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Last updated by at May 30, 2017 .
The cost of hiring a professional plumber can be quite high even for small plumbing tasks. In an attempt to save some money, many house owners will choose to carry out the small fixes on their own instead of hiring a professional plumber Geelong. However, any small mistakes when carrying out a plumbing fix could lead to bigger problems which can only be fixed by an emergency plumber Geelong. An emergency situation that happens after hours will cost you more in terms of added fees by the Plumber Geelong.
This is both in terms of the size and the type of the pipe that is used. The pipes may therefore fail to fit into each other, as you require. Using too much force when connecting two pipes together or forcing the connectors may break the pipes or the connectors. Further leaks may develop in the pipes and they may burst when pressure builds up in them. Corrosion may also occur if you get the pipe type wrong. Professional Geelong Plumbers know when to use galvanized pipes and when to use copper pipes. Connecting the two will lead to corrosion which will require regular replacement of the pipes.
The last DIY plumbing mistake in the list is failure to turn off the water stopcock before attempting any type of repairs.
This is always the first thing that a professional Geelong Plumber will do even for the smallest plumbing tasks at hand. Doing so prevents flooding, which often causes damage to household items. It will also take you added time to drain the water from the room.
Trying to fix a small problem on your own and getting it wrong could create a major problem. Hiring an emergency plumber Geelong to rectify the bigger problem will cost you more. You should therefore take your time when doing your own plumbing work to avoid such mistakes or call a professional Plumber Geelong in cases where you are not sure how to mend the problem.
If you have an issue with a blocked drain Geelong or hot water system Geelong, then you need a 24 hour plumber Geelong or an emergency plumber Geelong to service you. You might also reach out to a gas plumber Geelong to help you. Its important that you have a plumber Geelong or a Geelong Plumber you can trust.
We service all areas of Geelong including plumber Newtown, plumber Geelong West, plumber Geelong East, plumber Hamlyn Heights, Plumber Waurn Ponds, plumber Highton.
Local Plumber Central Coast is your local plumber Central Coast specialist. If you have an issue with a blocked drain Central Coast or hot water system Central Coast, then you need a 24 hour plumber Central Coast or an emergency plumber Central Coast to service you. You might also reach out to a gas plumber Central Coast to help you. It’s important that you have a plumber Central Coast, Central Coast plumber, plumbing Central Coast, plumbers Central Coast you can trust. Drain Camera Central Coast and Carbon Monoxide Testing Central Coast are other service we offer to our clients. Emergency Plumbing Central Coast is important to your home system. Do you have a Burst Pipe Central Coast? Make sure to visit our contact page.
Local Plumber Canberra is your local plumber Canberra specialist. If you have an issue with a blocked drain Canberra or hot water system Canberra, then you need a 24 hour plumber Canberra or an emergency plumber Canberra to service you. You might also reach out to a gas plumber Canberra to help you. It’s important that you have a Canberra plumber, Plumbing Canberra, plumbers Canberra you can trust. Drain Camera Canberra and Carbon Monoxide Testing Canberra are other service we offer to our clients. Emergency Plumbing Canberra is important to your home system. Do you have a Burst Pipe Canberra? Make sure to visit our contact page.
Local Plumber Newcastle is your local specialist. If you have an issue with a blocked drain Newcastle or hot water system Newcastle, then you need a 24 hour plumber Newcastle or an emergency plumber Newcastle to service you. You might also reach out to a gas plumber Newcastle to help you. It’s important that you have a plumber Newcastle, Newcastle plumber, plumbing Newcastle, plumbers Newcastle you can trust. Drain Camera Newcastle and Carbon Monoxide Testing Newcastle are other service we offer to our clients. Emergency Plumbing Newcastle is important to your home system. Do you have a Burst Pipe Newcastle? Make sure to visit our contact page.
Local Brisbane Plumber is your local plumber Brisbane specialist. If you have an issue with a blocked drain Brisbane or hot water system Brisbane, then you need a 24 hour plumber Brisbane or an emergency plumber Brisbane to service you. You might also reach out to a gas plumber Brisbane to help you. It’s important that you have a Brisbane plumber, Plumbing Brisbane, plumbers Brisbane you can trust. Drain Camera Brisbane and Carbon Monoxide Testing Brisbane are other service we offer to our clients. Emergency Plumbing Brisbane is important to your home system. Do you have a Burst Pipe Brisbane? Make sure to visit our contact page.
Why Fixing a Leaking Tap Geelong Is Crucial?
Leaking Tap Geelong is not only irritating but also indicative of deeper plumbing problems and an expensive waste. A leaking tap is far more complicated than you may think. As such, attempting to fix it yourself may even worsen the situation. Any attempt can potentially make Leaking Tap Geelong repair cost you even more to fix it later. Geelong 24 Hour Plumber is your perfect plumbing company.
A cartridge is a ceramic handle used to operate your water tap. When they start leaking, it is an indication that they whole valve inside your faucet needs replacement. Our plumbers will check closely to establish if they are the cause of your Leaking Tap Geelong. We will then use our expertise to remove and replace it without further damaging the system.
O-ring, typically located inside your tap handles, plays a crucial role. It provides a waterproof seal. When the O-ring is damaged, a leaking handle ensues. Geelong 24 Hour Plumber has everything to fix the resulting Leaking Tap Geelong. We will perfectly replace the damaged O-ring with another of the right size.
Corroded washers are the most rampant causes of Leaking Tap Geelong mainly because these tiny pieces are prone to corrosion. If the problem started soon after initial installation, possibly your installer did not position the washer correctly inside the compression valve resulting in the leak. Once we establish that this is the cause of your leaking tap, we will use our expertise to reverse the situation.
Even what appears to be simple Leaking Tap Geelong requires a lot more than you can imagine. Our technicians take ample time to diagnose your system. They then use everything at their disposal to fix your system in the best way possible. We subject every leaking tap to a dedicated effort, careful utilization of specialized tools, and use of state-of-the-art technology to fix the problem once and for all. At times, a Leaking Tap Geelong calls for an overhaul of the entire sink to effectively deal with the issue.
Besides fixing your Leaking Tap Geelong, we can also identify and repair all other faulty sections in your plumbing system. Several other components could be at various stages of deterioration. Sooner or later you may experience a different problem with the system. While repairing the tap, we will also check loose valves, minor pipe defects, and broken gaskets and accordingly make a recommendation to you.
Save money and eliminate inconveniences by having your Leaking Tap Geelong repaired by the proficient Geelong 24 Hour Plumber . While fixing the possible causes above may be simple, it is easy to damage other crucial sections or even incorrectly install the parts. We have the expertise, experience, and equipment to deal with your Leaking Tap Geelong right the first time.
Blocked drains Geelong are caused when food particles and hair is washed down the drain, and are build up over time causing the blockage. It’s also caused when leaves are washed away in the ran down to the pipeline, and also when the roots of the tree expand to find a source a water. In this case, the root can spread to the waterline, and that can be a major problem. Nevertheless, whatever the cause of the blockage, and regardless how big the problem is, there are experts and specialized equipment that can resolve these issues without requiring too much toil.
As mentioned before, there are experts (plumbers) who specialize in handling big and small problems concerning blocked drains Geelong. They can handle these problems regardless of the complexity fairly easy. There are also specialized equipment they possess to undergo these problems.
Many people may think they can solve these blocked drains Geelong themselves, but that can cause even more problems, which in turn would most likely be more expensive. But with licensed plumbers, they use specialized water jets to eliminate particles, such as oil, food, and hair. They also have CCTV cameras that show drainpipes’ photos. This would ensure that drains are able to clear quickly without unnecessarily stripping the sink. Additionally, they will also advise you on how to avoid the problem from happening again, and they can provide a maintenance schedule.
Blocked drain Geelong is no longer a big problem as it once was a long time ago. Living in an advanced technological age, blocked drain Geelong and sewage repairs are taking care of with top of the line, and state of the art equipment.
Surrounding areas– blocked drain Geelong and surrounding areas are normally covered.
Long term warranty– plumbers always offer a long term warranty.
Instalment plan– plumbers normally work out an instalment plan, and offer discounts.
Professional– licensed plumbers are professional, on time, responsible, reliable, courteous, and offer great customer service.
Satisfaction guaranteed– plumbers normally guarantee satisfaction or else.
Blocked drains Geelong are caused by various foreign objects that are washed down the sink causing a blockage. It’s also caused when leaves are washed away in the ran down to the pipeline, and also when the roots of the tree expand to find a source a water to the waterline. But take heart- there are always experts and specialized equipment that can resolve big and small problems right away. Blocked drain Geelong is no longer a big problem. Because of the advanced technological age, blocked drain Geelong and sewage repairs are taking care of with top of the line, and state of the art equipment. And there is a reputable and licensed plumbing professional near you.
A leaking tap can prove a menace to any homeowner. Failure to fix a leaking tap in time could lead to loss through water spillage. In many instances, one may require the help of a Plumber Geelong, but the available professionals could be busy elsewhere. Instead of waiting too long for a trained Plumber Geelong, there are DIY options that can help one to fix a leaking tap. Here are some things you need to understand about fixing leaking taps.
As a well-established Plumber Geelong will explain, there are various reasons behind a leaking tap. One of the things that lead to leakage is a worn out washer or the o-ring. It is good to replace these parts from time to time to ensure the tap remains in perfect condition. Before buying a new part, it is advisable to consult with a professional Plumber Geelong to get insights about the right size and quality that can be fitted.
In the absence of a Plumber Geelong, the first step to fixing a leaking tap is turning the water flow off. There are taps under the sink that run up, and that is the right point to stop the flow of water. You should also remember to put the plug in the basin so you can hold any small parts from going down the drain. You need several tools so you can make the process possible and easy. Using a screw driver, undo the handle screw and remove the handle. You will find this screw under the hot or cold mark, although some will have the screw on the side. Using a wrench, undo the tap bonnet and take off the headgear. At this point, the jumper valve and the o-ring are visible and can be replaced. There are the parts that should be replaced.
There are various types of faucets in the market and quality varies. Discuss with a reliable Plumber Geelong to get insight on what can work best to offer durability and reliability. Remember to apply a waterproof lubricant, which helps to extend the life span of the o-rings and any other metallic parts. This procedure will save you both time and money if you follow keenly.
If you are looking for a Gas Plumber Geelong, you should be aware that all states and territories in Australia require a licensed gas fitter for work related to LPG as well as natural gas. You should not attempt to treat this as a do-it-yourself project or use a person as Gas Plumber Geelong who has not undertaken specialist gas training and in possession of a specific gas fitter license. Unlicensed work on gas is illegal and could be dangerous, and your warranty and insurance cover may also be voided if you use an unlicensed person. Some states have different kinds of endorsements for different categories of gas fitting work, such as the conversion of gas appliances. Many gas fitters are trained plumbers, but not all plumbers are necessarily gas filters. Some work to be performed by Gas Plumber Geelong such as gas hot water systems will require somebody who is proficient in both trades.
People could have a gas leak and not even be aware that they have one. A leak can cause a great deal of serious damage, which is why it should be fixed as early as possible by a Gas Plumber Geelong. With expert knowledge, tracing a gas leak is relatively straightforward and one sure sign of a leak is a smell similar to rotten eggs. A Gas Plumber Geelong has a better way of checking for any leaking gas than just to see if the meter is still ticking over. If you believe that you have a leak somewhere, you need to call an expert like Geelong 24 hour plumbing immediately. They will realise that you require urgent service and act accordingly. Make sure that you only call a trained gas plumbing experts to attend to the repairs. Speed is important and you require the services of the best Gas Plumber Geelong.
You need to first choose which LPG gas appliance you want. For instance, gas hot water system are a good choice for the replacement of old electric hot water heaters because they are energy efficient and only operate when hot water is being used. Similarly, gas heaters have advantages over electric ones because they can hit more quickly and provide the maximum heat even in very cold weather. You will also need a Gas Plumber Geelong who is licensed and familiar with LPG and LPG appliance installation. Experienced gas fitters such as Geelong 24 hour Plumbing are best suited to take care of all your requirements.
Hot water is extremely important to any home, and any disruption in hot water supply could cause a great deal of inconvenience. If you are having problems with your gas heaters, the Gas Plumber Geelong to call is Geelong 24 Hour Plumbing. They will respond immediately to your call and their Geelong plumbers have a great deal of expertise and experience in the repair and maintenance of heating systems, as well as new installations. They work regularly with gas storage water systems and gas instantaneous hot water service and their expertise means that your problems are fixed as soon as possible.
You never know when you might need a Gas Plumber Geelong for emergencies such as a breakage in the pipes or a breakdown in the hot water system. Your best bet is to call Geelong 24 Hour Plumbing Geelong because they are always available for services 24 hours a day 7 days a week to help and they will be there as quickly as possible to fix your problem. They pride themselves on their speed and their reliability while charging affordable and economical pricing. All their professional plumbers are properly certified. They should be your Gas Plumber Geelong of choice.
BLOCKED DRAINS? TRY DRAIN CAMERA GEELONG?
Blocked drain pipes, toilets, baths, showers or dishwashers are not unusual in any home or any building for that matter. These simple plumbing issues can cause so many problems when not taken cared of properly with the right equipment and by the right people.
Just like any other problem the best way is to look for the cause of the problem first. And for plumbing problems the best way to find out is to use a drain camera. The best one in the city is Drain camera Geelong.
The team of Geelong 24 Hour Plumbing has the best services for plumbing. Drain camera Geelong has top of the line equipment and experience people that can help you with your problem. When you call us for any drain or plumbing issues, we will make sure that we will identify it right away. With the use of Drain Camera Geelong you will be sure you get the best service ever. This is the most accurate, most cost effective and efficient way to fix your plumbing issues.
HOW DRAIN CAMERA GEELONG IDENTIFIES THE ISSUE?
They have the ability to see through your drains. As simple as peeping through a window, Drain camera Geelong will see through your plumbing and they will identify the problem. They will survey your plumbing by inserting a small drain camera through your clogged plumbing system. The camera is then connected to a screen, where you can view the inside of your plumbing systems. As the camera continually surveys your pipes, the plumber will then identify the problem along the way. Then they will suggest the best possible solution.
This is a guarantee. Your plumbing problems will be easily identified using Geelong plumbing’s’ state of the art equipment. Drain camera Geelong has experienced plumbers and personnel who deliver this kind of service every day, so you know you’re in the right hands. The sheer dedication of the Geelong 24 Hour Plumbing team to their jobs can assure you the efficiency of the service they will give.
When it comes to plumbing clogs and issues, name it and we will identify it for you. They can even give you a copy of a DVD that will show you the inside of your plumbing. With the visual aid given, Drain camera Geelong can identify the very location of the problem. May it be on the top of the tube or underground, Drain camera Geelong will find it for you.
Geelong 24 Hour Plumbing has considered that services like this can cost more from other companies. But with Drain camera Geelong they can assure you that the service will be reasonably priced. The services that will be given are truly top of the line but still affordable at the same time. What you should also consider is that by using Drain camera Geelong, you are saving yourself a lot of money. By simply identifying the true source of the issue and its location, you are able to save from spending more in incorrect plumbing installations. Drain camera Geelong is the most economical repair solution ever.
Geelong 24 Hour Plumbing are experts when it comes to plumbing services. They have done hundreds of fixes around the city. So it is no question that you are in capable hands. Drain camera Geelong is just one of an array of services that the team can offer. With extensive knowledge about plumbing and the plumbing industry, they know what you need.
The company assures you that Drain camera Geelong is not the only thing they can deliver. When the drain camera has identified the problem, they will be able to fix it with all the services they offer. Whatever plumbing issues you will have they will be able to fix it. Name it, may it be a hot water system issue, kitchen and bath issue, strong sewage smells, leaking taps, leaking toilets or running toilets, they will fix it for you.
The best part is Geelong 24 Hour Plumbing is open 24 hours, 7 days a week. They never close. So call anytime no matter how big or small your problem is. They cater to both domestic locations and corporate buildings. Wherever, whenever, if its plumbing, call Geelong 24 Hour Plumbing. | 2019-04-20T01:09:09Z | https://www.geelong24hourplumbing.com.au/tag/geelong-plumber/ |
In accordance with embodiments, there are provided mechanisms and methods for recovering from an incomplete transaction. These mechanisms and methods can enable embodiments to detect incomplete transactions when recovering from a server crash or other catastrophic event. Some embodiments can automatically re-establish interrupted connections when incomplete transactions have been detected. The ability of embodiments to detect incomplete transaction can allow recovery to initiate substantially immediately upon server restart and adapter redeployment.
U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______ entitled RECOVERY MECHANISM FOR TRANSACTIONS, by Brian Christopher Chesebro, et al., filed on Mar. —2006 (Attorney Docket No. BEAS-1786US0).
The current invention relates generally to techniques for providing interconnectivity between one or more application servers and one or more enterprise information systems, and more particularly to a mechanism for recovering from an incomplete transaction.
Since its inception in 1995, the Java™ programming language has become increasingly popular. (Java™ is a trademark of Sun Microsystems, Inc.) Java, which is an interpreted language, enabled the creation of applications that could be run on a wide variety of platforms. This ability to function across a variety of different client platforms, i.e., platform independence, and Java's relatively easy implementation of network applications has resulted in the use of Java, as well as other programming languages that provide platform independence, in endeavors as basic as personal web pages to endeavors as complex as large business-to-business enterprise systems.
However, since applications, as well as the Enterprise Information Systems (EIS) to which the applications connect, may be provided by many different vendors, a mechanism that enables these disparate computational entities to communicate with one another was needed. The Java 2 Platform Enterprise Edition (J2EE) is a specification that addresses such needs.
J2EE Connector Architecture provides a mechanism for integrating J2EE-compliant application servers with enterprise information systems. The J2EE Connector Architecture defines a Common Client Interface (CCI) for EIS access. The CCI defines a client API that enables clients to interact with heterogeneous enterprise information systems. Application servers, i.e., servers onto which applications may be deployed, and Enterprise Information Systems need only follow a J2EE Connector Architecture specification in order to interconnect with one another.
Unfortunately, the J2EE specification does not resolve all interconnection issues. For example, one area of concern is detecting and remedying incomplete transactions that can occur in the event of a server crash or other unforeseen interruption. Transactional applications often employ various approaches attempting at coordinating the processing for a transaction. Such conventional approaches, however, can fail to detect the presence of an incomplete transaction for a period of time. Additionally, since such conventional approaches may create unneeded connections during the process of checking for an incomplete transaction.
What is needed is an improved mechanism for recovering from an incomplete transaction.
FIG. 1 is functional block diagram of an example computing environment in which techniques for recovering from an incomplete transaction in an embodiment may be implemented.
FIG. 2 illustrates an overview of a two phase commit process for committing transactions.
FIG. 3 is an operational flow diagram illustrating a high level overview of a technique for recovering from an incomplete transaction in an embodiment.
FIG. 4 is a hardware block diagram of an example computer system, which may be used to embody one or more components in an embodiment.
In accordance with embodiments, there are provided mechanisms and methods for recovering from an incomplete transaction. These mechanisms and methods can enable embodiments to detect incomplete transactions when recovering from a server crash or other catastrophic event. Some embodiments can automatically re-establish interrupted connections when incomplete transactions have been detected. The ability of embodiments to detect incomplete transaction can allow recovery to initiate substantially immediately upon server restart and adapter redeployment. Creating real adapter connections unnecessarily for recovery can be avoided.
In an embodiment, a method for recovering from an incomplete transaction is provided. One method embodiment includes creating a dummy resource and registering the dummy resource with a Transaction Manager using a name that would have been used by a previous use of a Resource Adapter before a server crash. The Transaction Manager checks the name to determine whether the name was involved in an unresolved transaction. The Transaction Manager invokes the dummy resource to initiate recovery when the Transaction Manager has determined that the name was involved in an unresolved transaction. This processing can enable embodiments to provide a notification mechanism by which a Transaction Manger is enabled to determine that recovery is needed. In an embodiment, the method can also include creating, by the Transaction Manager, a real connection via the Resource Adapter. The recover request is passed on to a Resource Manager associated with the Resource Adapter.
FIG. 1 is functional block diagram of an example computing environment implementing a connector architecture in which techniques for recovering from an incomplete transaction in an embodiment may be implemented. As shown in FIG. 1, a connector architecture implementation 100 includes application server 110, resource adaptors 120 a, 120 b, resources 130 a, and 130 b and application component 140. As used herein, the term application server is defined broadly as a server computer in a computer network dedicated to running certain software applications. Application server 110 exists in conjunction with a web server (not shown in FIG. 1 for brevity) or between a web server and an enterprise information system (not shown in FIG. 1 for brevity) to provide middleware functionality for an enterprise. As used herein, the term resource adapter is defined broadly to include any segment of code that represents a resource. Resources can include applications, services, databases web sites and other computer based resources. As used herein, the term application component is defined broadly as any data entry, update, query or program that processes data on behalf of a user. Users may be human or computational entities, including proxies and the like. Requestors may be users, proxies or automated entities. As used herein, the term environment is intended to be broadly construed to include a set of any characteristics of a computer configuration, including hardware and software characteristics, such as without limitation, operating system, Central Processor Unit (CPU) model, data communications systems, database systems, programming languages and any applicable standards. As used herein, the term residing is intended to be broadly construed to include applications loaded into active memory, persisted in storage, being executed by a processor and other associations between applications and environments known in the computing arts. Embodiments implement connector architecture 100 to enable one or more connections to be established between the application component 140 and the resources 130 a, 130 b.
In one embodiment, the connector architecture implementation 100 is compatible with the Java 2 Enterprise Edition (J2EE) Connector Architecture. This architecture provides for an EIS vendor-provided resource adaptor and an application server, to which the resource adaptor interfaces. The J2EE Connector Architecture defines a set of contracts, such as transactions, security, and connection management, which both the resource adaptor and application server require to communicate with one another. The connector architecture 100 may be implemented in an application server and a resource adaptor.
Application server 110 embodiments can be configured from a variety of hardware and software products. The application server 110 may run Java or other programming language environment, and may be configured to provide access to resources internal to the server, as well as resources reachable by the application server 110. Resources 130 a, 130 b can include applications, services, databases web sites and other computer based resources. These resources may be part of an Enterprise Information System (EIS) or independent resources reachable by network or other communications mechanisms. In one embodiment, the application server 110 utilizes WebLogic® Server from BEA systems of San Jose, Calif.
As further illustrated by FIG. 1, application server 110 includes an application server transaction manager 112 for managing transactions initiated by application component 140. A Transaction Manager embodiment comprises techniques for recovering from an incomplete transaction. In an embodiment, recovering from an incomplete transaction can include creating a dummy resource and registering the dummy resource with the Transaction Manager 112 using a name that would have been used by a previous use of a Resource Adapter 120 before a server crash or other unforeseen event. The Transaction Manager 112 checks the name of the dummy resource to determine whether the name was involved in an unresolved transaction. When the Transaction Manager 112 determines that the name was involved in an unresolved transaction, the dummy resource is invoked to initiate a recovery. Embodiments can provide a notification mechanism by which Transaction Manger 112 is enabled to determine that recovery is needed. A process for recovering from an incomplete transaction will be described in further detail below with reference to FIGS. 2-3.
Resource adaptors 120 a, 120 b comprise system level software drivers used by application server 110 to connect to resources 130 a, 130 b, respectively. In an embodiment, resource adaptors 120 a, 120 b comprise Java code and any native components required to facilitate interconnection between the application server 110 and the resources 130 a, 130 b. In one embodiment, the connector architecture 100 supports resource adaptors developed by vendors and third party application developers that can be deployed in any application server according to the J2EE platform specification.
As further illustrated by FIG. 1, Resource Adaptors 120 a, 120 b include Resource Managers 122 a and 122 b, respectively. Resource Managers 122 a, 122 b register their respective resources with the transactions manager 112.
Application component 140 may be at least a subset of an application that initiates transactions. Application component may be implemented for example and without limitation, using an enterprise java bean (EJB), Java Server Page (JSP), servlet, or any combination thereof, that is deployed, managed, or executed on the application server 110.
The connector architecture 100 of FIG. 1 further includes system level contracts (not shown in FIG. 1 for brevity). System level contracts govern the interactions between the resource adaptor 120 and the application server 110. The contracts may relate to connection management or other aspects of the connector architecture. Connection management contracts allow an application server the ability to provide a pool of connections that enable application components to connect to various resources 130 a, 130 b. In one embodiment of the present invention, the connection management relates to connection pool configuration, connection pool management, and connection management.
An example employing the XA protocol recovery process by which atomicity of transactions is ensured even when a server failure occurs while in the middle of completing a transaction will next be described to illustrate some of the features and benefits available to embodiments. The XA recovery process is relevant to two-phase transactions. Two-phase transactions are useful when more than one Resource Manager is involved in the transaction. In one embodiment, the Transaction Manager 112 conducts optimization by switching to a one-phase commit protocol instead of a two phase commit protocol in the event that there is only one Resource Manager involved. Processing for performing a two-phase commit transaction will next be described with reference to FIG. 2.
FIG. 2 illustrates an overview of a two phase commit process for committing transactions. As shown in FIG. 2, the commit process commences with an application starting the transaction (block 201). The Transaction Manager registers and enlists Resource Manager 1 with the transaction (block 202). The Transaction Manager registers and enlists Resource Manager 2 with the transaction (block 203). The application performs operations that invoke changes that are intended to be persisted using Resource Manager 1 and Resource Manager 2 (block 204). The application commits the transaction (block 205). The Transaction Manager calls prepare on Resource Manager 1. The Resource Manager 1 returns a status code indicating success or failure (block 206). The Transaction Manager calls prepare on Resource Manager 2. The Resource Manager 2 returns a status code indicating success of failure (block 207). If either Resource Manager returns failure during the prepare call, the Transaction Manager rolls back the transaction for both Resource Managers (blocks 208-209). Otherwise both Resource Managers are committed: The Transaction Manager will commit Resource Manager 1 if both Resource Managers returned prepare success (block 210) and commit Resource Manager 2 if both Resource Managers returned prepare success (block 211).
In this way, atomicity is maintained so that if a change to one resource is made, it is ensured that the corresponding change will be made to all other resources in the transaction. A recovery mechanism is desired, however, in the event where this process is interrupted by a server crash for example at the point in the process between block 210 and block 211 shown above by FIG. 2. Should such a failure occur, one set of changes has been committed via Resource Manager 1, but the corresponding change has not been made by Resource Manager 2.
The application server transaction manager 112 maintains the state of the transaction persistently in a file called the transaction Log. After a server crash and restart, the Transaction Log will contain the information that the Transaction was not fully completed. It cannot be known however which Resource Managers were fully committed or not, since it may have crashed after sending the request but before receiving a response from the Resource Manager. It is the responsibility of the Resource Manager to indicate which changes are in a prepared but not yet committed state. When the recovery process is initiated by the Transaction Manager, it sends a request to the Resource Managers asking for a list of transaction Ids, that were prepared but not yet committed. The Resource Managers return the list of changes in this state, and the Transaction Manager can then complete the transactions by committing the remaining resources.
One of the problems with conventional two phase commit processing is the process by which the application server Transaction Manager 112 initiates the recovery process for an incomplete transaction. The Transaction Manager does not check what needs to be recovered until an RM is registered (as done in blocks 202 and 203 illustrated by FIG. 2. When an RM is registered with a given name, the Transaction Manager then checks the transaction log to see if there were any unresolved transactions that involved a Resource Manager of the same name. If so, the Transaction Manager will call the recover method on the newly registered Resource Manager. This is a problem because the Connector Container has no knowledge if any resources for a Resource Adapter need to be recovered, and the Transaction Manager will not invoke recovery until there is a registration of such a resource.
If the resource adapter is not used for a long period, the registration may not occur until this time. One solution is for the Connector Container to always create a connection to the backend via the Resource Adapter and to register the connection with the Transaction Manager in order to allow any needed recovery to be initiated. This would work, but in the case where recovery is not needed it will cause a connection to be unnecessarily created.
FIG. 3 is an operational flow diagram illustrating a high level overview of a technique for recovering from an incomplete transaction in an embodiment. The technique for recovering from an incomplete transaction shown in FIG. 3 is operable with an application server, application component and resource adaptor, such as application server 110, application component 140 and resource adaptor 120 of FIG. 1, for example. As shown in FIG. 3, a dummy resource is created and registered with the Transaction Manager using a name that would have been used by a previous use of a Resource Adapter before a server crash (block 302). The Transaction Manager checks the name to determine whether the name was involved in an unresolved transaction (block 304). The dummy resource can be invoked to initiate recovery when the Transaction Manager has determined that the name was involved in an unresolved transaction (block 306). Accordingly, the dummy resource can then be used as a notification mechanism by which it can be determined that recovery is needed. In an embodiment, a real connection will be created via the Resource Adapter, and the recover request passed on to the real underlying Resource Manager for the Resource Adapter. The processing of blocks 302-306 can enable embodiments to avoid creating real adapter connections unnecessarily for allowing recovery to initiate immediately upon server restart and adapter redeployment.
Included in the programming (software) of the general/specialized computer or microprocessor are software modules for implementing the teachings of the present invention, including, but not limited to providing mechanisms and methods for recovering from an incomplete transaction as discussed herein.
FIG. 4 illustrates an exemplary processing system 400, which can comprise one or more of the elements of FIG. 1. Turning now to FIG. 4, an exemplary computing system is illustrated that may comprise one or more of the components of FIG. 1. While other alternatives might be utilized, it will be presumed for clarity sake that components of the systems of FIG. 1 are implemented in hardware, software or some combination by one or more computing systems consistent therewith, unless otherwise indicated.
System 400 also includes a machine readable storage media reader 405 coupled to a machine readable storage medium 406, such as a storage/memory device or hard or removable storage/memory media; such devices or media are further indicated separately as storage 408 and memory 409, which may include hard disk variants, floppy/compact disk variants, digital versatile disk (“DVD”) variants, smart cards, read only memory, random access memory, cache memory, and so on, in accordance with the requirements of a particular application. One or more suitable communication interfaces 407 may also be included, such as a modem, DSL, infrared, RF or other suitable transceiver, and so on for providing inter-device communication directly or via one or more suitable private or public networks or other components that may include but are not limited to those already discussed.
Working memory 410 further includes operating system (“OS”) 411 elements and other programs 412, such as one or more of application programs, mobile code, data, and so on for implementing system 400 components that might be stored or loaded therein during use. The particular OS or OSs may vary in accordance with a particular device, features or other aspects in accordance with a particular application (e.g. Windows®, WindowsCE™, Mac™, Linux, Unix or Palm™ OS variants, a cell phone OS, a proprietary OS, Symbian™, and so on). Various programming languages or other tools can also be utilized, such as those compatible with C variants (e.g., C++, C#), the Java™ 2 Platform, Enterprise Edition (“J2EE”) or other programming languages in accordance with the requirements of a particular application. Other programs 412 may further, for example, include one or more of activity systems, education managers, education integrators, or interface, security, other synchronization, other browser or groupware code, and so on, including but not limited to those discussed elsewhere herein.
When implemented in software (e.g. as an application program, object, agent, downloadable, servlet, and so on in whole or part), a learning integration system or other component may be communicated transitionally or more persistently from local or remote storage to memory (SRAM, cache memory, etc.) for execution, or another suitable mechanism can be utilized, and components may be implemented in compiled or interpretive form. Input, intermediate or resulting data or functional elements may further reside more transitionally or more persistently in a storage media, cache or other volatile or non-volatile memory, (e.g., storage device 408 or memory 409) in accordance with a particular application.
invoking the dummy resource to initiate recovery when the Transaction Manager has determined that the name was involved in an unresolved transaction; thereby providing to a notification mechanism by which a Transaction Manger is enabled to determine that recovery is needed.
creating, by the Transaction Manager, a real connection via the Resource Adapter; and passing on the recover request to a Resource Manager associated with the Resource Adapter.
causing the Transaction Manager to initiate recovery processing by registering a non-existent Resource Adapter with the Transaction Manager.
checking a transaction log to determine whether there were any unresolved transactions which involved a Resource Manager of the same name.
creating a real connection via the Resource Adapter and passing on the recover request to a Resource Manager associated with the Resource Adapter.
thereby providing to a notification mechanism by which a Transaction Manger is enabled to determine that recovery is needed. | 2019-04-26T07:24:42Z | https://patents.google.com/patent/US20070261054A1/en |
Speaker (and panel organizer) “Open Gulf: Collating the Imperial Knowledge of Historical Gazetteers of Arabia” on panel “Gazetteers for Digital Geographic Research on the Historical Middle East” Middle East Studies Association meeting, New Orleans, 14-17 November 2019.
Co-convener, Global Shakespeare and Digital Humanities conference, NYU Abu Dhabi Institute, 7-9 October 2019.
Co-offering workshop (with R. El Khatib), “Humanities Data and Mapping Environments”, European Summer University for Digital Humanities 23 July-2 August 2019.
“Mapping English in Contact in the Contemporary Middle East” paper for digital humanities panel “Space, Pattern and Scale: Digital Investigations” International Association of University Professors of English, Poznan, Poland, 21 July 2019.
“Using Visualization to Understand the Complex Spatiality of Mappae Mundi” (long paper with Martin Reckziegel, Taylor Hixson and Stefan Jänicke) Association of Digital Humanities Organizations DH2019 Proceedings, Utrecht, NL, 9-12 July 2019.
“Active Learning from Scratch in Diverse Humanities Textual Domains: Optimizing Annotation Efficiency for Language-Agnostic NER” (long paper with Alex Erdmann and Béatrice Joyeux-Prunel) Association of Digital Humanities Organizations DH2019 Proceedings, Utrecht, NL, 9-12 July 2019.
Co-offering workshops (with G. Riva) at the International Medieval Congress, Leeds (1214 & 1314) “Medieval Vernacular Corpora and Digital Textual Analysis, I: Text Creation & II: Text Analysis” 3 July 2019.
Co-offering workshop “Introduction to Computation for Literary Criticism” (with R. El Khatib), Digital Humanities Summer Institute, University of Victoria, Canada, 3-7 June 2019.
Offering workshop “Quantified Self” at Digital Humanities Institute Beirut 2019, Beirut, Lebanon, 3-4 May 2019.
“Making/Thinking with Information” keynote for the Information Literacy Network Spring Symposium: Education, Impact, Reflection, Abu Dhabi, 24 April 2019.
“Co-Occurrence Networks of Place in Literary Corpora” Workshop on the Frontiers of Network Science, NYU Abu Dhabi, 8 April 2019.
“Revisiting Caxtonian Style,” paper for the “New Technologies and Renaissance Studies IV: Digital Textual Studies” panel, Renaissance Society of America (RSA), Toronto, Canada, 17-19 March 2019.
“Enacting Open Scholarship Within Transnational Contexts” paper and “HSS Infrastructures for Open Knowledge and Data Science?” panel at the INKE Winter Gathering, Victoria, Canada, 16 January 2019.
Attending Linked Pasts IV: Inside the LOD Cloud, University of Mainz, Mainz, Germany, 11-13 December 2018.
“HPC and Digital Scholarship in the Humanities,” High Performance Computing (HPC) for Graduate Research, American University of Beirut, 16 November 2018.
“Cartographier la poésie des troubadours: modélisation, visualisation, interprétation” Workshop AcTo, Centre interrégional du développement de l’occitan, Béziers, France, 15-16 November 2018.
“Pre-Visualization” at “Vis4DH <=> DH4Vis” workshop at IEEE Vis, Berlin, Germany 21-22 October 2018.
Opening keynote “Recasting the Can(n)ons: Towards a New Generation of Computational Medieval French“, at The Medieval Canon in the Digital Age, Ghent University, Belgium, 17-18 September 2018.
Co-leading workshop “Humanities Data and Mapping Environments” (with R. El Khatib), European Summer University of Digital Humanities, Leipzig, Germany, 17-27 July 2018.
“Mapping Lorimer: Using Digital Methods to Explore the Discursive Construction of Gulf Space, societies and cultures/economies” with (N. Barakat, E. Fakhro, N. Fuccaro), Beyond Oil, Sheikhs and Security: Plotting New Trajectories in Gulf Studies, Exeter Centre for Gulf Studies, UK, 2-3 July 2018.
Co-leading workshop “Semi-automated Alignment of Text Versions with iTeal” (with S. Jänicke), DH2018, Mexico City, Mexico, June 2018.
“On Alignment of Medieval Poetry,” (with S. Jänicke) long paper for DH2018, Mexico City, Mexico, 26-29 June 2018.
“‘Moon’: A Spatial Analysis of the Gumar Corpus of Gulf Arabic Internet Fiction” (with Hind Saddiki) poster for DH2018, Mexico City, Mexico, 26-29 June 2018.
Participating “Open Access and Open Social Scholarship” at Digital Humanities Summer Institute, Victoria, BC 11-15 June 2018.
Co-organizing (with Béatrice Joyeux-Prunel), “Exploring the Geographic Information of Literature and Art History,” a spatial humanities workshop, NYU PSL Global Alliance Partnership, Ecole normale supérieure / NYU Paris, 4-8 June 2018.
Co-presenting Digital tools for teaching, writing, and research: Building capacity in the Digital Humanities (AMICAL 2018), American University of Central Asia, Bishkek, Kyrgyz Republic, 4-5 May 2018.
Presenting at Text Analysis Using Stylometry, AUB, Beirut, Lebanon, 24-25 April 2018.
“Mapping the Geographic Information of the Corpus” at Mapping the Text 2018, New York University, New York 21 April 2018.
Co-led workshop (with Gimena del Rio Riande and Gustavo Riva) Técnicas para la creación, enriquecimiento y análisis de textos digitales: Una introducción al proyecto Open Medieval French (OpenMedFr) [Creating, Enriching and Analyzing Digital Texts: Introducing the OpenMedFr Project], NYU Buenos Aires, 22-23 March 2018.
“Electronic Literature in the Context of Digital Humanities” lecture at Arabic Electronic Literature: New Horizons, Global Perspectives,” RIT-Dubai, 25-27 February 2018.
“Towards an Open Corpus of Medieval French,” Renaissance Knowledge Network Sessions, Arizona Center of Medieval and Renaissance Studies Annual Conference, Scottsdale, Arizona, 8-10 February 2018.
“Operationalizing Literary and Linguistic Geographies,” The Politics of Space and the Humanities, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece, 15-17 December 2017.
“Can Computers Critique the Media?” (workshop) Young Arab Media Leaders, Abu Dhabi, 19 November 2017.
“Disrupt(,) or Bust” at “The ‘Crisis’ Humanities and the Digital Humanities?: New Directions in the Humanities,” NYU Center for the Humanities, New York, 14 November 2017.
“The Space of Curation: On the Possibilities of Open Cultural Data in Arabia,” The Third International Conference on Museums in Arabia, Manama, Bahrain, 11-13 October 2017.
“What Can Spatial Data Tell Us About Genre in Medieval French Literature?” Humanidades Dixitais: olladas cara á Idade Media, Universidade de Santiago de Compostela, Spain, 9-11 October 2017.
“Creating Geotagged Humanities Data via Mobile Phone: Opportunities and Challenges” (with Mario Hawat and Dalal Rahme), Japanese Association of Digital Humanities, Doshisha University, Kyoto, Japan, 12 September 2017.
Teaching workshop “Humanities Data and Mapping Environments” at European Summer University in Digital Humanities, Leipzig, Germany 18-28 July 2017.
Attending DH Benelux, Utrecht, Netherlands, 4-6 July 2017.
Mapping Minds, Worlds, Territories – A Workshop, University of Notre Dame Rome Global Gateway / Bibliotheca Herztiana, Rome, 11-13 June 2017.
Attending “Cloud Powering DH Research” DHSI, Victoria, Canada, 5-9 June 2017.
“Notes from DHIB 2017” and ““Digital Project Brainstorming: One-on-One Consultations” at AMICAL Consortium Annual Meeting, Thessaloniki, Greece, 17-20 May 2017.
“What is Web Hosting, and What Kind(s) of Writing Take(s) Place Therein?“ NYU Abu Dhabi Writing Studies Working Group, Global Literacies and the Liberal Arts, 27 April 2017.
“Toolkit or Toychest?: the Digital in the Classroom,” American University of Paris, Paris, France, 17 March 2017.
“Digital Project-Based Scholarship and Pedagogy in the Liberal Arts Institution,” American University of Paris, Paris, France, 16 March 2017.
Keynote, Digital Humanities Institute – Beirut, American University of Beirut, Beirut, Lebanon, 10-12 March 2017. Video here (starts 35:00).
“TopoText: Interactive Digital Mapping of Literary Text” (with R. El Khatib, J. El Zini, M. Jaber and S. Elbassuoni), COLING 2016: 26th International Conference on Computational Linguistics, Osaka, Japan, December 2016.
GIS Day 2016, NYU Abu Dhabi, November 2016, blog post here.
Workshop on Visualization for the Digital Humanities (organizing committee) at IEEE Vis, Baltimore, 24 October 2016.
“What is Spatial Literary Historical Knowledge?” (lecture) and “Co-Created Cultural Gazetteers for Digital Spatial Research: Models, Desiderata, Implications” (workshop) at “Creating Spatial Historical Knowledge: New Approaches, Opportunities and Epistemological Implications of Mapping History Digitally,“ German Historical Institute, Washington, DC, 20-22 October 2016.
Event and World System: (Digitally) Mapping the Age of Peter I” for the conference “The Reign of Peter I of Cyprus: Crusading and Diplomacy in the Late Medieval Eastern Mediterranean,” University of Notre Dame, Rome, Italy, 13-15 Oct 2016.
“Digital Humanities and Cultural Heritage in the U.A.E.: Opportunities and Challenges for Future Collaboration” at the NYU Abu Dhabi Institute workshop “Dialogues with the Past: Documenting Heritage in the UAE,” Abu Dhabi, 5 October 2016.
“Digital Humanities in the Arab World in 2016” for the 3er Encuentro de Humanistas Digitales, Colegio de México, Mexico City, 12-14 September 2016.
“Spatial Humanities for Beginners: A Workshop” for the 3er Encuentro de Humanistas Digitales, Colegio de México, Mexico City, 12-14 September 2016.
“Caxton and Computational Stylistics,” to be presented at International Association of University Professors of English Triennial Conference 2016, Institute of English Studies, School of Advanced Study, London, 29 July 2016.
“From Text to Map: Modeling Historical Humanities Data in Mapping Environments,” workshop co-led with Maxim Romanov, European Summer University in Digital Humanities, University of Leipzig, 19-29 July 2016.
“Visualizing Mouvance: Towards an Alignment of Medieval Vernacular Text Traditions” (with Stefan Jänicke) Long Paper for Digital Humanities 2016, Kraków, Poland, 12-16 July 2016.
“Exploring Modes of Authorship in Caxton: Rolling Delta for Early English Printed Texts” at Digital Literary Studies Seminar, National Humanities Center, Research Triangle Park, NC, 27 June-1 July 2016.
“TopoText 2.0: Prototyping Modes of Interactive Mapping and Social Knowledge Creation” (with Randa El Khatib, Julia El Zini, Shady ElBassuoni and Mohammad Jaber), Innovative Interrogations: Modelling, Prototyping and Making, Implementing New Knowledge Environments (INKE) Conference @ DHSI 2016, Victoria, BC, 10-11 June 2016.
“Locative Devices and Web Mapping in the Humanities” at AMICAL annual conference “Libraries and Digital Initiatives,” American University of Rome, Rome, Italy, 12-14 May 2016.
“Digital Humanities Project-Based Faculty Learning Communities: From the Local to the Consortial” (with Rayane Fayed) at AMICAL annual conference “Libraries and Digital Initiatives,” American University of Rome, Rome, Italy, 12-14 May 2016.
“Beirut publishes… / وبيروت تطبع : Digital Spatio-Temporal Narratives of the Lebanese Publishing Industry (1920-present)” to be presented at Books in Motion Conference, American University of Beirut, Beirut, May 2016.
“Linguistic Landscapes at Scale: Affordances and Limitations of Mobile Data Collection“ to be presented at Linguistic Landscapes and Multilinguality: Sociolinguistic, Cultural and Psychological Perspectives, 37th International LAUD conference, University of Landau, Germany, 4-6 April 2016.
Organizer, Medieval Academy of America Meeting, Digital Humanities Session “Place in Corpora” including my paper “Toponymic Strata in a Large Corpus of Medieval French,” Boston, MA, February 2016.
“Does Literature Have Data?: On Extracting and Representing Entities from Texts,” (with Shady Elbassouni) Research Incubation Seminar, Center for Research on Population and Health, AUB, Spring 2016.
Organizer, Modern Language Association, Special Session on “The Visual Display of Literary Information,” Austin, Texas, January 2016.
“Using Stylometry to Model Transmission of Arabic in Medieval Europe: the Case of the Bocados de oro,” La Asociación de Humanidades Digitales Hispánicas. II Congreso Internacional. Innovación, globalización e impacto. Madrid, 5-7 October 2015.
Keynote/Workshop, “Exploring Space-Time Representation in the Digital Humanities,” Digital Humanities Day, American University of Cairo, Cairo, Egypt, 30 September 2015. Storify here.
“Evaluating Peer Review Criteria: The Geo-Twist” (with Kathy Weimer and Karl Grossner), Digital Frontiers, University of Texas – Dallas, 17-19 September 2015.
“Machaut, Mézières and al-Nuwayri al-Iskandarani: ‘Rapport de Fait’ or Interliterary Mediterranean System?” Annemarie Schimmel Kolleg “History and Society during the Mamluk Era (1250- 1517)” University of Bonn, Germany, 10 August 2015.
“Maps and Networks in Medieval Studies,” European Summer University Culture and Technology, Universität Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany, 5 August 2015.
“Toward an Assessment of the Heterogenous Digitally-Inflected Undergraduate English Course” (with Najla Jarkas) on the “Innovations in Digital Humanities Pedagogy: Local, National and International Training,” ADHO DH 2015, Sydney, July 2015.
Co-organized and led pre-conference workshop DH2015 “Exploring Peer Review in the GeoHumanities” (with Kathy Weimer and Karl Grossner).
“Supporting Peer-Review for GeoHumanities and Spatially-Inflected Projects” (poster with Kathy Weimer), Association of Digital Humanities Organizations DH 2015 Conference, July 2015.
Led workshop, “Representing Space and Time in Digital Environments” Dartmouth College, Leslie Center for the Humanities, 4 May 2015.
“How are Medieval Places Different from Ancient Ones?: Thoughts on Digital Mapping the Middle Ages,” Columbia Medieval Colloquium, New York, 22 April 2015. Reaction here.
“Visual Exploration of Medieval Textual Histories: the Case of the French of Italy,“ (with Laura Morreale and Abigail Sargent) Keystone Digital Humanities Conference, University of Pennsylvania Libraries, Philadelphia, PA, 22-24 July 2015.
“Author! Author! Christine de Pizan’s Styles : Did She Have a Moi prosaique Distinct from Her Moi Lyrique ? The Comparative Insights of a Tradition Stylistic/Thematic and a Stylometric Analysis of Christine’s Writings” (with E.J. Richards and Liliane Dulac), IXe Colloque International Christine de Pizan, Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium, 7-11 July 2015.
Co-organizer, four-part workshop series “Topics in Digital Mapping,” Fordham University, Spring 2015. Summary of part one here.
Organizer, Digital Humanities Institute – Beirut and co-organizer ThatCamp Beirut, March 2015.
“Islamicate Worlds, the Late Medieval Court of Burgundy and the Mediterranean,” Center for Medieval Studies, Fordham University, New York, 9 December 2014.
Participant, “What is the Vernacular?” a workshop at Fordham University, Center for Medieval Studies, 5 December 2014.
“Big (comma) Open Data in the Humanities,” Research Without Borders panel, Columbia University Libraries, New York, 4 December 2014. Reaction here and here.
“Visualizing Medieval French Places: Spatial Information, Scale and Literary History,” Mahindra Humanities Center, Medieval Studies/Cartography Seminars, Harvard University, Boston, 20 November 2014.
Co-led “Spatiality and Digital Mapping” workshop, Fordham University Digital Humanities, New York, October 2014. Reaction here.
Attended Text Corpora and Digital Islamic Humanities workshop, Brown University, October 2014. Storify here.
“Lieu, Temps, Réseau : la modélisation des géographies littéraires du moyen âge français” accepted on the panel “Les « interfaces numériques » dans la recherche aujourd’hui,” Journées francoromanistes allemandes, “Schnittstellen / Interfaces,” Münster, Germany, 24-27 September 2014. Slides here.
“Doing Things with a Spatial Dataset of Medieval Literature,” presented at the workshop Applying New Digital Methods to the Humanities, British Library, London, 27 June 2014.
“Modeling Literary Geographies: a Medium-Data Approach to Medieval French Literary History,” presented at Medieval Francophone Literary Culture outside France conference, King’s College, Cambridge, UK, 10-12 April 2014.
“A Modular Mediterranean Classic: Al-Mubashshir’s Mukhtar al-Hikam in Late Medieval Europe” presented in the seminar “On the Classics: Debating a Concept Across the Premodern Mediterranean World,” American Comparative Literature Association, New York University, New York, 20-23 March 2014.
“A Spatial and Network Analysis of Outremer in Medieval French Texts” presented at The French of Outremer: Communities and Communications in the Crusading Mediterranean Center for Medieval Studies, Fordham University, New York, NY, 29-30 March 2014. Abstract here.
Organizer, Modern Language Association Meeting January 2014, Special Session on “Geospatial Literary Studies” Reaction here.
“Visualizing Medieval Places in Overlapping Uncertainties of Time” with Christian Heine and Stefan Jänicke presented at the European Summer University of Digital Humanities ‘Culture and Technology,’ Universität Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany, July 2013.
“Visualizing Uncertainty: How to Use the Fuzzy Data of 550 Medieval Texts?” presented at Digital Humanities 2013, University of Nebraska – Lincoln, 16-19 July 2013. Abstract here.
“Guillaume de Tignonville’s Dits Moraux des philosophes: Modeling the Circulation of Greco-Arabica in 15th century Europe” presented at the Oxford University Medieval French Seminar, Oxford, UK, February 12, 2013.
Three-day workshop and mini-conference “Digital Humanities @ AUB,” 15-17 April 2013. | 2019-04-25T12:53:49Z | http://djwrisley.com/events/ |
Currently 306 words, if feedback doesn't add much, I may try to pare back for the bonus points (and I'll certainly appreciate suggestions on what to cut).
You have defined what is -2, but it is not clarified what is -1 at all in the article.
I don't really understand why it is Thaumiel.
How are the in-universe people certain that -2 is a good measuring stick for Foundation loyalty?
Is the picture a complete set or is there any anti-meme in place that only makes a selected few able to see the whole thing?
And what is Project Kallinikos? There's hardly anything to decipher what is it all about, beyond their creation of -2? And why would these project members to amnesticised and exposed to -2 in the end?
Overall, this does leave me in want of more "What is going on?"
The following, is I feel too many spoilers, I was really hoping people could figure this out from the clues given. I'd appreciate it if reviewers only peeked here after reading the draft. Thanks!
Knowing too much about -1 may be very dangerous. I suppose I can emphasize this. It was originally a Daevesite weapon that works much like their book does except on personal history rather than on political history. That's why the dig team was always a cult cell. They were exposed and retroactively converted into Daevesite cult moles.
Because if you show it to anybody sapient they immediately and retroactively turn into a loyal Foundation member. It's a cure for almost any anomaly that transforms, possesses or otherwise compromises a person as long as they remain sapient. It completely eliminates moles. It can be used for rapid recruitment in an emergency. And all it costs is some ink and paper (or pixels).
It's not a measuring stick, it's an assimilator. 100% of persons who view it are now (and always have been) loyal Foundation persons.
It's a complete picture. Anybody who views the whole thing is now (and always has been) a loyal Foundation guy.
And what is Project Kallinikos? There's hardly anything to decipher what is it all about, beyond their creation of -2?
-1 was cut into several pieces, each team worked only on their piece (compartmentalized) to reverse engineer how it works and then a team which only had the information from the analysis team and zero exposure to -1 created a version "reprogrammed" for the Foundation.
And why would these project members to amnesticised and exposed to -2 in the end?
Because they were exposed to portions of -1 and they also knew the details of Project Kallinikos. As it says in the Containment procedures under these circumstances they needed to be either terminated, amnesticized or exposed to -2.
I was hoping that I left enough clues. I'll see if I can't demystify without breaking it. It can't work if it is in the clear completely and in-universe its effect can only be deduced from the really weird facts anyway, it can't be directly observed since its effect is retroactive.
Okay, I added a bit to the Containment Procedures which may help.
And I added a bit to the description of Project Kallinikos that should elucidate the methodology better.
Thank you for addressing my queries. Now, allow me to give a second evaluation.
There was little to clue in on that, unless you count "Uzbekistan" (but there's a lot of history behind Uzbekistan, or most countries, that a relic could be anything). That does explain why the script is expunged, although it is not so apparent at first sight.
You could highlight what -1 does, so that it can make more sense as to what -2 does. With the little known of -1, it feels like a memetic hazard that no one should ever know. And I personally can't invest myself in something so ambiguous.
Just to clarify, the glyphs will retroactively convert people to the Foundation. Yes?
Well, I'm wary of outright using the D-word for fear of coat-tail riding accusations. I was hoping the retro-cliodynamic action of this object being akin to that of the book was clue enough.
Well, like -2 you can't actually directly observe the effect, only that 100% of people who are able see the thing are Daevesite cultists. Like the entire dig team. That's not normal. I have an idea though (ugh, more words).
Okay, more clues but 420 words (ouch). I really need to cut now. Please suggest cuts if possible. Thank you.
Tightened to 412 words, and I need to sleep.
So, I read the current draft, and haven't yet read your spoiler clues. I'll put my interpretation in the collapsible, and then check the spoilers. Then I'll come back and edit this comment with my critique.
The Foundation dug up an image (-1) which retroactively turns people who see all of it into cultists. That's why everyone who sees it turns out to be in a cult, despite no previous connection.
Realising this, the Foundation split the image up, and reverse-engineered a second image (-2) which retroactively turns people who see all of it into loyal Foundation personnel.
Okay, let's see how I did.
Edit: Yay. So at least you can check the box for "comprehensible to the relatively-thick".
1) I like puzzle-box SCPs. I like this idea - a loyalty glyph that works retroactively. I am concerned that in terms of the contest, not everyone likes puzzle-boxes or will upvote, even if they work it out. I'm also concerned that too much of this draft deliberately obfuscates the mechanism of the SCP to ensure that it's a puzzle - that is something I have huge issues with in my drafting as well. As well as specific comments, I'm going to try to suggest ways to keep it tricky without being obtuse.
2) I am insufficiently aware of the Daevesites to have picked that up at all - even though I think I've read the relevant SCP. I think it's best to leave that fact as your headcanon (or for intuitive readers to pick up on) rather than hint at it.
3) The power of this SCP - particularly the -2 variant - seems quite problematic to me. There is no suggestion that the Foundation might be debating the implications - for instance, should they have it on every wall of every Site, or should they hide it forever, to prevent other GoIs from reverse engineering it.
And while I understand the reason for classifying as Thaumiel, this also presents big risks to the Foundation if it ever got out of containment. If the Foundation turns out to employ huge numbers of people (with a sudden increase in the past few years), that is bordering on a broken masquerade or (at the extreme end) even a K-Class event. And what if you showed it to someone who was known to have committed an anti-Foundation act in the past (eg a captured member of CI or CotBG)? Would showing them -2 be a good idea, because it made them a productive employee, or a huge risk, because their past actions now never occurred, and you are at risk from the butterfly effect. Should we use it on hostile SCPs? I would almost prefer to see this pushed to long-form to explore some of those implications.
Although I like -2 being included as an image in this article - is the Fridge Horror of that deliberate?
If you're keeping it short, I would be tempted to reduce the effect of -2. Perhaps it only works on people who have been exposed to -1? Perhaps it simply stops them being cultists, without making them Foundation loyalists. That might also help with my next comment.
4) In order to keep the mystery in this draft, you can't allow the Foundation itself to understand the SCP's effect of changing personal history. But that Foundation has to have some understanding of how -1 works, or how did they manage to reverse engineer -2? Squaring these two points is quite difficult. For example, presumably they didn't get -2 right the first time. How was it tested? How did they know it was a success?
I think your best bet is to make the Foundation at least partially aware of how -1 works, even at the risk of the reader catching on more quickly. There are lots of ways you could take this within the word count. Perhaps when the Eta-10 agents turn out to be cultists, the Foundation theorises that it is an infohazard which the cultists want to expose to others - they may think at that stage that it's only a prospective effect. So knowing that the image is causing problems, they give it to the infohazard team in pieces, aiming to reverse the effect. When they show it to the captured cultist moles, it turns out that they were all in fact double agents, loyal to the Foundation all along, and infiltrating the cell. The Foundation is confused as to why everyone was a double agent ("Man Who Was Thursday" style), but declares -2 unnecessary, -1 a possible infohazard for further testing, and leaves it at that. Exposure of other Foundation employees (or D Class) to -2 does nothing.
Sorry, that is a huge change to what you have written, but I think it might be necessary. And I think that the puzzle box element can remain in this form, if you want it to. Although I think the idea is interesting enough that it may not need the puzzle.
The remainder of my comments will stop trying to completely overhaul your idea, and concentrate on the text you've got.
5) As I'm sure you know, Thaumiel classification is an immediate risk of downvotes. For whatever reason, expectations will be raised. And if the Foundation doesn't know that -2 is changing history (if it did, the article would say so explicitly) then I'm not sure it knows enough to classify -2 as Thaumiel. Even if -2 has the power you've suggested, you could probably get away with an overall classification of Euclid, or even Safe.
I suggest swapping the order so that -1 is referred to first.
I found the third paragraph almost incomprehensible. The second sentence, in particular, could be deleted entirely without losing any meaning from the article (even on a re-read).
Instead of "duplication of Project Kallinikos by any entity", perhaps you would just stick with "All possible effort should be made to prevent discovery or creation of additional instances or derivatives of SCP-XXXX."
The third sentence could be shortened to "Any person exposed to, or possessing significant knowledge (as defined in Appendix C) of, any SCP-XXXX instance is to be terminated, amnesticized or exposed to SCP-XXXX-2 at the discretion of the SCP-XXXX project director."
NB - here and elsewhere you have used "amesticized" without an "n" - is that correct?
I suggest deleting the last paragraph - it doesn't add much to what's gone before.
Again, I would switch the order so that -1 is described first, as an "image depicting glyphs in the [DATA EXPUNGED] script [which appears to have great significance to the [DATA EXPUNGED] cult]".
Then go on to describe the recovery of -1.
Then explain that -2 was created as a compartmentalized effort by the infohazard team to reverse engineer -1.
Then describe -2's effect, and the fact that the Project Kallinikos team were amnesticized.
Summary: this is a great idea, and I respect the puzzle-box construction. But I think that the idea is being hampered by the difficulty of creating a box with so few words. Suggest either letting go of: (a) the word count (and thus the contest status); (b) the puzzle entirely (and try another angle); (c) the complexity of the puzzle (to sort out what I perceive as logical issues).
1) I like puzzle-box SCPs. I like this idea - a loyalty glyph that works retroactively. I am concerned that in terms of the contest, not everyone likes puzzle-boxes or will upvote, even if they work it out.
I am insufficiently aware of the Daevesites to have picked that up at all - even though I think I've read the relevant SCP. I think it's best to leave that fact as your headcanon (or for intuitive readers to pick up on) rather than hint at it.
So less hints than currently exist, or fine as is?
The power of this SCP - particularly the -2 variant - seems quite problematic to me. There is no suggestion that the Foundation might be debating the implications - for instance, should they have it on every wall of every Site, or should they hide it forever, to prevent other GoIs from reverse engineering it.
Strangely I abandoned a "long form" approach to this for this very reason (this was a short article idea before there was a contest). Any answers I give to these will a) realistically take the form of very boring to read (not to mention write!) policy documents and b) not be as good as the readers own thoughts on these subjects. I was hoping that this works better if it only asks these questions.
Yes, absolutely! That's nearly the entire stinger here! If you are reading this document, you are retroconveted into a loyal Foundation employee, and since you are both loyal and reading this document you are (and always have been) a person cleared for this information. Thus its a self-keeping secret (but of a different kind than SCP-055) if you work through the implications.
I'd rather not, that fairly guts it of any of the really interesting implications of it, which I find to be essential. I'll think about this, though.
In order to keep the mystery in this draft, you can't allow the Foundation itself to understand the SCP's effect of changing personal history. But that Foundation has to have some understanding of how -1 works, or how did they manage to reverse engineer -2? Squaring these two points is quite difficult.
The Foundation does have a pretty good model of how it probably works, that's why they can duplicate it. However it is impossible to observe it working. Therefore I can't just say that it retroactively alters the past, because there's no way (barring SRAs or other super science; the lack of which is not negotiable here, I really don't like them) to observe the history that has been changed. It's only possible to observe the effect in the present. Which is that it's impossible to show it to anybody who isn't a loyal Foundation employee with a personal history that matches that profile. Which is of course itself impossible, unless this object is retrocreating these histories. So the evidence is in the description where it should be.
Unless, of course, I'm missing some key piece of observable evidence that would exist. Am I?
For example, presumably they didn't get -2 right the first time. How was it tested? How did they know it was a success?
Sure, but anyone exposed to the previous attempts would have been finally been exposed to -2 and those previous attempts would have been completely erased.
I think your best bet is to make the Foundation at least partially aware of how -1 works, even at the risk of the reader catching on more quickly.
Again though, they are. All the evidence is right there. It's just logically impossible to observe what it does directly in-universe though. Unless I'm leaving something out that should exist but I'm not able currently to conceive of anything like this though.
There are lots of ways you could take this within the word count. Perhaps when the Eta-10 agents turn out to be cultists, the Foundation theorises that it is an infohazard which the cultists want to expose to others - they may think at that stage that it's only a prospective effect. So knowing that the image is causing problems, they give it to the infohazard team in pieces, aiming to reverse the effect. When they show it to the captured cultist moles, it turns out that they were all in fact double agents, loyal to the Foundation all along, and infiltrating the cell. The Foundation is confused as to why everyone was a double agent ("Man Who Was Thursday" style), but declares -2 unnecessary, -1 a possible infohazard for further testing, and leaves it at that.
That's why I added the footnote. This just seems to repeat the clues in the footnote in more depth. Usually repeated versions of identical evidence (despite the realism of such) make skips boring, IME. Also any such testing was likely to been erased when -2 was deployed on the survivors. What am I missing?
Exposure of other Foundation employees (or D Class) to -2 does nothing.
-2 doing nothing leaves me with a neutralized skip and about three lines of text… I'd lose all of the ethical, security, and temporal/cliodynamic implications, which is IMO, the fun part here.
I really unable to figure out how, unless I use SRAs or something. Isn't it impossible to observe direct evidence of this effect? Or are you referring to something else as the "puzzle"?
I have trouble seeing how if this is used at all, it isn't Thaumiel, it is far too useful and powerful a direct counter to other effects (especially other instances of the same object). The Foundation would seem to be stupid to not at least consider its use. Also again, using it opens a host of interesting questions, which I think is really the point of the piece.
They can't know this (unless I'm missing something), but they can strongly hypothesize this, which they do.
How (without SRAs or the like)? Did I miss some key piece of observable evidence?
Even if -2 has the power you've suggested, you could probably get away with an overall classification of Euclid, or even Safe.
I suppose I could. Are you suggesting I do this only because otherwise it may get downvoted? Or is there some non-meta reason for it? If the former, I'm not sure that is really honest.
This definitely seems to be a box when you apply the locked box test.
-2 is the object that's actually in active containment, so IMO, it should be the primary instance referred to in the document.
-1 is neutralized and sealed in concrete blocks inside reactor vessels or buried 100s of meters underground or whatever all over the world. It's basically a footnote. Now that I had to include a footnote anyway (which I was hoping to avoid), maybe I should literally make it a footnote. Done.
I like the impact of starting with "SCP-XXXX-2 is poses no threat to Foundation personnel" when you work through the implications of why that is. I'd be sad to lose it.
I found the third paragraph almost incomprehensible.
Okay, I'll consider reworking for clarity.
The second sentence, in particular, could be deleted entirely without losing any meaning from the article (even on a re-read).
I added that sentence to answer Wr. Wrong's question about why there's little information about -1 presented. Should I not have answered this question?
Also the idea that it can retrocreate from people merely knowing about it, isn't really presented anywhere else in the article, so I think meaning would be lost. Is this information nonessential?
Yes, much better, thank you.
Yes, that is better but I don't like giving that much power to one person and having a weapon that only a single person can authorize deployment of means you don't really intend to use the weapon (like nukes in the real world). So I revised this to "at the discretion of Basilisk/3 personnel ".
No, that's an artifact of me being a terrible speller and amnesticized not being a word that the spell-checker recognizes. Thank you!
Wouldn't that be putting discovery before the contained object? Which is generally bad form.
Well, I originally conceived of this as longer, but I don't think I can write pages of use of force policy and ethics commitee memos and it be any good. Isn't this something that's better left to the reader?
Again, though if the "puzzle" derives from the impossibility of direct evidence of the effect, then I'm not sure how to do this. Am I missing something?
(c) the complexity of the puzzle (to sort out what I perceive as logical issues).
I'd love to simplify, yes.
Edit: Additional information added to enhance clarity (hopefully). Including a sentence that should hopefully clear up any ambiguity about what the Foundation hypothesizes is happening.
Wow. I've read the response above, and will aim to comment in full (and read the re-draft) when I'm next awake.
On your most repeated question: I agree that (due to its retroactive effect) the Foundation will have no observable evidence of what the SCP does. But as you say, the Foundation will have a strong hypothesis - indeed, they must have that hypothesis in order to synthesise -2. In my view, the article must explicitly state that hypothesis.
Otherwise, either the Foundation is being deliberately obtuse about a theory with plausible evidence (every test just happens to be on a completely loyal person), or the Foundation hasn't come up with the theory, and the reader is smarter than the Foundation. Either option doesn't paint the Foundation in a great light. And that's what I mean by simplifying the puzzle - by stating this hypothesis outright, you make it less difficult (read: fun) for the reader to work out what's going on.
It occurs to me that if you really want to try to keep the puzzle, one way to deal with it is to lampshade it. You could describe the effect of tests, and then "see Documents XYZ for current theories as to SCP-XXXX's method of operation". That way the Foundation isn't dumb or obtuse, and while you are playing slightly coy with the reader, you're also hinting that they should be able to work it out.
I'm not sure if you read the draft after I changed it in light of your feedback, but I believe I have added a sentence that states this hypothesis directly. Does that help?
It occurs to me that if you really want to try to keep the puzzle, one way to deal with it is to lampshade it. You could describe the effect of tests, and then "see Documents XYZ for current theories as to SCP-XXXX's method of operation".
Ok, I have some general issues with this.
1) Your image was clearly made in a paint program, so it looks kind of cheesy. What I would recommend is to print the Foundation logo, draw the rest of the symbols around it in Sharpie, and scan it. Edit: That, or do it in a vector graphics program, if that's in your wheelhouse.
3) Major point: In general, given that the Foundation definitely suspects history-altering properties, I think they should never expose any employees to this except those that might have some knowledge of XXXX, -1, or -2. In that case, it's kind of throwing good retrocausation after bad, so it comes out a wash.
There are several reasons this shouldn't be a broad-use thing, but they pretty much all boil down to "The Foundation doesn't volantarily screw with history using a poorly-understood anomaly without very, very good reason." I mean, any employee you expose to -2 is going to have at least some portion of their personal experience poofed away in exchange for loyalty. In the best circumstance, they lose skills or knowledge or experiences that define their personality. In the worst circumstance, you've erased the conditions of their recruitment (such as letting a dangerous SCP go uncontained or wiping out their past in another GOI), so it absolutely poses a threat to both personnel and the Foundation.
4) I feel like you're really, really trying to make "cliodynamic" happen, and for me it is not working. Yes, you've defined it, but it is still a new enough term for the wiki to take some adjustment. More importantly, now every time you want to imply history is being altered you just slap cliodynamic in there. As far as the puzzlebox goes, you're not hiding anything with that. As far as narrative structure goes, slapping in a technical term is a sidestep and something of a failure of the show-don't-tell rule.
You could still keep cliodynamic in circulation if you had more… "showing" I guess… in the text, but right now it is not helping.
While it is possible for any person to view isolated portions of the image, 100% of persons who view the entire image are loyal Foundation personnel with XXXX/2 clearance or better.
every person who has viewed the complete image is a loyal Foundation employee with XXXX/2 clearence or better. <sentence about corroboration you already have>. No record of any individual without such clearance or background of loyalty ever viewing the complete image exists.
I know that this tacks onto your wordcount, but you've got room.
The entire dig team was subsequently discovered to have been a [DATA EXPUNGED] cult cell within the Foundation and were killed resisting capture when MTF Eta-10 "See No Evil" recovered the object, ultimately suffering three casualties.
If [DATA EXPUNGED] is just the word Daevite, then that's probably the appropriate level of redaction, but it's weird that the redaction is longer than the word.
7) It's odd and kind of unclear that the final paragraph is talking about -1, but never uses the designation. Maybe replace "the image." in the first sentence of that paragraph with "SCP-XXXX-1."
Some of the sentence structure you use to frame the story doesn't work for me, particularly the one about loyal personnel. I also think "cliodynamic" isn't doing you any favors.
As far as XXXX-2, I strongly think its use should be limited to XXXX-related issues, and I think it would be cool to lampshade that you are exposing the reader to it.
Ultimately, I think there's a solid story here, but your attempts to obfuscate and dance around it are making the whole thing sterile and awkward. I'm not pushing for major changes outside of what I've stated above, but right now it would be a no-vote at best.
Yes, it's placeholder like "XXXX". I actually intend to do it with a quill pen on parchment (and maybe also with Inkscape and seeing which looks better; if I have time). I'm more worried about the text for now.
Interesting. I'm not sure how to make that work without putting the image well above the Item # (which seems like it will be considered "format screw").
I don't actually say its a broad use thing. I say that some personnel have Basilisk clearance (how many? I don't say) and are approved to use it under specific conditions (which are? I don't say that either. I'm trying to leave that question to the reader, but I'm guessing that's not working for you.
I feel like you're really, really trying to make "cliodynamic" happen, and for me it is not working. Yes, you've defined it, but it is still a new enough term for the wiki to take some adjustment.
I'm flattered, but I'm not Kenneth Hite (or remotely as cool). I didn't invent the thing. If you have another word that works better, I'll use it (sadly because I like Ken's word). Do you also hate "retrocreate"?
As far as the puzzlebox goes, you're not hiding anything with that.
No but I am not trying to. I am trying to save a word each time over "history altering" and giving some technical jargon based verisimilitude.
That was the original phrasing, but I rephrased it in case people would read it (as Mr. Wrong apparently did) as a loyalty detector instead of a retroconverter.
Yes, I've thought about this. I'll see what I can do in this vein.
Do Daevite cults worship something specific. I thought they are dedicated to retrocreating the Daevite empire. I'll see what I can do.
I don't actually ever say or imply that it isn't, though. I could make this less ambiguous. I'll think about it.
and I think it would be cool to lampshade that you are exposing the reader to it.
Don't I lose the "fridge horror" if I do? Is it better that way than when the reader realizes they've already been exposed?
Ultimately, I think there's a solid story here, but your attempts to obfuscate and dance around it are making the whole thing sterile and awkward.
It isn't really that deliberate. It's my SCP philosophy of only describing what can actually be observed and never ever using SRAs.
I'm not pushing for major changes outside of what I've stated above, but right now it would be a no-vote at best.
I'm kidding, I find you to consistently give me some of the most useful feedback, and I really appreciate it! Thank you!
EDIT: I have no idea how to make that box work with the image. :( I am not very good at getting the wiki to do anything weird.
EDIT2: Well, except for the above, I made some changes in line with your issues.
Okay, here goes. This draft is an improvement, and is probably close to mainlist-survival threshold (as far as I have the ability to gauge) but I think it can still be improved further.
Make -2 into SCP-XXXX. Then you can refer to it first without it being distracting. Turn -1 into "Previous SCP-XXXX-a, now Neutralised and referred to as…" - it could be SCP-XXXX-N, "the N-glyph" or something else.
Keep the current designations, and reverse the order of the paragraphs, as previously suggested. I don't think you lose much by doing this. You can easily end the Special Containment Procedures with "SCP-XXXX-2 poses no threat to Foundation personnel." - I think the impact is increased by not having it as part of a longer sentence, even if you keep it at the start.
2) Containment Procedures: The downside of my first bullet point is that you then need to work out what "other SCP-XXXX instances" should be re-worded to. I don't think that you deploy -2 in order to contain images - you deploy it to reverse the effect that the images have on individuals - so I think the first Containment Procedures sentence should be re-worded. I also think the semi-colon feels odd in that sentence.
Expanded deployment against other threats must be approved on a case-by-case basis by O-5 command.
Just to make it clear to readers that you have thought through the implications, I would name check the Ethics Committee here, either in the alternative or in addition.
Knowledge of any SCP-XXXX instance or portion thereof may present a timeline hazard and result in the spontaneous retrocreation of that instance.
I still dislike this sentence. I didn't pick up the first time that knowledge of the skip will cause it to come into existence in the past, and I don't feel like that's necessary. I think readers will have a hard enough time following the effects without adding that to the mix. The risk still exists that there are other -1 images out there, or that someone will invent one, and if -2 can be used for other things, then even if we could be 100% sure that -1 no longer existed, there's sufficient threat in -2 that we don't need to add to the threat level of -1.
3) Daevestites - fine as is. I didn't find it distracting, and presumably others will pick up on it. Query why their name is always expunged - would it not be available to higher clearances, and thus redacted? That would solve Petrograd's concern as well.
my suggestion is to describe the -1 image first, then its discovery, then describe -2, then its creation.
SCP-XXXX-2 is an image depicting glyphs in the [DATA EXPUNGED] script originating from Project Kallinikos.
I think this would read better as "SCP-XXXX-2 is an image created through Project Kallinikos, depicting glyphs in the [DATA EXPUNGED] script, which is based on SCP-XXXX-1."
I think the first clause here is unnecessary. The implication of "view the entire image" should be sufficient.
No record exists of any person viewing the complete image who does not fit this profile. Nor has any deliberate test with D-Class or any other person without appropriate qualifications, loyalty or clearance ever been successful.
Interesting. I think this is a situation where things are made less clear by the attempt to clarify them. The second sentence sounds like there have been unsuccessful tests involving D-Class walking out of the room afterwards, rather than what's actually happening. Perhaps: "No record exists of any person viewing the complete image who does not fit this profile, including D-Class or other low-clearance persons who would be expected to be used as test subjects."
The presence of physical evidence of appropriate personal histories for all individuals who have viewed the image strongly indicates a retroactive temporal effect, rather than a purely cognitive one (See Appendix B).
This feels like it's trying to split the difference on hiding and showing. I think it should either be a puzzle to the reader, and merely allude to theories ("For current theories on the reasons for this pattern, see Appendix B") or it should be absolutely clear ("The research team's current hypothesis is that SCP-XXXX-2 retroactively changes the subject's history to one of Foundation loyalty."). If you go with the second option, you may need to do something similar for -1.
The entire dig team was subsequently discovered to have been a covert cell within the Foundation dedicated to the retrocreation of [DATA EXPUNGED]. All seven personnel were killed resisting capture when MTF Eta-10 "See No Evil" recovered the object.
It's not entirely clear to me why Eta-10 was sent in - this might be eliding too much. How did the Foundation know that the dig team were moles, and choose to send the right MTF for the job?
All members of the project were subsequently amnesticized and exposed to SCP-XXXX-2.
"All members of the project (including all subjects used in testing of SCP-XXXX-2 prototypes) were subsequently…" That would make me happier, although I admit it's not essential. It's a really weird test though, because there's no way to run controls! Still, that's not important.
Usually repeated versions of identical evidence (despite the realism of such) make skips boring, IME.
Agreed, that's not what I intended. But now irrelevant, as it only applied if you limited -2's effect.
I'm going to take a huge liberty and create a draft in my sandbox, to show you how I suggest amending it. I hope that's okay. I'll edit this post when done.
I can't and don't want to write to please everybody. I think I'm willing to take my chances with my audience and post work that I am happy with. :) Writing a good article is more important than winning, IMO.
I absolutely agree with the sentiment. You have to be proud of what you write - vote-seeking is facile (and pointless, as "everyone's taste" doesn't exist on this site). All my comments are definitely aimed at making it better (to my taste, obviously).
Ha! Not unless you help me sort out that second addendum! Got some more negative feedback in chat this week.
Sorry, I know I said I'd edit, but this is going to be another long-ish post. I have hacked at a draft, which is in my sandbox under the "Stop! Thief!" tab. It is 442 words, which doesn't include the caption for the missing picture, and I'm sure it could be cut down. It is intended purely as an illustration of my comments above, and if you want me to delete it immediately, let me know.
1) You'll see that I've added a few extra sentences. Feel free to drop them - they were more experimentation than anything else.
2) I've tried to explain the logic of the recovery more clearly, at the expense of more words.
3) "All … effort" should either be "All possible efforts" or "Every possible effort".
4) I think the second footnote can live comfortably in the text. If you flesh out the recovery enough, you could even live without this section entirely.
5) If you do keep the Agent Swanson bit, saying that he/she"deliberately caused" the other agents' exposure doesn't make sense. They were all always cultists, so the other agents would look at it willingly. I've tried to fudge this in my draft.
6) I suggest "no exposure" rather than "zero exposure", as I prefer that phrasing for tone.
I don't mind your draft, but I don't see how I can use it without disqualification. You do intend to submit your own entry still, yes?
I didn't pick up the first time that knowledge of the skip will cause it to come into existence in the past, and I don't feel like that's necessary.
Besides that I think it is cool, I don't see how the expungments and general paucity of information about the original is justified unless the information is itself dangerous.
I am not sure if I can make this work now. I need to think about it.
I think it's getting better! Edit: I rather appreciate the changes in the containment procedures.
I agree with psul's comments about framing the effects, e.g. That you could either leave the retrocausation as unstated or deliberately stated, but that the final sentence concerning cognitive effects and the event in the footnote are in kind of a weird middle ground. I haven't seen psul's text, but I think if you went for the unstated option, the footnote could go something like (again paraphrasing) "During the recovery, Agent Swanson and two other agents were revealed to be a deep cult cell within the Foundation and were terminated while attempting to expose other MTF agents to SCP-XXXX-1."
As far as the box goes, I wasn't imagining moving the image or anything. It would be in the typical SCP image field position, just with a box above the whole entry. So, rather than having the image show up in the terminal or warning or whatever, they just know that by viewing the normal SCP document that you have been exposed. I leave that up to you if you like the idea or not. For a standalone box, I would check the code on pages that have an RAISA warning.
Tangent, I don't think Daevite cultists necessarily have to be focused on the retrocreation of that culture. Sure, the culture was (probably) retrocreated by (I don't remember the SCP number), but that's more a property of that SCP than of their culture. The Daevite culture had verifiable thaumaturgic power and had artifacts and individuals existing to this day, and any of those things could be a reason to start a cult. Sure, the cultists would happily spill blood on the book if they knew about it, but if the Foundation has successfully maintained secrecy they might not even be aware of it.
Also, I don't hate cliodynamic (yay Ken Hite!), I just don't think it was serving any purpose well in that draft. See again psul's dichotomy between concealment and disclosure, where saying "cliodynamic" was sort of popping down a direct statement in otherwise rather indirect paragraphs.
So, in that response, a lot of text, but maybe not as much of it helpful.
Div box as suggested by Petrograd. I'm worried that it's cheesy, though. Opinions?
Significant textual revisions that should address psul's problems without requiring I give him (a disqualifying) collaborator credit.
404 words, and a little over 24 hours to go.
BUT, I must confess that if this is abstract, I don't qualify as a judge, because I generally have a hard time grokking what's abstract!
What is the difference between -D and -F? What are their respective anomalous effects?
What exactly happened at the dig site in Uzbekistan?
Why? What does it do to hostile SCPs?
EDIT Okay, I feel terrible about this. I feel like a moron.
All I actually got from first reading (should say first readingS, because I did read it several times!) was… the fridge 'horror' (?). Yep, I'm a nice Foundation gal now, and have always been. A very stupid Foundation gal, but a nice loyal one anyway.
Don't feel that way. People not understanding it is important feedback all its own.
-D retroactively makes you a fanatic Daevite cultist. -F retroactively makes you a loyal Foundation employee with XXXX/2 clearance or better.
Omniscient: The Foundation archeologists discovered -D and were retroconverted to Daevite cultists.
In-universe: They were always Daevite cultists and deliberately were looking for -D so they could a) close the time loop and b) expose others to it.
Counter the effects of any other glyphs of the same type.
Counter any effect that converts, possesses, alters personal timestreams, or otherwise changes a sapient creatures history or loyalty.
Emergency instantaneous recruitment of loyal personnel.
As a weapon to turn enemies into allies.
That's good. Do you think it should have been clearer at the outset?
Thanks for the explanations, Sirpudding!
Well, I don't know. If some people get it, or at least part of it, without lengthy explanations, why should you change it?
OTOH, I read somewhere that every SCP should be written as standing on its own. Not knowing about Daevites, I couldn't possibly catch the reference… And a lot of understanding derives from this little detail.
I couldn't possibly catch the reference… And a lot of understanding derives from this little detail.
I tried to write it so that's just author headcannon. It shouldn't really matter what the [REDACTED] cult is as long as it fits the other elements (ancient dig site in Central Asia and fanatic hostile followers). Does it?
Have you looked at the new draft? It's a significant change. Opinions?
1) Yeah, the div box is kind of cheesy. That's unfortunate.
Edit: I had to upload a second version, because I forgot to fix some clipping errors.
4) I think I preferred it when the footnote about the agents turning was included. If you cut it for length or couldn't get it quite where you wanted it, I understand.
5) So, this is more of the directly-stated route. I think it works alright, although the alternative would produce more mystery.
I do think the last paragraph would be improved if you removed the words "keyed to the Foundation", maybe subbing in "of SCP-XXXX-F" or otherwise keeping it as is. The readers will be able to figure out from context that -F is keyed to the Foundation, and it makes it a bit more fun this way. Kicks off something of a SCP-963-2 vibe, especially if they're being coy about it.
I think that definitely looks computer generated (it's also a little busy for my taste). Doesn't it? Maybe I'll try again, but I don't think I'll have time. I'm starting to think this concept isn't going to work. I really felt this would have been a pretty straightforward concept and I'd have time to get the image right. Maybe I'll use yours even if it is computer generated. Maybe the Kallinikos guys were able to use computers to duplicate it? Is that plausible? Am I going to get dinged for having a computer generated picture?
EDIT: Nevermind. Duh. Fixed. Thanks!
I think I preferred it when the footnote about the agents turning was included. If you cut it for length or couldn't get it quite where you wanted it, I understand.
Ah it seemed problematical and a little redundant. Explaining how it was surmised that Swanson was exposed first seems to be something that will add a lot of word count and both you and psul seemed to demand that I did. Unless I misunderstood you?
So, this is more of the directly-stated route. I think it works alright, although the alternative would produce more mystery.
There was an alternative? Psul seems to be saying there isn't. Unless again, I'm misunderstanding. I'm personally adverse to speculative material in SCPs anyway, so I'd like to not have it if it's possible.
I do think the last paragraph would be improved if you removed the words "keyed to the Foundation", maybe subbing in "of SCP-XXXX-F" or otherwise keeping it as is.
I felt I was repeating "SCP-XXXX-F" way too much in too short a space. | 2019-04-21T12:07:39Z | http://www.scp-wiki.net/forum/t-1288517/retroconverter-short-works-contest |
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Backwards compatible: Bluetooth 5.0 is fully backward compatible with previous versions of Bluetooth. Therefore, your Bluetooth 5.0 headphones can connect with all Bluetooth speakers, smartphones, and any other devices. This means you can buy a future proof pair of headphones. However, don’t expect the advantages mentioned previously when connecting to older versions of Bluetooth.
All headphones in this buying guide are wireless as Bluetooth 5.0 has been implemented, however, the wireless experience will differ from one product to the next. Pay attention to the battery life as this can vary wildly. Do you want to use the headphones for traveling? Then you would benefit from a long battery life of over 10 hours so that you can enjoy audio throughout the day.
Some headphones come with a quick charge feature that allows you to get a boost in battery life for a relatively short period of time – 2-10 minutes in some instances. Such a feature is handy if you’re just about to go out and have forgotten to charge the headphones.
Wireless headphones improve comfort by removing wires from the equation. Therefore, you can walk to work or take part in sports without having to worry about the placement of a wire.
Headphones have advanced considerably in the last few years when it comes to the audio department – even in the budget models. Bluetooth 5.0 offers considerable upgrades in the data connection quality, which means audio is not sacrificed due to the wireless nature of the connection.
Frequency range: a wider frequency range unlocks a richer audio experience and 20Hz-20KHz is desirable. This is the frequency range the ear can hear and most quality headphones will offer this range.
Bass: bass represents the audio at the lower frequencies and contributes to impactful music. In the description of the headphones pay attention to what’s mentioned about the bass implementation. Some brands go the extra mile by boosting the bass, but the feature is not for everyone. It may create an artificial audio experience that some audiophiles do not appreciate.
Connection quality: it’s important to see what version of Bluetooth is implemented to figure out what kind of connection quality you can expect. All the headphones in this guide offer 5.0, but when looking elsewhere you’ll need to pay attention to the version.
A big part of the buying process is selecting the brand you’re going to buy from. Some buyers play it safe by sticking with the top audio in the brands like Sony, Sennheiser and Bose. However, some smaller brands offer quality that’s comparable and might even be better for a given price bracket.
The brand also determines the quality of the post-purchase customer care. Some might be slow to respond while others eager to help you get the most out of their headphones. A responsive brand is desirable when trying to take advantage of a warranty deal.
Brands can also provide a signature feature that adds to the experience. For example, HyperX offers a foam memory technology that contributes to comfortable earcups. Look out for these signature features as they typically provide something unique that isn’t just a gimmick.
Earcups: headphones with large earcups are bulkier, but don’t put pressure on the ears. Furthermore, the earcups should be made from soft material so the sensation on the skin is pleasant.
Weight: if you’re sitting at home watching a movie with the headphone then weight might not be an issue. However, it can be a problem when traveling or at the gym. We have added the weight in all the fact boxes of our buyer’s guide for your convenience.
Type of fit: earbuds have different design characteristics that determine comfort. Some have a simple in-ear design, while others come with earhooks that latch onto the ear. The design you opt for will generally depend on your preference and the intended use.
It would be highly frustrating if the headphones were to break just a few months after purchase – therefore, you should give the durability some consideration. Pay attention to the materials used as this determines the rate at which the headphones will deteriorate.
Some headphones have a waterproof design that allows them to be used for outdoor activities and going to the gym. However, in most cases they are waterproof to rain and sweat – if you were to submerge the headphones water will get inside.
Take a look at the warranty information to help you figure out the durability. A company that believes in the quality of their product will provide a lengthy warranty period that covers a wide range of damage types.
At the budget price point of under $40, you’ll find some well-executed Bluetooth 5.0 headphones that provide the best wireless connectivity technology that’s available. The fit and comfort of these headphones is notable, and the audio quality isn’t bad either given the low price point.
The low cost of these headphones goes to show you do not need to pay a premium price point in order to enjoy the latest and best of what technology has to offer. However, if you’re after industry-leading audio, then you will need to look at some of the more expensive options.
These Anker headphones offer a mix of well-implemented features that includes Bluetooth 5.0 and anti-sweat technology. It’s a personal audio solution that’s ideal for travelers or those into sports. You’re getting a competitively priced piece of kit at just under $40.
The Bluetooth connection can last for 12 hours, which is above the industry average. You’ll be able to enjoy music all day without worrying when they’ll need to be charged. It’s also over a week worth of workout time so you may only need to charge them once per week.
The comfort of these headphones is one of the highlights and that’s why they are suitable for sports. Earhooks are provided that latch onto the ears, which greatly reduces the chances of them falling out. Therefore, when you’re doing the last rep or spiriting at the end of your jog you can rely on stability.
The in-line controls allow you to alter the volume levels, music, and microphone. Having a mic allows you to speak while working out without the need to reach for your smartphone. Furthermore, a carrying pouch is included that allows you to store the earbuds while not in use. The pouch is a nice size as it’s relatively small but large enough to fit the headphones inside.
A variety of eartips are provided, which include extra small, small, medium, large, and extra-large. The range of sizes means you’ll be able to get a fit that best matches your ear size. This reduces the chances of the earbuds falling out during vigorous movements.
Anker Soundcore Spirit X Sports also excels in the audio department for the budget price tag. Deep bass and clarity are offered that will impress those who are looking for an affordable personal audio solution.
A balanced overview of the product is required to make an informed buying choice and with that thought in mind, we will consider the drawbacks. The audio cable is slightly thin, which gives the product a less premium feel. Also, the noise isolation could be improved, but choosing the right eartips will help you with that.
To summarize, the Anker Soundcore Spirit X Sports is the ideal Bluetooth 5.0 headphones for the sports enthusiast. The mix of audio quality, comfortable fit, and long battery life mean you’re getting a solid offering.
The OYRGCIK Wireless Earbuds is another excellent choice in the Bluetooth 5.0 category for the budget buyer. At the cost of just under $40 you’re getting a well-executed set of earbuds that’s suitable for any occasion – this includes jogging, the gym, hiking, biking, and traveling.
3 pairs of eartips are included to find the right fit and the in-ear design provides a secure fit. Therefore, the chances of these earbuds coming loose are minimal – even when you are taking part in vigorous exercise. The low weight and minimalist design also contribute to the comfort of wearing the OYRGCIK Wireless Earbuds.
Each charge gives you 3-4 hours of battery life, but with the charging box, you receive a total of 15 hours, which should last you the entire day or week depending on how long you use them for. The built-in 45 mAh battery takes up 45-60 minutes to charge the earbuds.
The stable Bluetooth 5.0 connection has a range of 33 feet (10m) and the time to connect is very fast – especially if you are connecting to the device you have connected to before. You can also connect to two devices at the same time, such as a portable speaker and your smartphone.
The highly rated earbuds also come with a few drawbacks that are worth keeping in mind before making the purchase. Noise isolation could be improved so you can enjoy music in noisy environments. Furthermore, the lack of battery life without the charging case might be a limiting factor for some.
To conclude, the OYRGCIK Wireless Earbuds is a solid choice for travelers, sports enthusiasts, and commuters. The elegant design has a secure fit and the array of features means you’ll get to use the earbuds in a variety of ways.
Consumers looking for the best Bluetooth 5.0 headphones on the market available right now will find them in the under $150 category. The length of the battery life, audio quality, and durability will please the majority of buyers.
The most expensive option on this list comes with an array of features that justifies the high price point. However, you need to consider how you will use the headphones and if you’ll end up taking full advantage of the features.
The Anker Zolo Liberty+ comes with a few advantages over the previous model and one of them is the upgrade from Bluetooth 4.2 to 5.0. Furthermore, the battery life has been doubled and the driver size increased to 6mm. The premium price point of $150 demands a higher number of features and these headphones deliver.
The wireless connection provides 48 hours of battery life, which means you will not have to worry about charging them frequently. Simply store them in the case at the end of the day to top up on battery life. For example, if you listen 3 hours per day, then you can enjoy music for 2 weeks before a power outlet is required. Bluetooth 5.0 offers a very reliable connection that is distortion-free over an extended distance.
Are you a sports enthusiast that’s looking for comfort and durability? Then the Anker Zolo Liberty+ is worthy of your consideration due to the sweat-resistant feature. You can be sweating or running in the rain and not worry about damage to the earbuds. The GripFit Technology provides a solid rock fit that is comfortable and secure.
A personalized music experience can be created using the ZOLO Life app. EQ profiles can be set up to change the audio profile to match different moods and genres of music you’re enjoying. Bass boosting is also available that creates an impactful level of audio. The audio drivers are created from graphene, which provides high levels of flexibility and strength.
A disadvantage of the Anker Zolo Liberty+ is the premium price point, but you can fully justify it given the range of premium features. Also, the battery life is quite small if the carrying case is not used to charge the unit.
To conclude, the Anker Zolo Liberty+ is a mix of impressive features that gives you full control over your audio experience via the app. It’s ideal for sports enthusiasts that need durability, comfort, and industry-leading audio. It’s one of the better Bluetooth 5.0 headphones that are available to buy right now.
These Tranya earbuds come with an array of features that should give you some food for thought. The implementation of the bass, minimal design, and Bluetooth is what stands out here. It’s a highly rated product that is affordably priced and even comes with a convenient carrying case.
The HD sound comes with deep bass, which is perfect for those who enjoy impactful music. A deep bass feature also comes in handy when you are working out and want to be motivated by music that energizes you.
These headphones have a waterproof design, which is another useful feature for working out or taking a jog in all manner of weather conditions. There is no need to protect the headphones from light moisture, but don’t submerge them into water. The Tranya headphones are not fully waterproof, which means they aren’t suitable for swimming.
3-4 hours of playing time is available on a single charge, but the total time can be extended to 15 hours when the carrying case is used. It’s a straightforward way to charge your earbuds while traveling. The option to charge the earbuds 4 times while traveling is a highly desirable feature. The carrying case also does a good job of protecting the earbuds while not in use. The earbuds automatically turn off once they are placed in the charging case.
Android smartphones have their battery life displayed on the screen, but the earbuds are also compatible with iOS operated smartphones. A microphone is available for calls using your smartphone, or activate a voice assistant like Siri. It’s a convenient and efficient way to execute commands like switch music and alter the volume.
A disadvantage of these earbuds is the lack of noise isolation, which might be a problem when trying to enjoy music in a noisy environment. Also, the limited battery life without the carrying case might be a hindrance for some.
Overall, the Tranya headphones are excellent for everyday use whether you’re traveling or just chilling out in your garden. The minimalist design and low weight nature mean they are comfortable to wear. The deep rich bass is one of the highlights here that allows for an impressive music listening experience.
The ENCAFIRE E18 is one of the best value for money Bluetooth 5.0 headphones on the market. You’re getting a bunch of different features that are well implemented at just under $50. The combination of the design, price, and audio quality will impress you from day one.
The Bluetooth connection allows for a 15 hour battery life, which means you can listen to music all day long without worrying about the need to charge. However, this battery life will be drastically reduced if you turn up the volume to max. Keep in mind that you only get around 4 hours of usage on a single charge, but the convenient carrying case provides the additional battery juice to achieve an overall 15 hours. The advanced charging system allows the earbuds to achieve 80% charge during the first 30 minutes of charging.
A one step link technology is used to connect to devices in one step where a connection was established previously. This is convenient when you want to connect on the go without having to fiddle around with the audio emitting device.
The earbuds have a minimalist approach to the physical design as there is no headband, wires or earhooks. From a distance, people won’t notice you’re using a personal audio device of any type. Furthermore, a microphone is included that can be used to have conversations on the go.
A drawback of the ENCAFIRE E18 is that no noise isolation is supported. While traveling on public transport you’ll have to deal with background noise. Also, the battery life without the charging case is average.
To summarize, ENCAFIRE E18 is a solid offering at just around $50. You’re getting a personal audio solution that’s comfortable, fairly priced, offers industry-leading Bluetooth, and comes with an advanced carrying case. It will be a challenge trying to find a better Bluetooth 5.0 audio solution at this price point.
The Bluedio UFO2 and the Bluedio TM come with Bluetooth 5.
It’s not called Bluetooth 5.0!
The ATH-SR50BT by Audio Technica are Bluetooth 5 headphones.
Bluedio TMS are equipped with Bluetooth 5 too.
There is one thing I did not see addressed. Most of the individual earbuds get the same signal which means that they are not true stereo. That is a show stopper for me. That should be listed as a CON if that applies to these earbuds.
Charging not charring, typo under cons.
Thanks for the write-up, sadly none of these have long enough battery life for me to buy them.
I’d love the HD4.50 from Sennheiser released with BT5, already has a 2-3 day battery life for my usage, I’ll probably swap to a PXC 550 successor if they release with BT5. | 2019-04-20T22:38:32Z | https://3dinsider.com/bluetooth-5-headphones/ |
Given the public-private mix of the Greek health system, the purpose of this study was to assess whether variations in the utilisation of health services, both primary and inpatient care, were associated with underlying health care needs and/or various socio-economic factors.
Data was obtained from a representative sample (N = 1426) residing in the broader Athens area (response rate 70.6%). Perceived health-related quality of life (HRQOL), as measured by the physical and mental summary component scores of the SF-36 Health Survey, was used as a proxy of health care need. Health care utilization was measured by a) last-month visits to public sector physicians, b) last-month visits to private sector physicians, c) last-year visits to hospital emergency departments and d) last-year hospital admissions. Statistical analysis involved the implementation of logistic regression models.
Health care need was the factor most strongly associated with all measures of health care utilization, except for visits to public physicians. Women, elderly, less wealthy and individuals of lower physical health status visited physicians contracted to their insurance fund (public sector). Women, well educated and those once again of lower physical health status were more likely to visit private providers. Visits to hospital emergency departments and hospital admissions were related to need and no socio-economic factor was related to the use of those types of care.
This study has demonstrated a positive relationship between health care need and utilisation of health services within a mixed public-private health care system. Concurrently, interesting differences are evident in the utilization of various types of services. The results have potential implications in health policy-making and particularly in the proper allocation of scarce health resources.
Several studies have identified perceived health status or health-related quality of life (HRQOL) as a very important predictor of health service utilization [1–7]. Furthermore, many studies provide evidence that demographic characteristics also affect health care need and utilization. Specifically, women report poorer health and use primary health services more often than men, have higher rates of hospitalisation and surgery and increased total expenditures, whereas men are less likely to receive preventive medical services [3, 6, 8, 9]. Age is positively related to hospital admissions , and also to an above average length of stay, increased utilization of services and, overall, to greater need . Regarding men, marital status and specifically married, in a de facto relationship or divorced, was found to be positively associated with a first or further visits to a GP [3, 4].
Other studies have focused on the extent to which socio-economic differences affect the use of health services. Individuals with a lower level of education make fewer visits to specialists [11, 12]. Contrarily, those with a higher education or income, after adjustment for socio-demographic and need variables [1, 4, 13], demonstrate an increased likelihood of accessing GP services or making at least one visit to a specialist. Morris reports a pro-rich inequality in all types of hospital care and a pro-poor inequality in GP visits. Furthermore, an inverse income relationship has been observed with respect to needed, but not sought, medical care, with the proportion of individuals not seeking needed medical care increasing significantly in lower income groups . On the other hand, visit delay and/or cancellation, and underutilization of physician services were more evident in younger individuals, low-income and economically troubled, in chronic medical conditions or in individuals without a regular source of care or a physical care discount card .
Many studies have examined the influence, on service utilization, of factors such as race/ethnicity or community area (rural/urban), with the latter differentiating access in favour of urban area residents . In the UK, it has been shown that Indians use more GP services than other minorities. Moreover children and young people from all minority ethnic groups make lower use of outpatient and inpatient services compared to white children and young people, and these differences persisted after controlling for socio-economic and health status variables [17, 18].
The purpose of this study was to examine if demographic, socio-economic and need characteristics of individuals influenced their use of the following health services: visits to public sector physicians, visits to private sector physicians, visits to hospital emergency outpatient departments and admissions to hospitals. In addition we attempted to identify factors that differentiate the use of public and private services. Based on previous research it was hypothesized that need factors ranked as the most important determinant of health care use. Concerning the different use of public and private services, it was assumed that socio-economic factors played an important role. This study contributes to the available literature as it investigates variations in health care service utilization in Greece, by using SF-36 Summary Scores, instead of the usual eight subscales, as proxies of health care needs. The results have potential health policy and planning implications and could support administrators in their difficult task of properly allocating health resources.
Self-assessed health status was measured with the SF-36 Health Survey, a generic instrument constructed to be a brief alternative in health policy evaluations, general population surveys, clinical research and practice. It is the most widely used measure of self-perceived health with the aim of assessing concepts representing basic human values relevant to health status and well-being. The SF-36 has proven useful in comparing general and specific populations and for assessing the impact of disease and treatments on patients' perceived health state and quality of life . The SF-36 is a multi-item questionnaire comprised of eight scales: Physical Functioning (PF), Role limitations due to Physical problems (RP), Bodily Pain (BP), General Health (GH), Vitality (VT), Social Functioning (SF), Role limitations due to Emotional problems (RE) and Mental Health (MH) .
Factor analytic studies have shown that the physical and mental summary factors account for 80%–85% of the reliable variance in the eight scales, leading eventually to the construction of two summary scores for physical and mental HRQOL. The use of summary scores provides the advantage of requiring fewer statistical comparisons in order to analyze SF-36 results, while not forfeiting the discrimination potential between physical and mental health status and outcomes. The two summary scores are usually normalized to a mean value of 50 and a standard deviation of 10 [20, 21]. In a recent study in Greece, the SF-36 was validated and the results were comparable to those from studies in other European countries and the USA . In a subsequent Greek study, the validity of the Physical Component Summary (PCS) and Mental Component Summary (MCS) scores was also established .
The National Health System (ESY) in Greece was established in 1983 with an axiomatic aim to provide coverage for the entire population. It has evolved during the 1980s, and this is reflected by a substantial increase in public resources (e.g. beds, health centres and medical personnel) . Meanwhile, the private sector, with a great tradition in Greece, managed to find ways to increase its market share by setting up diagnostic centres and investing in expensive medical technology . Given also the increased number of physicians in Greece (physicians per 1000 individuals: 2.0 (1974), 2.8 (1983), 3.9 (1993) and 4.5 (2000)) , the Greek health care system continued to expand and became a typical example of a mixed (public-private) system .
The Greek health care system provides full coverage to the entire population, but at the same time has observed an increased use of the private sector. Access to all public services is free and there are no fees at the point of use, whereas the private sector requires out of pocket payments. Differences, between more and less prosperous insurance funds, concerning the extent and quality of services provided are evident. Health care services in Greece are basically provided by: a) the National Health System (public hospitals and health centres in rural and semi-urban areas) b) health units of Health Insurance Funds (health centres with salaried physicians or contracted physicians working in the private sector) and c) the private sector (hospitals, diagnostic centres, and private practitioners).
Health insurance funds are public schemes financed by employees, employers and the public budget. In Greece it is mandatory for the entire workforce (including their families) to be insured according to professional status, via one of 32 different health insurance funds . It is worth mentioning that Greece spends 9.4% of its GDP on health, 59.1% of which is public expenditure coming from general taxation and social insurance contributions . The rest is covered by private sources and mainly out of pocket payments, which confirms the noteworthy growth of the private sector . Even after twenty years and a number of attempts to reform it, the Greek health care system remains fragmented in terms of coverage, and quite distanced from its principles of equity and efficiency .
The study involved a stratified sample of residents of the broader Athens area, where approximately 35% of the Greek population lives. Institutionalized people were excluded. Participants were chosen proportionally to the population size, according to a three-staged sampling methodology. Specifically, in the first stage a random sample of 84 blocks of residences were selected according to information from the 1991 national census. In the second stage, households were selected from every block by systematic sampling. In the third stage, a participant (> 18 years) was chosen from every household by simple random sampling. Totally, 1007 out of 1426 candidates (response rate 70.6%) agreed to participate, constituting a representative sample of the population living in this particular area.
Participants were interviewed and the survey included the SF-36 and various health service utilization and socio-demographic questions. The necessary approval for carrying out this study has been provided by the Review Board of the Hellenic Open University. Physical and mental health summary scores, calculated and presented in previous work, were used as a proxy of health need. Principal Component Analysis was conducted to extract two components, which were subsequently rotated to an orthogonal simple structure using the Varimax method in order to facilitate comparisons with published results and simplify interpretation .
Health service utilization was measured by the visits: a) to public sector physicians within the last month b) to private sector physicians within the last month, c) to hospital emergency outpatient departments within the last year and by d) admissions to hospitals within the last year. Dependent variables were dichotomised to 0,1 values (0 → non use and 1 → use). Independent variables were grouped into three clusters, specifically i) demographic: age (continuous), gender (1 = male, 0 = women), marital status (dummy variable with reference category singles: 1 = married, 2 = divorced, 3 = widowed), ii) socio-economic: education level (1 = primary, 2 = secondary, 3 = lyceum, 4 = university), net monthly family income (continuous) and self-owned or rented residence (dummy variable with reference category residence freely provided) and iii) a proxy measure of need variable: SF-36 PCS and MCS scores. Only the variables demonstrating statistical significance (P < 0.05) were included.
Multivariate logistic regression models were implemented, one for each type of service, in order to determine predictors of health service utilization. Initially, access to health services was assessed and particularly the characteristics of those using the services compared to those not, and secondly the frequency of health service use, i.e. characteristics of those having used the services once compared to those using them more frequently. As Andersen and Newman , underline "it makes considerable difference whether we are studying initial contact during a given period or whether we are studying the number of services received in a given period of time". There is no clear perception on how frequent and non-frequent users should be distinguished, as they are defined arbitrarily and there is a lack of consensus in the literature .
Subsequently, we explored different predicting factors for the use of public, compared to private, services. Separate regression models were employed for primary and secondary services. The independent variables remained the same as in the analysis previously mentioned. The dependent variables were binary variables with 0, 1 values (0 → use of private services and 1 → use of public services). All statistical analyses were undertaken using SPSS v13.0.
Out of 1007 participants, 53.4% were women and the entire sample, with a mean age of 45 years, is classified into six age groups. Detailed socio-economic characteristics are provided in table 1. Four hundred fifty seven individuals had utilized at least one of the four types of health services, implying that 42.4% of the sample was considered as "users" (at least once) of public or private health services. Specifically, 26.5% of them used services affiliated to health insurance funds and 67.6% were one-time users. Accordingly, 13.9% of the participants had visited a private doctor and 64.9% of them were one-time users. The mean annual admission rates to emergency departments and to hospitals were 12.4% and 12.2% respectively, with 9.7% and 10.3% admitted at least once.
Upon initial investigation of the socio-economic characteristics of users and non-users (table 2), we observed that the users assessed that their general health was worse than that of non-users. At the same time their mental health, and even more so their physical health, was significantly lower. Women reported poorer physical and mental health compared to men (48.7% and 48.1% against 51.3% and 52.1%). Furthermore, an inverse relationship was witnessed between physical and mental health and age. Primary school graduates, the widowed and those with monthly family income less than 440 euros reported the poorest physical and mental health. Comparing physical and mental health of users and non-users (table 2) to that of the entire sample (table 1), users of all age groups -as it was expected- reported worse physical and mental health scores, with the exception of those aged 25–34 and 55–64. The same applies for all levels of education except in the case of high school graduates who report better mental health. In the case of marital status, it is the widowed (users) that report, once again, better mental health.
Given the four types of health service utilization designated in this study, we used regression models combining both public and private sector users, in order to determine the best predictors of utilization. Utilization of primary health services (table 3) appears to depend on demographic variables (13.8%), minimally on need variables (1%) and not at all on socio-economic factors. Women, elderly and those with worse physical health were more likely to use primary health services. Following this, separate models were implemented for public and private primary care users, and this resulted in various interesting observations.
Table 4 shows the regression model for last-month use of insurance fund primary services, which explained 18.2% of the variance. Demographic variables predicted 11.9% of the variation, socio-economic variables contributed with a further 2.3% to the explanation of health service utilization and health status, as measured by PCS and MCS scores, predicted a further 4.4%. More specifically, it appears that women utilized significantly more primary services, provided by health funds, than men. The elderly were 26.6% more likely to use these services, whereas wealthier people reported lower use. As for self-perceived health status, we observed that those with lower PCS scores were more likely to use health insurance services than individuals with higher PCS scores. Concerning visits to private physicians, within the context of primary health care, the regression model (table 3) explained only 13% of the variation. This figure is broken down to 7.9%, 3.0% and 2.1% variation explained by health status, socio-economic and demographic factors respectively. Women were more likely to visit private physicians. People with higher education were about 42% more likely to use primary health services from the private sector. Individuals with higher PCS scores were less likely to have consulted a private doctor within the last month.
Table 5 shows the regression model for the utilization of emergency department services and, in this case, only health status explained the variation. A trend was evident individuals with lower PCS and MCS summary scores reported higher use of emergency departments within the last year. The regression model for hospital admissions, shown also in table 4, predicted only 12.3% of the variation, with 10.1% predicted by health status and the remaining 2.2% by age. Specifically, age was related with admission and the elderly were more likely to be admitted, but after adjusting for health status, age was marginally not statistically significant. People with low PCS and MCS summary scores demonstrated a higher likelihood of having been admitted to a hospital within the last year.
In the previous analysis, regression models were implemented to distinguish between users and non-users in an attempt to examine possible socioeconomic barriers to initial care seeking. Another basic element, in this study, is the frequency of use for those making at least one visit, and the identification of predictors of the number of subsequent visits . In the context of primary care, we classified people into two groups, those making one visit and those making more, and this was chosen because those who had made one visit to public and private sector physicians constituted 67.6% and 64.9% of the sample respectively. An inverse relationship was evident between family income and more than one visit to public sector physicians working for health insurance funds (table 6). Less wealthy and people with poorer mental health were associated with a higher likelihood of having made more than one visit. The regression model for subsequent visits to providers of the private sector resulted in statistical insignificance.
The logistic regression model in table 7 focuses on the factors associated with utilization of public vs private primary health care services. Demographic variables explain only 7.8% of the total variance, and the addition of socioeconomic variables increases the explained proportion significantly to 16.9%. Married people were more likely to visit doctors affiliated to their insurance funds. More educated and wealthier people show higher likelihood to contact private doctors rather than their insurance fund doctors. The logistic regression model concerning hospitalization in public, compared to private, hospitals explains 44.8% of the total variance. Demographic, socioeconomic and health status variables contribute 19.5%, 21.6% and 3.7% respectively. Married, divorced and widowed are more likely (than singles), to be admitted to private (rather than to public) hospitals. The elderly show a significantly higher likelihood of being admitted to public hospitals. Indeed, the risk of being admitted to public hospitals increases 98% with age. Contrarily, as net monthly family income increases, people make more admissions to private hospitals. Finally people with higher MCS scores -better mental health- use the private hospitals more.
In this study we investigated the impact of demographic, socio-economic and need factors on the utilization of health services. The data showed that self-perceived health status -as a proxy measure of need- is the most important contributor to the utilization variance for three of the designated services (private physician, emergency departments and hospital admissions), a finding which is consistent with many previous studies [1–7]. Demographic variables such as age and gender were most strongly associated with visits to public (provided by health insurance funds) sector physicians. Socio-economic variables such as income and education did not have a statistically significant relationship with utilization, particularly in the case of secondary health services.
The results of the study seem to suggest the existence of equity in the use of primary health care services. Demographic and, to a lesser degree, need factors affected utilisation and no socio-economic gradient was apparent. Things were slightly different when the public and primary sectors were analysed separately, but once again inequity is not implied. Use of primary health services, provided by health insurance funds, was made according to demographic, socioeconomic and health care need variables. Women, elderly, less wealthy individuals and people with a lower physical health status visited their insurance fund physicians more. Demographic variables were the most important contributors and this may be explained by the fact that women reported higher consumption due to their increased awareness of health problems and symptoms when assessing their health status . Furthermore age is a factor inversely linked to health, therefore elderly -a high-risk group from the aspect of health status and economic welfare- seek more public primary services, which are free at the point of use.
Utilisation of private services was also affected by socio-demographic and need factors. Women, well educated and those once again of lower physical health status were more likely to visit private providers. It was expected that economic factors like income would affect utilisation of private physicians, which involves out of pocket payments. However, this was not confirmed by our study as opposed to an earlier study in Italy , where a linear relationship between the level of income and private utilization was observed. A possible explanation, in our case, is the underestimation of income. One third of the sample had not reported income. Even people who did may have underestimated it because the Greek population is often reluctant to answer these kinds of questions.
Another noteworthy fact is that the independent variables in the regression model (table 4) explain only a low portion of utilisation of private primary services. Besides the underestimation of income mentioned previously, another reason could be the small proportion of users having visited a private physician (14.0%), since the sample comprises an overall healthy population. An interesting topic for future research is the users' satisfaction from public primary services and if quality variations actually directed them towards private physicians. An important implication, which will be discussed subsequently, is that low-income individuals use primary private services as well.
Visits to hospital emergency departments and hospital admissions were related to health care needs, and no socio-economic factor characterized the use of those types of care. As reported in an earlier study, hospital utilization and the volume of inpatient services were significantly influenced by medical needs or as Andersen explains, hospital services received in response to serious problems and conditions would be primarily explained by need and demographic characteristics. The small amount of variance explained here implies the coexistence of other factors (e.g. lifestyle) that could affect the utilization of these health services, and this itself is another issue for future research.
Upon examining the number of visits, no socio-economic influence was revealed. The poorer and those with worse mental health visited more frequently physicians linked to their health insurance fund. Other studies [3, 4] have shown that people with higher education visited specialists more frequently or that they were more frequently referred to one. Socio-economic variations in the utilization of specialist services seem to be well-established in health systems in which referrals to specialists are made by primary physicians who play an important role in follow-up visits and hospital admissions. The structure of the Greek health system is different, primary health services concern mainly specialist services, which people choose freely without a referral.
Patients' preferences, awareness of their medical profile, availability of services and their expectations are important factors in seeking referred health care, mainly from specialists, in many European countries. Higher educated or wealthier individuals have different attitudes about the potential benefits, so they are more motivated to request specialist care . In the Greek health system there is no observed inequality in access or frequent use, but patients' expectations, awareness of their condition and educational level consist basic factors in tackling a health problem within a complex mixed public-private health system.
After studying the different use of public/private services (table 7), a pro-rich inequality was observed. This does not contradict what has been previously mentioned about the use of private services only (table 4), where the effect of income is not evident, most likely because the respondents are homogenous (i.e. users of private services). Contrarily, income is important when the combined (public/private) users are studied. People better off in respect to education and income levels were more likely to use private health services. Results from another study in Greece reported that the two higher income groups spend approximately the same amount of money as the others combined. This inequality becomes more severe when low-income people are forced to use needed health services from the private sector (because of the incomplete network of public primary health services, long waiting lists, "under the table" payments and low quality of provided services) burdening their limited family budget.
Low-income individuals have greater health care needs expressed by lower physical and mental summary scores, and further supported by research in western European countries showing that morbidity and mortality risks are higher in lower socioeconomic groups . Although it seems that low-income individuals generally use health services, it is apparent that they are not exclusive users of the public services, but they are often forced to use private health services as well. This implies inequity in the distribution of care since the consumption of private health services is not limited to the higher incomes, but is extended to the lower ones as well, thus giving rise to issues of horizontal and vertical inequity. A possible explanation could be the inadequate public financing. Greece has the lowest percentage of public health expenditures among the EU countries. According to OECD data in 2002 , total health expenditures per capita were 1814$, of which public health expenditures per capita were only 960$. On the contrary, private expenditures are the highest among the EU countries, and this means that the income, in all socio-economic classes, is burdened for the use of health services.
Another possible explanation is the structural problems of the system. The large number of health insurance funds and the different range of health services they cover is the most typical characteristic in this case. More specifically, wealthier funds cover a large range of services, provide a better set of inpatient services or, in many instances, offer reimbursement when individuals purchase from private providers. Often, people insured by the most prosperous health insurance funds (approximately 10% of the insured population) are covered, to a large extent, for hospitalization in prestigious private hospitals, for all illnesses, specialized operations and examinations . This unequal distribution of provided health services, within the public sector, constitutes a structural weakness of the Greek health system, which the private sector exploits.
In spite of social insurance coverage of Greek citizens, the use of private services is extensive throughout the country. This could be attributed also to the absence of the "family doctor" in Greece, and the inability to select the desired physician in primary and secondary health care. The absence of the family doctor affects the delivery of care, access and the referrals to the health system. This results in patients accessing secondary care based on their own initiative. The adoption of a gate keeping system could result in a link between primary and secondary care, and an effective patient transfer. Moreover it could give emphasis to issues such as prevention and over-consumption (especially of hospital care), which pose a great burden on the health system . On the other hand, insurance funds covering people of low income are either incapable of fulfilling their needs, or they provide lower quality health care, in conjunction to long waiting lists, all of which affect the degree of satisfaction. Overall, a significant personal cost is created for the users, who are forced to turn to the private sector and spend a large part of their income. This implies that a more complete and satisfactory network of services could result in lower use of the private sector.
Finally, two limitations should be briefly underlined. First, this study concerned the broader Athens area, the capital of Greece, where medical personnel is more experienced and better equipped technologically, and consequently more specialised health services are available. The heterogeneous dispersion of resources in relation to the population throughout the country reflects an unequal availability of health services, which is expected to be more intense in rural areas. So the first restriction reflects lack of data on the pattern of use of the rural population. Another limitation, reported also in a study by Morris , was the fact that utilization measures were zero-one variables for four defined types of use and there was no information on the quality of provided services.
This study has demonstrated a positive relationship between health need and the utilisation of health services under a mixed public-private funded health care system. Health need, defined by self-perceived health status, was the most important determinant for visiting public or private sector physicians, emergency departments and admissions to the hospitals. Moreover, health need and low income were the main factors influencing subsequent visits to public sector physicians. Concerning the use of public vs private services, we observed that socio-economic characteristics of individuals were the main determinants. People with higher education and income levels used more private sector services, although they were not the exclusive users, since low-income groups used private services as well. In Greece, it seems that access into the health system is relatively easy. However the aim is to access a complete, uniform and satisfying public health system with respect to the quality and the extent of provided services. Despite 25 years of Greek NHS reform, this target has not yet been achieved.
Collection of data for this study was supported by grants from the Greek Ministry of Health and Social Solidarity.
We are grateful to our colleagues Dr. Fotios Anagnostopoulos for statistical assistance in preparation of this manuscript and Mr. Nick Kontodimopoulos for useful comments in an early version of this paper.
EP has participated in the design of the study, the statistical analysis, the interpretation of the results and drafted the manuscript. DN conceived the study, interpreted the results and made refinements of the manuscript. Both authors have read and approved the final manuscript. | 2019-04-20T08:30:51Z | https://bmchealthservres.biomedcentral.com.preview-live.oscarjournals.springer.com/articles/10.1186/1472-6963-6-146 |
Many people struggle with with patellar tendonitis for months because they think – like I once did – that rest, ibuprofen, and doing a few stretches are enough to heal knee tendonitis.
Following this standard treatment suggestion will actually make your knee worse.
On this page, you’ll learn what to do instead.
Do you want to get your life back and beat patellar tendonitis?
Update: I published a whole book about how you can get your life back and beat patellar tendonitis by fixing hidden causes of pain that most doctors ignore.
You can download the first chapter for free to get started healing your knees today.
Knee pain is an indication of some aspect of the body not working as it should and finding that underlying problem is the tricky part. By getting more familiar with the disease, we increase our odds of solving the tendonitis knee riddle. The following paragraphs will detail symptoms, causes, risks and conservative treatment options of patellar tendonitis.
Picture: Where you’ feel the pain. The pain can occur in one or both knees.
The symptoms for knee tendonitis are pain on the side of, in front of, below or even behind the kneecap. Most commonly the pain will reside below the knee cap, where the patellar tendon attaches to the patella. The pain usually gets worse with activities like squatting, running, climbing stairs and jumping. Additionally, you may feel tenderness below the kneecap and in the area of the bony protrusion right below.
You should also know that patellar tendonitis progresses in stages and that each stage requires a different healing approach. To learn more about the symptoms of the individual stages, go here: patellar tendonitis symptoms.
Jumper’s knee is an overuse injury and the result of repetitive microtrauma to patellar tendon. Usually such microtrauma is caused by activities that include a lot of jumping, running and cutting. Not surprisingly, sports such as basketball, volleyball and tennis have a high incidence rate of this injury, but it is not limited to these groups.
A common theme among people who suffer from knee tendonitis is playing through pain or regular overexertion on the court. Pain, just like fatigue, causes movement patterns to deviate from the desired optimum and the worse you move, the more likely you are to suffer injuries such as patellar tendinopathy. But what happens if it is left untreated?
Initially tendonitis will make itself felt as the pain accompanying the inflammation in the tendon below the kneecap, but with repeated tissue damage cellular degradation will set in. The body is unable to repair the damaged tissue and tendonitis turns into tendinosis: a painful chronic condition that will take months, if not years to heal, especially if the athlete lacks commitment to getting healthy before competing again. Ignore tendonitis and your pain will get worse, your condition will get more permanent and your weakened patellar tendon will be more prone to tearing.
Do nothing and your athletic career might be over before it even started. Act early and you can be back to competition in a few weeks.
Watch this video to learn more about how long recovery will take and how to avoid 3 dangerous mistakes that will add months to your recovery time, if you make them.
Some athletes get relief by wearing an infra-patellar strap, which helps by improving load distribution in the tendon.
There are several conservative treatment options for tendonitis. A common recommendation is the RICE-protocol (rest, ice, compression, elevation), combined with the use of NSAIDs (Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs). Other modalities used to deal with knee tendonitis include ultrasound treatment, deep friction massage, shockwave therapy and plasma-rich platelet injections. Speaking of injections: in his book “Framework for the Knee”, Nichalos DiNubile, MD, explicitly warns against cortisone shots, as they can “cause a rupture of the tendon” (page 20).
In physical therapy, the rehab protocols for tendonitis revolve around strengthening and stretching of the leg muscles, with a focus on stretching the quadriceps muscle group. Keeping these traditional approaches in mind we can build on them to create a more holistic approach for knee tendonitis. This will help us to deal with jumper’s knee more thoroughly and also seems necessary, as the traditional methods of treatment apparently only provide temporary relief.
There are a lot of simple things you can do at home to deal with patellar tendonitis and most of them don’t even require additional tools or help by others. The following list will get you started with your healing process and after that we will cover a number of exercises which will help you put the plan into operation.
Healing Knee Tendonitis Step 1: Freeze right there!
As most of you know, the inflammation in the tendon can be decreased through icing, which is mostly done after exercising. Using a wet towel between the ice and the knee is recommended, as this will prevent frostbite and improve temperature distribution. Apply the ice for a maximum of 20 minutes, directly post-exercise or several times throughout the day. You can also apply ice after performing rehab exercises, to minimize pain and inflammation.
However, icing only helps with pain management and will not speed the healing process if you have already progressed from tendonitis to tendinosis (i.e. you have knee pain not just post-exercise, but also throughout the day and the condition did not improve after two weeks of rest). If this is the case you can experiment with using a warm water bottle or a heating blanket for 20 minutes, several times a day. With the warm water bottle you again have to use a wet towel to prevent burning and improve heat distribution. When using heating blanket you should wrap it around your knee and then wrap a big towel or a blanket around it, to keep the heat in.
I have successfully used heat with my patellar tendon pain and I felt like it definitely sped up the healing process, which is only logical as the increased temperature improves circulation. On the other hand, being outside in the cold winter weather increased knee pain noticeably. Your mileage may vary, so just experiment to find out what works best for you.
In conclusion one could say that while ice is the way to deal with inflammation you feel after exercising (be this rehab or performing in your sport), it actually slows healing once you’re dealing with tissue degradation instead of inflammation. Tendonitis pain should go away after a week or two of rest, but if the knee pain persists you’re more likely dealing with tendinosis. Only you and your physician know where you stand.
Driving a car with your feet on the gas and the brake at the same time will ensure lower performance and early malfunctions. This is what’s going on in our bodies most of the time when we suffer from ailments such as knee pain, as bad biomechanics prevent us from achieving our athletic goals and predispose us to injury.
Anterior Pelvic Tilt (forward tilted hip) is one of the conditions which can lead to patellar tendonitis, as Dr. Perry Nickelston points out in his article on “Lower Crossed Syndrome and Knee Pain”. Check where you stand in terms of posture and immediately address every problem you uncover. You can use this article on anterior pelvic tilt as a starting point. The exercises at the end of this page will also help you improve your posture.
I’ve only devoted three paragraphs of this article on improving posture, but believe me: it’s of utmost importance.
As explained earlier, jumper’s knee occurs when the patellar tendon is overloaded. Dr. Kelly Starrett of San Francisco Crossfit points out that this can actually occur as a result of tight calves and hamstrings, which is all the more obvious when looking at the muscles around the knee. Hamstrings and gastrocnemius are both responsible for knee flexion and if either of these structures is tight, the quadriceps has to work against additional resistance when extending the knee (research supports this). This will obviously put additional load on the patellar tendon.
Before stretching, tissue quality has to be addressed first. You can have this done by professionals, using active release massage technique for example, or you can do it at home using a foam-roller. In my free email course I’ll show you a special technique that brought me great results without having to buy any tools.
Once you’ve improve tissue quality you can get started with the stretching. Remember: with stretching you’re not lengthening the tissues; you’re actually reprogramming your nervous system to allow for more muscle extensibility. You will be a lot more effective at retraining your central nervous system if you stretch daily or even several times a day. The stretching will help take load off the patellar tendon and will have an immediate impact on your knee discomfort.
The exercises further down will give you detailed instructions on how to improve tissue quality and length.
We need a certain degree of mobility and stability at every joint. Some joints need more stability and some need more mobility. Both, the hip and the ankle, need to be mobile and if they lack mobility the body will make up for it by increasing mobility at the neighboring joints (i.e. knee and lower back), which should not be too mobile. This can translate to knee ailments such as knee pain, lower back pain and a host of other problems that are beyond the scope of this text.
Decreasing tendonitis knee issues will require more than just diligent stretching though, because a lack of mobility can actually be caused by low stability (i.e. you cannot move safely through certain ranges of motion and your central nervous system knows that, which is why it will stop you from entering those ranges). By tensing up, the central nervous system uses your muscles to protect the body against injury. Hence, a lack of mobility can sometimes be attributed to the CNS not knowing how to use the muscles properly and it uses tension to keep you from performing movements that it deems dangerous, like touching your toes or doing a full split.
In the section on jumper’s knee exercises we will go through several drills that can be done daily and will help you improve mobility and stability by retraining your central nervous system to allow proper movement.
Assume a stance with your feet directly under your hip and parallel. Now squat down by sitting back as far as you can, rather than dipping straight down. Pay attention to how your knees move: does one knee cave in? Do both knees cave in? Do you have trouble maintaining your balance in the bottom position, meaning, do you keep falling over backwards? If you answered yes to any of these questions you have one or more imbalances, which you need to fix before venturing into the field of athletics. If you don’t, you risk getting tendonitis knee pain or worse, a torn ACL or meniscus.
Here is how an imbalance like that can lead to knee pain: if your knee collapses inward during running or when landing, you will put excessive stress on the patellar tendon and thereby increase your risk of getting knee tendonitis (and slowly shred your ACL).
The only way to retrain your central nervous system is by moving the right way and since you need to overwrite wrong programming, you’re going to have to do it very often. We will get to that in the exercise section.
The gluteal muscle group is very important for knee health. Strong and functional gluteal muscles will not only help you produce force more efficiently, providing a more forceful hip extension which allows you to jump higher or sprint faster, they also resist movement in the opposite direction. This is important for preventing knee tendonitis, because healthy glutes will prevent the knees from collapsing inward when landing from a jump. On top of that, poor gluteal function can lead to overworked hamstrings, which in turn leads to a tighter muscle, requiring more tension in the knee extensors, thereby putting the patellar tendon under higher load. Poor gluteal function will also put you more at risk of pulling or even tearing your hamstrings, as these muscles are chronically overworked. Finally, among many other problems, weak or non-functional gluteals can cause lower back pain.
With all that in mind it’s safe to say that gluteal training should be included in the training regimen of every athlete and it should be emphasized for those suffering from jumper’s knee.
Pro tip: train your glutes throughout the day when climbing stairs. Shift the load from your quads to your glutes and try to squeeze your glutes hard with every step. This will help strengthen the neural connection to your glutes.
Research indicates that eccentric exercises can be very beneficial for speeding up the healing process of damaged tendons. To apply this method to knee tendonitis we simply have to squat with an emphasis on the lowering part of the lift. Lower yourself down slowly (i.e. taking 4 to 5 seconds) and get back up assisting yourself, for example by grabbing a hold of a sturdy piece of furniture, a doorway or the hand of your training partner. The efficiency of eccentric squats can be improved further by performing them on a slanted board of around 25 degrees, as this puts more load on the patellar tendon than if you were to do squats on even ground.
All this can be compressed in one simple, albeit hard to follow, piece of advice: take it slow! If you train too hard, too often, you’re going to get injured. The irony of that is that most people train hard with the intention of progressing quickly, but they eventually get injured, which stalls or even regresses their training progress. Don’t be that guy (or gal).
Once you’ve crossed the Rubicon and have gotten injured you will need to take it slow with getting back to training, or else you risk delaying recovery indefinitely.
The following exercises address the issues we covered in the 8-step action plan. Once you know all the exercises you can start the recovery program for tendonitis knee pain. You don’t need a gym membership to perform these drills, as a matter of fact, you only need to get two tools: a foam-roller and an elastic band (I use Therabands). I suggest you get one of the stronger rubber bands, but not necessarily the strongest one there is. Additionally you will need a blanket and a stick, such as the stick of a broom for example.
Unless stated otherwise, all exercises are to be performed barefoot. This will help strengthen your ankles and will enable you to derive maximum benefits from the exercises. The only acceptable reasons for wearing shoes are the need to wear orthotics and having to train in public places with a high risk of infection (e.g. the gym). Wear minimalist shoe wear in that case. For more information on that: benefits of minimalist shoe wear.
A few words of caution before we get started: foam rolling should not be used on body parts that you have recently suffered an injury to. You should consult your physician about foam rolling if you have circulatory problems or chronic pain conditions such as fibromyalgia. Please also take note that while foam rolling is a cheap and easy way to improve tissue quality, results will not appear overnight. You will have to work on your fascia daily for a week or more in order to notice improvement. With foam rolling you’re targeting your soft-tissue (i.e. you should not be rolling your joints or other bony structures).
Adjust the pressure you create with the roller to not cause pain, but don’t use too little pressure either. Just imagine you’re getting a massage: you wouldn’t want the therapist to leave bruises, yet at the same time you don’t want them to be too gentle either. In time, tissue quality will increase and you can spend less time foam rolling, but in the beginning you might have to spend between 1 to 2 minutes per muscle to achieve results. Don’t roll a muscle longer than that, as it can actually have a negative impact on tissue quality. If you want to do more, just do several sessions per day. Once you’ve done this for a couple of weeks you will know when you’ve reached the point of diminishing returns.
Releasing trigger points in the quadriceps muscle group is an important part of our exercises because it will increase the efficiency of the quadriceps stretches we’ll do later. A muscle with trigger points or other soft-tissue problems will resist stretching, making the process not only more time-consuming but also more painful.
Get in a plank position and place the roller under your thighs. Roll back and forth moving your thighs across the roller by pushing and pulling with your arms (make sure to not shrug your shoulders towards your ears). Keep your knees straight for a few repetitions and then experiment with bending your knees, turning your feet out and combining both variations. This will enable you to hit certain spots you might have missed before.
You can increase the intensity by just rolling one leg. Once you have rolled out the tension in your rectus femoris, simply turn your body to one side to proceed with the next patellar tendonitis exercise.
The Vastus Lateralis is on the outside of your leg and can sometimes become attached to the iliotibial band, thereby restricting free gliding of the fascia. This way a tight Vastus Lateralis can contribute to lateral knee pain.
You can hit the Vastus Lateralis better by rolling a bit more on the front of your thigh, as opposed to just on the side.
As with the other drills you can increase or decrease pressure by placing more weight on the supporting limbs. Like in the previous drill, try bending the knee of the leg you’re working to hit some unnoticed trigger points.
Once your vastus lateralis is all nice and soft, just continue turning to the side and proceed to the next drill.
The iliotibial band runs down the outer side of your thigh and rolling it might be a bit uncomfortable the first couple of times. Reduce the pressure by putting more weight on your supporting limbs if it’s too painful for you.
To foam roll the iliotibial band, just place the roller on the outside of your thigh and then roll back and forth until you feel the pressure “melting”. Remember to relax. Don’t react to trigger points by tensing up your muscles and that also applies to facial expressions: keep a relaxed face. After a couple of sessions you can increase the pressure by putting more weight on the working leg.
Once more thing: sometimes space is limited and if that’s the case rolling in short strokes might be more feasible than doing the entire ITB in one long stroke, especially if you’re a tall person like I am. Once you’re done with your ITB you just move the roller up to the side of your hip for the next exercise.
The area we’re targeting with this drill is on the side of your hip, slightly to the front. Lie down on your side, with the roller under your hip, slightly to the front. Avoid all bony prominences in that region and just concentrate on the soft tissue. You can change the intensity by putting more weight on your supporting limbs.
Gently roll back and forth for a few minutes until there’s no tension left. As with the other drills: go slowly. Once you’re done with the TFL turn sideways to prepare for the next exercise.
To hit the Gluteus Maximus you sit down on the roller, balance with your hands behind your back and just roll back and forth like in the previous drills. You can increase the pressure by just rolling one side. Some coaches recommend using a tennis ball or lacrosse ball, but I found those small implements to be too inconvenient. I spent more time fiddling with the setup than I spent actually rolling. You might want to give it a shot though, as tennis and lacrosse balls are cheap and can also be used for other muscle groups like the chest.
From this position you can easily move to the next area by moving your body backwards and letting the roller move to the back of your thighs.
By the way: in some cases rolling your Gluteus Maximus can alleviate back pain, as too much stiffness in the GM can cause flexion in your lower back.
Rolling on the back of the thigh you can hit your hamstring muscle group. I prefer to roll each leg individually, as this makes it easier to roll all muscles. On the inside of the back of your thigh you can hit the semimembranosus and semitendinosus. The biceps femoris is on the outside of the back your thigh.
Make sure to be thorough, as soft tissue problems in this region can directly contribute to hamstring “tightness”, which will place more stress on your patellar tendon, as your knee extensors have to work harder (i.e. against the additional resistance of the “tight” hamstring).
Push the roller down to your calves and journey on.
Foam rolling the lower leg is very similar to rolling the thigh. Roll your calves keeping your knees straight to hit the Gastrocnemius and then roll your calves with your knees slightly bent (not pictured) to hit your Soleus.
You can also tilt your body to the side to hit the muscles on the side of the lower leg (e.g. Peroneals) and on the front (e.g. Tibialis Anterior). Be careful not to use too much pressure though, as these are very small muscles.
If you have a tennis ball or a lacrosse ball you can use it here. Just place the ball under your foot (without shoes on obviously) and roll the bottom of the foot (Planter Fascia). This can magically free up additional range of motion in the rest of the body, as the fascia of the whole body is interconnected.
