasn't warranting 20 cents either. I also did silly things like kids did, the equivalent of the lemonade stand, I remember we were living in Australia at the time, I gathered up pretty much all of my toys, and sold them at what I'm sure is a ridiculously reduced cost than what they cost my parents for my birthday and Christmas. I was just constantly doing little things like that.
What kind of support networks did you have in place to then take that leap into starting your own business?
I guess my first foray into business was at university. I started a crash course provider where we basically gave kids access to a tutor for eight hours just before the exam, so a real crash course. That was a venture on my own with a business partner who was equally inexperienced. I think more than anything, making those mistakes early on and learning from them held me in good stead for when the real business came along. I've certainly had support along the way as I've grown the New Zealand network for entrepreneurs and startups is super evolved so I've never been shy of support.
The tech scene often comes up with ridiculous buzzwords, 'gamification' is one of them, but there is some science behind that, and you look at the way people learn when they're having fun or they're interested in something, that generally tends to stick. Can you explain how Banqer works and what the philosophy is in that regard?
Sorry to get really technical, but we wouldn't really call ourselves gamified, or gamification. We're more of a simulation, so if you've ever played The Sims or Sim City, we're kind of similar to that in that we're a mock-online-banking experience with a little bit more. You go on there as a kid and you've got access to your finances, but you can also do a lot of financial things that you don't realise like pay tax, take out a mortgage on your first property, take out insurance, and we simulate your life condensed down over the school year.
Like a better, maybe less capitalist version of Monopoly.
What had to happen for you to realise that the business had potential, and does it have bigger potential than just New Zealand?
So much. The whole journey I've been on was somewhat accidental, stemming from my past job as an accountant all the way to becoming a software developer, and in just a simple conversation with my brother which is what sparked all of this. Even when I intentionally took that idea that my brother essentially gave me, and wanted to intentionally do something with it I didn't have these kind of aspirations. It was when users started using it and we started hitting those milestones that we really had to take a long hard look and say ‘hey, we've got something here, what is it that we have?’ Definitely, the problem of financial literacy is borderless, so our product too can be borderless.
You see a lot of opportunism with business. I think that being able to see them and then obviously react rather than just watch them go by. Is that innate do you think, or have you had those other mentors or people to sound things off with to decide whether it's a goer?
I think it's been a bit of both. You've got to have that drive and that belief even if the steps don't stack up that week or month, but then hearing the reassurance from the mentors and advisors is really what keeps you going in there as well.
Technology is changing the way we learn, and historically it's been an industrialised system based often on rote learning. Now we see it's becoming personalised, often more fun, more creative, as you can see with things like the Khan Academy where you can learn through YouTube. What do you see as the future for education and do you think New Zealand is in a good position to ride that wave?
We're absolutely only scratching the surface in edutech here in New Zealand and globally. I would say education, along with agriculture and a few other industries, are the last tapped tech industries. We're not the first to revolutionise education, that's been done by some great systems like Khan, as you said. But I think here in New Zealand we are positioned really uniquely to run with this technology. Our schooling system and our curriculum is actually really flexible and teachers are able to pick up Banqer and give it a go in their classroom without seeking higher approval. That's pretty special and we should certainly take advantage of that here in New Zealand.
You've also taken advantage of the growing desire for companies to get involved in financial literacy from a corporate social responsibility perspective. Kiwibank in particular has come on recently and funding it into different classrooms. How important has that partnership with a big player been to show momentum and to get your secret out there?
That's been massively important to our success, to stand on their shoulders. They're Kiwi giants, and they've got a great Kiwi brand that we want to be aligned with. That was so valuable to us in the very early days and even today. Any startup would kill for that kind of exposure and we're really grateful to start forming those relationships.
25 now, you're female, so I guess you could say you're a little bit of an anomaly in the tech scene, and there's been a lot of discussion about that, about diversity in the tech sector. Has that hampered you in any way, have things changed recently, and what do we need to do to address that issue in the tech sector?
It's really interesting, I feel really fortunate. I attend this monthly lunch with a lot of females in tech around Canterbury. The average age is a little bit older than me, and they'll share stories of their experiences in tech as a female. Some of them are quite frankly horrific. I've never experienced any of that and I think we've had this really strong generation within the last decade or so of women who have experienced terrible things, general inequality based on their gender, and they've changed the system for me and for women after. I'm not saying it's fixed by any means, but there are a lot of programmes, processes in place to address that problem now. I'm really thankful I haven't seen the hard sides of that gender inequality.
From your experience working with other tech companies and your own business, do you feel as though New Zealand has an opportunity to become a bit of a hub for that globally?
Oh, absolutely, I think New Zealand is your perfect wee playground for getting a product out there early and engaging with users. We've got that built into our DNA, No. 8 wire mentality, DIY, so we do also encourage others to give it a go, and we'll support them. I think we're the perfect springboard, the only problem in the equation is then ensuring you get out of New Zealand and you do export to whatever region suits your product best next.
Have you always been good with money? What's your weakness? You must have one.
I'm definitely a big saver. My weakness is that perhaps sometimes that plays out poorly into my social life. I'll forego a wine here or there, or a trip away with the girls to scrounge my money, which isn't the most exciting life.
It's often what you see successful business people doing though. They have a very specific focus, and they will often remove everything else in their life to get there.
That's good to hear it's not just me then.
There are thousands of startups trying to disrupt the big guys in banking and payments and, another abbreviation or buzzword, "fin-tech" is what it's often referred to. There's a lot of money at stake there. Is that something that you want to get involved with, an area that you maybe want to branch into?
No. We know what we're good at and we want to keep running with that. There's a lot of different ways we can branch our product though, be it through high school or young adults. Financial literacy capability is our game, and sure banks have offerings in this regard, but that's not their core product, and this is certainly our core product.
What do you see as the future of money, I read a great story actually about the co-founder of Abba, Bjorn Ulvaeus, who's currently engaged in a big battle in Sweden to completely get rid of cash. His take on it is that it's the only thing that is keeping the black market alive. Increasingly you see, as we've discussed, people using cards and phones. What do you see happening in 5, 10 years with money?
Certainly we're heading towards a cashless society globally. Culturally here in New Zealand we're moving a lot faster than say the States. We're still quite reliant on tangible cash. It is a generational thing though, I know my grandparents don't have EFTPOS cards, they actually go into a physical bank to withdraw any cash they need.
They use cheques, so I think the learning curve is quite steep, but as we move on as a society, that's definitely where we're heading. Phones will come into play a lot more, phones or whatever the popular device is at the time.
I guess there will always be a place for certain technologies, and they'll take longer to be removed I think than people realize. Particularly giant cheques. They'll always have a place, won't they?
They always will on a stage somewhere.
What's the one piece of advice given your experience that you would give to other people who have an idea or are, as you've said, forced into a particular idea, to make it happen?
The problem with a lot of people who do have an idea is they just leave it at that, they think the idea has some kind of inherent value. An idea, essentially, is worthless. I place no value on any ideas I have. It is the doing that matters, and the doing it well, the execution. It is literally just making and doing it. Like us, you don't have to have the end goal in mind when you actually write the first line of code or put your team together. That can come over time but you do actually need to make a start.
Some of the fastest growing companies in the history exist at the moment. Is that a good thing for you? Are you scared of that? Is that something that you're trying to tap into?
I think it is a little bit scary that these startups are growing so rapidly because I think of the way we measure the growth and their value. Perhaps it's justified, perhaps it's not. I also think it creates a culture on raising capital very early, perhaps not so much here in New Zealand, but certainly abroad, when that's not the right step for everyone at those early stages. We shouldn't place so much value on how much capital you've raised, that shouldn't be the only measure of success. They're great goal posts for certain businesses, but not every tech startup needs to follow that mantra an go down that same path.
Is there any kind of quantifiable result that you could look at that isn't cash based, in terms of the social benefit that you can maybe provide through your service?
Absolutely, but I think the problem with any social benefits often they're hard to quantify. We've tried really hard to enable our platform to collect that data and say this is the social difference we're making this year, and projected out over 10, 20 years, this is the way it's going to affect our economy. Ensuring that you can quantify social will put it up in good stead alongside raising capital and those other metrics we use.
How has business changed in regards to releasing things in terms of products and going out to the market maybe with something that isn't fully formed, and then maybe dealing with the feedback as it comes in rather than as you said having an idea and thinking your idea has a market and then finding out it doesn't.
It's so easy and so cheap to get something off the ground now. We did it in a weekend, we started it in Startup Weekend and on Monday we had our first users. Our product looks remarkably different from that day than it does now, but that's all largely thanks to the advice and support of our users. We've crafted something with them along the way that meets the needs of our users, which is outstanding. That's exactly what you want, you want to build a product that people actually want to use to why not seek their advice. There's some issues that come along with rapid release and live iteration, yesterday we broke something on a pretty big day for us, so you do suffer those consequences.
What's the Zuckerberg quote, move fast and break things.
Yes, move fast and break things, but fix things and move faster, he forgot to add on at the end. You take the good with the bad when you're iterating like that.
We've got a reputation for invention in New Zealand that may have been slightly romanticised in the past, but do you feel as though entrepreneurism is an accepted goal for younger New Zealanders to strive for?
I think it's heading that way, but it's certainly not the default. We are still pretty risk averse, New Zealanders, we're quite straight-laced in a lot of senses, so the default would certainly be your profession, which is certainly what I fell into, and escaping that was very nice because this is what I do feel I’m meant to be doing. There's a lot more programmes out there that encourage entrepreneurship and stand it up there equivalent to the more traditional professions, doctor, lawyer, accountant, whatever it may be.
It's a pretty appealing profession in a way, I think there might be some mythology around the hero entrepreneur, but it's still making your own mark on the world and going the way that you want to rather than for a big company. I think there's inherently a New Zealand attitude to that independence that helps with that.
Absolutely, it's an incredible feeling, and in a lot of ways it's a little bit of a selfish pursuit by me and anyone else on a similar journey, in that we don't like to be a small cog in a big wheel, we'd rather scrap the wheel altogether and run or do whatever we have to to, like you say, put our own mark on the world, or more than anything, feel like I'm contributing. At other jobs I've been in, I did my work but it didn't really feel like I was making a difference. Had I been sick that day or that week would it have really mattered? Just answering those questions I guess.
I wouldn't say selfish is the right description then.
So what is the purpose? What's the big goal that keeps you moving? Is it a "what", is it a "who", is it the people who use your product?
Increasingly so, it's becoming the users and the difference I am seeing us make. We've got some really cool data, knowing exactly the financial literacy and capability differences that we're having on a whole generation of Kiwi kids. That's exciting to make that kind of difference. I'm not driven by ... I don't have financial aspirations of my own really, it is more I enjoy doing this and I'm going to keep doing it as long as I do enjoy it. | 2019-04-20T12:16:15Z | https://idealog.co.nz/innovators/2016/08/vodafone-xone-innovators-series-banquers-kendall-fluety |
As politicans from across the world met at the NATO summit in Wales, the crisis in Ukraine saw an escalation in rhetoric. The same people who told us about Saddam’s “Weapons of Mass Destruction” are now raising a hue and cry about thousands, perhaps tens of thousands, of Russian troops having invaded Ukraine and are demanding swift action to counter them.
This is rich, coming from a country which has never hesitated to resort to invasions, military coups, covert destabilisation all over the world, splitting countries and redrawing their borders whenever it suited the interests of US capitalism. And we are not just referring to the 19th and 20th centuries. The more recent examples of the coup in Honduras, the coup in Venezuela, the invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan, the bombing of Libya, the support for reactionary fundamentalist insurgents in Syria, the support for reactionary dictatorships in Saudi Arabia and the Gulf states and a long list of other cases. When US imperialism talks of “the right of nations to determine their own future” what it really means is “our right to determine any nation’s future according the interests of our bankers and capitalists”.
To make a lot of noise about alleged Russian intervention in Ukraine is one thing, but the US is finding it increasingly complicated to be the world’s policeman in a period of capitalist economic crisis worldwide and the accompanying turmoil and instability. Obama was therefore very strong in his denunciation of Russia but very vague in stating his concrete commitment to responding in the only way that would amount to anything: that is, by providing a military response. In fact, the whole conflict over Ukraine has revealed openly the limitations of US imperialist power, the divisions between America and its European allies and the even deeper divisions among the latter.
US imperialism had already been forced to exit Iraq and Afghanistan leaving behind a situation which was less stable from the point of view of its own interests. To that we now have to add the rise of the IS (the direct result of US meddling in the region), Israel’s criminal bombing of Gaza and the crisis in Ukraine. These growing demands on the US as the world’s policeman come at a time when its relations with key European ally Germany are at an all time low and the US public is extremely wary of any more costly foreign military operations.
To return to the Ukraine, it was the provocative actions of Western imperialism which unleashed the present crisis. The US backed the removal of Yanukovych and the instalment of a government firmly committed to bringing Ukraine into an alliance with the EU and possibly membership of NATO. This was like a red rag to a bull for the Kremlin, and US strategists must have known it. The annexation of Crimea was the only logical step to take from the point of view of Russia in order to secure continued control over a Russian naval base of great strategic importance. For all the talk on the part of the US of “red lines which cannot be crossed” and “consequences” which were supposed to follow, the truth is that they were unable to do anything about it. The “inviolable borders of a sovereign state” had been “redrawn at the barrel of a gun” and the US was completely impotent.
Crimea was not the only Russian aim in this conflict. The Kremlin cannot allow Ukraine to fall completely into the West’s sphere of influence and has used the uprising in the East of the country, as well as its control over gas supplies, as bargaining chips to ensure it continues to have a major say in Ukrainian politics. Despite this, US officials backed the reactionary Turchynov-Yatseniuk-Poroshenko government in Kyiv and pushed it to launch a war on its own people in the Donbass. Every major offensive of the so-called “anti-terrorist operation” was preceded by a visit of a high ranking US official to Kiev. And every one of them failed.
In the middle of August it looked like the Ukrainian Army and the far-right “patriotic” Battalions set up by Kiev were finally advancing in their war against the Donbass rebels. They forced them out of their strongholds in Slavyansk and Kramatorsk by means of a brutal siege. Then they managed to surround Luhansk and Donetsk, moving to cut them off from the Russian border.
The Ukrainian forces engaged in the indiscriminate shelling of civilian areas, schools, hospitals, markets, apartment blocks, water supply systems in important urban centres like Donetsk and Luhansk as well as smaller cities and towns. All were seen as legitimate targets in Kiev’s war against the Donbass. Over 2,000 people have been killed, tens of thousands injured and up to one million have been forced to flee the region. Yet there were no protests, no signs of outrage coming from the “international community”. These crimes were met with a deafening silence in Washington, London and Berlin.
In order to whip up public support for the war, the Kiev government had to resort to a campaign of increasingly virulent patriotic hysteria, which led to the suppression of any opposition voices. Left-wing organisations were forced underground, legal proceedings started to ban the Communist Party, Russian language newspapers were attacked, members of parliament physically assaulted during the sessions, social media monitored, Russian channels banned, left-wing and anti-war activists arrested without a warrant, etc. Again, not a single word of condemnation from the West.
Even at this time the military situation was not completely under the control of Kiev’s forces. Hundreds of Ukrainian soldiers were trapped between rebel forces and the Russian border, without access to supplies. Kiev was unable or unwilling to send them food or ammunition, but ordered them to resist and not to surrender. Hundreds finally crossed the border and gave themselves up to the Russian army. Some were then put on trial for desertion.
For the Kiev authorities, the Ukrainian soldiers are nothing more than cannon fodder. It is therefore no wonder that there have been continued protests by soldiers’ relatives all over the country. With the new wave of mobilisation, hundreds of ordinary working people are being drafted. These unfortunates are being sent to the Donbass with very little training, poor equipment and very little food. Meanwhile, the sons of the wealthy and state officials are paying bribes to prevent being sent to the front. One of the slogans raised by the mothers’ and wives’ movement was: “send the sons of judges and politicians to the front first!” Others argued that the war had been provoked by the Euromaidan movement and therefore those who engineered it should be sent to do the fighting. The movement against mobilisation into the army was particularly strong in regions where there are national minorities, but not only there.
The offensive drive of the Kiev forces seemed to be unstoppable. But then, as the end of August approached, the tide started to turn. The rebels fought back, breaking the encirclement of Donetsk and Luhansk, taking control of the airport in both cities, opened a new front in Novoazovsk and are now advancing on the key port of Mariupol. The fascist paramilitary Battalions (Azov, Donbass, Dniepr) took a particularly severe beating in the crucial battle of Ilovaisk and some of their main leaders were injured.
Now thoroughly alarmed, the Kiev government started to shout loudly about “thousands of Russian troops” on Ukrainian soil and whole tank battalions that were allegedly crossing the border. It was at this point that the Western capitals started to raise the alarm - not about the Kiev forces’ use of artillery and aerial bombardment against civilian targets, but about a so-called “Russian invasion”. In order to back up this claim, NATO has produced some grainy satellite pictures. These are the same people who assured us that Saddam Hussein not only had weapons of mass destruction, but also that he possessed means to deploy them and was ready to do so. Any “evidence” coming from them should be considered with a large degree of scepticism.
Kiev is also interested in hyping up the potential threat from Russia in a bid to get some concrete military support from the West for a war it is now clearly losing. Its claims about a “Russian invasion” are therefore heavily suspect. Of course, the Kremlin cannot allow the Donbass rebels to be crushed. First of all it would lose an important card in its bargaining to achieve its aims in Ukraine. Secondly, it would deal a severe blow to Putin’s popularity in Russia if he was seen as abandoning them to their fate. In order to prevent that from happening, Russia has undoubtedly helped the rebels with surveillance and intelligence, a regular supply of weaponry, “volunteers”, and a small number of special troops.
There is no reason to doubt the presence of some Russian troops in East Ukraine. Russian claims that border troops could have crossed the border “by mistake” cannot be taken seriously. But to speak of a Russian invasion is an invention of the Kiev regime intended to conceal the real reasons for its military setbacks. The reversal of fortunes of the Ukrainian troops in the East is explained by other factors: the incompetence of the high command of the “anti terrorist operation”, the fractured nature of the forces fighting on Kiev’s side (which includes Ministry of Internal Affairs troops, the Army, neo-Nazi volunteer Battalions, other volunteer forces ascribed to different political forces or to individual oligarchs), rampant corruption and outright treason.
Even before the current rout, the self-appointed commander of the volunteer “Donbass” Battalion Simon Semenchenko, was complaining: “there is a growing gap between unit commanders and the leadership of the ATO (they say ‘why are we being driven to slaughter and why no one is punished’); an absolute mess regarding weapons, lack of coordination and communication management; corruption and chaos in support in feeding and clothing the volunteers."
The humiliating retreat of Kiev’s forces further widened the divisions in their camp. The “patriotic volunteer” Battalions accused the Ministry of Defence and the president of lack of support and about a thousand gathered at a protest in Kiev at the end of August demanding more weapons, more men and more funding for the war. Another joint protest of all the volunteer battalions was planned for September 4 and there are constant rumours of attempts by these fascist thugs to remove the current government in a “new Maidan”.
What this means is that the Ukrainian army is an accurate reflection of all the contradictions of Ukrainian society and the rottenness and corruption of Ukrainian capitalism. Above all, the defeat of the Ukrainian forces is the result of the lack of morale of the conscript and reserve soldiers who see no reason for this war and lack the will to fight. On the other hand the rebel forces are fighting a war to defend their homes and families. They are fighting with their backs to the wall and therefore they fight with a courage and determination born out of desperation.
The fact that Kiev’s forces are in effect fighting in enemy territory, not against “gangs of foreign mercenaries” but rather against a hostile local population which has raised a militia army, will have further undermined the morale of the ordinary Ukrainian conscript. The mood of civilians in Donetsk was faithfully conveyed by a report by CNN, which cannot be accused of being a mouthpiece for Russian propaganda: (See the report here).
The mood of the population has changed in recent weeks as the vicious nature of the occupying forces has become clear to ordinary people. Previously, many ordinary people regarded the war as a temporary thing, an unwelcome interruption of their normal lives that would eventually disappear, allowing them to return to their daily routine. While they regarded the new regime in Kiev with deep suspicion, they remained passive spectators, unwilling to engage actively in the struggle. But now the mood has hardened.
This very point was made by journalist Tim Judah in an article for the NY Review of Books entitled “A Catastrophic defeat”: “"Rebel-held Luhansk came under a virtual siege, and was heavily shelled by Ukrainian forces, though bizarrely it is still possible to get to the town on a suburban train. Large parts of Donetsk too came under shelling from Ukrainian forces. Some areas have been badly damaged and targeting has been so woefully inaccurate that hundreds of civilians have been killed in the process. The result is that, by August, many ordinary people who did not care that much about who ruled them hated the government in Kiev and Ukraine as a whole."
An article by Roland Oliphant in the Telegraph described the attitude of local residents of Komsomolskoye towards the fascist paramilitary battalions of the National Guard which had occupied their area for a few days in early September: "They didn't defend us, they just stole from us. They showed up, said they were going to blockade the town, and took over the police station for their HQ. When we complained we'd get shelled because of this they said that was none of our business. After this my doubts are gone. We're just waiting for the DNR to get here."
By comparing the mood on both sides of the war it is not difficult to conclude that one does not require the hypothesis of a “Russian invasion” to explain the latest rout of the Kiev forces.
War is a complex and dynamic equation. The attempt by Kiev to smash the rebels (calculating that Putin would be unwilling to get further involved in helping the rebels) completely backfired and now it is Kiev which has been forced into a humiliating retreat. Poroshenko is desperate to get support from NATO and has been given a guest seat at the organisation’s summit in Wales.
Emboldened by provocative statements made by the flint-faced Great Dane General Rasmussen, Ukraine’s Prime Minister Yatseniuk insists that his country wants “first class ally” status and will apply for NATO membership after the forthcoming parliamentary elections. Brave words indeed! But the fact is that Poroshenko’s attempt to get NATO to take military action to stop the “Russian invasion” failed miserably and Kiev’s request for NATO membership was met by a polite but non-committal and very lukewarm response.
The US has made a lot of noise about the need to support Ukraine and its national integrity, but in reality her European allies are extremely reluctant to commit themselves and the mess in Iraq now occupies a higher place in its order of priorities. At the NATO meeting in Wales they thundered condemnations, raised their hands to the Heavens and called down Divine Wrath on the head of Vladimir Putin, and – did nothing.
Once again there was talk of “tough economic sanctions”. But we have heard all that before. The truth is that, although the Russian economy could be badly hurt by any serious sanctions, the economies of Europe, already in a very fragile state, would suffer still more. Several European countries, including Germany, are already on the verge of falling into recession again. Implementing harsher sanctions could be the last straw. Russia could then cut off gas supplies to Europe on which Germany and other countries are heavily dependent.
The prospect of German families shivering in the dark while German factories grind to a halt with the onset of winter is not the most attractive one for Angela Merkel. Therefore Germany wants a negotiated solution to be reached, and that means one which is acceptable to Russia. We have not the slightest doubt that even while the noisy denunciations continue, such a deal is being worked out under the table.
The attempts of NATO and the West to frighten the Russians with threats of more economic sanctions have had the opposite effect to that which was intended. Far from being intimidated, Putin immediately upped the ante and now says that any negotiated settlement must include “statehood” for the Donbass. The Russians see that things are moving their way in East Ukraine and see no reason to make compromises. By contrast, the Kiev regime is in a state of confusion that borders on panic.
All of a sudden everyone wants to get to the negotiating table as quickly as possible to work out an agreement in which everything will be for the best in the best of all possible worlds. All eyes are on the talks in Minsk, but in reality matters will be settled by fighting on the ground, and there the rebels are now on the offensive. At this moment of writing they are attacking checkpoints just outside the crucial port town of Mariupol. As long as there is no agreement they will continue to take advantage of their momentum on the ground to consolidate and expand their gains.
Meanwhile in Kiev there is a mood of panic and division in the ruling elite. When president Poroshenko published an official statement on his website on September 3 announcing that in a phone conversation with Putin he had agreed a plan for a “permanent ceasefire” (the word “permanent” was later deleted), prime minister Yatseniuk immediately contradicted him and said that “peace will be achieved through battle”.
A Russian spokesperson then confirmed the veracity of the phone conversation but added that there was no agreement, as “Russia was not a party to the conflict” and that any ceasefire had to be agreed with the Donetsk and Luhansk Republics. Representatives of both Republics said that there was no ceasefire on the ground, that they had not been consulted and that a pre-condition for any agreement was the complete withdrawal of Kiev’s troops. They added, correctly, that they doubted the ability of Poroshenko to enforce any ceasefire on the punitive Battalions. Members of the neo-Nazi Azov Battalion confirmed to the media that they would not respect any deal with the rebels and would continue fighting.
Any deal which Poroshenko signs with the Donbass rebels will provoke rage amongst the far-right volunteer battalions which might move to attempt to overthrow him. All these are unknown variables which can prevent a deal or even provoke a further escalation of the conflict.
Meanwhile, the economic crisis Ukraine already faced has been severely worsened by the civil war. The country’s GDP, which was already forecast to collapse by 5%, could now end the year with a terrifying 8% fall. The IMF is already talking of the need for a further bailout. Private investors are already counting on some sort of default on the country’s debt.
The war is affecting two of the most industrial regions in the country and in July industrial output was down 29% in Donetsk and 56% in Luhansk. There have already been a number of high profile announcements of factories either closing down or stopping their operations, like that of ZAZ carmaker. Inflation is soaring and is expected to reach 20% by the end of the year. This is particularly affecting the prices of utilities. At the same time the conflict over gas supplies with Russia is leading to hot water being cut off in several cities, including Kiev. That is already a problem in the summer, but it will lead to an unbearable situation in the freezing Ukrainian winter.
At a certain point economic and social issues must come to the fore and dissipate the poisonous clouds of nationalist hysteria. Already there have been a number of small scale protests against utility price hikes, in some cases combined with protests against drafting of soldiers to the front. On September 3, a conflict over the removal of a design manager at the state owned Antonov aircraft factory led to a clash between workers and Ministry of Interior troops which surrounded the plant. The workers are fighting a move to privatise and restructure this flagship company. These are small signs but they show the way forward.
All history shows that defeats in war have a habit of turning into revolutions. Today Ukraine is in the grip of counterrevolution, White Terror and bloody civil war. But the march of events can produce all kinds of sudden and dramatic changes. One thing is clear: 25 years of capitalism in Ukraine have produced nothing but economic and social, cultural collapse, political upheavals, corruption, crime, chaos, wars, poverty, death and suffering. On this basis, there is no future for the people of Ukraine. Sooner or later that lesson will be learnt. | 2019-04-21T18:31:25Z | http://londonprogressivejournal.com/article/view/1963/ukraine-nato-hypocrisy-over-russian-invasion-as-kiev-suffers-defeat |
The International Mediation Institute (IMI) began its life in early 2007. IMI was, and remains, unique. No other initiative has ever been undertaken, or even attempted, to forge mediation into a global profession by establishing worldwide, high level, practice and approval standards. The mission is nothing short of pioneering.
The American economist, Paul Zane Pilzer, observed that: The early pioneers…were motivated by a sense that it was possible to create a better world than the conventional routes offered…Now the alternatives of yesterday have become the economic powerhouses of today and tomorrow.
IMI seeks to rid mediation of the “alternative” cloak that has restrained its growth over the past 30 years by enabling its practitioners and service providers to gain the understanding, acceptance and respect of users – worldwide – offering a true professional activity. Mediation is not an alternative, but a natural process to be used in resolving any conflict and at any time in the dispute cycle and deal making. This has been no easy task, because currently anyone can call themselves a mediator, and too many regularly do so. IMI has introduced a worldwide mediation standard that for the first time enables users to make informed decisions on mediator selection that are truly objective.
This Mission is so important to users, yet so challenging, that no other institution in the international mediation space relies entirely on donations from Patrons to implement its mission, refraining from competing in the marketplace for mediation services.
Fortunately, there have been many visionary thinkers that have combined their financial resources, and organizational and human skills to enable the IMI Mission to gain real traction. IMI originated as a user-driven public-interest initiative, voicing and meeting users needs. The Chair of the IMI Board has always been from a prominent Mediation User to emphasize this focus.
IMI has followed through on its Mission by creating international standards by which mediators are objectively credentialed; providing resources to users and others; establishing Inter-Cultural Competency Certification; and introducing Mediation Advocacy Competency Certification. These initiatives are just the beginning. During the coming years, IMI will extend these and other initiatives globally to regions primed for social and economic growth.
In 2006, leaders of four organisations, one in the US, one in Europe and two in Asia, discussed the longer term future of the dispute resolution field and what, if anything, they could do to improve its prospects. They represented the Netherlands Mediation Institute (NMI), the Singapore Mediation Centre (SMC), the Singapore International Arbitration Centre (SIAC) and the American Arbitration Association’s International Centre for Dispute Resolution (AAA/ICDR).
The growth of international trade and investment had significantly enhanced the need for private dispute resolution services. Until the 1980s, this mainly meant arbitration. Modern arbitration tracks its origin to the 19th Century in Europe, then in the 20th Century, formalised with the US Federal Arbitration Act of 1925. AAA and the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators were established and arbitration gradually matured to international acceptability.
The four organisations understood that with arbitration experiencing its international Golden Age, user concern had increased about the cost and time of arbitrating. However, not all disputants want a judge or arbitrator to decide right or wrong, and few had the satisfaction of “winning” as their prime objective; most desire a quick and acceptable outcome, enabling them to move on. This user drive to control their own outcomes, and reduce risk, through settlement negotiations is not always achievable. Often people were the problem. Assisted negotiation – with the help of a mediator – offers the opportunity of a mediator to reduce the adverse effect of tactical maneuvering and emotion – but it requires quality, experienced mediators as well as users who understand the value of mediation over traditional litigation and arbitration. Mediation is a very different process from arbitration and litigation, because it is not an application of law but a negotiation process, but there is great reluctance on the part of many users to try mediation, mainly owing to a widespread lack of understanding of how and why it works.
The founding institutions agreed that quality and information were the keys to unlocking greater traction for mediation. At the urging of Netherlands-based international mediator, Annette van Riemsdijk, it was agreed that the best vehicle for increasing quality perception and improving understanding about mediation was an independent, non-profit, non-service-provider, global foundation designed to inspire user confidence in mediators and mediation. That foundation needed to attract support from all competing players in the dispute resolution market worldwide and all other stakeholders – users (disputants), advocates (mainly law firms), adjudicators (judges and arbitrators), educators (academics and mediation skills trainers) and policy makers (mainly governments). Its mission would be to set high transparent mediation quality standards and to explain and promote the value of resolving disputes using mediation. No such entity existed in 2006.
For these public benefit reasons, it was resolved to form the International Mediation Institute (IMI) and provide initial funding for it to achieve these goals on a global scale.
Once the first Executive Director (Michael Leathes) and the Operations Manager (Irena Vanenkova) had been identified, a meeting was convened in early 2007 to discuss incorporation, funding and an operational plan. It was agreed to register IMI as a foundation (“stichting”) in The Hague, that AAA/ICDR, SMC and SIAC would fund IMI for its initial few years through grants, and that IMI would develop an international mediator competency credentialing scheme supported by NMI, which offered the expertise it had developed in creating NMI Certification of mediators in the Netherlands – the only truly national credentialing scheme for mediators in the world at that time.
IMI was incorporated under Dutch Law in The Hague on March 23, 2007. Provision was made in the Articles of Association for an Advisory Council as well as a Board of Directors. The first executive director agreed to serve in a capacity pro bono, in order to contain costs. It was also agreed that, in due course, an Independent Standards Commission would be convened comprising thought leaders in mediation drawn from all stakeholder groups, worldwide.
A week after IMI was incorporated, the European Parliament passed a Legislative Resolution on what was then the draft EU Mediation Directive which, among other amendments to the Directive, inserted a new Article 4 urging EU Member States to introduce effective quality control mechanisms on the provision of mediation services and to develop certification systems in the mediation field. The Legislative Resolution also called on Member States to improve the level of objective public information about mediation. This reassured the founders that quality and information were the correct components of the IMI mission.
It was also agreed that transparency and diversity should underpin the IMI competency scheme, preferably involving a way to make user feedback on the competency, skills and other characteristics of mediators openly available for the benefit of future users.
The next priority was to establish the IMI web portal, as it was decided at the outset that this would be the main communication medium. The web portal was initially designed by then Operations Manager Irena Vanenkova and constructed by Tribiq, an Internet Service Provider (ISP). The web portal went live on April 30, 2007. Tribiq remains the ISP of IMI and has continually improved the portal, with the help of Irena, who became Executive Director in 2008 and Emma Ewart, who succeeded as Operations Manager.
Simultaneously, IMI began to consult with leading users, mediators and service providers to gain an insight into their thinking on both quality and information to help IMI devise its operating plan. No attempt had previously been made to establish worldwide quality standards in mediation, but the issue was starting to be debated in dispute resolution circles. The NMI Certification scheme was gaining international recognition, and at the time mediator practice standards were being drafted in Australia by a Government-funded agency, the National ADR Advisory Council (NADRAC). This activity began to be noticed by leading international corporate users, such as General Electric, Northrop Grumman and Nestlé, and some service providers, such as the founding institutions of IMI but also others.
The initial consultation enabled IMI to prepare a paper in July 2007 proposing a system for certifying international competency standards for mediators. This system envisaged setting high, experience-based standards (similar to the NMI Certification Standards, but unlike the draft Australian system which envisaged the establishment of basic standards).
In September 2007, IMI held its first Board Meeting, in Zeist, the Netherlands attended by representatives of each of the founding institutions, at which the proposed credentialing scheme was reviewed, refined and approved.
IMI set itself a task to provide useful tools that could be presented on its web portal to encourage understanding and use of mediation by those less accustomed to the process.
Because most mediation service providers understandably use their promotional budgets mainly to promote their own services, there was no real professional platform that users and others could visit for independent objective guidance. IMI therefore resolved to address this deficiency through thought leadership and a variety of mechanisms to make mediation less mysterious and more comprehensible, and to focus especially on users (disputants). If users, and their advisers, could come to understand mediation better, they would become less hesitant to use the process, and the growth rate of mediation would start to increase.
The Hague was chosen as the seat of IMI for its standing as the international city of peace, justice and reconciliation, and the location in the Peace Palace of the International Court of Justice and the Permanent Court of Arbitration. Moreover the City of The Hague was encouraging international NGOs like IMI to establish themselves in the city.
A leading international mediator, Leslie Mooyaart (formerly General Counsel of KLM, now Vice President Legal at APM Terminals, a division of Maersk), who had been instrumental in the formation of IMI, offered IMI a temporary address at his office location in The Hague. However, it was agreed to apply as soon as possible to the Municipality of The Hague to be allocated a permanent physical office space in one of the City-owned buildings reserved for international NGOs. In 2008, the Municipality of The Hague identified a fully-serviced office to accommodate IMI in the Bertha von Suttner Building at 70 Laan van Meerdervoort, close to the Peace Palace, which the Municipality reserves for approved NGOs at subsidised rents. In addition, the Municipality graciously donated €45k to IMI over three years to help it establish in The Hague. IMI continues to hold this office.
GE had been a supporter of IMI from the outset, and IMI was invited to apply for a grant from the GE Foundation. In order to qualify as an applicant, it was necessary for an independent assessment to be made that IMI, as a non-US registered foundation, would, if registered in the United States, qualify under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code as a tax-exempt non-profit organisation. Following a review by Sullivan & Cromwell, that determination was made and submitted to the GE Foundation.
Meanwhile, IMI had applied to the Dutch Tax Service for a ruling that IMI to be accepted as an “Algemeen Nut Beogende Instellingen” (ANBI) (Institution Aimed at the Common Good), a status accorded to charitable, religious, humanistic, cultural and scientific institutions whose mission and operations are deemed by the Tax Service overwhelmingly to serve the public interest. Donations to ANBI-registered entities are exempt from Dutch Gift Tax and donors to such entities may deduct grants made from taxable income. IMI has been deemed to be ANBI-registered since January 2009.
From its early beginnings in 2007, IMI has progressively refined its governance, and consequently its strategy.
The initial Board of Directors, comprising people affiliated with the Founding Institutions, quickly expanded to include a number of in-house corporate counsel and others. The Advisory Council was convened, and an Independent Standards Commission was established.
It was decided by the Founding Institutions that the Chair of IMI should always be someone with a background as a leading corporate user of mediation. Wolf von Kumberg of Northrop Grumman was appointed as the first Chair in 2007, followed by Michael McIlwrath of General Electric in 2008, Patrick Deane of Nestlé in 2010, Ute Joas Quinn of Shell, and later Hess Corp, in 2011 and Deborah Masucci of AIG in 2013. All remain members of the IMI Board.
The Board has a four-year rotation policy. There are also Board policies on Conflicts of Interest, Anti-Bribery & Corruption and Gifts & Hospitality.
Serving the Board of Directors are the two key full time members of staff: the Executive Director Irena Vanenkova and the Operations Manager, Emma Ewart.
appointing assessors to review Code of Professional Conduct complaints.
Mediation of disputes under the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises.
There are currently 73 members of the ISC from 27 countries on all continents.
Quality and Information are the two main focus areas of the IMI Mission.
Quality certification is experienced based, and set at a high standard.
The Independent Standards Commission sets the standards.
All materials generated by IMI are copyright-free to encourage their use.
The IMI portal will include a search engine to find IMI Certified mediators.
All IMI Certified mediators are required to have an online Profile.
Summaries of user feedback on mediator performance are part of all IMI Profiles.
IMI is user-led and the Chair of the Board is always be a user.
IMI is donor-funded and does not compete in the market for mediation services.
The organisation is genuinely global, non-partisan and multi-stakeholder.
All members of the Board provide their time and expertise on a pro bono basis.
All stakeholders are welcome to actively support IMI.
When IMI was established in 2007, there were no internationally-applicable quality standards for mediators, and no international credentialing scheme. The NADRAC in Australia was considering practice and approval standards at a basic post-training level, and CEDR, a UK-based mediation service provider, was accrediting mediators on the same post-training basis. However, only the NMI, a non-profit, non-service-provider body in the Netherlands, subsidized by the Netherlands Government, was certifying competency of experienced mediators locally at a high, experienced-based level.
The IMI Board believed that for users to have confidence in mediators, and therefore to use mediation more frequently and with better results, it was necessary to credential mediators to a high, experience-based standard. The results in the Netherlands proved the wisdom of this strategy. In 2011, there were an estimated 52,000 civil and commercial mediations in the Netherlands, a country with a population of 17 million and with a single high-level mediator certification scheme operated by a non-provider entity. By contrast, in the UK, a country with a population of 63 million where mediation is considered successful, but with no national certification scheme, there were only an estimated 8,000 mediations in 2012. On a per capita basis, the frequency of mediation in the Netherlands in 2011 was therefore about 24 times greater than in the UK. Users in the Netherlands seemingly have a far greater confidence in the quality of mediators, and respect for mediation as a method for resolving disputes, than do those in the UK.
IMI considered adopting on an international level the credentialing process applied by the NMI in the Netherlands. It was based on a third party assessment conducted pursuant to ISO Standard 17,024 (certification of competency of individuals) but was considered bureaucratic, inflexible, difficult to adapt culturally and jurisdictionally, costly and slow. Moreover, the assessment criteria used was proprietary, and the copyright owner was unwilling to allow it to be adapted or shared with others without his consent.
Consequently, IMI did not adopt the NMI scheme (which NMI has itself since abandoned) and developed its own high-level competency certification process, with help from members of the IMI Independent Standards Commission. In particular, published research by Christopher Honeyman on performance based criteria and assessment of mediators, as well as developing standards in Canada, Australia and Argentina, were also available to the IMI ISC for the modelling of its credentialing scheme.
IMI does not itself qualify mediators – this is done by those with QAPs.
No two QAPs are likely to be exactly the same, allowing for local adaptation.
All QAPs must qualify to the same high competency standards set by the ISC.
QAPs can offer their own credentialing to coincide with IMI Certification, thereby raising local standards.
IMI exercises control over the QAPs by requiring mediators qualified by a QAP to complete an IMI Certified Mediator Profile in a pre-determined format, and that mediators cannot call themselves IMI Certified until their Profile has been approved by IMI and posted on the IMI web portal. IMI also conducts periodic audits of QAPs to ensure they are correctly implementing the IMI Criteria. There are so far 30 QAPs in 19 countries, and over 400 IMI Certified Mediators on the IMI search engine in 47 countries, including 7 sub-Saharan countries, 4 South American countries and 6 in the Middle East.
An obligatory part of every IMI Certified Mediator Profile is a Feedback Digest, an independently-prepared summary of user feedback collected by the Mediator using the IMI Feedback Request Form or a similar form. Once completed by users this feedback is anonymized and turned into a summary by an independent Reviewer selected by the mediator. The identity of the Reviewer must be disclosed on the Profile, and as a result the credibility of the Feedback Digest has much to do with that of the Reviewer. Only the Reviewer can upload the Feedback Digest onto the mediator’s Profile and amend it afterwards. In compiling the Feedback Digest, the Reviewer must follow Guidelines published by IMI. Once the Profile is complete and verified by IMI, it is posted onto the IMI Search Engine and the mediator is IMI Certified.
Feedback is exceptionally useful to users, not only providing reassurance of experience and competency, but also providing reliable insight into the mediator’s suitability to the conflict. Very few mediators make prior user feedback transparent, but it is considered essential information by most users for reliable mediator selection purposes.
The Independent Standards Commission has convened an Ethics Committee, chaired by Professor Ellen Waldman, the leading international authority on mediation ethics, to keep the IMI code of Professional Conduct fully updated in line with the highest standards of international practice, as well as the disciplinary process.
Another obligatory part of the Profile is a declaration by the mediator of which Code of Conduct she or he ascribes to, and the complaint mechanism that would apply. Many IMI Certified Mediators have chosen the IMI Code of Professional Conduct and the IMI Professional Conduct Assessment Process (which can result in loss of IMI Certification and other sanctions and is administered by the ISC). Assurance of ethical conduct is an important element in generating user confidence in mediators and the mediation process.
As a development of IMI Certification for mediators, IMI set up a Task Force of the Independent Standards Commission in April 2010 to develop criteria for inter-cultural mediator training and a dedicated IMI Certification. In an initiative partly funded by the GE Foundation, the Task Force developed succinct and flexible criteria that enable IMI Certified mediators to extend their skills and experience inter-culturally. As with IMI Certification of mediators, the Inter-Cultural Certification can be implemented worldwide by QAPs. The criteria include Cultural Focus Areas (CFAs) applicable to mediating inter-cultural conflicts, including communication styles, cultural diversity paradigms, conflict attitudes and mindsets, process differences, orientations towards information exchange and time, and decision-making approaches for all main cultural groups.
In 2012, a Task Force of the Independent Standards Commission was convened to develop competency criteria for lawyers and other party representatives to achieve recognition as IMI Certified Mediation Advocates. The competency of the parties’ advocates in mediations is widely recognized as a crucial factor in securing the best possible settlements. To establish a professional and technical basis for enabling parties to identify the right people to advise and represent them in mediations, a comprehensive set of Competency Criteria of Mediation Advocates/Advisers was developed by the Task Force with the support and endorsement of a range of stakeholders, including the Mediation Committee of the International Bar Association, the Standing Conference of Mediation Advocates (SCMA), the Paris Bar, ACB Foundation and Herbert Smith Freehills LLP. This initiative was part-funded by the GE Foundation.
ADR professional and provider organisations may now submit to the ISC their applications to be approved for qualifying competent professionals for IMI Mediation Advocacy Certification.
Mediation advocacy skills increase user understanding of how and why mediation works and when mediation is the most likely route to a desired outcome. This makes users more willing to participate in mediation, and actively to propose it when appropriate.
By January 2014, 404 mediators from 28 countries practicing in 28 conflict fields and speaking 28 languages had become IMI Certified. The gender balance was 35% women and 65% men. Although this is by far the most internationally and culturally diverse group of transparently experienced mediators anywhere, much progress has yet to be made on the gender balance and also generating more IMI Certified Mediators in Asia, Africa, Latin America, Russia and affiliated countries and the Middle East. The quest of IMI to increase the number of QAPs and Hubs will progressively improve diversity in all these respects.
Lack of understanding is one of the main impediments to the growth of mediation and the breadth of its uptake. The average user is often confused by numerous different definitions of mediation, mostly technical and written by lawyers who often describe mediation as a legal or quasi-legal process, and by a serious lack of information about how and why mediation works. Without a proper and objective understanding, there is little prospect of universal acceptance of mediation.
Because mediation services are highly fragmented, with numerous mainly small providers competing for relatively little business, there are few resources for promoting the field. Such funds as service providers do have to spend on promotion are usually spent on income-generating initiatives, such as training, and there is generally a strict enforcement of copyright by providers on training and promotional materials, so that information is not easily sharable.
IMI set about breaking this paradigm by developing informational materials about mediation that are not copyright-protected, thereby encouraging wide and diverse dissemination. Since 2008, IMI has published numerous pieces of information about mediation, such as online videos (including a detailed study guide to one of the videos), 20 Questions that people ask about mediation, write-ups and articles on how mediation works, an online library, podcasts, survey data, blogs, webcasts, and newsletters. There is an article by IMI offering a classic definition of mediation, and a Young Mediators Initiatve designed to share information among those aspiring to be mediators and to help them generate experience as assistants to practicing mediators.
Decision Tree to provide objective and impartial guidance to users of mediation services on what to bear in mind, and what basic decision need to be taken, when going to mediation. Presented as a visual with links to more information.
Olé – Online Evaluation/Case analysis Tool to provide help to parties and their advisers to analyze and assess specific disputes in order to determine the best possible way forward. Olé can be used online or in a printed version (the web enablement funding having been provided by the GE Foundation).
Model Contract Clauses including guidance on drafting dispute resolution clauses and examples of many clauses offered by different provider organisations.
There is a serious deficiency of reliable data on the use of mediation, both nationally in most countries, and internationally.
A 2003/06 study by the American Arbitration Association of 254 US companies, supplemented in 2012/13 by a similar study in France in association with FIDAL.
A 1997/98 survey led by Cornell University of the in-house counsel of 606 Fortune 1,000 companies, updated by a 2011 survey of 368 US-based in-house counsel led by Pepperdine University’s Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution and Cornell University’s Scheinman Institute on Conflict Resolution.
These studies demonstrated quite convincingly that, at least in the US, there was a growing appetite for mediation among corporate counsel, with the more mediation-experienced companies (those described in the AAA survey as the most “Dispute-Wise”) actively engaged is dispute avoidance programs and experiencing higher price-earnings ratios than non-Dispute-Wise companies.
The 2011 survey by Pepperdine/Cornell indicated that many large US companies are using binding arbitration less often and instead relying more on mediated negotiation and other approaches aimed at resolving disputes informally, quickly and inexpensively. Pepperdine Professor Thomas J. Stipanowich noted the emergence of a “quiet revolution” in US dispute resolution in which corporate counsel, driven by cost and risk reduction strategies, are playing an increasingly directive role on how disputes are managed and resolved. A common theme from the survey results was a desire for optimal control of the dispute resolution process, with in-house counsel preferring to manage outcomes, so mediation and other approaches that aim at achieving a mutually acceptable settlement are strongly favoured.
However, neither of these surveys gave truly international impressions, and neither asked a number of key questions that would determine and underpin the the Vision and Mission that IMI had adopted. Accordingly, in January 2013, IMI sent out a survey to in-house dispute resolution counsel in 124 multinational corporations, based mainly in Europe and North America, designed to surface user attitudes and approaches to arbitration and mediation. The Survey ran from mid-January to mid-March 2013. This seems to have been the first time that in-house dispute resolution counsel had been asked for their views on many of the issues raised at an international scale. Seventy-six in-house dispute resolution counsel completed the Survey.
The IMI Survey addressed issues not covered in the previous user surveys. The IMI Survey focused more on in-house counsel needs, attitudes and preferences regarding issues concerning information, professional quality standards and the skills they expect from their arbitrators, mediators and outside counsel.
Most responders were either senior in-house legal counsel (63%) or members of senior management (20%) in their companies, with 17% indicating they were engaged in other corporate roles. 71% of responders were from corporations with over 10,000 employees, and 18% were employed by companies having between 1,000 and 10,000 employees.
80% agreed that outside counsel should be trained in mediation advocacy skills.
These results strongly indicated that the IMI Mission reflected corporate user needs, and, by extension, the needs of other disputants.
Underpinning the IMI mission is the need to build mediation capacity throughout the world. Capacity-building strategies vary according to local and regional circumstances, such as the condition of the Rule of Law, the extent to which mediation has already developed, local resources, funding availability and collaboration opportunities with governments, judiciaries, mediation bodies, user groups and other stakeholders.
Raising standards of mediation practice, and convincing users that competent mediators can help them deliver better, faster and less risky/costly outcomes than judges and arbitrators must be the common key to the growth of mediation in all countries.
As illustrated under Quality & Credentialing (page 10), there is an apparent but unsurprising correlation between mediation uptake and visible high standards of mediation practice. Encouraged by the recent user survey data, IMI will therefore continue to promote adoption of its credentialing scheme, which relies on QAPs. This classic glocal approach will catch fire over time. Increasing the number of QAPs is a fundamental IMI strategy, and it can be done effectively and efficiently, via local hubs.
In December 2013, the Singapore Ministry of Law announced that a Working Group convened by the Chief Justice had recommended that a mediation professional body, to be called the Singapore International Mediation Institute (SIMI), be created in Singapore, as an independent non-profit body and as a collaboration of IMI and the National University of Singapore (NUS). IMI is in discussions with NUS and relevant stakeholders about how the IMI credentialing scheme, as well as IMI’s informational materials and tools and operating procedures, can be adopted in Singapore. It is expected that SIMI will set new standards for mediators, and encourage growth of mediation throughout Southeast Asia. It is envisaged that SIMI will be an autonomous entity working in close association with IMI.
IMI has appointed a task force to develop a hub of IMI in Northern Europe/Russia, designed to advance mediation skills and capacity in trans-border disputes in this area.
For several years, a small group of IMI Independent Standards Commission members has been preparing the ground for an IMI hub in Brazil, and those involved participated in parliamentary consultations for a new law in Brazil to promote mediation practices.
Over the past several years IMI has assisted a group from Nigeria, South Africa and Kenya to establish the African Mediation Association. In September 2013, this entity was incorporated as a foundation in The Hague, with its residence at the IMI office. In parallel, discussions are in progress to establish a national hub of IMI in Nigeria.
IMI is fortunate to have attracted the support of several of the largest arbitration bodies, (AAA/ICDR, ICC, JAMS and BCDR), all of which have active mediation capabilities. AAA updated its Commercial Arbitration Rules and Mediation Procedures in October 2013 to require mediation to take place concurrently with arbitration subject to a party opt-out – a major step forward in the energetic use of mediation in arbitration. ICC introduced new Mediation Rules with effect from 2014, replacing the 2001 ADR Rules.
Through the work of Task Forces of the Independent Standards Commission, recommendations and opportunities are being generated to bring much greater use of mediation in Investor-State disputes and in conflicts arising between communities and businesses under the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises. Both of these areas typically involve very difficult disputes involving massive social and economic consequences, and are widely considered, by government, corporate and community stakeholders alike, to be highly appropriate for mediation.
IMI has applied to the United Nations ECOSOC for NGO Consultative Status, which will help IMI advance mediation capacity in inter-State disputes. There has been a considerable increase in the interest of nations in mediation in recent years, resulting in a UN Security Council Resolution on Enhancing Mediation and its Support Activities in 2009. In September 2010, Finland and Turkey convened a Group of Friends of Mediation at the UN to raise awareness of mediation and to help build mediation capacity and expertise in the UN and regional organisations. Almost every country is a member of the Group of Friends, and Consultative Status will enable IMI to build a direct alliance with the Group of Friends on behalf of the mediation field and profession.
In December 2013, IMI efforts in public disputes were brought to the attention of negotiators involved in the pending Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) Treaty discussions, enabling language on a mediation requirement to be tabled in the negotiations, attracting a number of favorable comments from Industry negotiators.
For several years IMI has been planning the creation of a global forum for cross-constituency sharing of ideas and proposals among mediation users, advocates and referrers, providers and mediators, adjudicators, and mediation education and support bodies. Mediation is a de-centralised, fragmented field in most countries. Strategic dialogue within stakeholder groups is remarkably superficial and cross-constituency dialogue is almost non-existent. Mediation growth will not occur without improved intersectional communications and common strategies to improve capacity and traction.
Users hardly have any voice because in only rare instances are they sufficiently organized to crystallize and state their needs. There are few international mediation user forums to give authoritative expression to user needs – such as the 125 member Corporate Counsel International Arbitration Group – CCIAG (which hitherto has focused on arbitration, though it does have mediation in its mission statement) and the 23 member Round Table Mediation und Konfliktmanagement der deutschen Wirtschaft – RTMKM, which is focused on Germany but brings together many German-based international companies. IMI has a formal alliance with CCIAG and good connections with RTMKM. The Association of Corporate Counsel (ACC), which has over 30,000 in-house counsel members in 75 countries, and similar national bodies, does not yet have sections or chapters on mediation or ADR.
On the service side, the only international initiative that brings together mediation providers is the UIA World Forum of Mediation Centres (WFMC) which hosts an annual meeting attended, in the main, by small and medium providers. Although valuable in its own right, this is mainly a networking group and the WFMC does not attempt to enter into dialogue with the demand side or with educators and policy makers to progress the broader development of mediation. The American Bar Association’s (ABA) International Committee, the International Bar Association’s (IBA) Mediation Committee and the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) do have mediation committees and perform valuable project work, but are not designed to convene all stakeholders in the field. Other than IMI, the largest service providers have no suitable platform for collectively improving the international mediation field and addressing emerging major issues, such as investor-State, human rights (eg OECD Guidelines), WTO and UN disputes.
Finally, educators and trainers lack a joint facility for developing mediation teaching. Dialogue between law and business schools is patchy, and there is little international discussion regarding inter-cultural mediation, mediation advocacy training, hybrids, collaborative law training, neuroscience standards, and other key educational issues.
Not only does IMI perceive all three areas as crucial to the proper development of mediation, but it is important to intersect them to create holistic benefit. If the user need can be more coherently and convincingly expressed, if service providers can have their value more effectively recognized and in fields that have hitherto under-utilized mediation, and if educators and trainers can improve their programs and offerings to address the changing needs of users and providers, mediation will progress effectively.
Cross constituency networks, linking users with providers with trainers.
Unlimited access to all information and tools developed by IMI.
Ability to initiate discussions/reviews/surveys within specific stakeholders groups.
Access to assistance from the GMC members in different countries and regions.
Engagement at public policy forums via IMI as the voice of mediation (e.g. UN).
The opportunity to shape the future of mediation in a coherent manner.
Publication of opinion pieces, articles and other materials.
The creation of the GMC, combined with the gradual development of IMI hubs, would make mediation more accessible to a more diverse group of constituencies, increasing understanding and acceptance of mediation and generating real growth.
As a first step toward the creation of the GMC, IMI has begun to convene a Mediation Users Council, bringing together businesses, industry associations, chambers of commerce, communities and individuals; professional firms that advise and represent users on dispute management; adjudicators (judges and arbitrators) that refer parties to mediation; as well as certain national international organizations and NGOs.
The Users Council will be an autonomous international group of thought leaders convened to progress issues of importance to disputants and their professional advisers with regard to mediation and related methods of achieving negotiated outcomes. Those issues may include policy, regulatory, legal and practice matters in mediation, developing the role of IMI, expressing the views of Users, improving tools for Users and mediators, commenting on quality criteria, supporting the implementation of agreed initiatives, and assisting the IMI Board to help drive its Mission for the benefit of Users.
One of the unique features of IMI is the ability to draw on a wide range of expertise of people in the ADR field through the Independent Standards Commission. To convene and apply that expertise in a productive manner, with tangible outputs, IMI has asked ISC members to lead time-bound ad hoc task forces with specific terms of reference in areas that the IMI Board considers require development and progress.
IMI continues to leverage the quality and collective reach of its ISC, which has been gradually growing, for over six years. Valuable contributions have already been made in terms of the IMI Intercultural Mediator Certification and the IMI Mediation Advocacy Certification, both of which are products of ISC Task Forces and will build expertise in mediation quality and user skills. Other Task Forces and Committees are in progress in relation to Mediation Ethics, Investor-State Mediation, OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises and Online Dispute Resolution.
The role of the YMI is to build mediation capacity at the intake end of the field by connecting young trained mediators and mediation advocates worldwide to create a platform for the exchange of ideas and experiences, and to facilitate interaction with mediators who can offer hands-on experience-generation and learning opportunities.
The Right Mediator: How Do You Know?
2020 Vision: Where will mediation be in 2020?
Mediation is used in all fields of conflict, from family and community disputes, the vast spectrum of business conflicts, financial services, government and regulatory negotiations, healthcare, human rights, personal injury, sport, tax and many others. Mediation is used in criminal situations to assist individuals and communities to implement restorative justice programs. Mediation is also used outside the context of a dispute, when two or more parties merely want to negotiate a higher quality deal that addresses their respective needs and interests. Mediation is highly diverse and adaptable.
The quality criteria and standards devised by IMI are directly applicable to all situations where mediation can be used, including those that are designed to transform relationships rather than achieve specific negotiated outcomes. The goal of IMI is to address quality and information in all circumstances where a neutral third party can add value.
The past seven years have emphatically established the need for IMI globally. Support for the IMI mission has been growing strongly throughout the world and is expected to continue. Such developments as the recommended establishment in 2014 of the Singapore International Mediation Institute jointly by IMI and the National University of Singapore, and the prospect of hubs in Africa, Northern Europe/Russia and Brazil are expected to continue to mature and gain traction.
IMI will remain a donor-funded global professional body for mediation and will not participate in the marketplace by providing billable services. Although this self-restraint brings financial challenges, IMI believes that there are sufficient long-term strategic funders willing to continue their support for the initiatives of IMI, such as the corporate Patrons and founding institutions of IMI, and others yet to lend their support to the accomplishment of the IMI mission.
IMI will thereby remain independent, transparent and objective. Support for the IMI mission is expected to increase, with more corporate donors and provider institutions adding to IMI’s capabilities. IMI will continue with its resolve to convene all stakeholders, regardless of their competitive positions in the market, and to invite them to share in the implementation of the IMI mission while remaining user driven. This vests IMI with the stakeholder authority to fill the global vacuum that exists for setting standards of excellence and the ethical practice of mediation globally. IMI will increasingly have the ability to promote understanding and acceptance of mediation worldwide and, with UN Consultative Status expected in 2014, to represent the mediation field and profession to global policy makers.
Task Forces of the ISC can play a unique role in developing mediation capacity. Already ISC Task Forces have established the quality criteria for IMI Mediator Certification, IMI Inter-Cultural Mediator Certification and IMI Mediation Advocacy Certification. A standing Task Force is reviewing the IMI Code of Professional Conduct for Mediators and the disciplinary process associated with it.
ISC Task Forces are in progress to develop standards for Online Dispute Resolution (ODR) providers and to encourage mediation in Investor-State Disputes. A further Task Force is being convened to establish standards for mediators dealing with cases under the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises. Task Forces are planned in the areas of family mediation, disputes between nations, intellectual property and other fields.
Hubs of IMI are a glocalized way to build mediation capacity nationally and regionally, with appropriate cultural diversity while gradually applying high international practice standards. Hubs in Southeast Asia, Northern Europe/Russia, Africa (Nigeria) and South America (Brazil) are all at different stages of development.
As described on page 19, the Users Council will be created in early 2014. One of its first initiatives may be the hosting of an online user conference to identify and accelerate evolutionary change in the resolution of cross-border disputes using massive stakeholder crowd-sourcing via the internet on a global scale.
The YMI mentioned on page 20 will be progressed, with more IMI Certified Mediators strongly encouraged to allow trained but inexperienced mediators to gain experience as assistant mediators.
IMI aims to increase the number of institutions and organisations publicly joining the IMI mission and adding further expertise and diversity to the IMI Board and Independent Standards Commission as well as increasing the reach of the IMI Mission.
IMI will actively leverage Consultative Status at the UN Economic and Social Committee on behalf of the mediation field and profession.
QAPs enable local mediators, regardless of their field of specialization, to be qualified for IMI Certification as well as an equivalent local certification. This increases skills and user recognition of those skills, enables users to find the right mediators through the IMI Search Engine, and thereby expands the uptake of mediation.
IMI is considering a request to the ISC to establish high minimum standards for basic training leading to an entry-level accreditation. This may be associated with an IMI-recognised credential, and will be discussed in 2014.
IMI publishes all its tools and materials on an open-source basis, copyright-free, to encourage their widespread use. New materials and tools are continually under consideration. In January, a major IMI article on mediation in Investor-State disputes will be published in the biannual Review of the World Bank’s International Council for the Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID). IMI will be making a Keynote Speech at the Asian Mediation Association’s biennial Conference in Hong Kong in April, on the subject: Mediation’s Elusive Goal: Achieving Exponential International Growth – What factors restrain rapid growth? Why are they still there? How can they be overcome? Two IMI Directors have agreed to make a joint monthly contribution to the Kluwer Mediation Blog in January 2014 from a user perspective.
Funding permitting, IMI intends as soon as possible to expand the number of language versions of its web portal. This will occur automatically as hubs are established, but a broader range of language versions is also planned.
IMI has undertaken a task of immense importance, not merely in developing uniform standards of practice for conflict resolution, but in creating the foundation for an enormous increase in international conflict resolution capacity. If we are to solve global problems we will require not only global solutions, but global processes, methods and techniques. This will necessitate the development of a collaborative approach to diversity and uniformity in conflict resolution practices, and the creation of a global forum where our differences can be discussed, analyzed, learned from, and synergistically combined. IMI has taken the first step in bringing conflict resolution into the 21st century, by inviting us and the cultures and nations we represent to come together and learn from each other. Only in this way can we hope to overcome the obstacles we have created through conflict.
Of all the efforts at making mediation mainstream, of all the mammoth initiatives and giant strides by leading proponents, of all our success stories, nothing compares with the IMI vision of standard setting and Industry watch, for without such, mediation remains an endangered specie.
I sincerely welcome the recent incorporation of the International Mediation Institute (IMI) in The Netherlands. As the first global, non-governmental organisation that will enable certification of the competency of mediators worldwide, it will certainly be of great benefit and value to all users of dispute settlement services.
In an age of globalisation, IMI offers local mediators a global voice, national bodies an international benchmark, and users of mediation confidence in the mediation profession worldwide.
Two undeniable facts underpin the IMI and its extraordinary mission: a commitment to raise the bar of quality dispute resolution, and leadership by example. This organization reflects the substantial practical benefits experienced by some of the most sophisticated consumers of dispute resolution services in the world.
IMI holds the promise of delivering real value to disputants and their professional advisers, to mediation providers and trainers, to judges and arbitrators and to teachers and governments. There is advantage in it for everyone.
I congratulate IMI in establishing a valuable platform for the global mediation standards. As the professionalism of mediation is raised, I believe mediation will claim its rightful place as a legitimate and viable way of resolving disputes.
As a user of mediation services I am an enthusiastic supporter of the IMI effort to establish a universal standard for Mediators. It will make the choice of a qualified Mediator to assist with our disputes so much easier and more reliable.
While acknowledging all the benefits and values that IMI can bring to mediation practice internationally, it really is just the beginning of the exciting process of mindset change that people need to experience so that we switch from win to resolve, from fear to trust and from destruction to collaboration.
IMI is valuable for the private sector. It will bring a substantial increase in trust and opportunities to identify a professional mediator, even in those parts of the world that lack the presence of a professional mediation body. Yet IMI is more than a practical initiative to ensure quality and facilitate the use of mediation internationally. It is about thought leadership and provoking the next step in the development of mediation into a self-determining interdisciplinary profession – with requirements regarding professionalism of its practitioners and with its own techniques and theories.
I applaud this thoughtful initiative to seek to introduce a scheme which will help mediators around the world to raise their own and others’ standards and to make sure that the services of mediators are available, understood and valued among a range of users in commerce, government and elsewhere. There is a great need for the skills and techniques employed by mediators to be utilised in a much broader range of activity than at present, to the great benefit of our world.
The establishment of the IMI will help create international standards for mediators, a critical step towards enhancing the professional level of international mediation.
Resolving disputes by way of mediation has been inherent in the Confucian culture, and my colleagues and I have been long-time advocates for mediating international commercial disputes. Mediation is no doubt as good as the mediators. CIETAC welcomes the initiative of certification of mediators and believes it will enhance the business community’s confidence in mediation and therefore contribute to the growth of mediation in the world. | 2019-04-23T12:18:07Z | https://www.imimediation.org/2014/01/10/imi-7-year-anniversary-review/ |
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While Mnuchin did not say how the Trump administration planned to get Fannie and Freddie out of government control, the fact that he called it a “top ten” priority that he wants to accomplish “reasonably fast” is an extremely positive development.
Mortgage reform has been hung up in Washington for the past eight years, largely because the Treasury Department has insisted that Fannie and Freddie be “wound down and replaced” as part of any reform initiative. To facilitate this goal, Treasury falsely accused the companies of having caused the 2008 financial crisis, and put them into conservatorship against their will and in spite of the fact that they still met their statutory capital requirements. Treasury then directed their regulator, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) to book massive amounts of non-cash expenses that forced them to take $187 billion in unneeded, non-repayable senior preferred stock, whose 10 percent dividend required them to pay $18.7 billion after-tax to Treasury in perpetuity. But because the source of Fannie and Freddie’s senior preferred stock burden had been temporary or artificial non-cash expenses booked by FHFA—not operating losses incurred by the companies—the expenses reversed themselves and became profits beginning in 2012. At that point, Treasury and FHFA agreed to the net worth sweep, requiring Fannie and Freddie to remit all their future profits to Treasury—keeping them in indefinite conservatorship while Treasury, its allies and supporters attempted to figure out how to replace them. Numerous lawsuits were filed challenging the sweep, and reform discussions effectively have been frozen as those suits work their way through the courts.
Now the incoming Secretary of the Treasury says he wants to get Fannie and Freddie out of the government. To do that he will need to settle the lawsuits, and to settle the lawsuits he, and the plaintiffs with whom he will be negotiating, will need to decide what they want to do with Fannie and Freddie after the settlement.
Mnuchin ran the mortgage department at Goldman Sachs for five years (during the time I was Fannie’s CFO), so he comes to the fight over Fannie and Freddie with a wealth of knowledge, and brings a fresh perspective to it. He knows the plaintiffs he will be negotiating with—Bruce Berkowitz, John Paulson and Bill Ackman among others—quite well, and they all understand the difference between financial reality and financial fiction when it comes to the companies. Plaintiffs in the lawsuits have had ample time to evaluate the alternatives to Fannie and Freddie that have been put forward; they believe they are unworkable, and will convey that to Mnuchin. On the other side, career officials from Treasury will continue to assert that Fannie and Freddie are a “failed business model” that leads to “private gains and public losses,” but those bromides are unlikely to be persuasive to the pragmatic group of financial professionals who now are in a position to decide the companies’ futures.
Just as Fannie and Freddie were put into conservatorship (and subjected to the net worth sweep) through administrative action, they can be taken out the same way. And moving the locus of the reform debate from Washington to New York will be a welcome reset. The special interests in Washington have had eight years to try to devise a replacement for the companies as the centerpiece of the U.S. secondary mortgage market, and they have failed utterly. That is turning out to be a blessing. Very few on Capitol Hill have more than a superficial understanding of what it takes for a secondary mortgage market credit guaranty operation to function effectively, and having a $10 trillion financial market at the heart of the American economy be at the mercy of lobbyist-drafted legislation always was a frightening prospect. We will be much better off in the hands of Messrs. Mnuchin, Berkowitz, Paulson, Ackman, et al.
For almost twenty years I was responsible for the capitalization, credit risk analysis and pricing of Fannie Mae’s single-family credit guaranty business. When I left at the end of 2004, Fannie was financing more than $2.3 trillion in mortgages, serving an impressively wide range of low- and moderate-income homebuyers, meeting ambitious affordable housing objectives, and charging an average guaranty fee of under 20 basis points while posting a 15-year average annual credit loss rate of less than 3 basis points. This experience gives me a better perspective than most on what the future U.S. secondary mortgage finance system should look like. From that perspective, I have three pieces of advice for the negotiators who must agree on this post-settlement system: pick the best model, get the capital right, and be realistic about the role of government.
I elaborate on each briefly below.
The biggest mistake the Obama-administration Treasury made in its stewardship of mortgage reform efforts was its insistence that the mortgage finance system of the future look nothing like the mortgage finance system of the past, with Fannie and Freddie at its center. This doomed its reform efforts to failure, because the Fannie and Freddie model works, while alternatives that reject this model do not.
In his book On the Brink, Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said, “Fannie and Freddie were the most egregious example of flawed policies that inflated the housing bubble and set off the housing crisis.” That was complete fiction. The superior performance of the companies was known even before the crisis, and it has subsequently been confirmed: from 2008 to date, the average credit loss rate on single-family loans purchased or guaranteed by Fannie and Freddie prior to the onset of the crisis has been about one-third the average loss rate on comparable mortgages made and held by commercial banks, and less than one-fifth the loss rate on loans financed with private-label securities.
One reason for Fannie and Freddie’s exceptional credit results is their business model. They are specialized institutions, whose only business is financing U.S. residential mortgages. While they hedge their interest rate risk extensively, historically they have retained the bulk of the credit risk on the mortgages they finance. As shareholder-owned companies they have strong incentives to gauge, price and manage that risk prudently. They impose strict underwriting standards on the loans they purchase or guarantee, and benefit greatly from their ability to diversify credit risk by product type, risk category, geography, scale and over time.
Credit guarantors that diversify credit risk at the entity level can weather adverse housing market environments with far less capital (and thus far lower guaranty fees) than structured securities or credit guarantees made at the pool level. In the entity-based model, revenues on good loans from all years, regions and loan types are available to cover losses on any group of loans that happen to go bad. In the pool-based model, each pool has to stand on its own, and the inability to reach beyond that pool for revenues—or to add capital post-securitization, as an entity-based guarantor can—requires substantially greater amounts of capital initially. Across a $5 trillion secondary market, the inefficiencies of pool-based guaranty models add up to tens or perhaps hundreds of billions of dollars in required capital, which simply disappears when those risks are diversified at the entity level. The entity-based model isn’t just marginally better than the pool-based model; it’s overwhelmingly better.
Fannie and Freddie are entity-based guarantors. They exist today, and have a proven track record of success. They should not be “wound down and replaced;” they should be reformed, removed from conservatorship and recapitalized.
As I’ve noted elsewhere—including in an essay titled “Fixing What Works,” done for the Urban Institute (and available on this site)—there are three key reforms to the companies that should be made. The first is to limit their mortgage portfolios to purposes ancillary to their credit guaranty businesses. Those would include holding non-performing loans purchased out of mortgage-backed security (MBS) pools, operating a cash window for whole loans sold by smaller lenders (to be pooled into MBS by the companies), and possibly for the “incubation” of new product types in anticipation of their becoming sufficiently popular to warrant their own MBS prefix. The maximum size of the companies’ portfolios would depend on what is necessary to carry out these activities; I’ve recommended a limit of no more than 10 percent of outstanding credit guarantees.
The second and third recommended reforms to Fannie and Freddie are updating their capital requirements and clarifying their relationship with the government. They are addressed in the next two sections.
The path to determining the amount of capital required to make Fannie and Freddie “absolutely safe” has been open in front of us for eight years. Section 1110 of the Housing and Economic Recovery Act (HERA) of 2008 states, “The Director [of FHFA] shall, by regulation, establish risk-based capital requirements for the enterprises to ensure that the enterprises operate in a safe and sound manner, maintaining sufficient capital and reserves to support the risks that arise in the operations and management of the enterprises.” FHFA so far has ignored this provision of HERA, I believe at the behest of Treasury, which knows that if FHFA does update Fannie and Freddie’s risk-based capital standards it would reveal that the companies need far less capital to operate safely than their critics insist they hold.
The actual risk-based capital requirements that result from this exercise will not be known until FHFA conducts it, but I’ve used the same stress scenario, Fannie’s 2008-2012 credit losses, and its current book of business—which has few of the interest-only adjustable-rate mortgages and “no-doc” loans that caused half its credit losses in 2008-2012—to estimate what Fannie’s single-family credit risk capital might be today. That estimate is not much over 1 percent. The percentage is so low because Fannie’s mid-2016 business mix contains relatively few higher-risk loans. Largely for this reason, I’ve recommended that the companies also have a minimum capital requirement (I’m proposing 2 percent). A minimum capital percentage will benefit affordable housing borrowers by making it impossible for Fannie or Freddie to drive their required capital below that minimum by financing only pristine credits.
Banks have been persistent and vocal critics of a risk-based capital standard for Fannie and Freddie’s credit guaranty business for over three decades. Because of the scope and complexity of banks’ permitted business activities, their regulators have had no choice but to subject them to static, ratio-based capital standards for broad categories of the various types of business they do. Banks’ opposition to custom-tailored capital standards for Fannie and Freddie rests on the “level playing field” argument that the companies should have the same arbitrary and inefficient capital standards for mortgages they have. Yet that would cause homebuyers to pay unnecessarily high guaranty fees for no good purpose. More capital for Fannie and Freddie is not better. The objective should be the right amount of capital—one that strikes a careful and deliberate balance between taxpayer protection on the one hand and the cost and breadth of access to mortgages on the other.
Be realistic about the role of government.
With new, much more rigorous and transparent risk-based capital standards set by FHFA and endorsed by Treasury, I believe Fannie and Freddie’s credit guaranty businesses would be able to operate without an implicit or explicit guaranty from the federal government. (The companies’ portfolios would need to either shrink or be sold off to the point where they could comfortably be financed with debt that is a general obligation of the companies, combined with derivatives.) Mortgage rates, however, would be higher. The yields on Fannie and Freddie’s MBS would rise by some unknown amount, and the market for their MBS would be considerably less broad and deep than it is now.
To prevent these adverse effects, it would be much better public policy for the companies to have some form of recognized support from the federal government. In my “utility” model, I have proposed that in exchange for Fannie and Freddie’s accepting a stringent risk-based capital standard, tighter supervision and regulated returns on their business, the government would put in place a formal agreement to extend short-term repayable loans to them in the remote event that their (new and much tougher) capital standards prove insufficient. With such an arrangement, the government would convey a valuable benefit to low-, moderate and middle-income homebuyers—through the lower Fannie and Freddie MBS yields that would result—at no perceptible risk or cost to taxpayers.
The concept is simple, and I think compelling. Once the government has picked the stress standard it wants Fannie and Freddie to be able to protect against, it then becomes in the government’s best interest to extend short-term repayable credit to the companies in the remote chance this standard (which it set) proves insufficient. Any consequent moral hazard or perverse incentives should be minimal. Beyond the companies’ having regulated returns, in a scenario that triggers government support Fannie and Freddie’s shareholders would lose nearly all of their capital, the stock price would plummet, noncumulative preferred dividends would cease, and top management would lose their jobs. And once the companies recovered, they would have to replace their lost capital by issuing new shares of common stock at very low prices, badly diluting the value of existing shares. The mortgage finance system, and homebuyers, would benefit from the backstop arrangement far more than would the companies or their executives.
There are numerous precedents for the federal government conveying benefits to particular industries or sectors of the economy for the public good, at negligible risk to the taxpayer. An excellent example is federal deposit insurance. FDIC insurance already is in place, so we tend not to notice its systemic benefits. But imagine what would happen were those who insist that the secondary mortgage market be “fully private” to make the same demand of commercial banking, and require that FDIC insurance be replaced by private deposit insurance, backed by private capital.
Implementing this would have three major effects. First, banks would pay far more to private deposit insurers than the actuarially determined fees they pay the FDIC, because private insurers would have to hold significant amounts of risk capital and would price to earn a market return on that capital. Second, consumers would demand substantially higher rates on privately insured bank deposits than they do on FDIC-insured deposits. Third, private insurers would exercise considerably more discipline over what banks can do with their insured deposits than the FDIC now does, limiting banks’ revenues from risk-taking. The total costs to the banking system of private versus FDIC insurance—through higher insurance fees, higher deposit rates, and restrictions on risk-taking—would be enormous, and the bulk of them would be passed on to banks’ customers. By corollary, the avoidance of those costs through FDIC insurance is a government benefit of an equivalent amount.
No one advocates replacing FDIC insurance with private deposit insurance, yet many do assert that any form of government support for the secondary mortgage market—even one with no hard-dollar costs—is anathema. That is an indefensible double standard. Policymakers must recognize it as such, and not penalize mortgage borrowers by forcing them to bear an ideological burden from which customers of banks have been exempted.
Pick the best model; get the capital right; be realistic about the role of government. That’s the easy part. Following these steps, settling the lawsuits, and getting Fannie and Freddie “out of government control” and back supporting the mortgage market as shareholder-owned companies is the hard part. That, however, is the expertise of the people who now will be taking the lead on mortgage reform. We all should wish them well in the task that lies ahead of them.
Even with Allison’s criticisms, I find him in ways more friend than foe with respect to his views on ultimate blame lying more with with government, not market institutions. Any thoughts given his name is now being floated about?
I see that Mr. Allison is being considered by Trump to fill a vacancy on the Federal Reserve Board, as vice chairman and head of banking regulation.
I don’t share Allison’s ideology, however, so I doubt we would have the same objectives, or similar views on most financial issues.
Yes, I see him as one opposed to some aspects of GSEs but possibly also against C ship and takings.
The former finance chief of Allianz said European banks needed to defend their interests more vigorously against rivals in the United States where lenders are helped by state-sponsored bodies such as Fannie Mae, allowing them to shed part of the risk of mortgages.
Does the nominated Secretary of Justice , Jeff Sessions, assume his functions as head of DOJ on Jan 20 and then he is confirmed by senate , or he will take over only after confirmed?
Sessions will assume the functions of Attorney General only upon being confirmed by the Senate. In the interim, however, the President can designate an acting head of the Justice Department.
Hi there Tim. Thanks for all of your insight. This may a silly question, as I put little faith in what I read here for obvious reasons, but on a separate blog this was stated. “I have heard from multiple sources that all of the documents that Obama has withheld under various bogus privilege claims will be released with the blessing of Trump and Newly appointed Attorney General Jeff Sessions.” Have you heard anything of the sort or is this hollow like much of the past? Even if you haven’t heard this, do see this as a possibility? I read everything I can and though slightly on the narcissist side, he has been correct a few times in the past. Thanks for your input.
That sounds like speculation to me. It is, however, quite possible that senior officials in the Trump administration will not want to take on what now seems to be a futile battle to keep documents that may be (and I think very likely are) incriminating of officials in the prior administration from being produced in discovery in the Sweeney case. If key advisers to or officials of the Trump administration are leaning that direction, the quicker they drop their privilege claims the cleaner their hands will be.
Do you have any thoughts on David Stevens’ claim in this recent article that the Congress has prohibited the Treasury from executing any transactions with the Sr. Preferreds absent an explicit act of congress?
If true, this would seem to seriously tie the hands of the Trump/Mnuchin’s Treasury with respect to recapping and releasing the GSEs.
DOJ can work with plaintiff to ask judge to write a summary judgement. Corker has a clause in the budget bill to prevent feds from voluntarily action. But this does not affect courts at all.
Additionally, Treasury can modify any contract with GSEs. For example, raise exercise price to $100 per share, which makes warrants worthless.
Mnuchin is 10 times smarter than David Stevens, Mike Bright, Corker, and Warner.
you can drive a truck through this language. a 4th A that retroactively amends a term (NWS) is not prohibited, and would have the effect of converting dividends into principal repayments.
even if perry appeals court hasnt ruled, nothing prevents from a mnuchin treasury from concluding that the lew treasury didnt have authority under HERA to implement NWS. see for example HERA provision against treasury transactions post 2009.
so assuming mnuchin is satisfied with a 10% senior preferred return and actually wants to prepare the GSEs’ balance sheets for a recap, there is nothing in jumpstart that prevents treasury from doing this.
stevens is just blowing lobbyist smoke.
A 10% Sr return even if the NWS is terminated would not prepare GSEs for recap in any way as it effectively sweeps all profit to the Treasury.
So treasury has already gotten 10% return on and almost entire return of capital under NWS.
This law applies to only Tsy or executive branch.
How does this law affect others like FHFA conservator?
This law only puts restrictions on Tsy.
FHFA conservator can unilaterally cancel all contracts saying inter-agency agreements can not trump US laws. BTW nobody can sue FHFA conservator while exercising legitimate conservator authority to preserve and conserve.
Forgot that: FHFA had and still has unconstitutional management structure.
If all work together in the best interest of all stakeholders, there is nothing to prevent doing what is right.
Either management structure should not affect the conservator’s authority to preserve and conserve.
wouldnt it be interesting if mnuchin et al incorporate this notion of a govt cat-loss level explicit guaranty into a GSE recap program? wouldn’t it make a capital requirement along the lines of what you have been proposing, on order of 2%, much more palatable (both to politicians and the financial market)?
of course treasury could offer this explicit guaranty not just to GSEs but anyone who wants to securitize mbs…though i think the capital markets would much prefer to own GSE debt than individual pools of mbs with a cat-loss guaranty, no?
I just read the blog post in question, and, as I suspected, the story that appeared in Inside Mortgage Finance claiming that “Obama is in favor of an explicit guarantee for certain MBS” does not appear to be accurate. The authors of the Treasury blog post cited as the source of this statement (two people I’d not heard of before–Jane Dokko and Sam Valverde) say that “as the president articulated in 2013, a reformed housing system must ensure access to safe and affordable mortgages in all economic conditions.” That’s a laudable objective, and I can see President Obama saying something like that. The authors then go on to add, “To this end, the Administration supports an explicit government guarantee on a defined class of mortgage-backed securities (MBS).” “The Administration” could be anybody; I highly doubt that President Obama has endorsed this idea, or indeed even is aware of it.
The concept of catastrophic loss coverage by the government on guaranteed MBS–whether for some (ironically undefined) “defined class,” or all of them–has been an element of many recent mortgage reform proposals. But “God is in the detail.” As I note in this current post, I think some form of formal backstop arrangement by the federal government for mortgage pools guaranteed by credit guarantors of the future (whether Fannie and Freddie, or some other entity or entities) is sound public policy. Exactly how one provides that backstop, however, will depend on how it fits within the overall credit guaranty mechanism being proposed, and the political appetite for that particular approach. I trust the negotiators in the upcoming settlement talks to be able to balance all of the economic, financial and political elements in this equation, and get it right.
I think most of the elements identified in this plan could be useful as components of a negotiated settlement between the government and the plaintiffs. But I also think your plan would greatly benefit from having an identified objective (for which this plan is, in your opinion, the best way to achieve it).
Many proposals I’ve seen have the implied objective of maximizing the values or prices of Fannie and Freddie’s preferred and common stock (which is why they all include cancelling the warrants). I understand why the companies’ current shareholders might have this objective, but that won’t be enough. If Fannie and Freddie are to be released from conservatorship and restored as private companies, the Trump administration will need to have a reason to make it happen, and Congress at a minimum will need to accept that plan, and not seek to counter it with legislation.
I still do not know what the Mnuchin Treasury will set as its objectives for settlement talks with plaintiffs. I’m hopeful it will realize that releasing and recapitalizing Fannie and Freddie is the best alternative for ending the eight-year impasse on mortgage reform, but I can’t rule out the possibility that it might decide to settle the lawsuits as cheaply as possible, then throw its support behind the forces in Congress that want to liquidate Fannie and Freddie and replace them with some mechanism more to the liking of the large banks and Wall Street interests.
If the latter choice is made, your plan obviously is dead. But even if the former is made, I believe your plan would need to be tweaked in some ways to give the Trump administration (and Congress) some reasons to go along with it (other than that it’s the right thing to for consumers, which unfortunately in politics seldom is enough).
I’m surprised you’d say that. At the very least, it’s not in keeping with what mnuchin is on record saying.
Some optimism is justified by recent events, but I’d caution about getting too far out in front of what we actually know.
i agree with sentiments expressed by tim and anon on not getting carried away, which is another of way of saying we need to check our confirmation bias as best we can. i probably more than most let my conviction become hardened.
but after hearing for years from an administration saying it wants to wind GSEs down and replace them with whatever congress comes up with, we now have an administration (only mnuchin really, and assuming he is confirmed) that says he wants them out of govt control and ownership, and he thinks this can be done reasonably fast. mnuchin may think he got ahead of himself with that comment a bit, especially after the immediate market reaction, and i am actually glad he has not spoken to the GSE issue since.
so let’s not underestimate the extent of this turn of events.
will there be push back against a more favorable GSE policy within treasury and congress? of course. but i think you will see a programmatic tone to the trump administration’s first 100 days, and that tone will be that the new administration is working to reverse alot of what the obama administration has done. indeed, with recent developments regarding russia and israel, there is even more on trump’s plate to reverse than even when he was elected.
and so the presence of GSE pushback needs to be understood in the context of what will be going on, which will be a whole lot of policy reversals being proposed of which the GSE policy will likely be not the most prominent or contentious issue. and the administration can say that nothing prevents congress from trying to modify anything mnuchin’s treasury does administratively after the fact, but given that congress couldnt pass anything adverse with a receptive obama administration, i have a hard time seeing congress coalescing in a way that would significantly counter what mnuchin might have in mind.
pushback will be coming from the democrats on alot of what trump wants to reverse, but democrat pushback is not going to be that significant re GSEs imo. so, i think a favorable GSE policy will lose its most ardent opponent, the obama white house itself.
assuming the trump administration sets a tone in the first 100 days that it means business and is not pausing for stragglers, opponents of an favorable GSE policy will face an uphill fight.
Thanks Tim for bringing us back to earth. You are highlighting the complex political system that binds such a difficult resolution with both sides having their own agendas even though the truth already has enough legs to stand on its own imho. Would you say, one of the strongest ‘reason’ that the new administration needs could be in the form of the evidences released by courts (if it happens) from the undisclosed documents withheld under various privileged claims?
Which do you have a view on why suddenly everything on the courts fronts has suddenly gone so quiet?
Evidence contained in the 56 documents whose disposition is currently being reviewed by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit is very likely to support the notion that the Obama administration Treasury has misled both the courts and the public about its motivations for taking over and then sweeping the profits of Fannie and Freddie. That would add weight to the argument that the companies were taken over in 2008 not because they were weak, but because they were strong–and that if released they could again serve as the engines of the secondary mortgage market.
As to the delays in the court rulings, I’m guessing along with everyone else, but I now suspect the courts may be waiting for the change in leadership at the Justice Department that will take place next month before issuing rulings on these important and high-profile cases.
If the Courts are waiting for new leadership at DOJ, like Tim thinks, it means that the Courts are against the old DOJ’s position. What Judge will support hiding 11,000 documents for not even one good reason.
I hope the documents will be uncovered and the protective order void. The , after the dust settle, any decision will be more fair.
What are the derivative hedging profits/losses since 2002 for FnF?
Is it true that that Fannie had over $50 billion in losses on derivatives hedging between 2002 and 2007 and added another $15 billion in derivatives losses in 2008?
I’ll answer your second question shortly, but before I do I’d like to make a general point about why the topic of derivatives losses at Fannie and Freddie between eight and fourteen years ago might now be coming up.
When I read a reference to “over $50 billion in losses on derivatives hedging between 2002 and 2007 and…another $15 billion in derivatives losses in 2008,” I immediately think of the article that likely would have contained these figures: its subject would have been what an awful company Fannie Mae was to have lost over $75 billion in risky derivatives speculation in just six years.
Opponents of Fannie and Freddie now are genuinely alarmed that they may not succeed in killing them, so I have little doubt we’ll be seeing a barrage of negative publicity about the companies in the coming months. Almost all of it will go unchallenged, as it has for the past couple of decades. Just for the record, though, I’ll give you my answer to the derivative loss question.
First of all, the derivative numbers cited (which, with the exception of 2008 I haven’t checked, but they look reasonable) aren’t “losses;” they’re expenses. They fall into four categories. The first two—interest payments on floating-to-fixed rate interest rate swaps, and premiums paid for options to enter into interest rate swaps in the future (known as “swaptions”)—are routine parts of Fannie’s interest rate risk management. Prior to the adoption of the accounting for derivatives standard, FAS 133, in 2001, these two items would have been recorded as interest expense, not derivatives “losses,” and nobody would have paid any attention to them.
The third component of derivative expense is gains or losses in the market value of Fannie’s outstanding interest rate swaps. Fannie had $547 billion in floating-to-fixed interest rate swaps in 2008, and the 213 basis point decline in swap rates during the second half of that year resulted in a $13 billion market value loss on those swaps. These same declines in interest rates, however, also increased the market value of Fannie’s mortgages, but following the accounting rules this increase in value was not marked to market. Post-2008, the company’s profits benefitted (by close to the $13 billion amount written down in 2008) by having its mortgages remain at their (higher) historical interest rates, while the annual interest expense on its swaps was deducted at the (much lower) 2008 marked-to-market costs.
The one category of Fannie’s $75 billion-plus in derivatives expenses that WAS a permanent economic loss was fees paid on the interest rate swaps it terminated (which Fannie will do when interest rates fall and it needs to shorten the durations of its liabilities to match the suddenly-shorter durations of its assets). Fannie discloses its swap termination fees, as a component of “accumulated other comprehensive income,” but Fannie’s opponents and critics don’t like to cite real numbers. They would much rather pretend that ALL of the $75 billion in Fannie’s derivatives expense is a “loss,” and that it comes from bets on interest rates that went bad. All the more reason, then, to shut them down, and replace them with a bank-centric alternative.
Thanks, You are the genuine expert one can rely on, when opponents try their best to confuse the public with such misleading narratives.
Thanks for your public service to keep all well informed on such nationally important issues.
The rich (hedge funds) benefitting on the backs of the poor (taxpayers) narrative is quite powerful, and is a tool effectively used by detractors of Fannie to turn public opinion against the shareholders. Since we can assume that this rhetoric will get louder as we get closer to d-day, how can Mnuchin and other protagonists defuse this false narrative and make people understand that the GSEs need to be private companies?
Is there a graceful way of doing this without the mass media being status-quo?
Docs. That’s the only way. They will prove everything and as a byproduct the warrants will be deemed extortion upon extortion.
Thank you for your explanation about derivative expenses. The important point here is that over all the companies , after paying the expenses , were always profitable and generating well being and jobs by propelling house ownership.
Thanks for all you do Tim Howard. Enjoy the holidays.
Tim – have you seen this clip of Kellyanne Conway discussing FnF from last night?
When she says that many republicans believe in privatizing FnF for a long time, do you read into this at all, i.e Corker, Hensarling, etc.? Mnuchin certainly didn’t say anything about dismantling, but curious on your thoughts.
I hadn’t seen the Conway interview, but just watched it.
People think and mean different things when they talk about the “privatization” of Fannie and Freddie. Fannie was an agency of the federal government until 1968, when it was “privatized’ by having shares sold to the public. At that time, it had a federal charter which limited it to the residential mortgage business, and also gave it certain benefits that enabled it to operate on a scale and at a cost that companies without its charter could not. When Freddie was created in 1970, it was given essentially the same charter as Fannie, but was made part of what then was the Federal Home Loan Bank System; Freddie was “privatized”–with shares sold to the public–in 1989.
A different concept of Fannie Mae privatization–the revocation of all of its charter benefits, usually while keeping its business restrictions–became popular and was advocated by many prominent officials in the Reagan administration in the 1980s. It is this “pure” version of privatization that Rep. Hensarling and other conservative Republicans have in mind when they speak of “privatizing” Fannie and Freddie. In my view, however, pure privatization is not workable: if you get rid of the companies’ charter benefits, give them no other benefits, and keep them limited to the mortgage business, they will not be able to function effectively (as the commercial banking system could not function effectively without federal deposit insurance).
We do not yet know which definition of privatization Mnuchin has in mind for Fannie and Freddie. I believe it’s one in which the companies are moved out of their government-controlled conservatorship and returned to shareholder-owned status, with a set of charter attributes that allow them to carry out their mission effectively and efficiently, not the Hensarling version that would permanently cripple them. But we should find out soon enough.
Asked by Senator Shelby, CBO produced a research paper on recapalizing GSEs. It seems obvious to me that no concrete replacement can be found despite of many proposals..
Do you or your friends have any information about the status of the Lamberth appeal? Further, do you know if the public can put pressure on the court to wrap up their analysis?
In my experience, the longer deliberations like this last the less righteous the decision becomes.
I do not have any good information on the status of the Lamberth appeal, and I don’t know of anyone who does.
But if we’re speculating about the implications of the delay in the decision, I think they are considerably more likely to be positive than negative. Were the judges inclined to uphold Lamberth, that would have happened a long time ago. My guess would be that Judges Ginsburg and Brown are awaiting a decision on the writ of mandamus to vacate Judge Sweeney’s decision to grant plaintiffs’ motion to compel production of the 56 documents in the Court of Claims case, with that expectation that denial of that writ may (a) convince Judge Millett to join the majority in remanding the case to the Lamberth court for development of an administrative record, (b) enable Judges Ginsburg and Brown to write a stronger majority decision (from which Judge Millett would dissent), or (c) less likely, give Judges Ginsburg and Brown sufficient additional ammunition to persuade them to decide in favor of overturning the Lamberth decision in its entirely, invalidating the net worth sweep.
I think your own experience is a good example of how the governments delaying tactics can backfire on them. I remember reading your book, The Mortgage Wars, where you discussed how the Government attorney, Paul DeMarco, fell out in the courtroom, trying to answer questions about lack of evidence, feeling constant pressure from an incensed judge, collapsing to the floor under the tension of the situation at hand. Your reflections on this case may be helpful here.
Some people used “logic” rather than evidence.
there could be any number of explanations for the length of the perry appeals decision. here’s another: that ginsburg/brown dont want the decision (assume favorable for Ps) appealed for en banc consideration, and are waiting for a trump administration doj. arguably, if an obama doj requested en banc consideration and the majority of the dc circuit granted it, a trump administration doj might not be able to pull it back.
who knows. we are in wait mode, and patience is a virtue.
is it reasonable, in your exp, to believe that “were the judges inclined to uphold Lamberth, that would have happened a long time ago”?
have you seen cases that took equally long if not longer only to affirm lower ct’s ruling?
Is it normal though for judges to play politics like this and i am just being naive thinking they don’t?
it is quicker to write one unanimous opinion than a majority opinion and a dissenting opinion (with the majority opinion invariably responding to certain issues raised by the dissent).
so i think one could speculate that this decision will involve a dissent, given the delay. now, when i listen to the oral argument, and read the transcript of the argument, i come away with the speculation that the most likely configuration of this split is for judge millett dissenting from a majority ginsburg/brown opinion.
btw, there could be three opinions, one for reversal, one for remand, and one for either affirmance or remand using a different standard than that used by the other judge. the majority result would be for remand.
there are at least 6 different claims that i believe the opinion(s) must address. a law clerk’s nightmare.
so, while i dont think there will be affirmance, i believe this based more upon what i heard and read in the oral argument, and not so much by the lapse of time since then.
it strikes me my answer to your question was incomplete.
there is a sense in which the delay in the perry appeals decision augers against affirmance. if you recall the govt argued that this was a very simple case. under HERA the conservator can exercise a power, and HERA prevents a court from restraining the conservator’s exercise of the power. so, when conservator signed 3rd A, it exercised a power (amending a contract), case closed. judge lamberth agreed with this truncated reasoning.
of course plaintiffs argued that the exercise of conservator power must be within the HERA statutory purposes of rehabilitating the GSEs, during conservatorship, or moving on to receivership and liquidation. if you listened to or read the oral argument, there was precious little attention paid by any of the judges to this broad conception of conservator power advanced by govt.
you would think that if the appeals court would affirm, it would affirm on the basis of this truncated conservator power argument. and this would be the quickest path to the issuance of an opinion. but there was no indication at oral argument that the judges were taking that position.
Outstanding clarity. Thank you for your concise and well-reasoned response.
Are you basing your assessment of Judge Millett’s dissent on her line of questioning at the appeal? I found it troubling but have wondered whether she is now up to speed.
Yes; when I read the transcript I felt that Judges Ginsburg and Brown likely would agree on remand, and that Millett would dissent. But the longer the decision is delayed the more I wonder about other possible dynamics. One, as you suggest, is that information that has come to light since the April oral argument about the government’s actions and motives in imposing the net worth sweep–and the obvious inference from this information that the government deliberately had not been truthful in statements it made to the Lamberth court–may be causing Millett to reassess her position. That’s why I noted as one possibility that she (and Ginsburg and Brown) might be waiting to see what’s in the 56 documents the government so desperately is seeking to withhold.
Any direct pressure placed on the court or judges could result in a mistrial, delaying the legal process, while giving the the defense team a means of appeal.
Any thoughts on the FHFA Landing Team’s inclusion of Pinto and Pollock?
They are volunteers nobody choose them specially. Alex Pollock is a volunteer in several landing teams.
I think there would be a collective roar from your followers, myself included of course, if you raised your hand as a volunteer for a landing team position. Are you in a position to take on, or would you consider such a role? There is no authority such as yourself on this planet that I am aware of, although Epstein would be up there. I appreciate your time and dedication to this blog immensely. Thank you!
I’m not planning to volunteer for a landing team position; I believe I will have more influence and success working directly with people who are in a position to influence the outcome of mortgage reform than I would have as one of many volunteers (with no real authority) on a landing team.
Don’t know why those guys are there. Trump would not like them if he knows them. Watt may hate them. He can continue to finish term in 2019.
They may want to land a job in Treasury.
Although this article is about the DeMarco-Bright plan for mortgage reform (“Toward a New Secondary Mortgage Market,” published in September by the Milken Institute), it is written by former Treasury Department official Michael Stegman.
The Stegman article is a good example of how bad ideas gain policy currency in Washington. I don’t know Stegman, but I do know that, like many current and former Treasury officials, he has been a persistent advocate of replacing Fannie and Freddie. To him, the DeMarco-Bright plan seems like a plausible way of doing that, so he endorses it and makes arguments in its favor without having much if any understanding of the subject matter he’s addressing.
Currently, Ginnie Mae packages government-guaranteed FHA and VA loans, and issues them on its securitization platform. DeMarco and Bright think, “well, why can’t Ginnie do that for conventional (i.e., non-government guaranteed) loans, like Fannie and Freddie do?” (Irony alert here: DeMarco now says that the Ginnie Mae securitization platform is a better choice for this than the “common securitization platform” (CSP) he forced Fannie and Freddie to start building in 2012; that certainly raises the question: “so why did you make them spend all that money on the CSP if Ginnie had a better platform already?”) The answer to this question is, “Ginnie could ISSUE the conventional securities, but who would guarantee them?” DeMarco and Bright’s idea– which Stegman endorses–is that Ginnie would take on the new responsibility of ensuring that every loan delivered to one of its new conventional mortgage pools had sufficient credit enhancement to leave it (Ginnie) with virtually no residual risk through adding its (government) guaranty to it.
Among the types of credit enhancements that DeMarco and Bright say would pass this test of highest quality would be securitized credit-risk transfers such as Fannie’s CAS and Freddie’s STACRs. Yes, these are the same securities I’ve written about extensively, which according to both Fannie’s and Freddie’s prospectuses take less than one-tenth of the credit losses they’re advertised as taking. If Ginnie actually accepted CAS and STACRs as “top quality credit enhancements,” what would happen to the 90-plus percent of the credit losses the CAS and STACRs don’t absorb? Ginnie Mae, of course, would end up with them. DeMarco and Bright don’t seem to understand that, nor (obviously) does Stegman. So another terrible idea for mortgage reform gets endorsed and perpetuated.
You are much too kind. It isn’t ignorance, but infamy, which compels Demarco and Bright. The CAS-STACR credit trades are dual purposed as 1) fig leaf to taxpayers and 2) transfer of shareholder wealth (including IP) to TBTF banks. The real idiocy is putting ones name (and personal integrity) to intellectually flawed and dishonest proposals.
Can you please explain “backing” of the federal government and “implicit Guarantees” of the federal government in the context of FnF. Which one these really exist and in what form?
Many people have freely used these phrases very conveniently without really being specific about what and how. Should not Gov be specific about these to make it easy for investors and also to avoid litigations with Gov?
The easiest and most understandable way to explain the “implicit guarantee” (or “government backing”) for Fannie and Freddie is in the context of their existence as private, shareholder-owned companies, pre-conservatorship.
We learned during the 2008 financial crisis, however, that the concept of implicit guarantee applied not just to Fannie and Freddie, but also to all large, systemically important financial institutions. Banks facing imminent financial collapse were given trillions of dollars in repayable loans from the Federal Reserve, with few if any conditions, and have long since been restored to their former states as independent companies. Fannie and Freddie, on the other hand, which faced no liquidity problems and did not require federal help, were forced into conservatorship and saddled with non-repayable senior preferred stock by their conservator, FHFA, and remain in conservatorship today.
Today, “too-big-to-fail” banks continue to benefit from an implicit guarantee, in the sense that nobody doubts that if Citigroup, Bank of America or any other very large commercial bank were to get into trouble again, the government would come to their rescue. Yet critics of Fannie and Freddie act as if the implicit guarantee were only an issue for these two companies, in spite of the fact that—unlike the banks—Fannie and Freddie still “pay for” their government relationship through the limitations on their business powers contained in their charters.
I can certainly understand if you are confused by what an “implicit guarantee” is, how it is conveyed, and what conditions come with it. The federal government is too.
Nowadays all SIFI around the world have implicit guarantee. Just these days Italy is rescuing its banks. Also the European Central Bank is telling all the time that they are ready to act if a SIFI needs to be rescued.
Thanks for excellent explanation of the most misunderstood topic in FnF saga.
When this explanation comes from credible and authoritative source like you, it establishes a quotable reference. So far no one has ever tried to explain. This also brings certainty to any debates or discussions.
In the past we have never read or heard from either public officials or private experts on what these mythical things are. Hope plaintiffs will make sure that Judges understand these mostly misunderstood phrases.
Tim – what do make of the talk lately regarding Watt and the fact that he holds all of the cards? Many are saying he can not be removed and that unless the new admin. meets all of his demands, he can prevent them from releasing. Given his actions and past testimony couldn’t he be removed for cause given that he clearly did not follow his duties as a conservator? Further, couldn’t the new admin use the sealed docs as leverage and aren’t there a million ways for Treasury to make Watt’s life as head of FHFA very difficult if so inclined? I believe that the new admin will be very focused on expanding home ownership and aiding low-income Americans as well so it would seem that Watt’s refusal to comply would be nothing more than politically driven.
I’ll start by saying that I’ve had no direct contacts with senior officials at FHFA for a couple of years, so my comments on this question are based on inferences from information that is available publicly.
I have no reason to think that Watt will be opposed or an obstacle to releasing Fannie and Freddie, should the Trump Treasury (and administration) elect to do that. In my view, Watt has been in a very difficult position. Prior to his becoming director, his predecessor, Ed DeMarco, had allowed Treasury to dominate FHFA, and become the de facto conservator. Treasury’s plan was to deprive the companies of capital, drain significant amounts of their revenues by forcing them to enter into expensive risk-sharing transactions that transferred very little risk, and spend their own money on a securitization platform designed to ultimately be given away to whatever entities could be devised to replace them. Watt believed–I think correctly– that he got into the game too late to effectively fight that, so he and the rest of FHFA went along with it. If the Trump Treasury changes its objectives for Fannie and Freddie, I personally believe that Watt would be very happy with that. Historically, he has supported their mission and their existence as shareholder-owned companies.
Watt’s actions as conservator also have been affected by the legal position Treasury and FHFA have taken (again, predating his appointment as director) in the net worth sweep cases. Their primary defense has been that HERA allows them to do whatever they want with Fannie and Freddie, including liquidating them and allowing Treasury to call the shots on how they are being run. As you know, this defense worked with Judge Lamberth (although that decision is on appeal). Watt can’t break from Treasury while this defense is still, on its surface, succeeding. So here, too, I think he has defensible reasons for “not follow[ing] his duties as conservator.” He doesn’t have an obvious alternative. He can’t release Fannie and Freddie without Treasury abandoning the net worth sweep (they have no capital), and breaking ranks with Treasury would sabotage their collective legal strategy.
So, I’d be inclined to withhold judgment on whether Watt’s professed desire to remain in office until the end of his term is a good or a bad thing until we get more clarity on what the Trump administration’s intentions for Fannie and Freddie are, and how Watt responds to them once they’re known.
Clear thinker you are Mr Howard!
Rep Mulvaney is the new director of budget. After reading his bill (link below) it seems that his ideas are positive for GSEs. The bill talks about “risk-weighed” capital; is it what you always propose? He proposes very high capital, do they do this is for margin to negotiate?
Also the bill expressly grants jurisdiction to the district courts over private claims. That seems very good considering what is brewing in the district courts. isn’t it?
Can you give us your opinion on Mulvaney’s position about GSE?
Mick Mulvaney (R-SC) has been chosen by President-elect Trump to head the Office of Management Budget, but he still will need to be confirmed by the Senate (which I do not anticipate will pose any problems for him).
My opinion of his proposed bill on Fannie and Freddie (H.R. 4913) hasn’t changed since it came out in the spring. While it clearly has some good things for the companies, overall I do not support it, primarily because of the way it treats capital. Mulvaney is another advocate of applying “bank-like” capital standards to Fannie and Freddie, which I believe would be a grave, and potentially fatal, mistake.
His capital proposal is that Fannie and Freddie hold “an amount of total capital…that is equal to or exceeds 10 percent of the risk-weighted assets of the enterprise.” The Mulvaney bill does not define what “risk-weighted assets” are, however, and that term is nowhere defined in the companies’ charters, nor in the Federal Housing Enterprises Safety and Soundness Act of 1992. By elimination, therefore, he must be referring to “risk weights” as they are defined in the Basel capital standards for banks, in which residential mortgages are given a risk weight of 50 percent. Mulvaney’s proposal to capitalize Fannie and Freddie at 10 percent of risk-weighted assets thus would translate into approximately 5 percent capital against the companies’ total assets (the difference coming from the fact that not all of Fannie and Freddie’s assets are mortgages).
As I noted in my responses below to comments on the Rosner and Carney capital proposals, I strongly oppose applying fixed, ratio-based capital standards to Fannie and Freddie’s credit guaranty business. I believe that when negotiators of a settlement in plaintiffs’ net worth lawsuits against the government for the net worth sweep focus on what Fannie and Freddie should look like–and how they should function–post-settlement, they will agree with my view that custom-tailored, true risk-based capital standards are a greatly superior approach to capitalization for the companies compared with a simple ratio-based standard. When they do that, Rep. Mulvaney will be one of the many people on the Republican side of the aisle they will try to persuade to come to that same point of view.
I don’t see any great significance in Mulvaney’s granting jurisdiction to district courts in disputes concerning the companies, other than a preference for those venues over state courts. But perhaps the lawyers among the readership see something there that I don’t.
I realize you can’t know, but do you think it’s probable that Mulvaney would resonate with sound instruction on this point he currently misses, or at least was missing in his thinking at the time the bill was drafted? I take you to suggest he might.
I don’t have a good sense for how “persuadable” Mulvaney would be on the capital issue, although his memberships in both the Tea Party Caucus and the Freedom Caucus suggest to me that he might be a fairly tough sell.
On Mnuchin, I would be surprised if he “gets [the capital issue] already, without being told.” This is awfully esoteric, and unless you’ve worked with or studied the operations of a mortgage credit guaranty business– which few have–it’s unlikely you would know it off hand, because it’s not intuitive. “Bank-like capital” and “more capital” do seem intuitive (although they’re wrong). That’s why I believe that someone will need to take Mnuchin through the reasons WHY customized, risk-based capital standards are better for Fannie and Freddie than artificially high, static, ratio-based standards. The plaintiffs in the lawsuits should be able to do that (I’ve offered my help, if they need or would like it). Once Mnuchin hears the arguments, I think he’ll make the right call.
What do you think of Bruce Berkowitz’ earlier proposal to carve out a “Private GSE” from the current GSEs? He proposes to capitalize $1t of new mortgages with $52b of capital – or 5%.
So does he really “get it” re capitalization numbers?
Bruce made that proposal over three years ago, a few months before I first met with his team (following publication of my book). Back in 2013, any proposal to capitalize Fannie and Freddie with less than 5 percent capital was not taken seriously–in fact, many people still were advocating 10 percent capital. It was necessary for Berkowitz to use a 5 percent capital figure just to get his proposal in front of the administration (although it was dismissed in any case).
I don’t presume to speak for Fairholme, but I think they now understand my risk-based capital approach, and why it’s better for both the companies and homebuyers. It also makes recapitalization easier (less capital to raise). It’s a win-win-win. Even so, I plan to do a round of calls and/or meetings with the principals after the first of the year, to make sure no one has any outstanding questions or concerns about the idea.
Tim – what are your thoughts on Josh Rosner’s recommendation of minimum capital requirements of 3% to 5% Risk Adjusted vs. your 2%?
First, let’s make sure we’re talking about comparable concepts.
I’ve proposed that Fannie and Freddie be subject to a risk-based capital standard; their required capital would be set by product and risk category, with the percentage amounts determined by stress tests specified by the government and run by FHFA. (I would add that the Housing and Economic Recovery Act, passed by Congress in 2008, also requires FHFA to determine the companies’ capital using a risk-based stress test.) I have recommended that Fannie and Freddie be required to hold enough capital to survive a 25 percent nationwide decline in home prices over a 5-year period, plus a small cushion, but it should be the government that picks that standard.
If a 25 percent home price decline is in fact the stress standard picked by the government, my analysis of Fannie and Freddie’s 2008-2012 credit losses suggests that—for the companies’ current, very high quality, books of business—their required risk-based capital would be well below 2 percent. I thus have also recommended that Fannie and Freddie have a 2 percent minimum capital requirement, so that if application of the risk-based standard results in calculated capital below that level, the 2 percent minimum would become binding. Above 2 percent, the risk-based standard would be binding.
I have the same objection to Josh’s approach as I had to John Carney’s (discussed below): it applies a bank standard to Fannie and Freddie, which aren’t banks. Banks have exceptionally wide asset powers that force bank regulators to apply “rough justice” capital percentages to broad categories of the business they do around the globe. With the limits now imposed on Fannie and Freddie’s portfolio business, they take essentially one type of risk (credit) on one type of asset (residential mortgages) in one country (the U.S.). And the credit results on their one asset type can be modeled, analyzed and predicted statistically. For that reason, it is possible to do a TRUE risk-based capital standard for Fannie and Freddie, whereas bank capital standards are “risk-based” in name only.
Beyond this argument (which, by the way, was good enough to convince former Fed Chairman Paul Volcker, who worked with me on Fannie and Freddie’s original risk-based capital standard, developed in the early 1990s), there is a practical one in favor of the true risk-based capital standard I advocate compared with the ratio-based standard Josh recommends. A fixed, ratio-based standard makes guaranty fee pricing extremely problematic. For example, you don’t need 3 to 5 percent capital to cover the credit risk on a loan with a 40 percent down payment and a 750 credit score. If a credit guarantor prices for that amount of capital it won’t get the business, but if it cuts its fee the capital requirement doesn’t change. To make its target return on capital at the corporate level, the guarantor has to make up fee cuts for low-risk borrowers by charging higher-risk borrowers even more—but then THOSE fees become unaffordable. In the real world, there’s no way around that problem if you saddle Fannie and Freddie with non-risk, ratio-based standards that are anywhere near the 3 to 5 percent level Josh is recommending (on loans, remember, that are likely to have less than a 4 basis point annual credit loss rate). If you break the link between risk and capital, as ratio-based standards do, the credit guaranty business really doesn’t work.
You’re referring to property and casualty companies. No, I don’t know how they’re capitalized, but in any event their capitalization has no practical relevance for the capitalization of Fannie and Freddie.
Eric (and Tim) property and casualty companies, such as you describe Eric, are regulated by the 50 states. Ergo, while there may be a common set of rules, each state has the authority to establish different levels and capital requirements.
Historically, state insurance commissioners come from and later return to those industries, which makes state oversight, control and, company rate increase requests an “easier row to hoe”, and sometimes, a “good old boy” arrangement.
This link has some of the most recent state capital requirements for insurance companies.
Brilliant. Makes perfect sense. Thanks Tim.
Your recommended methodology for setting regulatory requirements by product, assets, geography and risk category is the most logical and scientific methodology in the current information age. Using single broad percentage based regulatory requirements is unscientific and carryover from past.
Single percentage based regulatory requirements is preferred by other FIs for obvious reasons. Other FIs have risks based on multiple of geographies, products, assets, services, risks. It not only makes it simpler for them but it also allows them to maximize the profits by focusing on specific geographies, products, assets, services taking maximum risks but allocating the same single percentage based regulatory capital for any risk. Also it is very difficult for regulators to have accurate historical data for multiples of geographies, products, assets, services, risks and determine detailed risk requirements for all types of banks that exist in thousands.
In case of FnF, these are just two companies that have very few specialized products and services limited to single country but on a very large volume and scale. Also reasonably accurate historical data exists and it is very easy to determine detailed risk requirements by the dedicated FHFA regulator.
FnF and Banks are totally different on many criteria. FnF are highly regulated and just two companies where as thousands of Banks exist in hundreds of different formats. For these reasons FnF and other FIs also have separate dedicated regulators.
In case of FnF, even a very small mistake in regulatory requirements can have very large impact on economy because of very large volume and scale of their operations.
When there are easy ways to determine risks and regulatory requirements, then it makes no sense to use single percentage criteria. This is main reason why regulators were clueless about real conditions of FIs during 2008 crisis and used “rough justice” to deal with the crisis. FnF and Shareholders are the victims of such “rough justice”.
Any opinion on this article?
I normally don’t comment on articles that deal with the relative pros and cons of ownership of Fannie or Freddie’s common versus preferred stock, but I did read this piece and thought it contained some good background material and solid analysis, which many readers might find useful.
There was one area where I thought the author could have been a little more clear in his exposition. He spends considerable time discussing the upside for common shareholders of a challenge to the Senior Preferred Stock Purchase Agreement (SPSPA), but he doesn’t point out that none of the net worth sweep lawsuits challenge the SPSPA (or if he does I missed it). One way that plaintiffs in the net worth sweep cases–Berkowitz, Paulson, Ackman and others–might get around this is by threatening to “commandeer” (i.e., start picking up the legal fees for) the Washington Federal suit, which does challenge the SPSPA. That might put it on the table in a negotiation. But for this tactic to give the plaintiffs more leverage in a negotiation, it would have to be viewed a credible threat by the government–that is, the government would have to believe that the plaintiffs would be willing to forego a near-term settlement of the net worth sweep cases and spend several more years of discovery in and legal wrangling over the Washington Fed suit, which to date has been stayed. So far, none of the plaintiffs in the net worth sweep cases have shown any willingness to do that–although it’s possible that could change.
I tend to believe that the settlement would include Washington Federal. Otherwise, if Wash Federal wins eventually, a big bill ($300B) for the feds to pay. Wash Federal can fight to end if it wants to. In a settlement with all plaintiffs, feds may be able to keep some profit.
I believe Washington Federal will accept whatever settlement the plaintiffs in the net worth sweep cases negotiate. The issue I’m raising is whether the net worth sweep plaintiffs can parlay the threat of keeping the Washington Federal suit alive (using their own resources) into a better overall settlement for everybody. I suspect that’s a long shot, but it’s not totally out of the question.
Rule Of Law Guy said that the law firms that represent Washington Federal had an agreement of services contingent to a quick settlement and other sources agree. However that agreement of service was done BEFORE the suit was filed. A lot happened since May 2013 and the two firms that represent WF find now that the case is a lot more easy to prove than they expected before. It happens because now there is enough evidence , through discovery and forensic audits, that they did not expect to have on hand with almost no effort from their part. In another words, while their case has been stayed, others have been doing a great job for them. Maybe the two law firms will change their minds and never walk away from the case. It is too big to walk away.
Tim – In your opinion would you say that given it may be impossible to settle every single suit depending on certain controlling P’s rationale, i.e they are looking for an outcome deemed to simply be unreasonable, Mnuchin will hammer out a deal with the key litigants and major shareholders, as well as reach out to smaller cases once the parameters with larger have been agreed to? Assuming they choose to take advantage of warrants with the possibility of altering the original deal, isn’t the pps of common shares a key to a successful transition, i.e. most suits are settled/dropped, ability to raise capital increases, treasury maximizes it’s own interest, prf’d may be convinced to a conversion and remain invested for a longer period, etc.? I ask as many still put forth the notion of shareholders being wiped out, new issuance, etc. This to me doesn’t seem like a reasonable probable outcome when the opportunity exists for a win-win scenario. Am I missing some key element short of an unrealistic capital buffer, say 3% or above?
The way these multi-plaintiff settlements typically work is the “big dogs” negotiate the terms, and the smaller plaintiffs then decide whether to accept those terms or opt out, and continue to sue on their own (with their own money). Knowing that, the large plaintiffs try to structure the terms to maximize the chance that both the defense and the smaller plaintiffs will accept them, so as to end the lawsuits for everyone.
And you’re right about the common shares. If the government views a reformed, released and recapitalized Fannie and Freddie as the best available alternative for the secondary mortgage market of the future–as I argue in this piece that it is–then the government and the plaintiffs have a mutual interest in maximizing the long-term value of those common shares (the government because of its ownership of the warrants). Another important mutuality of interest in a negotiated settlement is “getting the capital right.” Yes, the government wants Fannie and Freddie to be, in Mnuchin’s words, “absolutely safe,” but it also would want to achieve that safety with a minimum of unnecessary excess capital. Capital that’s not needed to meet the government’s safety and soundness standards either extends the time to achieve full capitalization via retained earnings (which requires negotiating regulatory forbearance, and limits or prohibits junior preferred and common dividends in the interim) or requires additional equity capital raises (there is a limit to the percentage of its capital structure a financial institution can have in preferred stock), which dilutes existing owners of common (including the government via the warrants) and lowers its price.
If there are favorable rulings in either Perry or Fairholme cases prior to negotiations, do you think the plaintiffs, with a bolstered negotiating positon, will alter their positions on warrant exercise i.e. move towards no exercise or do you think excercising warrants is going to happen regardless and it is just a matter of at what strike price?
Since other financial institutions have been given several years to comply with Basel III, is there any reason why GSE’s won’t be given forbearance?
Again, I’m not going to speculate about various scenarios for the warrants; that’s completely in the hands of the negotiators, who will be balancing multiple objectives in real time, amidst a changing set of external circumstances and internal dynamics.
On regulatory forbearance, there clearly will be some required in order to get from Fannie and Freddie’s current capital level (essentially zero) to whatever target is set. But the time period for that forbearance won’t be indefinite, and in my opinion almost certainly not so lengthy so as to permit Fannie and Freddie to recapitalize solely through retained earnings, and without any common equity issuance.
What is the limit to the percentage of its capital structure a financial institution can have in preferred stock?
I haven’t done any updated research on this topic for a while, but when I’ve looked at this in the past the highest percentages of preferred stock in a financial institution’s capital structure that I found were in the 10 to 12 percent range.
so tim, i wonder if there can be any recap unless and until the perry appeals court renders a decision that lamberth’s interpretation of HERA was wrong.
who is going to invest $65B of fresh capital unless it is made clear that HERA doesn’t mean what judge lamberth said it meant?!
Technically, there could, if the parties were to reach a full settlement before the appeals court renders a decision on Perry. But that’s highly unlikely to happen.
And even if the appeals court upholds Lamberth (which I think also is highly unlikely), you still have the Federal Court of Claims case outstanding, so settlement remains possible. But you won’t get recap without a settlement, along with a clear and binding agreement on what Fannie and Freddie will look like post-conservatorship, and how they will operate. Investors in any new equity issues in the companies will have know to a certainty what they’ve buying into.
On reflection, I think you’re right. The preferred shareholders could get relief from a positive outcome in the Court of Claims case (or a settlement of it), but if Lamberth is upheld (through the Supreme Court) the government undoubtedly wouldn’t release Fannie and Freddie from conservatorship without their being able to access the equity market in large size to recapitalize, which would be problematic unless and until Congress overturned the provision(s) in HERA that gave rise to Lamberth’s interpretation.
With the dramatic move in interest rates during this current quarter Q4, might it necessitate a pre-settlement end to the sweep or at least a temporary halt? I ask as rates have moved 100bps from 1.60% to 2.60% in Q4 and that will have a dramatic one time positive effect on Fannie Mae’s profits from interest rate hedges. If Fannie pays that all away to Treasury and interest rates drop back down to 1.60% in the following quarter (Q1 2017), there’s a good chance the company would need a treasury draw from any potential massive drop in rates. With that said, wouldn’t it be best if the new administration was pre-emptive to avoid an increased chance of a potential draw, especially so soon into their new jobs (even if one time only while they work out the larger reform issues). Your thoughts?
I think you raise a good point. Movements in interest rates this past quarter very likely WILL result in significant (temporary) accounting gains for Fannie and Freddie’s derivative positions, all of which are scheduled to be paid to Treasury under the net worth sweep. A comparable fall in interest rates in the first quarter—and the attendant accounting loss on those same derivative positions—could well provoke a draw.
This is a potential dynamic that the new administration (and the plaintiffs) will need to keep an eye on. But they have time. Fannie and Freddie won’t put out their full year (and fourth quarter) 2016 results until mid-February 2017, and they won’t release their first quarter 2017 results until early May. By mid-February we’ll know what interest rates have done in the first six weeks of the year, and thus be able to handicap the likelihood (and possible magnitude) of an accounting-driven loss in the first quarter. If one appears likely, I think the (newly installed) Trump Treasury should instruct FHFA to allow the companies to not make their scheduled net worth sweep payments for the first quarter of 2017, and instead enable them to retain those earnings to serve as a buffer for the probable accounting-related losses to come (thus avoiding a draw).
If the Trump administration Treasury truly is interested in reaching a negotiated settlement with plaintiffs—which I believe it is—it wont want an accounting-driven senior preferred stock draw in May to add a political complication to what already will be a challenging negotiation on settlement of the lawsuits. So first quarter interest rates are definitely something to watch.
Let’s compare FnF with their only peer, the FHA.
Congress mandated the FHA to have a 2% capital ratio. The FHA now has a 2.32% capital ratio.
FHA: 4.92% This figure includes the “legacy portfolio” (mortgages made before 2009).
All the metrics point out that FnF should be required to have a capital ratio well below FHA’s.
If FHA has a Congressional mandate of 2% capital ratio and a serious delinquency rate of 4.92%, then Fannie Mae, with a 1.06% serious delinquency rate, should have a capital ratio of 0.43%. It’s a simple math.
Curiously enough, FnF have always had a capital ratio around 0.38% since they were set up in a Congressional charter 40 years ago. After reading this article, now you know why: a low-risk business model translates into very low delinquency rates.
Cap ratio for GSEs: 1.5% is good enough!
Due to in depth insight by you and others with working knowledge fighting the propaganda, I feel my IRA is much safer and am more optimistic than ever. I knew deep down it was not if, but when, it is resolved in favor of the rightful owners that value and thus capital would flow back in, providing stability and rewarding shareholder patience.
One of the biggest problems is the “distrust” of government. This has to be addressed somehow. But the path of the past few years has led the country to the brink of every man for himself; as few have any trust in the government to actually do the right thing.
Another issue surrounding capital is that at the extremes, there is simply no amount of capital that any company can have and meet muster if the tests are unrealistic. Rumor mongering and skeptical silliness have led the Feds and their “stress tests”.
The government, ultimately, backstops America. There is an implicit guarantee at the extremes. There is no way around it and no way to hide it; unless you want Fannie or Freddie to relo to Canada.
The government uses Fannie and Freddie to set and manage policy. This is a massive misconception in the market place.
The economic expansion of the past 70 years is directly correlated to the ability of the average person to buy a home and create a future. If you want to grow the economy this is the best way to do it.
Just a few salient points to consider.
While Mr. Carney did not cite any specific article or study authored by Mr. Pollock, I presume you are very likely familiar with his work. Do you have any comments or rebuttal to what may be a statement and I suppose justification by Mr. Pollock regarding what he believes are Minimum Capital Reqs.?
Note: I shall be happy to inquire further of Mr. Carney should you ask for a specific work by Mr. Pollock.
I think this is a healthy debate as Mr. Carney seems to be taking a stand here and it would in my view be good to address his concerns given his position as an influencer in the Financial Press.
I do not follow Carney, but I do know that he is what I would refer to as a “reflexive critic” of Fannie and Freddie, meaning that nothing positive done by or said about the companies will escape some sort of rebuttal or nay saying.
You quote his comment that “[my] estimates of capital minimums are ridiculously low. Not even worth considering.” The “estimate” he seems to find objectionable is the “not much over 1 percent” capital percentage that resulted from the analysis I did to determine the amount of capital Fannie would have required to have survived the 25 percent decline in home prices that occurred between 2006 and 2011, adjusted for the fact that it no longer finances interest-only ARMs and Alt-A mortgages (as it did then). That figure may be “ridiculously low,” but it is inaccurate? Has Carney done a similar analysis, and come up with a different result? I suspect not. So I’m not sure what point he thinks he’s making.
I don’t know how I could have made my proposed capitalization requirement for Fannie and Freddie any clearer: they should have to hold enough capital (plus a small cushion) to survive a 25 percent nationwide decline in home prices. Is that not severe enough? If not, what should they be required to protect against, and why?
I’m not familiar with Mr. Pollock’s minimum capital estimates, but it’s not necessary for you (or anyone else) to ask Mr. Carney about them on my behalf. And I would not agree with your characterization of Mr. Carney as an “influencer.” He may have a following in the financial press, but the people whom I view as opinion leaders in the mortgage reform dialogue view him as being the same sort of reflexive critic as I do. Reflexive critics are completely predictable, so they don’t have much influence on people who like to think for themselves.
You need to debate your analysis and opinion only with people who match your openness, transparency, integrity and expertise. Otherwise it would be giving attention to publicity seekers.
It was rude of me to say that your proposed capital standard was not worth considering. I apologize.
My argument with your proposal is that it starts from the wrong place. The purpose of contemporary capital standards is not to set minimums at levels needed to survive the stress scenario. They are to set levels high enough that firms are adequately capitalized during and after the stress scenario.
And we don’t set capital standards based on the specific product mix present at a given time. Rather we set them on historical observations of losses in this type of business. So the starting place should be 4% to 5%.
In other words, they need to have 4% to 5% minimum after the stress scenario. So that brings us to at least 5-6%. In addition, we will need to require a capital conservation buffer of 2.5% as well as a TBTF capital surcharge of 1% to 5%. This gives us a capital requirement of around 10% to 12%.
Your view of capital adequacy as being set by the amount needed to survive a crisis is outdated and fails to take into account the systemic risk posed by the GSEs.
For a simple discussion of the new view of capital requirements, this article from the Economist makes a good starting place.
John: I agree with one of your points, but disagree with how you are applying the other.
I agree that, “we don’t set capital standards based on the specific product mix present at a given time.” I’m not proposing we do. I’m proposing that FHFA set risk-based capital requirements by product type and risk category (at a minimum, combinations of loan-to-value ratios and credit scores). As the mix of Fannie or Freddie’s business changes, the capital requirements will change. But I also believe there should be a minimum capital requirement, below which the aggregate risk-based requirement (based on a company’s current mix of business) cannot fall.
My disagreement is over your statement that Fannie and Freddie “need to have 4% to 5% minimum after the stress scenario…and a capital conservation buffer of 2.5% as well as a TBTF capital surcharge of 1% to 5%.” I know why you’re making this recommendation: banks are required to do something similar, so in your view Fannie and Freddie should have to as well. But Fannie and Freddie aren’t banks; they’re specialized institutions, limited to the mortgage business.
I do understand that large commercial banks (with assets of over $50 billion) now are required to have at least 5 percent capital after deducting the losses from their (stylized) stress tests. But there’s a very good reason for that, which I discussed at the end of a recent post called “A Solution In Search of a Problem” (accessible as the last of the posts under the “Recent Posts” heading on the site).
Briefly, what caused the problems at the banks during the crisis wasn’t loan losses; it was that fact that they were experiencing runs of non-insured deposits and hot money. Banks are highly levered. It’s not enough for them to have sufficient capital to absorb losses; they have to have enough to maintain the confidence of uninsured depositors and money market mutual funds so that they don’t take their short-term funds out, triggering the need to sell assets. The Fed says 5 percent post-stress capital is enough to maintain that confidence, but I’m not sure even they believe that. Large banks in the aggregate had more than 5 percent capital at the height of the last crisis, and the Fed still had to lend them trillions of dollars, and Treasury had to give some of them infusions of capital. This, I believe, is why banks are subject to things like the capital conservation buffer and TBTF surcharge.
The capital argument you’re making is a variant of the “level playing field” notion I referenced in my current post: Fannie and Freddie have to have the same capital requirement the banks have, even though their business models, and risks, are very different. Your 10 percent capital requirement for Fannie and Freddie would have them charge 130 -140 basis points per year to guarantee a loan whose average expected default rate is less than 4 basis points per year. That basically kills the secondary market credit guaranty business, and takes massive amounts of money out of mortgage borrowers’ pockets. I don’t believe policymakers will choose that outcome by forcing bank capital standards on Fannie and Freddie for no reason other than the banks would like them to.
Tim’s articles start with clear objectives and scenarios. If one reads a few of these articles most of the questions will be answered.
One needs to look at various similarities and differences between FnF and similar FIs, before trying to burden FnF with various statutory regulatory requirements. These statutory regulatory requirements need to be in synergy with GSE charter, counter cyclical public missions and social mandates.
The current gripe seems to be GSE charter and FnF business model which Congress has refused to change in last 8 years despite dogged efforts by insiders and outsiders in the financial establishment.
FnF and Banks have fundamentally different business models based on their charter/incorporation, the business products/services and business risks. FnF are more like specialized private insurance companies along with punishing counter cyclical public missions and social mandates. In 2008 crisis these punishing counter cyclical public missions have cost these companies and their shareholders all of their capital and investments.
Mark (in this blog) compares FnF with FHA (FHA with more riskier business model) and comes up with fairly realistic capital requirements. Similar such comparative analyses would help in setting statutory regulatory requirements for FnF. But this needs to be done by FHFA with the help from mortgage finance experts using a open, transparent, and fair process complying with all the laws and regulations.
Secondary Mortgage finance is a very specialized field and requires in depth knowledge and expertise. We wish experts like Tim would help current and next DJT administration in setting the right direction.
I would love to see a public debate between you Vs. Hank Paulson , Demarco, Zandi, fellow travellers, Corker et all . Such debate would fill up the Madison Square Garden! I would be in the line since the night before.
Probably Obama relied on Hank/Ben/Tim and Fellow Travelers for the housing finance advice since Obama was more involved in Law and Community development .
I’m sending this article to my senators and Congressmen.
Thanks for a great article for current administration as well as next administration.
Over all, FnF business models have worked well during good times and have worked very well during bad times (counter cyclical role).
The benefits of lawfully restoring FnF to their original private shareholder companies far outweigh the costs and risks of lawless status quo or any other lawless manufactured alternatives.
This article provides a complete solution to finish meaningfully the unfinished business of FnF conservatorship.
Current administration and next administration need to implement these ideas.
Thank you Tim for this excellent post.
Yay you, Tim, a hundred times over.
It is so logical, prepare for the “Establishment” blowback.
Bill: Thanks. On the potential establishment blowback, I doubt I’ll hear anything new, but I expect it to be louder.
Tim, Great job!!!!. This is a most concise summary of what mortgage reform is for FNF. This a must read for all stakeholders on secondary mortgages, which means all of us. I do not have a financial background but your analysis is easy to understand and doable.
Somebody made a comment that you should have a direct access to SOT Mnuchin and President elect Trump. I support that and hopefully you have access to them through Fairholme.
Are you still in direct contact with Fairholme?
Tim – If you don’t already have one, u need a direct line to Steve Mnuchin & Donald Trump!
Thank you jtimothyhoward for giving to the American People your brilliant, concise and logical roadmap. This is a new horizon with few economic and political clouds that reasons our way forward!
Excellent piece! Tim – I posted under the comment section of the previous post. If you care to address, please include under this post.
Tim Howard for the next FHFA Director!
Yes we are all for it. It would be great choice for DJT.
How about CEO of FnF.
Great post. If Fannie and Freddie were the problem according to some then why didn’t their previous regulator do anything at that time. | 2019-04-19T01:14:53Z | https://howardonmortgagefinance.com/2016/12/12/a-welcome-reset/ |
My anti-apartheid protest convictions nearly kept me out of Canada. Luckily, I had friends in high places. What though of those many people in our world, especially those seeking refuge from war and oppression, who do not?
The Court of Appeal ruling and his critics suddenly championing free speech has left the creator of the famous Planet Key video baffled and asking, who's being satirical now?
It started with a song and a Facebook post and has ended with a baffling court decision, one that seems to have little connection to where we began. Frankly, the whole Planet Key episode has been a very expensive exercise for everyone involved – both the taxpayers and plaintiffs – just to establish a definition of free speech and our right to exercise it.
Up to 90% of prison inmates have problems with substance abuse and addiction. But Corrections does not require the counsellors who provide rehabilitation programmes for them to have a graduate degree in the assessment and treatment of addictive disorders. In fact, they don't even need a degree - just a qualification.
In April last year, Radio New Zealand reported that the Corrections Department was paying for non-existent alcohol and drug counsellors.
In many respects, Judith Collins has been the worst Minister of Justice and Corrections New Zealand has ever had. She had to go – even if that changes absolutely nothing about how the country deals with the drivers of crime or the growing prison population. And it won't.
The Corrections Department puts out a monthly magazine called, guess what – Corrections Works.
The Government announcement of a Predator Free goal for New Zealand by 2050 sounds good. But the budget for this is woefully inadequate, and comes on top of years of cost cutting - some say the deliberate, reckless weakening - of the Department of Conservation. We need to do more.
“I have been involved in this strange, fascinating and tragic world of incarceration for over 25 years. I have had many ideas about penal reform in that time, many of the subsequently proved quite wrong. I now think there are two basic things for which one should aim.
Black power member, Ngapari Nui, has been working as a prison volunteer for the past five years trying to steer young gang members away from crime. By all accounts he’s been doing a great job.
I am not supporting Helen Clark or Steven Adams.
Before you choke on your coffee, here’s why. I do not support New Zealanders just because they are New Zealanders. That’s near blind loyalty of the “my country, right or wrong” variety. Neither Helen Clark nor Steven Adams really thrill me and I decline to jump on the bandwagon.
Tony Robertson was sentenced to eight years in prison for indecently assaulting a five year old girl in 2005. He was considered a high risk prisoner and the parole board declined to release him on four separate occasions. He was eventually released in December 2013 at the end of his sentence.
Rhona's death-it was not what she would have wanted.
Rhona and I were married for 54 years and about 45 of those were good, until vascular dementia began to affect our relationship. She died in April 2014.
The statistics from Oregon are clear: the people who have the "choice" of assisted dying are disproportionately white, wealthy and well-educated. Who pays the price for their choice?
Jamie Whyte claims that poverty statistics based on relative measures of poverty are misleading. I explain why his argument is unpersuasive.