Patellar tendonitis exercises wouldn’t be complete without a good stretching regimen. We’re going to stretch the quadriceps muscles, the TFL, the calves and the hip flexors.
As I’ve mentioned before, tightness in the hamstrings can contribute to tendonitis knee pain, as the knee extensors have to work against additional resistance, which will put extra load on the patellar tendon. In most cases it is not a good idea to stretch the hamstrings though, as the tightness you feel is just your body’s reaction to that muscle being overworked.
The typical postural misalignment of today is anterior pelvic tilt (pelvis tilted forward), because we sit a lot, which leads to a neurological shortening of the hip flexors (e.g. rectus femoris, iliopsoas). Once we stand up, those short hip flexors pull the top of our hip and our lower back closer to our thighs, creating an excessive curvature of the lower back. This will lengthen the gluteals, because they are the antagonists of our hip flexors and normally create hip extension. The gluteals will slowly lose function and the hamstrings now have to pick up the slack to create hip extension which will lead to overworked and tight hamstrings.
This is why I suggest you stretch your hip flexors and strengthen your glutes: it will remove factors that are very likely to contribute to hamstring tightness and thereby allow your hamstrings to get back to normal. It is very likely that you are in a similar situation, in which case simply aggressively stretching your hamstrings will not work to remove the tightness permanently. That being said, let’s finally move on to the stretches.
The hip flexor stretch is tricky and easy to do wrong. Set up in a lunge position with your bottom knee padded using a blanket, towel, yoga mat or something similar.
Keep your back straight and vertical. Looking at the anatomy of the human body you can see that some hip flexors attach to the hip and the Psoas Major even attaches to the lower back. Now, if you want to stretch the hip flexors you have to lengthen the muscle, which creates forces that try to tilt your hip forward and increase the curvature in your lower back. You have to resist these forces by bracing your core and strongly tensing your glutes.
In order to stretch your hip flexors you have to brace your abs (as if bracing for a punch) and tense your glutes. Depending on the surface you work on you now either have to sink forward and down, having your upper knee travel forward or you can get everything tight and push the rear leg backwards by tensing the glutes. Tensing the glutes will not only increase your ability to engage them actively, but it will also help stretch the hip flexors through a process called reciprocal inhibition: if you use a certain muscle, its antagonist relaxes.
To make change, perform this stretch for at least two minutes per side. I usually start with my tighter hip flexor and stretch both sides twice for a total duration of 4 minutes. You can also make this stretch more dynamic by moving your hip forward and back, thereby increasing and decreasing the stretch with the movement. Just make sure not to slip into the compensational patterns.
Once you’re familiar with this stretch you can combine it with a simple ankle mobility drill. Place a stick just on the outside of your toes and as you sink into the stretch you move your knee beyond the stick on the outside. This will prevent your arch from collapsing and will improve your ankle mobility. Don’t force the range of motion, but only go as far as you can without straining. With mobility drills you won’t feel a stretch and the exercise is more about working the available range of motion of the joint to slowly restore its complete ROM.
The setup for the quadriceps stretch is similar to the hip flexor stretch, but here you grab your leg with the arm of the same side. Make sure to have ample padding under your knee for this one.
Personally, I prefer getting into position for this stretch by lunging down to have my knee on the pad, after which I will lean forward at the hip and grab my ankle (don’t grab the foot). After that I will get my torso upright again, holding on to the ankle and get into a good position for the stretch. Getting into position this way made it easier for me to find a more comfortable position for my bottom knee.
At this point you need to pay attention to the same things as with the hip flexor stretch: keep your back straight and vertical, don’t let your hip tilt forward and don’t lean forward. To move into the stretch you can pull your leg closer, tense the glutes and let your hip move forward (not tilt forward!) and sink down.
In a nice variation of this exercise (easier on the arms) you prop your rear leg against a wall.
To perform this drill, set up with your side towards a wall, bend the leg that is away from the wall and place it forward, while keeping the other leg straight. The forward leg will help you support your weight and maintain balance.
In the beginning this setup will be a bit tricky and it takes time to find a “comfortable” way to do this. Once you’re in position for this stretch, sink down, keeping your torso upright or slightly bent away from the wall.
You should feel the stretch on the outside of your hip. Increase the intensity by leaning away from the wall. Remember to always keep the bottom leg straight. It helps to have a surface that prevents the foot of the working leg from slipping away from the wall, but you can also have a training partner block your foot from slipping away.
There are several ways to stretch your calves, but I found this one to work best for me. You will need something sturdy to stand on and shoes with a solid sole. Step on the object, placing the balls of your feet on the ledge. Now sink down into the stretch, keeping your knees straight. You can intensify the stretch by putting more weight on one leg.
A word of advice: don’t let your arches collapse and keep your knees aligned over your feet. Your ankles shouldn’t rotate inwards at all. If you feel pain in your ankle you will need to find another position to perform this stretch (e.g. standing on a curb and leaning forward).
Once you’ve stretched your calves with your knees straight, you can bend your knees. This will shift the focus to different muscles in your calves (from the Gastrocnemius to the Soleus).
With the strengthening exercises we’re going to improve strength and function of your gluteal muscles, improve your mobility at the ankle and the hip and we will also speed the healing process up by directly strengthening your patellar tendon.
To derive maximum benefit from these exercises you have to pay attention to proper postural alignment of all body parts. With regard to your feet and knees: keep your feet either pointing forward or pointing in the same direction as your thigh. Your thighs will only point outward when working in a very wide stance and therefore your feet should also only point outward when working in a very wide stance.
Lie down on your back and bend the knees to create a 90 degree angle, while your hip is still on the ground. With both feet planted, push through the heels squeezing your glutes to form a straight line from your chest to your knees. This is the regular glute bridge.
In the advanced version you keep one leg straight and push yourself up using only one leg. Just like in the two-legged version you squeeze your glutes and lift your body up.
In both versions you have to hold the elevated position for around 5 seconds, squeezing your glutes hard during that time. Touch the gluteal muscles with your hands to help your nervous system rediscover the neural pathways to the muscles, should you have trouble getting them to fire. The main workload has to be felt in the gluteals and not in the lower back, hamstrings or abs. Only move on to the one-legged version once you feel your glutes working hard and you can keep good form throughout the set.
Put the stick on the middle of your back and have it touch your head, your back between your shoulder blades and your tailbone. Maintain these points of contact during the movement and don’t tilt your body to the side, or else the stick will roll off. The distance between your lower back and the stick should not increase too much. You can have a partner cue you through the movement or use a video recording (e.g. your cellphone). If these options are not viable, you can put your hand in the space between your lower back and use the stick to gauge the distance.
In the advanced variation of this exercise you will also raise your opposite arm toward the front.
With the side-lying clams we train another movement pattern at the gluteal muscles. This is a very subtle movement in the beginning, as the neural pathways to the required muscle have been dormant in most of us. Pay attention to performing the exercise the right way.
Lie on your side with your body straight. Now bend both knees a bit. Rotate the upper leg out without tilting your hip back to perform one repetition. I prefer to hold the upper position for 2 or 3 seconds, as this helps me feel the correct muscles working.
As the name suggests your legs should imitate the opening motion of a clam. Keep your upper body in place throughout and don’t roll on your back (3rd frame) to increase the range of motion. This will trick you into using the wrong muscles for the job.
This is the third exercise we use to retrain the gluteal muscle. Lie on your side with your body forming a straight line. Then raise the upper leg upward, just moving from your hip. As in the previous drill, your upper body remains in place and does not contribute to the movement. Only go as far as you can without compromising technique and hold the top position for two to three seconds. Keep your feet parallel to each other or lead with the heel of the working leg.
This exercise is specifically designed to teach you to resist movement at the hip. Take your rubber band and hold it out in front of you. Now step onto the band with your feet hip-width apart. Put the bands into the opposite hands and you’re in the starting position.
From the starting position you squat down slightly by sitting back and now you walk sideways, moving one leg at a time. Don’t let the “rear” leg drag on the ground, but pick it up and resist the tension of the band. You can make this exercise (a lot) harder by using a stronger band or pulling on the band more. Just like in the other strengthening drills: move without using momentum. You should be able to stop at any point and then reverse the movement into the opposite direction.
I suggest you perform this exercise with a stick as a guide for the first couple of times. This way you can find your ideal head and back alignment a lot easier. Have the stick touch the back of your head, your upper back between your shoulder blades and your hip at all time.
I also highly recommend performing this drill with the big toe of the other foot on the ground (as shown in the picture). This helps grooving the proper movement in the beginning, as the body would quickly resort to unwanted compensational patterns if it felt too threatened or overwhelmed.
For our purposes, the error you need to avoid is having your knee collapse inward (last frame). This is the at-risk position for injuries to the knee from simple patellar tendonitis to ACL-tears. Strengthen the correct movement pattern and your risk of injury will drop significantly.
To perform this exercise you assume a stance with your feet hip-width apart and pointing forward. Move one leg back and bend it, so that only the big toe touches the floor. The majority of the weight will now be on the working leg. Start the movement by sitting back and once your knee is bent a little, you bend forward at the hip. Keep your shins vertical and your back straight (i.e. touching the stick at the supporting points).
Go as low as you can without compromising technique. To return to the starting position, squeeze your glutes hard and reverse the movement. Keep squeezing your glutes until you’ve locked out in the top position again. You can experiment with different degrees of knee bend. The less you bend your knees, the more hamstring flexibility the exercise will require.
You can progress to more demanding variations of this exercise once you’ve mastered the easier versions. To make the exercise more difficult you take the supporting foot off the ground. This step should be open to you after the first week of training. Be sure not to have your knees collapse inward und continue to use the stick if you need to. You can also gradually improve the range of motion, although this happens automatically in my experience.
The next step in loading would be holding a weight on the hand opposite to the working leg. Use a light weight to be able to maintain flawless technique. Once you feel confident you can of course use heavier weights and later you can even hold weights in both hands.
The benefit of this exercise goes way beyond knee health, as the improved proprioception and strengthening of the ankle will also bullet-proof your ankle. In spite of landing on other people’s feet after rebounding I haven’t sprained my ankle even once after implementing this exercise into my training.
The King Deadlift is a very difficult single-leg exercise that will require a lot of strength and a good deal of balancing skills. This is a strength drill, so perform it in a controlled fashion without any bouncing or momentum. You have to be able to freeze at every point during the movement.
To perform the King Deadlift you stand on one leg and start sitting back while keeping the other leg bent. The knee of the other leg should be the first thing to touch the floor (use padding in the beginning!), but of course it’s ok to assist yourself with your other leg a little bit at first.
To get up from the bottom position you must not use momentum. If you don’t have the strength to get up just using one leg you can assist yourself with your back leg. Always remember to never sacrifice poundage lifted for technique, because in the end that mentality will not only get you injured, but also prevent you from setting records.
When doing the King Deadlift you also have to pay utmost attention to the position of your knees. Don’t let your knees collapse and don’t let it travel forward too far. The knee should stay behind the toes of the foot.
Eccentric squats on a decline surface have been shown to speed the recovery of patellar tendonitis and they should therefore be included in our training. You can improvise a slanted board using wood and some books, but you could also go to a hill. As a last resort you could wear shoes with a sturdy sole and stand with your heels on the curb. The shoes shouldn’t restrict your ankle though. Be creative.
To perform the eccentric squats you assume a squatting stance on the board and squat using just the strength of your legs on the way down. Support your weight in some way on the way up. I used the stick to push off from the ground.
Many people perform squats in a way that is more stressful on the knees and doesn’t recruit the gluteal muscles a lot. To perform it the right way, imagine sitting back on a chair that is far away, rather than dipping straight down. Start and lead the movement with the hip. Only start bending at the knee once it’s necessary to go lower, but keep your shins close to vertical throughout (will happen automatically if you sit back as far as you can and only move from the hips). Don’t let your knees collapse inward.
To reverse the movement, you push your hips back as far as you can. You should feel your gluteal muscles working as you get up. Oh and don’t let your knees collapse inward.
Depending on your strength and pain level, you have to determine how low you want to squat. In the beginning you can just squat to slightly above parallel (second frame) and once you feel confident you can perform the full range of motion.
The question of how deep you should squat is controversial to say the least and could fill another 25 page article, but I will trim it down to one paragraph. Without a heavy barbell putting additional load on your back it’s totally safe to squat all the way down. Children do it all the time. Billions of people in other cultures spend a significant amount of time in a full squat and you know what? Their incidence rate of hip and knee pain is a lot lower. On top of that the cartilage in the knee only gets supplied with nutrients if the knee is moved through the complete range of motion. If you only ever squat to parallel your cartilage will not get enough nutrients to stay healthy.
This is a very advanced drill that should only be performed if the two-legged version can be done pain-free through the complete range of motion for at least 50 consecutive reps. You also have to be proficient in the one-legged deadlift and king deadlift before trying this.
Steve Maxwell has written an excellent piece on the full ROM single-leg squat (aka pistol) and I suggest you read it before tackling this skill: how to become a pistolero. Since this is a very advanced variation you don’t need to read it now, as there will still be plenty of time in the coming weeks while you work on the foundational movements.
To perform the single-leg eccentric squat you lower yourself on one leg sitting back as far as possible (just like in the regular squat). Use the second leg on the way up. If you need to hold on to something for balance you can use a training partner, doorway or a sturdy piece of furniture. Depending on how you are built you might have to use a light weight between 5 to 10 pounds for balance (hold it out in front of you). Hang on to a doorway or a sturdy piece of furniture if you have to.
Range of motion in this drill is even more controversially discussed than ROM of the two-legged squat. I’ve been doing pistols for years now and the only time I ever felt it in my knees was when I increased my volume injudiciously (as in from 3×6 to 5×9). Now, we know from the graph in “Step 8: take it slow” that there will be tissue breakdown before pain sets in, so we have to give our bodies enough time to recover and only increase volume (number of reps), frequency (how often you train it) and intensity (how low you go) judiciously.
That being said, if you slowly increase one training variable (volume, frequency or intensity) in a given training cycle of 6 to 8 weeks you will derive great benefits from a properly performed pistol. If you do too much too soon with improper technique, you will get hurt.
Now that you are familiar with the exercises we can put them in a program for tendonitis knee pain. The program is divided into phases and it’s up to you to decide when to go to the next step.
The number of repetitions given for single-leg drills has to be performed with each leg.
On the surface this phase may seem boring and useless, but trust me, performing these seemingly simple drills can teach you a lot. Those are the basics that everyone has to master and any athlete that has a flawed foundation will never reach his or her full potential.
Stay in this phase for at least 1 to 2 weeks.
In the second week you go through the strength training circuit twice (so four times a day).
Perform the foam rolling at least 4 times per week.
Do the stretches at least 5 times per week (perform the hip flexor stretch with the stick to work ankle mobility).
Practice the unassisted one-legged Deadlift drill two or three times per day. Only do a couple of repetitions per set and then rest before starting the next set. Pay utmost attention to picture perfect form and never exhaust yourself.
Perform the foam rolling 3 times per week.
Do the stretches at least 4 times per week (perform the hip flexor stretch with the stick to work ankle mobility).
Three times a week: perform the one-legged deadlift. Start with 2 sets of 8 reps and add repetitions once you feel proficient and strong enough. Technique should be as close to perfect as you can manage.
Stay in this phase for at least 2 to 3 weeks.
Perform the foam rolling at least 3 times per week.
Do the stretches at least 3 times per week (perform the hip flexor stretch with the stick to work ankle mobility).
Practice the King Deadlift two or three times per day. Only do a couple of repetitions per set and then rest before starting the next set. Pay utmost attention to picture perfect form and never fatigue yourself.
Once per day, perform one-legged eccentric squats to just above parallel on the slanted board (use both legs to stand up), 2 sets of 5 – 7 reps (rest as much as needed between sets and hold on to something for balance if you have to). Remember: sit back as far as you can and keep your shin vertical!
Three times a week: perform the one-legged deadlift. Start with 3 sets of 8 reps and add repetitions once you feel proficient and strong enough to perform the amount of work with very good technique.
Twice per day, perform one-legged eccentric squats to just above parallel on the slanted board (use both legs to stand up), do 2 sets of 5 to 8 reps. Don’t add more than one rep per week and rest as much as you need to maintain perfect form.
Once you have followed the 5 phase program you will have stronger muscles, healthier joints and better movement patterns. By then it will be time to move on. You will have to prepare yourself for the rigors of the athletic world.
Depending on your sport you could add force absorption work, full range of motion single-leg squats or other demanding exercises that will strengthen your joints, muscles and tendons even further. That is a topic for another day.
I’ve tried to put as much knowledge as possible into this article and it gives you everything you need to know to start fixing your tendonitis knee pain. There still is a lot more that can be said about the topic of knee health. I also highly recommend you check out my book Beating Patellar Tendonitis. It’s a very comprehensive resource about all the possible mistakes you are probably making right now and that are preventing you from getting rid of patellar tendonitis.
Alfredson, H.; Pietila, T.; Jonsson, P.; Lorentzon, R. (1998): Heavy-load eccentric calf muscle training for the treatment of chronic Achilles tendinosis. In Am J Sports Med 26 (3), pp. 360–366.
BMJ Publishing Group Ltd and British Association of Sport and Exercise Medicine (1998): Patellar tendinopathy: some aspects of basic science and clinical management. — Khan et al. 32 (4): 346 — British Journal of Sports Medicine. With assistance of K. M. Khan, N. Maffulli, B. D. Coleman, J. L. Cook, J. E. Taunton. Available online at http://bjsm.bmj.com/content/32/4/346.citation, updated on 1/12/1998, checked on 6/03/2012.
Perry Nickelston, D. FMS SFMAC: Lower Crossed Syndrome and Knee Pain. Available online at http://www.dynamicchiropractic.com/mpacms/dc/article.php?id=52178, checked on 6/03/2012.
Chek, Paul (2004): How to eat, move and be healthy! Your personalized 4-step guide to looking and feeling great from the inside out. San Diego, CA: C.H.E.K. Institute.
Christian Thibaudeau (2006): 7 Secrets to Rapid Recovery | T NATION. Available online at http://www.t-nation.com/free_online_article/sports_body_training_performance/7_secrets_to_rapid_recovery, updated on 27/01/2006, checked on 6/03/2012.
DiNubile, Nicholas A.; Scali, Bruce (2010): Framework for the knee. A 6-step plan for preventing injury and ending pain. Emmaus, Pa: Rodale.
Dr. Kelly Starrett: Episode 33: FGB Push Press Prep. Patellar Tendonitis – YouTube. Available online at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ydoRfEXvmU8&feature=player_embedded, checked on 6/03/2012.
Frohm, Anna; Saartok, Tonu; Halvorsen, Kjartan; Renstrom, Per (2007): Eccentric treatment for patellar tendinopathy: a prospective randomised short-term pilot study of two rehabilitation protocols. In Br J Sports Med 41 (7), pp. e7.
Lian, OysteinB; Engebretsen, Lars; Bahr, Roald (2005): Prevalence of jumper’s knee among elite athletes from different sports: a cross-sectional study. In Am J Sports Med 33 (4), pp. 561–567.
Peter Blanchonette (2006): Eccentric Exercise – A Solution to Tendonitis? | T NATION. Available online at http://www.t-nation.com/free_online_article/sports_body_training_performance/eccentric_exercise_a_solution_to_tendonitis, updated on 3/09/2006, checked on 6/03/2012.
Stanish, W. D.; Rubinovich, R. M.; Curwin, S. (1986): Eccentric exercise in chronic tendinitis. In Clin Orthop Relat Res (208), pp. 65–68.
Steve Maxwell: How to Become a Pistolero | Steve Maxwell Strength & Conditioning. Available online at http://maxwellsc.com/blog.cfm?blogID=60, checked on 6/03/2012.
The Sports Physical Therapy Section of the American Physical Therapy Association (2010): EVIDENCE–SUPPORTED REHABILITATION OF PATELLAR TENDINOPATHY. With assistance of Marsha Rutland, Dennis O’Connell, Jean-Michel Brismée, Phil Sizer, Gail Apte, Janelle O’Connell. Available online at http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2971642/?tool=pubmed, updated on 1/01/2010, checked on 6/03/2012.
Visnes, Havard; Bahr, Roald (2007): The evolution of eccentric training as treatment for patellar tendinopathy (jumper’s knee): a critical review of exercise programmes. In Br J Sports Med 41 (4), pp. 217–223.
Witvrouw, E.; Bellemans, J.; Lysens, R.; Danneels, L.; Cambier, D. (2001): Intrinsic risk factors for the development of patellar tendinitis in an athletic population. A two-year prospective study. In Am J Sports Med 29 (2), pp. 190–195.
Wolf, Robb (2010): The paleo solution. The original human diet. Las Vegas: Victory Belt.
This page was originally published by Martin Koban on the 6th of March 2012. | 2019-04-20T06:52:06Z | https://www.fix-knee-pain.com/patellar-tendonitis-knee-tendonitis/ |
New Century Academy has kicked off its seventeenth school year in Hutchinson with great anticipation. Located at 950 School Road SW in Hutchinson, New Century Academy is a PUBLIC-TUITION FREE Charter School serving grades 7-12. In 2002 the school was opened on the Hutchinson Technology campus and completed its first five years of education in the Learning Center building located on Bluff Street. In 2008 the school moved to 5th Avenue into a new building built by local investors. Last June (2017) the School Board was presented with an opportunity to move into a larger space on School Road. This opportunity included a remodel plan for a full gymnasium, upgraded kitchen, an improved science lab and several creative learning spaces. The New Century Academy School Board was in full support of the move and students, families and staff have all worked tirelessly to create a collaborative and creative learning space. We completed a full year of education in our new home, amidst construction and at times confusion, the students and staff did an amazing job adapting to our ever-changing environment. As a PUBLIC-TUITION FREE Charter School, our world is always changing and adapting. The very nature of our efforts is to adjust to the changes that take place amongst our students and families. As an educational institution, we believe that it is our duty to meet the students where they are at, rather than always expecting them to conform to an educational system that hasn’t truly changed in 100 years. This is a culture that we have fostered from our beginning and continue to construct as we move into the future. After all, you can change the outside appearance of the package but if the present inside is the same, it may not excite you!
Students and families who choose New Century Academy have much to look forward to in this new school year. We continue to expand our extra-curricular activity offerings and are excited about these opportunities for our students. Our goal is to learn, compete and most of all, have fun together! Our fall activities include Cross Country, 6-man Football and Volleyball. Our winter activities include Boys and Girls Basketball and Archery. Spring activities include Archery and Trap Shooting. With the construction of a regulation gymnasium this last school year, students can enjoy the indoor space during practices and competitions.
Along with our extra-curricular activities we continue to work to develop unique and creative clubs that students can participate in. Students will again provide a Gaming Club, Photography Club, Yearbook, Student Council, Reading Club and Art Club. Our hope is that more students will show interest in Speech, Knowledge Bowl, Math League and a Rock Climbing Club. We have completed the construction of one of the two rock walls within the gymnasium. Students, families, staff and community can look forward to challenging themselves on the only rock wall available in this community and surrounding communities.
Students can also look forward to the continued development of our Work Study program where students can enroll in an elective course that will teach them hands-on employability skills. Students may select from the Food Service, Office-Clerical, Maintenance and our very own Coffee Shop! Students will work along with a staff member to develop essential skills needed for the work environment. The Coffee Shop is a unique experience in which students develop menu items, the associated costs and marketing techniques to conduct their business. All of the profit goes back to the shop and to student activities. Our goal is to have this Coffee Shop open to the public!
In addition to our Work Study program, we will continue to provide the same required course work that all public schools must offer as well as electives like trigonometry, calculus, STEM, Careers, Fitness and Activity classes, Band & Choir and various levels of Art. At New Century Academy, students have the option to enroll in online elective courses through Edynamic Learning. The program offers over 50 online elective courses. Our Band program, directed by a St. Paul Orchestra Director, will be in its second year of development. The first year of Band saw great improvement and tons of excitement. We look forward to expanding our Band program and attracting new, talented musicians! In addition to a typical Band program we will continue the development of our Music and Video Production program. Students will have the opportunity to explore these artistic areas through blogs, podcasts, mixing and recording music and much more! Students will also have the opportunity to explore college courses through our PSEO program.
As a PUBLIC-TUITION FREE Charter School, we continue to provide our Project Based Learning program. This program allows students to obtain elective and core credit through the development of independent projects. These projects are chosen by the students and can be developed around any passion or interest they have. Once the idea is in place, student embark on a project development process with an advisor and other students. Students learn project management skills, resource development in both community and print, collaboration and teamwork as well as refining their skills in evidence based research and presentation skills. Through the recent remodel construction, we have created two unique Project Based Learning Spaces on either wing of the school building. These spaces allow for students to spread out and get to work whether it be by themselves, in partner groups or small groups.
One of many great things about our staff is that many of them have worked in other professional capacities before coming to education. For example, we have employees on staff who have worked as an EMT, Orchestra Director, Athletic Trainer, Apparel Business Owner, Cable/Satellite Installer, Lawyer, Parks and Recreation, Early Childhood, Nursing Home Worker, Childcare, Military Personnel, Restaurant and Food Service Worker and many more! All of these employees share these experiences with students and use their past skill development to help students discover their potential career interests. Our staff knows that education is more than just teaching and learning, it’s about connecting with students and families and connecting them to the community.
It is our job as public education to serve our students and families, not the other way around. This has often been lost in many traditional public schools as they continue to meet the needs of a certain type of student. While this might be an easier approach when attempting to educate a larger number of students in a big school, it may not meet the needs of students who are less traditional and maybe non-conforming. What if you don’t fit into that traditional mold? What if you’re looking for something different? Something that meets your needs as an individual. This is the advantage a small PUBLIC-TUITION FREE Charter School can offer. We have a better staff to student ratio on purpose. Our class sizes are designed to be small on purpose. We believe we can help those students who need to reconnect to their education. We also believe we can help those students who need more or who believe in having more control over their education. If you are a student who needs a place you can feel that you belong, are wanted and can find empowerment, then New Century Academy is the school for you! If you are a parent who wants their child to find excitement and curiosity again in their education, then New Century Academy is the school for you!
Spring and warm weather is finally here! I’d like to take this opportunity to celebrate the success of our school year. I will speak to you about some of our successes and some of our challenges. I will also take time to share our future plans and possibilities.
New Century Academy started this journey 16 years ago with the hopes of providing an educational environment that made students the center of their own learning. The vision for the school included students working together with their peers, teachers, family members and community to solve problems and discover confidence and ownership in their learning. This included the development of a Project Based Curriculum combined with the traditional methods of education.
Throughout New Century Academy’s existence this approach has evolved and changed with the leadership, teaching and learning styles of our students. This student involvement and choice in the learning model has always been a staple of our program. This choice extends to the enrollment of all our students as we are a public school of choice. This means that all students are open enrolling, by choice, from their home districts. We celebrate the choice families make each year to entrust our staff and programming with the education of their children.
I would like to take a few moments to reflect on the successes we’ve had this year and the plans for the future. It has been a busy year to say the least. At the close of last year we were presented with an opportunity from the ownership of our then building on 5th avenue, which we’ve occupied since 2008. That opportunity involved a well-known facility on School Road. Did you read that? ON SCHOOL ROAD! It had long been a frustration of mine that we always, from our inception, seemed to be tucked behind the industrial areas of town. From our first building on the Hutchinson Technology campus to our most recent building just down the road from 3M and the Household Hazardous Waste facility. Although these were good neighbors, it always felt like we were somewhere we didn’t belong. It felt isolated and although the building itself was sufficient, the opportunity to grow and expand was limited. I believe students never quite felt like they owned the space. This obscurity was made clear to me over the course of the last couple of years as Director. As I worked through the community more and more about the opportunity New Century Academy could make available to students, I observed three misconceptions by citizens who have lived in the community for decades. First, that we were a private school and charged tuition. Secondly, that we were a school but people were not sure of where we were located as they had spent very little time driving down 5th avenue. And third, that some citizens had no idea we even existed.
I’m not sure what more motivation we needed than what I’ve just explained. The opportunity to have a Public Charter School of choice located on School Road, right in the middle of the education sector of the community – was a no-brainer. The school board and staff took immediate action to explore our options and decide a course of action. Through the months of April, May and June we worked tirelessly to explore our options. Finally, we made the decision to move and realize the potential. This new location allows us 10,000 more square feet, a full regulation gymnasium, additional science lab space, property and much more.
I would like to thank staff, students and families for their patience this year as we worked through the series of construction phases. We recently finished the interior phase of construction and have only one item remaining pertaining to the exterior of the building. Although this process has had its challenges, the overall scope of the project has been a success and students and staff have enjoyed their new home.
There have been several new opportunities this year at New Century Academy. Our new home has allowed us additional space to expand our activities. We were very proud to host our first ever home basketball competition! We look forward to future basketball games as well as volleyball in the fall. This new gym space allowed us to add a rock climbing wall and stage with a connected shower room. This will allow for increased activity opportunities for students within their physical education classes and future performing arts. With the help of our Activities Director Josh Krych, we have continued our archery program and added a trap shooting team. Students are very excited about these opportunities and we all look forward to watching them compete. Next school year we will be competing in 6 man football and are very excited to offer this activity.
Another highlight is the cafeteria space and kitchen which provides unique sitting areas and, with the help of our amazing food service director, unique opportunities to learn food service job skills and provide a service back to the school. I believe those of us who have eaten the food would all agree that it is amazing! In addition, students are realizing new job skill learning through our coffee shop, office and maintenance work study program. During second semester, students and staff have been working in our new science lab and I’ve heard many compliments on the design and equipment available for learning. I can honestly say that students and staff have embraced our new building and feel a larger sense of ownership in our new home.
The school has also realized new programming and the addition of several new staff members. We hired a new math teacher, Mrs. Stansbury, and a new instructional coach for students, Ms. Mumford. These efforts centered around our declining performance in the area of math. Both of these individuals have been great additions and have worked hard with students to help them improve. It will take some time to reach our goals and I feel very confident that the teaching and learning in this department will make that happen. In the area of reading, Mrs. Haugen continues to be influential in our continuous improvement and her efforts along with the students resulted in an increase in our academic performance. Mrs. Haugen, along with teachers and support staff across the curriculum, will continue to find ways to collaborate and combine our efforts in reading to help students realize their full potential.
Another first for New Century Academy was the addition of a music teacher who specializes in band and orchestra. Mr. Carvell has done an amazing job in cultivating interest and starting our first band! I have been very pleased to see the interest and talent of our students in this area. Again, this will take time to develop this program and I’m confident this will be an area of interest for our students as we move forward.
All of our teachers and support staff work hard each day to create a welcoming environment that supports students mental health, confidence, sense of belonging and progress toward the purpose of secondary education which is a well-rounded person, able to graduate and move into the community as a contributing member.
I would like to share my gratitude for taking the time to read this update and for all that you do to support us during the year. This is the time to celebrate a year that is coming to a close, and expectations of a new year rapidly approaching. Our staff eagerly anticipates the challenges, growth, successes, lessons learned, and triumphs that will occur in the next school year. We look forward to serving families and students for many years to come. Thank you.
Welcome all of you to a new school year and a new horizon for New Century Academy! I, Jason Becker and Board Chair, Kathy Prellwitz, would like to thank you all for your patience and understanding as we move forward in our new building with exciting possibilities. We are writing this email to inform all of you of the progress we have made as we approach the start of a new school year at New Century Academy.
We have all been working very diligently to execute the remodeling and construction of our new building. This process involves the State of Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry, including the plumbing and mechanical departments. These departments are involved in the approval of our construction plans. Once approved, the City of Hutchinson issues permits to allow the various levels of construction.
The original plans were submitted for approval in early June. Unfortunately, it took until August 11th to receive approval for construction from the state. At that time, the state had not approved certain pieces of the mechanical and plumbing plans. It took several resubmissions before the state would approve the mechanical and plumbing plans. We received approval of these remaining pieces today, August 29th. While I’m confident we will receive a Certificate of Occupancy soon, we will not have enough time to complete critical pieces of construction needed before the original calendar start date of September 5th.
For these reasons, we feel, in the interest of student safety, that it is necessary to move the school start date to Monday, September 11th. This would then mean that we would move the school end date to June 1st. However, please know, these decisions are being made in the best interest of the students: we want them to start a new year in a steady and structured environment, as proud and excited as we are! I understand that this may change plans for some families, and I apologize for any inconvenience this will cause. Please understand that it is in our highest interest to start the year off conveniently with as much access to the building as possible. We value every day that we have with your children and will work tirelessly to prepare.
There will be a Special School Board Meeting held tomorrow night, Wednesday August 30th, at 6:00pm at the new school site on 950 School Road SW in Hutchinson. This meeting will be to approve a move of the school start date from Tuesday, September 5th to Monday, September 11th. This change in start date will be to accommodate the construction and acquisition of a Certificate of Occupancy issued by the City of Hutchinson.
We invite all of you to join us for the special board meeting on Wednesday night, particularly if you have any questions or concerns. We truly appreciate your patience as we make this tremendous and exciting transition into a new spectacular location, and we truly appreciate your patience and commitment to NCA. We are so excited to be a part of your child’s future!
The Open House and Ice Cream Social will remain for this Thursday, August 31st. Student schedules will be available as well as the opportunity to meet new and returning staff. Please join us for a social and preview of the construction project. We look forward to seeing all of you!
Happy Spring New Century Academy families! As we move away from another winter and into a beautiful spring season I hope this letter finds you all well rested and healthy. Students and staff have been working very hard to prepare for our upcoming spring assessments and the end to another successful year at NCA. All of us at New Century Academy thank you for your choice to attend our school and the privilege we have to help your students achieve their goals. It is hard to believe that Graduation is only a few short months away!
Conferences for Quarter 3 will occur on Thursday, March 9th from 4:30 pm to 8:30 pm and Friday, March 10th from 7:45 am to 3:45 pm. Teachers are allowed a one hour lunch between 12:00 noon and 1:00 pm and will be unavailable at this time on Friday. Your child’s advisor should be scheduling a conference with you. This may be done through an email, phone call or through your child. Our goal is to have 100% attendance at conferences. Staying connected to your child’s education is critical to their success. Your child’s advisor is the point person and your first contact for conferences. All teachers are available during conferences, however you may have to wait to speak to a specific classroom teacher. For this reason, please check our website and reach out to your child’s classroom teachers if you have questions before or after conferences. Your child’s advisor will work to answer questions you may have.
Please remember that you can set up access to the parent portal for updates on academic progress. Once set up, you can receive these updates through email, phone or other device. You can also adjust the settings to receive notifications about attendance, grades, missing assignments and other important information. This is a great way to stay connected to your child’s education and can be critical in helping us hold your child accountable.
New Century Academy students have submitted their art work to the Hutchinson Center for the Arts exhibit. The exhibition is open for viewing until March 9th. The Hutchinson Center for the Arts building is located next to the police station and is open Monday through Friday from 10:00 am – 5:00 pm and Saturday from 12:00 pm – 4:00 pm. There will be a reception on March 9th from 4:00 pm – 6:00 pm. Please attend the exhibit and support New Century Academy Art students!
Tonight, Thursday March 2nd at 6:00 pm the New Century Academy MS and HS Choir groups will be performing songs in our second concert of the year. Everyone is invited. Please show up to support Mr. Sood and his students in their efforts. They have been working very hard.
This Friday, March 3rd all of the students and staff will be at the Minnesota Science Museum for a day of learning. This field trip is not optional and will count as our day of school. Any student who chooses to stay home will be considered absent unexcused. All students were given a permission form to bring home for you to sign. Please return this form before Friday if you have not already done so. The cost of the trip is $10.
March 6th through March 9th the 7th, 8th and 10th grade students will be taking the Minnesota Comprehensive Assessment along with all other students in the state. This is an opportunity for our students to show what they can do! We are confident that if the students put the best effort into this test, the results will reflect how awesome we already know they are! Please help improve your child’s chances by getting them plenty of rest and good nutrition. A healthy brain is a successful one. It is very important that your child takes the assessment seriously and performs at the best of their ability. Please have a conversation with your child about their approach to this assessment.
Future MCA tests will occur in Math and Science during the months of April and May.
There will be no school from March 10th through March 17th. Hopefully this will be a time of rest and relaxation for our students and staff.
Our third Eterm will occur immediately following Spring Break. This is a great time where we get to know our students outside the typical classroom, learning things that may seem non-traditional but have enormous value in the development of the complete student.
Your child should bring home a packet March 3rd with all the details. Please review this document with your child and help them pick a seminar for both the morning and afternoon sessions. Students also have a chance to sign up for an all-day seminar as well. Your signature is required on the document so that we know that you approve of their choices. Some of the seminars cost money. Please know that we do work with payment plans that work for you.
We will also be offering a Driver’s Education course for the second time this school year. We need a minimum of six students to sign up for this seminar. The cost is broken up into three payments: $50 down at sign-up, $99 by the end of class, and $149 when the behind the wheel portion is completed. This has been a great seminar to offer our families. You get all the course work done in one week.
We had our second Family Night on December 12th at the school. Students, staff and their family members enjoyed an evening of free food and entertainment. Those who attended participated in a free game of bingo with prizes. We are so thankful to all of the businesses in Hutchinson and surrounding communities who helped supply the prizes. Thank you to all that attended.
Our next Family Night is scheduled for April 3rd from 6:00-7:30 pm. The free supper begins at 6:00 pm with activities to follow. Please join us for the festivities!
The 2017 Annual Meeting for New Century Academy will be held on Wednesday, April 19th from 6:30 – 7:30 pm at the school. This is an opportunity for us to celebrate our school year and to elect new school board members. Please let the school know if you are interested in a school board position. Everyone is invited to learn about the successes of our students and staff and to see what lies ahead for NCA.
Graduation will be held on May 19th at 7:00 pm. The event will take place at the Hutchinson Event Center. A senior student picnic is also scheduled that day at 12:00 noon at Northwoods Park in Hutchinson. If you have questions about cap and gown or anything else related to this event please contact the school office.
Welcome back to a beautiful fall and another school year at New Century Academy! I hope this message finds your family in good health. New and exciting things are happening at New Century! We are working hard to help your children become positive leaders and productive citizens. Thank you for your trust in our efforts.
Conferences for Quarter 1 will occur on Tuesday, October 18th from 4:30 pm to 8:30 pm and Wednesday, October 19th from 8:00 am to 5:00 pm. Teachers are allowed a one hour lunch between 12:00 noon and 1:00 pm and will be unavailable at this time on Wednesday. Your child’s advisor should be scheduling a conference with you. This may be done through an email, phone call or through your child. Our goal is to have 100% attendance at conferences. Staying connected to your child’s education is critical to their success. Your child’s advisor is the point person and your first contact for conferences. All teachers are available during conferences, however you may have to wait to speak to a specific classroom teacher. For this reason, please check our website and reach out to your child’s classroom teachers if you have questions before or after conferences. Your child’s advisor will work to answer questions you may have.
We will have someone available in the computer lab during conferences to assist you with the Parent Portal access for grades and attendance updates. Once set up, you can receive these updates through email, phone or other device. This is a great way to stay connected to your child’s education.
This Thursday, October 13th the staff will be playing a friendly game of flag football with the students who have been participating in this extracurricular. The game starts at 3:30 pm. Please show up and support your students and staff!
At 6:00 pm the New Century Academy MS and HS Choir groups will be performing three songs in our first concert of the year. Everyone is invited. Please show up to support Mr. Sood and his students in their efforts. They have been working very hard.
This Thursday and Friday students at NCA will be taking the NWEA test. This is a computer assessment that allows us to track progress and growth in the areas of math, reading and language usage. This information is used to provide students with supplemental support and targeted services to help them improve their academic skills. Please help improve your child’s chances by getting them plenty of rest and good nutrition. A healthy brain is a successful one. It is very important that your child takes the assessment seriously and performs at the best of their ability. Please have a conversation with your child about their approach to this assessment.
At the end of each quarter this school year students will be participating in something that makes New Century unique and a great place to learn. Our Eterms (Exploratory Terms) have become a great part of the education at our school. Students and staff participate in all types of learning opportunities! This is a great time where we get to know our students outside the typical classroom, learning things that may seem non-traditional but have enormous value in the development of the complete student.
Your child should be bringing home a packet this weekend with all the details. Please review this document with your child and help them pick a seminar for both the morning and afternoon sessions. Students also have a chance to sign up for an all-day seminar as well. Your signature is required on the document so that we know that you approve of their choices. Some of the seminars cost money. Please know that we will work with you with payment plans that work for you.
This year we will be offering supplemental reading support to our 7th, 8th and 10th grade students based on both NWEA and MCA standardized assessment scores. Each Eterm, students that are selected will have the choice of either a morning or afternoon seminar designed to help them improve their reading abilities as we lead up to the MCA assessment this Spring. Our goal is to have everyone reading at grade level. Please encourage your children to do their best if they are selected for this seminar.
We will also be offering a Driver’s Education course. We need a minimum of six students to sign up for this seminar. The cost is broken up into three payments: $50 down at sign-up, $99 by the end of class, and $149 when the behind the wheel portion is completed. This has been a great seminar to offer our families. You get all the course work done in one week.
We had our first Family Night on September 26th at the school. Students, staff and their family members enjoyed an evening of free food and entertainment. Those who attended faced off in a friendly game of Family Feud with the winners receiving prizes. We finished the evening with a prize drawing. Thank you to all that attended.
Our next Family Night is scheduled for December 12th from 6:00-7:30 pm. The free supper begins at 6:00 pm with activities to follow. Staff are working hard to receive and gather donations for prize drawings and a bingo competition. Please join us for the festivities!
Thank you for taking the time to read this message. Enjoy the few days we have left of beautiful weather.
My hope is that this letter finds you all well rested and in good health. Summer time is a great time to enjoy family, friends and beautiful weather. Please take time to enjoy your family, especially the little ones as they grow up so fast!
We are excited as we look forward to the next school year at New Century Academy! Soon we will all be back in the swing of things. As we anticipate and continue to plan for the next school year there are a few items I would like to bring to your attention. Please read through each topic paragraph and let us know if you have any questions. Our summer office hours are 9 am to 2 pm on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. Please stop in if you need anything. You can also reach us by phone at 320-234-3660 and my business email is [email protected].
Registration: Included in this form are registration documents that we need as soon as possible. Please fill out the forms and drop them off at school or mail to the school address. All students will be registered for courses according to their grade level and based on graduation requirement needs. Elective courses will be available for registration at the ice cream social on August 18th starting at 7 pm.
Ice Cream Social on August 18th starting at 7 pm.
First Day of School is August 22nd. School starts at 8:30 am this year.
First 2 hour late start is September 14th. School starts at 10:30 am on late starts.
September 20th is an all school Field Trip to WE Day.
Our first Family Night is September 26th. Free supper starts 6 pm, games and prizes follow until 7:30 pm.
Enrollment: New Century Academy is a tuition free public school of choice. In order to offer our school as a positive choice for families we need students. A couple of years ago our enrollment dropped significantly. Our enrollment last year stabilized around 123 students. Our goal is to be at 150 students. We have plenty of openings in grades 7 through 10. Please encourage anyone you know who might be interested in New Century Academy to stop by for a tour or call with questions. We need students in order to continue to build our programming.
Attendance: As you all know, attendance is a key factor in student success. This is an area that we need your help. The impact that attendance has on student learning as well as the financial stability of the school is something we all need to be concerned about. When a student is not present, it interferes with their ability to absorb all the necessary information and skills. From a financial stand point, the Minnesota Department of Education adjusts our funding based on our daily membership. So, when your child does not attend school it not only hurts them directly but also impacts the other students indirectly. Our goal is to have a 92% attendance rate. Last school year we ended with an 89% rate. I am confident we can improve! Please do everything you can to get your child to school so that we can meet this goal together!
Programs/New Staff: We have been working hard to bring back what makes New Century Academy unique. Project Based Learning is what the school was founded on. We have taken steps to ramp up our project based learning opportunities. Students will be expected to complete projects within their advisory course. Your child’s advisor will lead them through the process, which advances in complexity and rigor at each grade level. We have also added additional E-terms to our scheduling. We have four E-terms this year, one at the end of each quarter. We are excited to add Band and Choir to our programming this year! We are also in the process of attempting to hire either an Agriculture instructor or and Art instructor. These electives will be available for registration on August 18th at the Ice Cream Social. Come and meet the new staff and register for their programs. Our extra-curricular activities will include Flag Football, Student Council, Yearbook, Basketball, and Archery. Our hope is to also conduct the following activities: School Play, Robotics, Knowledge Bowl, Bowling, Mock Trial, Speech, Trap Shooting. If you have any interest in coaching these activities, please contact the school.
School Board: We are looking for an interested parent or community member to fill an open position on the board as soon as possible. The board meets every third Wednesday of each month. Occasionally we hold additional meetings for training purposes. This is a great way to get involved in your child’s education. You can have a direct impact on the school and the children we serve. Please inquire in the school office or email our School Board Chairperson Kathy Prellwitz at [email protected].
Thank you for the opportunity to share this information with you. Please stay informed by checking your email and the school website. You can also reach us through Facebook. I hope you enjoy the rest of your summer and we look forward to serving you again. | 2019-04-22T18:58:24Z | https://www.newcenturyacademy.com/category/directors-update/ |
When Andy Murray walked to the net after a hard fought victory in a final set tiebreak in Valencia late last year, he looked to embrace his opponent, who jokingly or not, flipped him the bird.
Murray had just Tommy Robredoed Tommy Robredo.
Now, it may seem impossible for a person to create a verb with his or her own name, but with his long track record of fighting until the end, Robredo has proven time and time again that he exemplifies that very thing better than anybody else.
So, when Murray looked to congratulate Robredo on a good match, which their clash was, one of the best of the season in fact, the Spaniard was not very happy. Not only did he lose a tough match, but he got beat at his own game, the game of survival.
Robredo’s Grand Slams on his least favorite surface, hard court, in 2014, show why the gritty right-hander has earned his reputation of being a fighter.
In his first Grand Slam match of the season at the Australian Open in Melbourne, Robredo played the always-dangerous Lukas Rosol. Although Rosol is somebody who many would expect Robredo to beat, down two sets to one makes things look a lot different.
It takes enough energy to play down under with the fatigue caused by the rigors of the Australian summer heat, but to hang tough in the fourth set, clinging to his life in the match until a tiebreak would be impressive enough. Not only did Robredo emerge from that vital tiebreak in an even match, but he toughed out the Czech 8-6 in the fifth.
Typical Robredo, never convincing, always there until the end.
Fast forward to Wimbledon, on yet another surface that is not conducive to the heavy topspin, high-net clearance game of Robredo. On the other side of the net, the powerful Jerzy Janowicz, whose serve and groundstrokes skip right through the Wimbledon grass.
Even after not getting off to a good start to his season, or their third round encounter, Janowicz fought back, and started playing tennis reminiscent of his standout 2013 season. From two sets down, Janowicz pushed one of the toughest players on tour around, evening affairs with all of the momentum in his corner.
That is exactly where Robredo wanted him. Down and nearly out, Robredo once again showed that he is most dangerous when backed into a corner. Although he would lose next round to Roger Federer, Robredo showed his character to stay the course and defeat Janowicz.
Robredo may have thought that nobody had seen the script before, so he pressed the rewind button when he arrived to Flushing Meadows for the United States Open. It was time to show the world who he is again, this time on the biggest stage of them all, Arthur Ashe Stadium.
As the crowd looking down from the seats of the largest stadium in the sport of tennis gasped in awe, Robredo was in trouble. The fans were witnessing the birth of a future star in Australian Nick Kyrgios during a third round match. The big-hitter was pushing one of the fleetest afoot of the ATP World Tour around for more than a set, making it seem like Robredo would be on the next flight out of John F. Kennedy Airport.
Slowly but surely, point by point, Robredo maintained his composure, and let Kyrgios start to miss. The first sign of Kyrgios’ dropping confidence was all it took, seemingly giving Robredo a hook to latch onto, never letting go, as he would pull away for a four set win.
By the way, Robredo was down two sets to love against Italian Simone Bolelli in the second round.
Although Robredo may never be a true Grand Slam contender, or a player who fans get to see be at the top of the world in the rankings, one thing is for certain.
Nobody wants to be stuck with Robredo in his or her section of the draw. And, while many opponents will go away and give up when they get down, that is when Robredo is most dangerous.
As he showed after his loss to Murray in Valencia, nobody hangs in there better, and he wants the world to know it.
Having grown up in a tennis-centric household just an hour’s drive from the USTA National Tennis Center in New York, ritual U.S. Open day trips were akin to my peers’ summer outings at the beach. Every August we’d make the mini-trek to Queens and marvel at Agassi’s baseline power, Kafelnikov’s precision, Chang’s agility and the serve-and-volley prowess of Sampras and Rafter.
My dad was a huge fan of Pistol Pete, so when he advanced to the final of the 2001 Hamlet Cup, a U.S. Open tune-up event now known as the Winston-Salem Open, we pounced at the prospect of seeing the 14-time Grand Slam champion on a more intimate stage than the cavernous bowels of Arthur Ashe Stadium.
Standing across the net from Sampras that day was a spry 23-year-old German named Tommy Haas. Ranked just outside the top-10 at the time, Haas was less than a year from vaulting to a career-high number two in the world, while Sampras was embarking on his farewell lap around the ATP Tour. I was only a freshman in high school at the time, but I was nonetheless impressed by Haas’s attacking presence and crisp strokes from both wings, as he ousted Sampras in three sets for his third career ATP title.
Twelve years later and Haas is still a force on the Tour, perhaps playing the best tennis of his life. His stunning upset of Novak Djokovic in Miami, and subsequent run to the semifinals, set the stage for his title in Munich one month later and a remarkable quarterfinal finish at Roland Garros this past week.
Rewriting the record books seemingly every week, from becoming the oldest player to beat a world number one in 30 years to becoming the oldest French Open quarterfinalist since 1971, Haas is once again on the cusp of the top ten. Did I mention he recently turned 35?
Among all his astounding achievements over the past year, which also includes an upset of Roger Federer in the 2012 Halle final, the most impressive came in the third round of the French Open last week, when, after being denied twelve match points against John Isner, he maintained his composure and somehow prevailed in five sets. A presumably spent Haas went on to destroy Mikhail Youzhny two days later, dropping just five games. That’s a feat most 25-year-olds would struggle to accomplish after a grueling four-and-a-half hour match.
A top 20 player for the majority of his career, boasting a high of number two in the world in 2002, Haas implements an exceptional all-around all-court game, anchored by a beautiful one-handed backhand. Having reached his first Wimbledon semifinal in 2009, after a 2008 season riddled with abdominal, shoulder and elbow issues, the German was primed for a late-career push at the age of 31. Then, less than a year later, it was revealed that he would need hip surgery and the German would not be seen on court again until mid-2011. He has since reached five ATP finals, winning two, and just achieved his best result at Roland Garros in twelve appearances. Words cannot describe the significance of his resurgence with his career on life support less than two years ago.
Considering the growing physical nature of the game over the past decade, the fact that no player has enjoyed consistent success in their mid-30s since Andre Agassi is understandable.
Haas’s longevity is a testament to not only his work ethic and conditioning, but to his ability to adjust to the modern game and find new ways to be aggressive without employing a physically taxing style of play. The same can be said for Tommy Robredo, who, at age 32, reached the quarterfinals this week after being absent from the ATP Tour with a leg injury. A year ago, Robredo was ranked 470 in the world and playing a Challenger event in Italy and Haas was outside the top-100 battling through the Roland Garros qualifying tournament.
While I am in no way refuting the claims that advancements in tennis (i.e. string technology and more rigorous physiotherapy methods) are potentially detrimental to players’ health in the long term, there is no doubt that such developments in nutrition and conditioning contribute to prolonging careers as well.
We are seeing more and more players, such as the two Tommys, in the top 30 at the age of 30. A late-career injury should no longer be considered a career death sentence; rather it’s an opportunity for a fresh start. There is no denying that the collective accomplishments of both Haas and Robredo at Roland Garros are a sign of inspiration as well. They may lack an intimidating weapon like a Nadal topspin-laced forehand, Djokovic’s penetrating groundstrokes or Isner’s bazooka serve, yet they are proving that grit and determination are powerful tools to have in your arsenal.
For athletes of all sports, the stronger and more personal the motivating factor is, the more driven they are. It may seem rather obvious, but it couldn’t be more relevant to Haas’s success. And if you think he is inspired, imagine how his fellow 30-Year Club members are feeling, particularly David Nalbandian, who is recovering from injury while recently welcoming his first children as well. Haas’s resurgence could even potentially be a game-changer for younger players who are looking to model their playing styles after someone with his durability. The trend toward the physical grinding game is a slippery slope and one that is not associated with career longevity.
Haas will look to defend his Halle title next week while Robredo isn’t currently on an entry list for a Wimbledon tune-up event. Despite their mediocre career results at the All England Club, with no points to defend both men will be playing with house money and should be considered dark horses to make the second week.
Josh Meiseles manages the tennis blog The Sixth Set and you can follow him on Twitter at @TheSixthSet.
Plenty of fascinating events unfolded on the first day of quarterfinal action in Paris. Here are my thoughts on what happened.
Major breakthrough: Not since 2011 had Jo-Wilfried Tsonga defeated a member of the ATP top eight, much less one of the Big Four. He had lost a five-set heartbreaker in the same round here last year to Novak Djokovic, and he had lost a five-setter in the same round at the Australian Open to the man whom he faced today. When Tsonga fell behind early in the first set, the narrative looked all too familiar. But the flamboyant French shot-maker has shown far more resilience this fortnight than he has in years, and he stormed back from early adversity to dominate Roger Federer as few men ever have at a major. Give the Paris crowd credit for abandoning their usual adulation of Federer and relentlessly exhorting their home hero to knock him off.
Pumpkin time for Cinderella Tommy: All of those grueling comebacks finally caught up with Tommy Robredo, who won just four games from David Ferrer in a listless quarterfinal. When he looks back at this tournament, though, Robredo will remember it as one of the highlights of his career. Normally a reserved, unassuming character, he stole the spotlight for several days on a grand stage for the first time. Nobody would have expected it of him a few months ago.
Crossroads for Federer: Despite the 36-quarterfinal streak at majors, one would have to rate the first half of 2013 a serious disappointment for the Swiss. Federer has no titles, one final, and one victory over a top-eight opponent (Tsonga at the Australian Open). Now, Federer must seek to defend his Wimbledon title or possibly face the prospect of dropping outside the top four. His occasional flickers of brilliance this spring simply will not suffice unless the draw implodes, which rarely happens at a major.
When David becomes Goliath: The fourth seed reached his second straight Roland Garros semifinal and fourth semifinal in five majors by losing just nine games in his last six sets. Tsonga cannot overlook the small Spaniard on the eve of a possible final against Novak Djokovic or Rafael Nadal. Granted a fine draw that placed him in the opposite half from both of those nemeses, Ferrer has made the most of it. He could reach his first major final without facing any of the Big Four, a golden opportunity.
All eyes on the top half: With Federer gone, the winner of the projected Novak Djokovic-Rafael Nadal semifinal blockbuster will be heavily favored against whomever he faces in the final. That match looms larger than ever, assuming that both men can take care of business tomorrow.
No time like the first time: Neither Tsonga nor Ferrer ever has reached the final here. Neither man even has lost a set in reaching this stage, a first for both. Who will handle the pressure better on Friday?
Forza Italia: For the fourth straight year, an Italian woman reaches the Roland Garros semifinals. Sara Errani hit neither an ace nor a double fault in a characteristically gritty win over Agnieszka Radwanska, concluding with a 67-minute second set. Defeating Radwanska in a WTA main-draw match for the first time, she exploited her much greater comfort on the surface but also beat the world No. 4 at her own game. A leisurely 11-break contest with long points and relatively few winners normally plays into Radwanska’s hands. Not this time.
No déjà vu, thank you: Facing Svetlana Kuznetsova on the same court where she lost to her in this round four years ago, Serena Williams seized control with an emphatic first set that extended her usual pattern this tournament. History then threatened to repeat itself when Kuznetsova rallied to take the second set and claimed an early break in the third. Struggling with both her serve and her groundstroke technique, Serena looked much less like the dominant contender of the early rounds than the woman who had not reached a Roland Garros semifinal for a decade. Sheer willpower finally ended that drought and a four-match losing streak in quarterfinals here as the world No. 1 forced herself to find her range in an unexpectedly hard-fought victory.
Crossroads for Radwanska: In some respects, the newly blonde world No. 4 has enjoyed a strong year, matching her best result ever at the Australian Open (quarterfinal) and achieving a new best result at Roland Garros (also quarterfinal). A few other results have impressed as well, including a Miami semifinal. But Radwanska has shown little real evolution this year that would encourage one to believe in her as anything more than a serial quarterfinalist at majors. She will defend finals points at Wimbledon, the only major where she has gone past that round. Like Federer, her top-four status might crumble if she falls well short there.
No eyes on the bottom half: With Serena still in the draw, the matches down there offer an entertaining diversion but lack real title implications. The top seed has bageled or breadsticked all four of the bottom-half quarterfinalists on clay this year and holds a 32-4 career record against the three not named Jelena Jankovic. When JJ holds your best hope for a competitive final, avert your eyes.
Rewind to Madrid: Nudged within two points of defeat by Anabel Medina Garrigues in a quarterfinal there, Serena escaped and then rocketed past her last two opponents to the title. She will face Errani in the semifinals here, as she did there. Will the parallels continue?
The first four Roland Garros quarterfinals unfold on Tuesday, featuring Roger Federer, David Ferrer, Serena Williams, and Agnieszka Radwanska. Colleague Yeshayahu Ginsburg will break down Federer’s marquee bout with home hope Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in plenty of detail. You can find succinct previews of the other three quarterfinals here.
Tommy Robredo vs. David Ferrer: Classic clay specialist Robredo radiated with elation after he rallied from multiple deficits to upset compatriot Nicolas Almagro for his first quarterfinal here in four years. Two days later, he will need all of the energy that remains in his legs to defeat the second-ranked Spaniard. The clay specialist par excellence in the ATP, Ferrer has cruised through five matches without dropping a set and befuddled a wide range of opponents. Robredo does nothing that the fourth seed cannot do, and do better, so the matchup presents serious problems unless the favorite’s forum tumbles down an elevator shaft.
To leave any impact on the match at all, the underdog must start more effectively than he has in previous matches. Masked by the heroism of his record-setting comeback trilogy was the uninspired play that required the heroism. Ferrer is no Almagro or Gael Monfils, instead an excellent front-runner against lower-ranked opponents who rarely lets an advantage slip away once he sinks his teeth into a match. Robredo last defeated him in 2008, when they stood much closer in the rankings, and Ferrer has won six of seven overall since losing their first meeting. An all-Spanish quarterfinal at Roland Garros always produces a welcome display of vintage clay tennis. But this quarterfinal should not produce much drama.
Agnieszka Radwanska vs. Sara Errani: The only quarterfinal in either draw between two top-five players features two women who prefer the counterpuncher’s role. The winner can count on occupying that role in the semifinals, no matter who she faces there, but it will be intriguing to see whether Radwanska or Errani steps out of her comfort zone to take the initiative. Both have displayed sparkling form here, suggesting that a high-quality match should lie ahead. Radwanska faced the single most challenging test of their eight opponents in Ana Ivanovic, while Errani’s victories came against a higher level of opponent on average. The Italian labored through a difficult three-setter against Carla Suarez Navarro, a heavier burden than any placed on Radwanska this fortnight. She overcame breathing issues in that match too, showing her underrated toughness.
Neither of these stubborn women relaxes her focus when at her best, so we can expect an absorbing battle waged in all areas of the court. We also can expect plenty of service breaks from these antitheses of Serena’s first-strike power. Radwanska wins more free points on her serve than she did earlier in her career, but she remains a competitor who makes her living with excellent consistency and inspired finesse. Those two traits define the core of Errani’s success as well, pitting strength against strength here. Their history extends back to several meetings in challengers and qualifying draws, which the Pole has dominated in addition to claiming their three WTA main-draw encounters.
Serena Williams vs. Svetlana Kuznetsova: Other than a few games here or there, the top seed’s opponents have offered little more than glorified batting practice. Which Kuznetsova decides to show up on Tuesday will decide whether the batting practice continues, or whether the level of competition spikes. After all, the Russian has won as many Roland Garros titles as Serena has, and hers came more recently. In the same round here four years ago, she outlasted an edgy, error-prone Serena in three pulsating sets before proceeding more smoothly to her second major title. Kuznetsova also served for the match when they met at the Australian Open that year, a tournament that the latter eventually won. Overall, she has won at least one set in five of their eight meetings and taken Serena to a tiebreak in two others. Few women can boast such a fine record against the greatest player of their generation.
An area in which Kuznetsova can come closer to Serena than most women is her natural athleticism, which enables her to transition smoothly from defense to offense. Years of training in Spain have honed her clay skills, moreover, leaving her a more natural mover on the surface than even this sensational version of Serena. An area in which Kuznetsova remains more vulnerable than many women to the world No. 1, meanwhile, is her serve. This shot contributed to her downward spiral in 2011-12, partly because of shoulder trouble and partly because of a general lack of confidence that emerged through double faults. To plant a flicker of doubt in Serena’s mind, an opponent cannot sustain relentless pressure on her own serve. Kuznetsova will bring belief from her three-set upset over world No. 8 Angelique Kerber, but belief alone cannot revive her 2009 form. | 2019-04-22T20:45:20Z | http://www.tennisgrandstand.com/tag/tommy-robredo/ |
Back in 1989, all you needed to do to realize how badly Venezuela needed reform was pick up a phone. On a bad day it could take half an hour or more to get a dial-tone. You’d unhook the phone, go make yourself a sandwich, check for a dial town, eat the sandwich, check for a dial tone again, wash your dishes and put away the mayonnaise, come back and check for a dial tone again…it was pretty ridiculous.
Ah, the days of the nationalized phone company. Working with 40 year old equipment, CANTV (as the company’s called) was far, far behind the technological and service curves. Waiting times to get a new phone line could extend into months or years. Predictably, the delays spawned their own little hotbed of corruption: if you needed a new phone line, you had to pay off somebody inside CANTV to bump you to the front of the line.
It’s just one example, a particularly vivid one, but typical of the times. State-owned CANTV was prey to all the vices of clientelism run amok. Shielded from competition, the company could get away with bloody murder. As a consumer, you were powerless: a supplicant in the grip of a system that existed more to extract bribes than to provide phone service.
But the rot wasn’t confined to the micro-level: macroeconomically, the country was also in serious trouble. The Central Bank was more or less out of foreign reserves. Protected by years of tariff barriers and subsidies, Venezuelan businesses were inefficient, rent-seeking leeches cranking out substandard goods at inflated prices.
Thirty years of petrostate clientelism had turned the government into albatross around the nation’s neck. The public sector payroll was impossibly bloated. The petrostate model had degenerated into a full-employment scheme for governing party clients. In 1988, Venezuela had more public employees than Japan, but as the dark joke at the time went, “of course, in Japan they don’t get quality public services like we do here.” Lots of people on the state payroll showed up just twice a month to collect their paychecks, without doing any actual work. Many others treated their official salaries as a sort of retainer, but everyone understood that the real money was elsewhere – in the kickbacks, commissions and bribes that state jobs gave them access to.
People were sick of it, and understandably so. But – and this is a crucial “but” – they didn’t see the need for root and branch reform. What they wanted was to see the petrostate fixed, not replaced. Venezuelan longed for the bonanza days of the 70s, when windfall oil revenues financed a huge and rapid expansion in consumer spending. If they were angry at politicians, it was because they thought politicians had failed to deliver on their basic mission to meet everyone’s needs by distributing the oil money fairly and generously. Do that, they figured, and the country could return to the good old days of the 70s.
Now, what on earth CAP was thinking when he ran his campaign that way is still a subject of debate in Venezuela today. Looking back, it’s clear that the state was in no financial position to bankroll the whole of society anymore, and CAP must have known that. Some people think it was all a carefully calculated ploy from the start, that he knew he needed to talk the talk to get elected, but was aware all along that he wouldn’t walk the walk.
Not everyone agrees. As one delicious anecdote would have it, CAP was certain that he could revamp the petrostate because he had already worked out a preliminary deal with the incoming US administration. The soon-to-be secretary of the treasury was fully on board for a financial rescue package that would allow the Venezuelan government to keep doing business more or less as usual…and that incoming administration would be run by President Michael Dukakis. Oops.
Instead, he announced a program of massive, IMF-sponsored structural reforms – lifting tariff barriers, dropping subsidies, privatizing state assets…a straightforward neoliberal, Washington Consensus type program. Now, it’s easy to rant against the IMF, but context is key here. Given the scale of the mess that state finances were in, and the role petrodollar-funded patronage played in undermining state finances, there’s a good case to be made that radical reform was badly needed with or without the IMF. Which, in general, is my critique of the standard critique of the IMF: put forward in a context-vacuum, it fails to take note of the entirely Venezuelan reasons why reform was necessary to overcome the bottlenecks generated by petrostate clientelism.
Be that as it may, it’s also true that CAP’s reforms were also a bald-faced betrayal of everything he’d stood for just weeks before he announced.
The point is that there was nothing like political agreement for reform at that point. And CAP didn’t seem to think he needed to make the case for dismantling the petrostate. He thought he could just do it, steamroll over all opposition and present the country with a fait accompli. His thinking, apparently, was that the economic benefits of reform would be so evident within a couple of years that the critics of reform would be marginalized.
Alas, he miscalculated badly. First off, CAP was elected on an AD ticket, as the candidate of the party that benefited the most from the petrostate model. In fact, arguably the main source of resistance to CAP’s reform push was his own party. CAP might have had a road-to-Damascus moment sometime after Michael Dukakis imploded, but the rest of AD was still very much wedded to petrostate clientelism. And CAP’s reforms were plainly incompatible with their vision of the state.
Take CANTV. Sure, it was a nightmare for consumers, but who cares about consumers? For the AD patrons who got to run it, the phone company was a cherished power-base. Not only could they exploit their control over a scarce commodity – phone lines – to demand any number of bribes, enriching themselves and feeding their personal patronage networks, they could also use the company to listen in on their opponent’s phone conversations, to distribute CANTV jobs to clients, and, of course, to install multiple phone lines in their own homes. If you privatized the company, the phone system might start working, but the whole patron-client network it sustained would come crashing down.
Similar arguments could be made about any of four dozen other state institutions CAP wanted to sell off, streamline, or reform. From the state owned steel-maker to the public hotel network, every bit of the petrostate had a powerful set of AD caciques dead set against reform.
Soon, CAP found himself engulfed in a rising tide of unmanageable protest and dissent. Every scrap of reform met strong resistance in congress. AD patrons exploited people’s strong adherence to the petrostate cultural model to fuel resistance to reforms that would undermine their power bases. The IMF was predictably demonized, as was CAP for caving in to its demands. Many Venezuelans were genuinely outraged at what they saw as an unacceptable onslaught on their petrostate perks. In the end, too many people were too dependent on the cash that flowed through the patron-client networks for reform to be viable – and those who stood to lose the most were, by definition, easy to mobilize politically, precisely because they were part of the network.
On February 27th, 1989, a group of far-left agitators in Guarenas, a Caracas suburb, started a small riot over the fare hikes. The riot spread incredibly quickly, first to Caracas itself and then throughout the country. For three days Venezuela went through an unprecedented spasm of rioting, arson, and very widespread looting. The police was helpless in the face of the sudden outburst of anarchy. Eventually, the government called out army troops with orders to shoot rioters on sight. At least several hundred people were shot dead in the next two days, by some estimates the real toll was over a thousand.
The effect of the 1989 riots was in some ways analogous to 9/11 in the US: the event transformed the country deeply. Until then, Venezuelans had seen themselves as different, more civilized, more democratic, better than their Latin American neighbors. 31 years of unbroken, stable, petrostate-funded democracy had made us terribly cocky. In a sense, the riots marked Venezuela’s entry into Latin America. The country was no longer different: just another hard-up Latin American country struggling to put its democracy on a stable footing.
But none of that mattered to the old-style patrons, the 10,000 little caciques heading up administrative fiefdoms large and small throughout the country. What they cared about was power, and CAP’s program constituted too big a threat to their habitual way of getting it. From their perches in AD’s National Executive Committee, in congress, in the courts, the nationalized companies and the labor movement, they were extraordinarily well placed to wreck the reform drive.
It was during the third year of this little CAP vs. AD psychodrama that a certain army lieutenant colonel first entered the public scene…and with a bang. On February 4th, 1992, a group of junior officers launched a bloody coup attempt against the elected government. The crazy adventure – the first time someone had tried to overthrow a Venezuelan government by force of arms since the 60s – left about a hundred dead. But it also turned its leader into a kind of folk hero – the valiant paratrooper willing to put his life on the line to stop CAP’s outrageous drive to dismantle the cherished petrostate.
The coup-plotting lieutenant colonel went to jail, where he whiled away two years reading (but not understanding) Rousseau, Bolivar and Walt Whitman.
In those two years, the government faced a second, even bloodier coup attempt by officers loosely associated with the first. Eventually, CAP was impeached by his fellow AD party members on flimsy charges, and after a brief interim government, the presidency passed to yet another petrostate dinosaur – Rafael Caldera, who had also been president already, but even further back than CAP, in 1969-1974.
By the time he reached power for the second time, Rafael Caldera was over 80 years old. He’d spent 58 of those years in front-line politics. Frail, some would say decrepit, his voice tremulous and barely audible, he wasn’t exactly the kind of leader you’d turn to for bold new ideas. Caldera tried to patch up the old petrostate system – the only one he understood – as best he could.
Predictably, he failed. Corruption continued unabated, cronyism as well, while the banking sector collapsed, the economy languished, and the nation’s collective impoverishment continued afoot. Eventually, he was persuaded of the need for some reform, including an important overhaul of the criminal system and of social security. But he didn’t understand, much less share, the notion that the basic model of the state he had spent a lifetime championing needed a total overhaul.
Disenchantment with the old party structures ran so deep that Copei didn’t even bother to try to run a party insider as candidate. Instead, they tried to co-opt the beauty queen, Irene Saez, who collapsed in the polls the second she accepted their nomination. As always, AD was the last to get the message: they nominated Luis Alfaro Ucero, a semi-literate 80 year-old cacique, a sort of capo di tutti i capi sitting at the pinnacle of the party’s patronage structure. The guy never got beyond 7% in the polls. The much vaunted adeco patronage machine had sputtered to a halt. Soon enough, it was all down to the governor and the coupster, and it was clear that the election would go to the one who best voiced the people’s virulent rage at the ongoing failure of the petrostate.
The scene went down in the middle of one of his infamous, never-ending televised speeches in 2004. President Chavez had barely hit his stride when something caught his eye. His tone changed. Concerned, he started looking towards the scaffolding to the left of the stage he was using, the one used to put up the lights for the speech.
Welcome to the new era of chavista postinstitutional clientelism. This sort of thing is typical of Chavez’s governing style. The president never turns down a personal plea for help, at least not in public. His weekly TV call in show amounts to a parade of supplicants – each week, the lucky few who manage to get their calls through see their wishes for a job or a pair of crutches or an operation fulfilled. The president works hard to make the entire audience feel how much he wants to help them all, personally, one by one.
Chavez’s peculiar contribution to the concept has been to cut out the middlemen. In the old system, each client’s relationship was with the patron immediately above him. But the chavista patronage system only has two levels: the president and everyone else. The old system was held together on the basis of the personal bonds between people in adjacent levels of the pyramid. These days, the relationships that hold up the system are imagined rather than personal – the charismatic leader’s bond with each of his followers individually.
Though Chavez has spent billions of dollars on emergency social programs that effectively re-distribute petrodollars to his political supporters (the famous misiones) I’d argue that his success has almost as much to do with raw sentiment, with primary identifications. Many chavistas feel deeply, personally, almost mystically wedded to the president – the intensity of their emotions towards him are hard to overstate. I’ve heard journalists describe meeting chavistas who carry nothing in their wallets but an ID card, an icon of the virgin mary, and a picture of El Comandante.
That’s a departure from what we’d seen before. In the old system, the relationship between patrons and clients was basically a quid-pro-quo, a matter of mutual interest. Insofar as feelings played into it at all, they didn’t go beyond a certain deference born of respect and fear of the boss. With Chavez, the bond comes from the heart. Chavez’s rhetoric is so powerful he makes people want to see him as a saviour: they want to cry on his shoulders, they want to redeem themselves through him.
courts and the elections authorities and the nationalized companies and every other part of the state was subjugated to one party or the other. But at least there were two of them!
If nothing else, AD and Copei served to balance each other off. No truly transcendent decision could be made without at least a tacit agreement between the two.
In the chavista state, there is only one institution: Hugo Chavez. Note that I’m not talking about the office of President of the Republic, I’m talking about Hugo Chavez personally. When an important policy decision has to be made, the only deliberations that matter take place between his ears.
All loyalties are directed at him personally. Supporters are in no doubt, their gratitude for the misiones is not directed at the state generally but at him personally. With the president locked in a circle circle of relentlessly sycophantic collaborators, all dissent is equated with treason. The one man who makes every relevant decision personally is never confronted with a view of the world that differs one iota from his own.Chavez has largely blurred the the institutional distinctions between state, government, party, presidency and president. The result is an accelerated decay in the state’s institutional structure, to the point where no part of the state can act independently of Hugo Chavez personally. Venezuela today is an exercise in turbocharged personalism.
Of course, Chavez thinks of himself as the pre-eminent critic of the post-1958 state. But his critique is based on ideas that have always been at the heart of the petrostate’s cultural model. Chavez certainly thinks he’s rebuilding Venezuela’s political and social structures from the ground up. But like so many self-described revolutionaries before him, he’s blind to how much his vision has in common with the old regime.
Again, the central conceit of the petrostate cultural model is the idea that the state can and should use its oil wealth to bankroll society. Rather than a critique of the petrostate as such, what Chavez provides is a critique of the way it went astray in the 1970s and 1980s, and particularly of attempts to dismantle it, such as CAP’s.
Chavez doesn’t realize it it, but his outlook places him squarely in the intellectual tradition pioneered by Romulo Betancourt more than 50 years ago. Because the clear implication of his line of reasoning is that the old party bosses forfeited the state’s mission, which was to distribute petrodollars to the people. Ultimately, Chavez is just peddling a very old petrostate line – the old longing to fix the petrostate, to reform the unreformable.
That longing has been the key to his political success. In beating the old petrostate drum, Chavez taps into a rich vein of Venezuelan culture. Breaking the petrostate’s hierarchical social system is child’s play compared to the monumental task of breaking the petrostate as an idea, as a collective understanding of what the state is for. And Chavez never challenged the dominant understanding on that score, he merely leveraged it to his own advantage.
In 1998, the voters wanted to hear someone tell them that the country is rich, that prosperity is their birthright, and that the only reason they are poor is that their share of the oil money was stolen. They wanted to hear that because that was what they intimately believed. And Chavez articulated it brilliantly. With amazing vigor and charisma, he captured the volcanic anger people felt about the breakdown of the old model. Chavez became their voice. So they voted for him. What could be more natural?
There’s just one minor inconvenience: the Chavez era has made the petrostate model even more unworkable than it was at the outset. Oil production has fallen. Chavez’s mismanagement of the oil industry has left the state dependent on periodic oil booms to generate the resource stream he needs to finance his promises.
That’s worth a brief explanation. Those of us who don’t work in the oil industry tend to think of oil wells more or less as water faucets: you want oil, you just turn the thing on. It doesn’t quite work that way. As oil wells age, their pressure decreases, and increasingly complex methods are necessary to keep the black stuff flowing. That costs money, so, as oil wells get older, you need to invest more and more money just to stay even. Venezuela’s rate of depletion runs at about 20% a year, meaning that, in the absence of new investment, that’s how much our production capacity would fall each year.
Hugo Chavez either doesn’t understand that or doesn’t care. Since 1999 his government has pressured PDVSA so hard to hand over more and more cash that the oil men haven’t had enough money on hand to even maintain capacity. Insufficient investment has sent Venezuela’s capacity tumbling – from 3.8 million barrels per day in 1998, capacity had fallen to about 3.3 million b/d at the end of 2002. After the oil strike, capacity is thought to have shrunk farther still, though reliable data is hard to come by. In December 2005, the International Energy Agency, perhaps the most impartial source on the matter, reported Venezuelan production was down to 2.6 million b/d.
So one of the many, many contradictions and ironies of the chavista era is that the president hangs on to the petrostate’s founding myth even as he chips away at the oil industry’s ability to finance it. If the state couldn’t really afford to bankroll society in 1988, and less still in 1998, it really, really can’t today. | 2019-04-25T22:42:15Z | https://www.caracaschronicles.com/2006/01/17/the-petrostate-that-never-went-away-part-ii-2/ |
Steve Wynn had the vision to open the first Las Vegas style resort in Asia, and his vision paid off in spades. By any measure, the Wynn Macau is an unmitigated success. Opening on September 5th, 2006 to massive fanfare, the property expanded again in April 2010 with the addition of the 57-story Encore Tower, making it the biggest hotel casino on Macau island, surpassing the Lisboa in terms of room numbers 1014 to 972. With nothing but rave reviews online, including the Wizard's full endorsement, the Wynn has become THE hotel by which all others are judged on Macau island.
What’s next for Mr Wynn then but to conquer the Cotai Strip? The mammoth Wynn Cotai project is set to break ground any day now, just as soon as he receives government approval. To show they mean business, Wynn Resorts just spent 12.8 million dollars on a set of four porcelain Qing vases for the new hotel. I can't wait to check them out already, but that won't be until 2015 at least, when construction is completed.
Steve Wynn couldn't have put his hotel in a better place. Holding the ground between the Lisboa and MGM, it's the last call for gamers on the Western side of the Amizade strip.
This may come as a surprise to a lot of people, but the Wynn Casino is easily the worst part of the Wynn Hotel. First off, I've been there at least twenty times, but still don't know where anything is, or even where I am when I'm inside. The problem is that every part of the casino looks exactly the same. All you see in every direction are identical looking mini sections, each divided by wooden partitions and decorated with grey curtains and big red chandeliers. And with no central area or focal point to key in on to get your bearings, walking around the place can be a very disorienting experience. Now I don’t mean that the floor arrangement doesn't look good, because it clearly does, I’m just saying that it's way too repetitive. When I'm in there, I'm lost all the time.
This of course leads to other problems. If you don't know where you are, you can't find the games and it doesn't help that the Wynn refuses to group games in their own areas. Instead they're scattered throughout the whole casino so quite often you have to search awhile or ask staff to direct you to the tables. When I was waiting at the membership desk, I heard no less than three people having to ask where various things were. On top of that, the mass gaming is all mixed together with the VIP, so even if you find what you're looking for, you might be politely told that those tables aren't for you.
The kicker is that despite its big name, the Wynn casino really isn't that big. All of the gaming is found on the ground floor, so getting around and finding things should be a lot easier. In all, the casino has around 230 tables with most of them $300 plus. (I had to take staff's word on the amount of tables, because I didn't even try to count them. I'd probably count the same one four times.) Slots number 375 with the cheapest machines 2 cents and the most expensive ones $10. Electronic versions of Sic Bo, Roulette, and Baccarat are also available for play among the slots.
How else to end this part of the review but with more issues? The drink service is beyond slow while the player card and casino promotions are also substandard. (If you can even find out what they are. Anyway, I'll get into that more below.) But I've saved my biggest complaint for last. It derives from something I saw firsthand there in September of 2010, the last time I took my business there to game.
It was one of those nights when everything was going bad. I was playing Caribbean Stud Poker, and couldn't get a pair to save my life. After folding another hand, though, things got a lot worse. I was joined at the table by a bunch of guys you don't ever want sitting down beside you. All of them looked unsavory, especially the head thug, this real ugly, frog-faced boss man whose face had been through a thousand wars. For an Asian, he was one big mother, and even though he was in his fifties, he still looked like serious trouble. The other guys with him were his cronies, clear underlings, just there to light his smokes, laugh at his jokes, and give him face. Think of like meeting the Soprano crew in Macau.
So no sooner did they sit down did they begin to win, which irked me, because I was getting nothing. But as soon as the boss man lost a hand or two, he let his true colors show. He started telling the dealer F you, F that, F the poor guy's mother, and it didn't stop for three or four hands. He even let the female floor manager have it when she came over to tell him to stop touching his chips after the cards were dealt.
As I sat there listening to it, I couldn't believe what I was hearing. First I couldn't believe that that the poor dealer just stood there taking it, and didn't say a word. And then I couldn't believe that the Wynn casino let it continue. Of course, he should have been tossed ASAP, and at one point I really felt like stepping in and saying, "On the contrary pal, why don't you go F your mother?", but I didn't want to start anything four against one. In mainland China, employees who work in the service industry get verbally abused like that all the time, but I didn't think such disgusting conduct would be tolerated in Macau in a place like the Wynn.
Eventually the only thing that made frog face stop was his cards. He got tired of losing and told his boys it was time to go. One of them who was on a huge run motioned toward his chips as if to say, "Look man, I'm hot", but the boss man would have none of it. And since that night I've had no more of the Wynn. I can't frequent a place that won't defend their dealer against such abuse. Now maybe every place in Macau would do the same as the Wynn, and I'm picking on them unnecessarily, but I don't think so. Some casinos surely have spines.
The game selection at the Wynn is little disappointing. At the very least, they should add Casino War and Three Card Baccarat.
Commission Free Baccarat — Players win 50% on a won banker 6 bet.
EZ Baccarat — This commission free baccarat game is Macau's best, with a house advantage of 1.02% for the Banker. In exchange for not paying the 5% commission, banker bets push on won 3 card totals of 7. Also has a Dragon 7 side bet paying 40-1 if the banker does get a three card total of 7. House advantage on that bet is a far less palatable 7.61%.
Caribbean Stud Poker — Payout on a royal flush is 50-1.
Craps — Table is 3-4-5 odds.
Sic Bo — 7 different bets are available.
Slot machines — 375 machines with minimums ranging from 2¢ to $10.
Texas Hold Em — 11 poker tables, 3 of which are VIP. Blinds are $10/$25, $25/$50, $50/$100, $100/$200, $300/$600.
Video Poker — 8 $5 Game King machines with Jacks or Better, Bonus Poker, Double Bonus Poker, Double Double Bonus Poker, and Deuces Wild.
The Wynn promotions are poorly advertised and information related to their player card is not very forthcoming. I really don't think they want players to know what specials are on or how the player card works. Short of summoning the membership desk manager, gamers will be left completely in the dark.
No staff could tell me the rate of point accumulation for the slots.
Mega casinos usually have at least one big promotion where one lucky gamer can win millions of Hong Kong dollars. The Wynn, on the other hand, does only small scale stuff. If some of the promotions aren't clearly explained, it's because that's all the information I have. Brochures were not available at the desk nor was the onsite staff very willing to elaborate.
Rolling Fortune — One draw will be held daily at 5 pm. Table players can redeem one draw ticket for every point earned that day, for a maximum of 12 tickets. Slot players can exchange 100 slot points for every draw ticket, but may redeeem no more than 40 daily. 3 table winners and 3 slot winners will be selected and each player can roll a ball onto the fortune table and win prizes according to where the ball lands. Prizes include cash in the sum of $5000, $3000 and $2000.
Each winner can also participate in a second game. They roll three dice and if they roll three of the same number they'll win between $10,000 and $30,000 HKD.
East West Dining — Slot players who earn 388 points are eligible to receive a $100 dining certificate eligible for use in Red 8, Cafe Esplanada, 99 Noodles or Cafe Encore. Points must be accumulated within a 24-hour period.
Lucky Table — Daily at 3 pm and 10 pm, two random tables will be selected and players playing there will receive $500, $300 or $100 cash chips.
Slot Bonanza — Every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday at 10 pm, 30 slot winners will be selected. I have no idea what they win.
Rolling Treasure — 3 winners will be selected at 9 pm daily. I think it's similar to Rolling Fortune but this promotion is for Diamond Club players only.
There are probably around 10 private junkets in operation on the first floor of the Wynn Casino, all returning different rates. I went to about half of them and found the cash back percentage varies from 0.95% to 1.2%. 1.2% is about as high as VIP companies go in Macau, so congratulations to the Viva Club for giving that.
I asked the staff why their numbers are so inferior to the private junkets and they responded that their service puts them over the top. They will satisfy all of their guest's requests, and that's a direct quote. When I heard that I immediately thought bad things but that only means booking rooms and arranging for cars and ferry tickets. For Wynn Club members who roll in the millions, I'm pretty confident that they get comped outright with free rooms and free food a lot of the time. The Sky Casino on top of the Encore Tower is their private playing ground, off limits to anyone who rolls under five million per month. I would have liked to have gone up there to have a look, but hey, maybe in the next life.
In terms of 5 star hotels on Macau island, it doesn't get any better than the Wynn. The Wizard is a huge fan of place, calling their customer service the best he's ever seen. And believe me, with his rock n roll lifestyle, he's a man who would know. Other objects of his praise include the size of the rooms and the excellent complimentary gifts found inside.
I'd like to add that even though the hotel is five years old, it still feels fresh and new. It also smells great, even on the outside, which shows the lengths they go to. Anyone can pump scented oxygen into a confined space and think they've done something, but it takes real wherewithal to battle the open air and achieve success.
The 24 floor Wynn hotel has 600 rooms and suites, while the 57-floor Encore Tower adds another 414 suites. Always sold out on the weekend, your only chance to snag an unused junket room is to call their reservation hotline at (853) 8986 9966. Don't expect to stay in the Two Bedroom Lake Suite though as it's been unavailable all year.
Rooms in the Wynn Hotel can be found between floors 5 to 24, while Encore Tower suites are located on floors 7 to 56.
I think I can only give half marks to the Wynn for it's beautiful outdoor pool. Sure it looks great, with the lush garden flora, palm trees and chic cabanas, but in the heat of summer, when they're at peak capacity, that pool isn't going to stand up to the demand. They probably should have put another pool somewhere in the Encore Tower, like right on the roof. That would have been a great idea.
Apart from that, the Wynn's outdoor pool is heated, so it's good to go 365 days a year. Jacuzzi fans need not worry either, because there's one of those too.
Pool hours are from 7 am to 8 pm.
With eight restaurants in total, there's no shortage of fine or casual dining at the Wynn. They could use a bit more variety in the cuisine however, as only two places do non-Asian. Prices in the four high brow dining establishments are expectedly pricy, but not super exorbitant by any means.
Golden Flower — Delicious Northern fare for your dining pleasure at the Golden Flower. Everybody says Canton food is so great, but I don't see it. Having lived in China for 6 years, I can tell you Northeastern food is where it's at. Beijing set menus go for $880, $1200 and $1380 while other delicacies are $600 to $1300. Seafood stays in the $200 to $400 range with standard meat and vegetable dishes between $100 and $200. The restaurant is on the western side of the building, accessible from Avenida 24 de Junho. Golden Flower is closed on Mondays. On weekend they serve lunch from 11:30 am to 2:30 pm, and are open in the evening Tuesday to Sunday from 6 pm to 10:30 pm.
Ristorante Il Teatro — Tucked in the lobby, Ristorante Il Teatro does high class Italian dining. Prices are pretty acceptable, with most dishes under $445. Specifically, salads are $88 to $188, pizza $118 to $148 and pasta $128 to $298. The most expensive dishes are seafood $268 to $328 and meat like steak, veal and lamb $228 to $445. If you prefer set meals, one goes for $788, while the other is $1220. Hours are 5:30 to 11:30 pm Tuesday to Sunday.
Okada — Okada overlooks the pool and is Wynn's Japanese eatery. A few different set meals are $580, $880 and $1280 while sashami and sushi go for $40 to $380. Hot and cold appetizers are $45 to $280 while entrees like grilled salmon, abalone and Boston lobster are $180 to $380. Standard rice dishes finally are $65 to $280. Take care in the clothing department as the dress code prohibits patrons from wearing shorts. They will however lend you a pair of trousers if you need them. I don't know about you but wearing other people's pants just really isn't my thing. For larger groups, 2 private dining areas are also available, each seating 8 people. Okada is only open evenings from 5:30 pm to 11:30 pm Wednesday to Monday.
Wing Lei — Wynn proudly calls Wing Lei their signature restaurant, serving food in Cantonese style. Set meals are either $888 or $1388, while abalone, shark's fin and bird nest run patrons $388 to $1288. Seafood specialties stay in the $128 to $528 range, while meat, barbecue and cold dishes are $98 to $488. The cheapest thing on the menu is rice and vegetable fare with most dishes $68 to $128.
Wing Lei is in the northeast corner of the building and can be reached via the casino or through the entrance on Praceta 24 de Junho. Lunch hours are 11:30 am to 3 pm Monday to Saturday and 10:30 am to 3:30 pm on Sundays and public holidays. Dinner is from 6:00 pm to 11:00 pm nightly.
Cafe Encore — General Chinese fare is the order of the day at Cafe Encore. Delicacies run $388 to $1388 while seafood is the second most expensive thing on the menu, costing between $68 to $208. Almost everything else, which includes rice, soup, meat and vegetables, is $68 to $138. Cafe Encore is located in the hallway that bridges the Wynn and Encore casinos. It stays open 24/7.
Cafe Esplanada — Cafe Esplanada has quite a few tables outside beside the Wynn pool. As my notes say, "it's a sick setup, very, very nice." Styles run the gamut with Western and Asian both accounted for on the menu. Sandwiches are $70 to $120 while main courses meals like Norwegian salmon, fish and chips, and lamb chops go for $130 to $250. Steak is $260 to $315. For Asian lovers, Macaunese fare is $60 to $105, Korean $85 to $125, and noodles and rice $60 to $85. I hear the muesli comes highly recommended. They also have a buffet twice daily with breakfast prices $185/$88 for adults and children, and evening rates $238/$130. Cafe Esplanada is open daily from 6:30 am to midnight.
Red 8 — Here's where we start to get a bit into the Wynn's fast food fare. Red 8 does a lot of basic Chinese dishes, and even takes a stab at seafood, birds nest and abalone, but they're not expensive, only going for $88 to $298. A lot of noodles dominate the menu with prices $42 to $78. Barbecue meat, barbecue rice, vegetables etc. stick to the $45 to $88 range. Red 8 can be found somewhere in the casino (don't ask me!) and never closes.
99 Noodles — 99 Noodles is in the Encore casino, and is open from 11 am to 1 am daily. Almost nothing on the menu exceeds $98, with soup, noodles, dumplings, and cold dishes all somewhere between $38 and $88. Rice plates are a little pricy though, costing between $88 and $188.
I'd say the Wynn's facilities are outstanding, but that would be selling them short. How about calling them the best in the city? No argument here, because they're the only hotel in Macau that boasts two spas and two fitness centres.
Both gyms are fantastic. Not only are they large, but they're locked and loaded with state of the art exercise machines, a full cardio complement and an advanced Kinesis wall (which, if nothing else, sounds very cool). Personal trainers are also available if you want some expert guidance on how to use the machines or tips on devising a suitable workout plan. While the gym at Wynn Spa is little better than the one at Encore spa, that doesn't matter because guests can use either one they want.
The Wynn spa and Encore spa serve different functions. The Encore spa consists of eight private treatment rooms equipped with a Jacuzzi, sauna, and shower room. Access to the rooms is available only via appointment and everyone must pay to use them, guests included. Most of the treatments offered are massage, with 60 minutes costing $1,000 and 90 minutes $1,500. On top of those times guests can stay another 30 minutes in the room to enjoy the facilities. Facials and body treatments are also available with prices a few hundred patacas higher than at Wynn spa. Many thanks to the absolutely charming beauty from the Phillipines, Leslie, who works the Encore front desk and broke it all down for me. In fact, I think I might have some follow up work to do with her in the near future.
The Wynn spa is the larger of the two spas and has a more extensive menu. This is the spa hotel guests want, because use of the sauna, steam room and jacuzzi is free for them. Non guests can also access them but must pay for a treatment in order to use them. The one I'm thinking about going for next time is the 15 minute waxing of the eyebrow or chin for $120. Yes, I'd sit back, take the pain, and then just not leave. I’d be all over the hot tub and steam room for the next six hours.
The Wynn spa treatment list is quite large, with selections including massage ($1000/ 90 mins), facials ($780-$1600), waxing ($120-$400), hydrotherapy ($300-$380), and six or seven extra treats ($350-$550). One VIP double suite is also available for couples, with two different 3 hour treatments that cost $3366 and $2388 respectively.
Both gyms are located next to the spas. The Wynn spa is found on the 1st floor while the Encore spa is also located on the first floor in Encore Tower. Hours for all of the spas and the gyms are the same, 6 am to 10:30 pm.
There are two casinos in Macau trying to put on legitimate Las Vegas type entertainment, and they're both on the Cotai strip - the City of Dreams and the Venetian. Six other places, namely Galaxy, Grand Lisboa, Oceanus, Ponte 16, Sands, and Starworld, will put on singing or dancing shows. At the other 24 casinos, including the Wynn, the stage pretty much stays empty.
That's not to say that the Wynn doesn't do anything. The water show out front can turn heads sometimes, especially when it spurts fire at night, but if that's the headline of your show, then you don't have much of one.
They also say call The Tree of Prosperity and Dragon of Fortune "entertainment", but come on. Both are lame five minute borefests. You get to watch a tree and a dragon emerge from a mysterious looking atlas sphere in the shopping arcade. Believe me, don't waste your time.
Finally just to show how hurting the Wynn is, they actually list the Moonfish Jelly Aquarium in Encore Tower as entertainment in their hotel brochure. I've attached a picture so you can check it out. I don't know, you tell me; that's entertainment!?
Bars are quite often a waste of time in China, as your normal everyday person doesn't have the time or money to frequent them. When Chinese go out to drink it's usually done in restaurants with food, and then after that, they might go to a KTV. That's why bars in Macau casinos are so often ignored. It's just not a very Chinese thing to do.
Cinnebar — Cinnebar is located just to the right of the Wynn lobby and is trying more for the trendy coffeehouse/lounge feel with their comfy sofa and lamp decor. Drinks are a bit steep with beers $40, cocktails $70 and harder shots $40 to $85. Glasses of wine are around $100 while bottles go for $390 to $2400. If fine cigars are your thing, they can be had for $120 to $390. An added bonus is that some of the chairs are outside next to the pool, so you can be a part of all the sweet summer action. Cinnebar is open from 5 pm to 1 am Monday to Thursday, 3 pm to 2 am Fridays and Saturdays, and 3 pm to 1 am on Sundays.
Cristal Bar — Prices aren't a whole lot different than Cinnebar's, although you'll find a lot more champagne at Cristal Bar, with prices that will knock your socks off. I saw quite a few bottles are priced in the $3300 to $15000 range. The centrepiece of the Cristal Bar is its impressive looking chandelier which is a bona fide 19th Century antique. Cristal Bar is the Encore Tower lobby bar and keeps hours from 2 pm to 1 am on Sunday to Thursday and from 2 pm to 2 am on Fridays and Saturdays.
Wing Lei Lounge — Located in the casino, Wing Lei Lounge is open 24 hours. Prices and selection are pretty much the same as at Cinnebar although the Wing Lei Lounge has a lot more cognac. I don't even know what cognac is exactly, and with bottle prices $1000 to $2000, I don't think I'll ever find out.
The Wynn will go down in history as the first hotel in Macau to offer a ton of high end luxury shops. It must have been a good idea, because every new mega property that's opened since then has followed suit, with the exception of the Grand Lisboa. While the size of the Wynn's shopping arcade can't compare to the behomoths down on Cotai Strip, 25 upmarket shops is still an appropriate number for the size of the hotel.
LV, Chanel, Gucci, Prade etc, if it's European and expensive, it's at the Wynn.
The Wynn is the best 5-star hotel on Macau island. It's also the most expensive but it's still well worth dropping the extra one or two hundred patacas. Simply put if you're spending over $1,800 on a room in Macau, then you should be staying at the Wynn — end of story.
The casino is a whole other animal though. I can't throw it under the bus completely — as much as I'd like to — because it does have EZ Baccarat, the best Baccarat game in a city built on it. Getting a piece of the 1.02% house advantage on the Banker bet may be enough to make up for all of the casino's glaring deficiencies. Gaming houses, at the end of the day, are about gaming, and not about drink service, or promotions, or layout, or any other secondary consideration that has nothing to do with winning or losing money. They should keep the lowlifes out though. | 2019-04-24T16:55:14Z | https://wizardofmacau.com/en/casinos/wynn |
Many pre-service teachers feel under-prepared to teach students with a diverse range of needs and abilities and continue to be concerned about classroom behaviour management when undertaking practicum experiences. In order to address these concerns, teacher educators have explored alternative pedagogical approaches, including computer based simulations and immersion in virtual worlds. This paper reports on the results of a pilot study conducted with eight pre-service teachers who operated avatars in a virtual classroom created within Second Life (SL)™. The pre-service teachers were able to role-play students with a diverse range of behaviours and engage in reflective discussion about their experiences. The results showed that the pre-service teachers appreciated the opportunity to engage in an authentic classroom experience without impacting on "real" students, but that the platform of SL proved limiting in enacting certain aspects of desired teaching pedagogy. The findings of this pilot study are discussed in relation to improving the preparation of pre-service teachers for practicum.
Integrating theory and practice within pre-service teacher education programs has long been identified as problematic (Korthagen, Loughran and Russell 2006; Lenz Taguchi 2007). Unlike in other professions, pre-service teachers tend to bring to their preparation firm attitudes and beliefs about what comprises good teaching and good teachers from their own prior experiences as school students (Lortie 1975; Sirotnik 2001). These types of predispositions have been shown to exert a much stronger socialising influence on pre-service teachers than either their teacher education program or subsequent socialisation into the workplace (Zeichner and Gore 1990). Accordingly, one of the biggest challenges confronting teacher educators is to impart theoretical understandings that go some way at least in altering the deeply-held, acculturated views of teaching and learning that prospective teachers bring to their pre-service education (Segall 2002). It has been widely argued that this will not occur without the introduction of new and more effective pedagogies that enable pre-service teachers to both conceptualise and also enact ways of doing and behaving in the classroom (Yayli 2008; Meijer, de Graaf and Meirink 2011).
One of the areas in which pre-service teachers' predispositions remain most intractable in teacher preparation is behaviour management (Wubbels 2011). Many pre-service teachers have been shown to rely upon "tried and true" methods from their own schooling (Allen, 2009), with little consideration for new times, new generations of school students and, most importantly, new social behaviours. Also at play is the cautious anticipation, if not fear, that most pre-service teachers experience in relation to behaviour management (Darling-Hammond and Bransford 2005). Although strategies to promote positive behaviour cannot be separated from other dimensions of teachers' pedagogy, behaviour management has consistently proven to be the one that causes most pre-service (and in-service) teachers concern (Woolfolk and Margetts 2007). Therefore, it is incumbent upon teacher educators to ensure that those being prepared to enter the profession are equipped with knowledge and skills around behaviour management, both as they progress through their degree and upon graduation.
Another particular source of anxiety for pre-service teachers is their capacity to cater for the education of students with diverse needs and abilities (Hemmings and Woodcock 2011). Regular classroom teachers have an increasingly important role in implementing inclusive educational practices (Attorney-General's Department 2006; Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership 2011; Forlin and Chambers 2011; UK Department for Education 2012), yet pre-service teachers often state that they feel under-prepared to teach students with a diverse range of needs and abilities, citing: (1) the limited time devoted to inclusive education in pre-service teacher education programs; (2) a lack of experience in primary or secondary inclusive education settings in terms of their own schooling background; and (3) the increasingly greater demands upon classroom teachers to effectively include all students (Hemmings and Woodcock 2011).
A strong practicum component is acknowledged as essential in teacher preparation, yet many pre-service teachers report that the in-field experience provided by practicum does not effectively prepare them for their professional role (Gregory et al. 2011). Due to increasing enrolments and limited availability of suitable field placements, many pre-service teachers are often restricted in their access to quality practicum experiences. Even when placements are found and undertaken, there is no guarantee that pre-service teachers will be exposed to exemplary practices or have the opportunity to trial behaviour management approaches, particularly those associated with students with additional needs that are advocated through their university programs.
A common strategy to prepare pre-service teachers for practicum experiences and to encourage them to engage in discussion about classroom practices has been to use videos of teaching sessions. Teaching videos have been regarded as an effective means of deepening pre-service teachers' learning (Llinares and Valls 2009), with follow-up discussions used to assist pre-service teachers to appreciate alternative viewpoints and to think more critically (Lin, 2005). While we have used such resources with our pre-service teachers with some success, we recognise the limitations in providing examples that are seen as truly authentic by pre-service teachers. The static nature of the footage also limits active engagement and participation and lacks the sense of a "lived experience" that SL can provide.
Responding to similar concerns, some teacher educators have explored alternative approaches, including supplementing traditional practicum placements with professional learning in the virtual world (Christensen, Tyler-Wood, Knezek and Gibson 2011). One such virtual world is Second Life (SL) (www.secondlife.com) - a popular, online 3D world where each user has an avatar (graphical representation of the user or user's character) that represents him or herself (Campbell 2009). While a common use of virtual worlds is in multiplayer online role-playing games (MMPORGs), SL is not a game but, rather, a space for social interaction (Baker, Wentz and Woods 2009). The avatars interact with each other through conversations and gestures (Gao, Noh and Koehler 2009) in a non-scripted environment that is beginning to show its potential for use in educational settings. Virtual worlds have been utilised as communication spaces, simulation of space, and experiential spaces (Hew and Cheung 2010). Of most relevance to this paper is the use of virtual worlds which have been designed to create simulations of real world phenomena to provide opportunities for experiential learning and training (Eschenbrenner, Nah and Siau 2008). In 2008, it was estimated that nearly 12 million unique SL avatar accounts existed worldwide and SL is being increasingly used in educational contexts, with over 100 universities conducting classes or sessions in SL (Gao et al. 2009). The benefits noted by educators include the opportunity to conduct activities and tasks in a risk-free environment, enhanced collaboration and communication between participants, particularly those who are geographically dispersed, and increased engagement (Gao et al. 2009).
While no specific pedagogical model for developing instruction in SL is apparent, there are some principles of instruction that were devised by Driscoll (2005, as cited in Atkinson 2009) which provide for useful consideration. The principles are as follows: (a) the learning process engages learners through exploration and reflection; (b) learning is embedded in a 3D environment where learners interact through role-play; (c) learning is proactive and collaborative where learners test and compare multiple perspectives; and (d) learning simulates real life in authentic contexts through real world activities, behaviours, actions and events (Driscoll 2005 as cited in Atkinson 2009). According to Atkinson (2009), instruction in virtual worlds should involve immersion, interaction, identity and integration. While these aspects could arguably also be applied to learning in the physical world, they were taken into account when designing and implementing the pilot study described in this paper.
Although the body of literature concerning SL practice in teacher education is limited, some research studies and anecdotal evidence show that teacher educators have begun experimenting with the use of SL to both supplement pre-service teachers' learning and as part of their preparation for practicum (e.g. Cheong 2010; Gregory et al. 2011). Given that it is not always possible for pre-service teachers to have sufficient opportunities to practise teaching prior to their work in a classroom setting, SL may provide an additional opportunity for this to occur. Using the environment of SL, Gregory and her colleagues (2011) designed VirtualPREX in order to assist pre-service teachers to acquire a range of professional skills and to develop their self-confidence before they were placed in a real-life classroom. VirtualPREX allows pre-service teachers to engage anonymously and freely in teaching practices and to trial their pedagogical strategies. As Cheong (2010) found, SL has the advantage of providing opportunities for pre-service teachers to improve their teaching abilities without impacting on "real" students. According to Gregory et al. (2011), the pre-service teachers who had used VirtualPREX reported that they found the experience of role-playing students and teachers in SL to be interesting, novel and valuable, with the main drawbacks being the limitations associated with text chat in slowing down the actions. Although SL does support spoken interaction, this facility was not incorporated into the VirtualPREX experience. More recently, the study of Gregory and Masters (2012) suggested that role-plays for pre-service teachers conducted through SL could approximate the benefits of equivalent face-to-face role-plays. Gregory and Masters (2012) argued that, with the potential for additional flexibility afforded by role-plays through SL, further research and experimentation is warranted to explore the utility of SL in this and other contexts. This paper reports on research that goes some way in responding to this identified need.
How valuable did the pre-service teachers find the environment of SL in terms of taking on and managing a diverse range of student behaviours?
The aim of the SL design was to create a highly immersive environment that was, within the constraints of the virtual environment, typical of an upper-primary classroom. Creating the virtual classroom was a three-stage process involving conceptualisation, locating and purchasing objects, and assembling the objects into a finished product. Techniques for building in a 3D world were applied, including the need for: proportions to be upsized [a] from the physical world; clear areas in which students can gather before entering the classroom; and views to the outside to be available, given that enclosed areas can create a sense of discomfort among users. Textures for these elements were chosen carefully to give a sense of space, light and realism. Virtual chairs and tables, notebooks, pens and other classroom decorative items were purchased using in-world currency (known as "Linden dollars"). A screen shot of the classroom is shown in Figure 1.
Further infrastructure that was added to facilitate and record the sessions included signage and instructions and a specialised 3D navigator joystick was used to smoothly pan and zoom camera viewpoints. Video capture software (Snapz Pro X) and video-editing software were used to record the live sessions and to produce the final movies (machinima), which were uploaded onto the "vimeo" website for ease of viewing.
Matak is a 12-year-old boy who arrived in Australia from Sudan three months ago, having spent the previous ten years in a refugee camp in the Congo. He speaks English and comprehends spoken English quite well, but it is apparent that he has not learnt to read or write and often misinterprets colloquial and/or non-literal language. He does recognise most letters of the English alphabet and the symbols for numbers up to ten. In class, Matak is frequently off-task, leaving his seat during personal work time to walk around the room and/or check the contents of his school backpack.
Matak speaks very politely to the teacher, but rarely seeks help or initiates interactions with adults other than his mother. He often seems withdrawn and in a "daydream" but is reluctant to share with others what he is thinking about. Matak loves to play soccer. He is fast and quite skilful for a boy of his age. This year, he has joined the school futsal team and is beginning to make friends with some of his classmates through the sport.
Also provided to participants was a list of typical student avatar behaviours. For Matak, these were: Leaving seat, picking up/holding school backpack, walking around classroom, swinging on chair, avoiding eye contact, kicking a soccer ball. While it eventuated that not all these actions were able to be performed by the avatar, they were originally included in order to fully portray his character.
Once ethical approval was obtained from the relevant Social Sciences HREC, pre-service teachers enrolled in their second and third year of the Bachelor of Education (Primary) program (2011) were invited by email to participate in the pilot project. Eight female pre-service teachers who were enrolled in their second or third year of study eventually volunteered to participate, after we sent out a number of requests. This number, though disappointingly low, was considered appropriate for the purposes of the pilot study as each session needed to be restricted to eight or less participants to avoid noise congestion and audio feedback associated with using the SL voice mechanism. All eight were studying the course either fully or partly online, six were mature-aged, and only one had any prior experience with using SL.
At the beginning of the project, participants were given self-guided tutorials in SL to assist them with movements, gestures and speaking. In hindsight (and as discussed further in this paper), participant feedback indicated that more time was required in order for them to feel confident with operating in the SL environment. Consequently, some designated teaching sessions were preceded with "warm-up" tutorials to practise actions and gestures. Initially, pre-service teachers played the avatar role of students and one nominated researcher played the role of the classroom teacher. This assignation of roles was selected in order to allow pre-service students to reflect and later debrief on the responses made by the teacher avatar (played by a lecturer) about the types of responses she made to student avatar behaviour. It was also done to alleviate pre-service teachers' initial reluctance to take on the teacher role as many felt that it would be too challenging to do this until they were comfortable with operating within the SL environment. Fortunately, one pre-service teacher felt confident enough to take on the role of the teacher, Miss Carpenter, in the fifth and final session. A total of five sessions were conducted over a period of six months. It was initially intended to hold six to eight sessions but, due to factors such as participants' availability and individual limitations with access to technology, a number of sessions had to be cancelled and rescheduled. All the participants were physically dispersed and logged in from their home environments. The topic for each session varied as did the number of participants in the sessions. Table 1 provides an overview of the sessions within the action research cycle, the number and names of participants and the data collected. While the student avatars were the same, they were not necessarily always role played by the same pre-service teacher. The educational developer, who had his own avatar, attended each session to provide support and to record the machinima footage. Each recorded lesson ran for between 20 and 30 minutes and was immediately followed up with a debriefing session, which was also recorded.
As Table 1 shows, the first cycle of the action research process involved conducting the reading of Who Sank the Boat? (Allen 1998). Following this session, the researchers reflected on the outcomes and noted any issues that arose, both in terms of behaviour management and operating within the SL environment. Information collected was then used to inform the next phase of the cycle, which involved a number of shorter interactive activities. Similarly, as a result of the first session, it was deemed appropriate to seek more detailed feedback from participants; hence a recorded reflection session occurred as part of the second cycle of the action research process. A similar pattern continued throughout the process. Data collected consisted of machinima recordings of the lessons, which were fully transcribed, along with audio recordings of debriefing sessions, also fully transcribed.
In the debriefing sessions, also conducted via SL, the participants were typically asked to reflect upon how they felt about taking on the role of the student avatar and how they decided to behave. Issues associated with operating within the SL platform were also discussed. Additionally, participants were asked to complete two evaluation activities in which they viewed the machinima footage, answered questions about aspects of the lesson and provided feedback on the overall experience of SL. Questions asked in relation to viewing the footage from the third lesson conducted included both a focus on teaching approaches and questions about the usefulness of the experience. For example, questions such as "What did the teacher do when she asked Monty to sit and he didn't?" and "Why do you think she did this?" were used to evaluate the pre-service teachers' ability to reflect upon and analyse behaviour management practices. Other questions, such as "Do you think it is possible to recreate an authentic classroom experience using SL? Why/why not?" and "What do you see as the main limitations or restrictions associated with participating in the virtual classroom?" were used to evaluate the experience itself and to solicit feedback about the usefulness and relevance of the SL platform.
The transcripts were all fully transcribed and manually coded with the material being classified into themes, issues and topics (Burns, 2000). For example, instances of participants' role playing according to their students' character descriptions were noted, as were instances of reflection and observations about teaching approaches. Separate themes were identified in relation to the issues associated with operating within SL; these included limitations which impacted upon the choice of teaching approaches, frustration associated with actually operating the avatars and technological difficulties associated with being on-line and accessing the classroom. These themes are described and discussed in the following section.
Due to the nature of the action research process, this section contains both details of some of the procedures conducted with the participants, along with the results that were obtained. In the first of the five lessons, many of the participants had difficulty with controlling the movements of their avatars, and this seemed to detract from their ability to take on the behavioural characteristics of their assigned student avatar. In addition, the selection of a picture book as a focus of the lesson proved challenging, in that the participants were required to "visualise" the pictures in the story because it was not possible to replicate the turning of the pages using the SL platform.
Miss Carpenter: Right, could you sit down Monty? Are you going to join us? Can you suggest a problem where the answer is 28? [no answer] Matak, can you sit down? Thank you. All right - I want some subtraction problems where the answer is 28. Matak, could you give me a subtraction problem where the answer is 28?
Matak: 35 minus 7 equals 28.
Miss Carpenter: Thank you. 35 minus 7 is 28; well done. OK, Willow, did you hear what Matak said?
Willow [talking with classmate]: Yes.
Miss Carpenter: Good, can you give me a subtraction problem where the answer is 28?
Willow: Um, 30 take away 2 is 28.
Miss Carpenter: OK, so we're going to start today by playing a game called "Count around the circle." Does anybody remember how to play that?
Matak: I haven't played this before.
Miss Carpenter: OK, so we start with a number and I think we might count by twos. So if we start with you Monty, you'd say 'two', and then Matak, what would you say?
Miss Carpenter: Ten? Can anybody help Matak out?
Naomi: 14, oh no sorry, 12.
Miss Carpenter: 12, so we had 8, 9, 10, 11, 12. What can you do if you don't know what the next number will be?
Naomi: Count on your fingers.
The conversation continued in a similar vein and, although the transcript showed that the participants were willing to contribute some incorrect answers, they did not portray any real behavioural challenges. Mahon et al. (2010), in a similar study to ours, found that pre-service teachers in the role of student avatars, tended to manifest the behaviours assigned to them, namely to be disruptive and to misbehave. In the study of Mahon et al. (2010), these tendencies might have been attributable to the inclusion of "bots" (an abbreviation of "robot" and refers to pre-programmed computer-simulated character/s) in the simulation and to the provision of specific instructions given regarding, for example, the number of times students were allowed to interrupt. In our pilot study, this was not the case; participants were asked to interpret, and then enact, their roles within the virtual classroom.
"I'm not feeling I can do things with my avatar ... I've tried the inventory and it's not responding and I can't stop my avatar from doing this constant stretching backwards so, other than speaking and sitting, I'm not feeling that I can actually control the avatar ... with calling out, if I talked when someone else was I got feedback, so I didn't call out as much as I could, or as it said in the character's description ... I feel that I can't actually do the things that I suppose define my character; I feel that Monty is being defined by the program."
Several participants' responses indicated that the environment proved limiting in terms of restricting movement and enacting particular behaviours. Other participants raised similar concerns and, as a result of their feedback, and in keeping with the action research process, the next session included an introduction whereby the participants were able to demonstrate the gestures within their inventory in response to the lecturer's commands (e.g., "Everyone, raise their hand"). It was also decided to limit the gestures available to five or six and to concentrate more on the verbal exchanges that could occur.
Confusion with ordering fractions - might think, for example, that 1/9 is larger than ¼ because 9 is bigger than 4; would have difficulty with putting fractions in order on a number line; could probably say that 2/4 is the same as ½ but not consistently; no real understanding of the relative size of a fraction or that a fraction is also a number; if asked to add fractions, would say that ½ and ¾ would be 2/6.
Miss Carpenter: Willow, what would you say if I asked you which was bigger - a quarter or a third?
Willow: A quarter is bigger.
Miss Carpenter: A quarter is bigger? How do you know it's bigger?
Willow: Because it's got the number 4 and 4 is bigger than the number 3 because 4 is one more than 3.
Miss Carpenter: Do you remember what I was saying before and how we were dividing up that piece of chocolate? So, having a look at our fraction wall, if we were to cut up our piece of chocolate into quarters, how many pieces would there be?
Willow: 1, 2, 3, 4.
Miss Carpenter: Excellent, and we would divide those pieces among four people. If we divided our piece of chocolate into thirds, how many pieces would we have?
Miss Carpenter: OK, and are our purple pieces [representing thirds on the fraction wall] bigger or smaller than our light blue pieces [quarters]?
In this context, the teacher was able to demonstrate explicit teaching in relation to explaining the concept of a denominator and the relative size of fractional parts. This could then be used as a basis for future discussion when reflecting upon the machinima footage with the participants after the lesson. This focus was taken by researchers to explore whether or not the SL environment could also be used to investigate other aspects of teaching, besides behaviour management.
What did the teacher do when she asked Monty to sit down and he didn't?
Identify three things that the teacher did that you thought were effective or examples of good practice.
Name one to three aspects of her teaching approach that you would question or change.
Responses to these five questions indicated that the pre-service teachers were able to identify that the teacher effectively ignored Monty's behaviour so as not to disrupt the lesson, but then tried to encourage him to participate through asking him a question related to the lesson. One of the pre-service teachers acknowledged that she would have adopted a different approach, suggesting that: "I probably would have lost track of learning and tried to establish why Monty wouldn't sit and address his refusal to cooperate ... it's hard to say..." Some responses also provided insight into what the pre-service teachers valued as good teaching practice. For example, Amy suggested that Miss Carpenter should not have called Willow "a good girl" for correctly answering the question but, rather, for making a contribution to the class. Others noted positive aspects about the teacher's performance, including her questioning technique, her provision of "wait time" and her use of positive reinforcement.
The reflection process itself proved powerful, in the view of the participants, in that it enabled them to reflect on their own practices so far in their pre-service program in dealing with a diverse range of student behaviours. Through discussing the actions of the teacher avatar and their own and other student avatar responses, they were able to explore some different behaviour management techniques. Participants also commented on the value of peer engagement and reflection. As partial/fully online and geographically dispersed learners, they were able to interact with others in ways that were not always available to them.
If the comments above from Angie were representative of the group, the lack of time spent being the "teacher" may be seen as a limitation of this virtual classroom experience for the pre-service teachers. Notwithstanding, the opportunity to view the classroom experience from the students' perspective may have been beneficial because it is important to appreciate viewpoints from a range of stakeholders to facilitate inclusive education. It has been reported that approaches combining instruction with direct contact with people with disabilities (self-advocates) have been the most effective for changing pre-service teacher attitudes and confidence regarding inclusive education (Forlin, 2006). There are, however, administrative challenges with arranging these experiences, particularly for pre-service teachers who are studying by distance through online delivery modes. Further research may explore the relative benefits for pre-service teachers of role-playing students with specific educational needs, through platforms such as the SL virtual classroom used here, in terms of enriching pre-service teachers' appreciation of student perspectives on learning and teaching experiences.
As with other participants, Lisa viewed the SL activities as a useful addition to "real life" practicum experiences.
The pilot study reported on in this paper investigated the extent to which one small sample of pre-service teachers found the SL environment valuable in terms of understanding how to manage a diverse range of student behaviours. On the one hand, our findings show that pre-service teachers valued the opportunity to both participate in the SL sessions in the role of student avatars with challenging behaviours and also to reflect on the teaching approaches used. The use of a virtual classroom enabled real time role-play for geographically dispersed pre-service teachers who did not have access to on-campus facilities or the opportunity to engage in collaborative reflection and peer discussion. In addition to providing a relatively authentic classroom experience, the opportunity to view the footage and reflect on the experience was seen by participants as being one of the main benefits of using SL. Although only one participant was recorded in the role of the teacher, all recognised that this would be a potentially valuable means of reflecting upon their teaching practice. The SL environment and allocation of student avatars meant that participants could participate in a "lived experience" that would not be possible in the physical world. They could represent their character, interact with others and immerse themselves in an experience that arguably could not be replicated as fully in another environment. An added advantage was that the free form nature of the SL environment meant that each session and lesson was different, allowing for different situations to be played out depending upon the contributions of the participants.
On the other hand, participants found it difficult to fully adopt the role of their student avatars and tended to co-operate with the teacher, rather than exhibit the challenging behaviours expected from their avatars. Participant reflection data suggest that this was due to participants' lack of experience with operating their avatar in the SL environment. Accordingly, it would seem advisable to provide: (a) ample opportunities for practice before expecting participants to undertake the intended role of an assigned avatar, and (b) more explicit instructions about the number of times specific behaviours were expected to be exhibited. Other limitations, as identified by the participants, included the restriction on the use of teaching materials and aids and the inability to use gestures spontaneously.
Although used specifically in this context as a teacher educator tool, SL can also be used to expose students to a new technology, and might potentially increase student engagement, particularly in online classes (Baker et al. 2009). As a result of the findings from this study, we will continue to explore ways in which SL and the virtual classroom can be used as a teacher tool in our courses. Providing pre-service teachers with the opportunity to review and discuss the practice of teaching in which they participated not only offers chances for vicarious experiences and social persuasions (Cheong 2010), but also allows for in-depth reflection and preparation for practicum experiences. It is anticipated that, subject to the provision of adequate time and resources, some of the limitations associated with using SL to replicate classroom experiences will be overcome, allowing it to become an efficient and effective tool in teacher education.
Acknowledgement: The pilot study reported in this paper was made possible through a $7000 institutional Teaching and Learning Grant, which was used primarily to employ personnel to develop the site.
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[a] Replicating the dimensions of the physical world in the virtual world can create a confined atmosphere, due to the differences between a screen presentation and the way we perceive our environment in the physical world. To overcome this effect, objects and buildings are required to be scaled up, the spacing in and around virtual buildings needs to be scaled up in a similar manner. | 2019-04-26T09:45:55Z | https://jime.open.ac.uk/articles/10.5334/2013-03/ |
An update. We arrived in the Jolly Roger RV Resort on the Tuesday, to find that Wednesday and Thursday were Mini Lobster Season.
As I said in my previous this amounts to loads of people coming down here with boats and basically a free for all on Florida Spiny lobsters.
To quote another site “Every July the coastal areas of Florida are flooded with lobster hunters trying to get their share of this year’s bounty when the offical mini lobster season kicks off. There are two Florida Lobster Seasons, the 2 day mini season and the 8 month regular lobster season. The mini lobster season is always the last consecutive Wednesday and Thursday in July. This year the mini season falls on July 26th and 27th. The regular 8 month lobster season is always August 6 through March 31.”.
There is an interesting web site that tells you how to catch them, measure them, quotas etc. here http://floridalobstering.com/ .
We decided to keep well away, plus the two gentleman next door to us promised to show us the lobsters and the end bit of the process the lobster tails (they do not seem to eat anything else but the tails).
So Wednesday we decided as we both got up late to chill after the journey and just do some local shopping for food etc. as on the Tuesday night we had a nice meal at the http://flkeyssteakandlobster.com/welcome/ Steak and Lobster Grill.
So Thursday dawned and we had decided to go to Key West, which is another 60 miles south of Marathon Key. Wow what a journey, Key after Key and bridge after bridge, including one that is 7 miles long.
And then we arrived at Key West a key 2 miles wide by 4 miles long, by Keys standard a large key!! Immediate problem was to find the Trolley Bus tour start point and then some parking, which we found about 400 yds away for $20 all day. That 400 yds walk back in the Florida heat felt like 2 miles!! Got our tickets valid for 2 days, which was lucky as we thought we only needed 1 day, how wrong can you be!!
Took the tour which took about 90 minutes and quickly realised that 1 day was not enough to see everything!!. So we picked a few things to do and started off.
Number 1 was the The Little White House. I will let a photo explain this.
It was used mainly by Harry S Trueman between 1946 and 1952 as an official White House when he was on holiday (vacation in the USA). Many influential pieces of legislation were drafted here and our guide told a lot of what went on when he was in residence. Most of it seems to involve entertaining and playing poker as well as working hard.
I have attached a few photos of our tour on the trolley bus but there are as you could probably guess hundreds of them.
Key Lime Pie shop. Iconic Naval station statue!! Southernmost point.
We then left and made our way back to Marathon where we saw a Florida Keys sunset !!
Next day we went back to Key West to make use of our two day pass. As luck would have it I decided to try the southern route to the Trolley place and recognised a car park that was on the route and FREE!!
It was right next to the West Martello Tower which is run by the Key West Garden Club, http://www.keywestgardenclub.com/ .
It is a lovely tranquil garden that includes a butterfly garden.
We then hopped on the Trolley and got of at Ernest Hemmingway’s house. We lucked out again and got another really good guide around the house, which took about an hour.
Very interesting person, raconteur, drinker, writer, married 4 times!!
Lots of cats that are the 6 toed variety, which are fed by the guides.
Swimming pool cost $20,000 in 1939.
Today (Saturday) we went North, but unfortunately so was everyone else (leaving after mini Lobster Season), so it was extremely slow. We were trying to get to Key Largo but in the end after 2 hours gave up at a place we had seen on the way down with a huge lobster model in the front, and a load of gift shops etc. behind.
Bet you can’t eat that lobster tail.
We also found that Anne has a beach named after her.
As with everywhere here loads of sandy beaches, and miles and miles of clear blue sea.
And we also found a place called Duck Key with an internal canal system and lots of nice looking houses that range from $420,000 upwards!!
Tomorrow Sunday is a chill day, to get everything set up for leaving Monday (where is the time going!!). But more of that in my next post.
A few days to catch up on.
It has been a few days since my last post, so here goes.
Christopher kept his promise and came and saw us on Saturday after his bike ride. He rode most of it with the sole of his cycling shoe gradually becoming more and more detached. He stayed for an hour or two and then went off to finish his gardening jobs.
We then went out to see two local attractions, the Loggerhead sanctuary and the Hobe Sound National Wildlife refuge.
The Loggerhead Sanctuary was very interesting with examples of the various turtles found in the Florida region and also some that are not, but it made a very good exhibit, especially the skeleton of an absolutely huge turtle they found which must have been at least 10ft from head to toe (or back end of shell).
Outside they had various turtles recovering in tanks, a bit like the Seal Sanctuary at Gweek in Cornwall. Most of them seem to have been found after being hit by boats or ingesting fishing line (not good for turtles as messes up their digestive system).
A little one that kept trying to get out!!
Another big one with seaweed on his head, like a comb over!!
Best photo of medium size one.
Unfortunately the main exhibit at the Hobe Sound National Wildlife refuge was closed (seems strange to close at 3pm on a Saturday!!). However, there was this bush that was covered in yellow butterflies, but I am afraid they don’t come out very well on the phones camera.
You can just make out some yellow blobs if you look hard.
Since it was very hot we decided to give the open air nature trail of two miles a miss and returned back so that I could cook the steak we had bought (steak is so cheap in the US).
Next day dawned (Sunday) and it was a bit cooler so put the RV mat out, plus the table and chairs and we sat outside and ate breakfast and relaxed. There was a lovely cool breeze and it great to sit outside.
Anne enjoying the cool breeze.
Notice the matching the paintwork all weather RV mat!! Also the wheels are covered in the wheel protectors.
Later on Christopher brought Scott and Erika, who we first met at Christopher’s and Lilia’s wedding in Mexico, across to see the RV and after a beer we went out to eat at Shrimpers at Hobe Sound.
Each boat is worth $.5m apparently!!
Monday saw me doing various things to the RV. Fixed the windscreen wipers that were set too low and banging on the bodywork. Bought LED stop/night/indicator lights for the back light clusters so everyone knew what I was doing, so I fitted those. Also had to part empty the grey tank as we had a few showers since we had been here and it was full. And at the end of the day Christopher turned up with the propane hose that allowed me to connect the Weber grill to our propane tank, and we tried it out by grilling steak for dinner. We said goodbye to him later on as this was the last time we would see him before setting off to the Florida Keys (or perhaps that should be Quays!!).
Tuesday dawned and for once we got up early as we had a lot of packing up to do before we headed off. All the various things inside the RV had to be stowed so they wouldn’t crash about and break, the black and grey tanks had to be emptied and flushed, and the electricity, water and sewer pipe disconnected. Then slides in, jacks up and roll forward so we could attach the Spark to the towing hitch. and off we went at about 10.30am.
First stop was to get some gas (petrol) and much to my surprise as it was reading half full it only took $80 to fill it up. Then off to I95 for the journey south to the Keys.
As it was after rush hour we got past Miami fairly easily and joined US 1 to take us to the Keys. One thing we have to figure out, is where do you stop in an 35ft RV with a tow car to have a “rest” break. US highways are sadly lacking in Service Areas no wonder they invented the various “pee in a bottle” solutions. In the end I just pulled it into a chevron area off the main carriageway so we could both go to the loo!!
Then the Keys made an appearance. With lack of space US 1 in many places is just a single carriageway road with a concrete divider which had lots of rubber marks on it so obviously people have hit it.
Some of the scenery is spectacular with long bridges over stretches of water (True Lies!!) and some larger bridges over deep water channels.
Arriving at Jolly Roger 197 miles later.
Site is a lot more cramped than JD Park, but then they do not have the space, and there are a lot of people here for the Mini Lobster Season (two days of mayhem apparently when everyone is out in their boats catching lobsters).
Just about got the slides out.
Tested my reversing skills getting between our camp area (concrete pad with table) and the large truck next door, but my guide helped, waving away in the mirrors!!).
So we are here and planning our next 6 days going up and down the Keys as Marathon Key, where we are, is right in the middle.
We need a bigger boat!! How about this one!!
Woke up on our first morning and we both agreed the Queen bed is b****y hard!! So straight on the shopping list was a mattress topper we had seen but decided to wait until we had tried it out!!
Then I tried out the shower, water flow was just about acceptable, but Anne then tried and said that the flow wasn’t enough to wash her hair properly. Well I figured it was the water pump, so I looked at the manual and discovered I had made a mistake. To be honest it was our previous experience of RVing in Canada that caused me to make the mistake. The RV we hired in Canada had a campground water connection, but we weren’t allowed to use it, just the gravity water tank fill and the on-board pump as apparently they had too many hire RVs blowing up water systems with over pressurised mains feeds. Well this “big beast” has a water pressure reducer fitted (keeps it at 40psi max which is what the water system is rated at) and that keeps over pressurised systems in check and allows you to run direct water pressure from the campground with no water pump in use. You only use the water pump when boon docking (camping on the open road or a Walmart car park, yes they allow it!!).
So off went the pump and bingo good pressure throughout the coach except (you guessed it) the shower!! So the next culprit was the shower head. Disconnected it and sure enough the water from the hose was flowing nicely, so what is wrong with shower head? Perhaps it was blocked but on taking it apart all was well. And then I happened to look at the bit that screwed into the pipe and what I saw was a plastic insert with 3 minute holes in it. Great thought I a pressure reducer. No chance this was stuck in as permanent fixture and I can only think it is to help the feed when we are running on the pump. So the next item on the shopping list was a proper shower head!! (Update new shower head is a success).
Next I went outside to fit the wheel covers. Now some off you at this point will be thinking has he gone nuts putting covers on the tyres and wheels, but there is a reason for this. The Florida sun is quite hot (British understatement) and has a high (actually very high) UV reading, and UV light does nasty things to large RV tyres(truck tyres really), like cracking sidewalls causing blowouts. With two new tyres on the front and 4 fairly new tyres on the back axle I wasn’t taking any chances so on went the covers.
Just in time as it happened, as a huge thunderstorm then rolled in and deluged us for an hour. Thunder and lightening in an RV is an experience, as is heavy rain bouncing off the roof, but at least it proved we have no leaks.
After this we spent the afternoon in Walmart and Publix getting our food supplies in as the fridge is now down to the correct temperature and the ice maker is making big chunks of ice!!
When we got back we cooked our first meal in the RV which was an interesting experience but with the vent fan, the cooker vent fan and the air con running we have no lasting smells and it stayed quite cool.
Christopher is arriving early tomorrow as he is mountain biking in the park track for an hour or so. Not too early I hope, as we are retirees after all.
So now to test the new mattress topper.
Well here we are after all the work buying the RV and tow car, plus contents, parked at our first Campground https://www.floridastateparks.org/park/Jonathan-Dickinson .
It is about 10miles up the road from Christopher’s and about 20 miles from Palm Beach RV just in case anything is not working correctly.
After a very hot morning spent sanitising the drinking water tank outside Christopher’s house we loaded the last bits into the RV and hitched up the Spark. Then we set off to arrive at the park at 3pm which was our “check in” time!! After filling out a few extra details with the rangers we got two vehicle passes, one for us and one for Christopher so he could see an RV in the “wild”.
We are on pitch 58 for 5 nights, to do the planned RV “shakedown”, getting used to how everything works, and making sure it all works as it should. While we were at Christopher’s parked up without the jacks out so not level, the fridge decided to throw a wobbly, but it turns out his drive was too steep and the fridge stops working if it is more than 6 degrees out of level. Anne found that out after searching the owners manual, so it was a case of RTFM.
We parked up, levelled out on the hydraulic jacks (the RV dances for about 3-4 minutes until it is satisfied the RV is level), slid the two slides out, attached the surge protection system and the 50amp lead to the electricity supply, attached the water hose to the potable (drinking water to you and me) water supply and filled our fresh water tank, and then put the sewer hose together and attached it to the sewer outlet and the black/grey tank dump valves. All done without a hitch!!
If you look closely at the photo above the first black lead is the 50amp electricity feed, the just visible blue hose is the fresh water feed and the brown hose on the black caterpillar (contraption to allow a gradual fall on the pipe to the outlet so nothing yucky gets stuck in the pipe) is the sewer connection.
We then went to get something to eat and some basic supplies (not to many as the fridge is not at the right temperature for at least 12 hours) and then returned in another thunderstorm. Florida weather is almost as changeable as the weather in the UK!! Christopher then came to see us and to check out the RV life style. First thing he said was it is quiet here and it is until an Air Con unit kicks in!! Sitting a nice balmy 77F (25C) as we have been told not to make it too cool as the hot air hits you as you leave. Leave!! I am staying in here!!
I am typing this in the RV using the AT&T phone as hotspot as there is no WiFi in State Parks.
Tomorrow we will go and get more groceries and start using all the appliances in the RV.
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We decided as the Spark was going to be our lifeline that we ought to get it serviced, so I phoned up the local Chevy dealer and booked it in for a full service, saying that I would wait while it was done (little did I know!!).
The day (Friday) dawned and I turned up at Schumacher’s and was introduced to my “service Consultant”, Tom!! He noted what was required including fitting the “hood” bracket so the hood would stay up (for some reason it was missing) and two extra keys. He then said they would take a look at it and let me know approximate costs!! In the meantime I could sit in the Customer Lounge and enjoy the free coffee and bagels. Had a coffee, gave the bagels a miss, although not everyone did as while I sat there an older lady came in and proceeded to take three complete bagels with cream cheese and wrap them up and put them in her handbag, must have been peckish!!
Anyway an hour later Tom turned up. The Spark’s rear drum brake cylinders both had leaking seals, which had ruined the cylinders so both needed replacing including the brake pipes which were frayed, and we needed new front brake pads on the disk brakes. Other than that and the normal filters and oil, and he advised a transmission oil change as it was long overdue, he said the car was in remarkably “good shape” especially as the last time he could see it had been serviced was 25,000 miles (40,000 miles ago!!). All of this meant they had to order parts and it therefore would not be ready until Monday!! They would supply a free loan car. OK said I and we duly filled out the paperwork, and I was taken out to the loan car. Well I had to laugh!! Here was me driving around in England in 14 year old Passat estate with 220,000 miles on the clock and running the UKPassats web site http://www.ukpassats.co.uk/phpbb/index.php and the loan car was a nearly brand new VW Passat sedan (saloon) with 3,000 miles on the clock and all the toys!! And I had it for the weekend!!
I had also arranged on Friday for the paint guy at Palm Beach RV to fit the new bumper, so I had to ring him and rearrange it for Monday when the new tyres were due to be fitted to the RV.
We had a good weekend shopping for the RV and chilling as well as trying out the Passat (it was a V6 3.2 litre!!).
Monday dawned and it was due to be a busy day. Pick up the Spark from having a service at the Chevy dealer (and return the loaner VW Passat sedan sigh!!), back to Christopher’s, hitch up the spark to the RV, drive to Palm Beach RV (slowly with the tyres banging away!!), leave it to get the tyres done, and take the Spark to the paint shop to get the new bumper fitted.
What is that saying “the best laid plans of mice and men”!! Waited for the supposedly early call to say the Spark was ready, but by 10 o’clock it hadn’t happened, so I rang the dealer. The Spark wasn’t going to be ready until 11.30am at the earliest as some parts had come in late. So I rang Palm Beach RV to warn them I was going to be late, to be told that the tyre place they used were short of fitters as they had called in sick so could we delay it until Tuesday!! OK that simplified things a bit as now I had to just concentrate on the Spark.
Schumacher’s phoned back dead on 11.30am to say the Spark was ready, so I set off. Saw the Spark sat there ready when I pulled in and Tom said could I complete the loaner paperwork and he would get my bill ready. Completed the paperwork, and went to Tom’s booth. Turned out the bill was slightly less than the initial estimate, but it was still a chunk of money!! 2 keys at $128 each didn’t help as well as an hour’s labour to fit the hood strut bracket (think it would have taken me 2 minutes!!). But it is all worth it as the car was now on a “minor” service schedule and wouldn’t need another service for 5,000 miles.
So got into the Spark and drove it to the paint shop. At least that part went well, all fitted in about 2 hours (they had to recut the new grill to allow the tow receivers to fit through). I then drove back to Christopher’s in a Florida rain storm (it hissed it down for at least 2 hours, but over here they seem used to it with large drainage ditches and huge runoff drains on the roads).
Tuesday dawned and it was time to take the RV back to Palm Beach RV to get the tyres fitted and some paperwork done for the extended Warranty etc.
After a slow drive down, so we didn’t break anything in the partially loaded RV with tyres banging away, we arrived at Palm Beach RV. They have a somewhat narrow entrance to the lot so turning in from the middle lane of the main road was an experience as Americans have a habit of undertaking people even when they have the right turn indicator flashing (thank god for the camera in the mirror, so I had at least 3 ways of checking what was happening)!!
Made it into the lot and handed the keys over and they took it off to the Tyre supplier. The estimate was 2 hours to change to RV tyres, so we should be out of here by 12.30 (!!). Completed all the paperwork and then sat and waited for the RV. 12.30 passed, still no news, and finally at 1.00pm I went and asked if they had heard anything. That rang the tyre fitter and they said it would be ready in about 30 minutes. Well it was actually an hour, before we were driven up there to collect “big beast”. All done, with the Tyre Pressure Monitoring System installed on the new tyres. “RV is round the back in our lot” says the receptionist as she gave me the keys. Well that tested my manoeuvring skills in a 35ft RV. It was parked front in with cars all around it and not a huge space to turn around!! Finally got out after a 10 point turn, without hitting anything (the rear camera is a godsend!!). We had agreed with Palm Beach RV we would test drive it up I95 to Christopher’s and we would let them know the result.
Well all I can say is what a difference two tyres make!! Smooth as silk, no banging and cruised at 55mph no problem, so that sorted that out.
Got back to Christopher’s and Anne made the evening meal (sockeye salmon very nice) and the Christopher and I decided to try out towing the Spark. Hooking it up was fairly easy and it was at this point that Christopher insisted Anne drive the Spark while I did the hitch work, so for the first time since we arrived in the US Anne drove a car!! It all went very well and Christopher and I set off on a trial run. The people at Palm Beach RV said we wouldn’t even notice a 2,000lb car being towed by a 22,000lb RV and that turned out to be true, and the only reason we knew it was there is we could see it in the rear view camera. Christopher decided he needed to test my RV driving skills on narrow roads (for America that is, although they are still wider than a lot of our A roads), and roundabouts (there seem to be a lot in Florida compared to other states I have been in). So after about 10-15 miles and about 10 roundabouts all negotiated with the rain tipping it down, Christopher was happy and asked if he could have a drive. He took us back to his house and luckily it had stopped raining (or so we thought) but as we unhitched the Spark the heavens opened again and we got soaked, but at least it was warm!!
Sorry this is along post, but there was lot to tell, but mission accomplished all vehicles ready to go and we are now booked into the shakedown campground, Jonathan Dickinson State Park from Thursday night for 5 nights to trial everything on the RV https://www.floridastateparks.org/park/Jonathan-Dickinson .
Final note, I am trying to add a subscribe widget to the Blog so that you can be informed automatically if there is a new post or comment. Think I have done it but not sure as I only seem to see it at certain times. Let me know by email if you are having problems.
Anne in the driving seat.
Spark Florida plate turned up.
We got our first official number plate today for the Chevy Spark, and I think someone at the vehicle licensing has a sense of humour, can’t believe it is a coincidence!!
Well it finally happened we picked up the RV!!
Got to Palm Beach RV a little early and we sorted out a couple of payments for some outstanding items, and then we set off on a test drive and lesson on driving. All went well, learnt how to avoid overhanging trees (it is 12ft 6in tall) and that doing a U turn in an RV of this length is not possible (just go around the block!!). Got to remember the rear end swings out as at least 9ft of the coach is beyond the rear wheels!! It was then we noticed a vibration from the front wheel, but more of that later.
Got all that sorted out and then returned to Palm Baech Rv to find that they still hadn’t emptied the black/grey tanks, or filled up the LPG and gas tank. So they emptied the tanks, went to AmeriGas to fill up the LPG tank and then to Racetrack garage to fill up the gas(petrol) tank.
Filling the gas tank was an experience vying with all the other people to get a 35ft bus alongside a pump, but eventually got there. You also can only go to the larger garages as you have to get a 12ft 6in bus under the canopy!! Then we started to fill and fill and fill the tank. Bear in mind it was just under half full when we started, but about 5 minutes later the pump final slowed and clicked off and we had a full tank and 45 gallons extra (US fuel pumps seem to go extremely slowly but luckily they have this nifty catch that allows the pump to carry on working without you having to hold it). Total bill $99 at $2.09 per gallon, which is 3 .78 litres approximately (that is about 45p per litre!!). I have seen it lower that at $1.99 so thank god for low prices!!
All done so we drive back to Christopher’s to drop of the Spark and then he drove us back to Palm Beach RV to finally drive the RV to Christopher’s. We had already mentioned the vibration and they said they would arrange a tech, but I am glad we did as on the drive back up I95 we couldn’t get above 50mph because the vibration got horrendous. Christopher pulled alongside on I95 and he could see the wheel was bouncing, so we backed off to 45mph and drove home. We then looked at the tyres (tires in the US!!) and the nearside had multiple flat spots and the offside had a few less but still had some. So I am back to Palm Beach to tell them we need 2 new front tyres and I am not paying for them ($450 a tyre!!).
We got the RV on the drive and with Christopher’s help and a lot of wooden blocks we got “big beast” (as Anne calls it) level on the auto hydraulic levelling system, so we could run the bedroom and living room slides out. We were hoping to use one of the house 30amp sockets to power the static RV but its not that simple in the US as the house sockets seem to have a different configuration to the RV 30 and 50amp sockets, another thing to ask.
So day ended with us running the RV on the generator, which since it has only got 94 hours use on it is no big deal.
Only a few wooden blocks.
On a level site we shouldn’t have to use any.
“little beast” and “big beast” !!
Today we are starting to put all the “stuff” we have bought into the RV and figure out what we still need and I am back to Palm Beach RV to get the Spark front bumper sorted and tell them about the tyres!!
Onwards and upwards!! In spite of all this we are way ahead of where we expected to be, so hopefully we will be going to our first “shake down” RV campground next week.
I have forgotten to mention one important part of our journey so far and that has been the transfer of money to our US bank account with Citibank.
Some months ago I spotted an article by Martin Lewis of Money Saving Expert about the rip off rates that Banks use to transfer money to foreign banks. Investigated this with our bank and found that on average you lost about 6-7 cents per pound when transferring money to the US. Now this meant we would lose quite a substantial amount when we wanted to move money to buy our RV.
Martin in this article http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/banking/foreign-currency-exchange recommended a company called Transferwise. I can but back him up on this as we have used them and to say the least the transactions have been flawless.
Because our bank had a daily transfer limit we had to do it over a few days but having two bank accounts with different UK banks sped up the process. The way is works is you transfer money to Transferwise (we did a small transaction of £100 first to check it all worked), and then Transferwise converts the money and sends it to your nominated foreign account. It works for all of the major currencies and they are gradually adding more.
We always got the top conversion rate as per the market (we lucked out as over the period we did it £ – $ went up to $1.30!!) and Transferwise make their money by taking a small percentage fee on each transaction. We actually saved thousands of dollars by doing this, so I can heartily recommend Transferwise.
Thursday the 6th July dawned and with some trepidation we set of to Palm Beach RV for our training course and to pick up the RV and the Spark with the towing hitch fitted.
Got there after picking up a rather large certified cheque from Citibank and the day started with an introduction to their Finance guy to hand over the cheque and sort out our Warranty and Paint cover.
All completed we waited for the guy who was going to walk us through the RV and introduce us on how to use everything. He turned up and first showed us the Spark with all the towing brackets etc. sticking through the front grill. At first glance all looked great(more of this later).
Then onto the RV. I suppose we should of guessed that we weren’t going to get all we thought we were when he opened up by saying “this is my first time doing this on an RV”. Anne asked if we could video his talk and he said he wasn’t happy with that so Anne got the notebook out and started writing. First came the tour around the outside where we were shown the outdoor entertainment centre, the various storage lockers, the on-board generator and how to start it from the outside, and then the important bits on how to connect to the Black (sewerage), grey(dirty water) and white(drinking water) tanks, and the electrical, TV and cable hook-ups.
First thing we found out was something we already knew but our guide didn’t was that there was a separate black tank for the front bathroom which was connected to the back black tank for dump purposes via a macerator pump. Got that sorted out and then moved on to the front of the vehicle, where he didn’t know how to open the hood (bonnet). Luckily I knew how to do this and had already seen all the important bits (oil fill, radiator top up, washer bottle etc.), so we completed the external tour and moved inside.
Opened up the door and out popped the steps and he took us through the 4 batteries on board (2 engine start, 2 house batteries for running unconnected to power). Next to them he pointed out the external awning controls, and then then the various fuses and breakers that were in the panel next to the switches. Then we introduced to the screen door and the main door locks etc. and finally got out of the Florida heat into the air conditioned interior!!
This is when we discovered that the bits they were supposed to be repairing hadn’t been done! The end of the tow/haul lever was still missing, and the pull that opens the sofa into a bed that was pulled off during our sales tour was still off!!
We proceed on round the coach (will not bore you with the multitude of switches, functions etc. we were introduced to), although there was quite a few things that he was unclear about how they functioned. Finally got to the bottom of most things after asking more questions.
I then noticed an extra pedal next to the automatic pedals and asked what it was and he said it was the parking brake and proceed to show us how it worked. He released the brake and at this point the levelling jacks all automatically closed, a safety feature he had forgotten all about, since you are not supposed to drive off down the road with jacks down!! After a bit of rocking and rolling as we settled onto the wheels he apologised and tried to explain what had happened!!
We then moved onto how the slides worked and said that he would now show us how they retracted. Now I was a bit puzzled by this and said so, since I had read that you should never move the slides unless the vehicle was level on the jacks, which due to his mistake were now closed. Luckily Winnebago had put another safety feature in that stops you operating the slides without being level, so when he pressed the button nothing happened!!
So we found out how the levelling system worked!! First you must turn on the engine to provide pressure for the hydraulics and then you hit the Auto Level button. At this point the jacks come down and the RV goes into a sort of dance at it figures out what jack it needs to get the RV level. After about 3 minutes it declared success and sure enough we had one green light in the middle of the levelling system saying it was level.
Then we could retract the slides!! Which we did by pressing the appropriate buttons, but noting that you must make sure you switch all the lights etc. off at the back of the RV as once the bedroom slide is in the only way to do it is to climb across the bed.
At this point the “instructor” declared it was time for lunch and he would take us through how to attach the Spark to the hitch after lunch.
Anne and I looked at each other and said fine we will go and get lunch as well and meet him back there in an hour. In reality we wanted time to write down what we thought was missing so far and what we still needed to know and get fixed.
Our list was quite long so we decided after lunch to get our main contact Will and explain to him that we were not that happy with what had happened. To give him credit all sorts of people appeared out of the woodwork and we suddenly had access to more experienced people who explained all the outstanding questions (i.e. how did the left/right turn cameras work, obvious when you shown but it was omitted!).
Then we went through the things we thought we had paid for but not been done, black/grey tanks had not been emptied and flushed, LPG was not full, gas tank was half empty and supposed to be full and we weren’t too impressed with external “detailing” (water streaks all over it).
So finally it was agreed that we would leave the RV with them until Wednesday 12th July so they had time to fix all of this and also service the vehicle/generator which had not been done. Ho hum.
Then I was shown how to hitch the Spark up to the RV (it looks tiny at the back of the RV!!), which to be honest was impressive with so many safety features to stop it flying off into the woods if it became disconnected!!
We needed the Spark as the hire car goes back on Sunday 9th and we had promised to take Lilia to Miami airport on Tuesday (going to Mexico) as Christopher starts his training course on Monday and cannot get away. So we parked it in the Customer Parking and drove back to Chris’s to get him so we could pick it up.
We then drove back with Chris and it was then that he noticed that they had damaged the Spark front bumper installing the hitch!! The dealership was closed so we drove back got something to eat, and called it a day.
Next day we went back again to have this investigated and we are getting a new bumper to fix the problem!! Result!!
Other than all above we have been continuing to shop for the RV which if some of you have seen Anne’s Facebook post has not exactly been my favourite bit!!
That’s all for now, probably will leave it until Wednesday to post again when we pick up the RV (hopefully) !! | 2019-04-19T15:17:12Z | http://dmjsystems.co.uk/rvblog/2017/07/ |
Behaviors are really not something entirely new as you might expect. They are nothing more than a simplified way to use parent/child objects. When a sprite begins, Lingo automatically creates a child instance of the behavior script just as it would for a parent script. In the case of a behavior it automatically puppets the sprite, creates a property variable for the object called spriteNum and initializes it to the number of the sprite channel. This new object instance is then stored in an internal list of sprites. This behavior object receives some new messages such as BeginSprite, and you can send it messages with SendSprite. In most other respects it operates much as a normal child object operates.
We use sprite behaviors for everything from our developer utilities such as DreamLight RAMLight through full-length CD-ROM projects such as the award-winning KeyQuest edutainment CD-ROM, to our on-line entertainment products like Quipples: The Internet game show of satirical riddles.
This page also includes some miscellaneous bugs, tips & tricks not directly related to behaviors.
Strange Behavior: Recompile all Scripts!
What is the number of the frame script sprite (channel)?
Well, it depends exactly who you ask and exactly when you ask.
Inside a frame script behavior, the value of the currentSpriteNum is 0.
Inside a frame script behavior, the value of Me.spriteNum is -5.
Inside a frame script behavior's isOkToAttach handler, the sprite number argument is 1.
I have personally found that referring to the frame script sprite number by using the currentSpriteNum (which is 0 in a frame script) is currently the best way to refer to a frame script sprite in a behavior, especially since it's the only valid way to access any of the sprites properties via Lingo as you'll see below. (Though you can only access a couple of Director's built in properties for it this way) Currently, in an isOKTattach handler though, you can't use the passed sprite number since the number 1 could easily be mistaken as graphic sprite number 1, so you have to rely on the type argument instead. It would obviously be much more consistent if all three of these access methods used the same number to refer to the frame script channel.
Now, let me outline the case I made to Macromedia to fix this problem by changing Me.spriteNum and the sprite number argument in an isOKToAttach handler, both to also return 0 for the frame script sprite.
Since the original definition of a sprite in Director, going way back, was that of an animated graphic, the script channel was not "really" considered a "sprite" and thus the spriteNum of the frame script channel has always been considered "ill defined". In the current implementation of Director, using behaviors, the frame script channel has much more in common with what Director now considers sprites than it used to. So much so in fact that it would be much more consistent and easier to program if the frame script channel were fully promoted to sprite(0), as it already partially is considered by Lingo, as you'll see below.
The frame script channel uses sprite behaviors which are attached to it, just like they are to graphic channels, they may span a range of frames just like other sprites. They are written and attached exactly as they are for other channels.
The frame script channel receives the following sprite behavior messages: beginSprite, endSprite.
The frame script channel also has properties of sprite(X).startFrame and sprite(X).endFrame.
So, even though Lingo currently uses three different numbers to refer to the frame script channel ( 0, -5, and 1 ) it only allows access to any of the sprite's properties if you use 0, which corresponds to the currentSpriteNum. If you attach the following behavior to a graphic sprite and the frame script sprite (spanning a different range of frames) and run the movie you'll see what I mean... also, while it's running use sendSprite(0,#report) to send a custom message to the copy running in the frame script.
Me.pSpriteName = "sprite(" & the currentSpriteNum & ")"
"sprite(" & the currentSpriteNum & ")"
-- "sprite( the currentSpriteNum ) = sprite(1)"
-- "sprite(1).scriptInstanceList = [<offspring "SpriteBehavior" 3 146e8058>]"
-- "sprite( the currentSpriteNum ) = sprite(0)"
-- "sprite(0).scriptInstanceList = [<offspring "SpriteBehavior" 3 146e2788>]"
The primary argument against changing this, is that some people have been using Me.spriteNum = -5 to detect a sprite behavior running as a frame script. I don't recall Me.spriteNum = -5 being documented or supported but I do recall the currentSpriteNum = 0 being both documented and supported to detect a sprite behavior running as a frame script. Therefore, changing Me.spriteNum to also return 0 for a frame script sprite sounds entirely reasonable to me. If the frame script channel were promoted to sprite(0) we could use the spriteNum to access its properties just like in other sprites.
to explicitly declare the automatic sprite property spriteNum. As shown on page 475.
In this case Lingo uses the declared property spriteNum inside the isOKToAttach handler (rather than the sprite number passed to isOKToAttach) and at the time that the handler is actually called, the property "spriteNum" is not defined and is VOID. spriteNum only gets set when the behavior is actually instanced, during run time, so the test will not work as expected.
Instead you should use a different variable name, rather than spriteNum in your isOKToAttach handler. Something like attachedSpriteNum or aSpriteNum will work fine. The example would also work if you don't explicitly declare spriteNum as a property in the behavior. Explicit declaration is optional, but personally I would recommend declaring it, since it makes the code easier to understand to someone who may not be a Lingo expert.
The Lingo Dictionary also states that isOKToAttach handler is only called once, when a behavior is first attached to a sprite or script channel. There is a bug in D8.5.1 where every isOKToAttach handler, of every behavior, is also called multiple times in certain cases when the behavior tab of the property inspector or the behavior inspector is brought to the foreground with any sprite selected.
Open the message window and you should see the following.
Now you'll get multiple beeps and multiple sets of info appearing in the message window. Now any time you switch to another window and then bring the behavior inspector back to the foreground, isOkToAttach will run multiple times. Therefore you may want to avoid putting alerts, beeps, or other similar statements in an IsOKToAttach handler, since they may be called often, when you may not expect them to be.
"¥ Seconds: Number of seconds to wait, set to zero to wait forever."
"Attach to a frame script to loop in the frame for X seconds."
i have a string that = "[CompanyOverview, Products, Programs, TopService]"
-- "[CompanyOverview, Products, Programs, TopService]"
-- on the itemDilimiter eleswhere in your program, since the default is ","
strLst = "[ CompanyOverview, Products, Programs, TopService]"
> the MIAW on the screen before it moves it to the new loc.
I'm not sure what you're trying to do with the frameLabels, but myWin.open() inherently sets myWin.visible to TRUE. So you could set up the window first and then do myWin.open() when you want to see the window for the first time. Or you could build your code more flexibly to allow various scenarios.
the user would be hosed.
Actually the code checks for 1 or anything else in which case it pixel doubles if it fits. This way it defaults to pixel double if it fits and we then let the user use command-1 and command-2 to change it themselves if they wish.
1) Changing 8-bit palettes in the score immediately shows the new palette while the stage still shows the previous picture (Tested on Mac). If you try to use fade to black or white, it changes the palette first, then fades to black or white and then fades to the new image. Not very useful. I've basically had to resort to doing a pixel dissolve to a black frame, changing the palette while on the black frame and then pixel dissolving to the new frame. Unfortunately pixel dissolves look crappy on the PC so this is not an optimal solution.
2) In a full screen projector under Win-98, Lingo can set the colordepth from 32 down to 8 bit (I need 8-bit so I can colorize the game board via the palettes). The depth does report as changed but the screen just goes black, and stays black, not too useful... ;-) (Tested on Win-98) So I've had to resort to telling the user to change it themselves under Windows and just quit. It works fine on the Mac though.
If the window rect is going to be "translated" when I give it to a window, then it would make much more sense to me, if it were then "untranslated" by the same amount when given back to me.
set the rect of window "sample" to the rect of window "sample"
We don't have to translate our content's rect on the Mac, even though the title bar is added, why should we have to translate our content's rect on Windows just because a menu bar may be added as well?
>so the stage gets moved down by the height of the menu by mistake.
should logically return a window to it's original position.
Of course I can hack around the problem. I created that sample code, not because I was really trying to set the rect to itself each frame, but simply to illustrate the illogical unsymmetrical handling of the window rect on Windows.
would maintain it's logical integrity across operating systems.
>From my knowledge, this has always worked this way. Or it has for a long time.
In the process of tracking down a memory leak/fragmentation problem that surfaced in my Quipples project, I've created a new version of the DreamLight RAMLight. I was getting the NEW RAMLight 3.0 ready for release, with a quick test under Windows (since I develop on the Mac) when I noticed odd movement of the MIAW under Windows 98. Further investigation revealed a strange inconsistency.
I did a quick search on the net to see if there was any information about the problem but didn't turn anything up, so I figured I'd post a report to see if anyone else has seen this behavior and to have someone test it under D8 and other permutations of Windows. It's possible that there's something unique about my Win98 setup, since I would think this would have surfaced already if it were an across the board Windows problem.
Run the same movie under Director 7.0.2 under Windows 98.
In my case, what happens is the stage whizzes off the screen, step by step. It seems that getting the rect of the stage and setting the rect of the stage are using different coordinates or offsets for some strange reason and are not equal. So each time you set the rect to itself, it moves... This also happens with MIAW's using "the rect of window" and first surfaced in the RAMLight since it is a resizable MIAW it adjusts its own rect which works fine on the Mac but was causing it to move each time on Win98.
Has anyone else come across this behavior? Can someone try it under other permutations of Windows and also under D8 to see if they can reproduce it?
Strange Behavior, Recompile all Scripts!
After the information you posted and my last test I decided to go ahead and figure out just which properties could be used in a beginSprite handler.
put fromHandler && "Sprite Property Test"
"of sprite the spriteNum of me"
I then saved, opened and ran this and was astounded! This time the rect property was working 100% properly???
-- "beginSprite Sprite Property Test"
-- "rect: rect(10, 10, 100, 100)"
-- "endSprite Sprite Property Test"
-- "rect: rect(20, 20, 200, 200)"
As soon as I made a call to "the left of sprite" the rect property was calculated, or updated or whatever and became available to the beginSprite handler.
So, an easy, albeit unintuitive, workaround to this problem is to access "the left of sprite" before accessing "the rect of sprite" in a beginSprite handler.
John, is there any way that lingo could be updated so that a call to "the rect of sprite" does whatever calculations are being triggered by a call to "the left of sprite" as well? This would seem to me to fix the problem. What do you think? Any other Macromedians have any other input about this problem?
Thanks for the information. I went back and ran some more detailed tests based on your information.
The reason that the rect seemed to work within the beginSprite handler every time except the first was that it was using the "previous" rect. The first time through, there was no Previous rect so it reads rect(0,0,0,0). Once it loops or is replayed the rect seemed to be reading properly because there was only one sprite in the channel so the next time through it read the rect from the previous time through which happened to be the proper size because it was a prior instance of the same sprite.
This shows up easiest by creating three different rectangle sprites in sprite channel 1.
-- "BeginSprite Rect rect(0, 0, 0, 0)"
-- "MidSprite Rect rect(10, 10, 100, 100)"
-- "EndSprite Rect rect(10, 10, 100, 100)"
-- "BeginSprite Rect rect(10, 10, 100, 100)"
-- "MidSprite Rect rect(20, 20, 200, 200)"
-- "EndSprite Rect rect(20, 20, 200, 200)"
-- "BeginSprite Rect rect(20, 20, 200, 200)"
-- "MidSprite Rect rect(30, 30, 300, 300)"
-- "EndSprite Rect rect(30, 30, 300, 300)"
The beginSprite is reading the rect "before" it has been changed for the new sprite. This gives us the rect of the "previous" sprite instance. The midSprite and endSprite tests are correct.
This leads me to the following question. Is there any way that you guys could have a sprite's properties be initialized before the beginSprite is read? Also, can we get a list of which properties are and are not valid during a beginSprite?
When using the sendSprite command, an invisible "me" (or object reference) is created and passed along with the handler call. Normally this goes unnoticed as long as you create all your behavior handlers using the recommended "me" object reference.
If sendSprite doesn't find a handler in the target sprite object however, it passes through to scripts in the cast member, frame script and movie scripts. In these places it is not normal convention to use the me variable because normally these handlers are not associated with objects. Without a clear understanding of what's going on behind the scenes, this can cause trouble.
Behaviors are really not something entirely new as you might expect. They are nothing more than a simplified way to use parent/child objects. When a sprite begins, Lingo automatically creates a child instance of the behavior script just as it would for a parent script. It automatically puppets the sprite, creates a property variable for the object called "spriteNum" and initializes it to the number of the sprite channel. This new instance is then stored in an internal list of sprites.
The behavior handlers can keep track of the current object through use of their own "me" variable.
Technically, if a particular handler of a behavior (or parent script) does not need to access items in the object instance itself through the me variable and has no other arguments, you could leave off the "me" variable. This can lead to problems however because the object reference is usually passed to the handler anyway as the first parameter. This means that if you want to add arguments to the handler, you need to skip the first argument which would be passed the object reference. The easiest way to do this is to always use the "me" variable as the first argument of any behavior or parent handler you are creating.
Create a rectangle in sprite 1 from frames 1 to 20. In frame 20 put a "go to the frame" loop.
Attach the behavior to sprite 1 and run the movie. While it's running enter this into the message window.
-- "Now I'm doing my thing with anArgument: TEST"
on handleSomething <offspring "SomeBehavior" 1 aa258e0>, "TEST"
put "Now I'm doing my thing with anArgument:" && "TEST"
So you can see that even though the me <offspring "SomeBehavior" 1 aa258e0> is not used anywhere inside the handler, it is still passed as the first argument and must be caught.
Now comes the tricky part. Normally if we were writing a handler in a movie script, we wouldn't use the me variable since the handler is not used with any object and an object reference is not passed. However, if the sendSprite command does not find an appropriate handler in the target sprite, it looks through the cast, frame and movie scripts for a matching handler. If it finds a match, it executes it and passes it the same arguments it would have passed the target object, including the target's object reference.
However, if this is called as the result of a sendSprite, the "anArgument" variable will not receive the argument you might have expected, but rather a reference to the target object!
Notice that I've added a new first argument to catch the object reference but I did not use the traditional "me" variable. In this case, using the "me" variable could be confusing because the value passed would not really be a reference to this script's object. Since the handler is in a movie script, there is no object. The value passed is a reference to the original target object. You could name this variable anything you want, originalTargetObject seemed appropriate.
Can anyone else verify this for me?
>reference to it by the score is also deleted.
If I had a frame script in the score and I delete the script from the cast, I would like the score reference to be deleted as well. This is by far the most intuitive approach I can think of. Going the other way, leaving the reference to a blank cast slot is fraught with dangers that I don't think are justified. I had run into this myself and reported it as a bug since it is far from intuitive behavior.
If someone pastes a new script over an older script in the cast, then the score references could be maintained to point to the new script.
> would break authoring techniques.
I don't use any authoring techniques that use this "feature", though others out there may. If so I think using this "feature" came about from exploiting an obscure situation. I think that streamlining the product and tightening its intuitiveness would be a better solution than trying to save obscure authoring techniques. If many people out there are using this "feature" during authoring then perhaps you could create a user preference that they could turn on. But for the majority of users it would be safer to default this new preference to maintaining referential integrity.
Here are some comments I had as I wrestled with this topic upon first using D6... If I found this confusing, just imagine how a poor newbie would feel... Maybe these comments will spark some ideas on how to make this more intuitive.
How many of you out there have accidently opened a script window which then creates a blank "on exitframe" script and enters it into the score?? I'll bet everyone out there. Here's an idea. If one of the script windows is called up which creates a blank "on exitframe" script, if it is then closed without being edited in any way simply make it disappear into oblivion. I can't tell you how many times I've given a file to a beginner to edit castmembers, and when I get it back, there are all types of blank scripts attached to everything known to man because they accidently opened those windows and didn't know how to "cancel" out of them by fully deleting all the text in the window (which isn't very intuitive) Any votes for that change?? At the very least let's just put a real "Cancel" button on the script window which would close it without entering changes and would delete a script that the user never edits in the first place.
1) I open a brand new file.
3) I realize I don't want a script so I immediately close the script window without editing anything. This now creates a behavior icon in cast member #1 but the castmember itself appears empty and enters the #1 in the score script channel.
4) I then double click on cast memeber #1 and it opens the new behavior inspector. So far, I'm not sold on having this open rather than the script itself but I'll suspend my judgement until I'm more used to the new behaviors. It's great to see that you've supplied a preference for this just in case.
6) I then close that window and boom, the cast member 1 behavior icon is gone and cast member 1 is empty. However there is still an entry in the script channel in frame 1 and it refrences the now empty cast member #1???
7) I click on cast member #1 and nothing happens, it's gone. But it's still entered as a 1 in a little blue box in the script channel of frame 1.
10) I close the script window (without editing anything again) and I get the blank cast member with behavior icon in cast member #1 again.
11) I now go to the score and double click on the frame 20 script channel. This opens a new Score Script 2 window with an empty "on exitframe" handler as expected.
1) Double click a script channel frame. It opens the Score Script Editor for cast member #1 as before.
3) Now immediately Undo. Surprise. It undoes the entry in the score but leaves the blank behavior iconized script cast member in your cast. You can keep doing this and fill your cast up with blank behaviors that then disappear if their script windows are opened and closed. | 2019-04-24T08:46:33Z | https://dreamlight.com/insights/07/behavior.htm |
We’ve already delved into the green world of fresh herbs, but now it’s time to dust off the old spice jars to find out why they’re good for us and how to use them. Pepper may be the only one you’re used to, but we’ve got the specifics on more spices, and spice blends, to flavor healthy meals from breakfast to dessert.
Whole spices last longer than ground versions, but you’ll need a grinder. A mortar and pestle or a dedicated coffee grinder work like a charm!
Keep spices away from heat, moisture, and direct sunlight. Avoid tacking a spice rack above the stovetop or oven — heat and moisture can negatively affect spices’ quality. And when sprinkling spices into a dish, pour into your hand before adding them to food: Shaking the jar directly over a steaming pot can cake up the rest of its contents. Another stay-dry tip is to replace the lid immediately after use.
Spices don’t actually go bad per se, but they lose flavor as they age. Whole seeds last around three to four years, while ground has a shelf life of two to three years. If a spice looks dull and has lost some of its original color, then give it the boot. And make sure to date the back of the bottle to keep tabs on when it’s time to buy new ones.
Instead of teetering spice jars on top of one another in a crammed pantry, check out some innovative ways to store them, like in-drawer racks, mini-mason jars for a pretty wall installment, or even corked test tubes!
This spice was first named Jamaican pepper and later changed to allspice which, just like its name implies, tastes like a mixture of nutmeg, cinnamon, ginger, and pepper. Research suggests that some compounds found in allspice — including eugenol and gallic acid — may have anti-tumor properties on human cancer cells Medicinal properties of the Jamaican pepper plant Pimenta dioica and Allspice. Zhang, L., Lokeshwar, B.L. Sheila and David Fuente Graduate Program in Cancer Biology, Leonard Miller School of Medicine, University of Miami, Miami, FL. Current Drug Targets, 2012 Dec;13(14):1900-6. Anticancer and antioxidant tannins from Pimenta dioica leaves. Marzouk, M.S., Moharram, F.A., Mohamed, M.A. Natural Products Group, Nobel Project Laboratory, National Research Centre, El-Behoos St., Dokki, Cairo, Egypt. Zeitschrift fur Naturforschung C., 2007 Jul-Aug;62(7-8):526-36. .
Greatist Recipe Pick: Add to this cold-weather quinoa breakfast bake or incorporate a pinch into these comforting baked apples.
Cardamom may have the potential to prevent against some small, potentially-cancerous skin growths, called papillomas Antioxidative effects of the spice cardamom against non-melanoma skin cancer by modulating nuclear factor erythroid-2-related factor 2 and NF-κB signalling pathways. Das, I., Acharya, A., Berrry, D.L., et al. Department of Cancer Chemoprevention, Chittaranhan National Cancer Institute, Kolakata, India. The British Journal of Nutrition, 2012 Sep 28; 108(6): 984-97. . This spice is also one of the main components in chai tea.
Greatist Recipe Pick: Take boring smoothies to new (spicy) heights by adding cardamom to a coconut-lime, vanilla chai, or apple pie rendition. We also like cardamom in this pumpkin pie oatmeal.
Alias: Red pepper. Studies suggest this fiery spice, which gets its flavor from capsaicin, may increase fat oxidation, allowing the body to better use fat as fuel Effects of novel capsinoid treatment on fatness and energy metabolism in humans: possible pharmacogenetic implications. RSnitker, S., Fujishima, Y., Shen, H., et al. University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 2009 Jan; 89(1):45-50. Pharmacokinetic and the effect of capsaicin in Capsicum frutescens on decreasing plasma glucose level. Chaiyasit, K., Khovidhunkit, W., Wittayalertpanya, S. Inter-department of Pharmacology, Graduate School, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand. Journal of the Medical Association of Thailand. 2009 Jan; 92(1):108-13. .
Greatist Recipe Pick: Heat up this veggie chili with a small dose of cayenne.
This spice, which compliments both sweet and savory dishes, has a range of health benefits from reducing arthritis pain to keeping the mouth clean Comparing analgesic effects of a topical herbal mixed medicine with salicylate in patients with knee osteoarthritis. Zahmatkash, M., Vafaeenasab, M.R. Farateb Research Institute, Yazd, Iran.Pakistan Journal of Biological Sciences, 2011 Jul 1;14(13):715-9. Susceptibilities of Candida albicans Mouth Isolates to Antifungal Agents, Essentials Oils and Mouth Rinses.Carvalhinho, S., Costa, A.M., Coelho, A.C., et al. Department of Biology and Environment, University of Trás-os-Montes and Alto Douro (UTAD), PO Box 1013, 5001-911, Vila Real, Portugal. . Add cinnamon to morning coffee instead of sugar for guilt-free flavor.
Greatist Recipe Pick: Add to super simple crockpot recipes like apple-cinnamon breakfast risotto or homemade pumpkin butter for no-fuss flavor.
Cloves, which are dried flower buds, provide a burst of flavor even in small amounts. One study found cloves to be the best natural antioxidant because they contain high levels of phenolic compounds, as well as other beneficial properties Antioxidant activity of essential oils of five spice plants widely used in a Mediterranean diet. Viuda-Martos, M., Navajas, Y., Zapata, E. et al. Flavour and Fragrance Journal 25, 2010 Feb. . Another study suggests that clove oil may decrease depression in a similar way to psychostimulant drugs (like aderall) The effect of the essential oil of Eugenia caryophyllata in animal models of depression and locomotor activity. Mehta, A.K., Halder, S., Khanna, N., et al. Nutritional Neuroscience, 2013 Mar 4. .
Greatist Recipe Pick: Make a batch of fool-proof spiced nuts or simmer up some mulled wine.
Be careful not to douse a dish with this powerful spice — a little goes a long way. Aside from providing great flavor, this spice has traditionally been used for the treatment of sleep disorders, indigestion, and hypertension Cuminum cyminum, a Dietary Spice, Attenuates Hypertension via Endothelial Nitric Oxide Synthase and NO Pathway in Renovascular Hypertensive Rats. Kalaivani, P., Saranya, R.B., Ramakrishnana, G., et al. Centre for Toxicology and Developmental Research Sri Ramachandra University, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. Clinical and Experimental Hypertension, 2013 Feb 12. .
Greatist Recipe Pick: Use cumin to warm up this chickpea, kale, and tomato soup or incorporate it into this chili spice rub.
Traditional Iranian medicine calls on fennel for its antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, and memory-enhancing properties (amongst many others) Medicinal properties of Foeniculum vulgare Mill. in traditional Iranian medicine and modern phytotherapy. Rahimi, R., Ardekani, M.R., Department of Traditional Pharmacy, Faculty of Traditional Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran. Chinese Journal of Integrative Medicine, 2013 Jan;19(1):73-9. .
Greatist Recipe Pick: Use fennel seeds and bulbs to flavor this barley risotto.
Slightly spicy, slightly sweet ginger root is used in cooking both in its fresh and dried and ground forms. It has been used to treat nausea, ease sore muscles, and help alleviate symptoms of arthritis Ginger for nausea and vomiting in pregnancy: randomized, double-masked, placebo-controlled trial. Vutyavanich, T., Kraisarin, T., Ruangsri, R. Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai, Thailand. Obstetrics and Gynecology 2001 Apr;97(4):577-82. Ginger (Zingiber officinale) reduces acute chemotherapy-induced nausea: a URCC CCOP study of 576 patients. Ryan, J.L., Heckler, C.E., Roscoe, J.A., et al. Departments of Dermatology, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY. Supportive Care in Cancer: Official Journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer 2011 Aug 5. Ginger— an herbal medicinal product with broad anti-inflammatory actions. Grzanna, R., Lindmark, L., Frondoza, C.G. RMG Biosciences, Inc. Journal of Medicinal Food 2005 Summer;8(2):125-32. Ginger (Zingiber officinale) and rheumatic disorders. Srivastava, K.C., Mustafa, T. Department of Environmental Medicine, Odense University, Denmark. Medical Hypotheses 1989 May;29(1):25-8. .
Greatist Recipe Pick: Use fresh or dried ginger in this quinoa and vegetable salad.
Mustard powder, made from ground mustard seeds, is often used to make homemade mayo, dressings, and marinades. Adding powdered mustard seeds to broccoli during cooking may increase its ability to prevent the development of cancer The potential to intensify sulforaphane formation in cooked broccoli (Brassica oleracea var. italica) using mustard seeds (Sinapis alba). Ghawi, S.K., Methven, L., Niranjan, K., Department of Food and Nutritional Sciences, University of Reading, Whitenights, Reading, UK. Food Chemistry, 2013 Jun 1;138(2-3):1734-41. .
Taste: Often spicy and stronger in flavor than jarred mustard.
Greatist Recipe Pick: Made-from-scratch marinades like this sweet-and-spicy version.
We like to use this spice to make healthier pie (adding more flavor means you can cut back on the fat and sugar). Some studies suggest nutmeg can help repel cavities (not that we fully endorse eating the whole pie in one sitting) Food components with anticaries activity. Gazzani, G., Daglia, M., Papetti, A. Department of Drug Sciences, Pavia University, Viale Taramelli, Pavia, Italy, Current Opinion in Biotechnology, 2012 Apr;23(2):153-9. .
Greatist Recipe Pick: Indian, French, Scandinavian, and Caribbean cuisine. Use it as an unexpected way to flavor up this crustless vegetable quiche or blend into this chocolate blueberry smoothie.
This bright red spice is made from dried and ground mild chili peppers. For those who can’t handle the heat, there’s no need to get out of the kitchen — paprika provides a toned down, more smoky chili flavor. One health benefit of paprika is its ability to protect the body’s cells from oxidative stress (for example, smoking), which is believed to cause a number of diseases Bioavailability of Herbs and Spices in Humans as Determined by ex vivo Inflammatory Suppression and DNA Strand Breaks. Percival, S.S., Vanden Heuvel, J.P., Nieves, C.J., et al. Food Science and Human Nutrition, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL. Journal of the American College of Nutrition, 2012 Aug;31(4):288-94. .
Greatist Recipe Pick: Sprinkle some paprika to add color to these baked "potato" wedges (made from celery root).
Peppercorns come in black, white, and green varieties. There are pink peppercorns, which have a deeper pepperiness and chile-like heat compared to black pepper. The best thing about pepper is that it’s great in nearly everything. Switch things up and crack some pepper over grilled fruit for a surprising kick. Research suggests black pepper consumption can reduce high-fat diet induced oxidative stress to our body’s cells Antioxidant efficacy of black pepper (Piper nigrum L.) and piperine in rats with high fat diet induced oxidative stress. Vijayakumar, R.S., Surya, D., Nalini, N. Department of Biochemistry, Annamalai University, Annamalai Nagar, Tamilnadu, India. Redox Report, 2004;9(2):105-10. .
Perfect For: Pretty much anything — dressings, soups, salads, and meat dishes, for starters!
Greatist Recipe Pick: Pepper is a must in this quick and easy veggie chili, and spices up these baked black bean and quinoa burgers.
Time to get steamy! Research shows that saffron, the most expensive of all spices, can actually improve sexual function Effect of saffron on fluoxetine-induced sexual impairment in men: randomized double-blind placebo-controlled trial. Modabbernia, A., Sohrabi, H., Nasehi, A.A., et al. Psychiatric Research Center, Roozbeh Hospital, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, South Kargar Street, Tehran, Iran. Psychopharmacology, 2012 Oct;223(4):381-8. . If that’s not what you’re going for, use saffron (which comes from the yellow-orange flower of a small purple crocus) to add color to a dish with its deep crimson hue.
Greatist Recipe Pick: Turn on the crockpot for this saffron-infused root vegetable stew.
Salt comes in many varieties — rock salt, Fleur de Sel, and Kosher salt to name a few. Though this naturally occurring chemical compound isn’t actually a spice, we’re including it on the list since it’s the centerpiece on many kitchen tables. The American Medical Association has suggested we reduce salt consumption because too much can contribute to health issues like high blood pressure and heart disease Determination of salt content in hot takeaway meals in the United Kingdom. Jaworowska, A., Blackham, T., Stevenson, L. et al. Faculty of Education, Community and Leisure, Centre for Tourism, Events & Food Studies, Liverpool John Moores University, I.M. Marsh Campus, Barkhill Road, L17 6BD Liverpool, United Kingdom. Appetite, 2012 Jul 4. Salt and high blood pressure. Mohan, S. and Campbell, N.R. Departments of Medicine and Community Health Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Clinical Science (London). 2009 Jun 2;117(1):1-11. Policy options to reduce population salt intake. Cappuccio, F.P., Capewell, S., Lincoln, P., et al. University of Warwick, Warwick Medical School, WHO Collaborating Centre for Nutrition, Coventry CV2 2DX, UK. British Medical Journal, 2011 Aug 11;343:d4995. . But before we go tossing salt completely, it’s important to note that some salt is essential and can help maintain fluid balance, blood pressure, body temperature, and nerve and muscle function A hot topic: Temperature sensitive sodium channelopathies. Egri, C. and Ruben, P.C. Department of Biomedical Physiology and Kinesiology; Simon Fraser University; Burnaby, BC Canada. Channels (Austin).2012 Mar 1;6(2):75-85. Hydration, sweat and thermoregulatory responses to professional football training in the heat. Duffield, R., McCall, A., Coutts, A.J., et al. School of Human Movement Studies, Charles Sturt University, Bathurst, Australia. Journal of Sports Sciences, 2012;30(10):957-65. The role of sodium channels in chronic pain. Levinson, S.R., Luo, S. and Henry, M.A. Department of Physiology and Biophysics, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, Colorado 80045, USA. Muscle Nerve. 2012 Aug;46(2):155-65. . Our bodies need 180-500 milligrams of sodium per day, but the recommended limit is 1,500 milligrams.
Perfect For: Boosting the flavor of savory and sweet dishes, anything from baked goods to salads.
Greatist Recipe Pick: Get your snack fix with these spicy roasted chickpeas or eggplant chips with basil yogurt dip.
This spice gets its name from the way it’s shaped, like a tiny little star. Take a big whiff when you’re feeling stressed out — anise is known for its ability to reduce tension and help increase mental clarity.
Greatist Recipe Pick: Whip up this fancy star anise syrup or healthy orange-date-apricot muffins.
The root of a plant related to ginger, turmeric is known for its many superfood powers like the ability to help relieve the pain, swelling, and redness that may come from inflammation-inducing conditions Curcuma as a functional food in the control of cancer and inflammation. Schaffer, M., Schaffer, P.M., Zidan, J., et. al. Institute of Oncology, Ziv Medical Center, Faculty of Medicine, Zefat, Israel. Journal of Current Opinion in Clinical Nutrition and Metabolic Care, 2011; 14(6): 588-97. . It’s also known to help treat digestive problems Herbal medicines for the management of irritable bowel syndrome: a comprehensive review. Rahimi, R., Abdollahi, M. World Journal of Gastroenterology, 2012; 18(7): 589-600. . Just like saffron, this spice is often used to color food as well as add a faint earthy flavor.
Greatist Recipe Pick: Amp up your smoothie flavor palette, and toss some of this yellow spice into a raspberry turmeric smoothie.
A quick perusal of the Internet reveals a slew of homemade versions of spice blends, but for a little convenience in a jar, check out the pre-mixed blends parked right next to the main spices at the grocery store.
The five spices — star anise, cloves, cinnamon, Sichuan pepper, and fennel seeds — are often used in Asian pork and duck dishes, as well as a seasoning for the breading on fried foods.
This mixture is commonly made from ground chili peppers, paprika, cumin, and black pepper. Some versions are milder than others.
Curry powder is a Western term, but the mixture of spices is often called garam masala in India. Most curry powders are made up of coriander, turmeric, cumin, fenugreek, and red pepper, though the mix varies.
Made from garlic, onion, and herbs like rosemary, oregano, thyme, and marjoram, this blend is often considered a kitchen staple. This blend can vary a ton, with some including red pepper flakes for heat or a wider range of dried herbs.
The premise behind this mix is simple: Lemon and pepper. The lemon portion comes from zesting the peel. This mix often includes salt, too.
This one, made from black peppercorns, mustard seeds, red pepper flakes, allspice, dill seed, bay leaves, cloves, and sometimes cinnamon and ginger, is the go-to blend (when added to a vinegar base) for pickling veggies and eggs.
Like many spice blends, poultry seasoning states it’s purpose in the name. The mix often includes sage, pepper, lemon peel, savory, rosemary, dill, allspice, thyme, marjoram, and ginger. Talk about convenience in a bottle!
Though its name may insinuate that this spice mix actually tastes like pumpkin pie, its got no traces of the superfood. It does, however, comprise the main seasoning agents used in a traditional pumpkin pie — cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cloves, and allspice. | 2019-04-18T10:47:32Z | https://greatist.com/health/ultimate-guide-spices |
No additional import charges at delivery! If this equipment does cause harmful interference to radio or television reception, which sdw11g be determined by turning the equipment off and on, the user is encouraged to try to correct the interference by one of the following sdw11g Any international shipping sdw11g import charges are paid in part to Pitney Bowes Inc. This item will be sent through the Global Shipping Programme and includes international tracking. For additional information, see the Global Shipping Program terms and conditions – opens in a new window or tab This amount includes applicable customs duties, taxes, brokerage and other fees. Sdw11g group of wireless devices communicating with ssw11g access points and network sdw11g.
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I have successfully enabled the following features in my mod: I am on Windows 7 SP1 64bit. You need to be a member in order to leave a comment.
They also worked for me on Windows 7. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites. I installed the Sigmatel drivers for Windows Vista 32bit.
Already have an account? The latest modded driver package I know of is packaged in the st-idt I looked in the files in the D Posted March 23, The Sigmatel website obviously doesn’t provide drivers since it’s not existant anymore. Create an account or sign in to comment You need to be a member in order to leave a comment Create an account Sign up for a new account in our community.
Already have an account? IDT has never provided “generic” audio drivers on their web site to “end-users” and clearly states that you have to contact the computer manufacturer or visit the manufacturer’s support site in this case Dell for updated IDT audio drivers.
Now again I have sound for the laptop, but when connected to the docking station the following happens:. Posted August 3, How do I determine what the hardware ID is? Posted May 12, Register a new account.
I got this to work best with modded IDT driver version Sign In Sign Up. I also tried just updating the drivers from device manager, but i get an error about missing file.
You need to be a member in order to leave a aaudio. When I set the normal speakers as output: Posted December 10, Register a new account. Anyway, one doesn’t know if it works for Win 8 at all.
I tried the following drivers from the Dell website already which according to Windows 8 work, but give me the described sound problem:. Sign in Already have an account? Posted October 5, edited. Enjoy and hopefully these will work for you.
Hi I too have a dell d with Windows 7 32bit. Any other IDT drivers available? I am trying to fix driver issues, Dell D Vista 64bit Sigmatel audio driver is crashing my video on flash player latest official is 6. Because the INF and INI files are modded you must click OK or Yes to install the driver software anyway when Windows can’t verify the publisher of the driver software in order for driver installation to succeed.
Each new bit position is presented. Status Address Port bit assignments: Ic chip electronic components PCTA. If the items you purchase from our store are not of perfected quality, that is they don’t work. We will provide you with the best quality and most cost-effective products. The supplier supports Trade Assurance — A free service that protects your orders from payment to delivery.
The supplier supports Trade Assurance — A free service that protects your orders from payment to delivery. Assuming that slots 1 and 2 had been. We will ship all your order within working daysafter receving your payment. Please feel free to contact us at any time if you have any question or any other parts you need!
Our related sales person will be responsible to send the AWB for the delivered goods in the next workday. Please nitfy me you have any special needs 2, It will take around days to reach your hands.
SYNC is synchronous to the rising. Slot 0 is a special reserved time slot containing 16 bits that are pdt303a by the AC-link protocol infrastructure. Gold Plus Supplier The supplier supports Trade Assurance — A free pcf303a that protects your orders from payment to delivery.
The following seven bit positions communicate the associated control register address and the trailing 12 bit positions are padded with 0s by the PCTA.
Electronic component PCTA original and in stock.
The status address port monitors status for PCTA. On the immediately following falling. Any items must be returned in their original condition to qualify for a refund or replacement.
If the items you purchase from our store pcr303a not of perfected quality, that is they don’t work. Ic chip electronic components PCTA. This condition is normal following the deassertion of reset e.
pct303z Each new bit position is presented. Relevancy Transaction Level Response Rate. This falling edge marks the time when both sides of the AC-link are aware pt303a the start of a new audio frame. This is the case with the audio output frame; each Pch303a audio input frame consists of 12 bit time slots.
We have a professional logistics team and a professional logistics information platform, so we can deliver products safe and quickly. We will provide you with the best quality and most cost-effective products.
Any Electronics component must be returned in their original condition to qualify for a refund or replacement. Figure 7 illustrates the time slot-based AC-link protocol. Home – IC Supply – Link. The audio input frame data streams correspond to the.
Status Address Port bit assignments: So, please rest assured to choose, please contact us if have any questions. This sequence ensures that data transitions and subsequent sample points for both incoming and outgoing data streams are time aligned.
Status Address Port The status address port monitors status for PCTA functions including, but not limited to, line-side configuration. This is the case with the audio output. Our aim is to perfect the product quality for a long-time business. CODEC ready state or not. Sample Order Paid samples. Slot 0 is a special reserved time slot. If the Electronics component is defective, pls notify us within 3 days of deliver 4.
Subsystem Identification Register Description. TI does not warrant or represent that any license, either express or implied, is granted under any TI patent right,. During the data phase, AD31? Reproduction of information in TI data books or data sheets is permissible only if reproduction is without. Subsystem vendor ID alias. Link Control Register Description. Except where mandated by government requirements, testing of all.
Bus Options Register Description. OHCI registers base address.
These bidirectional signals control passage of information between the two devices. This terminal defaults as an input and if it is not implemented, it is recommended that. F capacitor which, in turn, is connected to ground.
Field can be cleared by a write of 1. Specification as a standard header. This signal is driven by a PCI device to indicate that calculated parity does not match. All products are tsb12lv226 subject to TI’s terms.
PCI signaling clamp voltage power input.
This terminal indicates wake events to the host. Subsystem Access Register Description. PC 99 Design Guide. When implementing wake capabilities instrumeents the host controller, it is necessary to implement two resets.
Link Control Register Description. Writes of 0 have no effect. Serial ROM interface supports 2-wire devices. Physical write posting of up to three outstanding transactions. Information published by TI regarding third?
TI is not responsible or liable for. The terminal numbers are also listed for convenient reference.
Otherwise, it must be pulled. This signal is used for target disconnects, and is commonly asserted by target devices which do. Other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. Interrupt Line and Pin Register Description. Link Enhancement Control Register Description. This terminal is implemented as open-drain, and for normal operation a ROM is implemented in the design.
Provides timing for all transactions on the PCI bus. All registers are detailed in the. All PCI signals are sampled at rising edge. Interrupt Event Register Description.
The REG18 terminals are connected to a 0. Testing and other quality control instuments are used to the extent TI. TI assumes no liability for applications assistance or customer product design. Texas Instruments Incorporated and its subsidiaries TI reserve the right to make corrections, modifications.
G Primary Dns Suffix. Other benefits of registering an account are subscribing to topics and forums, creating a blog, and having no ads shown anywhere on the site. No, create an account now. Whenever I boot up I have NO internet. Be sure to back up all documents before using it. You can play around with dial-a-fix and see if it does anything for you. Name resolution for the name dns.
Enabled Tunnel adapter isatap. They all worked well together before.
It is an amazing effective isatap.gateeway.2wire.net for internet related problems, but running it on a new OS is risky. Your name or email address: Yes Tunnel adapter isatap. Double NAT on every packet should work in theory but can cause problems as well. Sudo 15 – Thanks for this. Do you already have an account?
Search Advanced Search section: Do you already have an account? Let me know what other info you need. You will need to enter the default name password of the model manufacturer here. Broadcast IP Routing Enabled. Posted 12 April – Thanks for the help.
No, create an account now. Just isatap.gateway.2ire.net kicks, I switched the channel to 3. App opens very slow on homegroup network.
Welcome to BleepingComputera free community where people like yourself come together to discuss and learn how to use their computers. All times are GMT Jan 20, Messages: If I hook up the laptop to an ethernet port, she can get to the internet just fine.
Do you have any idea what feeO: Join our isatap.gateway.2wire.nt today to ask your question.
Where is the Main Index page of the old Woody’s Lounge? Monday, November 09, 9: Tech Support Guy is completely free — paid for by advertisers and isatap.gatfway.2wire.net. Log in or Sign up. Your computer will continue to try and obtain an address on its own from the network address DHCP server. Posted 13 April – Broadcast IP Routing Enabled. Malwarebytes is the best program for detecting malware, and it is not an active scanner so it should not interfere with any anti-virus you already have.
Be sure to back up all documents before using it. Saturday, April 25, Connect the the modem directly via ethernet. Remember to apply at each page before moving on or your setting will be lost.
Skip to main content. I guess the shaft was a good choice. Also is very straight and tends to draw for me on a bad swing. They seem to impart less side spin on the ball than anything known to man. Sign in or Register with Golfalot. While the Sumo may not be as shallow as the original Sasquatch driver, it is still on the shallow end of the spectrum.
I have been such a slacker on The Deep Rough the past year. I purchased one new in July at a military exchange and love it. All my hits felt pretty solid.
I don’t know why sasuqatch driver would be longer than another, all things being equal, but I am just crushing the ball with this club. Original goes up on eBay Not to mention, I may also give a look to the Sumo Square fws, as I rarely get to use the v5 off the deck due to it’s deep face and my inconsistency swinging fws off the deck.
I was consistently yards past his drives and straighter as well. I 1st used an Adilla One low launch 65, then a Graffalloy Blue etc. Can not fault golf ssuared on the service they provide. I was told by a GolfGalaxy employer thru launch monitor that I have a bit of a high “attack” swing, smo then, that was my “last” year swing, before taking a couple of “recent” golf lessons.
The club doesn’t give off the best sound when you strike the ball however i can live with this. Nike has delivered the geometry for stability, the shafts for control and speed and now has optimized the entire face to maximize faster ball speeds from every point on the saaquatch.
I think it’s a bit pricey and I would have preferred some more shaft options, but I really cannot complain about performance. They are almost always in play and still have good distance.
From custom golf spikes designed by Tiger himself to rain gear fit for a rainy Irish links course, high-performance golf balls, tees, towels, gloves and bags, Nike outfits top golfers from head to toe and leaves no excuse for greatness to be achieved any day, at any time. After investigating shafts and costs to switch, I ended up just buying a new club. As with other square drivers, you really do feel like you can get away with a murderous swing…and often times you can. Posted 29 January – Wanna get rid of this ugly yellow box?
Questionable build quality or just really thin metal? Posted 17 October – I’m coming from a SQ Tour Several functions may not work.
The Nike Sumo Squared driver comes with a stock Diamana graphite shaft custom designed for this driver.
I’ve forgotten my password. With three stock options, most people will probably be able to find a shaft that fits their swing without having to custom order an expensive after market shaft.
If you’re looking for a bomber, hit the Sumo The sound is not as bad as the previous Nike square driver and the ball does fly out there. Subscribe If you’d like to get the latest golf equipment reviews and information about free golf equipment give aways, please subscribe by providing your email address below. If you’re looking for a fairway finder, hit this club. Registration is fast, simple and absolutely free.
Posted 03 September – Page 1 of 2 1 2 Next. Very happy also with the quailty of club purchased, condition was just as golf bidder had described Was this review helpful?
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Peter Paul Montgomery Buttigieg ( /ˈbʊtədʒɪdʒ/ BUUT-ə-jihj; born January 19, 1982) is an American politician and former Naval Intelligence Officer who has served as the mayor of the city of South Bend, Indiana, since 2012.
Buttigieg is a graduate of Harvard University and Oxford University, having attended Pembroke College, Oxford on a Rhodes Scholarship. From 2007 to 2010 he worked at McKinsey and Company, a management strategy consulting firm. From 2009 to 2017 Buttigieg served as an intelligence officer in the United States Navy Reserve, attaining the rank of lieutenant and deploying for the War in Afghanistan in 2014.
Buttigieg was first elected mayor of South Bend in 2011 and was reelected in 2015. During his tenure as mayor of South Bend, Buttigieg's policies were widely credited with significantly spurring economic growth and business investment. In 2013 he won GovFresh's Mayor of the Year award. Buttigieg also campaigned for Indiana State Treasurer in 2010 and for chair of the Democratic National Committee in 2017.
Buttigieg was born in South Bend, Indiana, to Jennifer Anne (née Montgomery) and Joseph Buttigieg. His father, an immigrant from Ħamrun, Malta, initially studied to be a Jesuit priest before immigrating to the United States and embarking on a secular career as professor of literature at The University of Notre Dame at South Bend. The surname Buttigieg is Semitic; "tiġieġ" meaning "poultry" in Maltese. His mother was a professor at Notre Dame for 29 years.
In 2000 Buttigieg was valedictorian of his high school senior class at St. Joseph High School in South Bend. That year he was the recipient of a first prize for the JFK Profiles in Courage Essay Contest awarded by the John F. Kennedy Library in Boston. He traveled to Boston to accept the award and met Caroline Kennedy and other members of President Kennedy's family. Buttigieg had written about the integrity and political courage demonstrated by U.S. Congressman Bernie Sanders of Vermont, one of only two independent members of Congress.
Buttigieg attended Harvard College, majoring in history and literature. While at Harvard he was president of the Harvard Institute of Politics Student Advisory Committee and worked on the Institute's annual study of youth attitudes on politics. He wrote his undergraduate thesis on the influence of puritanism on U.S. foreign policy as reflected in Graham Greene's novel The Quiet American.
Upon graduating from Harvard in 2005, Buttigieg was awarded a Rhodes Scholarship and in 2007 he received first-class honors in philosophy, politics and economics from Pembroke College, Oxford (later promoted to a Master of Arts (Oxon) per tradition).
Before graduating from college, Buttigieg worked as an investigative intern at WMAQ-TV, Chicago's NBC news affiliate. He also worked as an intern for Jill Long Thompson's unsuccessful 2002 congressional campaign. He later served as an adviser to her unsuccessful 2008 gubernatorial campaign.
From 2004 to 2005, Buttigieg worked in Washington, D.C., as conference director for former U.S. Secretary of Defense William Cohen's international strategic consulting firm, The Cohen Group. He also spent several months working on Senator John Kerry's 2004 presidential campaign, where he was a policy and research specialist. After earning his Oxford degree, he worked as a consultant at McKinsey & Company from 2007 through 2010.
Buttigieg was commissioned as a naval intelligence officer in the Navy Reserve in 2009, and deployed to Afghanistan in 2014. After a seven-month deployment, Buttigieg returned to South Bend. He remained a lieutenant in the Naval Reserve until 2017.
Buttigieg was the Democratic Party nominee for State Treasurer of Indiana in 2010. He was defeated by Republican incumbent Richard Mourdock, garnering 37.5% of the vote.
The County-City Building in downtown South Bend, which houses the Office of the Mayor.
Buttigieg was elected mayor of South Bend in November 2011, with 74% of the vote. He took office in January 2012 at age 29, becoming the second-youngest mayor in South Bend history (Schuyler Colfax III became mayor at age 28 in 1898) and the youngest mayor of a U.S. city with at least 100,000 residents.
In 2012 Buttigieg demoted South Bend police chief Darryl Boykins after a federal investigation found that the police department had improperly recorded telephone calls. Buttigieg also fired the police department's communications director, who had "discovered the recordings but continued to record the line at Boykins' command". The police communications director alleged that the recordings captured four senior police officers making racist remarks and discussing illegal acts. Buttigieg opted to settle suits brought by Boykins, the communications director, and the four officers out of court. A federal judge ruled in 2015 that Boykins's recordings violated the Federal Wiretap Act. Buttigieg came under pressure from political opponents to release the tapes, but declined to do so, citing the Wiretap Act while calling for the eradication of racial bias in the police force. An Indiana court is currently hearing a case for release of the tapes.
Buttigieg at a 2017 Democratic National Convention event.
Buttigieg was named mayor of the year for 2013 by GovFresh.com, tying with third-term New York City mayor Mike Bloomberg. In 2014 The Washington Post called Buttigieg "the most interesting mayor you've never heard of" based on his youth, education, and military background. In 2016, The New York Times columnist Frank Bruni published a column praising Buttigieg's work as mayor and asking in the headline if he could eventually be elected as "the first gay president".
One of Buttigieg's signature programs has been the "Vacant and Abandoned Properties Initiative" (known locally as "1,000 Properties in 1,000 Days"), a project to repair or demolish blighted properties across the city. The goal was reached by the program's scheduled end date in November 2015.
Buttigieg served for seven months in Afghanistan as a lieutenant in the Navy Reserves, returning to the United States on September 23, 2014. While deployed, Buttigieg was assigned to the Afghan Threat Finance Cell, a counterterrorism unit that targeted Taliban insurgency financing. In Buttigieg's absence, Deputy Mayor Mark Neal, South Bend's city controller, served in the role of executive, from February 2014 until Buttigieg returned to his role as mayor in October 2014.
In 2014 Buttigieg announced that he would seek a second term and went on to win the Democratic primary with 78% of the vote, defeating Henry Davis, Jr., the city councilman from the 2nd District. In November 2015 he was elected to his second term as mayor of South Bend with over 80% of the vote, defeating Republican Kelly Jones.
During the 2015 controversy over Indiana Senate Bill 101—the original version of which was widely criticized for allowing discrimination against LGBT people—Buttigieg emerged as a leading opponent of the legislation, and shortly afterward came out as gay to express his solidarity.
In 2013 Buttigieg proposed a "Smart Streets" urban development program to improve South Bend's downtown area, and in early 2015 (after traffic studies and public hearings) he secured a bond issue for the program backed by tax increment financing. "Smart Streets" was aimed at improving economic development and urban vibrancy as well as road safety. The project involved the conversion of one-way streets in downtown to two-way streets, traffic calming measures, the widening of sidewalks, streetside beautification (including the planting of trees and installation of decorative brickwork), the addition of bike lanes, and the introduction of roundabouts. Elements of the project were finished in 2016, and it was officially completed in 2017. The project was credited with spurring private development in the city.
As mayor, Buttigieg was a leading figure behind the creation of a nightly laser lighting display along downtown South Bend's St. Joseph River trail as public art. The project cost $700,000, which was raised from private funds. The "River Lights" installation was unveiled in May 2015, as part of the city's 150th anniversary celebrations.
Under Buttigieg, South Bend launched a $50 million investment in the city's parks, many of which had been neglected during the preceding decades.
In December 2018 Buttigieg announced that he would not seek a third term as mayor of South Bend.
In January 2017 Buttigieg announced his candidacy for Chair of the Democratic National Committee in its 2017 chairmanship election. He "built a national profile as an emerging dark horse in the race for the chairmanship with the backing of former DNC Chairman Howard Dean and former Maryland governor Martin O'Malley. Buttigieg "campaigned on the idea that the aging Democratic Party needed to empower its millennial members". He withdrew from the race on the day of the election.
On January 23, 2019, Buttigieg announced that he was creating an exploratory committee for a candidacy for President of the United States in the 2020 election. Buttigieg is seeking the Democratic nomination. If elected, he would be the youngest and the first openly LGBT American president. He officially launched his campaign on April 14, 2019, in South Bend.
Buttigieg describes himself as a proponent of democratically influenced capitalism. He favors universal healthcare with retention of private insurance; dialogue and cooperation between the Democratic Party and organized labor; universal background checks for firearms purchases; and environment policies that address pollution and fight climate change, which he views as "a security issue". He also supports federal legislation banning discrimination against LGBT people and the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program for immigrants. Buttigieg self-identifies as a progressive and a supporter of democratic capitalism. He identifies regulatory capture as a significant problem in American society.
Buttigieg was named a 2014 Aspen Institute Rodel Fellow. He was named a recipient of the John F. Kennedy New Frontier Fenn Award in 2015.
St. James Cathedral in South Bend, where Buttigieg is a member.
Buttigieg is a devout Christian, and he has said his faith has had a strong influence in his life. Although his parents had him baptized a Roman Catholic as an infant in deference to his strongly religious Maltese relatives, and although he was sent to Catholic schools, his parents were infrequent churchgoers. While at Oxford, Buttigieg began to attend Christ Church, and says he felt "more-or-less Anglican" by the time he returned to South Bend. St. Augustine, James Martin, and Garry Wills are among his religious influences. A member of the Episcopal Church, Buttigieg is a congregant at the Cathedral of St. James in downtown South Bend.
Buttigieg is a polyglot. He taught himself to speak Norwegian and is also conversational in Spanish, Italian, Maltese, Arabic, Farsi, and French. Buttigieg plays guitar and piano, and in 2013 performed with the South Bend Symphony Orchestra as a guest piano soloist along with Ben Folds.
In a June 2015 essay in the South Bend Tribune, Buttigieg announced that he is gay. He is the first openly gay municipal executive in Indiana.
In December 2017, Buttigieg announced his engagement to Chasten Glezman, a junior high school teacher whom Buttigieg had been dating since August 2015 after meeting on the dating app Hinge. They were married on June 16, 2018, in a private ceremony at the Cathedral of St. James. They live in the same South Bend neighborhood where Buttigieg grew up, with their two rescue dogs, Truman and Buddy. As of April 2019, Chasten also uses the last name Buttigieg.
Pete Buttigieg is an only child.
Shortest Way Home: One Mayor's Challenge and a Model for America's Future. Liveright Publishing Corporation/W. W. Norton & Company, Inc. 2019. ISBN 9-781-63149-4369.
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^ Aggeler, Madeleine (2019). Wait, Sorry, How Do You Pronounce Buttigieg?". The Cut. New York Media, LLC.
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^ South Bend mayor back from Afghanistan deployment, Navy Times (September 26, 2014).
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^ a b c d e f g h From youngest mayor to Smart Streets: A timeline of Pete Buttigieg's political career, South Bend Tribune Report (December 17, 2018).
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^ Peterson, Mark. "Largest settlement yet on SB police tapes case". WNDU.com. WNDU. Retrieved July 31, 2017.
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^ "2013 GovFresh Awards". Govfresh.com. 2013. Retrieved June 18, 2015.
^ a b Bruni, Frank (June 11, 2016). "The First Gay President?". The New York Times. Retrieved July 18, 2017.
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^ Diane Daniels Annie Chang (May 20, 2015). "Pete Buttigieg winner of Democratic primary for South Bend mayor race". WSBT.com. Retrieved June 18, 2015.
^ Peterson, Mark (November 3, 2015). "South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg wins re-election". WNDU-TV. Retrieved July 18, 2017.
^ Buttigieg, Pete (June 16, 2015). "South Bend mayor: Why coming out matters". South Bend Tribune. Retrieved April 10, 2019.
^ Catanzarite, Maria (March 27, 2015). "SB mayor, business owners speak out against religious freedom act". 16 WNDU. Retrieved April 10, 2019.
^ Erin Blasko, Smart Streets bond clears key hurdle, South Bend Tribune (January 30, 2015).
^ a b c Jeff Parrott. "How much has Smart Streets driven downtown South Bend's turnaround?". South Bend Tribune.
^ a b c Pete Buttigieg, Mayor: Smart Streets will mean a more vibrant downtown South Bend, South Bend Tribune (June 16, 2017).
^ a b Chris Sikich, Pete Buttigieg says he’s mayor of a turnaround city. Here's how that claim stands up, Indianapolis Star (March 22, 2019).
^ Parrott, Jeff (December 18, 2018). "Pete Buttigieg will not seek a third term as South Bend mayor". South Bend Tribune.
^ Martin, Jonathan (January 5, 2017). "Indiana Mayor Running for D.N.C. Chairman". The New York Times. Retrieved March 18, 2019.
^ a b c Seitz-Wald, Alex (February 25, 2017). "DNC Race: Democrats Elect New Leader Saturday". NBC News. Retrieved February 25, 2017.
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^ Merica, Dan (January 23, 2019). "Indiana mayor Pete Buttigieg jumps into 2020 race". CNN.
^ Burnett, Sara (January 23, 2019). "Breaking: South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg joins 2020 presidential race". South Bend Tribune.
^ Burns, Alexander (January 23, 2019). "Pete Buttigieg, Mayor of South Bend, Ind., Joins Democratic 2020 Race" – via NYTimes.com.
^ Merica, Dan (April 14, 2019). "Pete Buttigieg officially announces presidential campaign". CNN.com. Retrieved 14 April 2019.
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^ a b c Beauchamp, Zack (March 28, 2019). "Pete Buttigieg makes the case for "democratic capitalism"". Vox (website). Retrieved April 1, 2019.
^ "Buttigieg Establishes City Diversity and Inclusion Initiative". SouthBend.gov. The City of South Bend. Archived from the original on January 30, 2018.
^ "November 13, 2015 – 2015 New Frontier Award Release" (Press release). Harvard Institute of Politics. October 28, 2015. Retrieved July 18, 2017.
^ Gambino, Lauren (March 23, 2019). "Pete Buttigieg for president? Long-shot stands out in crowded field". The Guardian. Retrieved March 30, 2019. Like many of his rivals, he offers a stark contrast to the president in style and substance. Buttigieg is the son of a Maltese immigrant; a navy veteran who took leave from his civic day job to serve in Afghanistan; a Harvard-educated Rhodes scholar; a devout Christian and a polyglot and bibliophile who learned Norwegian to read books by an author in Norway whose work had not yet been translated to English.
^ a b Beck, Father Edward. "Pete Buttigieg on faith, his marriage and Mike Pence". CNN. Retrieved 2019-04-04.
^ a b Adam Wren, Pete Buttigieg Has His Eye On The Prize, Indianapolis Monthly (December 16, 2018).
^ a b Bailey, Sarah (March 29, 2019). "Evangelicals helped get Trump into the White House. Pete Buttigieg believes the religious left will get him out". The Washington Post. Retrieved March 30, 2019.
^ a b Beck, Edward (April 2, 2019). "Pete Buttigieg on faith, his marriage and Mike Pence". CNN. Retrieved April 8, 2019.
^ Wallace-Wells, Benjamin (February 9, 2019). "Pete Buttigieg's Quiet Rebellion". The New Yorker. Retrieved March 21, 2019.
^ Lemin, Jason (March 10, 2019). "Pete Buttigieg 2020: Meet the South Bend Mayor Looking to Become America's First Millennial President". Newsweek. Retrieved March 21, 2019.
^ Allen, Nick; Millward, David (2019-03-29). "Pete Buttigieg surges as commentators declare obscure Midwestern Democrat 'hottest candidate'". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 2019-04-08.
^ Theresa Seiger,Who is Pete Buttigieg? Democratic mayor joins 2020 presidential race, Cox Media Group National Content Desk (January 23, 2010).
^ Jeff Harrell, Election victors chill with guitars: Too many well-wishers force Buttigieg to miss his performance, South Bend Tribune (November 12, 2011).
^ Andrew S. Hughes, Mayor, IUSB singers earn their ovations, South Bend Tribune (February 18, 2013).
^ South Bend Symphony Orchestra concert feat. Mayor Pete Buttigieg at the Morris Performing Arts Center, South Bend Tribune (December 23, 2013).
^ Buttigieg, Pete (June 16, 2015). "South Bend Mayor: Why coming out matters". South Bend Tribune. Retrieved June 19, 2015.
^ Blasko, Erin (June 17, 2015). "Pete Butigieg's announcement creates a buzz". South Bend Tribune. Retrieved June 19, 2015.
^ Trebay, Guy (June 18, 2018). "Pete Buttigieg Might Be President Someday. He's Already Got the First Man". The New York Times. Retrieved April 1, 2019.
^ "South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg announces engagement". WNDU. December 28, 2017. Retrieved March 21, 2019.
^ "Faculty and Staff". Tma-el.org. Retrieved 2019-03-26.
^ Shown, Mary (June 17, 2018). "Mayor Pete Buttigieg marries partner Chasten Glezman in downtown South Bend". South Bend Tribune. Retrieved August 21, 2018.
^ "Meet Pete | Pete for America". PeteForAmerica.com. Retrieved 2019-03-27.
^ Mack, Justin (April 9, 2019). "Chasten Buttigieg: What we know about Mayor Pete's husband". Indy Star. Retrieved 16 April 2019.
^ @Chas10Buttigieg (October 8, 2018). "I've got a new name! (🤵🤵🎉🥂💍) So now I need a new twitter handle. However, ChastenButtigieg is one letter too long for the Twitter gods. Any ideas?" (Tweet). Retrieved April 16, 2019 – via Twitter.
^ Victoria St. Martin (January 28, 2019). "'It's been a good trip.' Father of Mayor Pete Buttigieg dies after illness". South Bend Tribune.
This page was last edited on 19 April 2019, at 08:11 (UTC). | 2019-04-19T18:57:42Z | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pete_Buttigieg |
The 2011 Men’s Elite division was whittled down from sixteen teams in 2010 to only a dozen teams this year in an attempt to increase the level of competition. Captains stepped up to draw the card that would seal their fate on Friday evening, and the madness began in earnest on Saturday morning. Two big factors made an impact on the 2011 outcomes, as teams had to adjust to different circumstances throughout the weekend. First of all, Saturday and Sunday’s games were played on slightly smaller courts (just slightly shorter than a typical High School court as compared to the NCAA regulation size that the top teams had become accustomed to). The other factor was that this year’s tournament was not officiated by the usual NCAA officials, so this year the teams had to acclimate themselves to a more rough and tumble set of circumstances in a tighter environment. But all twelve teams were faced with the same situation, so it would just be a matter of who could make the adjustments more quickly. The rim was still 10 feet high, there were still 10 guys on the court, and the ball was still round, so in the end it was still the same game Naismith invented. In Pool A, NY USAB A upset Washington CYC A in Saturday’s biggest shocker to come in first, followed by CYC, NY FBNYC A, and the shortrostered Cali Davis Dynasty. Pool B was easily the most difficult pool on paper, but Coach Tony Wong’s young LA Alpine team picked up where they left off in 2003, winning every game by double digits as they pressed everyone into submission on defense and shot the lights out on offense. LA was first at 3-0, the 2-1 NY RL Cruisers finished second, the Toronto Titans finished third, and NY Maximum Output came up short. In Pool C, the Seattle Bladerunners were first as expected, the revamped Toronto Dragons A were a tough second, Markham FCCM came up from the Mens Open to finish third, and the hometown Boston Hurricanes AAU disappointed their supporters by going winless.
On Sunday morning, first up were the four first round games. On Court 1, it was Washington CYC A v/s Larry Chow’s NY Maximum Output. Maxout sat out the 2010 tournament, and had looked rusty & out of synch as they unsuccessfully tried to pull it together on Saturday. Maximum Output’s Oak Nguyen (16 pts, 4-4 ft, 3 steals) went toe to toe with CYC’s Jeffrey Lee (10 pts, 6 assists) in a matchup of two fabulous NACBA Top 30 guards. NYC’s Alex Stewart and Gavin Cook did a good job slowing down Hank Huang by keeping him from posting up, but they failed to stop unsung Kenny Ho (8 pts, 2 steals) from getting two early triples. NYC did play their best game of the tournament, with wings Dave Mason and Derrick Tsou making a couple of highlight reel plays as they kept the score somewhat close. But CYC was up comfortably by 5-8 points the whole way, and advanced 40-34. On Court 2, the Boston Hurricanes (2004 Champs) got a chance to prove that their 0-3 Saturday showing was not reflective of their talent level as they drew a pool play rematch with the 2010 Open Champions, Markham FCCM. FCCM took the earlier game 34-31, but this time Boston defended their home court as they came out with a sense of urgency. They limited standout SG Darren Liu’s touches and threw an extra defender his way in order to make someone else beat them. Liu still reached double digits, but no one else did for Markham. SF Johnson Lam dropped a dozen, Marvin Chan fell just short of a double double, and Greg Maneikis had 13 points as the Canes won easily 53-35. On Court 3, Ron Yeung’s Toronto Titans came in heavily favored as they would meet FBNYC A. But Will Cheung (21 pts, 7-9 ft) won the pivotal matchup with Carlos Andrade (13 pts, 1 triple, 7 rebs). Toronto sorely missed the veteran leadership of PG Acer Huang, as Ren Hsieh (5 pts, 2 fouls) came up with smart plays down the stretch to lead FBNYC to a big 42-39 upset. The final game of the First round was the NY RL Cruisers v/s Cali Davis Dynasty. One neat subplot of this game would be the George Chan v/s George Chan PF matchup. The Cruisers’ George won the name game as he outdueled the Dynasty’s version 10 pts, 4 rebs to 0 pts, 4 fouls. Top shooter Eddie Wang was scorching early as he tallied 9 in the first few minutes and the Cruisers were comfy. Every New Yorker got into the scoring column as they waltzed 60-34.
In the quarterfinals, there were a couple of exciting matchups. The Toronto Dragons A-Washington CYC A matchup was a repeat of last year’s QF game where CYC advanced 57-39. It was a very similar game this year, as Toronto kept it close- trailing only 28-22 at the half. Kenny Ao (11 pts, 6 rebounds, 2 dimes) and Andrew Suen (16 pts, 2 trifectas) were playing well in transition for the speedy Dragons. But as the game wore on, Jeffrey Lee (11 pts, 4 assists) and Chris Lee (4 pts, 3 steals) sparked DC with their pressure defense on the perimeter, while Kenny Ho (13 pts) and Hank Huang (13 pts, 11 rebs, 1 block) shouldered the scoring burden. Toronto’s lack of depth became their Achilles and Washington won 60-46. The next QF was the best game of the round as the Cruisers looked to do better in their rematch with LA Alpine (52-34 in pool play). James Chen and Jonathan Chu were once again the primary scoring options for LA, combining for 28 points. But the Cruisers had seen the Alpine 1-3-1 press and figured out how to beat it by flashing their big men to the middle in order to relieve the pressure. The tempo was perfect for the Cruisers. LA led 22-18 at the half, but it looked like NY could emerge victorious with a little bit of luck. Perennial All-NACBA pick Tony Hu (16 pts), George Chan (10 pts, 12 rebounds), and Eddie Wang (14 pts, 2 triples) were the big three for NYC. But towards the end of the game, LA picked up a key charging call, Tony Hu fouled out, and underage big man Jordan Young had 13 unexpected points as Alpine squeezed a win out 48-45 as the Cruisers failed to capitalize on the mismatches in the paint. On Court 3, it was NY USAB A v/s the Boston Hurricanes AAU in a matchup of the only two teams besides Seattle to have won the big dance since 2003. USAB’s vet guard Jason Chin (13 pts, 3 trifectas) hit two big three pointers early on, PF Joe Vines (19 pts, 2 steals) was smooth as silk, and Top 18’er Andrew Lichtenstein came out of nowhere to score 8 first half points. USAB was up by double digits and appeared as if they would waltz into the Final Four. However, the Hurricanes didn’t just give in. They turned it up a notch on the defensive end in the second half, allowing USAB only four second half field goals. USAB was rattled as they watched the lead slipping out of their grasp. Pat Redmond hit four three pointers, and Kevin Redmond scored 18 to get the Canes in position to win. But time began to run out and Boston had to start putting USAB on the line. USAB missed quite a few freethrows but they did hit just enough to win, as they snuck by 49-45. Not many people watched the last game of the round, as the Seattle Bladerunners amped up their defense and led 37-9 at halftime against NY FBNYC A. Stephen Chang (12 pts, 7 rebs) and Wesley Hsu (19 pts, 4 triples) were amazing early on, and Seattle played their bench most of the game en route to a 69-45 victory.
Monday morning, and three of the teams that were here at the Case Gym (Seattle Bladerunners, Washington CYC, and LA Alpine) were in everyone’s bracket. Most others had picked either the Toronto Dragons A or the NY RL Cruisers to complete the quartet, but it was actually NY USAB who had burst their way onto the big stage by virtue of their Saturday shocker over CYC. USAB had thus received the all-important bye, leaving the Cruisers to face LA and the Dragons to face CYC in the Quarters. But USAB is certainly no stranger to the bright lights of Monday, having made it to the Final Four in both 2004 and 2007. All four teams were amped up to be playing in front a larger crowd and to finally get out onto a full size regulation court (home of the Boston Terriers).
On the Main Court at 9am, it was a rematch of the 2010 Finals and the 2009 Semifinals as the 3-time defending Champion Seattle Bladerunners would meet Washington CYC A. Seattle had CYC’s number as they have won 5 straight matchups dating back to 2003. CYC has to look back to 1998 and 2001 for their last victories. But CYC has been slowly retooling their roster over the years, specifically trying to find the Bladerunners’ kryptonite. One flaw in the DC gameplan was that they didn’t expect Top 30 PG Austin Yuen to be injured this year, as Seattle had replaced Yuen with 6-2 wing Ryan Dunn (All-NACBA, SF Duke/ Hoopaholics) and 6-5 SF Thomas Fang (Cal-Berkley). Although Yuen’s injury had changed some things for Seattle, it definitely made them a more physically imposing team. Both teams came out with mutual respect but plenty of confidence. The stands were buzzing with chatter. There were a bunch of college level players, guys who played pro ball in various places, countless All-NACBAIT picks, and quite a few NACBA Top 30 players lined up on the hardwood. How would Seattle deal with CYC’s speed? How would CYC deal with Seattle’s size? What defenses would each team implement? Who would be the first to toss a monster jam? CYC came out with an aggressive box and one on 6-3 All-NACBA guard Wesley Hsu. The idea was to stop Hsu from sinking the 4.3 trifectas he had been averaging thus far, and to cut off his playmaking. Seattle recognized and went to living legend Jim Shih (8 pts) underneath. Washington worked the ball to F Hank Huang, and he scored CYC’s first 11 points on a variety of inside moves and jumpers. The Bladerunners took note and began to realize that the zebras were granting the players a lot of leeway in the paint (2 free throws and only 6 total foul calls in the half combined for both teams). Seattle got physical on defense and made someone else beat them. A big steal led to a Kyle Kiang (9 pts, 1 treyball) breakaway jam and Seattle was usurping control. But CYC remained poised as they expected a tough game. The game stayed whistle free, and it actually fell into CYC’s favor as Seattle got no calls each time they went hard to the cup against their smaller opposition. CYC was bumping Seattle every time they went into the paint, and the errant shots were going all over the place. The quicker Washington team was the first to the ball, and they patiently worked the perimeter on offense to hit six deep dialups on cue as Keith Wang, Bobby Hsieh, Jeffrey Lee, and Chris Lee took turns from 22-25 feet out. Seattle’s Ryan Dunn and Thomas Fang closed the half out well and Washington led only 34-30 at the midpoint. Seattle had confidence, as they had pulled games out like this in the past, but Jim Shih and Kyle Kiang’s bodies were starting to betray them as three days of playing is not the best thing for guys in their 30’s. Plus, Kyle had been nursing a pulled groin all weekend. It would be up to the young guys to get the job done. The gameplan remained the same for both teams, and CYC hit a bunch more treys to stretch the lead to double digits. Seattle realized that the clock was their enemy, and they went for broke with about 7 minutes to go. They implemented a jump trap defense and got some big steals as CYC was caught completely off guard. MVP man Stephen Chang and Tim Wang (10 pts, two 3’s) clawed the Bladerunners within 3 points, but as time wound down, they had to start putting CYC on the line and they sank 13/16 ft’s in the second half to win the game 66-57. Hank Huang had 23 to lead CYC, while Stephen Chang had 14 and two threes for Seattle, as CYC won this physically draining game and ended Seattle’s three year reign. Seattle will be back, but CYC finally got the monkey off their back.
The other semifinal was a matchup of two undefeated 4-0 teams as LA Alpine and the NY USAB Warriors would meet. USAB has a huge amount of respect for Coach Wong’s LA team, as Warriors founder Bill Chan often cites Alpine as one of the biggest inspirations for the creation of the USAB program. LA came out wearing black, and NY was dressed in yellow and it looked like a bunch of bees on the hardwood. Alpine swarmed like killer bees, causing turnover after turnover after turnover. Jonathan Chu was unstoppable from the wing as he dropped 21 in the first half alone. Chu is as impressive a player as we have seen in recent years. He showed his full repertoire of moves, showing us that he can drive left, drive right, jab step and hit the treyball, and he can stop on a dime to sink pullup j’s. James Chen (21 pts, 4 treys) was a perfect complement on the other wing, and LA took USAB’s swagger early by going up by more than 20 before halftime. The only reason Alpine wasn’t up by 30 was that Joe Vines (16 pts, 1 trey, 5-10 ft, 7 rebs) was doing some scoring on the rare occasion that USAB broke the press. In the second half, Alpine was up by 24. Coach Wong called off the dogs a little bit and started to put some subs in as he knew they would be facing CYC in about an hour. USAB threw in the towel as they benched All-Tournament pick PG Nicholas Mui (2 pts, 1 foul) and inserted other options. Still up by a sizeable margin, Chu went to the bucket on a breakaway and Joe Vines made some contact out of frustration. As expected, no foul was called, but Chu and Vines got into a little scrum. Tony Wong does not play games and does not tolerate anything of the sort from his players. He demands absolute discipline and sportsmanship. He holds his program to a higher standard than anyone else. Wong immediately pulled his #1 option while USAB kept their go to guy in the game. That showed a lot about the state of the programs and how they got there. One team was at the top even though they haven’t been at the Nationals scene in 8 years, while the other team was just trying to get to that level by any means possible so they kept their man in the game even if it meant sacrificing discipline. NYC apparently needed that little bit of extracurricular stuff to fire them up as they finally hit some shots. The lead started to dwindle, as USAB’s Kevin Chang (16 pts) and Zachary Liu (5 pts, 2 steals) stepped it up a notch. LA’s PG Benny Hoang kept going to the line and the normally rock solid #00 hit only 1 of 5 down the stretch. Alpine remained confident and they didn’t go back to their trademark press. The Warriors were trying to make the score respectable and were playing hard to make it happen. Throughout the whole series of events as the lead was dwindling, everyone was just waiting for Jonathan Chu to be reinserted into the game but it wouldn’t happen. Apparently if LA would lose the game without him, then that’s just how it would have to be. The Alpine organization definitely earned a lot of respect for playing the game the right way from everyone who saw this matchup. In the end, Alpine did coast to the win 58-48.
The Championship game boiled down to a rematch of the 2002 Finals between LA Alpine and Washington CYC A. Back then, Los Angeles defeated Washington 50-43 as 6-4 MVP Daniel Liu (UCSD) had 16 points, 17 rebounds, and 4 blocks while Song Cun and Benny Hoang were NACBA Top 30 legends in the backcourt. Ironically, Daniel played the past couple of years with CYC as Alpine did not travel to the NACBAIT, but he did not play this year due to a knee injury. Song has also moved on, and Benny is really the only remaining holdover from those glory days. Gone are Brad Au, Johnny Phan, Kenny Phan and Joe Diep. For CYC, the core of Jeffrey Lee (Charles College), Chris Lee (Rutgers), Keith Wang (Gettysburg), and Bobby Hsieh (Catholic) persists in their upper years but the remainder of the roster has seen a lot of turnover. After Alpine left the NACBAIT tour, it became a big man’s game and CYC was forced to get taller in order to compete. Big men like Stan Hwang (6-4, 260), Daniel Liu, Hank Huang, and 6-5 All-NACBA C Brian Liang became necessary pieces. Even transitional guys like lanky 6-1 SF Tuan Tang (Penn State Abington) needed to be able to defend bigger guys. So a lot has changed since their last matchups at the NACBAIT. The teams have still faced each other annually in tournaments such as the LVI (CYC won the last meeting in 2010 as Chris Lee sank a 3 at the buzzer) so it’s not like these teams are completely unfamiliar with each other- but for some reason things are always different at the Chinese Nationals. Spectators were mostly predicting a 7-8 point win for LA, since they had been so hot from the outside all weekend (9 threes per game), CYC had just come off a real war with Seattle, and LA had pretty much cruised against USAB in their semi.
The opening tap went up, and it was game on. CYC knew to put their primary focus on Jonathan Chu, and had Kenny Ho deny him the rock. Veteran Benny Hoang saw this and immediately called a play for #45 James Chen. Chen curled off some greatly spaced double screens, caught the ball and in one motion swished a three without batting an eye. The play drew oohs and aahs from the stands. Washington tried to establish Brian Liang and Hank Huang early as they had obvious mismatches inside, but it became apparent that the 7th game in 3 days were too much for Liang’s gimpy knee. CYC would have to readjust their game plan. LA came down, and ran the same play as CYC stood befuddled with their defenders standing there looking at each other. Chen’s quick trigger resulted in nothing but net from 21 feet out. Chen hit his first four three’s before he missed one and LA was off to a good start. Before you knew it LA was winning by double digits. Alpine was full court pressing and it looked like it could turn into a blowout. You just can’t play a team like LA from behind. CYC regrouped and tied it up at 18-18 thanks to 4 treyballs (two each from Kenny Ho and Bobby Hsieh). Then it was Jonathan Chu’s turn to put on a show. Some backdoor lobs, some face up threes, some strong penetration against the man defense and the score was 40-24 at halftime. The second half rolled around and Coach Wong’s Alpine Striders kept the press going. CYC was able to work it to Hank Huang for two baskets early in the half, but after that it was clear that CYC just had nothing left in their gas tank, as the veteran team was totally drained from the Seattle game. Alpine’s full court ball pressure was amazing as all 5 guys were working in unison. Their recovery and to the ball speed on defense was reminiscent of their old teams. Jeff Lim and Jordan Young filled the gaps and did all the little things as this team did not let up on the gas one bit. It was full throttle all the way. LA tallied 14 steals for the game. CYC couldn’t get their legs underneath them on their shots as they were stuck on 28 points for about 13 minutes. LA went on a 23-0 run before Kenny Ho hit 10 straight points for CYC, including a 4 point play. But it was over and the stands were emptying out early. Alpine’s suffocating defense, and their 14/18 3-point shooting were the keys. Jonathan Chu (24 pts, 3 treys, 5-6 ft, 4 steals, 2 TO’s) and MVP James Chen (24 pts, 7-9 threes) were the stars for LA, while Kenny Ho (16 pts, 5 treys, 6 rebs) and Hank Huang (8 pts, 7 rebs) led CYC. The game has changed to a speed game and it looks like LA is going to be the team to beat for years now. Congrats to Los Angeles on winning their 8th NACBAIT title! | 2019-04-19T11:20:07Z | http://nacbait.com/nacba/boston11/recaps/menselite |
During the past decade the technological advancements of the Internet has significantly changed the method of communications and access to information for millions of users worldwide. First developed as a secure communications mode for the military during the height of the cold war era, the Internet has become as commonplace for Americans as the telephone or automobile. Users, provided that they have the necessary computer hardware and browser application as well as a network connection to the Internet are able to access and exchange information at speeds measured In thousandths of a second.
Each time a connection to the Internet is made, users risk compromising their privacy through many different channels, including Internet service providers, search engines and actual websites visited. As this vast communications medium continues to evolve, so have the threats to user’s privacy. Scores of Internet marketing conglomerates are covertly collecting valuable Information from users such as search engine results, websites visited, purchases made and often times the user’s email address.
Internet users unknowingly are leaving a trail of personal information and the statutes regulating arresting and or governmental entitles collection and dissemination of this data are Insufficient given today’s technological advances. Under current federal laws, the collection and distribution of data which identifies a specific users Internet activities is subject to regulation under the Electronic Communications Privacy Act (CPA), or the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act enacted in 1990 to protect the identity of children under the age of 13.
CPA was passed Into law In 1986 as an extension of existing regulations governing wiretapping of telephones and interception of postal mail by the US government. Privacy advocates note that privacy threats occur in part because legislative and regulatory policies generally seem to trail behind the capableness of emerging technologies” (Marshall 948). Most agree that this legislation, though sufficient at the time of enactment is seriously out of date given today’s cutting edge Internet data collection technologies.
On the other hand, entities that engage in data collection as well as law enforcement benefit from the ambiguities that the CPA presents and are not In favor of stronger privacy protection laws. With today’s technology, online marketing companies are routinely electing data regarding a user’s search engine queries, websites pages visited, advertisements viewed, purchases made, time of day and geographic location of the Internet connection. With this data, detailed profiles are created for use by on-line companies to produce and direct targeted advertising to the user.
Additionally, this data is often times sold off to firms which specialize in compiling user information from several sources. DRP. Joseph Throw, a noted Internet privacy expert and professor at the University of Pennsylvania Ennobler School for Communication In is Journal article “Americans and Online Privacy: The System Is Broken” cites a national survey “that the overwhelming majority of US adults who use the Internet at home have no clue about data flows – the invisible, cutting edge techniques whereby about them” ( par. ). List firms whose sole purpose is to compile bits and pieces of user data and create detailed profiles are abundant. The biggest link too profile is a users physical or email address typically supplied when signing up for something free or making a purchase on a website. Most adults who go online are unaware of he value to online marketing firms that this data carries. With this robust information, marketers are able to create detailed profiles based on user’s activities.
Privacy advocates, consumers as well as many legislators feel that this practice, known in the industry as behavioral advertising is discriminatory. Online companies are presenting advertisements or making offers to users based on the user’s history of Internet activities. A user that has a profile indicating that they typically seek out and purchase from discount websites such as Walter. Mom may not be extended the name advertisement or promotional opportunities as a user whose profile indicates that they seek out higher end websites such as narcissuses. Com. This practice may seem harmless enough at face value, however if a user were to seek out information regarding debt relief and provided their email address to the website as requirement to access or receive information there is a overwhelming probability that a profile would be created and flagged as someone who has credit challenges. O illustrate this example a step further, if this user were to be a candidate for employment in the financial sector and the potential employer ordered a background reach during which the candidate’s email address was matched to a previous profile that was created when they were searching for debt relief information, the resulting match might negatively impact employment opportunity.
Mark Rottenest, executive director of the Electronic Privacy Information Center and Georgetown University Law Center professor stated during testimony to congress on the issue of Internet user privacy, “Users have little idea how much information is gathered, who has access to it or how it is used. The last point is critical because in the absence of legal rules, impasses that are gathering this data will be free to use it for whatever purpose they wish” (CTD. N Marshall 938). This type of data collection and information sharing could have long lasting and devastating implications for users for years. In addition to websites visited, search engines such as Google, MANS or Yahoo offer a substantial collection of user data. For every search engine query there is a digital road map created and stored by these companies, retaining this information anywhere from 90 days 18 months.
These companies are citing the need to do so to provide better service and avoid security threats. Additionally warns the Privacy Rights Clearinghouse in “Fact Sheet 18: Privacy and the Internet: Traveling in Cyberspace Safely’, if a individual uses one of the major email services such as Microsoft’s Hotmail as well as using Microsoft’s web browser, MANS, there is link made between the user’s email address and their browsing activities (4).
Privacy rights advocates are alarmed by the retention time periods, citing that these are excessive and increase the likelihood of government monitoring of user’s browsing activities. Google which in 2008 was the preferred search engine 82% of the time worldwide as successfully resisted subpoenas served by the Justice Department to force the disclosure of user searches (Marshall 943). Under pressure from privacy advocacy groups and constituents federal legislation to regulate the collection of personally throughout the past decade.
The online industry is utilizing more powerful tools to collect user information for targeted advertising and each of these laws introduced Nas intended to set a minimum federal privacy standard that websites, search engines and governmental agencies must adhere to. The first to do so was Democratic South Carolina Senator Ernest Holdings, Chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee. The Online Personal Privacy Act, introduced in 2002 proposed minimum standard that companies must adhere to addressing five basic issues: Notice, Consent, Access, Security and Enforcement.
As long as a website abides by their written policy, if they have one at all, regardless of how ambiguous it is they cannot be accused of deceptive business practices. Advertising executives are quick to counter the argument for additional legislation citing that the collection of marketing data is critical to attracting advertising dollars which in turn keeps the Internet a mostly no cost medium of information exchange for consumers.
Without advertising revenues, the Internet would not be nearly as robust as it is today, and industry leaders as well as lawmakers opposing additional regulations question how willing would consumers be to pay for content that is currently delivered free of charge. Further, the executives contend that users would do well to become more educated on privacy issues, utilize the privacy features of their web browser and avoid websites that have inadequate privacy policies.
As well, advertisers Justify targeted marketing as being able to present consumers with the best options that are suited to their tastes. In 2008 Congressional hearings ensued when Charter Communications, an Internet service provider (ISP) and Nebula an online marketing company announced their plans to step up analysis of their customer’s data. After lawmakers held numerous hearings on these practices, the companies abandoned their plans (Marshall 943). O date, with the exception of the passage of the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act no legislation specifically aimed at users’ Internet privacy has been enacted into law at the federal level. In the absence of substantial federal data collection legislation, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the watchdog federal agency Charged with protecting consumer rights has worked with industry leaders to develop a set of self regulation data gathering practices. Basic privacy guidelines Nerve first established by the Network Advertising Initiative (ANA), a coalition formed by 12 leading companies in 1999.
The guidelines require members to adhere too set standard of disclosure and conduct such as posting a notice on their website informing users of the potential that advertisers may place a third party cookie, squiring websites to give users the opportunity to opt-out of the collection of personal information and refrain from merging any acquired user information with policies in December 2008 to address options for sensitive information, parental consent for children under the age of 13 and an annual compliance review (Marshall 346).
As e-commerce has grown, several additional privacy protection companies have come into existence, developed to implement a uniform set of standards for their members as relates to the collection of user’s identifiable information. Some of the well-known are: Trustee, EBB and Verging. Today, virtually all reputable websites carry a privacy seal of approval from one or more of these organizations (Fact Sheet 18). Senator Holdings in his 2002 address to the senate makes note of the efforts of industry leaders such as EarthLink, U-Haul, Intel and others that have developed strong pro-consumer privacy policies and abide by these practices.
Although there are forward thinking industry leaders that have made the commitment to protecting privacy, the Senator further states that “despite the best intentions and some successful efforts, reliance on self-regulation alone has not proven to provide sufficient protection” (par. ). In February 2009, the Federal Trade Commission issued Markings to Internet marketing companies that they are not adequately explaining their information gathering policies to users.
The agency continues to maintain that the Internet companies can self-regulate themselves, on the other hand, warned by commission member, Jon Leibniz as quoted in a New York Times article “Agency Skeptical of Internet Privacy Policies” “With this Congress there is not going to be a lot of patience for Big Brother Internet advertising without privacy protections. They invite legislation if they don’t do a good Job at self regulation” (Hansel, par. 3). It is evident by these hearings that the FTC is issuing a stern warning to the industry to improve their data collection privacy policies and practices or face potential legislative actions.
Privacy rights advocates contend that the USA Patriot Act, passed n the aftermath of the 9/1 1 terrorist attacks has weakened American’s protection from government monitoring or access to their communications records. According to Jay Stanley, director of public education for the American Civil Liberties Union the Patriot Act weakens the Electronic Communications Privacy Act of 1986 by permitting he Justice Department to issue national security letters to Internet service providers for disclosure of information versus having to obtain a warrant from a Judge which is most times required to tap a telephone line.
Stanley contends: Our courts have not kept up with technology and have not kept up with the needs of privacy. When the fourth amendment was written, most of people’s lives took place in the home. Your medical life, your correspondence, your financial records were in the home… But much of our lives are now stored on the servers of international corporations” (CTD. In Marshall 950). Stanley comments are particularly poignant given the number of sensitive financial, medical and other transactions that consumers are able to conduct using today’s Internet technology.
The privacy concerns of Americans as a result of passage of the USA Patriot Act could very well have been the theme for Dan renown’s fictional novel Digital Fortress were it not for the fact that the novel was Mitten three years prior to the 2001 terrorist attacks. In this thriller the author created Commander Tremor Stateroom as the National Security Agency’s Deputy Director of Operations. Stateroom and his staff of cryptography experts’ scope of Nor are to decode electronic messages that are intercepted by various US having the phones tapped and immediately embraced this new means of global communication.
Email had the security of conventional mail and the speed of the telephone” (Brown 25). The author sets the story line by explaining that several years before, privacy rights advocates including the Electronics Frontier Foundation were demanding that the government put forth an encryption formula which assured the public that various intelligence agencies would not have the ability to intercept and read private communications. Stateroom’s team was charged with the task to evolve such an encryption standard.
Determined in his certainty that the National Security Agency must maintain it’s superiority in monitoring electronic communications Stateroom wrote a back door into the code. After being released for public analysis, it was discovered that Stateroom had secretly altered the code, creating a monumental public outcry as well. With the potential release off new highly sophisticated encryption code written by a disgruntled former NSA employee, Stateroom seizes upon the opportunity to redeem himself and his career by another attempt to insert a backdoor code.
In order to be successful with this attempt he goes to great lengths submitting the code to the Ana’s most powerful code breaking computer only to discover that the code was a trick and actually Stateroom has introduced a virus that will destroy the entire national security databanks leaving the country exposed to waiting electronic terrorists. It is Just the type of super secret maneuvers as portrayed in Brown’s novel that have spurred the growth of privacy advocacy groups such as the Privacy Rights Clearinghouse based in San Diego, California.
Privacy Rights Clearinghouse is a non-profit organization with the goals of gassing consumer awareness, empowering consumers to take action and advocacy for consumer’s privacy rights in local, state and federal pubic policy hearings (Givens, par. L). There are several other privacy groups such as American Civil Liberties Union, Center for Democracy and Technology as well as the Electronic Frontier Foundation that advocate for individual’s right to privacy on the Internet (Fact Sheet 21-22).
Fundamentally all of these organizations feel that the 1986 Electronic Communications Privacy Act is ineffective in today’s technological landscape and stronger federal Internet privacy protections are long overdue. Many privacy foes contended that the lack of federal legislation regulating Internet privacy has much to do with the demographics of Congress. This is clearly pointed out in a Washington Post July 2008 article titled “Senate Grapples with Web Privacy Issues. Websites have been collecting user data and compiling detailed profiles for the better part of 10 years and as Senator Bill Nelson from Florida asked a question of a witness concerning Internet connections, the witness was so confused at the question that their response was “l think I’m not entirely sure of what you are suggesting, senator. To which the senator replied, “Nor am l” (Workhorse, par. 7). Typically members of Congress are upper middle aged and have not embraced technology to the extent that the younger generations have and find discussions regarding data flows, bits and bytes, and Sips a foreign language.
Although one senator did boast that he reads his hometown newspaper online. In recent years a new solution, Platform for Privacy Preference (POP) has been proposed to protect Internet user’s privacy automatically through machine readable privacy policies. It is the company’s website would automatically communicate to the user’s computer that he website meets the privacy policies that the user has pre-configured on their computer.
In a report published by the Electronic Privacy Information Center, aptly titled “Pretty Poor Privacy: An Assessment of POP and Internet Privacy’ the validity of Madders implementation of POP is seriously discredited. The center contends that POP is not an effective solution to on-line privacy concerns given that it is a “complex and confusing protocol that will make it more difficult for Internet users to protect their privacy’ (par. 1). POP is a very cumbersome application, which if not configured ropey will not only block access to legitimate websites but also quite possibly extend a sense of false security for users.
The Internet has dramatically changed the everyday lives of individuals throughout the globe. With the ever-evolving technology to exchange information instantaneously users are able to carry out many of the everyday tasks that previously required a visit to the bank, post office or library. However with all of the conveniences that this robust communication medium brings to our lives, come serious issues concerning safeguarding of users’ private information. There are numerous avenues that a users’ privacy can be compromised, and inevitably, one can not avoid disclosing a certain amount of data when using the Internet.
At issue is the absence of federal legislation regulating who, what and “here this information may be collected, assimilated and shared with various marketing organizations or governmental authorities. Prior to the advent of the Internet American’s personal matters such as financial records, health information, personal correspondence was stored in the home; it is there that Americans are afforded the privacy protections as set-forth in the constitution. With today’s technology, intimate details regarding our lives are stored on network servers not in the home. | 2019-04-25T08:07:44Z | https://super2008.net/internet-privacy-has-it-become-non-existent/ |
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On monitor on the Storage Networking business association (SNIA) became an illustration of Plexistor’s utility defined reminiscence with smart Modular technologies DDR4 NVDIMM, which compares the throughput and latency of an Intel 750 NVMe PCIe SSD to their DDR4 NVDIMM. SNIA additionally confirmed their newest storage certification that lets you additional your odds of storage solutions to the SNIA typical.
To change the CompTIA Storage + certification, SNIA has introduced ahead their SNIA licensed Storage knowledgeable (SCSP) certification. they are informed that it provides a foundation of seller-neutral, systems-stage credentials that combine with and complement individual supplier certifications. The structure of the SNCP has been more desirable to reflect the concurrent progress of storage technologies and to supply expanded choices in the future.
running on a Linux-based equipment, they descry the Intel 750 working at eight,902 IOPS, and the NVDIMM operating at 651,481 IOPS. in the meantime, the DDR4 NVDIMM has 0 latency (according to the output of this benchmark), whereas the Intel 750 has 92 micro seconds.
This DDR4 NVDIMM was paired up with a PCIe Supercap Module, which everything over an influence low, the contents of the DRAM are instantly backed as much as flash.
stay tuned for greater coverage of Storage Visions 2016 and the client Electronics disclose 2016.
knowledgeable storage professionals are sought after as commerce IT teams select on exponential statistics growth and strategically migrate facts assets from legacy methods to greater concurrent options.
For these gurus who are seeking for a recent job or aiming to expand of their existing function, a certification may probably differentiate them from different one candidates. And for hiring managers, certifications can assist trim one of the crucial possibility from the recruitment process by validating to some extent talents in areas akin to network-connected storage, storage region networks, and storage configuration and operations administration.
making a choice on a certification to pursue depends on a candidate’s situation. Candidates with supplier-certain certifications may besides subsist attractive to corporations that are trying to find inescapable platform competencies, yet they may now not subsist as comely for companies that want people with the capabilities to toil throughout a heterogeneous storage ambiance.
in the meantime, present revenue traits testify sturdy claim for experienced IT pros who toil in the networked storage area. Tech profession hub and job-search web page cube launched its annual bespeak to U.S. tech salaries, and a few storage positions are netting greater-than-usual pay increases. as an example, the unique greatest revenue boost, percent sensible, amongst everything IT roles went to tech pros who've savor with Dell’s Compellent commercial enterprise storage platform. Tech execs with Compellent potential earned, on standard, $111,457 final year, a surge of 11%, in line with dice's salary analysis. (See extra salaries for storage pros here).
Granted, hiring managers won’t view a certification as a alternative for functional adventure. yet another consideration is the evolving panorama of technologies for architecting and managing storage in modern data facilities. businesses are stepping up adoption of glisten storage, utility-described storage, cloud storage and hyperconvergence, and certifications are being revised to live existing with these applied sciences.
“To subsist a success on your career, it is quintessential to regard how the storage items proper collectively in a multi-supplier atmosphere. SNIA education offers the framework for a accepted figuring out of storage networking concepts, troubleshooting, management and administration and structure. The potential and potential you net hold of from the supplier training and certification makes you more advantageous prepared to architect and convey a complete multi-supplier solution,” SNIA explains in an FAQ.
Brocade recently revamped its certification application, with the recent lineup taking repercussion in November 2016. Brocade’s certifications are equipped via four most distinguished job roles (architect/dressmaker, implementer, administrator, and assist) and four skillability degrees (associate, expert, expert and grasp). The IP certification track cultivates abilities within the setting up, configuration, upkeep, and troubleshooting of Brocade Layer 2/3 items, as an example, while the Ethernet fabric IT music is focused on Brocade VDX hardware, and the storage networking tune is concentrated on VCS fabric storage networks. particulars available prerogative here.
Dell EMC’s certification program tackles the huge latitude of the combined enterprise’s hardware, application and options. The company offers 4 talent levels (affiliate, expert, professional, and skilled), and its storage-certain certification tracks encompass counsel storage and administration; storage administrator; implementation engineer; expertise architect; and many extra. View a abstract of Dell EMC’s certification framework prerogative here.
HPE offers a wide array of certifications in its certification application, which spans IT management, tall records, protection, servers, cloud computing and greater. It presents four storage-specific alternate options: HPE grasp ASE - Storage options Architect V2; HPE ASE - Storage options Architect V2; HPE ATP - Storage options V2; and HPE Product licensed – OneView.
The IBM knowledgeable Certification software spans everything of its enterprise tech choices, including analytics, cloud, security and more. at present, IBM presents nine credentials involving its storage software and 12 expert certifications regarding its storage methods.
aimed at storage professionals working with NetApp records storage and administration technologies, NetApp’s certification courses offers 12 credentials. It’s geared up in three ranges (affiliate, professional and skilled) throughout 4 leading job roles (implementation engineer, storage administrator, steer engineer, and installing engineer).
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there's no question that competencies and information concerning quite a few networked kinds of storage – akin to storage enviornment networks (SANs), community-attached storage (NAS), virtualized storage, and even storage as a provider (STaaS) – are in unreasonable demand. also, IT specialists attracted to facts core or community-backbone-related positions are supine to want efficacious storage chops.
common salaries for storage engineers are constant (and profitable) throughout several job-related websites. for instance, SimplyHired reviews the habitual nationwide earnings is a runt over $107,600 in a variety dawn at $74,085 and climbing simply over $156,000. abilities income stated by using Glassdoor are larger: The countrywide commonplace earnings is just over $one hundred sixty five,800, with the low quit of the purview at about $one hundred ten,000 and the lofty quit immediate to $182,000.
In many ways, the status of storage certification perfectly mirrors in a unique region enviornment (or perhaps a closely clustered assortment of connected subjects) what occurs throughout the total spectrum of assistance expertise. Some dealer-impartial storage certifications can subsist found, peculiarly these from the Storage Networking commerce association (SNIA) and Arcitura. also, there are a lot of dealer-selected storage credentials attainable from suppliers of storage programs and options, including Cisco, Dell EMC, Hitachi facts techniques (HDS), HPE, NetApp and sun/Oracle, amongst others.
Like other IT certifications, seller-neutral credentials recognize great competency in design, implementation and management, while supplier-particular classes watch to match up with applied sciences active IT professionals interact within the dwelling of toil (or that they'd want to occupy interaction with for prospective employers).
How is a storage-minded IT knowledgeable purported to determine upon a winner here? identify consciousness is one factor. great title and massive company certifications are likely to entice larger numbers of certified individuals, lending extra credibility to such certifications.
based on identify focus and job board surveys, their picks for 2019 palter with Cisco, HDS, NetApp and SNIA. One merchandise distinctly absent from the chief board this year is the Brocade storage program. This gap in the lineup isn't for want of popularity. in fact, reasonably the contrary is sound because the job board search yielded over three,000 employers in quest of candidates with Brocade savor and certs. alas for certification seekers, after Brocade was acquired by Broadcom, its assessments, accreditations, certifications, and teacher-led practising are no longer available. although, many free web-based lessons remain that cover Fibre Channel Storage region Networking products for professionals seeking to extend their Brocade odds and skills.
Of everything the storage-related Cisco certifications, the CCIE statistics middle is probably the most senior and the most appropriate identified. whereas it's a tough and disturbing credential to earn, it comes with a very proper payoff for its holders.
To merit this credential, candidates should pass both a written and a rigorous 8-hour, two-part practical lab examination. The written exam should subsist handed before candidates can besides effort the lab examination. Lab checks occupy to subsist attempted within 18 months of successfully passing the written exam. The lab examination is delivered in two materials: the primary section carries a one-hour Diagnostic Module, while half 2 incorporates a 7-hour Configuration and Troubleshooting module. it is reputed to subsist fiendishly challenging.
Cisco keeps hyperlinks to recommended training, including self-look at materials, dissect corporations, webinars, syllabus, suggested readings, and other resources on the CCIE facts core and exam web pages.
$300 per examination; $1,200 total (price may besides disagree via vicinity). checks administered through Pearson VUE.
teacher-led training is counseled. guidance on self-examine substances and studying partner practising purchasable on the URL above and on the Cisco studying community information hub (CCNP information core) web page.
Hitachi Vantara, previously accepted as the Hitachi information systems enterprise, is common for its hybrid storage systems, storage management, and networking solutions geared toward Fortune 100 and Fortune international a hundred companies. The company has a smartly-developed certification program to aid its items and capabilities.
in contrast to most different IT certification sponsors, Hitachi's program distinguishes between skills and certifications. Qualification credentials goal at the affiliate and skilled ranges where candidates occupy extensive information of issues and ideas. Hitachi certifications are either specialists or specialists, the dwelling candidates occupy profound skills of and abundant arms-on journey with items and solutions.
each styles of credentials descend below a variety of tracks: Administration (professional), Architect (specialist and professional), Implementation and Integration (professional and skilled), installation and steer (specialist and knowledgeable), and basics and Fundamentals (entry-level), in addition to earnings and Presales.
The Hitachi certified skilled – Storage Administration credential, a section of the Administration music, is an intermediate-degree qualification geared toward storage networking authorities who can configure and troubleshoot Hitachi Command Suite items, as well as employ Hitachi gadget manager to manipulate the storage environment. Candidates occupy to circulate one examination – Storage Administration HQT-6740 – to merit the credential.
The TSI2565 Managing Hitachi Storage with Hitachi Command Suite v8.x instructor-led route, which runs five or six days, is offered at HDS working towards facilities. working towards prices initiate at $four,875.
The examination PDF contains assistance on examination aims and practising. Candidates should create an HDS account to net more guidance.
NetApp has been within the storage enterprise considering the fact that 1992, and presents a vast line of items and programs for backup and recuperation, traditional and virtualized storage and cloud-primarily based records facilities. youngsters NetApp has some inflexible competitors – Dell EMC, HPE and Hitachi, to identify a couple of – the company understands the value of flexibility and integration with different third-party products. for example, NetApp worked with Cisco to promote FlexPod, which helps customers control Cisco, Citrix, Cloudera, Microsoft, NetApp, Oracle, purple Hat, VMware, and different applications and environments, and NetApp's hybrid cloud storage integrates with Amazon web capabilities and Microsoft Azure, amongst others.
The NetApp Certification software (NCP) elements a number of certifications inside three tracks: facts, Hybrid Cloud and Converged Infrastructure. everything NetApp certifications focus on some ingredient of storage hardware or the utility that powers these products. The information track includes the NetApp licensed Storage associate (NCSA) – Hybrid Cloud, the NetApp certified Storage installation Engineer, ONTAP as well as their featured certification, the NetApp certified records Administrator (NCDA).
The NCDA acknowledges working odds of NetApp storage architecture, core ONTAP components, unreasonable availability, records clustering, protocol administration, storage efficiency, safety and information coverage. Candidates must subsist in a position to configure controllers operating the ONTAP working gadget in NFS and windows (CIFS) environments, and regard NetApp SnapMirror, SnapRestore and SnapVault applied sciences.
Candidates should circulate one examination to merit the credential.
NetApp certifications are sound for 27 months, and credential holders must meet recertification necessities during this duration to hold their certifications.
A NetApp lighten site account is required to enroll in NetApp university practicing.
NetApp presents instructor-led and net-based mostly working towards, a tradition verify for the NS0-159 exam, and an inventory of reference files. (See the NCDA internet page for links to working towards resources.) The NetApp KB tv YouTube channel offers how-to videos on the usage of NetApp know-how. Candidates should soundless additionally browse the NetApp college and training website for insights on training and checks. No certification study publications or apply tests were organize on the NetApp web page or on Amazon.
each and every certification requires candidates to tide the S10-a hundred and ten Foundations exam or hang a present CompTIA Storage+ Powered by using SNIA certification (exam now not provided), which earns the knowledgeable (SCSP) credential. The Networking expert (SCSN-E) requires everything of them.
SNIA certifications are respectable for 3 years from the date of certification. After that, a certification holder must select probably the most present examination to maintain the credential.
All tests are $220 apart from the SQSSP examination which is $100. tests administered by artery of Kryterion.
SNIA provides links to dissect reference substances, celebrate tests and working towards on each and every certification's net page. inspect at substances are additionally available through practising partners.
past the appropriate 5 storage certifications outlined listed here, there are lots of different certification classes that may extra the careers and skilled progress of IT professionals who toil within the networked storage arena.
youngsters no EMC storage certifications made their appropriate five record for 2018 or 2019, EMC (obtained through Dell in 2016) has one of the most longest-standing certification classes for storage. The program offers credentials for information scientists, cloud architects and directors, storage directors, cloud and implementation engineers, and an impoverished lot extra.
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On parade at the Storage Networking Industry Association (SNIA) was a demonstration of Plexistor’s software defined recollection with Smart Modular technologies DDR4 NVDIMM, which compares the throughput and latency of an Intel 750 NVMe PCIe SSD to their DDR4 NVDIMM. SNIA besides demonstrated their latest storage certification that allows you to further your information of storage solutions to the SNIA standard.
To supersede the CompTIA Storage + certification, SNIA has brought forward their SNIA Certified Storage Professional (SCSP) certification. They are told that it provides a foundation of vendor-neutral, systems-level credentials that integrate with and complement individual vendor certifications. The structure of the SNCP has been enhanced to reflect the recent advancement of storage technologies and to provide expanded offerings in the future.
Running on a Linux-based system, they descry the Intel 750 running at 8,902 IOPS, and the NVDIMM running at 651,481 IOPS. Meanwhile, the DDR4 NVDIMM has 0 latency (according to the output of this benchmark), while the Intel 750 has 92 micro seconds.
Stay tuned for more coverage of Storage Visions 2016 and the Consumer Electronics testify 2016.
Skilled storage pros are in claim as enterprise IT teams select on exponential data growth and strategically migrate data assets from legacy systems to more modern options.
For these professionals who are looking for a recent job or aiming to promote in their current role, a certification could potentially differentiate them from other one candidates. And for hiring managers, certifications can lighten trim some of the risk from the recruitment process by validating to some extent expertise in areas such as network-attached storage, storage region networks, and storage configuration and operations management.
Choosing a certification to pursue depends on a candidate’s situation. Candidates with vendor-specific certifications can subsist appealing to companies that are searching for specific platform expertise, yet they may not subsist as desirable for companies that requisite people with the skills to toil across a heterogeneous storage environment.
Meanwhile, current salary trends testify sturdy claim for experienced IT pros who toil in the networked storage arena. Tech career hub and job-search site Dice released its annual steer to U.S. tech salaries, and a number of storage positions are netting higher-than-average pay increases. As an example, the unique biggest salary increase, percentage wise, among everything IT roles went to tech pros who occupy savor with Dell’s Compellent enterprise storage platform. Tech pros with Compellent skills earned, on average, $111,457 terminal year, an expand of 11%, according to Dice's salary research. (See more salaries for storage pros here).
Granted, hiring managers won’t view a certification as a replacement for practical experience. Another consideration is the evolving landscape of technologies for architecting and managing storage in modern data centers. Companies are stepping up adoption of glisten storage, software-defined storage, cloud storage and hyperconvergence, and certifications are being revised to sojourn current with these technologies.
Here’s a inspect at some of the most valuable options available today in the market for storage certifications, dawn with the vendor-neutral SNIA and then organized alphabetically by vendor.
“To subsist successful in your career, it is necessary to understand how the storage products proper together in a multi-vendor environment. SNIA Education provides the framework for a common understanding of storage networking concepts, troubleshooting, management and administration and architecture. The information and skills you receive from the vendor training and certification makes you better prepared to architect and deliver a complete multi-vendor solution,” SNIA explains in an FAQ.
Brocade recently revamped its certification program, with the recent lineup taking sequel in November 2016. Brocade’s certifications are organized by four major job roles (architect/designer, implementer, administrator, and support) and four proficiency levels (associate, professional, expert and master). The IP certification track cultivates expertise in the installation, configuration, maintenance, and troubleshooting of Brocade Layer 2/3 products, for example, while the Ethernet Fabric IT track is focused on Brocade VDX hardware, and the storage networking track is focused on VCS Fabric storage networks. Details available here.
HPE offers a wide purview of certifications in its certification program, which spans IT management, tall data, security, servers, cloud computing and more. It offers four storage-specific options: HPE Master ASE - Storage Solutions Architect V2; HPE ASE - Storage Solutions Architect V2; HPE ATP - Storage Solutions V2; and HPE Product Certified – OneView.
The IBM Professional Certification program spans everything of its enterprise tech offerings, including analytics, cloud, security and more. Currently, IBM offers nine credentials related to its storage software and 12 specialist certifications related to its storage systems. | 2019-04-19T04:49:12Z | http://www.stargeo.it/new/cheatsheet.php?pdf=S10-110 |
The 18th of November every year, Oman celebrate the National Day, recalling the anniversary of the Omani Renaissance which kicked off 44 years ago and still presses ahead towards the achievement of further progress and prosperity for the citizens.
Oman’s citizens, have been the moving force behind this renaissance, inspired in this approach by the wisdom of HM Sultan Qaboos Bin Said, who commands a clear vision about what he wishes to achieve for the country and its people, the State and society.
The Omani foreign policy derives its origins from the rational thinking of Sultan Qaboos who perceives matters with wisdom and objectivity, away from impulsive emotions or rushing when critical political issues emerge or worsen, irrespective whether this occurs in the local front, the Arab region or the international arena.
Oman’s efforts have led to success on many occasions, narrowing differences and resolving disputes among sisterly or friendly states within the region and beyond. This has earned Oman more respect at all levels.
Oman has been able to establish advanced relations with other countries and nations and has expressed its position with full confidence, while at the same time exerting all possible efforts to support any begin action meant to achieve security and stability, regionally and internationally.
Oman also supports the efforts of the United Nations and its affiliate organizations and bodies, including the UNESCO, the International Labour Organization, the International Atomic Energy Agency and the UN Human Rights Council to foster positive dialogue and extend bridges of peace and understanding between nations of the world.
Oman has provided citizens with all means of self-advancement and qualified them to be true partners in nation building alongside the government.
So that citizens would exercise their full role in this partnership, proper institutions have been set up to achieve this goal. The establishment of the Council of Oman, with its bicameral system of governance (the State Council and Majlis Ash'shura) has been a turning point in the country’s history, an evidence that the ruler who took the helm of leadership has done so for the sake of the country and its citizens and that such a self-denied leader who meets people in their villages would not give up his promise to develop the Omani Shura system of parliamentary consultation.
The legislative and regulatory authorities granted to the Majlis Oman (Royal Decree 39/2011) made this council more capable of expressing the aspirations of citizens and granted them further opportunities for participation in the decision-making process. In addition, the experience of Municipal Councils proved to be another formidable development in democratic practice, an opportunity to expand the scope of citizens’ participation in serving their local societies and enhancing the tradition of Omani Shura. These achievements went hand in hand with steps to reinforce the independence of the judiciary and public prosecution.
Oman has guaranteed religious and intellectual freedom to citizens and residents alike, acting from the view that these freedoms are human rights that cannot be confiscated by any means.
Oman exerts tangible efforts in enhancing the concept of coexistence and tolerance for which our world today is in great need more than any other time before. Hence the Sultanate set out on a mission to reinforce principles of respect for religious freedoms. This approach has been realized through Oman’s keen efforts to communicate with ‘The Other’, partly through the establishment of interfaith dialogue centers and partly through the establishment of academic chairs at renowned world universities to propagate the true tenets of Islam, which is a religion that advocates peace and calls for peaceful coexistence among nations.
Oman holds a mobile exhibition which tours countries of the world to convey Oman experience in religious tolerance and co-existence that prevail across the spectrum of the cosmopolitan population. It also organizes symposiums on propagating the principles of tolerance.
The US State Department’s annual report on religious freedoms of 2013 hailed the level of religious tolerance in Oman towards other faiths among different communities in the country. The report reaffirmed a fact stated by earlier reports that tolerance is a constant tradition in Oman because it stems from the Omani spirit which rejects religious fanaticism and sectarian extremism.
In June 2014, the exhibition unveiled various projects, including a fine art exposition which presented to members of the public a set of spiritual values in a blend of calligraphy, decoration and art. Four fine art tableaux incarnating supplication and peace were on display.
Since its launching in 2011 in Germany, the exhibition has toured more than 55 cities around the world. On the occasion of the 40th anniversary between Oman and Korea, Seoul has been selected among many cities around the world to host the exhibition. In November 4, 2014, the exhibition organized by Oman’s Ministry of Endowment and Religious Affairs, the Oman embassy and Korea foundation host the exhibition for one month from Nov 4-Dec 6 in Korea foundation gallery, Seoul The exhibition presents variety of facets of the modern society in the Sultanate of Oman by offering the visitors with insight into the practice of Islam in daily life, along with an examination of contemporary Omani society and the role of women in its society. The exhibition comprises several corners including manuscripts which dates hundreds of years, tolerance panels, photo exhibition, fine arts-shadow arts, Arabic calligraphy, a documentary film, and modern Oman panels. Also a campaign titled "#ActForTolerance" a hash tag was launched, and this one targets young men and women from all countries of the world. The aim of the exhibition is to highlights various cultural aspect of Oman and spread the correct message of Islam which aims better understanding among our nation which ultimate aim is to enhance our relation and cooperation.
Oman history goes back to 5000 years ago. Its strategic location between the east and the west was a major part for being trade route. Therefore, it had connection with various civilizations in the past. Oman is also well known as sea faring and trading nation.
Oman enjoys an unspoiled culture and traditional lifestyle in almost every aspect of life which is derived from the Islamic religion. The Oman is a society committed to kindness, friendship, hospitality and the value of the family as the solid foundation of life. Arabic is the official language; English is considered a second language and widely used in the business sector. Oman has rich cultural values, art, handicrafts and folkloric performances. There are a number of UNESCO-classified World Heritage sites in Oman. The Royal Orchestra of Oman is considered one of the best worldwide, and the Royal Opera House recently opened as an example of its appreciation of art.
Oman is a beautiful country with many appealing sites and destinations. The popularity of Oman is mainly due to its geological structure, beautiful landscapes, mountains, deserts and Wadis, with green oases of palm trees, heritage, etc. Oman also has some exotic beaches with crystal clear and sparkling water and luxurious resorts and hotels, restaurants, etc. Some of the interesting attractions of Oman include Muscat, Nizwa, Sohar, Salalah and Sur. Oman is rich in nature, culture, heritage as well as interesting activities such as scuba diving, boating, climbing, trekking, camping, golf, shopping and watching whales, dolphins, turtles and birds. In addition, tourists can enjoy camel and horse racing and the souks and villages of Oman, Bedouin tents in the desert and camel riding.
Endowed with nature’s bounty and blessed with beautiful beaches, mountains, deserts, wadis (valleys), and islands, Oman is described as a dream destination and gradually being unveiled in all its glory to the outside world now.
Muscat is the cultural capital of the Arabian world. Oman is blessed with a rich culture and tradition backed by glorious heritage which is visible in the symbols of the past scattered all over the country such as forts, castles and ancient houses. Nature has also chosen Oman to bless with her munificence.
The tourism sector represents one of the mainstays of the national economy. The Sultanate ranks on the 4th place in the International Tourism Market in the GCC Countries, with total of more than 1.9 Million tourists in 2013. The Ministry of Tourism has organized many events and activities that highlight the features of tourism potentials that are abound in the natural Omani environment and cultural heritage such as Muscat Festival and the Salalah Tourist Festival.
In order to attract visitors and tourists the Government organizes several Festivals such as Muscat Festival, held in the first quarter of every year, and has been gaining greater popularity among citizens, residents and tourists, particularly from GCC states. The turnout of Muscat Festival 2014, held from January 23 to February 22, was 1.5 million visitors.
A major attraction during the summer months in the region is Salalah Tourism Festival, which is highly appreciated by Oman is and other GCC citizens. It is held during the Khareef or monsoon season in the Governorate of Dhofar at a time cloudy skies prevail throughout the season, while temperatures range between 15 and 22 degree Celsius.
The Oman are an ancient seafaring people. Stories of their adventures have been distilled into the tales of Sindbad the sailor, and they describe the historical sea routes from Sohar in Oman via Ceylon and Indonesia to Canton.
Already in the 18th century long before the first Europeans came along- Omani traders sailed the “Seven Seas” as far as China, where dates were traded for silk and porcelain. Other goods which were traded include gold, ivory, and above all spices.
Even in 2000 B.C the civilization of Sumer and the Indus Valley procured copper via sea routes from the dealers of “Magan”, which is now Oman.
In the following ages the most important export was frankincense from southern Oman, traded primarily with the Egyptian and Romans. Frankincense was literally worth its weight in gold.
By the 19th century, the island of “Zanzibar” had developed into the center of the Omani trade empire. The basis for the economic rise was the trade in ivory and cloves, slaves were sold in great numbers to the Europeans to work on plantations in Madagascar.
Today oil and gas are the most important export commodities. The main customers are the Republic of Korea, China, Thailand and Japan.
The national economy posted 5% growth in 2013, benefiting from a rise in oil production, the stability of oil prices and the Sultanate’s espousal of an encouraging financial policy that is supportive of the monetary sector, coupled with strong, growing local demand.
The Sultanate began 2014 by the announcement of the biggest budget in its history: The volume of spending was set at RO 13.5 billion ($35.06billion),, with emphasis on increasing developmental and investment spending in line with the approved goals of the Five Year Plan (2011-2015).
The State Budget 2014 was aimed to realize a set of goals, most notably support for economic growth through government spending, sustained rate of development of public services rendered to citizens, complementation of infrastructure, support for small and medium enterprises, support for the Employment Sector, enhancing the use of local assets, continuous consolidation of financial savings and fiscal reserves and maintaining a safe level of general debt.
The new budget also laid emphasis on society’s needs in the fields of education, health, housing, training and other social service areas through the allocation of RO 9.2 billion($23.9 billion), compared to RO 8.7 billion($35.06billion) in the 2013 budget.
The volume of general spending in the 2014 budget (RO 13.5 billion) ($35.06billion) increases by 5% over figures earmarked for spending in the 2013 budget. Current expenditure, which stands at RO 8.7 billion, ($22.6 billion) constitutes 65% of the total spending, while investment expenditure stood at RO 3.2 billion. A sum of RO 1.2 billion ($3.1 billion) has been earmarked for subsidizing petroleum products, staple foodstuff, the electricity sector and interests on developmental and housing loans.
Oman has been espousing the principle of 5-year development plans since its First Five Year Plan (1976-1980). The aim is to achieve balanced development in all governorates through executable programmes. Financial obligations for the current 8th Five Year Plan (2011-2015) the largest ever since the first plan grew to RO 59 billion ($153.2 billion) ($111.6 billion), compared to original allocations of RO 43 billion ($111.6 billion), an increase of 37%. The increase was due to additions made to spending sectors over the first 3 years of the plan. Most of the projects set for the 8th Five Year Plan are nearing completion, including seaports, airports, highways and expansions of industrial estates and economic zones.
The Main Committee for Oman 2040 was formed last year and it was entrusted with drafting a new vision on how to benefit from economic and social developments in the local, regional and international arenas, while at the same time taking into account the ‘Oman 2020’ assessment made by the Secretariat General of the Supreme Council for Planning.
The Committee has been formed as early as possible to allow for the accurate drafting of the future vision in accordance with as much community accord as possible, bearing in mind all economic and social realities and serving as a frame of reference for planning tasks over the next two decades.
Oman 2040’s main focus will be on identifying and exploiting the country’s available opportunities and resources of each economic sector, including airports, seaports and industrial estates, in addition to available resources, to help realise the diversification of sources of income and the expansion of self-employment projects. A balanced distribution of development in all governorates should also be taken into account.
Oman maintained its 40th place in the Global Electronic Preparedness Report 2014. The report measures the extent to which countries are prepared to develop their ICT sector.
The report showed that the Sultanate continued to maintain high standards of performance in “efficiency of government procedures, efficiency of the justice system and an increase in number of mobile phone subscriptions and government spending on advanced information technology, among other criteria.
The achievement comes at a time ministries and government units have made considerable progress in implementing the National e-Government Strategy, which is designed to be completed by 2015 in time for the Full Transformation Stage, so that government services needed by companies and individuals are made available in one website.
The Sultan Qaboos Prize for e-Government Services, launched in 2010, is considered one of the main mechanisms in building knowledge-based information society as part of the Digital Oman Initiative, eOman. The 4th round of this contest was held this year in 12 categories covering 9 government sectors.
The agricultural sector is one of the most important renewable economic sectors to support the national economy. The agricultural and livestock production represents an important activity for the most of population. This sector also provides a large scale of food to meet the requirements of food security. The value of GDP for agricultural and fisheries production increased 8, 6% in2013 to OR (388) million from the level in 2012.
The industry sector constitutes one of the main components of the national economy’s diversification aimed at reducing dependence on oil.
The recent past period witnessed the setting up of many basic industries, notably gas-based industries. Also, The Industrial Innovation Centre, founded in 2010, is considered one of the modern projects being implemented to upgrade the performance of the industrial sector through research in the field of “sustainable industrial growth”. An annual campaign titled “Omani” is being organized to help promote Omani products.
The Sultanate strives to make use of its geographical location by setting up economic zones for and free trade zones to help attract local and foreign capital. Specialized economic zones and free zones contribute to the stimulation of economic activity and the opening up of markets before converting industries. These are considered major sources for technology transfer and employment of Omani job seekers.