We're told it is inevitable that a boat carrying asylum seekers will one day arrive in New Zealand. This is one imagining of that meeting.
There’s a sail on the horizon.
Not really a sail. More like a blanket on a stick.
And today is suddenly going off-script. The complication of others intrudes. And I’m to be their savior.
John Banks' win at the Court of Appeal hopefully sheds some much needed light on the sorry state of costs in criminal cases.
How good is our schooling, really?
While there is much grumbling about New Zealand's education system, the evidence suggests it's doing very well. Every three years the OECD surveys a sample of 15 year-old students. The exercise, known as PISA: (Program for International Student Assessment) looks at three dimensions: reading, maths and science knowledge.
Nicky Hager's Dirty Politics has provided the disinfectant of sunlight but the kinds of behaviours are long-standing. Take this example from 2005. Does it look familiar?
It dates back to 2005, another election year. And as one of those responsible for seminars for the School of Government and the Institute of Policy Studies at Victoria University of Wellington I assisted with the organisation of two pre-election forums focusing on substantive policy issues of interest at the time.
'People are our greatest asset'.
Put it in to Google, with New Zealand as the specific country, and the range of companies that appear with the strap line is remarkable. From accounting firms through science to media and volunteer organisations. The employees of some of the companies might, however, give the Tui billboard response… Yeah, right.
Free trade: The end of the cosy arrangement?
What shape is the Trans-Pacific Partnership taking on and what impact will the election result have on whether or not New Zealand signs up?
For decades now National and Labour have had a cosy little arrangement when it comes to free trade. Both parties could count on each other to provide a solid bloc of votes in parliament to pass any bill implementing free trade agreements.
An alcoholic 58 year old man with twenty convictions for drink driving has been disqualified indefinitely but keeps getting his licence back.
Two months ago I was asked to interview Brian Hart, a 58 year old chronic alcoholic on his 20th conviction for drink driving. My job was to figure out how bad his drinking problem was and what treatment he needed. I discovered that as a child he had been physically abused and eventually abandoned by his parents. As a result he had long-standing personality problems.
There has been welcome attention in recent days on the stigma attached to being a beneficiary in New Zealand. As Catriona McLennan explained in the Herald, beneficiaries are discriminated against, and their fraud is disproportionately punished.
The Ombudsman has released a highly criticial report into the eight month segregation of Arthur Taylor in Auckland prison. Dame Beverley Wakem says the conditions for segregated prisoners "could be described as cruel and inhuman for the purposes of the UN Convention against Torture"
During his current incarceration in Paremoremo, Arthur Taylor has got right up the noses of Corrections officials by repeatedly taking them to court.
Pundit and Scoop are pleased to offer you the chance to win two tickets to Music at Matua. For free. Just for fun. Make a comment now and be in the draw.
Music at Matua is on Saturday 8th February 2014 at Matua Wines, Waimauku (30 mins West of Auckland city). And this is your chance to win two passes for 1 adult + up to three children.
EQC time for a rebuild?
EQC is broken and needs to be rebuilt. Or does it? If the complexity of the situation, some complaints and conflict are to be expected, right?
Let’s look at the facts. The first Canterbury earthquake occurred over 3 years ago. In February it will be three years since the second, but the rebuild has barely begun.
First, what were the highlights? We have the Black Sox men’s softball team winning their 6th World Title in Auckland at the start of 2013.
Brilliant and winsome teenager, Lydia Ko, won in just her second tournament as a professional, the rather curiously named Swinging Skirts World Ladies Masters in Taiwan. The world is her lobster, as Arthur Daley once said.
Many New Zealanders seem to believe that those who end up in prison get what they deserve. I can only suspect they're unaware the Corrections Department uses a variety of cruel, inhumane and degrading practices on a daily basis, which induce intense pain and suffering for people in prison. These practices are a form of psychological torture.
Where is Edward J Snowden's head?
When I lived in the United States some years ago I was captivated by some of its salty expressions. One was, “His head’s up his arse”. I took it to mean the said person was unaware of his surroundings because of his personal preoccupations. I guess that's the opposite of what's most prized in American mainstream culture – being a regular guy.
Is failing to "walk" in cricket symptomatic of a wider malaise?
The England fast bowler, Mr Stuart Broad, nicked a ball off Ashton Agar to the first slip, Michael Clarke, on day 3 of the first Ashes Test at Trent Bridge, Nottingham. The ball was cleanly caught and the entire Australian team celebrated.
Out Of Touch With Poverty, Mr Jones?
The New Zealand Herald a few days back had a column by Bob Jones on the problem of poor people. What he says is stunningly obtuse, and it perpetuates some silly ideas.
Fluoridation of public water supplies is a public health measure that has been around since the 1940s.
There have not been a lot of real issues about so far this year. We have had the usual silly season diet of non-consequential stories, interspersed with stories on the weather, accidents, crimes and so on.
For now, French Prime Minister Francois Hollande may well consider France’s intervention in Mali a success. French airstrikes and ground troops halted the rebel advance toward Mali’s capital and weakened rebel control of the North.
Naming gay All Blacks? Bring It On!
New Zealand’s struggle for gay rights has advanced in leaps and bounds in recent years. Ten years ago, gay rights were of interest only to the gay and lesbian "minority" who were directly affected. Now, issues like marriage equality and homophobic bullying appear to have caught the national imagination.
Murray Wilson, aka the ‘Beast of Blenheim’, sat in prison for 18 years doing next to nothing – and the whole country (well, Wanganui anyway) is up in arms. Why? That ‘doing nothing’ in prison seems to be at the heart of the problem.
Kennedy Graham's UN rescue plan – but what about big business?
Kennedy Graham is very experienced and knowledgeable in international law and process, but would his framework achieve what he claims?
Since when did church buildings become a matter of public vote?
What do the Anglican Church’s decision to demolish the Christchurch Cathedral and the Destiny Church’s decision to build a three-storey church, café, gym and school complex (the ‘City of God’) in South Auckland have in common. What do Bishop Victoria Matthews and Bishop Brian Tamaki share?
Whose airwaves are they anyway?
The hikoi that clogged the forecourt of an empty Parliament in early May was an ecumenical event, embracing causes from dolphin rescue to fracking the terrain and the public service. But foremost were the proposed asset sales.
Offensive christian billboard or offensive ethics ruling?
Do you believe in an interventionist God? Well, don't say so ... in case you offend people.
The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) recently ruled that a church’s billboard stating “Jesus Heals Cancer” was in breach of the Advertising Code of Ethics. The Equippers Church billboard was found to be offensive, misleading and social irresponsible.
Kim Dotcom recently spent a month on remand in Mt Eden prison after the police agreed to act on behalf of US authorities. The police took away his cars and froze his bank accounts.
Women under-represented as leaders in New Zealand - so what to do?
The first nation to give women the vote now has few women leading newspapers, businessness and political parties. So this international women's day, what can we do about that?
To uncover and address the many reasons why New Zealand women continue to be under-represented as leaders, a friend and I started Women’s Futures Month for March 2012 from our home city of Christchurch, the birthplace of the suffrage movement.
There are altenatives to selling off the SOEs, so why not look at some other options?
My summertime reading has included David Lange’s autobiography My Life. Yep I know, it’s a few years old now, but being written on his deathbed made it candid. It’s a great insight into the man, running the country and at times is hilarious.
Is New Zealand becoming a prison colony?
Does New Zealand need to build a new 1,000 bed prison at Wiri?
In 2008, a depressed man robbed a bank – not for the money but so the judge would send him to prison. He got no help in prison and three years later he did it again. Is it time for an inquiry into our judicial system?
Last week, the Dominion Post reported the sad case of Mr Craig Andrew Blair who robbed a bank in Rotorua – not for financial gain but so that he would be sent back to prison.
This time three years ago, a two-word phrase seemed to be gaining unprecedented coverage in New Zealand: Nanny State.
As the tenth anniversary of September 11 approaches, Americans are learning what Hope and Change really mean... Is Osama bin Laden still winning?
On June 28, 1914, Gavrilo Princip, a Serbian nationalist and member of the Black Hand, shot and killed Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria. The purpose was to throw off the yoke of Austro-Hungarian rule and form an independent Yugoslavia. Within 37 days, all of Europe was engulfed in a tripartite war.
Compared with other Western democracies, New Zealand seems to be keen on sending its citizens to prison. Our prison population has been rising for the last 50 years and in October 2010, reached a total of 8,892 inmates. New Zealand now locks up 199 people per 100,000 of its population.
Christchurch City's draft Central City Plan is a laudable document, containing exciting goals of, amongst others, urban sustainability, a sustainable city and sustainable buildings. The document essentially outlines a city which is a healthy community in which to live.
The harrowing images from the Horn of Africa are all too familiar – silent columns of the severely malnourished converging on refugee camps that are already overcrowded and struggling to cope. The United Nations has finally declared that parts of Somalia are suffering not just a food crisis, but a famine.
Hardly a day passes without the media reminding us how alcohol is causing harm. Now the government has a golden opportunity to create a change in our binge drinking culture, so will it step up to the mark?
Another week in Godzone and we have seen yet more evidence of the harm alcohol can cause in the lives of our citizens.
As an Australian migrant to New Zealand, one thing that still surprises me is the commonly-held belief here that Australians have a self-confident sense of nationhood, while Kiwis are full of angst and self-doubt.
Why debate the greening of the Mackenzie Basin when in reality it is being overrun by weeds and wilding pines and the topsoil is being blown away?
Claire, I have just now caught up with your latest blog on the Mackenzie Basin.
Why shouldn't actors be responsible for the result of their actions ?
I saw on TV last week actor Robyn Malcolm explaining that there was never an intention to cause mayhem over the Hobbit. "All we wanted to do was have a talk over wages and conditions," she said.
And all I want for Christmas is world peace and to end hunger.
A New Zealander no more?
As an Asian immigrant who first arrived to these shores 36 years ago, I am grateful for what New Zealand has given me and my family. I also like to believe that I have contributed something back to this country. My family certainly has.
So ONE News has won the Qantas Award for Best News for the third year in a row. Big deal. It's not as though it really had any serious competition.
New Zealand's main political websites are joining together, asking you to support an up and coming young journo. Who says we can't agree on anything?
Many people are concerned about the quality of public affairs journalism in New Zealand. Being concerned is a good start, but how can you take the next step? How can you help make it better? Yes, you.
Removing elected officials, replacing tried and true legal tests and processes with a non statutory, unreviewable Strategy, and changing rights of appeal half way through statutory processes - these features and more are the result of the new Act that signals a new era for the management of water in Canterbury.
At the next election New Zealanders will decide whether or not to keep MMP or replace it with something else. So what does history tell us about our voting system and why did we change to MMP?
It was Winston Churchill who said, “Those that fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it.” Like the names of loves long lost, we often forget, and so it is with politics.
Gaps remain in the new Auckland city structure, as do questions about just how much influence citizens will have over decisions that will affect their daily lives, but the importance of local boards is becoming increasingly clear.
Climate change fatigue has well and truly set in. This isn’t surprising. Despite all the hype, Copenhagen was little more than a talkfest that ignored what lies at the root of the issue - the fanciful notion that unlimited economic growth (premised on perpetual consumption) is somehow possible on a planet with finite resources and a limited capacity to absorb waste.
Is New Zealand inadvertently supporting the cause of the Tamil Tigers?
In the aftermath of the civil war in Sri Lanka, New Zealand should re-examine the small but potentially incendiary role it may have inadvertently played in the conflict.
Is netball too old-fashioned in this aggressive age?
I watch Silver Ferns netball because it is the game played at the top level, particularly significant when New Zealand plays against England or Australia. It is the game played at its best.
Can Maori language be anything more than an intellectual or cultural indulgence?
During my short stay at grammar school I learned some Latin and French (as well as English). French was never much use to me but Latin, in later years, became more and more valuable because it is not only at the heart of much English but has also helped with what little Italian I’ve needed for several trips to that country.
The Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) Review Committee has finished hearing submissions. Peter Dunne says it aims to report “as soon as possible”. It’ll take more than common sense - is there a Solomon in the House?
Looking objectively at a distance of 20,000 km from the land of my birth I have always found it hard to believe that the EU will survive; that it will be more than an anomaly in a restless history of self-serving tribes.
Another new logo in the offing?
In the modern drive to re-define and re-name entities, almost the first task of any new one is to commission a logo design.
It’s got all the right ingredients: local celebrity, an epiphany, cute animals, industry bad guys, hoodwink, public outrage - the media’s happy as a pig in muck, this week. But why did it take so long?
The story’s been around for years -- decades, actually. Sue Kedgley has repeatedly climbed in and out of sow crates and posed with bald startled chooks, patiently asking the questions and releasing the statements.
It was W.C. Fields, wasn’t it, who made that enlightened and penetrating remark about the wisdom of avoiding animals and children?
I am no great animal lover. Not that I’d do them any harm, mind you, but I always circumnavigate paddocks containing beeves that look the least aggressive and I’ve always thoroughly disliked zoos.
Vegetarians and vegans have taken the moral high ground, but think again - in a fossil-fuel challenged world, animals need to be part of the food chain.
Meat-eating in Green circles is considered rude, and cruel. The received wisdom is that one can’t credibly plug animal welfare and the environment while trashing them. I was, for many years, convinced of the utter rightness and unassailable logic of being vegetarian and, more briefly, vegan.
Once upon a time there lived a little gardener in a little house with one too many cats. It seemed possible, thought the neighbourhood children, that she might be a witch.
The statistics defy comprehension. All of them are shameful; some should make you weep.
I'm currently on holiday at home and enjoying the end of what I am reliably informed has been the best summer in years. I’m also enjoying observing what’s rattling the cages of New Zealand’s politicians.
Speak English to Me: No Affectations Please.
In advance of making a maiden speech (I cannot remember when or where) I was once advised, by someone who knew about these things, to select a face from the crowd and to address myself to that face.
Bang 'em up for longer or let 'em out?
According to Gwynne Dyer , the era of cheap food is ending.
Apropos George Monbiot, I have been thinking about how to inculcate the necessary sense of urgency. In the eye of the perfect storm, not much seems to be happening.
The case for gardening for food is simply this: turning your lawn into vegetables saves money, saves the planet, tastes good, and is good for you.
With all the economic turmoil, everyone is talking about cutting staff. | 2019-04-26T11:46:08Z | https://www.pundit.co.nz/category/category/your-punt |
Process: Bi Luo Chun, green tea. Oven dried.
Bi Luo Chun from Taiwan is quite different from the famous, original Jiangsu Bi Luo Chun. The leaves are much bigger, due to a different cultivar. Also, thanks to its more southern location, the start of the harvest happens roughly two weeks earlier than in China. This year, there have been a lot of rainfalls at the end of the cold winter. Plants had time to rest and get nourishment. The sun has arrived at the right moment to let the buds grow strong.
As spring progresses and temperatures rise, the shape of the leaves will change and loose its 'tippyness', its pointy, spear like appearance. So, it's in the early season that we can find the smallest and most tender tea buds.
So much freshness is concentrated in these young leaves, that it's best to enjoy green tea with a big ration of water to leaves. One very simple way to enjoy such a tea is brewing it in a tea bowl. Here, for instance, I use a very shallow celadon bowl that could be called a summer bowl. The large surface of water cools down faster than a deep and narrow bowl.
Bowls are also great vessels to simply watch and marvel at the performance of these green leaves as they open up.
Poured on the side, the boiling water creates a circular movement in the bowl.
This brewing method also lets you taste the tea as it continues to brew, from the lightest to strongest concentration. The flavors go from sweet, light green freshness to a more vegetable (artichoke) green with zesty feeling. Somewhere during the brew even light flowers scents would appear.
- The black "hare's fur" glaze Jianyang bowl (left) kept the temperature the highest. The brew was noticeably darker. This made the flavors come out the most.
- The wide celadon bowl (middle) let the brew cool down faster than other bowls, resulting in lighter flavors.
- The completely dark bowl (made in Europe) was in between. The clay doesn't retain heat as well as that from Jianyang (Fujian).
- Left, the blue/green bowl from Teajar gives similar results as the celadon. The rim is slightly bent inwards and the shape feels surely footed. Harmony and stability. His latest creations are very similar in shape, but the colors are fantastic.
- The unglazed wood fired bowl by David Louveau, in the middle, reacts very differently than the glazed bowls. It adds depth and sweetness to the tea. There is very little absorption of flavors. It's a rock solid bowl with little porosity. The contrast between the massive, rough bowl and the light, fresh fragrances adds an element of surprise.
The green leaves seem to have found back to their natural element. The brown, earth/rock color and the shape suggest more the autumn season.
I brewed the Bi Luo Chun with the gaiwan covered. The brew was much more concentrated (and hotter) than what I obtained in the bowls. What a difference a cover makes! It retains heat and enables an easy pouring out of the tea. It's such a convenient tea vessel, suitable for all kinds of teas!
With the bowls, you can taste the tea as it evolves.
- L'ajout d'une éponge 'magique' blanche à ma sélection. Elle permet de nettoyer les taches de thé sur la porcelaine (et la poterie) sans savon ou détergent (un peu d'eau suffit). Les accessoires redeviennent comme neufs!
- Le retour dans ma sélection de mon jeune puerh cru sauvage préféré: la galette de Lincang du printemps 2006.
My good friend David Louveau de la Guigneraye has sent me 10 wonderful wood fired cups. These are his own creations. And they carry so much of David's personality that I feel like starting the appreciation of these cups by giving you some background about David.
His noble and ancient name can be traced back to the Carolingian era. Due to the French revolution, I guess, his ancestors left France for the French overseas territories. Born in Guadeloupe in 1971, he grew up in New Caledonia (930 miles east of Australia). There, he led a very free and wild childhood at the contact with the local tribes. Think Robinson Crusoe. He is the kind of guy who builds huts or kilns from scratch, almost with his bare hands. A young adult, he left New Caledonia for 3 years to study pottery with Japanese potters in Japan and Canada. He returned to New Caledonia and worked as a potter for 10 years before moving to France (with his French wife). David Louveau also practiced martial arts and was an acrobat in his younger years.
These cups don't come with a predefined or even refined shape in mind. David feels the clay with his hands on the pottery wheel that he powers by foot. Then, he just lets the shape appear spontaneously. It's like a "jam session" for a musician or improvisation for an actor. He tries not to think, but to feel the wild energy of his clay and what it should/wants to become. So, here David draws on his personal experience of bringing peace and balance to his wild roots. The older and more experienced David gets, the more controlled power exudes from his wild pieces.
For a potter, nothing is more important than good clay. (See my article on teapots, for instance). In 'A potter's book', Bernard Leach (1945) explains that the raw material will impact the character of pottery and recommends to use local clay.
This is exactly what David did for these cups. The earth comes from holes he dug near La Borne, an ancient pottery town in the center of France. This raw earth is the clay David has used the very same day after digging it out. It is completely unrefined. He then uses a shino type of glaze that is also made with unrefined, natural materials.
This explains why the cups feel so rough and natural.
The best place to observe the clay is the bottom of the cup. This unglazed part has also had the least impact from the firing. So, that's where you can see how unrefined the clay is.
The many color variations on these cups come mainly from the wood firing in this small anagama kiln. (1 sqm volume). The cups were placed at the back of the kiln. The temperature reached 1350 degrees Celcius (2462 Fahrenheit!). This high temperature has completely hardened the clay and glaze. This smooth 'rock' feeling is not a small achievement.
Traditional wood firing is difficult to control. The side exposed to the fire takes a different color than the other side. There are so many nuances in-between. This is what makes it so fascinating: each cup is like a chocolate from Forrest Gump's box: you never know what you'll get!
The best place to hold a cup with this shape is the rim. It's quite thick and not too hot.
Even the potter doesn't know what will come out when he opens his kiln after it has cooled down (for several days).
These Earth and Fire cups are true reflections of David Louveau's approach and personality. He channels the untamed energy of rough clay and wood fire into these primal shapes. The energy is there to see and touch.
And to drink also! These cups are very good fits with puerh. Shu pu looks even darker in them! The cups magnify the natural, wild energy of puerh.
Thank you so much, David, for sending me these 10 wonderful cups that I'm adding to my selection!
The color changes due to the wood firing is very obvious: the darker parts are those that had less contact with the fire.
This bowl feels more porous, because the firing temperature was lower than what David reaches nowadays. Here, we can measure how his firing skills have improved with time and experience. He has gongfu!
And these 3 marks inside the bowl show that another bowl was stacked inside it during the firing!
Fresh leaves are about to be harvested and processed into Bi Luo Chun.
The taste of spring is in that first cup of green tea.
The lightness of sunshine and the sweetness of nature.
Le thé est un breuvage complexe. J'en suis à ma neuvième année de cours avec Teaparker, mais continue d'en apprendre à chacun de mes cours hebdomadaires. C'est aussi cela qui fait le charme du thé: il n'arrête pas de nous étonner par sa complexité.
Pour simplifier l'étude du thé, il faut pouvoir fixer les variables (oxydation, cultivar, saison, origine, process...) Boire 2/3 thés d'un même terroir, mais de saisons ou d'années ou cultivars ou de modes de conservation différents permet de mieux saisir d'où viennent les nuances, et de quel ordre sont ces nuances.
L'autre enjeu important est de savoir apprécier le niveau de qualité d'un thé par la dégustation plutôt que par le prix. Qu'est-ce qui fait un bon thé? Pureté des saveurs, une bouche qui laisse une impression clean après passage de l'infusion, une gorge qui ne s'est pas serrée lors de la déglutition et une longueur en bouche sucrée, énergique et qui n'en finit pas de stimuler agréablement nos papilles. Voici mon résumé des qualités d'un bon thé.
Avec cette méthode, on peut ouvrir la porte aux secrets de la plupart des thés, pourvu qu'on ait basé ses connaissances sur des fondements solides. Certains thés (jeunes et frais) sont plus simples que d'autres à étudier et à apprécier. La complexité grandit avec l'ajout de nouvelles dimensions: torréfaction, âge. Il est donc naturel que les Oolongs torréfiés offrent une grande diversité de saveurs et soient plus complexes à comprendre.
A mi-chemin dans l'oxydation et dans le degré de torréfaction, ils ne sont ni verts ni rouges, ni crus ni cuits. Ils mêlent fraicheur et chaleur, vivacité et moelleux. Bien réussis, ils combinent ces caractéristiques de manière équilibrée. (Mes Hung Shui Oolongs de Shan Lin Shi sont d'excellents exemples).
L'exploration peut continuer. Une fois le bon thé compris, on peut s'aventurer sur le chemin des accessoires et de leur interaction avec la méthode de préparation. A chaque étape, à chaque nouvel ajout d'un accessoire ou d'un changement de geste, l'objectif est simple: augmenter le plaisir. Utilisé à bon escient, chaque accessoire rend l'expérience plus riche de sens.
After the basic and potter's perspectives, we examined a collector's perspective. Today, I will show that a tea drinker would evaluate a teapot with a different focus.
Let's start with the obvious difference between the tea drinker and those who look at a teapot as a piece of craftsmanship: the tea drinker is not just looking, exhibiting or storing the teapot, he's using it! The value of the teapot is linked to its usage. A teapot that you don't use is worthless.
So, what do we, tea drinkers, appreciate in a teapot when we make tea? What are the qualities a teapot should display?
1. Conveying the taste and aromas of the leaves the best way possible and improve them compared to other vessels.
2. A certain ease in handling the teapot when brewing tea.
3. A sense of aesthetic beauty that doesn't compromise its functionality, but builds on it.
To summarize, a good teapot will make good tea with great ease and with a sense of beauty.
The most important teapot factor that influences the outcome of the brew is the clay. A chop is easily faked, a shape is also quite easy to imitate, but quality clay makes all the difference.
Before we examine the characteristics of clay, I want to emphasize the concept of clay quality with an analogy to Yan Cha. The quality level for clays bearing the same name can vary greatly. And, like Yan Cha, top quality clays come from precise locations and are obtained through traditional methods of drying, filtering, resting... Such small extractions result in very pure clay. Then, as with Ban Yan Cha, there's clay made obtained nearby in great quantity and treated with more mechanized methods. Such clay is diluted and only average. And then, as with the countless copies of Yan Cha coming from other provinces, clays are imitated and often obtained through mixing of coloring elements. Such clays are not natural and often create a bad, artificial smell in the teapot.
The difference between good and average clay is often a matter of concentration. Good clay is usually finer and more compact. Between real and faked clay, it's often a matter of how natural the color and texture feels.
How does clay impact the tea?
a. Hard clays absorb fewer flavors. Zhuni, for instance, is known for being very hard, which helps extract all the scents, good and bad, from the leaves. Hard clay is also more difficult to fire : the kiln has to reach a higher temperature. Underfired teapots end up sounding dull as their skin is softer.
b. Retaining heat. Teapots are usually preheated to help them maintain the water brewing at as high a temperature as possible. Good clays retain heat longer and higher. This allows to extract more flavors from the leaves. Zhuni, iron rich clay and Yixing purple clays are good examples. Porcelain, on the other hand, drops quickly in temperature.
Thick walls also retain heat longer.
c. Porous clays help filter some bad flavors.
Silver and gold are pure, hard metals that retain heat well. They extract flavors with uncompromising sharpness. However, these precious metals lack the filtering capability of clay. The porous texture inside the teapot and the walls under the cover give the tea plenty of surface to interact with. A good clay can purify and add balance, depth to the brew. Softer clays are more porous than hard clays. Yixing zini and di cao qing clays achieve a good balance between hardness and porosity. Duanni, hungni and Chaozhou clays are softer and quite porous.
2. Ease of handling. The 3 major points.
It looks like a ear. Attached to the body of the teapot, its function is to let us hold the teapot without burning our fingers. the top of the handle is often thicker than below, so as to provide some resistance for our fingers.
And even though it looks like a curved cylinger, the shape is slightly square where our fingers hold it. This improves the grip, making it easier to hold with one hand. We feel very secure that the teapot won't slip if the handle is well designed.
Similarly, the knob helps us to open and close the teapot several times during a brewing without burning our finger. It doesn't just look harmonious with the rest of the pot, but is placed and shaped in such a way that it's easy to hold.
One way to improve the handling of the knob is to slightly increase the distance between the cover and the knob. If it were too close, our fingers would often touch the hot cover and get hurt.
Located on top of the teapot and in the middle of the cover, the knob is the central point of the teapot. Our attention is automatically drawn there. A well centered hole in the knob shows the maker's attention to important details.
The shape of the spout determines the strength, angle of the flow of the tea coming out from the teapot. A smooth flow is easier to control when pouring tea in the cups. It's also more peaceful to watch.
A well shaped spout won't be easily obstructed by tea leaves.
Except for some decorations, the aesthetics of a teapot are not separate from its function of making good tea easily. That's the reason why we can combine the basic and the tea user's perspectives to see the deep beauty of a teapot. They complete each other.
The tea drinker will always try to imagine how a teapot would brew a certain kind of tea. Pairing tea and teapot is a real challenge. Great teas require particularly pure and hard clays to extract all their fine flavors. And average teas are better served by more porous clays that can hide their defects. So, it's not because a teapot doesn't brew one kind of tea well that it's not a good teapot. It could also simply mean that it's not well paired.
So, when you choose a teapot, keep in mind the teas that you drink, so that you can enjoy it as often as possible! And don't hesitate to try different teas in it to find out which tea your teapot handles best.
C’est sa première larme et son premier sourire."
On annonçait un temps instable, hier. Finalement, c'est à une journée ensoleillée à laquelle j'eus droit. Bien équipé, je file dans les monts de San Hsia pour inspecter les plantations et y saisir l'esprit printanier.
Ce gros roc devient ma montagne de thé. J'y dispose mes accessoires pour un Cha Xi du renouveau. Les feuilles vertes de mon Oolong de très haute montagne, Qi Lai Shan, du printemps 2011 sont à la mesure de ce cadre et de la météo.
Ses arômes me transportent à plus de 2000 mètres de haut!
Avant de tenir ce blog, et surtout avant mes études du thé, je n'arrivais pas à sentir toutes ces subtilités. Avec le vin, cela ne me posait pas de problème ; quelques cours d'oenologie avaient aiguisé ma curiosité avant de venir à Taiwan. Mais le thé est un monde bien plus opaque. Il y a quelques semaines, en buvant un reste ancien, je me rendis compte que ce thé, acheté il y a plus de 10 ans (avant mes études), ne venait pas d'une montagne Taiwanaise, mais d'Asie du Sud Est! Le goût avait une amertume prononcée et sombre, et le profil des arômes est très différent.
Mon blog m'a permis d'apprendre comment bien préparer le Oolong et de sélectionner des feuilles qui sont ce qu'elles annoncent. La base de toute qualité est la bonne connaissance du produit, savoir quel thé on a en face de soi. Pour cela, connaitre les standards est la fondation de toute apprentissage. Si la provenance du thé n'est pas claire (cultivar, lieu d'origine, saison, année...) alors on ne peut pas apprécier un thé à sa juste valeur. Quelle caractéristique a un Oolong de haute montagne, un thé vert du début du printemps, un puerh sauvage, un Hung Shui Oolong âgé...? Si on n'a pas d'étalon or, de thé standard, on n'arrive pas à saisir cette caractéristique avec précision.
Avant de différencier les thés entre bons et mauvais, il est donc nécessaire de savoir les différencier entre exacts ou non. C'est-à-dire, le thé est-il bien ce qu'il prétend être?
Le gaiwan en porcelaine est l'accessoire de la vérité. Son rendu neutre fait parler le thé si on a bien appris à goûter son langage.
Ensuite, comme au saut en hauteur, on s'attaque à la qualité en plaçant la barre de plus en plus haut. Le progrès se nourrit aussi de ce que nous nous habituons rapidement à des saveurs plus élégantes. Cette exigence de qualité de plus en plus accrue est humaine et naturelle. Chacun poursuit cette route à son rythme, selon ses envies, ses moyens, son temps, bien entendu.
Une nouvelle saison de récolte va bientôt commencer. J'espère recevoir vos commentaires et impressions sous les articles en question afin de partager avec tous vos découvertes, vos coups de coeur. Merci d'avance.
J'admire la pureté et le contraste de la fine porcelaine blanche du gaiwan sur ce roc. Mais on pourrait aussi y voir la trop parfaite modernité coupée de la nature.
Le bol à émaille noire de Jianyang trouve bien plus naturellement sa place ici. Sa forme est si simple. Les variations noires et brunes ont une certaine régularité, mais pas de symétrie. Elles sont le fruit du hasard des réactions de l'émaille lors de la cuisson. Il n'y a pas deux bols semblables. Le génie de la dynastie Sung (960-1279), qui a créée ce style de bol, est d'avoir cherché un raffinement en harmonie avec la nature. Et tel était bien ce que je ressentais durant ce Cha Xi du renouveau!
La fraicheur d'un thé vert de 6 ans! | 2019-04-23T14:38:10Z | http://teamasters.blogspot.com/2012/03/ |
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Verify to see that your roofer has the entire needed documentation. If you don’t know what kind of licensing your space requires, you shouldn’t just ask the roofer what’s needed. Contact the constructing division the place you reside and see what sorts of things you are going to want. When taking up a roofing job, make sure that you understand what you’re doing, before starting the challenge. Taking a category at your native hardware store can prepare you for the job. Not understanding what you might be doing can result in the job costing more than you ever intended.
With a strong give attention to studying more about roofing, this text is sure to provide you what you need. You wish to know what you’re doing in the case of placing a new roof on your property, and that requires that right information. Hold reading to study what you might want to know. When deciding on professional roofers, it pays to contact the BBB. This will help you see whether customers have filed complaints with your prospective contractors. You want to also examine-in with the Chamber of Commerce.
Many homeowners can attest to the problematic conditions that come up from poor roof upkeep. By using the stuff you’ve gone over here, you shouldn’t need to cope with any trouble later. Utilize this wonderful data to make sure your roof is properly maintained. Never try to complete any roofing work alone. If in case you have an accident while working on your roof, you could be sure that someone will likely be there that can assist you. It’s because the lengthy-term impression of a roofing accident injury could be very usually associated to the time it takes to hunt assist after the accident occurs.
Folks typically examine the roof and skylights for any leaks. Nonetheless, many neglect to examine the rubber boots. Each time they dry, leaks can occur. Fortunately, it is rather straightforward to exchange them. A brand new roof boot might be purchased at your native hardware store for a low price. Merely take away the old one, remove some shingles if necessary, and install the brand new one. Communicate with individuals you know to see in the event that they know of any roofing corporations that are good. This may be one of the best ways to seek out someone suitable. Consult with other contractors for referrals. This may be something from a plumber to a carpenter. They could have an incredible referral for you.
Never attempt to complete any roofing work alone. When this occurs, arm your self with the information in this article so you’ll be able to have the job carried out right.
One of the foremost reasons for roof leaks are attributable to clogged gutters. When you don’t clear your gutters regularly, you permit water to buildup whenever it rains. This in flip, may cause leaks to happen. Make certain and clean your gutters of all particles commonly so as to forestall this from occurring. Consider a number of roofing contractors before deciding on one. Even in case you feel that you’ve got found an ideal one immediately, continue in your search. Guantee that there aren’t any different roofers out there that can give you higher service at a extra cheap worth than the one you initially considered.
When you discover roof harm in direction of the middle of your roof, then it is seemingly you do not need water damage. As an alternative, you probably have dry rot, which happens each time the plywood is deteriorating. You’ll be able to prevent this downside by placing in a ridge vent. Nevertheless, to be able to set up one of these vent, you must have a properly working soffit vent. Drill holes via the soffit vent so cool air comes from the bottom and warm air is pushed out the top.
If you plan on working in your roof, by no means do it alone. When you have an accident working by yourself, there can be nobody around to help you. Anyone working on a roof ought to take a ladder, and nail some wooden down with the intention to be certain the ladder stays safe. Protecting your ladder on the precise roof makes it easier to move when mandatory and may prevent accidents. There’s certain to be one thing about roofing that has not been coated right here, but the fundamentals lie before you. Each little bit helps, and even a minor adjustment can save 1000’s of dollars. Don’t stop right here – continue learning! Do not cease studying all you possibly can about roofing. The extra you realize, the higher condition your roof may be in.
A living roof has layers of soil wherein a plant or flowers might be grown.
Do not ever paint your roof, irrespective of how much you think it’ll improve in look. Older shingles could crack, look darkish and in any other case take away from the great thing about your house, nonetheless; portray causes critical and everlasting injury to the roofing system. Merely change the previous tiles or have the entire roof carried out, or wait till you may, fairly than making an attempt paint.
If you are replacing a roof yourself, at all times remember to put a tarp on the ground. Whenever you change your roof, damaged shingles and thousands of nails may fall to the bottom beneath. In case you tarp the realm, you will make cleanup quicker and easier. If you do not, you would possibly discover particles in your ground for months to return. For those who plan on working in your roof your self, make sure that you take the right precautions earlier than you begin. Maybe an important thing so that you can keep in mind is to put on rubber soled shoes. This may prevent your from slipping as it is going to present a secure footing as you’re employed.
You shouldn’t neglect small matters when hiring a roofing contractor. You possibly can measure a agency’s reliability by whether or not or not they’re prompt for appointments and simply accessible by cellphone. Also, professional contractors often provide you with a typed bid for the job. These are all qualities you need your potential roofer to have. Search for a roofer that gives ensures on their work. Most repairmen is not going to present this, however someone who has put in a wholly new roof should provide you with this with no hesitation. If you don’t ask about this forward of time, you could find yourself paying a ton for a brand new roof, and paying even more for someone to fix it in case you have points.
It also takes hits from these parts, which can cause harm and make a case for repairs. Some contractors use a magnetic device to search out stray nails.
Do not select the primary roofer you discover in the telephone guide or online. By choosing the primary roofer you read about, it’s possible you’ll end up spending extra money that it is advisable. Name numerous roofers and go along with essentially the most reliable one at the very best price you could find. There could also be loads to find out about roofing, however thanks to this text, you are off to an excellent begin. You know a few of the most important advice, and can be capable of use it to keep your roof in wonderful situation. Earlier than you recognize it, you’ll be giving out your personal roofing recommendation.
Ask a ton of questions when hiring a roofer. The worst thing is that you do not ask a question after which it turns into a problem afterward. If a prospective contractor fails to answer questions, you need to in all probability avoid them. Roofing contractors you hire should have present credentials. Ensure your contractor has a roofing license. They need full liability insurance coverage, together with a present worker’s compensation certificates.
By no means attempt to restore your roof whereas the climate conditions are hazardous. Your roof can wait till the storm clears, and try to be extra concerned about your safety than the state of your roof. The storm could trigger additional harm anyhow, so there actually is just not a lot use in trying repair it until it all ends. When you’re trying out a roofing company discover out about their experience. Try asking them how long they have been in enterprise. If they have been doing business for a minimum of a few years, that normally implies that they’re established and that they have a solid understanding of roofing techniques and techniques.
When you’ve got an amazing roof, your own home is far safer from the hostile results of wind and water. When your roof has a difficulty, it can damage areas inside your house. When you perceive your roof, you possibly can better take care of it. Take a look at the roof tips under so that you’re going to be nicely ready. If a roofer is making your feel uncomfortable with a gross sales pitch, politely decline. A few of them will do no matter it takes to get your signature on a contract. That is never a superb signal for the patron, so cease them long earlier than you get to that point.
You should utilize this stuff to information you to the spot the leak is coming from.
Be sure you ask many questions of your roofer earlier than hiring him. One inquiry ought to be about how many nails the roofer will place into each shingle. Often, three nails are insufficient to the job. Ask questions regarding strategies, and see what answers you receive. In the event you do not like what they are saying, select someone else. Before entering a contract with a roofer, seek the advice of the Higher Enterprise Bureau. They’re going to have the ability to let you know if complaints have been entered towards this roofer up to now, and might be able to offer you insight that the roofer’s own references won’t. The integrity of your roof is essential, and you don’t wish to get scammed.
Should you discover roof harm towards the middle of your roof, then it’s likely you would not have water injury. As an alternative, you most likely have dry rot, which occurs each time the plywood is deteriorating. You’ll be able to stop this problem by placing in a ridge vent. Nevertheless, in an effort to set up this type of vent, you should have a correctly operating soffit vent. Drill holes by means of the soffit vent so cool air comes from the bottom and heat air is pushed out the highest.
In the event you plan on working on your roof, never do it alone. When you have an accident working by your self, there will likely be no one round that will help you. Anyone working on a roof ought to take a ladder, and nail some wood down with the intention to make certain the ladder stays safe. Keeping your ladder on the actual roof makes it simpler to maneuver when necessary and can prevent accidents. There may be certain to be something about roofing that has not been lined here, but the fundamentals lie before you. Every little bit helps, and even a minor adjustment can save 1000’s of dollars. Do not cease here – continue to learn! Do not cease studying all you’ll be able to about roofing. The extra you know, the higher situation your roof can be in.
That means that a unique roofer could come out to your home than you were anticipating. Talk to the roofer ahead of time to find out if they subcontract work out.
Don’t buy low cost roofing supplies. Shopping for sub-par materials will lead to higher prices down the road as a result of cheaper supplies don’t last as long and the work should be redone sooner, rather than later. You probably have a leaking roof, but the roofing contractor you contacted can’t get there for a couple days, you may wish to try a short lived fix. Get some heavy plastic materials and nail it up. Whereas not superb, it should provide a brief resolution for you.
For those who’re making an attempt to deal with roof repairs on your own, proceed with warning. A roof is a dangerous place to be, and you need to be correctly outfitted for it. Wear shoes with rubber soles, and use a effectively braced ladder that has rubber security ft. Your roof isn’t worth risking your life over. Solely rent a contractor who affords emergency providers in their contract. If a tarp blows off in a storm or your roof caves in, it’s essential to know that someone from the company will present as much as fix the issue right away. If they don’t supply this service, transfer on to the subsequent agency.
If you’re unable to find where your roof is leaking, try not to change into discouraged. You’ll find the issue, and the usage of a water hose and a buddy system will help. If your house may be very large, communicate via telephone to ensure every particular person in within the spot they need to be. You don’t need water to circulate into your property if nobody’s there to identify the leak!
All the time ask for references from anyone you’re considering hiring.
Use the NRCA, or National Roofing Contractors Affiliation to find a local roofing firm. Go to their web site and enter your address to start out searching native corporations. The NRCA has worksheets to assist you make a decision. This worksheet consists of issues like years of training beneath a specific company, years of expertise, lawsuits in opposition to the corporate, and many others. It additionally confirms whether they have correct local licenses, insurance coverage, offered warranties, and material details.
Many householders can attest to the problematic conditions that arise from poor roof upkeep. Through the use of the things you’ve gone over here, you should not must cope with any bother later. Make the most of this glorious knowledge to make sure your roof is properly maintained. Never try to complete any roofing work alone. When you’ve got an accident while working in your roof, it’s essential make sure that somebody might be there to help you. This is because the long-time period affect of a roofing accident injury may be very typically associated to the time it takes to seek help after the accident happens.
Take into consideration your own security first. You must all the time assess the state of affairs thoroughly before you start any roofing repair job. This is because rushing up to repair your roof as quickly as you discover a problem could end in a critical accident. As an illustration, it is best to by no means attempt to fix a roof when it’s raining or extraordinarily windy outdoors for apparent causes. All the time test the shades aspect of your property for deterioration of the shingles. The side that’s uncovered most to the sun lasts longer as a result of the heat of the sun retains the shingles mendacity flat. This prevents wind and rain from loosening the shingles, however shingles on the shaded side come unfastened sooner.
A number of occasions, folks make verbal agreements with contractors, but have issues when the work is poor. Hiring a roofing contractor isn’t a straightforward process, so just remember to take your time.
Put money into the best high quality roofing tiles your cash should purchase. That is particularly vital if you are dwelling in the house you might be reworking. The perfect roofing materials for your home depend on the climate of your location, so be sure to research one of the best roofing tiles for your climate. When doing work on your roof all the time do it with a buddy. Roofing can get harmful and it’s important on your safety to have someone with you. Working with another person will show you how to must you slip or fall or get damage in any approach. This may assure you’re as protected as doable.
Verify your roofing supplies totally earlier than installation. A number of leaks occur from improper supplies, equivalent to nails which are the unsuitable length or cracked shingles. Being certain that the shingles are in perfect condition and that you’re using the right nails to hold them securely will help the roof to last for much longer. In the winter months, be certain your roof is equipped with ice and rain shields. Additionally, be sure that it has proper air flow. Your private home is heated by the wall line and this is the place ice tends to build up. It is the construct up of this ice that may trigger interior leaks.
Be leery of anyone who randomly knocks in your door, and provides to fix your leaky roof. Unscrupulous con-males will supply to do the work, and most times run with your money, with out doing any of the work at all. In the event you need a roofing job performed, do your analysis and find a roofing contractor that you may trust. If you’re in search of out a leak in your roof, use a hose to seek out where the issue is. In case you aren’t having any luck, reverse the route of the water. When you’re pouring it down the roof, attempt spraying it up the roof. Continue to maneuver the water around until the leak is discovered.
Do not buy low cost roofing materials. Shopping for sub-par supplies will lead to greater costs down the road as a result of cheaper supplies do not last as long and the work must be redone sooner, slightly than later. When you’ve got a leaking roof, but the roofing contractor you contacted cannot get there for a pair days, you would possibly wish to try a temporary fix. Get some heavy plastic materials and nail it up. While not supreme, it is going to present a brief resolution for you.
If you have a contractor coming to take away your old roof, remember to reduce the grass beforehand. This can let you have a better time locating nails that fall on the ground so you can choose them up later. Even when your contractor has a nail finder, it’s going to work better with clipped grass. Utilizing the internet will typically reveal many services that appear perfect for the job, but are located out-of-state: these needs to be averted! At all times rent regionally and use a contractor with a history inside the local community. Non-local choices will all the time price substantially more and you run the next risk for encountering fraudulent services.
Study your roof on a yearly foundation. Roofs usually undergo from vital harm in the course of the months in winter and spring. Because of this, it is particularly essential to inspect your roof during these seasons. When meeting with a professional roofer, ask to see a duplicate of their liability insurance. Any reliable roofer should have copies available. If they have a tough time providing you with their papers, they’re probably not somebody you want to work with. While you’re trusting somebody along with your roof, you need all of your bases covered.
Get contractor referrals from loved ones. Ask them about their expertise with roofers, whether or not they had been glad with the quality of service and the price of the job. Additionally, find out whether the contractor cleaned when the job was completed and whether or not a warranty was supplied. If you happen to can afford to take action, all the time go for shingles that final for an extended time frame. For instance, your contractor may ask you to decide on between 25-year and 50-year shingles. Whereas the 50-yr shingles might cost one or two thousand dollars extra, it’s price your cash for the prolonged life of the supplies.
Solely hire people who are professionals at every step. A contractor ought to be able to give you a reliable fairly, as an example. If the method is professional, chances are the work is just too. Your roof is continually being uncovered to the elements, so it’s amazing that it lasts as long as it does. However, no roof lasts without end. Eventually, you’ll have to replace or restore your roof. When this occurs, arm your self with the information on this article so you may have the job done proper.
Before deciding to completely change your roof, ask your contractor if it can be repaired. When doing work in your roof all the time do it with a buddy.
In terms of roofing, likelihood is you don’t know too much in regards to the topic at all. Whereas that is normal amongst many householders, it doesn’t mean it’s okay. You want to be aware of several things relating to your roof to be able to keep your property safe and guarded. The next article will illustrate exactly what those issues are. If in case you have a roof, you need to have some primary roofing information below your belt. That’s just the way it is. Thankfully, this text has given you some really terrific recommendation that ought to provide help to out in numerous conditions. You would possibly wish to bookmark this article so you can come again to it in the future.
Roofing materials come in many attractive colors. If you are considering a new roof for your residence however will not be sure which color to choose, ask the salesman for recommendation. Darkish colors will entice heat, and that might be a problem when you live in a warm local weather. Neutral colors are often a better option. If you’ve narrowed your seek for a roofing contractor to some firms, think about asking each company for local references. This will let you see how recent prospects felt in regards to the enterprise offered by the contractor. It could go a good distance towards convincing you to rent or keep away from that company.
If you plan on working in your roof, by no means do it alone. When you have an accident working by yourself, there can be nobody round that will help you. Anyone engaged on a roof ought to take a ladder, and nail some wooden down as a way to be sure the ladder stays safe. Retaining your ladder on the actual roof makes it less complicated to maneuver when obligatory and can prevent accidents. There’s sure to be one thing about roofing that has not been lined here, however the fundamentals lie before you. Each little bit helps, and even a minor adjustment can save 1000’s of dollars. Do not stop here – keep learning! Do not stop learning all you can about roofing. The extra you recognize, the higher situation your roof might be in.
If you wish to work on a certain space, the fabric must be clean and dry.
Ask about complete warranties. In case you plan to interchange or restore your total roof, you’ll be able to anticipate to spend thousands of dollars. Some producer’s provide total warranties if you are going to buy all roofing parts from them. This may embody shingles, weather boundaries, underlay and other materials. It prices further, but it surely additionally offers you more safety in the long term. Do not settle for the fabric price quotes from only one contractor. Shady contractors can cost greater than double of their costs for the materials used. Do your analysis earlier than committing to a contractor, and if they quote a high price for a sure material ask them for a purpose for the fee distinction.
After a radical inspection and cleansing of the roof, it is imperative to patch and seal any drawback areas. Make it possible for the weather report exhibits good climate, as a result of sealing supplies may take as much as two days to completely cure. A sealant or different coating should be utilized after the areas are cured. If you find yourself using a ladder to climb onto your roof, make sure that you use one that is fitted with a stabilizer. It must also be placed on a floor that’s easy and stable. Within the occasion that you must place it on grass or soil, dig small pits within the earth to be able to regular it.
Before deciding on a roofing contractor, obtain a number of completely different quotes. It is advisable to do this to avoid scams. Do not allow yourself to be taken benefit of. Be taught concerning the market earlier than you hire anybody. All the time inspect your roof boots when you happen to be up in your roof, for no matter purpose. They have a tendency to dry-up and crack, leaving damaged areas where the rain and snow can are available in. Be ready to take away and replace the surrounding shingles, too. Roof boots will be discovered at most main hardware stores.
Use the NRCA, or National Roofing Contractors Affiliation to discover a local roofing company. Go to their site and enter your address to start out looking local corporations. The NRCA has worksheets to assist you make a decision. This worksheet contains issues like years of coaching under a specific firm, years of experience, lawsuits against the company, and so on. It also confirms whether they have proper native licenses, insurance coverage, provided warranties, and material particulars.
This will can help you have a neater time locating nails that fall on the ground so you can pick them up later. If you plan on working in your roof, by no means do it alone.
Just remember to hire a roofing contractor who has a locatable, permanent enterprise residence. When you rent a roofing contractor who doesn’t have a everlasting office, you danger being scammed. Furthermore, if the roofing contractor you rent does a good job, it may be helpful to have stated contractor’s everlasting contact particulars readily available in case you’ve gotten any more problems along with your roof in the future.
Don’t agree to contracts that aren’t written down. Loads of times, individuals make verbal agreements with contractors, however have issues when the work is poor. The best type of proof you possibly can have when the job just isn’t accomplished properly is a contract. Ask your roofer about putting in architectural shingles on your house or carport. Whereas this kind of shingle costs more than conventional shingles, they’re more engaging. Architectural shingles have the identical durability and quality as regular shingles, but are also accessible in additional colors, textures and thicknesses. They are not essential, however the distinction is noticeable.
Ensure your roof is protected against dry rot. Dry rot will be incredibly damaging, and may even cause your roof to sag in. One of the simplest ways to stop dry rot is with a soffit vent. Whenever you install one, you should definitely drill holes by way of the underside in order that it could actually work precisely as it ought to. If you want to exchange your roof, think about using a green different for material. Recycled roofing material, composed of used rubber and plastic, not only saves cash however serves the setting. Solar panels are another option, as they can also reduce power prices. They can also create a tax credit for owners.
All the time hold your eyes ahead of where you will be stepping.
Roofing is just one piece of your property, but it can be one of the vital necessary features of caring for your house. The ideas on this article should have given you some ideas on the place to start out, however you must tailor it to your wants. Think of the following pointers when considering roofing supplies. When wanting into several types of roofing materials, you will need to take into consideration various components. For example, the worth vary you’re inserting your funds in will in the end resolve what you are able to afford. A slate roof will probably be very costly, nonetheless, it’s going to last more than your lifetime.
Whenever the weather is bad, it’s best to never get on prime of your roof. If your roof is slippery and moist, you could fall, causing dangerous accidents or maybe death. It is in your greatest curiosity to deal with your mission on a dry, sunny day. Tell the truth, how much time do you think about your roof? It in all probability would not cross your thoughts too typically. Nonetheless, your roof is among the most important elements of your house. It protects you from the weather and any other dangerous issues that will fall out of the sky. Each house owner can be wise to educate themselves as regards to roofing and this article will do just that.
With a view to make sure that your roof stays in good situation, just remember to trim the bushes in the surrounding areas. This can prevent any branches from scuffing the floor of your roof which may ultimately lead to extra serious issues. This additionally helps stop any fungus or mould develop in your roof. When you’re the market for a roofing restore firm, take the time to conduct some research via on-line evaluate sites, the native chamber of commerce and any enterprise criticism bureaus. By spending the time vital to do this, you stand a significantly better probability of finding a good firm with the sources to do the job correctly.
When you are a home-owner, it is in your fingers to deal with your home. Whether it involves preventative upkeep or insuring that your home is secure, you could make the most effective selections for you and your loved ones. Bear in mind the ideas in the following article with regards to all points of your own home. Don’t work with any roofing contractor that wants to give you an estimate over the telephone. Every roof is different, and it is best to discover someone that is prepared to come out and try your particular problem. If someone balks at making a house visit, it is best to probably rent another person.
The information which are shared with you in this article will make it easier to correctly keep your roof. It’s also essential that you just get this estimate in writing. These gadgets are handiest when used on shorter grass.
Ask about comprehensive warranties. If you happen to plan to switch or restore your entire roof, you possibly can count on to spend hundreds of dollars. Some manufacturer’s provide whole warranties if you purchase all roofing parts from them. This may include shingles, weather barriers, underlay and other materials. It costs additional, nevertheless it also gives you more safety in the long run. Do not settle for the fabric price quotes from just one contractor. Shady contractors can charge greater than double of their costs for the materials used. Do your research before committing to a contractor, and if they quote a high value for a certain materials ask them for a reason for the price distinction.
Solely hire people who are professionals at every step. A contractor ought to have the ability to provide you with a reliable quite, for instance. If the method is professional, likelihood is the work is too. Your roof is continually being uncovered to the weather, so it is amazing that it lasts as long as it does. However, no roof lasts ceaselessly. Ultimately, you’ll have to switch or restore your roof. When this occurs, arm yourself with the data on this article so you can have the job executed right.
Don’t speak to only one roofer. Your co-worker might have raved over a contractor, and you’ll have been provided a tremendous deal, however that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t get a number of estimates. Encourage a number of contractors to put in bids for the job. When persons are competing for the work, you’re going to get higher provides. Know all about roofing materials. Each material has its pros and cons. For example, metal roofing is very sturdy and lightweight. Metal is tough to install and isn’t at all times an attractive addition to a home. Asphalt shingling is cheaper and simpler to put in, however doesn’t final as long. Other kinds of roofing supplies to explore are wood and tile.
Web evaluations are typically more frank and honest, since they’re anonymous.
Put together your property for roof contractors earlier than they get there by marking your sprinkler systems and letting the contractors know the place they can park. Remove garden furnishings and think about taking your vehicles out of the driveway. Put together your self for falling particles through the work on your roof so you possibly can stay secure, as properly. For those who cannot discover out where your roof leak is coming from, do not despair. You will ultimately find the source of the leak, by eliminating certain areas, using a hose, and having someone else look at it, as properly. As you do the testing of various areas, use your mobile phone to talk together with your buddy if need be.
Be certain your roof is protected from dry rot. Dry rot will be incredibly damaging, and may even trigger your roof to sag in. The best way to stop dry rot is with a soffit vent. Whenever you install one, you’ll want to drill holes by way of the bottom so that it may possibly work precisely because it ought to. If you wish to replace your roof, consider using a inexperienced various for materials. Recycled roofing material, composed of used rubber and plastic, not solely saves cash however serves the atmosphere. Solar panels are an alternative choice, as they’ll additionally reduce vitality prices. They can additionally create a tax credit for owners.
Ensure you set up a ridge vent into your roof in order to stop dry rot from occurring. Opposite to popular perception, dry rot isn’t brought on by water harm, however rather an absence of air flow. Installing a ridge vent will be certain that your roof is correctly ventilated all year long. Be sure to inspect your roof at the least once a year. You need to make sure that your roof is in general good condition and freed from any potential leakage problems. Try to make your inspections in the course of the springtime when the climate is good in order to scale back the danger of damage to your self.
This sort of shingle is rated from 15 to 25 years, and the more you pay the longer the lifetime of the shingle. Use a flashlight to go looking along your ceiling rafters to verify for watermarks.
Don’t Hire An Costly Contractor! Use These Suggestions For Caring For Your Roof As a substitute!
On the subject of roofing, chances are you don’t know too much in regards to the topic at all. While that is regular amongst many owners, it does not imply it’s okay. You want to concentrate on several things with regards to your roof with the intention to preserve your private home protected and guarded. The following article will illustrate exactly what those issues are. You probably have a roof, it is best to have some fundamental roofing knowledge beneath your belt. That’s simply the way it’s. Thankfully, this article has given you some actually terrific advice that should make it easier to out in plenty of situations. You would possibly need to bookmark this article so you can come again to it sooner or later.
With a purpose to ensure that your roof stays in good situation, just remember to trim the bushes in the surrounding areas. This may forestall any branches from scuffing the floor of your roof which might finally lead to extra severe issues. This also helps prevent any fungus or mold develop in your roof. If you find yourself the marketplace for a roofing restore company, take the time to conduct some research by way of on-line assessment sites, the native chamber of commerce and any business complaint bureaus. By spending the time vital to do that, you stand a significantly better likelihood of finding a good firm with the resources to do the job correctly.
Remember to ask many questions of your roofer earlier than hiring him. One inquiry should be about what number of nails the roofer will place into each shingle. Often, three nails are insufficient to the job. Ask questions concerning methods, and see what solutions you obtain. For those who do not like what they say, select someone else. Earlier than coming into a contract with a roofer, consult the Higher Enterprise Bureau. They’re going to have the ability to tell you if complaints have been entered in opposition to this roofer up to now, and could possibly offer you insight that the roofer’s own references will not. The integrity of your roof is necessary, and you do not need to get scammed.
When doing work in your roof at all times do it with a buddy.
Roof maintenance isn’t at all times simple, and it’s not often very fun. It is nonetheless, a needed job if you wish to maintain your private home safe and protected. Use the recommendation mentioned above to maintain your roof in good condition yr in and year out. Your efforts will be well worth it in the long term. At any time when you make repairs or inspecting your roof, you want to put on the appropriate sneakers. Roofs may be quite slippery so make it possible for your shoes have good traction on them. Typically, you want your footwear to have a rubber sole as this materials will provide you with the best grip.
Probably the greatest ways to discover a supply of a roof leak is to make use of water itself. It may be tough to see where a leak is coming from in the middle of a storm, but a garden hose will let you take a look at your roof until the leak has been discovered. Take a little time to learn the fundamentals of roofing, such as the supplies, the kinds, and the terminology. With this data, you’ll be guarded in opposition to sneaky techniques from roofers who wish to reap the benefits of the typical customer. At minimum, it is best to have the ability to perceive what goes into the restore and choose the legitimacy of any expenses.
In case you have a leak and are going in your roof to search for it, convey a hose with you. You’ll be able to spray the hose in an effort to find out where the leak is coming from. Nonetheless, don’t do this in the winter, because the water from the hose could trigger ice. When a storm blows through your area, beware of roofers who knock on your door. They often comply with a storm and provide their providers to everyone on the block, then they put up a cheap, inadequate roof whereas taking all the cash your insurer will supply in your declare, ripping you off.
Earlier than selecting a roofing contractor, receive several completely different quotes. You should do that to keep away from scams. Do not permit your self to be taken benefit of. Learn concerning the market earlier than you rent anybody. At all times examine your roof boots whenever you occur to be up on your roof, for no matter motive. They tend to dry-up and crack, leaving damaged areas where the rain and snow can are available in. Be ready to remove and substitute the encircling shingles, too. Roof boots could be found at most main hardware shops.
Checking your roof yearly can assist your roof to look good. For optimal security, strive using a soft bristled surface broom to remove the final little bit of snow as a substitute of using a shovel. | 2019-04-24T06:57:15Z | https://www.homedesignsantaana.tk/category/ceiling |
On 20 November 2018, India’s Mary Kom defeated China’s Wu Yu 5-0 in the 48kg quarterfinals of the women’s World Boxing Championships in New Delhi. She is assured of a medal. Mary has become the most successful medal winner in the Championship’s history with seven medals across different weight categories.
The Odisha Assembly has unanimously passed a resolution seeking 33% reservation for women in legislative assemblies and Parliament. The resolution, moved by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, was passed by a voice vote. Currently, the 147-member state assembly has 12 women MLAs. The Women’s Reservation Bill is pending in the parliament.
As a special initiative to mark World Toilet Day, Central Railway (CR) department has announced to introduce e-toilets in the railway coaches for the first time. The e-toilets electronically integrate all the toilet functions. These toilets are fully unmanned and perform automated operations. Pressure nozzles have also been attached to these toilets to make flushing easier.
Renault has appointed its Chief Operating Officer (COO) Thierry Bollore as deputy CEO to ensure day-to-day management of the company. His appointment was made after the arrest of its CEO Carlos Ghosn but he will remain as its CEO. Renault’s move to appoint a temporary leader was in line with a demand by the French government, which owns a 15% stake in the automaker.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will lay the foundation stone for City Gas Distribution (CGD) projects across 129 districts on 22 November 2018. This will boost the availability of gas supply for half of the country’s population in 26 states and Union Territories. The projects have been awarded by the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (PNGRB).
Kim Jong Yang of South Korea has been elected Interpol President. Kim will serve as president for the remainder of the current mandate, until 2020. The decision was taken at the 87th General Assembly of the Agency in Dubai. He was previously the Chief of police in South Korea’s most populous province.
On 20 November 2018, India and Russia signed a USD 500 million deal for construction of two missile frigates in Goa for the Indian Navy. The agreement for manufacturing of the two Talvar-class warships was signed between Goa Shipyard Ltd (GSL) and Russia’s state-run defence major Rosoboronexport. Russia will provide design, technology and key materials to GSL for construction of the ships.
Anuradha Roy and James Crabtree are among the winners of the ‘Tata Literature Live Awards 2018’. Harper Collins India was named publisher of the year 2018. Veteran journalist and writer Mark Tully won the Lifetime Achievement Award. Renowned poet Jayanta Mahapatra was named the poet laureate for 2018.
Google has announced the national roll-out of a new app from its ‘Next Billion Users’ team called ‘Neighbourly’. The app helps people source local information from their neighbours. Google is rolling out ‘Neighbourly’ starting with Bengaluru and Delhi, which topped the waitlist. More cities will be added every day, including Chennai, Hyderabad and Pune.
World Fisheries day is celebrated every year on November 21 throughout the world. The day helps in highlighting the critical importance to human lives, of water and the lives it sustains, both in and out of water. Fishing communities worldwide celebrate this day through rallies, workshops, public meetings, and cultural programs.
Indian gymnasts won two bronze medals in the men’s and women’s group events of the FIG Acrobatic World Cup in Baku. Prins Aris and Rejilesh Suribabu won bronze medals in the men’s and women’s group events on 20 November 2018. Russian gymnasts won both the gold and silver.
The 27th BASIC (Brazil, South Africa, India and China) Ministerial Meeting on Climate Change was held in New Delhi on 19-20 November 2018. The meeting was chaired by Dr Harsh Vardhan, Minister of Environment, Forest and Climate Change. The BASIC group was formed by an agreement on 28 November 2009.
Scientists have discovered a new, massive star system in the Milky Way galaxy. The scientists detected a gamma-ray burst progenitor system. It is a type of supernova that blasts out an extremely powerful and narrow jet of plasma. The system is estimated to be 8,000 light years away from Earth.
The Himachal Pradesh government decided to set up a ‘Gau Sewa Aayog’ for preservation, protection and welfare of cows in the state. The Aayog will regulate institutions like cow sheds and shelters, besides the ‘gau vigyan kendras’ and the community animal-rearing centres. The Aayog would also cater to the problem of abandoned cows.
Amitabh Bachchan was awarded the third Sayaji Ratna Award on 20 November 2018. The award was established in the memory of erstwhile Baroda ruler Sayajirao Gaekwad III. The Baroda Management Association had instituted the award to mark the 150th birth anniversary of the ruler in 2013. Infosys co-founder N R Narayana Murthy and noted industrialist Ratan Tata have been given the award earlier.
Bangladesh Krida Shiksha Prothishtan (BKSP) won the 59th edition of the junior boys Subroto Cup International Football Tournament on 20 November 2018. The team defeated Amini School, Afghanistan in the final match. The final match was held at New Delhi. A total of 95 teams and 1500 players participated in the tournament.
The Government of India, the Government of Jharkhand and the World Bank signed a $310 million Loan Agreement on 20 November 2018. The loan amount is for ‘Jharkhand Power System Improvement Project’ to provide reliable, quality, and affordable 24×7 electricity to the citizens of Jharkhand. The Project is part of the Government of India’s ‘Power for All program’ launched in 2014.
A book titled ‘Radio Kashmir – In Times of Peace & War’ was released by the Union Minister Dr. Jitendra Singh on 20 November 2018. The book has been written by Dr Rajesh Bhat. The book depicts a unique distinction earned by ‘Radio Kashmir’ by serving people and the nation. The author Dr Rajesh Bhat is currently posted in the Policy Division of Directorate General, All India Radio, New Delhi.
The United Nations’ (UN) World Television Day is annually observed around the world on November 21. The day recognizes that television plays a major role in presenting different issue that affect people. The United Nations General Assembly proclaimed 21 November as World Television Day through a resolution on 17 December 1996.
Jammu and Kashmir Governor Satyapal Malik dissolved the State Assembly on 21 November 2018. The Governor cited four main reasons for dissolving the Assembly with immediate effect. These include extensive horse-trading and possible exchange of money and the impossibility of forming a stable government by parties with opposing political ideologies.
On 22 November 2018, India and Australia signed five agreements to boost investments and enhance cooperation in key sectors like disability, agricultural research and education. The agreements were signed after President Ram Nath Kovind met Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison in Sydney. President Kovind is the first-ever Indian President to visit Australia.
The Himachal Pradesh government has approved to implement ‘Sashakt Mahila Yojna’ in the state. The scheme will empower rural women by providing them with an interface for socio-economic development. The scheme will link rural women with sustainable livelihood opportunities and also improve their skill by imparting training.
On 19 November 2018, the West Bengal Assembly passed the ‘West Bengal Land Reforms (Amendment) Bill’, 2018 to give land rights to enclave dwellers in north Bengal. The Bill will help in the distribution of land-right documents to the people of the enclaves in the border district of Cooch Behar. Bangladesh and India had exchanged a total of 162 enclaves on Aug 1, 2015.
Four new species of horned frogs have been discovered in Himalayan regions of Northeast India. They were discovered by a team of biologists from Delhi University, University College Dublin and the National Museum (UK). The four new Indian species are Himalayan horned frog; the Garo white-lipped horned frog; the Yellow spotted white-lipped horned frog; and the Giant Himalayan horned frog.
External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj began her two-day visit to Laos from 22 November 2018. She will co-chair the 9th Meeting of ‘India-Laos Joint Commission on Bilateral Cooperation’. The joint commission meeting will further enhance the cooperation between the two countries in various areas. The capital of Laos is Vientiane and its currency is Lao Kip.
On 21 November 2018, State Bank of Mauritius (SBM-India) has appointed Sidharth Rath as its Managing Director (MD). He was with Axis Bank as the Group Executive and Head of Corporate, Transaction Banking, and International Banking. SBM has received the licence from Reserve Bank of India to operate as a scheduled commercial bank in India with effect from December 1, 2018.
On 21 November 2018, the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB) has got the ‘Asia Environment Enforcement Award 2018’. It was awarded for its work in combating trans-boundary environmental crimes. This is the 2nd time in a row that the awards are being given by UN Environment to India. WCCB is a statutory body under the Environment Ministry to combat organised wildlife crime in the country.
The UAE will host the second edition of ‘India-UAE Strategic Conclave’ on 27 November 2018. The day-long conference will be held in Abu Dhabi. It will initiate dialogues to widen the scope of bilateral investments between the two countries. The conclave aims to improve the connection between the business communities of the two countries.
On 21 November 2018, Veteran cricketer Wasim Jaffer became the first batsman to score 11,000 runs in Ranji Trophy. Jaffer, who plays for Vidarbha, achieved the feat on day two of the Ranji Trophy match against Baroda. He has played 31 Tests and two One-Day Internationals for India. He last played for India in April 2008.
The 50th Union World Conference on Lung Health will be held in Hyderabad in 2019. The conference ‘Ending the Emergency: Science, Leadership, Action’ will be held from 30 October 2019 to 2 November 2019. The conference will be organised by the International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease.
On 21 November 2018, WhatsApp named Abhijit Bose as its India Head. He will join the WhatsApp in early 2019 and will build WhatsApp’s first full country team outside of California. He was the co-founder of Ezetap, an electronic payments company.
British actress Millie Bobby Brown was named the newest United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) Goodwill Ambassador on 21 November 2018. She is the youngest person ever to be appointed as the UNICEF’s Goodwill Ambassador. As a Goodwil Ambassador, she will use her global platform to raise awareness of children’s rights and issues affecting young people.