Free zones, regulated under Royal Decree 56/2002 provide a package of investment incentives, tax exemptions and streamlined services linked to licensing and import activities.
So far, three main industrial zones have been established, which are Al Mazyouna free zone, Salalah free zone and Sohar free zone.
Al Mazyounah Free Zone, which began operations in 1999, lies in the Governorate of Dhofar and it aims to attract enterprises that will promote trade and industrial links between the Sultanate and Yemen. Salalah Free Zone was established in 2006 and it is run by Salalah Free Zone Company. Sohar Free Zone was established under Royal Decree 123/2010, issued on 20 December 2010. It is run by Sohar Free Zone Company.
The establishment of the Special Economic Zone in al Duqm (SEZAD) under Royal Decree No. 119/2011, issued on 26th October 2011, was an important new addition to the national economy. Its facilities include Port al Duqm, a ship repair dry dock and several tourist and logistical services. The Sultanate is planning to set up a number of major projects in this area and attract investments totalling some US$ 15 billion over the next ten years.
The Public Establishment for Industrial Estates runs 7 industrial estates, which are Rusayl, Sohar, Raysut, Nizwa, Sur, Al Buraimi and Samayil (under foundation), besides KOM, Knowledge Oasis Muscat, which focuses on information technology.
Free zones provide a package of investment incentives and privileges like exemptions from taxes, streaming of licensing and clearance procedures, import of all goods permissible in the country, exemption from the “lowest limit of investment” condition, free use of currencies, exemption of profits from income tax and other incentives.
The network of main Omani ports includes Port Sultan Qaboos, established in 1974 as an import and export terminal that witnessed continuous development over the years of the country. In July 2011, the government decided to transform Port Sultan Qaboos into a full-fledged tourism port. The decision provides for the transfer of all import and export activities to Sohar Industrial Port.
The Port of Salalah is accorded great importance due to its vicinity to international maritime routes.
As for Sohar Port, which overlooks the Sea of Oman, its importance is expected to pick up after the start of implementation of the government’s decision to transfer all commercial activities of Port Sultan Qaboos. Sohar Industrial Port will become Oman’s main commercial hub.
Al Duqm Port will revolutionize the Sultanate’s maritime experience. Situated in the Governorate of Al Wusta, the Port of Duqm is considered one of the Sultanate’s most modern ports. The first phase of goods-handling operations at the Port of Duqm began in March 2013.
The Port of Duqm is also distinguished for its strategic location in the vicinity of international maritime trade routes, which offers great chances for attraction of regional and international business, besides activating transport and tourism activity within other Omani ports because this port is located halfway between Qaboos Port in Muscat and the Port of Salalah in Dhofar.
A key facility in Duqm is a project to set up a comprehensive city to serve as a center for attraction of maritime transport activity, besides serving the planned industrial city which will include a refinery, petrochemical industries and workshops for the repair of ships and tug boats. The facilities also include fisheries-based industries, logistic complexes and big stores. The area is expected to be the Sultanate’s main industrial center attracting both domestic and foreign investments, thereby expanding the country’s economic production platform. The volume of investments at the Port of Duqm is expected to touch US$ 15billion in the next decade.
The Sultanate’s main ports network also includes the Port of Khasab. Other ports in the Sultanate include Shinas.
A network of new ports along the coast in the coming years will increase the importance of the country as a commercial shipping center in the Indian Ocean.
The railway project is considered a complementing part of the land transport network in the Sultanate and a new facility which will enhance the national economy and support the sustainable development process. The railway will also reinforce transport networks between the Sultanate and the United Arab Emirates. It will enable the ports of Sohar, Duqm and Salalah to become the main gateways of import and export for GCC states, thereby keeping the Sultanate on the helm of the maritime transport industry.
The railway project extends for 1,687 kilometers. The project of detailed designs and construction is expected to be floated for specialized international companies during this year or by the first half of the next year.
Since the outset of the modern Omani renaissance, education has been accorded the greatest attention through the Royal speeches of His Majesty Sultan Qaboos, who considers that education is the ultimate goal for which all means must be made available.
The Sultanate’s quest to improve education has been aimed at building qualified human resources to meet the requirements of development now and in future. The Basic Education plan is focusing more and more on scientific subjects, mathematics and languages. New subjects have also been introduced to help cope with progress in information technology and the needs of the labour market for skill manpower.
Higher education is the first criteria by which the progress of nations is measured because of its significant role in drawing out strategies for the development of human resources. It has been one of the basic approaches of the modern Omani renaissance. Therefore, importance has been attached to the setting up of higher education institutions and colleges in different technical, health, banking and religious domains to help meet the needs of all sectors for qualified human resources.
The Sultanate has gone a long way in providing health services to citizens at levels as high as international standards. This made Oman occupy first place at world level in the effective use of health resources. This earned the Sultanate the global acclaim among international health service organizations.
Health Vision 2050 is a long-term plan forming a transitional stage which will further upgrade the health system to keep pace with medical and technical development in the global arena.
The Sultanate, when implementing various plans and projects, works to reinforce concepts of proper handling of environmental resources, since these represent one of the pillars of the country’s renaissance.
Oman Environment Day is celebrated on January 8 every year. It was first marked in January 1996 in recognition of the attention accorded to the environment by Sultan Qaboos.
The programme known as “Environment Monitoring” is being implemented as a standard procedure to keep pace with the rapid expansion in industrial, developmental and tourism activities which might have negative impacts on the environment. Steps are taken to benefit from the expertise of international organisations in the field. In addition, emphasis has also been laid on ecodiversity. There is ongoing cooperation with the UN Industrial Development Organisation to help conduct studies and projects in the field of ozone layer protection, climate change, applications of renewable energy and ways to diminish the emission of greenhouse gases.
In 2013, the prize was shared by the State's National Forests Holding of Poland and South Africa's “Endangered Wildlife Organisation”.
Oman-Korea relations date back more than a thousand years, when Omani merchants met their Korean counterparts on their way to China. In modern times, they established diplomatic relations in 1974. Since then, Oman―Korea relations witnessed a remarkable development in various fields.
Korea is regarded a major trading partner of Oman, and both countries engage in numerous economical exchanges and cooperation. Oman provides large quantities of oil and LNG to Korea.
On the other hand, Korea exports many industrial products, including automobiles, vessels, hi-tech electronics and electric goods to Oman.
Moreover, many Korean companies such as LG International, GS, Daewoo, Hyundai, Doosan, Hanjin, Dealim, and others are contributing to the development of Omani infrastructure and other major projects.
The volume of trade between the Sultanate of Oman and South Korea reached $5.79 billion in 2013. The Sultanate export to South Korea reached $5.3 billion while import from South Korea reached 0.923 billion.
The Oman-Korea Joint Committee is playing a pivotal role in promoting and developing the cooperation between the two countries. During the fourth round of meetings held in Muscat on Aug. 24. During this round they reviewed the results of the committee’s works and the bilateral cooperation in the economic, scientific and cultural fields and means of promoting them, as well as exchanging viewpoints on matters of concern to the two friendly countries.
To reflect the strong ties, an exchange visit from both sides has taken place. Lately, Oman’s minister of Information and minister of Transport and Communication visited Korea.
Oman has also participated in many international events and conferences which have taken place in Korea such as the UN Public Service Forum, the 12th Conference of Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (COP) and High Level Segment, International Telecommunication Union (ITU), Nuclear forum, and others. During the ITU conference Oman has participated on the Technology Gender Equality Streaming award and a golden sponsor.
Oman has worked to attract investment over the past years by creating a suitable climate to attract foreign investments and stimulate domestic businesses. It improves the economic environment and creates encouraging incentives.
Oman enjoys many investment features, which have enabled it to attract domestic and foreign investment, including security, political stability and the application of a free economic system. It allows foreigners to own projects without any restrictions on the transfer of funds to outside the country, and there is no tax on the income of individuals. Also, it gives uniform tax treatment to all companies, both Omani and foreign institutions, at 12 percent annually.
There are many investment opportunities and major ongoing projects and many more to come, such as a railroad project, a medical city, an education city, ports, airports, tourism projects, petrochemical projects, and many other construction projects.
Oman is looking to attract specialist investment into the Sultanate’s ports and special economic zones. As a major manufacturer of high quality machinery, technology and electronics, our focus is to bring an expertise to assist us with the development of major projects in the logistics, fisheries, petrochemical, tourism and manufacturing sectors across the Sultanate.
Oman will see a massive surge of investments with more than $127 billion worth of projects under way. This is in addition to more than $80 billion projects being executed at different stages of completion, while more are scheduled to be launched in the remaining 14 months of this five-year plan.
The contract for the Rail Road Network construction of the 207 km Sohar-Buraimi worth of $15bn is anticipated to be awarded by mid-2015. This in addition to a total of 18 consortiums and joint ventures prequalified to participate in the design and build package of the 2,235km-long line. Bids are due in by 21 December, 2014.
Also to be constructed along the route are a number of railway facilities, including stations, freight yards, wayside maintenance bases, and maintenance depots.
We would like to invite Korean companies to take the opportunity to participate in these projects and investments. The embassy is keen on providing support and cooperation to Korean companies and look forward their participation and presence in Oman.
The Open house program “Welcome to Oman”: a monthly program held at the embassy where we open the embassy for invited public people to the embassy as “open house program” where people from Korean society either students or business men or tourist organization or others visit the embassy. The program includes a welcome remark by the ambassador, briefing about Oman in general and culture in particular and the relation between Oman and Korea, view documentary film about Oman, experience the Omani culture and hospitality. In January and February hosted 3 groups each with 35 participants.
Other events are holding photo exhibition in various places in Korea throughout the year, arrange student exchange programs and business men/women visits.
In March 2014 , we held Omani night in Lotte organized by Oman LNG. The event include varies cultural performances including fashion show, art design, music and Omani traditional food will be served. Also in in March 16-20 H.E Lee MB visited Oman and delivered lecture in Sultan Qaboos University and participated in the economic forum as guest of honor and keynote speaker.
In June Oman was the guest of honor in international Seoul book fair where Oman participated in large pavilion which highlights Omani culture and art. The royal orchestra of Oman was present which performed at the Omani pavilion for 3 days. We also participated in the Seoul Tourism fair.
In Nov 4 we opened an exhibition titled “Tolerance, understanding and coexistence: a message from Oman”. The exhibition held in Korea foundation which will last for one month. The exhibition comprises several corners which are manuscripts which dates thousands of years, the tolerance panels, campaign #Actfortolerance, photo exhibition, Arabic calligraphy, modern Oman, shadow art. On Nov 9 held Omani fashion show at Kintex in coordination with Korea cultural association. In Nov 14 participated in the embassies cultural day at city hall. In Nov 18 will hold reception and cultural exhibition to celebrate the 40소 anniversary of the cordial relation between Oman and Korea.
These cultural events and business forum act as a bridge between our nation to promote understanding which enhances the relation and cooperation in general.
In conclusion, I would like to say that during these blessing days of the 44th National day, Oman is proudly witnessing the achievements made by the hands of its people under the wise leadership of H.M Sultan Qaboos.
On this occasion and the occasion of the 40th anniversary of the cordial relation between Oman and Korea, I would like to take the opportunity to congratulate the Korean government and people for the achievements that have been made in various areas, which are being felt everywhere, and the role of Korea in addressing issues of local, regional and international level besides hosting international events and conferences.
Also, I would like to express my thanks and appreciation for the Korean people and government for their cooperation, kindness, generosity and hospitality they have extended to us since our arrival in this great and beautiful country. Thanks and appreciation also extended to the sponsor and The Korea Post who have made this supplement possible.
Last but not least, I would like to invite the Korean people to visit Oman, explore the culture, tourism land marks, adventure and also invite the Korean companies to participate in the investment opportunities of various projects. I’m confident that our relations and cooperation in the coming days will witness further enhancement and development. Ultimately, my heartfelt wishes to Korea to further success and progress and for the Oman-Korea relation further development and prosperity. | 2019-04-22T20:29:49Z | http://www.koreapost.com/news/articleView.html?idxno=724 |
Varied though Central America is, Panama (City) stands well and truly apart. The cosmopolitan capital is easily the most developed and wealthiest in the region, but it is also a city of mind-boggling contrasts. The centre soars with skyscrapers befitting a truly modern metropolis largely thanks to the Panama Canal, which remains one of the most important shipping passages in the world.
But staring back at the high-rises from across the bay is Casco Viejo, a charming Old Town of pastel-coloured buildings that became a World Heritage Site in 1997. Fringed by slums, the chaotic metropolis was long riven by crime, but has been cleaning up its image in recent years as it welcomes growing numbers of tourists.
Not many a capital city can boast a tropical rainforest on its environs but just 2km north of Panama (City)’s centre lies this enormous nature reserve with dozens of animal species including deer, monkeys and sloths; after all, the land bridge between Central and South America is historically one of the most biodiverse in the world. There are several well-marked trails to try.
For some of the best seafood in Central America, head to this fabled fish market. Full of sellers serving up the daily catch kept on ice, the mercado is an essential slice of local Panamanian life. Take a seat at one of the tables outside overlooking the bay and dine on the Caribbean-style dishes while drinking down the view.
Originally built in the late 17th century, the gleaming white presidential palace as it currently stands was largely rebuilt in 1922. It sports the elegant neo-Moorish style that was popular at the time, and is famed for its Darién herons.
Dedicated to the great Latin American liberator Simón Bolívar, this square is amongst the most beautiful in Panama. A couple of blocks east of the Palacio Presidencial, it features a statue of Bolívar, who came here for the first Panamerican Congress in 1826, and a handsome museum dedicated to the legend. There’s also the glamorous 17th-century Church of San Francisco.
The Panama Canal was one of the 20th century’s greatest engineering feats, but it was also a source of enormous controversy, with the US effectively running the Canal Zone until 1999. This museum tells the whole story behind the vital waterway, with exhibitions including the original canal treaties.
The highlight of the whole Casco Viejo, as the Old Town is called, is probably the cathedral of Panama. It was consecrated at the end of the 18th century, though work began more than a century before. It has a classic colonial facade, but its two mighty white bell towers make for a striking contrast.
Once a church, the Afro-Antillano museum celebrates Panama’s Caribbean community – who play an important part in Panamanian culture. Dedicated largely to the black workers who built the canal in dreadful conditions, there are photographs and tools from the period on display in the old wooden building.
In 1671, Sir Henry Morgan raided Panama (City), leaving no treasure behind except the glorious gold altar of this church, which was disguised so that the daring Brit wouldn’t plunder it. Plaza Herrera next to the church is also worth a look for its pretty 19th-century architecture.
One of the first buildings to be constructed in Panama, this former church and monastery was built in the late 17th century. It’s now a ruin, but the Arco Chato – an unsupported arch spanning the church interior – is famous for having been cited as evidence of Panama’s seismic stability while the US was considering building the canal here.
Taboga Island is also known as the Isla de las Flores (Island of Flowers): A blaze of tropical color and gloriously quiet beaches await visitors here – just 20 kilometers or so from the big-city noise. Day trippers will enjoy the leisurely boat ride, which takes roughly one hour and offers incomparable views of the city’s skyline and the Bridge of the Americas. The ferry makes the crossing several times daily from Calypso Dock on Isla Naos, on the Calzada de Amador causeway.
Think Panama and what springs to mind? The canal? Cigars? Straw hats? Probably all three. However, for those in the know, this slender Central American nation is much more than that; it is a land of wildlife-rich rainforests and remote indigenous communities; Miami-esque promenades and paradisiacal beaches; verdant volcanoes and the impenetrable wilderness of the Darien Gap.
Firstly, the canal. Though considered to be the star attraction (thousands flock here to watch container ships passing through the locks) the wild landscapes it scythes through are an altogether more exciting prospect. Here you can hike volcanoes, zip-wire over forest canopies, raft down rapids and meet one of the country’s largest indigenous groups, the Kunas.
Panama forms the land link between the North and South American continents. It borders Colombia to the east, Costa Rica to the west, and the Caribbean and the Pacific Ocean to the north and south. The country forms an S-shaped isthmus, which runs east-west over a total length of 772km (480 miles) and is 60 to 177km (37 to 110 miles) wide. The landscape is mountainous with lowlands on both coastlines cut by streams, wooded slopes and a wide area of savannah-covered plains and rolling hills called El Interior between the Azuero peninsula and the Central Mountains. To the east is the Darién province which is a humid area of swamp and forest with few inhabitants. The Darién Gap is the missing link in the Panamerican Highway, as extending the road through the dense jungle would be costly and environmentally destructive.
The Caribbean and the Pacific Ocean are linked by the man-made Panama Canal, cut into a gap between the Cordillera de Talamanca and the San Blas mountain range and stretching for over 65km (40 miles); the length of the canal is often referred to as 80km (50 miles) as this is the distance between deep-water points of entry.
Only about a quarter of the country is inhabited.
The majority of the population live either around the canal and main cities of Panama City and Colón (the two cities which control the entrance and exit of the canal) or in the Pacific lowlands and the adjacent mountains.
The official language is Spanish, but English is spoken in Panama (City).
Balboa (PAB; symbol B/.) = 100 centésimos. There is no Panamanian paper currency; coins exist in denominations of B/.10 and 1, and 50, 25, 10, 5 and 1 centésimos. US currency was adopted in 1904 and exists alongside the Balboa coinage: B/.1 = US$1.
110 volts AC, 60Hz (in Panama (City) 120 volts). North American-style plugs with two flat pins (with or without third grounding pin) are standard.
Panama (City) has a lot to offer after dark, from sweaty local bars in Casco Viejo to swanky cocktail joints in the central business district.
Part swanky restaurant, part café-bar, this two-faced locale is a favourite with Panama (City)’s trendsetters.
Whether it’s Wednesday or Saturday, international DJs keep the punters pulling shapes all night long at this popular dance club.
This poky venue is one of the local favourites for live music, named after Panama’s jazz legend, Danilo Pérez.
Hit the terrace of this Lebanese bar-restaurant for a drink and a spot of people watching. Hookah smoke clouds the venue most evenings, shrouding the nightly belly-dancing acts in an atmospheric wispy veil.
For something a little different, spend an evening at the Teatro Nacional, a glamorous 20th-century national theatre that puts on classical music performances and traditional Panamanian productions.
Panama (City)’s restaurant circuit is varied, with fine-dining options catering for the rich visitors here on business, as well as numerous charming local joints and musical spots.
Sporting a minimalist design adorned with abstract artwork, it’s the food here that really inspires – Panamanian-influenced with a modern twist.
One of the finest restaurants in Panama (City), not only is the seafood spectacular, but it’s also a great spot for indulging in a bit of stargazing – this is the local celebrity hangout.
For an authentic Panamanian dining experience with a luxury tilt, head to ‘The Jars’, where exceptional seafood, tortillas and tangy tropical fruits are served up with a side of live entertainment.
Prepare to have your mind blown by this stylish restaurant that mixes Latin, Caribbean and Far-Eastern influences. The sea bass and garlic shrimp dishes both come highly recommended.
A laid-back option in a rustic setting, this renowned grill-house offers Panamanian sausages, Argentinian-style steaks and plenty more. If it’s meat you’re after, look no further.
The biggest event of the year: during the four days preceding Ash Wednesday, the entire capital shuts down, and some serious partying takes place. On Friday, the festival begins with a small coronation ceremony for the Carnaval queen, though the real party starts on Saturday with a small parade. By Tuesday, Panama City has already descended into madness, and the party doesn’t let up until the wee hours of Wednesday morning. After the sun rises, residents sober up enough to bury sardines in the beach – this gesture officially marks the end of carnaval and the beginning of lent.
The annual Alfredo de Saint Malo Festival is a huge celebration of classical music, named after the famous Panamanian violinist who played for Mussolini, President Roosevelt and Pope Pius XI, who apparently blessed his Stradivarius. If you are a classical music fan, this is a great time to be in Panama City.
Twice a year, the best restaurants in the city break out the special offers during Panama Restaurant Week, and for 15 days in March and September, the decadent eating takes over.
Every year Panama celebrates its independence from Colombia with a colourful parade, with school bands and dancers often dressed in flamboyant traditional clothes. It’s a bright and lively occasion culminating with a great fireworks display.
The Panama Beach Marathon is a new fixture in the city’s events calendar and is already proving popular with locals and visitors alike.
The annual Panama Jazz Festival hosts a gamut of international and local jazz musicians. The concerts take place in various theatres and venues across the city.
There’s a wide range of accommodation in Panama (City), from big-name 5-star properties to charming guesthouses based out of old colonial houses.
The international chains are found amidst the skyscrapers of the city centre, while the more boutique options predominate in Casco Viejo.
For a bit of that 007 mystique, stay in the hotel that hosted the crew and cast during the filming of James Bond flick Quantum of Solace. Rooms are decorated with wondrous indigenous craft.
The finest property in Casco Viejo is probably the American Trade Hotel, set in a spacious, palatial colonial house.
This well-regarded business hotel has views of Panama Bay and a rooftop terrace with a swimming pool.
With just 10 rooms, each individually designed with custom artwork, this edgy boutique hotel is one of the city’s best. The rooftop bar is one of the elite party spots in Panama (City), and gets very busy on the weekends with live DJs.
Comfortable, handsome and boasting a tranquil setting overlooking Andres Bello Park, this boutique hotel is an oasis of calm in the centre of the bustling city.
The old town of Panama (City) occupies a rocky peninsula and is protected by a mighty defensive wall facing the ocean. Its narrow streets are lined with mansions and palaces, churches and monasteries that have defied pirate attack for 300 years and testify to the mastery of their Spanish architects. After the Panama Canal opened in 1914, Casco Viejo was too small to accommodate the growing population. Panama (City) expanded eastwards and the exclusive commercial and residential districts of the nouveaux riches grew up. The old town degenerated to become a kind of slum that just 20 years ago was considered a no-go area for tourists, so high were the crime rates at the time.
Casco Viejo finally appeared to be lost. Then a miracle happened: In 1997, UNESCO declared the old town a World Heritage Site, while the Panamanian economic boom brought in cash – and the government began to restore it. Ministries and public agencies, restaurants and cocktail bars, galleries and corner shops moved into the newly renovated buildings. Now, aside from the Panama Canal, Casco Viejo is the country’s biggest attraction, drawing hordes of tourists eager to learn about Panama’s culture and art.
This vast square, in which the declaration of Panama’s independence from Columbia was pronounced in 1903, hosts a bustling flea market and an array of food stalls on the first Sunday in the month. Several venerable buildings surround the square, of which the cathedral, which has an incongruously plain interior compared with its ornate facade, was completed in 1796 – after 108 years under construction. Since 1997, the Canal Museum has occupied the former headquarters of the French company engaged in building the canal, while the History Museum of Panama can be found in the Municipal Palace.
This modest café on Plaza Santa Ana is possibly the only café in the world bearing the name “Coca-Cola.” Since one of the first bottling plants for the popular beverage outside of the USA was built in Panama 110 years ago, the café, which opened in 1875, has been serving the brown lemonade. The café has always been especially popular with workers and retains its character to this day: no frills, plain tables, a menu of hearty meals, and soccer on the TV screens. Its most illustrious guests include the revolutionary Ernesto “Che” Guevara and the Chilean poet Pablo Neruda.
The Relic bar is the most popular nighttime spot in the old town, and located in a cellar room beside the old city wall. It attracts a mixed crowd of young and old, including many foreigners, and features live bands on the weekends. Every Thursday, an artwork is created here live and later auctioned off.
The city’s most famous dance hall. The decor – red velvet curtains and armchairs – is very 1950s. Local salsa bands play here on weekends. If the dance floor doesn’t appeal, you can always take a seat on the first-floor balcony, order yourself a cocktail and watch the dancers in action.
It was the French, who – inspired by the success of the Suez Canal – in 1881 began building the canal through the Isthmus of Panama. They underestimated the financial requirements and technical challenges involved, however, and these drawbacks were compounded by the fact that at least seven laborers working on the canal died of malaria or yellow fever every day. After eight years of construction and 22 000 deaths, the French gave up on the project. This square commemorates their endeavors with a single obelisk topped by the French rooster.
Right next door, in the dungeons of the old fortress, there’s an excellent French restaurant, Las Bovédas (Mon-Sat 1800-2330), and a couple of meters further down, the National Culture Institute and the French Embassy. The ocean view is, however, impaired by the highway built on stilts just off the coast.
The owner, Carlos Weil, collects and trades in the pictures and sculptures of well-known artists from Panama and the rest of Latin America, and he also exhibits the traditional crafts of ethnic Indian groups.
The Neo-Baroque national theater, which was built in 1908 on a former monastery site, shared the fate of the old town – a slow and steady decline over decades. Following elaborate restoration, the theater reopened in 2004 and the operas, plays and ballets staged here are generally well frequented. For the audience, however, it’s not just what’s on stage that’s interesting; the ceiling frescoes of Panamanian painter Robert Lewis are also definitely well worth a look: He has angels and cherubs flying through a sun-filled heaven.
The Panamanian pianist and composer Danilo Pérez, 49, has played with a host of jazz greats, including Dizzy Gillespie, Charlie Haden, Tito Puente, Wynton Marsalis and Wayne Shorter and received a Grammy for his work. Although he lives mainly in the USA these days, the musician has not forgotten his roots. In fact, he set up a foundation that has been supporting talented Panamanian musicians for many years and stages the annual Panama Jazz Festival, too. Danilo has also opened a jazz club with his name at the fine American Trade Hotel, where he provides a stage for top jazz musicians.
Every morning, the fishing boats bring fresh seafood to the fish market on the edge of the old town. Crawfish and prawn, fish and squid line the vendors’ booths. All around, dozens of open-air restaurants serve specialties, such as ceviche, vinegar-marinated seafood, grilled langostinos and frittered lulas. Tables and chairs are usually plastic and the plates a little scratched, but the food is fresh, the portions are large and the prices low. Very popular at lunchtime and early evening from around 6 to 9 pm. Best of all, you can enjoy views of the old town and the ocean while you eat.
Musicians and bands from all around the world have been performing here for ten years. Friday is Salsa day; rock music generally features on Saturdays. The bar is in the basement of an old colonial building that’s a good century old. The choice of cocktails is large and they are served with tapas from the S’cena restaurant next door.
All that Panama has to offer in the way of souvenirs can be bought at this small store: lovely Embera baskets from the Darien rainforest, brightly colored mola scarves made by the Kuna Indians of the Caribbean coast, and also carnival masks and wood carvings. Although they are usually made in Ecuador, the traditional white Panama hats enjoy pride of place here. They are so closely woven that not a drop of rainwater reaches the wearer’s head.
The boss here, Manuel Madueño, is actually Spanish and hails from Barbate in Andalusia. Before opening his restaurant in Panama (City), he worked as a porter, cook and art dealer. He established his culinary realm in a colonial building and filled it with old pictures and artworks. The menu offers ten courses and changes every day. Classics include tuna sashimi, Andalusian gazpacho, Caribbean sea bass, prawn in coconut sauce and lots of tropical fruit.
Temperatures are high across the whole country throughout the year, though cooler at high altitudes. The rainy season lasts from May to November, but even at this time of year rain rarely lasts all day – just take an umbrella for the downpours; the sun will be out again soon. There are fewer people around at this time, too, and so prices drop for the low season. Rainfall is twice as heavy on the Pacific coast as it is on the lowlands of the Caribbean coast.
If you are planning to take a boat trip from Panama to Colombia, avoid travelling from December to February, as at this time of year the seas are rough, trips get cancelled and everyone gets seasick.
Surfing is possible and decent all year round on the Pacific side, but the best months are from November to April. For hiking, the dry season (December to April) is most comfortable. The dry season is also good for diving, because you’ll be able to see far better, but the rainy season means the rivers run high which is great for rafting.
Calling home is easiest either via Skype in an internet cafe (plenty have it on their computers and headsets) or using International Phone Cards. Hotel phone rates are typically expensive.
Roaming agreements exist with international mobile phone companies. Coverage is good. If you will be making a lot of calls within the country then it might be worth buying a local SIM card for your mobile phone. Make sure your phone is unlocked.
Internet cafes exist in main urban areas. Many hotels are Wi-Fi enabled and you can occasionally piggyback on open networks.
Most of the shops catering for tourists can be found in El Cangrejo and Casco Viejo, while the city centre has all the typical luxury brands and international chains. There are also a number of gigantic malls around the city, befitting its stature as one of the world’s busiest ports.
Those keen on locally crafted goods and precious wares hard to find outside Central America should head to the Centro Municipal de Artesanías Panameñas. The colourful market’s wares include hammocks, clothes, bags and of course Panamanian hats, as well as beautiful textile art by the indigenous Kuna.
For a good deal, head to the so-called people’s mall of Albrook. The Avenida Central pedestrian mall near Casco Viejo, meanwhile, is a lively place to browse clothes, jewellery and electronics.
Handshaking is the normal form of greeting and dress is generally casual. The culture is a vibrant mixture of American and Spanish lifestyles. The mestizo majority, which is largely rural, shares many of the characteristics of mestizo culture found throughout Central America.
Only three indigenous tribes have retained their individuality and traditional lifestyles as a result of withdrawing into virtually inaccessible areas.
Mains water is normally chlorinated and safe, especially in the larger cities. However, if you know you have a sensitive stomach and might react to water which you’re unused to, it is safer to drink bottled water, which is widely available. Drinking water outside main cities and towns may be contaminated and sterilisation is advised. Consider this especially along the Caribbean coast, in such places as Bocas del Toro and Kuna Yala; here, if you have no chance to buy bottled water, you should either boil the water for one minute or use iodine pills to disinfect the water.
Milk is pasteurised and dairy products are safe for consumption. Local meat, poultry, seafood, fruit and vegetables are generally considered safe to eat. In Panama City, many of the restaurants are of an exceptionally high standard and their hygiene standards match; however, if you are eating at one of the seafront restaurants where there are many excellent seafood places, try to pick one which looks busy and popular to ensure that the fish is very fresh.
When buying street food and snacks in more rural areas of Panama, take the usual precautions: don’t buy meat unless you can see it being cooked right in front of you. If you find yourself buying snacks out of a bus window, avoid anything with meat in it and try to go for fruit that you can peel.
While a Yellow Fever vaccination is not required for Panama, there have been instances of the disease in the Darién province, the San Blas islands and the east of Panama, so if you plan on visiting any of these areas it is as well to be up to date with the vaccine. Vaccinations against tuberculosis and hepatitis B are also sometimes recommended.
Malaria and dengue fever are also fairly common to some regions of Panama, so taking precautions against mosquito bites by using DEET and covering arms and legs in the evenings is wise.
An estimated 0.9% of the population of Panama live with HIV; travellers should take the usual precautions against infection. | 2019-04-25T08:10:53Z | https://www.lh-travelguide.com/be/en/panama-city/ |
Thus, inflation was a portion of the huge bang theory. It doesn’t feel as if we’re developing a mythology with an elegant mathematical proof in the surface of the impossibility of observation. There’s no empirical evidence to support one of these assumptions.
It might be closely related but slightly different and more challenging to discover, Skinner explained. The critics point out that it is not possible to empirically access different universes should they exist and they argue this makes theorising about other universes pseudo-scientific. essay-company.com Although some physicists are enthusiastic concerning the multiverse concept, others are really critical.
Enternalism is the precise opposite of presentism. Einstein spent a relatively great deal of time reading papers and discoveries from various physicists. It is associated with the inherent grounding that reality is not only logic, but also the thing itself.
Theorists propose theories and suggestions to explain natural phenomena, in addition to predict new ones. Most scientific fields are made over with a revolutionary theory at least one time in recent centuries. Some fringe theories are a type http://writing.umn.edu/sws/quickhelp/graduate.html of protoscience and others are a type of pseudoscience.
The issue is really the exact same as with dualism. The nature of the argument is actually quite straightforward. That’s a really tricky question.
Which, obviously, brings up a good irony that Gilder is quick to note. It is very important to remember that the multiverse view is not really a theory, it’s rather a result of our current comprehension of theoretical physics. The theory of everything will be the best discovery.
An alien on sunlight, Herschel reasoned, would need to have a massive head so that it wouldn’t explode. And it becomes even stranger.
Indeed there isn’t any overall physics theory or even method to cope with complex or chaotic systems. Although fascinating features are observed in helium in the past ten years, it is not likely they are signs of supersolidity, at least of the traditional kind3. In quantum mechanics, observations at various scales change the character of what is observed and we’ll examine this later on.
Many situations the proof used comes to the main definitions of terms involved. The script is straightforward and tasteful. String theory is a notable instance of this kind of attempt.
Physicist Max Tegmark calculated that quantum superpositions of the molecules involved with neural signaling can barely survive for even a portion of the time required for such a signal to receive anywhere. online paper writer Essentially entanglement opens a huge space for you, Popescu stated. Quantum mechanics describes the world concerning probabilities, instead of definite outcomes.
What each one of the ideas share is they’re constantly in flux. The analogy he draws is with conservation laws like the conservation of energy. You can opt to deliver a dissertation for a part of your ten units.
Not some kind of intermediary state between both, mind youphysically both, in the feeling it can be either. Think some time and think of all of the potential dreams you’ve experienced in your life. It’s tough to know which is going to be the case without opening any of them, but there are a number of things to think about prior to proceeding.
In the domain of quantum physics, observing something actually influences the bodily processes occurring. Therefore, the new cosmological theory results in an appreciable modification of the conventional viewpoint on the structure and development of the universe and on our own place on the planet. Therefore the development of the universe doesn’t have any end and might not have any beginning.
I’ve studied the topic of color theory and have found it useful over recent years. The world works in a few really weird ways, and though you might need a PhD to comprehend why, you just need a feeling of awe to appreciate how. A law can normally be formulated as one or several statements or equations, so that it may be used to predict the results of an experiment, given the conditions of the processes occurring.
There are times that you believe you are saving the world when it doesn’t require savingit is merely misunderstood. The only means to understand is to look. Lots of people run through a list of expected causes, based both on our personal experience and on all the information we can gather on the web.
The difficulties with classical physics resulted in the growth of Quantum Mechanics and Special Relativity. Quantum effects like superposition can easily be destroyed, due to a process called decoherence. To do so, their innate properties have to be highly constrained.
Let’s review a number of the vital points within this chapter. Theories which try to explain these data are created. We will occur after the definition given by the first key contributor.
Scientists predict that dark matter is made from particles. The two particles are not really permitted to get any closer. Instruments of various shapes and actions produce various overtones.
Over the length of your academic career, you will be requested to compose many papers and essays on many different topics, dependent on the training program. As it has evolved, sciences devoted to the study of contemporary technology and its various aspects also have evolved. There are two strategies meant to reduce the effects of agriculture on nature.
It also looks at group dynamics to understand the social structure of the population, where the population fits into the larger group of populations in the area, and how the geography affects the population. In such instances, issues with overpopulation have been overcome utilizing a selection of methods. If a population doesn’t have accessibility to abiotic elements, it might mean their demise.
The variety of individuals that a specific habitat or environment can support is called the carrying capacity. As a way to study an ecosystem it’s crucial that the way by which organisms interact with one another within the ecosystem is considered. When two species are observed in precisely the precise general area but not in the particular habitat, they might not have a chance to mate.
Competitionis often thought to be the most crucial biotic factor controlling population density. Overpopulation can have a lot of results on the health of the planet, as well as some other species within an ecological system. Let’s examine some of the general factors they’d consider.
One particular vital purpose of facilitated diffusion is that it’s the major mechanism supporting the binding of Transcription Factors (TFs) to designated target websites on the DNA molecule. It might be as easy as bringing in a glucose molecule. Molecules having the ability to pass through the membrane must be hydrophobic so they are in a position to move through the hydrophobic region of the lipid bilayer region.
What you input inside your body will directly impact your whole body and mind’s output. Therefore, their movement needs to be facilitated by proteins. What you input inside your body will directly impact your entire body and mind’s output.
Three sorts of transporters are identified (). By definition, facilitated diffusion is a sort of passive transport which utilizes agents referred to as channel proteins and carrier proteins to accelerate the transport practice. It refers to the transport of molecules across the plasma membrane against the concentration gradient by using energy.
Transmembrane carrier proteins take part in active transport. Though it is intended to keep bigger particles out, the cell membrane can be cautiously controlled to accept bigger substances. It consists of a phospholipid bilayer with an array of embedded proteins throughout.
Organisms that live essay writing in water also require a way to receive oxygen. Osmosis doesn’t rely on the sorts of molecules or ions in solution, only on the sum of solutes. It is the stream of water molecules and is dependent upon the particle concentration not the sort of molecule on each side of the membrane.
In fact, it’s constantly on the move! In order to correctly understand behavior, it will help to have the capacity to approach it from multiple angles and plenty of points and frames of view. When you have selected the controversial topic, it’s time to take into account over every side of the problem.
Diffusionis a passive procedure for transport. Embryonic development is a lovely symphony of several morphogen gradients overlapping and competing with one another. No input of energy is necessary in order for this to happen.
Thus, the primary difference between facilitated diffusion and active transport is using energy for the transportation by every method. It is an important part of many biological and chemical processes. Channel diffusion is additionally a passive course of action.
In fact, osmotic pressure is the most significant source of support in plants. Osmosis happens spontaneously and free of energy on the area of the cell. Unique cells ought to have a specialised structure which results in the creation of many completely different kinds of cell.
Background is critical to orientate the reader to what you’re doing, but it’s possible to give an excessive amount of detail so the reader starts to wonder the reason why they will need to understand all of what they are being told. The exact first thing should reflect in your cover letter would be your own conviction that you’re perfect for the position. In order to estimate something, you wish to compare https://grademiners.com/ it with the perfect illustration of that particular thing.
Sources which are associated with your research are observed in a diverse assortment of libraries and internet catalogs. The Preliminary Info The preliminary information needed for a dissertation thesis involves the information like information a title that’s suitable, a suitable abstract, a table of contents together with listing all the figures, tables and an acknowledgement.
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A review of the appropriate literature on a specific topic is a very important part of all research degrees. You should end up with a more specific free-writing about a particular topic. You review is going to be a mix of the summary and critical reviews on your favorite subject.
You’re openly permitted to stay in contact with your writing helper during the complete procedure to make sure your directions are followed correctly. Generally, the object of investigation is a person or a small group. Then you must provide that example.
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Introduction is at the beginning of a text. Literature reviews are ones of the most frequently made essays. Writing literature review is really uncomplicated.
A thesis statement must be specific, highlighting statements that you are just about to make in your paper and backing this up with an evidence. An individual can discover examples of thesis statement at the start of literary pieces. You could also repeat your thesis before the last deduction, to be utterly sure your subject is the exact same and your point of view did not change.
A quantitative review documents the significance of the research problem at the start of the study, supports the theory or explanation employed in the analysis, foreshadows the research questions, and explains the outcomes of different studies. A correspondence is included simply to boost your chances of being interviewed. Inclusion of inclusive literature review can be useful to create your audience sure that you’re using correct strategies to collect suitable research.
There are a lot of worksheets to be found on the Internet to check your understanding of the difference between common and proper nouns. A thoughtful and thorough analysis which takes into consideration the facts and ground realities should be shown in an editorial. When you have gathered all information that you need to include, you have to sort it and write my essay arrange it in chronological order.
Every once in a little while, writing your friend a letter is recommended, as opposed to updating your FB status and letting everyone know what’s up with you. For instance, a kid might want all to know that his grandfather was an honest, hard-working person who, despite many hardships made a great life for himself and his family members. Biographies are normally non-fiction that’s written on an account of somebody’s life authored by somebody else.
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Writing an autobiography for each individual is a distinctly individual experience but there are a number of topics that are vital to cover. As already said above, every individual has to know how to write autobiography. While writing your teacher biography, ensure you don’t incorporate any negative details, consider the reader’s perception of what you’ve done.
The best method is to look for photos which are in the public domain. To change the Earth, you have to be well prepared to earn world changing personal sacrifices. In the present times whenever the pollution levels are rising and the range of trees is deteriorating, our organization has https://www.csun.edu/social-behavioral-sciences/criminology-justice-studies/victor-shaw undertaken the job to plant saplings so the future generations will profit from the exact same.
There are a lot of people who can help who want to help but they might not know you need help. 1 reason I have so many to pick from is because I have added and subtracted through the years, dependent on suggestions from different teachers. 1 thing to bear in mind is that for your private essay to genuinely stand out, you will need to write about an experience that not everybody goes through.
If you’re thinking about how to compose an autobiography for children, you simply have to keep the language clear and easy. Implied metaphors can be challenging to determine when you’re first learning about them since they must trust their imaginations to comprehend what the comparison is all about. It should be pleasing and should have the ability to convince the reader.
Actually, plenty of product names are alliterative. The very first and the previous line have 5 moras. You could use the examples utilized within the next section.
Even when you didn’t take part in a huge event, you might have watched. Only then can you determine a party who’d be considering your event as they get to create their advertisements for their target audience.
For that reason, it becomes quite crucial for the writer to use simple and simple to understand metaphors. When you compose a lengthier work, like a novel or screenplay, it’s simple to forget minor character details. The most frequently encountered case of an autobiography stays the written form.
One starts with a little bit of background of parents and family, and proceeds from the right time of somebody’s birth. Folks often ask me why folks write memoirs. It is essential to not only analyze the connection between the brothers and Sonny’s drug usage, but in addition the historical setting of the story so as to understand James Baldwin’s Sonny’s Blues.
In the conclusion, you can concentrate on your future or only a concise description of the past. The target audience will also dictate the character of the info that is to be included. What follows is a lengthy answer.
You may start by discussing your childhood or you could begin with a description of a pivotal moment in your life and utilize it into a prologue. In addition, it’s marvelous to realize your life in your words. The expression is employed as a metaphor for a type of joke.
The amazing sword that safeguards your life is known as the blood of Jesus!” Ensure you include a great deal of photos, including baby pictures, as photos is going to be the most important material they will work with. As each individual finishes her or his biography, the name of the biographee should be set on the time line with photos, if at all possible.
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You can create your point once more in short. Accurate identification is the secret to knowing and understanding the many figures of speech which have been used in poetry and fiction since ages! Therefore, it can be said that for writing an essay on any certain topic, it must be looked at from various angles, its advantages and drawbacks have to get weighed and then finally conclusions must be arrived essay paper at.
Actually, plenty of product names are alliterative. After everything is completed, make the last copy. Utilizing good examples to explain is the sole way they’re likely to comprehend.
Actually, plenty of product names are alliterative. The very first and the previous line have 5 moras. Utilizing good examples to explain is the sole way they’re likely to comprehend.
Many oxymora are easy to understand and interpret their hidden meaning. Its goal is also to provide the writer an opportunity to leave a strong impression on the reader. Therefore, it can be said that for writing an essay on any certain topic, it must be looked at from various angles, its advantages and drawbacks have to get weighed and then finally conclusions must be arrived at.
From time to time, roots are https://riskinnovation.asu.edu/2018/04/homework-help-center-library specialized into aerial roots, which could also offer support, as is true with the banyan tree. To change the Earth, you have to be well prepared to earn world changing personal sacrifices. Now America takes first place on the planet concerning the cultivation and usage of the apple.
Possibly you won’t need to read the full biography too. So to earn a biography framed properly it’s important to have the biography template. Before deciding how you’d love to open your autobiography, return and review the intention behind the autobiography and what it must contain.
A biography provides a lot more viewpoints of the person it covers. The topic sentence is a sentence that’s used at the launch of a paragraph to inform the reader what it’s that you’re going to be speaking about in that paragraph. It’s also important why you ought not compose a memoir and that is with the goal of revenge.
If you’re writing a memoir for your family members, then you truly don’t need to be concerned about attempting to find the memoir published using a specialist publishing company. For quite a few, later life seems to be the ideal time to get started writing your memoirs or autobiography. These steps outline the specifics for a template which can be employed to aid in writing a memoir.
Writing an obituary at that point of time can seem to be superfluous job, but it’s a necessary one. An introductory letter from a new teacher is a manner of welcoming the students and parents to a person’s class and thus, the tone of the letter ought to be very polite. You should start by mentioning the particular occasion that has made you compose the letter.
The tips given below should be beneficial in the endeavor of writing an obit. Thus, follow the guidelines mentioned in the write-up to make sure that you draft a cover that’s simplistic and potent. For instance, you might not be permitted to post a photo of one of the pages of your own book on Facebook, as you would be violating the copyright.
The job of writing an autobiography can appear insurmountable. There are lots of issues that could be used for writing editorials. These steps outline the specifics for a template which can be employed to aid in writing a memoir.
There’s a show named TED where folks discuss many intriguing things. There’s no greater approach to do so than to write. It has the ability to do work of several human beings alone within less time.
You may also opt to use the essentials of scientific method in away that makes sense based on the ages and abilities of your children. Bear in mind your audience ought to be in a position to repeat your procedure should they wish to achieve that. No matter what kind of experiment you’ve performed in the laboratory essay writer help we’ll give you an authentic specialist who can help you document and promote your findings.
The intention of the introduction is to present sufficient background information to permit the reader to comprehend and rate the outcomes of your study. It tells what will follow in your lab report and provides the primary goals of the experiment. It should also provide the reason for the study.
A lab report describes a full experiment from beginning to end, describing. The lab report is a chance for students to have the part of a scientist and present the findings of their research. In the beginning, lab report writing may appear to be easy enough, but it requires a good deal of time and efforts.
The cohesion and surface tension of water gets apparent whenever the drops of water https://www.masterpapers.com/apa_format_essay you increase the penny get to the penny’s edge. All values should be interpreted to find out the implications with respect to your stated hypothesis. Hypothesizing, or making an educated guess about just what the consequence of the experiment is going to be, is among the important elements in any scientific experiment.
Make sure to create a citation each time you outside sources, unless you may have difficulties with plagiarism. Not all sorts of laboratory work would take a report. The ideal way to prepare to write the lab report is to ensure that you completely understand all you will need to about the experiment.
The ending of your introduction paragraph ought to be a thesis. If done correctly, it is a simple and effective way to write the entire paper quickly. It has a summary of the investigation.
That means you must be sure your statement differs. Frequently the thesis statement is revisited close to the start of the conclusion. Your thesis statement is the principal point of your paper and ought to deal with the paper.
Many writers confuse the information https://uknowledge.uky.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1757&context=gradschool_diss that they should include in their discussion with the info they need to place in their conclusion. Original work because it’s to offer you practice in writing scientific reports, so you will be able. Descriptions of the character of the issue and summaries of relevant research to give context and key terms so that your reader writing understand the experiment.
Follow my guidelines and your essay conclusion won’t only bind your writing together, but it will leave the reader with a feeling of closure. The essay is a brief variant of the last thesis and is typically of about ten pages long. For a more formal expository essay, you will need to receive them to go 1 step further.
You may also opt to use the essentials of scientific method in away that makes sense based on the ages and abilities of your children. Track your body at the molecular level, which means you are able to take care of yourself and the ones you adore. Full and appropriate acknowledgement is needed.
You may talk about the lab with different groups in the class. Writing an official lab report template can be a really tedious procedure, particularly if you’re not prepared. All introductory biology students wish to compose decent lab reports.
It is the most frequent task. It is a standard everyday lab report should be neat, and discuss your document that the. Biology lab reports have a certain format that should be followed to present the.
The purpose provides the reader a notion of what the experiment is all about and it’ll set up any vital concepts that will follow. Talk about your thoughts about the potential reasons for your results (for instance, if you chose salt water as a variable, give a potential reason salt water, particularly, may have generated your results). Hypothesizing, or making an educated guess about just what the consequence of the experiment is going to be, is among the important elements in any scientific experiment.
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General. TicketHurry.com acts as an intermediary between buyers and ticket sellers (“TICKET SELLERS”) to facilitate the purchase and sale of event tickets, and as such is not directly involved in the actual ticket sale transaction between the buyers and TICKET SELLERS. All sales are final. As tickets sold through SITE are often obtained through the secondary market and prices are determined by the individual TICKET SELLER, the prices for tickets may be above or below face value. The following are the rules(“TERMS”) that govern use of the TicketHurry.com Web site (“SITE”) by the user of the SITE (“USER”). By using or visiting the SITE, USER expressly agrees to be bound by these TERMS and to follow these TERMS and all applicable laws and regulations governing SITE. SITE reserves the right to change these TERMS at any time; new TERMS are effective immediately upon posting on SITE. If USER violates these TERMS TicketHurry.com may terminate USER’S access to SITE, bar USER from future use of SITE, cancel USER’S ticket order, and/or take appropriate legal action against USER.
Above Face Value. Tickets sold through SITE are often obtained through secondary market TICKET SELLERS and are being resold, in many cases, above the price or “face value” listed on the ticket. All ticket prices include additional service charges and handling fees as defined on each order. SITE and TICKET SELLERS are not directly affiliated with any performer, sports team, or venue; and SITE does not act as a primary sale box office, unless otherwise stated. By agreeing to these TERMS, USER agrees that the purchase price for tickets on USER’S order does not reflect the original purchase price of the ticket and may be either higher or lower than the original purchase price.
Orders. Orders placed through SITE will be fulfilled by one of SITE’S network of participating TICKET SELLERS. Contact information for the TICKET SELLER who will fulfill USER’S order (hereinafter known as “FULFILLER”) will be provided to USER upon completion of the purchase process. If this information is lost, USER may contact [email protected] to retrieve information about the order.
All sales are final. Since tickets are a one-of-a-kind item and not replaceable, there are no refunds, exchanges, or cancellations. If an event is postponed or rescheduled, tickets will be honored for the rescheduled date. New tickets will not need to be issued. If an event is cancelled without a rescheduled date, USER will need to contact FULFILLER for a refund. FULFILLER may require USER to return the supplied tickets at USER’S expense before receiving any refund USER is entitled to due to cancellation. SITE is not responsible for providing or securing this refund for USER. Any shipping and handling charges are not refundable. Refunds will be processed in the same currency as the original order. Conversion charges, including though not exhaustive of the ones issued by USER’S bank, if any, are not covered by SITE or FULFILLER. Neither SITE nor FULFILLER will issue exchanges or refunds after a purchase has been made or for lost, stolen, damaged or destroyed tickets. When USER receives tickets, USER should keep them in a safe place. Please note that direct sunlight or heat may damage tickets.Pricing. All prices are in United States Dollars (USD) unless otherwise specifically stated. SITE cannot confirm the price of an item until after an order is completed by USER. Despite SITE’S best efforts, a small number of the items listed on the SITE may be priced incorrectly. If FULFILLER discovers an item’s correct price is higher than the stated price, FULFILLER will either complete the order at the original price, contact USER to inform USER of different price with an option to purchase, or cancel USER’S order and notify USER of such cancellation.
Delivery: Costs associated with the Delivery Method chosen by USER and the SITE’S arrangement of USER’S ticket delivery by FULFILLER.
The total price stated is the entire amount charged to USER, including each ticket’s price as set by FULFILLER, Service Fee, and Delivery.
Credit Card Charges. USER’S credit card will be charged by FULFILLER and not SITE. If USER has any questions about charges on USER’S credit card statement, USER should contact SITE at [email protected] or direct USER’S question to FULFILLER. FULFILLER may charge or authorize USER’S credit card in advance of confirming ticket availability. If tickets are ultimately found to be unavailable, USER’S credit card will not be charged or USER will receive a full refund for the charged amount.
Payment by Debit Card. In some cases, FULFILLER may attempt to authorize a debit card multiple times, creating several holds on USER’S account. This often happens when a third-party credit card processing company requires additional security verification such as a CVV, Zip Code, or address, or when USER’S information is incorrectly provided or mistyped initially. Though FULFILLER will only clear USER’S transaction once, the hold(s) will temporarily lower USER’S available balance. Any hold(s) may take up to several days to clear.
Ticket Holder Behavior Policy. The USER agrees to abide by all rules and policies of the venue where the event is located relating to conduct and behavior. Should the USER be ejected from the event for failure to abide by the venue’s rules and policies, USER shall be subject to all applicable fines and legal or other expenses associated with the ejection. USER shall not be entitled to a refund due to ejection from the event for failure to abide by the venue’s rules and policies. Further, should the ejection result in the loss of the TICKET SELLER’s right to use any other season tickets at that venue, or the right to purchase other tickets from that venue, USER shall be held liable for all reasonable costs, expenses, and losses associated with said loss, including but not limited to all direct, indirect, vicarious, consequential, exemplary, incidental, special or punitive damages, including lost profits.
Ticket Availability. SITE cannot guarantee ticket availability until USER is in possession of USER’S tickets. Generally, all ticket listings on SITE are a unique set of tickets from an individual TICKET SELLER. Some ticket listings on SITE may only be representations of available tickets and not actual seat locations or currently available tickets. Occasionally tickets ordered may no longer be available at the price or in the quantity originally ordered at the time the order is received. If equivalent or better seat locations are available at the same price, TICKET SELLER will fill the order with the alternative seat locations. If no alternates are available, either USER’S credit card will not be charged at all or the entire amount charged will be refunded, and USER will be notified that the ticket request has been rejected.
Fraudulent Use. In order to protect USER from fraud, USER may be required to provide additional proof of identify on any order. Proof of identity may include but is not limited to a signed credit card authorization and/or photocopies of public documents such as a state driver’s license or federal passport.
Delayed Shipment. Tickets may not always be available for immediate delivery, particularly in cases when the tickets have been purchased far in advance of the event in question or for certain events including but not limited to the following: all off-season orders for professional sporting leagues, concerts, and Las Vegas events tickets. While most tickets are delivered within three business days via the delivery method chosen, this does not imply a guaranteed delivery date. In these situations tickets may be marked with an estimated ship date. USER will be provided with account access information that will allow USER to view the status of USER’S order and tracking information, if available, after purchase. In the case where tracking information is not available USER may contact a representative of FULFILLER for shipment information or an estimated delivery date. Tickets will be shipped when available, and choice of an expedited delivery method does not guarantee that tickets will be shipped immediately. USER should check the order notes for the estimated delivery date.
International Shipping. If USER is located outside of the United States, USER must choose an international delivery option. If a domestic shipping option is chosen for an order to be shipped outside the United States, the shipping cost will be adjusted by FULFILLER after the order is placed to use the international rate.
Delivery Verification. If USER specifies a shipping address that does not allow for Delivery Verification, such as a Post Office Box, USER may be required to pay an additional fee to cover the additional risks associated with this type of order. If such a shipping address is used, FULFILLER will, at FULFILLER’S discretion, either contact USER about the additional fee prior to shipping or cancel USER’S order and notify USER of such cancellation.
E-Ticket Download. Electronic tickets or “e-tickets” may not be available for immediate download. After placing an order, USER will receive an email with instructions on how to download the tickets; therefore, it is important that USER provides accurate email address information during the order process. The USER will be required to enter order specific credentials to gain access to the tickets, and USER must have access to a printer from which to print the tickets. USER is responsible for contacting Customer Support should USER not receive the email instructions, be unable to download the tickets, or be unable to print the tickets. Neither SITE nor FULFILLER will issue refunds for USER’S failure to provide a correct email address or failure to print the tickets.
Permitted Use. USER agrees that USER is only authorized to visit, view, and to retain a copy of pages of this SITE for USER’S own personal use, and that USER shall not duplicate, download, publish, modify, or otherwise distribute the material on this SITE for any purpose other than to review event and promotional information, for personal use, or to purchase tickets or merchandise for USER’S personal use, unless otherwise specifically authorized by SITE to do so. The content and software on this SITE is the property of SITE and/or its suppliers and is protected by U.S. and international copyright laws.
Links. The SITE may automatically produce search results that reference or link to third-party sites throughout the World Wide Web. SITE has no control over these sites or the content within them. SITE cannot guarantee, represent, or warrant that the content contained in the sites is accurate, legal, and/or inoffensive. SITE does not endorse the content of any third-party site, nor does SITE warrant that these sites will not contain viruses or otherwise impact USER’S computer systems. By using the SITE to search for or link to another site, USER agrees and understands that USER may not make any claim against SITE for any damages or losses, whatsoever, resulting from use of the SITE to obtain search results or to link to another site. If USER experiences a problem with a link from the SITE, please notify SITE at [email protected] and SITE will investigate USER’S claim and take any actions deemed appropriate at SITE’S sole discretion.
Violation of the Terms. SITE, in its sole discretion, and without prior notice, may terminate USER’S access to SITE, cancel USER’S ticket order, or exercise any other remedy available to it. USER agrees that monetary damages may not provide a sufficient remedy to SITE for violations of these terms and conditions and USER consents to injunctive or other equitable relief for such violations. SITE may release USER information by operation of law, if the information is necessary to address an unlawful or harmful activity against SITE. SITE is not required to provide any refund to USER if USER is terminated as a user of SITE.
Intellectual Property Information. For purposes of these TERMS, CONTENT is defined as any information, communications, software, photos, video, graphics, music, sounds, and other material and services that can be viewed by users on the site. This includes, but is in no way limited to, message boards, chat, and other original content. By accepting these TERMS, USER acknowledges and agrees that all CONTENT presented to USER on this site is protected by copyrights, trademarks, service marks, patents, or other proprietary rights and laws, and is the sole property of SITE and/or its affiliates. USER is only permitted to use CONTENT as expressly authorized by SITE or the specific CONTENT provider. Except for a single copy made for personal use only, USER may not copy, reproduce, modify, republish, upload, post, transmit, or distribute any documents or information from this site in any form or by any means without prior written permission from SITE or the specific CONTENT provider, and USER is solely responsible for obtaining permission before reusing any copyrighted material that is available on this site. Any unauthorized use of CONTENT may violate copyright, trademark, and other applicable laws and could result in criminal or civil penalties. Neither SITE nor its affiliates warrant or represent that USER’S use of materials displayed on, or obtained through, this site will not infringe the rights of third parties. All other trademarks or service marks are property of their respective owners. Nothing in these TERMS grants USER any right to use any trademark, service mark, logo, and/or the name of SITE or its affiliates.
SITE reserves the right to terminate the privileges of any user who uses SITE to unlawfully transmit or receive copyrighted material without a license or express consent, valid defense, or fair use exemption to do so. After proper notification by the copyright holder or its agent to us, and confirmation through court order or admission by the USER that they have used SITE as an instrument of unlawful infringement, SITE will terminate the infringing USER’S rights to use and/or access to SITE. SITE may, also, in its sole discretion, decide to terminate USER’s rights to use or access to the SITE prior to that time if SITE believes that the alleged infringement has occurred.
Disclaimers. SITE MAKES NO ASSURANCES THAT SITE WILL BE ERROR-FREE, UNINTERRUPTED, OR PROVIDE SPECIFIC RESULTS FROM USE OF SITE OR ANY SITE CONTENT, SEARCH, OR LINK THEREIN. THE SITE AND SITE CONTENT ARE DELIVERED ON AN “AS-IS” AND “AS-AVAILABLE” BASIS. SITE MAKES NO ASSURANCES THAT FILES USER ACCESSES OR DOWNLOADS FROM THE SITE WILL BE FREE OF VIRUSES OR CONTAMINATION OR DESTRUCTIVE FEATURES. SITE DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING ALSO ANY IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. SITE WILL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY DAMAGES OF ANY KIND ARISING FROM THE USE OF SITE, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION, DIRECT, INDIRECT, VICARIOUS, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, PUNITIVE, LOSS OF BUSINESS, OR LOSS OF PROFITS, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, WHETHER BASED UPON BREACH OF CONTRACT, BREACH OF WARRANTY, TORT, NEGLIGENCE, PRODUCT LIABILITY OR OTHERWISE, EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE.
SITE DISCLAIMS ANY AND ALL LIABILITY FOR THE ACTS, OMISSIONS, AND CONDUCT OF ANY THIRD PARTY USERS, SITE USERS, ADVERTISERS AND/OR SPONSORS ON SITE, IN CONNECTION WITH THE SITE SERVICE OR OTHERWISE RELATED TO USER USE OF SITE AND/OR SITE SERVICE. SITE IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR THE PRODUCTS, SERVICES, ACTIONS OR FAILURE TO ACT OF ANY TICKET BROKER, VENUE, PERFORMER, PROMOTER OR OTHER THIRD PARTY IN CONNECTION WITH OR REFERENCED ON SITE.
Limitation on Liability. USER acknowledges that SITE is a venue allowing people to buy and sell tickets to concert, sporting and entertainment events. The listings of ticket inventory on SITE are provided by a third party (“PROVIDER”). Neither SITE nor PROVIDER is involved in the actual transaction between buyers and sellers. While SITE and PROVIDER may help facilitate the resolution of disputes, neither SITE nor PROVIDER has control over the content of the tickets listed on SITE, the truth or accuracy of such listings, the ability of the FULFILLER to sell tickets, or that USER and FULFILLER will actually complete a transaction. Regardless of this provision, if either SITE or PROVIDER is found to be liable, SITE or PROVIDER’S liability to USER or any third party is limited to the greater of (a) any amounts due under SITE’s limited guarantee when applicable, (b) the amount of fees in dispute not to exceed the total fees of the transaction, or (c) $100.
Except in jurisdictions where such provisions are restricted, in no event will SITE or PROVIDER be liable to USER for any indirect, vicarious, consequential, exemplary, incidental, special or punitive damages, including lost profits, even if SITE or PROVIDER have been advised of the possibility of such damages. USER further agrees that the maximum available remedy on any successful claim is the greater of the choices listed in the paragraph above.
Indemnity. USER agrees to indemnify and hold SITE, its subsidiaries, affiliates, officers, agents, and other partners and employees, harmless from any loss, liability, claim or demand, including reasonable attorneys’ fees, made by any third party due to or arising out of USER’S use of SITE, including also USER’S use of SITE to provide a link to another site or to upload content or other information to SITE.
Governing Law. USER agrees that any controversy or claim arising out of or relating to the use of SITE will be governed by the laws of the State of Connecticut without regard to its conflict of law provisions. USER agrees to personal jurisdiction by venue in the state and federal courts of the State of Connecticut, Hartford County.
Arbitration and Dispute Resolution. Any controversy or claim arising out of or relating to the use of SITE, or any alleged breach of these policies, shall be resolved through binding arbitration in the jurisdiction of SITE’S headquarters, Hartford County, Connecticut, and administered by the American Arbitration Association in accordance with its Commercial Arbitration Rules including the Optional Rules for Emergency Measures of Protection. SITE will pay all filing, administration, and arbitrator fees for any arbitration initiated in accordance with the notice requirements above for claims for $10,000 or less. If, however, the arbitrator finds that either the substance of USER’S claim or the relief sought in the Demand is frivolous or brought for an improper purpose (as measured by the standards set forth in Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 11(b)), then the payment of all such fees will be governed by applicable American Arbitration Association Rules. In such case, USER agrees to reimburse SITE for all monies previously disbursed by SITE that are otherwise USER’S obligation to pay under the American Arbitration Association Rules. In addition, if USER initiates an arbitration in which USER seeks more than $10,000 in damages, the payment of these fees will be governed by the American Arbitration Association Rules. SITE and USER agree that the arbitration will be conducted solely on the basis of documents submitted to the arbitrator or through a telephonic hearing. SITE and USER shall both participate in the selection of an arbitrator. Any award issued through arbitration is enforceable in any court of competent jurisdiction.
IF USER DOES NOT WISH TO BE BOUND BY THIS ARBITRATION PROVISION, USER MUST NOTIFY SITE IN WRITING WITHIN 30 DAYS OF THE DATE THAT USER PLACES AN ORDER ON SITE. USER’S WRITTEN NOTIFICATION TO SITE MUST INCLUDE USER’S NAME, ADDRESS AND ORDER NUMBER AS WELL AS A CLEAR STATEMENT THAT USER DOES NOT WISH TO RESOLVE DISPUTES WITH SITE THROUGH ARBITRATION. WRITTEN NOTIFICATION SHOULD BE MAILED TO SITE’S ADDRESS.
All claims brought by USER against SITE must be resolved in accordance with this Arbitration and Dispute Resolution Section. All claims filed or brought contrary to this Arbitration and Dispute Resolution Section shall be considered improperly filed. Should USER improperly file a claim, SITE may recover attorneys’ fees and costs up to US$1,000 from USER, provided that SITE has notified USER in writing of the improperly filed claim, and USER fails to promptly withdraw the claim after USER receives notice of improper filing from SITE.
Force Majeure. SITE shall not be deemed in default or otherwise liable under these rules and policies due to its inability to perform its obligations by reason of any fire; earthquake; flood; substantial snowstorm; epidemic; accident; explosion; casualty; strike; lockout; labor controversy; riot; civil disturbance; act of public enemy; cyber-terrorism; embargo; war; act of God; or any municipal, county, state, or national ordinance or law; or any executive, administrative, or judicial order (which order is not the result of any act or omission which would constitute a default hereunder); or any failure or delay of any transportation, power, or communications system; or any other or similar cause not under SITE’S control (hereinafter all of the foregoing is collectively referred to as FORCE MAJEURE). Notwithstanding the foregoing, SITE shall be permitted to terminate this Agreement with or without notice to USER in the event that USER is prevented from performing hereunder due to FORCE MAJEURE.
USER Account. USER may be asked to select a username and password as part of the registration process. All USER account pages are protected with Secure Socket Layer (SSL) encryption. USER is fully responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of USER’S username and password. USER agrees to immediately notify SITE at [email protected] should USER know, or have reasonable grounds to suspect, that the username or password have been compromised. SITE shall not be responsible for USER’S failure to abide by this paragraph. SITE may, in its sole discretion, terminate the USER’S account for any reason. Under no circumstances shall SITE be liable to any user or third party for termination of USER’S account.
Third Party Advertisers. SITE may allow third-party advertisers to advertise on SITE. SITE undertakes no responsibility for USER’S dealings with, including any on-line or other purchases from, any third-party advertisers. SITE shall not be responsible for any loss or damage incurred by USER in its dealings with third-party advertisers.
Information Collection, Use, and Sharing. PROVIDER and FULFILLER are the sole users of the information collected on this SITE. PROVIDER only has access to or collects information that USER voluntarily gives via email or other direct contact from USER, such as requesting or purchasing tickets from a FULFILLER. PROVIDER, along with FULFILLER, will use USER’s personal information for transactional purposes, including those related to customer service for the transaction. PROVIDER may also use USER’S personal information to provide marketing services on behalf of SITE as well as share USER’S personal information with affiliated entities of PROVIDER to provide joint content and services and to market the products and services of such entities. PROVIDER may sell USER’S personal information to non-financial organizations, such as companies engaged in direct marketing and the selling of consumer products and services.
SITE and PROVIDER will respond to a verified law enforcement or other governmental department request or subpoena relating to a criminal investigation, alleged illegal activity, or identity theft. In such events, SITE and PROVIDER will disclose information relevant to the investigation such as name, city, state, zip code, telephone number, email address, fraud complaints, and credit card information. SITE and PROVIDER may also provide such information to merchant processors or other online ticket exchanges for the sole purpose of investigating fraudulent activities. SITE and PROVIDER reserve the right to report to law enforcement agencies any activities that they believe, in good faith, to be unlawful. In the case of identity theft, USER may authorize a law enforcement officer to request the records from SITE and PROVIDER or USER may request that SITE and PROVIDER send any records directly to a law enforcement officer.
To stop receiving promotional or marketing emails or to opt-out of having USER’S information sent to third parties for marketing purposes, USER can follow the instructions in any promotional email USER receives from SITE. Even if USER opts out of receiving promotional or marketing emails, USER will still be contacted with transactional messages.
Security. PROVIDER takes precautions to protect USER information. When USER submits sensitive information via SITE, USER information is protected both online and offline.
Whenever sensitive information (such as credit card data) is collected, that information is encrypted and transmitted in a secure way. USER can verify this by looking for a closed lock icon at the bottom of USER web browser, or looking for “https” at the beginning of the address of the web page. PROVIDER is committed to not re-identifying sensitive information collected by SITE.
Service and Advertising Emails. SITE may send USER several service-related emails to the email address given when placing an order. These may include a confirmation email with details of USER’S order, a pre-event email reminder about the event to be attended, and a post-event email gathering feedback on the USER’S experience. When USER places an order, SITE may also add USER to the weekly mailing list to be informed of upcoming events. USER can opt out of these emails at any time by clicking the unsubscribe link in the email itself, or by notifying [email protected].
Amendments. SITE reserves the right to amend this policy at any time.
These policies were last amended on December 20, 2012. | 2019-04-26T01:59:26Z | http://tickethurry.com/terms-privacy-policy/ |
“If you believe in God, you must obey God, put the truth into practice, and fulfill all your duties. Additionally, you must understand the things you should experience. If you only experience being dealt with, being disciplined, and judgment, if you are only able to enjoy God, but you are unable to feel when God is disciplining you or dealing with you, this is unacceptable. Perhaps in this instance of refinement you are able to stand your ground. This is still not enough; you must march forward. The lesson of loving God is endless, and there is never an end to it. People see believing in God as too simple, but once they gain some practical experience, they realize that belief in God is not as simple as people imagine. When God works to refine man, man suffers, his love of God becomes greater, and more of God’s might is revealed in him. The less man’s refinement, the less his love of God, and the less God’s might is revealed in him. The greater his refinement and pain and the more his torment, the deeper his true love of God will be, the more genuine his faith in God will be, and the deeper his knowledge of God will be. In your experiences you will see that those who suffer great refinement and pain, and much dealing and discipline have a deep love of God, and a more profound and penetrating knowledge of God. Those who have not experienced being dealt with have but a superficial knowledge, and can only say: “God is so good, He bestows grace upon people so that they can enjoy Him.” If people have experienced being dealt with and disciplined, then they are able to speak the true knowledge of God. So the more wondrous God’s work in man is, the more valuable and significant it is. The more impenetrable it is to you and the more incompatible it is with your notions, the more God’s work is able to conquer you, gain you, and make you perfect. The significance of God’s work is so great! If He did not refine man in this way, if He did not work according to this method, then God’s work would be ineffectual and without significance. This is the reason behind the extraordinary significance of His selection of a group of people during the last days. It was said before that God would select and gain this group. The greater the work He carries out within you, the deeper and purer your love. The greater the work of God, the more man is able to get a taste of His wisdom and the deeper is man’s knowledge of Him. During the last days, 6,000 years of God’s plan for management will come to an end. Can it possibly end just like that, so easily? Once He conquers mankind, will His work be over? Can it be so simple? People imagine that it’s so simple, but what God does is not that simple. No matter what part of God’s work it is, all is unfathomable to man. Were you able to fathom it, then God’s work would be without significance or value. The work done by God is unfathomable; it is too much at odds with your notions, and the more irreconcilable it is with your notions, the more it shows that God’s work is meaningful; were it compatible with your notions, then it would be meaningless. Today, you feel that God’s work is too wondrous, and the more wondrous it is, the more you feel that God is unfathomable, and you see how great God’s deeds are. If He only did some superficial, perfunctory work to conquer man and then that was it, then man would be incapable of beholding the significance of God’s work. Although you are receiving a little refinement now, it is of great benefit to the growth of your life—and so such hardship is of the utmost necessity to you. Today, you are receiving a little refinement, but afterward you will truly be able to behold the deeds of God, and ultimately you will say: “God’s deeds are so wondrous!” These will be the words in your heart. Having experienced God’s refinement for a while (the trial of[a] service-doers and the times of chastisement), some people ultimately said: “Believing in God is really difficult!” This “difficult” shows that God’s deeds are unfathomable, that God’s work is possessed of great significance and value, and is highly worthy of being treasured by man. If, after I have done so much work, you had not the slightest knowledge, then could My work still have value? It will make you say: “Service to God is really difficult, the deeds of God are so wondrous, God truly is wise! He’s so lovely!” If, after undergoing a period of experience, you are able to say such words, then this proves that you have gained God’s work in you. One day, when you’re abroad to spread the gospel and someone asks you: “How is your faith in God?” you will be able to say: “God’s actions are so marvelous!” As soon as they see you say this, they’ll feel that there’s something within you and that God’s actions truly are unfathomable. This is truly bearing witness. You will say that God’s work is full of wisdom, and His work in you has truly convinced you and conquered your heart. You will always love Him because He is more than worthy of mankind’s love! If you can speak to these things, you can move people’s hearts. All of this is bearing witness. If you are able to be a resounding witness, to move people to tears, that shows that you truly are one who loves God. That’s because you are able to act as a witness of love for God and God’s actions can be expressed through you. And through your expression, other people can seek out His actions, experience God, and they’ll be able to stand steady in whatever environment they find themselves in. Only bearing witness this way is genuinely bearing witness, and this is exactly what is required of you now. You should say that God’s actions are extremely valuable and worthy of being treasured by people, that God is so precious and so abundant, He can not only speak, but even more He can refine people’s hearts, bring them enjoyment, and He can gain them, conquer them, and perfect them. From your experience you will see that God is very lovable. So how much do you love God now? Can you really say these things from your heart? When you are able to express these words from the depths of your heart you will be able to bear witness. Once your experience has reached this level you will be capable of being a witness for God, and qualified for it. If you don’t reach this level in your experience, then you will still be too far off. It’s normal for people to have weaknesses in refinement, but after refinement you should be able to say: “God is so wise in His work!” If you are truly able to take in practical recognition of this, it is precious, and your experience is valuable.
Someone says: “I do not possess the reality of the truth, you want me to speak the truth, but what should I say? I have nothing to say.” Should people with nothing to say speak? If someone with nothing to say speaks, isn’t it annoying? Is it nonsense? What do you do if there is nothing to say? Should you force yourself to speak or say nothing? If there’s nothing to say, then don’t say anything—shouldn’t it be that simple! If there is nothing to say, what are you going to drivel on about? If there is nothing to say but you insist on speaking, aren’t you insane? Are you not speaking nonsense? Are people willing to listen? Are you all willing to listen to a mental patient talk? Someone says they are not. Why not? Because these aren’t true words coming from their heart, they are all nonsense, they do not contribute anything to anyone, isn’t that right? What kind of people are those who don’t think? Human vegetables. If you visit those human vegetables lying in the hospital, they’re only able to breathe, some maybe can eat, but they don’t have anything to say, why is that? They don’t have thoughts, and people without thoughts are human vegetables. Now this problem has been solved, people without thoughts are people with nothing to say inside, they shouldn’t speak, because when they do it is nonsense.
Another person asks: “He who does not possess the reality of the truth shouldn’t speak, but if we have some thoughts and understanding may we speak?” If you have thoughts and understanding, you can speak. Why is that okay? Because these are true words! So long as they are true words, they ought to be spoken if they are beneficial to others, but they should not be spoken if they are not beneficial to others. Is this principle okay? It’s just like if in your heart you want to find a partner, then you tell everybody: “I’ve been thinking, I want to find a partner.” Is this something you can say? Someone says no. Why not? Because it is not beneficial to others, it makes no contribution. Then is it okay to lay your heart bare to someone else? Laying your heart bare is okay, but don’t do it at gathering, to do so would be useless, it would bring no contribution. If you talk with someone that you are close to and say: “Lately I’ve been thinking, I want to find a partner, what do you think I should do?” “In that case we should seek out the truth, and try to grasp God’s intention! What is the context, should you look for one?” This is correct, when talking to someone you are close with you can talk about these kinds of things, because this is a problem, and when a problem emerges you have to search for the truth, and if you do not communicate then the problem cannot be solved. People that seek the truth must search for it regardless of what problem falls before them. Only by seeking the truth will you be able to understand God’s intentions and God’s requirements for people, and only in this way will you be able to come to some understanding of God. As soon as you become aware of God’s intention, you will come to some understanding of God. In this thing you become aware of God’s intention and so in this thing you come to some understanding of God; in that thing you become aware of God’s intention and so in that thing you come to some understanding of God. And if through seeking the truth in many things you become aware of many of God’s intentions, you will then come to a more deep and multi-faceted understanding of God. So, many problems must be communicated, and as long as they are true—do not tell a lie—they can be communicated. Some problems can be brought up in large gatherings, and some problems should be talked about in private with those brothers and sisters that understand the truth, not every problem should be talked about in a large gathering. You shouldn’t say something that doesn’t make a contribution to others, this is something you should talk about in private with leaders or someone who understands the truth; it is okay to communicate this with them. If something doesn’t make a contribution to others, even if they are true words, they shouldn’t be spoken; is this not a principle for being an honest person? These are all principles that ought to be observed. If you are fully aware of these principles of the truth but you do not observe them, then you won’t be principled in your actions, and when you aren’t principled sometimes you may act wildly, and this may sometimes bring troubles, which will disturb other people and interrupt the work of God’s family, which falls short of God, right? So what is the principle for speaking the truth? You can say things that contribute to others, and if they are true words you can speak them; but if they do not make a contribution to others then you should search for the truth in private, you can’t speak of them face to face with everybody. This is the principle for speaking the truth.
Then how do you go about speaking the truth during gatherings? Someone asks, “I do not have a true understanding of God, and I also do not have the reality of the truth, so should I not speak?” How do you solve this problem? Should they or should they not speak? If you don’t have the reality of the truth, does that mean you don’t have thoughts and knowledge? When we fellowship about the words of God, should we talk about our own understanding, our own acceptance? It is okay to talk about our own understanding and acceptance, this does not represent someone having the reality of the truth, but these are not lies. How you accepted and understood at that time, this is something you should talk about boldly and without restriction. However, if you have not reached full acceptance, if your acceptance is partial, and your thoughts are naive, then you ought to thoroughly think it over until you come to a pure acceptance and receive some real light. Then the things you talk about can benefit others. If you talk about all kinds of different things that you are feeling without structure or order, nobody can make sense of even the main ideas, will this contribute to others? It won’t. If your knowledge and your acceptance emerges in a structured way, then when people hear you speak they will think, “Your acceptance is straight and pure. In comparison with your acceptance, mine is somewhat partial, I should accept things in the way you do.” You see, if your acceptance is pure, it will shine brightly, it will illuminate other people, and benefit other people, isn’t this so? Now, if you have true thoughts, true insight and true acceptance, should these things be talked about? They should be talked about. Everyone can obtain great benefits while fellowshiping about this kind of things, and come to a pure acceptance and true knowledge. We should communicate with each other, complement each other, help each other and use the strengths of others to make up for our weaknesses, and then everyone’s knowledge will be increased. These are the results that can be achieved through church life. If every time we gather together we communicate in this way, eventually everyone will come to a pure acceptance and understanding of the words of God, isn’t this progress? Isn’t this kind of progress God’s blessing? This is God’s blessing.
Suppose someone says, “Today I feel I’ve been enlightened some. The way the brothers and sisters have communicated with me really has accomplished something for me. I really feel I’ve gained something. I understand a little of the truth, have a bit of light, some genuine understanding. But it’s too little. How great it would be if there truly were a person who understands the truth and could communicate it clearly all at once, so I could understand the truth thoroughly! “Is this a valid statement? It’s not valid. Why is it invalid? In experiencing the work of God, no one achieves a thorough understanding of God’s words and the truth. I do not have such an understanding at all. I am like you, just a step ahead, with only some of the Holy Spirit’s enlightenment and illumination to guide me. It’s not that I all of a sudden entered into reality and experienced very deeply, no such thing. God’s work is realistic. So I say while we are experiencing the work of God and live our lives in the church, there is no one who can thoroughly communicate the truth, we can just communicate some light at most. That genuine understanding is already something quite good. So don’t always think of this process based on the notions and imaginations that corrupted people have. Even what I’m telling you now about knowledge of the truth is so limited, we can say it’s too shallow. If you don’t believe me, just wait ten years and then look back on what I am communicating to you now. You’ll think, “Oh, looking back on it now, all that communication then was so inadequate, so superficial.” So I say, do not imagine God’s words and the truth in such a simple way, as if someone after believing in God for many years will fellowship about the truth so clearly all at once. Who can genuinely understand truth with perfect clarity? No one can achieve this. Even though I have a lifetime of experience, I wouldn’t dare say my experience of any truth is absolutely complete, that my understanding is perfect, not at all. Even though I’ve had a lifetime of experience I am still just an infant, just someone with a stature that’s none too big. God’s demands on people are not the loftiest, but practical and realistic. If you imagine that what God demands of people is so far above us, then it becomes impossible for people ever to meet these demands. In that case, you have misunderstood God, for God is a practical God. Whatever God demands of people, is as realistic and genuine as it can be. His demands on people are not too lofty; so long as you try with all your might, you can meet these demands. What is the problem if people imagine God’s demands to be too high? What is the mistake they are making? Such people certainly have no understanding of God’s work, no understanding of how practical God’s work is. Beyond that, God is the Lord of creation, God is thoroughly familiar with the corrupted human race, knows all too well what level of achievement humans can attain, and is completely aware how high humans are capable of reaching. So God’s demands on people are quite reasonable and absolutely not so high that they are beyond reach as people imagine them to be.
I’ve said this in the past. I’ve said that we should have some entry into every truth and that is meeting God’s demands. But it’s not okay if you don’t have any; you must gain some entry and have some basic likeness of a real man. To be absolutely holy, to be without imperfections or flaws is just people’s imagination, and God has no such demands of people! Then there are other people who say, “In the Bible, God says, ‘you shall therefore be holy, for I am holy.’” They speak based on this sentence in the Bible, what they say is also true. God’s words testify to that. So how do you explain this, what do you think? True, God spoke these words, but is the standard for the holiness in “you shall be holy” the same as the standard for God’s holiness? They could never possibly be the same. If you attained God’s holiness, the same as God, then you would become God! Then just what are God’s demands on people? To make you into a real man, to be able to obey God, no longer resist God or judge God, but be able to have true love for God and a God-fearing heart, that’s all. You may consider those things to be meeting the standard for the demands that God makes on humans, and this is the standard for humans achieving holiness that God spoke of. Fear God and shun evil: that is what is considered holiness. Just as when Job feared God and shunned evil, and God said he was a perfect and upright man. Consider whether he was as perfect and upright as people imagine. He was not. What the conceptual imagination of people demands of humans, people will never attain. But then why did God say that Job was a perfect and upright man? It was precisely to demonstrate that God’s demands on people are realistic, reasonable demands that people can meet. In the Age of Law, a person like Job met God’s demands, and in the Age of Grace Peter met the demands of God. God made these two models to set an example for people experiencing God’s work in the last days, and through these models to give people experiencing God’s work in the last days a true standard. Can one rely on human notions and imagination to understand God’s words? If that is how you understand God’s words, then you are absurd. You understand neither God’s words nor God’s will. If we can achieve some results in God’s word, in all that God demands of people, in all that He demands people to achieve, demands people to do, and demands people to know and understand, we will then meet God’s demands, we can be saved and completely able to survive. Is that a correct understanding?
If we have some practical experience, some genuine understanding of each truth that God has expressed, then no matter what the depth of the understanding is, we have entered a bit into the truth, and that proves that we have some reality of the truth. For example, when some people experience the truth of being honest, the lies they tell are much fewer and only under special circumstances they may still lie just a bit. Would we consider such people to have the experience and the entry? We would consider that having some entry and reality. You see such a person is not the same as before. Before, when he spoke, ninety times out of a hundred he lied, and now at most it’s only one or two times out of a hundred. That’s a good entry! So are there any lies in what you’ve heard me say? Think carefully whether there are. Some say there aren’t, but in fact I can’t say there are absolutely none. There are very few times when I’ve said something that is somewhat doctrinal, and not very practical. Still, I did not lie intentionally. It’s an issue of my stature. Now whether according to God’s words or according to the standard humans imagine, did I achieve true holiness? I don’t think so! If I told the satans and devils some things that were not true, and did not tell them the truth, would you say that is lying? You cannot tell satans and devils the truth about some things. That’s not considered lying. Now what does God think about this aspect of our lying? God’s demands on us are according to our stature. If we do not tell the truth to satans and devils, we are being wise, and God has not said we are lying, nor will God condemn us for it. But in our ordinary lives, we lie many times out of our corruptness. Lies told out of corruptness are numerous, for some people it can be as much as one-tenth or two-tenths, two out of every ten words. And now I’ve discovered a new question: Is it lying to speak letters and doctrines? This is a new discovery. I feel it comes from the enlightenment and illumination of the Holy Spirit, because this has so much benefit to our entry into life. Accept this if you can, for it benefits your entering into life. If you cannot accept this, no one is forcing you to. Pursuing the truth is something for each person to choose freely. God’s disposition is holy and righteous, and God does not like falsehood. So I say not to speak letters and doctrines, empty words, or imposing pretentious words. God detests that, God will not accept it, and if you speak them often enough it can infuriate God!
So you see that as we experience God’s work, there are times when the Holy Spirit unconsciously enlightens us, makes us discover new light in the course of our experience, and discover new questions. Is this not the work of the Holy Spirit? The Holy Spirit guides us to experience God’s words, and achieve understanding truth and knowing God. The more we experience these, then truly the greater the results, and the more we understand God’s purpose, and know God’s work. Therefore, God accomplishes His own work. This saying is absolutely true. Someone then says, “So now when I see God’s words made known, isn’t it entirely the man used by the Holy Spirit who is leading us? What we see is that this person is working and speaking! So why don’t we go experience God’s work for ourselves directly? If we don’t accept this person’s guidance, wouldn’t we make the same progress if we go experience God’s work, read God’s words, and communicate God’s words for ourselves?” Is that right? No, it’s not right. Why not? After hearing my words someone says, “That’s right! Why should we listen to you? Why should we obey you? We obey God. It is God we believe in, not you. What you just said makes me think.” You see that these people are also in the dark and have no discernment.
Some Korean brothers and sisters have said, “Can we Koreans worship God on our own? We don’t want you Chinese to lead us. We always feel restrained by you, and we are upset. We can set up a church ourselves and guide ourselves!” Is that a good idea? Some say it is not. Why not? In the past there were some antichrists who would say, “It is Almighty God we believe in, it is God’s words we believe in. Why should we listen to the man used by the Holy Spirit? We read God’s words ourselves, and live our own life in the church. We don’t need your management, and we don’t need your guidance. We are able to experience for ourselves.” Those words make sense. “People have freedom of belief, so why should you interfere?” But over ten years later, where are those antichrists? They’re all washed up, finished. Did anyone benefit from their guidance? Did they themselves have the reality of truth? Did they genuinely search for truth? Were they truly able to serve God? While they were without truth they wanted to lead God’s chosen people away from God’s authority, away from the authority of God’s house. Weren’t they attempting to set up an independent realm? If the Koreans want to choose Koreans to be their leaders, they certainly can, but do they have the truth? Do they have the reality of truth? Can they really lead you into the reality of the truth of God’s words? Are they truly able to gain the work of the Holy Spirit? Can they truly bring you before God to gain God’s perfection? Are you able to understand these things clearly? If you do not have a clear understanding of these things, you are all too ignorant! Go ahead to try and see. If you should be independent for half a year, you wouldn’t even have the work of the Holy Spirit, and you would have to live according to letters and doctrines, as bankrupt as religion, deserted by God and abandoned! Do you imagine that it is so simple to experience the work of God?
At present the house of God is constantly nourishing Koreans from both North and South Korea to let these people enter the reality of the truth, and thereafter let the Korean church select people who have the reality of truth as their leaders. What is the significance of this? It means turning you over to leaders with the reality of the truth, something indeed worthy of God! You Koreans at present have not yet thoroughly entered the reality of truth, and none of you is suitable and can truly lead God’s chosen people, and so for the time being it has been for God’s house to lead in unity. Isn’t this God’s love for you? There are some people who don’t see even this point. If you want to choose a Korean to lead you, there are some whose humanity is rather good, and we are just now training them. But can they lead now? Can they bring out the reality of truth in what they say? Do they have that stature? What is happening now doesn’t mean you are under the shepherding and authority of Chinese, but learning to obey God’s work and God’s plan. Not only you, my Korean brothers and sisters, but the entire world, the people of every nation, after they receive Almighty God in the future, must all be under the united leadership of God’s house. Whoever is able to break away from the leadership of God’s house and whoever dares to separate themselves from the leadership of the man used by the Holy Spirit, is setting up an independent realm. Those of you who want to be on your own, are your wings ready to fly? Do you have the reality of truth? See whether you can write a film script, if you have the reality of truth. See whether you can write down something that bears witness. If you really can write bearing witness out of your own experience, if you can write a film script, fine! God’s house will agree that you lead the Korean church. Do you have that stature? Do you dare stand up to say, “I do!”? “If you do, then try! Let’s see where is your reality of truth, tell us. Tell us about how many years of experience you have, by how many words of God you have been judged and chastised, and what pruning and dealing, trials and refining you have experienced.” You’ve had no reality of truth at all! God’s house has nourished you these past few years, so now you have some zeal and some knowledge, so that everyone can be of one mind. This is God’s love and God’s grace. Then some people feel they are ready to go out on their own and are impatient to assume authority to lead a church, become independent, and break away from the leadership of God’s house. Is this the behavior of antichrists? Is this human ambition? You want to break away from the leadership of God’s house. You think the leaders of God’s house are Chinese, and Chinese are not good enough for you? Is your humanity good? Does your humanity represent the reality of truth? Does it represent your knowledge of God? Those human conceptions and imagination that you harbor are not the truth. “Koreans show filial piety and respect to their parents, Koreans hold the elderly in high esteem, and the traditional culture of Koreans is good,” but these are human conceptions and reasoning, not truth, not God’s words. No matter how well you show filial piety and respect to parents, will that get you into the kingdom of heaven? No matter how good the culture of Koreans, is that truth? Does the moral code that children should show filial piety to parents represent that parents have the truth? Does it demonstrate that parents should be elders, or supervisors, or hold authority in the church? Would that be right? Are those of you who are parents leading others to receive God’s work? Do you have genuine testimony? Are you able to set an example for your children?
Some people who have believed in God for years still do not have a real understanding of traditional culture and still harbor these conceptions about traditional culture: filial piety toward parents, respect for parents, and respect for elders. They are the morality of humanity. They were present in China three thousand years ago. Isn’t Confucianism especially devoted to filial piety, the three obediences and the four virtues? Is that truth? That is the fallacy of Satan, the teaching by which Satan has corrupted the human race. It is just because of these falsehoods that humans do not obey God and do not obey the truth. Is this in the Bible? Was the Lord Jesus a man who showed filial piety and respect for His parents? Was Peter a man who showed filial piety and respect for his parents? No. But the Lord Jesus is truth, and Peter was a saint. Peter’s parents opposed his believing in God and following God. They looked forward to his making a distinguished name for himself and bringing honor and glory to his ancestors. Instead he rebelled against his parents to be with Christ, to follow Christ, while he abandoned his family and abandoned his parents. If it were left up to people’s imaginations, it would have been right for God to curse Peter for being an unfilial son. But the fact is that it was Christ whom Peter sought. It was truth. Because Peter followed the Lord Jesus, followed Christ, he was genuinely able to love Christ, and won God’s praise, becoming the historical model for saints. How do you explain that? How did the Lord Jesus treat His parents? Was He filial? From the age of thirty when He went out to preach, He rarely returned home and did not mention His parents. How did He put it? “For whoever shall do the will of my Father which is in heaven, the same is my brother, and sister, and mother” (Matthew 12:50). How do you explain this? You always judge people by people’s notions, people’s heritage, is that right? Does this represent humanity that is good? Can this represent you as being people obedient to God? If your humanity is good you should be able to pursue the truth, so why aren’t you obedient to the truth? If Koreans are allowed to lead Koreans, then they will put these notions in first place and put truth in second, to one side. Isn’t that so? | 2019-04-22T17:01:47Z | https://www.holyspiritspeaks.org/those-who-are-to-be-made-perfect-must-undergo-refinement-2/ |
The Soo Theatre Project will be hosting this year’s annual Christmas Tour of Homes and Tea on Sunday, December 11th. This year’s tour will feature the four beautiful homes of Mary and Chuck Weber, Julie and David Weir, Allie Brawley, and Tom Sherman.
The Tour will be from 1-4pm and Tea will be from 2-5pm. This year’s Tea will take place at the Soo Theatre’s Studio E located at 539 Ashmun Street. The Tea will be hosted by Dianna George and members of the Footlight Dance Company. There will also be a Christmas program featuring STARS students and faculty to entertain patrons as they enjoy their tea. Door prizes will be awarded as well as a Silent Auction.
This is a very popular Christmas tradition for many people so mark your calendars! Tickets are just $15 and will be available at the Soo Theatre office. For more information contact the office by phone at 632-1930 or email at [email protected]. You can also find us on Facebook!
This 1975 British musical comedy film parodies science fiction and horror films. Still in limited release nearly 36 years after its premiere, it has the longest-running theatrical release in film history. This movie is about a newly engaged couple who have a flat tire and go to a nearby castle to ask for assistance. Little do they know that they have stumbled upon a crazy household of aliens who are involved in some very odd situations and creations.
The movie will be shown at the Soo Theatre for one night only, Saturday, October 15th at 11pm. The box office will open at 10pm. Audience participation kits will be available for purchase prior to the movie.
Tickets are just $10 and will be available at the door. For more information, call the Soo Theatre at 906-632-1930.
The Rocky Horror Picture Show is rated R – Restricted – Under 17 Requires Accompanying Parent or Adult Guardian.
Check the Soo Theatre Project website at sootheatre.org and like us on Facebook - Soo Theatre Project, Inc.
4th Annual Show of Shows Sunday Afternoon!
There will be a cook-out in front of the theatre starting at 12:30pm so you can enjoy lunch and then attend the 2pm show.
This year’s show will feature acts from the Rotary Club of Sault Ste. Marie, the Chippewa Sunrise Rotary, Soo Theatre/STARS faculty and students, Footlights Dance Company, Anishinaabe Toe Tap, LSSU and Sault High Choruses, Foreign Accord Barbershop Quartet, and the debut performance of the Errant Late-Night Gardeners.
There is something for everyone in this show which is sure to please audience members of all ages. One of the Soo Theatre’s most popular events of the year, the “Show of Shows” is a great way to wrap up the summer season and see one last live show before winter sets in.
on Thur., Sept. 1, at 7:30 p.m.
Mike Dempsey has created yet another musical production for the entertainment of our local communities, this one called "Mike Dempsey and Friends Go to the Oscars." This performance will take place at the Soo Theatre on Thursday, Sept. 1, at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are now available at the Soo Theatre, 534 Ashmun St.
Large audiences enjoyed his last two Soo Theatre productions, one featuring the music of George Gershwin in 2009, and one featuring the music of Rodgers and Hammerstein last year. The singers and instrumentalists and narrator of the last two years will be joined this year by even more talented artists. And as in the last two Dempsey productions, the artists are all giving freely of their time and talents as a fund-raiser for the Soo Theatre Project, for which the local theatre is very grateful.
Dempsey was born and raised in Sault Ste. Marie. He attended St. Mary’s and Sault High Schools. He received both bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Michigan State University, and then served in the U.S. Army. He has been the choral director at Pontiac Central and Pontiac Northern High Schools, and also served as choir director at several Oakland County area churches.
In addition, he has been music director for such large-scale musicals as South Pacific, Oklahoma, Carousel, The King and I, The Music Man, Kiss Me Kate, Superman, You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown, Mame, My Fair Lady, Gypsy, Sweet Charity, Lil’ Abner, and The Sound of Music.
In 1995 he founded his singing group “Mike Dempsey & Friends.” In addition to writing the script and arranging the music, Mike serves as pianist. This small group has performed composer-themed musicals throughout Southeastern Michigan, and the Sept. 1 show is another of these.
Dempsey has been married to Ellen for 54 years, and they have three sons . As a published composer he is a member of ASCAP and was chosen to accompany Tony award-winner Anna Maria Alberghetti in a Detroit area performance. He is delighted to return to his hometown and the Soo Theatre, where he has many happy memories. Dempsey is looking forward to an evening at the movies with his Sault audience. Long-time Sault residents may recall Dempsey’s parents, Athaleen and Tom. Tom's brother Pat will be on stage this time, also, playing the part of Sammy Cahn. Pat was also born and raised in Sault Ste. Marie and is a music professional in Port Huron.
Other artists performing in this musical production are: Karen Hughes Beacom of Pickford, local soprano star of many Soo Theatre productions and both of the other Dempsey shows; Maureen Delaney-Lehman, another fine soprano, who has sung in the other local Dempsey shows; Eric Shaw, professional tenor coming in from Toronto for the third year, who was also born and raised in the two Saults; Linda Freeze, mezzo-soprano, coming from the Detroit area for the first time, who has sung in other Dempsey productions including his one-woman show featuring the music of Judy Garland; and John Young, baritone, coming for the third year from the Detroit area. The narrator is the Sault's own Tom Ewing of Sovereign Communications. Instrumentalists are Gig Stewart, double bassist from Petoskey, and local percussionist Eric Gadzinski.
Audience members will know most, if not all, of the music being performed at this show, and will sometimes be invited to sing along with the piano. The words will be provided. Please plan to attend and enjoy this wonderful evening of movie music.
Join us at the Soo Theatre on Friday, August 26th at 7pm for the "Northern Dance Collective 2011" performance. The dancers are sure to light up the stage! Open to the public - admission by donation.
For more information, call (906)632-1930.
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s famed opera The Marriage of Figaro will bring alive the historic stage of the Soo Theatre Project August 18, 19, and 21st.
Sault Symphony Conductor John Wilkinson and Canadian Director Timothy Murphy have come together to bring you one of the most popular comic operas of all time. This hilarious opera will be presented in English with Resident Soprano Karen Hughes Beacom being joined by visiting professional guest artists John Arnold, Tom Gunther, and Dawn Krogh. The rest of the cast will be comprised of local talent including members of Soo Theatre’s recent hit Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.
Show times are at 7:30pm with a 2pm matinée on the 21st. Be sure to get your tickets now by calling 632-1930 or stopping in the office at 534 Ashmun Street. Call ahead for group discounts.
On Friday, August 12, one of the world's best guitar players and one of Canada's best singer-songwriters return for one night only to the Soo Theatre.
Don Ross has wowed audiences with his intricate playing style and is one of the most viewed performers on YouTube. Brooke Miller's heartfelt and introspective music has been winning fans since a young age and has earned comparisons to Bruce Cockburn and Joni Mitchell.
If you don't know these artists, you should. You can see some of Don's amazing fretwork HERE and check out Brooke HERE. You can see them together live from the Soo Theatre HERE. If you're a fan of guitar, you'd have to be daft to miss this show!
This will be the first US date on their world tour. Don't miss this rare opportunity to see two of today’s finest musicians in an intimate setting.
Joseph at the Soo Theatre!
Community members from the Sault and surrounding areas, including Brimley, Pickford, Hessel and Rudyard have come together to bring you the thrilling biblical story of JOSEPH AND THE AMAZING TECHNICOLOR DREAMCOAT. The cast, crew, and production staff have been hard at work for two months and it shows in their high energy performance. This Andrew Lloyd Webber musical takes you on a tour of different music styles with everything from country western to Elvis and calypso not to mention the large Broadway style group numbers.
Local talent Matt Gilbertson will be leading the cast as Joseph, a role made famous by Donnie Osmond. A cast of 40 will join him, including two local performers and STARS students, Lola Kennedy (Narrator) and Christian Perron (Judah and Butler), who will both be departing for New York in the fall. Lola has been accepted on a scholarship to New York’s American Musical and Dramatic Academy to pursue her vocal career, and Christian will be attending the American Academy of Dramatic Arts on his way to what will surely be a successful acting career.
Their voices are tuned, the costumes are sewn, the lights are bright, and the set pieces are painted. Director Bob Koger says, "I am thoroughly pleased with the work these outstanding performers have devoted to this show. It will be a long time before you will see another live musical that blows you away like this company will!"
Do you have a child interested in music? The Soo Theatre will have a special “Music is a Family” workshop with singer/songwriters Switchback on July 22nd at 3pm.
This informative presentation is geared towards 11-18 year olds. These two incredibly talented performers will introduce your children to common elements shared between all forms of music. There will be demonstrations of a variety of instruments including the mandolin, bass guitar, and percussion boards. The presentation will be approximately 45 minutes long with a 15 minute question and answer session. Admission is only $5.
Come Out For The Magical Land of Oz June 30 and July 1!
STARS Musical Theatre Camp will be presenting the culmination of their hard work in two performances of “The Magical Land of Oz” Thursday June 30th at 7 pm and Friday July 1st at 2 pm.
Over the course of this 3-week camp, children ages 5-14 have mounted a full scale musical production. Campers have learned their lines, put on their dancing shoes, harmonized their voices, and even helped with their own sets, costumes, and props. Our next generation of performers are ready to show you what they’ve got, so come on out and see the future of performing arts for our community!
Yo Ho Ho! Join Our Pirate Cruise on Thursday, June 9!
On Thursday, June 9, 2011 the Soo Locks Boat Tours will once again be sponsoring their famous Pirate Cruise for the third consecutive year as a fundraiser for the Soo Theatre Project. The festivities will begin at 6pm at Soo Locks Boat Tours Dock One.
This is the third consecutive year the amazing pirate crew (Soo Locks Boat Tours staff) will dazzle seafarers with their pirate antics, including a performance on the dock before they set sail. Once upon the rapid seas, there will be pizza, pop, and water for all to enjoy while listening to pirate stories, singing pirate songs, and winning pirate prizes.
Tickets are on sale now at the Soo Theatre Project. Stop in at 534 Ashmun Street or give us a call at 632-1930. Seating is limited, so be sure to get your tickets early!
Join a Sound Celebration at the Soo Theatre on June 4!
For the fourth consecutive year audiences can join the local Northland Barbershop Chorus and the Lock Cities Chorus of Sweet Adelines, International for an evening of a cappella music at the historic Soo Theatre. The performance will feature a variety of music including selections from the Beatles, Billy Joel, the Inkspots, the Platters, the Beach Boys, and Elton John songs from “The Lion King” performed by the International choruses comprised of members from both sides of the St. Mary’s River.
The Northland Barbershop Chorus is celebrating 50 years of singing, while the Lock Cities Chorus celebrated their 25th Anniversary last year. These two groups are eager to share their passion for music with you, so don’t miss your chance to see these local talents in what is sure to be an exciting musical event.
Tickets are available at the Soo Theatre/STARS office. For more information call 906-632-1930.
The Soo Theatre Project is pleased to announce open auditions for this summer's Broadway musical Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor® Dreamcoat. Director Bob Koger and Music/Vocal Director Karen Hughes will be looking for community members to fill roles for 17 men and 12 women, as well as a 20-30 member children’s choir. All auditions will take place at the Soo Theatre, located at 534 Ashmun Street in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan.
Children’s choir auditions will be held on Sunday, May 1st from 2-4pm. **New** We have also added a second day of Children's Choir auditions for Wednesday May 4th 3:30-5:30 pm. Children in grades 3-6 are encouraged to audition for the production. There is nothing for children to prepare in advance of the audition. Auditions for the cast members will be held on Tuesday, May 3rd and Thursday, May 5th from 7:00-9:00pm each night. There is no need to prepare any audition materials, but candidates may bring a prepared song, if they so choose, and are only required to attend one of the audition times in order to be considered.
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat is the second musical written by the team of Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice. It moved on to a Broadway production and was further adapted as a straight-to-video film and traveling Broadway presentation starring Donny Osmond. “Joseph” is a high-energy, fast-paced production with very little spoken dialogue that has a history of exhilarating its audiences since moving to the stage in 1970.
The Soo Theatre Project production performs for the public on July 27th – 31st, 2011. Call the Soo Theatre Project Office at (906) 632-1930 to sign up for auditions. Don’t miss out on your opportunity to be a part of this wonderful production!
To get the latest news, follow us on Facebook - Soo Theatre Project, Inc.
Announcing Our 2011 Summer Show Season!
Soo Theatre Project is pleased to announce the schedule for our 2011 summer season (see flyer), opening with a combined STARS/Algoma Youth Orchestra Festival Concert on the 15th of May, followed by the 6th Annual STARS Dance Show May 20th-21st, and ending with the ever popular Rocky Horror Picture Show October 14th-15th.
Throughout the summer and fall there will be a wide variety of live shows and programs for your viewing pleasure, including the musical Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat July 24th – 31st directed by Bob Koger, and Mozart's opera The Marriage of Figaro August 18th-19th & 21st produced by Karen Hughes. Many artists, both local and professional, will grace the Soo Theatre stage, as they offer productions from the STARS Children’s Musical Theatre summer camps, dance camps, talent competitions, and variety shows. National and international music groups will also be performing, including Don Ross & Brooke Miller of Canada, Celtic duo Switchback, and California’s The Kid and Nic Show.
Tickets for all summer productions will go on sale in late May. Audition dates for the musical and opera programs will be announced soon, so keep an eye on the Soo Theatre Project’s website www.sootheatre.org or call the office for more information at 906-632-1930. Join us on Facebook by becoming a fan of the Soo Theatre and be among the first to get updates and information.
STARS Dance Fundraiser at Frank's Place Mar 31!
Don't miss this opportunity for great food and excellent service!
STARS dancers and staff are looking forward to helping serve your meal!
There will be a recital tonight (Friday March 4) for intermediate and upper level STARS music students. The recital will start at 7:00 at the First Presbyterian Church located at 555 Bingham Ave. Admittance is by donation. This promises to be a delightful evening of voice, piano, and strings, so don't miss it! You can call the office for more information at 632-1930.
STARS (Soo Theatre Arts Resource Studios) is pleased to announce that they will be continuing to offer Watercolor classes taught by local artist Randy Krause. Classes will begin March 4th and run for 5 weeks. Watercolor for Kids will be on Friday afternoons from 4:00-5:00pm with all materials provided. The Watercolor Techniques class for adults will be on Friday evenings from 5:15-7:15pm. Please bring your own materials to the adult class. For more information or to register please call the office at 632-1930.
STARS (Soo Theatre Arts Resource Studios) is pleased to announce that they have added Beginning Acro Dance to their schedule with instructor Courtney Bailey.
For more information call the office at 632-1930 or stop in at 534 Ashmun Street.
STARS (Soo Theatre Arts Resource Studios) is very excited to announce that Allie Brawley of Northern Life Yoga will be offering a Teen Yoga class at the STARS studios. Classes start February 1st and will be held from 4:30pm – 5:30pm at the student rate of $5 per session.
For more information or to register call 632-1930 or stop by 534 Ashmun Street.
New Dance & Music Classes!
STARS (Soo Theatre Arts Resource Studios) will be presenting an 8-week Beginning Group Piano class with instructor Ronda McGreevy beginning January 31, 2011 at Karen Hughes Beacom’s music studio in Pickford. Classes will be offered from 5:00-5:45pm for 8-10-year-olds, 6:00-6:45pm for 11-13-year-olds, and 7:00-7:45pm for 14-18-year-olds.
Dance instructor Courtney Bailey has returned to STARS to teach intermediate and advanced Acro Dance classes, as well as intermediate and advanced Lyrical/Jazz on Wednesday evenings in the STARS dance studios. These new classes will begin January 26th.
STARS is located at 534 Ashmun Street, with office hours from 9:30am–6:30pm Monday through Friday. Stop by or call (906) 632-1930 to register or for more information.
STARS (Soo Theatre Arts Resource Studios) has expanded class offerings in their Music Program.
First Steps in Music will be offered on Monday’s starting in February from 11-11:30am for 2-3 year olds and from 11:30-12pm for 4-5 year olds. Taught by Karen Hughes, the students will participate in engaging musical activities designed to stimulate their artistic senses.
STARS is located at 534 Ashmun Street, with office hours from 9:30am – 6:30pm Monday through Friday. Stop by or call (906) 632-1930 to register or for more information. | 2019-04-21T02:30:22Z | http://sootheatrenews.blogspot.com/2011/?widgetType=BlogArchive&widgetId=BlogArchive1&action=toggle&dir=open&toggle=MONTHLY-1312174800000&toggleopen=MONTHLY-1320123600000 |
There is no question that influencer advertising and marketing is amongst the modern-day marketing and advertising projects that are being utilized by brand names now. The easy fact that consumers prepare for influencers over the brands makes it a new promo tactic that will certainly help much more companies in promoting their brand-new as well as reaching their target audiences.
If you’re using the social internet sites in advertising and marketing, the chances are that you’re currently utilizing influencers on your initiative.
Social media site is the appropriate place if you want to control the business enterprise. Yes, it is highly hostile on the marketplace, so must make sure you are doing the perfect point.
Before leaping on just how influencer marketing can power your brand name, allow us initially have a look at the definition of influencer advertising and marketing.
Influencer advertising and marketing is an advertising campaign at which the brand name uses influencers to receive their message for its target audience. The influencers are people, areas or things that might affect the target market by means of their message or promo.
An influencer with a substantial following is a dominant part in the accomplishment of an influencer advertising and marketing. But, ensuring the target market is suitable for your brand is likewise a significant consideration.
Assessing the involvement of fans.
The most frequent blunder of entrepreneurs when advertising their brand-new with influencer marketing is to assess the number of fans that an influencer has. Yes, the number of fans might signify your influencer is a favored, but it is not a warranty they have a foreign involvement with their fans.
Need to they have substantial delights in, stocks and comments, it typically implies they are involving with their audience. Furthermore, it says they have top quality fans that are prepared to sustain them.
When entrepreneurs see an influencer includes a wonderful engagement, it’s a terrific indicator that their followers might also delight in, discuss and discuss funded articles.
One reason brand names do this sort of marketing nowadays is they save a considerable quantity of money in employing marketing experts. Finding an influencer is less expensive than keeping a PR business to do its marketing initiative.
There are many selections when paying an influencer. They might accept horizontal rate compensations, a reward, complimentary products, payments or job structure. Influencers can assist firms save loan as well as reap massive advantages which various other marketing strategies can not do.
Providing much more liberty to influencers.
One significant mistake that producers make is commanding their influencers excessively a lot. Doing so can influence the level of product they develop. Remember they are outstanding in their tasks as they’re fantastic content developers.
Currently, controling their profession by merely telling them specifically what to state or perform in their posts can restrict the yields. Depend on their decision to locate the optimum of influencers. Allow them perform their jobs to advertise your new to their followers and also establish how your brand will market.
This is the means they might aid spread out the voice about your brand.
If they market your goods with their followers, then they promote new recognition. Though not all followers will certainly buy what they’re urging, their fans will possibly make note that the products exist and it’s used on the market.
New suppliers locate it difficult to accomplish the optimal audience. But, influencers can achieve this task quickly as they’re relied on with their fans. They could sell as well as promote your product, with no fans asking a lot of questions.
Influencer advertising projects are powerful methods when implemented perfectly. It relates to all type of business, whether existing or brand-new best press release distribution and also in practically any type of company. Strategy your initiative completely to make sure you obtain one of the most of your advertising campaign and also develop your brand.
Sean Penn’s literary debut earlier this year has had reviewers and readers alike scratching their heads about how exactly to receive it. Bob Honey Who Just do Stuff is the tale of one Bob Honey, a reclusive divorcee who works in waste management in suburban California while also operating as a secret agent tasked with assassinating the elderly. Through the one-hundred-sixty-page book, Bob Honey has the opportunity to interact with and comment on Penn’s version of modern America—from partying with an El Chapo stand-in aboard the drug dealer’s yacht, to writing a scathing letter to “Mr. Landlord,” the president of the United States.
Bob’s letter to “Mr. Landlord” works toward emasculating the president and references various real-world situations in the effort. The epilogue consists of a poem that touches on various current issues: the shooting in Las Vegas, the #MeToo movement, and the tension between the U.S. and North Korea. The poem criticizes the nature of the movement as “infantilizing” and “reckless,” and touches on a topic that is personal to Penn. Both Madonna and Lee Daniels accused Penn of assault during their marriages, though both recanted their accusations.
USA Today released an article that has shocked the medical world. Researchers believe people can live longer lives if they drink coffee. This is opposite of what doctors have said for years, which is that coffee is not good for the human body. Researchers from USA Today spent hours researching diseases like cancer, heart disease, HIV, and more. It was proven that people who drink coffee are less likely to fall victim to cancer, heart disease, or HIV. These researchers study over 300,000 Americans, which included those with and without diseases. Follow Organo Gold on Twitter.
At this point, USA Today researchers cannot say with certainty why coffee is keeping people from falling victim to diseases. These researchers also cannot say with certainty if there is a limit to how much coffee a person should be drinking in the course of a day. USA Today researchers are planning to form a weekly study team as well as a weekly blog about this information. The next phase of this study is to analyze every ingredient that is found in coffee. If the ingredients that protect people from diseases can be isolated, researchers hope to add these ingredients in other foods. Follow Organo Gold on Instagram.
One company that is already doing this is Organo Gold. Organo Gold sells several different types of flavored tea. Every tea sold by Organo Gold is filled with Asian mushrooms. These mushrooms promote the killing of cancer cells, a healthier immune system, and better thinking. People from all over the world are beginning to purchase this tea on a daily basis. The Organo Gold website is filled with reviews from thousands of customers. Majority of these reviews describe how the mushrooms cannot be tasted in the tea, which makes the tea that much more satisfying. Organo Gold is planning on adding several new flavors to their brand over the next few months.
Dr. Mark Holterman expertise in the field of medicine is remarkable. He is a renowned surgeon in Peoria, Illinois working with several hospitals. He has practiced medicine for more than twenty years and won many awards and recognitions for his work. Among them is America’s top doctors for seven consecutive years in the year 2008 to 2014 and Chicago Magazine top doctors. Dr. Mark Holterman studied at the University of Virginia School of medicine where he acquired his medical degree. Read more about his interview at ideamensch.com.
He has certification in pediatric surgery and surgery with the American Board of surgery. Dr. Holterman graduated with bachelors in biology at Yale University before he joined the school of medicine. He later acquired a residency in general surgery at the University of Virginia and attended a pediatric surgery fellowship at children’s hospital and medical center with the University of Washington.
Dr. Mark Holterman’s has adequate experience in pediatric surgery. He works as an associate professor in the University of Illinois College of medicine, where he serves in the department of surgery. He serves as a CEO at Mariam Global Health. In addition to these roles, Dr. Mark Holterman also works as a surgeon in other hospitals. He is a member of the surgical team at children’s at OSF Healthcare where he has served since 2011. He supports charity organizations that cater for children welfare to improve access to surgical care. The international pediatric specialist for children of Vietnam is one of the beneficiaries.
Dr. Mark Holterman is an established medical researcher dedicated to improving health care. He is a member of the American Diabetes Association that conducts research and education on diabetes. In addition to being a member of several non-profit organizations, Dr. Holterman has been instrumental in the formation of Hannah sunshine foundation. The non-profit organization caters for children with rare diseases. Read more Q&A at Interview.net with Dr. Mark Holreman.
When it comes to database management, no company is as efficient as NuoDB. NuoDB is a company that offers some of the most productive SQL database management systems and has been developing its own SQL based technology since it first opened its doors to the public. Barry Morris and Jim Starkey were the two people who founded this company and have implemented their visions to make this business the success that it is in the industry today. NuoDB operates out of its headquarters in Massachusetts and offers its database solutions to clients who are coming to them from all over the country. The company has provided these database management solutions to clients coming from a variety of different sectors, and to businesses of varying sizes.
One of the key factors behind the success of NuoDB is the constant development of technology that they try to implement. The company had always tried to develop the current SQL technology even further, which is when they came up with NewSQL, which is a developed version of traditional SQL based systems. This technology is one of the main reasons why the company has gotten so well known in the industry and is being sought after by large corporates.
Ever since being founded in 2008, NuoDB has been pushing the envelope in terms of what is possible in a cloud database environment. They’re taking this classic technology and improved it dramatically. Best described as a newSQL cloud database, NuoDB has been able to take a classic technology and take it to the cloud.
Because it is a newSQL database, NuoDB takes classic components from relational database managing such as the syntax and design of database queries and allows them to be reformed in new ways. NuoDB focuses on scalability to the point of being considered elastic; this means that not only can it stretch to grow, but it can also return to its original state. Removing computers does not cause the same problems that used to, no one machine is essential because the entire database is distributed across the entire system.
This elastic scalability also comes with an additional benefit. Because the system is distributed across many computers adding additional computers does not slow the system down it actually makes it run more quickly.
There was so much more under the hood of NuoDB than can be explained in a short article. Conveniently, however, NuoDB offers a free version for the community to test and try out for themselves. This free version shows just how confident or in their product and its usefulness in any organization.
When someone is dealing with depression, they can feel all alone. It can be hard for other people to understand where they are at and what they are up against in their life. There are some things that people do not know about depression, and there is much that the average person does not understand about this illness. Depression can develop without anything going wrong in a person’s life. Because it is a health issue, it can happen even if a person has a happy life. Depression is not always easy to notice. Those who do not understand depression fully do not understand the way that it takes a physical toll on the body of the one who is dealing with it. It is important for everyone to be educated regarding depression. Neurocore is around to help those who are facing depression.
Neurocore understands that depression is something that is serious and that it is something that affects many individuals. They are available to help those who are faced with the illness. Neurocore uses Brain Performance Centers to change the lives of those who are faced with depression and in need of someone who understands them. These centers help a person change their life for the better and become all of what they are meant to be.
Neurocore completes comprehensive assessments of those individuals who turn to them for help with their daily struggles. This company is there to consider a person and figure out what is going on in their life and what can help them change for the better. Neurocore helps individuals train their brains and get them to a healthy place. This company provides free phone consultations for those individuals who would like to learn more about what they offer and the way that they can change lives.
For more information on Neurocore please follow them on Facebook.
Highland Capital is a company that has been operating in the financial sector for over twenty years. The company is one of the biggest in the state and is known for offering their services to an incredibly diverse range of clients coming to them from all over the country. Highland Capital first opened its doors for business in 1990 and since then has risen to be at the top of the field. The company was founded by James Dondero, who is an extremely proficient financialist. James Dondero is looked at as an icon in the sector owing to the contribution that he has had to the field of finance as part of Highland Capital. Today, the company is worth one billion and has handled trillions worth of cumulative businesses since it started offering its services to their clients.
When it comes to financial services, the company takes pride in offering a diverse range of plans so that they can cover every array of the business and client who is coming to them. The company believes that every client that comes to them is different and therefore would have different needs and financial situations. The company has a large pool of financial advisors and researchers who are able to aptly provide their clients with the correct financial information. The people that work for Highland Capital are trained extensively in the field of finance so that the services that they provide their clients with are always top tier. Because of this, the company has gained an excellent reputation for being a firm that always works for the benefit of the clients.
Highland Capital believes that they are the specialists in finance, and the people who are coming to them are coming there because they are not. Their clients are specialized in other fields, and therefore would not know the different nuances of finance. When a client comes for financial help to Highland Capital, the advisors working there take the time out to explain to their customers what exactly is happening with their finances and all that they need to know what the company is doing.
Highland Capital Management is currently considered to be one of the most influential investment firms in the United States. The company has managed to establish itself in the market by offering top notch financial services to clients in all parts of the world. Customers visiting Highland Capital Management have a wide variety of products and services to enjoy. Their greatest responsibility is to manage the capital of their clients.
The successful company has done very well over the years for several reasons. First of all, the institution has been in the business for more than three decades. At first, it was a life insurance company that was only focusing on providing life covers to its clients. However, after some years, they decided to grow and become a full financial services firm. The reputation of the company has been on top of the game too. Customers from all over the world say that they got the best services whenever they visit the private company. Some of the clients of the firms include high net worth individuals, governments, and corporates. The institution has established its presence in all parts of the world, and it has earned the trust of so many people.
The leadership of Highland Capital Management has played a primary role in the success of the financial services company. At the moment, the president of the investment company is known as James Dondero. The hedge fund manager has been working so hard to make the company a leader in the modern market. Dondero partnered with Mark Okada several years ago so that they could form an investment company that would look into the needs of the middle-class investor. After a lot of hard work, the pair introduced Highland Capital Management.
Although Highland Capital Management is already doing well in the international set up, it has been supporting the local communities at Dallas to live a good life. The company has introduced a special branch to be in charge of all the donations given by the successful investment banking firm. Not long ago, the private company announced to the communities living in Dallas that they had appointed Linda Owen to be in charge of the company donations.
For more information follow Highland Capital Management on Twitter.
People have to retire and they worry about building a nest egg so that they can actually retire without worries throughout the golden years. Many professions give people extra funds but these people often do not understand how to invest their money.
Where, When and How to build wealth can be a headache. Doubts on how to sort through conflicting advice can be very difficult.
There are many wealth stealers such as Bankers, Taxmen, The Fed, Brokers, Politicians and even Insurance Companies, which are hard to protect yourself from that would love to take a person’s saving from him.
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Agora Financial has different profile modes for your investment. Each one is designed to fit any individual’s investment preferences, from tips on finding rapid growth opportunities, secrets of generating income, and wealth protection strategies. Agora Financial’s research is always unbiased and independent. The company’s analysts go on the scene to find investment opportunities as opposed to many other companies that keep their analyst only in their offices. By investing in this strategy, Agora Financial is able to seek and find opportunities before they become successful companies and investing in them is no longer such a great opportunity.
Agora Financial has a qualified team that includes an Ex-Banker to the Presidents, an Ex-Hedge Fund Manager, and Award winning Filmmaker, a three-time New York Times Best selling author, a Pulitzer Prize nominated Journalist, the world’s leading bond experts, a self-made Billionaire and Philanthropist as well as a Harvard Trained Geologist prepared to find the best investment opportunities. Since 1999, Agora Financial has predicted more than 4 major investment opportunities in gold, housing, oil and medicine.
Agora Financial is and will continue to be a leader in the financial counseling market for more than two decades. With Agora Financial’s amazing resources, they are able to help individuals make amazingly successful investments.
With more than 14 publications in the fields of natural resources, penny stock recommendations, and other kinds of investments, Agora Financial is able to offer a complete range of financial strategies and investment ideas. Agora Financial wants to help you to protect and grow your wealth. | 2019-04-25T22:08:36Z | http://warcraftbloggers.com/category/uncategorized/ |
Feb 19, 1998 - Hill-Rom, Inc.
This application is a divisional application of application Ser. No. 08/511,556 filed Aug. 4, 1995, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,771,511.
The network of the present invention also includes a bed status information charting feature. The network allows all data from each of the modules coupled to the network to be available at any time to the other modules. An optional module allows the network to supply information to a remote location through a data link. This information includes information from any of the modules communicating on the network. The peer-to-peer communication network of the present invention transmits electrical signals representing bed status variables that indicate the current position, status, and configuration of the bed. These variables include bed articulation angles, brakes, bed exit, scale, surface therapy attributes, as well as other variables. By detecting and storing changes in these bed status variables in the memory of a module or by transmitting these variables via the data link to a remote location, the present invention permits automatic charting of the bed status variables. Therefore, the hospital information system can monitor and record changes in the bed status variables continuously during the patient's stay for billing, legal, insurance, clinical/care plan studies, etc. The caregiver can also routinely check a nurse call bed status at a remote nurse master station rather than making bed check rounds. A history of the bed status for a particular patient can be displayed on the graphical user interface module, downloaded to a data file, and/or routed via the data link to a remote location.
A chair bed 50 in accordance with the present invention having a head end 52, a foot end 54, and sides 56, 58 is illustrated in FIG. 1. As used in this description, the phrase “head end 52” will be used to denote the end of any referred-to object that is positioned to lie nearest head end 52 of chair bed 50. Likewise, the phrase “foot end 54” will be used to denote the end of any referred-to object that is positioned to lie nearest foot end 54 of chair bed 50.
Bed Articulation Control Module (BACM) 1018—The BACM 1018 primarily controls the hydraulic system used to articulate the bed. BACM 1018 accepts inputs from various user interfaces located throughout the bed to control bed articulations. This control input is qualified with a position sensing input representing the actual locations of the bed deck sections, along with patient lockout controls, to determine whether the bed should articulate. The BACM 1018 is present in every bed. BACM includes a real time clock circuit to set the time for various other modules.
Siderails (SIDE)—The siderails will contain standard caregiver interface modules 1028 and 1030 consisting of input switch controls, output status indicators, and an audio channel. The standard caregiver interface modules 1028 and 1030 are coupled to patient control mechanisms for bed articulations, entertainment, surface, lighting, Bed Exit, and Nurse Call.
Sequential Compression Device (SCD)—This module will control the optional compression boots. It will use the GCI 1032 for interfacing to the caregiver.
Communications module 1022 is the gateway between the patient's environment controls and bed status information residing on the bed, and the hospital information/control network.
Diagnostic tool 1052 is used for servicing the bed, either at the bed site or from a remote location. A modem is coupled to accessory port module 1016 to provide a telephone line connection to the hospital bed. This permits information related to the bed from any module to be retrieved from the peer-to-peer network at a remote location. For instance, the amount of time that the surface of the bed is in use may be detected at the remote location through the modem for billing purposes. The diagnostic tool 1052 permits a remote operator to interrogate every module of the electrical control network. The diagnostic tool 1052 checks application dependent parameters, runs each of the modules through a test procedure, and fully accesses all network information. Diagnostic tool 1052 may be a hand held tool such as a lap top computer which is coupled directly to accessory port module 1016. In addition, a remote computer can be coupled to accessory port 1016 with the modem link to provide a data link to the network. A Voice Mate™ control system available from Hill Rom, Inc. may also be coupled to accessory port module 1016 to control the bed.
Illustratively, there are twelve different solenoids 1054 powered by FET drivers 1090. Neuron controller 1060 can provide three separate commands for each solenoid. The commands include an extend command, a retract command, and a pull-in command. The extend command is used to select the correct solenoid which when energized will extend the appropriate cylinder. Steady-state control of the FET which powers the solenoids is pulsed ON and OFF at the PWM rate. The retract command is used to select the opposing solenoid which when energized retracts the cylinder. It too is turned ON and OFF at the PWM rate. When a solenoid is initially activated or turned on, it is desirable to actuate the selected solenoid at “full on” for a predetermined time. Therefore, the pull-in command overrides the PWM control circuit.
Data including the control commands (pull-in, extend, or retract) for a selected solenoid 1054 transmitted from the neuron controller 1060 is written to buffer register 1084. To synchronize the commands stored in the buffer register 1084 with the timing pulses from timing generator 1066, the commands are shifted into a holding register 1088. Therefore, asynchronous information is received in buffer register 1084. This asynchronous information is synchronized into the holding register 1088 using a timing generator pulse on line 1094. The timing signal 1094 synchronizes the pull-in latch 1082 in buffer register 1084 and the pull-in latch 1086 in the holding register 1088 with the timing generator 1066. Timing signal 1094 also synchronizes the solenoid “extend” latches 1096 and 1098 and the solenoid 1054 “retract” latches 1100 and 1102 with the timing generator 1066.
Scale module 1022 also provides a weight change alarm. Scale module 1022 accepts a set point weight from the network. Scale module 1022 detects if a patient's weight change has exceeded or dropped below a preset level from the initial set point weight. If a preset weight change has occurred, scale module 1022 provides an alarm message to the network. Scale module 1022 stores all data critical to the functioning of the scale in non-volatile memory. Scale module 1022 has built in diagnostic capability to detect hardware integrity and data integrity.
Details of scale module 1022 are illustrated in FIG. 12. The four load cells 1126, 1128, 1130, and 1132 are coupled to a four channel analog to digital converter 134. Illustratively, analog to digital converter is a CS5516,4 MHz analog to digital converter available from Crystal Semiconductor. Analog to digital converter 134 converts analog signals from the load cells 1126, 1128, 1130, and 1132 into digital signals and inputs the signals into the echelon neuron controller 1136. Neuron controller 1136 is a MC143150,10 MHz networking microprocessor available from Motorola. Controller 1136 executes code stored in an EPROM 1138. Illustratively, EPROM 1138 is a 32K×8, model 27HC256 EPROM available from AMD.
Neuron controller 1136 stores calibration data related to each of the load cells 1126, 1128, 1130, and 1132 either in its internal memory or in external EEPROM 1140. Calibration data is necessary because each load beam 1126, 1128, 1130, and 1132 has slightly different gain or offset constant associated with it. Calibration/excitation relay 1142 transmits the calibration data from neuron controller 1136 to analog to digital converter 1134. Two connectors 1148 and 1150 are provided to couple scale module 1022 to the peer-to-peer communication network. Connector 1148 is hard wired to connector 1150. An RS-485 transceiver 1149 is coupled between connectors 1148 and 1150 and controller 1136. Transceiver 1149 takes logic inputs and outputs and converts them to RS-485 level signals for the network. For each of the modules on the peer-to-peer network, a connector such as connector 1148 is hard wired to another connector such as connector 1150 that goes onto the next node or module in a daisy chain configuration. Scale module 1022 also includes a +5VDC regulated power supply 1152.
Details of the position sense module 1026 are illustrated in FIG. 13. Illustratively, the position transducers are discrete tilt sensors on various deck sections of the bed. The sensors include a trendelenburg limit sensor at 13° relative to earth, a reverse trendelenburg sensor at −13° relative to earth, and a bed-level at 0° relative to earth. In addition, the articulating deck sections include position transducers which are also discrete tilt sensors. Illustratively, the tilt sensors are model A½ sensors available from AEC. The patient head limit sensor detects the head section at 55° relative to earth. The head contour limit sensor detects the head section at 30° relative to earth. The knee contour limit detects the knee section at 12° relative to earth. The patient foot limit detects the position of the foot section at 30° relative to earth.
The sensor inputs are coupled to the position sense module 1026. The sensor input signals are signed conditioned using a RC filter 1154. The output of RC filter 1154 is coupled to a neuron controller networking microprocessor 1156. An output from controller 1156 drives a local alarm 1158. Input power on line 1160 is coupled to a regulated power supply 1162 which produces a +5V output. The output from power supply 1162 is coupled to neuron controller 1156 and to a network transceiver 1164. The position transducers illustratively switch from a logic high to a logic low upon detection of the particular angle relative to earth.
Details of the left standard caregiver interface module 1028 is illustrated in FIG. 14. The standard caregiver interface module includes an echelon controller 1162 which is a networking microprocessor. Echelon controller 1162 is coupled to a +5.0V supply voltage from power supply 1164. Echelon controller 1162 is also coupled to a network transceiver 1166. Transceiver 1166 is an RS-485 protocol transceiver. Transceiver 1166 couples controller 1162 to the peer-to-peer communication network as illustrated at line 1168. A network connection for the graphic caregiver interface module 1032 is provided at line 1170 for both the left and right standard caregiver interface modules 1128 and 1030. Graphic caregiver interface module 1032 can be connected on either the left or right side of the bed. Echelon controller 1162 interprets the network messages. Network controller 1162 also detects switch activation from the articulation and entertainment patient interface 1154 and the surface patient interface 1156 and transmits output signals to the network on line 1168. The switches can be dead function switches, lockout switches, bed exit switches, nurse call backlit switches, and so on. Controller 1162 drives a LED driver 1172 to light indicator LEDS 1174 related to various bed status functions, such as bed-not-down, brake-not-set, battery low, and service required.
The standard caregiver modules 1028 and 1030 connect all the caregiver interfaces switches in a row/column type architecture to provide a 4×10 matrix. A keyboard row selection logic circuit is used to detect switch presses as illustrated at block 1182.
A graphic caregiver interface (GCI) module 1032 is illustrated in detail in FIG. 16. The GCI module 1032 provides an enhanced menu-driven caregiver input and output for bed articulation, scale, surface caregiver interface, and sequential compression device controller, and all other modules needing this type of user interface. The GCI module 1032 includes a LCD display 1206, which is illustratively a 320×240, model DMF 50081 available from Optrex. Display 1206 may also be a 320×240, model G321EX available from Seiko. Display 1206 outputs graphical information to the caregiver. A switch panel 1208 permits the caregiver to input information into the GCI module 1032. Switch panel 1208 may be a series of discrete switches or an alpha/numeric keypad. Switch panel 1208 is coupled to a connector 1210. Connector 1210 is coupled to an input of CPU 1212. CPU 1212 is illustratively an 80C188XL, 10 MHz CPU available from Intel. The input device for the caregiver may also be an encoder 1214 which is coupled to a connector 1216. Connector 1216 is coupled to CPU 1212. Illustratively, encoder 1214 is a rotary encoder.
Connection to the peer-to-peer communication network is provided at terminal 1218. The network connection is made to a RS-485 transceiver 1220. Transceiver 1220 is coupled to a +5 VDC regulated power supply 1222. Transceiver 1220 is also coupled to a +12VDC regulated power supply 1224. Transceiver 1220 is coupled to an echelon neuron controller networking microprocessor 1226. Controller 1226 is illustratively an AMC143120, 10 MHz networking microprocessor available from Motorola. Neuron controller 1226 is coupled to an I/O test port 1228. Controller 1226 is also coupled to CPU 1212. Software code for operating CPU 1212 is stored in an EPROM memory 1230. Illustratively, memory 1230 is a 512K×8 flash EPROM memory. Data is stored in static RAM memory 1232. Illustratively, memory 1232 is a 128K×8 memory chip. Additional memory is provided in a 2K×8 EEPROM 1234. An output from CPU 1212 is coupled to a LCD backlight inverter 1236. Backlight inverter 1236 is coupled to LCD display 1206 by connector 1238. Backlight inverter facilitates viewing of display 1206 in all types of room lighting. Inverter 1236 is configured to match the particular display 1206 selected.
CPU 1212 is also coupled to a LCD controller 1240. LCD controller 1240 drives the display 1206 through a connector 1242. Controller 1240 is coupled to a 32K×8 static video RAM 1244. As the CPU 1212 writes an image to LDC controller 1240, the controller 1240 stores the image in VRAM 1244 and then continuously refreshes the display screen 1206 with the image stored in the VRAM 1244.
Contrast of the display 1206 is controlled by software contrast adjustment as illustrated at block 1246. A LCD bias supply voltage at block 1248 is coupled to connector 1242. Supply 1248 converts a +5V input or a +12V input into a −22V output. An external watchdog timer 1250 monitors CPU 1212. If the CPU 1212 does not pulse the particular line on a periodic basis, timer 1250 resets the system.
Another module of the present invention is illustrated in FIG. 21. FIG. 21 illustrates an automatic charting module 1330. The automatic charting module 1330 includes an echelon controller 1332 which is a networking microprocessor. Controller 1332 accesses memory 1334. Memory 1334 includes an EEPROM, and EPROM, and a static RAM. Controller 1332 is coupled to a RS-485 transceiver 1336. Transceiver 1336 is coupled to first and second network connectors 1338 and 1340. Module 1330 includes an internal power supply 1342 coupled to a power input. Illustratively, power supply 1342 supplies a +5V supply voltage to controller 1332 on line 1344. Power supply 1342 also supplies power to a bar code interface 1346, a display interface 1348, and a keyboard interface 1350. Display interface 1348 and keyboard interface 1350 are optional elements of charting module 1330.
a global enable switch coupled to the controller, the global enable switch having a first state to permit actuation of the at least one lockout switch and a second state to disable the at least on lockout switch.
2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the at least one lockout switch and the global enable switch are located in a siderail coupled to the bed.
3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the deck is an articulating deck coupled to the base frame, the articulating deck including separate head, knee, and foot deck sections which are independently movable relative to the base frame and to each other, the apparatus including a separate lockout switch for the head, knee, and foot sections, and wherein the global enable switch controls activation of the head lockout switch, the knee lockout switch, and the foot lockout switch.
4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the global enable switch remains in the first state for a predetermined time interval and then automatically changes to the second state if a lockout switch is not actuated by a user during the predetermined time interval.
5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the at least one lockout switch controls both patient functions and caregiver functions on the bed.
5361755 November 8, 1994 Schaag et al. | 2019-04-19T04:54:43Z | https://patents.justia.com/patent/6279183 |
The infamous Tom Dooley’s Bar is next door but one, the bars and restaurants of Nasserein are a quick toboggan ride or few hundred yard walk away and the pulsating roar of central St Anton nightlife is a ten minute stroll. Fabulous for families and those who like the click click of bindings a few steps from the front door. These are the ultimate luxury chalets in St Anton, we're sure of that.
Had a lovely week, Sue and Alice were the best hosts - the food and the chalet were great, it was my first VIP holiday and will definitely go again!
Had such an amazing time staying in Haus Hochkar. The ski out location was fab, the chalet was lovely and, above all, the hosts, Alice and Sue, were awesome! Great food, great chat, great skiing, great people. I'm looking forward to my next VIP holiday already. Thanks!
From start to finish the chalet was a total delight. Alice and Sue were a total dream team - nothing was ever too much trouble and their food was delicious. The ski area is fantastic and we loved the convenience at the end of the day. Having been on several VIP holidays I would never book with anyone else. Thank you!
Alice & Sue are impeccable chalet hosts. Accommodating for all allergy requests and sensible levels of horseplay. As a group of 5 young men, who normally struggle in social situations, we were instantly made to feel at home over a fantastic game of battleships. The only issue was that trivial pursuit dates back to the 1990s. A moment of doubt was struck when a perculiar Austrian man questioned our decibel levels in the sanctity of our own bootroom(?) We seshed real hard all week, Basecamp was real hot (right now). We can't wait to stay with VIP again, they know how to sort you out and will look after you no end. Enjoy your stays everyone. What a season to be alive.
I have done a lot of chalet holidays, many with VIP and I can honestly say I don't think we have been as well looked after as we have this week. The biggest of thank you's to the lovely Alice and Sue, a delightful couple and a superb double act. Nothing was too much trouble, they went above and beyond the call of duty to make sure our stay was as good as possible. Great food, every night was a gastronomic delight! It's a lovely chalet, very comfortable and well laid out. The office staff in the UK were helpful and easy to deal with. We will definately be skiing with VIP in the future.
Chalet location good, food good, very good size rooms, chalet clean and tidy, chalet hosts (Alice and Sue) really helpful and great service, weather poor on 4 days out of 6 and ski area very restricted as a result (gampen, galzig and rendl) every day except one - I thought the lift company could have done more to open things up.
We have had a fab week despite the weather being hit and miss, we didn't let it spoil our fun. Chalet was really clean and we were looked after well.
The chalet and staff were excellent. The only thing we thought was the the food menu was quite basic and the portions were small. The cheese is nice to have after dinner but more appropriate cheese biscuits would be nice. The food was cooked well.
Sue and Alice were lovely and really good cooks, the chalet was very good, clean and well serviced. The wifi could be better, that would be my only minor criticism, otherwise an excellent weeks stay.
Great chalet - very comfortable and well located with all needed for a fab holiday. Sue and Alice have been masterful in providing us with a lovely food and ambience without over-fussing. Hot chocolate in bed has been a highlight for the kids and wonderful carrot cake made a great birthday tea. Advice every morning helped everyday be different and we also appreciated the support from Jamie after two accidents with lifts to hospital and good support while away from home.
I don't often get away, I don't have many friends but boy was i made to feel welcome at House Hochkar. Nothing was too much for Sue and Alice, my new friends. Wow, thanks for a great holiday. Watch out for the special cheese boards, yum, yum. Thanks again, Ollie.
Wonderful week in St Anton. Alice and Sue were great hosts; the chalet was lovely; the food was great. Perfect conditions - powder followed by sun.
All good. - portions could have been bigger. chalet very tidy and clean. Alice and Sue very friendly and helpful.
We have been very lucky with a great sunny week with lots of snow. The chalet has worked well although I wouldn't really call it ski in - ski out! Alice and Sue have looked after us very well and the food has been good overall although the portions of meat / fish have seemed a bit small which might be a reflection of the allocated budget. Compared to other chalets I've stayed in I would say it would say it is a fairly standard offer which is a bit lower than I was expecting for the cost.
Chalet very comfortable. Alison and Sue are very accommodating hosts, eager to please and attend to our needs. Only major grip is that the description of the chalet as being ski in - sky out is a bit tenuous; skiing back would only be possible for an experienced skier.
Amazing holiday from start to finish! The transfer from Friedrichshafen to St Anton was great and we had a warm welcome from Alice and Sue on arrival at the chalet. Room is excellent, spacious, modern and clean .. The shower is always hot ( very welcome after a long days skiing). The food is absolutely first class , restaurant standard every evening. Will be taking some recipes home for sure. First time skiing with VIP - chalets , certainly will not be the last. Five star service. Thank you for making our trip so fantastic.
Seamless flight and transfer, warm welcome from Sue and Alice on arrival. Chalet was great and our room was spacious. Food was wonderful, I thoroughly enjoyed my meal every night. Afternoon cakes were scrummy. We will be taking some of the recipes home with us. We will definitely be using VIP again.
The food was lovely, and the chalet girls were really welcoming and lovely. The chalet location is slightly far from the town but besides that it's nice and spacious. Offering wine with dinner as included in the price was lovely. Would have loved a beer or two included too.
Our holiday @ st Anton has been amazing. All the booking and additional things we needed were dealt with really well, very professional. The meet at the airport went really well. The Chalet is lovely and the hosts Alice and Sue were exceptional. Nothing was too much trouble. The food was brilliant. I would recommend the chalet. well done VIP and especially well done Alice and Sue.
Special thanks to Alice and Sue who were fabulous hosts - professional, organised and sociable. All the meals were delicious and the carrot cake in particular was the best my husband has ever tasted! They were really accommodating for us with non alcoholic options when requested. The chalet was not an easy ski in / out option but overall the conditions and weather were the best I've had in years of skiing. Looking forward to another holiday with VIP in the future!
Great Holiday, Chalet and Hosts!
Returning to skiing after several years we had a really great holiday courtesy of Alice and Sue at Haus Hochkar. The chalet was very comfortable, spotless and well appointed; a welcoming place to stay after a days skiing. Alice and Sue did an exceptional job hosting and catering for us. The food was great and they were both very well informed about the resort and options. Nothing was too much trouble for them and they were fun and courteous - in essence, faultless hosts! Jamie and the other members of the VIP team were really well organised and enabled seamless flight transfers to and from the chalet - despite the challenging conditions. VIP have clearly thought alot about the detail of what makes a good holiday experience and the team executed this very well. All in all, highly recommended, and especial thanks again to Alice and Sue!
Great level of service with excellent staff & breakfast at Haus Hochkar( Alice & Sue). Jamie was a very proactive, approachable and well organised resort manager. The Haus Hochkar is well placed and very close to lift Nasserein & is ski in/out. However the bathrooms do need a heated towel rail to dry some of your ski gear and towels.
The chalet is a comfortable environment and the ambience very welcoming. Alice and Sue were fantastic hosts for whom nothing was too much trouble. Definitely considering a return visit.
We booked late with VIP and managed to strike lucky with a week of incredible snow in St Anton. The chalet is situated in a great spot... walkable to everything you need and genuinely ski in & ski out. The thing that made our week though was the Alice & Sue factor. Alice & Sue have the whole Alpine welcome, fantastic food, helpful, professional chalet hosting thing absolutely nailed. From delicious cooked breakfasts, epic homecoming cakes & genuinely excellent evening meals we were incredibly well fed. Always friendly, chatty & patient they looked after us so well. The chalet was immaculately looked after, they have a great eye for detail. The best chalet experience we've had in years. Thank you both.... the Pooles & the Bowlings.
Chalet staff tried hard and always helped when asked. No info pack and no wow factor to chalet. Disappointed by st Anton piste groomimg - basically couldn't be arsed to groom pistes on xmas evening so very few runs open on xmas day despite great snow conditions. Attentive service and good boot room but frankly not possible to call this a ski in ski out location. 3rd VIP ski holiday and whilst ok easily the worst.
Thank you for taking the time to provide feedback. I am sorry to hear that the chalet did not meet your expectations. Our sales team will be happy to steer you towards a more luxurious option if you choose to travel with VIP next season.
Just spent an amazing week at Chalet Hochkar with Alice and Sue. They made us feel at home from Day One. Couldn't have asked for better chalet hosts. The chalet itself is immaculate - very comfy and well kept. And the food, it's simply scrumptious. This is a place I will definitely revisit for the next season.
Very sad to be going. Phil and Laurence have been excellent chalet hosts. Very relaxed but always attentive and willing to help. We had great meals and have really enjoyed our week at the Haus Hochkar. Thank you.
We had an excellent holiday. Laurence and Phil were outstanding hosts.
Good chalet, great food, outstanding service. Sparkles and Phil were very good cooks, excellent company and highly efficient. Nothing was too much trouble, they were very patient with our children and looked after us all exceptionally well. Thank you for an outstanding week.
Great holiday. Comfortable chalet with good sized rooms and excellent hosts. Laurence and Phil couldn't have done more for us. They were both always cheerful and keen to make our holiday as good as possible. Thank you!
We have had an excellent holiday made all the better by Phil and Laurence's hard work. They have been long suffering of lots of horrible children and kept us fed with delicious food throughout.
Transfers and admin all worked well and chalet was comfortable well equipped for our needs. The resort is as always friendly and fun although tough skiing for small children. The highlight of he week was Phil and Lawrence. The food was excellent but more importantly it was delivered with great charm and nothing was too much effort. We had six children with us and they were wonderful with them even arranging an Easter egg hunt with clues and maps. They managed to be both very professional and friendly throughout the whole week. They made the difference for us during the week. Thank you.
For the last 3 years I have been on Ski holidays that have been in catered accommodation and hosted by a company with chalet staff and rep. This has been by far the best so far. I have been particularly impressed with their honesty and attention to detail the chalet hosts (Phil and Laurance) have been. It's the small things that help make the experience better. From noticing that a member of the party didn't drink and so offering an alternative, remembering our names and always being on hand to organise bookings for transport or restaurants. This was all done with a smile and willingness to help without feeling like it was a burden. They have set the benchmark for all my future ski trips. I wish them all the best. A little mention to Annika and the team for there help in providing clothing and essentials for members of our party that lost their luggage for a couple days. This has all helped sell the VIP ski experience and I will definitely consider the company again for future ski trips.
Never stayed at a chalet before and left feeling why I haven't done so before and will look for VIP Ski when I go back to the US. Laurence and Phil were great hosts. Super helpful answering any questions we had and were always accessible by phone whenever we needed them (which sometimes we had to do when we couldn't get in contact with the shuttle). Overall service was great and can't imagine any other pair could have done any better. Truly great experience, thanks guys!
Great stay. Haus Hockar is a great place to stay and made even better by Laurence and Phil who made my stay even better. Both are very friendly, pleasant, very informative and helpful. The food made and presented was excellent and the whole experience was very luxurious. Thanks to both!
Extremely professional and luxury experience !
Laurence and Phil were fantastic hosts and the whole experience was amazing. The chalet is in a excellent location and the service is incredible. It was really a luxury set up with the hosts bringing coffee to the bedside before breakfast as well as extremely high quality food for breakfast and dinner. Aside from that the hosts manner was very professional and I couldn't fault it. I would recommend this to anyone!
Phil and Laurence really made the experience at the chalet first class. We had a great trip last year with ski total, but the level of cooking and overall service was even stronger here. My luggage was lost on the journey by BAE and Annika did a great job of making sure it was returned to us the very next day ensuring this didn't ruin our holiday. Phil and Laurence really added a lot of fun to our dress up evening on the WeDnesday night and were top sports for getting a last minute costume of PJ and Duncan together. Great week.
Once again, VIP provided us with an amazing holiday in every respect. Our chalet staff , Laurence and Phil, were fantastic. Gemma, Rafe's nanny, was a delight. A great family holiday; we hope to be back again soon! Thank you all!
Wonderful holiday in a modern and clean chalet. Laurence and Phil were the perfect hosts very friendly and professional with a great sense of humour! Food was great and wine selection was nice. Would highly recommend these two as hosts! Great job!
Fantastic week with VIP in St Anton. Phil and Laurence were absolutely awesome all week, food was amazing, wines great. Really couldn't recommend them and the wider team highly enough. Very well looked after, lot of fun had! Look forward to coming back!
Fantastic holiday, a great chalet in an excellent location. Laurence and Phil were amazing all week, who really looked after us and made us feel at home. Our second trip with VIP this year and will certainly be recommending them.
Both Phil and Lawrence were brilliant all week. The two are a great team and got on with our group so well. We had a 9 month with us and they went above and beyond with any meal requests we had. Top marks for both!
Superb holiday. Lawrence and Phil have been great hosts, fantastic food and a wonderful atmosphere. Thank you!
Can you pick us up from Basecamp please?
We have had a wonderful week - the chalet is lovely and spacious and all the bedrooms are a generous size with great bathrooms. Chris cooked for us and his food was another level - vegetarians and meat eaters catered for and everyone's plate was empty for every meal. Our chalet host Phil has been wonderful and has helped to make a good holiday very good. Cannot praise him enough. Altogether an amazing holiday in a great chalet with wonderful staff.
By far the nicest chalet I have ever stayed in. The rooms were perfect, the cleanliness was spot on. The food was unbelievably good, Chris is a fantastic chef! But the real thing that made the holiday was our host Phil, he was superb in every single way, could not be more helpful. His cooking was amazing, his attention to detail was brilliant, he made us feel welcome straight away and really made the experience something I will never forget.
Phil and Laurance were great hosts. Food excellent and really balanced menu and wine for all of us to enjoy. Challet as described with no disappointments. Lots of hot water and the toiletries provided were appreciated . We had been put off Challett holidays as have had poor experience in past - this was not the case for our fantastic week. Special thanks.
Sadly come to an end, but we've had a fab time. Hosts Phil and Lawrence provided excellent food each day and the chalet was very comfortable. Loved the extra touches. Will definitely be back.
Our hosts Phil & Lawrence were exceptional. They were perfectionists who made sure we were all looked after and had everything we needed. They had great local knowledge, booked everything from restaurants to massages for us and even helped out with one of our family member’s school project! We would all definitely visit again.
Truly fantastic trip, hosts Laurence and Phil went the extra mile to make it what it was! If only we had come for two weeks!!!
Laurence and Phil looked after us really well. Food was lovely and they were great with the kids.
we were really well looked after by Phil and Laurence.
It's been a wonderful week in St Anton only made better by our fantastic hosts Phil and Lawrence (Florence). They really have done a wonderful job in making sure we were so well looked after. Our rooms were taken care of excellently and every meal was an absolute treat! VIP the boys are an asset to you and have made our VIP experience a excellent one. Thanks Florence!!
Amazing Hosts & Amazing Food - 5* all round!
Wow! What a week we have had here in St Anton. A massive thank you to Lawrence and Phil (Florence!) for making our week one to remember. Their hosting the moment we arrived was second to none- even coming with us to sort our ski hire and carry them back whilst we tested out the Apres ski on our first evening here. The food every night has been exquisite and the flexibility of timings has made our holiday even more enjoyable. These guys know so much about St Anton advising us on the best places... Making it just the best holiday. A special mention must go to the lads for the way they looked after our little Belle and how amazing they were with her- she is only 2 and she had the best time! Thanks boys we will never forget this week!!
Laurence and Phil took great care to ensure that we had the best time possible on our ski holiday. The chalet was kept clean, they were very polite and friendly and nothing was too much trouble to sort for us. Laurence is a great cook and made sure all our dietrary requirements were looked after and he produced delicious food for us . Phil bringing hot drinks in the morning was much appreciated. We are repeat guests at VIP and they do the company proud. One thing I would recommend they put in place is a chalet folder with resort information which was lacking. Thank you for another brilliant holiday. Hopefully will be booking with VIP again.
First time staying with VIP and I have to say what an amazing experience we have had from the arrival at the airport to the final checkout they have been superb, the chalet is lovely and homely, food of a very good quality and always plenty on offer, as for the hosts they were very professional and no request was too much, alway wiling to tell you about the area/ good runs on certain days, some of the best hosts I've seen for a while !, Apartment was very clean and tidy and bedrooms cleaned every day, the ski pick up service is brilliant when you are tired at the end of the day or have had too many after Apres ski !, Highly recommend Haus Hochkar as a place to stay, would defiantly use VIP in the future..
The chalet was good, comfortable, efficient and food was excellent. Staff were great and could not have been more helpful. The resort was surprisingly busy for the end of January. Long queues built up as everyone in St Anton seemed to want to head to Zurs and Lech and back again. One day we had 4 queues of more than 20 mins. But no-one seemed to go to Warth and Sonnenkopf. Each of these is well worth a day. Deserted pistes and wonderful restaurants in lovely settings. Our chalet formed into an excellent ski group. One suggestion - the chalet should have an information folder with bus times, bus map, train times ( for Sonnenkopf), recommended restaurants, maps for satellite areas etc. We really struggled to find how to get to Sonnenkopf. One criticism - on 2 occasions we needed to use the minibus to get to the lifts and were dropped quite a long way from the lifts with a long walk on a very icy track carrying skis. Probably the most dangerous part of the holiday!
Thanks to Lawrence and Phil for a fabulous week in St Anton. Nothing was too much trouble, the food was fantastic, and the chalet was amazing; spotlessly clean and the proximity to the ski lift and runs was brilliant. After 30 years of chalet holidays, across Europe, Canada and USA, this VIP chalet was simply the best. Thanks for a wonderful holiday.
Great trip, shame about the avalanche!
Out reps at the chalet were fantastic, (Phil & Lawrence) and couldn't have done more - very relaxed and not phased even though we were quite a lively group, we lost the first 2 days due to the road to St. Anton being closed but VIP dealt with it very well. Would definitely use them again!
Although our trip was off to a rough start due to act of God aka resort closed due to Avalanche risk worst in 19 years. I have to say the entire VIP team went above and beyon to unsure we had a great trip. When we were stuck outside we found ourselves put up in nice hotels when other providers guest found themselves in military bases and church halls. When we got to chalet when the roads clear we found ourselves met by Phil and Lawernce who just made the entire trip. Their attention to detail was fantastic and a lot of fun. They went above and beyond to make sure we had an exceptional time which I know was challenging as we were a crazy bunch. I never booked with VIP before and after this trip I will be a customer for life. See you next year!!
So impressed, with the handling of the delayed entry into the resort as a result of the avalanche risk, super professional! Even more impressed with the guys on hospitality, great guys, great welcome, amazing food and couldn't do enough to for us.. Nothing was too much trouble! Will be booking with VIP again!
Great hosts and delicious food!
Phil and Laurence were fantastic hosts, the food they produced was delicious and the cup of tea in the morning was a lovely touch. They were great company and made the week thoroughly enjoyable. Enjoy the great snow chaps!
What a great way to spend a holiday in St Anton. The chalet was the perfect base. Phil and Laurence were the perfect hosts, tending to our every need. The chalet was always immaculate and all the food was delicious.
Our 2 chalet hosts were excellent in every way. Great cooks the chalet was always clean they answered all our questions and found out anything we wanted. It was all we wanted ‘what it said on the packet was in it’.
We have just stayed a week in Haus Hockhar where we were excellently looked after by Phil and Lawrence. Everything taken care of for us with effortless ease. Really delicious food cooked by the pair. First time in St Anton and skiing good although a little testing for a nervous skier. The shuttle bus was an invaluable service.
A really enjoyable week with excellent skiing due to bountiful fresh snow and well organised resort. Skiing is at least as good as trois vallees and materially cheaper when it comes to apres ski, lunches etc. The stars were Laurence and Phil who looked after our party of 10 superbly - food was excellent - ski chalets and their hosts have come a long way in 30 years!!
Fantastic holiday in Haus Hochkar. Phil and Laurence were the perfect hosts. The food was excellent, and they looked after us extremely well, nothing was ever too much trouble for them. Thank you very much.
The house was everything it said online. Phil and Laurence were exceptional hosts throughout the week.
Amazing hosts Phil & Laurence were the best hosts, they couldn't have been more fab!
Great double act from Phil and Laurence, thank you so much both of you!!!
The accommodation was first rate. Well built and spacious, comfortable and convenient for the slopes. Our hosts Phil and Lawrence were very friendly, helpful and professional. A delight!
I would like to whole-heartedly recommend our hosts Phil and Laurence. What an amazing week! They could not do enough for us. Charming, great cooks! Consummate hosts. I would recommend them to everyone and anyone.
Lawrence & Phil our chalet hosts were brilliant, Polite, friendly and made us feel extremely welcome. And they were great at answering all our questions. Thank you Lawrence for carrying our ski equipment from the hire shop. Food was delicious, the lamb, beef and pork were cooked perfectly. The panacotta was a great hit! And we loved the wake up cup of tea each morning. Accommodation was immaculate, modern and comfortable. Bathrooms were spotless and the shower water pressure was perfect to ease your muscles after a day of skiing. Thank you VIP ski.
A fantastic week hosted by Phil and Laurence. Nothing was too much trouble for our Chalet Hosts and they really added to and made a real difference to a very enjoyable time in St Anton. Fantastic hosting and cuisine . We couldn't ask for more.
Great modern "chalet" in a quiet part of St Anton. Fantastic service from VIP as usual, they really are a cut above the other English ski companies. We'll be back.
Steve and Nicky were brilliant looking after us in the chalet - great service and v. fine food! No request was too much trouble. The chalet is very clean and comfortable, albeit more apartment than alpine chalet; great location for Nasserein lift. The check-in at the airport on the way home was problematic, but BA's fault rather than VIP's. I will definitely be back again with VIP!
Great family ski holiday- again!
This is our second time skiing with VIP and everything has again surpassed all expectations. We have been so well looked after by our hosts, Steve and Nicky, from the famous early morning cuppa to a small guided tour of the village by Steve to show us where to find everything. The food has been AMAZING!! We have eaten fantastic breakfasts, cakes and sublime dinners all served with attention to detail and care. Nothing has been too much trouble. A special thanks must go to our ski guides, Roddy and Harry, thank you for giving David time off from his map reading duties! We had a great 2 days of skiing with you and I will learn how to stop on skis, soon Roddy, I promise!!
We both thoroughly enjoyed our holiday in Haus Hochkar. It is modern, spacious and clean and the whole VIP set-up in St. Anton is excellent. The chalet host, Steve, was wonderful and everything just worked - lovely food, plentiful wine and every need taken care of. Somehow, VIP had managed to fill up the chalet with some great company, and that all helped to make it a memorable week.
We cannot fault anything about our chalet experience this week. VIP goes just that little bit further than other companies we have used before. Our host Steve could not have done more for us. Food was excellent and whole chalet beautifully presented and works really well. The duty driver service is excellent and helped our group enjoy the Apres ski in the bars around town and dropping us back at the chalet door. We will definately be looking to book with VIP ski again next year.
Good. Steve the host is a professional who clearly injoys his cooking as well as keeping everybody happy. All staff work hard to please. VIP is all round more polished than budget chalet company's.
Ketchup with fish pie - phenomenal!
Yet again, excellent preemptive pistachio strike. From the booking staff to airport check in, arrivals and further to the resort, the process was stress free and seamless. Thoroughly enjoyable menus. Steve's attention to detail was as notable as he was unflappable - despite assorted challenges from the guests! Smooth organisation of logistics, including restaurant recommendations. A pleasure to holiday with VIP and would have no hesitation recommending it.
Haus Hochkar is great, plenty of space. Fantastic help from chalet host and resort manager.
Our chalet host was wonderfully kind and helpful. He made great meals for us and even allowed us to copy one of his fantastic cake recipes to try at home! Thank you.
VIP-ski came up trumps yet again. Superb chalet service made our holiday the perfect individualised package, from excellent food to perfectly arranged travel from start to finish. We will be back!
Service / Food / Comfort / Atmosphere and Convenience.
All of the above 5 are key to a great skiing holiday. You could add snow I guess but with 14 chaps together it comes a poor 6th. Steve, Cath and Richard the Haus Hochkar team are exceptional. No issues, no problems and nothing but great food, great service and great fun with a smile and a total "can do" attitude. You won't find a better, kinder and more expert team. Steve is a chef of top restaurant quality. Breakfast and dinner all to order and great quality and volume. Chalet is modern and clean. 5 minute walk from the main town but 3 mins from main gondola lifts. Being a bit,out of the town means you avoid the noise at 4am in the morning when the bars empty out. Seriously, for a great holiday with a brilliant team. Come here. There was even some snow. Thx Steve Cath and Rich. 10/10.
What a cracking resort!! Lovely accommodation 5 minuets from the slopes. VIP staff were brilliant, serving up delicious food and providing excellent customer service. Would recommend to anyone and will be using them again in the future.
Accommodation was good. Could have done with some Christmas decor. Chalet staff were excellent. Their cooking skills were immaculate and they were extremely friendly and helpful.
Top class accommodation a little out of town. Food excellent as are the lovely people who have made our stay a pleasure-nothing has been to much.
Really enjoyed my holiday. Thanks to Rich, Kath, and Steve for cooking such great food. Their attention to detail was quite superb.
12 of us had a fantastic memorable trip. Food was excellent. All plates emptied at every meal. No thoughts of even going out for dinner on any evening. Why bother when the best is available from the most conscientious VIP team possible. 10/10. Keep it up!
Chalet hosts were first class - great atmosphere, food and service Our child was unwell at start of our trip and needed to stay in hospital 30km away - the VIP team couldn't have been more helpful. Delighted to report all ended well in the end on the medical front!
We had a fantastic week in Haus Hochkar. Cath and James, our chalet hosts, were absolutely lovely and nothing was too much trouble for them. Delicious food and excellent service. All of the staff from our nanny Emily to the 'shuttle' guys were very friendly, flexible, and helpful. Good accommodation in good location with short walk to ski lift. Can't wait for next year... Many thanks.
Another fantastic holiday with VIP. Nothing was too much trouble for Cath and James in making our time in Haus Hochkar a relaxing and enjoyable one. The food was excellent and the menu flexible, considering the children's preferences, and giving them healthy and well thought out options. The chalet was walking distance to the slopes, and the car service was always available if we finished the day at the other end of town. The property is modern, clean and comfortable with a good view of the mountain. Thank you for a great holiday, we will be back.
We couldn't have wished for a better week: Fantastic chalet - all good sized, even sized rooms with excellent facilities and perfectly located for the Nasserein lift. Spotless clean all week long. Cath and James are absolutely outstanding hosts - nothing was too much trouble and the cooking was sublime. Really, really good and excellent presentation - definitely restaurant quality. The wine was delicious too and we made the most of it. Which leads me to say that Cath and James are unshockable. We had a wonderful day guiding with Chris in Lech, Warth and Zurs - so nice not to have to think about routes and lifts. We also lucked out with the weather and snow - both phenomenal. Our only regret is that we didn't ever clear our dinner plates as we had hefty lunches too and feel bad leaving excellent food on plates given all the effort that Cath and James went to for us. Thank you Cath and James for a brilliant week, and thank you Chris for a fun day, & VIP Ski for smooth organisation and for your help with our injured friend.
We arrived at the airport to be greeted by our VIP hosts who were helpful and informative. The coach took us to a taxi rank where we transferred to a minibus to the chalet. Our luggage was dealt with by VIP and made its way safely to our rooms. We were greeted by James and Catherine who were our hosts for the week. The chalet was nicely decorated, very clean and each of the rooms modern and well appointed. James and Catherine made us very welcome and instantly at home. They continued this high level of service throughout the week. St Anton had benefitted from fresh snow and the sun shone brightly. The runs were busy but there was ample off-piste to keep us happy. The skiing area is extensive and it's possible to ski in a different place each day. A big attraction of St Anton is the Apres ski. It is vibrant and addictive with the Moose Weit a favourite on the run home. A big part of our holiday was the excellent food and fine wines supplied by James and Catherine. It was like eating in a top restaurant every night and every member of our group was full to bursting at each sitting. A great resort. Excellent hosting. Superb food. Well done VIP .... Thanks again James and Catherine and all the best for the future.
Practically perfect in every way. The chalet hosts were exceptional. Ski out was very easy. The ski area is huge, with connections to neighbouring resorts by short bus ride. We had a local guide for a day's off piste which I would definitely recommend. Many thanks to all the staff in resort for making it happen.
James and Catherine were excepional hosts and very polite. They offered assistance and guidance on places to go. The food was amazing with a wide variety throughout the week. Each morning nothing was too much trouble to prepare. It was pleasing to have hosts that engaged in conversation and made us feel very welcome. We had a wonderful holiday despite the changeable weather and one of us managing to have their head scanned after a Big Bang! We enjoyed the lessons but be aware these extend into the mid afternoon.
A great week in St Anton being looked after by the super attentive James & Catherine in Haus Hochkar. A particular mention for an excellent days hosting in Zurs by Mark. Loved it! Thanks to Will (val d'isere manager)) for excellent customer service-ensuring the sunglasses left in val were retrieved in time for the week in St Anton.
We're just at the end of another excellent holiday with VIP. James and Cathrin in House Hochkar have been wonderful - really attentive and kind - and have provided us with top quality food. All round the resort team have worked hard to make our stay as perfect as is possible whilst retaining an easy nature that made our demands appear to be no effort at all. We look forward to our next VIP trip!
VIP ski really lived up to their name, friendly and efficient transfer. Exceptionally warm welcome in the chalet, followed by 6 nights of amazing and varied food. However, we heartily recommend you skimp on the lunches, so that you can make the most of the wonderful dinners, but also the home cooked cakes in the afternoons. We would definately recommend James and Catherine, as they were fun, friendly and fabulous hosts.
Another great skiing holiday. This was our 4th chalet holiday with VIP in as many years and true to form the hosts, James and Catherine, were really friendly and helpful. We were surprised that St Anton and area did not provide a more frequent bus service and free within the area of the lift pass coverage. We thought that the Germania flights were poorer than in previous years. Our strong preference would be to allow the 20kg luggage allowance to be spread across 2 bags with one as a boot/ski bag. Regarding a previous comment about an unsociable corporate group being segregated into a chalet. Not one we are staying in please!
We had a great week in St Anton hosted by James & Catherine who looked after us superbly. The chalet was very comfortable with good sized bedrooms. Highly recommended.
We had absolutely amazing time in St Anton and Cathrin and James were the best hosts ever! They were so nice, friendly and attentive...and we were not the easiest group to look after with 8 adults and 5 kids under 4 years old. The food was amazing! The chalet had a great set up for the kids with a large living room / play room and no stairs and a long corridor for running around. The chalet is about 15 minutes walk into town. Ski out was great, but ski in was a bit more challenging as it is quite flat on the way back.
Another great week staying in a VIP chalet, Catherine and James looked after us very well.
Perfect holiday expierence ! The chalet couple( James and Katherine ) were the perfect hosts catering to our every need and joining in with card games an laughs in the evening after there shift had finished. It all made for a lovely holiday! Thank you guys!
I have used VIP Ski on several occasions now. The personal attention and quality of service is second to none. Our hosts James and Catherine were efficient and charming, they looked after us as if we were good friends. Matt and Chris our ski guides ensured the safety of all skiers giving us two wonderful days. They literally dug me out of a hole when I took a fall off the edge of the piste into deep powderl. Thanks to a wonderful group of special people - VIP selection process is spot on.
We had a brilliant time at Haus Hochkar and were made to feel at home by our wonderful hosts, James and Catherine. The food was great throughout the week and the standard of the chalet and facilitates are high. James and Catherine were always on hand to help us with anything we needed assistance with or to offer advice. We would definitely stay with VIP in St Anton again.
Catherine and James have been exceptional! The chalet is run with care, efficiency and professionalism. They are friendly, helpful and the level of service throughout our stay has been really great. They really 'made' our stay. Thank you both so much. Resort manager, Wil, always available and on hand with great resort advice. Fabulous week....looking forward to next holiday with VIP already!
Just had a perfect week through the New Year in St.Anton. Our first family ski holiday for a few years we have had a great time it's been a fabulous week. James and Catherine have been fantastic hosts and looked after us extremely well. The food has been absolutely amazing and the afternoon tea very welcome after a long day. The guided tours were excellent and a great way to explore the other resorts. Will and the team for VIP have been great at looking after us, recommending bars and activities and providing much needed lifts after a long day skiing. We are sad to leave as we have had such great time and we hope to be back soon.
A fantastic holiday. Wonderful Chalet, very comfortable and modern with fantastic views. Ideally located next to slope and just a short walk to the town. Lovely hosts, James and Katherine, very friendly, welcoming and attentive. Throughly enjoyable holiday.
Booked last minute for family with three young children when we saw it was dumping with snow and could not be happier to have had some exceptional spring skiing, made all the better for the VIP service. Extremely smooth logistics, lift passes arranged on the spacious coach transfer with resort manager Will, who also came to the chalet to sort ski school for the kids starting the next day. Joe and Neil were looking after us in the chalet, who were very friendly and provided great food and service whilst striking a careful balance of being on hand but not intrusive so you could just relax and enjoy. More cakes baked than we could eat, separate menus for us and the kids (with good-humoured flexibility to change items last minute for particular fussiness), and good solid cooked breakfasts. The chalet is about 200m walk to the bubble car and the ski school meeting point, so very well located in that sense - says a lot that we didn't have to use the free VIP car service once... In all an excellent chalet run by a top team.
Joe& Neil and VIP Team were superb. Chalet ideal for 3 families. Weather spoiled the available ski area but we still had an absolute blast!
I really enjoyed the Chalet as the staff were great and the food was fabulous. Neil is very friendly and hospitable (especially because he had only come into the chalet a few weeks before our arrival due to the incident involving Joe's girlfriend). Joe is also very friendly and I really enjoyed his cooking. The chalet itself is very homely and in a great location (not too far from the stores or the slopes). I also want to say thank you to Will, the Manager, for making the holiday as easy as possible.
Great week in St Anton despite not such good weather or snow. All the VIP staff were terrific. Caring,helpful and courteous at all times and the food was delicious - well done boys!
Great modern open plan chalet, well laid out. Joe, Heather and Neil all very helpful and friendly and professional. Thought Joe did a great job especially given his chalet partner had to leave early due to injury. Felt very well looked after and food was excellent. really thankful for the spare buggy that we had use of.
Had a great stay in Haus Hochkar. Very well looked after by Joe and Neil.
Our family had an absolutely fantastic holiday in St Anton at Haus Hochkar. The chalet was exceptional, but what really made the holiday was the great staff, Joe, Neil and Heather. Every meal was delicious and all three were great with our kids who also had a really fun time.
A fantastic week in St Anton. Lynn and Joe were excellent hosts and cooks - the food was delicious and we are sad to be leaving. They were also amazing with all the children who had a ball staying here. We would definately recommend to friends and are looking forward to our next holiday with VIP.
Very enjoyable stay at Chalet HochKar (Nasserin). Lynn and Joe created an excellent atmosphere for us to enjoy with the other guests. Wonderful varied food. Loved the cup of coffee/tea brought to our room to wake up to. Only negatives were it wasn't really Ski-out as with so much snow it was a bit of pole to get to to the slopes. Some confusion in that we were allowed to take one suitcase and two boot bags between the two of us without paying any extra (as usual) as we were within our 40Kg allowance. This was not what the information pack says and when I checked with the office I was told I would have to pay £20 per boot bag. Not true.
Great hospitality and well taken care off by both Lynn and Joseph! Every aspect of the hols from transfers to day-to-day comfort was seamless.
Not knowing but I guess it is possible that Haus Hochkar is named after the highest peak in the Göstlinger Alsps near Vienna. If it is, it is well named. The seamless service, advice and food supplied by Lynn and Joe was top-notch. The chalet's amenities and facilities were of a high standard. High class all round. As silvered haired non-skiers in a party of winter sports enthusiasts we did not feel left out at all. Cable cars with grand views and mountain top restaurants to view the peaks, and the skiers and snowboarders in the party! Invigorating walking trails and the opportunity to visit the spa gave the excuse to experience the apres-ski available. What fun!
As previously, VIP were excellent from the moment of booking, to the phone call the day before departure, the seamless transfers and the quality of the accommodation. Lynn and Joe were excellent hosts, nothing was too much trouble and they were helpful and cheerful all week. The food was generally excellent, the highlights being the beef teriyaki, the parsnip soup and the apple crumble. (The poached pears could probably have been cooked for longer). St Anton was a super resort. Masses of choice and well cured pistes despite fairly poor weather. The chalet is a ten minute walk from the nearest lift. Would love to return.
We were extremely well looked after by Joe & Lynn in our chalet.VIP staff very helpful in assisting with arranging things and providing transport around the resort.
Great staff. Lynn and Joe have done a great job. We enjoyed the food and the after ski pastries. Many thanks.
Even though I am non-skier I spent a lovely Xmas here with my family. Chalet Hosts Lynn and Joe were amazing. Nothing was too much trouble for them and the food was great. Chalet was warm and comfortable. Many thanks to all the VIP Ski staff who were very helpful and always on hand if you needed anything. Only drawback was the fact that the TV in the lounge area was not working.
I have just returned from St.Anton. Slow start to the snow but there was still plenty high up in the mountain. Our Challet hosts Lynn & Joe were amazing. They couldn't do enough and the food was excellent. Hugh thank you to all the VIP staff, from Head office, who made a last minute relocation for us due to lack of snow in France, to Will the resort manager who popped in on Christmas day to help peal the potatoes? I will be recommending VIP to friends.
Our week at Haus Hochkar was a fantastic time!! Our chalet hosts Joe and Lynn couldn't do more for us, very friendly and easy to get on with. The food they prepared was lovely and children menus were available when asked. We booked a guide for a day as the snow wasn't great, Cosmo was great and took us on runs appropriate for our skiing abilities. The night we went out for dinner, Will was on hand to give recommendations and booked us a couple of restaurants for us to chose. Overall this has been a fantastic week and a very relaxing Christmas, would defiantly do it again.
Very helpful and friendly staff. Comfortable chalet and very welcoming chalet staff. Particularly good resort team who organised skiing lessons, nannies, hosting, restaurant booking, taxis etc very quickly and efficiently.
We have had a great week in St Anton with VIP. First class service and, as usual, excellent resort staff. Nothing was too much trouble. Many Thanks, especially to our chalet hosts, Ali and Kirsty.
loved it! our hosts were great and the snow fell! All in all a great experience - thanks so much!
A great experience, skiing amazing but accommodation could be better. The guys felt the portion sizes were too small. Was fine for the girls. Afternoon cakes and cookies were disappointing. Our food at val d saire resort was much better. Our hosts were accommodating and very nice.
Great quality accommodation and hosting. Enjoyed the high quality food, friendly hosting and shuttle services. We had a memorable holiday, thank you!
Couldn't have had a better week-great chalet,wonderful hosts,and amazing skiing.its great having ensuites in every room,and you can ski virtually from the back door. The attention to detail was very impressive. the food prepared by our hosts Kirsty and Alasdair was absolutely first class and they were extremely accommodating with some pretty specific dietary requirements. The free shuttle service made it so easy to get around with three children under four and the supply of cots/baby monitors/toys/booster seats was a godsend. the only small negative was not having access to basic kitchen facilities,which is a bit inconvenient on the hosts' day off.otherwise,really couldn't have had a better week!
This is our 15th year with VIP. We have always been pleased with the high quality of service provided by VIP. The resort lived up to expectations in terms of the variety and challenge of skiing. We found the chalet spacious, comfortable and conveniently located. The chalet hosts, Kirsty and Alasdair looked after us well. The food was of a very high standard and the house wines were very good. We appreciated provision of an iPad rather than papers. Overall an excellent experience.
We have all been made to feel so welcome and looked after by Kirsty and Alisdair in the Hochlar chalet. The 7.30am cup of tea was a particular highlight, as well as the high standard of gourmet food that we all enjoyed throughout the week. Tim kept a careful eye on us and nothing was ever too much trouble. The accommodation was perfect. Our only compliant was that the towels were on the small side.
Such a welcoming and enjoyable week for our holiday-we hope it was the same for our chalet hosts too! Excellent food followed by excellent hospitality, Kirsty and Ali will be at the top of their game by mid season, let alone their first week! Comfy warm chalet however as the chalet is newly built you would expect minor details such as multiple towel rails in shower rooms and surround sound speakers in the living area. All in all a brilliant holiday the week before Christmas!
As Haus Hochkar is brand new for us this winter we have no previous guest comments to share at the moment. Of course, we give the chalet 5 stars, but come back later in the year to see what our guests thought of the chalet and their VIP SKI holiday. | 2019-04-19T14:42:33Z | https://www.vip-chalets.com/chalets/haus-hochkar |
With an array of bioabsorbable implants available in the market one needs to know the properties, uses and limitations of these devices. We have attempted to review the available world literature on bioabsorbable implants and present it with an orthopaedician's perspective.
Metallic osteosynthetic devices have been extensively used worldwide. However there are inherent problems with the use of these metallic devices like stress shielding phenomenon, pain, local irritation, Retained metallic implants are always at the risk of endogenous infection. Release of metallic ions from these implants has been documented, though the long term effects of these are not yet known. Because of these reasons there is need for a second surgery for implant removal after the bone has healed.
Low molecular weight polyglycolic acid was synthesized by Bischoff and Walden in 1893. The first synthetic absorbable suture was developed from polyglycolic acid (PGA) by American Cyanamid Co. in 1962. The 90:10 copolymer of glycolide and lactide -polygalactin 910 - has been applied as the competitive suture 'Vicryl' since 19756. Since then sutures of polyglycolide and polylactide have been used for many years and no carcinogenic, teratogenic, toxic, or allergic side effects have been observed. The only adverse reaction reported has been a mild non specific inflammation,.
Use of PGA as reinforcing pins, screws, and plates for bone surgery was first suggested by Schmitt and Polistina in 1969. Since then there has been a lot of development in manufacturing biodegradable implants with properties appropriate for osteosynthesis.
Several animal experimental studies have been done testing the use of bioabsorbable implants. Tunc et al reported successful results of experimental osteotomies of the calcaneus fixed with melt moulded poly-L-lactide screws and plates in beagles. Raiha et al reported successful fixation of trochanteric osteotomies in laboratory beagles with self reinforced polylactide screws. Bostman et al tested self reinforced PGA screws for fixation of distal osteotomies in femora of rabbits and found the fixation appropriate and well tolerated by the tissues.
Polyglycolic acid (PGA) is a hard, tough, crystalline polymer with an average molecular weight of 20,000 to 145,000 and a melting point of 224-230°C. Polylactic acid on the other hand is a polymer with initial molecular weights of 180,000 to 530,000 and a melting point of about 174°C. In orthopaedic implants poly-L-lactic acid (PLLA) has been used more extensively because it retains its initial strength longer than poly-D-lactic acid (PDLA).
PGA belongs to the category of fast degrading polymers, and intraosseously implanted PGA screws have been shown to completely disappear within 6 months. PLLA on the other hand has a very long degradation time and has been shown to persist in tissues for as long as 5 years post implantation.
For Orthopaedic usage, the main hindrance to development of bioabsorbable implants has been the question of obtaining sufficient initial strength and retaining this strength in the bone. With the use of self reinforcing (SR) technique the material was sintered together at high temperature and pressure, resulting in initial strengths 5 to 10 times higher than those implants manufactured with melt moulding technique. Though initial strengths of SR-PLLA screws are lower than SR-PGA, strength retention in the former is longer than the latter.,. Now a- days, bioabsorbable implants show no difference in the stiffness, linear load & failure mode when compared with metallic devices.
The biggest advantage is that since these implants have the potential for being completely absorbed, the need for a second operation for removal is overcome and long-term interference with tendons, nerves and the growing skeleton is avoided. Additionally, the risk of implant-associated stress shielding, peri-implant osteoporosis and infections is reduced. An important aspect is that these implants do not interfere with clinical imaging. This allows the use of modalities like MRI in knee and shoulder injuries at any stage after surgical implantation. The other advantages include biodegradability of implants placed across mobile articular surfaces, as plus acceptable biocompatibility and resorption properties that reduces concern about complications.
Bioabsorbable implants, due to the fact that they may resorb inside tissues, offer specific advantages in specific fracture fixations; in the foot and ankle, where removal of the hardware is often mandatory prior to mobilization, they maybe beneficial in syndesmotic disruptions and Lisfranc's dislocations.
Biodegradable implants are available for stabilization of fractures, osteotomies, bone grafts and fusions particularly in cancellous bones, as well as for reattachment of ligaments, tendons, meniscal tears and other soft tissue structures.
Knee: Arthroscopic surgery is the most recent orthopaedic discipline to embrace biodegradable implant technology. It is used extensively for ACL reconstruction in the form of interference screws and transfixation screws. The authors have personal experience of more than 4 years of biodegradable screw fixation, with no added complications visualized. Osteochondral fractures can be well fixed by using arthroscopic techniques and biodegradable pins. Meniscal tacks and biodegradable suture anchors have opened new avenues for soft tissue reconstruction in complex knee injuries; these can be used via open or arthroscopic surgical techniques.
We have found the use of bioabsorbable interference screws to be a valuable alternative to metallic implants; as MRI is the only technique which allows good visualization of the transplant and evaluation of the healing process, absence of artefacts allows use of this modality for postoperative follow-up. Lajtai et al has shown that there was minimal surgical-site edema, minimal reaction to the material, and complete replacement by new bone formation of the previous site of these bioabsorbable interference screws. At 5 years, this bioabsorbable interference screw appeared clinically safe and effective for fixation of bone blocks during ACL reconstruction and MRI showed complete absorption and replacement with new bone. Additional advantages may be in the form of decreased distal tibial and some femoral tunnel diameters at both 3- and 12-month follow-up.
Shoulder: Biodegradable implants provide viable options for the repair and reconstruction of many intra-articular and extra-articular abnormalities in the shoulder, including rotator cuff tears, shoulder instability, and biceps lesions that require labrum repair or biceps tendon tenodesis. In a study of arthroscopic Bankart reconstruction using either PGA polymer or PLA polymer implants the overall clinical results were comparable at two year follow up. Furthermore, the visibility of the drill holes on the 2-year radiographs was greater after using PLLA implants than after using PGACP implant.
Spine: Bioresorbable implants have significant potential for use in spine surgery. Coe and Vaccaro published the first clinical series using bioresorbable implants as interbody spacers in lumbar interbody fusion; at follow-up beyond 2 years, they were pleasantly surprised by the fact that the implant materials significantly exceeded the biologic "life expectancy" of 12-18 months. The clinical and radiographic results of their study allowed them to recommend the use of bioresorbable devices structural interbody support in the TLIF procedure.
In a study by Kandziora et al, tricortical bone grafts and the bioabsorbable polymer-calcium phosphate composite cages were implanted in sheep cervical spines; the latter showed significantly better distractive properties, a significantly higher biomechanical stiffness, and an advanced interbody fusion. However, six of eight polymer-calcium phosphate composite cages cracked. Although the fate of the foreign body reactions and the cracks is currently unclear for bioabsorbable cages, the early appearance of osteolysis associated with use of the poly(l-lactide-co-d,l-lactide) cage allows skepticism regarding the value of this bioabsorbable implant.
Bioabsorbable anterior cervical plates have been used and studied as alternatives to metal plates when a graft containment device is required-. Ames at al found that bioabsorbable plates provided better stability than resorbable mesh although the results do not necessarily indicate that a resorbable plate confers equivalent stability to a metal plate.
Paediatric Orthopaedics: Bioresorbable material use in paediatric situations was perhaps the earliest recorded use in orthopaedic literature. The applications have been widely varied, and the results very successful. Bostman et al showed that self reinforced absorbable rods were suitable for fixation of physeal fractures in children. In 1991, Hope et al had compared the self reinforced absorbable rods with metallic fixation of elbow fractures in children. Partio et al found SR-PLLA screws firm enough for fixation of subtalar extraarticular arthrodesis in children. Bioabsorbable fixation technique for pediatric olecranon fractures has been described, with the advantage of avoiding reoperation to remove hardware.
Foot and Ankle: The first series of fixation of ankle fractures with absorbable rods was reported by Rokkanen et al in 1985. Subsequently, successful results with self reinforced absorbable rods have been reported by Leixnering et alin medial malleolar fractures, Ruf et al in ankle fractures, and Kristensen et al in intra articular osteochondral fractures of talus. Outside the trauma situation, Brunetti et al used bioresorbale implants in the fixation of osteotomies for hallux valgus. Bioabsorbable implants offer specific advantages in the foot where removal of the hardware is mandatory in some fixations like syndesmotic disruptions and Lisfranc's dislocations. Partio et al reported 95% good results in 152 patients managed operatively at a mean follow up of 2 years.
Hand: The available literature at the present time is scarce about biodegradable implant usage in the hand. However mini-plating systems are available for fixation of fractures, osteotomies and arthrodesis in the wrist and hand 1 . Preliminary reports have found usage of self-reinforced polyl/dl-lactide 70/30 miniplate and 1.5-mm or 2.0-mm screws in fractures and osteotomies leading to bone union uneventful Miscellaneous: There are bioabsorbable implants now available for use in humeral condyle, distal radius and ulna, radial head and other metaphyseal areas. Bioabsorbable meshes are available for acetabular reconstructions. Bioabsorbable implants are also variously used in craniomaxillofacial surgery2 and dental surgery.
Crystalline polymers have a regular internal structure and because of the orderly arrangement are slow to degrade. Amorphous polymers have a random structure and are completely and more easily degraded. Semi-crystalline polymers have crystalline and amorphous (random structure) regions. Hydrolysis begins at the amorphous area leaving the more slowly degrading crystalline debris 25 .
Some earlier biodegradable implants have had problems with degradation time and tissue reactions [Figure 1]. One commonly used material, Polyglycolide (PGA), is hydrophilic and degrades very quickly, losing virtually all strength within one month and all mass within 6-12 months. Adverse reactions can occur if the rate of degradation exceeds the limit of tissue tolerance and incidence of adverse tissue reactions to implants made of PGA have been reported from 2.0 to 46.7%. So PGA in isolation is rarely used these days in the manufacture of bioabsorbable implants.
Poly L Lactic Acid (PLLA), has a much slower rate of absorption. This homopolymer of L lactide is highly crystalline due to the ordered pattern of the polymer chains and has been documented to take more than five years to absorb.
The newer generation of implants remain predominantly amorphous after manufacturing due to controlled production processes of copolymers. D Lactide when copolymerized with L Lactide increases the amorphous nature of these implants. This increases the bioabsorbability of these devices. The ideal material is perhaps one that has a "medium" degradation time of around 2 years, as by that time the purpose for which the implant was put has been served.
There are quite a few problems that need to be addressed with the use of these devices. Primarily the inadequate stiffness of the device and weakness compared to metal implant can pose implantation difficulties like screw breakage during insertion and also make early mobilization precarious.
The other potential disadvantages are an inflammatory response described with bioabsorbable implants, rapid loss of initial implant strength and higher refracture rates. Bostman et al in reported an 11% incidence of foreign body reaction to PGA screws in malleolar fractures. However the fracture fixation did not suffer in any case.
Problem areas of concern regarding faster resorbed implants are due to the fact that the body mechanisms are not able to clear away the products of degradation, when they are produced at a faster rate. This leads to a foreign body reaction, which however has only been recorded in the clinical situation. No experimental study has been able to document this, nor have the exact mechanisms and causes identified.
A recent animal experimental study by Bostman et al has evaluated the kind of tissue formed at the site of the bioresorbable implants after resorption. They recorded lower levels of trabecular bone and haemopoietic elements at the site of the resorbed implants and the screw tracks, which maybe a potential area of concern. Invasion of tissue from the periphery to the center was a constatnt finding, but this was not normal tissue. Due to time limits, this study was only able to evaluate PGA screws, that degraded within the limits of the study period.
Many manufacturers are introducing coloured implants, as sometimes visualization inside the joint maybe a problem with non coloured devices. This is definitely easier to implant (personal experience), but the literature records significantly higher rates of inflammatory reactions with the use of coloured implants.
Bioabsorbable implant research is an evolving science. Resorbable plates can be covalently linked with compounds such as HRP, IL-2, and BMP-2 and represents a novel protein delivery technique. BMP-2 covalently linked to resorbable plates has been used to facilitate bone healing. Covalent linking of compounds to plates represents a novel method for delivering concentrated levels of growth factors to a specific site and potentially extending their half-life.
An area for future development would have to focus on developing implants that degrade at the "medium term". Since the screw that persists in its track for 5 years or more does not offer the advantage of bioresorbability, newer molecules may have to be studied.
In vitro studies have shown promising results of antibiotic elution from bioabsorbable microspheres and beads.
All in all, this is a concept that has perhaps come to stay. What the future holds in this sphere, is something we will have to wait and see.
1. Hughes TB. Bioabsorbable Implants in the Treatment of Hand Fractures: An Update. Clin Orthop. 2006;445:169-174.
2. Waris E, Konttinen YT, Ashammakhi N et al. Bioabsorbable fixation devices in trauma and bone surgery: current clinical standing. Expert Rev Med Devices. 2004;1(2):229-40.
5. Frazza EJ, Schmitt EE. A New absorbable suture. J Biomed Mater Res Symposium. 1971; 1:43-58.
7. Schmitz JP, Hollinger JO. Priliminary study of the osteogenic potential of a biodegradable alloplastic osteoinductive implant. Clin Orthop. 1988; 237:245-55.
8. Gammelgaard N, Jensen J. Wound complications after closure of abdominal incisions with Dexon R or VicrylR. A randomized double blind study. Acta Chir Scand. 1983;149:505-8.
9. Chegini N, Metz SA, Masterson BJ. Tissue reactivity and degradation patterns of absorbable vascular ligating clips implanted in peritoneum and rectus fascia. J Biomed Mater Res. 1990; 24:929-37.
10. Schmitt EE, Polistina RA. Polyglycolic acid prosthetic devices. U.S.Patent 1967; 3:463, 158.
11. Tunc DC, Rohowsky MV, Zadwadsky JP et al. Evaluation of body absorbable screw in avulsion type fractures. The 12 th annual meeting of the society of Biomaterials, Minneapolis - St Paul, Minnesota, USA, May 29 - June 1, Abstracts 1986: 168.
12. Raiha JE, Parchman M, Krook L et al. Fixation of trochanteric osteotomies in laboratory beagles with absorbable screws of polylactic acid. VCOT. 1990; 3:123-9.
13. Bostman O, Paivarinta U, Partio E et al. Absorbable polyglycolic screws in internal fixation of femoral osteotomies in rabbits. ActaOrthop Scand. 1991; 62: 587-91.
17. Lee MC, Jo H, Bae TS et al. Analysis of initial fixation strength of press-fit fixation technique in anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction. A comparative study with titanium and bioabsorbable interference screw using porcine lower limb. Knee Surg Sports Traumatol Arthrosc. 2003;11(2):91-8.
18. Raikin SM, Ching AC. Bioabsorbable fixation in foot and ankle. Foot Ankle Clin. 2005;10(4):667-84.
22. Lajtai G, Schmeidhuber G, Unger F et al. Bone tunnel remodeling at the site of biodegradable interference screws used for anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction: 5-year follow-up. 2001;17(6):597-602.
24. McFarland EG, Park HB, Keyurapan E et al. Suture anchors and tacks for shoulder surgery, part 1: biology and biomechanics. Am J Sports Med. 2005;33(12):1918-23.
25. Magnusson L, Ejerhed L, Rostgard-Christensen L et al. .A prospective, randomized, clinical and radiographic study after arthroscopic Bankart reconstruction using 2 different types of absorbable tacks. Arthroscopy. 2006;22(2):143-51.
26. Coe JD, Vaccaro AR. Instrumented transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion with bioresorbable polymer implants and iliac crest autograft. Spine. 2005;1;30(17 ):S76-83.
29. Bostman O, Makela EA, Tormala P, Rokkanen P. Transphyseal fracture fixation using biodegradable pins. J Bone Joint Surg (Br). 1989; 71: 701-707.
32. Gortzak Y, Mercado E, Atar D, Weisel Y. Pediatric olecranon fractures: open reduction and internal fixation with removable Kirschner wires and absorbable sutures. J Pediatr Orthop. 2006 Jan-Feb;26(1):3942.
37. Brunetti VA, Trpal MJ, Jules KT. Fixation of Austin osteotomy with biosorbable pins. J Foot Surg. 1991; 30: 56-65.
39. Waris E, Ninkovic M, Harpf C et al. Self-reinforced bioabsorbable miniplates for skeletal fixation in complex hand injury: three case reports. J Hand Surg (Am). 2004;29(3):452-7.
40. Mayfield L, Nobreus N, Attstrom R, Linde A. Guided bone regeneration in dental implant treatment using a bioabsorbable membrane. Clin Oral Implants Res. 1997;8(1):10-7.
41. Andriano KP, Pohjonen T, Tormala P. Processing and characterization of absorbable polylactide polymers for use in surgical implants. J Appl Biomater. 1994;5(2):133-40.
42. Bostman OM, Pihlajamaki HK. Adverse tissue reactions to bioabsorbable fixation devices. Clin Orthop. 2000;(371):216-27.
44. Shibuya TY, Wadhwa A, Nguyen KH et al. Linking of bone morphogenetic protein-2 to resorbable fracture plates for enhancing bone healing. Laryngoscope. 2005;115:2232-7.
45. Garvin K, Feschuk C. Polylactide-polyglycolide antibiotic implants. Clin Orthop. 2005;(437):105-10.
46. Bostman OM, Laitinen OM, Tynninen O, Salminen ST, Pihlajamaki HK. Tissue restoration after resorption of polyglycolide and poly-llaevolactic acid screws. J Bone Joint Surg (Br). 2005; 87:1575-1580. | 2019-04-24T02:45:12Z | http://www.ijoonline.com/article.asp?issn=0019-5413;year=2006;volume=40;issue=4;spage=205;epage=209;aulast=Dhillon |
In this rapidly changing globally competitive environment, companies have no option but to be innovative inorder to survive. Innovation can be in the form of a new product/technique or improvement of an existing product /technology.
Construction Industry in India is no exception.Construction industry abounds with innovative products and techniques and the construction activities contribute to more than 8% of India’s GDP. Because of various government and private initiatives, there is an increased demand for real estate and infrastructure projects and companies in the construction sector are developing a number of products, services and processes that can be used used for new construction.
Abstract: The invention relates to a panel-based construction system for buildings. The construction element for a building comprises two stiffening plates (1-2) between which a load-bearing central core (3) is positioned, with an insulating foam (6-4) and linking beams (5-7) being provided on each side thereof. These components are assembled one against the other by means of bonding.
Abstract: Climbing shoe for fixing a climbing scaffold to a concrete section (2), comprising a first part (11) including clamps (14) configured for securing a track of the climbing scaffold and allowing the guided movement of the track while the climbing scaffold climbs in a substantially vertical direction, and a second part (30) fixed to the concrete section (2), the first part (11) being coupled to the second part (30). The first part (11) and the second part (30) are coupled to one another by means of a transverse guide (33) arranged in one of said parts (11, 30) and at least one hook (15) surrounding the transverse guide (33) arranged in the other one of said parts (11, 30), the hook (15) and the transverse guide (33) being able to slide with respect to one another for laterally disassembling the first part (11) with respect to the second part (30).
Abstract: A three part foundation system for supporting a building is described. Three part foundation systems can include a containment vessel, which constrains a buffer medium to an area above the containment vessel, and a construction platform. A building can be built on the construction platform. In a particular embodiment, during operation, the construction platform and structures built on the construction platform can float on the buffer medium. In an earthquake, a construction platform floating on a buffer medium may experience greatly reduced shear forces. In a flood, a construction platform floating on a buffer medium can be configured to rise as water levels rise to limit flood damage.
Title: BINDER BASED ON CALCIUM ALUMINOSILICATE DERIVATIVES FOR CONSTRUCTION MATERIALS.
Abstract: The present invention relates to a hydraulic binder comprising at least 80% by weight of a ground granulated blast-furnace slag and at least one accelerator of the hardening reaction, said accelerator comprising at least one source of calcium sulfate and at least one nucleating agent in the form of particles, the BET specific surface area of which is greater than 1 m2/g and the size of which is such that 50% of the particles have a mean diameter of less than 5 µm, said particles being chosen from calcium carbonates, magnesium carbonates, calcium magnesium carbonates, calcium silicate hydrates, aluminum silicate hydrates, alone or as a mixture. This binder may be used in a mortar and concrete composition which, once mixed with water, makes it possible to obtain construction materials.
Abstract: Systems and methods for preparing construction material mixtures. A container can include a flexible body having an interior for receiving and holding construction material mixture components to be mixed. The construction material mixture components can be mixed in the interior by rotating a mixing tool. The flexible body is collapsible for forcing the construction material mixture out of a mouth of the container. The flexible body can be everted to facilitate cleaning the interior of the flexible body. The system can also include a stand, a mixing tool, a funnel, and/or a measuring cup.
Abstract: A device for determining the temperature of a road building material applied by a construction machine in a placement width includes an infrared temperature measuring head, a motor and a controller. The infrared temperature measuring head is arranged to be twistable by the motor in a manner transverse to the direction of travel of the construction machine so as to scan the surface of the road building material to capture temperature measuring values of the surface of road building material during a rotational movement at a plurality of measuring points spaced apart from one another. The controller is configured to set a scanning speed as a function of a position of the measuring point.
Abstract: A tool holder includes a locking cylinder provided with two first gripping pins extending laterally from each side of the fixed part thereof, and two second gripping pins extending laterally from each side of the moving part thereof. The tool includes at least two reception assemblies each having a first receiving portion and a second receiving portion the openings of which are each facing and provided to receive one of the first gripping pins and one of the second gripping pins for retaining the tool on the tool holder. The tool is locked on the tool holder by means of the locking cylinder by moving each gripping pin into abutment at the bottom of the associated receiving portion thereof.
Abstract: The invention provides a solution to the problem of the overuse of concrete, using a method for constructing walls by means of panels. The invention solves the problem of the use of large amounts of concrete while maintaining what is routine in the industry with respect to construction using specific measurements of the wall, by providing a method, along with tools, which consists in using panels inside the wall by forming empty rectangular cuboid formworks that displace the concrete by an amount equal to the volume thereof.
Abstract: The invention is about a modular foldable brick that enables architectural elements such as stacked walls, arches, corners, doors, windows and wall niches to be constructed at indoor and outdoor conditions that divides, restricts and secures a certain space; Due to the possibility of folding the storing and carrying of this brick is possible at a minimum weight. The brick is connectable within itself and also attachable to others for constructing architectural elements as wall building systems. The foldable brick provides a foldable brick body that forms the outer walls and an inner wall being formed with three techniques; connecting/fixing (A-B groups)/encircling (C group). All three techniques are related to the forming of the detachable wall building system’s entity unit foldable and sustainable brick. All these three techniques are used simultaneously.
Abstract: The present invention relates to an electric driver tip structure for finishing a building outer wall and, more specifically, to an electric driver tip structure for finishing a building outer wall, the tip structure pressing and rotating a screw nail by the engaging rotation of two threaded parts coupled in a screw form, in a state in which a panel and a stud are supported in a state of making contact with each other, so as to couple and fix the panel and the stud by passing the screw nail through the panel and the stud from the rear thereof, thereby quickly and stably performing a coupling operation of the panel and the stud (vertical support), and thus building outer wall finishing construction using a metal panel can be easily performed and time and costs can be significantly reduced.
Abstract:A method for the construction of energy-efficient buildings which provide thermal comfort to the occupants thereof. The outside walls are insulating walls, and the inside walls are thermally inert. The walls are constructed from one or more vertical layers printed simultaneously or consecutively. Each vertical layer consists of a different material and has a different thickness depending upon the strength, insulating properties or thermal inertia required of the layer in question. Nozzles mounted on movable carriages hold different materials. No computer is required to give coordinates. The nozzles move from one end to the other end of a carriage pertaining to a wall, which is located in a specific position. The movement of the nozzles on a frame is restricted by switches and a programmed controller, which stop the movement of a nozzle when it reaches the end of the wall, sending a signal to raise the device a step up and to commence movement in the opposite direction. The program of the programmed controller stays the same because the coordinates are set by the carriages with switches.
Can you patent Sport based invention?
New and revolutionary sports technologies are protected under the intellectual property (IP) system by patents. The sports technologists have applied their creativity and expertise in multiplicity of ways ranging from developing better, safer and effective sports equipments to device for precise measurement of performance and ways to experience sporting events anywhere and at any time.
Protecting your patent rights for your invented sport & novel game is very important to reap the benefits and make money in the long run. Patents encourage investment in development and commercialization of new and improved products. However, as an inventor you need to determine whether the sport, game, sporting device, gaming apparatus, sport equipment is patent worthy or not.
Step 1: Carry out patentability research inorder to determine the novelty of the sport, game, sporting device, gaming apparatus or sport equipment.
Step 2: Prepare invention drawings with element list.
Step 3: File provisional patent to secure a patent filing date with the patent office. Step 4: Use “patent pending” status for marketing sporting and gaming devices, apparatus and equipments.
Step 4: File Non-provisional patent application within 12 months from first filing date.
Patent in Sports: Any equipment used in the new sport may be patentable, if the technology satisfies patentability criteria.
US 20170291063 A1 titled- “Sports Mat ” published on 12th Oct 2017 relates to a sports mat which consists of a flexible material and has a longitudinal direction (L) and a transverse direction (Q) perpendicular thereto, comprising a rectangular mat longitudinal subarea (2) and a rectangular mat transverse subarea (3) which intersects the mat longitudinal subarea (2) forming a T shape, an extension of the mat longitudinal subarea (2) in the transverse direction (Q) along a leg section (6) of the T being not more than half the size than a longest transverse extension of the mat transverse subarea (Q).
PCT/EP2015/073658 titled- “Fast radio frequency communication for sport timing applications” published on 21st April 2016 relates to Computer-implemented methods for managing communication between each of the plurality of wireless RF nodes and a base station using frequency hopping over M non-overlapping frequency channels in a wireless network is provided. The communication is carried out according to a time slot schedule comprising M time slot assemblies, each time slot assembly comprising at least one time slot for the base station to transmit, preferably by broadcast, data on a different channel of the M channels, and R time slots, R being an integer equal to or greater than 1, for one or more of the plurality of nodes to transmit data to the base station. The methods described herein enable a point-to-multipoint wireless communication system in an ISM frequency band that can provide a reliable RF data link even in an area that already comprises one or more WLAN networks that operate in the same ISM frequency band.
JP 2017185102 A titled- “A hand protection equipment selection supporting system for sports , and a method” published on 12th Oct 2017 provides a sports hand protection ship selection support system and the like which enable selection of an appropriate sports hand protection device suited to the shape of a hand of a selector, and the like. The selection support system 100 includes a three-dimensional shape measurement apparatus 1 for measuring a three-dimensional shape of a hand of a subject, at least a gesture is calculated on the basis of the measured three-dimensional shape of the hand, And a computing device 2 for selecting a type of a sports hand protection tool to be recommended for a subject. The calculation device calculates the horizontal dimension and the thickness direction dimension of the hand along the surrounding measurement position of the subject based on the measured three-dimensional shape of the hand of the subject, and is expressed by an approximate expression using each dimension, and the subject Calculating a circumferential length of an approximate curve approximating a cross-sectional shape of the hand along the surrounding measurement point of the sports hand; and a step of calculating, based on the stored surroundings of the sports hand protection tool, And selecting the type of sports hand protection as the type recommended for the subject.
US 20170281818 A1 titled- “Deodorizing glove holder for athletic gloves and other equipment” published on 5th Oct 2017 relates to a deodorizer for insertion into athletic and other equipment, having an outer housing that is infused with an antimicrobial agent and that has ventilation holes, and containing a moisture absorbing deodorizer within the outer housing. The deodorizer absorbs moisture that allows bacteria to grow and the antimicrobial infused outer housing kills existing bacteria, thereby reducing bacteria and odor.
US 20170318340 A1 titled- “Systems, Methods And Apparatus For Identifying Preferred Sporting Events Based On Viewing Preferences” published on 2nd Nov 2017 discloses various embodiments of systems, apparatus, and/or methods for identifying a preferred sporting event. A receiving device receives viewing preferences from a user, sports data from a sports data provider, and programming information for candidate sporting events from a content provider. The receiving device then analyzes the programming information for one or more preferred sporting events based at least in part on the user’s viewing preferences and the sports data. The user may then be notified of the preferred sporting event.
US 9807839 B1 titled- “Intermittent overdrive for sports lighting” published on 31st Oct 2017 relates to a method, apparatus, and system for operating wide area lighting systems. Operating costs, as well as capital and installation costs, can be reduced by designing the lighting system for operation of individual light sources at a first “normal” operating power for a majority of the time but having the ability to boost or increase operating power for “boosted” or increased light output for the same light sources of the system for a minority of cumulative operating time of the light sources. “”In one aspect, performance data about the LED light sources is evaluated relative to whether or not the light sources will have a predicted life expectancy on the order of the entire lighting system life expectancy. Operating power levels for boosted and normal LED lumen outputs are selected to comport with predictably meeting or exceeding lighting system life expectancy.
US 9802101 B1 titled- “Apparatus and method for counting attempts in a sporting game” published on 31st Oct 2017 relates to an apparatus for counting attempts in a sporting game includes a housing with a display for displaying at least a running count of attempts; wrist band means having opposing first and second sides, being connected at the first side with the housing, and being sized and configured to encircle a person’s wrist proximal the person’s palm; an input contact member mounted at the second side of the wristband means for movement upon contact with the person’s palm; an attempt input assembly operably connected with the input contact member to transmit an electrical signal upon detecting movement of the input contact member by the palm; and electronic processing and power elements for receiving input from the attempt input assembly and causing the display to display information related to the movement registered by the input contact member.
US 9802127 B2 titled- “Video game including user determined location information” published on 31st Oct 2017 relates to a method, apparatus and computer program product for a video game including user determined location information is presented. Location information (e.g. GPS, Google Maps, an entered address or the like) determined by a user of a video game is acquired. Then user determined location information relating to a physical location determined by the user is mapped to a video game environment wherein the user of the video game experiences objects from the users entered location while playing the video game.
Formulate a patenting strategy for your sport and game based invention. Discuss your invention research with our team of patent attorneys. | 2019-04-21T12:46:45Z | https://startupindiastrategist.com/category/patent-in-sports-and-technology/ |
The Portuguese transfer pricing rules have been in force since 2002, through the publication of Decree 1446-C/2001 (Portaria). This decree, combined with Article 63 of the Corporate Income Tax Code, establishes the transfer pricing principles and rules for Portugal. Complementarily, Article 138 of the Corporate Income Tax Code, as well as Decree 620-A/2008 of 16 July 2008, determine the framework of application of advanced pricing agreements (APAs).
These rules are based on the OECD Transfer Pricing Guidelines, and Portaria states that 'for its application, in cases of greater technical complexity, it is advisable to consult the OECD Transfer Pricing Guidelines'.
Portaria also states that these rules apply to all operations conducted between a corporate or individual taxpayer and any other entity with which the taxpayer has a special relationship, which seems to indicate that the rules apply to individuals, corporations and any other types of entities with whom the taxpayer has a special relationship. However, although those rules have specific corresponding provisions in the Corporate Income Tax Code, there is no reference at all to transfer pricing in the laws that govern taxation of individuals. This situation has triggered some as yet unresolved litigation between the Portuguese tax authorities and certain individuals regarding the use of transfer pricing rules to adjust individuals' taxable income. Although we should wait for final judicial decisions regarding this issue, it is more likely than not that the Portuguese transfer pricing rules do cover transactions that involve individuals, but do not allow any adjustment on the taxable income of individuals, but only in the taxable income of corporations and other entities subject to corporate income tax.
Portuguese transfer pricing rules do not apply to equity operations, namely dividends, equity increases and decreases, etc.
a resident entity – or a foreign company's permanent establishment (PE) – and entities resident in jurisdictions listed as tax havens.
In addition, foreign entities and Portuguese PEs; Portuguese entities and correspondent foreign PEs; and Portuguese PEs and foreign PEs are also deemed to be related parties.
Portaria clarifies that the scope of 'operations' subject to the transfer pricing rules includes financial operations and any commercial transaction, including those involving fixed or intangible assets, or goods, rights or services, even if those were conducted within cost sharing or contribution agreements, service agreements or other types of agreements, or if those result from any alteration of business structures, especially whenever that alteration involves the transfer of intangible elements or a compensation for losses or for lost profits. The Portuguese transfer pricing rules cover both domestic transactions as well as cross-border transactions, including those between a branch or a PE and its mother entity.
whenever the conditions of a transaction, conducted between a Portuguese taxpayer and a resident related party, differ from those that would have been agreed, contracted or performed between independent enterprises, then the Portuguese tax authorities might carry out the adjustments required for the taxable income of that Portuguese taxpayer to be no different than what it should have been in the absence of the special relationship.
The wording of Article 3 of Portaria has two relevant specificities: that taxpayers can only perform self-initiated transfer pricing adjustments on their tax return in case of cross-border transactions and when those adjustments are positive; and that all other transfer pricing adjustments are the exclusive competence of the tax authorities and, as such, are dependent on the tax authorities' assessment and decision.
Although the Portuguese transfer pricing rules are closely based on the OECD standards, in 2014 the Portuguese tax authorities launched some new rules regarding the tax deductibility of some types of costs, namely financial, that do define a threshold above which those costs will not be tax-deductible, even when they comply with the transfer pricing rules, which is a first deviation from the strict application of the arm's-length principle in some specific fields in which the tax authorities have faced, through consistent litigation, difficulties in effectively applying the arm's-length approach.
Accounting rules and treatment are generally the basis for the computation of the taxable income, although the Corporate Income Tax Code has several specific identification, recognition and deductibility rules that do differ from the accounting rules and require a specific reclassification or computation within the taxable income assessment.
Article 13 of Portaria sets documentation requirements, namely a yearly preparation of a transfer pricing file for any taxpayer that has recorded, in the previous tax exercise, a total revenue of at least €3 million. Although that transfer pricing file must be prepared each year (for those taxpayers that have reached the above-mentioned threshold), it is not required to be automatically delivered to the tax authorities. It would only need to be provided to the tax authorities upon specific request, usually within a 10-calendar-day delivery deadline. Article 63 of the Corporate Income Tax Code also provides that taxpayers need to maintain proper transfer pricing support documentation.
the transfer pricing economic analysis conducted to assess the compliance with the transfer pricing rules of each group of controlled transactions.
No specific provisions are expressed in the legislation regarding a documentation structure of a master file and a local file. Nevertheless, the Portuguese transfer pricing documentation requirements already address the contents and information that the OECD recommends to include in the master file and the local file, and, in practice, the Portuguese tax authorities have been accepting documents with a master file or local file structure, if those do comply with the Portuguese documentation requirements (those do require some additional information compared to the OECD master file or local file approach).
the transfer pricing methodologies used to assess compliance with the transfer pricing rules.
Following BEPS Action 13, the Portuguese Budget Law for 2016 introduced a new additional documentation requirement through Article 121-A of the Corporate Income Tax Code. This new provision implements the country-by-country (CbC) reporting obligation for fiscal years starting on or after 1 January 2016. This new rule follows OECD recommendations regarding the CbC reporting requirements. The Portuguese legislation allows a surrogate entity to be designated by the group, in the event a parent entity is not obliged to file a CbC report (CbCR), or where an automatic exchange of information process by the tax authorities of that jurisdiction with the Portuguese tax authorities is not in place. Nevertheless, such a reporting entity should be identified and communicated to the Portuguese tax authorities by the end of the relevant tax period.
another motive (which needs to be disclosed on the 'other information' field of the CbCR.
The CbC rules also imply the submission of additional information, also based on the OECD CbC guidelines, namely a communication of who will be the CbC reporting entity and in which jurisdiction that entity is located. The corresponding form also requires some information regarding that entity, namely its tax number and address, as well as the confirmation if that entity is a final ultimate owner or if it is submitting the CbCR as a surrogate entity. The deadline for that communication submission is the end of the fifth month after the closing of the accounts.
the profit split method (PSM), the transactional net margin method (TNMM) and any other method deemed as the most appropriate taking into consideration the facts and circumstances and the arm's-length principle, whenever the methods foreseen in (a) are deemed non-applicable.
As a result of the wording of Article 4 of Portaria, transaction-based methods such as CUPM, CPM and RMM are deemed as being the common usual methods, while the remaining profit-based methods can only be applied whenever the taxpayer can demonstrate that the transaction-based methods were not applicable.
As a result, the method selection process described in the transfer pricing file of the taxpayer needs to address that inherent method hierarchy and, apart from explaining and supporting why the applied methods were deemed as being the most appropriate ones to test the controlled transactions under analysis, in the event profit-based methods were applied, it also needs to explain why transaction-based methods could not be applied or were not deemed as being the most appropriate testing method.
Portaria contains quite detailed considerations about comparability, whether in Paragraph 3 of Article 4 or in Article 5 (the title of this article is 'Factors of comparability'), and those considerations follow closely the OECD Transfer Pricing Guidelines.
Usually, whenever the taxpayer (or its related-party counterparty) conducts similar transactions with independent parties, then the internal CUPM, through the use of internal comparable data, will be deemed the most appropriate method to test compliance with the transfer pricing rules.
The tax authorities do consider that internal comparable data may provide more reliable data to analyse the transaction or company under analysis than external comparable data. Taking this into consideration, internal comparable data are usually preferred over external data.
If no internal comparable data (or no good internal comparable data) is available, but that external comparable price data can be identified, and whenever those external comparable data can be deemed as sufficiently comparable, then this is usually considered as the second-best testing method.
issued or loaned to an entity located in the same region.
There have already been some court cases that have confirmed the importance of comparability within the application of the CUPM.
When the CUPM cannot be applied, one of the remaining indirect methods will be used, which will require the search of potentially comparable companies developing potentially comparable activities to the one being tested, within publicly available databases. Those methods are usually less demanding in terms of comparability, but those searches will nonetheless seek to obtain the most comparable data possible, namely through detailed industry and activity description searches, complemented with internet searches for more information about the potentially comparable companies. Apart from the comparability factors, those searches will seek to confirm whether those potentially comparable entities comply with the Portuguese independence rules (meaning that none of those entities can be directly or indirectly owned by a corporation by 20 per cent or more, and cannot own directly or indirectly any subsidiary by 20 per cent or more).
The PSM is a method rarely used to date, because taxpayers are usually reluctant to proactively share information about the profits earned by their non-resident related entities, although tax authorities have tried to enforce the use of this method in some cases, with limited success. A possible outcome of BEPS may be an increased use of PSM, although this is yet to be seen in practice.
The audit procedure usually begins with a notification sent by the tax authorities to the selected taxpayer, which sets out the nature and scope of the audit, as well as the rights and obligations of the taxpayer during the audit process. Nevertheless, we have observed an increasing tendency of the tax authorities to send initial informal requests for information prior to the sending of the notification and of the official audit procedure. In most cases, tax audits will be conducted through a series of requests for information or documents and access to accounting systems and books, and through several meetings and queries conducted with the accounting and financial interlocutors of the taxpayer. We have also observed an increasing tendency of the tax auditors to contact third parties (e.g., clients or providers) to gather evidence or to confirm statements made by the taxpayer.
When the tax authorities identify potential transfer pricing issues within transactions conducted with non-resident entities they seek to gather information about the global tax position in order to assess the profit share by jurisdiction. For that purpose, they usually send requests of cooperation to other tax jurisdictions for them to issue requests of information to the counterparties of the transaction located in those jurisdictions.
The implementation of CbC reporting (see Section II) will provide more information to the tax auditors to identify potential non-compliance of certain group transfer pricing policies.
The Portuguese transfer pricing rules do not include any specific consideration on intangibles, but, as mentioned earlier, they contain an explicit referral rule directly to the OECD Guidelines. As such, the guidance for how to identify and recognise transactions with intangibles for transfer pricing purposes are the OECD Guidelines. As a result, the changes originated through BEPS Actions 8–10 were assimilated by the Portuguese market players as a more recent and updated definition of the guidance on how to deal with intangibles for transfer pricing purposes, not requiring a specific legislative change (and no such legal change is foreseen or expected regarding intangible definitions).
Consequently, the recognition process has to be based on a detailed functional and risk analysis, which will identify the intangibles in the transactions under review, how they contribute to the creation of value and how they interact with other intangibles, with tangible assets and with business activities. The new OECD guidance clarifies that this functional analysis step will have to focus on DEMPE (development, enhancement, maintenance, protection, exploitation) functions and risks, seeking to identify which entity develops those functions, which entities assume the subsequent risks, which have control over risk (requiring ability and resources to perform that control) and which are funding the DEMPE functions or risks. It also highlights some specific functions deemed as particularly relevant for intangibles, namely design and control of research and marketing programmes, direction of and establishing priorities for creative undertakings, control over strategic decisions regarding intangible development programmes, management and control of budgets, important decisions regarding defence and protection of intangibles, and ongoing quality control over functions performed by independent or associated enterprises. Similarly, it also highlights some specific risks deemed as particularly relevant for intangibles, namely risk related to the development, obsolescence risk, infringement risk, product liability risk and exploitation risk.
Taking into consideration that tax treatment is a critical factor in any investment decisions, in 2014 the Portuguese government launched a tax reform aiming to achieve a more competitive tax framework to attract investment, and promote economic growth and employment. Intangibles was one of the areas in which tax treatment was significantly changed.
More specifically, the 2014 tax reform launched a new regime for intangibles through Articles 45-A and 50-A of the Corporate Income Tax Code. Article 45 aimed at recognising tax effects for intangibles with an indefinite life, and as such, it introduced the recognition, as a tax-deductible expense, of a constant depreciation, within the 20 tax exercises following the recognition, of the acquisition cost of some specific intangible assets that have no limited lifetime, namely patents, brands, licences and permits, production processes, models or other assimilated rights. The same applies to goodwill generated by acquisitions of the shares of other entities or of other entities' assets and liabilities.
Similarly, at the same time (2014), a patent box regime was also introduced which enabled that income deriving from the sale or the temporary licensing of the use of industrial property rights (i.e., patents and industrial drawings and models) was 50 per cent exempt from corporate tax taxation. In 2016, that regime was amended, following the BEPS Action 5 guidance, also introducing a limit on the tax deduction, as well as a 30 per cent uplift on the tax deduction of some eligible R&D expenses.
Tax authorities always fear that intangibles' intra-group transactions might lack effective substance and that they might have been artificially structured only to benefit from tax incentives or to shift profits abroad. These concerns regarding substance were particularly addressed by BEPS Actions 8–10.
Despite the 'substance over form' concept being generally foreseen in the Portuguese rules, as stipulated in the General Taxation Law, the issues addressed under these BEPS Actions are not specifically embedded in the Portuguese transfer pricing rules. However, we do not anticipate that the Portuguese tax authorities will formally propose changes to the domestic transfer pricing framework. Hence, the OECD Guidelines are followed because Portugal is a Member State of the OECD and because the Portuguese transfer pricing rules include a specific referral to the OECD Transfer Pricing Guidelines.
Nevertheless, it is important to note that the Portuguese transfer pricing rules are not embedded within the anti-abuse rules in place within the Portuguese legal and tax framework. As the application of the substance over form concept often implies more than just a pricing adjustment, we have observed several court decisions that have ruled against the tax authorities' attempt to recharacterise some transactions (due to the lack of substance) based on the transfer pricing rules, as the court considers that those attempts lack the substantiation and support required by the Portuguese anti-abuse rules, which are quite complex. As a result of that complexity, the Portuguese anti-abuse rules are not a path that is often followed by the Portuguese tax authorities, which, together with the fact the Portuguese transfer pricing rules are not embedded within that anti-abuse regime, limits the effectiveness of the substance over form concept in Portugal. It is still too early to conclude whether the new BEPS guidance can improve this paradigm.
Under this new guidance, a contractual arrangement and the subsequent expected return will only be accepted if each party that is supposed to bear a risk is deemed to be effectively controlling that risk, taking the decisions to take on, lay off or mitigate that risk, and to have the financial capacity to bear that risk. As a result, even more than before, the functional and risk analysis is a critical part of the transfer pricing analysis. The new guidance calls that analysis the 'accurate delineation of a transaction', meaning comparing what derives from a written contract with the actual behaviour of the parties.
The new guidance also states that the mere fact that a party is funding an activity or controlling the funding risks does not entitle that entity to the returns associated with the operational risks of that activity, unless it does exercise control over those risks as well. Control of funding risk is deemed to be about being able to evaluate an investment opportunity as an investor, meaning as a provider of funds, to take investment decisions and to set up mitigation procedures for funding risks. As a result, these functions and risks are deemed to be entitled to a remuneration aligned with what the market usually pays for similar financial functions, which is no more than a risk-adjusted financial return, and not the residual income deriving from operational risks or activities. The new guidance goes even further when stating that if the legal funding entity is not even managing and controlling the funding risks, namely due to lack of resources, but only providing the funds (meaning that some other entity is effectively managing and controlling that funding activity), then it will only be entitled to receive a risk-free rate of return.
Comparatively, control of operational risks implies being able to analyse the consequences of potential alternative operational decisions on the business being developed and on its subsequent returns, having the authority to take those operational decisions and to assess, decide and implement mitigation procedures for those operational risks. Operational risks are entitled to receive residual returns.
All of these characteristics imply specific resources and specific operational know-how, which cannot be found in pure funding structures. As such, decision-makers must be competent in the area of risk for which the decision is required, and they must be performing the decision-making function in the location of the entity claiming to be controlling the risk and the associated return. As a result, mere minutes of board meetings performed outside of that location, or signature of documents executing the decisions are deemed to be insufficient to demonstrate decision-making (this has already been enforced by an existing rule in place in Portugal, namely through the concept of 'effective management').
Traditional 'principal versus operational structures', in which the operational structures were traditionally awarded a return based on a transactional net margin method or a comparable profit method and the funding principal would get the residual income, might be non-compliant with the new guidance whenever the principal is merely funding the activity and not managing and controlling the operational risks.
Whenever more than one entity controls the risks that drive the return, they will have to share the income based on their real contributions to the value creation.
The new guidance recognises that payment for use of an intangible should be made to the party having the legal rights to such intangible, which, at a first glance, could be seen as a step back in the substance over form paradigm. However, the new guidance also stipulates that, when another entity has developed or participated in the development of the DEMPE functions, provides funding or assumes risks, a separate transaction dealing with that contribution must be considered. That assertion implies that the income flow deriving from the use of an intangible will not be diverted from the legal owner, but that entity has a transfer pricing obligation to remunerate the other entities that are developing activities that the legal owner is not performing, which can mean that the legal owner may end up not registering any profit at all after appropriately compensating the other group members for their contributions.
The new guidelines also recognise that the legal owner does not need to perform all the DEMPE functions, as independent parties do sometimes subcontract others to develop parts of those functions, but, in that case it requires control to be effectively applied over those subcontracted activities and their performance, which requires determining the objectives of the outsourced activities, as well as capability to understand and assess the performance of the activity, to take decisions regarding selection, hiring, change and cancellation, as well as to effectively exercise those functions.
ongoing quality control over functions performed by other parties that may have a material impact on the value of the intangible.
viability and profitability risks associated with the returns to be generated by the future exploitation of the intangible being able to generate appropriate returns compared to the research and development costs.
The party actually controlling, managing and assuming the risks will be entitled, through a secondary transaction, to the potential gains and losses deriving from those risks. In contrast, a party that is not controlling, managing and assuming those relevant risks, nor developing the relevant functions listed above, will not be entitled to the gains or responsible for the losses.
There were no formal settlement or negotiation procedures with the Portuguese tax authorities foreseen in the Portuguese General Tax Law before the introduction of APA procedures. Until then, the interaction between taxpayers and tax authorities consisted mostly of audits, investigations and litigation.
The only procedure that could be deemed as closer to a negotiation or settlement procedure is the taxable income revision procedure foreseen in Article 91 of the General Tax Law, which can only be initiated in the event the tax authorities do apply indirect methods to determine the taxable income of the taxpayer. In that procedure, both parties (taxpayer and tax authorities) will nominate experts who will analyse the case, and conduct working sessions and contradictory debates (which end up involving some kind of negotiation) in order to achieve a common technical understanding, which will be binding for the tax authorities (except in cases of tax crimes).
Although the law did not specifically entail a negotiation alternative (apart from APAs, which will be addressed below), there have been cases where, in view of the proposed adjustments, informal discussions with the tax authorities (at an administrative stage of the process or during the audits) were conducted, in order to assess the arm's-length pricing of the controlled transaction under controversy.
In this regard, it should be noted that following this solution is dependent on a variety of issues, ranging from the specialisation of the tax authorities' audit team involved in the process, and the availability of the latter for initiating such a negotiation, to the complexity of the analysis.
In situations where the tax authorities' transfer pricing team is not involved or the taxpayer pursues a resolution of the controversy aimed at a full annulment of the proposed adjustment, this alternative is usually not successful.
The possibility to conclude unilateral and multilateral APAs was introduced in 2008 and the inherent legal dispositions were subsequently amended in 2014, essentially with the aim of promoting and facilitating unilateral agreements. As such, the APA alternative is the unique course of action in situations in which a taxpayer wishes to proactively seek a negotiated understanding for a complex transfer pricing issue. However, note that a rollback of the terms and conditions negotiated under the APA is not formally possible, according to Portuguese law, although the tax authorities have informally agreed in the retroactive application of some signed APAs. Therefore, any retroactive application of the APA is subject to acceptance by the tax authorities responsible for the negotiation.
Portuguese tax laws do not include any specific process for handling formal inquiries into transfer pricing issues. Therefore Portuguese tax authorities should follow the general tax inspection procedures stated in the Portuguese Tax Procedure Code (CPPT), as well as apply the timelines and detailed requirements given by the Complementary Requirements Code for Tax Inspection Procedures (RCPIT).
Regarding the tax inspection procedure, Portuguese tax authorities may start this procedure for a four-year period after the end of the accounting period to which the tax assessment relates. However there are special rules applied if the tax return presents tax losses; in such cases, the forfeiture period shall be the same as the exercise of such right.
The tax inspection procedure follows strict formal requirements, is continual and must be concluded within six months (Paragraph 1 of Article 57 of the General Tax Law). However, under certain circumstances, this period may be extended twice for three months each.
The audit procedure is completed when the tax auditor considers that all the necessary information has been obtained to draw up a proposed tax audit report. This proposal is sent to the taxpayer, who has 10 days in which to dispute the preliminary conclusions of the proposal. After the 10-day period has elapsed, the tax auditor will issue a final audit report, which may give rise to an additional tax assessment.
an administrative appeal, 30 days after the notification of the act to be appealed.
Finally, resolution of tax disputes is regulated by a complex set of legal rules that determine different types of actions and deadlines, among other things, depending on the type of dispute in question.
for the arbitration court (Article 10 of the Legal Regime of Tax Arbitration), within 90 days after any of the facts foreseen for the judicial courts mentioned above, or from the notice of the decision – as long as such acts can be subject to a separate claim – or from the end of the term for the decision of the administrative appeal; or within 30 days from the declaration of the illegality of acts determining the tax base when it does not give rise to the assessment of any tax.
preparation of the allegations in written form (typically, in an articulate form), indicating and providing all means of evidence needed.
As for the timelines, once again it depends on which litigation forum was used by the taxpayer: if the taxpayer has appealed to the judicial courts, a first instance decision is usually reached within three to five years after the submission of the process to the competent court. In situations where the taxpayer initiates the process in the arbitration court, a decision is usually reached within four to six months.
In Portugal, the initial courts are the only fact-finding forums. As such, all evidence needs to be produced in the court of first instance. For this purpose, all means of evidence are admissible (documents, witnesses, specialist technical reports, etc.), albeit the judge has some discretionary power to decide which means of evidence are useful for deciding the case.
As such, any further appeals cannot be based on the existence of additional evidence, or aimed at producing evidence on the case under analysis. Nonetheless, the applicant can appeal based on the fact that the first instance decision did not allow a certain mean of evidence necessary for the decision of the cause, or such decision did not consider certain statements, documents or other means of evidence that should have been considered in the decision.
an appeal to the Supreme Administrative Court within 10 days after the final decision from the initial court, if the reasons for appealing include only legal grounds.
In any case, if the value of the case is lower than €5,000, no appeal can be brought.
As a rule, the process includes a notification of the intention to appeal (within the aforementioned 10 days), a notification by the court accepting the appeal, and the presentation of the grounds for appealing and conclusions, within 15 days after the notification by the court (for the applicant), and 15 days after the end of the deadline for the applicant to present the allegations, with respect to the defendant.
With respect to the likely timing for reaching a decision, it is somewhat difficult to estimate such deadline – in fact, it greatly depends on the complexity of the issue, as well as the court that is going to decide the appeal. Nonetheless, this tends to be a rather lengthy process, with decisions from the superior courts being reached 10 or even 15 years after the appeal.
breach of the audi alteram partem and 'equality of arms' principles.
In practice, most arbitration decisions are final.
Portuguese transfer pricing rules do not include any specific provisions for secondary adjustments and, in practice, we have not observed any attempt by the tax authorities to apply such adjustments.
Nevertheless, a case could be made that such adjustments could occur regarding customs, VAT or even stamp tax.
Regarding customs, for example, in the case of a transfer pricing post-year-end adjustment to the price paid for imported goods, the Portuguese customs rules establish that a post-importation change in the reported customs value due to such an adjustment always needs to be reported (even in situations where the duty rate is zero).
the post-closing adjustment decreases the price paid by the importer of the goods: should the transfer pricing adjustment decrease the price paid by the importer, a duty refund may be requested, within three years from the date of the taxable event, provided that the importer can provide proof to support the claim.
The administrative procedure for claiming a refund is the same as the one prescribed for other value-related corrections; however, the taxpayer should contact the customs authorities to seek guidance on how to proceed.
It should be noted that, although in theory an aggregate transfer pricing adjustment (i.e., an adjustment to the importer's profitability under a profit-based pricing method) may be relevant for adjusting the value of imported goods, the fact is that those types of adjustments rarely allow for a correction to the value of the goods for customs purposes.
As such, it is recommended that, should customs be a concern for the taxpayer, a transaction-by-transaction transfer pricing adjustment be made, in order to be relevant for revising the customs duties already paid.
There is also a relevant interaction between the customs authorities and the VAT tax authorities whenever a customs value increase or decrease is reported. In fact, in situations where a customs value increase is reported to the customs authorities, such an adjustment will automatically result in the assessment of additional VAT, if applicable; and where a customs value decrease is reported, the taxpayer needs to file a request in order to obtain a refund of overpaid VAT.
penalties ranging from 30 per cent up to 100 per cent of the VAT or customs duties owed, with a maximum of €45,000 per transaction, plus 4 per cent interest per annum.
These penalties may be reduced when a voluntary disclosure is made.
Regarding VAT, in situations where a post-year-end adjustment occurs, and the taxpayer wishes to adjust the value of the goods or services considered for VAT purposes correspondingly, the corrective invoice that performs the adjustment needs to meet all the requirements of an original invoice, plus a reference to the original invoices to which the adjustment refers, and a reference to the elements of the original invoices that are subject to modification.
Only corrective invoices that comply with these requirements may be considered in adjusting any original invoices that have already been submitted in the periodic VAT return.
On the other hand, if the corrective invoice reduces the taxable value of the transaction, also causing a reduction in the VAT initially paid, the taxpayer may correct the initial VAT amount, up to the end of the period subsequent to the one in which the circumstances giving rise to the correction occurred. Note, however, that this is not a mandatory regularisation.
If the corrective invoice results in more taxable value for the transaction, thus more VAT than the amount initially deducted, such regularisation is mandatory and can be done, without incurring penalties, until the end of the period subsequent to the one to which the original invoice refers. If this correction is not made by the prescribed deadline, the correction is still mandatory but then should take place in a replacement of the periodic VAT return for the period when the correct transaction should have occurred.
Regarding penalties, specific transfer pricing penalties (from €500 to €10,000) apply for failure to present transfer pricing documentation within the time frame determined by the tax authorities. Should the taxpayer be subject to a transfer pricing adjustment, no specific transfer pricing penalties apply.
In addition, depending on the circumstances, general tax penalties of up to €150,000 apply for refusal to provide information, or for providing incorrect or incomplete information.
Double taxation treaties signed by Portugal do include the possibility for taxpayers to invoke a mutual agreement procedure (MAP).
Also, as Portugal is a member of the European Union, the taxpayer may, whenever there is a tax dispute involving another member of the EU, invoke the EU Arbitration Convention (EUAC).
As a practical disadvantage, the MAP is a long process and, ultimately, the tax authorities are not obliged to reach a decision on eliminating double taxation. Therefore, whenever possible (i.e., when the dispute involves another member of the EU), it is highly recommended that the taxpayer invokes the EUAC, as there is an obligation to reach a decision within two years after all relevant documentation is filed (in practice, we have had some cases where an agreement has been reached within three to five years).
There are also some cases where the Portuguese tax authorities have even reached a decision to eliminate double taxation with respect to years already closed for inspection, under the good-faith and collaboration principle.
Portugal adopted several of the OECD recommended BEPS initiatives prior to the publication of the BEPS reports, and is following through with the implementation, when required, of the remaining ones.
The Portuguese tax authorities have become increasingly active in transfer pricing issues, developing more audits and focusing more on complex issues, namely intangibles, financial operations, systematic loss makers, branches and equity allocation. We have also observed an increase in the number of APAs under negotiation.
It is still too early to judge the impact of the adoption of the BEPS initiatives. Surely, the tax authorities have expectations that these new rules will effectively tackle several of the usual tax-optimisation structures that were set up by multinational enterprises to achieve greater tax efficiency. The complexity and subjectivity of some of the recommended measures could make achievement of that objective difficult. It is likely that significant changes in the way multinational enterprises operate will occur and empty structures with no substance will probably disappear, but they will probably be replaced by other structures in which part of the relevant functions focused on by BEPS will be developed, as well as the relevant risks assumed. Those structures will still seek to take advantage of taxation differentials between jurisdictions, which are not expected to disappear, as tax authorities and governments will still compete to attract investment and employment, and, as a consequence, tax revenues, through differential and attractive tax measure packages.
BEPS measures, namely the greater consistency deriving from the new documentation requirements and the new guidance, will probably increase and accelerate the already current trend of greater centralisation and greater automatisation and IT integration regarding transfer pricing policies and documentation, as opposed to the multiplicity of local policies aimed at adapting global policies to address local specificities of local transfer pricing rules. The digital economy is expected to be particularly affected by BEPS, although the divergences between the United States, European Union and OECD regarding this issue may imply lengthy negotiations and require adaptations to the current proposed measures.
1 Patrícia Matos is a partner and chartered accountant and Filipe de Moura is an associate partner at Deloitte & Associados, SROC, SA. | 2019-04-19T11:23:00Z | https://thelawreviews.co.uk/edition/the-transfer-pricing-law-review-edition-2/1171449/portugal |
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Summary: The main idea of IoT is making the devices and objects smarter by linking them to the internet. After introducing this concept and technology to the devices you use daily, they become more efficient and independent. If you are an amateur, you can start by building some basic IoT projects to understand their operations and functionalities. Arduino platform is the most suitable for you.
I’m sure you have heard of smart cities. But do you know? There is going to be 98 smart cities in India itself. This means, the water that flows through your faucet and the trash that you throw can now be managed smarter.
Now, have you ever wondered what makes these smart cities “smart”?
That’s right. It’s IoT, Internet of Things.
No wonder, IoT is currently the trending technology among all the industries of today. And developing a career on such an advanced technology had become a dream for a number of enthusiasts and engineers across the globe.
If you are one such enthusiast who want to develop skills on IoT, building hands on projects on IoT is a great way start.
Here are some good project ideas on IoT which are super easy for you to build and get started with IoT.
But before that, what is IoT?
The Internet of Things or IoT is a network or an ecosystem of interrelated ‘things' that interact and exchange data amongst one another. The ‘thing' may refer to computing devices, mechanical and digital machines, objects and even people.
Yes, you read that right. Even people can be part of IoT. A person connected to a heart monitor or life support is a real-life example.
Kevin Ashton, the co-founder of the Auto-ID Centre at MIT, was the first to mention the term “Internet of Things” in a presentation he made to Procter & Gamble (P&G) in 1999.
An article by Ashton published in the RFID Journal in 1999 said, "If we had computers that knew everything there was to know about things - using data they gathered without any help from us - we would be able to track and count everything, and greatly reduce waste, loss, and cost. We would know when things needed replacing, repairing or recalling, and whether they were fresh or past their best. We need to empower computers with their own means of gathering information, so they can see, hear and smell the world for themselves, in all its random glory."
That there is the exact concept behind IoT. It enables devices to interact with one another, share data and give output without manual intervention.
The IoT is an extended or evolved version of machine-to-machine or M2M communication. As the name suggests, M2M is a network of machine connected with each other that operate without human interaction. It refers to connecting a device to the cloud, managing it and collecting data.
IoT, an upgraded version of the M2M is a sensor network of a multitude of smart devices that connect people, systems and other applications to collect and share data.
IoT platform is a multi-layered technology that connects your hardware to the cloud by using flexible connectivity options, several security mechanisms, and data processing powers. It provides features that speed up the development of applications of connected devices.
It is referred as middleware which basically functions as a mediator between the hardware and application layers. It allows the IoT device to facilitate management, connectivity and network management, data and information analysis, processing, monitoring, and interfacing, among many other functions.
What are some of the latest devices of IoT?
Nest Smart Thermostat: The Nest Learning Thermostat is a smart thermostat developed by Nest Labs. The device is based on a machine learning algorithm i.e., it learns your family’s routines and will automatically adjust the temperature based on when you’re home or away, awake or asleep. It makes the house more efficient and helps save on heating and cooling bills and even conserve energy. It is electronic, programmable, and self-learning Wi-Fi-enabled thermostat.
Tile: With the increase in the number of things (keys, phone, laptop) that you carry to your office every day, do you often forget something? Well, then this device is just for you! It is a tiny device that you can embed to your laptop, mobile, wallet etc. It has real-time tracking with the help of IoT based mobile application. You can also loudly ring a lost item and find it by sound.
August Smart Lock: With the advent of this device you will never need keys again. This device unlocks the door as soon as you arrive at the front door and locks behind when you close the door. You can grant guest keys to friends or the dog sitter, and have them expire when you no longer want to give that person access to your house.
Petnet Smart Pet Feeder: Have a pet? Do you often worry about the nutrition it gets? Well, this device helps its user calculate the best type of food for their pet, how much they should be eating, and even sets up delivery of pet food for when it runs out. The smart feeder can be controlled via smartphone and can monitor your pet's food consumption even if you're away from home.
Kolibree Smart Toothbrush: Bet you’d never thought there would be a smart toothbrush existing. Yes, IoT extends to even the smallest of things like your toothbrush. This toothbrush connects to your smartphone and encourages good brushing habits for both adults and children. It turns brushing into a game and saves data on your phone regarding your brushing habits.
What are some of the latest IoT trends?
Smart Home Devices: These devices are soaring in popularity with each passing minute. Like some of the examples mentioned above like Smart Thermostat, or August Smart Lock. Even those who dismissed these devices as unnecessary and termed them as “for lazy people”, are tempted by this electronic wonder. They become highly intuitive and innovative, extending to not just home automation comfort but also home security and the safety of your family. They also have a huge play in conserving energy and hence, are important for efficient usage of electricity and various other resources which is colossally important for our future generations.
Healthcare: The advent of IoT into healthcare has seen some great wonders. According to data from Frost and Sullivan, the internet of medical things could be expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 26.2% and reach $72 billion by 2021.
IoT has numerous applications in healthcare, from remote monitoring to smart sensors and medical device integration. It has the potential to not only keep patients safe and healthy but also to improve how physicians deliver care as well.
IoT applications in Smart Cities: With the rapid increase in the population, the need for food, shelter, water, and other resources is also increasing. According to Gartner, approximately 70 percent of the world’s population is expected to live in cities by 2050. This poses a huge threat to our resources. Will there be enough for our future generations? Thankfully, IoT is here to help solve some of these issues.
The implementation of IoT on various smart city projects helps to optimize the usage of resources. Better optimizing will result in better distribution of resources without increasing the production mechanisms. For example, Smart Water Monitoring system will give us insights about the water consumption by the residents and help us in reducing leakage & wastage. This IoT technology alone will help us save huge quantities of water and provide an efficient solution to the water shortage problem. Sounds cool?
IoT in Wearables: Being one of the most popular ways of implementation of IoT, smart wearable devices have taken the market in a storm. Watches were earlier used just to indicate the time. Now, the real question is what can they not do? From counting the number of steps walked in a day and calories burned, to the heart rate of the user, these devices have exceptional functions. One can now even control their smartphones through the smartwatches.
IoT in Education: Implementing IoT in schools in the form of Smart Classes is a hallmark in the evolution of education. Learning will not be limited to just textbooks. Smart classes will see an increase in interactive learning. Students can definitely grasp more with visual learning. It also provides online classes with experts. Educational apps are also being introduced into classrooms to increase the efficiency of learning and teaching.
What is an IoT project?
The main idea of IoT is making the devices and objects smarter by linking them to the internet. After introducing this concept and technology to the devices you use daily, they become more efficient and independent.
Imagine a fridge that notifies you when there's no more milk or bread or a football that tells you the velocity with which it was kicked.
Sounds incredulous? Well, get used to it. Because with the advancement and introduction of IoT, more and more devices are getting smarter by each passing second. It is estimated that the total number of devices connected to the IoT will exceed 31 billion worldwide by 2020.
If you are an amateur, you can start by building some basic IoT projects to understand their operations and functionalities. Arduino platform is the most suitable for you.
1. Automated Street Lighting System using IOT: It is an Ideal course for beginners to understand the Internet of Things, automatic street lighting, Arduino architecture, and Arduino programming. In this project, you can develop a street light controlling mechanism which is automatic and depends on the intensity of the sunlight at that particular time of the day. Usage of this device will help to save a huge amount of power and make the lighting system more efficient. The on/off switch will be triggered by the system automatically depending on the data sent by LDR (Light Dependent Resistor) sensors. The data sent to the microcontroller will also be sent to the cloud for analysis to gain valuable insights about energy consumption.
You can now build your own Automated Street Lighting System with Arduino right at the comfort of your home using the kit we send you with the excellent video based course.
Click here for the video demonstration.
Smart Building System using IOT: With home automation now reaching great heights, the way we look at smart homes is changing day by day. Smart lighting system inside homes is a crucial part of home automation. Through this IOT project, you can develop an electronic device that will facilitate the switching on/off of the electrical appliances based on the people present inside the room. The system also records the number of occupants present inside the room and send the data to the cloud, which can be used for analysis.
You can now build your own Smart Building System using IOT & Arduino right at your home with the kit we send you and using the excellent video based course.
Smart Water Monitoring System using IOT: This IoT project gives an innovative solution to the difficulties of water management. With the increase of urbanization, it is extremely difficult to efficiently manage water consumption. That is where this device comes to play.
can be accessed anytime, anywhere for analysis purpose and efficient water consumption.
You can now build your own Smart Water Monitoring System using IOT and Arduino right at your home with the kit we send you and using the excellent video based course.
Smart Irrigation System using IOT: With the introduction of modern civilization, we are readily losing lots of natural resources. This poses a huge threat to modern farming. Using this particular IOT project you can achieve an efficient solution to this problem. The device uses a soil moisture sensor which detects the moisture content of the soil and sends the data to the Arduino. The Arduino then processes the data, and switches on/off the water pump accordingly. The data collected is sent to the cloud server using ESP-8266 Wi-Fi module for storage and analysis.
You can now build your own Smart Irrigation System using IOT and Arduino right at your home with the kit.
Weather Monitoring System using IOT: This project is best for all the nature lovers out there. This device can stream the temperature differences online. This project has a DHT (Digital Humidity Temperature) sensor which can record the temperature and humidity differences in the environment and sends the data to the Arduino Uno. All the data collected by the microcontroller will be sent to the cloud with the help of ESP-8266 (Wi-Fi module). The user can analyze the data from anywhere on earth.
You can now build this Weather Monitoring System using IOT and Arduino right at your home with the kit we send you and using the excellent video based course.
Click here for the Combo course of all the aforementioned projects with Skyfi Labs.
Weather Monitoring System using Raspberry Pi: This is an ideal course for beginners to understand IOT and Raspberry Pi. Apart from gaining practical skills on the Internet of Things, by doing this project you will learn about the Raspberry Pi development platform.
In this project, you can develop an electronic device that streams temperature and humidity data over the internet using Raspberry Pi and DHT sensor. You can also program the system in such a way that says whenever the temperature exceeds a certain limit, the device will automatically send an email notification!
Air and Noise Pollution Monitoring Device: With the exponential increase in the air and noise pollution, it has become very important to control and monitor the situation.
In this project, Raspberry Pi is used to monitor and check live the Air Quality Index and the sound pollution of a region. The technology includes two modules namely: The Air Quality Index Monitoring Module, the Sound Intensity Detection Module.
Firstly, the Air Quality Index is measured with consideration of the presence of the air pollutants and the sensor is used to identify the harmful gases in the air and it transmits the data to the microcontroller. Then the sound intensity is detected using the respective sensor and it keeps measuring sound level and reports it to the online server over IOT. The sensors interact with a microcontroller which processes this data and transmits it over the internet. This allows monitoring the air and noise pollution in different areas and takes action against it.
Theft Detection Device Project: This device helps secure tour homes and offices from theft using Raspberry Pi. It uses image processing on live video to detect theft using motion. It also highlights the area where the theft occurs.
It allows the user to view the theft details and saving the video of the theft in a USB drive. In this system, a camera along with a circuit with LCD display IR for night vision and USB drive for storage is used. As soon as camera detects motion, the system uses image processing to identify the exact area of motion occurrence and then highlights it accordingly. The system now transmits the images of the occurrence over IOT to be viewed by the user online.
Garbage Monitoring System: The IoT Garbage Monitoring System is designed to ease the problems faced while managing waste. The system allows the user to keep watch on the garbage bins by utilizing buzzer and IoT service. The system has a buzzer on it which sets off an alarm when the garbage bin is filled with waste. The user can also get updates about the wastage recycling from anywhere using IoT service.
Automatic Selfie Booth: This innovative system does not need users to click selfies, it automatically starts taking selfies and saves it in their pen drive using face recognition technique. It consists of a Raspberry Pi based system with a camera as well as a speaker. LED is interfaced through a PCB board to deliver this. The Raspberry Pi is used to detect human faces near the selfie booth. It then instructs the camera to start taking selfies at 2 seconds intervals until the user is still standing in front of it. It allows the user to attach a pen drive before starting image capture and saves all selfies in it.
Suppose, if you want to build great IoT based projects but don’t have the necessary technical knowledge, don’t worry!
We at Skyfi Labs have developed an innovative learning methodology through which you can learn latest technologies by building projects hands-on right from your home. With the hardware kits delivered to your doorstep and 1-1 technical assistance provided, developing great expertise on latest technologies like IoT will never be tough for you.
You can contact us at 1800-200-3855 if you need to talk to our expert team.
Comment your queries below, we will assist you at the earliest. | 2019-04-23T17:08:03Z | https://www.skyfilabs.com/blog/good-iot-project-ideas-for-enthusiasts |
Buffelgrass is the invasive species most likely to cause irreparable damage to Saguaro National Park.
Buffelgrass (Pennisetum ciliare, Cenchrus ciliaris), is the archenemy of the Sonoran Desert, the invasive grass most likely to cause significant damage to the native ecosystem. Buffelgrass is native to Africa, Asia, and the Middle East. This grass was intentionally brought to arid portions of the U.S. in the 1930s and was planted for cattle forage because of its drought tolerance.
In dry climates throughout the world, buffelgrass escaped from where it was planted and has established in places where it is unwanted -- natural areas, city parks, roadsides, and vacant lots. In the U.S., buffelgrass has been recorded in California, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma, Missouri, Louisiana, Florida, New York, Hawai'i, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands. In some areas, such as the Sonoran Desert of Arizona, buffelgrass is a highly invasive non-native weed and is officially listed and regulated as a noxious weed.
Natural desert ecosystems have open spaces.
Buffelgrass pastures were planted in and around Tucson in the late 1930s for cattle forage and erosion control. Since then, it has become established in both disturbed and undisturbed desert environments and is now recognized as a top threat to the Sonoran Desert ecosystem. Here at Saguaro National Park, buffelgrass was first detected in 1989 and is widely distributed throughout the desert portion of both districts.
Buffelgrass plants are prolific seeders and its seeds are easily transported by wind and water. Additionally, each seed has little bristles which allow it to easily hitch a ride on animals, people, bicycles, and vehicles.
Desert tortoises need open spaces to roam and forage.
The greatest threat that buffelgrass poses is that it can fuel wildfire; however, buffelgrass is able to severely and irreversibly alter that desert ecosystem even without fire. Buffelgrass grows in dense patches, crowding out and competing with native plants for nutrients, water, and sunshine. Open spaces between native vegetation fill with buffelgrass, occupying areas where one typically sees wildflowers bloom. Dense bufflegrass patches alter the habitat for desert animals and inhibit the growth of native plant forage. With increases in buffelgrass, we stand to lose plant and animal diversity, including some of our Sonoran Desert signature species.
Buffelgrass burns hot enough to kill native plants and animals.
The threat of fire is very real, with habitat, homes, and lives at risk. Our desert plants and animals did not evolve with fire and therefore, are not adapted to it. Fire can kill or severely damage much of the Sonoran Desert vegetation upon which animals depend on for food and shelter. Typical desert vegetation is sparse, so a fire would not spread and would quickly extinguish itself because of the lack of fuel. Natural desert fires are often caused by dry lightning strikes during our summer monsoon season. In a natural ecosystem severe impacts are unlikely during this time due to high humidity and probable rainfall.
Normal fuel loads are several times lower than fuel loads when buffelgrass is present.
With buffelgrass filling in the spaces between native plants, fire can carry over a continuous stand of vegetation. Buffelgrass evolved with fire and thrives under repeated burning. In the event of a desert fire, native plants would be killed or injured, while buffelgrass would survive and resprout. Such an event would result in additional buffelgrass plants replacing native plants, thus producing more fuel for another fire. This is termed a grass-fire cycle which increased the frequency, size, and intensity of fires over time.
Peak temperatures reached over 1600° F.
Average temperature was between 1300-1400° F.
Tallest flame height was 25 feet.
Average flame heights were 8.5 to 11 feet.
Rate of fire spread was 1.4-3.0 mph (with wind speeds of 4-9 mph).
Fuel loads (biomass of buffelgrass) varied from 1 to 6 tons per acre.
These experimental burns provided an excellent opportunity for firefighters to experience firsthand how quickly the fire could move and how hot it could burn; hot enough to melt tin, zinc, and aluminum. While the fire did not spread at an alarming rate on the flat ground, a buffelgrass fire in the mountain foothills would move much faster. This has many firefighters concerned. Outrunning such a fire would not be an option. Watch a video clip of the test burn below.
Test burn of buffelgrass in Avra Valley.
In the Santa Catalina Mountain foothills, buffelgrass infestations threaten habitat and homes.
Outside the park, buffelgrass threatens homes, property, and lives. It now grows in urban and suburban areas, roadsides, empty fields, washes, creosote flats, and other natural areas. Establishing itself particularly in subdivisions in the foothills of the Santa Catalina Mountains, buffelgrass presents a greater threat to safety, structures, utility poles, and other improvements.
Homes and buildings that are embedded in buffelgrass or near dense patches of buffelgrass are at high risk. Tucson's Rural Metro Fire Department has been urging resident to remove buffelgrass from around their homes to create a defensible space.
Buffelgrass is susceptible to herbicide only when it is mostly green, which is a few weeks per year.
Our goal is to slow the spread of buffelgrass in order to protect native habitat and to manage fire risk in the park. At the present time, buffelgrass is so widespread throughout the park that complete eradication is not possible. Buffelgrass is here for now, but so is our determination to keep fighting. From our small successes, we have proven that buffelgrass can be controlled and native communities will recover, provided the infestations are removed in a consistent and timely manner.
Management of buffelgrass includes mapping and inventory, manual and chemical control, monitoring, research, prevention, and adaptive management strategies. Preventing buffelgrass from establishing in new locations within the park is a challenge because seeds can be dispersed by wind and travel long distances. We try to create a buffer between the park and established urban buffelgrass populations through cooperation with local departments of transportation and park neighbors.
We map and inventory buffelgrass to determine where it is and how fast the grass is spreading so that we can make informed decisions for applying resources to control the spread. Mapping and inventorying are ongoing tasks. Park staff and volunteers opportunistically map buffelgrass when they are hiking the trails and they also systematically map buffelgrass in a pre-established grid manner, covering large sections of the park's interior. The park conducted a second round of aerial mapping from a helicopter using digital sketch-mapping in 2012. All mapping efforts utilize global positioning systems (GPS) and geographic information systems (GIS).
Mapped treatments and infestations of buffelgrass within both district of the park. Click image for more detail.
Pick-mattocks, and other tools, are used to remove the entire plant, so that it does not resprout from the roots.
We control buffelgrass either by hand pulling or by spraying the plants with herbicide. Buffelgrass is only susceptible to herbicide when it is over 50% green and growing, which is usually only a few weeks during the monsoon season and sporadically after winter rains. During this time, well-training, physically capable crews hike into rugged backcountry terrain to spray buffelgrass with glyphosate-based herbicides. They wear personal protective equipment and carry heavy back pack sprayers. We spray dense patches of buffelgrass that are too remote or too hazardous for people to reach on the ground with a helicopter.
Hand pulling can be done year-round. Digging bars, picks, and rock hammers are used to dig and lift the roots out with the plant, so that it will not later resprout from the roots.
Both methods of buffelgrass control are successful. However, repeat visits to the treated areas are necessary because of viable seed in the soil. We have found that it takes at least three years of biannual visits to eliminate buffelgrass from a particular site. We evaluate the success of our control efforts by measuring the change in the amount of buffelgrass coverage, before and after control efforts.
All of these control methods were throughly documentented, researched, and appoved as part of an Environmental Assessment, which resulted in a Restoration Plan in 2014. It is by these approved guidelines that the park determines which treatment methods are appropriate in each area where buffelgrass is present.
Before (above) and after (below) shots of Javelina Hill showing the extent of the infestation and the success at removing and keeping it clear of buffelgrass.
We started hand-pulling buffelgrass in the early 1990s, but our efforts could not keep pace with the rate at which buffelgrass spreads (our current estimates have roughly 1,800 acres of untreated buffelgrass within the park's boundaries). In 2005, we began using herbicide to control buffelgrass and increasingly found success. Each year we manage to knock back infestations in some areas, allowing for us to expand our treatments to new locations. In 2011, park staff and volunteers surveyed over 2,800 acres for invasive plants and treated a total of 140 acres using manual and chemical treatments. In 2014, we surveyed over 9,000 acres throughout all of our projects, treating invasive plants on 165 of those acres. After 4 to 6 years of annual treatments, sites are complete, but will require periodic monitoring for any new established plants. The hill to the east of Javelina Picnic Area in the Rincon Mountains (pictured on the left) is one area we call a success.
In 2014, after seeing buffelgrass increase unchecked in areas too remote or dangerous for people on foot to reach, the park began using a helicopter to spray buffelgrass infestations in these areas.
Volunteer efforts have contributed substantially to our successes in buffelgrass removal.
Before (above) and after (below) of the 11 acre patch near Freeman Homestead. This patch was pulled almost exclusively by volunteers once a month from 2007-2012.
The second Saturday of every month (September through May), volunteers gather to remove patches of buffelgrass. One of many successes is the Freeman Homestead patch where 464 volunteeers contributed over 2,800 hours to remove an 11 acre patch.
Weed Free Trails volunteers monitor the trails below 5,000 feet elevation for several invasive plants that threaten the park, mapping and pulling as they encounter them. In 2013, volunteers monitored over 1,000 miles of trails.
Civic, social, work groups, and youth organizations also volunteer to assist in buffelgrass removal.
Our successes give us hope because, even though the task seems daunting, we have shown that we can effectively control localized buffelgrass populations.
The park participates in community events providing educational information about buffelgrass and other invasive species. Stop by a park booth to pick up some informational freebies. We also give presentations to homeowners associations and community, educational, and environmental groups.
Green buffelgrass often has reddish to purple seedheads. These seedheads turn golden as the plant dries.
Download our buffelgrass identifcation sheet.
Buffelgrass is a perennial grass that grows in dense messy-looking clumps. It sprouts new green (typically lime green) growth with adequate moisture and produces bottlebrush-like flowers. The flowers are red or purple when they are young and turn tan as they mature. White hairs can be seen at the base of a leaf blade, right where it diverges from stem (this area is called the ligule).
When the plant is dormant, it turns golden and may appear dead (don't be fooled!). Another distinctive characteristic is that the stem the individual seeds are attached to (the rachis) is rough and zigzagged. Click here to see what a buffelgrass rachis looks like compared to the rachis of some common native grasses.
Please watch Welcome to the Buffelgrass Patch, our informational video where we take you to a small infestation in the park and talk about identification, removal, and the effects buffelgrass has on the landscape and the economy.
Volunteer to remove buffelgrass at a Second Saturday buffelgrass pull. You will be trained in how to identify buffelgrass and safely remove it. This is a great way to get outside and help protect the park.
Participate in our Weed Free Trails program. This is a wonderful opportunity to hike the trails and keep them free of buffelgrass and other invasive plants.
Please do not remove buffelgrass or other invasive plants in the park if you are not an official volunteer. To become a volunteer, email us.
What to do if you have buffelgrass on your property.
To learn more about buffelgrass and how to get involved, schedule a buffelgrass presentation for your community group (neighborhood/homeowner association, civic or religious group, etc). Contact the Pima County Environmental Education Department or call (520) 615-7855.
Organize a neighborhood buffelgrass removal event.
Report buffelgrass in Pima County.
Buffelgrass is native to Africa and countries in the Middle East and Asia, where it is part of savanna grasslands with sparse trees. Buffelgrass is not invasive in its native habitat because herbivores such as zebra and antelope graze on the grass and keep it in check. Frequent fires are part of the native savanna's natural ecosystem processes. The trees and grasses are adapted to withstand hot fires and will resprout.
Buffelgrass was brought to the southwest by the U.S. Soil Conservation Service for cattle forage and erosion control. Several varieties of buffelgrass were planted in test fields in southern Arizona. It is the "common" variety or T-4464 that established the best and has since escaped from the test fields. Common buffelgrass can reproduce without pollination, so new offspring are genetically identical to the parent plant.
Until recently, Texas A&M University was conducting agricultural research on buffelgrass to develop more robust and cold-hearty strains. These varieties have been released in Texas and Mexico.
Because buffelgrass is able to grow in poor soils, withstand drought, and provide cattle forage, this grass can be an ideal plant in marginal agricultural areas. Buffelgrass has allowed many ranchers in Mexico to make a living on land that has been converted to buffelgrass pastures. In central Sonora, Mexico, over one million hectares of native desert thorn scrub have been converted to buffelgrass pastures for cattle and livestock. The benefit to individuals and the economy from beef sales make buffelgrass a friend in Mexico, though it is still ecologically devastating. Texas also uses buffelgrass for cattle forage.
Buffelgrass is considered an enemy to the Sonoran Desert in Arizona due to the threats to human life and the enviroment. Hawai'i and the Pacific Islands also consider buffelgrass to be a foe. For most buffelgrass-inhabited areas in the U.S., the threats outweigh the benefits, and efforts are made to control populations.
Buffelgrass has been in Australia longer that it has been in the Southwest, so we have an opportunity to learn from their experience. Buffelgrass was first introduced to Australia accidentally in the 1870s, originating from seeds in stuffing for camel saddles. Later, buffelgrass was harvested and seeds were sown for forage, but the establishment remained localized. In the mid-20th century, buffelgrass was introduced on a larger scale, providing cattle forage and reclamation of damaged grazing lands. Unfortunately, as in the U.S., bufflegrass escaped its plantings. Today there are tens of millions of hectares of buffelgrass in Australia, much of which were not intentionally planted.
While buffelgrass has improved livestock production and brought economic benefits to many parts of Australia, it is now considered to be a major environmental weed, a Category One species (a terrestrial species capable of destroying an ecosystem), with extensive continental distribution. Computer modeling shows that buffelgrass has the potential to expand across more than 60% of mainland Australia. The models show buffelgrass invading much of the arid north. There is more moisture in southern Australia, and buffelgrass does not appear to outcompete native plants in moister soils.
Some of the threats buffelgrass brings to Australia are similar to those in the Sonoran Desert. Australia is concerned with the loss of plant and animal biodiversity, loss of signature species, more frequent and intense fires, and the threat to lives and property. They expect negative economic impacts from loss of tourism and increases in buffelgrass management costs. There are also concerns in Australia that we might consider. Buffelgrass may change water infiltration into the soil as well as surface flow, blocking drainages and increasing flooding. It also threatens the traditional food plants of Aboriginal people.
The Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum has a lot of information about buffelgrass http://www.desertmuseum.org/buffelgrass/ and what can be done about it, plus some of the other serious non-native pests http://www.desertmuseum.org/invaders/.
To understand the magnitude of the threat and what the community is doing, watch the video Buffelgrass: Its Threat to the Sonoran Desert and Our Will to Stop It.
Tucson Clean and Beautiful https://tucsoncleanandbeautiful.org/buffelgrass-education-removal/ also has information about buffelgrass and provides opportunities to help fight it. | 2019-04-25T08:55:35Z | https://www.nps.gov/sagu/learn/nature/buffelgrass.htm |
You’ve likely done a lot of work to get to the point in the sales cycle where you have secured a request for a proposal, so it is crucial that you finish strong. In this chapter, we’ll cover what to include in your proposals, and how to present them to ensure you have the best chance of getting a signature from your client.
When it comes to writing, knowing the building blocks of a great proposal can be your key to success. We’ll outline what is important to include, and how to effectively match the complexity of your proposal to the complexity of the project. Additionally, we’ll explore how to best tailor your proposal for different types of clients. Together, these factors will set you up for a strong proposal presentation.
Presenting your proposal provides you a final opportunity to make your case as to why you are the right team or person for the job. In this chapter, you’ll take away some key considerations and best practices for your presentation, including how to best play to your audience, sticking your ground on pricing, and protecting your profit margins. These tactics will put you in a position to win and create the most value for your client — all while securing a profitable project for your business.
Getting proposal writing right is crucial. When done correctly, this document should summarize your understanding of the client’s business, their goals, the project, and why you are the best choice for the job.
There’s no exact formula for writing a great proposal, but there are some general rules of thumb that can help guide you. Here are two rules that our team swears by, which should help improve the quality of your proposal, and the likelihood of winning the project.
It’s important to keep the correlation between project scope and level of detail in mind when going into the proposal-writing stage of your sales cycle. Generally, the larger the budget, the more detailed the proposal should be.
Prospective clients with small budgets and project scope don’t need a full song and dance; simply a proposal made up of a few pages or less, discussing what they’re going to get, pricing details, and anticipated timelines. Small and medium-sized businesses usually don’t have a dedicated marketing director, which means you’re dealing with the owner of the business whose main concern is keeping the lights on — so cutting to the chase about pricing and results is usually the more effective approach.
Prospective clients with small budgets and project scope don’t need a full song and dance.
On the other hand, brands with larger budgets (midsize and enterprise level) and projects of larger scope will require a significantly more nuanced and detailed proposal. In this scenario, you are most likely dealing with a Director, VP, and/or C-level executive. With more sophisticated requirements comes the necessity to provide more detail around how your services will address pain points and accomplish objectives.
For example, if you have someone who is looking to migrate an existing website from one platform to another, the client is going to be concerned with factors such as SEO, downtime, integrations setup, ongoing costs, and more. You’ll want to speak to these concerns with the right amount of specificity to ensure that the client has no doubt that you’re going to execute effectively. In these scenarios, the financial investment in the project will be higher, and more decisionmakers will be involved.
For more straightforward projects, you should be able to address any concerns in your early conversations within the sales cycle, so that when you get to the proposal, all of those things have been hammered out and you’re really focused on getting your estimate approved.
1. What are your budget expectations?
Bottom line: You don’t want to waste anyone’s time (yours or the prospective clients). Understanding the budget at the front end of the process allows you to quickly understand whether or not the project is worth pursuing, as well as the ability to correlate budget with scope.
2. What is your target launch date and/or timeline expectations?
Again, if the client has an unrealistic expectation regarding timeline, the project might not be the right fit for you. With this knowledge early on, you have the opportunity to 1) address any unrealistic expectations, and 2) effectively work backwards from the proposed launch date when mapping out the project timeline in your proposal.
3. What is your design aesthetic?
It’s good to know ahead of time if the prospective client has a specific design aesthetic in mind, so that you can sprinkle that into the design process where applicable. See if there are any websites that they like, and have them send links with notes on what they like about them if you can.
4. What integrations are needed?
This is an important variable that can have an impact on budget and timeline. You will want to secure a list of their current website integrations so that you can effectively estimate the level of effort needed for them on the new platform you’re going to produce.
Before putting your proposal together, you first need to understand the client and their business challenges as much as possible. Put yourself in their shoes. This is vital in order to create a highly effective, personalized, and ultimately project-winning proposal.
Potential clients are likely going to fall into one of two buckets.
Some potential clients will have experience leading digital projects, and won’t need super granular details in your proposal because all those items have been discussed ahead of time in the sales process. Those clients just need to feel confident that you understand their core business goals, desired results, timeline, and budget expectations. When dealing with savvy clients, you can feel comfortable opting for a lightweight, condensed version of your proposal — so long as the core details have been discussed in advance.
On the other hand, there are going to be plenty of times where the client isn’t as savvy, and will need a lot of hand holding to ensure they understand the breadth and depth of your proposal. In this case, they may also need to run the proposal up the food chain for scope, budget, and timeline approval. This is a scenario where you’re most likely going to want to dig a little deeper into the core details of your project and implementation plan. Doing so will help build confidence with the client, and arm them with the right amount of ammunition to ensure the appropriate approvals are secured, and that they choose to work with you.
These rules, while not hard and fast, provide a solid guide for you to follow. The bottom line is this: put yourself in the shoes of your prospective client, ask the right questions up front, and tailor the complexity of your proposal based on project scope.
You don’t want to overwhelm your client with a ton of unnecessary detail in your proposal. Keep things simple and try to showcase that you clearly understand their goals, objectives, timeline, and budget expectations. Different clients will have different needs, so feel them out as much as you can prior to submitting your proposal. Doing so will ensure that you have a strong grasp of what information should be included to ensure you close the deal.
Keep it simple. Client name, project name, name/title of the person you are presenting the proposal to, your name/title, and date. The cover page also provides an opportunity to integrate your brand assets and/or your client’s, through the usage of logos, color palettes, and other design elements.
You’ve put a lot of thought into the details of your proposal. It doesn’t hurt to request that the prospective client keep the information you’ve provided confidential, especially considering you may have included some relevant client case studies. A brief statement like, “we appreciate you keeping any concepts, pricing, and sensitive client information confidential” will do the trick.
This section is really the central nervous system of your proposal. It’s an at-a-glance area where you’re demonstrating your deep understanding of the project requirements, goals, objectives you will be accomplishing, your vision for the project, and why you are the best choice for the job.
Process: Provide an overview of your strategy as well as design and/or development process. This will allow your prospective client to visualize themselves in the process, and get an understanding of how things will flow.
Capabilities: Highlight your firm’s relevant skill set. Place focus on the specializations that are relevant to the project directly, as well as highlighting subsequent offerings to consider in the future.
Fee/rate structure: Provide an overview of your hourly and/or task-based rates for reference.
Team composition: Showcase how your team will be structured as it relates to providing the most value to your prospective client.
Nine times out of ten, folks are going to flip right to your estimate first. That said, it’s still crucial that all the information provided in your proposal should reinforce why your estimate is what it is. Break up your fees section in the most easy-to-digest way possible. Based on your pricing strategy of choice, a simple table that outlines each phase of the project, along with the associated projected hours and costs, should do the trick.
You want your best advocates and champions listed here. The more relevance to the type of company that your prospective client has, the better. Provide the name, title, company, email address, and phone number for each reference listed. Feel free to include written testimonials in this section as well.
It’s always best to secure some time with the client in order to walk them through your proposal. This gives you the opportunity to showcase why you’re the best team for the job, while also addressing any questions or concerns they may have regarding the details of the proposal. Do this in person if at all possible, but if not, a video chat or phone call is the next best option.
Why face-to-face? It’s all about relationship building. Not only will you get some extra face time, you’ll also be able to address any questions or concerns regarding your proposal in real-time — building trust and confidence with your prospect. Clients will almost always choose to work with a person or team with whom they trust, and have developed a personal relationship with, even if the price is slightly more expensive than the others.
As already mentioned, it’s all about relationship building. This will allow you to get face time with all the key players, address their questions, showcase your expertise, and demonstrate why you are the best choice for the job. Be confident (not cocky), make eye contact, and connect with your audience on a personal level. Personality is one of the variables in the buying process for your prospective client, so show them how working with you will be a pleasurable experience.
Different stakeholders are going to be focused on specific pieces of the project. Anticipate those needs ahead of time so that you can build confidence throughout the presentation. Also, try to get a sense of the personalities in the room as best you can before going in for the pitch. That way, you can showcase that you’re not only the most qualified developer for the job, but you’re also someone that they will enjoy working with on a day-to-day basis. Sometimes, this alone can be a deciding factor on whether you win or lose a project.
It’s not necessary to go through every word in your proposal for the presentation. Stick to the items in your proposal that will be most important to the client. Demonstrate your understanding of the project scope and your vision for the project, as well as how you will accomplish goals/objectives within the projected timeline, and for the price estimated.
As you flow through your presentation, be sure to take a quick pause at key points to see if anyone has questions. This allows you to address any questions or concerns regarding the information you just reviewed, but also allows for some interaction with your audience. Although you definitely want structure to your presentation, it’s important to make it conversational as well.
Throughout this book, you’re going to hear this advice again and again: stop selling on a discounted model, and start selling on the value you’ll bring.
Let’s face it — some clients are going to be more price sensitive than others. In fact, many are more cost-conscious than value-conscious. There are many variables that play a role in price sensitivity, such as provided budget, payment schedules / “payment spread,” end of fiscal year budgets, etc. This is why it’s always a good idea to ask about budget expectations at the front end of the sales cycle. This way, you can make an educated decision as to whether or not you want to pursue the opportunity or take a pass. The last thing you want to do is waste your time, or the client’s time, if the right budget isn’t allocated for the project.