Professor S.P. Ganguly has been awarded the ‘Mexican Order of the Aztec Eagle’ on 20 November 2018. The award is the highest civilian honour given to a foreigner by Mexico. The award was in recognition of his outstanding work in the study of the Spanish language and Mexican culture. He headed the Centre for Spanish and Latin American Studies at the Jawaharlal Nehru University.
The Credit Guarantee Fund Trust for Micro and Small Enterprises (CGTMSE) has changed norms to improve credit guarantee process for Micro and Small Enterprises (MSE). It will now capture key information on the financial status of the borrowers. The modification will be applicable from 1 December 2018. CGTMSE has been jointly set up by the government of India and SIDBI.
Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman inaugurated Manipur’s annual ‘Sangai’ tourism festival on 21 November 2018. The festival is named after the state animal, Sangai, the brow-antlered deer found only in Manipur. The 10-day festival will see various cultural troupes from different parts of the country. The festival was started in 2010.
Badohi in Uttar Pradesh has got the ‘export excellence’ tag from the Government of India. It is known for its hand-woven carpets around the world. Under the tag, carpet makers will get financial assistance from the central government to procure modern machines, improve export infrastructure. The status was granted by the Directorate General of Foreign Trade, under the Commerce Ministry.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi constituted a ‘National Implementation Committee’ (NIC) to commemorate the 550th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak in India and abroad. Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh is the Chairman of National Implementation Committee. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and Minister of State for Culture are the Members of NIC.
Andhra Pradesh launched ‘Bhudaar’ portal which makes land records available to people with unique identification numbers. The ‘Bhudaar’ is an 11-digit unique identification code assigned to each agriculture land holding and rural and urban properties in the state. Two types of Bhudaar cards are available including e-Bhudaar an M-Bhudaar.
The ‘Institution’s Innovation Council’ (IIC) program under ‘Innovation cell’ of Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD) was launched in New Delhi on 21 November 2018. The purpose of formation of network of IICs is to encourage, inspire and nurture young students by exposing them to new ideas. MHRD has established the ‘Innovation cell’ at AICTE.
The Indian Chamber of Commerce (ICC) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the IIM Calcutta Innovation Park to help facilitate incubation of start-ups on 21 November 2018. The Innovation Park will incubate and handhold the start-ups, and provide them with training and mentorship. IIM-Calcutta Innovation Park is a not-for-profit company and is currently incubating 40 start-ups.
On 22 November 2018, Tanzanian microbiologist Joyce Msuya has been appointed as acting head of the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) following the resignation of Erik Solheim. Erik Solheim was the Executive Director of UNEP. Prior to joining UN, served as Adviser to the World Bank Vice President. She also served in the Republic of Korea, as the inaugural World Bank Special Representative.
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs has approved continuation of ‘Atmosphere & Climate Research-Modelling Observing Systems & Services’ (ACROSS) during 2017-2020. ACROSS scheme consists of 9 sub-programmes It will be implemented by the Ministry of Earth Sciences. The objective of the ACROSS scheme is to provide a reliable weather and climate forecast for the betterment of society.
The 19th edition of the prestigious ‘Laureus World Sports Awards’ will be held in Monaco on 18 February 2019. ‘Laureus World Sports Awards’ are considered as the ‘Oscars of sports’. Tennis player Roger Federer won the Laureus Sportsman of the Year award for 2017. Former India cricket captains Kapil Dev, Rahul Dravid and Sachin Tendulkar are members of the Laureus Academy.
The Geological Survey of India (GSI) has found 44 new coal blocks in four states of Eastern India. The location of these coal blocks are spread across West Bengal’s Purulia and Birbhum districts, coal city of Talcher in Odisha, Bihar’s Bhagalpur and Jharkhand’s East Bokaro and south Karanpura. The estimated coal resource of these 44 new blocks is close to 25,000 million tonnes.
On 23 November 2018,singer Nahid Afrin of Assam has been appointed as the first ‘Youth Advocate’ of the Northeastern region by the UNICEF to fight for child rights. The UNICEF engages ‘Youth Advocates’ to act as agents of change in society. She made her playback debut in the 2016 Bollywood film ‘Akira’. She received the best female playback singer award at the Assam state Film Award 2018.
The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has come out with new rules for re-classification of a promoter as a public investor. An outgoing promoter will have to relinquish special rights as well as control over the affairs of the listed firm. The promoter will not be allowed to have any representation on the board of directors. They will not be allowed to hold over 10% stake.
The term of the commission examining the issue of sub-categorisation of Other Backward Classes (OBCs) in the central list has been extended till May 31, 2019. The decision was approved by the Union Cabinet on 22 November 2018 The commission was formed in October 2017. The five-member panel is headed by Justice (retd.) G Rohini.
Morocco’s ‘Mohammed VI – B’ satellite was successfully launched on 21 November 2018 by Arianespace from the Guiana Space Center, in French Guiana. ‘Mohammed VI – B’ satellite is a high-resolution Earth-observation satellite. It will be used for mapping and land surveying, regional development, agricultural monitoring, prevention and management of natural disasters, and mine exploration.
Uber Eats has appointed actor Alia Bhatt as its brand ambassador in India on 22 November 2018. India is the first country for Uber Eats globally where the company has appointed a brand ambassador. Uber Eats is the food delivery arm of Uber and was launched in India in May 2017. The food delivery service is available across 37 cities in India.
According to the RBI data, bank credit rose by 14.88% to Rs 91.11 lakh crore in the fortnight ended 9 November 2018. The deposits grew by 9.13% to Rs 118.25 lakh crore. In the previous fortnight ended October 26, 2018, credit had grown by 14.57% to Rs 90.37 lakh crore, while deposits rose by 9.01% to Rs 117.71 lakh crore. In September 2018, the non-food credit rose by 11.3%.
IIT Roorkee Professor Vimal Chandra Srivastava has won the ‘NASI-Scopus Young Scientist Award 2018’ in ‘Environmentally Sound Sustainable Development’ category. He has been given the award for his work on Industrial Wastewater Treatment, Clean Liquid Fuels, and Multi-component Adsorption. The Award was instituted by Elsevier in the year 2006.
On 22 November 2018, the Union Cabinet has given its ex-post facto approval to the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between India and Tajikistan on Cooperation on Youth Matters. The areas of cooperation include exchanges of youth, representatives of youth organisations, and Government officials in-charge of youth policy-making. The MoU shall remain valid for a period of five years.
On 22 November 2018, the Union Cabinet has approved Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between India and Mauritius on Consumer Protection and Legal Metrology. The MoU is beneficial for bilateral relations of both the countries. It will help in expanding cooperation in the field of consumer protection and will provide an institutional mechanism for the exchange of information.
On 22 November 2018, the Union Cabinet approved the Allied and Healthcare Professions Bill 2018. The aim of the bill is to regulate and standardise the education and services provided by allied and healthcare professionals. The Bill provides for setting up of an Allied and Healthcare Council of India. The allied and healthcare professionals include physiotherapists, nutritionists etc.
The sixth edition of the ‘Brahmaputra Valley Film Festival’ will begin in Assam on 28 November 2018. The aim of the festival is to promote cinema of the Northeastern region of India. ‘Spring Thunder’ will be the opening film of the festival and Assamese Film ‘Bornodi Bhotiai’, will be the concluding film of the festival.
Two fast patrol vessels manufactured by ‘Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers’ (GRSE) for Indian Coast Guard were launched on 22 November 2018. The vessels have been named ICGS Amrit Kaur and ICGS Kamla Devi. The vessels are fitted with state-of-the-art main engines with advanced control systems with modular accommodation for 35 personnel.
Nepal’s largest exhibition on construction equipment and technology ‘ConMac 2018’ began on 22 November 2018 in Kathmandu. The 3 day mega event is organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) in association with Embassy of India in Nepal. The exhibition is showcasing, mainly heavy equipment such as dozer, crusher and concrete mixer.
Union Cabinet has approved building and development of the Kartarpur corridor from Dera Baba Nanak in Gurdaspur district to International Border. It will provide a smooth and easy passage to pilgrims to visit Gurdwara Darbar Sahib in Kartarpur throughout the year. Kartarpur corridor project will be funded by the Central Government.
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) has given its approval to expand the scope of mandatory packaging norms under the Jute Packaging Material Act, 1987. The CCEA approved that 100% food grains and 20% sugar shall be mandatorily packed in diversified jute bags. The decision will give an impetus to the diversification of the jute industry.
Filmmaker Nandita Das will be honoured with the ‘International Federation of Film Producers Associations’ ( FIAPF) Award 2018. The award will be given at the ’12th Asia Pacific Screen Awards’ on 29 November 2018. She will be presented the award in recognition of her achievement in film in the Asia Pacific region. She started her career as an actor in films like ‘1947 Earth, ‘Fire’ etc.
The ‘Forbes India Leadership Awards’ was held on November 22 in Mumbai. The award honours the top executives of companies in India. Azim Premji, Chairman of Wipro Limited, got the ‘Lifetime Achievement Award 2018’. Vivek Chaand Sehgal, Chairman of Motherson Sumi Systems, got the ‘Entrepreneur for the Year 2018 award’.
According to official data by the Department of Telecom (DoT), India’s broadband subscriber numbers touched 463.6 million at the end of August 2018. The number of broadband subscribers stood at 460.24 million in July 2018. The total number of telephones rose to 1,189.17 million. Maximum rise in total telephone connections was recorded in Mumbai followed by Bihar and Madhya Pradesh.
Former Rajya Sabha member from Odisha, Baishnab Charan Parida passed away on 22 November 2018. He was a prominent politician, writer, columnist and a social activist. Mr Parida was elected to Rajya Sabha in July 2010 and his term ended on July 1, 2016. He was president of Odisha Bhasa Suraksha Sammilani and had been fighting for promotion of Odia and use of the language in official works.
Classical music stalwart Ustad Imrat Khan has died in the U.S. on 23 November 2018. He dedicated his life to promote the sitar and the surbahar worldwide. Ustad Imrat Khan belonged to the illustrious Etawa gharana, or the Imdadkhani Gharana. The gharana is one of the oldest in India with a musical legacy of over 400 years and traces its roots to Agra.
The government of India will give a subsidy of 5% for non-basmati rice exports from 26 November 2018 to 25 March 2019. The move is expected to boost the exports of non-basmati rice. The subsidy will be given under the Merchandise Exports from India Scheme (MEIS). The products include husked (brown) rice, parboiled and broken rice.
Jharkhand Day is being celebrated at the International Film Festival of India (IFFI) in Goa on 24 November 2018. For 2018, Jharkhand is the focus state at the International Film Festival of India. This is for the first time that any state has been made focus state at the film festival. The movies which have been shot in Jharkhand, are being screened at the film festival.
India’s National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi held the ’21st round of border talks’ in China on 24 November 2018. Ajit Doval and Wang Yi are the designated Special Representatives (SRs) for border talks between India and China. The India-China border dispute covers 3,488-km-long Line of Actual Control (LAC).
As per the ‘India Skills Report 2019’, Andhra Pradesh has topped the list of states with the highest employability followed by Rajasthan and Haryana. The report also said that the employability levels of engineering graduates have increased across all the sectors. The report was published jointly by Wheebox, PeopleStrong and Confederation of Indian Industry (CII).
The proposal for treating J&K Bank Limited as a Public Sector Undertaking (PSU) was approved by the State Administrative Council (SAC). The Jammu and Kashmir bank has been brought under the purview of the Right to Information (RTI) act, the Chief Vigilance Commissioner (CVC) guidelines, and the State Legislature. The J&K Bank Ltd is the only state government-promoted bank in the country.
Scientists at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have built and flown the first-ever silent aeroplane with no moving propellers or jet turbines. The aeroplane is powered by an ionic wind technology. Ionic wind technology uses a powerful electric field to generate charged ions, which are then expelled from the back of the aircraft for generating thrust.
Tyre maker, Apollo Tyres has appointed cricketer Sachin Tendulkar as its new brand ambassador on 22 November 2018. He will be the ambassador of Apollo Tyres for a period of five years. Apart from Apollo Tyres, he is also the brand Ambassador for BMW in India. Sachin Tendulkar was the former brand ambassador of MRF Tyres.
General insurance company ‘HDFC ERGO General Insurance’ has set up a remote sensing lab for crop insurance. The lab will work on accurately assessing the risks of the insurers and will also be able to give early warnings about the losses. Remote sensing involves setting up scanning an area through the use of satellite to get deeper information about that region.
The ’12th World Congress on Mountain Medicine’ began in Kathmandu on 21 November 2018. The theme of the 4-day congress is ‘Mountain Medicine in the Heart of the Himalayas’. The event mainly focused on science and research aspects of high altitude medicine. The event was held for the first time in Nepal and hosted by Mountain Medicine Society of Nepal (MMSN).
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has developed a new technology called ‘Impact Based Forecasting Approach’. It will be used to assess the rise of water level in rivers and reservoirs by rain. It can help state governments to minutely monitor the impact of rain and take real-time decisions.
Jammu and Kashmir Governor Satya Pal Malik inaugurated a week-long ‘Jhiri Mela’ at village Jhiri in Jammu district on 23 November 2018. The annual fair is commemorated in the memory of the martyrdom of ‘Baba Jittoo’. He was a farmer who gave up his life about 500 years ago in protest against the oppressive demands of a landlord.
The three-day ‘Jangalmahal festival’ was inaugurated in Kolkata on 23 November 2018. The aim of the festival is to revive and popularise the culture and heritage of the Jangalmahal area. The forested areas of West Midnapore, Jhargram, Bankura and Purulia districts in the southern part of the West Bengal form the Jangalmahal area.
The government of India has declared quadricycle as a ‘non-transport vehicle’ under the Motor Vehicles Act 1988. This will provide a safe and cheap mode of transport for the last mile connectivity. A non-transport vehicle is a vehicle whose usage is allowed under personal capacity only. A quadricycle is a vehicle with the size of a three-wheeler but has four tyres and is fully covered.
‘Baliyatra festival’ was inaugurated in Odisha on 23 November 2018. Baliyatra festival commemorates the ancient maritime glory of Odisha. The festival is associated with ancient mariners, who established trade and cultural links through sea routes with different archipelagos of the Indian Ocean. The festival will end on 2 December 2018.
The European Investment Bank (EIB) and State Bank of India (SBI) have agreed to cooperate on financing renewable energy sector in India. The EIB will also provide new support for wind energy projects across India, With this collaboration, the promoters of wind projects in India will get low-cost financing under the dedicated €600 million renewable energy financing programme of EIB.
MC Mary Kom won the gold medal in Women’s World Boxing Championship in New Delhi on 24 November 2018. She defeated Ukraine’s Hanna Okhota in the final match. She became the first female boxer to win six gold medals at World Boxing Championships. She previously won the gold medal in 2002, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2010 editions of the World Boxing Championships.
The International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women is observed on 25 November 2018. The aim of the day is to raise public awareness of the fact that women around the world are subject to various forms of violence. The theme for 2018 is ‘Orange the World: #HearMeToo’.
Bhadohi in Uttar Pradesh has got the ‘export excellence’ tag from the Government of India. A book titled ‘Radio Kashmir – In Times of Peace & War’ written by Dr Rajesh Bhat was released on 20 November 2018. The Prime Minister, Narendra Modi launched the ‘Ease of Doing Business Grand Challenge’ on 19 November 2018.
India’s Lakshya Sen won the bronze medal in the World Junior Badminton Championship 2018. Tennis player Alexander Zverev won the ATP Finals in London. Bangladesh Krida Shiksha Prothishtan (BKSP) won the 59th edition of the junior boys Subroto Cup International Football Tournament on 20 November 2018. Cricketer Wasim Jaffer became the first batsman to score 11,000 runs in Ranji Trophy.
Global education monitoring report 2019 was released by UNESCO on 19 November 2018. World Health Organisation has released ‘World Malaria Report 2018’ on 19 November 2018. The ‘Global Talent’ rankings were released by IMD Business School in Switzerland on 20 November 2018. The report on ‘Industrial Park Rating System’ was released by Ministry of Commerce and Industry on 19 November 2018.
‘Baliyatra festival’ was inaugurated in Odisha on 23 November 2018. The ‘Jangalmahal festival’ was inaugurated in Kolkata on 23 November 2018. The ‘Jhiri Mela’ was inaugurated at village Jhiri in Jammu district on 23 November 2018. Manipur’s annual ‘Sangai’ tourism festival was inaugurated on 21 November 2018. The ‘Brahmaputra Valley Film Festival’ will begin in Assam on 28 November 2018.
World Toilet Day is observed on 19 November every year. Africa Industrialisation Day is observed on 20 November every year. Universal Children’s Day is observed on 20 November every year. World Television Day is observed on 21 November every year. World Fisheries day is observed on 21 November every year. The first ‘Naturopathy Day’ was observed across India on 18 November 2018.
The ‘Institution’s Innovation Council’ program under ‘Innovation cell’ of Ministry of Human Resource Development was launched on 21 November 2018. Andhra Pradesh launched Bhudaar portal which makes land records available to people with unique identification numbers. The government of India has declared quadricycle as a ‘non-transport vehicle’ under the Motor Vehicles Act 1988.
British actress Millie Bobby Brown was named the newest United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) Goodwill Ambassador. State Bank of Mauritius (SBM-India) has appointed Sidharth Rath as its Managing Director (MD). Singer Nahid Afrin of Assam has been appointed as the first ‘Youth Advocate’ of the Northeastern region by the UNICEF to fight for child rights.
Ajay Bhushan Pandey has been appointed as new Secretary Revenue in Ministry of Finance. Jalaj Srivastava has been appointed the Chairman of the Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI). Sanjay Kumar Mishra has been appointed as the full-time Chief of the Enforcement Directorate. Kim Jong Yang of South Korea has been elected Interpol President.
Kuldip Singh Chandpuri, known as the hero of the Battle of Longewala during the 1971 Indo-Pak war, died on 17 November 2018. Uber Eats has appointed actor Alia Bhatt as its brand ambassador in India on 22 November 2018. Tyre maker, Apollo Tyres has appointed cricketer Sachin Tendulkar as its new brand ambassador on 22 November 2018.
Professor S.P. Ganguly has been awarded the ‘Mexican Order of the Aztec Eagle’ on 20 November 2018. On 21 November 2018, the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB) has got the ‘Asia Environment Enforcement Award 2018’. IIT Roorkee Professor Vimal Chandra Srivastava has won the ‘NASI-Scopus Young Scientist Award 2018’ in ‘Environmentally Sound Sustainable Development’ category.
Indian golfer Shubhankar Sharma became the first Indian to emerge as the ‘Sir Henry Cotton Rookie of the Year 2018’ on the European Tour. Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) has won Indira Gandhi Prize for Peace, Disarmament and Development 2018. Amitabh Bachchan was awarded the third Sayaji Ratna Award on 20 November 2018.
National Stock Exchange of India (NSE) launched a mobile application and web-based platform named ‘NSE goBID’ on 19 November 2018. The J&K Bank Limited will now be treated as a Public Sector Undertaking (PSU) bank. The Reserve Bank of India’s Central Board decided to constitute a ‘Board for Financial Supervision’ which will examine the framework for banks under Prompt Corrective Action.
The joint military exercise ‘Vajra Prahar’ between India and the United States commenced in Jaipur on 19 November 2018. India and Russia signed a USD 500 million deal for construction of two Talvar-class warships in Goa for the Indian Navy. Indian Coast Guard’s two fast patrol vessels named ICGS Amrit Kaur and ICGS Kamla Devi were launched on 22 November 2018.
The 27th BASIC (Brazil, South Africa, India and China) Ministerial Meeting on Climate Change was held in New Delhi on 19-20 November 2018. The UAE will host the second edition of ‘India-UAE Strategic Conclave’ on 27 November 2018.
India and Australia signed five agreements to boost investments and enhance cooperation in key sectors like disability, agricultural research and education. The Union Cabinet has given its ex-post facto approval to the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between India and Tajikistan on Cooperation on Youth Matters.
The Government of India, the Government of Jharkhand, and the World Bank signed a $310 million Loan Agreement for a power project. The Union Cabinet approved Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between India and Mauritius on Consumer Protection and Legal Metrology. The European Investment Bank and State Bank of India have agreed to cooperate on financing renewable energy sector in India.
The world’s standard definition of the kilogram, the ampere, the Kelvin and the mole has been changed. The ‘GROWTH-India telescope’ at the Indian Astronomical Observatory located in Hanle, Ladakh has made its first science observation which is a follow-up study of a nova explosion. Google has announced a new app from its ‘Next Billion Users’ team called ‘Neighbourly’.
Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit was held on 17 and 18 November 2018 in Papua New Guinea. Nepal’s largest exhibition on construction equipment and technology ‘ConMac 2018’ began on 22 November 2018 in Kathmandu. The ’12th World Congress on Mountain Medicine’ began in Kathmandu on 21 November 2018.
Screenwriter Salim Khan will be honored with ‘International Film Festival of India (IFFI) Special Award’ for his lifetime contribution to cinema. He will receive the honour at the closing ceremony of the 49th edition of the IFFI on November 28. He will be presented with a cash prize of Rs 10 lakh, a certificate, and a shawl.
According to a Supreme Court order, an employee has the right to resign from a job. An employee cannot be compelled to serve in case he is not willing until and unless there is some stipulation in the rules. The Supreme Court made the observations while allowing the appeal of a former Air India engineer, who was refused his dues by the Central government carrier.
Manu Bhaker of Haryana won a double gold in junior sports pistol at the National Shooting Championship on 25 November 2018. Ravi and Rahi Sarnobat were crowned national champions in the men’s 10m air rifle and women’s 25m pistol events respectively at National Shooting Championship on 25 November 2018. In the 25m junior girl’s pistol event, Bhaker, Tanu Rawal and Tejaswani won a gold medal.
National Milk Day is observed on 26 November every year. The day commemorates the contribution of Dr Verghese Kurien towards Milk Revolution in India. Dr Verghese Kurien played a key role in the formation of milk co-operative ‘Amul’. He is also known as ‘Father of the White Revolution’ in India.
Indian cricketer Harmanpreet Kaur was named the captain of the ICC Women’s World Twenty20 XI. A selection panel of International Cricket Council (ICC) picked up the team on the basis of the players’ performances in the Women’s World T20 tournament. 3 players from England, 2 from Australia and one each from Pakistan, New Zealand, and the West Indies are also part of the team.
On 25 November 2018, the Uttar Pradesh government unveiled the picture of the grand statue of Lord Ram that it proposes to install in Ayodhya. The height of the Ram statue will be 151 metres and its overhead umbrella will be 20 metres in height. The statue will be made of bronze. There will also be a provision for a ‘modern museum’ inside the base that will showcase the history of Ayodhya.
Maitree Diwas, a multi-cultural social event, will be organised at Tawang on 28th-29th November 2018 in Arunachal Pradesh. Maitree Diwas aims at celebrating the strong spirit of friendship that exists between the civilians and the Indian Army. This will be the 10th Maitree Diwas since it was initiated by Late Dorjee Khandu, Former Chief Minister of Arunachal Pradesh in 2004.
Sanjay Kumar was conferred the ‘Global Geospatial Industry Ambassador’ Award by the United Nations Global Geospatial Information Management (UN-GGIM) on 19 November 2018. He was awarded at the United Nations World Geospatial Information Congress held in China. He is the Founder and CEO of Geospatial Media & Communications.
Lupin, India’s third-largest drugmaker on 23 November 2018 has launched a chatbot named ‘ANYA’ for disease awareness. It is specially designed to provide medically verified information aimed at answering patient queries related to ailments. ANYA will initially address queries related to diabetes.
The Ministry of Finance has enhanced the total outlay on the first phase of the ‘Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of (Hybrid) and Electric Vehicles’ (FAME India) scheme from Rs 795 crore to Rs 895 crore. The aim of the scheme is to incentivise the production and promotion of eco-friendly vehicles. The scheme was launched by the Ministry of Heavy Industries & Public Enterprises.
Former Railway Minister CK Jaffer Sharief passed away in Bengaluru on 25 November 2018. He held the office of the Minister of Railways under PV Narasimha Rao, from 1991 to 1995, and was instrumental in gauge conversion across the nation. Jaffer Sharief was also elected as the Member of Parliament for the first time on 1971 from the Bangalore North constituency.
The International Film Festival of India (IFFI) has nominated 12 movies for 2018 International Council for Film, Television and Audiovisual Communication (ICFT) UNESCO Gandhi Medal. Of these 12 films, two are from India and the rest are foreign movies. The two Indian movies competing for the honour are Tamil film ‘Baaram’ and Ladakhi movie ‘Walking with the Wind’.
Australia cricket team has won the ‘Women’s World Twenty-20’ title. It was their fourth World Twenty-20 title. They defeated England in the final match. Austrailia’s Ashleigh Gardner was named ‘Player of the Match’. Austrailia’s Alyssa Healy was named ‘Player of the tournament’.
The United Nations has selected Uttar Pradesh’s Noida and Greater Noida to participate in its Global Sustainable Cities 2025 initiative. They have been selected in the ‘University City’ category. Overall 25 cities across the world have been selected in five categories by the UN Global Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) cities initiative.
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar unveiled a 70-feet tall statue of Lord Buddha at Rajgir in Nalanda district on 25 November 2018. It is the second tallest statue of Buddha in the country. The statue has been installed above a 16-metre radius pedestal in the middle of Lake Ghora Katora. It is made of pink sandstone.
Badminton player Sameer Verma won the ‘Syed Modi International Badminton Championships’ on 25 November 2018. He defeated China’s Guangzu Lu in the men’s singles final. Men’s doubles pair of Satwik Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty and women’s doubles players Ashwini Ponnappa and Sikki Reddy also won silver in their respective finals.
The Regional Integrated Multi-Hazard Early Warning System (RIMES) for Africa and Asia has termed cyclone ‘Titli’ as ‘rarest of rare cyclone’. Cyclone ‘Titli’ struck Odisha in October 2018. It is the rarest of rare in terms of its characteristics such as recurvature after landfall and retaining its destructive potential. RIMES is a 45-nation international organisation on disaster warning.
The first-ever India Russia Strategic Economic Dialogue was held at St. Petersburg in Russia on 25 November 2018. The Indian side was led by NITI Aayog’s Vice Chairman Rajiv Kumar with the Russian delegation headed by Economic Development Minister Maxim Oreshkin. The participants will discuss the development of bilateral ties in trade, investment, technology, and industry.
India’s Bhavani Devi won the gold medal in the Sabre event in the ‘Senior Commonwealth Fencing Championship’ held in Australia on 25 November 2018. She defeated England’s Emily Ruaux in the final. Bhavani Devi is the first Indian to win a gold medal in the Commonwealth Fencing Championship. Earlier, Bhavani Devi won a silver medal in the Tournoi Satellite Fencing Championship in Iceland.
Constitution day which is also known as the ‘Samvidhan Divas’ is celebrated every year on 26 November. The adoption of the Constitution took place on 26 November 1949 but it came into effect on 26 January 1950. On 19 November 2015, the government of India with the help of a gazette notification declared 26 November as the Constitution Day.
To improve the financial condition of Public Sector Banks (PSBs), the government of India will infuse ₹42,000 crore by March 2019. The government in early 2018 infused ₹11,336 crore in 5 PSBs: Punjab National Bank, Allahabad Bank, Indian Overseas Bank, Andhra Bank, and Corporation Bank. The government had announced the Rs 2.11 lakh crore capital infusion programme in October 2017.
The ‘Global Wage Report’ was released by the International Labour Organisation (ILO) on 27 November 2018. According to the report, India recorded the highest average real wage growth in South Asia during the 2017-18. India was followed by Nepal, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Pakistan and Iran. For the first time, the ILO report also focused on the global gender pay gap.
Prof Punyasloke Bhaduri of the Indian Institute of Science, Education and Research Kolkata was awarded the prestigious ‘Swarnajayanti Fellowship’ by the government of India for 2017-18. Under this fellowship, scientists are provided with generous support to pursue research in the frontier areas of science and technology. It is awarded for a period of 5 years.
According to the Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD) order, there will be no homework for students of classes I and II. The order also said that there will be prescribed weight limit of school bags for each class. The weight of school bags for students of classes I and II should not exceed 1.5 kg, while the school bag of students of class III to V should weigh between 2 kg to 3 kg.
According to the data from the health ministry, Gujarat has emerged as the top performer in implementing the Ayushman Bharat-Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY). The state accounted for around 26% of the total number of hospital admissions cleared under the scheme so far. Tamil Nadu was ranked second and Chattisgarh was ranked third.
AB-PMJAY was launched on 23 September 2018.
DTAA signed between India and China On 26 November 2018, India and China have signed a protocol to amend the ‘Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement’ (DTAA). The DTAA has been amended for the avoidance of double taxation and for the prevention of fiscal evasion with respect to taxes on income. It also incorporates changes required to implement treaty related minimum standards under ‘Base Erosion and Profit Shifting Project’.
‘SBI Ecowrap’ report was released by SBI Research on 26 November 2018. The report said that India’s GDP growth in the September 2018 quarter (Q2) is expected to slow to 7.5%-7.6% mainly due to the slowdown in rural demand. The report also said that SBI Composite Leading Indicator (CLI), a basket of 21 leading indicators for Q2 FY19, is showing a marginal declining trend.
Varsha Varman won the women’s trap gold medal at the ’62nd National Championship for Shotgun’ on 26 November 2018. She represented Madhya Pradesh at the event. She won the bronze medal at the 2014 Asian Games at Incheon in the women’s double trap team event.
On 26 November 2018, Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) came out with a framework to identify listed companies that need to meet 25% of their financing needs through debt securities. It would be applicable to all entities that have an outstanding long-term borrowing of Rs.100 crore or more and a credit rating of AA and above. The framework will come into effect from 1 April 2019.
ISRO will launch ‘PSLV-C43’ mission on 29 November 2018. The ‘PSLV-C43’ rocket will carry India’s ‘HysIS’ satellite and 30 other satellites. ‘HysIS’ is an earth observation satellite developed by ISRO. The primary goal of the satelite is to study the Earth’s surface in visible, near infrared and shortwave infrared regions of the electromagnetic spectrum.
Nagaland’s Chief Minister, Neiphiu Rio launched ‘Nagaland Tourist Police’ on 26 November 2018. It will work for the safety and security of the tourists and report any crime against them to the nearest police station. Nagaland is the second state in the North East to introduce tourist police. Arunachal Pradesh is the first state in the North East to introduce tourist police.
The national festival for children of Child Care Institutions (CCIs), ‘Hausla 2018’ was inaugurated on 26 November 2018. The festival is being organised by the Ministry of Women and Child Development. The aim of the festival is to provide a national platform for the children from CCIs across India to showcase their talent. The theme of the festival is ‘Child Safety’.
Azim Premji will be conferred with the ‘Chevalier de la Legion d’Honneur’ (Knight of the Legion of Honour). Alexandre, Ambassador of France to India will confer the award to Premji. The award comes in recognition of his outstanding contribution in developing the information technology industry in India, his economic outreach in France, and his contribution to society as a philanthropist.
Nageshwara Rao Guntur has been appointed as the Chairperson of the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB) on 26 November 2018. He is the Chairman of the Project Design Safety Committee, Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor and former distinguished scientist of the Nuclear Power Corporation of India (NPCI) Ltd. His appointment as the AERB chairperson will be for three years.
Odisha’s Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik launched a public bicycle sharing project and a mobile app on 26 November 2018. The bicycle sharing project and the mobile app is named ‘Mo Cycle’. The project will provide mobile app-based services to users to locate and use a bicycle. The ‘Mo Cycle’ system will help in reducing traffic congestion, enhance space efficiency, and improve air quality.
President Ram Nath Kovind appointed Sunil Arora as the new Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) on 26 November 2018. He will take charge on 2 December 2018. He was a 1980-batch IAS officer of the Rajasthan cadre. Sunil Arora, who is an Election Commissioner (EC) currently, was appointed to the Election Commission in September 2017.
On 26 November 2018, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) relaxed norms for External Commercial Borrowings (ECBs). It reduced the mandatory hedge coverage from 100% to 70% under ‘Track I’ of the ECB framework. ‘Track I’ refers to medium-term foreign currency-denominated ECBs with a minimum average maturity of 3-5 years. This move will help reduce costs for companies that raise foreign funds.
On 26 November 2018, the government of India and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) signed a $200 million loan agreement. The loan amount will be used for widening and upgrading State Highways (SHs) in Bihar under the ‘Bihar State Highways III Project’ (BSHP-III). The Project will also establish a State-level Road Research Institute.
The Geological Survey of India (GSI) has been made the sole custodian and curator of all meteorites within the Indian boundary. It has been declared as the nodal agency for collection, preservation, registration, and dissemination of all meteorite falls/finds within the country. The declaration was made by the Ministry of Mines. The GSI is headquartered in Kolkata.
The government of India launched ‘PAiSA – Portal for Affordable Credit and Interest Subvention Access’ on 26 November 2018. The portal is a centralised electronic platform for processing interest subvention on bank loans to beneficiaries under ‘Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana’. The web platform has been designed and developed by ‘Allahabad Bank’ which is the Nodal bank.
The government of India approved 100% stake sale in state-owned airline Air India’s ground-handling company ‘Air India Air Transport Services Limited’ (AIATSL). Proceeds from the sale of AIATSL would be used to pay off Air India’s debt. AIATSL is the largest ground handling company in India and is present in almost all airports across the country.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate two-day international ‘Conference on Maternal, Newborn, and Child Health’ in New Delhi on 12 December 2018. The objective of the conference is to improve knowledge and accountability to accelerate action on women’s and children’s health. The programme has been framed around the objectives of the global strategy of ‘Survive, Thrive and Transform’.
Hospitality firm OYO has appointed Rohit Kapoor as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of its new real estate businesses. Before this, he has been the Executive Director and a member on the board of Max Healthcare. He will be responsible for growing OYO’s business in India as well as across international markets, through strategic partnerships and investment opportunities.
A 3 day ‘South Asia Regional Youth Peace Conference’ is being held from 28 November to 30 November 2018 in New Delhi. The conference is being organised by Gandhi Smriti and Darshan Samiti in partnership with UNESCO- MGIEP and Standing Together To Enable Peace Trust. The conference is being organised to mark the beginning of the celebration of the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi.
The President of India, Ram Nath Kovind received the first copy of the book ‘Making of New India: Transformation under Modi Government’ from the Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on 27 November 2018. The book has been edited by Dr Bibek Debroy, Dr Anirban Ganguly, and Kishore Desai. It contains 51 essays on themes ranging from economy to diplomacy, education to public health.
New deep-sea shark species named ‘Pygmy false catshark’ has been found in the northern Indian Ocean. It was found off the southwestern coast of India and north of Sri Lanka. It is about 65cm long and dark brown in colour without any prominent pattern. Its scientific name is ‘Planonasus indicus’. It is the first such discovery in India since the ‘Mangalore houndshark’ in 2011.
According to the RBI data, the total credit flow from banks to the commercial sector grew at 15.6% year-on-year to Rs. 97.32 lakh crore in the fortnight ended 9 November 2018. The non-food credit grew by 15.12% to Rs 90.51 lakh crores, while the total non-statutory liquidity ratio (SLR) investments rose 22.26%. Bank credit was lowest during the November 2016 to March 2017 period.
Veteran singer Mohammad Aziz passed away in Mumbai on 27 November 2018. The singer has lent his voice to over 2000 songs in Hindi, Bengali and Odia films. He made his singing debut with Bengali film ‘Jyoti’. He has recorded several devotional Bhajans and Sufi songs as well.
Logistic meet ‘Logix India 2019′ will be held from 31 January to 2 February 2019 in New Delhi. The event is aimed at improving logistics cost effectiveness and operational efficiencies for India’s Global Trade. The event is organised by the Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO).
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has introduced a survey on India’s startup sector (SISS). The survey will create a profile of the startups and provide dimensions pertaining to their profitability and workforce.
The survey would also aim at talking about the problems being faced by the sector in the country.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) will infuse Rs. 40,000 crores into the system through Open Market Operations (OMOs) in December 2018. The RBI had announced to inject Rs 40,000 crore into the system in November 2018. OMO refer to the buying and selling of government securities in the open market in order to expand or contract the amount of money in the banking system.
The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has announced the guidelines for interoperability of Clearing Corporations (CCPs). The interoperability would permit trading members to clear trades through a firm of their choice instead of going through the CCPs owned by the stock exchanges. The new norms will help in reducing the trading costs.
It will be effective from 1 June 2019.
Akhilesh appointed as convenor of task force The government of India appointed Akhilesh Ranjan as convenor of ‘New Direct Tax Law Task Force’ on 26 November 2018. The task force was formed to advise the government on drafting a new direct tax law that suits India’s economic requirements. The task force was constituted in November 2017. Akhilesh Ranjan is a member of the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT).
National Projects Construction Corporation Limited (NPCC) has been conferred with the status of ‘Miniratna’ by the Government of India. The empowerment of ‘Miniratna’ status to NPCC will help the company in taking speedy decisions by enhancing the delegation of powers to the Board. NPCC comes under the Ministry of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation.
The ‘International Gita Festival 2018’ will be organised in Kurukshetra in Haryana from 7 to 23 December 2018. Mauritius will be the partner country of the festival. Gujarat will be the partner state of the festival. Artists from India as well from Mauritius, Indonesia, Iran, Turkmenistan, and Russia will perform during the annual festival.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi left for Argentina on 28 November 2018. He will be taking part in the 13th G-20 summit. The theme of the summit is ‘Building Consensus for a Fair and Sustainable Development’. The capital of Argentina is Buenos Aires and its currency is Argentine peso.
Nepal’s Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli unveiled a contribution-based social security scheme’ on 27 November 2018. It will cover health and medical facilities, safe motherhood, and provide security to dependent family members. The scheme will compulsorily be applied for formal sector workers. It will come into effect from 22 May 2019.
On 26 November 2018, the government of India has launched the initiative called ‘Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme’ (IDSP) of ‘Integrated Health Information Platform’. The initiative has been launched in Andhra Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Odisha, Telangana, & Uttar Pradesh. The initiative will provide near-real-time data to policymakers for monitoring public health.
Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has formally launched ‘Mission Raksha Gyan Shakti’ on 27 November 2018. The aim of the mission is to promote self-reliance in Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) in defence. Under the mission, 10,000 personnel of Defence Public Sector Undertakings (DPSU) and Ordnance Factory Board (OFB) will be trained on IPR.
The Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPR&D) organised the ‘2nd National Conference of Heads of Investigating Agencies’ in New Delhi on 29 November 2018. The theme of the conference is ‘Capacity Building of Police Investigators in the Era of New Age Crimes’. The conference will deliberate on various legal aspects, procedures, and use of technology in investigation.
Union Minister of State (IC) for Power and Renewable Energy, RK Singh said that 8 States have achieved 100% saturation in household electrification under the Saubhagya scheme. The 8 states are Madhya Pradesh, Tripura, Bihar, J&K, Mizoram, Sikkim, Telangana and West Bengal. Saubhagya scheme’s objective is to provide access to electricity to all the remaining households in the country.
The Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD) has launched an initiative called ‘Bhasha Sangam’. ‘Bhasha Sangam’ is a programme for schools and educational institutions to provide multilingual exposure to students in Indian languages. The initiative was launched under ‘Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat’ on 22 November 2018 and will continue till the 21 December 2018.
Saudi-India Business meeting was held with the Council of Saudi Chambers in Riyadh on 28 November 2018. The meeting was attended by top the officials and CEOs of the companies of Saudi Arabia. The Indian delegation was represented by several leading infra and housing companies. The Indian delegation was led by Manoj K Bharti, Additional Secretary, Ministry of External Affairs.
India’s first advanced personal robot for children called ‘Miko 2’ was launched on 27 November 2018. It was developed by the Mumbai-based start-up named ‘Emotix’. The robot will help parents in early education and development of children. The robot comes with preloaded games, riddles, fun facts, rhymes, music, dance etc and can be loaded with new content.
On 29 November 2018, the Maharashtra assembly has passed the ‘Maratha Reservation Bill’ 2018. According to the bill, 16% reservation for Marathas will be given under the socially and educationally backward category. The Bill has now been sent to the state Legislative Council. However, there will be no reservation for Marathas in local body elections.
The Indian Navy and the Royal Navy of United Kingdom began the exercise ‘Konkan-2018’ at Goa on 28 November 2018. The bilateral exercise provides a platform for the two Navies to periodically exercise at sea and in harbour, so as to build interoperability and share best practices. The Royal Navy was represented by HMS Dragon and the Indian Navy was represented by INS Kolkata.
The two-day ‘Global Aviation Summit’ will be held in Mumbai in January 2019. The summit will be organised by the Ministry of Civil Aviation and the Airport Authority of India (AAI) in collaboration with the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FICCI). The theme of the summit is ‘Flying for all – especially for the next 6 billion’.
The first ever India-Indonesia Business Forum (IIBF) will be held on 29 November 2018 at Port Blair in Andaman and Nicobar Islands. The forum aims to facilitate the commercial and people-to-people linkages between the Andaman and Nicobar Islands with Aceh and North Sumatra Provinces of Indonesia. The 1st Business Forum was held in Indonesia in July 2018.
The ‘Lancet Countdown 2018 on Health and Climate Change’ report was published on 29 November 2018. The report was authored by people from 27 organisations including the WHO and the World Bank. The report said that globally each person was exposed to an additional 1.4 days of heat wave between 2000 and 2017. India experienced an additional 40 million heat wave exposure cases in 2016.
The first Global Conference on the ‘Sustainable Blue Economy’ was held on 28 November 2018 in Nairobi, Kenya. The conference was organised by Kenya. Canada and Japan were co-hosts of the conference. The conference committed to protect ocean and coastal resources, help them regenerate, and to ensure they remain viable for the present and future generations.
The International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People is observed by the United Nations on 29 November every year. On 29 November 1947, the UN Assembly adopted the resolution on the partition of Palestine. The resolution provided for the establishment in Palestine of a ‘Jewish State’ and an ‘Arab State’.
On 28 November 2018, India and China have signed a protocol on hygiene and inspection requirements for the exports. The protocol will enable India to commence export of fish meal and fish oil to China. China has so far not allowed the exports of fish meal and fish oil by India. China imports fish oil to the tune of USD 143.29 million, and fish meal to the tune of USD 263.43 million.
CSIR-Institute of Microbial Technology (CSIR-IMTECH) will establish a ‘High End Skill Development Centre’ in Chandigarh. It will establish the centre in partnership with Merck, a leading German Science and Technology company. The centre will help accelerate healthcare research and train Indian students and researchers in latest life science technologies and make them industry ready.
University Grants Commission (UGC) has decided to set up a ‘Consortium of Academic and Research Ethics’ (CARE).\ CARE will prepare a fresh list of credible quality journals in the non-science disciplines. CARE’s focus will be on journals in disciplines such as social sciences, humanities, languages, arts, culture and the Indian knowledge system.
Indian Navy Commander Vijay Varma and Captain P Rajkumar won the ‘Asian of The Year’ Award on 28 November 2018. They were awarded for their selfless service and bravery in rescue operations during the devastating floods in Kerala. The awards have been constituted by the English language newspaper ‘The Straits Times’ and it is based in Singapore.
On 28 November 2018, the President of India appointed Arvind Saxena as the Chairman of the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC). The term of his appointment will be till 7 August 2020 when he attains the age of 65 years or till further orders. He joined UPSC as a Member on 8 May 2015. Prior to joining UPSC as Member, he was working as Director of the ‘Aviation Research Centre’ (ARC).
On 28 November 2018, A.M. Naik has been appointed as the Chairman of the National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) by the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship. He is the Group Chairman of Larsen & Toubro Limited (L&T). NSDC aims to promote skill development by creation of large, quality and for-profit vocational institutions.
‘Donbass’ has won the coveted ‘Golden Peacock Award’ at the 49th International Film Festival of India (IFFI) on 28 November 2018. The Award carries a cash prize of Rs 40 lakhs to be shared equally between the Producer and the Director, Trophy, and the citation. ‘Donbass’ is the official submission of Ukraine for the ‘Best Foreign Language Film’ category at the 91st Academy Awards in 2019.
On 28 November 2018, Himachal Pradesh became the first state to launch a pan-India single emergency number ‘112’. Under this project, an Emergency Response Centre (ERC) has been established in Shimla along with 12 district command centres (DCCs). The ERC has been integrated with police (100), fire (101), health (108), and women (1090) helpline numbers to provide emergency services.
The government of India launched ‘Passport Seva Project’ (PSP) in major consulates in the United States. The aim is to simplify the overall passport applications procedure and reduce the turnaround time for applicants from 10 days to 48 hours or less. PSP prints Indian passports in the US and reduces turnaround for applicants.
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), the current Ebola epidemic in the Democratic Republic of Congo is now the second largest and second deadliest in history. The latest outbreak in Congo, which began in August 2018, has a case fatality rate of 57%. The deadliest outbreak occurred in West Africa in 2014, where more than 11,000 people were killed due to Ebola.
The report titled ‘Children, HIV and AIDS: The World in 2030’ was released by UNICEF on 29 November 2018. According to the report, in India, an estimated 120,000 children and adolescents aged 0-19 were living with HIV in 2017. The report noted that South Asia has made substantial progress in reducing HIV risks and vulnerability among children, adolescents, pregnant women and mothers.
The President of India, Ram Nath Kovind inaugurated the 2nd ‘International Ambedkar Conclave’ on 30 November 2018 in New Delhi. The conclave is the part of the commemoration of Constitution Day. The Conclave is being organised by the Forum of SC and ST Legislators and Parliamentarians and the Dr Ambedkar Chamber of Commerce.
Georgian traditional wrestling called ‘chidaoba’ won recognition from UNESCO as a global cultural asset on 29 November 2018. The UNESCO had added it to its list of ‘intangible cultural heritage’. A match ‘chidaoba’ lasts for five minutes, during which wrestlers wearing traditional high-necked woollen coats try to defeat their opponent using various holds.
Table tennis player Manav Thakkar won the singles and doubles titles at the Portugal Junior and Cadet Open on 29 November 2018. Manav defeated Jeet Chandra in the singles final match.
Manav partnered with Manush Shah to win the doubles title.
Previously, he won the bronze medal in the U-21 singles category in the ITTF Challenge Belarus Open on 16 November 2018. India to chair Kimberley Process from Jan 2019 India will chair the Kimberley Process (KP) from January 2019. KP is a global initiative to remove conflict diamonds from the global supply chain. The conflict diamonds are used by rebel movements to finance wars against legitimate governments in the world. India is the founding member of Kimberley Process Certification Scheme (KPCS).
The Irish sport of ‘hurling’ was granted UNESCO’s special status of ‘Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity’ on 29 November 2018. The game is played by teams of 15 on a pitch with ‘H’ shaped goals at either end. According to UNESCO, Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) is made up of oral traditions, performing arts, social practices, rituals, and festive events.
NITI Aayog began a series of ‘Development Dialogues’ from 30 November 2018. It will engage experts, thought leaders and government stakeholders across key avenues of long-term social and economic development. The first event was a conference on ‘Health Systems for A New India: Building Blocks’. The conference will feature senior government functionaries and experts in the healthcare space.
World number one Norwegian Magnus Carlsen has won the ‘World Chess Championship’ title on 28 November 2018. He defeated Fabiano Caruana from the United States in a tie-breaker event. He won the ‘World Chess Championship’ title for the fourth time. He won his first ‘World Chess Championship’ title in 2013 by beating Indian grandmaster Viswanathan Anand.
Salome Zurabishvili has won Georgia’s presidential election on 29 November 2018. She became the first woman President of Georgia. She was the former French Diplomat. She was the former Foreign Minister of Georgia. The capital of Georgia is Tbilisi and its currency is Georgian Lari.
According to a report by the National Council of Applied Economic Research (NCAER), the Indian economy is projected to grow at 7–7.4% in 2018-19. The real agriculture Gross Value Added (GVA) is envisaged to grow at 3% and real industry GVA at 7% in 2018-19. NCAER is a New Delhi based non-profit think tank of economics.
Slovenia has become the only NATO country to appoint a woman as head of its army. Maj Gen Alenka Ermenc took up the post of Chief of Staff of the Slovenian army on 28 November 2018. Maj Gen Ermenc is currently serving as the army’s Deputy-Chief of Staff. She began her military career in 1991 when the country won its independence from the former Yugoslavia.
The ‘Global Nutrition Report 2018’ was released on 29 November 2018. According to the report, Forty-six million children in India are stunted because of malnutrition. In India, high rates of malnutrition lead to anaemia, low birth rates, and delayed development. The report is an independently produced annual analysis of the state of the world’s nutrition.
Renowned flautist Pandit Keshav Ginde will be conferred with the prestigious ‘Bharat Ratna Pandit Bhimsen Joshi Lifetime Achievement Award 2018’ for classical music. The award has been instituted by Maharashtra Governement. The award honours maestros in classical music and singing, and carries a cash award of Rs 500,000, a memento and a citation.
China and India will hold a joint 14-day military exercise ‘Hand in Hand’ in China’s Chengdu city from 10 December 2018. It will promote understanding between the two militaries and improve their capabilities in fighting terrorism. The exercise is being held after a gap of one year as both the sides were locked in a standoff in Doklam in the Sikkim sector of the border in 2017.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has made the Legal Entity Identifier (LEI) code mandatory for all participants undertaking transactions in the markets regulated by the RBI. The LEI is a 20-character unique identity code assigned to entities who are parties to a financial transaction. The LEI code is a measure to improve the quality and accuracy of financial data systems.
Air forces of the United States and India are scheduled to participate in a 12-day joint exercise ‘Cope India 2019’ in West Bengal. The exercise will be held from 3-14 December 2018. The ‘Cope India’ exercise is being held after a gap of eight years, with the last one having taken place in 2010. ‘Cope India’ was first held in 2004 as a fighter training exercise at Air Station Gwalior.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) increased the interest subsidy on the post and pre-shipment export credit from 3% to 5%. This move will boost the exports of the Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises (MSME) sector manufacturers. The increased subsidy is applicable from 2 November 2018. Exporters get the subsidy under the ‘Interest Equalisation Scheme on Pre & Post Shipment Rupee Export Credit’. | 2019-04-21T18:57:32Z | http://www.sbank.in/2018/12/current-affairs-november-21-to-30-2018.html |
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We would like to congratulate Holmes Installation who fitted our kitchen, Darren was magnificent, splendid, remarkable in the way he made a first-class job of fitting the kitchen and he deserves the highest praise.
We have very recently had a kitchen fitted and I am writing to thank you for the outstanding service we have received. We were concerned about the fitting of the kitchen and the organizing of the various trades needed. Within 10 minutes of arriving tiles were removed and 6 hours in it was ready for the plasterer and electricians who arrived on cue. Darren had everything organized and planned out in advance. His and his associate’s productivity had to be seen to be believed. They always left the house tidy, they always arrived when they said they would and it was very easy to have them in our house. Again, nothing was too much trouble. We are really impressed with our kitchen, it looks good, we believe we got a very good deal and you have exceptional people representing your business.
Darren who has completed fitting my kitchen has done an excellent job and has worked well in making the process as comfortable as possible for me. Thank you to the team.
Now my kitchen is complete I would like to express my delight with it. I hope I shall enjoy working in it for many years to come. Darren and his team were competent and efficient in their working making a potentially fraught time relatively stress free. Darren was skilful with his jigsaw as he was with dealing with our requirements. He tried where possible to work around our routine without compromising his high standard of workmanship. Darren showed himself to be a very personable, reliable and flexible craftsman, full of initiative, going out of his way to ensure customer satisfaction. Nothing seemed too much trouble for him. We were very impressed by him and the quality of his work. Thank you Darren we really appreciated his wide range of skills which executed quickly and to a high standard and his pleasant and cheerful personality.
I am writing to express my most sincere thanks to yourself for the excellent work done in undertaking the supply and fitting of our kitchen. Darren and his team worked very long hours and showed tremendous commitment and pride in their working leaving a kitchen befitting the highest quality which my wife and I are absolutely delighted with. In this modern age it is nice to witness workmanship and dedication of a very high standard which you should be proud of. | 2019-04-18T11:16:42Z | http://www.holmesinstallation.co.uk/testimonials/ |
1. Part #1 – The NWO – What is it? – Will it take place?
4. Part #4 – The Future NWO – Is the Lord pleased?
Based on Bible prophecy will the New World Order ever take place?
We’ve all heard the phrase, “The New World Order” or “The One World Order”, but do we really understand what this phrase is talking about? Is it simply a harmless concept of world unity to bring about peace, or does this phrase refer to something that displeases the Lord and endangers us as the United States of America, and as individual citizens of our country?
This sounds like a great idea, doesn’t it? To unify all the nations so that there is no more wars, no more social injustice, and basically, no more disagreements. Who would want to oppose that?
Simply put it is: a political unity between nations, that results in less conflict and instability by working together to solve the problems of the world.
Absolutely, according to Rev 13:7-10 (and many other verses) the Bible makes it plain that this NWO will take place in the not so distant future.
The basic concept of a NWO has existed throughout the ages of mankind, beginning with the Tower of Babel; followed by the different world empires extending from the Egyptian Empire to the Roman Empire; and extending into today’s time. The concept of the NWO is nothing new.
In our next study will we look at the different forced attempts for a NWO brought about by the ancient world empires (Egypt to Rome). Were they successful? What was Lord’s response to their attempts?
One of the most interesting areas of Bible study is the area of Bible symbolism. Symbols are used in the Bible to help illustrate many differing Bible doctrines. Symbols are used throughout the Bible, both in the Old and New Testaments, covering most of the major teachings of Scripture.
The symbols of the Bible have come to us by the grace of God. Our Lord understood our need to understand Bible teachings. Because He loved us, has made it easier for each of us to understand these teachings through use of symbolism.
As an example, within the pages of the Scriptures we find the Lord uses everyday objects to help us understand spiritual truths.
John 6:35 – I am the BREAD of Life – By this He was teaching us that we must partake of His work for spiritual life, satisfaction for our spiritual hunger and the basis of our eternal salvation.
John 10:9 – I am the DOOR – By this He is saying that He is the entryway into salvation, which leads to an eternity in God’s presence.
In this lesson we will be looking at the symbols that Christ used to help us understand truths about His local churches on earth.
1Tim 3:15 (KJV) – But if I tarry long, that thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth.
Here is a listing of 10 different items in the NT believers lives that helped them (and us) understand His church on earth.
The importance of coming to an understanding of Bible doctrine cannot be overemphasized. Our loving heavenly Father has seen fit to make this understanding a bit easier for each of us through the use of many, varied Bible symbols.
The most important Bible truths for anyone to understand are truths about our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
In the introductory portion of this blog entry, we find that Christ is declared as the gateway (door) to forgiveness, salvation and an eternity with the Heavenly Father. It is through the application of His work to our lives that we are given salvation from our sins, much like the partaking of bread brings about satisfaction from the spiritual hunger in which we all share. And finally, our source of spiritual life and divine supplies comes from Him also.
Won’t you come to Christ today, realizing He is the only source of forgiveness for your sins and an eternal relationship with the heavenly Father?
February 18, 2011 11:32 am / 6 Comments on Where Does Waldo Go To Church?
February 15, 2011 9:50 am / 18 Comments on Death and the Afterlife… What’s Next?
We will divide our study of this section of Scripture into 3 basic parts. In the last part of our study we will be looking at 1 Corinthians 13:11-13.
1Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become [as] sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal…13And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these [is] charity.
In our previous study, we saw how both the gifts of prophecy and knowledge ceased to exist when the last of God’s revelation to man was received. We now turn our attention to two examples given by Paul to help illustrate the principle.
Vs 11 – When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things.
Paul now uses the example of the physical maturing process to picture the process of God’s revealed Word being brought to completion. Just as Paul’s growth allowed him to come to a more mature and full understanding of life, so too, as God’s Word is brought to completion, it brings to us a fuller understanding of our Lord and our responsibilities as servants.
Vs 12 – For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known.
Paul now compares our understanding of God in our sinful flesh with mankind’s knowledge of God with only a portion of His Word given to them. In both cases, an incomplete view of God is had by man.
Paul describes our life in sinful flesh as seeing our Lord “through a glass darkly”.
Vs 13 – And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these [is] charity.
After telling us about the Word it’s soon completion, Paul now beings us back to the original thought. That love is even greater that our three existing gifts of faith, hope and love.
Why didn’t Paul mention prophecy or knowledge as abiding (to continue on for extended period of time, to endure to limit)? We have already seen they would end within a short period of time when Word was brought to completion. So he didn’t include these on our list.
But why didn’t he include the gift of tongues… when did they cease to exist? Tongues ceased to exist, around the same time as knowledge and prophecy. Tongues was one of several “sign gifts” that God gave to mankind. These were gifts given by God to His followers to accredit their message and to prove He was the only true God. This is why these types of miracles are called “sign gifts” from God (Exo 3:14, 4:1-8) A listing of the sign gifts can be found at 1 Cor 12:8-11.
It has been so interesting for me to come to an understanding of the Lord’s motives in these sign miracles that were performed. Note that the Lord, through divine miracles, accredited the messenger, as well as the section of Scripture written, and the worship place used at that time. In each case, the “sign miracles” were in existence for approximately 70 years. In each case, a “silent time” existed after each group of miracles, where no sign miracles and few, if any, other miracles were performed. Why? Once God established the validity of each of the above segments, there was no need for miracles until another segment was about to take place.
Putting all of this together, it is easy to see why only faith, hope and charity are said to “abide” (to stray in place for an extended period of time). The gifts of prophecy, knowledge and tongues would go out of existence within a few years after Paul’s ministry would be complete.
But not so with faith, hope and love. They would continue on until the second coming of Christ. When Christ comes back we will have no need of faith nor hope…. As we begin, our eternity with Him, we will begin the process of receipt of all His promises to us. Faith and hope will no longer be needed, we will be experiencing all He has for us.
As we come to a completion of our study the basic principles we have learned about love compared to the other gifts mentioned is significant.
First of all we saw that God’s gifts to man are temporary, but love is eternal.
Secondly, the gifts of God are elementary, love is the essence of maturity.
Thirdly, the gifts of God are partial, but love is complete.
Keeping all this in mind, it should not surprise us that the Lord gave Peter this word of self inspection and instruction….
15So when they had dined, Jesus saith to Simon Peter, Simon, [son] of Jonas, lovest thou me more than these? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my lambs.16He saith to him again the second time, Simon, [son] of Jonas, lovest thou me? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my sheep.17He saith unto him the third time, Simon, [son] of Jonas, lovest thou me? Peter was grieved because he said unto him the third time, Lovest thou me? And he said unto him, Lord, thou knowest all things; thou knowest that I love thee. Jesus saith unto him, Feed my sheep.
You see, our love for the Lord should be one of the ultimate motives in our service to Him. The more we love and appreciate Him the greater our service to Him. Is our service motivated by our love for Him? Is our helping and instructing others coming from a heart filled with love for our Lord?
May the Lord help all of us to be able to say “yes” to these questions.
7Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God.8He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love.9In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him.10Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son [to be] the propitiation for our sins.11Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another.12No man hath seen God at any time. If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his love is perfected in us.
We will divide our study of this section of Scripture into 3 basic parts. In today’s blog entry we will look at 1 Corinthians 13:8-10. And in our final part we will look at verses 11-13.
Vs 8 – Charity never faileth: but whether [there be] prophecies, they shall fail; whether [there be] tongues, they shall cease; whether [there be] knowledge, it shall vanish away.
Here, Paul makes it very plain that love is the only gift of the four divine gifts (love, prophecy, tongues, knowledge) that will exist eternally. In our previous study, we explained that both knowledge and prophecy was related to the divine inspiration of Scripture, when the Lord handed His Word to mankind. The sign gift of tongues was related to the accreditation of the ministry of Christ, His NT Word and the local church ministry.
Vs 9 – For we know in part, and we prophesy in part.
The gifts of prophecy and knowledge were “in part” meaning… as each prophecy came from God (as each bit of knowledge came to man) they were “one part” of the whole of divine revelation to man. Until the final revelation from God was received by John on the Isle of Patmos (the book of Revelation), both knowledge and prophecy received by man was only a piece of His Word. At the end of the message given to John on Patmos, the word was finally completed. It was only then that mankind had the prophecy and knowledge God had chosen to give to man in a state of completeness.
Vs 10 – But when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away.
Remember, in the previous verse of our study we saw that the gifts that were in part were the gifts of prophecy and knowledge.
2. What has acted on the gift of prophecy and knowledge rendering them worthless? It is the completed revelation from God… Once God had given to man all of His Word, there was no need for prophecy or knowledge gifts any longer… they were now useless and ineffective because the Lord was not going to give men His inspired revelation any longer.
In Matthew 5:48 “telios” is used to describe the Lord and in the context, it is describing His absolute maturity. Note that the issue of treating all men kindly and with respoect is the issue being addressed, this is a mark of spiritual maturity. We are to even pray for those that mistreat us. By doing this, we will be mature Christians following the example of our Father who is in heaven. He is the epitome of spiritual maturity and completeness. The issue is not sinlessness, the issue, here is spiritual maturity. Learning to treat all men with love and kindness. The very issue of our study in 1 Corinthians. No place in Scripture does the word “telios” mean sinlessly perfect.
We have to say that the Lord is continually revealing His inspired word to man throughout the ages. In other words, His word is not in completed form but He is continually adding to His revealed Word to man. This revealing of the Word will only stop at His second coming.
If this is so, we should be continually adding to the Scriptures. Every new revelation God gives to man should be added to the Scriptures. This principle does away with the warning given by John to not add to the Scriptures (Rev 22:18-19).
And also the fullness and completeness of God’s Word for us to use is done away with. Therefore we cannot count on His Word being the complete set of instructions for us to live by. (2 Tim 3:16-17) In this hypothetical scenario, we may face situations that the Word cannot equip us to face. What happens if the part of the Word we need now, will not be revealed to man for another 25 years? Our entire view of the Scriptures must change if this is the case.
Remember, the principle concerning love that is presented in our study today…. Charity NEVER FAILS. But all these other gifts that are mentioned have already failed and now cease to exist. We’ve seen that the gifts of prophecy and knowledge have already ceased to exist when man received the final revelation of God to man. In our next study, we will see that the gift of tongues has already gone out of existence as well.
The eternal nature of love is one of the many reasons why love is counted as superior over these sign gifts.
With the importance of love in view… should we not all strive to show love to others? How much love do we show others? Or maybe, I should ask it this way… how much are we willing to sacrifice for others? This is the true mark of love.
12This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you.13Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.14Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you.
We will divide our study of this section of Scripture into 3 basic parts. In today’s blog entry we will look at 1 Corinthians 13:1-7. In section two of our study we will be examining verses 8-10. And in our final part we will look at verses 11-13.
Vs 1 – Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become [as] sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal.
If men were not motivated by love when they exercised the gift of tongues, they were simply making noise without gaining any spiritual benefit for themsleves or the listener.
In EVERY case, angels speak human languages as they give God’s Words to man. Paul is saying whether he shared God’s word in a off-hand everyday way, or as part of an authoritative, divinely called ministry, without love, he is not actually pleasing the Lord.
Vs 2 – And though I have [the gift of] prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing.
Paul, says that the display of miraculous feats, without love, are of no true spiritual value. The four miraculous feats that Paul talks of are feats involving inspiration, knowledge and faith.
(At the time of the writing of 1 Corinthians 13:, the revelation of God’s Word to mankind was not completed. God still had more to say to man. This is why the gift of prophecy, understanding, and knowledge were still in effect at the writing of this letter.
The gift of prophecy is simply the miraculous ability to receive a message from God and to be able to reveal it to man without error. The ability to understand all mysteries, involves a supernatural ability given by God to understand the spiritual truths that He revealed to man. The third gift is the ability to possess knowledge that had never been shown to man before.
All three of these gifts were absolutely necessary as God handed down His Word to mankind. They are three different aspects of God’s giving His Word to man via Divine inspiration) And now that the Word is completed there is no longer any need for these gifts.
Vs 3 – And though I bestow all my goods to feed [the poor], and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing.
Paul states although he gave up his possessions to meet the needs of the poor, and if He was willing to sacrifice his very body and life for the cause of Christ, if he was not motivated by a love for Christ and others, all of these immense sacrifices were of no spiritual profit for him.
Vs 4-7 – Charity suffereth long, [and] is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil; Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth; 7 Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.
We have seen the importance of love in every aspect of our service to the Lord. We have also seen the marks of true love in our loves.
Do our lives exhibit the Lord’s love? Are our ministries motivated by a love for Christ and others?
If we can say “yes” to these questions, we can have joy knowing that our ministries, and lives, are pleasing to our Lord. If we must say “no” to these questions… we need to reevaluate our service, and lives, we are living for Christ. It is very possible we are simply going through the motions without ever actually having experienced God’s grace in our lives. This is the message of Matt 7:21-23.
21Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.22Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?23And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity. | 2019-04-26T13:51:10Z | https://settledinheaven.wordpress.com/2011/02/ |
From left to right: Kosta, Tony, Nic, and John.
Finally the big day has arrived! After much hard work (thank you, thank you, thank you) Table Top Titans has at last opened its wide barn doors to welcome the enthusiastic wargame hobbyist a first glimpse at all the good things we have in store for you over the coming months.
Indeed, from the outset, we have a rare treat in store for our first readers; and it is with immense pleasure we were able to pin down Nic Robson & Greg Hallam from Eureka Miniatures, and persuade them to take time out from their busy work schedule to talk with us in an exclusive interview and games chat about their amazingly diverse and unique range of wargame and collector piece miniatures.
TTT: Hi guys, and once again, thank you for being able to join us at such short notice... to talk to us a bit about Eureka Miniatures.
Hmmmm, how long have Eureka Miniatures been running Nic; and something I've often wanted to ask you in the past (as an avid customer of yours): how did the company originally come about in the first place? What made you uproot from England and settle in sunny Australia, owner of such an energetic miniatures company?
Nic: Hi Steve. Well, Eureka began in 1991 when I emigrated to Australia to be with my girlfriend and couldn't find a real job (Australia was then in a recession we had to have) My former employer at Irregular Miniatures in the UK offered me the chance to be his agent in Australia, I found a second hand casting machine and began manufacturing under licence and have been running my own small business ever since.
TTT: Ah, so you worked for Irregular Miniatures, wow. I've been collecting their 6mm English Civil War, Fantasy figures, and 6mm terrain for years now, and I must say what a great UK company they are... very pleasant people to deal with as well - and have a wonderful personal touch with their customers.
How did Eureka Miniatures first get its name? Was it like Archimedes stepping into his bath and suddenly shouting "Eureka, I have found it" or was the name chosen under less extreme circumstances?
Nic: I wanted something that wasn't too generically military and that related to Australia in a generalised way. The rebellion at the Eureka Stockade on the outskirts of Ballarat (in Victoria, the state in Australia within which I am based) is a specifically Victorian military action and was a triumph of the people over the Establishment (eventually). Coincidently, as you just mentioned, Eureka also means 'I found it'and I like to think that customers will shout "Eureka"? when they find our web site.
TTT: Haha, yes that was pretty much my reaction when I stumbled across the site early in 2007.
But Eureka has such a diverse range of genres and periods, where on earth do you find time to cover such a wide range of miniatures, and in so many scales too? I mean, with the 28mm range alone you cover everything from Fantasy, Ancients, Age of Reason, Victorian, World War I & II, and you even cover a Modern range of miniatures... yet you also have many less mainstream and unusual periods covered as well, stuff not normally seen by figure makers today?
Nic: Well, all of us at Eureka come up with ideas, and all our sculptors enjoy a good challenge. We also listen to our customers requests via the 100 and 300 Clubs, and the upshot of all this input is that we end up making a huge variety (some think too many) of figures across many genres and in a wide spectrum of scales as well.