The last thing you want to do is waste your time, or the client’s time, if the right budget isn’t allocated for the project.
If you feel good about the proposed budget expectation for the project, then it’s on you to clearly articulate why your estimate is in line with the value that you bring to the table. Sure, we’ve all been in a place where you need to get deals in the door to stay afloat, but if you’re at a point where you’ve grown out of that stage, you should stick your ground on price. If you’re not there yet, do what you need to do to get there ASAP. That will provide you with the leverage to say yes to the projects that fit, and no to the ones that don’t. Ensure that there is enough wiggle room in your pricing model so that you can negotiate a bit if necessary, without digging into your margin too much.
Here’s another tip. Clients often say, “I don’t have a budget” or, “tell me the budget.” In cases like these, we always let clients know what our minimum budget is, and also provide them with an average budget (usually a range) for completed projects of a similar scope. This information is always accompanied with the caveat that the range provided will depend on the final scope of work required. Do this early to ensure you and your potential clients are aligned on price, before spending a lot of time on the proposal process.
If I were to summarize all of this into one bottom-line statement, it would be this: focus on the value you bring to the table over price, but always make sure to qualify clients early on to avoid wasting everyone’s time.
The responsibility we all share to positively influence our industry is immense, and we don’t even realize it. If we all do things the right way, we can influence an entire industry towards a better future.
Between the support team at Shopify and the ever-expanding list of industry experts, there are a wealth of folks out there to bounce ideas off and share best practices with. In the end, we’re all doing what we can to make web design and ecommerce better for business owners.
Dialing in your process by gleaning insights from every sales cycle should be standard practice for everyone. Not only will it help you close more deals, but — without even realizing it — it can help provide a positive light on our industry as a whole.
Just as you would work to test and optimize within client projects, you should be continually finding ways to refine your proposal process to ensure you’re always putting your best foot forward in every opportunity.
Discounting work only devalues the industry. If you look at other service professionals, such as doctors, lawyers, architects, landscapers (the list goes on and on), they all “charge what they charge” and don’t apologize for it. We, as industry professionals, should always sell on the quality and value of our work and processes. We’re worth it, and the more we all sell at a high level and with confidence, the more our industry will grow.
Anshey Bhatia is the founder of Verbal+Visual. He’s a self-professed commerce nerd, people connector, travel junkie, and tech lover. | 2019-04-24T04:41:13Z | https://www.shopify.co.uk/partners/guides/grow-vol-3/how-to-write-a-proposal-web-design |
Allergy season is officially here. The warmer weather does not only bring with it the outdoor adventures but also the flea burden, risk of mites and/or tick infestation, and the unavoidable exposure to a multitude of pollen and grass.
It can be quite stressful watching your dog obsessively chewing his/her feet or scratching his/her flank.
1. What do you feed your dog? Have you recently changed his/her diet?
2. Is your pet up to date with flea control? Yes, which one?
3. Do you live on a property? Any possible access to foxes or a range of plants/bushes?
4. Has your dog ever had any skin issues before?
5. Do you bathe your dog? How often? When did you do it last? What product did you use?
I always take a deep breath before embarking on a skin consult. My primary concern is overwhelming my clients with all my questioning. I do my best to explain why each and every question is relevant. It always seems easier handling a client with a dog that has had its first skin flareup. However, for those clients who are frequent flyers, some can be quite understandably fed up with the whole interrogation process.
I would really like to start by saying that a really good veterinarian will not offer you the quick fix solution.
That’s easy, they can give your dog or cat a cortisone injection and send you on your merry way with a 1-2 week oral course of cortisone. The itching will stop and you will feel instant relief. However, the underlying problem would not have been addressed. After the cessation of the cortisone, your pet will more often than not have a relapse and you are back to square one. You have to fork up money for another vet visit. I often wonder if owners are pre-warned about the significant side effects that cortisone can cause their much loved pets. Just like in people, cortisone leads to increased eating, drinking and retention of water. In dogs, it can also unleash aggression. The risk with cortisone is increased with prolonged and repeated dosing and can even cause iatrogenic cushings or diabetes which are serious medical conditions.
I don’t want to get on my soap box about cortisone being the enemy in treating skin issues. In reality, short term use of corticosteroids is definitely warranted in the early management of many skin cases like flea allergy dermatitis. Dogs that come in with self inflicted hair loss and thickening around the base of their tail combined with a flea burden will always need cortisone to dampen the overstimulated immune response. I often examine those flea allergy dermatitis cases after they have already been treated with appropriate flea control like Frontline, Revolution, Advantage or Advocate and they are still very itchy. These dogs are free of fleas but their body is still in a state of war against the previous exposure to a flea. Hence, the only solution is to cool off their immune system with some cortisone.
During these in-depth skin consultations, I often get unstuck when I get clients misunderstanding my intentions.
They think I just want to sell them flea control products or a new diet to make an extra buck.
I am secretly gratified when some of these clients are adamant their dogs don’t have fleas and I reveal to them a hidden stash of them on their pets. I often wonder if they actually think I planted these live fleas on their pets just to prove a point, hehehe. I personally have had to prescribe cortisone in many cases, some of which I wasn’t particularly happy about. The animal was clearly suffering from a severe itch and his/her owners could only afford the dirt cheap cortisone tablets.
If your dog stops itching when you have asked him/her to, then maybe he is just doing it out of habit. Yes some pets can become obsessive compulsive about chewing themselves purely from a medical behavioural point of view but those cases are not as common as you may think! Before you can assume it is a compulsive disorder, a full skin workup must be done to rule out any underlying skin condition.
Food allergy isn’t always due to a sudden change in food. Your pet’s body may have been exposed to that particular allergen for some time and has suddenly developed a reaction to it. The most common age for dogs to develop food allergies is between 5 and 8 years of age. Veterinary dermatologists will ALWAYS ensure your pet has been on an appropriate food elimination diet (4-6 week duration) before they rule out food allergy as a possible cause forpet’s skin issues.
We can’t always diagnose your pet’s skin condition in a single consultation especially if it has been long standing. Some cases can be quickly diagnosed in the consultation via a skin examination or skin scraping like flea or mite infestation. Others are often much more complicated and can be multifactorial and can take several weeks to months to definitively diagnose. Chaos below had a classical distribution of skin lesions indicating he was suffering from mange. We did some skin scrapings and were instantly able to diagnose him and start appropriate treatment.
Flea collars and supermarket flea products don’t work effectively. Flea collars definitely stop fleas from jumping onto your pet’s head and neck. However, these cheeky fleas have learnt they can escape the collar’s potency if they chill out around your pet’s bottom end. Supermarket flea products are cheaper for a reason; the quality of the product pays the price. Please be careful not to use a supermarket dog applicant on your cat as it can kill your cat > read Poison is Poison about this issue.
The cheapest and best option for your pet’s skin allergy is not getting him/her onto cortisone as soon as the skin flares up. The only means to truly nipping it in the bud is trying to get to the crust of the problem! Yes this may cost more upfront with the workup: skin scrapings or even biopsies, culture of specific lesions, food elimination trial, introduction of a healthier diet that better supports your pet’s skin & so forth. However, if you tally up the all up costs of cortisone and frequency of visits to the vets with the full skin workup & in most cases the diagnosis and appropriate management of your pet’s specific condition, you will realise it would have always been cheaper to properly workup your pet.
If you bathe your dog enough, you can definitely rid him of that awful dog smell. That is so far from the truth! If anything, the more you bathe your dog, the more you rid him of his essential skin oils that support his skin barrier; this can make him/her prone to major skin flareups. You must always make sure to use a pet registered shampoo and keep in mind that your pet may potentially react to a specific shampoo. You shouldn’t bathe your dog more than once a fortnight or a month.
I have only touched on a fraction of the information I would like to share with you about skin issues in your pet.
Stay tuned for more in depth discussions about the intricacies of managing some skin disorders in pets.
Next time, I will be talking all about gorgeous Lucy (pictured above), a 5 year old female de-sexed golden retriever, with some nasty dermatological issues . I am currently fostering and managing Lucy’s skin issues and will be giving you insight from both a veterinary and client perspective!
← I’m a vet and I love it..
So glad to see that you’re back. Yes, I remember the incident where you did your best and posted the story (with the family’s permission), only to be shot down in flames. Don’t worry. We all know you were doing your best. Don’t let it bring you down. I look forward to your posts and have missed them while you were gone. There’s always good information for pet owners. I look forward to more postings.
Is it possible for a dog to be an allergies sufferer WITHOUT the scratching bit? That is my big question. Jasmine gets episodes of panting/pacing/distress which so far we were unable to find an answer for.
Eventually, if the episode lasts long enough, she will lick and chew at her front feet. But the episode has to last 5 hours minimum. (duration random between 30 minutes to 36 hours). Her vet is quite convinced that this comes from allergies (histamine release leading to panting and increase in temperature, itching causing the pacing) but it does not match what we are seeing and how we understand allergies. Jasmine is not an itchy dog! She is the least itchy member of the household! So this has been a major dilemma for us.
Hey Jana. I apologize about the late reply but I found your message in my spam. Firstly,I am so sorry to hear about Jasmine’s panting episodes.In all honesty, I think allergy sufferers usually display obvious scratching or chewing episodes. They mostly develop skin lesions.
I have a few questions: how old is Jasmine, is she desexed, how long has she developed these episodes, is there a pattern to them, is there a trigger, are they seasonal?
She seems either painful or distressed in the video.
Has you veterinarian done full bloods, chest and abdominal xrays?
I would be fully working her up. She sounds like a very complex case but the answer is there somewhere. I hope this information is helpful.
I’m so glad you are back. Sorry we had to miss out on two of your posts – I really find them extremely helpful and useful. You are doing such fantastic work and I truly appreciate the effort you put into each post.
Looking forward to hearing all the updates on Lucy and hope she is getting better fast.
I am very touched with your lovely comment. Thank you for appreciating my work.
Wonderful shot of Lucy – wet doggies do not always make good photo subjects, but Lucy’s portrait is a good one.
Two posts in one day! It’s the best day ever!
Owners these days may not know how lucky they are. There are so many great products for treating and preventing fleas, there are hypo-allergenic diets, there are effective medications. Skin issues make such a difference in the quality of life! I can’t imagine spending every single day itching like mad. I agree that the quick approach isn’t necessarily the best one.
Heather you make a great point. There are a range of products now available that weren’t a few years back to help support you pet’s skin. Scratching non-stop is a form of suffering for your pet and must be addressed.
We lost a much loved dog to skin issues many years ago. She was badly allergic to fleas, and we tried everything available at the time, including dusting the yard with pesticides. She was allergy tested at the university and had specially formulated allergy shots, but one flea bite was all it took. A few years after her death, truly effective flea control came on the market. Had it come out earlier, it could have saved her life. We are so lucky now!
Hey Heather. It is very sad that you had to lose your dog. It is just unbearable to watch them struggling with a severe itch.
Wonderful to have you back to blogging. Great post… We had a lab he is long gone now but he suffered from horrific allergies I cooked rice and hamburger, carrots, vacummed packed last 2 years of his life. Took a long time to find out what he was allergic to corn, wheat, lamb and chicken were huge triggers.
Thanks for sharing you personal experience with your labrador. It is definitely not easy to determine the food triggers and can be quite a long process. Some dogs’ skin issues can be very challenging to workup especially if they have not been addressed in the early stages or are food related.
My Lhasa Apso suffered terribly from a skin condition and it took us a long time to find a vet to actually diagnose her. By that time she had hardly any fur left and had weeping lesions all over her body (secondary infections). Apparently she had demodex mites and her immune system was not working properly to cope with them. My vet treated her with Ivomec over a period of a few months, going back for skin scrapings, etc., but it did the trick. She made a full recovery.
I will be very interested to read your further posts on skin problems Rayya – the information will be helpful to so many pet owners dealing with this.
Thanks for talking about your dog’s condition and highlighting the challenges you faced in her diagnosis. I wonder why the first vet didn’t do a skin scraping. Did she have sarcoptic or demodectic mange? With sarcoptes, if you don’t find a mite on the skin scraping, it doesn’t mean you have ruled it out as opposed to demodectic mange.
We often get skin consults referred to our clinic. We definitely make sure to address all the issues and often book a minimum of half an hour consult period. This allows us sufficient time to appropriately workup any challenging skin cases. We often require regular revisits in the initial period to ensure our patient is responding to our treatment. I will definitely endeavor to tackle the skin discussion pretty well.
Penny had demodectic mange, Rayya and none of the vets we took her to did a skin scraping until we found a vet called Willeke who was as caring and thorough as you are (she reminds me of you).
She treated Penny for months until she got on top of the problem, doing regular skin scrapings, etc., so we became quite close and will be forever grateful to her; sadly for us, she is no longer a vet – she went on to become a human doctor.
Is the reason for asking about Foxes because of Mange? When Midnight my Pit mix first came to live with me in a rural area where there are many Foxes she was diagnosed with Sarcoptic Mange. ( Midnight is from Manhattan , NY) BabyGirl did not show signs of the Mange but we treated both dogs with Revolution as Vet said BabyGirl could be a carrier. Midnight also has allergies and I bath her 1 a week with Medicated shampoo, Recently I was told to start bathing her 2 x a week. I have kept both girls on Revolution because of all the protections it provides and because of where I live . BabyGirl has allergies also and I was looking at some pictures of her when she was younger and she looked then as Midnight does now. BabyGirl doesn’t get all the hair loss like she use to. She doesn’t itch all the time but her paws get red and sore looking. This to has gotten quite better than it use to be. Allergies are so confusing when it comes to our pets.
You are right. We ask about foxes because dogs mostly contract it from direct contact with a live/dead fox or even fox urine or stools. It is usually highly contagious to other dogs and can even be transmitted to humans.
Sorry to hear about Midnight’s experience with Mange and hope you are managing her current skin issues well with the regular bathing. Is there a specific reason she is regularly bathed with the medicate shampoo? Is it pyohex for a dermatitis? Glad to hear Baby girl’s skin seems to be going okay.
Yes allergies can be quite frustrating especially if your pet is highly sensitive. Keep up the great work with managing your babies’s skin issues.
Midnight gets the baths because of the Dermatitis. It is just a medicated shampoo from the Pet supply store. The vet said it was working well and to keep it up. Midnight gets the Blisters and the hair loss. The scratching has gotten a lot better as long as I give her regular baths. She has been on prednisolone a couple of times and I have a supply for treatment on hand if she needs it. I try to limit how often I give it to her. She used to scratch so much she was getting open sores ad now she doesn’t scratch so intensely now and no open sores.She also likes Baths so that helps a lot.
At one time I worked for an older vet who gave allergy injections as often as every 3 – 4 weeks. One day we had a substitute vet who was much younger, and she refused to give a steroid injection to a dog that had received one 3 weeks prior. She used a different medical protocol which, over time, was safer for the dog. The owner wasn’t very happy that her dog couldn’t receive the injection, and it was hard to make her understand why. Interestingly enough, the owner said at the beginning of the consultation that she wanted her dog to have an allergy injection even though “the last one didn’t work”. The dog had received so many injections that they were becoming ineffective.
There’s no quick fix for allergies, is there?
Back in the day, veterinarians only had access to very few products and so cortisone was one of the only things available to help relieve pets with allergies. We have come a long way from there and we can definitely help support the skin better. If your pet is appropriately worked up, sometimes you can have great results. However, other times it is an ongoing battle but you have manage your pet quite well.
Cortisone is definitely not the long term solution. It is only a quick fix for a very short period.
Hey Sherri. Yes it is great to be back. Thanks for caring enough and noticing my absence :-).
With regards to Joy, fleas can live in the dirt and their eggs can also live in the carpet and with enough stirring, they hatch and the vicious cycle begins. The best thing to do is to use revolution spot on to protect Joy from any flea or mite infestation.
With regards to her recurrent itching, it can be a lengthy process and you have already excluded a few potential causes with her corn/wheat/soy exclusion diet. The distribution of her skin lesions may be relevant. If you want to rule out her itching as being due to a compulsive behaviour, then you should trial her on cortavance spray. It is pretty straight forward, if she stops itching when you use the product then you know she is itching because she is in fact itchy. Hope this information helps. Goodluck!
Thanks for sharing your own experience with skin issues. I mean you had it even tougher since Saffy developed her allergies quite early and was only a puppy.
So I’ve always had my dog get itchy after kennel stays about 4 times a year. This time is super bad and so she got a cortisone shot one week. She is always on advantage monthly. She obviously is getting flea bites there and reacting but this time the cortisone did absolutely nothing. She kept itching. A week later another shot and an antibiotic. Vet suggests changing to revolution but I just gave a second dose of advantage so can’t give revolution until next month according to the vet so basically she will keep getting flea bites and responding with the shots giving no relief and we will start this over with her next kennel stay in two weeks:(.
Sorry to hear about your pooch’s recurrent skin flare ups. Firstly, I think it is important that the kennel your dog stays at only accepts dogs that are flea treated as they obviously have a flea burden on the premises. Have you discussed your dog’s recurrent flare ups post kenneling with them?
Secondly if spot ons like advantage or revolution aren’t doing the trick then maybe you should consider an oral form of flea control like Sentinel.
Does your dog have seasonal itch or allergies, does it lick specific areas like its paws or scratch its ears regularly?
It is important to support your dog’s skin with supplements like flax seed oil/omega oil or change her diet (consider vets all natural allergy food).
Cortisone has lots of side effects and it doesn’t make sense to keep using it as a first line. It has its place and definitely is indicated when the skin is out of control. However, it doesn’t seem like the underlying issues are being totally addressed. Best of luck.
Sadly I got upset and even brought it up to the kennel and the girl at the front desk seemed completely unconcerned with the fact that she got fleas originally there and now has bites every visit. Back easy our standard was to inspect boarders and treat if necessary. I was tempted to take her out recently and try a new place but she is such a high stress, anxious chichiahaha that putting her in a new place before I leave her for two and half weeks seemed a poor choice. I guess the results though aren’t worth it either so after this trip I won’t keep her there.
Yes West Highland Terriers are super prone to skin issues. Glad to hear you have found a combination that helps manage her flareups.
So I’m from California and my senior dog Herbie has been scratching himself intensively that he now has multiple scars on the back oh his front legs and his whole face is losing hair. His left ear is full of crust and it is passing in to his right ear. The part just on top of his nose is completely bare aswell. Recently I have noticed the hair above his eyes to be reducing. He would not stop trying to scratch his face so I bought him a head cone to prevent himself from harming himself more than was already done. I am afraid that whatever he has might be passing on to my two other dogs which have also been scratching and have several sacra on their bodies and one of them has two scars on her face one on each side. The one with the serious issue is Herbie but it doesn’t really seem to bother him as much as it seems it would but the smell is horrible and no matter what I do i can’t seem to make it go away. I have tried everything to stop him from scratching but it is just beyond my power. I would really appreciate your help to try to figure out any possibilities of what this might be. Thank you!
Sorry to hear about Herbie’s escalating skin condition. Given the history that your other dogs have also become symptomatic, it is concerning that a contagious disease is occurring.
Have you taken your dogs to the vets to get them thoroughly examined. As you would have appreciated in my post about itching dogs, you must go through a huge process of determine the possible causes and trying to eliminate each cause one at a time!
I took Herbie to the vet today to get a skin scrape and we found out that he has sarcoptic mange. We began a treatment with ivermectin vaccinations every two weeks. Now we can finally focus on the real issue that was going on all along. It’s too bad I’m not allowed to really pet any of my dogs for now since it is contagious to humans aswell but if all goes well they should be clear in about 2 months. Thank you very much for your help and information!
Glad to hear your puppy has started treatment as sarcoptic mange can be very irritating.
I am not surprised he is still very itchy as he has still not been cured from his mange infestation. The mites must be moving around. Best to keep in touch with the vet treating your puppy to ensure treatment is effective. Goodluck.
I have a Maltese x shi tzu male dog aged 8 years old and he has a horrible chewing habit which I assume is caused by some type of nervousness, which I have heard happens quite a lot in small dogs. He chews his paws constantly and his lower back until they are red raw and bleeding. I bathe him in hypo allergenic shampoos and conditioners and have tried oat meal type shampoos and various other treatments. I have taken him to get cortisone treatments before but they only last a few weeks and I cannot keep on affording it. I have even tried frontline and advocate and tablets for fleas which works, but he rarely ever has fleas. I try and distract him from scratching which only works for a period of time. I am know trying to get opinions and suggestions to help my dogs condition. Does anyone know any ways to help my dogs nervousness and anxiousness and relief for his skin? I hate seeing him suffering and I want him to be at ease now.
Sorry to hear about your dog’s constant itching.
Based on the history you mentioned, it doesn’t sound like your dog has anxiety. I don’t recommend you assume he does without effectively ruling out underlying allergies. Given he has responded to flea control, he may be suffering from flea allergy dermatitis which means he doesn’t have to be riddled with fleas, just one flea can cause him to have a massive reaction. He should be maintained on regular flea control. Did the cortisone injections help stop him itching completely? If the answer is yes, then that again indicates he suffers from a true itch and isn’t just chewing because of stress. Sometimes dogs that itch constantly due to unresolved skin issues can develop a psychological obsession with itching.
my dog is itching so hard..that he cried while scratching…we visited the vet and injected ivermectin…my other dog has recovered bt EVO hasn’t.. wen i got him1st he has fowl smell…we go to the vet and put revolution…the smell goes away..now he is 4 yrs old..stil have the same issue…he always scratch..his hair are falling…his skin s very very dry..h has a lot of flakes.. im so worried about him..because he is such a sweet dog. thanks for your reply.
Dear Leslie. Sorry about the late reply but I’m currently overseas. With regards to your dog, if has recurrent issues with his skin, you need to go through am am intensive elimination process with your vet. He will need to be regularly maintained on revolution including all other pets. Based on the brief history, you haven’t ruled out food allergy, contact allergy, atopy and so much more. I highly recommend you follow up with your regular vet and hopefully you get to the bottom of it or at least find out the best way to manage the skin flare ups. Good luck and please let me know how you go.
what do you mean by contact allergy and atopy? anyway, so far we have 4 dogs in the cage..bt they are n very good condition..they doesn’t itch like him…they also dont have foul smell..we have 4 months intensive medication with the vet..still the same…his falling hair wil heal,den later it wil recur agin. just ds week..some spot of his skin is wet nd slimy…wen it dries up it becomes very big flakes…im so worried.. we don’t want to go the vet anymore bcoz we almost run out of money..and still his condition doesn’t improve..we try eliminating food that would possibly cause of his allergy…but still the same…we tried all home remedy..still it my improved then later comes back agin… bt now we will try revoultion agin.. by the way.. how many months will we give him revolution? thank you soo much for your reply.
Hello Leslie. Contact allergy is when your dog is getting into direct contact with the allergen causing him to itch. Common contact allergy is to grass. Atopy on the other hand is allergy to both inhaled allergens and ones directly contacted and is much more difficult to manage. It can be quite costly managing a pet with skin allergies but unfortunately there is not always a single cure and generally complicated skin cases require ongoing veterinary care. In theory, he should be on revolution on going unless he reacts to the product. I highly recommend you read all the related skin articles I have written about Lucy.
Hello Dr. Raya – I am generally someone who looks at health holistically and am not a fan of broad spectrum products especially when dealing with skin issues. Over the many years of rescuing and fostering street dogs in India I have seen a lot of skin issues in dogs and really appreciate it when vets take the time to run through the list of questions to make a diagnosis. Even with strays where accurate medical and lifestyle histories are hard to obtain. However, it has been my experience, here in India, that many vets are very reluctant to do skin scrapping and cultures, even with pet dogs, and I simply cannot understand why they sometimes categorically refuse to do such a basic diagnostic test that is easy and painless. Especially when it can help rule out things and provide targeted treatment. Am I missing something here? I was hoping you could shed some light on this.
Dear Aditi. Good on you for all the work you do with rescuing and rehabilitating strays. You are not missing anything at all. You are absolutely right, your vets should be offering a range of tests when working up any skin case. If they aren’t, it goes to show they aren’t experienced enough and are too old school in their treatment methods. Hope you can find a vet that’s graduated more recently and has the new skills needed for diagnosing, treating and managing a skin case.
Dear Rose. Sorry to hear about Lucky boy’s recent skin issues. Unfortunately based on the information you have provided, I really can’t give you much advise. I’m not clear on what your vet has diagnosed him with. There is no skin condition that requires daily antibiotics for life. Sometime they require repeat courses when the skin flares-up… I honestly doubt an 8 year old dog suddenly develps major skin issues. They would usually start much earlier. So definitely worth ruling out parasites like fleas or mites using a proper product like revolution spot on used fortnightly for 3 consecutive treatments (that is off label use). It’s important for you to discuss all your concerns directly with your vet. You need to be confident in what he/she is saying and understand the diagnosis. Otherwise, find a new vet that you can trust and feel comfortable with. Hope this information helps. Please let me know how Lucky Boy gets on.
Sorry to hear about Jasper’s skin issues. I can’t give you a solution based on the information you have given me. Skin issues are very complex. You are best to communicate directly with your vet. Goodluck.
Dear Dr Rayya, We have a two year old staffy who has skin allergies. She has seen several vets as out of shear frustration we have been trying to find one who will reccomend something other than steroids. We have tried the food elimination and natural remedies but are unable to control it. The seroids are now causing vomitting and tummy upsets so we are trying not to use them. The latest vet who treats the staffy breeders dogs has told us that her allergies are environmental and so it is near impossible for us to control. We love our girl and hate seeing her uncomfortable. What can you suggest please?
My Great Dane is suffering from skin issues and I was told it was Demodex mites. I was given Noromectin and it seems to be helping her during the day shortly after I give it to her, but at night she keeps me up scratching and chewing. My question is can I give her Melatonin at night to help her sleep and it not have a reaction to the Noromectin?
I don’t recommend you give your dog anything that hasn’t been prescribed by your vet. It’s important to ask your vet directly about the melatonin.
My lab has been on allergy shots for over 4mos. She is still itching and licking like crazy. She has recently developed a hematoma on her ear. I am doing steroids in conjunction with the shots. Nothing is helping. I feel horrible for her. What should I do? We have been contemplating putting her down. I know she is in pain, and nothing is helping her.
Hi, we have a Staffy who is allergic to “well everything really”! We have it under control by administering 1/2 a 20mg Prednisolone tablet every second day. Pyohex cream on her paws and tail base. Which is a new found use for the medicated conditioner initially used after bathing. Definitely NO dog treats as they contain either sulphites or grains. NO human food. We feed her Purina Supercoat Sensitive Gentle Formula biscuits and Natures Goodness grainfree tin dog food. Both can be purchased from a supermarket. Her vet has commented how well she looks and her coat is so shiny. She is 95% under control. No scratching at all, just licks her paws occasionally after walking on the lawn. Yes she is allergic to grass too! On the rare occasionI that she does have a relapse we use Neocort cream if she gets sores and Cutaneous Spray solution for places where she may lick the cream off. Please post this as it has worked for our dog and I am sure it will work for many. We too suffered frustration for our baby in so much discomfort. She is now a healthy happy 2 year old puppy.
My dog is insanely itchy. Has been for six months. Scraping negative. Responded well to course of oral steroid with antihistamine but itching resumed following course. Could it be mites anyway.?
Im just searching in google and i drop by in your column about this horrible scratching of my fur baby husky… she is 6yrs old now and she had suffering epilepsy 3months ago and she is taking medicine for her epilepsy to…my far concern is she had scratching all over her body and i found out she had some hot spot wich i treat it early using vergin coconut oil and it comes out good but on her stomach,elbow and paws she still biting and licking furiously until sometimes bloods comes out iam so worried, i try to bring her in vet but they only do is soaking her in a bath and still not relieve her itchiness and it cost expensive….please give me some of your advises.
My German Shepherd, Sasha, has responded with a hot spot and maddening scratching ever since I put Revolution on her just a few days ago.
It has just finally clicked that this happened last year too.
She is such a porch puppy as I call her, she only goes outside to do her business on a run. She is like a chow in that she doesn’t like to be out when it is wet and she is a Big Mama to my 10 cats, in fact, the real Mama cat and her are extremely jealous of each other, she prefers to be inside.
I feel so bad for her!!!
I have 21pills of 5mg Prednisone and 25mg Benedryl, she weighs 65Ibs. Can I administer these to her rather than taking her to the vet.
She only trusts me and Gary. She is not socialized due to we live on the Toccoa river in the mountains of Georgia, it would cost me $187 just to get her seen with sedation, she is very protective of me and my husband and our kitty family.
I love your blog. Im watching a friend’s roommate’s dog suffer on a minutely basis (every 15 seconds I would say). He’s scratching and biting himself. I can see his stomach move the way mine does when I have an eczema outburst. The itching is insanely painful at times until a topical solution is applied. The vet has given him meds but it’s been 2 weeks and it’s not working. I read online to put coconut oil on him so I did but it’s not working. Please help with advise! | 2019-04-19T14:28:36Z | https://rayyathevet.com/2012/11/11/is-your-dogs-scratching-driving-you-mad/ |
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Matthew 23:23 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cummin, and have neglected the weightier provisions of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness; but these are the things you should have done without neglecting the others. 24 “You blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel! 25 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you clean the outside of the cup and of the dish, but inside they are full of robbery and self-indulgence. 26 “You blind Pharisee, first clean the inside of the cup and of the dish, so that the outside of it may become clean also. 27 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which on the outside appear beautiful, but inside they are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness. 28 “So you, too, outwardly appear righteous to men, but inwardly you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness. 29 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!… 32 “Fill up, then, the measure of the guilt of your fathers. 33 “You serpents, you brood of vipers, how will you escape the sentence of hell?
Could it possibly be that the majority (if not vast majority) of professing churches are those that are “sections of the world of fundamental Christianity have gone overboard for practices wholly unscriptural, altogether unjustifiable in the light of historic Christian truth and deeply damaging to the inner life of the individual Christian. They have imitated the world, sought popular favor, manufactured delights to substitute for the joy of the Lord and produced a cheap and synthetic power to substitute for the power of the Holy Ghost”? Could it be true that what is thought to be Reformed in our day would not have been considered by Calvin and Luther as Reformed? Could it be that we have accepted the husks of Christianity today and have cast off the true fruit?
Again, Tozer was speaking to those who professed to believe the Bible and were even orthodox. Could it be that one can have a solid profession of the Bible, be orthodox, and yet not believe the heart of Christianity? Have the Pharisees in our day, though they speak against the Pharisees in the time of Jesus, have followed stringent rules (like tithing mint and cumin) and yet have broken and violated the greater laws of the heart? Could it be that we have ministers and college and seminary professors who are straining out gnats (being very precise in their morality and doctrine) and yet they are blind guides who swallow camels? Could it be that the most religious people in our day are those who look great on the outside but on the inside they value their salaries, the sales of their books and electronic materials, which make them guilty of self-indulgence?
It is far easier to be a critic of the scribes and Pharisees than it is not to be one. The scribes and the Pharisees were the religious elite of that day and they were the ones that held the respected positions of orthodoxy, wrote the books (scrolls), and blasted the non-orthodox. They were the ones that claimed the history of Judaism and had the scholars on their sides, yet despite their great learning and outwardly holy lives they were haters and enemies of the true and living God. They were precisely like whitewashed tombs which in their man-made religion and man-made rules and laws looked beautiful in the eyes of men and yet their hearts were like a tomb that was full of bones and uncleanness. These whitewashed men, who looked holy and highly educated and orthodox, yet they were full of hypocrisy and lawlessness. In their stringent ways of keeping the law they were in fact lawless.
The Pharisees were the moralists, the legalists, and the orthodox people of the time of Jesus. In the 1500’s Roman Catholicism had men who were moralists, legalists, and yet were thought to be orthodox. Both had history on their side and pointed to history and their agreement with it as the basis for why they were right. Jesus came and poked huge holes in the self-righteousness of the Pharisees. Luther came along and poked huge holes in the self-righteousness of Roman Catholicism. If history has repeated itself in our day, will we be swept along by all the external things and yet are vile in the eyes of God? Will we be content with anything less than the free-grace of God in Christ Jesus? Will we be content with orthodoxy? Will we be content with a version of history? Will we be content with our own self-righteousness? We must have Christ in our hearts in reality or we do not have Christ at all.
One of the most obvious things about the modern version of Christianity is the absence of the Spirit. While there may be a fair amount of teaching about the Spirit at times, that is a far different thing than having the presence of the Spirit. Even more, that is a far different thing than relying upon the Spirit to do His work and for us human beings to sink into nothingness before Him. After all, we are told that the reason it is by faith is in order that it may be by grace (Rom 4:16). This should bring many things to mind, but one is that faith is not a work of the self that brings something from God. Faith is not what we do, but instead it is what God does in us. True faith should seek the Spirit and His guidance and wisdom.
If we think of “spirituality” as the things that the Spirit does, we will have a fairly close idea to how Tozer is using the term. One can focus a lot on the work of the Spirit as can be seen in certain circles and yet the real issue is nothing but materialism and self-effort. While the work of the Spirit is given lip-service in certain circles while rationality and moralism is what drives things, in other circles the Spirit is focused on and yet His real work is ignored and perhaps unknown. The real work of the Spirit is to convict sinners of sin, or righteousness, and of judgment to come. The real work of the Spirit is to regenerate sinners and illumine the saints with light. It is the Spirit who opens eyes to the truth and shows the glory of it. It is the Spirit who alone can empower the weak and show the strong their weakness.
What has happened in our day is that we have turned to man-pleasing ways to get people in the doors of the buildings and to extract money from their wallets. If we have attracted people by our man-pleasing ways, then we must keep them by more of the same, but perhaps we have to do things in an ever increasing excitement level to keep them. Those who do not love the true Christ have to be entertained or their false religion encouraged by good works and perhaps orthodox teaching. As we think of what is going on in the professing churches today, what are people doing to attract people? What are people doing to keep people?
But of course the smug person or the smug professing church will say that they teach orthodoxy. So did the Pharisees. Orthodoxy can be taught to the natural man and the natural man will stick around an orthodox place because it pleases self. Let us not think that orthodox churches are not touched by these things, but instead they just use differing ways to get people in the door and then keep them. It is Christ Himself who must be held out and it is Christ Himself and His cross which must be preached. It is only the Spirit who can attract men to the crucified Savior and it is only the Spirit who can keep men attracted to the crucified Savior. While Christ-centeredness is a truth that we can never get away from, let us also remember that a professing church with all the truth in the world is still far from the kingdom apart from the work of the Holy Spirit.
The words of Tozer at the top of this page are sobering and accurate. They are perhaps more accurate in our day than in his own. Biblical Christianity appears to be virtually out of sight and out of mind. Various forms of legalism or libertinism seem to have swallowed up all that is pure and holy. While we know that the gates of hell will not prevail in reality, the appearance is a different thing. The modern version of Christianity or the modern presentation of Christianity is all smoke and mirrors. Those who claim to believe the Bible and to be conservative believers are as much opposed to the truth of God as anyone. As Stephen Charnock wrote so long ago regarding practical atheism, people deny certain truths of God in their daily lives. The theology and the practices of so many are a denial of the truth of God and of the cross of Christ.
The professing Christianity of today has several manifestations, but all are apart from Christ being the life of His people and His Church. The only true doctrine is a reflection of the truth and glory of the true God, it is not just an intellectual concept of Him. The only true “morality” is not a Judeo-Christian morality, it is true holiness in which Christ dwells in His people and manifests His glory through them. The only true Christianity is not a compilation of miracles and God giving riches to those who can work up a high enough frenzy, it is a group of people that He prunes and works on to make them branches that bear His fruit.
It has been a terrible thing to watch either in person or by reading about the things that people do in our modern day and still take the name of Christ. People seem to have more faith in their creeds than the grace of the living God. People have more faith in the sacraments than the grace of the living God. People have more faith in church membership than the grace of the living God. People have more faith in the practices that they have dreamed up than the grace of the living God. People have more faith in their historical practices than they have in the grace of the living God. People have more faith in their new theology and new interpretations than they do of the grace of the living God. People have more faith in their external religiosity than they do in seeking the face of the living God who can only be found by free-grace alone. People will do virtually anything in the realm of religion rather than seek God by grace alone. Grace leads to the destruction of self, all the things of religion leaves the self intact.
The world is getting worldlier and the professing Church is as well. There is little difference between the professing Church and the world in many ways. As Tozer saw it, those many years ago, the level of spirituality was low. But again, he was speaking of the orthodox camps and not just those who were in the grips of Modernism. Have things changed since then? Yes, they have, but they have changed for the worse. It is true that things change rather slowly from one day to the next, but in terms of what has happened since the days of Tozer there has been an enormous change. Christianity is moralistic on the one hand and heavily rationalistic on the other. Spirituality, however, is a different story. The things of the Spirit, and that has to do with spiritual insight and spiritual knowledge leading to holiness, is something that is hardly ever mentioned in a positive light.
We are satisfied with an intellectual knowledge of the Bible, an intellectual knowledge of Christ, and an external morality rather than to live by grace alone by the power of the Spirit. The Scriptures teach us very clearly that we are to die to self and our life is to be Christ Himself. We are not to live by our own reason even if it is knowledge of the information of the Bible and of a moral life. The Pharisees had vast amounts of knowledge about the Bible and lived a very moral life if judged by the externals. It does not appear that many people are seeking the face of God in our day. It does not appear that many people are living coram deo, that is, in the presence of God. Instead, professing Christianity has become nothing more (in many ways) than another way of self-help.
Self-help (professing) Christianity is much in vogue. Instead of being centered upon God and seeking His face to know Him and glorify Him by grace alone, man is now the center of his own attention and affections. Man wants to hear of a “gospel” (so-called) that enables him to be fulfilled and to make his life easier and better. God is really nothing more (in man’s conception) than a little help when you need and perhaps a cheerleader in the sky. Instead of man seeking God for higher levels of spiritual growth, man now seeks God to give man higher levels of worldliness. The so-called leaders in the professing Church seem to have bought into this and instead of denouncing it; they seem to be going along with it to some degree.
What used to be thought of as ridiculous is now accepted as orthodoxy. Now men seek self-esteem rather than Christ-esteem. As one Puritan writer put it, “the only self-esteem you have is that which you have stolen from Christ.” The self must be denied in order to truly seek Christ. There can be no seeking of self while one is seeking Christ with the whole heart. One cannot love self in the worldly sense if one is to love God with all of the being. One cannot love the world and God at the same time, but now it seems as if God not only gives people permission to seek and love the world, but it appears that all of the Christian practices are to be done in order to get God to give people worldly things. When the level of spirituality is low, the whole of Christianity is changed from seeking God to seeking the world. Orthodoxy is no longer used for godliness and spiritual growth; it is used for personal fulfillment. We have fallen to great lows in our day. Only God can deliver us from it and yet we will not seek Him for Himself, we only want Him to obtain worldly things and to keep us from hard things which deny us the world we love.
Tozer wrote stirring works in the 1940’s and 50’s and died in 1963. What he wrote about the entire evangelical world being unfavorable to healthy Christianity back then has not gotten any better, but perhaps is far, far worse. This is, of course, a stunning statement in terms of its breadth and width. It takes in denominations and churches and seemingly about everything that is termed “evangelical.” He goes on to say that he was not speaking of anyone but the Bible-believing crowd that bore the name of orthodoxy.
Here is something for people to take to heart and seriously consider. The orthodox crowd in the time of Jesus thought that they were the elect of God, that they had the true set of beliefs, and that they had true holiness. Could it be that evangelical Christianity (in name), while claiming to use the Bible (as the Pharisees did) have in fact used their orthodoxy to twist and turn what the Bible actually teaches? Could it be that some of modern versions of orthodoxy is not really what the Bible teaches? Could it be that we have so trusted in academics to give us history, theology, and the teaching on the Bible that we have been turned from the Scriptures themselves? Have we substituted what people say the Bible teaches for what the Bible teaches?
We know that Jesus said several times that “you have heard that it was said, but I say to you.” Let us rephrase that to this: “The orthodox saying is this, but I say to you.” Do we really look to the Scriptures or do we look to others to tell us what the Scriptures say? Do we prefer to have historians teach us that others have said about the Bible and so we believe that or do we seek the truth from the mouth of God Himself? Just because Martin Luther said it does not make something true. If Luther said something was true and it was true, I should not believe it because Luther said it, but because the Bible teaches it. Just because Calvin said something does not make that something true either. Just because Turretin, or Hodge, or anyone else said something does not make that something true. It is only true if it is truly what Christ by His Spirit taught and teaches in Scripture.
The idea that the history of the Church is the standard of truth continues to sneak in upon us. It is very important to study the history of the Church and the theologians of the past, but it is far more important for people to study Scripture. Calvin, while a brilliant and godly man, does not determine what Scripture teaches. It is also true that we can agree with Calvin about what the Scriptures teach and yet not believe the truth as from Christ. Healthy Christianity feeds upon Christ Himself rather than what the historians teach. Healthy Christianity is also more than what the Bible teaches. Christ Himself is our wisdom and we cannot obtain that kind of wisdom from the Bible. While this may sound heretical to some people, let us know that while the Bible is vitally important, Christ is the real teacher and Christ is our life. The humble soul bows before Christ Himself and reads and studies the Scriptures with Christ as his or her wisdom and Christ as his or her Teacher. The evangelical world still trusts in itself to teach itself the Scriptures.
When we think of what it means to be a Christian, one part of what should be thought of is true holiness as opposed to various forms of false holiness. False forms of holiness will come from hearts that do not want to be different from the world, but in fact will come from those who are skillful to avoid being embarrassed by the implications of being a follower of Christ. The idea of being shamed or ashamed before others can be a mark of the true nature of our hearts. Would we rather be ashamed before God or before men? Will we choose to be shamed before men for true holiness or will we twist and turn our way to avoid being shamed in the slightest?
Matthew 10:32 “Therefore everyone who confesses Me before men, I will also confess him before My Father who is in heaven. 33 “But whoever denies Me before men, I will also deny him before My Father who is in heaven. 34 “Do not think that I came to bring peace on the earth; I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. 35 “For I came to SET A MAN AGAINST HIS FATHER, AND A DAUGHTER AGAINST HER MOTHER, AND A DAUGHTER-IN-LAW AGAINST HER MOTHER-IN-LAW; 36 and A MAN’S ENEMIES WILL BE THE MEMBERS OF HIS HOUSEHOLD. 37 “He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me; and he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me.
True holiness is to be set apart from all other things and to the purposes of God. We can have an outward form of holiness and yet have no clue about the nature of true holiness. We must confess Christ before men in the sense that we are to confess Christ in life and without our mouths. This does not mean that we are to be overly aggressive and be obnoxious, but we are not to change our paths and ways in order to keep from being shamed. We are to live before God and yet there should be a difference in how we live before men as well. We should speak differently, have different attitudes, and we should have different loves. There is a vast difference between living before God and living before men.
The modern versions of Christianity seem to want professing Christians to become as much like the world as they can in order to reach these people. The biblical version is for Christians to become as much like Christ as they can be grace alone in order that they may glorify God. The difference between these two attitudes or perspectives is huge. The modern version seems to avoid embarrassment before men at all costs and the biblical version is to please God at all costs. We try to figure out our lives in such ways as to avoid being embarrassed at all costs while in fact we are blind to the fact that we should be embarrassed before God. We may boast in the Lord when we are at church, but we would never say anything to those not at church that would indicate our chief love and the One we are supposed to fully depend on. Living before God means living in His presence and seeking His glory and pleasure whether men appreciate that or not.
The words of Tozer seem to be right on point. Rather than wanting a stout and full Christianity where we have Christ and His wisdom at all points, we have watered it down to where we can have a form of it and still be comfortable in our lives and not bother other people. We will talk about certain things at times, but it is clear that we really live by our own wits and our holiness is self-derived though we will argue that it is from the Bible. We want a comfortable level of holiness and “commitment” to the Lord, but we don’t want enough to disturb our own comfort level, the way we spend time, and the way we live around others.
Look at the strong words of Jesus to the Pharisees. They were willing to tithe from their gardens (mint, dill, and cummin), but they were quite unconcerned about justice and mercy and faithfulness which were things that came from the heart and would disturb their religion and their pursuit of money. This points us to an important insight into the modern version of Christianity. Professing believers are willing to spend time on some Sundays, give some money, and keep some level of morality in order to keep the name of Christian. However, that is nothing more than what the Pharisees would do. They were unwilling to seek repentance of their foul and selfish hearts from God in order to be just in their dealings, to be merciful, and to be faithful to God and men. They were willing to do acts of righteousness before men in order to be seen by them (and be proud of themselves in their own eyes), but their hearts were still full of self and the seeking of self.
Pastors will go to great ends to build large edifices for their own honor, though assuredly that is not what they would admit to others. They will go to great lengths to get people to pray prayers and so add to the list of people that they can count as their converts. They will go to great lengths to others to tithe to pay for their large buildings, and perhaps tithe themselves, but that can be done without disturbing their selfish hearts. If these same pastors (in name) would be granted repentance and they began to seek true justice, mercy, and faithfulness, it is most likely the case that they would never get their large buildings built.
Oh how modern Christianity (pastors and others) can present themselves as clean cups and clean dishes, which is to say that the present a clean exterior, but inside they are full of robbery and self-indulgence. What is a pastor that wants to build huge buildings for his own name’s sake and urge people to faithfulness to God but a man who is full of self-indulgence while he is robbing the people in the name of God? What are men like that and what is the external version of Christianity that is so full of external cleanness while there is no new heart? These people are like whitewashed tombs as well. The outside is cleaned, washed, and painted white and pretty but all that it is covering is the bones of dead men (or dead hearts). These people are outwardly righteous but the reality of the matter is that they are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness in their hearts. God looks upon the heart and knows all the religious things that are going on regarding the appearance of things while that appearance hides wicked hearts. In this sense the modern version of professing Christianity is just like the version of Judaism that the Pharisees presented.
When Christ took up human flesh on this planet and was the very tabernacle of God walking around, He was hated. He came and confronted the religious elite of that day and He was not timid or “nice” about how He did it. He called them “hypocrites” and “whitewashed tombs” and many other things that seemed to be intended to provoke them, though indeed in true kindness He may have been trying to open their eyes to their sin. The point is, however, that the one that proclaims truth is not to be swayed concerning the popularity of the issue. Christ pointed out sin many times by poking people in the eye rather than beating around the bush.
In the modern version of Christianity, however, we are too nice to speak against sin and too nice to speak with clarity and authority. The Lord Jesus did not value positive thinking so much as truth and love. The Lord Jesus did not think of being nice (in the modern sense) as a controlling power in His speaking. But also, He did not seek the favor of the political establishment either. He was there to love and glorify His Father by saving His people. When the rich young ruler came to Him, He did not bow to the man’s wealth or position, He spoke truth to the man. As the man turned to walk away, Jesus did not go after the man and water the message down. He did not plead with the man to come back or anything like that. He did not need that man’s money or influence, but instead He spoke the truth to the soul of that man.
The modern version of Christianity appears to be as oriented to celebrities and money as the world is. Instead of understanding and appreciating the Scriptures which teach us that truly the greatest among us is the one that is the most humble, it appears that the louder and more obnoxious a person is the more attention one gets and the bigger the sales of the books and CD’s and the like. It appears that people crave the unusual and the obnoxious rather than the humble. Of course people could say that Jesus was obnoxious, but that would be in a far different way. He did not use vulgar language and He did not speak with racy overtones, He simply spoke the truth. He did not focus on being outrageous, but in speaking the truth He was hated.
The Lord Jesus, who was perfectly humble and was love incarnate, was hated. For some reason we desire to be popular among the religious folks and among the world as well. It seems that we think that if we can be popular that we can gain a hearing and that this will influence people to make decisions and this will give us a greater influence in the world. We think that those with big names will come in and will give us greater influence and will gain more converts. We seek the wisdom of men of the world. But Christ did nothing like that at all. He sought the approval of His Father and no one else. The humble heard Him and they were glad. Broken sinners heard Him and were glad. Perhaps there are great lessons here for people to learn. The famous and the proud will oppose the truth that Jesus taught. Only the humble and the broken will listen. Will we repent of seeking to be celebrities and preach and teach against pride and hold up humility and brokenness and our own inability and weakness? God must turn hearts and make the proud into little children or people will not be converted. | 2019-04-26T10:37:05Z | https://godloveshimself.com/category/modern-version-of-christianity/ |
Part two of Naomi Klein's report on the events that triggered a momentous new kind of politics in Argentina.
Up until quite recently, Argentina pursued a policy of official amnesia when it came to the crimes of the Dirty War. Sure, the human rights non-governmental organisations still issued numerous scathing reports, the Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo still marched and the children of disappeared parents still showed up, from time to time, outside the homes of ex-military figures to throw red paint. But before the Argentinazo, most middle-class Argentinians regarded such actions as macabre rituals from a bygone era. Hadn't these people received the memo? The country had "moved on" - or at least it was supposed to have done, according to former president Carlos Menem.
Menem, a Ferrari-driving free-marketeer who is Argentina's very own morphing of Margaret Thatcher and John Gotti, was first elected in 1989, with the economy in recession and inflation soaring. Claiming that many of Argentina's economic troubles stemmed from botched attempts by his predecessor to bring to justice the generals of the Dirty War, Menem offered an alternative approach: instead of going backwards into the hell of unmarked graves and the lies of the past, he said, Argentinians should wipe the slate clean, join the global economy and then put all of their energy into the pursuit of economic growth.
After pardoning the generals, Menem launched a zealous programme of what here in Latin America is called "neo-liberalism": that is, mass privatisations, public sector layoffs, labour market "flexibilisation" and corporate incentives. He slashed federal meals programmes, cut the national unemployment fund by almost 80%, laid off hundreds of thousands of state employees and made many strikes illegal. Menem dubbed this rapid free-market makeover "surgery without anaesthesia", and assured voters that, once the short-term pain subsided, Argentina would be, in the words of one of his advertising campaigns, "born again".
The middle-class residents of Buenos Aires, many of them ashamed of their own complicity or complacency during the Dirty War, enthusiastically embraced the idea of living in a shiny new country without a past. "Don't get involved," the mantra of the terror years, gave way seamlessly to "Look out for Number One", the mantra of high capitalism, in whose cause neighbours are competitors and the market is put before all else, including the quest for justice and the rebuilding of shattered communities. In the years that followed, 1990s Buenos Aires went on a career and consumerism jag that would put the most shopaholic, workaholic New Yorker or Londoner to shame. According to government data, between 1993 and 1998, total household spending increased by $42bn, while spending on imported goods doubled over the same high-rolling five years, from $15bn in 1993 to $30bn in 1998.
In the swanky neighbourhoods of Recoleta and Palermo, residents bought not only the latest imported electronics and designer fashions, but also new faces and new bodies - Buenos Aires soon rivalled Rio de Janeiro as a capital of cosmetic surgery, with one plastic surgeon alone boasting 30,000 clients. Argentinians clearly wanted to be remade, just like their country - and like their president, who himself disappeared periodically, to reappear later with his face stretched taut and claiming that he had been stung by a bee.
The masks and disguises of the 1990s looked remarkably lifelike for a while. The national GDP increased by 60% over the decade and foreign investment poured in. But, just as Enron's stockholders did not care to look too closely at the books so long as their profits were going up, Argentina's foreign investors and lenders somehow failed to see that Menem's lean, mean government was $80bn deeper in debt in 1999 than the 1989 government had been. Or that, thanks largely to layoffs at privatised firms, unemployment had soared from 6.5% in 1989 to 20% in 2000.
In short, "Menem's Miracle", as Time gushingly called it, was a mirage. The wealth flowing in 1990s Argentina was a combination of speculative finance and one-off sales: the phone company, the oil company, the rails, the airline. After the initial cash infusion and greased palms, what was left was a hollowed-out country, costly basic services and a working class that wasn't working. It also left behind it a wild west-style deregulated financial sector that allowed Argentina's richest families to move $140bn in private wealth into foreign bank accounts - more than either the national GDP or the foreign debt.
As Argentina's wealth disappeared, destined for bank accounts in Miami and stock exchanges in Milan, the collective amnesia of the Menem years wore off, too. Today, almost 20 years after the junta's dictatorship ended and with the old military generals dead or dying, the ghosts of the 30,000 disappeared have suddenly reappeared. They now haunt every aspect of the country's present crisis. In the months after the Argentinazo, the past seemed so present that it was as if time itself had collapsed and the state terror had been committed only yesterday. In the courts and on the streets, a national debate erupted not only about how so many had got away with murder, but also about the reasons why the terror had occurred in the first place: why did those 30,000 people die? In whose interest were they killed? And what was the connection between those deaths and the free-market policies that had failed the country so spectacularly?
Back when students and union members were being thrown into green Ford Falcons and driven to clandestine torture centres, there was little time for such questions about root causes and economic interests. During the terror years, Argentinian activists had a single overarching preoccupation - staying alive. When groups such as Amnesty International began to intervene on their behalf, they, too, were preoccupied with day-to-day survival. Investigators would trace the missing people and then petition for their release, or at least for confirmation of their deaths.
There were, however, a few exceptions, individuals who were able to see that the generals had an economic plan as aggressive as their social and political ones. In 1976 and 1977 - the first two years of junta rule, when the terror was at its bloodiest and most barbaric - the generals introduced an economic "restructuring" programme that was to be a foretaste of today's cut-throat corporate globalisation. The average national wage was slashed in half, social spending drastically reduced and price controls removed. The generals were rewarded handsomely for these measures: in those same two years, Argentina received more than $2bn in foreign loans, more than the country had received in all of the previous six years combined. By the time the generals gave back the country in 1983, they had increased the national foreign debt from $7bn to $43bn.
On March 24 1977, a year after the coup, Argentinian investigative journalist Rodolfo Walsh published an Open Letter From A Writer To The Military Junta - it was destined to become one the most famous pieces of writing in modern Latin American letters. In it, Walsh, a member of the Montoneros youth movement, broke with official press censorship by launching a righteous and detailed account of the generals' terror campaign. But there was a second half to the Open Letter which, according to Walsh's biographer, Michael McCaughan, was suppressed by the Montoneros leadership, many of whom, though militant in their tactics, were not as focused as Walsh on economics. The missing half, just published in McCaughan's book, True Crimes, shifted the focus from the military's human rights abuses to its economic programme, with Walsh declaring - somewhat heretically - that the terror was not "the greatest suffering inflicted on the Argentinian people, not the worst violation of human rights which you have committed. It is in the economic policy of this government where one discovers not only the explanation of the crimes, but a greater atrocity which punishes millions of human beings through planned misery."
Walsh once again offered a catalogue of crimes: "Freezing wages with rifle butts while prices rise at bayonet point, abolishing all forms of collective bargaining, prohibiting assemblies and internal commissions, extending working days, raising unemployment ... an economic policy dictated by the International Monetary Fund, following a recipe applied indiscriminately in Zaire or Chile, in Uruguay or Indonesia." Minutes after posting copies of his letter, Walsh was ambushed by police and shot dead on the streets of Buenos Aires.
Harder to kill, however, has been Walsh's description of an economic logic that outlived the dictatorship, a logic that guided the scalpel of Menem's surgery without anaesthetic and that still continues to guide every IMF mission to Argentina, which always seem to call for more cuts to healthcare and education, higher fees for basic services, more bank foreclosures on mortgages. But Walsh didn't call it "good governance" or "fiscal prudence" or "being globally competitive" - he called it "planned misery".
Walsh understood that the generals were not waging a war "on terror" but a war on any barrier to the accumulation of wealth by foreign investors and their local beneficiaries. He is proved more prescient every day. Civil trials continue to unearth fresh evidence that foreign corporations collaborated closely with the junta in its extermination of the union movement in the 1970s. For example, last December a federal prosecutor filed a criminal complaint against Ford Argentina (a subsidiary of Ford), alleging that the company had inside one of its factory compounds a military detention centre where union organisers were taken. "Ford [Argentina] and its executives colluded in the kidnapping of its own workers and I think they should be held accountable for that," says Pedro Troiani, a former Ford assembly line worker who has testified that soldiers kidnapped and beat him inside the factory walls. Mercedes-Benz (now a subsidiary of DaimlerChrysler) is facing a similar investigation in both Germany and Argentina, which stems from allegations that it collaborated with the military in the 1970s to purge one of its plants of union militants, giving names and addresses of 16 workers who were later "disappeared", 14 of them never to be seen again. Both Ford and Mercedes-Benz deny that their executives played any role in any of the deaths.
And then, of course, there is the case of Gustavo Benedetto. On the face of it, there is nothing to connect Benedetto's murder to the past and there is no comparison between the repression during the Argentinazo and the terror of the Dirty War. Yet the Benedetto case highlights the changing role of the military, the state and financial interests, and the current role of ex-military officers.
In the 1970s, Jorge Varando, the man accused of Benedetto's murder, worked for a military regime that opened up Argentina's banking sector to private banks. In 2001, with the military downsized along with the rest of the public sector, he worked directly for one of those very banks. The fear is that the grand achievement of two decades of democracy is only that the middleman has been cut out and that repression has been privatised. Now Argentina's banks and corporations are guarded by units of armed former military officers, who protect them against public protesters, raising difficult questions about the compromises that were made in the country's transition from dictatorship to democracy.
Today, the history of that transition is being rewritten on the streets. There is no neat "before" and "after" the dictatorship. The dictatorship's project is instead emerging as a process: the generals prepped the patient, then Menem performed "the surgery". The junta did more than disappear the union organisers who might have fought the mass layoffs and the socialists who might have refused to implement the IMF's latest austerity plan. The great success of the Dirty War was the culture of fear and individualism that it left behind in neighbourhoods such as La Tablada, where Gustavo Benedetto grew up.
The generals understood that the true obstacle to complete social control was not leftist rebels, but the very presence of tight-knit communities and civil society. Which is why they set out to "disappear" the public sphere itself. On the first day of the 1976 coup, the military banned all "public spectacles", from carnivals to theatre to horse races. Public squares were strictly reserved for shows of military strength and the only communal experience permitted was football. At the same time, the military launched a campaign to turn the entire population into snitches: state-run newspapers were packed with announcements reminding citizens that it was their civic duty to report anyone who seemed to be doing anything "subversive".
And when the population had retreated into their homes, the economic project of the dictatorship could be continued and deepened by successive civilian governments without even having to resort to messy repression - at least until recently.
In the 1970s, when the Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo began searching for their missing loved ones, it was common for these brave women to say that their children were innocents, that they were "doing nothing" when they were taken. Today, the Mothers lead demonstrations against the IMF, talk about "economic terrorism" and proudly declare that their children were indeed doing something when they were kidnapped - they were political activists trying to save the country from the planned misery that began under the dictatorship and only deepened under democracy.
In the rubble that was left of Argentina after December 2001, something extraordinary started to happen: neighbours poked their heads out of their apartments and houses, and, in the absence of a political leadership or a party to make sense of the spontaneous explosion of which they had been a part, they began to talk to each other. To think together. By late January 2002, there were already some 250 "asambleas barriales" (neighbourhood assemblies) in downtown Buenos Aires alone. The streets, parks and plazas were filled with meetings, as people stayed up late into the night, planning, arguing, testifying, voting.
Many of those first assemblies were more like group therapy than political meetings. Participants spoke about their experience of isolation in a city of 11 million. Academics and shopkeepers apologised for not watching out for each other, publicity managers admitted that they used to look down on unemployed factory workers, assuming that they deserved their plight, never thinking that the crisis would reach the bank accounts of the cosmopolitan middle class.
And these apologies for present-day wrongs soon gave way to tearful confessions about events dating back to the dictatorship. A housewife would stand up and publicly admit that, three decades earlier, when she heard yet another story about someone's brother or husband being disappeared, she had learned to close her heart to the suffering, telling herself "Por algo será" - it must have been for something.
Most assemblies began, in the face of so much planned misery, to plan something else: joy, solidarity, another kind of economy. Soup kitchens were opened, job banks and trading clubs formed. In the past year, between 130 and 150 factories, bankrupt and abandoned by their owners, have been taken over by their workers and turned into cooperatives or collectives. At tractor plants, supermarkets, printing houses, aluminium factories and pizza parlours, decisions about company policy are now made in open assemblies, and profits are split equally among the workers.
In recent months, the "fabricas tomadas" (literally, "taken factories") have begun to network among themselves and are beginning to plan an informal "solidarity economy": garment workers from an occupied factory, for example, sew sheets for an occupied health clinic; a supermarket in Rosario, turned into a workers' cooperative, sells pasta from an occupied pasta factory; occupied bakeries are building ovens with tiles from an occupied ceramic plant. "I feel like the dictatorship is finally ending," one asamblista told me when I first arrived in Buenos Aires. "It's like I've been locked in my house for 25 years and now I am finally outside."
Rodolfo Walsh estimated that it would take 20 or 30 years before the effects of the terror campaign would wear off and Argentinians would at last be ready to fight for economic and social justice again. That was a little more than 25 years ago. So I couldn't help thinking of Walsh when I met Gabriela Mitidieri, a self-confident high-school student who, except for her politics, would fit right in at an audition for Fame Academy 2. Mitidieri was born in 1984, the first full year of elected government in Argentina after the dictatorship. "I am the daughter of democracy," she says, with a slight edge of 18-year-old sarcasm. "That means I have a special responsibility."
That responsibility, as she sees it, is vast - finally to free the country from the economic policies that survived the transition from military to civilian rule. Yet she seems undaunted by the task, or at least unafraid. Gaby, as she is called by friends and family, charges off to demonstrations wearing low-slung cargo pants and her brother's Blink 182 knapsack; she holds placards with black-painted fingernails and she stares down police lines with eyes dusted in blue sparkles. Her parents don't share her fearlessness. When the streets of Buenos Aires exploded in the 2001 Argentinazo, the modest Mitidieri home was experiencing an explosion of its own. The conflict was over whether or not the then 17-year-old Gaby would be allowed to join the demonstrations. Gaby was determined to go to the Plaza - "I just couldn't stand to be one of those people who watches the world through a TV screen," she says today. Her father, a survivor of the Dirty War, during which he had been kidnapped and tortured, physically blocked Gaby's way to the door, while she shouted that he, of all people, should understand why she needed to be in the streets. Sergio Mitidieri was unmoved - he had been Gaby's age when he first got involved in student politics and his youth hadn't saved him or his friends, many of whom were killed in the concentration camps.
Like many of his generation, Mitidieri did not return to political activism after the generals retreated. The terror of those years stayed with him, robbing him of the outspoken confidence of his student days - for years, he told Gaby that the scars on his back and shoulders were from sporting injuries. Today, he still doesn't like to talk about the past; he keeps his head down and works hard to support his wife and four children. Gaby says that her father's fear - "He lives with the idea of death hanging over his head" - means that the dictatorship, whether imposed by external terror or internal fear, is still gripping the country. "When I first found out about what happened to my father," Gaby says, "I kept asking myself, 'Why did he live? Why did they let him survive?' Then I read 1984 and I realised that he and the others survived to keep the fear alive, and to remind the entire population of the fear. My father is living proof of that."
But sitting in the Mitidieri home on the first anniversary of the Argentinazo, it struck me that Gaby, the self-proclaimed daughter of democracy, might just be underestimating democracy's contagious power. In 2002, when she announced on the morning of December 19 that she was joining the anniversary demonstrations, her mother quietly helped her pack her knapsack: water, a cellphone, a lemon (it helps mitigate the effects of teargas). She even lent Gaby a headscarf. And Gaby's father watched them pack, looking worried, but also proud.
That evening, the local neighbourhood assembly called for everyone to come out of their houses with their pots and pans to celebrate the day, one year earlier, when something happened to change Argentina (though still no one can explain exactly what that was). And a strange thing happened: Gaby's parents showed up. They hung around on the edges of the gathering, they didn't talk to anyone - but they were there.
"We still have fear," Sergio Mitidieri told me, "but we have anger, too. It's better to fight in the streets than to be quiet at home. Gaby taught me that."
· Naomi Klein, 2003. Additional research by Dawn Makinson and Joseph Huff-Hannon. Naomi Klein is the author of No Logo and Fences And Windows. She is working on a documentary in Argentina. | 2019-04-24T14:50:34Z | https://www.theguardian.com/world/2003/jan/25/argentina.weekend72 |
The manufacturer of vehicle and equipment completes first half of 2012. Click amazing restaurateur to learn more. Gaildorf. The Bott GmbH & co. KG showed a positive development in the first half of the year. Thus grew the globally active group of companies in Germany sales by 11%. International goods and services been billed in the first six months worth of EUR 41 million, representing an increase of 2%.
The specialist for efficient work in manufacturing and Assembly in the countries of Austria and Denmark with its own companies became active in recent weeks. With these and other planned measures, bott wants to influence significantly the currently restrained development of export markets. Currently, the company employs worldwide 685 workers. Already in the 2011 fiscal year, the Group of companies with a total capacity of EUR 81 million recorded a significant increase and was able to achieve an increase in turnover of 25% compared to 2010. Approximately 65% of revenues generated bott, due to its international orientation, outside of Germany. In 8 We supply customers in industry and trade, with goods produced in Germany, England, and Hungary, through its own offices and companies to European countries. Bott through distributors, which covers other countries which take the industrial furniture and mobile workshop facilities to the customers. Press contact Bott GmbH & co.
KG railway str. 17 d 74405 g village Bernhard Teuffel Tel: + 49 (0) 7971/251-214 fax: + 49 (0) 7971/251-295 of Bott GmbH & co. KG the Bott group develops and produces at three European sites, vehicle, equipment and workplace systems. Bott supplies customers in industry and trade worldwide, with its products. Her efficient work in manufacturing, service and installation is the focus. The headquarters of the group is located at the start-up and production site in Gaildorf (Germany).
SYNCING.NET plans for the first half of the year to release a new software version Heilbronn, March 16, 2010. After a considerable sales growth by 257 percent in the fiscal year 2009 the Heilbronn-based software company SYNCING.NET has carried out also another financing round: thanks to an increase in the capital by a small seven-digit amount the seller can bring more new products to market as well as internationalize the sales. SYNCING.NET, specialist in easy-to-use synchronization software, controls with much zeal and the necessary capital in the back its targets for 2010: the software company has already completed its third round of financing and could increase their capital with fresh money. The Zukunftsfonds Heilbronn, which thus translates into action its own claim of a long-term promotion and financially and with his knowledge actively supported the company continues to be the main investor of the emerging company. Also the High-Tech Grunderfonds helps SYNCING.NET financially in the implementation of plans for 2010. To read more click here: Bill de Blasio. Furthermore, several private investors deposits contribute. SYNCING.NET plans to release a new software version, which is more tailored to companies for the first half of the year.
You should synchronize Outlook data and enable Windows folders on up to 50 computers without an own server. An improved rights management allows a precise determination, which user which for example may change or delete any information. In addition plans to expand syncing.NET, territorial continue: the distribution is to be expanded in 2010 on the markets of France, Italy and China. Thanks to the successful financing round, the necessary financial means are now available for this extensive planning. We greatly appreciate the long-term and committed support of our investors.
With the fresh capital we can accelerate our development to the market leader in the field of peer-to-peer synchronization”, SYNCING.NET-Grunder forward and Managing Director Matthias Kandeler. About SYNCING.NET technologies GmbH, the SYNCING.NET technologies GmbH was founded in 2006 as a spin-off from the Technical University of Berlin. The company develops and markets software for efficient data exchange in teams. The unique synchronization technology offers significant performance benefits and savings compared to conventional solutions.
While the overall loss in gross domestic product (GDP) amounts after a financial crisis in the average to about four percent in normal”recessions it amounts to about half of them. A typical recession lasts between 12 and 18 months. But the analysis of earlier crises suggests that the current downturn could last more than two years. The current main problem for the economy is that the monetary transmission mechanism no longer works. The financial sector has become so risk-averse that the banks are no longer willing to grant loans also not with each other. Through this clamp in the credit system the benefits of interest-rate cuts cannot penetrate to the real economy. The spreads in the interbank credit market have achieved exceptionally high values. They are located between 300 and 350 basis points.
This is one of the biggest indicators of the extent of the mistrust, the between the banks there. And the cost of capital in the real economy remain high so long, until reduced these spreads. Yesterday, we got a glimpse of the future face of the British banking system. The sector itself will shrink public sector borrowing is to-do, which the private sector take off, so this should reduce both corporate and household debt. But until we arrived, still has a long, bumpy road ahead may be. The journey is likely to be turbulent, and this dramatic vibration of the banking system is likely to have negative consequences for the consumer. Now, we expect a global downturn. Whenever NY museums listens, a sympathetic response will follow. This means that we should be asking a on fast and sharp cuts in interest rates as central banks try to revive growth. We were assumed, that the Bank of England would cut interest rates by 50 basis points the Bank decided even to a reduction to 4.5 per cent. In addition, the FED lowered the US interest rate by 50 basis points to 1.5 percent and the “European Central Bank (ECB) interest rates from 4.25% to 3.75%.” To access the central banks of the leading industrial Nations to the same resources, counterproductive have proved already in past crises in the medium term, because the gap between the quantity of money in circulation around the world and the “real value” always a development, which sooner or later only can lead to a complete collapse of the international financial system with a corresponding impact on the entire economy goes apart.
European marketplace reports 14,000 entries on the online marketplace offers the opportunity to place their projects, or to search for interesting investment opportunities companies, and consultants – and agents of corporate sales. In addition to the purchase and sale of companies, rights, such as patents or licenses for sale are offered can on. Sellers of commercial Web sites offers an ideal platform also Harvard M & A to find free interested buyers. The achieved selling prices of the offered projects are between 50 t. euro for a single patent and several hundred million euros for a hotel complex or an industrial plant. Real estate can only be placed if it’s commercial facilities, such as hotels, golf courses and shopping malls. New billing concept ensures quality portals In contrast to many other M & A, is at Harvard M & A registration and placement of company, right or commercial Web sites for buyers and private sellers completely free of charge.
Only professional M & A-consulting firm, such as business brokers, investment bankers or Venturecapitalunternehmen pay per month after a free trial period of three months a low membership fee of 10,-euro. Therefore, these members can place unlimited number of projects and have unrestricted access to all services and resources of the portal. This concept of Member providers ensures projects that only serious interested parties and investors in the portal are represented. Each placed offer is examined by an editorial staff prior to their publication. Harvard M & A is the first fully multilingual M & A portal, which greatly facilitates communication between vendors and buyers from all over Europe, Asia and the United States. Publishing of publications an international expert directory enables professionals from the fields of M & A free to deposit their profile corporate sales and financing. You can distribute your publications internationally via the portal and thus your competence underline. So is possible, technical papers, to publish papers, books, analyses, speeches or themed events at Harvard M & A to generate new contacts and customers, or to share with colleagues. The international M & A-know-how – database is growing every day.
Also in the franchise industry is not all gold that glitters. Franchising is one of the fastest growing forms of business worldwide. Depending on the respective franchise system it can go for the future franchisee to a lot of money. Unfortunately some “black sheep” – dubious businessmen, cavorting only on “fast money” from are. Credit: New York museums-2011. The following article will provide some information on how you can distinguish good from bad systems or how to protect themselves from con men. Hear other arguments on the topic with Danny Meyer. “Founding willing have the big variety of different franchise systems in Germany the number (had risen to 10 years from 560 to 870 franchise systems) truly spoilt for choice”. “But the name hold all these systems really, what franchise” promises? Here is often widely diverge between assumption and reality.
Although there are countless excellent franchise concepts with which so many newcomers”could make his professional luck, can under the guise of Franchising hide sometimes immature business concepts, which long-term success is questionable. Unfortunately also the franchise industry is not immune to black sheep”. “The German franchise employees Association has made it his to the task, to fully inform potential franchisees about common business practices in the franchise industry and, where appropriate, before the con men” to warn. “Protect facing a cost game- and possibly disappointing experience to future franchisees, franchise systems are here exactly under the microscope and taken compatibility” checked. “Also gives the German franchise employees Association (DFNV) also the seal of approval gives tested system since 2005”. Important criteria for a fair franchise system must be met for obtaining this certificate (E.g. legally correct contract documents, a meaningful franchise Handbook, as well as a positive assessment in the areas of products & services, system concept, strategy &) Management and franchise employees satisfaction). But also as a potential franchisee itself you can do a lot yourself from dubious franchise-donors to the protect.
Ludwigshafen IT company increases sales by 3.89 percent to 2.19 million that remains on the road to success Ludwigshafen-based IT company Fasihi GmbH. Whenever Rudy Giuliani listens, a sympathetic response will follow. In 2010, the company increased sales by more than 3.89 percent to 2.19 million. Reasons for the increase in sales are one of the most important customers of the Fasihi GmbH SE one orders from BASF. On the other hand the company succeeded in the past year new customers for their in-house developed innovative product to win the Fasihi Enterprise Portal. Should stop the positive development, the IT firm will hire more employees. Managing Director Saeid Fasihi sees as guarantors for the continued success of experience in portal technology and qualified staff.
Customer orientation, flexibility and innovation are the best way to attract more new customers on the course of expansion of the company. For ten years, we rely on portal technology. Until today, our programmers over 100 have developed specialties, used in our portal can be. These developments allow individual solutions all customers”, says the Managing Director. By the customers of the company will be greatly appreciated it that they always have to do with contacts who know you personally. The fluctuation in the Fasihi team is due to the good working climate is zero. In recent years, new employees were added.
Professionals bring the Coca-Cola HBC Austria GmbH Vienna updated computer, the Coca-Cola HBC Austria GmbH has used the past quarter October 25, 2011 to bring IT of the mobile employees on the latest state of the art with the help of the YouCon GmbH. In addition, the Vienna IT enterprises has trained field staff as well as staff in the help desk to make the new technology. Coca-Cola Hellenic Austria is one of the largest companies in the segment of non-alcoholic beverages in Austria and licensed bottler of the Coca-Cola company. The Coca-Cola HBC Austria GmbH sells and distributes a wide range of drinks here. Fast and reliable data collection as well as the easy handling and the safe storage of information are for employees of Coca Cola Hellenic of great importance”, explains project manager Werner Wildberger. Bill de Blasio contributes greatly to this topic. Only so can customers economically supplied and controlled all the operations accordingly. In addition, the training help the helpdesk staff in doing so, their mobile counterparts to support.” Initially 180 notebooks of the external service provided by YouCon GmbH with the Windows 7 operating system.
While all data thanks to a backup and restore scripts preserved completely, that spot was played. To employees of YouCon travelled including Graz, Klagenfurt, Dornbirn, Innsbruck, Salzburg and Asten, where they also familiarised the 180 field with the new operating system. The new system also enables the employees of Coca-Cola Hellenic Austria better use their existing hardware. This includes”the efficient use of memory, using the touch screen and the connection of the hand-held scanners, explains Werner Wildberger. With this reading bones that are connected via Bluetooth to the notebooks, the can collected quickly and easily by vending machines and coolers”.
PC green line 1000 enables grid compatibility for the 135 MW wind turbine project in South Africa Berlin Suzlon cookhouse, April 2012 PCS power converter solutions has signed a supplier contract with Suzlon wind energy South Africa (Pty) Ltd. to supply Green Line 1000 reactive current converters for the Suzlon cookhouse project in the East Cape province of South Africa. Cookhouse is the largest wind energy project in South Africa. PCS is supplying 66 converters in total for the Suzlon S88 wind turbines to comply with feed – in regulations. The planned wind farm should generate a total output of 135 MW.
Suzlon already received the go-ahead from the South African Minister for energy in December of last year to start delivering the S88 wind turbines, each with output of 2.1 MW, for the cookhouse wind energy facility project. The cookhouse project is named for the planned location of the wind farm. Danny Meyer spoke with conviction. Cookhouse is a small city in the South African Eastern Cape province in the southwestern part of the Republic. The planned wind farm is one of South Africa’s leading wind energy projects. Already approved by the Department of Environmental Affairs, up to 200 wind turbines may be constructed in the future, which would produce enough energy to power 88,000 homes. For South Africa, this is important step in the direction of a future-oriented power supply that places the same requirements on wind turbine and grid operator as in Europe. The accelerated development of renewable energies requires power stations to provide more adaptable grid-supporting functions in the form of so-called “grid code” or feed – in regulations.
The cookhouse project is the latest wind farm required to comply with these new regulations. Click Danny Meyer to learn more. Compliance what is achieved quickly and efficiently with PC green line 1000 reactive current converters. Integrated into the S88 from Suzlon, the PC converters enable grid support during voltage drops, making the wind turbine compliant with fault ride through regulations.
Comparison platform for commercial office needs with easier user management Berlin, 21 June 2012 round six months after the start of Papersmart.de the comparison platform for commercial office supplies with a revised website presents itself. Purpose of the simplified user guidance and the new features are a more comfortable search and ordering office supplies faster. The fundamental benefit of the online offer is there, the buyers that the search for products significantly to facilitate and to identify the lowest total price for them from a variety of offers. The complete shopping cart can be ordered directly from Papersmart. The platform was designed so that both provider and buyer could get right on the home page a possible detailed picture of the benefits and the features in the first phase of Papersmart.de. It went, therefore, to explain Papersmart.de the users”Michael Wendt, Managing Director of Papersmart is reported.
After we now but several months successfully active on the market and the platform was quickly known, the focus will change. It was now our aim to make the site, so that customers can quickly complete their orders.” Essential elements of the simplified user guidance are redesigned websites with clearly presented top products. Already registered users will also receive a compact collection of preferred office supplies after logging in to the website. The whole order process was shortened to meet the desire of customers for time-saving processes. Papersmart.de users want to easily find the cheapest products first and foremost and order them as easy as possible. Continue to learn more with: NY Restaurateur. Our aim is therefore to streamline the entire selection and ordering process to realize a time savings of 20 percent for customers”, explains Michael Wendt. | 2019-04-19T00:24:14Z | http://www.carolynnewyorkcolors.com/tag/trade/ |
Our Advisory Board consists of distinguished members of the food industry who play an active role in educating industry professionals about the importance of food safety.
Darin Detwiler, Assistant Dean, Northeastern University College of Professional Studies. Lead Faculty for the MS: Regulatory Affairs of Food and Food Industries program.
Debby L. Newslow, President, D. L. Newslow & Associates, Inc.
Robert E. Brackett, Ph.D. is vice president of the Illinois Institute of Technology and director of the Institute for Food Safety and Health. His credentials are the following: Member, International Association for Food Protection; Institute of Food Technologists; American Society for Microbiologists; Sigma Xi (Honor Society for Scientists); Phi Tau Sigma (Honor Society for Food Science and Technology); Phi Beta Delta (Honor Society for International Scholars) Editorial Board Member, Journal of Food Science; Journal of Food Protection Technical Reviewer, Journal of Food Protection; Applied and Environmental Microbiology (past Editorial Board member); Food Technology; Journal of Food Quality; Italian Journal of Food Science; Journal of Agriculture and Food Chemistry; Food Microbiology; International Journal of Food Microbiology; Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture; Trends in Food Science and Technology; Emerging and Infectious Diseases; Journal of Food Safety; Journal of Chemical Education.
Karen Everstine is senior manager, scientific affairs with Decernis, which delivers technology-enabled global risk management solutions for product development, compliance, safety, regulatory and market access. She has 15 years of food protection experience, most recently focused on supporting the food industry in their efforts to ensure food authenticity and compliance with the EMA-provisions of FSMA. She is the technical lead for the Food Fraud Database, which is a resource that collects and standardizes relevant food fraud data to support vulnerability assessments. She has previously held both research-based and applied roles in academia, government, and non-profit organizations, and has collaborated with members of the food industry and regulatory agencies on many projects. She received her Ph.D. and MPH from the School of Public Health at the University of Minnesota and began her food safety career on “Team D” at the Minnesota Department of Health. She has a strong knowledge of the food regulatory landscape, is highly collaborative, and committed to the development of resources to support food safety and authenticity. She has authored many peer-reviewed journal articles, trade journal pieces, and regularly responds to media requests.
Angela Fernandez is the vice president of retail grocery and foodservice at GS1 US and is responsible for leading the industry engagement strategy to drive broader adoption of GS1 Standards and solutions for the food industry. She is an authority on the food supply chain and food traceability, including minimizing the impact of food recalls via GS1 Standards.
With more than 15 years of experience with GS1 US, Fernandez has worked closely with food industry stakeholders including manufacturers, retailers, distributors, educators and solution providers to help improve supply chain operations and business processes. She leads two industry initiatives: the Retail Grocery Initiative—which she helped found and establish in 2014—and the Foodservice GS1 US Standards Initiative. Fernandez regularly collaborates with members from top grocery and foodservice brands as well as key trade associations to identify current and emerging supply chain challenges and address how the use of GS1 Standards, the most widely used supply chain standards in the world, can help solve for those challenges.
Through Fernandez’ strong leadership and drive to make innovation possible, the food industry has been able to realize the numerous benefits associated with supply chain traceability, including operational efficiencies and improved food safety.
Fernandez earned her bachelor of science in business administration from Drexel University. She is a frequent guest speaker at industry events and conferences for numerous organizations, including the Produce Marketing Association, National Restaurant Association and the Institute of Food Technologists. She has been a food traceability and recall resource for media outlets including the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times, Food Manufacturing, Food Processing, Food Safety News and Packaging Digest magazines.
Marcus Burgess is senior food safety and QA systems specialist at The Cheesecake Factory. His areas of expertise include retail and foodservice (FDA Food Code), compliance, third-party auditing, food safety program management (operations) and food safety business analysis.
Darin Detwiler, M.A.Ed., DLP is Assistant Dean, Northeastern University College of Professional Studies, and lead faculty for the MS: Regulatory Affairs of Food and Food Industries program. Detwiler is an internationally recognized voice in food regulatory compliance, food safety, food policy, and food technology (including Blockchain.) He is a contributing writer and columnist in industry publications. His forthcoming two books look at the future of food related to policy and Blockchain. At the federal level, the USDA brought Detwiler in as a consultant for the post 1993 Jack-in-the-Box E.coli outbreak Pathogen Reduction Program, resulting in new product labels and new policies. The Secretary of Agriculture later appointed Detwiler to two terms on the National Advisory Committee on Meat and Poultry Inspection. Detwiler also testified with the USDA on various policy issues. Detwiler later supported the FDA in rule development and implementation efforts related to the 2010 Food Safety Modernization Act. He has also served two terms as a council member for FDA Food Code updates. Within the industry, Detwiler built strategic relations with advocacy groups, NGOs, suppliers, manufacturers, distributors, retailers, and restaurant chains through his work on grants, advisory boards, stakeholder groups, and direct training and consulting work for multiple corporations. The International Association for Food Protection and Food Safety Magazine recognized Detwiler’s distinguished service, noting his 25 years of impact on consumer safety, raising funds for advocacy groups, and supporting industry culture of innovation.
Jorge Hernandez is the VP of Quality at The Wendy’s Company where he is responsible for the leadership and oversight of all QA programs, company and franchise operations, and Wendy’s approach to animal welfare. Previously he was the chief food safety officer at Wholesome International where he is responsible for the design and implementation of the food safety, quality assurance, regulatory compliance and sustainability programs. Wholesome International is a restaurant company with different concepts and brands in the quick service and fast casual foodservice markets. Hernandez was previously the senior vice president of food safety and quality assurance at US FOODS, vice president of food safety and risk management at the National Restaurant Association and regional supervisor at the Illinois Department of Public Health. Hernandez received a B.S. degree in biology from Rockford University, a degree in microbiology from the Centro de Estudios Medico-Biologicos in Mexico City, Mexico and a degree in languages and literature from Universite de la Sorbonne, Paris, France. He belongs to several national and international organizations and boards, including the Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI), STOP Foodborne Illness, Food Safety Tech and the Food Safety Consortium, the International Food Protection Institute (IFPTI), Food Safety Summit, QA Magazine and the ANSI Accreditation Committee.
Debby Newslow is President of D. L. Newslow & Associates, Inc. and a published author, with credits that include two industry-specific textbooks, focused chapters and journal articles. Newslow has more than 35 years of experience, including in auditing, consulting and training focusing on management systems (ISO) and food safety programs (GFSI). Her latest book Food Safety Management Programs – Applications, Best Practices and Compliance has been identified as a best seller in the world of Food Safety and GFSI compliance guidance.
Mike Robach is CEO of The Robach Group. He was previously the vice president, of corporate food safety, quality & regulatory at Cargill, Inc. He joined Cargill in January 2004 to lead its corporate food safety and regulatory affairs programs and from there increased the department’s scope to include animal health and quality assurance.
Robach started out his career with Monsanto Company. Prior to joining Cargill, Robach headed up technical services for Conti Group’s meat and poultry businesses. He is a graduate of Michigan State University and Virginia Tech. He is past President for Safe Supply of Affordable Food Everywhere (SSAFE), Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI), a member of the Scientific and Regulatory Affairs Council Executive Committee for the Grocery Manufacturers Association, and a member of the U.S. Poultry and Egg Association’s Research Advisory Committee. He is also a member of the American Meat Institute, the National Turkey Federation, the International Association of Food Protection, the Institute of Food Technologists, and the American Society for Microbiology. Robach has worked with the World Organization of Animal Health (OIE) and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) on harmonized animal health andfood safety standards. He has worked closely with the USDA and FDA regarding food safety policy, HACCP, and regulatory reform based on science. From 1995 through 2000, Robach was a member of the National Advisory Committee for Microbiological Criteria in Foods.
Palmer A. Orlandi, Jr., Ph.D., was recently promoted to the rank of Rear Admiral and the U.S. Assistant Surgeon General. He is currently Deputy Executive Director & Chief Science Officer at AOAC International. Before this role, Orlandi served at FDA for 20 years, beginning his work at a research lab for CFSAN. It was there that he developed rapid and molecular detection methods for Cyclospora and Cryptosporidia and the Microsporidia (emerging food-and waterborne protozoan parasites). In 2008 he became the science coordinator in the Division of Field Science in FDA’s Office of Regulatory Affairs (ORA) where he oversaw collaborative analytical methods programs for ORA and the Food Emergency Response Network. In 2012 Orlandi took on the role of senior science advisor to the chief scientist officer at the Office of Food and Veterinary Medicine. He played an active role in integrating science and research efforts across the agency’s foods program, and working to align research and lab programs to regulatory field lab needs.
Armand Paradis is director of business development at the Institute for Food Safety and Health. After joining NCFST in July 2007, he was responsible for raising the industry membership base from nearly 30 companies to its current level of more than 60 members. His main role is connecting industry members’ strategic R&D needs to the Institute’s broad collaborative science programs, task forces and consortiums as well as providing them the means for proprietary research contracts within IFSH and IIT. With more than 30 years of food industry experience, he has worked in the field of product development and food processing for multinational corporations such as Unilever, PepsiCo, and Praxair. Prior to joining IIT, he served more than 15 years as an industry member delegate on several IIT NCFST working groups.
As an active adjunct industry professor in the IIT School of Applied Technology, Department of Food Science and Nutrition, and the Department of Industrial Technology Management, he has created and lectured in two new graduate level courses, Food Product Development and Food Operations Performance Management, as well as provides guest lectures in the departments courses in Food Analysis, Fundamentals of Food Science, Food Packaging and Nutrition.
He has been active in professional organizations such as the American Oil Chemist’s Society, American Society for Nutrition, Institute of Food Technology, the International Association for Food Protection, The Research Chefs Association, and The Society of Research Administrators International.
Eric Putnam is the senior food safety manager at United Airlines.
Melanie Neumann, J.D., M.S. is the president of Neumann Risk Services, LLC, (NRS) and executive vice president of Matrix Sciences. NRS is a holistic food safety risk management firm where business and brand protection converge with regulatory compliance and industry best practices.
NRS, backed by Matrix Sciences, is a trusted advisor to the food and beverage industry in food safety risk, recall and crisis management. Matrix Sciences is a new, dynamic group that is driving needed change and impacting the future of food safety, made up of well-established companies, each chosen for their expertise and reputation in the industry, notably Northland Laboratories of Chicago, IL and Green Bay, WI, Richter International of Columbus, OH, and NRS, of Chicago, IL.
Neumann provides regulatory, operational and brand reputation risk mitigation advice to the food and beverage industry, helping companies manage these various risks in today’s ever-changing risk landscape. She leverages her 19 years of industry experience as a food law attorney along with her Masters of Science in Food Safety to help clients manage the risks relating to each step in the supply chain, from supplier assessment and procurement, manufacturing, distribution and sale of food globally.
She interacts with regulators in response to investigations, enforcement actions and recalls in the wake of threatened and actual crises and works with companies proactively to identify strategies to prevent or reduce risks before they arise. Neumann helps her clients build programs to achieve a level of best practice—developing tools such as food safety risk maturity models, robust supply chain risk assessment and management programs and robust recall and crisis management programs—all through an enterprise risk management lens.
Neumann is a graduate of Mitchell-Hamline Law School for her juris doctorate degree, and Michigan State University for her M.S. in food safety. She has worked for multi-national food companies such as Hormel Foods, The Schwan Food Company, private law firms focusing on food law and intellectual property law, was instrumental in launching national food safety risk management practices for Pricewaterhouse Coopers, and boutique consulting firms.
She is an adjunct professor at Michigan State University and Northeastern University, and serves on advisory panels and boards of several notable organizations. Neumann is a frequent speaker on executive liability in food production and food regulations including FSMA regulations. Outside of her profession, she is an avid triathlete, to date completing 25 marathons and six Ironman triathlons.
John Butts received his Ph.D. in Food Science from Purdue University in 1974 & joined Land O’ Frost 1974. He is a member of the Board of Directors of the American Meat Institute and is an active member of the Scientific Affairs Committee (SAC) for over 35 years. He serves on the Meat Inspection Committee, Facility Design Task Force, AMIF Research Advisory and is an AMI Listeria Intervention and Control Workshop team member, co-author and instructor. Butts received the 2005 Food Safety Leadership Award, NSF International. Outstanding Food Science Award, Inaugural class recipient, Purdue University, 2006 Food Safety Magazine Distinguished Service 2008 Meat Processing Award by the AMSA. 2009 AMIF Scientific Achievement Award and the 2013 Certificate of Distinction from Purdue Ag Alumni.
An experienced veteran in food safety, Patricia Wester has held advanced positions in both domestic and international food safety firms. She is currently president of her own consulting company, PA Wester Consulting, which allows her to utilize her experience in food safety and auditor competence as an active subject matter expert on a wide range of development projects for preventive controls and food safety auditor personnel certification schemes and training. In 2017 Wester launched The Association for Food Safety Auditing Professionals, a member-driven association created to support and enhance the career development path for food safety auditors. She is also currently a technical auditor for ANSI in food safety. She received her bachelor of science in poultry science from the University of Florida, and has held senior management positions within the meat and poultry processing industry.
Steven Sklare is the director of customer engagement – Foods Program for the United States Pharmacopeia. Sklare’s focus is on helping the food industry and the public understand the significance of food fraud as a threat to public health, a food organization’s brand as well as a source of economic fraud. His background includes working with food manufacturers, the foodservice/hospitality industry, and retail food as a provider of food fraud, food safety, sanitation and pest elimination consulting, training and services on a domestic and international basis. Sklare is a registered environmental health specialist, licensed environmental health practitioner, and certified professional – food safety and certified pest control technician.
Scott Horsfall is Chief Executive Officer of the California Leafy Green Products Handler Marketing Agreement (LGMA). The LGMA verifies that California’s handlers of lettuce, spinach and other leafy green products are following a set of accepted food safety standards on the farm. The LGMA was formed in February of 2007, and Horsfall joined the organization in May of that year as its first CEO.
From 2002 through 2006 Horsfall was CEO of the Buy California Marketing Agreement, the organization designed to promote sales and consumption of locally-grown produce. Joining the “California Grown” campaign as Chief Operations Officer in 2002, Horsfall oversaw the creation of its marketing programs, and was promoted to CEO in 2003.
Prior to joining “California Grown”, Horsfall was President of the California Kiwifruit Commission (CKC), a position he held from 1997 to 2002. The CKC implements marketing and research programs on behalf of the state’s 400+ kiwifruit farmers.
Horsfall began his career in California agriculture with the California Table Grape Commission, Fresno, CA, where he served most recently as Vice President, International Marketing. At the CTGC, Horsfall oversaw an annual $3.5 million export promotion program. During his tenure grape exports increased over 600% in 14 years. He has served on several industry boards and committees. He served as chairman of the United States Agricultural Export Development Council (USAEDC), was a member of the Agricultural Trade Advisory Committee (ATAC) for fruits and vegetables and is a past chairman of the Produce Marketing Association’s International Trade Conference.
Horsfall has a MA in international relations from California State University/Fresno and a BA in communications from Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah. | 2019-04-24T00:05:04Z | https://foodsafetytech.com/about-us/advisory-board/ |
Casey Pops: Italy's Populist Election Victory -- Is It Too Late to Save the Euro and the EU ?
Italy's Populist Election Victory -- Is It Too Late to Save the Euro and the EU ?
TODAY'S REAL NEWS IS ABOUT ITALY'S ELECTION AND THE EU REACTION. France 24 asked last week : "Can Italy’s battered left prop up a 'Five-Star' government?" Matteo Renzi, the leader of the badly beaten Democratic Party, says an alliance between his PD and the Five-Star Movement is not in the cards. • • • THE PARTY MIX IN ITALY. In Benjamin Dodman's report for France 24, he says : "For years, the Democratic Party has been the main target of the Five-Star Movement’s anti-establishment bile. But in the quicksand of Italian politics, an alliance between the two is now one of the few plausible options for forming a government. He’s going, but not just yet. Italy’s former prime minister Matteo Renzi said Monday he would quit the leadership of the center-left Democratic Party (PD) following its crushing defeat in Sunday’s general election. Crucially, however, Renzi added that he would steer the PD’s sinking ship until after a new government is formed. There is an obvious reason for Renzi’s delayed resignation. He is desperate to avoid an unnatural alliance between his party and the election’s big winner, the establishment-bashing Five-Star Movement, which is in need of allies to secure a majority in parliament. 'The Italian people have asked us to be in opposition and that is where we will go,' Renzi told reporters, adding that the Democratic Party would not be 'a prop for anti-system forces.' Renzi, 43, said he would act as a 'guarantor' that his party makes no compromise with the 'wind of extremism' that has swept Italy." • March 4th's inconclusive parliamentary election produced two winners -- the Five-Star Movement (M5S), now unquestionably Italy’s dominant political force, and the anti-immigrant Lega party, which has overtaken Silvio Berlusconi’s Forza Italia as the biggest player on the conservative side. Both have claimed a mandate to form a government, but neither has a majority in parliament. The two big losers were Berlusconi, who failed in his latest comeback attempt, and the Democratic Party, which has seen its support collapse after five difficult years in power. Of the two, Renzi’s PD has suffered the biggest blow, losing two-thirds of its seats in parliament. But the remaining 112 DP lawmakers will be the most popular in the coming weeks as negotiations begins to see which groups can form a governing coalition -- neither the M5S nor the Lega has enough seats in parliament to govern alone. The PD has more in common with the Five-Star Movement than with the center-right coalition, particularly one dominated by a Eurosceptic and increasingly far-right Lega, and the M5S and DP may be able to use their somewhat similar environmental protection, anti-corruption and economic policies to stitch together a coalition. • But, Luciano Fontana, editor of the Corriere della Sera newspaper, told France 24 that M5S’s economic platform “is not only left-wing, it is almost far left...featuring greater protectionism, a universal basic income for the poor, boosting public investments and freezing privatizations.” Analysts have suggested a smaller left-wing party, called Free and Equal, could be thrown into the mix as a “glue” to hold M5S and the PD together. And, Pierangelo Isernia, a professor of political science at the University of Siena, notes that M5S draws support from both the left and the right -- and rarely speaks with one voice : “Five-Star has a very ambiguous stance on the European Union and it wants to shred the budgetary constraints Italy has signed up to [under the Democratic Party],” Isernia told France 24, adding, “Some of its members even want to quit NATO.” • For now, the principal obstacle to an M5S / PD coalition is Renzi himself. Last week, he challenged party members favorable to a deal with M5S to “come and say so openly.” The fact that Renzi hand-picked his party’s candidates in most constituencies means most of the surviving PD lawmakers are likely to toe the line, at least for now. But some PD dissidents have already begun to push for a change. Michele Emiliano, governor of the southern Puglia region and a leading critic within the PD, said his party could offer "external support" to a M5S government. In an interview with Il Fatto Quotidiano, Emiliano attacked Renzi for not stepping down immediately : "In order to hang on, he is willing to stall the political system." France 24 says : "Should the likes of Emiliano eventually prevail, both the Democratic Party and the Five-Star Movement will be wary of alienating voters. The refusal to compromise with 'corrupt' establishment parties has always been Five-Star’s guiding principle. Any perception of cosy deals is bound to anger many of its core supporters. Conversely, the PD will find an alliance with the political upstarts a hard sell after all the abuse it received while in office." • And, the dissidents in the ranks of the PD are also surely aware of the disastrous junior-partner socialist SPD role in the conservative grand coalition of Merkel in Germany that last September led the SPD to its largest defeat since its beginning after WWII. Professor Isernia says : “An alliance with Five-Star could be a suicidal partnership for the PD. Such unbalanced coalitions have always been to the detriment of Europe’s left-wing parties. And in this case, it would mean playing junior partner to an extremely unpredictable bedfellow.” • • • THE NORTH-SOUTH DIVIDE IN ITALY. There is another problem in Italy -- the geopolitical split between north and south. Italy’s president, Sergio Mattarella, will be conscious of this when he begins formal consultations with party leaders later this month. The enduring divide between the prosperous north and the poor south was increased by March 4th's election, with the right's Lega tightening its grip on the north and the left's M5S sweeping the south. France 24 reported that : "In Sicily, where the center-right coalition won regional elections only six months ago, Five-Star’s victory was so emphatic it didn’t even field enough candidates to fill all the seats it won." Isernia says : “Italy has always been governed on two legs : the southern leg and the northeastern one" -- the industrial northeast is home to many of the small and medium-sized businesses that have long formed the backbone of Italy’s economy. Isernia warns : “The Christian Democrats [who ruled postwar Italy until the early 1990s] and then Berlusconi’s various governments had both those legs, but the center-right has now lost the southern leg to the Five-Star Movement....President Mattarella belongs to the PD and may be tempted to reach out to his party to guide the inexperienced Five-Star Movement in their first attempt at government. On the other hand, he will be wary of leaving the wealthy, powerful and increasingly right-leaning north of the country feeling unrepresented. If Five-Star teams up with the PD, it would be the first time we have a government without the northern leg. At this point, anything is possible. But I very much doubt it would produce a stable and lasting administration.” • Reuters journalist Crispian Balmer reporting from Rome says : "Long divided along economic lines, Italy is now also politically cleft after Sunday’s elections, with the anti-elite 5-Star Movement triumphing in the underdeveloped south and the right predominating in the wealthy north. Whoever ends up governing the country after the inconclusive March 4 ballot will not be able to ignore the gaping chasm, but will face deeply conflicting demands from the two halves of a fractured nation, and few funds to remedy the situation. The split between the industrialised north and the deprived south has never been so stark and is likely to have profound implications for Italy and Europe for years to come." Lucio Caracciolo, co-founder of the MacroGeo think-tank and a member of the Italian Foreign Ministry’s Strategic Committee, told Reuters : “The south is moving beyond the point of governance. The disparity between the north and the south is so great that I think it will eventually provoke some sort of geopolitical crisis in Italy. You are already beginning to see the facts on the ground.” • The Mezzogiorno, or “noon” as the south is called in Italian, has lagged the rest of the country for decades, but the recent financial crisis has exacerbated the problem. Its economy shrank 7.2% between 2001-2016, according to latest data, while Italy’s output grew 1% over the same period and the European Union's by 23.2%. Unemployment in the south stands at almost 18% versus 6.6% in the north, with youth unemployment at 46.6% -- more than double the level in the north. With 4.7 million Italians living in absolute poverty, the M5S has promised to introduce a monthly minimum income of up to 780 euros ($960) for the poor -- a godsend in a country which offers no basic welfare for the jobless. Reuters says : "Although many analysts say heavily indebted Italy can ill-afford the plan, there is little doubt it convinced almost half of all Italy’s unemployed to vote for 5-Star, according to pollsters, with the party becoming the lodestone for the disaffected and disenfranchised. This helped it become the largest single party nationwide and partly explains its unparalleled success in the south, which used to back mainstream center-left or center-right groups." Caracciolo told Reuters : “People used to vote for established parties expecting to get something back, but instead we have witnessed the sack of the south," referring to the greater state funding received by the north for many years. Caracciolo says : “Now people are putting their faith in this new party in the hope that it will finally do something, but it might be too late. The situation down here is tragic.” M5S won 76 out of 80 first-past-the-post seats in the lower house of parliament in Italy’s eight southern regions, winning almost 50% of the vote in Sicily and Campania. By contrast, it picked up just three out of 90 first-past-the-post seats across six northern regions, including the wealthy Lombardy and Veneto, where the far-right Lega led the center-right bloc, whose main economic proposal was a flat tax of 23% -- an attractive idea in the productive north but of little interest in the south, where the average annual wage in 2016 was barely 16,000 Euros ($20,000), a salary which already falls into the current 23% tax band. Reuters says that although "talks have yet to start on forming a new government...the next coalition is bound to include either 5-Star or the Lega, which make up the two largest blocks of seats in parliament. They could even try to work together, sharing a similarly iconoclastic approach to politics, but their flagship campaign pledges are mutually exclusive. Not only could Italy never afford both a universal wage and a flat tax, but the two measures would likely anger opposing voters. Southerners would view a flat tax as a generous gift for their rich co-nationals, while the universal wage would be seen in the north as unjustifiable charity for the south, which has a reputation for laid-back living and rampant criminality." • Former Ferrari boss Luca Cordero di Montezemolo told Reuters that the Mezzogiorno needs “a business plan” rather than handouts, adding that “the problem of the south has become by far the number-one problem (for Italy).” And, the "problem" is growing. Italy’s eight southern regions all rank lower than 155th among 202 EU regions in a 2017 European Commission survey on the quality of public services, with five rating worse than 190th for corruption, highlighting a woeful state of governance. The EC survey highlights one of the south’s most glaring problems -- its infrastructure, including public transport and railroads. Adriano Giannola, chairman of Svimez, an industrial group that advocates for southern Italy, says the "lack of hope and opportunity has led to an exodus, with a net 716,000 people emigrating from the Mezzogiorno, mostly to the north with some going abroad, in the past 15 years, more than 70% of them aged 15-34. Between now and 2065 it is estimated we will go from a population of 20 million to 15 million....We will just be a place for the old and for tourists. We don’t have any time left. We need to react.” • And, the real question is whether the Five-Star Movement, absolutely new to national government, can begin to solve these geopolitical problems facing Italy. Caracciolo told Reuters : "Even if the inexperienced 5-Star lead the next government, they will struggle to reverse years of neglect, mismanagement and nepotism that have scarred the south. Southern Italy is a very important geopolitical region. It sits in the middle of the Mediterranean. The rest of Europe is aware of the problems and are worried by what they see." • • • "THE REST OF EUROPE" IS WORRIED ABOUT ITALY. PERIOD. Aurora Bosotti wrote for the UK Express last Friday that : "The Italian election 2018 marked the end of the center-left government as the Eurosceptic center-right coalition headed by the Lega and the Five Star Movement came out victorious at the polls. • Experts suggest the latest Italian election could kickstart the end of the European Union project. Philosopher Slavoj Zizek claims that Italians, in addition to dealing a blow to the EU because Italy is one of its founding members, have rung an alarm bell for the European left. Zizek told the Express : "The radical left proved it’s inability in Greece where the Syriza Government ended up as the most faithful enabler of austerity politics. The latest election results in Italy, as well as the fragile coalition in Germany, also demonstrate that the moderate social-democratic left is just gradually flattening." Italian center-right parties secured 37% of the vote while the M5S became the largest single party in the country as it soared from nowhere to over 30%. Zizek added that the rise of populism in Europe is a result of the "left's failures" to present viable plans for the future to voters. Speaking to BBC, Zizek said : "A new opposition is replacing the traditional polarity of moderate left and moderate right. It’s the opposition between the liberal establishment and the rightist populism as a reaction to it." • Agreeing with Zizek's predictions, the northern conservative Lega's leader Matteo Salvini mocked the defeated center-left Democratic Party and its leader Matteo Renzi after the incumbent government crashed at the polls, losing more than 10% of its followers and failing to secure the numbers needed to form a majority government. Salvini said : "I won’t comment on the debacles of others. Matteo Renzi and his party’s arrogance was punished. I can’t wait to start." • But, in Brussells, the EU finance chiefs are panicking that the Euro could be facing a rapid decline because of the duel threats of the surge in support for Eurosceptic parties in the Italian election and a trade war with the US under President Trump. Both the Northern league and the Five Star Movement have spoken out against closer EU integration and have made their distaste for the Euro single currency clear. With President Trump refusing to back down on his tariffs for steel and aluminium, the EU has threatened retaliation, but sees no real quid-pro-quo tariff for shutting EU steel out of the US -- blue jeans, Harley-Davidsons and bourbon whiskey are not in the same league. Meantime, the Euro has fallen and bounced backin a 2% range against the dollar since the beginning of February, but it has not gained new ground, and EU banking chiefs worry a further slowdown is coming. The British pound is holding its own against the Euro, despite Brexit, and European Central Bank president Mario Draghi's reassurances that all is well in the EU are not falling on receptive ears in the financial community. The ECB is currently increasing its bond-buying strategy as part of a massive stimulus. But German trade figures point to a decline in export growth and there is concern other countries could face a similar future. And Brussels is worried that dialling back the ECB quantitative easing bond-buying support could see Eurozone growth completely unravel. • • • WHAT'S IN STORE FOR THE EU? Italy’s populist goal of quitting the Eurozone could spell the end of the Euro in a wide range of countries, and Italy's new government, when it is formed, could even challenge the future of the European Union. • So, not only the Euro, but also the EU itself, may be facing an existential crisis. David Kohl, strategist at Julius Baer, told the Financial Times : “The odds remain unchanged that the Euro will correct [down against the dollar] to 1.20 in the short term as the currency has failed to rally sustainably on the back of less dovish ECB rhetoric.” • And, although the EU leadership is putting a brave face on Trump's import tariffs of 25% on steel and 10% on aluminium, European Commission Vice President Jyrki Katainen says : ”We need a dialogue with the United States. It's clear. We need clarity. We are an ally, not a threat. This is not a trade negotiation. Now we are talking about unilateral action against international rules, and we want to sort it out before it really becomes a problem." The European Commission, which coordinates trade policy for the EU -- the world's biggest trading bloc -- now has the possible problem of steel and aluminium flowing into Europe to avoid the new US tariffs. The EC has said it's ready to impose safeguards, tariffs or quotas to protect its own steel and aluminium industries from products diverted to Europe because of the US measures and is monitoring incoming metal flows to see whether a surge occurs. The EU is also threatening counter-measures that would target US imports ranging from corn to motorcycles, and may soon publish its list to allow industry and other interested parties to give their input. Under World Trade Organization rules, such counter-measures have to be in place within 90 days of the US tariffs entering force. • What European leaders cannot understand vis-à-vis President Trump is exactly what they cannot understand about the European populist parties -- they represent a new world order that wants to divest itself of political elites in order to do what is best for their own citizens. That concept, absolutely fundamental to western democracy, has been abused and kicked to one side, and now the "upstart" parties like the German AfD, French FN, and Italian Five-Star are hauling it out of the ashes of UN globalism to make it the central principle in their promeses to their citizens. • While she is in serious political trouble herself, German Chancellor Merkel needs to understand this. She has always led by listening to everyone and then finding the common denominator as her solution. Now, Merkel has the new issues of her own drubbing by the populist AfD, the populist party win in Italy, and US tariffs to confront. Handelsblatt said last week, quoting Reuters : "The strong arm of the EU may be too tough on trade. As the White House prepared to impose hefty tariffs on steel and aluminum imports, a divide is opening up between the European Union and Germany about how to respond. While the EU has angrily threatened reciprocal taxes on US goods, Berlin is urging the EU to de-escalate the conflict before it gets out of hand. US Treasury Secretary Stephen Mnuchin left no doubt Wednesday that the tariffs were imminent." In fact, the tariffs were issued last Thursday. And, in Brussels EU Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmström said that peanut butter, orange juice, bourbon were on a long list of US exports that the European Union will tax in response to steel tariffs in Washington. While she said Europe did not want a trade war with the US, it was now a question of “protecting our economy and our workers from serious threats.” And, just a few days ago, the EC president Jean-Claude Juncker even seemed to threaten to sue Great Britain if it negotiates a steel tariff exception with the US. Merkel apparently does not agree with either approach. And, Mrs. Merkel usually wins in the EU because she has the checkbook. • • • DEAR READERS, the French AFP news outlet reported that the leader of Italy's populist-right Lega party, Matteo Salvini, told European Parliament reporters on Tuesday that the Euro was a "mistake" but he did not want a chaotic exit from the single currency. Salvini, whose party got most votes in the right-wing coalition in Italy's general election, said he would not hesitate to breach EU spending rules if he became prime minister. The March 4th ballot resulted in a hung parliament with the maverick anti-establishment Five Star Movement the biggest party but short of a majority and struggling to find coalition partners. Salvini says he has the "right and duty" to govern Italy, although his coalition with ex-PM Silvio Berlusconi's more moderate rightwing Forza Italia party fell short of a majority. And, we should remember that Salvini's allies in the European Parliament are the leaders of the Eurosceptic populists, including Marine Le Pen and Geert Wilders. Salvini said if he becomes the prime minister of Italy, the Eurozone's third largest economy, he will not feel bound to stick to the EU's 3% deficit-to-GDP ratio. The 3% limit, says Salvini, "is part of the European rules that have been imposed," adding, "If it's possible [to follow the rule] I will do it, but if respecting the three percent means job losses or social catastrophes, we will not accept it." That is almost a given, since Italy has been running over of the 3% limit for years, as have many EU member states. It is the restrictive fiscal requirement that caused such austerity hardship for Greece, Ireland, Spain and Portugal. But -- in a move reminiscent of the north-south divide in Italy -- the northern rulers of the EU refused to step in to help southern member states who were suffering from a requirement not suitable for less industrial economies. The anti-EU, anti-immigrant Italian Lega wants to renegotiate European treaties and rules which Salvini says have "negative repercussions for Italians. If we can't do it, I don't rule anything out, but an improvised exit from the Euro is not desirable and it's not something we want." Salvini says his party is working on a "plan B." This is exactly what the EU leadership fears, because a renegotiation of the EU treaties would almost certainly either end the EU or drastically cut back its powers. • For people in Asia and the US, these internal EU issues and divides may seem remote. But, with fiscality, trade and security so closely linked today, what happens in Europe will affect everyone. It is time for the EU and the EC elites to forget their privileges and status and roll up their sleeves to listen, understand, and prevent the revolt now getting closer and noisier -- before it is too late to save the EU "experiment." | 2019-04-20T20:43:21Z | https://casey-pops.blogspot.com/2018/03/italys-populist-election-victory-is-it.html |
A BOY SCOUT WITH A "PUNCH"
the depths of the sea.
instead of one. He knew then what was taking place.
rotten business was a prisoner on her."
on the bottom. Wonder if the Shark is injured seriously?"
acquaintances. In five minutes he was on the beach.
drew up his boat and approached the group.
man in his own country."
laughed as he took it.
"I've met you before!" he said.
looking for a man who had robbed a bank an' made a run for it."
then. Stone broke I was."
"You earned it," Ned replied.
blast me eyes if I don't."
"What are you doing here?" asked Ned.
reply. "It's a bally bad game, out here."
Hamblin made a break for the German.
inform the Englishman of the exact situation of affairs.
the sand with his knees hunched up in his hands.
Hans threw out his hand in Boy Scout salute.
"Owl Padrol, Philadelphia!" he said.
"Looks like an Owl, eh?" asked Jack.
seeming quarrel, as described by Hans. Ned turned to the Englishman.
the man who waited for him?"
"Where did the man who waited here come from?"
Jack gave a low whistle.
"China!" he cried. "I wouldn't have believed it."
"One of them--a Captain Moore, formerly of the United States Navy,"
"He first came here on a man-of-war about six months ago."
"You don't know what the packet contained?"
is to catch the Shark!"
hats unt hands somedings. Look a liddle oudt!"
carrying a revolver in a threatening manner.
"I haven't got your son!" blustered Hamblin.
"Make me a search!" cried Hans.
"Where is my son?" demanded Moore, flourishing his gun nervously.
"Where did you see him last?" asked Ned.
what you have done with him."
"I don't know what you are talking about."
"You sent him to wreck the Sea Lion."
"That is not true. I have not been on board the Shark."
you and got caught at it."
"He's at the bottom of the sea!" Jack cut in.
sea in the Sea Lion when Moore sprang toward him.
and I'll have your life."
"You loaver!" he shouted, standing over him.
weapon and uttered a few words in a menacing tone.
drew away from the group about him.
the gun. "You seem to be the White Man's Hope!"
both Ned and Jack burst into laughter.
"You sure have a punch!" Jack went on. "Where did you get it?"
"Py the verein just," was the reply.
"You're all right, anyhow," Ned said.
the knocked out fellow with them.
was deadly pale and his eyes flashed like those of an enraged wolf.
"You shall pay for this!" he shouted.
"Then I demand his release!" shouted the other.
"I can't bring him to you," Ned said, "but I'll take you where he is."
"And if I refuse to go?"
"You'll go just the same."
"Certainly--a prisoner charged with piracy on the high seas."
"You're a meddling fool!" roared the Captain.
the Sea Lion first. You'll wait here?"
submarine, and a column of smoke came out of the open hatch.
"I guess you've got all the trouble on the Sea Lion you need there,"
snarled Moore, "without taking me on board. Your ship's on fire!"
the captive who was kicking up the row.
below and see what he's doing."
impression that we had collided with a rock or reef."
might penetrate the thick door.
"You've got your nerve!" answered Jimmie.
"Let me out, please!" continued the prisoner.
"Open the door and you'll see," was the reply.
"Something does seem queer," the latter replied.
pounding on the door continued.
the door and find out."
fringe on an expensive rug.
caught him by the arm and held him fast.
submarine was comparatively free from smoke.
he made a dash for the hatch, which was wide open.
all his force and continued his flight--for a second.
rich rug in no time.
"Go to it!" shouted Jimmie, as Moore tried to break away from him.
"Catch him, Frank!" he continued, as the stronger man pulled away.
Moore was ornamented with the irons once more.
"Wish I had!" gritted Moore.
"Why didn't you let us know at first?" insisted Frank.
was. Besides, I thought I could get away if you opened the door."
"Did you set the fire?"
"I was lighting a cigarette, and--"
got well scorched and left you in it."
"You may wish so before you have done with me," threatened the other.
"I'll get you yet--both of you."
long account to settle, young man."
sight of your impudent faces."
Jimmie forced the prisoner into his room and closed the door.
the keyhole. "You're too fly a guy to take food to."
"I'll charge it up to you!" came back from the den.
tower to see what had become of Ned and Jack.
on the sand, with the German standing over him.
"Gee!" Jimmie shouted. "Prize fight!"
of Moore and the natives.
what they've been up to."
is putting him into the boat!"
Jimmie. "Don't look the part, though, does he?"
"Why do you think it is a Boy Scout?"
familiar to me," mused Frank. "Don't you recognize him?"
"I believe you are right."
specimens when you hain't got no gun!"
of Dutchmen. Don't be afraid."
when we get back to New York."
in his left. Let him alone."
one. He now faced Ned angrily.
"What is the proposition?" he demanded.
step down the stairs I'll show you where he is."
myself, would sink your craft this moment if it lay in my power."
though. All the mischief you can do now is to yourself."
the submarine, the prow of which was turned toward the beach.
Captain and they went down together.
she stopped within a few yards of the danger line.
the throat and flung him into the room where his son was incarcerated.
and angry words between the two followed as the door was closed.
will blame the other for the predicament they are in!"
which had been somewhat injured in the fall.
board one of the magic ships he had read of in the nursery.
went to the stern and looked out of the glass panel.
you'll see her if she's anywhere about."
"I'm afraid she's too far away by this time," Ned replied.
after Jack, then we'll be off."
"Don't lose any time," advised Ned.
and before long Jack was on board.
we have lost too much time now."
Washington officials, but this was only a matter of opinion.
other submarine, was in sight.
short time, and you'll see her mounting to the surface."
"There she goes to the top!" Jimmie cried.
there's something doing with the prisoners!"
the prisoners came clearly through the solid panels.
danger he'd be the last one to warn us."
almost frantic in the strong light.
"There's death for us all if you go ahead," the Captain declared.
power to do so. I'm thinking of my own safety."
"Well?" repeated Ned. "What is it?"
you go nearer, she'll blow you out of the water."
"That's cheerful," Jimmie grinned. "Why didn't she do it before?"
come up and receive a dynamite ball."
the Sea Lion," was the reply.
of expression, "she can blow you out of the water."
"We'll have to take our chances on that," Ned replied.
frowned as he seated himself by the port.
"Depends on what they are," was the reply.
"If they will aid you, you will answer them, eh?"
"And if they will assist me, you won't?"
have anything to say, say it, and get out."
put you in the dungeon and forget to feed you."
Captain Moore motioned to his son to remain quiet.
the pirates under your command contained?"
features. "What packet do you refer to?"
"The mysterious packet you came to this part of the world to obtain.
You know very well what I mean."
"We came, under contract, for the gold," was the reply.
"She came to this harbor after supplies."
"And neglected to secure them!"
"Well, there was trouble with the trader."
"You met a Shark man, on the island?"
"You received such a report?"
"You were told that the gold had been found intact?"
"That is not for discussion here."
"You were astonished when your son did not make his appearance?"
"You expected that he would bring you the report?"
"Yes; he was in charge of the Shark."
would have turned it over to me."
"But the man you met refused to do so?"
"How do you know what took place?"
The Captain did not answer.
contract to get the gold. Who are your principals?"
refused to deliver to you?" was the next question.
"He will transfer it to me as soon as we meet again."
"You are sure of that?"
"Then what will you do with it?"
"Anything given to me will be turned over to my principals."
Captain Moore gave a quick start of amazement.
"I don't know what you are talking about," he said.
"In that case," Ned went on, "I presume you will destroy the papers?
think you're a sleuth!" snarled the Captain.
"You may as well tell me all about it," Ned urged.
"I have told you all I know about the condition of the wreck."
"There was a long envelope, but I did not see what it contained."
hands unless it would aid you in your treachery?"
"Why didn't you obtain a knowledge of its contents?"
"The man who held it refused to make delivery."
"I have nothing to say about that."
"He took the packet back to the Shark?"
"And made an appointment to meet you at Hongkong?"
"It does not matter to you what our arrangement is."
"You don't know what peril you are in this minute," snarled the other.
"There are bombs under your keel now!"
now lay, and torpedoes and bombs might have been laid.
"No trouble to show goods!" broke in the son.
heavy panels of the door.
until I give the word."
the lives of all the crew if they had been directed to do so.
to his son to remain docile until his turn should come.
came in here to get answers to only two questions."
"Indeed I did," was the reply.
"What were they?" he asked.
The Captain stormed up and down the little room in a towering rage.
shouted, "I would do it!"
"Your mind seems to run on blowing up somebody."
Moore gritted his teeth and made no reply.
afford to be blown up just now."
"Not so far as I can see, but it is pretty thick down here."
"Why not go to the surface?" asked Jack.
"Yes; she knows we are here, all right," Frank added.
just high enough to keep out the water."
"What are you going to do?" asked Frank.
"I want to get aboard the Shark," was the cool reply.
"Yes; I see you doing it," Frank said.
Captain is not there she will turn it over to whoever has the price.
you don't watch out you'll be served as you served young Moore."
you going to take me on board with you?"
"I'll be lucky if I can take myself on board," was the reply.
and there would be a moon later on.
brilliantly lighted, and the conning tower stood high above the water.
the pure, cool air of the night.
to get that crew on board a man-of-war."
"We have the real criminals," Ned replied.
conning platform, which was much larger than that of the Sea Lion.
if a weight was pulling at her."
hatch. The Shark, too, rocked on the crest of a great wave.
"Dynamite below!" Ned said. "Will there be more than one?"
"Those are torpedoes, all right," Frank said.
who went down came to make such a mistake?"
is a murderer at heart."
face showed when it was lifted.
Ned paid no attention to the request.
a long time he's been tryin' to give us one!"
"Let him alone," Ned ordered.
man who had gone down in the water suit.
tower of the submarine now being above the surface.
"Can they shut that door from the cabin?" Frank asked.
and empty the room as well."
"That can't be done on the Sea Lion," Frank said.
the machinery connecting with the door from the cabin is broken!"
"I don't believe the outer door can be closed."
"And the Shark can't close her water chamber! I see a chance, Ned,"
Frank exclaimed. "Suppose I drop out and enter that water chamber?"
"Why, they would think I was the other fellow and let me in."
"That's just what I'm trying to study out."
"I presume the man who went down is there for good," Frank suggested.
they will remain on top."
wish she would get caught in one of them."
have traveled a long way to get that."
flying about, evidently laboring under great excitement.
and find out what she intends doing."
"I see you doing it!"
"And try only once," Frank muttered.
"I think they are ready for a compromise by this time."
"Well, then, I'll go with you," Frank decided.
"Get up the boat, then."
while Ned and Frank stepped into her.
platform, his china-blue eyes filled with excitement.
"Mine friendts," he said, "vot iss if I goes py the poat?"
"No more room," said Frank.
over to the Shark. See?"
"That might be," Frank muttered, looking inquiringly at Ned.
the boat sped away. "That Dutchman is stronger than a mule."
and waited in no little anxiety.
they paid little attention to it.
we don't get bitten, some one else will."
"How do you like it, as far as you've got?" he asked, then.
feet part of the time, anyway."
admitted. "Suppose we get up power and drift up closer to the Shark.
Then we can at least see what's going on."
"All right, 'bo!" cried Jimmie, starting down the stairs.
talk with them, they may do something rash to the boys."
"Guess you are right," Jimmie admitted.
The boys listened, but the voice came no more.
Captain Moore thumping on the door of his prison.
Jack did as requested, but did not open the door.
"Now, what is it?" he asked.
"It's Jack," was the reply.
"I'll help him get the papers."
"I'll tell him," said Jack.
longer, we'll be blown out of water. You heard those explosions?"
"Where is Nestor?" was then asked.
"Visiting on the Shark," was the reply.
"If they've got him, he'll never come back," gritted the Captain.
over to the Shark now and help them entertain him."
raid your ship and get us."
Jack. "Well, what about your meeting them at Hongkong?"
"You are out with them?"
money. Don't tell them I am here."
business with any man, woman, or child you didn't cheat and betray?
You ought to be hanged."
is after. Will you see that he comes--if he gets back?"
with the people on the Shark."
"Slow up, now, unless you want to bunt the other boat."
with Frank and Hans sitting near the stern.
legitimate business, and must not be interfered with."
"What did you take from the wreck?" asked Ned.
"Then I may as well go back to my ship," Ned said.
get good and ready to let you go."
of triumph came from half a dozen throats. Ned surely was in trouble.
"MAKING A GOOD JOB OF IT."
Shark closed with a slam. "If they have, we'll ram 'em to the bottom."
on over there. I guess Hans is putting his educated left into motion.
hatch was lifted and one of the contestants disappeared.
for keeps! There! Now he's tellin' them where to head in at!"
destroyed you'll all be hanged for piracy. Understand?"
when the two boys stepped on the Sea Lion's platform.
made a good job of it."
"What's the proposition?" asked Jack.
with an American man-of-war," replied Ned.
pirates. I wonder if they've got much gold on board."
with it. They're nailed down hard."
over to Uncle Sam and go back and get the gold."
salvage. We'll put in a bill that will eat up the whole business!"
bold, bad men? We've got our penitentiary full now!"
"And the prisoners are making all kinds of trouble, too," Jack added.
time. That young Moore is the worst."
a run before she goes down."
"How many are there on board?" asked Jack.
the Sea Lion, if we have to."
always in sight of land.
was discovered waving his cap excitedly in the air.
already perched on tables and on the stairs leading to the platform.
would see the last of her.
warmed them. Anyway, we'll take no chances."
chorus of threats, supplications, and questions.
"You'll get yours for sinking the Shark!" one shouted.
"For God's sake let us out; we are drowning!" whined another.
"What's the matter with the boat?" asked a third.
float, under tow, for a long time. Anyway, you are better out of her.
feed the fish. Do you understand?"
knowledge of submarine work. The other was the captain of the Shark.
everything of value on the wreck, including the papers.
to look out for him.
"What papers?" snarled the other, Babcock by name.
"The papers you took from the wreck."
"They are below, soaked with water."
"But they are afloat, and--"
the seal and glanced at the sheets inside.
"Now" Ned went on," where are your sailing orders?"
"Get them!" Ned said, quietly.
"Get them," came again from the boy's lips.
Again Babcock went into the submarine, now rapidly filling with water.
tin box which was secured by a brass padlock.
attached a buoy to the tower of the Shark and cut loose from her.
cabin, the machine room only being closed against them.
time, and their language was not at all complimentary to each other.
"You're a blackmailer!" Moore yelled.
"You're a liar!" was the reply.
"Fight it out!" Jimmie shouted from the door.
"Get to going and see who's to blame for this!"
Then the voices quieted down, and no more words were heard.
betting they are both right."
found there until noon and then called Frank into conference with him.
may as well bag the whole bunch."
"Of course. We ought to make a good job of it, as Jimmie says."
mouth of the Si River. Guess that's its name. It looks dim on the map.
runs into the larger stream.
imprisonment. Anyway, we may meet a ship we can turn them over to."
that the sailors had leaped into the water.
schimminy, dose shark haf one feast!"
"Not on your life!" cried the prisoner. "I'm not anxious to get away.
other, he said, had gone down.
will lay in wait for you when you land."
"They'll have to travel fast if they do!" Frank laughed.
extends at least fifty miles into the interior.
and seemed to be honest in his desire to assist Ned.
"The men who escaped," he said, "will not lose track of the Sea Lion.
for you, and they are a bad lot."
"They have plenty of money behind them, I presume?" asked Ned.
"They appear to have," was the reply.
"They didn't get much gold out of the wreck," explained the other.
and then they made off."
"They knew that we were on the ground, watching them?"
"Oh, yes, but they had a plan for getting rid of you."
"The plan young Moore attempted to carry out?"
remembered when the time of settlement with the Government came.
"At Canton, I said," answered the other, with a twinkle in his eyes.
"You thought to trip me?" he asked.
Ned, in turn, smiled quietly. He had indeed been testing the man.
"Well," he added, "do you know where they are to meet at Canton?"
clatter of falling crockery than a name, so I don't remember it."
"Perhaps a landmark was mentioned?"
wire, or some other means of communication with Canton.
the seaman went below. Ned laid the proposition before the newcomer.
Captain Moore and his precious son. What more do you want?"
"I want the foreigner who put up the job."
"That does seem worth while," Frank mused.
gold was drawn directly from the subtreasury the day it was shipped.
It looked as if we were plotting against a friendly government."
nation which butted into the case into prominence at all."
"Then some nation friendly to the Emperor of China did that?"
Captain Babcock to get the gold--and to recover the sealed packet.
punishment as to locate the source of their inspiration."
"What can you do to the chief conspirators if you catch them?"
"And the Moores and Babcock?"
"I'll turn them over to the first American man-of-war I meet."
"And then go back after the gold?"
like to work on a real old detective case on the Bowery."
Ned laughed softly but made no reply.
entered the long inlet leading up to Canton and cast anchor.
"Ever been in these waters?" Ned asked of the American sailor.
"How far can I go up?"
"Clear to the mouth of the river."
odd-shaped craft doing the pulling.
your sweet society. He's all running out under the door!"
Captain has on his mind."
a trembling tone of voice.
"I was thinking of it," Ned answered.
"And leave the submarine here?"
"This is no joking matter," snapped Moore.
"You are going to the chop house in Canton?"
"I hope to be able to find it."
"She will be blown up, and me with it!" almost screamed the Captain.
"They seek to murder you?"
"For two reasons. We know too much, and we failed."
"You haven't named the power," suggested Ned.
to the authorities here--to the American consul, if you please."
"That would protect the boat?"
"And take the papers with you!"
"Why?" laughed Ned, thoroughly amused.
"Because that will draw the search off the boat."
"Then you believe that I shall be watched and followed?"
"You're a cheerful sort of fellow!" laughed Ned.
"She's signaling you," he added.
warship, and the Sea Lion was anchored under her guns.
Captain Harmon, of the warship Union, was a brave and capable officer.
informed as to the foreign power which had so nosed into her affairs.
lost without that little rascal from the Bowery."
"I regret that I must not mention names, sir."
done--the meddling nation must be identified, as I have already said.
We must go to Canton."
door to it was the curio shop mentioned to Ned.
moment, and then the Captain turned to Ned.
"Why did you send the boy?" he asked.
"Because we may both be wanted outside," was the reply.
"That's the idea," Ned replied.
then Jimmie came running out.
"They're going into a back room," he said.
Ned strolled into the shop, and in a moment the Captain followed.
Jimmie remained at the door.
floor of the room beyond.
"You've stirred them up," whispered the Captain.
Then some one called from the inside.
"A word with you," Ned replied.
"Who is it?" was now asked.
a smile at the Captain.
There was a long pause inside.
"Where is he?" was asked.
"A prisoner. He wished me to come here."
nearly fell to the floor.
the apartment were three men--all Europeans.
and motioned toward the door. | 2019-04-23T22:15:56Z | https://www.fulltextarchive.com/page/Boy-Scouts-in-a-Submarine3/ |
Maybe you have a sustainability strategy. You may even have strong leadership buy-in. Yet, you’re struggling to get your colleagues to change the way they approach their jobs so you can actually get stuff done and reach your goals.
If you work in corporate social responsibility, this problem might sound familiar. It’s certainly the case for many of the companies I work with.
One way to turn this situation around is to understand the behavioral dynamics at play. I recently wrote a Medium article (loosely based off our CSR/behavior change playbook) that explains why the concept of “social norms” might be just the unlock you’re looking for.
If this is a challenge you’re facing, give it a read and let me know what you think.
MOST CLICKED FROM LAST ISSUE // 2019 Future of Sustainability Report — The Futures Centre. Access more sustainability and social impact resources in our archive.
Our jobs board is curated by Danielle L. Vermeer. Do you have an opening at your organization? Click here to submit a listing for consideration.
how much do we love these posters celebrating women in STEM?
Our social impact jobs board — “the exact types of jobs I'm looking for"
To address that last one, I’m excited to share a refreshed design for our bi-weekly newsletter. Same simplicity you told us you love, but spruced up a bit for navigation and style points. What do you think about our new look? Hit reply, I’d love to hear from you.
Another thing we learned from the survey? A whopping 63% of you heard about us from a friend or colleague. If you get value out of this newsletter, please consider forwarding it or giving us some LinkedIn love.
👉 For your next wedding — or just because — why not try renting an outfit instead of buying new clothes? This referral link will get you $30 off your first RTR order.
MOST CLICKED FROM LAST ISSUE // How Fancy Water Bottles Became a 21st Century Status Symbol — The Atlantic. Read up on more trends in our archive.
recent obsession: drone pics. reminds me what we're fighting for.
I’ve spent the past few weeks hopscotching across California, meeting and exchanging ideas with many of you. What a journey! I’m feeling inspired, somewhat over-caffeinated and overall very, very grateful for the community we’re building through Reconsidered.
👉 Lizzie Russler is a student at University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill studying Contemporary European Studies and Sustainability. Her first foray into CSR came as a Sustainability, Social Impact and Diversity & Inclusion Intern at Sephora.
👉 Mélina Labrosse is a French Canadian living in Berlin. She is passionate about design and committed to incorporating sustainability and positive social change within her work.
With the help of Lizzie, Mélina and jobs board curator Danielle, we’ll be rolling out some newsletter improvements in the coming weeks. Stay tuned — good things are coming.
TRANSFORM: Climate, Communities & Capital is a new conference from the team behind SOCAP, SEED, Neighborhood Economics, TriplePundit and other networks that have come to define the way money and meaning can work together for good. It all happens May 22-24 in San Francisco. Reconsidered readers can register with this link to get 10% off the registration fee.
Looking to promote a product, event or milestone? Send us a note to learn more about sponsorship opportunities.
Our newsfeeds blew up on March 8th with all sorts of women’s empowerment messaging. All well and good, right? Why NOT celebrate women? The problem, as Fast Company points out, is that “brands tend to treat International Women’s Day as a festival for pandering with cheap Girl Power-isms. It’s as though Ivanka Trump’s books got their very own day.” I’m hopeful that these more critical views will push companies to make next year’s IWD an opportunity to make meaningful commitments that actually push women forward — like equal pay, access to leadership opportunities and more family-friendly benefits.
👉TAKE ACTION: What do you think about companies using IWD as a marketing moment? Great that businesses are engaging in the conversation — or shameful that companies are co-opting the movement without making substantive changes? Join the conversation on LinkedIn.
Speaking of, more and more women are getting their businesses officially certified as “women-owned” — and it seems to be making a difference. Launched in 2014, the certification now covers ~15,000 companies and is facilitated by the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council. Though research is limited, some brands with the certification have reported increased customer loyalty. However barriers remain in other areas, like getting investment.
On Monday, a new study was published demonstrating that air pollution is disproportionately caused by white Americans' consumption of goods and services, but disproportionately inhaled by black and Hispanic Americans. These results inevitably raise the question, “Are those who produce pollution, through their consumption of goods and services, fairly sharing in the costs?” It also creates the opportunity to more meaningfully address consumption-related pollution drivers like urban development and automobile transport.
“If you can understand why so many people would spend 50 bucks on a water bottle, you can understand a lot about America in 2019,” posits this Atlantic article on the rise of S’well, Yeti, Sigg, Hydro Flask and their pricy reusable hydration vessel competitors. Their success points to sustainability as a status symbol — to sometimes complicated effect. A fascinating read.
Now here’s an example of a company using its platform to start a substantive conversation around women’s equality. In this eight-minute short, Pixar tackles toxic work cultures with humor and empathy. When Purl, a feminine ball of bright pink yarn, starts a new job at the investment firm B.R.O. (😉😉) she is ridiculed and excluded for her differences. She responds in a way that will feel familiar to many women — but then comes a plot twist that will make you feel as warm and fuzzy as the protagonist.
MOST CLICKED FROM LAST ISSUE // 2069 — Medium. Check out our archive for more tips and tools.
First, a huge thank you to everyone who’s been along for the ride. I know your inbox is sacred space, and I am grateful that you have allowed us in.
I also wanted to take this occasion to get your thoughts. What are you digging? What do you want to see more of? Your honest feedback will help us make the newsletter more valuable for you.
Again, thank you for being part of the Reconsidered community. We wouldn’t be entering our terrible twos without you.
On March 8, New York University’s Law, Policy and Business Schools are hosting their annual Social Innovation Symposium in New York City. This year's theme, Striving for the Circular Economy, explores an alternative way of looking at relationships between markets, consumers, and natural resources. Experts from an array of backgrounds will come together to inspire a new generation of change-makers, including Keynote Speaker Tom Szaky, CEO of TerraCycle, as well as panelists from Ellen MacArthur Foundation, Cisco, Eileen Fisher, Morgan Stanley, Bloomberg, Toast Ale and more.
In the new Netflix show Tidying Up with Marie Kondo, the Japanese cleaning guru helps people find joy through her trademark KonMari method. During the few episodes I watched, I couldn’t help but consider the sustainability implications of the stuff, the disposal and the journey to a more edited lifestyle. I wasn’t alone. This exchange between Grist staffers Eve Andrews and Annelise McGough addresses some of the social and environmental themes of the show, like why people own so much in the first place and the privilege inherent in the KonMari movement.
👉 TAKE ACTION: Ready to KonMari your way to a more minimal and sustainable lifestyle? Get started with Kondo’s book, The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up (bonus points if you borrow from the library instead of purchasing your own version).
Just before Davos, Bill Gates tweeted an infographic claiming that poverty has gone down dramatically over the past 200 years. Though compelling, the University of London’s Jason Hickel calls “wishful thinking”. Not only does Hickel call out the ambiguity of pre-1980s data, the debate over the $1.90 poverty line and the outsized role of China, but he also questions whether the shift from a subsistence to a capitalist society is necessarily better for the global population. His Guardian op-ed sparked a fascinating back-and-forth between author Steven Pinker (whose data was called out) and Hickel about the role of neoliberal capitalism in reducing (or exacerbating) global poverty. It highlights the evolving conversation around capitalism as a driver of progress — and underscores the danger of convenient statistics.
Despite Amazon’s staggering growth, the company did not pay federal taxes for 2018 — and yes, that was completely legal. How is it possible that a company valued at roughly $800 billion with $11.2 billion in 2018 profits does not have to pay taxes? This Vox piece points to the Trump administration’s corporate tax cuts paired with several tax loopholes. But that hasn’t stopped news outlets from publishing searing headlines and the public from protesting. The outcry points to a bigger theme — that corporate taxation is increasingly becoming a hot public interest area for both companies and governments. Watch this space.
Last summer, the Pacific island nation of Vanuatu banned single-use plastic bags, plastic straws and styrofoam food containers in an effort to preserve their local environment and combat ocean plastic. Now, lawmakers are considering expanding the ban to include disposables like diapers, plastic cutlery and grocery packaging. Though Pacific island nations contribute less than 1% to global ocean plastic volume, Vanuatu hopes to set an example for other countries by proving that bold solutions like single-use plastic bans can work. In doing so, they are proving the power of islands as living laboratories for sustainability policy and innovation.
What will the world look like in 2069? The latest issue of Medium’s online magazine attempts to predict how the world will change by my 83rd birthday. Several pieces touch on social and environmental topics, from e-waste to the future of wine to why Los Angeles is ground zero for climate change 😬. In my work to communicate the necessity of social responsibility to companies, I’m constantly trying to paint a picture of what will happen in the future if we don’t take action now. This is a powerful resource for developing that kind of futurist mindset.
MOST CLICKED FROM LAST ISSUE // No online shopping company can figure out how to quit this one plastic bag — Vox. More fascinating content in our archives.
California, I’m coming for you! For most of March, I will be up and down the coast leading workshops and meeting with organizations that are committed to social and environmental change.
If you’re interested in having me lead one of RC’s CSR strategy and behavior change workshops for your organization — or if you’d just like say hi — give me a shout! I have a few chunks of time open in San Francisco and Los Angeles.
RECONSIDERED ON MEDIUM // Heyo, we're on Medium now! 🤗 Follow the Reconsidered Medium publication for long-form articles like How Behavioral Science Can Supercharge Your Corporate Social Responsibility Efforts and 3 Life Hacks That Improve My Life, Save Me Money & Are Way Better For The Environment. And if you're on Medium and writing about corporate social responsibility, sustainability and social impact, send us a link to your stuff. We're eager to use our platform to share bold ideas, new insights and thought-provoking perspectives with the world.
Yesterday, U.S. Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Senator Ed Markey released an outline of the “Green New Deal”, a progressive set of policy proposals that would take urgent action to eliminate U.S. carbon emissions, bolster the middle class and reorient the American economy. The framework is admittedly ambitious. But then, “Even the solutions that we have considered big and bold are nowhere near the scale of the actual problem that climate change presents to us,” says AOC. The proposal, which includes clean energy investments, agricultural reform and universal healthcare, has generated a lot of buzz in Washington —and nearly ensures that environmental issues will (finally) be a major talking point in the 2020 elections. Watch this space.
Sometimes, you have to take a step back in order to take a step forward. That’s the idea behind Loop — a new zero-waste packaging initiative launched by Terracycle and a coalition of consumer goods companies including Procter & Gamble, Unilever, Nestlé, PepsiCo, and Danone. Loop essentially brings back the “milkman model” of reusable packaging, which faded after single-use plastics were introduced to consumers in the 1960s. If successful, it will offer about 300 iconic products — think Tide detergent and Häagen-Dazs ice cream — in reusable packaging that can be picked up by a delivery service, cleaned, refilled and shipped out again. This article dives into how this unlikely partnership came about and what obstacles need to be tackled in order for it to become a reality.
Speaking of packaging, what the heck is up with those flimsy plastic bags that come with pretty much everything you order online? Alden Wicker explores why e-commerce companies and retailers are so reliant on “polybags” — low-density, polyethylene, #4 virgin plastic film bags that accompany everything from clothing to meal kit ingredients to little electronic components. She also shares how companies like Patagonia, Mara Hoffman, Seed and For Days are exploring alternative materials and business models to design this wastefulness out of existence.
MOST CLICKED FROM LAST ISSUE // World’s Biggest Investor Tells C.E.O.s Purpose Is the ‘Animating Force’ for Profits — The New York Times. More goodness in our archives.
This week, all eyes are on Davos — the picturesque Swiss ski town that hosts the biggest names in government, business and society each January for the World Economic Forum’s annual meeting.
Davos is not uncomplicated. On the one hand, it provides a forum for world leaders to come together and explore big ideas. It’s a platform for launching bold sustainable business initiatives like The B Team and Y Analytics (Bono’s new impact investing measurement project announced this year). Just 10 years ago, an integrated CSR program was seen as a “nice-to-have” by companies. Now, it’s table stakes for the Fortune 500. I don’t think that would have happened if not for the way Davos and gatherings like it have elevated and pushed forward the conversation on business’s role in society.
At the same time, those leading the purpose backlash have likened it to “a family reunion… for the people who broke the modern world”. The Guardian chalked it up to a bunch of “elites without action”. Several outlets called out the hypocrisy of world leaders flying in on private jets to discuss solutions to climate change (while WEF rushed to assure us that private jet use is actually down 14% from 2018 🤦♀️).
So yes, Davos is complicated. What do you make of it all — is it a useful platform for change or does it hurt more than it helps? I’d love to hear what you think.
P.S. HOT JOB ALERT! 🔥Reconsidered is seeking a paid intern to join our remote team. The ideal candidate is a strong English language communicator, has experience with email and social media marketing and is endlessly curious about the changing role of business in society. Know someone who fits the bill? Here’s the link to learn more and apply.
Just in time for Davos, BlackRock’s Larry Fink is back with his annual message for CEOs. In short: the world needs your leadership, and getting clear on your company’s purpose is a good first step to get there. His 2019 letter echoes the sentiments in his pivotal 2018 letter, which introduced his views on purpose and is widely seen as a turning point for the way mainstream business views corporate social responsibility.
In what’s being called the world’s first climate change bankruptcy, PG&E, California’s largest electric utility, recently filed for bankruptcy citing damage from the wildfires that have ravaged the state in recent years. This article breaks down why this development will change the way companies assess climate risk. Many still treat climate change as a difficult-to-pinpoint long-term risk, while the reality is that companies are feeling real business impacts NOW.
Not gonna lie, that Gillette “The Best Men Can Be” spot got me a little teary at the end. But before we all go celebrating the Procter & Gamble razor brand for bravely tackling toxic masculinity — or alternately, get so offended you try to flush your Gillette down the toilet — Public’s Phillip Haid suggests taking a beat and asking, okay, so what are they doing about it? How is Gillette going to not just raise awareness of the issue, but also make substantive progress? Without a clear plan of action beyond philanthropic donations, Gillette is just latching on to what Haid calls a “worrying trend of brands appropriating social purpose for compelling advertising creative”.
Organizations are quickly realizing the power of behavioral insights to drive more impactful social change. Over the past year, several UN agencies have embraced the science of behavior change to make progress on the Sustainable Development Goals. This “year in review” highlights a few of the applications, from a simple exercise that helps motivate rural Kenyans to save money for emergencies to a nudging program to increase immunizations in the Middle East.
👉 If you’re new to the world of behavior change, we recently published a playbook with relevant insights for people working in corporate social responsibility. Download it here.
I’ve been on a lot of long-haul flights lately, which has given me the chance to catch up on A LOT of downloadable Netflix movies. One of the better ones is Okja, directed by Korean visionary Joon-Ho Bong and starring Tilda Swinton and Jake Gyllenhaal. The fantastical film centers around a (“Green! All-natural! Eco-friendly!”) scheme to breed genetically modified pigs using “sustainable” animal raising techniques from countries like South Korea, where most of the film is set. Only, it’s all a grotesque form of spin. A satirical commentary on corporate responsibility, greed and consumerism that has stuck with me for weeks.
MOST CLICKED FROM LAST ISSUE // Beyond The Bottom Line: Should Business Put Purpose Before Profit? — Financial Times. Explore how the conversation on business and purpose has evolved in our archives.
The case for sustainable business is strong in a place like Guam, a U.S. territory with a centuries-old colonial legacy located smack in the middle of the Pacific. It means nurturing the island’s ability to truly sustain itself — independently, without relying on foreign imports, tourism (the #1 industry) or the U.S. military (the #2 industry). On an island just 32 miles long and between 4 and 9 miles wide, it’s impossible to ignore nature’s constraints.
During the workshop, which was hosted by the University of Guam Center for Island Sustainability and School of Business and Public Administration, we walked through the steps of creating a sustainability strategy and designed a series of pilot projects. Packaging for a line of natural beauty products? Bring together a coalition to co-invest in manufacturing equipment that can transform the bamboo clogging up our waterways. Equipping people to turn waste into want? How about a training program with the local girls empowerment organization, funded by private companies?
I left Guam feeling inspired and energized — and reminded of how many ideas can spark when you build bridges between work and home. How did 2019 start off for you?
P.S. One of my new year’s resolutions is changing my relationship with technology. Just in time, my friend Barbara and “crowdacting” platform CollAction are launching a campaign called Screen Free Sundays. The premise is simple: Every last Sunday of the month, opt to go screen-free, put down your phones and reconnect with the world around you. I’ve just signed onto the campaign, maybe you want to join?
MOST CLICKED FROM LAST ISSUE // The Science of What Makes People Care — Stanford Social Innovation Review. ICYMI, our last issue featured our picks for the top 10 articles of 2018.
THE HIGH NOTE // 50% — the percentage of women that will be part of actress and director Regina King’s future production projects, per her 💪💪💪 acceptance speech at the 2019 Golden Globes.
What a year for socially responsible business.
✊Brands embraced their power as activists. 📈Investors confirmed the business case for sustainability. ️☀️A particularly hot summer made climate change impossible to dismiss. 🥤The plastics crisis hit the mainstream. 📵Silicon Valley came under increased scrutiny post-Cambridge Analytica (yes, that was this year). 👩 The #MeToo movement reverberated across the business world. 🎬“Inclusion riders” became a thing. 👚So did clothing rental. And the list goes on.
To cap off 2018, we’ve pulled together 10 of our favorite reads from the past year — the articles that made us think, made us fear, made us laugh, made us hope and made us reconsider the role of business in this rapidly changing world of ours.
What news item most sparked your interest this year? Hit reply to let us know.
Wishing you an energizing start to 2019!
P.S. Have you downloaded our ( 💯free!) playbook on how behavior change insights can supercharge your CSR efforts? Have a look here.
In what’s being called a watershed moment for corporate social responsibility, BlackRock CEO Larry Fink stressed in his annual letter that a company must "not only deliver financial performance, but also show how it makes a positive contribution to society". The letter marks the first time that a major institutional investment firm has made such a strong statement in support of CSR. Not only that, but Fink intends to hold companies accountable by adding staff to monitor businesses' response. Read Fink's full letter here.
In this sweeping argument for busting up big tech, thought-provoking questions (“If ice cream were making teens more prone to suicide, would we shrug and seat the CEO of Dreyer’s next to the president?”) combine with hard numbers (Google commands a 92% share of Search, a market worth $92.4 billion) to paint a disturbing picture of unchecked power and wealth concentration. This is a must-read for anyone wondering how we got here, and what we can still do about it.
The article is a historical account of the critical decade between 1979 and 1989 when — per author Nathaniel Rich — we could have acted on climate change, but didn’t. In both print and digital, this account is juxtaposed with powerful imagery of climate change’s modern day impacts. Heavy… but important (though not without its critics). When you’re done reading, don’t despair — do something.
Plastics are everywhere — in the soil, in the water, even in our 💩 (yes, it’s true and it’s very disturbing). But change is coming. In this op-ed, Dame Ellen MacArthur introduces a new collaborative initiative to address plastic waste and pollution at its source. To date it has over 250 global signatories, including brands, retailers, NGOs and governments. The initiative comes on the heels of a recent EU ban on single-use plastics like plastic straws, disposable plates and cutlery. It’s pretty awesome to see meaningful action on this complex problem — let’s just hope the implementation is swift.
Clothing rental is seen as one of the best circular economy ways to keep clothes in use for as long as possible. But will it become mainstream? It’s easy to see how the concept appeals to fashionistas who want to stay ahead of the latest trends, but early adopters also include people who hate to shop and just want one less thing to worry about (um, hi).
As climate change causes storms to increase in intensity, coastal cities are being forced to protect their shores. New York City is pioneering a brilliant solution: living breakwaters made from leftover oyster shells, which protect harbors while also filtering water and contributing to a healthier ecosystem. The shells are sourced from local restaurants, then populated with new oysters hatched by students in a public high school’s aquaculture program — a unique model that brings together non-profits, businesses, schools and local government.
MOST CLICKED FROM LAST ISSUE // The Strange Phenomenon of L.O.L. Surprise Dolls — The Atlantic. Find more surprising content in our archives.
An abbreviated list of 10 great opportunities to match our 10 top links of 2018. The full curation will return next issue.
THE HIGH NOTE // 7 — The number of scientists joining the next U.S. Congress, which convenes at the start of 2019.
This was a big week for us! After months of research and writing, we published Making Change Sustainable — a new playbook exploring how insights from the world of behavioral science can supercharge the way companies embed social responsibility into their business. You can download the free resource here.
We celebrated the launch with an interactive “workshop-meets-cocktail party” held at the Fashion for Good Experience in Amsterdam. I was blown away by the warmth, intelligence and creativity of the group that came together. Pics below.
If you’ve downloaded the playbook, I’m eager to hear your thoughts. Did any chapters feel particularly relevant? Are there other change insights you would add? Hit reply and let me know what you think.
Speaking of holiday gift-giving, this Atlantic piece dives into one of the biggest children’s toys trends of 2018. L.O.L. Surprise! Dolls were created specifically for a YouTube generation raised on “unboxing videos”. Basically, after tearing away seven layers of packaging, you wind up with a cheap toy that’s bound to be in landfill by New Year’s. Ridiculous? Yes. Wasteful? You betcha. This article explores the sociological and psychological reason kids are losing their s*** over them.
This past week was COP24, the annual UN climate conference hosted in Katowice, Poland. Though government action has been shameful (ahem, U.S. and Australia) business stepped up in a big way, with a major investor statement and fashion industry pledge among the notable commitments. Hidden among the press releases was this gem on an interactive role-playing game showcased at COP24 that simulates how current climate action will impact the world in the future. "The whole point is to use narrative storytelling and imagination to make the human and economic cost of these events more concrete,” said the creators, which include researchers from Glasgow Caledonian University, Utrecht University and Purdue University. “People have emotional reactions to what is apparently real – not to what actually is real. Games give us a platform to create just such an apparent reality."
The “femtech” market is estimated to be worth $50 billion by 2025, and fertility and period-tracking apps are among the fastest-growing segments. This article argues that most apps on the market aren’t actually built for women, but rather for the men, marketers and medical companies that see a business opportunity in women's health. From inaccurate algorithms to stereotypically gendered design (SO MUCH PINK) to a deep insensitivity to real challenges like miscarriage and abortion, this fascinating piece goes deep.
Daniel Kahneman is a Nobel Prize-winning psychologist and behavioral economist whose research on judgement and decision-making forms the bedrock of modern behavioral science. This conversation with Hidden Brain’s Shankar Vedantam is wide-ranging, but the part I found most fascinating comes around minute 23:50, when the two start to discuss the behavioral response to climate change. “If you were to design a problem that the mind is not equipped to deal with, climate change would fit the bill,” Kahneman said. The two discuss this phenomenon — as well as some possible solutions, which we quoted in our new playbook.
MOST CLICKED FROM LAST ISSUE // The State of the Sustainability Profession 2018 — GreenBiz. Our archive is the best place on the Internet to get lost this holiday season.
The role of the sustainable business professional is changing, according to the latest GreenBiz State of the Sustainability Profession Report (see 5 Links below).
Sure, the core skills of data analysis, impact measurement, project management and deep subject matter expertise are still needed. But now, teams are also being called on to educate, empower and equip people across the business to own the sustainability agenda. They need to spark culture change, create internal movements and build consensus among people who don’t usually agree with each other. They need to persuade, nudge and influence people to change the very way they approach their jobs.
This shift requires a whole new toolkit of skills. We still need to make a rational business case for social responsibility — but we also need to layer on a clear understanding of what drives people and organizations to change.
Over the past several months, I’ve dug deep into the literature of behavior change science and spoken with leading behavioral researchers and social responsibility practitioners. The result is a new playbook that shares a few of the insights I think are most fascinating and relevant to people working in social responsibility. It’s called “Making Change Sustainable: Using Behavior Science to Embed Social Responsibility Into Your Business” and I’m excited to share it with you in the coming weeks.
If the topic sparks your interest, enter your information here and I’ll send you the playbook right when it comes out.
I’m also hosting a small in-person meet-up next week in Amsterdam to celebrate the launch. You can learn more and register here — and if you know anyone who’d be interested, feel free to share!
👉🏽 UPDATE: We have sold out of meet-up seats, but if you're interested in attending please join the waitlist. We hope to be opening up some spots early next week.
P.S. I’m still taking part in Grist’s 21-Day Apathy Detox — now on Day 9! It’s been educational and eye-opening to explore different ways of engaging with social and environmental issues. Check RC’s Facebook page for some of my recent dispatches.
P.P.S. My friend Kestrel Jenkins hosts the Conscious Chatter podcast (see RC’s episode here) and is one of the most consciously stylish people I know. She just launched LEFT EDIT, a new line of sustainable, made-in-USA essentials that are just so lovely and feminine (especially that Eve dress 😍). Check out the collection on Kickstarter.
‘Tis the season for #BlackFriday, #CyberMonday and TONS of online shopping. But before you default to that next-day or same-day delivery option, have a listen to this podcast from The Daily. It takes a look into a rapid fulfillment warehouse in Memphis, Tennessee, that is filled with the types of horrific human rights abuses you’re used to hearing about in developing countries. It is one of the most tragic, frustrating and powerful stories I’ve heard all year.
Speaking of Black Friday, the U.S. federal government chose that day (🙄) to release a massive climate report compiled by 13 federal agencies. It warned that if we don’t take drastic action on climate change, the U.S. economy could lose hundreds of billions of dollars — up to 10% of its total GDP. This handy round-up outlines 15 of the biggest takeaways, including business impacts like declining crop production, loss of seafood stocks and lost working hours due to extreme temperatures.
👉 TAKE ACTION: We need to engage with our elected representatives, but also with our business leaders. Climate Nexus's Jeff Nesbit offers three ways businesses can tackle climate change — if you work in a company, ask leadership how they’re moving forward on these issues.
Oh, Victoria’s Secret. This month, its annual fashion show riled up spectators for being… exactly the way it’s been since 1995. Meaning, instead of adapting to an evolving culture that values diversity, inclusion and feminism, it continues to perpetuate outdated gender stereotypes and beauty norms. It doesn’t help that when questioned, the CMO for L Brands (which owns Victoria’s Secret) said the company would never include trans and plus-sized models in the show because it “is a fantasy.” 🤮 The backlash was swift and fierce, including an open letter and full-page ad in The New York Times penned by the female CEO of ThirdLove, a new direct-to-consumer lingerie brand, that was as progressive and empowering as L Brands’ comments were archaic and insulting. To me, this situation illustrates the danger of standing still when it comes to social issues — and shows that when older brands stumble there are plenty of smaller, more purposeful companies ready to take their place.
When you think of the gig economy worker, you don’t typically think of the “influencer” — that person on your Instagram feed whose perfectly curated life of avocado toast and fancy hotel rooms never fails to inspire envy and FOMO. But many influencers face the same challenges, like financial instability, lack of healthcare and heavy upfront costs. This piece is a fascinating perspective on the changing face of organized labor, which increasingly includes contractors, freelancers and white collar workers.
MOST CLICKED FROM LAST ISSUE // Ask Umbra’s 21-Day Apathy Detox — Grist. Follow us on Facebook where I’m posting regular updates from my own detox.
THE HIGH NOTE // 02:03:49 — the half-marathon time of Justin Gallegos, a college runner who was recently chosen to be Nike’s first pro athlete with cerebral palsy. The video where Justin learns he’s made the cut will make you 😭😭😭 . | 2019-04-25T06:36:38Z | https://www.reconsidered.co/archive |
The great advance in the field of anti-myeloma therapy in the last few decades has resulted in a huge improvement of overall and disease-free survival. Nevertheless, multiple myeloma (MM) is still an incurable disease.
There are two issues emerging. On one hand, the patient lives together with the illness for a long time, and on the other hand, the thought of incurable illness hangs over their head like the sword of Damocles for a longer time. Quality of life (QoL) issues are coming into focus because of the longer survival times.
Problems related to the disease such as pain, fatigue, bone fracture-induced inconveniences, complications such as infections, neuropathy, thrombosis, osteonecrosis of the jaw, mucositis, as well as invasive interventions emphasize the importance of supportive care.
The social and economic environment of the patients, their participation in the world of labor, financial resources, changes in their family and in their circle of friends all have a great impact on the QoL of patients.
The stigmata of chronic illness and malignancy also contribute to the development of depression thus influencing quality of life. At the last stage of life it is a very hard task for the patient to face dying.
At the same time, family members are also in a troublesome situation. To accept the incurable illness of a beloved member of the family is a great psychical burden. Beside these, the increase of physical burden may cause insoluble task for the folks and this may generate sense of guilt.
Nowadays, the measuring of QoL is in a class by itself. QoL has become a prognostic factor. Several studies have demonstrated that better quality of life goes hand in hand with better prognosis. This is also the case with multiple myeloma.
Results of examinations of QoL may help us to provide professional and effective support to the patient and their family through a holistic approach. Multidisciplinary co-operation is essential.
Multiple myeloma is the second most common hematological cancer and represents 10% of all hematological malignancies and 1 % of all cancers. The annual incidence of the disease in the US is 4 in 100,000. Approximately 100,000 new cases of MM are diagnosed each year worldwide . MM accounts for 1% of all cancer-related deaths (approximately 72,000 deaths annually). The vast majority of the patients diagnosed with MM are 70-80 years old. MM is characterized by unregulated plasma cell proliferation in the bone marrow. These malignant plasma cells produce and secrete abnormal immunoglobulin (Ig) or immunoglobulin fragments. The monoclonal lg in the sera can cause hyperviscosity and this is one of the major symptoms of the disease. Clinical features and typical laboratory findings of MM include fatigue, bone pain, osteolythic bone lesions, pathologic bone fracture, anemia, hypercalcaemia, renal insufficiency, elevation of monoclonal Ig in the sera and/or in the urine and elevated erythrocyte sedimentation rate. The etiology of MM is unknown but aside from several environmental factors that are suspected, more and more cytogenetic alterations involved with the oncogenic process are detected [2,3].
Despite the huge advance in the field of MM treatment, the disease has still remained incurable.
The main goal of treatment is the prolongation of survival. By the 1980’s to 1990’s, the survival of untreated patients had increased from mere months to 3-5 years. The introduction of intensive treatment, such as high-dose chemotherapy with autologous stem cell transplantation (ASCT), further prolonged the overall survival. Novel agents, including immunomodulatory drugs, such as thalidomide and lenalidomide, and the proteosome inhibitor bortezomib have dramatically changed the results in the past decade. Besides overall survival, disease-free survival has also been prolonged and the life expectancies of refractory and relapsed patients are also largely improved .
The only curative treatment option is allogeneic stem cell transplantation due to antitumor immunity mediated by donor lymphocytes. However, morbidity and mortality related to graft-versus-host disease remain a challenge and regarding the average age of MM patients it remains an option for only a minority of patients.
Depending on stage of the disease, median survival varies between 5-10 years for patients with ISS stage I disease undergoing stem-cell transplant and/or receiving novel anti-myeloma regimens . However, outcomes have typically been poor for patients with high-risk disease and despite recent therapeutic advances the outlook for such patients remains unfavorable .
The incidence of multiple myeloma (MM) increases with age and with the aging of the population, the number of adults with MM is expected to double in the next 20 years. Intensification of anti-myeloma therapy has resulted in a huge prolongation of survival data but this data mainly refers to younger patients who are eligible for these treatment modalities.
Older patients are ineligible for high-dose therapy because it causes an unacceptably high mortality rate in that patient population. Several co-morbidities of this setting or poor performance status prevent the success of intensive treatment.
On the other hand the significance of supportive measures for these patients has become a greater value. Besides the extended duration of survival, to improve the quality of survival by alleviating symptoms and achieving disease control while minimizing the adverse effects of the treatment has become a major goal .
Factors affecting prognosis include burden of disease, type of cytogenetic abnormality present, patient related factors (such as age and performance status) and treatment response factors.
Asymptomatic myeloma (smoldering myeloma) does not require any treatment, only observation (watch and wait) is needed.
The choice of first-line treatment depends on a combination of factors.
For patients under 70 and with good performance status, the treatment of choice is high-dose chemotherapy with ASCT.
The majority of patients are transplantation-ineligible because of poor performance status or co-morbidities. These patients are therefore offered a less intensive single-agent or combination chemotherapy. Typically, combination therapies include chemotherapy with an alkylating agent and corticosteroids. More recent treatment options may also include combination therapies that incorporate drugs such as thalidomide, bortezomib and lenalidomide .
Regarding the maintenance therapy, if complete remission (CR) has been reached there is no need for maintenance therapy with thalidomide or lenalidomide because there is no significant difference in OS. In the case of lenalidomide, a significantly increased risk of secondary malignancies was reported . Maintenance is advised for patients who have not reached CR. In these cases, one of the new drugs (thalidomide, lenalidomide or bortezomib) is the drug of choice .
However, in line with all these improvements in the field of chemotherapy, some new questions have emerged. The patient has gained a longer life, but is this life good enough? Is it worth the sea of difficulties during the treatment period and even afterward? To answer these questions, QoL measurements can offer valuable meaning.
QoL can be defined in many ways. As a general term it is used to indicate the well-being of people and societies. A person’s environment, physical and mental health, education, recreation, social well-being, freedom, human rights and happiness are also significant factors.
The World Health Organization (WHO) defines QoL as individuals’ perception of their position in life in the context of the culture and value systems in which they live and in relation to their goals, expectations, standards, and concerns .
As illness and its treatment affect the psychological, social, and economic well-being, as well as the biological integrity of individuals, any definition should be all encompassing while allowing individual components to be delineated. This allows the impact of different disease states or interventions on overall or specific aspects of QoL to be determined.
QoL is measured in a variety of contexts. Aside from healthcare, it is also used in international development and political science. This results in diverse definitions being given to the term. Factors that are considered are both qualitative and quantitative. Many local, national and international organizations conduct surveys and psychological tests to determine an individual or society’s life quality for different purposes.
A major rule for physicians is the principle of “nil nocere”. While making an effort to reach better and better disease control for cancer patients, we often neglect the repercussions of the patient in regards to “being ill”, to the consequences of the treatment, and to the disease per se. The main purpose for all clinicians is therefore to improve the quality of the patient’s life and to avoid iatrogenic harm. It is not enough to make implicit, subjective judgments about QoL when treating a patient. Making explicit, objective assessments about QoL using validated tools and instruments is needed. Formal assessment of QoL is now a mandatory requirement in most clinical trials.
WHO defines health as "A state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being not merely the absence of disease.” The measurement of health and the effects of health care must include not only an indication of changes in the frequency and severity of diseases but also an estimation of well being and this can be assessed by measuring the improvement in the QoL related to health care .
HRQoL can be defined as self-perceived aspects of wellbeing that are related to or affected by the presence of a disease or treatment . A multidimensional HRQoL instrument was defined as any quality of life instrument assessing two or more of the three core domains described by the World Health Association: physical, social, and psychological wellbeing . As a multidimensional construct, it includes perceptions, both positive and negative, of several dimensions such as physical, emotional, social and cognitive functioning. It also includes the negative aspects of somatization disorder and symptoms caused by a disease and/or its treatment . Studies undertaken in different settings or in different countries might display slight divergences as HRQoL is also modulated by cultural and care patterns.
Over the past 20 years there has been a growing interest in the inclusion of HRQoL measures to assess the effects of a condition and/or its therapies on a person's health. In response to this interest, methods to assess health status and HRQoL have proliferated. There are now a number of valid and reliable instruments available for use in research investigations, which are the culmination of years of research with various populations, and reflect the target populations' perceptions of their health status and HRQoL .
HRQoL-measurement instruments validated for use in cancer patients have two basic categories. Questionnaires specifically designed for the disease explore the repercussions of the most typical symptoms and side-effects and are appropriate for comparing different treatment modalities or changes in patients. The general instruments are applicable to any population and are better suited to studies that seek to ascertain the disease's repercussion on HRQoL, taking the general population as reference . Among the former, the most used in Europe for MM patients are the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Core Cancer Quality Life Questionnaire (EORTC QLQ-C30) and its MM-specific module (EORTC-QLQ-MY24/MY20). Among the latter, the Medical Outcomes Survey Short-Form General Health Survey (SF-36) is the most widely used.
There are also symptom-specific instruments, assessing the patient’s reflections directly concerning pain, fatigue, neuropathy and nausea.
For example, the Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy (FACIT) system which is an established, comprehensive set of health-related quality-of-life measures includes a 27-item general measure, the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy (FACT-G), which can be combined with disease or treatment-specific subscales. The FACT-G captures four domains of health-related quality of life: physical, social, emotional and functional well-being. The supplemental subscales measure additional concerns of a specific disease or treatment. For example, the multiple myeloma subscale (FACT-MM) includes MM-relevant items There are also symptom-specific measures, such as FACT-An for patients with anemia or fatigue, FACT-Bone Pain: for patients with bone pain and treatment-specific measures assessing the QoL changing due to treatment such as FACT&GOG-Ntx: for patients with neurotoxicity .
In the case of MM, disease severity and type of treatment (high-dose chemotherapy and ASCT, the use of novel agents such as bortezomib, thalidomide or lenalidomide) have a clear influence on the patient's subjective perception of the disease. Their effects on HRQoL are also modulated by personality traits, personal resources and the availability and perception of social and family support.
Clinical applications of HRQoL tools may include prognostication, monitoring response to treatment, prioritizing problems or facilitating communication. The use of HRQoL instruments in clinical practice has also been shown to independently improve HRQoL in general oncology patients . Some authors who have demonstrated reduced HRQoL in myeloma have concluded that HRQoL assessment should become a normal part of clinical care [19, 20].
Besides the typical primary parameters of clinical trials for measuring the treatment effect, such as tumor volume and time to progression, recognition of HRQoL is also an important endpoint in clinical research. In circumstances when the studied treatment modality results only a modest improvement in respect to primary parameters, with little benefit for the patient but with a significant side-effect profile, it may be a helpful outcome to detect the declination of HRQoL compared to the control. Clinical trials incorporating QoL assessments can provide more information and help clarify the relative harms and benefits of palliative chemotherapy and aid patient decisions when survival gains are small.
Delineation of side-effect profile by means of HRQoL assessment can assist in determining the types of supportive interventions that may be needed to ameliorate the side-effects.
QoL can also represent an independent prognostic factor. It is known that patients with a good QoL at the beginning of treatment manage better than those with a worse baseline value and there is a growing amount of evidences that QoL can be used as an effective prognostic indicator in respect to several kinds of malignancies .
QoL data can be a useful predictor of patient response to treatment and can affect decision-making about therapeutic options. This data allows patients to make informed and individualized decisions on the most appropriate treatment and any required supportive interventions.
HRQoL may be applied by the healthcare system to allocate resources by economic reality. As demand is always larger than resources, the optimal allocation of the financial means has great economic importance.
MM is a chronic, incurable disease that is associated with reduced quality of life. MM patients have to face the problems of living with a chronic illness longer as a result of prolonged survival. However, they are also faced with the difficulties related to a malignant disease. Disease symptoms, concerns with certain therapeutic modalities and also the QoL changes due to organ transplantation emerge. Generation of pathologic bone fracture, bone pain, fatigue because of anemia and malignant disease itself, neurological symptoms due to hypercalcaemia have a profound impact on the QoL of MM patients.
Chronic renal failure develops in one third of MM patients. Chronic dialysis treatment implicates several life style changes.
Most anti-myeloma therapies involve intravenous injections or infusions. Regular laboratory check-ups require repeated blood sample collections that require multiple encounters with needles. Taking bone marrow for diagnosis and several times afterward for control examinations is very painful unless it is performed in narcosis.
ASCT has considerable effects on QoL. High-dose chemotherapy presents significant side effects and subsequently a reduction of QoL. This is due mainly to infections, mucositis, increased use of blood products and prolonged stays in the hospital.
Side-effects of several lines of treatments include polyneuropathy, deep vein thrombosis, loss of hair and constipation. Osteonecrosis of the jaw caused by bisphosphonates, though a rare event, results in severe deterioration of QoL.
Recurrent infections due to the patients’ immunocompromised status, the disease itself and also due to the several lines of treatment used to control the disease also contribute to the worsening of QoL.
Osborne et al. systematically reviewed the different HRQOL instruments applied for evaluating myeloma patients in their recent study. Thirteen different HRQOL instruments were identified across 39 studies. Only one disease-specific instrument was identified (EORTC-QLQ-MY24/MY20). Other measures were general cancer tools (EORTC-QLQ-C30, FACT-An), treatment specific (EORTC-QLQ-HDC19, FACT-BMT), or generic [SF-36, SF-12, SEIQoL-DW, EQ-5D, 15D, life ingredient profile (LIP), Quality of Life Index (QLI)]. The SEIQoLDW was the only individualised instrument (with domains defined by respondents). No instrument was developed specifically for clinical use, or in palliative settings – although the search strategy was designed to identify these. .
No single instrument covered all issues identified as important by people with myeloma. The most comprehensive coverage was found in the EORTC-QLQ-MY24 (myeloma-specific module, used in conjunction with core cancer questionnaire EORTC-QLQ-C30), the FACT-BMT and the QLI.
However, each tool has its strengths and the choice of tool will depend on the context in which it is used. To describe the incidence of side effects in a particular group, the EORTC tools may be more appropriate. However, in clinical practice, we may want a tool to focus more on the particular concerns of each patient (such as the SEIQoL-DW). These tools are time-consuming, require specialized training, are difficult to compare between studies and different interviewers and can be less feasible in certain groups such as those with chronic disease or the elderly.
Existing tools tend to be designed for use in research settings and their adaptation or the development of new tools specifically for use in clinical practice would be beneficial .
Though HRQoL examinations are widely used especially in cancer patients and they are an integral component of clinical trials with new drugs, MM patients are relatively poorly studied in this respect. A PubMed search with terms of “multiple myeloma and quality of life or health-related quality of life” has resulted in only 51 items.
These studies targeted the comparison of HRQoL of MM patients in different countries , treated with different therapeutic schedules, receiving new drugs , underwent ASCT or tandem ASCT , special issues of the elderly , the effect of anemia and fatigue and also the effect of personality on disease outcome . Methodological aspects are also emphasized .
Patients with MM experience a very high symptom burden and low HRQOL. In a study published in 2012, the Eindhoven Cancer Registry was used to select all patients diagnosed with MM from 1999 to 2010. Patients were asked at baseline and 1 year later. Patients with MM reported statistically significant and clinically relevant worse scores on all EORTC QLQ-C30 scales compared to the norm. Also, patients with MM reported a mean decrease (e.g., worsening) between baseline and 1-year follow-up scores for: QoL (74% of patients had a deteriorated score), fatigue (50%), nausea and vomiting (71%), pain (59%) and dyspnoea (66%). The most bothering symptoms during the past week were tingling hands/feet (32%), back pain (28%), bone aches/pain (26%), pain in arm/shoulder (19%) and feeling drowsy (18%). Also, 37% worried about their future health, 34% thought about their disease and 21% worried about dying .
The phase 3 VISTA study (ClinicalTrials.gov NCT00111319) in transplant-ineligible myeloma patients demonstrated superior efficacy with bortezomib-melphalan-prednisone (VMP; nine 6-wk cycles) vs. melphalan-prednisone (MP) but also increased toxicity. HRQoL was evaluated using the EORTC-QLQ-C30 questionnaire. Results demonstrated clinically meaningful, transitory HRQoL decrements with VMP and relatively lower HRQoL vs. MP during early treatment cycles, associated with the expected additional toxicities. However, HRQoL is not compromised in the long term, recovering by the end-of-treatment visit to be comparable vs. MP. Analyses by bortezomib dose intensity indicated better HRQoL in patients receiving lower dose intensity .
HRQoL assessment in this patient setting is important as patients and even clinicians are reluctant to choose this modality for fear of declination of QoL. However, it is not the best choice for every patient. HRQoL studies may contribute to the appropriate patient selection.
In a population-based study, the Nordic Myeloma Study Group found a survival advantage for high-dose therapy and ASCT compared to conventional chemotherapy in MM patients who were less than 60 years of age. HRQoL was integrated into the trial, using the EORTC QLQ-C30 questionnaire. Of the 274 patients receiving intensive therapy, 221 (81%) were compared to 113 (94%) of 120 patients receiving conventional melphalan-prednisone treatment. Prior to treatment, there were no statistically significant differences in any HRQoL score between the two groups. One month after the start of induction chemotherapy, the patients on intensive treatment had lower scores that gradually improved and at 12 and 24 months, the HRQoL was similar to that of the control patients. At 36 months, there was a trend toward less fatigue, pain, nausea, and appetite loss in the intensive-treatment group. Despite the moderate HRQoL reduction associated with the early intensive chemotherapy phase, the 18 months of prolonged survival seem to be associated with a good HRQoL .
QOL results of an Australian study on MM patients who underwent dose-reduced tandem ASCT were published in 2011. Patients younger than 60 years old received conditioning with melphalan 140 mg/m2 and patients who were Older than or equal to 60 years old received 100 mg/m2. EORTC QLQ-C30 and the QLQ-MY24 questionnaires were conducted after each ASCT and thereafter every 3 months for 24 months. Mean global health measure improved from 3.44 before transplant to 4.50 (1being very poor and 7 being excellent) at the second and subsequent follow-up visits and the mean global QoL score improved from 3.61 to 4.71. Pain symptoms were reduced and physical functioning improved throughout the period of post-transplant follow-up. The study showed that dose-reduced tandem ASCT was well tolerated with low toxicity although there was a transient reduction in QoL during both transplants. Post-transplant follow-up showed significant improvement in overall HRQoL that reflects positively on the overall disease-outcome .
In a University of Arkansas study, the decreases in functioning after transplantation were less pronounced than anticipated. At stem cell collection, physical deficits were common, with most patients scoring 1 standard deviation below population norms for physical well-being (70.2%) and functional well-being (57.5%), and many reporting at least moderate fatigue (94.7%) and pain (39.4%). Clinically meaningful levels of anxiety (39.4%), depression (40.4%) and cancer-related distress (37.0%) were evident in a notable proportion of patients. After transplantation, there was a worsening of transplant-related concerns, depression and life-satisfaction. However, pain improved and social functioning was well preserved. Older patients were not more compromised than younger ones. In multivariate analyses, they reported better overall QoL and less depression than before transplantation .
Thalidomide with melphalan and prednisone (MPT) was defined as standard treatment in elderly patients with MM. In a randomized trial (HOVON49), a prospective HRQoL study was initiated in order to assess the impact of thalidomide on QoL. Patients aged 65 years and older with newly diagnosed MM were randomized to receive melphalan plus prednisone (MP) or MPT, followed by thalidomide maintenance in the MPT arm. 284 patients were included (MP, n=149; MPT n=135). HRQoL was assessed with the QLQ-C30 and the myeloma-specific module (QLQ-MY24) at baseline and at predetermined intervals during treatment. The QLQ-C30 subscales physical function and constipation showed an improvement during induction in favour of the MP arm. During thalidomide maintenance, the scores for the QLQ-MY24 paraesthesia became significantly higher in the MPT arm. The QLQ-C30 subscales pain, insomnia and appetite loss and the QLQ-MY24 item sick scored marginally better during thalidomide maintenance. The overall QoL-scale QLQ-C30-HRQoL showed a significant time trend towards more favorable mean values during protocol treatment without differences between MP and MPT. For the QLQ-C30 subscales emotional function and future perspectives, difference in favour of the MPT arm from the start of treatment was observed with no significant 'time × arm' interaction, indicating a persistent better patient perspective with MPT treatment. The study concluded that the higher frequency of toxicity associated with MPT does not translate into a negative effect on HRQoL and that MPT holds a better patient perspective .
Quality-of-life assessment may be an independent and valuable addition to the known prognostic factors in multiple myeloma. In a randomized trial (NMSG 4/90), patients treated with melphalan/prednisone were compared to a melphalan/prednisone + interferon alpha-2b treated patient group in 486 newly diagnosed multiple myeloma. Univariate analysis showed a highly significant association with survival from the start of therapy for physical functioning as well as role and cognitive functioning, global quality of life, fatigue and pain. In multivariate analysis, physical functioning and W.H.O. performance status were independent prognostic factors when analysed in a Cox regression model with the somatic variables beta-2 microglobulin, skeletal disease and age. The best prediction for survival from the start of therapy was obtained by combining the beta-2 microglobulin and physical functioning scores in a variable consisting of three risk factor levels with an estimated median survival of 17, 29 and 49 months, respectively .
A cross-sectional survey was conducted aiming to identify the nature and range of needs, as well as levels of quality of life (QoL), of both patients living with myeloma and their partners. Patients and their partners were recruited from 4 hospitals in the United Kingdom at a mean post-diagnosis time of 5 years. A total of 132 patients and 93 of their partners participated. One-quarter of the patients and one-third of the partners reported unmet supportive care needs. About 27.4% of patients reported signs of anxiety and 25.2% reported signs of depression. Almost half the partners (48.8%) reported signs of anxiety and 13.6% exhibited signs of depression. Anxious/depressed patients had more than double the unmet needs than non-anxious/depressed patients (P<0.05). QoL was moderate, with key areas of impairment being physical, emotional, social and cognitive functioning. Patients complained of several symptoms, including tiredness (40.7%), pain (35.9%), insomnia (32.3%), peripheral neuropathies (28.3%) and memory problems (22.3%). About 40.8% were worried about their health in the future .
Investigation of QoL has become increasingly important in economically developed countries. HRQoL assessment is becoming a current and integral part of clinical studies with new drugs. Measuring of QoL is becoming more and more important for decision making in the field of health policy.
MM is a currently incurable disease, but survival can be significantly prolonged by the administration of new therapeutic modalities. The mean age at the time of diagnosis is over 60, so it is especially important to choose the least harmful treatment for the patient so the best quality of life can be achieved. Results of QoL examinations can help us find the most appropriate treatment for our patients. | 2019-04-20T17:20:21Z | https://www.intechopen.com/books/multiple-myeloma-a-quick-reflection-on-the-fast-progress/quality-of-life-issues-of-patients-with-multiple-myeloma |
Michelle’s lab develops innovative approaches to screen for chemical tools and drug leads, using biophysical approaches like fragment-based drug discovery and biological approaches including high-content imaging with primary cells and organisms. Our goal is to demonstrate ‘druggability’ of new target classes and to use our compounds to discover new targets for drug discovery. Areas of interest include protein-protein interactions, allosteric and scaffolding sites in enzymes, and orphan and neglected diseases. Michelle is Associate Director of the Small Molecule Discovery Center, a collaborative research and core lab that includes a high-throughput screening facility (smdc.ucsf.edu).
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Visscher M, Arkin MR, Dansen TB. Covalent targeting of acquired cysteines in cancer. Curr Opin Chem Biol. 2016 Feb; 30:61-67.
Alverez C, Arkin MR, Bulfer SL, Colombo R, Kovaliov M, LaPorte MG, Lim C, Liang M, Moore WJ, Neitz RJ, Yan Y, Yue Z, Huryn DM, Wipf P. Structure-Activity Study of Bioisosteric Trifluoromethyl and Pentafluorosulfanyl Indole Inhibitors of the AAA ATPase p97. ACS Med Chem Lett. 2015 Dec 10; 6(12):1225-30.
Frye SV, Arkin MR, Arrowsmith CH, Conn PJ, Glicksman MA, Hull-Ryde EA, Slusher BS. Tackling reproducibility in academic preclinical drug discovery. Nat Rev Drug Discov. 2015 11; 14(11):733-4.
Khare S, Roach SL, Barnes SW, Hoepfner D, Walker JR, Chatterjee AK, Neitz RJ, Arkin MR, McNamara CW, Ballard J, Lai Y, Fu Y, Molteni V, Yeh V, McKerrow JH, Glynne RJ, Supek F. Utilizing Chemical Genomics to Identify Cytochrome b as a Novel Drug Target for Chagas Disease. PLoS Pathog. 2015 Jul; 11(7):e1005058.
Ekins S, de Siqueira-Neto JL, McCall LI, Sarker M, Yadav M, Ponder EL, Kallel EA, Kellar D, Chen S, Arkin M, Bunin BA, McKerrow JH, Talcott C. Machine Learning Models and Pathway Genome Data Base for Trypanosoma cruzi Drug Discovery. PLoS Negl Trop Dis. 2015; 9(6):e0003878.
Neitz RJ, Bryant C, Chen S, Gut J, Hugo Caselli E, Ponce S, Chowdhury S, Xu H, Arkin MR, Ellman JA, Renslo AR. Tetrafluorophenoxymethyl ketone cruzain inhibitors with improved pharmacokinetic properties as therapeutic leads for Chagas' disease. Bioorg Med Chem Lett. 2015 Nov 01; 25(21):4834-4837.
Zhang X, Gui L, Zhang X, Bulfer SL, Sanghez V, Wong DE, Lee Y, Lehmann L, Lee JS, Shih PY, Lin HJ, Iacovino M, Weihl CC, Arkin MR, Wang Y, Chou TF. Altered cofactor regulation with disease-associated p97/VCP mutations. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2015 Apr 07; 112(14):E1705-14.
Tran K, Arkin MR, Beal PA. Tethering in RNA: an RNA-binding fragment discovery tool. Molecules. 2015 Mar 04; 20(3):4148-61.
Bulman CA, Bidlow CM, Lustigman S, Cho-Ngwa F, Williams D, Rascón AA, Tricoche N, Samje M, Bell A, Suzuki B, Lim KC, Supakorndej N, Supakorndej P, Wolfe AR, Knudsen GM, Chen S, Wilson C, Ang KH, Arkin M, Gut J, Franklin C, Marcellino C, McKerrow JH, Debnath A, Sakanari JA. Repurposing auranofin as a lead candidate for treatment of lymphatic filariasis and onchocerciasis. PLoS Negl Trop Dis. 2015 Feb; 9(2):e0003534.
Pfaff SJ, Chimenti MS, Kelly MJ, Arkin MR. Biophysical methods for identifying fragment-based inhibitors of protein-protein interactions. Methods Mol Biol. 2015; 1278:587-613.
Visperas PR, Winger JA, Horton TM, Shah NH, Aum DJ, Tao A, Barros T, Yan Q, Wilson CG, Arkin MR, Weiss A, Kuriyan J. Modification by covalent reaction or oxidation of cysteine residues in the tandem-SH2 domains of ZAP-70 and Syk can block phosphopeptide binding. Biochem J. 2015 Jan 01; 465(1):149-61.
Neitz RJ, Chen S, Supek F, Yeh V, Kellar D, Gut J, Bryant C, Gallardo-Godoy A, Molteni V, Roach SL, Khare S, Stinson M, Chatterjee AK, Robertson S, Renslo AR, Arkin M, Glynne R, McKerrow J, Siqueira-Neto JL. Lead identification to clinical candidate selection: drugs for Chagas disease. J Biomol Screen. 2015 Jan; 20(1):101-11.
Dar RD, Hosmane NN, Arkin MR, Siliciano RF, Weinberger LS. Screening for noise in gene expression identifies drug synergies. Science. 2014 Jun 20; 344(6190):1392-6.
Chou TF, Bulfer SL, Weihl CC, Li K, Lis LG, Walters MA, Schoenen FJ, Lin HJ, Deshaies RJ, Arkin MR. Specific inhibition of p97/VCP ATPase and kinetic analysis demonstrate interaction between D1 and D2 ATPase domains. J Mol Biol. 2014 Jul 29; 426(15):2886-99.
Arkin MR, Ang KK, Chen S, Davies J, Merron C, Tang Y, Wilson CG, Renslo AR. UCSF Small Molecule Discovery Center: innovation, collaboration and chemical biology in the Bay Area. Comb Chem High Throughput Screen. 2014 May; 17(4):333-42.
Flygare JA, Arkin MR. Inhibiting caspase-6 activation and catalytic activity for neurodegenerative diseases. Curr Top Med Chem. 2014; 14(3):319-25.
Wilson CG, Arkin MR. Probing structural adaptivity at PPI interfaces with small molecules. Drug Discov Today Technol. 2013 Dec; 10(4):e501-8.
Murray J, Giannetti AM, Steffek M, Gibbons P, Hearn BR, Cohen F, Tam C, Pozniak C, Bravo B, Lewcock J, Jaishankar P, Ly CQ, Zhao X, Tang Y, Chugha P, Arkin MR, Flygare J, Renslo AR. Tailoring small molecules for an allosteric site on procaspase-6. ChemMedChem. 2014 Jan; 9(1):73-7, 2.
Slusher BS, Conn PJ, Frye S, Glicksman M, Arkin M. Bringing together the academic drug discovery community. Nat Rev Drug Discov. 2013 Nov; 12(11):811-2.
Bagriantsev SN, Ang KH, Gallardo-Godoy A, Clark KA, Arkin MR, Renslo AR, Minor DL. A high-throughput functional screen identifies small molecule regulators of temperature- and mechano-sensitive K2P channels. ACS Chem Biol. 2013 Aug 16; 8(8):1841-51.
Heise CE, Murray J, Augustyn KE, Bravo B, Chugha P, Cohen F, Giannetti AM, Gibbons P, Hannoush RN, Hearn BR, Jaishankar P, Ly CQ, Shah K, Stanger K, Steffek M, Tang Y, Zhao X, Lewcock JW, Renslo AR, Flygare J, Arkin MR. Mechanistic and structural understanding of uncompetitive inhibitors of caspase-6. PLoS One. 2012; 7(12):e50864.
Wu VM, Chen SC, Arkin MR, Reiter JF. Small molecule inhibitors of Smoothened ciliary localization and ciliogenesis. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2012 Aug 21; 109(34):13644-9.
Gunatilleke SS, Calvet CM, Johnston JB, Chen CK, Erenburg G, Gut J, Engel JC, Ang KK, Mulvaney J, Chen S, Arkin MR, McKerrow JH, Podust LM. Diverse inhibitor chemotypes targeting Trypanosoma cruzi CYP51. PLoS Negl Trop Dis. 2012; 6(7):e1736.
Pu M, Hayashi T, Cottam H, Mulvaney J, Arkin M, Corr M, Carson D, Messer K. Analysis of high-throughput screening assays using cluster enrichment. Stat Med. 2012 Dec 30; 31(30):4175-89.
Rogers KE, Keränen H, Durrant JD, Ratnam J, Doak A, Arkin MR, McCammon JA. Novel cruzain inhibitors for the treatment of Chagas' disease. Chem Biol Drug Des. 2012 Sep; 80(3):398-405.
Debnath A, Parsonage D, Andrade RM, He C, Cobo ER, Hirata K, Chen S, García-Rivera G, Orozco E, Martínez MB, Gunatilleke SS, Barrios AM, Arkin MR, Poole LB, McKerrow JH, Reed SL. A high-throughput drug screen for Entamoeba histolytica identifies a new lead and target. Nat Med. 2012 Jun; 18(6):956-60.
Zhong M, Gadek TR, Bui M, Shen W, Burnier J, Barr KJ, Hanan EJ, Oslob JD, Yu CH, Zhu J, Arkin MR, Evanchik MJ, Flanagan WM, Hoch U, Hyde J, Prabhu S, Silverman JA, Wright J. Discovery and Development of Potent LFA-1/ICAM-1 Antagonist SAR 1118 as an Ophthalmic Solution for Treating Dry Eye. ACS Med Chem Lett. 2012 Mar 08; 3(3):203-6.
Lee H, Moody-Davis A, Saha U, Suzuki BM, Asarnow D, Chen S, Arkin M, Caffrey CR, Singh R. Quantification and clustering of phenotypic screening data using time-series analysis for chemotherapy of schistosomiasis. BMC Genomics. 2012; 13 Suppl 1:S4.
De Muylder G, Ang KK, Chen S, Arkin MR, Engel JC, McKerrow JH. A screen against Leishmania intracellular amastigotes: comparison to a promastigote screen and identification of a host cell-specific hit. PLoS Negl Trop Dis. 2011 Jul; 5(7):e1253.
Ang KK, Ratnam J, Gut J, Legac J, Hansell E, Mackey ZB, Skrzypczynska KM, Debnath A, Engel JC, Rosenthal PJ, McKerrow JH, Arkin MR, Renslo AR. Mining a cathepsin inhibitor library for new antiparasitic drug leads. PLoS Negl Trop Dis. 2011 May 03; 5(5):e1023.
Ben Khalaf N, De Muylder G, Ratnam J, Kean-Hooi Ang K, Arkin M, McKerrow J, Chenik M. A high-throughput turbidometric assay for screening inhibitors of Leishmania major protein disulfide isomerase. J Biomol Screen. 2011 Jun; 16(5):545-51.
Gut J, Ang KK, Legac J, Arkin MR, Rosenthal PJ, McKerrow JH. An image-based assay for high throughput screening of Giardia lamblia. J Microbiol Methods. 2011 Mar; 84(3):398-405.
Zhong M, Hanan EJ, Shen W, Bui M, Arkin MR, Barr KJ, Evanchik MJ, Hoch U, Hyde J, Martell JR, Oslob JD, Paulvannan K, Prabhu S, Silverman JA, Wright J, Yu CH, Zhu J, Flanagan WM. Structure-activity relationship (SAR) of the a-amino acid residue of potent tetrahydroisoquinoline (THIQ)-derived LFA-1/ICAM-1 antagonists. Bioorg Med Chem Lett. 2011 Jan 01; 21(1):307-10.
Zhong M, Shen W, Barr KJ, Arbitrario JP, Arkin MR, Bui M, Chen T, Cunningham BC, Evanchik MJ, Hanan EJ, Hoch U, Huen K, Hyde J, Kumer JL, Lac T, Lawrence CE, Martell JR, Oslob JD, Paulvannan K, Prabhu S, Silverman JA, Wright J, Yu CH, Zhu J, Flanagan WM. Discovery of tetrahydroisoquinoline (THIQ) derivatives as potent and orally bioavailable LFA-1/ICAM-1 antagonists. Bioorg Med Chem Lett. 2010 Sep 01; 20(17):5269-73.
Engel JC, Ang KK, Chen S, Arkin MR, McKerrow JH, Doyle PS. Image-based high-throughput drug screening targeting the intracellular stage of Trypanosoma cruzi, the agent of Chagas' disease. Antimicrob Agents Chemother. 2010 Aug; 54(8):3326-34.
Hawtin RE, Stockett DE, Byl JA, McDowell RS, Nguyen T, Arkin MR, Conroy A, Yang W, Osheroff N, Fox JA. Voreloxin is an anticancer quinolone derivative that intercalates DNA and poisons topoisomerase II. PLoS One. 2010 Apr 15; 5(4):e10186.
Bryant C, Kerr ID, Debnath M, Ang KK, Ratnam J, Ferreira RS, Jaishankar P, Zhao D, Arkin MR, McKerrow JH, Brinen LS, Renslo AR. Novel non-peptidic vinylsulfones targeting the S2 and S3 subsites of parasite cysteine proteases. Bioorg Med Chem Lett. 2009 Nov 01; 19(21):6218-21.
Arkin MR, Whitty A. The road less traveled: modulating signal transduction enzymes by inhibiting their protein-protein interactions. Curr Opin Chem Biol. 2009 Jun; 13(3):284-90.
Rubio BK, Tenney K, Ang KH, Abdulla M, Arkin M, McKerrow JH, Crews P. The marine sponge Diacarnus bismarckensis as a source of peroxiterpene inhibitors of Trypanosoma brucei, the causative agent of sleeping sickness. J Nat Prod. 2009 Feb 27; 72(2):218-22.
Conroy A, Stockett DE, Walker D, Arkin MR, Hoch U, Fox JA, Hawtin RE. SNS-032 is a potent and selective CDK 2, 7 and 9 inhibitor that drives target modulation in patient samples. Cancer Chemother Pharmacol. 2009 Sep; 64(4):723-32.
Arkin M, Moasser MM. HER-2-directed, small-molecule antagonists. Curr Opin Investig Drugs. 2008 Dec; 9(12):1264-76.
Choong IC, Serafimova I, Fan J, Stockett D, Chan E, Cheeti S, Lu Y, Fahr B, Pham P, Arkin MR, Walker DH, Hoch U. A diaminocyclohexyl analog of SNS-032 with improved permeability and bioavailability properties. Bioorg Med Chem Lett. 2008 Nov 01; 18(21):5763-5.
Arkin M. Protein-protein interactions and cancer: small molecules going in for the kill. Curr Opin Chem Biol. 2005 Jun; 9(3):317-24.
Waal ND, Yang W, Oslob JD, Arkin MR, Hyde J, Lu W, McDowell RS, Yu CH, Raimundo BC. Identification of nonpeptidic small-molecule inhibitors of interleukin-2. Bioorg Med Chem Lett. 2005 Feb 15; 15(4):983-7.
Raimundo BC, Oslob JD, Braisted AC, Hyde J, McDowell RS, Randal M, Waal ND, Wilkinson J, Yu CH, Arkin MR. Integrating fragment assembly and biophysical methods in the chemical advancement of small-molecule antagonists of IL-2: an approach for inhibiting protein-protein interactions. J Med Chem. 2004 Jun 03; 47(12):3111-30.
Hyde J, Braisted AC, Randal M, Arkin MR. Discovery and characterization of cooperative ligand binding in the adaptive region of interleukin-2. Biochemistry. 2003 Jun 03; 42(21):6475-83.
Braisted AC, Oslob JD, Delano WL, Hyde J, McDowell RS, Waal N, Yu C, Arkin MR, Raimundo BC. Discovery of a potent small molecule IL-2 inhibitor through fragment assembly. J Am Chem Soc. 2003 Apr 02; 125(13):3714-5.
Arkin MR, Stemp ED, Holmlin RE, Barton JK, Hörmann A, Olson EJ, Barbara PF. Rates of DNA-mediated electron transfer between metallointercalators. Science. 1996 Jul 26; 273(5274):475-80.
Murphy CJ, Arkin MR, Ghatlia ND, Bossmann S, Turro NJ, Barton JK. Fast photoinduced electron transfer through DNA intercalation. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1994 Jun 07; 91(12):5315-9.
Murphy CJ, Arkin MR, Jenkins Y, Ghatlia ND, Bossmann SH, Turro NJ, Barton JK. Long-range photoinduced electron transfer through a DNA helix. Science. 1993 Nov 12; 262(5136):1025-9. | 2019-04-19T01:26:42Z | https://pharmacy.ucsf.edu/michelle-arkin |
Dams play a significant role in altering the spatial pattern of temperature in rivers and contribute to thermal pollution, which greatly affects the river aquatic ecosystems. Understanding the temporal and spatial variation of thermal pollution caused by dams is important to prevent or mitigate its harmful effect. Assessments based on in-situ measurements are often limited in practice because of the inaccessibility of water temperature records and the scarcity of gauges along rivers. By contrast, thermal infrared remote sensing provides an alternative approach to monitor thermal pollution downstream of dams in large rivers, because it can cover a large area and observe the same zone repeatedly. In this study, Landsat Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM+) thermal infrared imagery were applied to assess the thermal pollution caused by two dams, the Geheyan Dam and the Gaobazhou Dam, located on the Qingjiang River, a tributary of the Yangtze River downstream of the Three Gorges Reservoir in Central China. The spatial and temporal characteristics of thermal pollution were analyzed with water temperatures estimated from 54 cloud-free Landsat ETM+ scenes acquired in the period from 2000 to 2014. The results show that water temperatures downstream of both dams are much cooler than those upstream of both dams in summer, and the water temperature remains stable along the river in winter, showing evident characteristic of the thermal pollution caused by dams. The area affected by the Geheyan Dam reaches beyond 20 km along the downstream river, and that affected by the Gaobazhou Dam extends beyond the point where the Qingjiang River enters the Yangtze River. Considering the long time series and global coverage of Landsat ETM+ imagery, the proposed technique in the current study provides a promising method for globally monitoring the thermal pollution caused by dams in large rivers.
Water temperature is an important physical property of rivers because it has significant effects on many economic and ecological aspects [1,2,3,4]. Water temperature affects water quality, such as dissolved oxygen and suspended sediment concentration. It is one of the most critical parameters that controls the overall health of aquatic ecosystems in rivers, and also has considerable influence on the growth rate and spatial distribution of aquatic organisms. Moreover, water temperature is economically important because of its influence on water requirements for industry and aquaculture. Water temperature variation in rivers is hard to quantify in practice, because it is typically spatially and temporally heterogeneous . Generally, river water temperature is affected by many factors, such as atmospheric conditions, topography and stream discharge . The change of natural conditions, such as global climate change, affects the pattern of river water temperature . Besides, river water temperature is also greatly affected by human activities, such as riparian land cover change and effluent point discharges from power stations .
Building dams along rivers is one of the most important human activities that change the hydrological processes in rivers [7,8,9]. Specifically, river water temperature is often altered by dams. The impact of an upstream reservoir on downstream river water temperature primarily depends on its thermal stratification characteristics, and design and operation mode [10,11]. In a reservoir, thermal stratification is common in summer, because the upper layers of water are warmed by solar radiation and cooler waters remain underneath in the hypolimnion. In the winter, however, the upper layer temperatures often are cooled and the thermal stratification reduces and may disappear because of full vertical mixing. Therefore, water temperatures downstream dams may be substantially changed by the reservoir released water at different temperatures. Dam-induced modifications to a river’s thermal regime can lead to unprecedented ecological and environmental results for the river downstream. This abrupt thermal shift phenomenon is then often referred as “thermal pollution”, because it tends to bring harmful consequences to freshwater ecosystems [10,12,13,14]. Analyzing the spatial and temporal variation pattern of water temperature downstream of dams caused by thermal pollution is therefore important for reservoir management to prevent or mitigate thermal pollution using optimized operations.
Thermal pollution attributed to dams is typically analyzed with in-situ measured water temperature records . By measuring water temperatures using a network of in-stream gauges, the magnitude, and the spatial and temporal patterns of thermal pollution caused by a dam can be studied. This technique can provide favorable results if long-term downstream temperature records measured by a dense observation network are available. In practice, however, long time temperature records are not always existent or available to the public in many areas. Moreover, in-situ gauges are often sparsely distributed in rivers, and using data measured in only one or several gauges cannot provide adequate information on the spatial distribution of water temperature.
Compared with in-situ measurements, thermal infrared remote sensing technique provides an attractive alternative for measuring water temperatures and quantifying spatial patterns of water temperature at multiple spatial scales . For example, coarse spatial resolution imagery, such as Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS), have been widely used to map the spatial and temporal patterns of temperature in large lakes and reservoirs [16,17]. Medium spatial resolution satellite imagery, such as Landsat thermal infrared imagery, have been used to quantify the longitudinal and temporal thermal patterns along rivers , and to identify the groundwater contribution . Fine spatial resolution airborne thermal infrared imagery is becoming popular for the accurate measurement of water temperatures for small water bodies [5,20,21,22,23,24,25].
The Landsat Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM+) sensor, which has a thermal infrared band with a 60 m spatial resolution and has a large amount of data archived from 1999 available free to public, provides a promising means to quantify water thermal variability [15,26,27,28,29,30]. Compared with coarse spatial resolution remote sensing imagery, such as MODIS, which is unsuitable for river applications due to its coarse spatial resolution, Landsat ETM+ satellite thermal infrared imagery have a finer spatial resolution and can be used to accurately estimate water temperatures in rivers. Compared with airborne thermal infrared remote sensing imagery, using Landsat ETM+ satellite thermal infrared imagery also has its potential advantages. Both the spatial and temporal coverage achievable with airborne remote sensing are always limited, and only a few thermal infrared images within small areas can be used in most cases, while Landsat ETM+ satellite imagery has a long period global coverage.
The primary objective of the current research is to investigate the capability of a long series of Landsat ETM+ satellite thermal infrared images to assess the thermal pollution caused by dams. We investigate the temperature estimation method for Landsat ETM+ imagery and analyze the uncertainty of result caused by imperfect atmospheric correction. The spatio-temporal pattern of thermal pollution caused by two dams in the study area is then analyzed with estimated river water temperatures. The potential applications and limitations of the proposed approach are also discussed. The contributions of this research are twofold. First, to our knowledge, it is the first time that the thermal pollution caused by dams is assessed by using satellite remote sensing technology. Second, a spatio-temporal analysis method is proposed in order to decrease the uncertainty of data provided by satellite images.
The study focused on the Qingjiang River, a first-order tributary of the Yangtze River downstream of the Three Gorges Reservoir in Hubei Province, Central China. The Qingjiang River has a watershed area of approximately 17,000 km2, with the mainstream having a total length of 423 km. A cascade of reservoirs can be found along the Qingjiang River. The study area ranges from the upstream Geheyan reservoir to the river mouth, including the Geheyan and Gaobazhou Dams that were constructed in 1994 and 2000, respectively (Figure 1). The monthly mean air and water temperatures measured in the Yichang hydrology station (Figure 1) in the period 2000–2004 are shown in Figure 2. The mean monthly air temperature is higher than the mean monthly water temperature in summer, while, in winter, the mean monthly water temperature is higher than the mean monthly air temperature.
The distance between the Geheyan and Gaobazhou Dams is approximately 50 km, and the distance between the Gaobazhou Dam and the river mouth into the Yangtze River is approximately 12 km. The river width in the study area is typically between 200 and 500 m. The normal water level of the Geheyan reservoir is about 200 m, while the normal water level of the Gaobazhou reservoir is about 80 m. The monthly mean discharges of both reservoirs in the period 2000 to 2004 are shown in Figure 3, and the annual flow discharges in this period are 400 m3/s and 436 m3/s, respectively.
Figure 4 shows the change of water temperature with the water depth in various seasons for the Geheyan reservoir . It is shown that the water temperature distribution is stratified in the vertical domain and the pattern varies in time. In summer, for example, on 28 July 1995, the surface water temperature was higher than 30 °C. With the increase of water depth, the water temperature decreased rapidly at first. From the depths 10 to 40 m, the water temperature began to decrease slowly. However, from 40 to 50 m, the water temperature had a rapid decrease. Below the depth of 50 m, water temperature decreased slowly again. On days in other seasons, such as on 26 October 1995 and 24 April 1996, the water surface temperatures were still higher than those in the depths of 80 m. However, the water difference was only about 5–10 °C, and was much less than that in the summer, which reached 20 °C.
The primary data source was a series of Landsat-7 ETM+ satellite images. The spatial resolution of the thermal infrared band (10.45 to 12.5 μm) for the ETM+ is 60 m × 60 m; other bands (1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 7) for ETM+ have a spatial resolution of 30 m. The selected Landsat scene was path 125/row 39, which covers the extent of the area of interest. Scenes that were mostly cloud-free from 2000 to 2014 were ordered and downloaded for free from the United States Geological Survey Earth Explorer website . All images were Level 1T products, which have been precision and terrain corrected in the GeoTIFF format and are in the UTM Zone 49N projection and WGS datum. The resulting dataset comprised 54 full scenes, including 39 scan-line corrector off (SLC-off) images. In the analysis, the SLC-off data would lower the data quality and affect the result. Although the gaps caused by SLC-off appeared in different locations along the Qingjiang River, no gap filling method was used in this study to avoid the uncertainty brought by gap filling methods.
In this study, the spatio-temporal pattern of thermal pollution caused by dams was analyzed using the time series Landsat ETM+ images through the steps, as shown in Figure 5, which are introduced in detail in the following sections.
First, to determine the water temperature along the river, a water mask was generated. The unsupervised Iterative Self-Organizing Data Analysis Technique (ISODATA) was applied on all six 30 m spatial resolution bands for each Landsat scene . The resulting clusters were then aggregated into a land/water classification map, which was used to create a binary water mask. Considering that the water mask has a finer spatial resolution (30 m) than the thermal band, only the coarse resolution pixels in the thermal infrared band that are fully integrated into the water mask were considered as water and were applied to determine water temperature.
L λ = g a i n × D N + b i a s .
where L λ is the TOA spectral radiance at λ wavelength in W ⋅ m 2 ⋅ s r ⋅ m m , DN is the digital number in the scene, and gain and bias are calibration parameters, and are set to be 0.067087 and −0.07 for the band 6 (low gain) of Landsat 7 ETM+ images.
L λ ( T s ) = L λ − L λ u p t × ε λ − 1 − ε λ ε λ × L λ d o w n .
where L λ ( T s ) is the corrected surface radiance, L λ is the uncorrected spectral radiance calculated in Equation (1), L λ u p is the upwelling radiance, L λ d o w n is the downwelling radiance, t is the atmospheric transmissivity, and ε λ is the water emissivity.
In this study, the emissivity of water was set as 0.9885 according to Simon et al. . The other three parameters used in Equation (2) were obtained with the atmospheric correction tool developed by Barsi et al. for the TM and ETM+ thermal bands. According to the date, time, and location of the Landsat scene, the atmospheric correction parameter calculator uses the National Centers for Environmental Prediction-modeled global atmospheric profiles as input data, along with MODTRAN and other integration algorithms, to derive site-specific atmospheric transmission, upwelling atmospheric radiance and down-welling atmospheric for each given Landsat scene.
T s = K 2 l n ( K 1 L λ ( T s ) + 1 ) .
where T s is the water temperature (K). K 1 and K 2 are thermal constants, where K 1 = 1282.71 K and K 2 = 666.09 W ⋅ m 2 ⋅ sr ⋅ mm for the Landsat ETM+ sensor. With all estimated water temperature values, the spatio-temporal pattern of thermal pollution caused by both dams could be analyzed. It needs to be emphasized that no in-situ observation water temperature data are available along the Qingjiang River at present. Therefore, in this study, the thermal pollution caused by both dams is assessed using only the Landsat ETM+ images.
To validate the estimated water temperatures, the results were compared with in-situ observed water temperatures. At present, there are no water temperature observation data available in the Qingjiang River. Therefore, the water temperature monitoring point (30°43′15″N, 111°15′47″E) located in the Yichang hydrology station in the Yangtze River within the same Landsat scene, as shown in Figure 1, were used for validation in this study. Five-year daily water temperature measured at 8:00 a.m. local time during 2000–2002 and 2007–2008 were collected. During the period, there are 24 Landsat scenes available and all measured water temperature values were then compared with corresponding estimated water temperatures, to assess the accuracy of results.
Table 1 shows the measured water temperatures (Tm), estimated water temperatures (Te), along with all used atmosphere parameters of all validation dates. In general, the accuracy of the water temperature estimated the radiative transfer equation algorithm is high. Most estimated water temperature values are similar with measured water temperature values. However, it is also noticed that there are several larger errors in resulting water temperatures estimated from Landsat images, especially when the water temperature is high. The main reason is that the in-situ temperatures were observed at 8:00 a.m. local time, while the satellite passed the area at about 10:00 a.m. local time. In general, when the water temperature is low, for example in the winter, the difference of water temperatures between the in-situ observation time and satellite pass time is small. By contrast, when the water temperature is high, for example in the summer, such as 20 July and 5 August 2001, the difference of water temperatures between the in-situ observation time and satellite pass time is large and may be a few degrees.
Figure 6 shows the plot of estimated water surface temperature and measured water surface temperature. Most scatter points are located near the 1:1 line. The correlation coefficient is 0.9268, and the root mean squared error (RMSE) is 1.07 °C, showing the effectiveness of the method used to estimate water temperature from the Landsat ETM+ thermal band.
The objective of the study is to analyze the dam-caused thermal pollution, which is mainly represented by the water temperature variation downstream of the dam. The temperature difference (or relative temperature) between water bodies below the dam and in the reservoir upstream may be more informative than absolute water temperatures. Therefore, besides direct temperature comparison, an uncertainty analysis was further performed. The uncertainty analysis pays no attention to absolute water temperatures themselves, but the water temperature difference between two sites in the same Landsat scene.
In the analysis of the uncertainty of temperature differences, two water points in the Landsat scene were first selected. The water temperatures of both points were estimated using the original downloaded atmosphere parameters, and their water temperature difference was also calculated. Then, random errors were added to original downloaded atmosphere parameters ( L λ u p , L λ d o w n , and t ) in Equation (2) to obtain simulated atmosphere parameters. Water temperatures of both points were again estimated with simulated atmosphere parameters and their water temperature difference was calculated. Finally, error between water temperatures of one point estimated with original atmosphere parameters and simulated atmosphere parameters, and error between water temperature differences of two points estimated with original atmosphere parameters and simulated atmosphere parameters, are compared, in order to assess the uncertainty of the water temperature difference caused by the uncertainty of used atmosphere parameters.
Table 2 shows the results of uncertainty analysis. Here, the difference of DN values between two selected water points is 10, which is larger than most DN difference values between two water points in all Landsat scenes in the study area. The error of atmosphere parameters is set to be in the range of −50% to 50%. With these simulated atmosphere parameters, the absolute error of estimated water surface temperatures can reach to 50 °C, which is not practical. Therefore, only absolute errors of estimated water surface temperatures based on simulated atmosphere parameters within the range between [−9 °C, 9 °C] are considered. It is noticed that, in most cases, the RMSE value of estimated temperature difference between two sites is only about 1 °C, even the error of estimated absolute temperature of each site is larger than 7 °C. Given water temperatures estimated from the Landsat ETM+ images already have a high accuracy as the validation result shows, the water temperature difference, which is more important for thermal pollution assessment, can also been estimated with a high accuracy for each Landsat ETM+ scene in the study area.
Figure 7 shows the resulting relative water temperature variations over four different dates. The thermal pollution is clearly shown in Figure 7. In summer scenes of both years, generally, river temperatures were warmer upstream and cooler downstream for both dams. For example, in the scene of 17 July 2000, water temperature is warm in the reservoir upstream of the Geheyan Dam. Downstream of the dam, water temperature cools along the river. From 30 km away from the dam to the reservoir upstream of the Gaobazhou Dam, the water temperature warms again. Downstream of the Gaobazhou Dam, however, water temperature becomes cooler until the water flows into the Yangtze River. Moreover, it is also noticed that the spatial pattern of relative water temperature variations is different in the two summer days in the years 2000 and 2001. In winter, by contrast, there are only slightly water temperature variations along the river, and the abrupt thermal shift is unnoticeable for both dams.
Figure 8 shows longitudinal profiles of relative water temperatures from the reservoir upstream of the Geheyan Dam to the river mouth in four different dates. Discontinuities of relative water temperatures are clearly visible at the reservoir locations, in July 2000 and 2001. The longitudinal relative water temperature profile shows a general pattern of “warm, cool, warm, and cool”. Taking the result on 20 July 2001 as an example, relative water temperatures in the reservoir upstream of the Geheyan Dam are approximately 0 °C, meaning that open water bodies in the reservoir almost have the same water temperatures. A rapid temperature decrease is noticeable below the Geheyan Dam, where the relative water temperature reaches approximately −5 °C. In the range of 0 km to 25 km downstream the dam, the relative water temperature remains stable. Beyond this area, the relative water temperature increases rapidly until 35 km downstream of the dam, again reaching approximately 0 °C and remains stable until the Gaobazhou Dam is reached. The relative water temperature again decreases to about −5 °C downstream of the Gaobazhou Dam, remaining stable until the river enters the Yangtze River. In 17 July 2000, a general trend exists, although the profile also shows changes in the longitudinal heating rate along the river gradient. In the winter, such as that on 27 March 2000 and 10 February 2001, the relative water temperature profiles are much different with those in summer. The relative water temperatures generally keep near zero, meaning that water temperatures up and downstream both dams are similar.
Water temperature values in four different sites, including the Geheyan reservoir, the site located 1 km away from the Geheyan Dam, the Gabazhou reservoir, and the site located 1 km away from the Gabazhou Dam, are plotted in Figure 9. It is noted that the intra-annual change of water temperatures in the four sites are mainly affected by the meteorological conditions, and the trends of the water temperature measured by Landsat ETM+ images are similar with that of the in-situ measurements, as shown in Figure 2. However, for both dams, water temperatures upstream of the dams vary within a larger range than downstream of the dams. A paired sample t-test showed that, at the 5% level, there are significant differences between water temperature of the Geheyan reservoir and water temperatures of the sites located 1 km downstream of the Geheyan Dam. The water temperature of the Gaobazhou reservoir was also found to have a significant difference with water temperatures of the site located 1 km downstream of the Gaobazhou Dam, at the 5% level. However, no significant differences were found between water temperature of the Geheyan reservoir and those of the Gaobazhou reservoir.
Figure 10 shows the differences between water temperatures upstream the dams and water temperatures downstream the dams in different sites along the river. Figure 10a–e shows the results of the sites located 1, 10, 20, 30, and 50 km away from the Geheyan Dam, respectively. Similarly, Figure 10f–h shows water temperature differences of the different sites located 1, 5, and 10 km downstream of the Gabazhou Dam, respectively, by comparing the reference water and those of the study locations. In Figure 10a–f, both Geheyan and Gaobazhou Dams have noticeable effects on water temperature below the dams. The trends of water temperature difference are similar for both dams, although the difference in the Geheyan Dam seems slightly larger. Generally, water temperatures below the dams are lower than that of the reservoir in the summer. The highest difference exceeds 5 °C for both dams. By contrast, the water temperature difference is small in winter. Meanwhile, the effect of the dam on downstream water temperatures is observed to decrease with increasing distance to the Geheyan Dam. Comparing the sites 20, 10, and 1 km downstream of the Geheyan Dam, the effect trend is similar, whereas the amplitude is decreasing. In the sites 30 and 50 km downstream of the Geheyan Dam, as shown in Figure 10d,e, noticeable trends of water temperature differences are essentially nonexistent, and the deviation indeed results from other factors, such as the uncertainty of water temperature extracted by Landsat images. The trend for the Gaobazhou Dam is similar, that is, the amplitude decreases with increasing distance. Considering that the Qingjiang River flows into the Yangtze River in the site 12 km downstream of the Gaobazhou Dam, the Gaobazhou Dam also has important effect on the thermal pattern in the main channel of the Yangtze River.
Thermal pollution caused by dams has an important impact on the downstream river environment and ecology. The popular method of using long term in-situ water temperature records to evaluate this influence is limited because in-situ records are not available for many areas. More importantly, in-situ records are always measured only at sparse certain locations, and cannot provide detailed spatial information for thermal pollution assessment. By contrast, Landsat ETM+ thermal infrared imagery can provide long term spatially continuous water temperatures, and then could be used as an alternative dataset to assess the thermal pollution for large rivers.
By analyzing the spatial and temporal pattern of water temperatures estimated by Landsat ETM+ thermal infrared images, it is shown that both Geheyan and Gaobazhou Dams have a significant effect on river temperature. Both Geheyan and Gaobazhou Dams are used for hydropower generation, then the water is then taken from deep in the reservoir and after use is discharged downstream of the dam. In Figure 4, it is shown that the water temperature distribution in the Geheyan reservoir is stratified in the vertical dimension. In summer, the deep water is much cooler than the surface water. Then, the released water from the reservoir to the downstream river is much cooler than the water in the river, making the water temperature downstream of Geheyan Dam much lower than the surface water temperature in the Geheyan reservoir. In spring and autumn, although the deep water in the reservoir is still cooler than the surface water, the water temperature difference is much less than that in the summer. Moreover, as shown in Figure 3, the monthly mean discharges in spring and autumn are also much less than those in summer. Then, the temperature different between surface water in the reservoir and that in the river downstream the dam is less then that in summer. The phenomenon is in accordance with a typical thermal pollution caused by dams, due to the thermal stratification characteristics of the reservoir formed by dams.
In this study, the inter-annual variation of water temperatures caused by meteorological and hydrological conditions are not considered. The main reason is that, although the satellite can revisit the same area every 16 days, only several Landsat ETM+ images can be applied to estimated water temperatures each year because of the problem of cloud coverage. Then, all available Landsat ETM+ imagery is combined to analyze the intra-annual water temperature variations. In Figure 9 and Figure 10, it is noticed that both absolute and relative water temperatures are dissimilar for different dates and locations. In general, the magnitude of thermal alterations caused by dams in summer is larger than that in winter. However, the magnitude of thermal alterations might be different in the same season. For example, in Figure 10b, near the 240th day, one relative water temperature value is about −5 °C and another value is about 0 °C. This is mainly caused by different meteorological and hydrological conditions in these two days. In general, with all available datasets, the general trend of thermal pollution caused by both dams can be acquired, but detailed information of the daily thermal pollution pattern cannot be assessed if using only Landsat ETM+ images.
The effectiveness of the proposed method is mainly affected by the accuracy of water temperatures estimated from Landsat ETM+ thermal infrared images. In practice, there are many different sources of uncertainty in river water temperature estimation . The two most important influence factors, the spatial resolution of image and the water temperature estimation algorithm used, should, therefore, be carefully considered in future studies.
The spatial resolution of thermal imagery is a crucial factor that affects the accuracy of the estimated water temperature from thermal imagery. In general, in order to estimate river water temperature accurately, the rivers should be as large as three pixels in the thermal infrared imagery . However, if image sharpening methods are applied, water temperatures in the rivers narrower than the pixel size may also be estimated, and used to identify the along-stream temperature pattern . In our experiments, the river is mostly wider than 200 m. Then, Landsat ETM+ thermal images, which have a spatial resolution of 60 m, are suitable to be applied to estimate the water temperature. In other cases, if Landsat 5 TM thermal imagery with a spatial resolution of 120 m or the Landsat 8 thermal imagery with a spatial resolution of 100 m, are used, or the river width is not large enough, these advanced water temperature algorithms should be used to improve the accuracy of results .
Another important issue is the temperature estimation algorithm. For Landsat ETM+ imagery, only the mono-window algorithm can be applied to estimate temperature because only one thermal infrared band exists. The results in this study show that the radiative transfer equation method obtained water temperatures with a high accuracy, satisfying the need for thermal pollution analysis. Moreover, the uncertainty analysis results show that the radiative transfer equation method can obtain temperature differences with a high accuracy even the estimated absolute water temperatures have large errors, showing the reliability of water temperature estimation with Landsat ETM+ thermal images. In practice, however, the uncertainty of estimated water surface temperature is unavoidable, because of the imperfect atmospheric correction. One possible method to reduce the impact caused by the uncertainty is using Landsat time series. For example, in this study, 54 Landsat ETM+ scenes were used. A large number of observations can help make the results robust.
In this study, Landsat ETM+ imagery are used as the only datasets to analyze the spatial temporal pattern of thermal pollution below dams. In practice, if other additional data are available, they can be incorporated into the analysis to further improve the results. For example, if in-situ water temperature records can be collected, they should be used to improve the water temperature estimation accuracy and provide more information about the thermal pollution pattern . Other datasets, such as high spatial resolution airborne thermal infrared dataset, can also be fused with long term Landsat ETM+ imagery to improve the accuracy of results. Results produced by water temperature simulation models and results obtained by the current study are obviously mutually benefit, and the integration between them needs further investigation .
Generally, the technique presented in this study offers a useful tool to fill in the sparse in-situ observational record of water temperature in rivers. This technique can be applied in the global scale because of the long time series and global coverage of Landsat ETM+ imagery. Based on the current study, analyzing the spatial patterns of thermal pollution caused by different dams is now possible. Such an analysis is important in reservoir management. Moreover, this technique can be used to compare the effects of the various larger dams with freely available data. The approach of the current study can be easily applied in other dams located in large rivers, and the results can provide useful information for further understanding the extent and magnitude of thermal pollution associated with dams.
In this paper, we proposed a method to monitor thermal pollution below dams using long time series Landsat ETM+ thermal infrared imagery. Taking Geheyan and Gaobazhou Dams located in the Qingjiang River as a case study, water surface temperatures were estimated from 54 Landsat ETM+ thermal images. Validation and uncertainty analysis results show that the estimated water surface temperatures have a high accuracy and can be applied to analyze the spatial and temporal pattern of thermal variations resulting from the dams. The results show that, on Qingjiang River, the Geheyan and Gaobazhou Dams greatly alter the downstream water temperatures. According to the operating mode, the discharges of both dams are taken from deep in the reservoir. Due to the thermal stratification characteristics of reservoirs, the temperature difference between the released water and the surface water is then large in summer and small in winter. Moreover, the flow discharges in summer are larger than those in winter. Therefore, both dams result in a typical thermal pollution phenomenon. In summer, water temperatures downstream of both dams are cooler than those upstream of both dams, and the water temperature difference exceeds 5 °C. In winter, the water temperature remains stable along the river. The area affected by the Geheyan Dam reaches beyond 20 km along the downstream river, and that affected by the Gaobazhou Dam extends beyond the point where the Qingjiang River enters the Yangtze River.
The results show that long term Landsat ETM+ thermal infrared imagery is a useful dataset to study the river thermal behavior and to assess the thermal pollution caused by dams in large rivers. However, other possibilities for improvement should still be considered. For example, given that Landsat ETM+ images have a global coverage, the proposed method should be applied in other dams globally to assess its ability. The water temperatures estimated from Landsat ETM+ images should be compared with more in-situ observed data in different areas to assess the uncertainty of results. Moreover, the results should be further explored with methods in other research fields, such as aquatic ecology.
This research was supported in part by the Youth Innovation Promotion Association CAS (Grant No. 2017384), and in part by the Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 51479186 and No. 31772854).
Feng Ling, Giles M. Foody and Yun Du conceived of the main idea and designed the experiments. Hao Du, Xuan Ban performed the experiments. Xiaodong Li and Yihang Zhang analyzed the data. The manuscript was written by Feng Ling and was improved by the contributions of all of the co-authors.
Sullivan, A.B.; Rounds, S. Modeling Streamflow and Water Temperature in the North Santiam and Santiam Rivers, Oregon, 2001-02; US Department of the Interior, US Geological Survey: Portland, OR, USA, 2004.
The United States Geological Survey Earth Explorer Website. Available online: http://earthexplorer.usgs.gov (accessed on 12 August 2017).
Atmospheric Correction Parameter Calculator. Available online: http://atmcorr.gsfc.nasa.gov (accessed on 20 November 2016).
Figure 1. Study area (Qingjiang River watershed in central China) and locations of dams analyzed in this study.
Figure 2. Mean monthly air and water temperatures of the Yichang hydrology station in the period 2000–2004.
Figure 3. Mean monthly flows in the Geheyan and Gaobazhou Dams in the period 2000–2004.
Figure 4. Vertical water temperature distribution in the Geheyan reservoir on three dates (spring, summer and autumn). The water temperature distribution is stratified in vertical dimension and the pattern is different at different time.
Figure 5. Flowchart for monitoring thermal pollution downstream of dams with Landsat ETM+ thermal infrared images.
Figure 6. Plot of estimated water surface temperature versus measured water surface temperature.
Figure 7. Relative water temperature variations derived using Landsat ETM+ imagery over four different dates.
Figure 8. Longitudinal profiles of relative water temperatures from the reservoir upstream of the Geheyan Dam to the river mouth over different times.
Figure 9. (a) Water temperatures in the Geheyan reservoir and 1 km downstream of the Geheyan Dam; (b) Water temperatures in the Gaobazhou reservoir and 1 km downstream of the Gaobazhou Dam. Note that the number of water temperature values in each case is different because of the SLC-off problem of Landsat ETM+ images.
Figure 10. Relative water temperatures in different sites: (a–e) relative water temperatures of downstream sites with different distances to the Geheyan Dam; and (f–h) relative water temperatures of downstream sites with different distances to the Gaobazhou Dam.
Table 1. Comparison between measured water surface temperatures (Tm) and estimated water surface temperatures (Te). dT is the temperature difference between the measured and estimated water surface temperatures.
Table 2. Uncertainty analysis for the relative temperature difference. E1 is the error between absolute water temperatures of one point estimated with original atmosphere parameters and simulated atmosphere parameters. E2 is the error between water temperature differences of two points estimated with original atmosphere parameters and simulated atmosphere parameters. | 2019-04-25T23:59:02Z | https://www.mdpi.com/2072-4292/9/11/1175/htm |
After a couple of days in the tourist-free city of Kayseri following our trek in the Taurus Mountains, we were keen to head back into the Turkish countryside again. Getting to the Kaçkars from Kayseri proved to be a bit of an epic in itself, due in part to more last minute changes to our itinerary.
Ath the end of an uncomfortable 9 hour night trip by bus, we arrived in the city of Erzurum, expecting to be met at the bus station and driven to Yusufeli, the gateway to the southern Kaçkars. However, no-one showed up and we ended up spending the day and night in Erzurum. This, in itself wasn’t that bad, as it is an interesting city, with its ancient mosques, madrassas and citadel. It is also much less westernised than the other Turkish cities that we have visited – for the first time more women were in scarves and coats than in jeans and shirts, and we saw our first burqas.
Two indicators of the extent to which western cultural influences have penetrated Turkey are women's clothing and alcoholic drinks - unlike cosmopolitan Antalya, there was no sipping a beer as you watched the world go by in downtown Erzurum.
We left Erzurum the next morning on a minibus, heading north across the grassy plains, over some mountains and through a long and spectacular gorge to reach Yusufeli. Here we were met and driven by a dolmuş to Yaylalar, another two hours driving, but through some even more spectacular country. The single lane road changed from paved to rough gravel as it followed the course of the Hevek Dereşi, a ribbon of white-foaming ice green water, swollen with melted snow, as it rushed down from the mountains in a narrow and winding ravine. Gradually, the landscape changed from arid to green as we gained height and penetrated deeper into the mountains, until eventually we reached Yaylalar, in its cosy green niche beneath snow-topped peaks.
We had arrived in the heart of the Kaçkars, part of the Pontic Coast - a mythical land visited by Jason and his Argonauts in their quest for the golden fleece, rich in the cultures of Byzantine, Armenian, Georgian, Ottoman, Laz and Hemşin, and rich in natural beauty. Once installed in our comfortable bungalow next to the rushing stream, the problems of our travels seemed to fade away. The mountains were already weaving their magic.
As we had only arrived in Yaylalar in the mid-afternoon, there was only time for short trek on the first day of our Kaçkar adventure. After 6 hours of sitting in minibuses we needed to stretch our legs, so following a late lunch, the fair Nello and I set off from the pension and headed up the Korahmet Valley. It was ideal for a warm-up walk as you could do it without a guide and turn back at any time.
A quick stroll down the road that followed the rushing white water of the Hevek Dereşi brought us to a deep opening of the Korahmet Valley, out of which the equally fast flowing Zamevan Dereşi joined the Hevek. We crossed the stone arch of an old Ottoman Bridge to reach the footpath on the other side that led up the valley. The track climbed up before levelling out to follow the valley round high above the silvery thread of the stream, now deep in the ravine below us.
The wildflower-lined path curved around beneath a rocky cliff face, opening out views down the valley toward the 3350m peaks of Lale Tepe. Following the track around to the east, the village of Karamolla with its traditional stone houses appeared. We walked through the village to pick up an overgrown track higher up the slope that led us to the ghost-town like village of Korahmet.
Here we stopped as time was getting on and followed the gravel access road back to Karamolla before retracing our footsteps down the path to Yaylalar, framed by snow-tipped green mountains. The greenness of the Kaçkars was all the more striking for its contrast with the barren, orange-tan landscapes of the Taurus Mountains, where we had just been.
It was a short walk, but gave us a good taste of what lay in store; snow-capped peaks, deep valleys with rushing streams, green meadows and wildflowers in abundance. Our appetite for the next week of walking was well whetted.
As has been the case since we arrived in Turkey, clear blue skies greeted us on our first real day of walking in the Kaçkars. We were planning a walk up to the high slopes behind Yaylalar, from where we could get a grand view of the main range of the Kaçkar Mountains to the north and our eventual goal, the 3937m peak of Mt Kaçkar itself.
We met our local guide, Ibrahim, at the village store and headed off, climbing up through the village and past the mosque. Just on the outskirts, we left the road and climbed up an old mule path, which led us on a traverse across the pine and fir covered lower slopes. As we pushed on, the white foaming water of the Hevez Dereşi gradually fell further below us. After a long traverse, our route onwards was cut by a deep valley which forced us to take the one direction that we didn’t really want – up!
We turned into the valley and the climb to the high slopes began. At first we skirted the edge of the forest, before crossing the side stream that tumbled down the steep valley slope and continuing our climb up the flower-speckled grass and herb-fields of Aksav Yaylasi.
The broad open higher slopes of the Davut Mountains looked down on us, as Ibrahim led us up the faint overgrown track and into a grassy bowl backed by the bare rock wall of the mountain ridge. One more climb, up through some scattered pines on a spur to the east brought us out to a stone cairn and impressive views across the valley towards the Bulut Mountains and the dark 3420m dome of Caymakçur Tepe.
Further to the left, the unmistakable snow-covered south-western face of 3937m Mt Kaçkar was just appearing from behind the green slopes of the range we were on. It was a good place for a rest stop and a chance to become a bit more familiar with the profile of these mountains.
Soon we were pushing on, across a steep slope covered with white- and occasionally pale pink-flowering rhododendrons. We curved around this slope to cross a clinking boulder scree and climb up to a grassy saddle. Just to our left the rocky knob of Halime Tepe was begging to be climbed. We obliged to reach the high point of the day at 2750m and the visual high point with its 360° panorama of the mountains about us.
Descending back to the saddle, we pressed on to pick our way carefully down a soft scree slope and reach a narrow saddle between two valleys. The wind was now picking up, so we sat on the leeward side to have our lunch – soon to be joined by a squadron of kamikaze March flies. It was the first time we had been bothered by insects on our walks in Turkey. However, they did not distract from the main spectacle of cloud rising up on the northern side of the main range and spilling over into our side through passes and over saddles – an impressive lunchtime display.
What we didn’t notice, as we watched the cloud display on the mountains, was the other band of grey clouds creeping up behind. It was time to move on and Ibrahim led us quickly down into the valley high above the stone and wood houses of Modut Yayla, a place where local people spend the 2-3 months of summer. Reaching the upper part of the valley, with its twin silvery streams tumbling down from above, we stream hopped past fields of flowers, included clusters of tiny purple orchids, before descending the rocky yayla pastures to reach the village itself.
The summer migration had not yet occurred and the village was eerily quiet apart from one person working on some renovations.
From Modut, we picked up a rough gravel road, descending it with the occasional short cut to pass the smaller yayla village of Sakura, with its outer houses perched on the edge of a formidable drop into the deep ravine of the Hevez Dereşi. The way down for us was the road, with an interminable series of hairpin bends, until Ibrahim found a footpath that not only cured the tedium of the road by passing through shady pine and fir forest, but got us down much more quickly.
Opening out to the right as we descended, we could look directly up the superb Mikelis Gorge, with its stream of the same name cascading down in a foam of white-water. Soon after we passed some terraced gardens and entered the village of Mikelis, very different from the villages above, as it was full of life – men and women working and children playing. We stopped off there for a welcome cup of cay at Ibrahim’s sister’s house, before making the final descent down the narrow concreted access road from Mikelis to the main Yaylalar road, over 1000m below our high point of the day. This was supposed to be the end of the walk, and just when we were beginning to think we may have a long walk home up the road, the local dolmuş appeared and we climbed on board for the short drive back to our pension.
The Kaçkars had delivered on their promise from our short walk of yesterday – spectacular peaks, fields of flowers, deep ravines and valleys, tumbling mountain streams. Thanks, Ibrahim for showing us this part of your mountains. The next step though was to enter the heart of the mountains – a visit to 3937m Mt Kaçkar itself.
For us, climbing Kaçkar was to be a 3-day expedition; one day to get up to base camp at Dilberdüzü, one day for the climb and the return to Yaylalar on the third day. At 6am on the day we were to head off the fair Nello looked out of the window and saw that the cloud of yesterday had settled in and was covering the hills around Yaylalar. A worry about whether we might not be able to do the climb began to nag, but by 7.30am the sun had burnt holes in the low cloud and by the time we were ready to go, it was a beautiful day – blue with big fluffy clouds drifting by.
We met Makşur, our guide, mule driver and cook, at the store. Soon he had the mule loaded up with our camping gear, plus tents and cooking gear, even a small table and chairs, and we were off. Again we headed up the street and past the mosque, but this time we kept on the concrete road that soon had us heading gently westwards up the valley towards the hamlet of Olgunlar.
It was a busy road, women tending their gardens, men scything the thick herb-fields for hay, mules passing by almost obscured by their loads of fresh hay for storage in the barns, kids wandering off to school. It was the season of the harvest – time to lay up supplies for the animals during the long cold winter ahead.
The road changed to gravel and crossed the rushing stream, leading us into Olgunlar with its stone and wooden houses and a small open-air café, where we stopped for a cup of çay and a chance to enjoy the lush green valleys of the Kaçkar.
Pushing on, we now followed Makşur and the donkey onto a nice footpath that headed up Büyük Valley, the road to Mt Kaçkar. It was a long and beautiful glacial valley, a green canvas of grass and herb-fields spattered with the whites, yellows, blues, pinks, purples and oranges of their flowers.
Butterflies flitted by, grasshoppers crossed the path and the faint song of the ground lark could be heard above the sound of the rushing stream, as it tumbled over rock and boulder. Our mule was enjoyed the moving buffet of different tasty herbs and grasses as we slowly headed up the valley. Rounding a curve, we could see the snow-capped ridge of the main range and started to head directly for it.
After passing through the empty houses or crumbling stone ruins of Hasta Yaylasi with its low stonewalled fields lining the stream, the climb started to get steeper. We crossed a boggy area, full of purple orchids and pink flowering herbs to reach a broader plateau. The flower fields were becoming denser, with thick clusters of yellow and white blooms providing a superb foreground to the dark walls of the mountains rising behind them.
We were now well into the upper valley and the mountains had begun to enclose us, silvery streams flowing down from the heights. We were starting to feel quite hungry, but our guide/cook was keen to get to the campsite and set up before eating. One last steep climb brought us out to the hanging valley of Dilberdüzü, a broad green grassy flat, split by a rushing stream and backed by the sheer rocky ramparts of the main range.
In full trekking season, Dilberdüzü can have more than 50 tents scattered on its grassy flats. We were fortunate to find only one other tent, plus a couple of brand new stone-walled toilets, functionally sound if bodgily built. Creature comforts were creeping in to the high Kaçkars. We set up camp and had a late lunch, looking out over the 3600m peak of Kaçkar Zirve, on a spur of the main mountain. The summit of Kaçkar itself was hiding behind the dark walls of Seytan Kayalari (Satan's rocks) rising up to the north of our grassy flat - we would have to wait for the start of the ascent next morning to see it.
The afternoon passed slowly and pleasantly in this beautiful alpine setting. A trio of Turkish trekkers dropped in to our campsite on their way down from the mountain for a çay and a chat – their description of the views made us even keener for the climb tomorrow. It was only 4.30pm when the sun disappeared behind the ramparts and the temperature dropped dramatically in 10 minutes. Time for down jackets and beanies – at least we got a chance to wear them after carrying them around Turkey for 7 weeks! It was also time to get stuck into Makşur's hearty dinner.
Later that evening, we shared a bowl of hot soup and chatted to the Polish couple from the other tent - they had also also just climbed the mountain - and two Americans, who had just arrived and, like us, planned to do it the next day. However, on cold mountain nights you retire early and we were soon snuggled into our sleeping bags. A slight rustling from the direction of Makşur's tent announced the arrival of Ibrahim, our guide of yesterday. He had walked up late in the day and tomorrow would be the one to take us to the summit. Our sense of anticipation was rapidly building up.
“Kahvasi – besh”, Makşur had told us before we crawled into our tent to sleep. I wished that with my smattering of Turkish words that I hadn’t understood – breakfast at 5am did not really appeal, but you need to start the climb of Mt Kaçkar early, as it has a reputation for clouding over in the afternoons. Still, after a night spent on 5mm foam mats, we were glad to get up. Our hips, spoilt by a 20mm thermarest when we camp at home, woke us up to complain regularly and at the best we got an hour or two’s sleep. The star-filled sky that we left when we crawled into our tent had been replaced by low cloud which hung about the peaks. We weren’t sure what to expect of today.
By 20 to 6 we were on the way, with Ibrahim leading us up and out of the camping area to start a long and steep climb beside the stream that tumbled down from the snow fields above. As we zig-zagged upwards, the mists above began to break up a little and by the time we reached the fluted drifts funnelling down between jagged black rock ribs, the sun was breaking through. Ibrahim had timed his run to perfection.
We crossed the strangely rippled snowdrift, to climb up rocks to the next level, then more snowdrifts and more rock. The pattern for our climb was quickly becoming apparent. As we pushed on through this monochrome landscape of snow and rock, cloud drifted by, hanging over the valleys or wrapping itself around the ranges on the far side.
For the moment though the route ahead was clear and, with one more trudge up a snowdrift, we reached the magnificent site of Deniz Gölü, a large glacial lake surrounded by sharp peaks and jagged ridges. Even though summer had well and truly started, the lake was almost completely frozen over. It was a good spot to sit and absorb the grandeur of these mountains for a while before heading on.
Meditational moment over, we rock-hopped across the mouth of the stream flowing out of lake to climb a large knob of jumbled lichen-spattered boulders. From the heights above the lake we could see the dark rocky summit of Kaçkar for the first time – my, it looked high! Then it was back into the snow, still crisp in the early morning cold. It crunched beneath our feet as we sought out rock islands in this white sea, before traversing upwards across a steep snowdrift.
The end of the climb brought us to a saddle with a long cornice between two rock pillars. We looked over its edge to see a very steep drop-off and the route heading off from its base – the question was how to get to it. After a quick reconnoitre, Ibrahim found the route down a rocky spur at the side of the cornice and when the spur ran out, it was directly down the snowy face.
We had lost almost 100 preciously gained metres. Ahead lay what looked like a morain of basalt boulders, which helped us regain some of them before we once again headed across a bowl of snow that swept down from the rock faces and funnelled into the gullies below. Looking at these huge snow-filled bowls, we could see why all the streams pouring off the mountains were so swollen with meltwater. Glancing behind at one particularly steep, north facing slope, we could see a patch of bluish ice – one of the glaciers revealed. Another steady climb traversing a snow bowl brought us to a small cliff face, where we needed to do some rock-scrambling across the face of a trickling waterfall.
We were now only 400m below he summit and, looking up, we could see the general route to it – 200m up a steep snow slope (and a lot further down if you slipped) followed by another 200m of scrambling over the sharp-edged boulder jumble that led you to the top. Luckily we had Ibrahim to plot our way carefully upwards across snow and over boulder. Below us we could see the tiny forms of the two Americans who had left later and were following our path – they were in luck today, because in these snowy conditions it would be very difficult to find the way without a guide.
The fair Nello was the first to spot the Turkish flag marking the summit when we were some 40m below it. However, before making the final ascent, we stopped to put on windproof gear, gloves and beanies as the icy wind was now whipping over the exposed slopes. A few more steps and, after 4.5 hours and 1100m of climbing, we were there, at 3937m on top of Mt Kaçkar and the whole Kaçkar Mountains. We signed the register, took the obligatory summit photos and took in the views.
They say that on a clear day you can see Mt Ararat, but today wasn’t that day. Cloud was swirling about, occasionally obscuring neighbouring peaks, but with gaps opening up to show these wild mountains in their full splendour. We could look down into the valleys of the north side and east and west along razor-sharp ridges and over snowy bowls, glacial lakes and towering rock pillars – the reward was well worth the effort we had expended to get here.
We were soon joined by the two Americans, but with the icy wind finding its way through our clothing, it was time to head back down. The route down was in some ways just as demanding – not energy sapping, but more adrenalin, as we picked our way back down the boulder screes and down the steep snow bowls, now much softer as the sun worked its magic. The fair Nello did a perfect 30m slide when she slipped off a snow traverse while I buried one leg up to the thigh in a section of very soft snow.
Apart from that and wet feet from bootfulls of snow, the descent was uneventful. A leisurely lunch on the edge of frozen Deniz Gölü, a long zig-zagging descent from plateau to campground and we were back. Makşur had a pot of hot cay waiting, which in the absence of Efes was a good way to celebrate the climb.
The days weather went from curious to curiouser – from the cloudy start, we ended up with very special views from the mountain top. We were lucky, because an hour later, the cloud had engulfed the summit. On reaching the campground the sun was shining brightly again on summit and camp, yet an hour later, while taking an afternoon siesta we were woken by the sound of thunder and then hail falling on the tent fly – how warm we felt inside.
Makşur’s giant-sized dinners continued, so tonight we shared it with a Hungarian couple who had arrived at the campsite drenched by the storm. It was good to enjoy the camaraderie of trekkers, but the storm had caused the temperature to drop and the cold wind seeped through, so it was early into the tent, hoping that tonight we might sleep the sleep of the physically exhausted, despite the thickness (or lack thereof) of the mat beneath us.
Despite the weather antics of the previous evening, the sun shone brightly again next morning. After packing up our campsite, we were off back down the track to Yaylalar, with Makşur and his loaded up mule in hot pursuit. We headed quickly down the long green-walled glacial valley, as cloud formed and dissipated on the peaks around.
Makşur and the mule soon caught us, just in time to watch us get our boots full of water crossing a side stream, and soon raced ahead. A mule on the way home is hard to beat. However, it had its advantages, as Makşur stopped off at the çay shop in Olgunlar and a fresh brew was waiting for us when we arrived.
From Olgunlar on, we were back in civilisation, people about the daily business that keeps the traditional life of a Turkish mountain village ticking over - a slower and more peaceful life that we of the modern technology driven world have forgotten.
The last few kilometres were just a steady walk down the road to Yaylalar, breathing in the scent of freshly scythed hay-fields and the wildflowers lining the road verge. We strolled through clouds of butterflies - blues, whites, oranges and yellows - fluttering in the warm morning sun. If anywhere should be called Butterfly Valley in Turkey, it is here, not on the Mediterranean coast.
All too soon, the road dipped sharply and we were back in Yaylalar - time to have a hot shower before lunch, and a quiet afternoon washing and mending torn trousers etc. Tonight we would have a nice comfortable mattress and a chance for a good sleep, dreaming of our climb up Mt Kaçkar. Tomorrow, it would be time to leave the southern side of these mountains and cross the range to the north – another early morning rise, I fear. | 2019-04-21T01:05:31Z | http://gang-gang.net/nomad/turkey/turkey08.html |
Republican incumbent Peter Roskam failed to respond to repeated requests to appear with the Chicago Sun-Times editorial board.
Roskam: Reining in out of control spending, strengthening the economy, and working to reduce the exploding cost of college/enhance the availability of career and technical education so every American has the opportunity to succeed and thrive.
Roskam: The opioid crisis in Illinois is critical, and there is bipartisan consensus on a path forward to combat this epidemic. We have come together, along with law enforcement and health care professionals, to introduce a series of bipartisan solutions to curb opioid abuse. We secured $16 million in federal funds for Illinois for opioid crisis prevention and placed a special focus on opioid legislation pertaining to senior citizens. I am currently sponsoring and advocating for several initiatives in the House to improve Medicare to protect seniors in cases of substance abuse and educate them about opioid dangers and prevention.
In 2014, the nuclear waste contamination in West Chicago had a huge impact on the local community. I worked to secure House passage of $20 million in federal funding for the environmental cleanup of the Kerr-McGee plant in West Chicago along with similar sites nationwide that participated in atomic energy programs dating back to WWII. The bill, HR 4923 (the FY15 Energy & Water Appropriations Act), passed 253-170 on July 10, 2014. The bill also included language directing the Department of Energy to provide sufficient resources in future budgets to eliminate the backlog and return to a more normal schedule to ensure backlog doesn’t happen again.
Obamacare has been a disaster for residents of the Sixth District, causing premiums to skyrocket and doing exactly what President Obama promised it wouldn’t – people lost their plans they liked and access to their doctors. Today, my constituents in McHenry County are left with only one choice of insurer – this is unacceptable. I voted for legislation that would fix this for the residents for the residents of the Sixth District and put people back in control of their own healthcare by allowing them to choose if they want to purchase coverage and what type/level of coverage is right for them and their families.
Chicago Kent College of Law, J.D.
Roskam: I have a proven track record of working with both Republicans and Democrats to achieve real solutions. I know that collaboration, negotiation and compromise are the keys to getting anything positive accomplished in Washington. Based on my record, the Lugar Center at Georgetown University ranked me the most bipartisan member of the Illinois Congressional delegation, and one of the top 25 most bipartisan members in all of Congress.
For example, during a hearing I led on IRS abuses, my predecessor as Chairman under the Democratic majority, Congressman John Lewis (D-GA) said, “I’ve been on this committee for some time, and I have never, ever seen in a very long time this degree, this spirit, of togetherness.” As a result of our work together on the committee, every Democrat joined me in voting to hold the IRS accountable for its abuse of the country’s civil asset forfeiture laws.
Just recently, I introduced a bipartisan bill with my Democratic colleague Congressman Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) aimed at reducing fraud and waste in the Medicare program. That effort is already receiving support from Republicans and Democrats alike and passed through the Ways and Means Committee overwhelmingly.
We need more people in Congress that are willing to work with those they disagree with to find solutions for the good of the country. What we don’t need is more hateful, divisive rhetoric from our elected officials, which is what my opponent’s track record has been.
Roskam: Yes—as U.S. intelligence agencies and the House and Senate Intelligence Committees concluded, the Russian Government clearly ran a significant operation to interfere in our 2016 elections. And yes, I believe many of Russia’s efforts were designed to support the Trump campaign.
As a Member of Congress, I also have a very important responsibility to recognize that the Russian information warfare didn’t stop there.
Consider that a USA Today analysis of ads run by the Russian firm charged with orchestrating the election meddling found that the majority of their online ads didn’t refer to candidates or campaigns, but instead aimed to sow discord among Americans on a wide range of specific issues, from race and religion to law enforcement and immigration policy. That is, the Russians were attempting to defeat our democracy itself, an alarming threat far beyond any one candidate or election.
In Congress, I have worked to recognize and respond to the danger Russia poses on many levels. For example, I recently joined Democrats and Republicans in passing H.R. 3364, the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act, an effort the White House set out to oppose. Working with a bipartisan group of lawmakers, we successfully passed this law to impose a stiff financial price on Russia for its recent provocations including threatening the integrity of U.S. elections; its atrocious human rights abuses; support of murderous regimes like that of Syria’s Bashar al-Assad; the unlawful annexation of Crimea and aggression towards our ally Ukraine; unchecked cyber crimes; and other threats to America’s safety and security.
Do you support the investigation being conducted by special counsel Robert Mueller? Please explain.
Roskam: Yes, there are serious allegations that warrant a thorough and impartial review.
Roskam: My ultimate responsibility is to the American people to uphold the oath I took to support and defend the Constitution. On any matter affecting the integrity of our government, I will evaluate the facts with the serious gravity the situation merits.
Roskam: As I stated before, my ultimate responsibility is to the American people to uphold the oath I took to support and defend the Constitution. On any matter affecting the integrity of our government, I will evaluate the facts with the serious gravity the situation merits.
Roskam: My job as a Representative is to represent the values and principles of my district to Washington, not represent Washington to my district.
I worked with my colleagues to modernize and update the our previous tax code, providing real tax relief to the residents of the Sixth District and making our country a competitive place to do business in once again. I was happy to have the President sign our bill, enacting it into law.
Congress has been working with the White House to enact bipartisan, common-sense regulatory relief. Eliminating red tape and burdensome regulations so that our communities and businesses can succeed and thrive is something I’m glad to work on with the White House.
Earlier this year, the President made a bold decision to officially relocate the U.S. Embassy to Jerusalem, the Capital of Israel. I have long urged this action, and it was strongly supported by many in our district. This was an important step in U.S.-Israel relations which signaled the deep respect and loyalty between our two nations.
I voted no on President Trump’s rescissions legislation that would have cut funding for the Children’s Health Insurance Program.
I spoke out against the Trump Administration’s policy separating children from their parents at the border and voted for an immigration bill to fix this problem.
I demanded that the Trump Administration back down on threats to cut funding for the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative so important to our state’s environment and economy. I also worked to get bipartisan legislation enacted to restore those important funds.
The Trump administration has taken action to roll back Obama-era policies aimed at curbing climate change and limiting environmental pollution. The administration has done so in the name of supporting business growth and making the United States more energy self-sufficient. Most notably, the administration has begun to dismantle Obama’s federal rules over American coal plants, weakened automobile fuel-economy standards and ended American participation in the Paris climate agreement. What is your take on all this?
Roskam: Being a good steward of our environment for future generations is a responsibility we all share. I have opposed the Trump Administration’s policies that would harm the environmental interests of our state and district.
For example, I opposed President Trump’s decision to withdraw the United States from the ‘Paris Agreement’ on reducing carbon emissions. The decision to withdraw from the agreement is foolish as the United States has the most influence with other nations when able to advocate our views from within the group.
I do believe the marketplace is a helpful disciplinarian as employers try to do things more efficiently and with less waste and as they appeal to the public’s sensibility about environmental stewardship. From a policy perspective, one way to reduce carbon emissions is to reduce the regulatory burdens on renewable energy sources and zero-emission energy sources like nuclear power plants.
Regarding more immediate environmental stewardship impacting our district, I spoke in opposition to President Trump’s FY18 budget proposal that eliminated the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative. The Great Lakes are a tremendous asset to our nation and Lake Michigan in particular is so important as it provides drinking water for much of our district. That is why I worked with a coalition of over 60 of my colleagues to advocate before the House Appropriations Committee to restore the full funding for the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative. It is an ongoing process, but we successfully restored the funding through House passed legislation.
Roskam: We know the climate is changing and we know that there are all kinds of influences. It’s safe to conclude that humans have an impact. The question we all are trying to answer is what do we do about it. Many of us have differing views and ideas on how to do this but it’s important that we continue to have these conversations and work together to come up with solutions that will allow us to care for our environment in a way that is economically responsible. That’s why I’m a member of the Climate Solutions Caucus in Congress, a Republican and Democratic group working together to identify solutions.
I cosponsored and helped enact into law the FIX NICS Act which strengthens the background check system by conditioning federal grants to states on their effective upkeep of the NICS background check system. Too often we have seen negative information on individuals in the hands of some authority somewhere, but never added to the database and thus never preventing the purchase of a gun as intended. It is past time we close that dangerous information gap and ensure the background check system in place functions as designed.
I cosponsored the Public Safety and Second Amendment Rights Protection Act to expand the mandatory background check system to cover all commercial firearm sales, including those at gun shows, over the internet or through classified ads. The bill also allows physicians to enter mental health records into NICS without violating HIPPA.
I urged the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) to reevaluate of the legality of bump stocks, which I do not believe should be allowed.
I cosponsored the Secure our Schools Act to improve student safety by establishing a grant program to help schools acquire alert buttons to rapidly contact law enforcement and improve incident response.
I cosponsored and helped enact into law the STOP School Violence Act to help our schools implement proven, evidence-based programs and technologies that stop violence before it happens and provides $50 million per year to create reporting systems for threats of school violence including phone apps, hotlines and websites.
I opposed the NRA when I voted against the Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act which would allow out of state individuals with no license, no permit and no training to carry a concealed weapon in Illinois.
And I cosponsored the Gun Violence Restraining Order Act which would establish a grant program to incentivize and encourage states to enact laws that enable family members, law enforcement and others to petition a court for a gun violence prevention order to temporarily stop someone from purchasing a firearm if they pose a threat to themselves or others.
Roskam: The press is vital to informing the public about current events. Throughout history, a free press has shined a light on abuses in government, highlighted important trends in business and helped strengthen our communities. We must also recognize that the media has a great responsibility as a trusted source of information to report in a factual, unbiased manner. That means not just continuing to push back on inaccurate statements by others, but also accepting responsibility for the many recent inaccuracies by certain journalists as well. Those mistakes or erroneous claims are every bit as harmful when coming from the media as they are when coming from other leaders.
We’re amidst an important national conversation that ought to hold both the press and public leaders to a high standard.
Roskam: Respectfully, I disagree with the board’s assessment on the tax law. I was proud to help craft this vital legislation and shepherd it into law. The benefits of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act are empirically aimed at the middle class. The bill that I pushed forward doubled the standard deduction; doubled the child tax credit and more than doubled the qualifying income limit; created an entirely new system to direct investment into low income census tracts (opportunity zones); made the first ever deduction for pass-through entities that are mostly sole-proprietor and family businesses; created a tax credit for employers to offset the cost of offering extended family and medical leave; and shifted a larger percentage of the total tax burden to millionaires. That’s on the individual side of the tax code, and it benefits ordinary American families – these successes cannot be dismissed out of hand in the interest of criticizing the corporate side of the bill.
Lowering the corporate tax rate is an idea that has been supported by economists of all stripes and was even proposed by the Obama Administration. For years other developed countries had been lowering their corporate tax rate while the United States stood idle and became increasingly uncompetitive. The results were as painful as they were foreseeable: Burger King didn’t relocate to Canada because of their love for hockey, they did it because it was not economically feasible to pay our high corporate tax rate. And when Burger King left, so did many of their jobs and associated tax revenue. What our legislation did on the corporate side was lower the overall rate and put penalties in place to stop companies that have been gaming our tax systems through complex inversions. Good actors and businesses that were paying the 35% are able to expand production in the United States and hire more employees with the benefit of lower tax rates. Companies that decided to invert to Ireland or move production facilities to third world countries to cut costs don’t enjoy that benefit. The Base Erosion and Anti-Abuse Tax (BEAT) puts a 10% tax on companies that artificially move profits overseas and the Global Intangible Low-Taxed Income (GILTI) provision requires that U.S. companies operating overseas must pay at least a 13.125% tax rate abroad or the United States will impose that tax here. What does all that mean? That the business side of the tax cuts legislation is focused on growth of American businesses, rising wages, expanded opportunity and new hiring. The business side of the tax cuts legislation is designed to benefit the middle- and lower-class. This is a key reason we are seeing the lowest unemployment rate since 1969 and increased workforce participation. It’s also why we are seeing record small business optimism, 401(k) values increase, an increase in the GDP and record low unemployment.
Opponents of the tax bill like to claim that the effects are minimal. They’ve call the benefits “crumbs.” They like to used skewed figures to find a way to call the tax cuts legislation unfair. But by the numbers, the tax reform law was a major win for the middle class, it was a major win in the Sixth Congressional District and it has helped revitalize the American economy.
Roskam: Congress has laid the foundation through the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act and we’ve seen our economy begin to grow at a more healthy rate and we’re on track to see much more growth. In May, we saw the lowest unemployment rate in nearly 20 years and in June, we saw 600,000 more people enter the workforce. Many of these people had given up on finding a job but have seen the shift in the economy and it’s given them renewed hope.
On the heels of the passage of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, hundreds of employers – big and small – across the country began giving $1,000 bonuses to their employees and increasing the employer match into their employees 401(k)’s. Additionally, wages at a significant number of businesses was raised to $15/hour. Under new tax withholding tables, 90 percent of workers can see an increase in their take-home pay. Finally, as we approach our first Tax Day under the new code, thousands of families in the Sixth District will experience simpler filing and larger returns.
The Joint Economic Committee (JEC) found that the percentage of taxes paid by millionaires increases from tax reform and the percentage paid by many middle- and low-income taxpayers decreases. Our tax cuts were aimed at the middle-class, and the numbers bear that out.
The economy is growing and companies are hiring more people and as demand for more and better employees increases, so do wages. We’re seeing that happening right now.
Would it be appropriate at this time for President Trump to invite Russian President Vladimir Putin to visit the White House? Why so, or why not?
Roskam: Following the Helsinki press conference, I stood up to President Trump and denounced Russia’s interference in our elections and the President’s failure to confront Vladimir Putin when given the opportunity. I went and spoke one on one with President Trump urged him to be tough on Russian aggressions and hold Vladimir Putin accountable for his bad acts.
Russian provocations are a great and growing threat to peace and stability throughout the world, and we should not be deceived by a wiley operator like Vladimir Putin. Much work must be done to improve relations between the U.S. and Russia. If a proposed visit is not in service of that goal, it would not be appropriate.
Roskam: I believe that the summit in North Korea was an important step for the stability and peace of the Korean Peninsula, however I neither overestimate Kim Jong Un’s willingness to cooperate, nor underestimate his ability to inflict harm. Kim Jong Un must prove his commitment to complete verifiable and irreversible denuclearization and begin the process immediately if the U.S. government is to truly move forward with improving relations with North Korea. Until we see tangible evidence, the U.S. must continue to apply maximum pressure on the regime and never forget the horrible conditions the North Korean people are forced to live in under the Kim Jong Un regime.
I’ve already expressed my thoughts on the U.S. relationship with Russia, but I will reiterate that work must be done to improve relations between the U.S. and Russia and any actions we take from a relational standpoint must be in furtherance of that goal.
NATO is the keystone of military cooperation between the United States and European allies and is a critical fixture of the post-war geo-political order. I voted to reaffirm the commitment of the United States to NATO’s principle of collective defense as enumerated in Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty. As Russia seeks to expand its sphere of influence by supporting rogue regimes and malign international actors, it is vital that NATO remain strong, cohesive and well-funded.
Roskam: Every president’s first and most important responsibility is to keep the American people safe. I supported the President’s effort to temporarily pause entry for certain visitors from high-risk countries until we could put in place thorough vetting procedures. Several of the targeted countries lacked the ability to perform basic government services, let alone adequately vet travelers. It is ludicrous to admit foreign visitors into the United States when we don’t know simple facts like who they are, where they are going, and why they are here. This is especially true for visitors from countries roiled by military conflict or with a history of terrorism, or countries that refuse to cooperate and share information on their travelers with U.S. authorities.
It is a false characterization to call this policy a “Muslim ban,” regardless of what some have said. Only three countries now facing U.S. travel restrictions are in the top 25 worldwide in terms of Muslim populations, the highest being notorious terror supporter Iran, with the seventh largest Muslim population. Restrictions on Iranian travel have nothing to do with religion and everything to do with the threat to the American people of unchecked entry from the world’s foremost government sponsor of terrorism. It’s also important to note that the policy doesn’t limit students, it allows many foreign workers, and gives everyone the opportunity to apply for entry through a waiver process.
The focus is on our national security, and this policy strikes the right balance between safety and travel.
Roskam: I recently voted for an immigration bill that addressed my top three priorities for immigration reform: 1. Securing the border; 2. Protecting Dreamers from deportation; and 3. Ending the policy of family separations. While this bill did not pass, I continue to work with my colleagues to ensure that these three priorities are front and center in efforts to craft a solution to the country’s broken immigration system.
Additionally, when I learned that children were being forcibly separated from their parents at the border, I was appalled. I spoke out against the President’s policy of family separation, and voted to fix the problem.
Do you support or oppose the family-based immigration policy sometimes called “chain migration”? Please explain.
Roskam: I have worked to ensure better treatment for immigrants and to prioritize immigration based on merit—those with military service and educational and work experience would be expedited. The current system of a random lottery for visas would be ended.
In this time of incredible connectedness and constant communication, our language plays a crucial role in how we relate to one another and our ability to live side by side in harmony and cooperation. Whether our differences are racial, ideological, religious or geographical – respect for one another is foundational.
Hateful speech, language that divides, attacking those with different beliefs—those are the types of action that make things worse. According to my opponent’s own words, people who disagree with him are “morons” who “can’t believe in facts.” We need more communication and cooperation, not more insults.
I am privileged to represent a district diverse in its makeup, with a rich tapestry of backgrounds and cultures. Throughout my time in Congress, I have been blessed to develop meaningful friendships with members of our local Ahmadiyya Muslim community, the Korean community, the Sixth District’s vibrant Indian community and many others. I have also been blessed to enjoy fellowship and develop productive working relationships with my congressional colleagues of different races and creeds. Working together, regardless of our backgrounds, we have made the country, and our district, more prosperous and secure. Being intentional about reaching out, spending time with one another and working to understand each other’s points of view is an important aspect of American togetherness.
Roskam: I have a proven track record of working across party lines to get things accomplished for our communities–Sean Casten has a proven track record of saying in his own words and showing by his own actions that he won’t work in a bipartisan way for the good of the Sixth District.
For example, I worked with constituents with all types of political views to bring our residents significant tax relief, while Sean Casten has run his campaign on repealing those tax cuts and raising taxes on just about everything. Sean supports raising property taxes, raising income taxes, raising the gas tax, creating a new carbon tax and is even proposing an unlimited new tax increase for Social Security.
I have demonstrated my ability to advance policies that benefit our communities and also to stand up to the Trump Administration when they are pursuing the wrong policies. By contrast, Sean regularly uses divisive, troubling rhetoric to divide, not unite. Simply consider his own words: he compared the President to murderous terrorist leader Osama bin Laden, called all Republican officials “pedophiles” and “morons,” and has repeatedly insulted those who simply disagree with his views. | 2019-04-20T00:55:46Z | https://chicago.suntimes.com/politics/peter-roskam-6th-congressional-district-republican-candidate-2018-general-election/ |
OUR LOCAL OFFER FOR CHILDREN WITH SPECIAL EDUCATIONAL NEEDS AND DISABILITIES.
How does Little Doves Christian Pre-school know if a child needs extra help and what should I do if I think my child may have special educational needs or disabilities?
At Little Doves Christian Pre-school each child has a designated key person. Their role is to develop a trusting, sensitive relationship with the parents/carers and the child to enable a respectful sharing of information. If you have any concerns about your child's development, you can discuss these with your key person or our Special Educational Needs and Disabilities Coordinator (SENDCO).
Ongoing observations are made of every child at Little Doves Christian Pre-School and these are linked to the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) Development Matters 2014 ages and stages of development. This, in some cases, identifies individual needs and if concerns are highlighted, they will be discussed with the SENDCO. If your child's key person has identified a possible individual need, they will discuss this with you and plan, with your support, your child's learning and development.
Our SENDCO will offer support and advice to your child's key person and other staff within the setting. They will also liaise with other professionals and seek advice in identifying individual needs if necessary. With your permission they will ask the Area SENDCO to visit to ensure that we are meeting your child's needs and refer to other specialists if necessary.
Reports from other health care professionals, such as speech and language therapists and health visitors will help to identify your child's individual needs. We welcome parents/carers and professionals to share these reports with the key person/SENDCO in order to plan appropriately to meet these needs.
How will you as a setting support my child?
Before your child starts at Little Doves Christian Pre-School, you and your child will be asked to come in for a build up session. You will be able to stay with your child and talk to your child's key person about any concerns you might have. This is part of our 'settling in' process and has proved to be highly successful. Parents/carers and children can find the transition to pre-school very daunting and it can be reassuring if you can get to know the staff and the setting first. This session also helps the staff build up a picture and gain information about your child.
You will be asked to fill in an 'Initial Child Profile' form about your child which will be placed in their Learning Journal. This information about your child's strengths and needs helps the staff to settle them quickly and plan for their likes and dislikes.
We will listen to any concerns you may have about your child and support you both. Our SENDCO will explain how children's individual needs can be met with SEND support in the Early Years. We focus greatly on the partnership with parents/carers, you and your child will be consulted in any planning and decision making about all aspects of your child's SEND. In Essex this person centred approach is known as 'One Planning'.
Observations, assessments and evaluations all contribute towards SEND support in the Early Years and your child's key person will oversee these aspirations with the help of the SENDCO. Together they will, with your approval, identify needs and plan for SMART outcomes for your child. (S: Specific, M: Measurable, A: Achievable, R: Relevant, T: Time-bound). These will consider both what is important to your child and what is important for their development. Your child's learning style, interests and stage of development will be used to support their SMART outcomes. With your approval, the SENDCO will access additional support from other professionals, including the Area SENDCO who will support our SENDCO to ensure that everything possible is being done for your child. These reports are always available for you to look at and are securely locked away after each session.
The manager of the pre-school will maintain an overview of the progress and achievements of your child and the SENDCO will work with all staff to ensure that we are providing the relevant and appropriate support.
Your child's key person/SENDCO will work in partnership with you, reviewing current aspirations, SMART outcomes and planning new ones together. Any information/ideas that you can give to your child's key person/SENDCO from what you witness at home are of great value to us. We will also give the child a voice in their planning and will ensure that the SEND support is child friendly.
How will Little Doves Christian Pre-School create learning and development opportunities for individual children with SEND?
We will know about your child from the build-up session, the 'Initial Child Profile' and through ongoing observations once they have started. Targets linked to the EYFS Development Matters 2014 will be set each week in their 'Next Steps'. This enables planning for individual needs and learning goals. In addition your child will also have a learning journal; this contains written observations, photographs and samples of your child's work. This supports staff in assessing and planning to help your child progress in their 'Next Steps'. You can ask to see the learning journal at any time.
Your child's key person and the SENDCO will work together to make sure that the environment, routines and activities on offer support your child's needs. They will communicate with the rest of the staff to provide consistency and understanding within the team at Little Doves Christian Pre-School.
The manager will monitor and analyse progress of all children within the setting to address any areas of weakness. This information will be used to focus on specific areas and adapt areas that are not meeting a child's needs.
Within Little Doves Christian Pre-school, the children's learning styles and interests are recognised and used to promote achievements and development. All children are involved in the planning and selection of activities.
Your child's key person/SENDCO will ask for copies of assessments from other professionals before your child starts or when you receive them after they start, which will include any helpful tips to their aspirations (such as speech therapy sheets). If your child's key person/SENDCO feels that more advice is necessary they will ask for your permission to contact individuals or the Area SENDCO.
How does Little Doves Christian Pre-School work in partnership with parents/carers?
Assessment systems, such as the 2 Year Progress Check, are in place and together with the stages of development in the EYFS Development Matters 2014 an 'Individual Next Steps Plan' is formulated each term for every child. This informs you how your child is progressing in their 'Next Steps' and includes a section explaining what you can do at home to help your child.
Parent/carer helper sessions are available every day and allow you to stay and witness how your child is developing within the pre-school.
Little Doves Christian Pre-School is a very happy, welcoming setting which has an Open Door policy. You can talk to your child's key person, the manager, the SENDCO or any other member of staff with whom your child has a good relationship, either in the morning before the session starts or at the end of the session. We pride ourselves on our excellent relationships with both our children and our parents/carers and believe that the opportunities we have to communicate freely with them are a great benefit to all the children.
We have termly newsletters that are either given out on paper or are sent by email. A wealth of information is displayed in the pre-school foyer and on the pre-school website. Our interest topics for the term are displayed in the foyer so that you can talk about these things with your child at home. At the end of each session a white board is displayed to give you an insight into what has happened during our day. This allows you to talk to your child about their day in greater detail and enable you to support their learning even further.
If your child is collected by a grandparent or child minder, we can relay information via them, with your permission, through the 'Contact book' you will have been given when your child starts at the pre-school. Your key person will start the 'Contact book' with a photo or comment about your child and you can then complete more information about their achievements at home, exciting moments and important milestones. This gives us a window into your child's life at home and is really important to monitor progress accurately.
We will work with you every step of the way to assist your child; you will be included in the planning of their SEND support and we will work together to ensure that there is a continuum of care.
If you are a parent/carer whose first language is not English, you can nominate a representative who speaks English, or if possible, we can arrange for an external interpreter.
Our staff are friendly and welcoming, providing an inclusive and positive approach. They provide good role models for positive behaviour and are consistent in their approach in the day to day care of all the children. We are flexible in our routines to provide a positive environment for your child's needs and provide personal care such as changing nappies.
Personal Health Care Plans can be adopted if necessary and staff will be trained in giving the appropriate medication for your child if required. Should your child require regular prescribed medication then you will be asked to complete and sign a Medication Permission form. You will be informed of the administration of the medicine and be asked to sign a form in accordance with Little Doves Christian Pre-School's Health and Hygiene Policy.
Most of our staff are trained in First Aid and are able to complete accident forms if necessary. Our staff are vetted and a vigorous recruitment process is in place. The manager is our designated safeguarding person and all other staff are trained to the required safeguarding level.
All our policies and procedures are updated regularly and available for all parents/carers to read in our Policies and Procedures File on the sign-in table in the main hall and copies can be provided upon request. Please ask a member of staff.
Activities can be adapted to ensure that your child is able to interact fully within the environment. Visual strategies, such as visual time tables, are used to help them understand the pre-school's routines. Our quiet corner is welcoming and provides a space to read or rest should your child require a retreat.
The children's views are always taken into account and your child's key person will have a good understanding of their likes and dislikes. Every week all staff help to fill out future planning ideas based on their key children's requests.
What staff training and experience in supporting young children with SEND is available at Little Doves Christian Pre-School?