TTT: Do you yourself find time to play wargames.
Nic: Yes, I occasionally get to play a figure game with our Pax Limpopo range.
TTT: do you use your own figures exclusively, or do you use other people's figures as well.
Nic: About once a month a get to play a board game (usually something by the excellent Richard Borg). I would like to play more, but business and family often gets in the way of this.
Greg: I play board games and role-playing games on a fairly regular basis, a bit of skirmish wargaming, but these days, because of the time involved in painting and assembling etc, I don't really play big table top games. Most of the time my figure-gaming is Pax-related which means I can just borrow Nic's figures!
Nic: I tend to use any figures that inspire me. Quite often we will write a new scenario for Pax Limpopo because I have some new figures that I want to put on the table. If I see something that is aesthetically pleasing... has some wit and charm, then I will add it to my collection and play with it quite happily alongside our own specific pieces.
TTT: Ah I see, you truly are a cosmopolitan individual then. This is refreshing to see nowadays, in an age when uber companies are often so keen to promote their own wares, they dismiss anything else out of hand entirely.
Who sculpts your miniatures for you?
Nic: Mike Broadbent, Kosta Heristanidis and Alan Marsh all work for us and we are hoping to do much more work with Tony Barton and Victoria Lamb in the future. We are also always interested to see work by new sculptors and will encourage them where we can.
TTT: Wow, there are some real veteran names among that list. No wonder Eureka Miniatures maintain such a high standard for their wargaming and collector public.
Hmmmm, you mention the 100 Club and 300 Club. I've seen this in your site, but have never fully understood it. (I know, I know, when in doubt, click the link and read). But can you tell me a little more about what this is?
Nic: Haha, this is quite a difficult thing to explain properly. Essentially the 100 and 300 Clubs are a response to the worldwide web's ability to put likeminded people in touch with each other. If we can get 10 people to commit to purchasing a total of 150 28mm figures or 600 15mm figures then we can afford to invest in making that range a viable product... knowing we will get our sculpting costs back. I believe that if ten people have had the faith to sign up for a figure, then many more will buy the figures once they are available and can be seen. It does take a great commitment to sign up for something that hasn't been made yet, but so far we believe we have met our customers'expectations and more when making these bespoke figures.
Once a suggestion reaches 150/600 I contact all the Club members with a prospectus before anything is made. If at that point a Club member decides they don't like the idea anymore they can cancel their pre-order and they will not hear anymore from us. However if they then want to continue, we make the figures, cast them and finally charge the customer only when the figures are despatched.
We have had great success with this concept ( which we borrowed from a board games company) and the Flying Monkeys, 15mm WWII figures and 28mm AWI Ragged Continentals would never have been produced without it.
TTT: This sounds great. So effectively, if my games club decided they needed a new type of generic figure (let's say - an Australian Bushman model we could group into fighting units for our Victorian games) if, as the club owner, I could guarantee purchases which match your 100 & 300 club minimal compulsory order, you could make a special sculpt for us. Wow, that's impressive.
A personal favourite period of mine Nic, is your amazingly weird and whacky range of Pax Limpopo miniatures. Pax Limpopo is a relative newcomer to your range, only conceived by you since 1998, I believe.
How an earth did you come up with such a strange idea. You've literally taken the Victorian world, added a bit of Steampunk, given it a twist of irony, and come up with something altogether unique. I've not seen anything even remotely like it anywhere else on the gaming market.
Was this your idea Nic, or did you and Greg sit down together one night after an evening watching some particularly memorable re-run episodes of Monty Pythons Flying Circus? The style could so easily be seen in this light, but remarkably (in my mind), you have also managed to capture the essence of the Dickensian Times... added a make believe Colonial New World and Darkest Africa ... yet you have put a humorous slant on everything without losing the 'feel'of the Victorian era in the slightest. What's this all about?
Nic: It all came about from a suggestion by Jon Tuffly of Ground Zero Games, who mentioned that he had always wanted to see a unicycling lancer figure. I cannot resist a challenge and so we made the figure. Then we needed to do something with it and Greg and Dave McCartney, a good friend of ours, came up with the Pig Tickling game. About this time we also began to be aware of the inherent boredom of Victorian era games of Europeans shooting down hordes of natives from around the globe. How much more interesting it would be if the natives and the Europeans could work together and face common threats. From this came the Anglo-African Empire which became Pax Limpopo. And then we started bringing in other nations such as Prussia and France. We've tried to gave each of them a distinct technology, i.e. so Britain uses steam, Prussia clockwork mechanisms, France uses biological technology, and this is reflected in the figures you see.
Greg: (laughing) Well there you go! I never knew it stemmed from Jon Tuffly! I thought you and Tony (one of Nic's staff) had the first idea.
Now you said something interesting Steve, when you described Pax as weird and whacky. The reason Pax succeeds as a world is that we have never thought of it as wacky. It's strange, bizarre, whimsical, nonsensical, but it all makes perfect sense once you delve into it. There is a wonderful internal consistency in Pax, which unfortunately people can't see, because most of the background to the figures hasn't been published yet. But over the years we've written notes and background about most of the figures and what seems wacky actually makes perfect sense in the context of the world.
Let me give you an example - the British soldiers in rubber dinosaur suits. I actually don't remember how we came up with them, but this is the reason the British use them: After discovering dinosaurs in Africa, the military lost quite a few soldiers by trying to kill or capture dinosaurs with traditional military tactics. Now a thin red line of rifles MIGHT hold off a Zulu attack, but it's no darn good against T-Rexes. So some colonel had the bright idea of luring the dinosaurs by having soldiers dressed up as dinosaur young. You see, they were working on the perfectly reasonable idea that a bleating lamb or bellowing calf attracts its parents. Unfortunately this doesn't work with dinosaurs, which they weren't to know, of course.
As soon as a unit of rubber-dinosaur decoys stood in the open and started screeching, the adult dinosaurs (quite naturally) attacked them. Turns out dinosaurs hate their offspring, which is one of the reasons the dinosaurs died out, by the way :-) . But by this stage the Rubber Dinosaur Decoy units were considered the epitome of courage and stiff-upper-lipped-ness so they continue to be used. And the rubber suits have found to be very good at stopping bullets. So now you have units that look scary and are fairly invulnerable to rifle fire, so the top brass decided that they are perfect defensive units. Of course, they can't actually DO anything except stand there.
Does it sound stupid? Maybe, but once you accept the premise that British have found dinosaurs, it actually makes sense. Some bigwig at the top has a wonderful idea and inflicts it on the rank and file, and when it doesn't work, justifies it away anyway. Entirely consistent with what really happened in Colonial times. The idea of incompetence, both military and otherwise, filters right through Pax.
TTT: Hahahaha, oh this sounds so wonderful. I've always imagined Pax Limpopo as working something like this (and your comments about real Colonial times, the sad lot of the common soldiery, and the stoic stupidity of the 'big-wigs'is spot on); but it's so good to hear it from one of the original concept creators of the game... 'straight from the horse's mouth'as they say in Britain.
So how did you come up with the name Pax Limpopo anyway?
Greg: My friend Dave McCartney and I were tossing around ideas for this new empire, and agreed that it had to be "Pax" something, in the vein of Pax Britannica and Pax Romana. So we obviously needed an African word, to signify the British/African alliance. The first African word we thought of was 'Limpopo'- both of us have read too much Kipling and were thinking of the story 'The Elephant's Child', which talks about the 'banks of the great grey-green greasy Limpopo River.'So we put it to Nic and Co., and Pax Limpopo it became. I always thought it ironic that two reasonably well-read and educated fellows like Dave and I had so little knowledge of Africa, and the first thing that flashed into our mind was by an English writer. But Pax Limpopo is a good name.
TTT: (Steve: makes mental note to dust off his old copy of Kipling stories and start re-reading). What incredible imagination and an unusual perspective on the real world. But then again, I can't argue with your reasoning. There is a certain consistent integral logic to the infrastructure of this imaginary world.
So, Pax Limpopo it is! Peace along the Limpopo River, and in effect, and an Anglo British African alliance... wonderful stuff.
Whose idea was it to add French Ant Eater Soldiers, Circus Clowns, Dinosaurs, and all that unusual stuff to the mix?
Nic: All of us at Eureka have added items into the mix over the years. We almost use Pax as role-playing exercise, someone will think of an idea for a game and each of us will want to better it or make it more ridiculous. The only limit I place is that there must be a reason for things being made or happening in Pax that is consistent with its own internal logic.
Greg: That's a very important point, everything fits into Pax. It wasn't planned that way from the start, as Nic said, we'd just think of figures and characters that ticked our fancy. But through some mysterious process they all make sense. As I said before, there is a lovely internal consistency and this comes out strongly in the Pax rules which, incidentally, will see light of day in the near future.
I think the other delightful thing about Pax is that it's not just a wargame setting - the personalities and events are quite alive and actively encourage you to think of scenarios - as Nic said, almost like a role-playing exercise.
TTT: Yes I see. It all makes sense now; especially as I have been fortunate enough to have glimpsed the rules myself. I must say, they are as unusual and every bit as original as the miniatures themselves.
I see Eureka Miniatures also make flying monkeys, extraterrestrial Cat People, Lunar Warriors, Fighting Teddy Bears, and a lot of other models which are often used alongside the Pax Limpopo range in games, but I notice these items are not exclusively part of the Pax Limpopo range, why is this?
Nic: All those figures were made for different ranges, and some of them as 100 Club requests. They aren't really part of our original expectations of the Pax world, but have been added once we saw their potential as lovely figures that can be added into a Victorian era game and that is consistent with the Pax logic. As an example the Teddy Bears were originally made as a customer request, we have now added clockwork keys to them and they are used as part of the Prussian Army (the Prussians in real life being great makers of toys and of clockwork, and this is the basis of their technology in Pax). Similarly the flying moneys were a 100 Club request, but can now be added into Pax on the principle that The Island Of Dr Moreau is a real life book and that animal experimentation did occur in the Victorian era.
TTT: Haha, oh my, this just keeps getting better. What more could the intrepid and daring gamer or collector want out of his or her hobby. It's like toy soldiers for adults, and has a really 'old school'gaming feel to it, where (as you say) Kipling, HG Wells, or Arthur Conan Doyle classics have as much influence as any modern day novel or movie.
Do you have any plans to expand the Pax Limpopo range at all any time soon?
Nic: Pax is always being added to in our minds even though it can be some time before the next figures see the light of day. We have been working on a set of game rules for Pax that will provide a framework for those who like to use their imaginations and be involved in the gaming process, rather than being dictated to as to what they can and cannot do. We hope to have these published in the next twelve months.
We also intend to have a Pax gamette (a board game with figures) available before Christmas, keep watching our web site for further details.
Greg: Yes, we like the idea of 'gamettes', as we call them, set in the world of Pax. We've got Pig Tickler and Wagers of Sin, there's the new game coming up, and I've been working on a cross-country penny-farthing race game. The thing with the gamettes is not only does it give players something to do with the figures (laugh), but it's a way of fleshing out the world a bit more at the same time.
TTT: Oooh yummy. So we may possibly some new Pax models sometime in the future; and the official Pax Limpopo rules will be a wonderful feast for Pax games to sink their teeth into. I can't wait to see these become available, and will look forward to writing many Pax battle reports on Table Top Titans using these new rules.
Yes, yes I completely agree with you Greg. The Wagers of Sin and Pig Tickler gamettes... whilst self contained games in their own right (and darn good tasty little games they are too) do add new layers to the Pax Limpopo world as a whole.
So if I have this right, you have a dedicated set of rules exclusively set in the world of Pax Limpopo, which will be available to the public sometime over the next year. That's wonderful.
Nic: Yes, as mentioned above we are working on a set and hope to publish them soon.
Greg: Yes... The theme of incompetence in Pax we mentioned earlier runs right through the rules. The harder you try to perform an action, the more chance you have of succeeding, but simultaneously the greater the chance of making a complete botch-up. It's not how good you are at something, it's how good you look when doing it; style over competence, every time!
TTT: Will the rules be for sale or downloadable as a freebie to customers?
Nic: We are looking into the feasibility of a full colour glossy rules book, but I cannot reveal any other details at the moment.
TTT: Yes of course. You have to keep a few secrets up your sleeve to excite and amuse your customers in the future.
Something I've often looked at in your catalogue, but know nothing about is your Avalon Bleeding range of miniatures. What's this all about. Is it another weird and wonderful made up land similar to the Pax Limpopo one?
Nic: Avalon Bleeding is a much darker world than Pax. In Pax we tend to make terrible puns and push the limits of ridiculousness. Avalon Bleeding is set during the English Civil War and represents the clash or Reason (in the shape of Parliament) and the Old Religions (fairy and magic in the form of the King and the Royalists). We are thinking about the rules for this game as I write these replies and I hope we have more about the background available soon.
TTT: This sounds fascinating, and I can hardly wait to find out more; especially as a personal passion of mine in ECW wargaming. The prospect of an alternative style semi skirmish wargames world in this genre makes me very happy indeed.
What is your most popular range?
Nic: The 15mm AB range that we handle of behalf of Anthony Barton is our biggest seller. Of our own Eureka Miniatures we don't have a stand out seller, everything sells well.
TTT: What new things do Eureka Miniatures have in store for its customers later in 2008/2009?
Nic: The definitive 28mm French Revolutionary War figures, more Pax, more 15mm WW2. Some 28mm Pulp style WW2 figures and lots more 15mm Napoleonics from AB.
Nic, Are you and Greg social buddies outside of work hours?
Nic: Actually, we don't work together, so we only meet outside of work. Greg has a real job, I only make toy soldiers. We get together once a fortnight to indulge ourselves in Pax and other gaming projects.
Greg: I might have a real job, but Nic's is more interesting! Sometimes Nic has a board games afternoon at his shop on the weekend and invites a few friends over... that's always lots of fun.
TTT: Who makes the work decisions, you Nic, or Greg; and how do you divide the workload?
Nic: I leave all the writing to Greg. I try to add my take on the Pax world into Greg's writings but he also has to take notice of all the rest of Eureka's creative team into account as well. I see myself as the helmsman of Pax, trying to steer it towards publication while Greg is in charge of making the map.
Greg: Most of the time ideas come up out of brainstorming sessions amongst the Eureka staff, a single word or phrase or idea can spark a new line of figures for Pax, or more background. Nic leaves it to me actually to put pen to paper, based on ideas that have been floated. The main exception is the wonderful Origins of The Pax Limpopo Empire, that Tony wrote, and which is the basis of 'official'Pax history.
TTT: Ah, that sounds like sound organisation and a great pooling of resources. I know you don't actually work for Nic, but you are obviously a integral part of the team, especially where Pax Limpopo is concerned.
Hey, I know Nic is originally from England, but were you born in Australia Greg?
Greg: I'm about 3rd or 4th generation Australian born, but am of Anglo-Saxon stock J. Don't ask me where in England my ancestors came from. My surname is Hallam, and I know there's a Hallamshire in England. One day I may visit there and discover a whole town that looks like me maybe? Scary thought !
TTT: Hallamshire (or Hallam) is the historical name for an area of South Yorkshire, England, in the current city of Sheffield. Maybe you're related the famous Hallams of the English Civil War period?
Have you ever been to England, finding out your family genealogy could be fun?
Greg: I've only been to London, and was surprised to find no unicycles or penny-farthing's in the streets! But while I was walking around London I came across Shaftesbury Lane (or Road?) Shaftesbury is the main hero of Pax - I was quite thrilled!
TTT: Haha, that must have been quite invigorating. Imagine travelling half way round the world, and suddenly seeing a place named after a main hero in your game *wink*.
See, you're more famous than you knew.
Hey, Nic, Greg, thank you so much for taking the time to talk with us here at TTT, it has been a real pleasure talking with you and picking your brains about Eureka Miniatures, the world of Pax Limpopo, and how they do things over in the land of Aus.
Is there anything either of you would like to add yourself before we wrap things up?
Nic: I would just like to commend TTT on their initiative in setting up this web magazine, to wish them every success in the venture and to thank them for inviting us to be part of it.
Greg: Yes, thanks Steve. And if folks have any questions about Pax, or the upcoming rules you can always email me or Nic.
TTT: Thanks for your encouragement Nic, it means a lot; and thanks to you Greg, it's nice to know you are both so openly approachable and friendly.
May Eureka Miniatures, the world of Pax Limpopo, Avalon Bleeding, the Hallam Name, and the success of Nic Robson and Co. continue to thrive for many many years to come. | 2019-04-24T02:25:39Z | http://tabletoptitans.com/reports/0007.php |
All throughout our early lives, we were taught how to read, how to write, how to manipulate, calculate, build, destroy, theorize, study, and analyze life. We were taught how to say “please” and “thank you,” as well as what was acceptable and unacceptable to others and society at large … but most of us failed to be educated in one essential dimension of life: self-love.
Something that continues to shock me about my own upbringing was the distinct lack of emphasis on respect for oneself and acceptance of one’s flaws and virtues alike.
As a child I can’t ever recall being taught the value of loving oneself; of setting healthy boundaries, knowing how to say “no” and “yes” when you mean it, and learning how to take care of yourself, even at the expense of others.
If you were raised in a culture and society similar to my own, you were probably taught to “put others before yourself” and not give much consideration to your own needs.
Self-denial and self-sacrifice were two of the main values taught in our childhoods, and continue to be emphasized as the markers of a “kind, caring and worthy human being” to this very day.
When we don’t learn how to love ourselves depression, bitterness, anxiety, resentment, isolation, and great unhappiness are the result.
Put simply, self-love is the practice of understanding, embracing, and showing compassion for yourself. Self-love involves nurturing your entire being – that means taking care of yourself on the physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual levels. When engaging in self-love, we also work to forgive ourselves, accept our flaws, and embrace our inner demons.
It sounds like a paradox, but you cannot be altruistic, caring, or compassionate unless you’re selfish.
Unless you’re capable of truly loving yourself first (even the darkest side of your being) you can never love somebody else.
Self-seeking is preached in all societies as sinful behavior. We’re encouraged to be self-sacrificers and martyrs for ” the greater good.” History is plagued with stories of the individual hero’s willingness to sacrifice his/her life for the survival of a group or collective of people.
But the truth is that the purpose of our society’s social conditioning is to preserve and develop society as a whole, not to allow individuals to reach their full potential. This is why taking care of yourself first is met with so much resistance from others: it’s against our collective brainwashing.
But here’s the thing: in order to be a positive presence in this world, in order to care for others in an authentically loving way, we must first focus on ourselves. We must first dedicate a large amount of time to our own healing, happiness, and self-fulfillment. We must be self-seeking.
If you can’t love yourself at a deep level – the place where your love originates from in the first place – how will you ever be capable of true altruism or of truly loving anybody else?
You can’t give away that which you don’t actually have.
Think about it for a few moments.
On the surface, it’s understandable how the word ‘self-love’ could be confused with the words ‘egotism,’ ‘self-indulgence’ or ‘narcissism.’ But this couldn’t be further from the truth.
Self-love isn’t about self-indulgence; it is about taking care of yourself.
A person who loves themselves wants to become the best they can be, they want to explore themselves, practice inner work, do some soul-searching, work on their flaws, heal their traumas, and find inner peace.
We are taught to believe that being self-seeking will jeopardize society as a whole – regardless of what you actually do – so it is condemned indiscriminately. This attitude is evident when we describe the behavior of a person who succeeds at the expense of other’s wellbeing with words like ‘selfish.’ But this isn’t selfish, it’s foolish and idiotic!
A person with mindful self-love is aware that they’re actually harming themselves when they harm others. Why? Because they understand that if they hurt others, they will suffering the negative consequences in the long term, which will make life much more difficult for them. They realize that causing suffering to others is actually self-destructive, which is the complete opposite of “selfish” self-love.
On a side note, is there any such thing as Altruism, really? The actual act of helping other people does benefit us: it makes us feel good. Therefore, Altruism itself can also be thought of as a “selfish” act.
If you truly love yourself, you want to take care of yourself. It’s only self-hating egotistical people that harm themselves physically or mentally.
Self-love has nothing to do with egotism or narcissistic self-indulgence. On the contrary, the desire for honest self-exploration requires immense respect and love for yourself. Egotism revolves around the ego, and the ego depends upon the respect of others, not yourself.
The good news, I discovered, is that with time and persistence, we can learn how to heal ourselves. In essence, we can teach ourselves to become doctors of the soul, healing our wounds, curing our own sicknesses, and maintaining optimum health through the development of self-love.
Swap processed, fatty and sugary foods, with whole, unprocessed and low-fat foods. So much research has shown the link between food and the mind. Eating the wrong food is a sign of self-neglect and contributes to physical, emotional and even mental illnesses. Try slowly cutting out junk food, and experience the immense benefits! This is a basic form of self-care.
Within all of us there are subtle and incessant voices that sabotage and paralyze us, and these are the voices of our subpersonalities. I wrote about these a while ago in my subpersonalities article. Awareness is the key to overcoming the negative self-talk of The Worrier, The Critic, The Victim, and The Perfectionist.
No, I don’t mean the news, or the latest gossip on Facebook, I mean reading books (those funny obsolete things!). Focus on mostly non-fiction books in the self-help category. Reading this type of material helps expand your mind and equips you with inspiring and life-applicable knowledge. My current favorites are “Nonviolent Communication” by Marshall Rosenberg and “Emotional Intelligence” by Daniel Goleman.
Inner work is a path we advocate a lot on this website. When we practice inner work, we are shining the light of consciousness into our hidden, unconscious realms. It is within the deeper layers of our minds where unresolved fears, blockages, wounds, and traumas lurk. Working through these issues is paramount to your physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual health. Learning how to love yourself, healing your inner child, and delving into shadow work are all the cornerstones of inner work. Click on the links I’ve just mentioned within this point if you’d like to learn more.
I personally found self-hypnosis to be an extremely powerful tool in re-wiring my brain from destructive thought patterns.
Also … ensure you set a stable bedtime! Once upon a time, my bedtime was 1am, and I rose at 6am (that’s a measly average of 5 hours sleep). Getting less than the recommended 7-8 hours of sleep every night, as I found, lowers your immunity, contributes to chronic fatigue, moodiness, depression, anxiety issues, and chronic pain (or fibromyalgia). Aim to go to bed around 10pm and rise at 6am. You will seriously feel the difference!
It is not necessary to be an obnoxious jerk about what you do and don’t want out of others and life in general. But it is essential to know how to stand up for yourself and set strong boundaries. Read more about how to set healthy personal boundaries.
Low self-esteem is often the result of false and unrealistic thought patterns that are deeply ingrained within us. These are composed of mental traps such as assumptions, beliefs, comparisons, desires, expectations, and ideals about ourselves and others. Read more about mental traps.
Often, we are our own mortal enemies. To heal ourselves, it is important for us to consciously change our relationships with ourselves, and treat ourselves with compassion and consideration just as we would with a best friend. I wrote more on this topic in my article on how to become your own best friend.
When we don’t make space in our lives to be alone, it is easy for us to burn out, become disorientated and even ill. Each day, make time for yourself to rewind, relax and reflect, alone. Solitude gives you insight, perspective and reinstates harmony in your life. We wrote a book on the power of solitude if you’re interested.
Becoming self-aware is a key skill in life, a gift that allows you to identify your self-destructive patterns of thought and behavior, and find more peace and balance in life. Meditation, although frustrating and seemingly meaningless at first, is a silently potent practice with endless benefits. Aim for 10-15 minutes each morning first thing (or whenever you have time!). It’s worth it!
Toxic people make us feel wretched and significantly lower the quality of our daily lives. Toxic people are often judgmental, manipulative, clingy, backstabbing, ruthless, aggressive, controlling, deceptive, self-pitying, and self-destructive. Learning to cut away those who hinder your self-growth is a difficult, but absolutely necessary step on your journey of healing.
Supportive people encourage us, uplift us, and inspire us. These people have often obtained a certain level of self-love, and because of their ability to respect themselves, they are easily able to respect and love others. Often it is not necessary to seek these people out as we naturally gravitate towards them on our paths! However, it always helps to instigate friendships and connections with the supportive people of life as they can really help us out in dreary periods of our journeys.
Our unconscious minds are oceans of wisdom, understanding, and insight. Intuition, that mysterious inner guide we all have, is a manifestation of this vast untapped world within us. Learning to trust your intuition will help you to live a life true to yourself and your deepest needs.
All of life on earth and the universe is so interconnected, that the harm we do to others always comes back to harm us in one form or another. By supporting the well-being of nature – whether by becoming a vegan or vegetarian, by choosing sustainable food and products or even by replacing our cosmetics with organic “non-animal tested” alternatives – we are promoting the well-being of the earth and thus the well-being of us as individuals. By healing ourselves we heal others, and by healing others we heal ourselves.
This is not always possible, but regular exercise really does benefit your body, mind, and soul, proving that you are actively taking care of yourself.
Did you know that on average the American adult spends 3.2 hours per day on social networks? Whether it’s Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat, Instagram, Tumblr, Pinterest, or any of the numerous other social networks out there, we waste so much of our time on social media … and what for? Often times we are motivated by the ability to obtain “likes,” “shares,” “followers” and “friends” constructing a feeble cyber alter-ego that craves for acceptance and the esteem of others. For this reason, social media is a sickly environment to constantly expose ourselves to each day, and many studies have shown its detrimental effects on our health, including an increase of depression and low self-esteem. Connect with your friends and family – sure! – but stop using social networks to unconsciously build a false and unstable sense of self-worth.
Colors are said to greatly impact our psychology (hence “color psychology”). I have recently replaced a lot of my black, grey and dull colored clothing with bright shades of various colors. The experience has been surprising: the colors of the clothes I wear actually impact my mood noticeably. Wearing light blue, for instance, stimulates feelings of openness, or yellow stimulates optimism. Dull colors like khaki, granite, and charcoal, on the other hand, are all associated with feelings of apathy, aloofness, pessimism, and despondency.
What drives you? Fires you up? Fills you with joy and a sense of accomplishment? When we learn to forget our needs and smother them with others, we often lose sight of what truly makes us happy in life.
Many of us abandon our dreams at an early age, and so live meaningless lives of drudgery and socially approved pursuits (such as having a “good” career, big house, nice car, perfect family, etc.). It is important, therefore, to ask yourself “What is my passion?” Remember, passions are not static and they can evolve with us. Whether painting, writing, dancing, designing, building or whatever excites you – pursue it – even if on the sidelines!
Prolonged stress contributes to so many illnesses in our lives, so it is important to learn how to reduce, and deal with it when it comes. Often stress can be reduced by dropping our desires and expectations for ourselves, other people and situations in life. Stress can also be reduced by practicing many of the things I have mentioned in this article, e.g. having a good diet, 7-8 hours sleep per night, self-hypnosis, targeting negative thought-patterns, and so forth.
It is important to come to terms with the fact that you are imperfect – there is NO denying it. As part of my journey, I have dedicated a lot of time to exploring my Shadow Self and accepting the embarrassing and even shameful aspects of my nature. By accepting your flaws, the doorway to self-improvement is opened. Accept them, don’t run away from them. Likewise, learn how to celebrate your strengths! Keep a journal of affirmations and honestly list every little thing you appreciate about yourself each day. Balance is essential.
Like me, you might have read a lot of material all over the place on self-love.
You might have watched videos of gurus explaining the importance of self-respect, you might have read books on people’s journeys of self-love and you might have a spiritual circle of friends that are always emphasizing the importance of taking care of yourself.
You might be bombarded with the overwhelming desire to love yourself – just like all these other awakened people do – but something isn’t quite right. You find that the more you try to love yourself, the more unhappy you are with your efforts.
You might find yourself berating yourself about an old misfortune or a new resentment, and then later repent, telling yourself “I should let this go and move on, I should be more forgiving.” Or you might try to be more confident in yourself, fall into insecurity and anxiety, and later think “If I am to love myself I have to be more confident in the person I am – I’m not doing well enough!” You might even compare some of your habits with others on the same path and feel miserable as a result, realizing that you are not as “self-loving” as they are.
When it comes to the word “should,” there is a very fine line between motivating oneself and sabotaging one’s happiness. On one hand, we motivate ourselves by setting goals and fulfilling them, (e.g. “I should keep up this exercise routine for the next week to see how I feel”), and on the other hand, we can undermine our happiness by imposing unnecessary ideals, expectations, and comparisons onto what we do.
Have you ever thought something along the lines of, “I SHOULD have more self-love! I SHOULDN’T feel so guilty!”? This is a perfect example of falling into the trap of making self-love a duty, a burden and a jail cell that restricts our ability to truly grow. That is the threat of making self-love into a “should”: it actually turns us against ourselves. Ironic don’t you think?
At the start of our journeys, it is all too easy to be ensnared by the external comparisons we make between ourselves and other people who have perhaps advanced more on the spiritual path.
I used to do this a lot until I realized one day that the very essence of self-love is about being gentle and forgiving with yourself.
Thanks to some much-needed guidance, I learned that it was (and still is) completely fine to take my time, to go slowly and to learn little by little. I learned that it was OK to be flawed, to continue making mistakes … just as long as I tried, persisted, and pushed through little by little.
So if you haven’t yet reached the pinnacle of what you consider to be self-love yet, don’t worry. It’s not necessary that you push yourself, and it’s not necessary to be hard on yourself – the precise opposite of what self-love is. Rather, know that self-love, at its core, is the ability to embrace your wrongdoings and imperfections, knowing that you are innately worthy of all the love life has to offer.
We’ll now move onto the ‘dark side’ of self-love.
How many times have you listened to people talk about self-love, read articles/books on self-love, and seen self-love memes post everywhere on the internet that sound like: “Love yourself first!” “Accept yourself unconditionally!” “It’s not selfish to love yourself,” “Make your happiness a priority,” “Self-love is the best way to find true love,” “I’m awesome – what’s your superpower?” … and so forth.
In fact, sometimes, the vibrant catchcries of the self-love movement are simply superficial masks that obscure the real truth: you still hate yourself deep down.
This is a strange topic that not many people shine the light on when discussing self-love. But YES it is possible to use so-called self-loving practices as a way to band-aid our deeper wounds. YES it is possible to unintentionally deceive ourselves as a self-protection mechanism.
Replacing the negative cycles of inner talk within us is very helpful. However, not only is optimism often a polarized reaction to pessimism, but it can also be used as a form of avoidance by dismissing the reality of our own pain and other’s pain. It is common to use positive thinking as a way to spiritually bypass our own deeper issues. Bottom line: be careful when approaching positive thinking communities and teachings. Positive thinking becomes toxic when it is used to hide the pain, shame, and fear we carry inside.
Rewarding ourselves every now and then simply for the sake of it is a healthy, self-nurturing habit. It’s nice to relax with that mini-series, spend an hour in a bubble bath and lavish ourselves with nice food, clothing, and other gifts whenever we feel the need. However, this habit can be taken to the extreme and used to justify unnecessary greed and indulgence that covers up and overcompensates for deeper issues such as the fear of aloneness, worthlessness, and social insignificance. There is a time to reward ourselves and a time not to.
Reminding ourselves of how innately wonderful we are is important. But the many over-the-top affirmations out there paraded in the name of self-love are not only nauseating (in my opinion) but are also often reactions to the self-hatred we have inside.
Anything of an extremist nature, such as the examples of affirmations above, are usually ways to overcompensate for the deep and unresolved misery of self-hatred we feel inside.
Also, I’ve often heard over-the-top affirmations used to justify selfish and self-destructive behavior (and I’ve done so myself) sort of like: “F**k you! I don’t care what you think because I’m beautiful and I love the person I am!” Sound convincing? Not really. When it comes to affirmations it is good to find balance; to realize that no, you aren’t the best thing in the world, but yes, you are an exquisite reflection of Oneness; of the mystery of life.
To genuinely and authentically heal we must be willing to face our shadows as well as practice self-love. The two paths go hand-in-hand. We must truly be able to fathom the depths of our self-hatred in order to heal from the inside out. If you’d like more guidance on how to face your shadow read our Shadow Work article.
Cultivating self-love is essential if you desire to live a life of joy, love, peace, and fulfillment.
Although it’s usually missed in our early life education, self-love is as vital to daily life as any other fundamental human need. Without learning how to love ourselves, our lives are filled with self-sabotage, self-loathing, toxic and heartbreaking relationships, emptiness, and a profound lack of connection with life.
I hope that this article has inspired you to re-educate yourself. And please, if you feel that someone else in your life could benefit from self-love, please share this resource with them!
What has been the hardest part of your self-love path? Please share below. I’d love to read your story!
I love this article. I’ve been on this journey now for 2 years. This journey is ever unfolding towards self discovery only attainable through self love. Those steps mentioned is absolutely what I’ve done and continue to do and my life has completely changed. It’s not a quick fix, for me the process took lots of time to myself and I studied who I am extensively. It work!
I have just read what I have always knew and believed in but never had the courage to follow that path. Today at the sixty I find myself totally alone. My wife and daughter walking away from me, my brothers giving the cold shoulder. I was the slave who lived to keep others happy and never able to say no. God has given me luckily perfect health. Your article is an inspiration. Thank you very much.
Don’t know if you still answer questions on this one, since it’s an old post, but I’ll give it a shot.
I came to this to learn how to raise my vibrational energy, as I have been strongly considering opening my Third Eye the last few days and wanted to be prepared. Unfortunately, I am also only 18 and finishing high school this year, so I don’t really have a choice in what food is in the house, plus I’m known for my lack of exercise and all, so they’d ask too many questions (I typically don’t have a problem with inquiries, except my family is very traditional and religious, so this sort of stuff about vibrations and third eyes would probably come off as Satanism to them- and I want to keep a low profile). Any tips for moving out quickly, or working around that? Or do I just wait it out, because none of us are particularly financially well off? | 2019-04-21T18:51:35Z | https://lonerwolf.com/self-love/ |
‘How do I know I’m not the narcissist???’ I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard this frantic question. But let me tell you. Asking yourself this is a testament to the fact that the narcissist is inside your head, and the abuse is working.
It’s also clear evidence that you are simply not a narcissist.
Reading these few words isn’t going to convince you though, right?
I’m guessing that for you to be asking yourself this, your journey of recovery has progressed to the point where you’ve done a heap of reading on narcissistic personality disorder (NPD).
You’re at the stage where you have a solid handle on the disorder, its symptoms, and the manipulation strategies used in narcissistic abuse.
This must be the case or you wouldn’t be worried that you are narcissistic, as the phenomenon and associated behaviours wouldn’t mean all that much to you right now.
With all the information you’ve gathered, and more importantly because of the narcissist’s brainwashing about who and what you are, the question niggles at you…you are scanning yourself, your behaviours, things you’ve done and haven’t done that could just be classified as narcissistic…and here you are slap bang in the middle of freakoutsville.
This article assumes these two things: 1) that you are pretty clear on NPD (for terminology refreshers check out the Glossary), and 2) the thought of being a narc scares the crap out of you.
Here is your big dose of logic that YOU ARE NOT THE NARC!
The methods the narcissist uses to erode your understanding and belief in who you are, are all focused on breaking your spirit, and to maintain power and control over you. They do this for several reasons.
The first is to feed their addiction which is to secure external confirmation of their beliefs. This drives the need for constant reinforcement from you (and all that surround them) that they are superior, special, omnipotent, and entitled to all they desire in this world. This is the ‘supply’ the narcissist needs to survive.
The second key reason is to ensure your disempowerment. After all, so long as you feel this way, you believe you are trapped in the relationship with them.
It also means that your resistance to satisfying their addiction by meeting all their demands, is low to nil. Supplying the narc becomes your priority, as it is and always will be theirs.
Enter gaslighting which we will consider for now to be all the manipulations employed to achieve your disempowerment. These are the tools used to brainwash you into believing you cannot trust your understanding of reality, or your mental health.
When you are in this space you have essentially lost all trust in yourself. You are fully disempowered.
This is precisely where they want you. Doubting all you know of yourself and reality is the foundation needed for the narc to get away with pretty much anything.
During devaluation, brainwashing tactics come at you hard and fast. Let’s zoom in on a few to see how the narc plants the seed in your mind that you are the narcissist (and waters in well, with lots of fertiliser for vigorous growth).
1.Projection: Denial underpins all narcissist defence mechanisms to protect the false self from confronting any truth about reality. The narcissist unable to accept that they have any flaws, uses projection as a defence mechanism to attribute what is unacceptable in themselves, onto you.
This of course means that narcissistic traits are regularly cited as your defects. Examples of your listed shortcomings might include ‘you’re so selfish’, ‘you think everything should be about you’, ‘you’re so manipulative’ etc.
2. Blaming you: Similarly, the narcissist cannot accept any responsibility for any negative behaviours. A preferred ‘go to’ when attempts are made to hold the narc to account is to blame you for the issues raised.
In this scenario, you will get a dose of projection (i.e.: a diatribe about your narcissistic traits) being the cause of their behaviour. For instance, ‘you made me look elsewhere at other men/women. If you weren’t so abusive/controlling/focused on yourself, I wouldn’t have needed to’.
b) in smear campaigns with others, also used to obtain sympathy for them as the ‘injured party’ and to garner support that you just might be the narcissist.
It’s becoming a little clearer now isn’t it?
Believe it or not, asking yourself ‘how do I know I’m not the narcissist’ signifies the fog of brainwashing is lifting. Of necessity, this comes hand in hand with the realisation that the person you’re in a relationship (or were in) with is abusive and potentially has NPD.
You are now able to recognise what is what. You are a victim of narcissistic abuse. And you rightly hold the narc responsible for abusing you.
You have been through hell. Pure and simple. It may come slowly, but eventually you will also most likely feel the need to share your story with those you trust as part of your healing journey.
The big tell gorgeous one, is your intention contrasted with theirs.
Quick recap. The narc’s intent in projecting, blaming, and using the ‘poor me routine’ is to disempower you, and brainwash you into questioning reality, and your mental health.
Now consider where you are coming from.
You believe you have suffered narcissistic abuse, and the responsibility for this is entirely the narc’s, because these are facts.
You share your story because you need to be heard after being silenced for so long. It is also how you receive the validation you desperately need to begin recovering from the annihilation you’ve suffered.
You are speaking your truth, the reality, in order to heal.
Still not sold? OK here we go.
My point lies in the word ‘concerned’. Feeling this way necessarily means that for you, the idea of feeling entitled to cause pain by controlling, demeaning, and manipulating others with the end goal of stripping them of all power and sense of worth, is well, abhorrent.
2. Furthermore, your concern indicates understanding of a) how awful the behaviour is, and b) the impact that it has on victims. For you to comprehend these concepts, indeed, to feel them, you must have empathy. As you know, the true narcissist is void of empathy.
3. Your repulsion at the possibility of behaving as a narcissist, of course means that you do not want to be this way. It is therefore fair to consider that the disgust would be a massive motivation to change.
For growth to occur, certain conditions must be met in addition to the will to change. The first of these involves giving honest critical thought to your actions and behaviours. The second is the identification and ownership of the undesirable behaviours you wish to transform. Let’s call this self-reflection. Pursuing an answer to the question ‘How do I know I’m not the narcissist?’ is an act of self-reflection (which by the way, you are doing right now…).
In living a life where a false-self has taken over, the narcissist functions through denial. Both reality and the true self have been set aside. The narc is thus incapable of many aspects required for critical self-reflection and consequently growth. It is antithetical to the narcissistic modus operandi on multiple levels. A belief system that clings to the conviction of being superior over all others, simply does not allow for these possibilities.
By definition, individuals with NPD are incapable of considering they are anything less than superior to all others; feel no sense of personal responsibility; and have no empathy for others. These traits render the need for self-reflection redundant. There is no need after all to review or change, what is already perfect.
4. In conducting your self-reflection, you will come across behaviours and actions that make you uncomfy, things you won’t be fully proud of in your time with the narcissist. Things you may compare to narcissistic traits, for example rage, jealousy, aggressiveness etc.
Think of what you have been through. Hell. Can anyone go through hell and not react? No. They can’t.
You can accept you are not perfect right? Your ego does allow for this. So forgive yourself now for your humanity, and how you have navigated surviving hell.
BOOM – you are not the narcissist. No way. No how.
Rest easy. Shoosh that voice that keeps asking the question. You know you’re not the narc. Stop giving the narcissist any more of your time or energy by engaging with this ludicrous idea they planted in your mind.
Use your precious time and energy on you instead, and in progressing your recovery. From now on, every time you hear that voice sneaking back in, promise me you will meet it with remembering who you are.
‘I am open and embrace growth. I evolve without fear knowing my heart is good and kind’.
‘I am strong, resourceful and capable of surviving any situation’.
Yeah baby! You are indeed gorgeous.
Please share your insights or questions below. Have you tackled this question? What are your tips for others in holding fast to self-truth? Sharing and encouraging others is so very necessary to help all of us on our journey of recovery – so thank you!
*I’ve just finished reading Psychopath Free by Jackson Mackenzie – what a magnificent book! It’s super helpful as an intro as to how all cluster B disorders destroy those they are in relationships with. Mackenzie walks through the emotional process of waking up to abuse, and what to expect through recovery.
This is a fairly typical book outline for this topic. Mackenzie’s book has extra specialness. A clear mission surfaces about celebrating the empath, the dreamer, and the gifts these offer the world. Sadly, these are the very qualities often targeted by narcs. So I just know that this book will speak to many of you out there and remind you to protect and treasure what makes you so very wonderful.
Also, Mackenzie at times writes like a poet (a humorous one!) which makes reading this challenging topic for victims a softer experience than the more common clinical/dry style found in similar titles. Loved it.
Wow, makes sence. Have had screwed over 50 yrs but all i knew. They all deny or take responsibility for their ampathy.
This is good to read. I have recently been told that I don’t live in the real world, that I do absolutely nothing, that things I like are just hobbies and are not real life, that I say ‘ I love you’ too much and it spoils it for him when I say it for real, that if it were not for him I would be homeless, that he has to do everything, because I can’t do anything, that I have no life. He ripped everything about me to pieces and expected me to be all jolly and happy and got even more angry when I was crying. this episode ( just the tip of the iceberg) has left me feeling traumatised and has given me nightmares ( that I am sleeping on the streets in a sleeping bag) and I am doubting myself, not sure what is real life or not real life. Am I some kind of hideous misfit ? He says I am miserable and can’t take a joke and beacause I have breasts I do not understand ‘banter’ And there is never ever any apology from him either, never has been. Its been 23 years. I can’t walk away, I have lovely kids and 2 beautiful dogs, I would lose them all.
Thank you, I shall read this again and again til it sinks in. I do realise that the only thing I can change is myself and can fill the empty shell that I feel I have become, in time. Its not pleasant and quite sad that someone can make you feel like THE worst person in the whole world.
What do you think? Do you think you are a hideous misfit? What do you believe of yourself? The answers to these questions are by far, the most important ones. And not the answers you would give in your sadness and pain, from the place of hurt you hold because of your husband, but the answers you would give from your place of either anger or deep peace. This is where your truth lies. You are not an empty shell, you’ve just lost that connection with your truth. Find your truth once more and you will be free from the words of others being able to make you feel like the worst person in the whole world.
Thank you very much dear Maggie, esp for your hot tips 🙂 it will not be time wasted working out the answers, I may know them already. Your writings have helped me make a small start already.
This sounds exactly like my husband. Now I realize he stripped me of anything I enjoyed. Made my own jobs impossible to keep per his needing me. Then discounted my worth because of my not being employed. Yet I worked for him, for pennies. Took all control of financial during my demise and predicted it all because he was manipulating me into it himself. He caught me at my most vulnerable point, the death of my brother and 2 weeks later my dog.
I’m 25 years in and the past 12 have been a nightmare. I realize now that he manipulated me into relocation even made me believe it was my idea. That was the beginning of his mask falling off.
I’m still with him trying to get my own financial in order to which I know he will destroy when I leave.
This article is a great source of reassuring me that I’m recovering and regaining control. I hope it works for you too! Good luck!
Dear Patricia, thank you for sharing your story and for reaching out to offer support & encouragement in the Narc Wise community. It’s people like you that make a difference 🙂 I’m so sorry for what you have endured. And for the losses of your brother & your beloved dog.
I left my narc nearly two years ago. He is in prison now, so I am technically “safe”, but I still live in constant fear and questioning of my own morality. As I read this article, I found myself needing to re-read certain sentences to solidify their existence to myself! Thank you!! I will keep this article close, and read repeatedly until every word ingrains itself. I finally feel like my eyes are open, and I am not the enemy. Thank you thank YOU!!!
Made me cry too. I think it’s because the words rang true in my heart, where so few have, and my soul hungered for someone to not only believe in me, but to champion me as well. Thank you, Maggie.
Thank you soooo much for this article. I must admit I was keep asking myself and blaming if I somehow I am not the narc. The worst of all is that I keep wondering that my husband would be a narc. But I had been to hell, I was thinking about suicide and all of that because he was telling me I destroy my kids, I am mean and aggresive. It’s hell to live thinking that you destroy your kids, that you do harm when all you want is to be good and offer all you find good in yourself.
But, with God help I think, only with His help, I succeded to stand up from my bathroom floor and to promise myself that I will NEVER be down there again!
Two months ago, I discover that narcissism is a disorder and what it means. Reading about it was like a waking up but reading about what the person in relationship with a narc is passing through is a revelation.
I must admit I still can’t belive that this is happening to me, most of all because we have 3 kids and I have no ideea how can I protect them and what is best for them.
But, in the same way that happend until now, I hope that time and God will gove me the proper answers. Thank you SO MUCH!
Let me thank YOU so much. Your words “I succeded to stand up from my bathroom floor and to promise myself that I will NEVER be down there again” gave me goosebumps.
You say that you don’t know how to protect your children or what is best for them or what the proper answers are, but I don’t believe you.
I do believe that you are all you need, and that all the answers to work through your challenges are right there inside you.
The goosebumps were from hearing your massive strength roaring through your words of pain.
I suspect you are only coming to grips now with all the strength and courage and goodness you have inside you. (Of course you are! You’ve been told you are the opposite for too long it seems). So let me join your own sweet self who is telling you from deep within that you are strong, courageous and good – and say I agree. You’ve got this. You’ve got you and your children.
I was told over and over that I was the Narc. I didn’t even know what one was! I just thought it was an egotistical person. She told me I needed to go to counseling so I did. After 2 sessions the counselor told me “Bryan, I have worked with many Narcs and you are NOT a Narc! Just the fact that you are here questioning yourself shows that you aren’.t What you need is couples counseling!” So that’s what we did. At the end of it all my counselor said “Bryan she is broken! She treats you horribly! She has no ability to rationally deal with conflict resolution! It’s either fight or flee! There are people out there that don’t act like this! It doesn’t have to be this hard!” My counselor was actually feeling pain for me. I thought she was going to cry! This is when I started hitting the web and realized that my love was a Covert Narc! The break up has been the hardest thing of my life! I truly loved the good side of her but the bad was BAD! The trauma bonding is real and getting off the drug and PTSD has been tough. No contact and run is the only answer!
I couldn’t understand why there was absolutely no emotion in how my sons (her former stepsons) and I were being devalued and discarded so easily after almost 6 years of marriage, and how she can call me a monster for none of us wanting her to remain a part of our lives after walking out on us, and trying to take their home away in the divorce. we were making love in Paris every day less than 30 days before she told me that she doesn’t love me, isn’t in love with me, and hasn’t loved me in a very long time. i learned about codependency and what a covert narcissist is and it all made perfect sense. i went no contact for two months and then had a momentary lapse in judgment and during the ensuing period of time she told me that I was the narcissist. i’m so glad I found your blog post.
Its been since Nov 13, 2017, when after 6 years of insanity, he raged, pushed me so hard in was knocked unconscious. Of course all the devaluing and blaming preceded that and was nonstop for 2 years. I didn’t go to the ER until the following day. He was arrested and the case is still pending. His plea is not guilty and thru a friend swears he will go to a jury trial and get this dismissed. He’s truly insane. The county in which this occurred is super tough on dom v. I have pics and text messages saved and even a solid terrorist threat sent via text that I have not disclosed to the DA as I almost feel sorry for him. I feel if I stay quite (as usual) I’m not doing myself any favors and boy oh boy…I deserve to be favored. He’s higher than thou and above the law…along with making me out to be the crazy one? NO. I am not crazy. I’m a caring loving woman who thought my love could save this (sometimes) gentle man. He gave me a concussion and walked away…not even knowing whether or not I was DEAD. I’ve never had a man put hands on me and THAT crap will never happen to me again. I’m angry and lashing out at many of my friends. I’m just so angry at my decision to stick by this monster, walking in faith that he wanted to change…In seeking EMDR therapy due to the PTSD aspect of this trauma. I will be fine. Better than fine. I’m now aware. And that’s all one can hope for – – preventing the bad decisions in losing sense of self. Damn I’m BLESSED for that!
Dear Sue, thank you for sharing your story.
I am so sorry for what you have been through, it is such a relief to know you are now safe from this man now. My goodness woman, the power and strength behind the words in your message are so inspiring. I hear you with the rage you are carrying (you can read more about this in Why is it so hard to leave an abusive relationship with a narcissist? if you you’re interested). Right now, your rage is your friend, it is your truth coming up and out, when this has been squished down for too long. I’m glad you are seeking therapy support and you are investing in you to work through these experiences and the PTSD. Enough has been given to this man, time to reclaim all your freedom & joy.
I completely agree with you: You are a caring and loving woman. You are not crazy. You are fine. You are aware. And you are blessed.
Thank you thank you and thank you this is beautifully executed , informative relatable and conforting. I am greatful for your insight.
I’m a 58yo male that is being used by a 34yo female narc.
Everything I’ve read (and been a ton over last two months) narc was males, and along with her I was scared I was the narc.
I NOW!! Realize I am not and need to break ties move on, (easy said than done). Again thank you for opening my eyes, and my heart.
I’ve read this article 3 times. Everytime I have doubt I read it again.
I’m so sorry you feel you are being used. And by someone you are intimately involved with. Not only this, but with someone who has sought to convince you you are someone other than who you are. How terribly heartbreaking.
I’m so very glad that you have made the decision to find a happier situation for yourself having realised what isn’t working for you.
I was told how I feel. I was called selfish and “it’s all about you.” I was gas lit, love bombed and manipulated for my entire marriage. Reading this has given me some much needed insight because I did question myself. I was beaten or punched whenever she drank and was blamed for it. Clothes were destroyed, glasses broke etc. I became enraged and ended up isolating because of the daily fighting. When I sought help for us, I couldn’t tell the truth or I was disloyal to her. I was blamed for everything she did and it was beginning to drive me crazy. Daily projections made me question my own sanity. I remember telling her ,”you’re breaking my spirit.” The response was always,”stop making it always about you.” The last straw was making me choose between her and my children from my previous marriage. She had me believe that I couldn’t love her if they were a part of our life. Thank God my children forgave me for not seeing them for 10 months. The price I’m paying now? She had me arrested for threatening her. Through counseling I’m realizing that when someone devalues you, crushes your spirit, tells you who you are and manipulates your very being that who wouldn’t lash out with threats? Who wouldn’t become enraged? I’ve also learned that is exactly what the narc wants is a negative reaction so they can blame you and make you look and feel crazy. My advice? If you’re in a relationship with a narc get out safely while you still have an ounce of self respect, self worth and sanity. They will drive you to do things that you don’t believe you were capable of doing.
Dear Anonymous, there is so much anguish in your words. I’m so sorry for your pain. I could be way off base, but your words tell me you are feeling such shame.
This isn’t something that seems to be spoken of much in the narcissistic abuse community, I think some may get confused that this is some form of victim blaming rather than a very real, powerful and destructive symptom of being abused leading to not much talk on this front.
It’s an area we should all start speaking more on. Brene Brown said “If we can share our story with someone who responds with empathy and understanding, shame can’t survive”. We must find our voices! I wrote about shame in Why is it so hard to leave an abusive relationship with a narcissist?.
Obviously speaking your truth is what you are doing withing counselling which is wonderful. My little rant here about the impact of shame and how to conquer it is really to say a) I get it – I get the yuck feelings that may be swirling inside now and the challenges of coming to grips with things you wouldn’t ordinarily do, nor are necessarily proud of – you & I are not alone in feeling this way, it is a product of what has been endured; and c) trust that you are now on the path to setting yourself free, you are doing the work, you will get there.
“that is exactly what the narc wants is a negative reaction so they can blame you and make you look and feel crazy.” That is so true! Know that you are not alone. We have all had to get this education the hard way. But also know that this knowledge will eventually set you free and keep you from making the same mistake again!
I’m at a point where I know I want away from my narc, but have always had the weakness of worrying more about others than myself and being overly receptive to his needs. I found this after yet another argument where everything turned back around on me and how I don’t care about his needs and everything is my fault. What I hate most about narc abuse is that, in the moment, everything they say to you makes sense and you feel how they want you to feel; then you walk away and see it’s bull but still have that doubt in yourself. Reading things like this helps me keep my feet on the ground and reassure myself I’m not crazy.
Ok so I get all this and I get I’m not a narcissist. But I am convinced that if my ex read this he will say the exact same thing, that he’s the victim and that I’m doing all these things described. He would truly believe that I am the narcissist. So again, how do I know I’m not the one in denial of a horrible personality?
Dear Zara, I sooooo get it. This is why I wrote the article. I call what you are doing the narc spin. The never ending circling through of repeating thoughts. Ruminating. You conclude a point, then find yourself unpicking it immediately afterwards, only to work your way back to the original conclusion and so it continues. Ad infinitum through the same loop, over & over again.
I will make a few observations & ask you a few questions. In the hope they may slow the spin until you find your way to peace and it halts altogether.
1. You start your message clearly stating you are not a narcissist. Presumably you look inside, reflect on who you are and subsequently assuredly state that this is a fact. You are not that person. You are not a narc.
It is not until you think of what your ex might say about you, that your assurance flags. Why should you take his opinion, word, interpretation as any more valuable than is your own? Who knows you better – you? Or him? And who’s view of who you is more important to you? (The answer on this last point gorgeous one, must be yours).
2. Placing weight on what he might be doing or thinking etc. is a dangerous practice. Your recovery has everything to do with cutting the tie with what he might be doing or thinking and reconnecting with just what you are doing and thinking. And only this.
3. A general observation is this: Victims of abuse will pursue information and seek to raise their own understanding of what has happened to them in order to heal. This is a proactive action taken to address the very real harm they have experienced, to heal and rebuild their lives. It is such a deep seated need, that the pursuit can become all consuming, such is the magnitude of the hurt.
4. “Victims” on the other hand, those in denial, do not. Blaming others for harm that they in fact are responsible for is not accompanied with genuine soul searching – the two concepts are diametrically opposed. They are mutually exclusive. (As an aside, to be clear because I can almost hear you thinking ‘so what’s the difference between me saying he hurt me, and him saying I hurt him?’…blaming is not the same thing as rightly holding another individual accountable for their actions. The former IS rooted in denial, the latter in acceptance, boundaries and strength. One on make believe, and one on reality).
– Do you believe you are better and more special than all those who surround you?
– Do you believe that you are entitled to anything you desire, and that everyone’s undivided attention & focus should be relentlessly on you?
– Do you need to be in control at all times in addition to confirming constantly that you hold the upper hand in terms of power in all circumstances?
– Do you need to be right in all circumstances? Do you get a kick out of making sure others know they are wrong in all circumstances that disagree with your own view?
– If someone gave you a horrible personality diagnosis, would you consider it an impossibility because you are beyond reproach and dismiss it altogether (as well as dismiss the smarts of the person diagnosing you)?
– When confronted with people who need help & kindness, do you walk away without any emotion refusing to offer them help, unless there is something in it for you?
Dear Zara. Only you know the answers to these questions. Only you. Similarly, the only person who actually cares about the answers, is you. By this I mean, that a narc would not.
I promise you the spin will slow and eventually stop if you continue on your journey. You’ve got this.
Dear Maggie, thank you! This clarified a lot! My narc is my daughters dad so naturally I can’t cut contact completely. I left him three years ago and the divorce was final last year. I met someone else and married him as soon as my divorce was final but the narc ex doesn’t know cause I am afraid of his attacks, they frikkin hurt! I am afraid he will use our daughter (6 y/o) and turn her against me as she’s too young to understand what’s going on and that her hero dad is nothing but a douche!
Last night I went to his place to pick her up, as we were leaving he started to walk with us. I asked why and he said we could have a drink. I said I need to do laundry and pack as me and my daughter are soon going on a trip to croatia. He said he wouldn’t stay long. He drank all the alcohol making margaritas, when I was out of ingredients he went to buy new (he’s an alcoholic but he’s denying it since he has no problem at all to not drink on a daily basis) I ignored him and did what I had to do and also of course giving my all focus to my daughter. As I was folding my clean clothes I told her that when I was done it’s brushing time and her dad said “yeah I should’ve left a long time ago” now this is how I knew he’s gotten nothing in his “narc veins” this evening. He wanted me to worship him and beg him to stay and tell him what a good Time we’ve had. I simply said “yeah so why didn’t you” he was shocked and said I didn’t kick him out and I replied that you can leave without being kicked out. He was furious and took his shoes on, ignored when I asked about tomorrow cause he was supposed to drive us, he slammed my door and left. One last try I opened the door after him and calmly asked again about tomorrow, he ignored me (the silent treatment is his thing and always have been) I said that we’ll be fine on our own and wouldn’t need him to drive us. It took literally 5 mins till he started calling and I didn’t pick up, in 5 mins he called 22 times (I have screenshots of this) in between I texted and said I’m done doing this and asked him to stop. The usual gaslighting started “yeah but what about you?” “Like you’ve never done that” “you’re insane” “all I did was….and then you….” “making a hen out of a feather” etc, I ignored said I would talk when he would be quiet and listen since I never get to finish my sentences. He turned again and begged me please to answer the phone and he promised to listen, HE would feel awful if we didn’t solve this misunderstanding, HE wouldn’t be able to sleep etc. I didn’t pick up. He said he would come back to my place, I said he wasn’t welcome back and that he should go back home, he said he was on his way, I said he should turn back home and he said I had to answer the phone. This was over iMessage and I have the screenshots of all the 22 calls and our messages. I also recorded the phone call when I finally had to answer since I didn’t want him back there and to bother my neighbors. I am now sure of what he is and what he does and this story is NOTHING compared to other things he’s done. I am also aware of how I t act to what he does and for the first time in my 10 year relationship with him I didn’t end up crying myself to sleep, I laughed, smiled and felt so relieved! Thank you for that! But now I don’t know how to get rid of him….
You know this because you are preocupied of beeing a narcisist, better saying of NOT beeing one. A narcisist would always think that even his behaviour is called a narcisist one it doesn’t matter. He/she is a powerful person and we, the others are weak because we have emotions!!!!
So the one who accept having emotions is NOT a narcisist.
Thank you Maggie, you helped open my eyes, 3 months ago. Since then, I had read books and I still learn how to establish boundaries. I hope I convinced my husband that he needs help unless we will have no future together. He said he will begin therapy. I have also learnt that in the future I have to be aware of this type of persons because somehow I am attracted to ths type of personslity and this is a schema for me.
Not to mention that I had prepared one of the best lawyers in town in case of a divorce.
Itripped upon this and will save it in a file.
I was married to one for 31 years.
He did whatever he wanted, I was a SAHM.
I was made to feel for years as an outsider from he and his family.
If his friends crossed the line or boundaries, I was overreacting, too sensitive, etc.
For years I was hurt, eventually I stopped caring, focused on theneeds of our two daughters .
My mother and father are narcs, I married one, and my oldest daughter is one .
I question myself all the time, am I being selfish, am I self absorbed, etc. eetc.
I’ve been separated for 3 and divorced for 2, and I still feel guilty if I treat myself.
My oldest daughter is an overt and my wasband a covert.
I am trying to learn how to not be drawn to a narc, especially since that is what my normal is.
I will soon be 58 and hope to never stop learning orworking on .myself.
Dear Mel, thank you for sharing some of your story. There are many more layers behind all this. How can there not be when this is all that has surrounded you since birth? I salute you gorgeous woman, for the stand you are taking for your self. No more. From this point, no more. I hear you, it is hard to unlearn all that has been learnt, particularly so when there is no real point of comparison of non-narcness to refer to. (Frankly, doesn’t cover it. It is strength and courage at it’s grittiest).
Still, despite the ‘hardness’, you’ve got this.
Hello… I was scrolling through pinterest one day and came across something about narcissism and it kind of made me do a double take- wait… that looks familiar… I started reading up more and more on it and I’m at that point where I’m asking myself if I am a narcissist. I’ve reflected on this article for quite some time, circling from saying no, I’m definitely not, to what if I am? I have so much empathy and love for every thing, i would never dare cause any harm to anyone or anything intentionally. I would rather harm be turned unto myself than anyone else. I’ve just recently been married, been with this man for 5 years… and I’m just now realizing. The shock and the unsure thoughts, I’m so… lost. I dont know what to do, who to talk to. I tried talking to my parents, they think I should stay with him and try to work things out. I’ve had so many talks with him, seemingly ending with solutions and some closure but then it goes right back to me feeling like I’m crazy and imagining things. Is be doing this on purpose? Everyone says they can see how much he loves me. And I think he does too… but… why then do I feel like this? That my mind is telling me to run, get away but my heart is telling me to stay? He isnt physically violent, or sexually… but he gets angry and has broken things, he gets very loud and I always feel like a wee mouse cowering and begging forgiveness… some how it’s always my fault. I’m constantly saying sorry, justifying my decisions and always having to explain myself. Please, what do I do? I need to talk to someone I need to know I’m not crazy.
Dear Anon. Can I suggest you reach out locally and you find someone to talk to? I provide coaching services as well online/over the phone. If you are interested email me: [email protected].
Have you read these articles: Am I in denial? Am I the narcissist?; 5 ways to counteract the narcissist’s gaslighting; and How journaling combats gaslighting & frees you from narcissistic abuse?
The key to determining what is right for you, irrespective of the opinions of others, lies within you. Finding your truth, and hearing it unimpeded by the confusion and what others would rather you believe. It isn’t easy, particularly when surrounded by voices who conflict with your own, but it is possible. The articles above have practices to help you get there. You may also want to read: Emotionally unhook yourself & starve the narcissist of supply: Here’s how. | 2019-04-21T03:07:24Z | https://narcwise.com/2018/03/25/youre-not-narcissistic/ |
This Hosting Agreement governs the terms of the use by the "Customer" (indicated as item 1 on the Term Summary Sheet) of services offered by NetAdvisor Ltd. ("NetAdvisor"), a Canadian company, having a place of business at 2748 Springfield Road, Kelowna, B.C. V1X 4N1. The Customer agrees to use NetAdvisor's services in accordance with the terms of this Agreement. This Agreement, together with the Term Summary Sheet, comprises the entire agreement amongst the parties.
The Customer acknowledges and agrees that the terms under this Agreement are for the services selected on the Term Summary Sheet. NetAdvisor is not responsible for Customer site maintenance, changes, modifications, HTML coding, scripting, or programming or any other services other than as indicated on the Term Summary Sheet.
2.1 The Customer will pay NetAdvisor the fees specified in the Term Summary Sheet. In addition, the Customer will pay interest to NetAdvisor at a rate of 2% per month on overdue accounts (effectively 26.86% annually).
2.2 All monthly fees will be paid in advance on the first day of each month. The Customer will either provide authorization for automatic bank payments or a standing credit card authorization. For fees other than monthly charges, the Customer will pay for services provided under this Agreement upon receipt of invoice to the Customer from NetAdvisor. When initiating the provision of NetAdvisor services, the Customer will be charged a base monthly access fee for NetAdvisor services according to the service plan selected by the Customer, as well as a pro rated partial month user fee according to the service plan selected for the number of days remaining in the calendar month from the time of initiation of service until the end of the month in which service is initiated.
2.3 All invoices will be sent by NetAdvisor to the Customer by email at the email address provided by the Customer to NetAdvisor. If payment by the Customer is by way of credit card charge, NetAdvisor will process the credit card charge monthly.
2.4 The pricing does not include any government sales tax, value-added tax or tax of any kind. If NetAdvisor has a legal obligation to collect any taxes from the Customer, then the appropriate amount will be added to any invoice and shall be paid by the Customer on the same terms as other invoices rendered pursuant to the terms herein.
2.5 If payment is not received in full within fifteen (15) days of the date of NetAdvisor's invoice, in addition to charging the interest on overdue accounts, NetAdvisor may at its option, terminate its services to the Customer. NetAdvisor may lock the Customer's account until payment of outstanding fees is brought up to date. NetAdvisor will not be responsible for any damages caused to the Customer or its affiliates as a result of the Customer's account being locked, and the Customer will indemnify NetAdvisor for all liabilities it incurs as a result of locking the Customer's account.
2.6 The Customer consents and authorizes NetAdvisor to obtain credit and bank information for purposes of assessing the Customer's credit worthiness. The Customer will provide such further documents and assurances, and take such further action as NetAdvisor may reasonably require, to carry out the intent of this paragraph.
3.1 This Agreement shall commence as of the Commencement Date set out in item 4 for the term set out in item 5 of the Term Summary Sheet. If the Term Summary Sheet designates this contract as "indefinite", either party to this Agreement may terminate this Agreement with or without cause by providing at least 14 days' written notice to the other party. Whether the term is indefinite or for a fixed term, if the Customer is in default under this Agreement (including without limitation, non-payment), then NetAdvisor may immediately terminate the Agreement without prior notice to the Customer. This Agreement will automatically renew for successive one (1) month periods unless cancelled in writing prior to the monthly renewal date. If the Customer does not provide NetAdvisor with the required notice as provided above, and the Customer's services are automatically renewed for the next month, the Customer will be charged for such month's service fees on NetAdvisor's next monthly invoice to the Customer, whether the Customer uses such services or not.
engages in conduct which is abusive to NetAdvisor's staff.
For greater certainty, NetAdvisor will not be liable to the Customer for losses caused to the Customer as a result of the interruption of the Customer's business during the period of suspension of NetAdvisor's services to the Customer.
Any Customer property that is left in the care or custody of NetAdvisor fourteen (14) days after the termination of this Agreement may be disposed of or retained by NetAdvisor without any further obligation to the Customer. The Customer is fully responsible for removing its software, information and equipment following termination of this Agreement. If NetAdvisor stores any hardware or software on behalf of the Customer, NetAdvisor will be entitled to be reimbursed for reasonable storage fees prior to returning such property to the Customer.
If the Customer is using the co-location service and the Customer continues to occupy space in NetAdvisor's facility, then such holding over will constitute a renewal of this Agreement on a month-to-month basis with the fees equal to 200% of the fees in effect immediately before the expiration of the term.
The Customer will use the services offered by NetAdvisor in accordance with the terms and conditions set out in NetAdvisor's Acceptance Use Policy ("AUP"), a copy of which is attached as Schedule A hereto.
The Customer will use the services offered by NetAdvisor in a manner consistent with all applicable local, provincial and federal laws and regulations.
Schedule D: Shared Hosting & VPS Service Level Agreement.
The SLA that will apply to the Customer will depend on the type of services selected by the Customer.
"spam" or distribution lists to be used via unsolicited electronic mail or other mass electronic mailings.
6.2 Due to the public nature of the Internet, all material submitted by the Customer for publication will be considered publicly accessible. NetAdvisor does not screen in advance the Customer's material submitted to NetAdvisor for publication. Use of NetAdvisor's servers or services to assist with the publication of material does not create any express or implied approval by NetAdvisor of such material, nor does it indicate that such material complies with the terms of this Agreement.
7.1 NetAdvisor is not liable for protection or privacy of electronic mail or other information transferred through the Internet or any other network NetAdvisor or its customers may utilize.
7.2 Under no circumstances will NetAdvisor be liable to the Customer for special, punitive, indirect, third party, incidental, consequential damages, or exemplary expenses, including without limitation, lost profits, lost business revenue, or failure to realize expected savings, sales or profits, even if the other party has informed NetAdvisor of the possibility thereof.
7.3 NetAdvisor does not represent or warrant to the Customer that the Customer will receive continual and uninterrupted service during the term of this Agreement. If the service is interrupted as a result of the negligence of NetAdvisor or its staff, the Customer's sole remedy will be the right to receive a credit in additional time for the number of days the services were interrupted and there shall be no cash refund or credit in substitution. In no event shall NetAdvisor be liable to the Customer for any damages resulting from or related to any failure or delay of NetAdvisor to provide services under this Agreement if such delays or failures are due to strikes, riots, fire, inclement weather, acts of God, theft or vandalism or other causes beyond NetAdvisor's control, as defined by standard practices in the industry. Such failure or delay shall not constitute a default under this Agreement.
7.4 The exclusions and limitation of liability set out in this Agreement are fair and reasonable in the commercial circumstance, and such limitations have been, in part an inducement to NetAdvisor to agree to the fees payable by the Customer herein, and NetAdvisor would not have entered into this Agreement for these fees otherwise.
The Customer agrees to defend, indemnify and hold harmless NetAdvisor, its officers, directors, employees and agents from and against any and all claims, losses, liabilities and expenses (including lawyers' fees) related to or arising out of the services provided by NetAdvisor to the Customer under this Agreement, including without limitation, claims made by third parties (including clients of the Customer) related to any false advertising claims, liability claims for products or services sold by the Customer, claims for patent, copyright or trademark infringement, claims due to disruption or malfunction of services provided hereunder, or for any content of the Customer published on NetAdvisor Servers, but excluding those related to the negligence of NetAdvisor.
The Customer will not copy, modify, make derivatives of, reverse engineer, disassemble, decompile or otherwise attempt to discover any portion of the source code, object code or trade secret of NetAdvisor's software or services.
NetAdvisor maintains control and any ownership of any and all IP numbers and addresses that may be assigned to the Customer and reserves in its sole discretion the right to change or remove any and IP numbers and addresses.
Grant of License. Subject to the provisions in this Agreement, NetAdvisor grants to the Customer, as of the Commencement Date (set out in item 4 of the Term Summary Sheet), a nonexclusive license to install, operate, replace, remove and maintain a server and communications equipment, cabling, connections, associated hardware and accessions (the "Equipment") in the co-location space specified in the Term Summary Sheet (the "Customer Space"), in the Premises specified in the Term Summary Sheet during the Term. The license granted is a license of space only, and does not create an ownership interest or property rights of any nature in NetAdvisor's real or personal property.
Installation and Requirements. The Customer owns and will be responsible for the delivery and installation of the Equipment and the connection of the equipment to telecommunications lines and power. The Customer must provide NetAdvisor with 48 hours advance notice for access to its Equipment in the Customer Space in the Premises and is permitted to install or remove equipment during business days between 8:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m. (OR with prior written approval of NetAdvisor, which approval will not to be unreasonably withheld). The Customer will only install or place equipment in the Customer Space. NetAdvisor, acting reasonably, reserves the right to approve or deny access to Customer's technicians, contractors or other agents. Any Customer's technicians, contractors or other agents allowed access to the Customer Space must be escorted by an NetAdvisor staff member in the Premises. During the term of this Agreement, the Customer will immediately notify NetAdvisor of any space, power or other requirements associated with the installation or operation of the Equipment. NetAdvisor will have no duty to monitor, maintain or care for the Equipment. The Customer must install their equipment according to the hot and cold aisle setup of the NetAdvisor facility. If the Customer requests NetAdvisor to install any equipment or hardware in the Customer Space, NetAdvisor will charge its service fee at the rate specified in item E of the Term Summary Sheet.
Maintenance and Use of Premises. The Customer, at its own cost and expense, will protect, maintain and keep in good order the Customer Space and any Equipment in the Customer Space. The Customer will ensure that neither the Customer nor its employees, agents, contractors or invitees damage any part of the Premises or any property located in or about the Premises, or interfere, or allow the Equipment to constitute a hazard to or to interfere with, NetAdvisor or any other user of the Premises or any equipment owned or used by NetAdvisor or any other user of the Premises. The Customer will not make any alterations or installations of any kind to the Premises without the prior written consent of NetAdvisor.
Immediate Threats. If, in the determination of NetAdvisor, acting reasonably, the Equipment poses an immediate threat to the physical integrity of the Premises or the physical integrity or performance of the equipment of NetAdvisor or any other user of the Premises, or poses an immediate threat to the safety of any person, then NetAdvisor may perform such work and take such other actions that it may consider necessary without prior notice to the Customer and without liability for damage to the equipment or for any interruption of the Customer's (or its clients') businesses. As soon as practicable after performing such work, NetAdvisor will advise the Customer in writing of the work performed or the action taken.
Intervention. If any part of the Equipment is not placed and maintained in accordance with this Agreement, and the Customer fails to correct the violation within 7 days after receipt of written notice thereof from NetAdvisor, then NetAdvisor may, at its option, without further notice to the Customer, correct the deficiency at the Customer's expense without liability for damages to the equipment or interruption of the Customer's (or its clients') businesses. As soon as practicable thereafter, NetAdvisor will advise the Customer in writing of the work performed or action taken. The Customer will immediately reimburse NetAdvisor for all expenses reasonably incurred by NetAdvisor associated with any work or action performed by NetAdvisor with respect thereto.
Relocation. The Customer will, at NetAdvisor's expense, relocate the Equipment to other space within the Premises upon NetAdvisor's written request and within 30 days of such request.
Periodic Inspections. NetAdvisor reserves the right (upon reasonable prior notice to the Customer) to make periodic inspections of any part of the Customer Space or Equipment; provided that the Customer will have the right to have one or more of its employees or representatives present during any such inspection.
Insurance. NetAdvisor does not provide insurance coverage for any Customer equipment in the Premises. The Customer will at its own expense, effect and maintain insurance of the Equipment in the Premises, throughout the term of this Agreement, for insurable risks against which and in amounts for which a prudent owner of such equipment would protect itself.
Access and Entry. Subject to the terms of this Agreement and compliance with the payment terms of NetAdvisor, the Customer will have unrestricted access to the Premises during the Term. The access fees charged by NetAdvisor are set out in item E of the Term Summary Sheet. The Customer will cause its employees, agents, contractors or invitees who have access to the Premises to conform to all NetAdvisor's rules and regulations (as amended by NetAdvisor from time to time). Failure to comply with the payment terms may result in denial of access to the Equipment and Customer Space. NetAdvisor shall not be required to provide Premises access to any person not approved by NetAdvisor. Notwithstanding the above, NetAdvisor shall not be liable for the consequence of admitting or refusing to admit to the Premises or Customer Space, the Customer's agents or employees or other persons claiming the right to admission.
Co-location Facility Rules and Regulations. NetAdvisor may vary these rules and regulations from time to time in its sole discretion, and the Customer will comply with all other reasonable security requirements that NetAdvisor may impose from time to time, provided that the Customer has been given 30 days notice in writing.
All Customer employees, agents, contractors or invitees ("Customer Persons") having access to the Premises must be approved by NetAdvisor. Approval by NetAdvisor does not release the Customer from its responsibilities pursuant to this Agreement, nor by approving such Customer Persons does NetAdvisor waive its rights to be indemnified by the Customer.
The Customer must provide NetAdvisor with particulars, including a current photograph of each Customer Person, (where required by landlord regulations) before that Customer Person is given access to the Premises.
No more than three Customer Persons will be authorized to have access to the Premises at any time.
Removal of Equipment. Upon termination or expiration of the Term of this Agreement, unless prohibited by NetAdvisor in this Agreement, the Customer will remove the Equipment from the Premises. Unless the parties otherwise agree in writing, in the event the Equipment has not been removed within 5 days following the termination or Expiration Date, NetAdvisor will have the right to remove, relocate, or otherwise store the Equipment at the Customer's expense without any liability to the Customer. If after 30 days of such storage by NetAdvisor, the Customer has not retrieved the Equipment and paid any indebtedness owing to NetAdvisor, then NetAdvisor may dispose of the Equipment.
Ownership of Equipment. The Customer represents and warrants that it either owns all Equipment or has all necessary rights to use and maintain, the Equipment in the Premises. If the Equipment is leased, then the Customer warrants that it has provided to NetAdvisor all documentation regarding the said lease.
Consent to Video Monitoring. The Customer acknowledges, agrees and hereby consents under applicable privacy laws that NetAdvisor may monitor the Premises by way of closed circuit television or other monitoring device for the purposes of maintaining the safety and security of the Premises, any equipment in the Premises, and any persons using or present in the Premises from time to time.
Interference. The Customer shall be responsible for resolving any technical interference problems between the Customer's Equipment and other equipment located at the Premises and, if there are other wireless telecommunications facilities located at the Premises, the Customer shall reasonably cooperate with such other licensees to resolve any issues of interference in an equitable fashion. The Customer's Equipment shall not disturb the communications, configurations, equipment, and frequency that exist at the Premises as of the Commencement Date.
NetAdvisor is not responsible for the Customer's files data residing on NetAdvisor's servers. The Customer is solely responsible for independent backup of data stored on NetAdvisor's servers.
NetAdvisor will provide a backup service if this service option is selected by the Customer. If the backup service option is selected by the Customer, the Customer will be authorized to perform backups of their websites and the Customer will receive access to the web browser based control panel to restore files at will. Even if the Customer selects backup service, the Customer is responsible for preparing independent backups of its data.
NetAdvisor may provide such maintenance modifications, updates and enhancements as and when NetAdvisor deems appropriate, without having to obtain the prior consent of the Customer and without notice to the Customer.
Force Majeure. Neither party will be liable for any delay, interruption or failure in the performance of its obligations if caused by acts of God, war, declared or undeclared, fire, flood, storm, slide, earthquake, or other similar event beyond the control of the party affected ("Force Majeure"). If any Force Majeure occurs, the party claiming the Force Majeure will promptly notify the other. The party claiming the Force Majeure will use commercially reasonable efforts to eliminate or remedy the Force Majeure. This section will not apply to excuse a failure to make any payment when due.
Survival The terms of sections 7 and 8 of this Agreement shall survive the termination of this Agreement for any reason, including termination as a result of a breach by either party.
eliminate or modify the need for a specific consent or waiver pursuant to this section in any other or later instance.
Notice. To be effective, a notice, request, demand or direction (each for the purposes of this provision a "notice") to be given pursuant to this Agreement by one party to another party must be in writing and must be delivered or sent by delivery or by facsimile, email or other similar form of written communication, in each case, addressed to the Customer or NetAdvisor at the addresses set out in this Agreement NetAdvisor may also notify the Customer by posting the notice on NetAdvisor's website.
Assignment. The Customer may not assign this Agreement, to any person without the express written consent of NetAdvisor, which consent may be withheld for any reason. NetAdvisor may assign its rights and obligations arising pursuant to this Agreement, provided that it notifies the Customer promptly of such assignment.
Governing Law. This Agreement is and will be deemed to be made in British Columbia and for all purposes will be governed exclusively by and construed and enforced in accordance with the laws prevailing in British Columbia, and the laws of Canada applicable therein, and the rights and remedies of the parties will be determined in accordance with those laws. The parties hereby agree to attorn to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of the Province of British Columbia.
This Policy applies to each Customer and its employees, agents, contractors or other users of such Customer (each such person being a "User", collectively, "Users") who obtain NetAdvisor services (the "Services"). All Users are required to comply with this Policy to enhance the quality of the Services and to protect NetAdvisor's customers, and the Internet community as a whole, from illegal, irresponsible, or disruptive internet activities. Each User should use common sense and good judgment in connection with the Services.
Utilize the Services to send mass unsolicited email to third parties.
Provided, however, that Users may use software programs or services provided by NetAdvisor to send unsolicited commercial email so long as the User ensures that such transmissions comply with all applicable provincial, federal laws and regulations.
Utilize the Services to be involved in the distribution of tools designed for the aiding of Unsolicited Bulk Email (UBE).
Utilize the Services in such a way that User becomes documented on a recognized SPAM abuse list or if the User has previously been denied access from another provider due to acceptable use policy violations.
Utilize the Services in any manner that violates applicable local, provincial, federal laws and regulations.
Disclaimer and Assumption of Risk. Notwithstanding this Policy, Users of the internet (including the Services) make such use at their own risk, acknowledging that there are known and unanticipated risks associated with internet use, some of which could result in physical, emotional or psychological injury or even death, or damage to individuals, to property, or to third parties. Such risks cannot be eliminated without jeopardizing the essential qualities of use of the internet. These risks include, without limitation, credit card theft, identity theft, fraud, solicitation, stalking, invasion of privacy, unwanted receipt of offensive or obscene material, trespass to chattels or denial of service attacks. NetAdvisor expressly disclaims any obligation to monitor Users with respect to violations of this Policy. NetAdvisor has no liability or responsibility for the actions of any User or any content any User may post on any web site. Users voluntarily engage in the activity of internet use and bear the risks associated with that activity.
Reporting Violations. NetAdvisor encourages Users to report violations of the terms and conditions set out herein to NetAdvisor, including in any such report the name of the offending domain (for example, xyz.com), the IP address and the type of abuse (for example, spam, illegal acts, harassment, etc.) in the "subject" field of the email.
Take other appropriate action in accordance with this Policy, the applicable service contract or applicable law.
Reservation of Rights. NetAdvisor reserves the right to involve and cooperate with appropriate legal authorities in investigations of claims of illegal activity involving NetAdvisor's Services, Customers and other Users. NetAdvisor reserves all other rights to respond to violations of this Policy to the extent of applicable law and in accordance with any applicable contractual obligations. NetAdvisor may utilize technical means to monitor communications into, and out of, its network facilities to prevent the introduction of viruses or other hostile code, to prevent intrusions and otherwise to enforce this Policy and each Customer agrees that NetAdvisor is authorized to monitor its communications through NetAdvisor's network for such purposes.
Indemnification. User(s) will indemnify, defend, and hold harmless NetAdvisor, its affiliates, subsidiaries, officers, agents and employees from any and all claims, damages or lawsuits of any kind (including reasonable attorney's fees) arising out of the User's use of the Services and negligent or illegal acts of User(s), its employees or agents, including, but not limited to, claims, damages or lawsuits arising out the use of such Services.
NetAdvisor will provide 100% uninterrupted transit to the internet to all co-location customers who have purchased said service from NetAdvisor. Should transit to the Internet become unavailable for a cumulative period up to one hour in any one calendar month, the Customer will receive a refund equivalent to one day of the Customer's pro-rated recurring monthly fees for that month. The Customer will receive an additional refund of one day of the pro-rated internet connectivity recurring monthly fees for each additional hour, or portion thereof, of unavailability. All refund calculations will be based on unavailability in one-hour increments. This SLA does not cover outages caused by equipment and/or events not under the direct control of NetAdvisor or caused by individuals not directly employed by NetAdvisor. This SLA does not cover outages due to scheduled or emergency network and/or facility maintenance, which will be broadcast to all customers in advance, and will not exceed 20 minutes per month.
Any and all refunds to the Customer will not exceed 50% of the Customer's recurring monthly fees for the month in which the refund is paid. The Customer should email NetAdvisor at [email protected] within 30 days of the service interruption to claim their SLA credits.
In addition to the above performance guarantees NetAdvisor will take all reasonable measures to insure all Customer traffic reaches its destination in a timely fashion comparable and within reason to any other carrier in the area. These measures include the manipulation of routing tables so as to direct traffic to the internet using its best possible upstream link.
NetAdvisor will provide at a minimum 99.9% uninterrupted access to your website, email, and other related hosting services.
Should the services become unavailable for a cumulative period beyond the allowed 0.1% in any month of service, the Customer will receive a credit equivalent to 10% of the Customer's recurring monthly fees (excluding excess bandwidth fees) for that month and then an additional 10% for every additional 30 minutes the services remain unavailable.
All credit calculations pursuant to this SLA are based on service unavailability in 30 minute increments. This SLA does not cover outages caused by Customer errors. This SLA does not cover outages due to scheduled or emergency network and/or facility maintenance, which will be broadcast to all customers in advance, either via email or posted on NetAdvisor's website, and will not exceed 4 hours in any month.
Any credits awarded under this SLA shall not exceed 100% of the Customer's recurring monthly fees for the month in which the credit is due. The Customer should contact NetAdvisor netadvisor.ca/contact within 30 days of the service interruption to claim their SLA credits. | 2019-04-25T18:48:59Z | https://netadvisor.ca/service |
Behind your thoughts and feelings, my brother, there stands a mighty ruler, an unknown sage – whose name is self. In your body he dwells; he is your body.
This paper is an introduction to a fascinating concept: that your body knows what it needs to heal itself, and that there is an inner communication between all parts of your body as well as with all present and stored emotions. This concept is in fact part of the road of discovery that I have been traveling for the past several years. To learn about these concepts I have studied a form of bio-energetic healing called Health Kinesiology (HK). This practice, that was developed about 40 years ago, is based upon psychotherapy and on Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM). To compliment the understandings of HK and to help me to more fully understand this form of energy healing, I have looked to what others have said about these concepts; and so I have based much of this paper on some of their ideas and thoughts and tried to relate those ideas to how Health Kinesiology ‘works’.
This paper will be to try to respond to some of those questions as I try to provide a deeper understanding as how these concepts actually do work.
This paper will have two sections. The first section will briefly explain the HK system and how it relates to both Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) and psychotherapy. By beginning the paper with these concepts I will be able to easily refer to them as the paper progresses. As well, I’ll momentarily touch on how this form of bio-energetic healing differs from allopathic Western concepts of medicine/ healing.
The second section will survey some of the research that has been done that examines how the physical body relates to the mind and emotions. I will examine some work done in the field of psychoneuroimmunology, as well as some ideas that other energy healers, psychotherapists, and scientific researchers have contributed.
To begin, I would like to explain a little bit about how the HK system of bio-energetic healing. HK was founded in the1970’s by a psychologist and physiological researcher from the University of California Medical School, Dr. Jimmy Scott. Through his research and careful thought Dr. Scott learned how to obtain information from the body to achieve greater wellness and functioning. Except for some concepts that are based on Traditional Chinese Medicine, all of his work is original and is a new form of Bioenergetic Kinesiology that works on the energy of the body. For more detailed information please check the HK website at www.healthk.org.
With this in mind then, HK understands that to maintain good health it is essential that the qi flows freely through all of the meridians in the body to enable all of the cells, and bodily systems, mind and emotions to be about their business of doing their job in the body.
HK uses the concept from TCM that there are fourteen major meridians. Two of the meridians on the midline of the body are the Central or Conception vessel that runs up the front of the body, and the Governing Vessel that runs up the back of the body. The other twelve meridians run bilaterally on the surface of the body. (HK1 p.4) Each of these meridians has it’s own acupoints and specific muscles associated with these meridians. These meridians are named after organs in the body, such as the lung meridian or spleen meridian. For example, the kidney meridian relates to the kidney’s ability to balance the fluids of every cell in the body to maintain biochemical balance within the body (HK 1 p.4).
Kaptchuk, in his book The Web That Has No Weaver, says that these fourteen meridians and some other minor meridians are “the warp and the woof of the body.” (Kaptchuk 200, p.106). These meridians are paired together in elements, and each pair has a Yin meridian and a Yang meridian. Seven of the meridians are Yang and seven are Yin. The meridians that run down towards the feet are Yang, and the meridians that flow up from the feet are Yin.
The Ying/ Yang symbol that illustrates the interconnectedness and balance resonates deeply within me to imply how everything in life is interrelated. We are so connected with nature and the world around us that each small occurrence in our life influences all parts of our being both emotionally, spiritually, intellectually as well as physically. What stands out the most to me is that when you go see an allopathic medical doctor that person needs to look at your whole being and not quickly compartmentalize you and only treat one small part of your body.
In HK muscle testing is used to gain information about what is happening in the body and how to restore balance. Muscle testing involves the practitioner applying gentle pressure to a muscle on the arm or the leg (in fact almost any muscle can be used). The muscle will be able to withstand the pressure if it is strong, or if weakened the muscle will give away. This will provide the Health Kinesiologist with information about what is going on in the body and the necessary procedures to correct the imbalance. HK recognizes that even when physical symptoms show up in the body, the source of the imbalance may be in the emotional or spiritual realm. This was a new concept for me to think about as I have always thought of illness as something physical that ‘happened’ to the body and I had not given much credence in the past to the connection between the whole body in terms of the emotional, spiritual, and psychological.
The first thing an HK practitioner does is to balance the body so that some of the major highways can become unclogged and allow messages from the brain flow smoothly to all parts of the body. To do this, first a muscle that will respond to testing is found, usually this is an arm muscle but most other skeletal muscles in the body can be used as well. When pressed down the muscle will ‘hold’, but when ‘spindled’ or ‘alarmed’ it will weaken and release. To balance the body, the practitioner determines which meridians have the blockages and which reflex points will balance them. This is where TCM comes into play again. In TCM the twelve meridians are coupled as Yin and Yang and are grouped into the Chinese Five Phases or Elements and these relate to: Wood, Water, Metal, Earth, and Fire. In HK these same elements are used, and as well the Governing Vessel and Central Vessel have been added to make the HK Seven Element Sequence. Below is a chart illustrating the connection between the elements and the organs and the related emotions.
The elements can be identified by lightly touching around the navel, as well as above and below the lips, and muscle testing at the same time. This is important in determining which element is unbalanced so that a correction can be made. In addition to determining the element (e.g. Lung meridian), Reflex Evaluation Points (REP’s) are used to determine which point along the meridian needs to be held for the correction of acupressure. The Reflex Evaluation Points include: Sedation, NeuroVascular, NeuroLymphatic End Points, and Activation Points. These reflexes are found on special points on the front of the body between the breast and pubic bone. When any of these points tests weak, then the practitioner can hold the appropriate reflex points to eliminate the blockage and allow more communication to travel from the body to the brain.
The above procedure is used at the beginning of the HK session to balance the client so that accurate testing can be then done to determine the correct energy work that is needed specifically for that client. (This differs form allopathic remedies and treatments that may be used for many clients who present the same symptoms.) The same HK procedure is also used later to make the energy corrections. During the correction, the Yang meridian points are held first, and the Yin meridian points are held second.
Once balanced, it is now possible to find out what particular issues are disrupting the body’s work. One method is to directly ask the person what is their complaint or concern at this time; this is called Client Specified Issue. The person may have a constant headache, but when you ask the body permission to work with that headache, the body may respond with a ‘no’ meaning: “Well that headache is not my main (energy) concern right now, as we’re really dealing with a blockage in transporting the blood from the heart and we need to get that fixed up first of all. You can deal with the headache later.” It could also be that if the heart’s issues are addressed, then the headache will also go away. This answer is determined when the person tests positive for Body Sequence and not Client Specified.
This communication with the body is done through questioning the body and eliciting ‘yes’ and ‘no’ answers. A strong arm response means ‘yes’ and a weak arm response means ‘no’. It takes some time to grasp the idea that the body can hear you and know what you’re saying. I had always believed that the mind / head was the seat of knowledge and knowing, and that the body was just the package that covered the insides. It took a while for me to realize that mind and body were connected and that the body and mind take everything literally and is always listening to what we say.
And so in HK testing when the health issue is revealed, the practitioner then consults several charts that indicate which meridian acupoints are to be held and for how long. For instance, if a person has a broken leg, or a fractured foot it may require precise placement of magnets and specific acupoints to be held to reconnect the meridians to get the healing mode activated to accelerate the body’s ability to heal. As well, the liver and the spleen may need more energy so the body can get back to making the necessary repairs.
During the correction certain words or phrases may need to be thought and focused on by the client at a cognitive level. Throughout our life many situations occur that stresses our body, some of them we are completely aware of while some of them we have never consciously thought about. If these thoughts/ feelings are not addressed, then they are stored in our energy system at a deep level that may be completely unconscious to the person. However, these thoughts and feelings can create blockages in our physical body that can impede the body’s flow of energy and its ability to do its work at a cellular level. Identification of these thoughts or feelings is necessary to enable them to be acknowledged and processed and corrected.
For so many years I have gone to the Western medical doctor to heal me and to tell me what is wrong and what to do, I have given my power to him/her to determine my body’s needs. While I am not about to discount all Western wisdom and learning, (for certainly western medicine has done amazing work in the field of surgery), I am now realize that there are other ways of healing, and HK is a way that makes a lot of sense. We are all connected in nature and are not ‘islands unto ourselves’.
This section has provided a very brief overview of HK and some of its principles. This next section will look at some of the work that other scientists and researchers have found that supports some of the above beliefs and principles.
Pert explains how these emotions can communicate with the body. She begins by suggesting that peptides are tiny pieces of amino acids that when joined together produce a chain called a protein and this protein is in every part of our body. She then speculates that the amino acids are the letters of language, and that the peptides and proteins are the words that are made from the letters. Thus, all together the peptides and amino acids make up a language that directs every cell, organ and system in the body.
Pert calls this the emotional resonance, which she explains as the connectors that “ flow between individuals moving among us as empathy, compassion, joy and sorrow… it is a scientific fact that we can feel what others feel…. Our molecules of emotion are all vibrating together.” (Pert 1997. p. 312) This concept resonates with me when I am working with a client and I feel their energy both at the physical level (when I hold my hands over their body) and at the emotional level when I look at them and see their emotions displayed on their face and in their body language.
This concept seems to support Levine’s work, which was mentioned above, as well as the TCM belief that there is a two-way communication system that travels around the body connecting all our organs and emotions and thoughts and feelings. The ancient TCM belief is that each organ is responsible for the different emotions that we feel now and have experienced. To maintain good health, both physically, cognitively and emotionally the qi needed to flow freely through each organ. In TCM there is the understanding that the qi moves with the blood and air simultaneously to all parts of the body. When there is no qi then there is no life.
Carrying on with her research, Pert feels that when feelings are not expressed appropriately but are buried deep below the unconscious, they are stored in the body’s energy field at a cellular level. Our culture has a challenge expressing our emotions appropriately and honestly, as we tend to deny feelings and suppress them and go through the motions of always being happy. Some of our feelings are fresh and very moving, while other feelings are deeply buried that may have originated many years ago. When both kinds of feelings remain un-addressed they are stored at a cellular level and at this level they cause blockages that impede the smooth flow of energy and nourishment in our body. While psychotherapists will address the thoughts and feelings they do not address the physical body; and conversely, the western physicians treat the physical body but pay little if any attention to the mind and emotions.
Hartley goes on to suggest that the skin is the body’s largest organ and it defines the body’s physical space. The skin is where communication between the inner and outer world takes place. This sensory organ registers pressure, contact, and threat, and the sensory nerves send impulses to the brain that interprets the messages as pleasure or pain. She feels that it is through the skin that we learn about ourselves and about those around us. While the layers of fat provide warmth and protection from the body, they also hold energy as a form of protection from either outside that may harm us, or from the inside to stop our feelings from flowing out. Hartley continues to suggest that the fat that we hold on to may be connected to our emotional and mental states that “are woven into our unconscious neurohormonal process of the body”, and thus how we hold or express our feelings may be related to our body fat. (Hartley 2004, p. 144) This view supports the idea that victims of sexual abuse may carry a protective shield of fat around their hips and genital area.
Hartley proposes that there is a direct relationship between our thoughts and feelings and our body’s ability to protect itself from invaders in the form of viruses, infection and disease through our lymphatic immune system. The process begins with the bone marrow producing B-cells that patrol the cells and provide natural antibiotics that protect us from invading bacteria, toxins and viruses. Then the thymus gland produces T-cells that check out the body and destroy worn out, damaged or infected cells in a process called ‘cellular immunity’ (think of this in the form of housekeeping). When the body is in good health, the T-cells and B-cells work together harmoniously.
While may of us feel that occasional ‘fight or flight’ experience, far too many of us are living in that mode on a daily level with no opportunity to allow the body to rest and relax and return to a balanced situation. Not only are we suffering from emotional stress, our body is also dealing with toxins in our air and foods, drugs and vaccinations that results in a compromised immune system.
When the mind moves, the mind intent is immediately aroused; when the intent is aroused the ch’i will follow. So heart (mind), the intent, and the chi are closely connected like a circle.
Heart connects with fear, openness, love, and compassion.
The first level is the background energy fields that is diffused and unformed, is influenced by forces from without and permeates the whole body. This level forms an aura that extends beyond the body, and it can be seen and felt by some people. In this level every thought and emotion is registered and the general feeling and vibration of the person is available here.
The second level are the channels where the energy flows in a vertical fashion through the body, and maintains the independent integrity of the person as well as the interdependency of the person to nature. It connects us to the universe, to heaven and earth moving and transforming the energy that passes through us. It flows through the skull, spine, pelvis and legs, as well as through the skeleton that is the densest of the body tissues.
We stop our feelings by blocking our energy flow. This creates stagnated pools of energy in our systems which when held there long enough lead to disease in the physical body…. The connection between therapy and healing becomes obvious when disease is seen this way. The broad view of the healer encompasses the totality of the human being. In healing there is no separation between body and mind, emotions and spirit- all need to be in balance tom create a healthy human being.
What the Bleep Do We Know!??!
A fascinating book called, What the Bleep Do We Know!?, looks at scientific research based on the scientific method and compares some the ideas with looking at it through the eyes of quantum physics. Their findings prove the interconnectedness of each of us to the universe, and among many other ideas the profound effect that emotions and feelings have on our well being.
The authors mention the work by Dr. Masaru Emoto and his research in his book, The Hidden Messages in Water. Emoto’s work showed photographs of pictures of water crystals that changed shape and arrangement after being subjected to music and words and thoughts. Negative words and thoughts caused the water crystals to take on malformed, ugly shapes, while positive words and thoughts caused the same water crystals to form beautiful shapes and designs.
When we realize that anywhere from 60-80 % of our body is made up of water, it gives us room to think about the effect negative thoughts and feelings have on our physical body and our health. It does make one wonder of the impact the phrase ‘mind over matter’ has on our ability to become and remain healthy!
This is a brief attempt to describe how our minds and body are all interconnected and how our emotions play a pivotal part in maintaining our health. I have attempted to describe this compelling energetic system that we call our body. When I practice Health Kinesiology and bio-energetic healing, I ‘see’ inside the body and visualize the miraculous interplay between all of the systems.
I know that when I ask questions of the body through muscle testing, that the answers are coming from the cellular level and the innate wisdom of the body that knows what it needs to run this incredible complex system. I know that unresolved thoughts and feelings have a profound effect on our health as they can create road blocks that impede the flow of energy in the meridians. By identifying these thoughts and feelings and addressing them by using HK, we can then assist the body by helping to remove the blockages that impede the flow of energy and cause imbalances that lead to pain, inflammation, and many other health issues.
I feel truly blessed to be working with such an incredible organism that is powerful beyond words.
Arntz, Chasse, and Vicente. (2005). What the Bleep Do We Know!? Discovering the endless possibilities for altering your everyday reality. Health Communications, Inc. Deerfield Beach, Florida.
Coelho, Paulo. (1993).The Alchemist. Harper Collins, New York.
Cohen, K. (1997. The Way of Qigong: The Art and Science of Chinese Healing. Random House. New York and Toronto.
Hartley, Linda (2004). Somatic Psychology. Whurr, London.
Hoberman Levine, Barbara ( 2000). Your Body Believes Every Word You Say. WordsWork Press, Connecticut.
Kabat-Zinn, J. (1990). Full Catastrophe Living: Using the Wisdom of Your Body and Mind to Face Stress, Pain and Illness. Random House, New York.
Myss, Caroline (1996). Anatomy of the Spirit: The Seven Stages of Power and Healing. Three Rivers Press, New York.
Scott, Jimmy. (1985) Health Kinesiology Manual – Level 1 . Hastings, Ontario.
Totton, Nick. (2003). Body Psychotherapy: An Introduction. Open University Press, Maidenhead. | 2019-04-19T04:38:36Z | http://www.northtorontoenergyhealing.com/articles/article-3 |
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Next off, you need to ensure you’re selecting a shape that praises your face. A rounder face could should attempt a square form and vice versa.
A distinction in the shade of a side could influence the form to look completely readjusted. It’s vital to try a number of hues in the sizes and shape that fits you best. Concentrating on the tone of your skin is necessary since a few tones can be excessively rough, or in reality laundry you out.
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krpano has a small and simple dynamic scripting language. With it krpano can be customized in many ways. A command or function is called 'action' in krpano. It's possible to use existing actions and also to define new ones. The scripting language is dynamic and untyped by default, only some predefined variables are typed, but that is normally not relevant because inside the scripts all type conversions will be done automatically.
This documentation is about global krpano variables and objects, about the actions calling syntax and about all pre-defined krpano actions / functions.
Whitespace characters (like space, tab, new-lines) will be ignored as long they are not inside quotes (single or double quote characters).
If there is more than one action call, the calls should be ended with a semicolon.
The action calls will be processed in sequence one after the other.
The parameters that could be or should be passed to the action depends on the particular action itself. See here the documentation of that action for more.
When passing more than one parameter, then the parameters need to be separated by commas.
All parameters will be passed as they are written as text to the action. When the parameter is a variable, then only the name of the variable will be passed - but not the value of the variable! To pass the value of a variable the get(variable) action need to be used.
Note - some actions are resolving variables automatically to their value, but this depends on the particular action itself!
To be able to use whitespace characters and commas inside a parameter value, the parameter must be enclosed by single ' or double quotes ".
The expression syntax will be used in if checks, in conditional loops (for, loop) and in the calc action. It can be used to evaluate logical conditions, calculate mathematical expressions or to concatenate strings.
where the a or b terms can be either variables, values or strings.
The OPERATOR can be one of the operators listed below.
The resolving order depends on the operator, but withhin equivalent operators the resolving order is from left to right.
Textual operators like AND or OR are only supported in UPPERCASE notation!
When using non-strict comparisons (by using == or != when the strict mode setting is false) then it will be assumed that the given values are either variables or strings. That means when a variable with the given name exists, then the value of that variable will be used in the comparison. But when the variable doesn't exists, then the given name will be used as string.
In strict comparisons the strings must be explicitly marked by quotes. Variables will resolve either to their value or to null if they don't exists.
* Note - due of xml syntax limitations, the usage of the characters <, >, & might be not possible (e.g. inside xml attributes or inside xml elements without CDATA tag). Therefore it's recommended to use the alternative syntax.
Every xml element with a name attribute is an element / item of an Array.
The name of the xml element is the name of the Array and the name attribute defines the name of the Array element / item.
An Array in krpano is always an Array of objects.
Such Array-item object can contain any kind of custom properties / attributes.
Arrays can be predefined or defined dynamically at runtime by setting an Array item value - when setting an item value the first time, then automatically an Array will be created.
Get the current number of items in the array.
An Array can be cleared by setting count to 0.
Sort all array items by the value of the given attribute.
By default the sorting order will depend on the type of the attribute (e.g. 'numeric vs. string' sorting).
caseinsensitive - case insensitive string sorting.
descending - use a descending sorting order.
numeric - parse the values as numbers and sort accordingly.
Create / add a new array item.
The items following the removed item will rank / move up.
The 0-based index of the current Array-Item (read-only).
The name of the current Array-Item.
It's also possible to delete an Array-Item by setting its name to null.
Value-Arrays are simple Arrays with an integer index and a value.
Dynamically creating Value-Arrays is possible by def(test, array).
The access to the items is possible by array[index].
The current number of items in the Array can be get via array.length.
Value-Arrays are only available in actions code.
The global object allows directly accessing the global variable scope.
The usage of global can be necessary inside local- or layer/hotspot scope code to be able to access a global variable when a variable with the same name is already defined the current scope.
The local object is only available inside local-scope actions and allows directly accessing the current local variable scope. This can be used to ensure defining new variables at the local scope when there might be already global variables with the same names.
The version setting from the xml.
When not set, this will be the same as the krpano version string.
The krpano build date string in the format YYYY-MM-DD.
The mouse.x and mouse.y coordinates are relative to the left top edge of the area.
The mouse.stagex and mouse.stagey coordinates are relative to the left top edge of the whole stage / screen / window.
The mouse.downx and mouse.downy variables store the position where the mouse button was last pressed down (for left and right buttons). The coordinates itself are relative to the left top edge of the area.
The mouse.clickx and mouse.clicky variables are special case ones - they store the position where the click from onsingleclick or ondoubleclick events had happend. The coordinates itself are relative to the left top edge of the area.
The keycode of the last pressed or released key.
The keycode value will be set in the onkeydown and onkeyup events.
The roll-delta of the mouse wheel rotation.
These variables will be set in the onmousewheel event.
The wheel roll delta as normalized value.
Typically +3 or -3 on the most systems.
The 'raw' unscaled and non-rounded delta values of the mouse wheel rotation. The normal wheeldelta values are limited to integer values and can be too inaccurate for some usages (plugins).
Note - in the krpano Flash viewer, the raw values are only available when using the default krpano embedding script and only in windowed-mode (not in Fullscreen mode)! In the krpano HTML5 viewer, the raw values are always available.
On touch devices there is no mouse-wheel, but the onmousewheel event will be also called on 2-finger zooming gestures.
The wheeldelta_touchscale variable will provide detailed information about the relative touch scale / zoom.
Note - only available on touch devices!
On other devices the value will be always 0.0.
The fullscreen variable can be used to check or to change the current state of the fullscreen mode. When the variable will be changed, then also the fullscreen mode will be changed.
Before using the fullscreen setting, it should be verified if the current browser / device actually supports the fullscreen mode. This can be done with the xml fullscreensupport devices setting and the device.fullscreensupport variable.
Due Flashplayer and HTML5 security limitations the switching to the fullscreen mode will be only possible as reaction to an user input like a mouse click or a keypress! That means it's only possible switch to fullscreen mode in an onclick or onkeydown event!
When the HTML5 fullscreen mode is not supported by the browser (like on iOS), then the fullscreen setting will only change the size of the viewer html element to match the size of the full browser window. Due technical limitations this will not work from inside an <iframe> and can be problematic in nested html structures.
When trying to use the HTML5 fullscreen mode from within an <iframe>, it is necessary to add the allowfullscreen parameter (and the non-standard browser versions of it) to the <iframe> declaration. This tells the browser that this iframe is allowed to switch to Fullscreen mode.
The sizes of the current viewer window in pixels.
Get the these sizes in the onresize event.
A global overall scaling setting.
The stagescale setting will scale all krpano elements and sizes.
By scaling all elements, the krpano stage-size (screen-size / resolution) itself will be scaled inversely by this value - e.g. a value of 0.5 will scale-down all elements by 50% while increasing the internal stage-sizes by 200% at the same time.
The user-agent string of the browser.
In HTML5 this will be the 'platform' string of the browser.
In Flash it will be always "Flash".
The full url of the current webpage.
The domain name of the current webpage (without leading 'www.' if there is one).
The protocol part of the current webpage url, e.g. 'http', 'https' or 'file'.
Flash notes - in the Flash viewer these information will be only available when using the krpano embedding script. When directly embedding the swf file, then these information aren't available.
The device object provides information about the current device/system. It's the dynamic/scripting equivalent to the xml devices attribute.
The attributes/properties of the device object can be checked anytime by scripting code, e.g. by the if() action.
Note - desktop, mobile and tablet are 'tri-state' settings, they can never be set at the same time, only one of these can be set to true.
Note - mouse and touch can be set at the same time when the device is supporting both (e.g. desktop devices with touch-screens).
The timertick variable returns the number of milliseconds that have elapsed since the viewer was started (1000 milliseconds = 1 second).
The random variable returns a random number in the range 0.0 to 1.0.
These variables can be used to set a force to move the view / the pano.
Their main usage is for keyboard or button movement control.
When they will be set to a value other than 0.0, the view will start slowly accelerating (controlled by control.keybaccelerate) and then move with a maximum speed (controlled by control.keybspeed) until they will be set back to 0.0, then the movement will slow down (controlled by control.keybfriction).
Lock the automatic multi-resolution level selection to a fixed level.
Set lockmultireslevel to "current" to lock the level to the current level. To release the level locking set lockmultireslevel back to "-1".
When set to true, the currently locked level will be downloaded completely.
The current loading progress as linear value from 0.0 to 1.0.
It could be used to create custom loading animations - e.g. use the onxmlcomplete event for starting the loading animation, and the onloadcomplete event for stopping it.
viewerpath - path to the krpano viewer file.
htmlpath - path to html file.
firstxmlpath - path to first loaded xml file.
currentxmlpath - path to current xml file.
If the paths will be absolute or relative paths depends on the paths used in the embedding and on the Browser and Flashplayer environment.
The xml.url variable contains the path/url of the currently loaded xml file.
The xml.content variable contains the whole content of the currently loaded xml file as string. After loading a <scene> with the loadscene() action, the xml.content variable will contain only the content of the <scene> element.
The xml.scene variable contains the name of currently loaded scene.
A backup of the values from the initial <view> element defined in the current xml or scene. E.g. get the initial view.hlookat value via xml.view.hlookat.
Note - only the values that were defined in the xml are stored here, no default values. That means before using a value from that object, it would be necessary to check if these variables actually exists - e.g. via if(xml.view.fov !== null, ...);.
The lasterror variable contains the last error message when an error had happened. To get this variable the onloaderror event must be used.
Online on a server the External Interface is always available, but locally only when Flash file will be opened inside the Browser and when the folder of the Flash swf is in a 'trusted folder'. The trusted folders can be managent in the Flashplayer security settings, see here for more detatils - Local / Offline Usage.
This variable can be used to check if the Network Access is available in the Flashplayer. This can be used to avoid errors when trying to use plugins like the Google Maps or Bing Maps locally, because these plugins are trying to load data from the web and so need Network Access.
Online on a server the Network Access is always available, but locally only when the folder of the Flash swf is in a 'trusted folder'. The trusted folders can be managent in the Flashplayer security settings, see here for more detatils - Local / Offline Usage.
Define a new variable with a specific type and optionally set it to the given value.
When no value will be given and the variable already exsits, then the variable with its current value will be converted to the given type.
The variable will be created when it doesn't exists.
The type of the variable.
The new value for this variable.
When no value will be given and the variable doesn't exsits, then these the default values are used: boolean=false, number=NaN (Not a Number), integer=0, string=null.
When the type is object or array, no value can be set.
Set a variable to the a value.
This is a normal set of one variable to a value.
This is a multiple-set of several variables at once.
Here the variables will be set or added to an object.
Optionally it will be also possible to specify the type of the variable.
The object for the multiple set call - at this object the variables will be set.
When the object doesn't exists, it will be created.
To define variables at a specific scope, it would be e.g. possible to use the global or local objects here.
When the variable already exists, then the value will be converted to the type of that variable (when no explicit type was be defined).
Note - to get the value of other variables use the get(variable) or calc(expression) actions.
Resolves the variable to its value.
The get(var) action is a special action that can be only used as parameter when calling other actions or when accessing array elements.
When the variable doesn't exists, get() will return null.
Note - some actions are automatically trying to resolve their given parameters to their values. For these actions using get(var) would be not necessary.
Calculate / evaluate / resolve the expression to its value.
The calc(expression) action is a special action that can be only used as parameter when calling other actions or when accessing array elements.
The variable where the result will be stored.
The mathematical or logical expression.
The copy() action copies the content from one variable to the other one.
By default this is the same as: set(destination, get(source)).
When the variable doesn't exists, it will be created.
When the variable doesn't exists, null will be set to the destination variable.
When both variables have different types, then the value of the source variable will be converted to the type of the destination variable.
Copy the value and the type of the source variable to the destination variable.
Delete and remove the given variables.
It's possible to delete several variables at once - just pass several variables names (separated by a comma).
The if() action allows conditional execution of code.
The actions that will be executed when the evaluation of the condition will be true.
The actions that will be executed when the evaluation of the condition will be false.
Calls / executes the given actions after a given time.
An optional unique id for the delayedcall.
This id can be used to stop the delayedcall by calling stopdelayedcall(id).
The number of seconds to wait before executing the actions.
The actions to call after the delay.
Stop the delayedcall with the given id.
The id of the delayedcall that should be stopped.
Calls / executes the given actions in the next processing tick - that means after the current actions, but as soon as possible.
Calls the given actions when the condition is true or when it will become true.
When the condition is currently not true, then the callwhen() action will wait as long until the condition will become true.
An optional unique id for the callwhen.
This id can be used to stop a waiting callwhen by calling stopcallwhen(id).
The callwhen() action will check this condition constantly every frame until it will become true.
The actions to call when the condition is true.
Stop a still waiting callwhen with the given id.
The id of the callwhen that should be stopped.
First the startactions will be called, then the condition be checked and when it is true - then the loopactions will be called, then the nextactions and then it starts checking the condition and the loop again.
The actions that will be called / executed before the for loop starts.
The actions that will be called / executed after one loop (after the loopaction).
The actions that will be repeatedly called / executed as long as the condition is true.
for(set(i,0), i LT 10, inc(i), trace('i=',i) );.
As long as the condition is true the loopactions will be called repeatedly.
The normal loop() action will continue with the following actions when the loop itself is done. The asyncloop() will continue intermediately with the following actions and execute the loopactions once per frame. When the async looping is finally done, then the doneactions will be called.
The actions that will be called when the condition becomes false and the looping stops.
Calls / executes the given actions repeatedly with a delay time interval between them.
An unique id for the interval.
This id can be used to stop the interval by calling clearinterval(id).
The number of seconds to wait between the actions calls.
When using 0 as delay, the actions will be called once every frame.
The actions to call every delay seconds.
<events onkeydown="setinterval(get(keycode), 0.1, trace(keycode); );"
The toggle action toggles the value of the given (boolean) variable between true and false.
The boolean variable that should be toggled.
The switch action switches the value of the given variable between / through several states. Everytime when the switch action will be called the value will be switched / changed.
When only the variable itself without value parameters will be given, then the variable will be switched between true and false.
When there are two or more values given as parameters then the variable will switch through all of these values (from left to right).
The variable that should be switched / changed.
The switch-through values for this variable.
Break / stop the execution of action calls from the current flow and the also the action calls from one nesting level up (e.g. when called inside an if() call then also the flow outside that if will be stopped).
When used inside a for() or loop() loop, the break() call will also stop that loop.
Directly exit / stop the current actions 'call'.
A 'call' is either a call to an <action> or the calling of a variable that contains action code or the calling of action code from events.
Call krpano action code with using a specific plugin / layer or hotspot element as caller. This can be used for direct property access or to simulate event calls on these elements.
The element that should be used as caller.
Can be only a <plugin> / <layer> or <hotspot> element.
The code will be executed in the 'context' of the caller - that means 'direct' access to its properties.
Call krpano action code within a specific scope.
The scope for the actions code.
Details about the scopes here: actions scope.
Set a variable to the a value - like a set() call - but in the scope of the parent action.
This could be used to return / pass back a result from an inner local scope action to an outer one.
When the variable already exists, then the value will be converted to the type of that variable.
Copy the attributes from one or more <style> elements to a custom element.
The name of the element where the style attributes should be copied to.
One or more name of <style> elements.
Several names need to combined by a | character.
Copy all attributes from one object to another one.
Note - the parameters of the copyattributes() action need to be the objects, not the names/paths of the objects! That means it might be necessary to use the get() action to resolve the names/paths.
The destination object - the object where the attributes will be copied to. Existing attributes will be overwritten.
The source object - all attributes from that object will be copied to the destination object.
Dispatches / calls the given event from all <events> elements.
The name of the event.
A Boolean setting (true or false, false by default).
When set to true, the events will be called and executed instantly, when not set or set to false, the events will be called after the current actions calls.
Note - val1 and val2 can be values or variables. When val1 or val2 is a variable then automatically the content of the variable will be used!
The variable where the result of the calculation will be stored.
The values or variables for the calculation.
These actions increase or decrease variable (with saturation or limiting).
The variable to increase or decrease.
Increase or decrease the variable by this value.
When not set, the variable will be increased or decreased by 1.
Defines maximum and minimum values.
When one limit will be reached then the value will be set back to the other limit value. This can be used to let the varibale either wrap around a defined range or to clip at at specific limit (with min=max).
Note - The inc() and dec() actions will convert the variable type to 'integer'!
Limit the value of the variable to be between the given min and max values.
The variable to clamp / to limit.
The minimum value - when value of the variable is below that value, it will be set to this min value.
The maximum value - when value of the variable is above that value, it will be set to this max value.
The Math object provides constants and actions for mathematical calculations.
The most Math actions can be called in two ways - either by just passing the name of the variable - then variable will be used as parameter and the result of the calculation will be stored back to the variable, or by specifying an additionally parameter where the result should be stored.
Calculates the arc cosine (in radians).
Calculates the arc sine (in radians).
Calculates the arc tangent (in radians).
Calculates the arc tangent (in radians) of the two variables a and b.
It is similar to calculating the arc tangent of a / b, except that the signs of both arguments are used to determine the quadrant of the result.
Calculates the next highest integer value by rounding up.
Calculates the cosine (parameter in radians).
Calculates e (=base of the natural system of logarithms, ~2.718282) raised to the power of var/v.
Calculates the next lowest integer value by rounding down.
Get the largest value of all given variables or values.
Get the lowest value of all given variables or values.
Calculates var/v1 raised to the power of var2/v2.
Calculates the rounded integer value.
Calculates the sine (parameter in radians).
Calculates the tangent (parameter in radians).
Rounds the value of the variable to given decimal places.
Note - the variable will be a string internally after rounding!
Only when called with 3 parameters!
The variable to be rounded.
When called with 1 or 2 parameters, the result will be stored also in that variable.
The number of decimal places - 0 when not set.
Convert the content of the given variable to a hexadecimal string.
Can be used to create html/css color strings.
Only when called with 4 parameters!
The variable to be converted to a hexadecimal string.
When called with less than 4 parameters, the result will be stored also in that variable.
A prefix (like '0x' or '#') for the string.
A fixed length for the result.
Convert the content of the given variable to a lower or upper case.
The variable where the case conversion result will be stored.
Only when called with 2 parameters!
The variable to be converted to a lower or upper case.
The txtadd action can be used to add/connect several texts / values together.
The action can be used with 2 or more parameters. When using only two parameters (destination and a text) then the text will be added to current value of the destination variable.
The destination variable where the connected text will be stored.
The texts that will be connected together.
When using only one txt parameter then this text will be added to the content of current destination variable.
Note - when the content of a variable should be used - then the get() action must be used to resolve the variable!
The subtxt action extracts a part of an other text.
The destination variable where the extracted text will be stored.
The variable or text with the source text.
The starting position from where the text should be extracted.
The length of the text to extract.
The indexoftxt action gives the position of the first occurrence of the 'searchtxt' value in the 'txt' string.
A variable that will store the index of first occurrence of 'searchtxt'.
Or -1 if 'searchtxt' never occurs.
The text in which it should be searched.
The text to searched for.
The starting startindex / position where to start searching for the text (0 by default).
The txtreplace action searches in 'var/srcvar' for all occurrences of 'searchtext' and replaces them with 'replacetext'.
The variable where to search for (var, srcvar) and where the result will be stored (var, dstvar).
The text that should be searched for.
The text that will replace the 'searchtxt' occurrences.
The txtsplit action searches in 'var/srcvar' for all occurrences of 'searchtext' and replaces them with 'replacetext'.
The string to split, can be either a text or a variable.
The separator character or string.
Name of an array variable that will contain the split parts as 'value' properties.
The results of the spliting will be directly assigned to the given variables.
The fromcharcode action converts the given character code to a string and stores in the given variable.
The variable where to store the character.
The Unicode character code as number.
The escape and unescape actions are escaping the content of the given variable or the given text and then storing the result in the given variable.
Without text parameter - the variable which will be escaped/unescaped.
With text parameter - the variable where the escaped/unescaped text will be stored.
The text that that will be escaped/unescaped.
The tween action can be used for a time-controlled animation / change of a variable.
The action will dynamically change the current value of the variable to the given value.
Color support: When tweening a variable with a name that contains the word 'color', then the values will be automatically interpreted as 32bit ARGB colors and each color channel will be processed individually.
Multiple variable support: It is possible to tween several variables together at once. Therefore specify several variables, values and tweentypes separated by | characters. When several variables were specified, but only one value and/or only one tweentype, then all variables will tween to the same value and/or use the same tweentype. The time and the done- and updatecalls will be always the same for all given variables.
The variable that should be changed.
Use the | character to specify several variables.
When the variable name contains the word 'color', then process the variable value as 32bit ARGB color value.
The destination value for this variable.
When tweening percent values - add a '%' character to the value.
Use the | character to specify several values for several variables.
Note - to tween to the value of another variable use the get() action to get the value of the other variable!
The time in seconds for the change from the current value to the destination value (0.5 seconds by default).
Instead of using a fixed time for the change it is possible to define the maximum moving distance for the value and a time for that distance (not supported when tweening multiple variables). This allows to use a short time for a short distance and long time for a long distance.
The tweening / interpolation type (easeOutQuad by default).
See here for all available tween types: tweentypes.
The action commands that should be executed when the tween is done and the destination value has been reached.
Instead of normal actions, it is also possible to use the special keyword WAIT here. In this case the user interface and the execution of the following actions will be blocked until the destination value has been reached.
These action will be called every time (=every frame!) when the value will be updated / changed!
WARNING - use with care! When heavly used this can reduce the framerate!
Some information about the origin of the name "tween" - Wikipedia about Tweening.
The stoptween action stops a currently running tween action.
The name of the variable which is currently tweening and should be stopped.
Addtional variables that should stop tweening.
Here all supported tween types for the tween action.
These tween types are only available when including the moretweentypes plugin.
Actions to load a new panos.
Note - only the layer, plugin, hotspot, event and lensflare elements with keep="true" will be kept when loading new panos!
The path/url of the new pano xml file to be loaded (use null for none).
When a relative path will be used then the file will be loaded from the basedir folder, which is %FIRSTXML% by default. That means that the paths in all loadpano calls are relative to the first loaded xml file.
The content of a xml file as string / text to be loaded (should be escaped).
The name of the <scene> element that should to be loaded.
Custom variables to set (use null for none).
These variables will be set after parsing / resolving the xml but before starting to load the pano images. This way these variables can be used either to overwrite settings from the xml or to set addtional ones.
Variables can be defined as var1=val1 pairs separated by &.
Addtional flags for loading (use null for none).
Several flags can be combined by a | character.
Merges all settings from the current and the next pano.
If there are plugins and hotspots in the new panorama with the same name as the kept ones, the new elements will not be loaded.
This is the recommended setting for virtual tours.
IGNOREKEEP - ignore the keep flags and remove also the elements with keep="true"
Blend / fade to next panoroma - transition animation.
No blending, just switch directly to the next panorama (the default).
Blend / Cross-fade from current panorama to next one.
time - The blending time in seconds (default=2.0).
tweentype - The blending curve / motion shape, type of the blending animation (default=easeInCubic) - see tweentypes.
Blend to a color and then from that color to the next panorama.
color - The in-between color in hex format (default=0x000000 = black).
tweentype - The blending curve / motion shape, type of the blending animation (default=easeOutSine) - see tweentypes.
Add or subtract a color and then cross-fade to the next panorama.
color - The color to add in hex format (default=0xFFFFFF = white).
colorscale - The scaling factor of the color, use negative values for subtracting (default=2.0).
A slide animation between the current and the next panorama.
angle - The angle / direction of the slide in degrees (default=0.0).
smooth - The smoothing / blurring of the transition line (0.0 to 1.0, default=0.2).
tweentype - The blending curve / motion shape, type of the blending animation (default=linear) - see tweentypes.
An opening animation between the current and the next panorama.
shape - A factor that defines the opening shape (-1.0 to +1.0) - 0.0=circle opening, -1.0=vertical opening, +1.0=horizontal opening (default=0.0).
zoom - Additionally zoom-out the old panorama (0.0 to 1.0, default=0.0).
Zoom into the current view and cross-fade to the next panorama.
zoom - The zoom factor (default=2.0).
tweentype - The blending curve / motion shape, type of the blending animation (default=easeInOutSine) - see tweentypes.
Note - When the selected blending mode will be not supported (e.g. when using a 'WebGL only' mode and only Flash or CSS3D is available), then it will automatically fallback to the default blending mode.
Open an url / link.
The target where the url should be opened.
Flash Notes - this action requires the External-Interface of the Flashplayer. This is only available when running inside a browser. When working work offline / locally with 'file://' urls, then the security settings of the Flashplayer need to be adjusted.
Look at this panorama position.
The horizontal looking direction (view.hlookat) in spherical coordinates in degrees (-180 to +180).
The vertical looking direction (view.vlookat) in spherical coordinates in degrees (-90 to +90).
The field of view (view.fov) in degrees (0 - 179).
The fisheye distortion setting (view.distortion).
The architectural projection setting (view.architectural).
The pannini projection setting (view.pannini).
Move the view from current looking position to the given position.
Note - the user interface and all other actions are blocked during the movement. That means the next action will be executed when the current action was done. The oninterrupt action can be used to make these actions interrupt able by the user.
Horizontal destination looking direction (-180 to +180, wraparound possible).
Vertical destination looking direction (-90 to +90).
The name of the hotspot.
This will be use the hotspot position (ath/atv) as destination position.
When no name will be defined and looktohotspot() will be called from a hotspot element then that hotspot itself will be used.
The destination fov (0 to 179).
The looktohotspot action will use automatically the size of the hotspot as destination fov when the fov was not set. The other actions keep the current fov when not set.
The type of the motion.
The use the shortest possible way from the current to the destination position.
Possible settings: true or false (default=true).
When set to true, then the lookto action will not wait for completing the movement before continue executing the the following actions. The user-interface will also be not blocked.
When the lookto movement is done then the donecall action will be called (when defined).
This action will be called when the nonblocking lookto movement is done.
Adjusts the view.hlookat value for manual tweening.
It fixes the 360 wrap around for the shortest way to desthlookat.
The intended destination hlookat value.
When desthlookat is the name of a variable, then automatically the value of that variable will be used.
The current view.hlookat variable will be adjusted (without changing the current view) to be next to this value.
Get the spherical distance between the fromH / fromV and toH / toV lookto points (in degrees). The result will be always between 0.0 and 180.0 (more than 180 degree distance is not possible on a sphere).
The name of the variable where the distance value will be stored.
Horizontal looking-to position (-180 to +180, wraparound possible).
Can be a variable name or a value.
Vertical looking-to position (-90 to +90).
Horizontal looking-from position (-180 to +180, wraparound possible).
When not defined, the current horizontal looking direction (view.hlookat) will be used by default.
Vertical looking-from position (-90 to +90).
When not defined, the current vertical looking direction (view.vlookat) will be used by default.
Stop a non-blocking lookto / looktohotspot / moveto / zoomto action.
Instantly stop all user-driven (by mouse, keyboard or touch) panning and zooming movements.
Wait a number of seconds or wait for an event.
Note - The user interface and all following actions will be blocked during the waiting. That means the next action in the current call will be executed when the current wait action is done. The oninterrupt action can be used to make this action interruptable by the user.
This action can be used before starting a set of actions (like lookto, looktohotspot, moveto, zoomto, wait and tween with WAIT as donecall) that are blocking the user interface.
When any of these actions will be interrupted by the user (e.g. by a click) then the these actions will be stopped and the in the oninterrupt action defined actions be executed.
The action commands to call on a user interrupt.
break - this will just break the current actions.
Actions for converting between screen and spherical coordinates.
The screentosphere action will convert the x/y variables to the h/v variables and the spheretoscreen action the h/v variables to the x/y variables.
Variables with screen coordinates in the pixels from the left top edge.
Variables with spherical coordinates in the degrees (360x180).
For stereo rendering - define to which screen side the coordinates should be mapped. Possible settings: l for the left side or r for right side or not-set/undefined for normal non-stereo screen coordinates.
The x,y,h,v parameters must be variable names, using values is not possible!
When a variable doesn't exist, it will be created.
Actions for converting between screen / stage and relative <layer> coordinates.
The name of the <layer> element.
Variables with screen / stage coordinates in the pixels from the left top edge.
Variables with layer coordinates from the left top layer edge.
The screen /stage coordinates are based on the krpano coordinate system (from left-top 0 / 0 to right-bottom stagewidth / stageheight).
The layer coordinates will be scaled when scalechildren is enabled.
Rotated layers are not supported!
All parameters must be variables, using values is not possible!
Remap a fov value from one fovtype to another.
When changing the viewing fovtype and at the same time, remapping the viewing fov, then the resulting pano zoom will keep the same.
A variable with the fov value that should be changed.
The result will be stored in the same variable.
Can be: HFOV, VFOV, DFOV or MFOV.
The width of the fov area/frame in pixels.
By default the current screen/area size will be used.
The height of the fov area/frame in pixels.
Deprecated - use the new and extended showtext.xml plugin instead!
This one works basically the same, but it works for Flash and for HTML5.
Updates / rebuilds the internal 3D model of the pano object.
This must be called after changes of the display.details and display.tessmode settings.
When changing of the image.hfov, image.vfov or image.voffset settings interactivly, this action must be called with updatefov=true to get an updated pano object!
Note - the rebuilding of the internal 3D model is a heavy process! This action should be used carefully!
For multi-resolution pano - should all levels be updated?
Possible settings: true or false (default=false).
Reparse the image.hfov, image.vfov and image.voffset settings when updating the pano?
Forces a redraw of the screen.
And resets also the idletime counter (the time without user interaction).
Dynamically create and add a new layer, plugin, hotspot or lensflare element.
Name of the new layer/plugin, hotspot or lensflare element.
Horizontal and vertical position in degrees for the lensflare element.
Dynamically remove and destroy a layer, plugin, hotspot or lensflare element.
Name of the layer/plugin, hotspot or lensflare element that should be removed.
When set to true, all children elements will be removed too.
The name of krpano variable where the returned value will be stored.
The variable will be created when it doesn't exist.
Show or hide the trace output log.
true - Show the log window (default).
false - Hide the log window.
top - Show the log at the top of the viewer window.
bottom - Show the log at the bottom of the viewer window (default).
Show / trace details (value and type) about a variable in the output log.
When the variable is an object, then also all object properties will be shown.
Debug messages will be only shown when the debugmode setting is enabled.
Consider enabling the consolelog setting in the html file to see these messages also in the browser console.
Doing many traces is affecting the rendering performance! Especially avoid constantly tracing messages every frame!
Traces texts or the content of variables to the output log.
debug() will trace 'DEBUG:' messages.
These messages will be only shown when the debugmode is enabled.
trace() will trace 'INFO:' messages.
warning() will trace 'WARNING:' messages.
error() will trace 'ERROR:' messages and additionally also open the log (when showerrors is enabled).
When passing a variable, then that variable will be automatically resolved to its value.
onclick="trace('mouse clicked at ', mouse.x, ' / ', mouse.y);"
Show an error message and stop the user interaction.
The error message to show. | 2019-04-22T15:05:37Z | https://krpano.com/docu/actions/?version=119pr16 |
Cream puffs are one of the treats Mom used to buy us when my sister and I were kids. Despite not being a frequent treat we received, I remember loving cream puffs so much because of the custard filling. I didn’t like the filling too sweet though. I wanted them just right.
When I eventually started working and had my salary, I used to buy cream puffs from a Beard Papa’s stall in Glorietta until one day, I noticed that the stall was no longer there. A few years later, just recently, I discovered that Beard Papa’s is reopening in Glorietta. This time, it’s not just a stall; it’s going to be a shop!
While waiting for Beard Papa’s to open though, I decided to attempt making cream puffs in my own kitchen. I looked for recipe after recipe until I discovered the recipe from Kitchen Conundrums with Thomas Joseph segment in Everyday Food’s YouTube channel. I also searched for the video on how to make the filling that they dubbed as the No-Fuss Pastry Cream. It was the perfect recipe for me because I did not have to think about tempering the eggs to make sure they do not scramble and all the “fuss” that comes with making pastry cream.
What I did find difficult though is piping the batter and the pastry cream. I watched a lot of YouTube videos where the baker pipes stuff out of a pastry bag without looking like he or she is struggling or exerting any effort at all! My hands and wrist hurt a lot after.
I was surprised at how much they puff up. They looked so tiny when I piped them out. I left them to bake while I piped another batch and ten minutes later, they were already big! I remember turning around to check my oven only for my eyes to almost pop out of my head when I saw how much they have risen.
I was very sure then that they were going to have this huge air pocket inside for the cream to fill. They were so light once out of the oven!
I may have gone overboard with some because I filled them too much that some pastry cream oozed out the other side. Nevertheless, I was so happy I finally got to make these! It was just one of the treats I would think about but not dare try. Not anymore! I was hooked!
Please do check out the links of the recipes I linked above. They really are beginner-friendly and taste amazing!
I still cannot wait for Beard Papa’s to open soon.
Last August 21, my country celebrated two holidays: Ninoy Aquino Day and Eid al-Adha. We were actually hoping for Eid al-Adha to be celebrated on the 22nd like the rest of the world, I think but even just one day of rest from work is already very much welcome.
I took the opportunity to go through the ingredients I had at home and realized that my whole wheat flour isn’t gonna last for long. I needed to bake it into something despite my and my mom’s lack of fondness for whole wheat bread. Initially wanting raisin whole wheat bread, I realized we only had dried cranberries at home. So whole wheat cranberry bread it is.
I had a fun time kneading the dough using my handheld mixer with dough hook attachment. Eventually, I started using my hands to incorporate the cranberries into the dough. It looked so cute while it was proofing!
While waiting for the dough to proof, I decided to bake the frozen blueberries and strawberries that I bought on a whim. I discovered the Sunny Morning Muffins recipe the day before and just knew I had to bake a version of it! From the name alone, I was expecting the muffins to be as bright as the sunshine in deliciousness!
The muffins were fairly simple to make. You just combine all the ingredients and that’s it! No special method of folding or mixing. What took me long was filling my muffin tray (one that makes 24 mini muffins) and ensuring that each well will have enough berries and nuts.
For step-by-step procedures, you may click on the link to the original recipes.
After hours of baking, I had a large loaf of bread and about 5 dozens of mini muffins. What should have been the last dozen on mini muffins, I made into four larger ones.
The whole wheat bread turned out to be really soft. It tasted pretty much just like plain bread; nothing extra special. The cranberries just added some tartness and sweetness to it. As much as I enjoyed making it though, I really cannot find it in me to love the texture of whole wheat bread when eating it.
But, the muffins! They were really, really good! They were soft but not mushy. The combination of strawberries, blueberries and cashews in one bite was awesome! The berries were not too sweet and were a just a tiny bit tart, giving balance to the sweetness from the sugar and the banana. Also, it was a good thing I used half the amount of the salt required due to the cashews already being salted.
If anyone knows how to make whole wheat bread without the gritty texture in the mouth, please let me know! I’d be so happy to learn.
They say that the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach. I’m not quite sure about that and currently, there’s no man whose heart I wish to worm my way through. All I know is that when I saw my cousin post about these cookies that she baked, I just knew I had to try making it too!
Well, that was three years ago, back in April 2015. She found the recipe from The Café Sucre Farine blog. However, instead of pecans, she wanted her fiancé to try them with hazelnuts. I am not sure why but maybe because he was more partial to hazelnuts than pecans? Judging by her post too, it seems as if he got to try it already before. Whatever! All I know is that they did get married. And, whether this cookie was one of the reasons he married her, I shall never know because my cousin is a pretty awesome woman anyway.
Okay, so back to the cookies. A little more research and I found out that this recipe was from Melissa Stadler. She entered the recipe in a contest by The Cooking Channel and eventually, she found herself filming for a segment for a show called, The Perfect 3, where she won the cookie category! Anyway, you can find her recipe and her story in her blog, Modern Honey. The original recipe though, unlike the one my cousin found, did not contain any nuts and called for less white chocolate chips.
Well, speaking of nuts, I didn’t have pecans or hazelnuts. I did have a small bottle of cashews though and I figured it should work. And, thanks to the gift certificates our boss gave out for a job well done a few months back, I was able to buy all other ingredients I would need without spending a dime! Ah, I love my employer! I did tweak a little bit though, depending on what was available in the supermarket where I went.
Oh! They smelled heavenly while they were in the oven!
Because I was making two batches of these, some trays of dough had more chilling time that the others. I found that those that chilled longer did not spread and brown as much as those that had less time in the fridge. Chilling does make a difference!
So, how did they taste? They were fantastic! Despite the amount of sugar and the chocolate chips in the recipe, they were not overly sweet. In fact, they were just right! Since I baked them longer than the minimum, I got cookies that were on the crispy side. Not hard like Chips Ahoy cookies but still with a crunch. Just how I liked my cookies!
I do not wonder anymore why they are called I Want to Marry You Cookies! They were perfect! They also went great with a mug of milk!
So, to give back to my team at work, I decided to bring most of the cookies I made to work for my colleagues to try. I hope they like these cookies as much as I did!
Melt the butter until golden brown in color, then add all the sugars. Combine well and allow to chill in the fridge for 10 minutes.
After chilling, add the egg plus extra egg yolk and vanilla and mix well.
Add the flour, oats, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Mix just enough until there’s no trace of unmixed dry ingredients.
Add in the chocolate chips and nuts. Mix well to evenly distribute.
Using a small ice cream/cookie scoop, scoop the dough onto the baking sheets lined with parchment/baking paper, making sure to leave an inch or two between each cookie.
Allow to chill for around 30 minutes.
Pre-heat the oven at 325˚F.
Take out the cookies from the fridge and bake them for up to 12 to 18 minutes or until fully baked.
Allow to cool on the pan for a few minutes then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely.
One of the reasons I made this blog was to document my attempts at trying new things and learning along the way. This means I will not only write about my successes, but also my failures. The goal is to always discover and to always do better next time.
Recently, I got to make my version of a big pionono, which is similar to a jelly roll cake. Since I was very happy with how it turned out, I thought of going for a similar dessert called Brazo de Mercedes.
Translating literally to “Mercedes’ arm,” it’s more accurately translated to “Arm of our Lady of Mercy.” This is not surprising since the Philippines was once a Spanish colony. And while this dessert seems similar to Spain’s Brazo de Gitano (gypsy’s arm) and the Swiss roll cake, the Brazo de Mercedes contains no flour at all. Instead, it’s a fluffy delight that’s basically a meringue.
The recipe I used was from Foxy Folksy and she included tips on how to make a damn good Brazo de Mercedes (some of which I did not bother following, tsk).
I started with my favorite part–the meringue. I got hooked on making meringue when I did my first attempt at Japanese cheesecake. I am still amazed at how egg whites could turn into this opaque, fluffy goodness.
The recipe called for five egg whites, 1/3 cup plus 1 tbsp of sugar and 1/2 tsp of cream of tartar. It took a few minutes of beating until I got to stiff peaks. I did not bother with those lines/ridges traditionally seen in this dessert because I had no pastry comb. I baked it at a pre-heated oven at 180°C.
Mistake number 1: I placed the tray on the top rack. The meringue browned too much than it was supposed to. I guess the recommended baking temperature was fine had my oven not been an electric convection type. I shall lower the temperature next time and bake at the lower rack with an empty baking tray on the first rack for the first few minutes.
Next was the custard filling. Using the five egg yolks separated from the whites used in the meringue, I added 7oz of condensed milk. I combined them in a saucepan and went to the stove to heat the mixture until thickened.
Mistake number 2: The saucepan I got had too thin a bottom for our induction stove that has no notion of consistent temperature. In a matter of minutes, the temp shot up to 160°C and in seconds, my custard started to burn a little bit.
Fortunately, I did not burn the whole thing. So, I sifted the custard mixture to a new pot that had a thicker bottom to leave the few clumps that burned. What I did like from what happened was that it gave my custard a sort of caramel taste (think dulce de leche). I heated it until it reached a spreadable consistency. I added the vanilla after taking mixture out of the stove.
I got my meringue from the oven and waited for it to cool down. Then, I dusted the top with powdered sugar and flipped it over. I peeled the baking sheet/parchment liner that I used and spread my custard over the meringue. I love it when my Brazo de Mercedes oozes with the filling so I made sure to be generous with it. Then, I rolled the meringue like I would a jelly roll cake.
See the little spots of dark browning on top? Thankfully, it did not taste like charcoal. Like the custard, the browning of the meringue gave it a deeper, richer flavor. A few extra seconds would have probably burned the entire top, geez!
Let’s forget the browned top for a second and focus on the inside. Ooooh yeah! The filling should have been a bright yellow had I not almost burned all of it. Still looks yummy to me though.
Despite my blunders, I still liked it. It only took two days for us at home to finish the whole log! That being said, I bet that if I didn’t make my two mistakes, it would have been so much more of a hit!
I tell you, my Mom will not hold back from criticizing it if it really was bad. She is so hard to please when it comes to food and is not shy at expressing her displeasure when she is not happy. But, since she ate slices from it more than once, I am sure it truly wasn’t awful at all!
I am so excited for attempt number 2!
Another weekend, another baking day for me! This time, I shall be making pionono.
What is pionono? This is difficult to answer. You see, depending on where you are from (e.g. Spain, Philippines, South America, etc.), we may not be talking about the same thing. Pionono varies depending on where it is made. The common factor though is that it is said to have been named after the Italian name of Pope Pius IX, Pio Nono.
In the Philippines, these are small, Swiss roll-like cakes. I loved them as a kid and used to buy them at the Landmark, Makati when they still had Fortune Bakery. Today, it’s not very often that I see pionono in bakeries and I truly missed them lately. That’s why I decided to make my own.
Actually, this is already my second attempt at this because I did not document my first try. Half of the first one I made went to my aunt who came over to visit. Mom mentioned lately that she wanted to have it again because she did not get her fill the first time. So, I decided to make it for her as soon as the weekends came.
Preheat your oven to 150°C/300°F. Separate the whites and the yolks of 5 large eggs. Make sure the egg whites will have no trace of the yolks.
Using an electric mixer, beat the egg yolks, gradually adding 30 grams of white granulated sugar. Add in 25 ml milk, 1 tsp vanilla, and 25 ml melted butter.
Sift 1/3 cup cake flour and 1/8 tsp salt and add to the egg yolk mixture. Fold in gently and stop once combined.
With a clean whisk/beater attachment to the electric mixer, beat the egg whites until frothy. Add 1/4 tsp cream of tartar and continue beating. Gradually add 70 grams of granulated white sugar and beat until stiff peaks form and the egg whites do not slide or move when you tilt the bowl. This is the meringue.
In three batches, add the meringue to the egg yolk mixture and fold in gently. Be careful not to over mix to avoid knocking all the air out from the meringue.
Line your baking tray with a parchment/baking paper and gently pour in mixture. Gently spread it around to get to the corners of the pan. Give the tray a light tap on your counter/table.
Bake at 150°C for 15 to 18 minutes or until a toothpick test comes out clean.
While still warm, sprinkle the top with powdered sugar. Then, cover the top with parchment paper. Get another baking tray and flip the cake over. Gently remove the parchment paper that was used for baking.
You may either divide into four or six portions to make small, individual rolls or just make one big roll. Gently roll the cake into a log using the new parchment paper to guide it. Let it cool while rolled into a log.
While waiting for it to cool, combine 1/4 cup of softened butter and 2 tbsps of powdered sugar. If using unsalted butter, you may add a pinch of salt just to liven the taste of the filling. You may just use butter or margarine too. That should work fine.
Once the cake has cooled, unroll it and spread the filling. Make sure to leave one inch on each side without filling. Then, gently roll back the cake into a log.
If desired, you may brush the top of the cake with melted butter and sprinkle with granulated sugar.
When it came out of the oven, it smelled strongly of eggs. It’s not a wonder given that five eggs were used in making this treat. I was too lazy to make 6 individual pieces out of the whole pan I baked so I decided to make it into one big Swiss-roll like piece.
I might have been a little impatient because I realized that it has not cooled enough to keep the butter filling from melting. Tsk. Also, I have to work on making a tighter roll.
The good news is, it still tasted great! It tasted exactly like the pionono I loved as a kid. Even Mom liked it too. She was even teasing me that when I was younger, she baked and I taste tested. Now, it’s the other way around.
It’s true. I learned how to bake from my Mom. We just used a stove-top oven because we could not afford an electric oven yet. Today, we still dream about a large oven and a stand mixer. Hence, I must work very hard to be able to afford these.
Anyway, there you go, guys. My go-to recipe for pionono. What’s the pionono like in your country? How do you make it?
The first time I heard (read, rather) about Icelavie was a little over than a year ago. My friends from my former workplace promised ourselves we were going to treat ourselves to the giant cup of icy-cool goodness. Our schedules and frequent need to travel out of town made us forget about that plan.
Thanks to Facebook’s “On This Day” feature, we got reminded by that plan. Mark tagged us all in the post that started it all. I told them to push for it the following day. Unfortunately, when you raise ideas like that, you get teased to treat everyone else. Since I missed them so much and since we got informed that there’s a buy 1 get 1 promo in Booky Prime, I figured it wouldn’t hurt my wallet so much. So finally, we were getting those drinks. I made sure to download Booky Prime, or Booky for short, to be able to claim that promo. I also told my friends to make sure at least one of them downloads the app too so that we could get four drinks and pay for just two.
What is Booky Prime, then? Its website says it’s a membership program allowing a member access to buy 1 get 1 coupons monthly. It also allows them to get unlimited bookings to partner restaurants with up to Php 500 bill discount on top. When you sign-up for a free trial, you initially get Php 1,000 worth of savings that may be in the form of coupons to be claimed. Booky Prime’s app is available on the App Store and on Google Play.
Don’t be too excited! There’s a catch. When you claim coupons on the app, you only have 10 minutes to present it to the partner establishment you’re going for. Otherwise, you will have to claim a new coupon, the saved amount value of which shall be deducted again from your initial balance. So, make sure you swipe claim when you’re at the counter already.
Going back to Icelavie, it turns out to be a Malaysian brand that’s famous for their huge drinks. They currently have four branches in the Philippines: Circuit Mall (Makati), The Paseo Center (Makati), Glorietta 4 Cinema (Makati), and U.N. Square Mall (Manila).
We went to the Paseo Center branch and opted to get 2 orders of Tropicana and 2 orders of Fruit Paradise. For myself, I got the Fruit Paradise which is a fruit juice mix with a splash of milk. Thanks to Booky, I only paid Php 198 for all four drinks!
What makes Icelavie special? Well, aside from its really huge size, it boasts of its special kind of ice that does not melt easily. It comes with a cup holder with a string attachment so you can carry it like a mini gift package instead of holding that giant cup in your hands. If you got tiny hands like I do, the cup holder will be very, very helpful.
Look at how big it is! I could not wrap my hands around most cup!
I also cannot believe it was only Php 99 for that huge cup! The drink was very refreshing and was not too sweet. True to its word, the ice cubes they use do not melt easily. It took me four hours to finish my whole cup and there were still a couple of ice left! This is coming from someone who finishes a half liter of drink in 3 minutes!
Just when I thought great things were over, I found out that I can claim another coupon from Booky to use in the same establishment! I initially thought that I could only claim it once from Pase Center and that I would need to visit other branches should I want to claim the promo again. Amazing!
So what happens once you’ve consumed all your Php 1,000 free trial savings? You’ll have to subscribe monthly for Php 199. This will give you access to more than 16,000 new Buy One Get One coupons every month, up to P500 off your bill every time you book a table, and a free dessert every time you submit a feedback form. Plus, you get to sponsor at least three school lunches to a child every month through its partners, ARK and Gawad Kalinga.
If you’re a foodie and would like to get discounts from around 1,063 partner restaurants, Php 199 per month is already a great deal! Plus, you get to help put a stop to hunger where it matters most.
By the way, I got to try the Tropicana variant too the other day. It tasted like apples and lime. So delish! | 2019-04-25T14:52:44Z | https://sunshineandrobins.wordpress.com/category/tummy-talks/page/2/ |
Shiva, the Limitless and His tranquil Trimbakeshwar!
Ask me what intrigues me the most. My prompt reply would be ‘the transformer, the supreme concept of Lord Shiva‘. I feel that Shiva is there but no where. How simple, soft, compassionate, straight-forward and formless and yet so powerful, infinite and fascinating is He? He is an enigma.
Ask me where I want to go all the time. In my mind there is this ancient stone Shiva temple tucked away in a deep forest and with a river burbling by its side, bringing me a whole lot of tranquility and inner peace taking me far from this tumultuous world. Yet, the question still remains. Can inner peace be achieved only by running away to a serene place? What is the idea of Shiva telling me..to run away or to flow with life? And I think, the answer is this simple – “Sometimes you have to disconnect to stay connected”.
My today’s post is about one of my most favourable places on this earth, the ancient Hindu Shiva Temple and one of the 12 Jyothirlingas, Trimbakeshwar.
Jyothirlinga, the infinite pillar of light means ‘The Radiant Sign of The Almighty Shiva‘. Trimbakeshwar is surrounded by three hills namely Brahmagiri, Nilagiri and Kalagiri. River Godavari originated in these hills and can be seen distantly from the Lord’s abode. A very serene place, it gets more verdant during monsoons. About the temple, read more here on wiki.
It is a very positive experience visiting Trimbakeshwar. You will be given yourself after the visit. You will be left with some new questions in mind and you will get some answers too. You will be left in a unique peaceful state of mind to continue your quest for the light. The simplicity and stillness of the place combined with the aura and holiness of the formless Jyothirlinga radiates good vibes and shows you the right direction.
Let me be frank. I don’t get it when people say what’s in Grand Canyon except for the rock. Personally, I get very philosophical every time I visit it or think about it. May be it’s just me, as it is said ‘Beauty is in the eye of the beholder‘. So, here is my little ode to this magnificent natural wonder that awe-inspires me every single time I visit it.
Standing royal, the Grand Canyon reiterates the power of nature to us. Every glance at its dimensions takes our breath away and each attempt to peruse it reminds us how tiny we are in this Universe. It inspires us to be undeterred by the trivial problems of life and to stand sentinel to protect ourselves and those who trust in us. Here is my Grand Salute, to The Grand Canyon!
Do share links of your blogs on Grand Canyon, I would love to read!
A happy day with the Arts People!
Last weekend, as the sun shone bright, I reached the venue where I was supposed to volunteer as a Vendor Relief, and was so looking forward to it. With not many expectations in mind, I checked in to the Phoenix Festival of the Arts and took my badge and t-shirt.
Spotting this mom-dotty duo who were volunteering at the entrance welcoming guests and just began to have their lunch, I took a quick chance to approach them and ask for their company as I was already starving. So, that’s how my day began, with very pleasant and welcoming lunch partners. Is this how life feels in a strange land, with strange people? Yeah, I think being in the company of total strangers is one of the nicest feelings in this world. No prejudices, no barriers, no opinions, no distances and no strings attached. We enjoyed lunch together while we spoke about what and why the volunteering, etc. Also, I got to see this Christmas Parade by some pretty children in the Fair Grounds.
My next stop was the beginning of my volunteering. So, this event was an Art Festival held by the Phoenix center for the Arts every year.
First things first. Dressing up to the occasion. Well, it is definitely a choice, if you don’t want to. But, dressing appropriately to an occasion connects you to the event, puts you in the right mood and also changes the way people look at you which is important if you want to ‘connect’.
Since it was an Art Festival, I decided to give an Ethnic touch to my ensemble by wearing a Red Cotton high-low kurti with white printed designs on it that I got in India paired with blue jeans. Wearing an Indian Kurti, when you are in an Art Festival on a Foreign land is for sure trendy and classy, and makes it look unique. I paired this attire with big cream colored Stone ear-hangings, and a knitted scarf to beat the cold in case. But, tee hee..once I got the volunteer t-shirt, I had to layer myself up with it that’s a different story though 😉 To perfectly complement the outfit, I carried my favorite Fossil Explorer Straw Cross Body Bag and wore my perfect colorful Mojdis bought in a craft expo in Hyderabad, India, though replaced them later with my comfy Crocs as my walking time increased. Ta da! Didnt I pretty much nail the outfit?
My first stop was this booth where a lady was exhibiting her hand made jewelry. Call it an act of Universe or not, a particular blue resin pendant caught my attention and it had etched on it, Dancing Ganesha with eight arms. I am a Hindu, and all our prayers and Pujas first begin with praying to Lord Ganesh. You can read more about the significance here. Isn’t it interesting that you are alone on a strange land, with complete strangers around you and how the Universe makes you feel that you are still connected and belonged. I asked her if she needed a reliever, to which she said No and then we had a brief conversation about her beautiful jewelry creations. It was a fun start!
Moving on further, I found this very creative artist Kelly, who is a graphic designer and also creates her own designs and prints. Her designs were beautiful and after discussing about both of our interests and goals in life, what and how etc, I watched her booth for a while and she took a quick break. This meeting is so special to me because of late I was looking for some answers regarding Graphic Design and related fields, and voila I get to meet with this awesome artist specialized in the same field! Visit her website here to know more about her works.
As I kept walking further down the aisles, the talent and creativity of the various artists and artisans enthralled me and the variety of stalls that lined up amazed me. The diversity of arts included Pottery, Canvas Paintings, Glass Art, Hand Made Jewelry, Homemade Bath and Body Products, Arts and crafts made of Recycled metal, Handmade bags, Custom Printed T-shirts, Pashmina Scarves, and what not! There was live music and food trucks served up delicious warm food. Kids played around in merriment. It was a fun-filled warm sunny Saturday.
In another brief meeting, I met this lovely couple from Berrie Creative who were selling their unique and creative vibrant colored lampshades made of glass and wire. And I did not know that a small conversation with them would give me a hope for a life-time! They told me how to never give up on an interest and keep experimenting. Trust me, I have never seen such creative glass art in my life. The lamp shades were mesmerizing.
Later, I relieved a couple of artists so that they have their lunch. They were very kind and appreciated me for helping them out. Isn’t is wonderful when people realize your effort and good intentions and respond back to you positively. Ohh, what would I do without all these beautiful people in my life!
My next stop was Reflections in Metal, a unique art handcrafted out of rolled steel. Their display had amazing pieces of art and in quite large numbers. The vendors were so welcoming and were explaining well about their art to the guests. I couldn’t remember their names, but after talking about their work I took a photograph with them which made them very happy. And when I waved them Goodbye and Merry Christmas, the eldest gentleman of the two stopped me and gifted me a Metal Cross that was among the items being sold! Wow! What was that! Does affection and appreciation has any bounds? I was so elated, particularly when someone fondly gifted me a Cross, and that too during Christmas season…like I always believe, connections don’t happen without a reason. Now, this Cross is in my Puja room along with the other Gods. I am Hindu, and what Hinduism teaches is Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam. It is a Sanskrit phrase found in Hindu texts such as the Maha Upanishad, which means “The world is one family”, and I believe in it.
A special mention is needed about ‘Paintings by the disabled’ stall. All the paintings were unbelievably lively and excellent! We bought a miniature Canvas Painting of the Prickly Pear Cactus.
Towards the end, my family joined me in the festival. They enjoyed live music and chilled out on the lawn watching Muralists painting murals under the warm winter sun. The whole environment was fun and frolic lifting up spirits.
And then while finishing up my shift, I met Amelie. With a calm face and a gorgeous smile, she invited me to her booth. Her paintings were so full of life, spirituality and love. I am so glad I got to know her and could make friends with her. Visit her website here to see more of her brilliant and life-changing artwork.
Finally, I wrapped up my evening at the festival by taking my family around. My son goofed around all the while and really enjoyed each and every aspect of it. There were these folks from circus entertaining kids and adults alike, walking around the place.
We came back home after purchasing a lamp shade and a face balm from Flower Song Soaps.The lampshade now lights up our Puja/Meditation room. Every time I see the lamp, I remember that lovely couple, their smiles and the encouragement they gave me. I am using the face balm daily post scrubbing my face, and it gives me the perfect moisturizing for Arizonan winters along with an exquisite fragrance.
So whenever I say I believe in Fairy tales, I mean it. Look what all this love gave me in the middle of an ordinary life – in deed a Fairy tale!
Thank you Phoenix Festival of the Arts for having me and thank you for everything. These moments will be cherished forever.
On a final note, I would like to appeal to you, please encourage and appreciate handcrafts and local made.
Dochu La & Chele La – Bhutan’s sacred mountain passes!
Bhutan’s Thimpu and Bhutan’s Paro.
In this post, I am going to brief about our trip to Bhutan’s sacred mountain passes, Dochu La and Chele La.
When mountains call you, there are no excuses. There is a reason behind it, a purpose behind it. And what do the mountains tell us? To stand still and strong against the blustering winds. Mountains are unyielding protectors, they show us the righteous way of life. They inspire us with their patience and perseverance. They are unconquerable, but they leave the passes for us, humans to go closer to them, and reach them for the fillip. I witnessed the same kind of spirit going closer to the holy Himalayas during our Bhutan trip! We visited Dochu La and Chele La, the two mountains passes in the Himalayas of Bhutan.
Located at an elevation of 3,100 metres, Dochu La is located on the road from Thimpu to Punakha. To the east of the pass, the snow clad mountain peaks of the Himalayas are seen prominently and among them is the Mt. Masanggang at 7,158 metres (23,484 ft) which is the highest peak in Bhutan, known in local language as the Mt. Gangkar Puensum. The road further runs into the scenic Punakha valley.
The environment is calm and religious, with 108 memorial chortens called the Druk Wangyal Chortens built by Ashi Dorji Wangmo Wangchuk, the eldest Queen Mother. There is a monastery called the Druk Wangyal Lhakhang (temple), built in honor of the fourth King, Jigme Singye Wangchuck. Also, there is the country’s first Royal Botanical Park located adjacent to the chortens. While this whole scene on the pass is a colorful feast to the eyes, the backdrop is often claded with a moving blanket of fog obscuring and revealing the Himalayas along with the near-by verdant greens leaving your mind and soul in tranquility.
It is an indelible experience for me to meditate inside and outside the Lhakhang overlooking the Himalayas.
Chele La Pass is one of the highest motorable passes in Bhutan. It is the highest point with an altitude of 3988 metres. The road to Chele La is flanked by dense forests, and the trip to reach the pass takes you on a non-stop jaunt. Chele La, unlike Dochu La is very jagged and is surrounded by hilly terrains covered with vegetation that changes colors with seasons. The pass roughened by the cold gusts signifies a different side of Mother nature. Colorful prayer flags can be seen fluttering on the rough slopes making the view bright and pleasant. On a clear day, there are spectacular views of Mt. Jumolhari, Jichu Drake and adjoining peaks to the North West, as well as the view of the beautiful Haa and Paro valley.
‘The best dreams happen when you are awake’! And yes, my dream to feel closer to the Himalayas came true this way. I will await to witness this heavenly experience once again in my lifetime.
So, did the mountains ever call you? If yes, please leave a comment and tell me all about it. I would love to connect with like-minds.
Thank you for reading. More on our interactions and conversations with folks in Bhutan, and why I think Bhutan qualifies for a happy country in the upcoming posts. Stay tuned, and stay connected. See you later!
Bhutan – The Kingdom of Happiness. (Part 2) In and around Paro!
I hope you have read about our Bhutan travel experiences in my previous blog here. Now, I am going to share with you more details of our itinerary.
After spending in and around the charming Capital city of Bhutan, Thimpu, we moved to Paro for a two day tour. Along with being a picturesque city, Paro is a historic town with structures with traditional architecture. It is also home for Bhutan’s only international airport, Paro Airport.
The main attractions in the city tour of Paro are Rinpung Dzong, Paro Taktsang, Kyichu Lhakhang, National Museum of Bhutan, Paro Airport bird’s eye view and the shopping streets of Paro.
With history beginning in the 15th century, Rinpung Dzong is a large Buddhist Monastery and a fortress that now has various administrative offices of Paro within it. Outside of the Dzong is the Deyangkha Temple and inside are fourteen shrines and chapels. It is quite interesting to go around the Dzong and to soak in all the historical and cultural significance. Below are a few photographs taken in the Dzong.
Paro Taktsang, the very famous Himalayan sacred monastery is perched on the cliffs of upper Paro Valley. It can be reached either through a trek, or a horseback ride. Guru Padmasambhava who brought Buddhism to Bhutan is believed to have meditated there for three years, three months, three weeks, three days and three hours in the 8th century. The monastery has a rich and very significant history related to Bhutan and Buddhism. Read more about the world famous heritage site here.
The Jowo Temple of Kyichu is one of the oldest temples in Bhutan, originally built in the 7th century by the Tibetan Emperor Songtsän Gampo. Read more about it on wiki here.
The museum of Bhutan documents the cultural dances, flora and fauna, and other historical facts of Bhutan. There is a video played in the museum showcasing the different Bhutanese dances and festivals and their significance. It is quite fascinating to go round the museum. Aerial view of Paro valley from the museum offers breath-taking vistas. Photograph below.
Paro Airport is undoubtedly one of the world’s very scenic airports. Nestled in a gorgeous panorama and in a deep valley is the airport adjacent to the banks of River Paro Chhu. The whole scene is fabulous and it stays with you forever.
Last but not the least, shopping! What fun is it when you do world travel and not collect souvenirs? Here is my Bhutan travel haul. I bought most of these things on the street bazaar of Paro. They are going to keep all the memories alive to me.
Bhutan – The Kingdom of Happiness (Part 1). In and around Thimpu!
A few years ago, the topics during a tea-time confab were Gross Happiness Index, Bhutan, Himalayas and Taktsang Monastery. Like a seed planted grows into a tree, this discussion intrigued me a lot and my fascination to witness the Bhutanese way of living increased by the day. All the enthralling aspects of Bhutan and my all time obsession with nature, and mountains in particular, I added Bhutan travel to my bucket list.
Come 2016, life showed a direction towards pursuing my travel dream. And yes, I visited Bhutan, the Kingdom of Happiness.
Pristine landscapes, spectacular views, amicable people and their spiritual way of life, rich heritage, comforting food, and everything else so heavenly qualify Bhutan for a Utopia. Nestled in the Eastern Himalayas, Bhutan is full of never-ending range of hills, verdant plains, meandering perennial rivers, meditative sounds of the Buddhist chants and colorful prayer flags tied everywhere reminding us that nature and spirituality are inseparable.
Though the pictures don’t do justice to the real beauty of this paradise, and my words can’t describe the magical experience, I shall try my best to give a brief of how and what it was. Our tour was of four days covering the two major cities of Bhutan, Thimpu and Paro. A further long stay will give you much time and opportunity to explore the country better.
The Memorial Chorten or Memorial Stupa was built in the honor of the third King of Bhutan Jigme Dorji Wangchuck. It does not contain human remains, but just a photograph of the King. It is circumambulated in clockwise direction like other religious structures. We spent about an hour in the Chorten witnessing the annual recitation of ‘Seven Line Prayer’ to Guru Rinpochhe. The whole milieu was sacred and ingenuous.
We later visited the Great Buddha Dordenma, a 169ft gigantic Buddha statue and the Takin Preserve. Takin is the national animal of Bhutan.
Rest of city tour had viewing gorgeous vistas and visiting the important places of interest like Changlimithing multi-purpose national stadium, National Institute for Zorig Chusum (Arts and Crafts school), Authentic Bhutanese Crafts Bazaar, National Library of Bhutan etc.
National Institute for Zorig Chusum trains the Bhutanese youth in 13 native and traditional Bhutanese arts like wood carving, statue-making, painting, weaving, tailoring, embroidery etc. Some of the finished products are also sold for good prices.
The shops had a unique collection of handcrafted house decors, clothes, book marks, key chains, Bhutanese masks, Bhutanese musical instruments, hand bags, jewelry and many more. The place was a kaleidoscope of colors.
Tashichhoedzong build by the first Dharma Raja, is a Buddhist monastery and fortress on the banks of Wang Chu River. There are thirty temples, chapels and shrines within it. It is the office of Bhutan’s civil government and Kingship together. A few kms near the Dzong is the King’s palace, the Dechencholing Palace. The photograph below is an aerial view of the Dzong and its surroundings.
Coming to cuisine, red rice and buckwheat are Bhutan’s two main foods. Red rice in Bhutan has an earthy flavor. The Bhutanese make soups and stews out of various vegetables and meats (yak meat being a specialty). Ema datshi, which is their national dish, is spicy made with large, green chili peppers in a cheesy sauce. It is one of their major comforting and widely made dishes. Momos (dumplings) are also quite famous. Butter Tea (also called Suja) is made of the Bhutanese Tea Leaves, Water, Butter and salt. The Bhutanese also include various spices like ginger, garlic, turmeric, caraway etc in their cooking.
The National game of Bhutan is Dha or Archery. We made sure we wore the traditional dresses of Bhutan (Gho for men and Kira for women) and played archery amidst the serene hilly terrains.
Traditional Architecture remains prevalent in Bhutan. Throughout its history, Bhutan has mainly followed the Tibetan tradition of Buddhist architecture. Any new structure construction is supposed to abide the rules. Read more on the Architecture of Bhutan in wiki here.
Touring Bhutan is not only a way to escape in the tranquility of nature, but also a fun trip getting to know their unique culture and tradition. It opens your heart to simplicity, variety and spirituality.
Revive your body and awaken your soul, go visit this magical Kingdom.
More on the remaining itinerary in next blogs. I will take through our Paro city tour and the sacred mountainous passes.
Monsoons remind me of Visakhaptnam aka Vizag, my home town. I have lived all my childhood waking up to a kaleidoscope of greens, thanks to my dad, an ardent nature lover who thought we should live as close to nature as possible.
Monsoons in Vizag bring a burst of vibrancy and a splash of lush green to an already verdant view. Our home being at foot hill of the Eastern Ghats and a bit sloped, we experience lovely and fresh water streams gushing on a heavy rainfall day. The sight of monsoon clouds hovering over the majestic hills shrouding and revealing them is in deed salubrious.
And oh, not to forget the tiny pools of water collected on our terrace top, I remember jumping into them and splashing water all over myself. All those little birdies singing at the top of their voice and, freshest flowers and leaves with rain droplets raise your spirits high and make you live in the moment.
Over time I have captured these scenes in my camera and though they don’t do justice to the beauty of this rainy paradise, they keep these special memories alive. So well, I have a lot of rainy tales to tell, but for now please enjoy viewing these photographs. | 2019-04-20T08:37:06Z | https://etherealburst.com/category/life/page/2/ |
From where do placebo powers start and end? As peculiar as it might sound its effectiveness can be extended to cases of severe, enervating pain where the causative agent is anatomical in nature and acquired through injury. We know for a fact that pain deriving from structural defects to bone and cartilage has nothing at all to do with the mental faculties of imagination or autosuggestion, and that no amount of wishful thinking can alleviate the nagging discomfort, or can it? This is exactly what health practitioner Dr. Bruce Moseley of the Baylor School of Medicine wished to set straight with an experimental study about the role of belief in postoperative recovery. Moseley divided his subjects, all of which were suffering from arthritic knee pain, into three test groups. The first two were treatment-based, and received one of two standard operating procedures for pain relief–damaged cartilage was surgically cleaved from the problem area in some patients while others had material at the root of the agonizing inflammation flushed out. The third category were led to believe that they had been operated on when in reality Moseley had simply gone through the motions of sedating, incising, and knee-washing without as much as modifying a hair follicle. The postoperative agenda for all three groups involved an exercise regimen intended to strengthen the knee joint and augment kinematic recovery. In what might be described as a temporary lapse into Mad Hatter mode, it was found that the treatment efficacy was tantamount for all three groups. Surgery had been effective in alleviating pain, but in a direct transcendence of all logic the placebo had been equally operative in doing the same. When asked about this unprecedented development, Moseley admitted that, “My skill as a surgeon had no benefit on these patients. The entire benefit of surgery for osteoarthritis of the knee was the placebo effect.” With the commodities of cost-efficiency, timeliness, and stress-free manner built into its design, the scalpel of the mind trumps the metallic variant used in surgery by a mile.
Let’s move along now to the psychopathology of schizophrenia, a word literally meaning, “Split mind.” Recently, the auditory hallucinations that form a core symptom of the condition have achieved scientific coherence through the hemispheric model of psychosis. This particular model pairs primary (brainstem and limbic, mostly autonomous and unconscious) with the right hemisphere and secondary (cortical, conscious) processes with the left hemisphere, and then goes on to reason that the ego-dystonic and intrusive hallucinations frequently reported by schizophrenics are explainable as aberrant intrusions of information held by the right hemisphere into conscious awareness. Put differently the critical and reprimanding ‘voices’ heard by psychotics are simply emotional aspects of one’s own self–desires, beliefs, appraisals, and what not–which remain unconscious in the rest of us, thanks to our dominant left hemispheric interpreters which either suppress, inhibit, or extirpate them from our inner worlds.
Could psychotics somehow program themselves or alternatively allow themselves to be programmed so that they stop hearing voices? In the early 1970s a clinical psychologist by the name of Arthur H. Weingaertner wished to ascertain exactly that–if the hallucinatory reality of a schizophrenic could somehow be conditioned. He divided forty-five male patients up into three groups. The first two were given unusual gadgets with switches that could be fitted around the waist with a belt and advised to press the switch when they could feel the onset of a psychotic episode as to administer an electric shock. Those familiar with the humble beginnings of behaviourism should be getting explicit flashes of Ivan Pavlov with his salivating dogs about now! Incidentally the electric shock wasn’t an experimental feature of the second group; their gadgets were inoperative. The third group were alleviated of the burden of carrying around contraptions but were obliged to complete an array of interviews and surveys. All patients, contraption-wearers or not, were led to believe that their voices would decline in frequency.
Should Pavlov himself have been allowed to hypothesize before Weingaertner collated his results, he would have confidently deduced improvements in only the first group receiving the negative stimulus, the jolt. But for all his faith in the scientific spirit of predicting outcomes based on past research, he would have been wrong. When Weingaertner published this study in the Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology under the heading of, “Self-administered Aversive Stimulation with Hallucinating Hospitalized Schizophrenics”, he ceded that there had been significant improvements in all three experimental groups. Some stopped hearing voices completely. This phenomenon speaks volumes for the power of suggestion, especially when it comes from an individual perceived by the patients as a commanding authority, a God-figure if you like. It also speaks volumes for psychoneural evolution; standing a developmental tier above the primary consciousness of mammals, the higher-order consciousness of human beings can transcend in-built mechanisms of conditioning reflexes that impound the former. Being in a position to exert some level of control over the biochemical matter within our own bodies means we are in possession of a much greater freedom than they are.
Another interesting observation regarding the placebo relates to the unconscious. When the patient’s unconscious remains a tabula rasa, clear of any preconceptions about the collective imperative regarding the nature of his or her illness, the projective worth of medical intervention is substantially amplified. The success rate is amplified even further when the unconscious minds of the two protagonists, the healer and the one wishing to be healed, are in fundamental harmony with one another. Testifying to the empirical validity of these statements is an exceptional case of a teenage boy suffering from fish-skin disease, a grotesque condition whereby black warts and horny skin are omnipresent on the body. After successive skin grafts had failed to yield improvements to the horny skin texture, the treating physician referred him to an anaesthetist, a certain Dr. Albert A. Mason in hope that hypnotherapy might help where surgery had failed. Mason had successfully cured warts and other skin conditions before, so there was no reason to believe that this specific case should be any different. After placing the young chap in a hypnotic trance, he suggested that the leathery skin on his left arm would drop off in a few days, which it did. Mason’s triumph was met with an incredulous stare on the part of the surgeon, who had recently discovered that the boy was suffering from a rare genetic disorder called ichthyosiform erythrodermia. If the diagnosis was correct, and sources suggest it was, then any treatment method was hopeless. How could the horny coat resembling an arachnid’s exoskeleton soften and fall off to reveal a layer of soft, pink-coloured skin beneath when the oil-forming glands responsible for such were absent? It was supposed to be impossible, and yet Mason succeeded in dematerializing most of the morbid warts and improving the boy’s physical appearance. Being able to venture out in public worked wonders on the boy’s mentality and self-image, and he even scored a job as an electrician’s assistant! The hypnotic cure was nothing short of a miracle.
Published in the British Medical Journal in 1952, Mason’s results instigated a medical furore. Individuals suffering from fish-skin disease, something long decreed by traditional medicine to be both rare and lethal, suddenly found themselves gasping at the straws of a visible lifeline again. They began turning up at his doorstep, demanding that he administer treatment. At this stage Mason was shrewd enough to realize that ceding to their requests was a formidable way of maintaining professional integrity and virtue, and he swiftly set about trying to program suggestions into his patients’ minds through hypnotic induction. It soon became apparent that former success would not be replicated. Whereas previous sessions had been carried out in a highly spirited and undaunted frame of mind, Mason now found that knowledge of the official diagnosis and prognosis was pinching him out from the realm of eternal viabilities and confining him to the sharp cubic metres of fatalism, worthlessness, and doubt. He understood the deflating qualities of doubt in the context of belief–that it was like a mental poison, an acidic agent at the root of these successive failures; doubt was diminishing the hypnotic trance, it was projecting into the patients’ unconscious minds and then manifesting in the guise of hyperactivity and anxiety, and above all, it was marring his overnight reputation as a miracle worker. Mason later told the Discovery Health Channel that the optimistic attitude he’d maintained out in public since the publication of the study was a complete farce; the collective imperative created by the medical establishment had simply quashed all his faith that a healing response was achievable. Doubt had truly ruined everything.
The most tangible evidence we have supporting the seminal role of collective unconscious suggestions in the mobilization of the placebo effect is hypnosis, and specifically its successive transformations in complying with the cultural egregore (thought form) of a particular time and place. Anybody who has studied this protean state of consciousness in some depth knows that epiphenomena of induction will always mirror the inductee’s preconceptions and the inductor’s expectations. Its most striking feature is the paralogical submission to a reality facilitated verbally by an external narrator, a reality defined by declarations about people, the world, and its processes taken at face value. If we were to grasp Franz Anton Mesmer’s early theory of animal magnetism from this vantage point, it would seem his tremendous success rate with healing all types of organic conditions had more to do with unwavering trust in the process rather than artificially driven alterations in magnetic tides between people. In the early nineteenth century, a time when hypnosis came to be viewed as a voguish tool psychiatrists, parapsychologists, and philosophers used to explore a subliminal co-consciousness or self, individuals would flit out from lucid trances wherein they had answered questions and followed commands complaining of psychogenic amnesia. The newfound tendency to forget everything in the trance state accorded with what was then believed to be true about dissociative systems of functioning and switching between multiple nuclei of consciousness. Later, when the yoke between hypnosis and healing had been firmly established, trances suddenly became intuitive spaces offering up diagnostic information about one’s medical condition. From what we can see the hypnotic always reflected the expectations and biases of her hypnotist.
By the mid-1850s the bizarre discipline of phrenology began to gain traction in the scientific universe. Phrenology was a localizationist and encephalic model seeking to inferentially localize some twenty-seven mental functions with brain anatomy by assigning them to specific regions on the outer surface of the skull. During this time pressure administered to an area of a hypnotic’s scalp would spur the exhibition of qualities and behaviours in congruence with its phrenological association. For example, if a hypnotist caressed the posterior region of the skull connected to destructiveness, the hypnotized individual might scurry around the room in a frenzy, breaking and tearing things. Then again the subsequent hybridization of Mesmerism and phrenology between 1820 and 1850 forged hypnotic epiphenomena of a different sort–the positions of mental capacities, perceptions, movements, and anything that had hitherto been attributed to skull conformations by phrenology could be reversed during a hypnotic trance by fastening magnets to either side of the body. As irrational, ludicrous, and incredulous as many of these epiphenomena sound, they actually came to pass. Why? Simply because the subjects came to believe that they were engendered by hypnosis and paradigmatic of hypnosis.
Repressed for an indefinite period the patient’s psyche was left with no other avenue but to shuttle the proliferating discontent to conscious awareness through a dialectical opposition between psychic and somatic channels. The first manifested as the ticking time-bomb symbol in the dream, the second as a cancerous tumour with its trail of harrowing symptoms. You see, bomb and tumour were one–if there is any truth in to-down causation then disabling the bomb would alleviate most, if not all, the agonizing symptoms. And what better way to unburden the patient of the bomb’s hold on his life than by exploding it, right? Through sense perception of the pain, or proprioception if you like, Mindell urged the patient to amplify his symptoms in any way he could and thought appropriate. The verbal paroxysms erupted from within him in succession like seismic effusions of geothermal stress; he cried, laughed hysterically, howled, and shrieked at the top of his lungs without as much as a verbal or tactile cue. His revelation was evocative and meaningful, eliciting positive immunological responses that added some two to three years to his life. It appears that this particular man had to relish and explore the wisdom of this newfound state, the ability to express oneself freely, before permission to abscond the physical world could be bestowed.
Somewhat perturbed by the implications of this symbolic admission, Mindell assures her that the decision is solely hers to make: she may choose to fly away and explore the mystical dominions of space, or she may choose to descend and rejoin the other earthlings in the only world she knows. Initially she chooses the first, but subsequent cogitation of the blissful, nurturing, and empathic bond she’d just forged with an authoritative paternal figure casts a serious element of doubt in her mind. Now there was a social synapse on the horizon able to tap into the levitational wonders of altruistic and unconditional love, connectivity, and security where previously there had been none, now there was a reason to survive. The inherent fear that comes with the realization that these miracles of human relationship may never be savoured again was a decisive factor in bringing her back down to earth in both the symbolical and literal sense. “I’ll come down for a while just to be with you,” she tells Mindell. By soliciting amplification of an inner process that transmuted from the kinaesthetic, to the visual, and finally to the proprioceptive mode of experience, Mindell was able to illuminate the formative and salvific power of loving human relationships, that fundamental key to a protracted meaningful existence which, for one reason or another, had been markedly absent from the girl’s life. The psychospiritual revelation of instant freedom, the idea that she could operate freely and independently in an empathic world, reversed her general disposition and drastically altered the biochemical mechanisms responsible for the back tumour. Slowly but surely the terminal illness abated, leaving the medical doctors flabbergasted as to how such an awe-inspiring case of spontaneous remission could have ever evolved from such a poor prognosis.
From the abovementioned it becomes clear that in many instances, certain external elements must accumulate in the immediate environment and present themselves in some configuration before the placebo effect can run its natural course. Just as water molecules and light must be present for life to evolve, so too must belief systems be buttressed by cognitive functioning in aggregates along with continued internal adjustments to the nature of external relations if they are to yield cathartical and transformative effects on our psyche-somas. Practitioners of traditional medicine bypass the placebo in treating their patients because they still dogmatically perceive a mind-body split in a mechanical universe where organisms are mutually exclusive biological systems, virtually ignoring the alchemical space formed by everyday human synergies that makes possible dynamic change on every conceivable ontology–spiritual, cognitive, behavioural, biological, chemical, physical, and so forth. Lacking this key insight into the monumental importance of human interconnectivity and interactions, they will place all their faith in abstract, methodical solutions that perceive the ailing individual as an isolated singularity, an approach most incongruent with the true interpersonal habitats from where our corporeal lives sprout like beanstalks and continue to grow. This is why all possible solutions that may be cognized by medical practitioners, a narrow path of predictable responses unable to veer from the wonderful world of surgery, x-rays, and drugs, frequently fall short of their intended mark.
Their erroneous approach brings to mind certain gaffes made in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries by practitioners in the fields of medicine and mental health. During this time it was quite common for autistic and mentally retarded infants, toddlers, and youngsters deemed unfit for communal life to be locked up in the Hadean-like rooms of obscure mental asylums out in the middle of nowhere, or for malnourished orphans suffering with so-called infectious diseases to be separated from one another and denied all human contact as to prevent contagion. In their reductive worldview complete isolation interspersed with the occasional impersonal touch of a doctor, a nurse, or a warden, and only then for the sake of administering a hypodermic injection or assessing symptomatology, was the best possible strategy for guiding these underprivileged children back to health. History has not been very kind in this respect, for recorded in pages and pages of nineteenth and early twentieth century clinical files from children’s cottages in the Australian state of Victoria is the sobering outcome, “DIED”.
There is overwhelming documentation in support of the notion that children abandoned in orphanages and mental asylums didn’t last very long. One would think that after examining a year’s worth of admission forms and death certificates it might occur to the superintendent that medical mandates were dismal failures, but alas, such a high moral, ethical, and philanthropic expectancy may be beyond what is possible for the average human being. Had these unfortunate souls not been starved of authentic love, care, and mutually stimulating interactions, our natural birthright, a much more sanguine history with significantly lower mortality rates and happy endings would have written itself into the starry heavens.
In truth we know that nothing in the natural world exists as an abstract singularity; cells, multicellular organisms, fungi, bacteria, reptiles, birds, mammals, and every other phylogenetic taxonomy imaginable subsist on the earth as communities with the more evolved amongst them also expressing social hierarchies. Humans are not exempt from these unshakable laws of communal ecology. For the first few decades of our lives the dendritic and synaptic connections of our brains grow, wire, and prune according to the empathic wealth and worth of social interactions. If our formative years consist of social synapses formed by nurturing relationships within empathic environments we develop into healthy, level-headed individuals with unique psychosocial leanings and an authentic sense of self; if, on the other hand, the environment can offer no worthwhile relationships of attachment through which we may be able shield our lithe-bodied and unformed selves from external dangers, we enter a schizophrenic, persecutory space of selflessness, forever at the mercy of compulsions that erupt into consciousness without our choosing and behaviours enacted without the censorship afforded by introspection.
Bruce Lipton, The Biology of Belief: Unleashing the Power of Consciousness, Matter & Miracles (New York City, NY: Hay House, Inc, 2008), pp. 110.
Arthur H. Weingaertner, “Self-administered Aversive Stimulation with Hallucinating Hospitalized Schizophrenics,” in Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 1971, 36: pp. 422-429.
Primary consciousness is present in all mammals and involves a fundamental capacity to construct mental scenes. There are some symbolic and semantic capacities but no language.
Higher-order consciousness is characterized by a sense of self able to transcend linear time by constructing past and future scenes; it also involves sufficiently developed semantic and linguistic capacities.
Arnold Mindell, Working with the Dreaming Body (Portland, OR: LaoTsePress, 2002), pp. 3. | 2019-04-24T09:10:04Z | http://www.paulkiritsis.net/_blog/Down_The_Rabbit_Hole/post/phenomenology-the-placebo-effect/ |
This is a guest post by Derek Watson.
So, it turns out that Satoshi Nakamoto is not Satoshi Nakamoto. According to Andreas Antonopoulos, who was charged with giving him the bitcoins that had been raised for him as a sort of apology for the Newsweek fiasco (and explaining what they were), he doesn’t know how to use a Web browser. So, assuming that Satoshi didn’t invent the Bitcoin protocol, have a stroke and retire to build model railway engines, what should we think about the Creator?
A lot of effort has been put into trying to work out who Satoshi is. His last words were that he was leaving Bitcoin and had “moved on to other things.” But could someone who was so obsessed (and who must have known that it would need much further development) give it up so absolutely? Wouldn’t we expect that person to continue working on it? It would be difficult to contribute to it under a pseudonym so perhaps Satoshi has revealed himself? Is he hiding in plain sight? It would be difficult for one of the core development team to hide the fact that he was Nakamoto. The temptation to refute any argument with “Don’t you know who I am? I am Satoshi Nakamoto!” would be too great. You can’t really feign ignorance and re-learn your own subject with a peer group.
Another alternative is that Satoshi is maintaining an active interest from the sidelines (this is pretty much a given, assuming he is alive), but is worried about the repercussions both on the currency and on him if his identity were to be discovered. Initially, the thought probably crossed his mind that he might be assassinated. He had been entrusted with the means to bring down governments, notwithstanding that it was his own brain that had entrusted him with it. Anyone who realises that they are more powerful than the government, the CIA, the FBI and any number of three-letter initialisms is going to worry about their personal liberty at the very least. At that point he had very few friends and his options were to keep very quiet, to get squashed like a bug or book a one-way ticket to Guantanamo Bay.
He? What makes us think that Satoshi is male? The inventor of the ultimate geek currency – are you joking? You may think he’s almost certainly male, but that is an assumption. What else do we actually know? We know his email address – it’s [email protected]We know that he still has access to it, because he used it to tell the world’s media that they were barking up the wrong tree with Dorian Nakamoto. The email address was verified as the same one that had been used routinely when Satoshi was active. That tells us that Satoshi is still alive and still watching Bitcoin. Why did he send an email saying that Dorian Nakamoto was not him? If Dorian was not Satoshi, that fact would have come out eventually in any case. If Dorian had been him, then sending an email denying that would not have really achieved anything. Nobody’s going to believe a denial, even if it does come from Satoshi’s email address. We can rule out someone else using his email address, the only explanation is that he had some empathy with Dorian’s plight, and in a way he was laughing at the media’s clumsy attempts to unmask him.
Reactivating an old channel of communication was risky, as it provides the only link between Satoshi and the real world. It is tangible evidence that he is still extant and therefore worthy of ongoing research. The fact that he had the confidence to do that over such a minor issue as media misdirection leads me to suspect that he is still communicating with other people in other areas. Satoshi, however, appears to be someone who is confident with encryption and secrecy. Not just a Tor user, not just a PGP user, but someone who is capable of vanishing off the face of the earth. Anyone who can do that has some special skills.
The British are good at keeping secrets. Too good in fact. The valuable work done at Bletchley Park during the Second World War in breaking the Enigma code was kept secret until 1974, by which time many of the staff who could have told the story had died. The machines were scrapped and the plans burnt. As a result, the story that the world wants to hear is an echo of reality. Some staff were so indoctrinated that secrecy was necessary to the safety of the realm that they refuse to discuss their work, even now. Early code-breaking machines are being rebuilt based on guesswork. In the United States, the rule was that everything should be in the public domain, unless there was a good reason to hide it. In the UK, the rule is that everything must be kept secret, unless there is a good reason to reveal it. Snowden has shown us that, in the modern era, there is probably not that much difference between the two and the British GCHQ approach is winning.
Does Satoshi ‘owe it to the world’ to come out of hiding and do some interviews? The first man to step on to the Moon’s surface, Neil Armstrong, was referred to as a ‘reluctant’ American hero. He did not become a celebrity and took a variety of jobs in business. When hearing that his autographs were being sold, he refused to sign any more. Having been trained and paid at the taxpayers’ expense to do something in the public domain, Armstrong was someone who could have done so much to promote science and technology. He inspired generations of children and gave back something of the massive amount given to him, yet he preferred to keep it all close to his chest until the day he died.
Satoshi doesn’t have anything to prove to anyone. His achievements were self-funded and so there is no pressure on him to ‘repay’ any investment in him. That doesn’t mean that vanishing off the radar is the right thing to do. It’s possible that, as things have moved on, he wouldn’t be much help to the core development team, and his writings were so comprehensive that there is barely a theoretical issue that hasn’t been thoroughly explored. In fact, reading his original correspondence you might think that it had been written last week, not several years in advance. Another thing thing we know about Satoshi is that he is good at ‘thought experiments,’ following through on an imaginary scenario as if it existed in real life. Einstein couldn’t experiment with planets or objects moving at light speed; he had to imagine what would happen to those things. Working in the Swiss Patent Office, he was forced to conceive how the many inventions that passed over his desk could or would work—if they were ever to be assembled. Later on, he applied this imagination to things that could not be assembled. Bitcoin existed first in Satoshi’s head, then in writing. The actual Bitcoin system is its third iteration.
There are many things which would happen as a result of Satoshi going public. Some people would deny that it is him. Opponents of the Bitcoin system would point to Satoshi and say that the blockchain was a reflection of his weaknesses. Weaknesses could be invented. There would be an enormous media scrum, not least because he owns 1 million bitcoin. Based on today’s price of USD 600 a coin, that’s USD 600M, not a massive amount. However, if you consider that owning as few as 21 BTC means you could own a millionth of the world’s future money supply, Nakamoto’s future wealth is indescribably huge. That’s assuming that all 21 million bitcoins will eventually be in circulation, which, due to loss of private keys, is impossible. So, when he feels more secure will he come out of the shadows? Is he due for a Scrooge-like conversion? Or, like Neil Armstrong, will his invention be a source of secret satisfaction—until no more satisfaction can be had?
Satoshi has control of 1 million bitcoins. So far, he’s spent 18 bitcoins. What should he do with the rest—and what would be the impact on the rest of us?
Previously, I looked at what we do know about Satoshi Nakamoto—his skill in mind experiments, his compassion for Dorian Nakamoto and most of all, the fact that he is still alive, is watching bitcoin and has a current email address.
In the early days of the Bitcoin system, it was only Satoshi and a very few others who were mining bitcoin. It was a trivial task and it is estimated that Satoshi personally has approximately 1 million coins in his wallet. Apart from eighteen which were ‘spent’ for experimental purposes, these coins have remained untouched. Most people’s first thought is “At today’s valuation, that makes Satoshi a rich person!” Which begs the question—why would someone so wealthy spend none of his money?
There is a theory that Satoshi has lost control of the coins, possibly by losing the private key. It is not likely that the creator of bitcoins would have been technically so inept as to lose control over them. In all of the cases where large amounts of bitcoin have been lost to carelessness, it has been someone who was on the edge of the system who ‘forgot’ that they had bitcoins on (for example) a hard drive and literally threw them away. Satoshi will not have forgotten about those coins. And neither has anybody else.
Having built a system with a finite money supply, Satoshi would not have discounted the first million coins, explaining that there would be 21 million coins ‘minus the first million or so that were experimental.’ Those coins must be regarded as active and likely to come back ‘on-line’ at some point. If he had lost the key, or had decided to permanently exclude them from the money supply, I think he would have told us by now. So, why would someone with half a billion in assets, not touch them?
Assuming Satoshi is a US citizen liable for US taxes, with bitcoin classed as a ‘good,’ disposing of the coins would result in a very happy ending for the US Treasury. The US approach, which is to classify bitcoins as an asset, instead of a foreign currency on which no tax is payable for personal use, is clearly incorrect and will be changed with much confusion in the future. There are very few jurisdictions in the world that would ignore that sort of money, so unless Satoshi wants to move to the Turks and Caicos Islands he’s probably thinking hard about what to do with it.
Another possible explanation for the inactivity on the account is that Satoshi believes that any movement will result in his identity being compromised, and he is probably correct. The opponents of bitcoin would not be above using Satoshi himself as a PR weapon against the currency, and which of us is mathematically perfect? In the future, blockchain technology will eliminate corruption and enable perfect forward privacy for financial transactions, but we are not there yet.
Looking at the furor caused when the FBI decided to sell approximately 30,000 bitcoins by tender, dumping another 1,000,000 on the market is not going to help. Although most people know that bitcoin is deflationary, this is only in the long term. In the short-term—right now—it is inflationary, with the bitcoin supply increasing by 11.5% a year. This will continue until 2016 when the number of new bitcoins per block will halve from 25 to 12.5. Part of the reason that the price is not increasing is that there is no squeeze on supply. This will come when we all stop talking about bitcoin and start talking about how easy it is to send and receive money securely without a bank. Mass adoption will increase demand and may provide the earliest hope of a boost to the price, but the squeeze on supply is not going to bite for a while yet.
There are two dates you need to remember—2140, which is the last bitcoin mining in theory, but more importantly, 2040, which is realistically the last date on which bitcoin mining in any significant sense will become practically impossible (excluding quantum computing). Incidentally, quantum computers work by considering all the possible solutions to a problem simultaneously. That is why they are so fast. This means that a quantum computer will be able to mine every remaining bitcoin the day it is turned on. Put that date in your diary as well.
The problem with bitcoins (and every other virtual currency) is who gets them? When you invent a currency, who do you give it to? Some people’s answer, which we have observed in many alt coins, is you give a few away to your friends, keep a load for yourself and then try to sell the rest. This rarely works well. So, should you just give them away to everyone as they did with AuroraCoin in Iceland?
The new mothers on a big estate all need baby-sitters so they have a meeting and decide to set up a baby-sitting circle. They don’t know each other, but everyone knows someone who knows that other person, and who better to babysit than another mother, right? They decide the most flexible system is using babysitting tokens where each token represents one hour of babysitting. This gets round the ‘coincidence of wants’ and makes the problem of matching sitters with babies much easier. The problem is that new mothers join the circle precisely because they want some babysitting, and because they haven’t done any babysitting, people are reluctant to ask them. Thus, they don’t have any tokens.
So the mothers decide to give everyone who joins the circle five tokens to get them started. It will solve their immediate problem and after that, everyone will get to know them so they can start earning tokens of their own. The problem is that every mother that joins the group increases the money supply by five tokens because they never have to give them back. Soon, everybody has lots of tokens and nobody wants to babysit. The circle collapses and everybody blames it on the new mothers who used their tokens and never babysat in return, but the fact is that it was the rampant inflation that was inadvertently built-in that killed the system. The fact is that you can’t just give money to everyone, because then everyone has got it, so they don’t want it.
The solution which most users will accept, is that the tokens are distributed depending on how early you get into the system. Inventors get the most, providing they have mined them. Simply ‘reserving’ them is not seen as fair. Early miners end up with a lot of tokens. This is because they are ‘early adopters.’ They are effectively being rewarded for risk although another view is that they have been lucky that that their project gained any traction. As more and more people come on board, there are fewer coins to be had and less potential for growth.
What would you do if you discovered a pot of gold buried in your garden? Would you spend some (not all) on a cruise, or would you bury it again, because you believe that the price of gold inevitably rises? If a relative died and left you a wedge of cash, what would you do? Would you spend some (not all) on a cruise, or would you invest it all in property because you believe that the price of property always goes up in the long-term? If you made a killing on the stock market, would you cash some (not all) of it in and go on a cruise, or would you reinvest all of it back into stocks because you think in the long-run stocks are always a good investment?
The world’s cruise ships are full of wealthy people who could tell you the answer. Bitcoin has the potential to be the currency that keeps on giving. Who cares if it is an intelligence test? Is that a bad thing? Don’t make the mistake of mixing up an investment that beats inflation with a deflationary asset.
Critics who say that bitcoin owners ‘hoard’ their bitcoins misunderstand that we are at the beginning of a phase of fiat-to-bitcoin conversion. Converting fiat to bitcoin and keeping it is the name of the game. You don’t have to buy bitcoin from people who are pessimistic about the price; there are many people who are sitting on piles of bitcoin and who are quietly converting them to fiat to pay their day-to-day living expenses. Bitcoin wealth is being used for philanthropic donations. It is being used as investment capital, and it is being put up as rewards for further innovation. In short, it is being used for whatever the owner wants to use it for—but it is being used.
So, what should Satoshi do—when he finally decides to do something? The coolest thing he could do would be to use the funds to increase the adoption of the Bitcoin protocol. There are several ways in which this could be done, but acting as an investor is probably the worst. The simplest would be to set up a Bitcoin Faucet Trust that made every recipient a stakeholder in the new financial system. This could be directed (as in the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation) at the poorest people in the world and give them an asset that could be used to meet their real-world needs. One million coins might be five per cent of the world’s future money supply, but it is only slightly more than the 870,000 that went walkies from Mount Gox and a lot fewer than the billions of people who are financially disenfranchised. Gavin Andresen’s bitcoin faucet was generally agreed to have had a significant effect on adoption; the only problem was that the pump ran dry. We’re going to need a bigger faucet. The effect on the markets would be minimal, but the direct and indirect effects on world poverty could be significant.
I don’t think anybody would object to the outstanding coins being trickled back into the market in that way. It would help the currency, and it would secure Satoshi’s reputation as a great philanthropist as well as a brilliant conceptual economist and mathematician.
What do you think should be done with Satoshi’s millions? | 2019-04-23T10:55:15Z | https://bitcoinmagazine.com/articles/satoshi-1409688824/ |
Rivas Music Academy will be hosting a free event on Friday, May 10th to celebrate their 10th year anniversary of shaping the music and vocal landscape across South Florida through their personalized and group music lessons!
The event is open to the public and will be held on Friday, May 10, at 7:00 p.m. at the Rivas Music Academy, 3416 W 84 St. Suite 106.
The Rivas Music Academy team will be answering any questions that parents and students may have regarding their musical lessons in voice, piano, guitar, drums, violin, among others.
Visit rivasmusicvideo.com for more information. We can’t wait to see you there!
Experience Miami through the decades at the 3rd annual Flamingo Ball taking place on Saturday, April 6th from 6:30 to 11:30 p.m. The event will commemorate its third year with a night of cocktails, dinner and dancing. Hialeah Park will present the 2019 Henry Flagler Award to Ryder System, Inc and will be accepted by Chairman and CEO, E. Sanchez. All proceeds from the event will benefit HistoryMiami Museum, a Smithsonian Affiliate that safeguards and shares Miami stories to foster learning, inspire a sense of place, and cultivate an engaged community.
To RSVP for the Flamingo Ball, please click here. Attire is Black Tie or decade inspired.
You don’t want to miss this exciting event with Latin super star Darell, performing his hit singles “Asesina” and “Te Bote” Live on Superbowl Sunday at Shadow Cabaret.
Reservations only! All tables sold with bottle service and General Admission tickets also available. This is an Exclusive event with Limited Space.
With special performances by the Shadow Dancers. Don’t Miss this Epic Event!
Reserve your tickets now! 21+ ONLY!
Art on Palm is back! Walk along Palm Avenue while indulging in some delicious bites from food trucks, shop from some of your favorite vendors, and watch live performances from local bands and dance groups.
For the art lovers, you’ll have the chance to meet some of the local artists that are on display at the Milander Center for Arts & Entertainment and even purchase some of your favorite pieces.
Stay tuned for vendor, performance, and sponsor announcements coming soon!
On Saturday, October 6, District Fit will be hosting a preview event at Brightline’s MiamiCentral station to showcase the wellness programming experiences that participants can anticipate later in the month at CityPlace and Hilton West Palm Beach during the multi-day health and wellness festival taking place October 19-21 in the heart of downtown West Palm Beach. With both host locations just steps away from Brightline’s West Palm Beach station, the high-speed rail provides a convenient way for people in neighboring cities to attend events such as District Fit.
The preview event, which will feature a Vixen Workout by Zoila Garcia, a Body Weight Movement & HIIT class by Anthony Mendez, and a soccer-inspired fitness class by SoccerShape, was created to inspire participants to attend District Fit’s main event while showcasing the accessibility Brightline provides to special events and attractions nearby. Guests can use the code DISTFIT on gobrightline.com for a 10% discount on round trip tickets to Miami from Fort Lauderdale or West Palm Beach on October 6.
As an initiative that builds on the missions of both CityPlace and Hilton West Palm Beach to enhance the health and wellness of community residents and visitors, District Fit offers an invigorating three days of mind, body and soul experiences. All classes during the District Fit preview event will be open to the public and will collect donations to directly support Palm Beach County community organizations in the fight against cancer. For more information or to sign up for the classes, visit www.DistrictFitWPB.com.
Join us at Milander Center for Arts & Entertainment for the City of Hialeah’s first ever Wellness Festival! Experience all things health, fitness, and lifestyle by speaking with various health professionals.
The 32nd Annual Turkey Trot is scheduled for Tuesday, November 13, 2018 at 3 p.m. at Milander Park located at 4700 Palm Avenue. We invite all children between the ages of 6 and 13 to join in what has become a Hialeah holiday tradition. Prizes for the Turkey Trot include turkeys that will be awarded to the first place winners in each age category and other prizes for second and third place winners. The fourth, fifth and sixth place winners receive medals. Children are encouraged to preregister with their school or local park.
Diabetic 2018 welcomes you to grace with your presence in the 26th International Diabetes and Healthcare Conference (Diabetic 2018) to be held at Helsinki, Finland during November 26-27, 2018. This International Diabetes and healthcare conference will bring together diabetic researchers, diabetologists, cardiac surgeons, professors and scientists to discuss strategies for diabetes globally. Diabetic 2018 is designed to provide divergent and prevailing education that will gather medical professional’s familiar of the issues affecting the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of diabetes care. Undoubtedly the participant at this diabetic 2018 congress will be able to exchange with the best experts in the specialty and will return home with extensive knowledge.
Diabetic 2018 welcomes you at Diabetes and Healthcare conference going to be held in Helsinki, Finland during November 26-27, 2018 which unites brief keynote presentations, speaker talks, exhibitions, Symposiums, workshops. Diabetic 2018 is the Diabetic meetings which will be most visited by all the eminent diabetologists, diabetes educators, fiery inspectors, postgraduates, affiliations, business meanders under a solitary rooftop. This Diabetic conference will assist to framework organization, B2B teaming up amidst specialists and academicians. Diabetes Conferences promotes awareness against risk factors and advancements about the diabetes. This diabetes meeting lay a platform for postgraduate education and scientific work in the fields of diabetes, cardiology, healthcare, hypertension, nutrition, oncology and stem cell research in diabetes and paediatric diabetes.
This conference will provide the focused learning on the distribution of knowledge, opportunities to network and discuss science and medicine on diabetes and healthcare and the recent advances and technologies related Diabetes for the making of better health. Fresh minds will have the opportunity to explore more areas of expertise on Healthcare in Diabetes. With members from all around the world increasing the knowledge about Diabetes and Healthcare and the increase in the new advance related to Diabetes, this is your best chance to reach the largest gathering of participants from Diabetes Community.
We avidly look forward to organize our 22nd International conference on Food Science and Nutrition at Moscow, Russia from October 11 – 13, 2018 which is themed Reinforcement on modernization capability in food Science. This particular Euro Food Science 2018 conference targets the conceptualization of recent technologies in food Science and Nutrition. Which includes all end to end process, emerging technology’s in Food Sector, Revolution In Food Safety and quality, Recently developed equipment’s, New techniques in Food Preservation, Effects And Benefits Of Nutrification, Benefits of functional foods, Impact and aims of Nutrigenomics, Need of intelligent packaging, Emerging techniques in food waste management.
Dentistry Medicine 2018 scheduled to be held in the month of November 22-23, 2018 at Bucharest Romania is a perfect occasion intended for International well-being Dental and Oral experts too. The gathering welcomes members from every driving university, clinical examination foundations and symptomatic organizations to share their exploration, giving a showcase of the most recent dental procedures around the theme “Welcoming the era of smile”.
Please arrive 15 minutes prior to event to ensure parking, set up etc. All ages, no experience required. Yes, mom you can paint, too!
Spend an evening with friends and family and catch a movie under the stars!
Join us on Friday, April 27th for a movie night at Milander Park, located at 4700 Palm Avenue.
This month’s movie is Justice League.
Gates will open at 5PM, and the movie will begin at sunset.
Admission is free; just bring chairs, blankets, & your appetite!
18th Global Ophthalmology, Optometry and Glaucoma Conference (Glaucoma 2018), which is going to be to be held during October 18-19, 2018 at Helsinki, Finland in collaboration with EVRS, will raise the most dynamic and latest issues in the field of Ophthalmology and Optometry. The Congress will highlight the discussion around the theme “The Science of Eye” by bridging the gaps between the intellectuals from across the globe to enlighten their research and findings at Glaucoma 2018.
The Conference additionally goes about as a stage to trade data, new mediation and fortify the coordinated effort among Ophthalmologists, Optometrists, Eye Care Specialists, Related Educators and Researchers from both Scholarly World and Ophthalmic Foundations. Glaucoma 2018 also brings together a unique and international mix of large and medium pharmaceutical, biotech and diagnostic companies, leading universities and clinical research institutions making the conference a perfect platform to share experience, foster collaborations across industry and academia, and evaluate emerging technologies across the globe.
Join us for the 2018 City of Hialeah’s Eggstravaganza!
There will be activities the whole family will love including an egg hunt featuring over 50,000 eggs, a Kids Zone and live entertainment.
Come enjoy a variety of food trucks, rides, and even a chance to take a picture with the Easter Bunny!
Join HistoryMiami Museum for a sizzling “Tropical Nights”-themed gala in the Hialeah Park Citation Room. Enjoy a sumptuous stone crab and lobster buffet, open bar, and much more. Through exhibitions, city tours, education, research, collections and publications, HistoryMiami advocates for helping everyone understand the importance of the past in shaping Miami’s future. Tickets are $350, and proceeds from the gala benefit educational programming at HistoryMiami Museum.
The City of Hialeah is proud to announce: “And Still I Rise” – A Collective Art Exhibition inspired by Maya Angelou.
In a continued celebration of Black History Month and in honor of Women’s History Month, the Milander Center for Arts and Entertainment will open its doors to an exhibit that is sure to leave you breathless as we celebrate the power and courage of women.
Texas Two Step CPR is an annual event whose purpose is to engage the public and educate them on the benefits of compressions-only/hands-only Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR).
Training will take place at the Miami-Dade county locations on Saturday the 24th and Sunday the 25th. The Broward county event will take place only on Saturday the 24th.
During 5-minute training sessions, participants learned how to act quickly in the event of cardiac emergencies by following two easy steps: 1) Call 911 and 2) Initiate hands-only CPR.
Compressions-only CPR is easy to perform, and can be done by the layman in emergency situations in order to buy time until Emergency Medical Services arrive.
The event was created by a group of medical students in 2016 after recognizing the need to train more Texans in lifesaving, hands-only CPR. In its inaugural year the event trained more than 4,200 individuals.
To date, this project has trained over 10,000 people in the use of compressions-only CPR with the help of more than 1000 medical students.
The City of Hialeah unveils a collective art exhibition in honor of Cuba’s poet & hero, Jose Martí.
Join us for a night of art, culture, accompanied with light appetizers & drinks. You’ll also have the opportunity to meet the artists behind the artworks in person!
Nursing Health 2018, July19-21, 2018, Dubai, UAE is organised aiming to bring together leading academic professors, scientists, researchers and research scholars to exchange and share their experiences and research results on all aspects of Primary Health care and Emergency Nursing. It also provides a premier interdisciplinary pavement for pharma, Healthcare, Biotech and Medical Device industries and to represent their company and discuss the most recent innovations, trends, and concerns as well as practical challenges encountered and solutions adopted in the fields of Nursing, Paediatrics, Health Care, Cancer, Trauma, Neonatal Nursing, Occupational Nursing, Mental Health Nursing and Family Medicine and Home care .
Family Paint Day: Last Party of The Year!
We are still accepting Artist Submissions as well as Vendors and Sponsors.
(South and Southwest Florida, November 6) In honor of Veteran’s Day, on Saturday, November 11th Hooters is offering all Veterans and Active Duty Military a free meal. Veterans and Active Military can choose from one of five menu items following free menu items: Buffalo Chicken Salad, 10 Piece Boneless Wings, 10 Piece Traditional Wings, Hooters Burger and a Buffalo Chicken Sandwich.
Those interested must present their Military ID. Promotion is for dine in only. This offer is not valid with any other discounts and is one per person.
As part of its military support, Hooters also invites guests to participate in its annual Operation Calendar Drop program by purchasing a 2018 Hooters Calendar and attaching a personal note of thanks to our troops. Hooters will then collect and deliver the calendars to U.S. military deployed around the world. Since 2013, more than 100,000 Hooters Calendars have been distributed to troops worldwide.
LTP Management, a Franchisee of Hooters of America, owns and operates 16 locations in South Florida. For more information about South Florida Hooters please visit www.HootersFlorida.com or follow us at Twitter @HootersFlorida, Instagram @SouthFLHooters and Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hootersflorida/.
#HialeahHolidays continues with Santa’s Snowblast presented by Sedano’s Supermarkets!
Children of all ages are encouraged to come with their parents for carnival rides, games, food, live musical entertainment and, of course, the chance to play on a mountain of glistening, white snow.
Hooters is expressing its thanks to our Nation’s First Responders by treating them to a free entrée. On Saturday, October 28th all First Responders including EMT, Firefighters and Police Officers in uniform can select an item from a special menu that includes, Buffalo Chicken Salad, Buffalo Chicken Sandwich, Hooters Burger, 10-Piece Traditional Wings and 10-Piece Boneless Wings at any Hooters location.
“We look forward to seeing First Responders from our local community at Hooters. We want to thank our Nation’s First Responders for their strength, courage and service, said Hooters Director of Marketing Kristi Quarles. Offer is for dine in only, one per person for all active first responders with First Responder identification card.
LTP Management, a Franchisee of Hooters of America, owns and operates 16 locations in South Florida. For more information about South Florida Hooters please visit www.HootersFlorida.com or follow us at Twitter @HootersFlorida, Instagram @SouthFLHooters and Facebook www.Facebook.com/SouthFloridaHooters.
Healthcare Asia Pacific 2018 is now collaborated with Asian healthcare hospitals and management, voice of leaders, Placid way, innovating care, ASEAN Brifing and many more.
Healthcare and Management, Public healthcare, Private Healthcare, Occupational healthcare, Healthcare Case Studies, Home Care, Nursing Education, Cancer and Care, Infectious Disease and Prevention, Healthcare and Chronic Diseases, Psychiatric and Healthcare, Community Healthcare, Women Health Issues and Care, Paediatric Healthcare, Nutrition and Healthcare, Dental Care, Healthcare Services, Health Informatics.
We invite all children between the ages of 6 and 13 to join in what has become a Hialeah holiday tradition. The annual Turkey Trot Presented by Fresco y Mas is scheduled for Monday, November 13, 2017 at 3:00 p.m. at the Ted Hendricks Stadium located at 4800 Palm Avenue, Hialeah, FL 33012.
Prizes for the Turkey Trot include turkeys, seasonal pies, ribbons, and trophies.
Join us on Friday, November 17th at Triangle Park for our annual Tree Lighting Ceremony!
The event begins at 6:00pm with live entertainment and various food trucks.
Guests of honor will include Santa and Mrs. Claus for anyone wanting to capture a picture perfect moment, all leading up to the moment we officially welcome the holiday season to Hialeah with lights!
You tend to think of yourself as brave. Being brave will not save you now! Come give voice to your spirits, spend a night at the Insanitorium. Once you step in…you can’t step out!
Ever wondered what happens when a young married couple moves from the windy city of Chicago to the colorful and strange land of Hialeah, Florida?
The long-awaited premier of the Hialeah Series is coming to Milander Center for Arts & Entertainment, and we want YOU to be a part of it!
Join creators David Vargas, Melissa Carcache, & Javier Mayol along with the entire cast for a night that celebrates our city and the unique mark it leaves in our hearts.
The City of Hialeah invites you to the opening reception of our Hispanic Heritage Month exhibit: “La Mano Hispana”. Join us and experience art that celebrates the rich cultural expressions of Hispanic traditions, history and contemporary life!
The EuroScicon will be holding its CNE and ADA accredited 4th World Congress on Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome from June 07-09, 2018 London, UK. The theme of this year’s meeting is “Diagnosis & Intervention of Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome” which will provide an international platform for discussion of present and future challenges in Effects of PCOS on women’s health, Risk factors in PCOS and expertise meeting. World-leading health practitioners, clinicians, educators and researchers will present cutting-edge and practical clinical techniques based upon widely accepted evidence and will introduce new and emerging research.
Hialeah’s art scene never disappoints! Join us on September 15th for Art on Palm, a block party featuring live music, live art & shows, and food trucks! The fun starts at 7PM on 5th Street between Palm Avenue and East 1st Avenue, for more information please call 305.804.7141.
Hialeah’s art scene never disappoints! Join us on August 18th for Art on Palm, a block party featuring live music, live art & shows, and food trucks! The fun starts at 7PM on 5th Street between Palm Avenue and East 1st Avenue, for more information please call 305.804.7141.
The City of Hialeah invites you to the opening reception of our newest exhibit: “Pop Goes the Palette” on Friday, August 25th at 7 p.m. Milander Center for Arts & Entertainment.
This will be a collective art exhibition rich in pop and non-pop art in celebration of the sumptuous colors of life.
The City of Hialeah invites you to the Annual Independence Day Celebration presented by Leon Medical Centers! Celebrate with family and friends and experience our vibrant city at its best.
With a variety of food trucks, activities at the Kids Zone, and even a live concert, this event will be one that you can’t miss!
Missing Children is an epidemic that plagues our global community every single day. The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children reports that roughly 800,000 children are reported as missing in the United States each year. Of those children that are reported missing, about 20 percent are not found alive. We cannot sit idly by and let our children continue to be taken from their families and stripped of their freedom.
Florida National University, its Powerhouse Steering Committee and the Dr. Jose Regueiro Foundation have collaborated to present the Third Annual Missing Children’s Awareness and Prevention Rally. The event will take place on Thursday, May 25th, 2017 at 10AM outside of Florida National University’s Hialeah Campus, which is located at: 4425 W 20th Avenue, Hialeah, FL 33012.
The City of Hialeah is pleased to present a Cuban and Diaspora art exhibition featuring the work of 17 seasoned and emerging artists that have been influenced by the culture of modern art in Cuba from past and post 1959.
Come and witness this extraordinary collective art exhibition of discovery, loss and the evolution of the soul of the Cuban artist at the opening reception starting at 7PM.
This exhibit and parking are free and open to the public.
Please join us as we continue our six-month long #HIALEAHNOW Series at the Beats and BBQ Bash in the Leah Presented by Jameson! Nothing like a good ‘ol barbecue to bring people together along with some banging beats to jam to. This is a celebration of community through music and art and the most fitting close to our series.
With your $5 donation to Catalyst, you can sample three of Miami’s favorite barbecue restaurants’ best dishes! Full plates will also be available for sale.
Join the cypher or watch from the sidelines, you’ll enjoy witnessing the Catalyst Crew and their award-winning breakdancing moves competing for the title of Best B-Boy/B-Girl and a $500 cash prize!
The BBQ Bash will celebrate the life of one of this community’s most giving and impactful individuals, Catalyst Hip-Hops’s Joel Stigale, the passionate founder who worked with mentoring at-risk youth and inspired many of Hialeah’s most impressionable minds through hip-hop and positivity.
Free and open to the public, free parking.
Saturday, May 20 // 2 p.m. – 8 p.m.
Hialeah’s Southeastern industrial corridor rose to prominence during the 1980s as one of the largest and busiest areas of production and manufacturing in Florida. As a result of modernization combined with the effects of outsourcing, the uses that were once prevalent in the area dissipated and this particular area was all but abandoned.
Since that time, a medley of different uses has been incorporated into the area including a heavy presence of some of Miami-Dade County’s most prolific thrift stores.
These thrift stores have been instrumental in introducing Hialeah to an entire generation of antique lovers and artists. The Hialeah Artist Live/Work Overlay District, also known as The Leah Arts District, enjoys a strategic proximity to the newly proposed Hialeah Market Station development project, Miami’s artistic hubs, and other destination areas within Miami-Dade County. Because of it’s location and highly affordable price per square footage, Hialeah’s new Artist Live / Work District is in a position to play a vital and important role in the artistic and cultural development of not only Hialeah, but the entire South Florida community.
The City of Hialeah and the Florida Grand Opera are pleased to announce their fourth installment of Family Day on Sunday, April 9, 2017.
Perfect for children of all ages, FGO’s Family Day offers a hands-on, behind-the-scenes experience, with interactive workshops, musical activities, and a live family friendly performance of the opera classic Carmen.
Join us for the 2017 City of Hialeah’s Eggstravaganza!
Live Radio show on Jolt Radio, Discussion & Call in using this phone number 305.912.5658.
Ife-Ile Afro-Cuban Dance Festival, Origami Everglades, Reading Queer Literary Festival, PageSlayers Summer Camp, N8tive Reel Cinema Festival are all winners of a 2016 Knight Arts Challenge, a grant awarded to any one with an idea that brings South Florida together through the arts.
Applying takes 150 words to fill out the initial application, which will be available at knightarts.org through April 28, so be ready to distill your complex ideas down to their very essence, if you can.
3) The grant recipients must find funds to match Knight’s commitment.
Many previous Knight Arts Challenge winners have been small, grassroots efforts that reflect South Florida and its many cultures. They include the recently launched Nu Deco Ensemble, which aims to be a 21st century orchestra for Miami; MicroTheater Miami, which adapts an idea from Madrid by offering short plays in shipping containers; in addition to funding to engage the public in creating a major public art project in Opa-locka.
The City of Hialeah invites you to the opening reception of “Women: It’s All About Us – Portraits of Love and Courage†on Friday, March 10 at 7 p.m. Milander Center for Arts & Entertainment 4800 Palm Avenue, Hialeah, Florida. This collective art exhibition pays tribute to the greatness of all women in a month-long art exhibit featuring the works of over 75 impassioned artists tasked to celebrate the profound influence of women. The visual interpretations of this collective will visit the milestones and whispers in the landscape of women. Admission and parking are free.
Photographer Cristian Lazzari spent an autumn in Nepal photographing the people and their beautiful country. The following spring, a disastrous earthquake destroyed much of what will be seen in this exhibition. | 2019-04-22T06:09:52Z | http://www.soulofmiami.org/category/where/hialeah/ |
This release has a few new (minor) features and a couple of bug fixes. The most important change is not in code, but in the license. With this release, I will no longer offer paid licenses. Instead, the code is released under the Apache Public License 2.0, and free for use in closed, commercial applications.
I have never worked full-time on upscaledb (and its predecessor hamsterdb), but the amount of time I have invested was often more than 40 hours per week. Over the last year I realized that I do no longer have the resources and the grit to do this. Spending time with the family is just way more valuable.
Still, it was a difficult decision. For many years I had the vision to write database code for a living. Working on my own database, my own project, felt like a dream coming true. Commercially, the dream turned out to be not sustainable. It did not feel good to see that others had the same problems, but it helped nevertheless.
What now? I will continue working on upscaledb. I will invest my limited time where it makes most sense (for me). Things that I do not enjoy or that consume too much time will be neglected. That's mostly related to providing Win32 builds (if you look at the download page then you will see that they are missing). Bugs will be fixed as soon as possible, patches are more than welcome.
The integer compression codec UPS_COMPRESSOR_UINT32_MASKEDVBYTE is now a synonym for UPS_COMPRESSOR_UINT32_VARBYTE, but uses the MaskedVbyte library under the hood.
All files are available on the download page.
After several months of hard work, I'm proud to release the first (beta) version of upscaledb-mysql, a MySQL storage engine based on upscaledb.
MySQL uses "storage engines" to persist and access the actual table data. The most prominent storage engines are InnoDB and MyISAM. The upscaledb storage engine tries to be 100% compatible to InnoDB, while offering higher performance and an even faster NoSQL interface to the table data. If MySQL hits a performance wall you can use the regular upscaledb API, connect (via the remote interface) to the MySQL process and directly query or modify the data.
I have tested performance with several benchmark programs.
Sysbench’s OLAP test uses transactions which are not yet implemented [Scroll down for the TODO list]. To avoid race conditions, they were run with one client connection only. The tests were run for 60 seconds, the test data consists of 1 million rows. Tests were run with BEGIN/COMMIT transaction envelopes and with LOCK TABLE. The graphs show the total number of queries.
For such simple operations %%upscledb outperforms InnoDB.
I have run two benchmarks using siege, a http benchmark tool. The first one retrieves the start page of a Wordpress blog with five posts and several comments. The second benchmark searches the blog by accessing the “Search” page. Both tests were run for 30 seconds, with 30 concurrent connections.
The results are slightly in favour of InnoDB. Upscaledb leaves some performance on the table, mostly because it requires two database accesses when reading or writing a secondary index. In addition, InnoDB implements a MySQL feature called “Index Condition Pushdown”, which optimizes range lookups via secondary index. Both optimizations are on the TODO list.
Upscaledb does not yet optimize the COUNT(*) queries, therefore InnoDB is currently much faster. But upscaledb’s built-in query interface (“UQI”) is still the winner. This query interface can be extended through plugins, and any type of full-table scan can thus be implemented. In addition, you can use all other upscaledb API functions to read or manipulate the table data. The graphs show the duration of the SELECT COUNT(*) query (in seconds).
You can find detailled information about the benchmarks in a GitHub Gist.
Both are described in the Wiki: Installation, Configuration.
Q: Is this ready for production?
A: No, unless your definition of "ready for production" is significantly different from mine.
Q: How can I improve the performance?
Q: Does upscaledb use the same cache size as InnoDB?
A: Like InnoDB, upscaledb's default cache size is 128mb. However, this cache size is *per table*, and not set globally! See this page for details, and make sure you keep this in mind when comparing the performance of InnoDB and upscaledb.
Q: Is the NoSQL API security critical?
A: Yes, you basically open a backdoor to your data and avoid all of MySQL's security layers and authentication features. By default, this interface is therefore switched off.
Q: How can I use the NoSQL API to access the various columns?
A: You have to de-serialize the keys and records that are stored. I'll cover this in another blog post.
Q: Does the upscaledb storage handler support compression?
A: Yes, you can compress the row data with zlib, snappy or lzf. See this page for more information.
Q: Does the upscaledb storage handler run with MariaDB?
A: I don’t know, I did not yet have time to test. But I would expect so.
This blog post continues with the summary of a research paper by Daniel Lemire and me about the use of 32bit integer compression for keys in a B+-tree index. We evaluate a wide range of compression schemes, some of which leverage the SIMD instructions available in modern processors. To our knowledge, such a comparison has never been attempted before.
You can read part one here. This part describes the integration of integer compression in upscaledb and presents benchmark results.
upscaledb’s B+-tree node stores keys and values separately from each other. Each node has a header structure of 32 bytes containing flags, a key counter, pointers to the left and right siblings and to the child node. This header is followed by the KeyList (where we store the key data) and the RecordList (where we store the value’s data). Their layout depends on the index configuration and data types.
The RecordList of an internal node stores 64-bit pointers to child nodes, whereas the RecordList of a leaf node stores values or 64-bit pointers to external blobs if the values are too large.
Fixed-length keys are always stored sequentially and without overhead. They are implemented as plain C arrays of the key type, i.e., uint32 t keys for a database of 32-bit integers. Variable-length keys use a small in-node index to manage the keys. Long keys are stored in separate blobs; the B+-tree node then points to this blob.
This in-memory representation of fixed-length keys makes applying compression easy - at least in theory. The keys are already stored in sorted order, therefore applying differential encoding does not require a change in the memory layout. Since keys are stored sequentially in memory, SIMD instructions can be used efficiently if needed.
When using integer compression, the keys are split into blocks of up to 256 integers per block. We chose this to offer faster random access (by skipping blocks). Also, inserting or deleting values will only affect a small block instead of a huge one.
I already described the various codecs in the previous part. In order to integrate a codec into upscaledb, it had to implement a few functions.
A full block is not decoded during CRUD (Create/Read/Update/Delete) operations, but it is decoded frequently during analytical queries (see below).
Used i.e. after a page split or in the "vacuumize" operation, which periodically compacts a node in order to save space (see below).
Inserts a new integer value in a compressed block. A few codecs (Varbyte, MaskedVByte and VarIntGB) can do this without uncompressing the block. All other codecs uncompress the block, modify it and then re-compress the block.
Appending an index key at the “end” of the database is a very common operation, therefore we optimized it. Most codecs are now able to append extremely fast with O(1), and without decoding the whole block. Appending an integer key to a compressed block would otherwise be costly, because all codecs (except FOR and SIMD FOR) have to reconstruct all values because of the differential encoding.
Performs a lower-bound search in a compressed block, without decompressing it.
Not a priority since we did not use this in our benchmark. Implemented for Varbyte (and therefore also for MaskedVByte) directly on the compressed data. All other codecs decode the block, delete the value and then re-encode the block again.
Performs a compaction by removing gaps between blocks. Gaps occur when keys are deleted and blocks therefore shrink, or blocks require more space and are moved to a different location in the node. SIMD FOR and BP128 periodically also decode all keys and re-encode them again.
Was originally used for cursor operations. But then we found out that cursors often access the same block. We decided to decode and cache the last used block. The select function is therefore no longer used.
All our experiments are executed on an Intel Core i7-4770 CPU (Haswell) with 32 GB memory (DDR3-1600 with double-channel). The CPU has 4 cores of 3.40 GHz each, and 8 MB of L3 cache. Turbo Boost is disabled on the test machine, and the processor is set to run at its highest clock speed. The computer runs Linux Ubuntu 14.04. We report wall-clock time.
This benchmark creates a new database for 32bit integer keys and inserts various numbers of keys. We should expect a compressed database to be slower for such applications, as insertions may require complete recompression of some blocks, at least in the worst case. Among the compressed formats, the best insertion performance is offered by the FOR, SIMD FOR and Masked VByte codecs, followed by BP128 and VarIntGB. VByte is slower than all other codecs. If one uses FOR, SIMD FOR and Masked VByte, insertions in a compressed database are only 2.5× slower than insertions in an uncompressed database.
This benchmark opens an existing database and performs point look-ups of all inserted keys. Each look-up requires a B+-tree traversal to the leaf node. The node then performs a linear search through the block index and locates the block which stores the requested key. The codec then searches the block for the key.
The benchmarks show that integer compression does not cause a significant performance hit for lookup operations. We get the best results with SIMD FOR, VarIntGB and FOR, and the worst results with VByte and BP128 (with a penalty of up to 60 %). Actually this was a positive surprise; we expected worse!
This benchmark opens an existing database and creates a cursor to traverse from the first to the last key. To position itself on the first key, the cursor traverses down the B+-tree at the left-most path down to the leaf, then visits each leaf. Since all leaf nodes are linked, no further traversal is required.
In our original implementation, the cursor then used the select method to retrieve the key directly from the compressed block. But since cursors are usually used for sequential access, and therefore frequently access the same block, we decided to decode the block and cache the decoded values. Our tests showed a significant performance improvement compared to the previous implementation based on select.
This benchmark performs a “SUM” operation on all keys. It is equivalent to a SELECT SUM(column) operation of a SQL database, where the specified column is an index of unique 32bit integer keys. For such operations, upscaledb does not use a cursor to traverse the B+-tree, but performs the operation directly on the B+-tree’s data, without copying the keys into the application’s memory. SUM performance is impacted by database size: the bigger the database, the more compression is beneficial, with BP128 and SIMD FOR offering the best performance.
Finally, here are the compression results with the various database sizes, using the default block sizes (128 for BP128 and 256 for other codecs). BP128 is the clear winner. It is able to compress the database by a factor of ten compared to an uncompressed B+-tree. The compression ratios offered by the other codecs are similar (compression ratio of 2 or 3), with SIMD FOR compressing slightly less and VByte compressing slightly better.
We have shown that fast key compression could improve the single-threaded performance of a key-value store - if these compression techniques are accelerated with SIMD instructions. We get the best performance for SIMD codecs (BP128 and SIMD FOR). Unlike other codecs, they show an ability to noticeably improve query performance in all our tests (from small to large databases) on the analytic “SUM” benchmark.
Another conclusion would be: if your application mostly appends keys (instead of inserting them at random positions), and you perform many analytical queries or full-table scans, then performance will improve (in the best case) or at least not deteriorate significantly (in the worst case). But you will save lots of RAM.
One of our codecs, BP128 ("SimdComp"), comes with an interesting limitation: it is not "delete stable" and often grows when keys are deleted. To our knowledge, upscaledb is the only database which is able to deal with such codecs. In the next blog I'll describe how we did this, a few other problems we faced when we integrated compression, and how upscaledb's B+-tree differs from the textbook B-tree algorithm. Sign up to our newsletter to get notified when the next blog is published.
This blog post shows how to use the new "UQI" query interface of upscaledb 2.2.0. It's the follow-up to the series "Building an embedded column store database with upscaledb" (part one, part two and part three).
In the previous parts I demonstrated how to use upscaledb to create multiple indexes on one or several columns, and how to perform range queries with cursors. This part will show how to run queries with the UQI query interface.
upscaledb has a lot to offer regarding analytics: it has a full set of APIs dedicated to analytical calculations. These APIs are called "UQI" (Upscaledb Query Interface) and declared in the header file `ups/upscaledb_uqi.h`. These functions were rewritten for version 2.2.0 and now support an SQL-ish query language which can be extended through custom plugins.
This query interface can run full-table scans over a single database and apply aggregation functions and filter predicates. Functions and predicates can be extended through user-supplied plugins. Joins are not supported.
Internally, the UQI functions can operate directly on the B+-tree node data. B+-trees store keys and records very compact and efficiently. While you could also use cursors to implement this functionality, a cursor requires the key- and record data to be copied from the B+-tree to the application. The new UQI interface does the opposite: it performs the query in the B+-tree and does not copy any data. This makes the UQI queries much faster.
Performs a "select" query. The query syntax is described below. Results are returned in result. This is a shortcut for uqi_select_range.
Performs a "select" query. If begin is not NULL then the query starts at the specified position, otherwise it starts at the beginning of the database. Afterwards, the begin cursor is advanced to the next element after end. If end is not NULL then the query stops at the specified position, otherwise it stops at the end of the database. This API can be used for pagination.
Returns the number of rows from a result object.
Returns the key type from a result object. Key types are UPS_TYPE_UINT8, UPS_TYPE_UINT32, UPS_TYPE_BINARY etc.
Returns the record type from a result object. Record types are UPS_TYPE_UINT8, UPS_TYPE_UINT32, UPS_TYPE_BINARY etc.
Returns a key from the specified row of an result object. I.e. uqi_result_get_key(&result, 0, &key); returns the first key from the query results.
Returns a record from the specified row of an result object. I.e. uqi_result_get_record(&result, 0, &record); returns the first record from the query results.
Returns the serialized key data. If the key type has fixed length (i.e. UPS_TYPE_UINT32) then the returned pointer can be casted directly into a uint32_t * pointer. The size returns the size of the integer array.
Returns the serialized record data. If the record type has fixed length (i.e. UPS_TYPE_UINT32) then the returned pointer can be casted directly into a uint32_t * pointer. The size returns the size of the integer array.
Note that you can only SUM up records (or keys) if their type is numeric!
The TOP and BOTTOM queries are the only queries which accept the LIMIT keyword. If you specify a LIMIT for any other function the the UQI parser will currently fail with an error. You can also query TOP/BOTTOM queries over the keys, but since keys are already sorted it would be much cheaper to use a cursor instead (with the BOTTOM elements starting at the beginning of the database, and the TOP elements at the end).
Again you can calculate the minimum and maximum from keys as well (by using MIN($keys) from database 1), but since keys are already sorted it would be much more efficient to use a cursor and retrieve the first (or last) element in the database.
A predicate can be supplied with the WHERE clause. In release 2.2.0 there are no predicates supplied, but they can be written as a plugin. A predicate can also be loaded from an external (dynamic) library.
Counts all distinct keys in database 13 with even records. The "even" predicate is loaded from a dynamic library, and therefore has to be quoted.
The "distinct" keyword ignores duplicate keys and skips them when processing the input data. Its meaning is therefore different from DISTINCT in an SQL database, where it filters duplicate results.
For performance reasons, plugins have to be written in C or C++. With some knowledge in C/C++, writing a plugin is not difficult, but it extends the scope of this blog post a bit. We've created a sample which demonstrates how an application can supply its own plugins for aggregating and filtering data: uqi2.c.
The UQI interface is brand new, and fairly unique. If you have any questions then please do not hesitate to write! | 2019-04-26T00:00:44Z | https://upscaledb.com/blog/blog.html |
So what are you waiting for? Get out there and find some birds!
There are primarily two birding skills that are used by most experienced birders to find and identify birds. They are visual birding ("eye birding") and auditory birding ("ear birding"). Over the past decade, however, I have found that one technological advancement has trickled down to the discipline of birdwatching and led to a third skill - "phone birding".
I first became aware of the art of phone birding on April 24, 2006. It was late afternoon and I had retired to my roof to relax before dinner and look for migrating birds that were heading north. My friend Sean, who lived 3/4 mile to the southwest, was on his roof doing the same. We chatted on the phone as we scanned our respective sections of sky. At one point Sean excitedly announced, "There’s a Northern Harrier flying over 5th Avenue!" The avenues in this part of Brooklyn run, loosely, from north to south. I waited a beat, trained my bins in his general direction, then replied, "It just passed over Methodist Hospital".
Fast forward to April 22, 2014, one week ago.
I had work to do during the early morning and couldn't get out into the park for some spring birding. It was about 11am when I finally ventured into Prospect Park. Sean called me as I was walking through the park's "Ravine", passed the back of the "Upper Pool". He gave me the rundown of his morning's birding while he walked to the subway station near his house. About 5 minutes into the conversation he stopped in mid-sentence and exclaimed, "There are two Bald Eagles flying over me!" I asked him in what direction they were flying, to which he replied that it looked like they were heading towards Prospect Lake. He continued his binocularless description of the huge, soaring raptors as I ran down the steep path towards the open sky of the Nethermead Meadow. Once in the middle of the field I spotted an immature Bald Eagle in the sky to my south, over the neighborhood of Windsor Terrace. It soared into the park between Lookout Hill and the Quaker Cemetery, then followed the park's ridged, forested spine, quickly moving north and out of sight.
WASHINGTON, DC, April 23, 2014 (ENS) – The warming climate is melting sea ice, opening U.S. Arctic waters to shipping and oil and gas development, but the National Research Council warned today that U.S. personnel, equipment, transportation, communication, navigation, and safety resources are not adequate for an Arctic oil spill response.
In a new report released today, “Responding to Oil Spills in the US Arctic Marine Environment” the National Research Council calls this absence of infrastructure a “significant liability” in the event of a large oil spill.
The Arctic poses challenges to oil spill response, such as extreme weather and environmental settings, limited operations and communications infrastructure, a vast geographic area, and vulnerable species, ecosystems, and cultures.
“There is a need to validate current and emerging oil spill response technologies under these real-world conditions,” the report finds.
The committee recommends that “carefully controlled field experiments that release oil in the U.S. Arctic be conducted as part of a long-term, collaborative Arctic oil spill research and development program that spans local, state, and federal levels.
It suggests that positioning response equipment such as aerial in situ burn and dispersant capabilities in the region before a spill occurs would provide immediate access to rapid response options.
The U.S. Coast Guard’s presence and performance capacity in the Arctic should be enhanced, the report recommends. The Coast Guard should work with the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation to develop an oil spill training program for local communities and trained response teams in local villages.
They also should integrate local and traditional knowledge of ice and ocean conditions and marine life to enhance oil spill response, the report says.
Given the nearness of U.S. Arctic waters to international territories, communications between command centers, coordinated planning, trans-boundary movement of people and equipment, and identification of translators, should be addressed before an actual spill, the report says.
While formal contingency planning and exercises with Canada have been established, the U.S. Coast Guard should expand its bilateral agreement with Russia to include Arctic spill scenarios and conduct regularly scheduled exercises to establish joint response plans, the report recommends.
“High-quality nautical charting is essential for marine traffic purposes and oil spill response in the Arctic. However, shoreline topographic and hydrographic data are mostly obsolete, with limited tide, current, and water level data and very little ability to get accurate positioning and elevation,” the report warns.
“Private AIS [Automatic Identification System] receivers are used to track vessels in the Bering Strait and along a large part of Alaska coastal areas, but there are significant gaps in coverage. Consequently, there are numerous regional ‘blind spots’ where an early indication of elevated risks may not be apparent to officials on shore,” warns the committee.
The committee also cautions that the Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund “may prove insufficient to cover the sociological as well as economic damages of an affected community,” adding that a structure other than the National Contingency Plan may be needed to deal with broader social impacts resulting from a significant oil spill.
The study was sponsored by the U.S. Arctic Research Commission, the American Petroleum Institute, U.S. Coast Guard, U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement, Marine Mammal Commission, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Oil Spill Recovery Institute, and the National Academy of Sciences.
“The inevitability of an oil spill given the industry’s drive for profit at all costs, the immense difficulties of responding to an Arctic spill and the devastating impact a spill will have on the region’s residents, wildlife and ecosystem should be enough to prevent this lunacy,” said Deans.
In 2012, Royal Dutch Shell started drilling the first wells in the Alaskan Arctic in nearly two decades in the Beaufort and Chukchi Seas. Shell’s goal for the summer drilling season was to confirm a major discovery of oil in commercially-viable quantities in the Alaskan Arctic Ocean.
Shell was not able to achieve its goal and did not complete any exploration wells. The company was unable to obtain certification of its containment vessel, and both of Shell’s drilling rigs experienced marine transport problems, including the grounding of the Kulluk off Alaska’s Kodiak Island during a towing operation.
A subsequent federal government review of Shell’s 2012 operations concluded that before it is allowed to approach Arctic drilling again, the company must submit to the Interior Department a comprehensive, integrated plan describing every phase of its operation from preparations through demobilization. Shell did no drilling in U.S. Arctic waters last year.
“Weeks after the 25th Anniversary of the Exxon Valdez oil disaster, and days after the fourth anniversary of the BP Deepwater Horizon disaster, those environments remain forever altered and communities continue to struggle against oil company obfuscation. To allow the same thing to happen again in pursuit of bigger profits for the world’s largest corporations is insane,” Deans said.
Nearly five million people from around the world have signed the Greenpeace petition to protect the Arctic, calling on governments to create a global sanctuary around the North Pole, and to ban offshore drilling and destructive commercial activity in the fragile Arctic environment.
Saturdays, through June 28, 12 – 1 p.m.
Sunday, May 4, 2014, 8 a.m.
Guide: NYC Audubon, Van Cortlandt Park Conservancy With the Van Cortlandt Park Conservancy Meet at Van Cortlandt Nature Center. The history of birding and Van Cortlandt Park are inseparable. Influential birders such as Roger Tory Peterson and Allan D. Cruickshank got their starts on Van Cortlandt’s ecologically diverse grounds. These walks celebrate the tradition set forth by these great ornithologists. Participants will look for various species of residents and migrants and discuss a wide range of avian topics.
Guide: Chrissy Word With Rocking the Boat Meet at Rocking the Boat, at 812 Edgewater Road in the Bronx, and launch from the adjacent Hunts Point Riverside Park. Explore the Bronx River aboard a hand-built wooden boat, led by experienced rowers. The Bronx River is the City’s only true river and hosts an abundance of wildlife, including herons and egrets, osprey, and belted kingfishers. Visit restoration sites and learn about the Bronx River eco-system and the area’s history. rowing optional.
Limited to 20. $45 (31) for adults, $35 (24) for ages 18 and under Click here to register.
Saturday, May 3, 2014, 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
Enjoy walking at a comfortable pace to see wonderful vistas, beautiful, spring woodlands. The hike begins at the Greenbelt Nature Center, 700 Rockland Avenue. Bring lunch, a beverage and sturdy walking shoes.
Saturday, May 3, 2014 – 1:00 P.M. to 3:00 P.M.
With its bluffs nestled 85 feet above sea level, Mt. Loretto is home to beautiful vistas of the shore facing Prince’s Bay. The shoreline is home to some of Staten Island’s most unique natural artwork. Nestled in the meadow’s hills are a variety of plants and wildlife. Mt. Loretto is a habitat for harbor seals, monarch butterflies, wild rabbits, muskrats, ospreys, and on occasion, bald eagles. Meet at the parking lot at Cunningham Road and Hylan Boulevard ( http://goo.gl/maps/3c5Fh ).
Please call John Paul Learn at 718-619-5051 or e-mail at [email protected] for more information.
Sunday, May 4, 2014, 11 a.m to 1:00 P.M.
The park is loveliest in the spring. Let’s identify what trees are blooming and see what birds and insects are about. Meet at Silver Lake Park Road and Forest Avenue for a walk across the lake bridge to the trails above. If it’s raining at the time of the walk, the event is postponed to Sunday, May 11, same time.
Contact Hillel Lofaso at [email protected] for more information.
Sunday, May 4, 2014 – 2:00 P.M. to 4:00P.M.
Containing mature upland woods, swamp forest, open marsh, ponds, and shoreline on Raritan Bay, Wolfe’s Pond is one of the most diverse parks in the city. Meet at the comfort stations at the end of the parking lot. The entrance to the parking lot is located off of Cornelia Avenue (http://goo.gl/maps/n8XBa).
The Prospect Park Alliance presents Pop-Up Audubon, now in its second season, which invites families to directly engage with nature through outdoor learning in locations around the Park.
Join the Alliance to learn about the 250 species of birds that call Prospect Park home.
Heidi Steiner, from the Brooklyn Bird Club, will lead this spring bird watching tour around the Ridgewood Reservoir. Binoculars recommended.
Join the Prospect Park Alliance to see some of the dazzling birds that visit the Park before flying to northern breeding grounds.
The highlights of today’s tape are PROTHONOTARY, YELLOW-THROATED and CERULEAN WARBLERS and other spring migrants and such winter remnants as SNOWY OWL and NORTHERN SHRIKE.
A slowly approaching spring has this week provided a slowly increasing number of migrants, with some nice warblers among them.
On Wednesday, a YELLOW-THROATED WARBLER was seen in Forest Park, Queens, and a PROTHONOTARY WARBLER was found in Northport on the north shore of Long Island. The YELLOW-THROATED was not relocated after the initial sighting, but the PROTHONOTARY was still present at Fuchs Pond Preserve today. This is an historic location for PROTHONOTARIES, and visitors looking for this bird should do nothing to disturb it. This Preserve is along the Eastern side of Waterside Road, just south of Seaside Court, which goes off to the east – parking is available at this intersection, and a trail from Waterside circles the pond.
An early surprise among the warblers was a male CERULEAN spotted Tuesday in Central Park and remaining through Wednesday.
Other arriving warblers included an OVERNBIRD last Saturday in Brooklyn’s Greenwood Cemetery, a NASHVILLE WARBLER in Central Park Wednesday, a NORTHERN WATERTHRUSH in Prospect Park Thursday, and a HOODED WARBLER in Greenwood Cemetery today. The Prospect Park WORM-EATING WARBLER continued through today, and also noted in the region were a few more NORTHERN PARULAS and BLACK-AND-WHITE, YELLOW, PRAIRIE AND BLACK-THROATED GREEN WARBLERS.
Additional passerines encountered this week included WOOD THRUSH Saturday and YELLOW-THROATED VIREO the day before in Prospect Park and VESPER SPARROW on Eastern Long Island. HOUSE WRENS increased dramatically this week.
The season’s first reported WHIP-POOR-WILL was singing early Sunday morning out in Amagansett. The Eastern Long Island Pine Barrens still host a decent number of this species.
Central Park on Wednesday produced a SPOTTED SANDPIPER, as well as a WILSON’S SNIPE, and one of a few more arriving RUBY-THROATED HUMMINGBIRDS, and Prospect Park featured the same two shorebirds today.
CASPIAN TERNS visiting various ponds and inlets on Eastern Long Island recently included five at Mecox Bay Saturday and two each at Georgica and Sagg Pond.
Twenty-two PECTORAL SANDPIPERS were still on the low tide flats by the entrance bridge at Sunken Meadow State Park last Saturday, and an adult BROAD-WINGED HAWK was noted the same day over Connetquot River State Park.
Up to six BLUE-WINGED TEAL in Prospect Park this week were joined by a SNOW GOOSE on the lake Wednesday and Thursday.
For winter birds, two RAZORBILLS were spotted off Shinnecock Inlet Saturday, a SNOWY OWL was still at Smith Point Park in Shirley Sunday, and the NORTHERN SHRIKE was still present Sunday at Jones Beach West End south of the West End 2 Parking Field. A GLAUCOUS GULL was still along the Brooklyn Waterfront on Saturday.
A few lingering RED-NECKED GREBES included three off Floyd Bennett Field Tuesday, and late in the week RED-HEADED WOODPECKERS were still at Greenwood Cemetery in Brooklyn, Kissena Park in Queens and in Rye, Westchester County, and another was spotted in Forest Park today.
The Blue-winged Teal is a member of the waterfowl genus "anas", which includes mallards, wigeons, teals, pintails and shovelers. Their preferred habitats are calm water bodies such as inland marshes, lakes, ponds, pools, and shallow streams with dense emergent vegetation rather than large open water and fast currents. They are usually the first ducks to head south in the autumn and the last to head north in the spring. Blue-winged Teal currently breed in New York State, primarily in the St. Lawrence Valley and Lake Plains regions, although their numbers have been declining.
For the second week in a row my Wednesday morning Green-Wood Cemetery tour was met with less than ideal spring migration weather. The skies were clear and beautiful, but north-west winds gusting to 35 mph made it feel more like early-March than late-April. Cold and wind aside, there were still some highlights to report.
"RHWO exhibits 3 structurally distinct vocalizations. For convenience, these are arbitrarily termed Vocals 1, 2 and 3. Vocal 1 is a discrete call while the others exhibit both discrete and graded characteristics. Vocal 2 is the most gradated with the extreme of gradation associated with agonistic circumstances. All of the vocalizations, with the exception of Vocal 3, are limited to the breeding season. All three vocalizations are used by males. Females do not exhibit Vocal 1. Both sexes employ Vocals 2 and 3. Once the territory is fully established and pair bonding is complete, acoustic activity declines, especially when incubation commences."
I didn't find this too helpful, but you can read the entire piece, "Brief Overview of Sexual Dimorphism, Monochromaticism and Acoustic Repertoire of the Red-headed Woodpecker", here.
Since my last visit to the cemetery the magnolias and cherry trees have really popped. For the first hour of the walk we didn't find too much bird activity, but the blossoms were a nice second prize. We finally came across a small mixed flock of songbirds on the steep, wooded Bluff Side Path above the Sylvan Water. In the trees above we counted Blue-headed Vireo, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Palm Warbler, Pine Warbler and Yellow-rumped Warbler. Descending the ridge to the lake we found a mixed flock of swallows braving the strong winds and skimming back and forth in the air above the Sylvan Water. Normally fairly active during the spring, the wooded hillside on the south side of the lake was pretty quiet. It wasn't until we ascended Oaken Bluff, towards Horace Greeley, that we stumbled on the second songbird flock of the morning. Seven Palm Warblers were foraging on the ground beneath a stand of conifers. A still bare dogwood tree just beyond the flock held another gnatcatcher and vireo. After a moment I spotted my first Black-and-white Warbler of the season. Normally, finding a black-and-white in Brooklyn on April 23rd is not a big deal, but spring migration so far has seemed a little slow. On past Green-Wood Cemetery trips around this date I've tallied between 5 and 8 different species of warbler. Maybe things will pick up a bit more this weekend.
To read about what birds are moving and migration forecasts, check out Cornell's BirdCast forecasts here.
Comments: My weekly cemetery tour.
Since my posting about our Brooklyn's nesting Red-tailed Hawks here, I received a couple of updates.
I just read your post and have some information for you. I do not know about this or last year for sure but 3 years ago there was a confirmed pair with a single offspring. I rescued the early fledged baby after it left the park on its own and was discovered sitting for hours on the stoop of a brownstone directly across the street from the park on Washington Park Ave. Park Rangers had been monitoring the nest in a huge tree at the top of the hill in the middle of the park directly across from the monument. A few days before we got the fledgling the rangers picked up a sick adult male red-tail in the park. Unfortunately it died the next day from a severe case of frounce. They never saw any other adult return to the nest so after a few days I guess of no food the youngster jumped out rather than sit there and starve to death, as any orphaned baby bird will do once hungry. He was very underweight when we rescued him but months later he was released in Prospect Park along with Urban Park Rangers. I will try to find out more about the possibility of a new pair there and pass along any news if I get any.
I also receive an email and photo from Pam Langford regarding the Brooklyn Botanic Garden hawks.
The BBG red-tailed hawk pair appears to be nesting in the Japanese garden. Today my friend Jan Kraus and I spotted a hawk flying into a pine tree near the entrance to the Japanese garden (by the cherry esplanade). It's not easy to see, but after watching a while we saw a hawk in the nest, and later there was a swap when a second hawk arrived and the hawk on the nest flew away. No way to know how far along things are, but the pair appears to be attending either eggs or youngsters.
There is a nest of some sort near last year's nest tree by the BMA parking lot, but it is not very big. Perhaps they built two nests this year? In any case, I am hoping for another delightful summer with fledglings in the botanic garden.
WASHINGTON — The Obama administration is putting off its decision on the Keystone XL oil pipeline, likely until after the November elections, by extending its review of the controversial project indefinitely.
In a surprise announcement Friday as Washington was winding down for Easter, the State Department said federal agencies will have more time to weigh in on the politically fraught decision — but declined to say how much longer. Officials said the decision will have to wait for the dust to settle in Nebraska, where a judge in February overturned a state law that allowed the pipeline’s path through the state.
Nebraska’s Supreme Court isn’t expected to hear an appeal to that ruling until September or October, and there could be more legal maneuvering after the high court rules. So President Barack Obama will almost surely have until after the November congressional elections to make the final call about whether the pipeline carrying oil from Canada should be built.
Approving the pipeline before the election would rankle Obama’s allies and donors in the environmental community, but nixing it could be politically damaging to vulnerable Democrats running this year in conservative-leaning areas.
“This decision is irresponsible, unnecessary and unacceptable,” said Democratic Sen. Mary Landrieu, who faces a difficult re-election in oil-rich Louisiana. Landrieu said Obama was signaling that a small minority can tie up the process in the courts, sacrificing 42,000 jobs and billions in economic activity.
In an ironic show of bipartisanship, Republicans joined Landrieu and other Democrats like Sen. Mark Begich of Alaska in immediately condemning the announcement — the latest in a string of delays in a review process that has dragged on for more than five years.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., accused Obama of kowtowing to “radical activists” from the environmental community, while House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, called the decision “shameful” and said there were no credible reasons for further delay.
“This job-creating project has cleared every environmental hurdle and overwhelmingly passed the test of public opinion, yet it’s been blocked for more than 2,000 days,” Boehner said in a statement.
Keystone XL would carry oil from western Canada’s tar sands to refineries on the Texas Gulf Coast. The project requires State Department approval because it crosses an international border. The State Department vowed to move forward with other aspects of its review even while the situation in Nebraska remains in limbo.
“The agency consultation process is not starting over,” the State Department said in a statement.
State Department officials said other U.S. agencies, such as the Environmental Protection Agency, won’t be notified of their new deadline for comment until the legal situation in Nebraska becomes clearer. Driving the delay is a concern that the legal wrangling could lead to a change in the pipeline’s route that would affect agencies’ assessments, said the officials, who weren’t authorized to comment by name and demanded anonymity.
The White House has insisted that Secretary of State John Kerry is in charge of the process, which involves a determination about whether the pipeline is in America’s national interest. But Obama is widely expected to make the final call.
In a nod to environmentalists’ concerns, Obama has said the pipeline will be deemed not in the U.S. interest if it contributes significantly to increasing carbon dioxide emissions that contribute to climate change. Environmentalists argue that the oil that’s pulled out of Canada’s tar sands is among the dirtiest on the planet.
The White House declined to comment on the State Department’s announcement, which came on Friday afternoon, when many Americans were observing Good Friday. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, accused the administration of “a stunning act of political cowardice” by waiting until most Americans would be too busy preparing for Easter or observing Passover to notice the delay.
This isn’t the first time that machinations in Nebraska have delayed a Keystone XL decision. The pipeline’s initial route had to be redrawn to address concerns that it would threaten the Nebraska Sandhills, a region of grass-covered dunes used as ranchland.
“We are disappointed that politics continue to delay a decision on Keystone XL,” said Jason MacDonald, a spokesman for Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper.
The pipeline project has become a proxy for a larger battle between environmental activists and energy advocates over climate change and the future of American energy — much to the dismay of Calgary-based TransCanada Corp., which has proposed the pipeline. The company’s CEO, Russ Girling, said the company was “extremely disappointed and frustrated” with the latest delay.
Environmentalists’ hopes that Obama would reject the pipeline were dealt a blow in January when the State Department, in a highly anticipated environmental report, said that building the pipeline would not significantly boost emissions because the oil was likely to find its way to market one way or another. The State Department concluded that transporting the oil by rail or truck would have an even worse environmental affect than building the pipeline.
Associated Press writers Bradley Klapper and Matthew Lee in Washington, Grant Schulte in Lincoln, Neb., and Charmaine Noronha in Toronto contributed to this report.
Celebrate Earth Day in Jamaica Bay!
With the American Littoral Society, Jamaica Bay Ecowatchers and the Broad Channel Civic Association.
Join us for a fun day of educational and community service events in Broad Channel, Queens. Bring your children, friends and family to help make our community spaces greener and to help our salt marsh habitats thrive this year!
Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge Walk 10 AM - 12 Noon.
Sunset Cove and American Park Community Cleanup 12 PM - 3 PM.
Join us for a community cleanup of Sunset Cove and American Park. At 12 PM we will give a short talk about the Marsh Restoration Initiative , a multi-year Jamaica Bay project co-led by the American Littoral Society and the Jamaica Bay Ecowatchers, whose mission is to restore Ruler's Bar and Blackwall Marsh islands, along with news about future habitat restoration initiatives that we hope to achieve with your help and support. Meet at the American Ballfields parking lot.
All cleanup volunteers are eligible to win two free concert tickets to see world famous musician, Jack Johnson, perform at Jones Beach Theatre on Saturday, June 7th, 2014, courtesy of Skraptacular and the Johnson Ohana Charitable Foundation.
To be eligible, you must register in advance for the cleanup and check in at our registration desk the day of the cleanup. click here to register.
The ticket winner will be announced on our Facebook page, so please "Like Us" on Facebook!
For sponsorship opportunities, please contact: [email protected].
Classes: Wednesdays, April 9, 16, and 23, 6:30-8:30pm Trips: Saturdays, April 19 and 26, Times TBA Instructor: Tod Winston Learn the keys to identifying the spectacular variety of birds that migrate northwards through New York City every spring. Even if you've never picked up a pair of binoculars, you’ll soon be identifying warblers, thrushes, waterbirds, and more—both by sight and by ear. Three fun and educational in-class sessions and field trips to Central Park and Jamaica bay (transport to Jamaica bay included). limited to 12. $160 (112) Click here to register!
Saturday, April 26, 2014, Noon to 2:00 P.M.
Meet at the first parking lot about a quarter mile from the entrance to Great Kills Park. From the starting point near where the bath house once stood we will explore the shoreline and peat flats to discover which species of intertidal life are active in the spring. Please dress appropriately for walking in this environment.
Sunday, April 27, 2014, 1:00 P. M. to 3:00 P.M.
Past and present blend in the Conference House Park where history stretches back thousands of years with the seasonal occupation of the Lenape and hundreds of years with the habitation of the Dutch and English. In addition to the local history we’ll observe the geology, as well as the plants and animals found in the park. Meet at the parking lot at the end of Hylan Boulevard on the left.
We'll explore our wetlands and woodlands in search of resident and migratory birds.
Come check out some of the best birding spots in Manhattan and learn how New York Restoration Project’s approach to landscape management supports these populations.
Greetings. This is the New York Rare Bird Alert for Friday, April 18 at 6:00 pm.
The highlights of today’s tape are SWALLOW-TAILED KITE, WHITE-WINGED DOVE, SUMMER TANAGER, YELLOW-THROATED WARBLER, SNOWY OWL, CASPIAN TERN and spring migrants.
Finally, this week the unusual winter holdovers gave way to some nice spring rarities, with three good southern overshoots appearing before winter came back again later in mid-week.
Topping the list certainly was SWALLOW-TAILED KITE, with two Monday sightings of what is one of the world’s greatest and most distinctive birds. But, like virtually every other New York appearance, these sightings were very fortuitous and very brief. The first was seen about 8 am Monday morning over the Southern State Parkway near its intersection with the Wantagh Parkway, and the second appeared briefly over the Lullwater in Prospect Park, Brooklyn around 9 am, visible long enough for a diagnostic photo to be taken. These sightings might involve the same bird, though the first was reported moving East. Hopefully one day one will stay in New York long enough to be enjoyed by many - a free dinner to the finder of that bird.
Two southern passerines appearing on Sunday were a YELLOW-THROATED WARBLER spotted near the Lower Pool in Prospect Park and a male SUMMER TANAGER seen briefly at the Lenoir Preserve in Yonkers.
Another interesting bird was a WHITE-WINGED DOVE appearing Sunday around a private home in Montauk - and the source of this species in the Northeast remains more mysterious.
A CASPIAN TERN visited Mecox Bay from last Friday through Monday, and an increasing number of spring arrivals, mostly expected, have included TRICOLORED HERON as of last Friday, CLAPPER RAIL and FORSTER’S TERN both at Oceanside Marine Nature Study Area Sunday, BROAD-WINGED HAWK from Saturday, some WILLETS, SHORT-BILLED DOWITCHER at Captree yesterday, and a RUBY-THROATED HUMMINGBIRD on Eastern Long Island Sunday. Increasing numbers of LAUGHING GULLS and CHIMNEY SWIFTS were also noted. Among the passerines appearing recently have been an EASTERN KINGBIRD reported last Sunday and WHITE-EYED VIREO in Prospect Park last Saturday, as well as a few more BLUE-HEADED VIREOS and HOUSE WRENS.
Newly arrived warblers featured a WORM-EATING WARBLER in Prospect Park Wednesday to today, PRAIRIE WARBLERS in both Central and Prospect Parks, ORANGE-CROWNED WARBLER reported from Bellmore Monday, a YELLOW WARBLER at Hempstead Lake State Park, a COMMON YELLOWTHROAT or two, and a BLACK-THROATED GREEN on Staten Island today. Also increasing were BLACK-AND-WHITE, NORTHERN PARULA, and PALM.
On the winter front, last Saturday still found two SNOWY OWLS at Jones Beach West End and one at Orient Beach State Park, and a few RED-NECKED GREBES included another visiting Central Park Reservoir to Thursday. A GLAUCOUS GULL was still at Coney Island Creek in Brooklyn Monday and Wednesday, with single LESSER BLACK-BACKS over Greenwood Cemetery in Brooklyn Monday, at Floyd Bennett Field Tuesday, and at Heckscher State Park today. A late RAZORBILL was moving east off Robert Moses State Park this morning. RED-HEADED WOODPECKERS were still in Brooklyn at Greenwood Cemetery and Marine Park Saturday, with others at Pelham Bay Park in the Bronx Sunday, at Muttontown Preserve Monday and in Rye today.
Over the last week or two large flocks of Double-crested Cormorants can be seen migrating through or to New York City. Relatively scarce around the five boroughs during the winter, they are replaced during the cold months by Great Cormorants. Several of the islands that dot New York Harbor or the Long Island Sound north of the city are home to large colonies of breeding double-cresteds. This bird is one of several species that are part of the New York City Audubon Society's Harbor Heron project. As a defense mechanism cormorant nestings will vomit on a perceived threat, so approach a nest colony forewarned.
Yesterday I led a Green-Wood Cemetery birding tour, which should have been a typical mid-April spring trip. I expected to see a few species of warbler and other migrants songbirds. Mother Nature had other ideas.
At this time of year I usually hear the sound of songbirds outside my window in the early morning hours. Yesterday, though, I was awakened by the sound of car owners with plastic scrapers removing ice and snow from their vehicle's windows. The temperature at the start of the trip was 30º f. With nearly 25mph wind gusts it felt more like 17º. The sky was bright and clear, however, with a few feathery clouds, so if you didn't feel the wind or know the temperature, you might have thought that is was a beautiful Spring morning, that is until you noticed the icy sheen on the sidewalks and thin layer of crusty snow on the grass. Still, it IS spring migration and there are birds out there to be discovered.
The overwintering Red-headed Woodpecker was still present in his usual haunts just inside the main entrance to the cemetery. He is now in adult plumage and actually vocalized for us while clinging to the side of "his" tree in front of the cavity he excavated back in November. I guess he is hoping for a female to pass through the neighborhood. He might have a very long wait as I haven't found any documentation of this species ever nesting in Brooklyn.
Any north or west facing hills were being blasted by pretty strong and frigid winds, so I mostly concentrated the morning walk to the cemetery's dells and leeward sides of the ridges.
Many of the magnolia trees in the cemetery have begun flowering and I noticed a pale green hue developing on the maple tree's crowns as they have just started to bloom. Keep an eye on the maples and oaks over the next week. As warbler numbers begin to increase, the flowers of these trees will attract the insects on which these colorful birds feed.
Given the wind conditions, I wasn't surprised that I had a hard time finding any warblers. Daffodils were wilting under the weight of ice on their petals and trees creaked as they swayed. A small flock of Tree and Barn Swallows skimmed back and forth across the Sylvan Water. A silent Belted Kingfisher flying across the pond had me fooled as his normal flight pattern had changed to adapt to the buffeting winds. Unlike my weekend experience, I couldn't find one warbler around the edges of the pond. There was a marked increase in arriving Blue-gray Gnatcatchers, however.
Seeing several gnatcatchers under these weather conditions seemed a bit incongruous or unlucky ... for them. These tiny, hyperactive songbirds are, on average, 4.5 inches long, nearly half of that is just their tail. They weigh in at about 6 grams. That's a bit less than the weight of three U.S. pennies. Their wheezy, chattery song perfectly matches their cute, diminutive size.
As I watched this teensy bird foraging for insects there were times it seemed to be completely immune to the wind. Perhaps it is exactly their lack of mass and wind resistance that allows them to move around in the gusts almost effortlessly. Conversely, my upright body on a bicycle, pedaling against the wind and uphill after the walk probably burned more calories that a Blue-gray Gnatcatcher might on the entire 2,000+ mile migration from its wintering home in Honduras to Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn. I can't wait until normal spring weather.
Comments: Weekly tour. Temps around 30º, winds N-NW at 15-20mph.
Last weekend I did a little spring birding at Prospect Park, Green-Wood Cemetery, Coney Island, Coney Island Creek Park and Gerritsen Creek. Like the previous weekend, my Saturday birding agenda kicked off at pre-dawn. I like to be where the birds are when the sun comes up, so was walking into Prospect Park just as the sky was lightening from black to navy. Robins, cardinals and House Sparrows had already been singing for 30 minutes. The annual mockingbird at the end of my block must be late to arrive as I haven't heard his 3am concert. I was optimistic that there would be a nice mix of warblers and other migrant songbirds vocalizing in the park at this early hour and couldn't wait to get started.
I was kind of hoping to find something really interesting before 6am. That way I could use my Twitter account like an alarm clock for any followers who opted to sleep in on a beautiful spring morning. Luckily for them that didn't happen, though, and my first tweet didn't go out until 6:28am. We were standing at the Lily Pond, just upstream from the nature center when we spotted a Louisiana Waterthrush. I heard the weak trill of a Palm Warbler and the high-pitched rising scale and chatter of a Ruby-crowned Kinglet. I would hear several through the morning. We noticed some activity in the trees at the back of the pond and walked over for a closer look. Within a moment or two we spotted Blue-headed Vireo, Golden-crowned Kinglet, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Palm Warbler, Pine Warbler and Yellow-rumped Warbler in the trees at the edge of the pond. After about 20 minutes we headed towards the nature center. Standing near the concrete "duck feeding station" I heard the raspy "skeow" call of a Green Heron, but couldn't see the source. Mustering my best impression of the "skeow" call, I was shocked with the bird flew up from the edge of the water and headed directly towards me. My first thought was how narrow this small wading bird looked straight on, sort of like a dart. My second was whether I should duck as he looked like he was coming right at my head. At the last moment he ascended into a tree above and behind me. I never realized I was so gifted at calling in Green Herons, but I think I'll leave that talent off of my resume.
Green-Wood Cemetery was the next stop after 2 good hours in Prospect Park. There were lots of both species of kinglets present, but for the most part the cemetery was fairly quiet. The one exception was the area around the edges of the Sylvan Water. A lone cherry tree at the southeast edge of the pond was loaded with hungry warblers. Around a dozen Palm Warblers, a several Pine Warblers and a few Yellow-rumped Warblers chased down insects amongst the trees pink blossoms. A Northern Parula flew in from the shrubs across the road and joined the feeding frenzy. Teetering along the shore at the edge of the pond was a fifth warbler species - a Louisiana Waterthrush. By the time we left the cemetery it was late morning and the songbird activity was beginning to slow down. We decided to go to Coney Island to look for migrating seabirds and shorebirds.
One of our target birds at the shore was Northern Gannet. From the edge of the jetty at the end of West 37th Street we scanned back and forth across the water. There were lots of Brants and a couple of dozen Common Loons. A single Purple Sandpiper foraged for arthropods within the jetty's green-fringed boulders. It took about 15 minutes, but eventually a lone gannet was spotted soaring over the bay. A few minutes later we were scanning the water off the end of Stillwell Avenue. There were more loons in the water here, 19 to be exact, and a few Horned Grebes.
Coney Island Creek Park is at the northern end of West 37th Street. It has a narrow strip of trees and low vegetation adjacent to the sand dunes that border Gravesend Bay. On a good spring migration morning it attracts a surprising diversity of birds. Saturday was not one of those days. One surprise was spotting a pair of lingering Bonaparte's Gulls on the shore. I had been standing a shore distance from them for probably 10 minutes before I noticed. After a long, brutally cold winter of chasing gulls in this area, I was sort of done with "gull mode" and was focusing on everything else.
A short distance east of the park is the actually creek. It's usually a good spot to see a nice mix of waterfowl. A sand spit here is a great winter spot for gulls. Neither the spit nor the water held many birds. A single Red-necked Grebe remained in the area. Normally spotting the grebe would be a big deal. As a friend recently pointed out, this winter's irruption of Red-necked Grebes has New York birders a bit "grebed out". I was optimistic that I'd find my first Blue-winged Teal of the year on the creek, but I guess that will have to wait for another day.
My final stop during Saturday's long day was Gerritsen Creek, in Marine Park. The hope was to find a few wading birds, maybe a tern or two and a couple of shorebirds. One of the first year birds found on our walk down the west side of the creek was a Forster's Tern. The bird was perched on a wooden piling exposed by the low-tide. Later we spotted our first Snowy Egret of the season. Migrating Common Loons were relatively abundant and seen in multiple locations during the day. Unfortunately I also stumbled (literally) on this dead one along Gerritsen Creek's shore. I'd never seen one up close and was surprised to learn that the dark collar is actually an iridescent green color.
I was about to hop on my bike and ride into the park to find this rare bird until I received this follow up.
I had about 10 minutes to spare, so re-dressed, grabbed my bins and bicycle and pedaled into Prospect Park. It wasn't difficult to find the warbler as there was at least a dozen people with their bins trained on it. I would have liked to linger and watch the bird for a while, especially considering that, if you're lucky, you only get to see one a year. I said hello to a few people, but really had to rush back home. When I bid everyone "good birding" and clipped into my pedals, my friend Dennis captured the sentiment of spring migration craziness when he said to me, "And here we are again..."
It has been a while since I've posted any updates on our local Red-tailed Hawk pairs. Sometimes the revolving seasonal bird activity distracts me from the one species that got me started in birdwatching. Perhaps it is because what seemed unusual to me over 20 years ago has become common place. Barely a day passes that I don't notice at least one Red-tailed Hawk around Brooklyn or NYC's other boroughs. As my knowledge of and interests in other family of birds evolves, I still enjoy periodically going back and tracking down Brooklyn's hawks.
There are three nesting pairs in and around Prospect Park and a possible fourth pair at Fort Greene Park. A pair at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden has been using a pine tree that borders the Brooklyn Museum parking lot for their nest for a third year. I am guessing that this is the pair named "Nelly" and "Max" who used to nest in a Japanese Black Pine at the edge of Nelly's Lawn in Prospect Park. Nelly and Max stopped using the nest in Prospect Park at the same time the pair showed up across Flatbush Avenue at the botanic garden.
"Junior" the long time mate of the late "Big Mama" appears to have moved on. He has taken a new mate and the pair has settled on a nest site in a pine tree on "The Flats" of Green-Wood Cemetery. The nest tree is only about 600 yards south-west of Junior and Big Mama's final nest. That was also a pine tree, but sustained major damage from one of this past winter's storms. As of last weekend, the hawks didn't appear to be incubating eggs yet. The nest is at the very top of the tree and not easy to see. If I find a good viewing vantage point I'll post directions here.
My friend Steve called me on Saturday morning to tell me about a large nest he found in Prospect Park. I was aware that a pair of Red-tailed Hawks had been nesting somewhere in a stand of pines at the south end of the baseball fields a couple of years ago, but had no luck confirming the location. Like Junior's nest in Green-Wood, this nest is near the top of a conifer and very difficult to see. Through Steve's scope, however, we could see that there is a red-tailed sitting on eggs.
So, who is this pair? An educated guess would be Alice and Ralph. In 2012 they were unceremoniously evicted from their pine tree nest site of 9 years in the Ravine by a pair of owls. Shortly thereafter I began receiving notes about a pair of red-tails building a nest at the south end of the baseball fields.
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has issued their latest report and the message is predictable, but will world leaders act in time.
There are choices that need to be made if dangerous climate change is to be avoided in the 21st century. Previous reports from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) have confirmed that the influence of human activities on the climate is unambiguous, and that climate change will have a major impact on human activities and ecosystems. Its third report, published yesterday, sets out the huge challenge that needs to be addressed by policymakers.
The evidence is clear: sticking to business as usual will lead to temperature rises of three to five degrees above pre-industrial levels. This will potentially lead to catastrophic effects on water resources and agricultural productivity, and accelerate sea level rise. If momentum is maintained, the pledges made by UN members at the Cancun Climate Convention in 2010 would probably take us to the bottom end of that range, close to a three-degree rise. But they would not meet the two-degree goal set by the UN and accepted as the target needed to avoid dangerous climate change.
Hitting the two-degree target has not been ruled out, but the IPCC has concluded in its report that major changes would be needed to energy systems, requiring technological and institutional change on a massive scale. Global emissions of greenhouse gases would need to fall by 40-70% to meet the target. This could imply a tripling or quadrupling, by 2050, of cleaner electricity sources such as renewables, nuclear or fossil fuels, along with carbon capture and storage, and the aggressive pursuit of energy efficiency opportunities. There will be no single solution across the world but rather a patchwork of responses as countries make their own choices. However, the expansion of renewable energy is likely to be ubiquitous.
The implications of delay are clearly stated in the report. If we postpone action until 2030, the two-degree target will be beyond our grasp unless technologies to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere are used. Afforestation and reduced deforestation will help but the alternative of burning biomass and capturing and storing the CO2 would need to be adopted. This is controversial and raises wider sustainability concerns. Prompt action will cut costs and leave open a wider range of options.
Cost is a critical question that needs to be addressed in any proposals for action, or inaction. In the report, the IPCC has suggested that action to cut greenhouse gas emissions could reduce global growth by 0.06% per year over the 21st century, leading to a 1.7% reduction in global consumption by 2030 and 3.4% by 2050 relative to a business as usual strategy. Is this affordable? It does not sound much when set against the impact of climate change. And other benefits from improved air quality and reduced dependence on imported fossil fuels are not costed in. However, expenditure would fall heavily on energy bills rather than being spread imperceptibly across the economy. The political leadership challenge is clear.
What does it mean for the UK? The Climate Change Act contains a legally binding target for an 80% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. This is broadly compatible with the IPCC conclusion that global emissions need to fall by 40-70%. The UK also has a system of five-year carbon budgets that act as stepping stones towards the 2050 target. UK policy therefore has a built-in mechanism which, if used, can ensure that emissions reductions are not delayed. The government is considering a recommendation from the committee on climate change that the fourth carbon budget, covering 2023-27, should not be loosened. The IPCC report provides substantial support for this argument. If the UK is going to play a leading role in international negotiations, cut emissions in line with the IPCC analysis and keep its options open, the prompt action signalled by the existing fourth carbon budget is essential. | 2019-04-24T04:39:00Z | https://citybirder.blogspot.com/2014/04/ |
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