All staff are experienced in working with the Early Years age and have a good understanding of child development. The majority of our staff have Level 2 or 3 in Children & Young People’s Workforce or an equivalent qualification. One member of staff is a play worker. We have 3 Appointed First Aiders present at each session who are trained in Paediatric First Aid.
Two members staff have completed a course in the Makaton language programme.
All our staff are encouraged to attend extra CPD and relevant courses. If any additional training is required to meet a child's individual needs, then this is organised and cascaded down to all staff.
We will work alongside the specialist services involved with your child and they are welcome to visit Little Doves Christian Pre-School or speak to us on the telephone. Working closely with you and your child will enable us to build strong relationships and understanding and therefore supporting your child's needs better. We can also sign post ways of getting support through the local children's centres, for example, speech and language drop in sessions.
giving direction for further training.
Parental/carer agreement is always obtained before the Area SENDCO becomes involved with any individual child. The Area SENDCO will support the setting in working together with other agencies that may already be involved with the child.
Our SENDCO has attended courses in Behaviour Management, A Focus on SEND, One Planning, the Role of the SENDCO and Autism and has worked closely with children on the autistic spectrum. She has worked with children with speech and language difficulties and has attended speech and language sessions with some of our children and completes their sheets with them at the session. She also has experience with children with Cystic Fibrosis, Fragile X and those with Global Delay.
The pre-school is always looking to extend its knowledge of SEND by staff attending further training courses and cascading information to other staff within the setting.
We have experience of working with children with English as an additional language and who seek bilingual support (see our ENCO policy). Visual supports are given, such as communication books, photos and visual time tables.
Little Doves Christian Pre-School has links with St Paul's Bentley Church and although we are a Christian pre-school, holding those values as core in how we run the pre-school, we welcome children from all cultures and religions.
We have a Positive Behaviour Practitioner and can help with advice and strategies to cope with undesirable behaviour.
What specialist services and expertise can you inform me about?
Health Professionals: Paediatricians, Health Visitors, Clinical Psychologists, Physiotherapists, Occupational Therapists, Speech and Language Therapists, Specialist Nursery Nurses.
Education Professionals: Area SENDCO, Specialist Teachers, Specialists Key Persons, Educational Psychologists.
Social Services Professionals: Social Workers, Family Care Workers.
A list explaining the role of each of these professionals is available in our SEND policy.
How will my child be included in activities outside Little Doves Christian Pre-School including trips?
All our trips and visits are planned to include every child in the pre-school setting and all parents/carers are invited to attend trips. We will endeavour to include parents/carers in the planning of the visits off-site, to identify the needs of your child.
A detailed risk assessment will be carried out before the trip by the manager/trip organiser.
We would take any aids or medication needed by your child on the trip.
See Little Doves Christian Pre-School Outings Policy.
How accessible is the pre-school environment?
The main access into the single storey building is flat, suitable for wheelchair use. The pre-school is in the main hall and an adjacent smaller room with easy access and movability between both rooms. There is double door access to an outside play area.
We have one disabled toilet with a dedicated changing facility in the ladies' toilets.
Disabled parking is available at the front of the main entrance to the building with unloading space.
Additional funding may be obtained to help us meet your child's needs.
Signs and posters are displayed around the setting helping children to identify the equipment and play areas.
Multi-sensory activities are always part of our planning and we will always endeavour to seek out the best and most suitable equipment / facilities to support the child with special educational needs.
Risk assessments are carried out daily before the session begins and at the end of the session. All staff are trained to Level 1 in Health and Safety and we have a dedicated Health and Safety Officer.
How will Little Doves Christian Pre-School prepare and support my child to join the setting/transfer to school?
Little Doves Christian Pre-School offers Introductory Sessions that you can attend with your child (as explained in question 2.) Our Settling-in Policy builds firm relationships between the child, parents/carers and staff members. We know that every child and indeed parent/carer is an individual with their own needs and we are therefore very flexible about the length of time that it takes to settle a child. We work very closely with each parent to ensure that their child settles in well.
When transferring to another setting or moving on to school, Little Doves Christian Pre-School will invite the key person/SENDCO of the new setting to visit your child in our setting. This helps them to become familiar with that person in our setting and allows us to discuss your child's strengths and needs. The key person or the SENDCO from Little Doves Christian Pre-School may also visit the other setting to discuss your child.
We have a very good relationship with all the schools within our area and they often provide us with books about their school to show to the children, or with a visit to talk to the parents/carers of the children going to the school.
Your child's Learning Journal and Development Matters are given to you when they leave. It is up to you to decide if you wish to pass this on to the new setting. Most new settings would like to have a look at these, to give them an insight into your child's likes and dislikes and current stage of development.
If the Area SENDCO has been involved with your child they will also aid us on his/her transition. Our SENDCO will produce a special 'Passport' for your child to take with them to school. This is written with the child and includes all their favourite and least favourite things to do. It also includes strategies on how they work best and a list of all the specialists involved with them.
How are Little Doves Christian Pre-School resources allocated and matched to children's special educational needs or disabilities?
If required, additional funding can be sought to support your child within our setting.
A dedicated Little Doves Christian Pre-school budget is available for staff training, which will include up to date training on SEND.
There are lending libraries that can supply us with toys, sensory equipment and topic boxes. We already have some excellent toys and resources for children with SEND. Most of our current resources can be moved to allow better access, for example, toy cars moved from the floor to the table for children in wheelchairs.
How does Little Doves Christian Pre-School decide on appropriate support for young children with SEND?
Little Doves Christian Pre-School SENDCO will identify what support is required through observations linked to the 2 Year Progress Check and the developmental stages of the EYFS Development Matters 2014 and in discussion with you and your child's key person.
A 'SEND support in the Early Years' report will be put in place. This will be done in partnership with you, your child and their key person. A graduated approach is then put in place where the SENDCO and key person will assess your child and develop a plan for your child. A review, usually termly, will then take place with you and the key person where the SENDCO will adapt the plan or leave it in place if good progress is being made.
If 'SEND support in the Early Years' is thought to be ineffective the SENDCO will ask for your permission to involve the Area SENDCO who will come and observe your child. They may decide that your child should stay on 'SEND support in the Early Years' and offer suggestions as to how it could be more affective. Alternatively the Area SENDCO can help us in implementing a 'Personalised Plan' for your child. This will involve assessments from other professionals and their reports will be used to help plan for your child within the setting.
The ongoing partnership with you and other professionals will help us to create a 'Provision Map' which will identify our aspirations for your child and the SMART outcomes that we hope they will achieve. A time frame will be put in place for these aspirations and regular observations will help us ensure that the best possible progress is being made by your child.
Regular staff meetings will ensure that all staff are aware of your child's strengths and needs, and how to support them. If your child requires further help an Education, Health and Care (EHC) Needs Assessment can be requested. This is where your child is referred to the Local Education Authority (LEA) for assessment. Reports and evidence from all the agencies involved with your child will be looked at and the LEA may or may not issue an EHC Plan.
How do we involve all parents/carers in our setting?
We value the parents/carers within our setting and have excellent relationships with them. We are aware of the fact that no one knows your child better than you do, if we want to get to know them well, we need your help. We have an open door policy and parents/carers are always welcome to talk to any member of staff before and after the session. We can also arrange for a place to talk in private if you need to discuss sensitive matters.
We have a lending library in the lobby from which you are welcome to select books to help with a range of topics from tantrums, bed wetting, starting school and fussy eaters.
Parents/carers are always involved in identifying needs, information sharing, identifying targets and 'Next Steps' to focus on at home. You will be involved in reviewing the progress towards the targets. Within your child’s Contact Book, your child’s key person/SENDCO will give you ‘How can you help me with my learning’ sheets to give you ideas of how you can help your child at home.
All parents/carers are encouraged to help out in a session, so that they can gain a true understanding of life at our pre-school.
Parents/carers can become involved in fund raising for the pre-school and we try to hold coffee mornings to help new parents/carers mix when their child first starts.
We provide newsletters to keep parents/carers updated with life at Little Doves and children and parents/carers are invited to come to other events held by St Paul's Bentley Church.
Please visit the website www.littledovescp.org.uk or contact the manager, Pam Biddulph via email: [email protected] or call 07756 029105 Tuesday to Friday, during term time, regarding any further inquiries. | 2019-04-23T10:13:48Z | http://littledovescp.org.uk/about/SEND |
Area: 7.7 million sq. km. (3 million sq. mi.); about the size of the 48 contiguous United States.
Cities (2010): Capital: Canberra (pop. 358,000). Other cities — Sydney (4.6 million), Melbourne (4.1 million), Brisbane (2 million), Perth (1.7 million), Adelaide (1.2 million), Darwin (125,000), Hobart (215,000).
Climate: Relatively dry and subject to drought, ranging from temperate in the south to tropical in the far north.
Nationality: Noun and adjective — Australian(s).
Population (January 2012 est.): 22.8 million.
Annual population growth rate: 1.8%.
Religions (2006 census): Catholic 26%, Anglican 19%, other Christian 19%, other non-Christian 1%, Buddhist 2.1%, Islam 1.7%, no religion 19%, and not stated 12%.
Education: Years compulsory: to age 16 in all states and territories except New South Wales and the Northern Territory where it is 15, and Western Australia where it is 17. Literacy — over 99%.
Health: Infant mortality rate: 4.7/1,000. Life expectancy — males 79.3 years, females 83.9 years.
Work force (11.4 million): Agriculture, fishing and forestry — 3%; mining — 1.8%; manufacturing — 8.75%; retail trade — 10.9%; public administration, defense, and safety — 6.2%; construction — 9%.
Type: Constitutional monarchy: democratic, federal-state system.
Constitution: Passed by the British Parliament on July 9, 1900.
Independence (federation): January 1, 1901.
Branches: Executive: Queen Elizabeth II (head of state, represented by a governor general); the monarch appoints the governor general on the advice of the prime minister. Legislative — bicameral Parliament (76-member Senate, 150-member House of Representatives). The governor general appoints the prime minister (generally the leader of the party which holds the majority in the House of Representatives) and appoints ministers on the advice of the prime minister. Judicial — independent judiciary.
Administrative subdivisions: Six states and two territories.
Political parties (as of July 1, 2011): Labor, Liberal, Greens, the Nationals, and Democratic Labor Party.
Suffrage: Universal and compulsory 18 and over.
Central government budget (revenue): A$321.4 billion, or U.S. $331 billion (FY 2010-2011); A$336.4 billion, or U.S. $346.5 billion (FY 2011-2012 est.).
Defense (FY 2011-2012 est.): A$29.1 billion, or U.S. $30 billion (approx. 2.2% of GDP).
GDP (2011 estimate): A$1.3 trillion (U.S. $1.3 trillion).
Inflation rate forecast for 2011-2012 (from November 2011 budget update): 2.25%.
Reserve Bank official interest rate (January 2012): 4.25%.
Trade: Exports ($297.5 billion, 2010-2011) — coal, iron ore, education services, gold, travel services, oil and gas, wheat. Major markets — China (A$70.5 billion, or U.S. $73 billion), Japan (A$48.9 billion, or U.S. $51 billion), Korea (A$24.3 billion, or U.S. $25 billion), India (A$18.43 billion, or U.S. $19 billion), U.S. ($14.3 billion), and U.K. (A$10.6 billion, or U.S. $11 billion). Imports ($276.6 billion, 2010-2011 estimate) — travel services, petroleum, passenger motor vehicles, refined petroleum, freight transport services, medicaments ($8.2 billion), telecom equipment ($8.9 billion). Major suppliers — China (A$42.7 billion, or U.S. $44 billion), U.S. ($36.3 billion), Japan ($18.8 billion), Thailand ($11.1 billion), and Singapore ($15.1 billion).
Exchange rate (January 2012): U.S. $1.037 = A$1.
Australia's indigenous inhabitants, a hunting-gathering people collectively referred to today as Aboriginals and Torres Straits Islanders, arrived more than 40,000 years ago. Although their technical culture remained static — depending on wood, bone, and stone tools and weapons — their spiritual and social life was highly complex. Most spoke several languages, and confederacies sometimes linked widely scattered tribal groups. Indigenous population density ranged from one person per square mile along the coasts to one person per 35 square miles in the arid interior. When Captain James Cook claimed Australia for Great Britain in 1770, the native population may have numbered 300,000 in as many as 500 tribes speaking many different languages. In 2006 the indigenous population was approximately 517,200, representing about 2.5% of the population. Since the end of World War II, the government and the public have made efforts to be more responsive to aboriginal rights and needs, such as Prime Minister Kevin Rudd's February 2008 apology to the indigenous people that included a pledge "to close the gap that lies between us in life expectancy, educational achievement and economic opportunity."
Immigration has been vital to Australia's development since the beginning of European settlement in 1788. For generations, most settlers came from the British Isles, and the people of Australia are still predominantly of British or Irish origin. Non-British/Irish immigration has increased significantly since World War II through an extensive, planned immigration program. Since 1945, over 7 million migrants have settled in Australia, including 700,000 refugee and humanitarian entrants. About 80% have remained; 24% — almost one in four — of Australians are foreign-born. Britain, Ireland, Italy, Greece, New Zealand, and the former Yugoslavia were the largest sources of post-war immigration. In 2010-2011, China was the largest source country for permanent migrants to Australia, with New Zealand, India, Britain, and the Philippines making up the rest of the top five. Australia's humanitarian and refugee program of about 13,000 per year is in addition to other immigration programs. In recent years, refugees from Africa, the Middle East, and Southwest Asia have comprised the largest element in Australia's refugee program.
Although Australia has fewer than three people per square kilometer, it is one of the world's most urbanized countries. Less than 2.5% of the population lives in remote or very remote areas.
Much of Australia's culture is derived from European roots, but distinctive Australian features have evolved from the environment, aboriginal culture, and the influence of Australia's neighbors. The vigor and originality of the arts in Australia — film, opera, music, painting, theater, dance, and crafts — have achieved international recognition.
Australian actors and comedians including Nicole Kidman, Cate Blanchett, Russell Crowe, Geoffrey Rush, Hugh Jackman, Sam Worthington, Chris Hemsworth, the late Heath Ledger, and Dame Edna Everage (Barry Humphries) have achieved great popularity in the United States. Directors including Baz Luhrmann, Peter Weir, Philip Noyes, and Russell Mulcahy; the conductor Sir Charles Mackerras; and singers and musicians including Olivia Newton-John, The Wiggles, AC/DC, Dame Joan Sutherland, Dame Nellie Melba, and Kylie Minogue are well known.
Australian artists with international reputations include Sidney Nolan, Russell Drysdale, Pro Hart, and Arthur Boyd. Writers who have achieved world recognition include Thomas Keneally, Colleen McCullough, Nevil Shute, Morris West, Jill Ker Conway, Peter Carey, Robert Hughes, Germaine Greer, and Nobel Prize winner Patrick White.
In sports, Australian athletes are internationally renowned, particularly in swimming, diving, cricket, netball, tennis, rugby, rugby league, and golf. Australia's share of Olympic medals and world titles is larger than its share of the world's population. In 2005 Andrew Bogut began playing for the Milwaukee Bucks after becoming the first Australian to be drafted number one overall in the U.S. National Basketball Association draft. Cadel Evans became the first Australian to win the Tour de France cycling race in July 2011. Australian football, or "footy," is a very popular contact sport for players and spectators.
On January 26, 1788 (now celebrated as Australia Day), the First Fleet under Captain Arthur Phillip landed at Sydney, and formal proclamation of the establishment of the Colony of New South Wales followed on February 7. Many of the first settlers were convicts, some condemned for offenses that today would often be thought trivial. From the mid-19th century convict transportation to Australia significantly declined; the last ship to arrive was in 1868. The discovery of gold in 1851 led to increased population, wealth, and trade.
The six colonies that now constitute the states of the Australian Commonwealth were established in the following order: New South Wales, 1788; Tasmania, 1825; Western Australia, 1829; South Australia, 1836; Victoria, 1851; and Queensland, 1859. Settlement preceded these dates in most cases. Discussions between Australian and British representatives led to adoption by the British Government of an act to constitute the Commonwealth of Australia in 1900, effective January 1, 1901. In 1911, control of the Northern Territory was transferred from South Australia to the Commonwealth. Also that year, the Australian Capital Territory (where the national capital, Canberra, is located), was established. The Northern Territory and Australian Capital Territory were granted self-government in 1978 and 1988, respectively.
The first federal Parliament was opened at Melbourne in May 1901 by the Duke of York (later King George V). In May 1927, the seat of government was transferred to Canberra, a city designed by American Walter Burley Griffin. The first session of Parliament in Canberra was opened by another Duke of York (later King George VI). Australia passed the Statute of Westminster Adoption Act on October 9, 1942 (with effect as of September 3, 1939), which officially established Australia's complete autonomy in both internal and external affairs and formalized a situation that had existed for years. The Australia Act (effective March 3, 1986) eliminated almost all remaining vestiges of British legal authority, including the ability to appeal to the British Privy Council. "Advance Australia Fair" was adopted as the national anthem in 1984.
The Commonwealth government is a constitutional monarchy with a Constitution patterned partly on the U.S. Constitution, although it does not include a "bill of rights." Powers of the Commonwealth are specifically defined in the Constitution, and the residual powers remain with the states. Proposed changes to the Constitution must be approved by the Parliament and the people, via referendum.
Australia is an independent nation within the Commonwealth. Queen Elizabeth II is the head of state and since 1973 has been officially styled "Queen of Australia." The Queen is represented federally by a governor general and in each state by a governor. By convention, the governor general generally acts on the advice of the prime minister and other ministers. However the governor general has "reserve powers," including the power to dismiss ministers, last exercised in 1975.
The federal Parliament is bicameral, consisting of a 76-member Senate and a 150-member House of Representatives. Twelve senators from each state are elected for 6-year terms, with half elected every 3 years. Each territory has two senators who are elected for 3-year terms, concurrent with that of the House. Seats in the House of Representatives are allocated among the states and territories roughly in proportion to population. The two chambers have equal powers, except all proposals for appropriating revenue or imposing taxes must be introduced in the House of Representatives. Under the prevailing Westminster parliamentary system, the leader of the political party or coalition of parties that wins a majority of the seats in the House of Representatives becomes prime minister. The prime minister and the cabinet wield actual power and are responsible to the Parliament, of which they must be elected members. General elections are held at least once every 3 years.
Each state is headed by a premier, who is the leader of the party with a majority or a working minority in the lower house of the state legislature. (Queensland is an exception, with a unicameral parliament.) Australia's two self-governing territories have political systems similar to those of the states, but with unicameral assemblies. Each territory is headed by a chief minister who is the leader of the party with a majority or a working minority in the territory's legislature. More than 670 local councils assist in the delivery of services such as road maintenance, sewage treatment, and the provision of recreational facilities.
At the apex of the court system is the High Court of Australia. It has general appellate jurisdiction over all other federal and state courts and possesses the power of constitutional review.
Australia maintains an embassy (http://www.usa.embassy.gov.au/) in the United States at 1601 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036 (tel. 202-797-3000), and consulates general in New York (212-351-6500), San Francisco (415-536-1970), Honolulu (808-524-5050), Los Angeles (310-229-4800), Chicago (312-419-1480), and Atlanta (404-760-3400).
Three political parties dominate the center of the Australian political spectrum. The Liberal Party (LP), nominally representing urban business interests, and its smaller coalition partner, the Nationals, nominally representing rural interests, are the center-right parties. The center-left Australian Labor Party, founded by labor unions, nominally represents workers and left-of-center groups. While traditionally moderately socialist in its policies, today it is best described as a social democratic party. There is strong bipartisan sentiment on many international issues, including Australia's commitment to its alliance with the United States.
Julia Gillard assumed the office of Prime Minister in June 2010, succeeding Kevin Rudd following her unopposed election as Labor leader in a caucus ballot. The August 21, 2010, federal election produced a hung parliament, with neither the Labor Party, under the leadership of Gillard, nor the Liberal/National Coalition, led by Opposition Leader Tony Abbott, holding a majority of seats. Subsequently, the Labor Party secured the support of the Greens Party Member of Parliament (MP) and three independent MPs to gain a majority of 76 seats. The government was sworn in September 14, 2010. Peter Slipper became Speaker of the House in November 2011, subsequently resigning as an Opposition MP to sit as an independent. In January 2012 independent MP Andrew Wilkie withdrew support for the Labor Party. With these changes, the Gillard-led government can typically rely on the support of 75 voting lawmakers and the Opposition 73. The composition of the Senate, effective July 2011, is 34 seats for the Liberal/National Coalition, 31 for the Labor Party, nine for the Greens, one for the Democratic Labor Party, and one independent.
Gillard delivered on her campaign promise and passed landmark carbon price legislation in October 2011, and continued to work toward building a national broadband network. The Australian Government's foreign policy shows strong continuity with that of its predecessors, including support for the U.S. alliance, engagement in the Asia-Pacific, and commitment to the mission in Afghanistan where it has deployed about 1,550 troops.
Australia's economy is dominated by its services sector, yet it is the agricultural and mining sectors that account for the bulk of Australia's exports. Australia's comparative advantage in the export of primary products is a reflection of the natural wealth of the Australian continent and its small domestic market; 23 million people occupy a continent the size of the contiguous United States. The relative size of the manufacturing sector has been declining for several decades, but has now steadied at around 8.5% of GDP. The global recovery is putting upward pressure on prices for Australia's commodity exports, which caused a substantial rise in the terms of trade in 2011.
Since the 1980s, Australia has undertaken significant structural reform of its economy and has transformed itself from an inward-looking, highly protected, and regulated marketplace to an open, internationally competitive, export-oriented economy. Key economic reforms included unilaterally reducing high tariffs and other protective barriers to free trade, floating the Australian dollar, deregulating the financial services sector, including liberalizing access for foreign banks, increasing flexibility in the labor market, reducing duplication and increasing efficiency between the federal and state branches of government, privatizing many government-owned monopolies, and reforming the taxation system, including introducing a broad-based Goods and Services Tax (GST) and large reductions in income tax rates.
Australia enjoys one of the highest standards of living in the G7. Australia's economic standing in the world is a result of a commitment to best-practice macroeconomic policy settings, including the delegation of the conduct of monetary policy to the independent Reserve Bank of Australia, and a broad acceptance of prudent fiscal policy where the government aims for fiscal balance over the economic cycle. Economic recovery is strengthening, with GDP forecast to grow by 3.25% in 2011-2012 and 2012-2013. The success of monetary and fiscal stimulus is projected to return the budget to surplus in 2012. Net debt is forecast to peak at 8.9% of GDP in 2011-2012.
The unemployment rate was 5.3% in November 2011. Labor market participation has remained at around 65%. Both the federal and state governments have recognized the need to invest heavily in water, transport, ports, telecommunications, and education infrastructure to expand Australia's supply capacity. The largest river system in Australia, the Murray-Darling, and related coastal lakes and wetlands in South Australia are threatened, although the long drought has broken, and the government has developed a plan to improve irrigation infrastructure and efficiency and buy back unused water allocations along the river.
A second significant issue is climate change. A report commissioned by Prime Minister John Howard recommended a domestic carbon emissions trading scheme and that Australia take an active role in developing a future global carbon emissions trading system. The Gillard government has passed legislation to price carbon at a rate of A$23 (about U.S. $24) per ton from July 2012, with free carbon credits provided to many companies.
The Australia-U.S. Free Trade Agreement (AUSFTA) entered into force on January 1, 2005. The AUSFTA was the second free trade agreement (FTA) the United States concluded with a developed economy, following the U.S.-Canada FTA in 1988. Australia also has FTAs with New Zealand, ASEAN, Singapore, Thailand, and Chile, and is pursuing other FTAs, including with China, Japan, Malaysia, and South Korea. Australia is also involved in ongoing Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade negotiations.
Australia has been an active participant in international affairs since federation in 1901, and Australian forces have fought beside the United States and other Allies in every significant conflict since World War I. On January 8, 1940, the governments of the United States and Australia announced the establishment of bilateral diplomatic relations. In 1944, Australia concluded an agreement with New Zealand dealing with the security, welfare, and advancement of the people of the independent territories of the Pacific (the ANZAC pact). After World War II, Australia played a role in the Far Eastern Commission in Japan and supported Indonesian independence during that country's revolt against the Dutch. Australia was one of the founding members of the United Nations, the South Pacific Commission, and the Colombo Plan. In addition to contributing to UN forces in Korea — it was the first country to announce it would do so after the United States — Australia sent troops to fight the 1948-1960 communist revolt in Malaya and later to combat the 1963-1965 Indonesian-supported invasion of Sarawak. The United States, Australia, and New Zealand signed the ANZUS Treaty in 1951, which remains Australia's pre-eminent formal security treaty alliance. Australia sent troops to assist South Vietnamese and U.S. forces in Vietnam, and joined coalition forces in the Persian Gulf conflict in 1991, in Afghanistan in 2001, and in Iraq in 2003.
Australia has been active in the Australia-New Zealand-U.K. Agreement and the Five-Power Defence Arrangements — successive arrangements with Britain and New Zealand to ensure the security of Singapore and Malaysia. Australia participates in a Trilateral Security Dialogue with the United States and Japan. One of the drafters of the UN Charter, Australia has given firm support to the United Nations and its specialized agencies. It was a member of the UN Economic and Social Council 1986-1989, and a member of the UN Human Rights Commission 1994-1996 and 2003-2005. Australia is seeking a non-permanent seat on the UN Security Council for 2013-2014; it was last a member 1985-1986. Australia takes a prominent part in many other UN activities, including peacekeeping, nonproliferation and disarmament negotiations, and narcotics control. Australia also is active in the G20, the Commonwealth Heads of Government, the Pacific Islands Forum, the Cairns Group — countries pressing for agricultural trade reform in World Trade Organization (WTO) negotiations — and the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum, of which it is a founding member. In 2002, Australia joined the International Criminal Court.
Australia has devoted particular attention to relations between developed and developing nations, with emphasis on the 10 countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the island states of the South Pacific. Australia is an active participant in the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF), which promotes regional cooperation on security issues, and has been a member of the East Asia Summit (EAS) since its inauguration in 2005. Prime Minister Rudd's government argued that the Asia-Pacific area needs a regional body that addresses both security and economic issues; as Foreign Minister, Rudd has said this concept was reflected in the expanded East Asian Summit. Australia was active in urging the United States and Russia to participate in the EAS, which both countries officially joined in 2011. In September 1999, acting under a UN Security Council mandate, Australia led an international coalition to restore order in East Timor upon Indonesia's withdrawal from that territory. In 2006, Australia participated in an international peacekeeping operation in Timor-Leste (formerly East Timor). Australia led a regional mission to restore law and order in Solomon Islands in 2003 and again in 2006. Australia is part of the Asia-Pacific Partnership on Clean Development and Climate, which also includes the United States.
The government is committed to increasing official development assistance to 0.5% of gross national income by 2015-2016 (est. A$8 billion, about U.S. $8 billion). Australia budgeted $A4.8 billion (U.S. $5.1 billion) for FY 2011-2012 and A$4.35 billion (U.S. $4.7 billion) in FY 2010-2011. The Australian aid program provides development assistance to 75 countries and is concentrated in the Asia-Pacific region (Papua New Guinea and Indonesia are the largest recipients). Selected aid flows are allocated to Africa, Latin America, the Caribbean, and the Middle East. Australia also delivers aid through several multilateral organizations, including the United Nations, the World Bank, and UNICEF. Contributions to global programs and other expenses account for 38% of the foreign assistance budget.
The Australia, New Zealand, United States (ANZUS) security treaty was concluded in San Francisco on September 1, 1951, and entered into force on April 29, 1952. The treaty bound the signatories to recognize that an armed attack in the Pacific area on any of them would endanger the peace and safety of the others. It committed them to consult in the event of a threat and, in the event of attack, to meet the common danger in accordance with their respective constitutional processes. The three nations also pledged to maintain and develop individual and collective capabilities to resist attack.
In 1984, the nature of the ANZUS alliance changed after the Government of New Zealand refused access to its ports by nuclear-weapons-capable and nuclear-powered ships of the U.S. Navy. The United States suspended defense obligations to New Zealand. Ministerial consultations (AUSMIN) involving the U.S. Secretaries of State and Defense and Australian Foreign and Defense Ministers now alternate between Australia and the United States. The U.S.-Australia alliance under the ANZUS Treaty remains in full force and was enlarged to include cyber security at the 2011 AUSMIN meeting in San Francisco. AUSMIN meetings are supplemented by consultations between the U.S. Combatant Commander, Pacific and the Australian Chief of Defence Force. There also are regular civilian and military consultations between the two governments at lower levels.
ANZUS has no integrated defense structure or dedicated forces. However, in fulfillment of ANZUS obligations, Australia and the United States conduct a variety of joint activities. These include military exercises ranging from naval and landing exercises at the task-group level, to battalion-level special forces training, to numerous smaller-scale exercises. There are numerous liaison and exchange officers assigned to each other's armed services. These officers work to standardize, where possible, equipment and operational doctrine. The biennial "Talisman Saber" exercise, conducted with Australia, is the United States' largest military training exercise. In 2011, it featured 14,000 U.S. and 8,500 Australian personnel. The two countries operate joint defense facilities in Australia.
As a result of terrorist attacks on the United States on September 11, 2001, Prime Minister Howard and U.S. President George W. Bush jointly invoked the ANZUS Treaty for the first time on September 14, 2001. Australia was one of the earliest participants in Operation Enduring Freedom and remains an unwavering member of the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan. Australia has an active deployment of approximately 1,550 troops in Afghanistan and also provides significant development and capacity building assistance to the country. The Australian Defence Force participated in coalition military action against Iraq in Operation Iraqi Freedom. Australian combat forces began their withdrawal from Iraq in mid-2008 and forces were fully removed by July 2009. The Australian Army is projected to grow from 30,617 in FY 2011-2012 to 31,076 in FY 2014-2015. This will enable the establishment of two Army battalions.
The U.S. and Australia signed a Defense Trade Cooperation Treaty in Sydney in September 2007. This treaty, when approved by Australia and implemented, will facilitate the trade of defense equipment and technology between the countries.
In May 2009, the Australian Government released its Defence White Paper, outlining Australia's long-term strategic outlook. In addition to buying Joint Strike Fighter aircraft, the White Paper proposed doubling Australia's submarine fleet via development and deployment of a new class of submarine, and replacing the ANZAC-class frigates and the Army's armored personnel carriers. The next Defence White Paper is scheduled to be released in 2014.
President Barack Obama and Prime Minister Gillard announced in November 2011 that from mid-2012, the U.S. will deploy a company-sized rotation of 250 Marines to the Northern Territory, Australia. This number is expected to increase to 2,500 over the next 6 years for 6-month rotations. They also announced plans for greater U.S. air and naval access to Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) facilities.
The Australian Government has stated its intention to maintain its investment in future capability of the Australian Defence Force. To do so, the government has committed to a 3% annual growth in real defense funding through 2018 — and 2.2% annual real growth from 2018 to 2030 — to ensure the Australian Defence Force can continue to meet capability and interoperability goals.
Australia is a significant purchaser of U.S. military equipment, consistently ranked in the top 10 globally based on sales in dollar value. In August 2004, Australia selected the U.S. Navy Aegis Combat System for three new air warfare destroyers, which will start coming into service in 2014. In a joint venture with the U.S. Navy, Australia is upgrading its Submarine Combat System, and its associated support infrastructure, for its six Collins-class submarines.
The F/A-18 fighter is the principal combat aircraft of the Royal Australian Air Force. In October 2002, Australia became a Level III partner in the U.S.-led Joint Strike Fighter program. Additionally, the Australian Government signed the Joint Strike Fighter Production, Sustainment and Follow-on Development memorandum of understanding in 2006. Australia is projected to buy 72, and possibly up to 100, Joint Strike Fighter aircraft with deliveries starting in 2014. Australia's first operational squadron is planned to be ready for operations in 2018. Australia is also a developmental partner for the P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft. In 2011, the Royal Australian Air Force completed acquisition of 24 Boeing F/A-18F Super Hornet fighters as an interim strike capability to bridge the capability gap to Joint Strike Fighter delivery. The Royal Australian Air Force took delivery of its fifth Boeing C-17 strategic airlift aircraft in 2011, with delivery of its sixth scheduled in 2012. In addition, Boeing has provided the RAAF with an Airborne Early Warning and Control system based on the Next-Generation 737-700 aircraft as the airborne platform.
Recent major U.S. sales to Australia include MH-60 "Romeo" helicopters, CH-47F Chinook helicopters, the M1A1 Abrams tank, M-777 howitzers (artillery), tactical unmanned aerial systems, and numerous types of missiles and other munitions. Future opportunities include light cargo aircraft replacement, submarine technologies, and unmanned surveillance capabilities.
The World War II experience, similarities in culture and historical background, and shared democratic values have made U.S. relations with Australia exceptionally strong and close. Ties linking the two nations cover the entire spectrum of international relations — from commercial, cultural, and environmental contacts to political and defense cooperation. Two-way trade was A$50.6 billion (U.S. $50.6 billion) in 2010-2011. Around 473,000 Americans visited Australia in the 12 months to April 2011.
Traditional friendship is reinforced by the wide range of common interests and similar views on most major international questions. For example, both attach high priority to controlling and eventually eliminating chemical weapons, other weapons of mass destruction, and anti-personnel landmines; and both work closely on global environmental issues such as slowing climate change and preserving coral reefs. The Australian Government and the Opposition share the view that Australia's security depends on firm ties with the United States, and the ANZUS Treaty enjoys broad bipartisan support. Presidential visits to Australia (in 1991, 1996, 2003, 2007, and 2011), a Vice Presidential visit in February 2007, and Australian Prime Ministerial visits to the United States (in 1995, 1997, 1999, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009, and 2011) have underscored the strength and closeness of the alliance.
The bilateral Australia-U.S. Free Trade Agreement (AUSFTA) entered into force on January 1, 2005. This comprehensive agreement substantially liberalized an already vibrant trade and investment relationship and was only the second FTA between the U.S. and a developed nation. The AUSFTA created a range of ongoing working groups and committees to explore further trade reform in the bilateral context. Both countries share a commitment to liberalizing global trade. They work together very closely in the World Trade Organization (WTO), and both are active members of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum.
A number of U.S. institutions conduct scientific activities in Australia because of its geographical position, large land mass, advanced technology, and, above all, the ready cooperation of its government and scientists. In 2005, a bilateral science and technology agreement was renewed. Under another agreement dating back to 1960 and since renewed, the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) maintains in Australia one of its largest and most important programs outside the United States, including a number of tracking facilities vital to the U.S. space program. Indicative of the broad-ranging U.S.-Australian cooperation on other global issues, a Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty (MLAT) was concluded in 1997, enhancing already close bilateral cooperation on legal and counter-narcotics issues. In 2001, the U.S. and Australia signed a new tax treaty and a bilateral social security agreement. The U.S. Studies Center was launched in 2006 at the University of Sydney with Commonwealth funding of A$25 million (U.S. $25 million). In April 2010, Australia and the U.S. signed a memorandum of understanding to strengthen emergency management cooperation including during bushfires, major storms, and other severe natural disasters.
The U.S. Embassy Sydney (http://canberra.usembassy.gov/) in Australia is located at Moonah Place, Yarralumla, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory 2600 (tel. 61-2-6214-5600; fax 61-2-6214-5970). Consulates General are in Perth (http://sydney.usconsulate.gov/), (address: MLC Center, Level 59, 19-29 Martin Place, Sydney, NSW 2000; tel. 61-2-9373-9200; fax 61-2-9373-9125); Melbourne (http://melbourne.usconsulate.gov/) address: 553 St. Kilda Road, Melbourne, VIC 3004; tel. 61-3-9526-5900; fax 61-3-9510-4646); and Perth (http://perth.usconsulate.gov/) address: 13th Floor, 16 St. George's Terrace, Perth, WA 6000; tel. 61-8-9202-1224; fax. 61-8-9231-9444. | 2019-04-21T22:08:25Z | http://fact.geoba.se/background-page.php?bc=AU |
1.1 These are the general terms and conditions (Terms) upon which ACS Aviation provides its pilot training courses and other service offerings.
1.3 By submitting a booking form to us for enrolment on a course (as defined below), you acknowledge and agree that these terms will become legally binding on you upon issuance by us of a written confirmation of your acceptance on a course (in whatever format that acceptance is delivered).
1.4 In respect of self fly hire or any other of our service offerings, you acknowledge and agree that these terms will become legally binding on you at the time you make the booking with us either by telephone, email or by using our online booking system.
1.5 In the event of any conflicts or inconsistencies between these terms and any other documents pertaining to your enrolment and participation on a course, hire of an aircraft (as defined below), or any other service offering (as the case may be) including any brochures, advertising material, descriptions on our website, these terms shall prevail.
EASA means the European Aviation Safety Agency.
Student means any person accepted by us in writing on a course.
(d) headings are included for ease of reference only and shall not affect the interpretation or construction of these terms and conditions.
3.1 The provision of clauses 3 and 4 of the Terms shall apply to Students on any and all Courses.
3.3 Students must have read the Operations Manual for the Aircraft in question and the relevant Pilot’s Operating Handbook before the flight and must at all times comply with the requirements of the Operational Manual and Pilot’s Operating Handbook.
3.4 In order to be eligible to enrol on a course you must meet all minimum entry requirements for the relevant course, including those specified by the CAA and EASA. On applying for admission to a course, you warrant and represent to us that you satisfy all the specified course requirements and can provide appropriate evidence of this on request from us.
3.5 If at any time any document you supply to us in connection with your admission onto a Course or otherwise (including passports, visas, medical certificates, existing licences or ratings) is found to be or, in the reasonable opinion of ACS Aviation is thought to be, false or forged, ACS Aviation may (i) immediately suspend or expel you form the relevant Course without any refund in respect of the fees you have paid; and (ii) inform the CAA and any other relevant authority including the police about the forged or false document.
3.6 You warrant that you are entitled to reside within the United Kingdom and undertake the Course, either by virtue of being a national of an EU country or by holding an appropriate visa issued by the UK authorities.
3.7 If you are undertaking a Course by virtue of an appropriate visa, the visa must be produced to ACS Aviation prior to commencement of that Course and on any subsequent renewal of that visa during the period of the Course. Should you fail to be complete the Course for any reason whatsoever, you shall have responsibility for informing the relevant authorities, however, you acknowledge and agree that ACS Aviation may advise the issuer of the visa that you have ceased to be admitted on a Course. You understand and agree that ACS Aviation shall comply with the recommended practices of the UK Border Agency guidelines in relation to Students whose attendance levels are unsatisfactory.
3.8 You acknowledge and agree that we will retain the details of all Students and shall be at liberty to disclose any and all such information to the police, immigration and other relevant authorities including the CAA.
3.9 If for any reason you fail to attend any of your flying slots during the Course you may be required to make up the missed hours before you can complete the Course. You acknowledge and agree that you shall pay any additional costs reasonably incurred by us in connection with any rescheduling of your slots as a result of your absence. All rescheduled flights will be charged at our hourly rates in force at the time of the re-arranged slot.
3.10 You acknowledge and agree that all flight, simulator and/or academic training is offered by ACS Aviation only as part of a Course and we have no obligation to make any flight, simulator and/or training slots available to you on any other basis.
3.11 Where successful completion of a Course requires you to undertake a regulatory body examination, your entry to the examination will be at the discretion of ACS Aviation. Our decision will be based on how we perceive your level of understanding (as demonstrated by your completion of and the results you obtain in our assessments) and ability in accordance with the regulations laid down by the CAA/EASA.
(b) the time necessary to obtain one or more particular ratings, a given number of flight hours or to successfully complete written tests and flight tests.
3.14 You acknowledge that any published completion time for the Course is based on average Student performance and is not in any way to be relied upon by you.
3.15 ACS Aviation reserves the right to substitute Aircraft of equal or higher specification, should this become necessary, in order to complete training requirements.
3.16 ACS Aviation cannot and does not guarantee employment to any Student upon successful completion of a Course. Whilst we may, at our discretion provide you with reasonable assistance to attain your goals where appropriate for us to do so, ACS Aviation will have no liability to you in connection with your employment status at any time following completion of a Course.
4.1 A Course may be completed on either a full-time or part-time basis. Once you have been accepted on a Course we will notify you of you flying account details. Payment of fees and other related costs must be made into your flying account in accordance with these Terms.
4.3 Course fees for Students enrolling on a full-time Course will be as set out in the published details for that Course at the time of enrolment.
(g) if you fail to attend a slot without giving us more than 48 hours notice of your unavailability we may charge you a fee of £25.00.
4.6 The Student acknowledges and understands that their roster and/or schedule may be varied by us on very short notice due to factors outside our control including weather conditions, air traffic control, regulatory requirements and urgent aircraft maintenance. ACS Aviation will have no responsibility or liability to any Student in connection with postponement or cancellation of a flight.
5.1 Fast Track students are required to wear pilot uniform and shall at all times whilst on the ACS Premises maintain a high standard of dress and appearance in keeping with their proposed profession. The pilot uniform is included in the enrolment fee and can also be purchased from ACS Aviation.
5.2 You shall conduct yourself in a professional and polite manner at all times whilst on the Premises, at Perth Airport and residing in any accommodation during training with ACS Aviation. You will be held responsible and liable for any damage to or loss of ACS Aviation’s or any third party’s property caused by you.
5.3 Use of mobile (cell) phones is not permitted in the classroom or simulator area.
5.4 No food or drink may be consumed on the Premises except in the student lounge or outside areas.
5.5 Smoking is not permitted anywhere within the Premises or simulator area.
5.6 No litter should be left in or around the Premises, car parking areas and surrounding areas.
5.7 No bicycles, packages or bags may be left anywhere other than designated areas within the Premises or Perth Airport facilities.
5.8 Consumption of alcohol and illegal drugs is strictly forbidden on the Premises and must not be consumed within 12 hours of any flight, simulator or ground training.
(c) an administration fee of £750 being charged to that Student.
5.10 ACS Aviation will refuse to allow a Student to fly if, in our reasonable opinion, the Student is unfit to fly whether as a result of the consumption of alcohol and/or drugs, illness or any other reason.
5.11 You consent to ACS Aviation performing ad-hoc drug and alcohol testing (by taking specimen samples of breath, blood and/or urine) as and when we deem it appropriate. Where a blood sample is required from a Student, an appropriately qualified medical profession will be used to take that sample.
5.12 A hirer or student (as applicable) shall indemnify ACS Aviation in full against all costs, damages, expenses and losses, including any interest, fines, legal and other professional fees and expenses awarded or incurred or paid by ACS Aviation as a result of or in connection with any claim brought against ACS Aviation for actual or alleged damage to any third party property or equipment, including any airport or aircraft, caused by the hirer or student (as applicable).
5.13 Physical violence or the threat of violence (whether physical, verbal or otherwise) against any person whilst undertaking training at ACS Aviation will result in instant dismissal from the Course and no refund of fees will be made.
6.1 The prices for all Courses can be found on ACS Aviation's website as may be amended by ACS Aviation from time to time. To reserve a place on a course you will be requested to pay a deposit or enrolment fee.
6.3 The fees for the PPL, Hour Building, CPL, IR, the self hire, or any other courses are payable as and when the Student is notified and in receipt of an invoice by ACS Aviation, depending on the student's flying account balance for the relevant course which is reviewed by ACS Aviation on a regular basis.
6.4 All Course fees will be the published fees for the relevant course at the time of enrolment. However, the Student acknowledges and understands that the course fees are based on third party or product costs including fuel and Airport fees which are beyond ACS Aviation’s control. In the event that during the Course, there is an increase in any such costs then ACS Aviation reserves the right to increase the Course fee for the remaining proportion of the Course unless the full Course fee has been paid in advance by the Student.
6.5 If a booking has to be cancelled by ACS Aviation for whatever reason, ACS Aviation will not be liable for any additional expenses incurred by the Student in connection with the booking.
6.6 If a Student wishes to re-schedule his/her Fast Track Modular Course start date after a course place has been confirmed a rearrangement fee of shall be payable by the Student unless there are exceptional circumstances (which will be determined at the sole discretion of ACS Aviation). For all other Courses, if the Student wishes to re-schedule his/her Course start date, at least 7 days’ written notice must be given to ACS Aviation or the initial deposit or payment (as applicable) will be forfeited together with any bank or credit card fees paid by ACS Aviation. For all re-scheduled Courses, the Course fees charged will be those in force at the time of the new start date.
6.7 If you wish to re-schedule any of your training times within your Course timetable, you must give us at least 48 hours’ notice in writing (including by email) or a cancellation fee for that training period may be charged.
6.8 Those Students attending part-time Courses and who have not paid the cost of their Course in advance, are required to remain in credit throughout the Course with sufficient available funds in their flying account set up by ACS Aviation to cover the cost of the next flight.
6.9 You acknowledge and agree that fees for any additional training, including additional airport costs will be charged by us at our published rates at the time the additional training is provided.
6.10 Where you do not have sufficient funds in your flying account to cover any charges and fees which we are entitled to charge under these Terms, we may invoice you separately for such charges and fees. You shall pay our invoices within 7 days of receipt. We may charge you interest on any overdue or outstanding balance at the monthly rate of Bank of England Base Rate plus 4% until full payment of the overdue or outstanding balance is made.
6.11 In certain circumstances, ACS Aviation may charge you (the student) any relevant insurance excess amounts incurred (or cost of repair if less than the insurance excess) if an aircraft is damaged as a result of your negligence (for example, by landing with your feet on the brakes).
6.12 ACS Aviation will not be held liable for any costs incurred by you due to diversions caused by Air Traffic Control instructions, weather conditions or other circumstances or events outside our control.
6.13 You acknowledge and agree that ACS Aviation may have to suspend a course due to technical problems relating to an Aircraft or due to any regulatory or operational reasons. ACS Aviation will endeavour to contact students in advance in such circumstances but this may not always be possible. Suspension of a Course shall not alter your payment obligations in relation to that Course (as set out in the admissions document and in this clause 6) or give rise to any obligation on us to refund any amounts already paid by you in connection with that Course, or any third party charges (e.g. accommodation costs).
6.14 If you do not pay ACS Aviation for a Course in accordance with this clause 6 and any terms set out in the admission document for that Course, ACS Aviation may suspend your participation in the Course with immediate effect until all outstanding amounts have been fully paid. This does not affect ACS Aviation’s right to charge you interest under clause 6.10. A cancellation fee of £150 per day shall also apply during any period(s) of suspension.
6.15 If you require ACS Aviation to certify to any bank or financial institution (including for the purpose of this paragraph any body issuing public funds by way of a career development loan or similar scheme) that training is being undertaken for the purposes of obtaining a loan for their training, ACS Aviation shall retain details of the bank or financial institution concerned. Should you cease training for any reason whatsoever (including termination of your participation in the Course by ACS Aviation) ACS Aviation has the right to advise any bank or financial institution of the termination of training as appropriate.
6.16 The initial payment, entire upfront payment or deposit (as applicable) made by you may be refunded at the sole discretion of ACS Aviation, if, for reasons beyond your control, you are denied a UK Entry Visa (where applicable for International Students and subject to retention of the £2,500 CAS application fee), or you are unable to pass an appropriate EASA medical examination. In these circumstances any expenses incurred by ACS Aviation on your behalf will be deducted from the refund. Otherwise, the initial payment, entire upfront payment, or deposit (as applicable) is non-refundable by ACS Aviation.
6.17 Fees that have been paid to ACS Aviation are non-refundable once the relevant Courses have been commenced. Should you leave the Course for any reason you will have no further obligation to pay any further fees in relation to training not yet undertaken.
6.18 Students who leave the Course prior to completion will not be entitled to any refund of the monies paid to ACS Aviation.
7.1 For details of what is included in the Structured Hour Building Package please check our website.
7.2 A minimum of 5 hours must be purchased at a time and the corresponding amount placed on your flying account. The cost of each flight will then be deducted from the account.
7.3 Standard rates will apply to each flying hour undertaken but we reserve the right to offer discounts on such terms as we deem appropriate from time to time.
7.4 Bookings should be made online after 20:00 the day before the booking is required and on the condition that ACS Aviation can rearrange or cancel a booking if an Aircraft is needed for another purpose.
7.5 Unless you have paid ACS Aviation an insurance excess waiver fee prior commencing the Structured Hour Building Package, we will charge the relevant insurance excess amount (or cost of repair if less than the insurance excess) if an aircraft is damaged through your negligence (for example, by landing with your feet on the brakes).
8.1 The Hirer is responsible for ensuring that their rating is current and appropriate for the type of aircraft they have selected to hire. ACS Aviation shall have no liability in connection with any failure of a Hirer to have the appropriate rating and accordingly the Hirer will indemnify ACS Aviation in full against any financial penalties, fines, costs, expenses and losses incurred by ACS Aviation in connection with the Hirer not having the appropriate rating.
8.2 ACS Aviation has the right to insist, without explanation, on the Hirer taking a flight with an instructor before permitting the Hirer to take a solo flight. In addition to the standard flight costs, the Hirer will be charged for the instructor’s time in accordance with our published rates.
8.3 ACS Aviation requires a deposit to be paid prior to booking an aircraft. If the Hirer refuses to pay a deposit then the booking will not be made.
8.5 The Hirer acknowledges and agrees that booking times may be changed by ACS Aviation due to operational reasons and/or events or circumstances outside our control including weather conditions, air traffic control, regulatory requirements and urgent aircraft maintenance. ACS Aviation will have no responsibility or liability to the Hirer in connection with the postponement or cancellation of a booking.
8.6 A cancellation fee will apply if the booking is cancelled by the Hirer with less than 48 hours’ notice. However, a cancellation fee will not be charged if the Hirer notifies us that he cannot take a booking that has been rearranged by us within 24 hours of us notifying the Hirer of the change in the booking date and/or time. A cancellation by the Hirer, in person or by telephone, must be confirmed by e-mail to ACS Aviation.
(c) the technical log is completed at the end of the flight.
8.8 The Hirer is responsible for the Aircraft during the booked hire period and is liable for any losses from the Aircraft, if left unlocked or otherwise, and any damage whatsoever caused to the Aircraft. The Hirer is responsible for locking the Aircraft and ensuring it is tied down, if necessary, at the end of the hire period. ACS Aviation has the right to claim from the Hirer for any damages incurred during the hire period, including loss of revenue if the Aircraft is rendered unavailable for further hire.
8.9 The Hirer is responsible for all aerodrome and navigation fees.
8.10 The Hirer acknowledges and agrees that ACS Aviation can request that the Hirer return the aircraft at any time during the hire period. The Hirer will return and land the aircraft promptly on receipt of a request from ACS Aviation. In such circumstances the Hirer will only be charged for the actual time used and any fees paid in advance will be refunded to the Hirer.
8.11 Unless the Hirer has paid ACS Aviation an insurance excess waiver fee prior to commencing the Structured Hour Building Package, we will charge the relevant insurance excess amount (or cost of repair if less than the insurance excess) if an Aircraft is damaged through that pilot’s negligence.
8.12 If the booked Aircraft should become unavailable, for any reason, and a suitable alternative Aircraft is unavailable, then the booking will be cancelled and ACS Aviation will accept no responsibility for any additional expenses incurred by the Hirer.
9.1 ACS Aviation offers introductory flying lessons and “Trial Lesson” vouchers subject to the terms and conditions of this clause 9.
9.2 Vouchers are valid for 6 months from date of purchase. The voucher entitles the voucher holder to an introductory flying lesson for the amount of time stated on the voucher including taxiing to the take-off position, the duration of the flight and taxiing back to the parking bay after landing. The time spent on the pre-flight briefing is additional to the flight time and is not deducted from the flight time.
9.3 Flights may take place in any of ACS Aviation’s Aircraft.
9.4 If a flight is not booked within the validity period stated on the voucher, the voucher will automatically become void without refund.
9.5 The voucher holder should telephone ACS Aviation on 01738 550 003 to book the flying lesson.
9.6 The voucher holder should telephone ACS Aviation on 01738 550 003 on the day of the flight to ensure that weather conditions are suitable before travelling to Perth Airport. ACS Aviation will not be responsible for any expenses incurred by the voucher holder or accompanying persons if a flight cannot take place due to any reasons beyond its control.
9.7 If a flight cannot take place for any reason including poor weather or Aircraft unavailability, the voucher holder may make another booking. If this booking date is outside the validity period of the voucher, there will be no extra charge.
9.8 A booking may be cancelled by the voucher holder provided that 48 hours’ advance notice is given. If a booking is cancelled with less than 48 hours’ advance notice, a cancellation fee of £25 may be charged by ACS Aviation to the voucher holder.
9.9 An additional person may be accommodated in the back of the Aircraft subject to aircraft type booked and weight of the person. ACS Aviation has the final decision on whether an extra person can be carried. If carrying of an extra person is an important part of the experience, this must be stated at time of booking so that a suitable Aircraft can be booked.
9.10 Vouchers may be exchanged for a higher value voucher, at any time during the validity period of the original voucher, upon payment of the additional amount.
9.11 Vouchers may be refunded in full within 14 days of purchase provided no flight has been booked by the voucher holder.
9.12 All terms and conditions printed on the Voucher or accompanying documentation will be binding upon the voucher holder and ACS Aviation.
9.13 If there is any conflict between these Terms and any terms and conditions printed on the Voucher or accompanying documentation, these Terms shall prevail.
10.2 No employee, agent, or other representative of ACS Aviation has authority to verbally modify or waive any of its terms. Any modifications to, or waiver of, these Terms will be invalid unless they are in writing and signed by the Managing Director of ACS Aviation.
(c) any other liability which cannot be excluded or limited by law.
(b) ACS Aviation’s total aggregate liability to a Student or Hirer in respect of all other losses arising under or in connection with these Terms, any Course or any flight or service provided by ACS Aviation whether in contract, tort (including negligence), breach of statutory duty, or otherwise, shall in no circumstances exceed the value of fees paid by the Student or Hirer (as the case may be).
13.1 If you have any reason to make a complaint about the Courses, then you should firstly discuss the complaint with the relevant instructor. If the complaint cannot be resolved then the matter will be referred to the Head of Training at ACS Aviation from time to time. If you are still unsatisfied with the response then the matter will be referred to the Managing Director of ACS Aviation.
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At the meeting there were also present: From our side, comrade Mihal Prifti, from the Chinese side the comrades Deng Xiaoping, Luo Ruiqing, Vice Premier of the State Council and Chief of Staff, and Wu Xiuquan, Deputy Director of the CCP CC International Department. In the lunch that was given after the talks there was also comrade Tan Zhenlin, member of the Political Bureau of the CCP CC and dealing with agriculture issues, as well as Comrade Li Xiannian.
Comrade Zhou Enlai: We took a look at the minutes of the meeting between [Chairman of the Ministerial Council and Member of the Political Bureau of the ALP CC] Comrade Mehmet Shehu and comrade Luo Shigao that they had after the meeting of the Political Consultative Committee of the Warsaw Pact that was held in Moscow. In addition, we have also seen the minutes of your meeting with comrade Li Xiannian. Comrade Mao Zedong and comrade Liu Shaoqi are not here and we still do not know when they will be back, and that is why we requested this meeting. Today we have a party meeting to attend, too.
Comrade Zhou Enlai: There is no reason to thank us. In brief, I can tell you that since the Moscow Conference (He was referring to the conference of 1960) the relations between our two parties and our two countries have been strengthened even further, because we have often exchanged thoughts and because, as you also mentioned, what we have to say we say it to each other. These past few days we also received the report by comrade Liu Xiao on the meeting of the Political Consultative Committee of the Warsaw Pact and are of the opinion that the positions, letters and the discussions of the CPSU and of the Soviet government, and especially of Khrushchev, are incorrect. They are in contradiction to the principles of last year's Moscow Meeting, accepted by all the parties. It was especially incorrect the decision over the naval base which was accepted by a forced majority. They, as comrade Abdyl Kellezi mentioned, entered into the inter-governmental jurisdiction. It is a well known fact that all this is in contradiction to the Marxist – Leninist principles. As far as your side is concerned, in our opinion the behavior of comrade [First Vice-Chairman of the Ministerial Council, Minister of People's Defense and Member of the Political Bureau of the ALP CC] Beqir Balluku was correct. As to the relations between Albania and the Soviet Union since the Moscow Conference and until the Warsaw Pact meeting, whenever we have had the chance, we have suggested to the Soviet comrades that these relations should be improved. We think that the larger responsibility falls to the CPSU because it is a big country and these relations have deteriorated because of them.
During the days that the Moscow meeting was being held, comrades Deng Xiaoping and Peng Zhen have spoken to many Soviet comrades about this. This was reiterated once more by comrade Li Xiannian when he passed through Moscow on his way to your Congress. And lately, during the latest meeting in Moscow, comrade Liu Xiao (ambassador of the PRC to Moscow), whenever he has had the chance, has again spoken to the comrades of the CPSU CC.
During the proceedings of this latest meeting, since we are only observers, we did not read any speeches. We took the position of not reading any speeches. This was as a silent protest against the blackmail and the unreasonable attacks that Khrushchev waged against Albania. In fact there were also some other observers, such as that of Korea and that of Vietnam, who took the same position of silence, approving the Albanian position. We did not applaud Khrushchev. If we are given the chance again, we would continue to keep this attitude toward them. We are convinced that the leadership of the ALP CC and the government of the PRA have taken the correct position and the CCP and the government of PRC stand on your side.
As you also say, we support and stand on the side of those that follow the principles of Marxism-Leninism. Since the CPSU CC proceeded incorrectly and unfairly toward you, we are against them. I believe you know well the situation of our relations with them. Starting from the year 1958, in fact since 1957, we have entered into polemics with them. And especially during the period of 1959 – 1960 we have exchanged very bitter polemics. The polemics reached its climax at the beginning of last year's second half.
If we should speak of thanks, it should be us thanking you, because you took a brave stance at the Bucharest meeting and it was you defending us, a task that was not easy. We have a greater capacity of helping you, than you do us because we are a larger party and you are a smaller one, are situated in Europe, and are a member of the Warsaw Pact. From today onwards we will continue to exchange our points of view because we are Marxists. It should be noted that our opinions are sometimes incorrect, and that is why we need to exchange opinions. As comrade Mao Zedong says, we must stay with the truth and correct our mistakes. This would be the most correct position to take, to look at our mistakes and to correct them. Not only are some of the leaders of the CPSU not on the side of truth and do not correct their mistakes, but they do not even accept them. This is not according to the Marxist – Leninist principles. This must be dealt with seriously.
[Zhou Enlai:] We are of the opinion that the Moscow Conference of the 81 Parties was a great success and it has developed even further the spirit of the 1957 Conference. Of course, this has happened as a result of our work of keeping with the principles of Marxism – Leninism, as a result of the efforts of the CCP and the ALP and of many other parties. But we cannot say this without including [sic] the CPSU and some other parties because they have revisionist points of view, but when faced with the truth they cannot accept this reality. During these past four years we have been able to finish two very important documents: The Declaration of 1957 and that of 1960. These are a common program for the international communist and workers' movement; they are our banner and weapon in our war; these weapons help us in the war against imperialism and against the modern revisionism in the defense of Marxism – Leninism and in the construction of socialism, and that is why we need to value deeply, and carry and raise high this banner. Whenever someone drops this banner and distances himself from the Moscow Declaration, he allows us to criticize him. When this weapon is held by our hand, then the errors will not be able to raise their heads, because we will raise this weapon high and they will lower their heads. It is precisely because we have this weapon that we are strong and on the side of rightness. The events taking place attest to this. The development of the events in our times proves our thoughts on the Declaration and not that of Khrushchev, who claims that we live in a time where we do not need weapons, wars and militaries.
And this time, at the Moscow meeting, Khrushchev did not mention this anymore. On the contrary, he pointed out that importance must be placed on the navy, aviation, nuclear submarines. He spoke about the strengthening of the defensive force of the Warsaw Pact, etc.
Comrade Abdyl Kellezi: But he also wants to close the naval base in our country.
Comrade Zhou Enlai: Everyone is laughing about it and is saying that they think he will not close it. And what do the new events in Cuba tell us? They show that there is no difference between Kennedy and Eisenhower. If there can be any discussion about any differences between the two, then the difference is this: When Eisenhower came to power, he ended the war in Korea; but when Kennedy came to power, he started the war in Cuba. The war in Korea was started by Kennedy's party and was ended by that of Eisenhower. Kennedy is developing military preparedness even further. And if there is another difference, it is this: Eisenhower and Dulles openly followed the policy of “open war,” while Kennedy on the surface appears as a person of peace but in reality has increased armaments. Not three months had passed before he showed his true face. Comrade Mao Zedong has said, “sometimes the criticism of the comrades and even of the masses do not have an effect in a comrade, but the acts of the enemy will have an effect if the comrade is still a revolutionary and a Marxist.” According to our opinion, the leadership of the CPSU and Khrushchev may not have any differences in their ideology and their working style, but we cannot say that they will not be influenced by all of this movement of the masses and the people if they are Marxists. And that is why in this case he could not pass on sending a letter to Kennedy and making the declaration (on the events in Cuba). On this he did a good job and we support him. I believe that you also agree.
Comrade Abdyl Kellezi: We do.
Kennedy's circles have understood this and say that they are willing to cooperate in Laos for the reestablishment of peace and that they are willing to carry out the UN resolutions in Congo for the normalization of the situation.
I had a meeting on this issue with the Soviet embassy's chargé d'affaires, because the ambassador is not here. I told him that we must look at the possibility of starting up another situation in another country as well. They are making the situation difficult in Cuba, so we go ahead and start another in a place more suitable for us. We speak up and condemn them in the UN. This should also be happening elsewhere, outside the UN.
He told me that the Cuban government has told the Soviet ambassador that the landing was done with American ships and planes. They must have been using an aircraft carrier, because the planes went and returned within 20 minutes. We can document this because we know how far Cuban land is from the territory of other countries, like Guatemala, etc.
But the war might continue for a long time, and that is why we need to be prepared. Of course, both you and we are far away from Cuba and cannot help her, but we could help her through the Soviet Union, because the Soviet Union has ships and other equipment. It is our opinion that at the last meeting in Moscow the issue of the Soviet Union not helping the other socialist countries so that they may also develop militarily was also left unresolved. The Americans have helped the others, to not mention here France and England. They are also helping Japan, have helped Canada, and Canada is helping India to develop atomic and nuclear weapons. We think that the Soviet Union should help the other countries so that they may also have atomic weapons, nuclear submarines, etc. When comrade Deng Xiaoping was in Moscow, he said that if all the socialist countries had nuclear weapons, peace would be even more guaranteed. And this is a very simple thing. Why does Khrushchev not accept this? He wants the monopoly of nuclear weapons. Well, it does not matter; we will work on our own.
He noted that he had had a meeting with the Mongolian ambassador who had just come to Beijing and he had said that the situation in Congo has now been stabilized, despite the fact that the country is isolated. Nonetheless, the situation there looks good.
[Translator's note: The notes switch back to first person.] About the situation, I think that in diplomacy we can use [our] strategic words but we must also prepare for war in practice.
We are Marxist–Leninists and we see that the course of events confirms our forecasts. This will also convince the others and that is why we must keep high the Moscow Declaration.
1) In the struggle against the enemy we do not speak first but second. We do not raise the issues but allow the adversary to do so, because through this he uncovers himself. After this we answer our adversary. This tool is more powerful. We defend the right and by defending it the masses and the others that do not see clearly, little by little are enlightened and come to our side.
2) We keep high the banner of unity. Often the opposite side does not keep this banner high, such as in Bucharest against us and now in Moscow against you. They do not keep the banner of unity high and through their stance wanted to expel us from the camp and make us kneel. But we understand their intentions and in Bucharest we fought our own war and presented our own points of view. For example, we signed the Bucharest Declaration, but we also distributed our own declaration.
At the Moscow meeting of November 1960, they conceded and we did the same and, finally, the Declaration was signed. Comrade Mao Zedong tells us to keep high the banner of unity. The intention is to bring the masses of the party and the people to our side, because when we have them on our side, it is more difficult for the enemy.
3) Confronted with the issues we must keep a correct stance. We say that we must speak openly and carefully. Sometimes we take this course: You speak and yell loudly, and I say nothing. This is a silent protest. For example, comrade Beqir Balluku, when he spoke, said to Khrushchev, “Will you let me continue, or not?” This was a good protest.
4) We must deal with restraint both in the war against the enemy and in the internal struggle between the parties. We do not say our entire piece to the end, because the situation cannot develop in only one manner. There can be two, three, or four ways it can develop. For example, Khrushchev says his final word first, but the situation does not develop as he thinks, and so he has to pull back and change course.
Comrade Deng Xiaoping: Such is his position when dealing with the naval base. He deals without restraint. He said that he would liquidate the base, but this must not be done. Under these conditions the decision that was taken has no value. We must deal with restraint. As far as the base goes, we must require that the existing agreement is honored. This base lies in Albania, and that is why Albania should have command of it. For example, Albania says that we must improve relations and the base must be strengthened. This is fair.
Comrade Abdyl Kellezi: He says that he will remove the base, but we say no.
Both of them: They are saying that they think it will not be removed, because it should be kept.
Comrade Zhou Enlai: Of course, the enemies realize that there are differences between China and the Soviet Union and between Albania and the Soviet Union, but they do not know what these differences actually are. That is why we need to analyze these issues step by step and with restraint. For example, Khrushchev always goes into battle personally, but we do not follow this course. In Bucharest we sent comrade Peng Zhen and in Moscow we sent comrade Deng Xiaoping. We hold back the other comrades. We keep comrade Mao Zedong and Comrade Deng Xiaoping in reserve for later.
Comrade Liu Shaoqi, when he went to Moscow, told Khrushchev, “Why do you continually go personally to other countries? Let the other comrades go and prepare the situation and then you can go.” We saw then that many Soviet comrades liked this idea of ours, but in Moscow it was Khrushchev again who came out. That is why we say that Khrushchev's method of thinking and his style of work are difficult to change. Nonetheless, we do not say that his politics will not change, because the development of the situation and the pressure from the people and the party will have an influence on him.
1) You should continue your struggle with determination. We will help you in this struggle and you, through your struggle, will influence the other parties. But, nonetheless, a bad outcome may not be avoided.
Comrade Deng Xiaoping: This would not be a very big or a difficult outcome. Should it happen, we will help you with all our strength.
His words were approved by comrade Zhou Enlai, who then continued: We will show the enemy, his party and the other sister parties his mistakes and weaknesses and force him to answer for those mistakes.
We will attempt and change him and will not make concessions on these points of view. We think that whenever we have the chance, we will speak again with the Soviet comrades to see if the relations with you can be improved. As far as the military assistance, we think that we should wait a little longer until he [Khrushchev] answers you with a letter. After this, we will say that we will temporarily help Albania. You will also talk about this with comrade Mao Zedong.
If the other socialist countries really do not help you, we think that we should make some adjustments to the proportion of assistance you receive. We think that the field of agriculture should be the primary concern of these adjustments. And when we do this (meaning the socialist reconstruction of the country), we should take into account all the variables, such as the work force, the raw materials, etc., etc.
Comrade Deng Xiaoping: Comrade Zhou Enlai mentioned all the issues and these are the opinions of every one of us. They are the opinions of the CC of our party. I would only like to mention two issues.
1) One is the problem of the internal relations within the socialist camp. As you well know, Bucharest was a struggle against us. You found yourselves in the flames of the fire, drew the fire of the battle upon yourselves, and that was a good move. You showed bravery. Marx was also the brave type. All of the Marxists are the same. They are not afraid of prison, or of internment, and not even afraid of death. They follow this road out their own free will. Then, at the Moscow Conference, both our parties were in the line of fire. After the Moscow Conference, their fire was directed back against you. It seems like the fire against us is a little bit softer, maybe because we are a larger party. But in fact, they direct their fire not only against you and not only against us both. It seems like this issue is here to stay for a long time. As I speak, I may also repeat things a few times. During the Moscow Conference I did not have the chance to meet comrade [First Secretary of the Albanian Party of Labour (ALP)] Enver Hoxha and had a lot of meetings and talks with comrade [Member of the Political Bureau of the ALP CC and Secretary of the CC] Hysni Kapo. The same with comrade Liu Shaoqi, most of whose meeting were also with comrade Hysni Kapo. The opinion that this is an issue that will take a long time is a common opinion of both our parties. But we are on the side of justice. Justice is with us and this is essential. But even formally we should always be just. We should owe nothing. In fact, they owe us, but this struggle will be long, and that is why we should operate in such a way that both formally and in actuality justice should be on our side and they should owe us. Let us look at the naval base, for example. You are on the side of justice. You should request that the relevant agreement be respected. You should keep repeating this and say nothing else, until you find out what he has to say. We think that the method that comrade Beqir Balluku used was very correct. If you get mad, then why shouldn't I? If you curse, then why shouldn't I? This makes them think.
We are convinced that your opinions are correct and we cannot fathom how small Albania could be the perpetrator against the big Soviet Union.
We recognize the truth at first sight. The issue is how to organize our work. We used to have a good coordination with Moscow. Of course, they have attacked you unfairly during the last meeting and the way you retorted was good. We did not speak. We will look to find out the right time to speak.
We have mentioned this issue many times in the coordination commission and comrade Liu Shaoqi has spoken officially to Gomulka. We told them that they should not act in such a way toward Albania and that Albania is right in this case. In his greetings, comrade Liu Shaoqi spoke about twelve socialist countries. He said that from Albania to Vietnam and from Germany to Korea there should be complete unity and whoever destroys this unity shall be committing a historic crime. We will always repeat this position.
This time we only sent our ambassador to the meeting of the Political Consultative Committee of the Warsaw Pact, while in other meetings we have sent a delegation. They understand our position. We had instructed our ambassador that if the meeting's proceedings were in order, he could read a greeting, but if there would be anything spoken against Albania, he should be silent. Sometimes, when you do not hold a speech, it weighs more than if you say something. This does not mean that we did not take a position in Moscow. They owe you and the entire communist movement. We will be speaking out, but when or how we are going to do this, is an issue that we must look over carefully. For example, he [Khrushchev] has not decided to remove the base, and even if he does so, to prevent him from doing so. But we will try so that he does not. This is in your favor and that of the entire socialist camp. That is why we will carefully study the issue of when we will speak out about this. We will also weigh its effect. It may be that the events in Cuba have some sort of benefit for you. Of course, should they not back down, there should be a retreat position. This is our opinion for the moment. Of course, when we speak out and what we will say will be discussed with you first. For the moment, we are being silent. But, of course, on such an issue, one cannot stay silent forever.
2) The second issue has to do with the matter of economic assistance. Should they decide to not help you, it will be our duty to do so, because you have given a great assistance to the world communist movement. This is what we say: We will help you with all the capacity we have. If there are some things which, right now or in the near future, we cannot help you with, we will tell you so. These are issues which have to do with the development and technological stage where we find ourselves. These are issues which we should solve in stages. There are some objects which we are not able to build right away.
We think that in the field of economic cooperation you should operate in such away that for the next 100 years the responsibility falls on them. Whatever you can solve, solve it with them, keeping justice always on your side. The rest we can look at together. But in your conditions, the way to solve these issues (the construction of socialism) is a big deal. We also raised these issues with the Cuban comrades when the general secretary of the party was here and we exchanged opinions with them. Comrade Mao Zedong said, “first of all, you should keep and strengthen the people's police force. Second, you should change their one-sided economy and develop the agriculture.” Now in the development of their economy they are keeping this in mind. Instead of planting only sugar cane, they will also develop the production of rice and other cultures. Now they have a 300,000 strong people's police force, which serves as a guarantee for them. Can the [Soviet] missiles [stationed in Cuba] really be used? This is not an easy thing, because a world war could be ignited, while local wars have always existed and will continue to exist. Today, a people's police force is more important than a regular military. It is possible that the enemy can occupy all the main cities, but the war will be continued in the rear by the people's police force.
Of course, such advice is not for Albania's conditions, because all the people are behind you. For you important is the issue of reconstruction and this should be at the basis of your work.
Your agriculture has a relatively high potential and this is an important issue. The development of industry should have at its base the development of agriculture. First we should fill our bellies and then comes the rest. As for the other issues, you can see to them yourselves, because you have enough experience. In general though, developed industry with underdeveloped agriculture becomes a hindrance. For example, every year we supply the province of [Manchuria] with 1.6 billion tons of grains. There are also examples of other provinces where work in various industrial projects has been suspended. We now have to slow down the building of industry to develop our agriculture. In the next three years we will not see a visible development of our industry. We will mainly place the most importance on the development of agriculture.
When you go back to Albania, please tell comrade Enver Hoxha that we will help you with all our strength, with all we have, but we will not be able to fulfill all of your needs.
Comrade Abdyl Kellezi: Comrade Zhou Enlai and comrade Deng Xiaoping presented their opinion that we have common points of view and have no disagreements. We are convinced of this because we found each other on the same page in Bucharest without any previous planning. We found ourselves holding the same positions in defense of Marxism – Leninism. The Central Committee of our party is completely convinced that we have common points of view when it comes to the defense of Marxism – Leninism, because both you and we are on a just course, because between us there have not been and there are no disagreements.
We were not caught unprepared in the meeting of the Consultative Committee because our leadership had foreseen that there might be some kind of attack against us there, which it actually happened. You had also foreseen that there might be an attack against Albania. Nikita Khrushchev, backed by the rest of them, elevated the issue of ideological disagreements to the level of inter-state relations.
We did not start the fight at the meeting of the Consultative Commission. The speech by comrade Beqir Balluku was correct and principled; it had been approved by the leadership of our party. Our speech relied on the Moscow Declaration after the Conference of the 81 Communist and Workers' Parties of 1960, in which, the need for the strengthening of the militaries of the countries of the Warsaw Pact and the dangers that American imperialism presented were mentioned; the activities of the imperialists, Kennedy, and of the Belgrade revisionists were unmasked publicly; the need for the strengthening of our military was stressed, etc. In other words, that speech was correct and principled.
Nikita Khrushchev, on the other hand, and the rest of them attacked Albania and, as you well know, presented shameful declarations and arguments against our country and our party. The fabrications and the slander on the issue of the naval base are ignoble. Nothing has happened at the base which has been done purposefully by us. (Comrade Deng Xiaoping interrupted here and said that they had heard about the case of the five Soviet women that had been stopped by the police and that the Soviets had used such methods against them too.) The reason for their attack is not this event, but what happened in Bucharest and we said this openly in the meeting. It is a fact that since Bucharest they have started to sabotage the readiness of the base and of the military; they have not completed supply deliveries of any goods and we have raised this issue with them time after time. They requested that either only Soviet personnel be stationed at the base,or else it be removed. We explained that the base was constructed at the initiative of the ALP CC and in agreement with the CPSU CC and that there is a signed agreement on this between us and the Soviet government. We told them that we would never agree to remove the Albanian personnel from the base, and that if they wanted, they could remove the base, but I also said that it would be a violation of the signed agreements and that they would be held responsible by their [own] people, by the world communist movement, and by history. The removal of the base damages Albania, the Soviet Union and our entire socialist camp, but we defend and will continue to defend our country in every situation. We told them that if they would remove the base, we would help them and would not hinder their work, but that we think that the base should be strengthened instead. They also delivered a letter to us, but our delegation did not answer them on the spot. It was a letter by [Warsaw Pact Supreme Commander Andrei A.] Grechko and we only answered it after they asked us for an answer. In other words, it was not us who started the fight. It was they who started it, and we answered as we should have. It was they who trampled on the Moscow Declaration of the 81 Parties.
Khrushchev said that the Albanians are trying to overthrow him and other things. This is absurd and anti Marxist, but he thinks of himself as someone who has taken under his wing and defends the enemies of the ALP. How is it possible that the ALP could seek to overthrow the secretary of another party? It is not our business. Who is and who remains the secretary of a party or another is only the business of the communists who are members of that party. But we do say openly to Khrushchev that he should have nothing to do with the traitors of our own party. He should not interfere with the internal business of our party, because we do not allow anyone to do this. So, we did not initiate an attack. Khrushchev did and we gave him the counterpunch. In this situation it is Khrushchev the one who is trampling on the Moscow Declaration. Our party has fought and will continue to fight for the execution of the Moscow Declaration and we are convinced that both our parties will always be the ones to consistently hold high that banner, and they will be left to hold the other banner, the banner of opportunism and revisionism.
The comrades here said that you did not speak at the meeting in Moscow, just like the others that were there as observers did not speak either. But you are on our side and you support our stance. We know that your ambassador had instructions to not speak and that he spoke outside the meeting. We know that you will speak up when you think it necessary and will not stay silent forever. We believe what you say. You know it better when, what and at what level you will speak up. We are confident that when you deem it necessary, you will speak up and this you know better. We are confident that we have common points of view in our just and principled struggle.
[Abdyl Kellezi]… but they will fail in this and in it the great assistance that you gave us played a very important role. There are also nuances, for example, the Hungarians did not make it difficult for us. The Czechs, merchants that they are, might not break the agreements with us, because they would rather trade the goods, especially the iron and the copper they get from us. We agree to trade with them. But there is one thing that is clear; they are trying to sabotage our five-year plan.
As to the matter of military assistance, I have also told comrade Li Xiannian that since the Bucharest events they have not sent any more supplies and are not even thinking of sending them. They also want to destroy the base. Once again, on this issue, they showed themselves to be in opposition to the Moscow Declaration and with the signed agreements. After the Moscow meeting (of the Warsaw Pact), our representative requested from the Soviet side that they decide on the materials and equipments that should be sent to Albania for the military. The Soviet representative asked him whether the answer that Khrushchev and Grechko gave us was not enough for us. In other words, they are not going to send any supplies for the military.
This was also indicated by the work of the commission that made the decision of how the munitions would be produced and the difference between its decision and the list of the equipment that we asked to receive from the Soviet Union. They asked that the supplies be bought 50% through clearing and 50% through a loan plus annual interest. We opposed this and it was removed from the protocol. Chinese comrades, we do not ask for the fulfillment of the list. We only ask for the munitions from it.
(Then it was agreed that the competent comrades set off for Albania to deal with this issue, because the Chinese comrades are willing to help us and the defense minister will be the point person on their side. Comrade Abdyl Kellezi thanked them once more for their readiness to assist us and emphasized once again that what we were asking for are needed to create what comrade Zhou Enlai advised about, the creation of necessary reserves for bad days. Comrade Abdyl Kellezi told them that our entire party and our entire people would fight for the defense of our fatherland, for the defense of their revolutionary victories, for the defense of Marxism – Leninism. He assured them once more that all what was said he will faithfully transmit to comrade Enver Hoxha.
Comrade Abdyl Kellezi: Comrades, you said that there is no reason for us to thank you. You have to forgive me but we thanked you because we, first of all, have to fulfill the instructions that Comrade Enver Hoxha gave us. Furthermore, this is something that we deeply feel it in our hearts and we cannot keep it inside. You are helping us in an unprecedented manner, as true brothers. We come here to you and we ask that you forgive us for continually bothering you and making so many requests. We are saying this like communist friends and brothers and you should do the same and tell us openly what your capabilities are and where you can help us. We will never forget this internationalist assistance. Just like you understand us when we come and openly seek your assistance, we also understand you we you say to us that this is something you have, or something you do not have, but which you will try to maybe give it to us a bit later. We understand that sometimes it is difficult for you to say no to us, but we also understand that you are doing what you can and more, because you are taking from your own table to give to us. This is an internationalist behavior. We are also very confident that when you tell us that a certain factory, for example, shall be delivered to us on that date, which may not be very suitable for us, your apparatus, following your orders, will work hard to deliver it before the deadline.
(Comrade Zhou Enlai intervenes here and said that there may also be technical difficulties or some materials, like steel for example, due to shipping problems may be delivered after the deadline. Comrade Abdyl Kellezi added that such things may happen in life, but that we understand each other and that what is important is that our unified forces will be put to use to execute the tasks that await us. He also added that we have no doubt about this. Comrade Zhou Enlai said that it may happen that they could give us something which may not be completely perfect and may have some problems. He said that if that happens they would plead with us to send it back. Comrade Abdyl Kellezi added that we will solve everything like communists and that… [illegible].
Conceived by A. K. and M. P.
Three copies were produced, two of which were handed to comrade A. K. and the other to M. P.
Central State Archive, Tirana, AQPPSH-MPKK-V. 1961, L. 13, D. 6. Obtained by Ana Lalaj and translated by Enkel Daljani. | 2019-04-26T10:02:52Z | https://digitalarchive.wilsoncenter.org/document/111817 |
Might have, I say, because I still don’t know for sure. What I do know is that nine days later it’s still hurting when I walk. It happened mid Fashion Week at a callback casting, last Saturday at Marc's offices in Soho. Katie Grand, the riotous and revered stylist of the collection, and Marc Jacobs, it’s designer, were reviewing the final cut, so to speak, of potential models for their Spring-Summer show a few days later, but Marc was't there when I went in. The casting director wasn't either, but her smokey-eyed assistant was, and asked the models to put on slip dresses and large (7 inches high I heard?) platform heels, and to get in line to walk for Katie. The only pair of boots available when it came my turn was two sizes too big, not a good way to start.
I went into the viewing room anyway when my name was called and crossed to the wall where they take a polaroid. I carefully stepped in my big high heavy boots onto the paper that they use as a backdrop, and my step was too wide a step and my left foot wobbled when I transferred my weight onto it and I was on the floor next minute in an awkward crouch and a loud thundering of the paper backdrop that I tried to lean on. The long and narrow platform had rolled sideways just the slightest and that was that for my chances at Marc Jacobs.
I didn’t mind my humiliation at the moment so much as I worried about how the innards of my left foot were aching and how maybe that was the end of my New York Fashion Week before it had even begun. No such luck, though, for when I regained my feet I found I could indeed still walk, though it hurt to, and Katie Grand grinningly asked me now to walk my runway walk for her, which I did without mishap although I might have looked like the tin man cause I was stepping extra careful.
Two hours later my agent called to tell me that Marc had put me on first option, meaning they wanted me still to potentially do the show, and I did not understand it and was not surprised when in the end they never called for a fitting. Who would book a girl who had faceplanted in the very shoes she’d have to wear out on the catwalk? Someone fond of excitement, perhaps, someone I’m sure but not me. I have a doctor appointment on Thursday to find out how my foot is, and until then it's a Might-be-fracture, and it's by Marc Jacobs so I'll wear it with éclat. If my foot is not whole, at least my sense of humor is, and the peculiar insanity of my modeling job proceeds.
I’m walking through woods carrying a large bowl of fake blood. We made it after lunch with some red food coloring and powdered sugar we found in the kitchen of the cabin we’re renting on the north-eastern shore of Lake Doolittle, the shore that sees the sunset. We’re staying here for a week, my family and our friend Sophia’s family, seven of us total, and all week we swim in the lake and boat on the lake and hike around the lake and photoshoot in and on and around it. Today we’re shooting at it’s far western tip, where the water grows murky and shallow and peters into mud flats that smell like ancient fishy farts but look beautiful with their rushes and moss humps like islands. Nicolai has chosen the fishy inlet as the location for what we’re about to shoot, the second segment of his newest “editorial,” a collection of photos with a constant theme. Reclaimed by the wild is the theme this week. Dressed in a khaki green polyurethane parka, black bikini bottoms, and inscribed on every inch of my skin with fake scratches and scrapes sketched with lip-liner that was once my mother's, I carry the bowl of blood ceremoniously along the path by the lake shore that takes us to the marsh.
It’s hot and humid here and when we arrive Nicolai begins to sprinkle me with fake blood like holy water, and it’s sticky and smells sweet and I hope it doesn't attract more mosquitos. When we were shooting yesterday he was smearing me with mud he scooped from the bottom of the lake using a kayak paddle, and today like yesterday I complain a lot of the discomfort. That’s the thing about shooting with your brother: you can object to the annoying things he makes you do. You can’t do that with other photographers, the serious and professional ones you work with in the city, so I always make a fuss when I pose for Nicolai, partly because he makes me do more outrageous things than anyone else and partly because, well, I can. Of course I end up doing whatever irksome task he asks, though, because ultimately I trust his vision and know that the image he’s chasing will be worth the anguish of wading barefoot in a black and squelchy bog, as I did yesterday, or climbing into the upturned root bulb of a dead and centipede-infested poplar tree, as I’m doing today.
Luckily, on shoots like these that we do at Lake Doolittle, I have our friend Sophia always nearby holding the LED light-wand aloft, and she came knee deep in the swamp mud with me and I thought to myself whatever found me would find her too and maybe four foreign feet would be more intimidating to bog creatures than two. I knew the fish and frogs would stay away, but I wasn't sure about the muskrats, I’ve been bitten by one here before, and what I felt most afraid of was the leeches I’ve spotted like small ribbon clippings flowing under the water’s surface with their soft black backs and flat, white undersides.
No leeches appeared though, and today we are shooting on dry land, maybe too dry and about to disintegrate as I stand on it. I’ve climbed about halfway up the overturned root bulb and Sophia climbed up beside me with the light wand and we blow at the insects that move onto our arms and legs with terrible speed. My limbs are getting a good workout clinging to the wood and we shoot for almost an hour with the tree and other logs around it and then we use up the remaining blood in our bowl and shoot me standing gory on a bridge. Now we’ve lost the light and we’re all hot and hungry. It’s near dinnertime and our parents will be waiting at the cabin and I think tonight we’re having spaghetti. We trundle the quarter mile back along the shoreside trail to home, and Nicolai’s already enumerating his ideas for the next shoot and I’m already insisting I won’t do it, I have real blood on my hands from holding on and unless you’re more considerate dammit I won’t shoot for you anymore Nicolai and this time I mean it. Why would anyone voluntarily place themselves under their brother’s jurisdiction? I wonder this every time and yet I invariably find myself sooner or later knee deep in another swamp for him, or another blood bath.
Someone mentioned recently that a simple way to be happier each day is to lower your expectation of that day. At first to me this smacked of giving up— “I can’t make things good so I’m not even gonna try” kind of thing. But I realized this theory pertains less to what we do ourselves to further our well-being and more to the parts of our days that we cannot influence, like the punctuality of our bus to work, or whether we’ll be successful in overcoming writer’s block when we sit down to write a new blog post. These are circumstances outside our control: why do we categorically expect their best case scenario?
Having understood this, I’ve started to practice it, and the lowering of my various expectations has indeed brought me increased satisfaction in a week when on some days I’m going to castings for New York Fashion Week even though I’m not sure how much of fashion week I’ll be able to do now that I’ve just started two honors courses at my local community college. On the days I don’t have class I run around the city visiting offices of influential fashion people so at least I maintain some involvement in the fashion season, and on these days it is extremely helpful to lower my expectations of the castings I attend so that I won’t be disappointed when shows start and I’m not walking them or when the week ends and I’ve actually lost money rather than made it because of my multitudinous bus and subway fares.
Likewise on my class days I try to lower my expectations of academia. If I expect that my teacher won’t greatly like the essay I wrote or that I’ll have accidentally read the wrong pamphlet for homework, then I’m not as frustrated when it turns out I have indeed read the wrong pamphlet or whatnot (actually, I feel sort of satisfied at knowing my shortcomings so well…but that might just be me). This takes some of the unknown out of the labors of a day, and I fret less over the unacknowledged possibilities for failures that might otherwise weigh on my subconscious, ignored. I become less stressed. Does this not constitute an improvement on my quality of life?
So in review: to have a better day it is mainly important that you don’t lie to yourself about the prospects of that day, that you think realistically about the rather large potential things have to not go the way you want them to. Just don’t expect what isn’t possible— seems simple, right? But actually it isn’t: I think these little glossy lies (or maybe not lies exactly, but refusals to recognize risks; denials) are simply our way of convincing ourselves it’s worth getting up every morning in the first place. What we have to realize is that ignoring uncomfortable possibilities and lying to ourselves that the day will all come off successfully will only wind up making us less satisfied with the outcome of our strivings, as well as distancing us from authentic human interaction and genuine emotion. As the formidable Fyodor Dostoyevsky wrote in the novel I’m currently reading: “Above all, do not lie to yourself. A man who lies to himself and listens to his own lie comes to a point where he does not discern any truth either in himself or anywhere around him, and thus falls into disrespect towards himself and others. Not respecting anyone, he ceases to love…”* and thus, I believe, ceases to be happy. So let’s all be honest with ourselves, and expect less than we might desire, for expectations exceeded will bring not disappointment, but pleasure.
With that, I must go catch a bus to New York. Have a good Monday everyone! Or, you know, just a mediocre Monday— Monday’s aren’t realistically all that amazing, right? But we all make the best of them-- of them and every other day, too.
*The Brothers Karamazov, Book II, ch. 4, Fyodor Dostoyevsky.
The first few points are fairly simple. They are tenets of any healthy lifestyle: mindful eating (quality over quantity; full sensory engagement in each bite; gratitude for each bite) and physical exercise (no explanation required, right)?
But I’m still working on the last points. It’s surprisingly hard to get in enough laughs in a day! Either I don’t spend time with enough humorous people or I’ve an unusually stern and indifferent disposition. ….which both sound about right.
But what about infinite love? Yes, I love my family “without measure,” and my friends “without measure.” But could I love more? I love trees, I suppose. I love them almost obsessively (yes it sounds really weird but my dad has this too so maybe I’m hereditarily really weird). Should I love the sky as well? The sky is without measure. Should I love the rain as well? The rain is nearly without measure, or at least a measure of 1050 millimeters per year. The rain sustains our life, and though life itself is not without measure, the effects of a life are.
I'm starting to realize more and more that it's truly this last point, the love point, that makes all the difference in a life. Its been proven time and again that we become happier individuals when we are attentive of those around us, and act ethically. Ethical practice, as explained by none other than the Dalai Lama, means acting out of concern for the well-being of others, while unethical action is any deed that compromises the happiness or expectation of happiness of another. If acting ethically means not harming others, it requires that we be constantly aware of the feelings of others. This idea lies at the heart of many religious and philosophical doctrines-- but more importantly is something we all know already by instinct. We just don't always make the effort to implement it.
So I for one will keep working on myself. I'll try to love more. I'll try to laugh more, hang with more funny people, maybe lose the resting b*tch face… Cause the things in life that matter are usually the shockingly simple ones, like chewing your food slowly or giving way to your adoration of trees. I know that that specifically may not be for everyone (though honestly look at trees more closely, I’m telling you), but there must be some things you can each find to revel in. Seeking them out and enjoying them— it’s a small price to pay for happier selves.
But it wasn’t all tea and cake, so to speak (surprise!). In fact it turned out to be another day in my model life that I could file under my running “strange things I do for my job” tab, as the rest of the shoot involved standing barefoot in a puddle on drizzly Canal street (ankle deep in warm gutter water afloat with cigarette butts and trash that left my feet brownish colored) and climbing/being pushed from beneath by two men up a wall to get at an inaccessible rooftop for a pic with some illegally-purchased fireworks (the little backyard fountainy kind).
And so that is how an initially lazy afternoon became a puddle-sloshing, building-scaling, firework-lighting, and finally crime-witnessing adventure. All while wearing wool dresses and trying not to look like a hot sweating farm animal. We don’t know if that last endeavor succeeded or not— the spread was entirely shot on film. So we’ll have to wait till September when it’s published to find out just what a ninety-degree day in raining Chinatown looks like, I suppose. At least I can’t say work’s boring!
There was much to do in chile, and still more to talk about. First we covered New York (there was far less news of home than there was of my brother’s exchange), and then we talked of Chile. Chile, Chile, Chile… The place was hazy (rampant smog), mountainous (those Andes! enchanting…), and cold, much colder than I or my brother anticipated. Though the afternoons reached nearly seventy, the mornings and evenings plunged into the mid thirties. It’s currently winter in Santiago, and my brother arrived there three months ago. He only brought a pair of denim jackets. I arrived last Sunday, and I only brought a pair of wool sweaters. (Yes, our apparel tastes are reflected quite aptly there if you were wondering). I was to spend the week with Nicolai and his intercambio Fran (a twelfth grader in the Santiago Waldorf school) at Fran’s house in the semi suburban neighborhood of La Reina.
La Reina— “the queen.” What queen, I wondered? Did it refer to the Spanish monarchs who presided over Chile during its colonial years, via a system of viceroys? Did it refer to an Inca queen who (more justly) held power in the region before that? Modern Chile has had no monarchy, but it did have a dictatorship— I visited the museum devoted to it in Santiago: “Museo de la Memoria,” where we saw black and white video clips of tanks projecting spumes of gas into multitudes of protesting citizens. It was a rather gruesome morning as holiday sightseeing goes (28,000 Chileans tortured, 2,279 executed, and 1,248 missing between 1972 and 1990), but in my inquisitiveness about the identity and mentality of this cryptic country I was ready to devour any information or imagery that might help me understand it.
Chile, though, proved a rather finicky thing to study. Something about it felt to me sort of primal and primitive; sequestered. The Chile I saw was devoid of the recreational trappings and luxuries of my suburban upbringing, and free of the societal stresses— the stigmas and the standards— imposed on individuals in a refined business arena such as New York. People here weren’t as concerned with (or defined by) prestigious advancements in some abstract career track. Nor were they concerned, in their daily lives, with the minutiae of lawfulness (as evidencedby the way my brother and his Chilean friends simply don’t pay bus fare when they ride the city buses) or cleanliness (demonstrated by the bemusing habit Fran’s dog had of pooping in the corner of the dining room every morning, unprevented and unpunished).
But what rather took me by surprise was the unmistakeable air of struggle in the country; of seeking, of irresolution. Perhaps it was leftover from the dictatorship, which still figures strongly in the national consciousness (grandparents and parents of current Chilean men and women are still missing, unaccounted for even 26 years after the fall of the regime.) Perhaps it’s just the way things have always been. I’m not one to say— given my short time here and my minimal exposure to the local reality, I can’t really draw conclusions. But I can share impressions, and I say that my impression last week was of a country still very much developing— still determining its stance on democracy and globalization; as we speak constructing (or reconstructing?) its identity. Chile is steeped in passion, and achingly stolid. It is going somewhere— it’s just not there yet.
I witnessed this passion firsthand when Nicolai, Fran, and I happened upon an illegal demonstration in the city center on Tuesday. We were searching for lunch when we found ourselves confronting a plaza packed with the student movement for education reform in Chile. Eager to explore (and understand, fill in some blanks), we skirted amazed around large armored tanks and groups of visored police guards, pausing as we did to take surreptitious photos of them until they started nudging each other and gesturing towards us and we would scamper on down the sidewalk. A group of kids behind us started dislodging cobblestones from the street and heaving them at guards. Retaliation was not long in coming— the foremost of the tanks lurched into motion, and with surprising speed drove up onto the sidewalk and aimed a powerful stream of water—laced with some chemical variant of tear gas— into the crowd. The exact image I had just seen that morning in the Memoria museum. With the tear gas came (duh) tearing eyes, running noses, burning throats, itching skin, and, an instant later, salesmen with wagons of lemons, which apparently counteract the chemical. We didn’t go for the lemons but we did nab a fistful of napkins from a street cart selling toasted peanuts (…now toasted peanuts a la gas lacrimpógeno)!
I saw their passion resurface two nights later. It was eight pm and I was at a bar with an old friend in the popular Plaza Nuñoa, seated at a sidewalk table. A modest group of high schoolers marched by with a sign I couldn’t quite make out but which had something to do with reinstating free tuition for Chilean colleges, a practice that had existed pre-dictatorship but was abolished with the rise of the military junta. On the heels of the marchers trundled the tanks, methodically spewing tear gas— onto all the customers at all the bars who were all just trying to enjoy a margarita. The whole scenario had the feel of a performance— a rehearsed dance between pedestrian and patrolman, something timeworn and even ritual. Generations have endured this, and continued striving. Chile, steeped in passion; Chile, achingly stolid.
My week with my brother in Santiago, however, wasn’t entirely spent clashing with police and inhaling mildly lethal chemical compounds. We filled our other days with strolls through the shopping district, a trip south to the artistic seaside village of Valparaíso, Pablo Neruda’s house, empanadas sold hot from a neighbor’s kitchen window, poetry writing sessions in Starbucks. A few divine alfajores (traditional South American chocolate/dulce de leche cookies), many mediocre coffees. A photoshoot on a bus at night and a faux birthday party (at a bar one evening Nicolai’s friend secretly alerted a waiter that it was my brother’s birthday, though of course it wasn't, and to our great bewilderment and delight the restaurant staff soon waltzed out of the kitchen with a flaming confection and a loud, unanimous singing of Feliz Cumpleaños). Getting to know my brother again. Something I needed to do not just because of these past three months he’s spent abroad: it’s been longer, maybe even a year or two, since my and his daily realities diverged, and I feel I scarcely know him outside the familial setting. This was our reintroduction, our reacquaintance, and, it happily transpired, our reconnection.
All this against the backdrop of the city of Santiago, with its underpinnings of social and political tension. All this in barrio La Reina. The queen. What was her name, and what would she think of this era, this world? As I rode a taxi to the airport on my final day in South America, I realized that, more than all our fun shoulder-rubbling with police, the cheese empanadas and even the quality sibling time, the most valuable thing this week had offered me was a little sip (not too hot, not too cold) of the ongoing saga of a developing country finding it’s place in what’s becoming an increasingly arbitrary, uncivilized world. I realized that I, too, am a developing entity trying to find my place in this world. But learning a country and learning a brother are light tasks compared with learning oneself. What is my daily reality outside the family setting? Who is La Reina? I, too, am going somewhere—like Chile, I’m just not there yet.
The question I get asked most about being a model is this: "Do you get to keep the clothes?" No. I don't-- with all the models that pass through a designer's atelier this would hardly be a sustainable practice. However, if you're fortunate enough to work with such kind and caring people as happen to comprise the team of Ace & Jig, you might just wake up one morning and find a gift bag of clothes in the mail for you (and, if you're me, be eyebrow-raisingly gleeful for the next few days).
I love clothes, as some of you might know. I especially love summer clothes (I mean, warm weather allows for all the creativity of expression that winter’s tedious coats suppress)! So I was remarkably lucky through this modeling job of mine to be introduced last fall to the brooklyn-based brand Ace & Jig— whose clothes (pure cotton textiles hand woven by a holistic manufacturer in India that even supplies its employees with organic food!) prove that fashion can be at once magically, obsessively beautiful AND practical, ethical, natural. Plus, Ace & Jig creations comprise the ultimate vacation wear, which you can imagine has me drooling. Have you seen anything that hollers “holiday” louder than this red ‘Frances’ tank top of theirs? Like many Ace & Jig pieces, it is reversible, oh-so-satisfyingly layerable, and suits a myriad of occasions. Pair it with a choker and slinky high-waisted pants for a night on the town, or over a wide flouncy skirt for a windswept stroll along the beach. Or imagine this shirt against a South American street colorful enough to match it’s own vibrancy— oh wait, you don’t have to. Because last week in Chile, I spent a day exploring the muraled alleys of Valparaíso, a saturated, art-filled village perched precariously on a hill above the Pacific— and I wore, of course, the most festive summer shirt I could conceive of (and one that doesn’t wrinkle in a suitcase, too)! My brother, camera in hand as usual, took some pictures for me, which turned out, in my mind, to be a photographic homage to the love I bear warm-weather clothes. Here were all my favorite things gathered into one tableau: sun and summer, paint and cotton, art and fashion (and a really tasty ice cream shop just out of the frame! Yes, we got some). This was Chile, this was summer, this was— and will, I hope, always be— my dearest, loveliest Ace & Jig.
Photos by Nicolai Tadeushuk, unedited.
London has uncommon good weather during the week of June 20-25. I am here with a high school friend of mine for a hybrid pleasure/business trip. Our plan is to bundle a staggering amount of tourist sites into the two days that we spend in a centrally-situated Air BnB before parting ways for the next three days while I attend castings and stay with, appropriately enough, a high school friend of my mom’s!
I’m marveling at this legacy but thinking; really, for all Westminster’s greatness, I like myself more than it, and I wouldn't trade places with the Abbey for all the world. Is any human existence equal in value to a landmark such as this? I mean, would they destroy Westminster if such was the price of saving a single somebody trapped inside? Or would they prioritize this bastion of national identity over an ordinary person’s life? Public scandal! it would be a public scandal to do so. A thing the British, as a rule, avoid.
We get up, blink, stretch. Down “Broad Sanctuary” street and round the bend into “Little Sanctuary” street, I leave behind my bulging brainiac bliss, spangled above the green. My brain— exhaustive, convoluted thing— moves on with me (what ho! does it really belong to this head?) and it thinks now on other things.
I am thinking of Brexit. It is Friday, one of my allotted business days, and also the morning after the Referendum to leave the European Union. It’s 5:45 am. I have woken so early because my kind hosts are relocating to Seattle today, and within an hour the couch I’ve usurped as bed will be boxed up and brought to the quay. But before deserting said couch (and the lifeline of wifi that appends it), I linger, knotted in my blankets, to scroll through my phone— and I can hardly believe what I find there. Throughout the past four days in London I have seen only support to “REMAIN” in the bloc: picketers on train platforms, social media propaganda (#bremain?), raucous coffee counter rants about xenophobes. Where then did the “LEAVE” support come from? Through what cobblestoned cracks of rural Britannia scuttled this ra-ra egoism and brazen prejudice? Public scandal, public scandal: it’s a debacle that now can’t be avoided.
And shaken up it does appear to be. And I am a little bit, too, as I board a train at King’s Cross and rumble off towards the northeastern suburb of Waltham Abbey, where I will rejoin my friend for our last day together before she returns to her career in Israel and I to mine in New York. (My full-time coffee-drinking career, that is). I muse on what has struck me most today: the way strangers search each other’s faces in passing. The way no one directly mentions Brexit, but rather looks it, shoves their keen awareness of it into one another’s eyes on the street, in an elevator, on line at Marks and Spencer. Is it just me who gets a sort of ice cube thrill from knowing that all these significant looks, grim nods and cocked eyebrows reference one and the same subject? That we’re all in something together? Whether our opinions concur or not is inconsequential; what I relish is the strange unity of our brains as we each absorb separately some common information. Shared experience. Society is knit of shared experience.
And so is history, really. What classifies something as a historical event if not the fact that it effects many individuals at once? So, then. This must be what witnessing history feels like. I'm no Westminster Abbey but at least now I've seen something mildly momentous... I step off my train in the beige township of Loughton. Trees once more surround me; wriggling, vibrant trees drying after a brief rain. I stand on the station steps, shade my eyes as I scan the parking lot. Who of us knows really what will come next? An ebbing of a vast European tide? A lawn sprawled bliss? I spot my friend, we move, brain follows.
The Strange Things I Do For my Job, Part IV.
These strange things are mounting in imaginativeness, as last week I was asked to take a video of myself “jumping on rocks.” It was to be casting material for a French perfume advertisement; the client wanted to see how I moved on camera— specifically, how I sprung amid imaginary stepping stones in an imaginary lake trailing imaginary silks and streamers. At home in the suburbs between a doctor’s appointment and trip to the supermarket, I got my mom to film me bounding about our garden; a slightly shaky, substantially overexposed, thirty second iPhone clip complete with our neighbor’s lawnmower hum in the background. Jump, hop, squint, skip. Send off to Paris with a signature iPhone whoosh. Maybe they’ll ask for cartwheels next?
At this mild time of year, in the pleasant, pastoral month of May, my ex-classmates (still the strongest peer family I have) are all returning from far-flung dorms and libraries and reconvening here, in the glorious county of Rockland, NY. In the twelve months since we all, in our staggering sum of 23 individuals, graduated from high school last June, they've been through the thrills & throes of the American college freshman experience. And I? How have I sprinkled away these months? As what in September I called my "limbo hinterland" hurtles round its final bend (and perhaps into another incarnation?), I look back on just what exactly it is that has filled, and fueled, my Gap Year.
Chocolate. And Chocolate. And Chocolate.
You may be familiar with the above apparatus. Or, like myself a year ago, you may have never seen it before, as it is a tool I— with my geek-meets-granddad personal style— have little use for. But this, my friends, is an eyelash curler, and I can now vouchsafe I know most everything there is to know about it, for a few months ago I had the opportunity to spend some one-on-one time with a pink Japanese eyelash curler on the set of my last French Vogue shoot. It was a windy night and, in a studio in the 13th arrondissement of Paris, a small team of artists from all continents and climes was working to create what an internal memo dictated should be “an atypical beauty shot.” The antics involved in realizing such a vision included me getting black acrylic paint dabbed into my eye rims so I could cry black tears (which I did no problem!); biting limes while still attempting to look composed and edgy; and trying to balance thin rounds of an orange over my eyes as the fruit inevitably inched down my cheeks in a sweet and juicy exodus towards the floor.
Enter eyelash curler. Enter confusing pink contraption and the dictum from somewhere off set: Play with your eyelid. Play with my eyelid? A thing I’d never before contemplated. But it did the trick— it achieved atypicality for a thing by nature fairly typical. I left the studio that night wearing an unusually slack upper lid on my right eye— and a grin. Cause after all, one can never expect beauty to come without pain, right? Not to mention French beauty— VOGUE beauty! Neither, it seems, can one ever expect to do the expected when it comes to fast-paced—and sometimes fruity— fashion.
Photograph by Ben Hassett, Makeup by Georgina Graham. Vogue Paris April 2016.
I’ve been a Vegetarian all my life. Which means that I depend on dairy (cheese, mostly) as one of my primary sources of protein— and for a little indulgent, high-caloric yumminess every once in a while. Well, more than once in a while: cheese goes with everything, what can I say… Well, imagine my dismay— nay, horror— when my doctor told me that in hopes of remedying the recurring stomach bugs I’ve been having recently I should…quit dairy. Me, quit dairy? I can live without meat (duh); I can live without gluten (there are so many worthy alternatives); but please doctor, not the cheese! Did she know what she was asking?
Just for three months, she assured me— just to test it. So I resignedly abandoned dairy, one and a half months ago. Alas not longer yet… but it does get easier as I go. The hell becomes a bit less hellish, you could say— in all respects but one. Though the nostalgia for milk in my coffee may wane daily, what does NOT lessen is the utter grossness of VEGAN CHEESE. Hush, hush! don’t even invoke its name! It is a living (literally: fermented) force of evil, the eleventh of Moses’ Ten Plagues— arrived a few millennia late, perhaps, but for all it’s tardiness no worse equipped to rival the frog deluge or boil epidemic of Ancient Egyptian days.
Ok.. never get near this stuff please. First, the texture is like that of melted plastic (as is the flavor, it just so happens) but worse by far is the filmy aftertaste it leaves in your mouth: bubblegum. This, however, is bubblegum that you stuck behind your ear for a few days (during which interim you neglected to shower) and then decided to eat again. Yes, folks, this deserves to be the dictionary definition of “Blech” (although I don’t think “blech” is actually in the dictionary yet? Soon it will be, though— and with a picture of “Vegan Gourmet Mozzarella” beside it)!
This cheese comes in a beautifullll, fancy package— but don’t let that fool you. It tastes more like wallpaper paste than any aged, artisanal food product I know.
I tried a recipe I found online, and was sorely disappointed. After diligently boiling and pulverizing carrots, potatoes, and cashews with garlic, I found myself in possession of a sort of pungent cement that was posturing, it seemed, as fondue. Even down to it’s lumpy orange color. Meh.
#2. Treeline: "Soft French-Style Nut Cheese in Garlic Herb Flavor:"
Basically, “Garlic Herb flavor” says it all. When it comes to this spread, the only thing I really have to say about it (aside from the fact that it was criminally overpriced at $8.29 for a tiny jar!!!) is that it is very, very garlicky. It is palatable, yes, but just as another dubious-looking, breath-befouling hors d’oeuvre you find at a family party. Not quite as cheese.
This is the most cheese-like non-cheese I’ve tasted to date. I actually found myself eating it straight by the slice, without having to mask it’s taste with crackers as I did the others. Right color, right texture…quite a happy discovery.
I get up at 6:45 every morning but Sundays, eat breakfast alongside my family all piled in my parents’ bed, then go for a long walk through the woods and fields nearby.
This done, I usually sit down to write— at the nearest coffee shop. Writing at home is a snag-prone business (such an abundance of distractions! That chocolate bar you stowed under the egg carton in the fridge. Mom accidentally putting tinfoil in the microwave. The Romance novel you’re two chapters from finishing. Mad Men Season 7. The list goes on). At Bulldog, though, (the coffeeshop) I can enjoy a more focused, disciplined environment— and a strong cappuccino, too! The bench in the corner by the window becomes my very own office for two hours each morning, and has seen many a post hammered out that you’ve hopefully read here.
At the start of this blog I claimed to be no Liz Gilbert (author of Eat Pray Love. If you’re not familiar, she took a sort of gap year from life to do some soul-searching, and got a book deal out of it to boot! The lady certainly knows a good thing when she sees it.) But now I begin to question my assertion of dissimilarity more and more. Of course certain things haven't changed— I’m still not a middle-aged divorcee like she, not to mention renowned writer published in 30 different languages!— but something in my between-jobs lifestyle has certainly come to resemble the routine of someone far older than myself. And I’m talking FAR older…Grandparent older. In fact, I’ve dubbed this routine I step in and out of Intermittent Retirement, for the only things distinguishing me from the frosty-haired, golden-aged members of our populace are 1) I don’t yet have frosty hair and 2) I live with my parents— a luxury not many other retirees have access to. That, and the little matter of walking runways, another thing I haven't seen many seniors up to. Maybe there’s a new business there? Step aside, girls: Maggie Smith's in the house!
Anyway, this retired lifestyle is peaceful and, on most days, productive. Whether it’s affordable— or desirable— outside my current circumstances is another question entirely (and spoiler: the answer is probably no, even for such a homebody as myself). But at this moment in time, it constitutes an ideal counterpart to the job I pursue, balancing the tumult of travel with the tranquility of routine; the pressure of publicity with the security of seclusion; the breathless tempo of fashion (many brands churn out between 4 and 8 collections a year!) with the plodding pace of my writing (it takes me between 4 and 8 days just to finish one piece to satisfaction)…in short, it balances in considerable harmony the outward and inward forces of my gap year. What better arrangement could I ask for?
None that I’m aware of. Which is why I’m considering taking another year off before starting college: a Gap Year 2.0. I’ve been pondering this now for a few months— decisions always put me through the wringer, and this one was no exception— and I have concluded (at least, I think, maybe?) to defer school again this fall in favor of my job, my blog, and, yes, my honorary grandmahood. It is in some ways a leap of faith (what if I don’t continue to get work? What if I lose all my hair? Lose my teeth? Lose my curiosity?) but I feel that I’ve had the great fortune of hitting on something good here— a rare synthesis of freedom and responsibility, a precious interlude between one of my lives, which has already ended, and the next, which has yet to begin— and it just so happens that sometimes I, too, know a good thing when I see it.
At least, I think, maybe.
Ironically, just as I wrapped up this very post, I got a call from my agent: Could I perchance fly to Dallas tonight? Apparently sometimes we can't even plan as far ahead as dinner!
Water is something I’ve been thinking about a lot recently. We depend on it for almost everything we do, and we also waste it in almost everything we do. Today in America, we have become accustomed to the idea that the planet is running out of fresh water. But only the idea of it. When instances of water shortage actually present themselves to our population in temporary, circumstantial forms (2011-17 drought in Cali, 2016 contamination in Flint, etc), the nation is thrown into a royal uproar over the inconvenience. But these immediate issues are only the fleeting shadows (or foreshadows, I should say) of the greater global water crisis that is now our planet’s slow and stealthy death knell.
What I want to make clear, though, is that it’s not actually all that slow, or stealthy. The demise of our life-source, lifestyle, and planet, of our civilization, not to mention our own charming species, is advancing fast, advancing now: and right in front of our own charmed eyes. Scientists predict that by the year 2030 more than half of the world’s population will live under chronic water shortage, a condition defined by the Water Stress Index as having less than 1,000 cubic meters of water available per head per year. That's only fourteen years from now: MOST OF US WILL STILL BE AROUND to experience this chronic shortage. Talk about California droughts and Flint contaminations— these sorts of irksome scarcities are going to become a year-round reality for 50% of humanity.
The sooner we address the water crisis, then, the better, for each year that passes sees roughly 3,750 billion cubic meters of fresh water consumed worldwide— a figure that shows no sign of diminishing, as the global rate of water consumption, driven by growing population, increases by no less than 64 billion cubic meters per year. To the best of my minimal mathematical ability, I tried to put this in perspective, and calculated that the world consumes 4.3 million Olympic swimming pools worth of water every day. That is enough Olympic pools to cover the five boroughs of New York City SEVEN TIMES OVER, EACH DAY. In other terms, all of New York could be submerged daily under 46 feet of water, enough to reach the fifth floor of the Empire State Building.
farmers can implement more efficient methods of watering crops, such as drip-irrigation.
Politicians might impose higher tariffs on water purchase and fines for pollution.
Nations might privatize the management and distribution of water: if companies handle our resources rather than governments, water would be better shielded from political corruption and partisan power struggles.
But these aren’t really things you and I can jump up and do right this minute (Unless, of course, you happen to be a state governor, in which case I doubt you are reading my blog). Anyhow, for those plebeian, non-state-governerning members of our society, I propose a list of day-to-day measures that will allow us each, in our own orbit, to impact this wretched state of worldly water affairs.
1. You may look at me funny when I tell you that one of the most effective ways you can limit water consumption is by eating vegetarian. But let me explain. The majority of water consumption is concealed in something known as "virtual water”— all the water that goes into the creation of a product but cannot be seen in its outcome. Beef is the most water-intensive product that we make, as beef cattle have an average lifespan of three years in a holding tank before their slaughter: the virtual water in a single kilo of beef accounts for the water that the cow drank for three years (24,000 liters), the water used to grow the grain he ate for three years (3,060,000 liters), and the water used to service the farmhouse and the butchering procedure (7,000 liters). The total? A staggering 15,400 liters of water to create A SINGLE KILO OF BEEF! Other meats (especially goat and poultry) are less water-intensive than this, not to mention vegetables and fruits, which are exceedingly more efficient to produce. Moral of the story? Maybe allot a few days each week to eat vegetarian. Opt for a turkey burger instead of a beef one next time. Or dare I suggest…a veggie burger?
2. Stop wasting food! Agriculture is by far the largest consumer of clean water, accounting for more than 70% of global water usage. But the average household in an advanced economy like that of the US throws out 30% of the food it buys. That means that of all that water we dumped into agriculture (and that inefficient kilo of steak!) an entire THIRD of it goes down the drain when it reaches our tables. So please, buy only as much food as you’ll eat; cook only as much food as you’ll eat; serve yourself ONLY as much food as you’ll eat! Store the leftovers— and don’t forget them at the back of the fridge for months!!
3. Be frugal with household water. The largest consumer of household water is the flushing of toilets. A thing quite necessary, to be sure. But perhaps over-used. I know I’m volunteering myself for all sorts of ridicule here when I remind you of this nursery saying, but… “If it’s yellow, let it mellow— if it’s brown, flush it down.” Sorry.
Turning off the shower faucet while you shampoo or shave.
Turning off the sink faucet while you soap your hands before dinner, or scrub your dishes after. Rinsing requires water to be running: sudsing does not. Just shut it off for a minute.
Don’t shower every day. It has been proven unnecessary, and even unhealthy, to strip the skin of its natural oils so persistently, so do yourself (and the planet) a favor and decrease your shower and bath time. No one will smell the difference: our bodies adjust their oil/odor production to our washing schedule, not vice versa.
4. Stop using lawn products. Fertilizers and insecticides get washed away with rain and run into ground water supply, polluting otherwise clean reservoirs.
5. Any other ideas you have— I’ve done a bunch of research but am definitely no expert. What else can you come up with?
Because the issue of water shortage is one that people of all ages, races, and religions can and must take an interest in— it’s not yet too late to shift our fate. Though we can’t keep water on this planet forever, we may at least extend its presence here by a few centuries if we pull ourselves together and make some amendments to our lifestyles. Starting now! Use less, pollute less, and spread the awareness— three…two…one…GO.
The New Holy Trinity? Words, Weather, and Wee Little Wonders.
It is still dark this morning when we leave the house for Hook Mountain. I am only half awake, feeling drowsy and a bit like a wilted tea leaf in last night's drained mug that's still on my dresser. Today is Sunday- Easter Sunday no less- but this morning there's no limitless lounging twixt the sheets, no slow, easy emulsion of coffee and undisrupted reading. This morning I am climbing the “Hook” to watch the sun rise over the Hudson River— with my family, close friends, and a backpack full of breakfast.
Is writing as she walks.
Is she then a writing walker?
Stomping a search for synonyms. Not cinnamon. That’s already in the cupboard.
Did you know “rust” is a synonym for cinnamon?
We reach the peak of the Hook, a tall, bald lookout on the west bank of the Hudson. The river is wide and a dull, wrinkled grey; reflective of the overcast sky that is shrouding our treasured sunrise. Oh well: a narrow strip of pink is all we’re graced with, just a glimpse of dawn “spread out against the sky / like a patient etherized upon a table,” as T.S. Eliot would elegantly put it— or, as I might paint the image, like the slimy orange slabs of smoked salmon whose unique odor drove me from the kitchen as a child vegetarian, holding my nose.
Breakfast is eaten alfresco and the hike is reversed. Back home by ten, we rally to prepare an extravagant lunch (soups and grilled veggies and quiches, oh my!), host a humbly extravagant (if such a paradox can be tolerated) lunch party, and decorate eggs in the ancient Ukrainian Easter tradition (which is to say playing with fire, melted wax, raw eggs and lots of pretty plant dyes)!
So you see, on this lovely day of March 27, 2016, this mild Easter Sunday, I was robbed both of sunrise and sunset: one obscured by stratocumulus fog, the other by my leaden lids. What I did see of this day, though, far made up for the solar splendors I missed, and was peaceful, luxuriant, and- in our own haphazard, familial way- gleefully, wistfully sacred.
My Fantastic early Morning Face, Photobombed by The Fantastic View.
Cappuccino and Champaign Back at Home-- Because Who Said Good Things Can't Come In Pairs?
My First Egg of this Year: Frida Kahlo (who else)!
The Fam, Home Peacefully in the Afternoon.
At the outset of this year— in the inaugural post of this blog— I hoped my months would be strung together by the two themes of satisfaction and delight. And so they have been-- with the additions of many other wonderful things (French hot chocolate rich as Trump), and unwonderful things (Trump), and of course many unexpected things, the most prominent and constant of which has been MOTION. To my surprise (and delight and satisfaction, if we're true to form!), I have travelled oftener and covered vaster distances in these past six months than I had in all my combined years hitherto. And nearly all of that motion has been through public transportation. Wherever I am in the world, and in whatever vehicle, I rub shoulders with the quirky and the elegant, the militant and the musical, the sleepy and the scornful alike— and catch a glimpse of the lives of each.
1. On the metro between castings last week in Paris, my train car was serenaded by two different street performers in quick succession: the first, an elderly gentleman with a trumpet and a mustache, played very well, and I gave him a euro for his skill and for reminding me how romantic Paris can be. To the second performer, an old lady who had only her voice as instrument and howled rather tunelessly, I also gave a euro— for her grievous lack of skill and the bad luck of having such formidable trumpeters to compete with. Moral of the story? If you should ever wish to take your musical talents (or non-talents!) to the subways of Paris, choose wisely the acts you follow. That, and… it seems my wallet is rather easy prey regardless, so scratch that about skill and wise choosing!
2. There is a dead man outside Port Authority. It’s a February morning on the steps leading to the terminal. Two EMS personnel are propping him up on a chair draped in a white sheet, darting forward repeatedly to uphold a tumbling limb like two children vainly persuading a heap of stones to stand upright. His bare feet lie splayed on the concrete, grimy and relaxed. I want to get far away from him, fast, but some perverse curiosity detains me on the steps to watch and wonder at his fate. I’m expected at a shoot, though, so I pass through the doors and to the subway. What would my agents say if I told them t'was a dead man made me late?
3. On a puddle jumper headed from New York to Dallas the other evening, I couldn't help overhearing the conversation of two men in the seats behind me (the rows were so tight, it was impossible not to!). One was old, the other young; one was Texan, the other a New Yorker; and both were strangers to each other. The older man, wearing a pink polo shirt, slacks, and loafers, was reminiscing to his seat-mate, unbidden, about his youthful dalliance with the army.
“When I finished school,” he claimed, “I joined the US army, for two reasons mainly: shooting a gun is fun, and I wanted to also see the world.” Korea was the US enterprise of the time, but our pink polo fellow didn’t get very far because, it seems, when he went to basic training he fell “madly in love with a flight attendant, and… that was it.” He decided not to go to war.
“Well at least, you know, you, um, had a happy ending,” the New York man timidly supplied.
His son gazed silently ahead. What hope rests on new generations!
When you’re in Paris for work it’s often easy to disregard your setting and overlook all that the city offers— especially when your work happens to be fashion week. For fashion week, like a parrot, is a glittering, captivating creature of ever-shifting humors who demands all of your attention and most of your time. Fashion week keeps you up late with midnight fittings and wakes you up early with 6 am call times. Fashion week blisters your feet with extraordinary shoes and fries your hair with flatirons. Fashion week worries you and thrills you and disciplines you, swoops you up to giddy heights and drops you down at the end of a month feeling at once drained and exhilarated. But mostly drained. So why all the bother for a month of shows that leaves you wondering what hit you? Because not only are there practical rewards to be gained from a show season (like exposure and client relationships that may pay off in jobs down the road), but also a huge amount of insight and worldly experience to be gleaned from this month of madness. Fashion week, and modeling in general, is a window into this most complex of world-wide industries, and provides a view not only of some of the most renowned artists of our modern era, but also of the culture we live in. It is for this view—the privilege of seeing these artists work and this culture evolve, of witnessing the most enchanting and absurd of characters, of experiencing society and experiencing the individual—for this I immerse myself in the frenzy of this month and pursue the unpredictable runway circuit. How’s that for living on the edge of your seat?
This job, however, isn’t entirely about change, and there are in fact some aspects of show season that for a model are quite predictable.
1. Castings— Sometimes a blast with a bunch of your best friends and other times long and uneventful, castings are the standard way to meet the high and mighty of the fashion industry and (hopefully) book jobs!
2. Fittings— Fittings and sleep deprivation go hand in hand, as fittings usually occur the night before a show and are no instantaneous process— no effort is spared nor detail neglected when the realization of a designer’s vision is at hand. Seams must be altered, shoes insoled, jewelry paired, bags stuffed and belts hole-punched. At the end of the night—sometimes with the first light of dawn— an abstract concept or sketch on paper has been given life. Quirky hours and sleep loss notwithstanding, I find fittings to be consistently wondrous things.
3. Meeting Interesting People: As a model my itinerant job exposes me to quite a parade of characters, like the dresser at Isabel Marant a few days ago who assured me that dog walking was more lucrative than baby-sitting (not to mention dogs more managable than children); hadn’t I ever tried it?
4. Blistered Feet— Pediatric woe is an inevitable byproduct of show season. You may not imagine that shoes could actually create blisters in such short periods of contact (let alone blisters of such considerable size!), but once you try wearing a few new, cutting-edge (literally) pairs of shoes every day sans socks, you’ll quickly come to understand!
5. Wearing Interesting Clothes— As someone who reveres craftsmanship and beauty, it’s a thrill for me to be able to represent the brands I find myself regularly ogling through store windows. This black chiffon shirt belonged to my retro/punk outfit at Isabel Marant, and take my word for it: it looked much better in real life.
But amidst all this hubbub of work, it is important to occasionally pause and remind yourself that you are in fact standing a few hundred feet from the Eiffel Tower over there, or perhaps around the corner from the granite wonder that is Notre Dame. Because, though shows may change, and trends and tastes fluctuate from season to season, the one circumstance in all of Paris Fashion Week that never, ever alters, is Paris.
1. Food: Start your day off like the Parisians— that is, with a delicious, not-exactly-nutritious breakfast. A fresh croissant, crispy on the outside, stretchy on the inside, is the holy marriage of butter and dough…and pairs lamentably well with a hot café creme.
2. Music: Get serenaded by a street musician— it’s not hard to arrange. On nearly every subway at nearly every hour throughout the day and city you can find singers, saxophonists, trumpeters…I even saw one guy playing a harp! When you hear La Vie en Rose warbled by solo trumpet in a near-empty metro car late at night, you can’t help but feel drawn into that magical, heart-warming romance Paris is so famous for.
3. Sweet Meetings: Grabbing hot chocolate with a friend is the best way to break up the stream of castings and remind yourself that in addition to a lot of other things, Paris happens to be capital of sugary treats! Especially when the hot chocolate you're grabbing is no less than “the best hot chocolate in Paris” (according to Coco Chanel), and as far as I can judge rich chocolaty things—which is pretty well— the best hot chocolate ever, at cafe Angelina. Thick as gravy and rich as Trump (but a good deal more palatable), it is just extravagant enough to make a rainy hour in a hectic day feel like a special occasion.
4. Wander the streets: My favorite part of Paris (besides the pastries, of course) is the architecture. If you have time enough to walk somewhere rather than take the metro, go for it— every alley is a feast for the eyes.
5. Get Inspired: Write a poem in a spare moment— it helps evoke the city's abounding literary past. Because it’s sometimes refreshing to shoo that fashion parrot from off your shoulder, and listen a little, taste a little, contribute a little to the indomitable essence of Paris. You see? Life on the edge need not always feel hectic— sometimes it can simply feel French.
Sorry I'm posting this quite late, but I've been in the thick of fashion week and what with travel and work haven't had a minute. But I'm done now, and here you go-- one from two weeks ago!
I spent the last two days in Dallas shooting for Neiman Marcus (yes, not just a 24 hour sleepover,— two days this time! I’m moving up in the world…I hope), and for some reason they put me up not only in the king of all kingly hotels, the Four Seasons, but in the king of kingly rooms, a suite. And this wasn’t just any suite. This was a stand-alone suite the size of an Adirondacks cabin, detached from the main hotel building and located down a path that wound by the bubbling (and odorous) hot tub and over a bridge straddling the shimmering outdoor swimming pool (there’s a tongue twister for you)… Anyway when I finally reached my room (or shall I say, apartment!) I was amazed to find what all I had to myself: two bathrooms, a huge bedroom with a desk, sofa, and master bed; a living space complete with dining table, fireplace, and another sofa; and a patio with wooden chairs overlooking the resort’s golf course. All these luxuries, and only me to enjoy them! These two days in Texas were very busy— and not all with work!
2. Try both the shower AND the bath… leaving some time between, of course, to let your skin un-wrinkle… as much as I appreciate (and exemplify!) the granny look, it isn't always optimal-- especially when you have a shoot the next morning!
3. Turn on the tv in two different rooms and on two different channels while you wander around packing and getting ready for bed. I don’t have a tv at home, so this was an unusual treat, and a great way to see a bit of everything— wander through the living room to glimpse the news stories (politics politics politics, peppered with a few fresh atrocities from the innumerable pockets of unrest in the world); then through the bedroom to catch up on the contrasting first world unrests of the Kardashians and co.
4. Do some yoga on the terrace at midnight: after a long day in a studio bouncing between makeup chair and set, it is wonderful to stretch your body and breathe some fresh air at last, even if a bit chilly!
5. Once you’ve worked out enough (like after three minutes) make a cup of tea in the little water boiler and throw on a coat. Sit out there in the deepest of the deck chairs, sip your tea, listen to the quiet buzzing of the pool filter nearby and survey the large, flat, dark Dallas sky and the occasional golf cart that goes silently by.
When newer models ask me for advice about modeling (not that I’m an expert by any means, but occasionally it happens), I always tell them it’s imperative to learn not to take personally the losses and gains of jobs, especially in runway. The competition for work is great (there are so many stunning girls out there), the frustrations frequent, and the only way to avoid chronic devastation is to detach yourself emotionally from the “confirmations” and “releases” of bookings: in reality neither have anything to do with you, but rather with your height, your hair color, the relationship (or shall I say rivalry) between two casting directors who won't both hire the same girl, or even the shape of your earlobes (as in the case of a Vogue jewelry shoot I was considered for a few months ago)! To be disappointed over these arbitrary circumstances would be foolish— and useless.
Then this week my doctrine was put to the test. This week was New York Fashion Week, and my ruminations— maybe premonitions?—of the previous journal entry proved eerily close to the reality that has come to pass. Somehow— from a combination of scheduling conflicts that tied my hands, a trending hunger for catwalk populations of edgy, unexpected faces that I can’t satisfy, and an industry-wide disinterest in models who aren't seasoned enough to be someone yet no longer new enough to be no one,— from such an agglomeration of circumstances, and probably others I’m not aware of, I struggled to book shows this season. Walking for only three brands (three wonderful brands, to be sure, but three nonetheless), I received an unprecedented opportunity to try my detachment theory. And I found it tricky— like many things, easier said than done. It’s hard to dismiss something as being “not about you” when getting booked for or dropped from a runway show seems so directly about… you. The earlobes, though; the rivalries and heights and hair colors, must all be remembered at these moments. You’ve really worked yourself up over nothing: this modeling job, you remind yourself, is just that: a job, holding no more significance than any other service we perform to pay the bills. Stripped of the thrilling idea of glamor and prestige, it no longer warrants any special emotional attachment. After all, it’s not glamor and prestige that matter— those come arbitrarily to those of good earlobes and certain hair colors. At the end of the day only diligence and perseverance are meaningful.
After thus praising perseverance, I will now seem riotously hypocritical when I tell you that in light of my meager New York fashion week I have decided not to continue on to Milan. Phony two-faced shrew, am I right? But let me explain. I believe there’s a certain time and place for perseverance, and a certain time and place for prudence, too. Spending my money and energy abroad in the pursuit of a show season that has given generous indication of not wanting me to pursue it would be sheer foolhardiness, and so I have strategically resolved to stay home. (Well, not exactly home… I have a job scheduled next week on the other side of country, but any place in this hemisphere is close enough to home for me)!
In doing some "fact-checking" for this piece I discovered that most of Europe is actually in the Eastern Hemisphere, which was a convenient but unexpected fact. | 2019-04-25T08:54:51Z | http://www.zuzutadeushuk.com/home/?offset=1475064247723&category=Journal |
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Do EPAs undermine regional integration in Southern Africa?
Our guest of the week is Mario Giuseppe Varrenti, coordinator of the project "UN Millenium Development Goals" that the European student association AEGEE conducted between Europe, India and South Africa. At the European Commission where Varrenti is now working, he presented the main outcomes of the project.
While Europe celebrated its 61st birthday this week, MEPs recalled that "Europe is not a given", but a task ahead of us. They criticised the possible reintroduction of border checks in the Schengen area and asked for a stronger European voice on the international scene. Also this week, there was a musical celebration of Europe day and an unprecedented spam attack on Parliament’s Facebook page.
Europe Day On 9 May, Europe celebrated the anniversary of the signature of the Schuman Declaration in 1950 that laid the foundations of the EU. This year is also the 25th anniversary of two EU symbols - the flag and anthem. A piano concert and traditional flag raising ceremony in Strasbourg marked the event.
MEPs discussed the future of the Schengen agreement and French and Italian calls for the temporary reintroduction of border controls inside the Schengen area. Most speakers criticised the proposition, but some called for better control of immigrant flows.
Consumers suffering from allergies may be the main beneficiaries of the new textile labelling scheme, which stipulates product labels must clearly indicate if textiles contain real fur or leather, both of which can be a health hazard to allergy sufferers.
So-called cloned and other novel food will not be labelled in Europe for now, after conciliation talks between the EP and Council failed. MEPs called on the Commission to come up with new proposals as soon as possible.
Emergency measures are needed to help fishermen suffering from high oil prices, says the European Parliament. It believes the current ceiling on state aid should rise from €30,000 to €60,000 per company and new technologies be used to improve energy efficiency. A long-term approach is required to avoid similar problems in future. The current high oil prices have had a severe impact on operating costs of fishermen, even forcing some to stop work. Parliament calls on the Commission to introduce emergency measures including raising the current ceiling for state aid from €30,000 to €60,000 per company for a transitional period of three years. These temporary measures should not result in unfair competition between Member States, says the resolution, which was tabled by several political groups and adopted by 369 votes to 203 with 27 abstentions. The possibility should be explored of temporarily financing the support measures from margins of the EU fisheries budget for as long as no other type of measure is implemented, argues Parliament. To avoid similar problems caused by oil price volatility in future, MEPs ask Commission to come up with a medium and long-term plan for improving fuel efficiency in the fisheries industry and to promote investment in new technology at European and national level to increase energy efficiency and reduce the fishermen's dependence on fossil fuels. Efforts to improve fuel efficiency should also become an integral part of the upcoming CFP (Common Fisheries Policy) reform, believes Parliament. The reform of the European Fisheries Fund should ensure that aid continues to be granted above all to small scale coastal and traditional fishermen.
Two days after the budget commissioner’s declarations who called for a “reduction of the share” of the EU budget made up of agricultural expenses, the French president strikes back. France will block any form of the CAP that does not stay within the same budget, Sarkozy declared during a visit in Picardie on 12 May.
Ahead of negotiations with Mauritania on the renewal of one of the most important of EU fisheries agreements, Parliament's main concern is to balance economic benefits with conservation of resources. MEPs are stressing the vital importance of sustainability, better coordination of EU funds and aid for infrastructure development in Mauritania to boost the local economy. Concerned about overexploitation of certain stocks, such as octopus, MEPs call on the Commission to discuss with Mauritania the development of long-term fisheries management plans that would include the allocation of catches to Mauritania's national fleets and to third country vessels, including those flying the EU flag. Sustainable development of local fisheries shall also be supported financially, with money being granted in particular for research, control or infrastructure. EU vessels should fish only surplus stock and exploit solely those resources Mauritanian fishermen are unable to harvest themselves, according to the resolution, which was tabled by several political groups and adopted by show of hands.
France on Wednesday cancelled 100% of Togo’s debt, which comes up to 66,2 billion Fcfa (101,1 million Euros) in favour of a treaty on the reorganisation of debt between the two countries. “This substantial cancellation is to reduce the weight of Togolese debt to a manageable level so that Togo has the means to pursue its financial recovery and its reforms and to dedicate enough resources to its social and economic development”, the French embassy said in a press statement. The agreement signed between Dominque Renaux, France’s ambassador in Lomé and the Togolese finance and economics minister Adji Otéth Ayassor. At the end of last year, Togo benefitted from a cancelation of 80% of its external debt because it reached the fulfillment point of the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries Initiative (HIPC) in record speed.
Ahead of Commissioner Piebalgs’ first visit to South Sudan from 12-14 May, the European Voice reports that the Commission asked Member States for an additional 200 million EUR of funds. The money is destined to prevent funding gaps following South Sudan’s independence, which it is expected to declare on 9 July. Member states in principle agreed on 5 May to use unspent development funds in order to support South Sudan in its development.
On Wednesday MEPs approved, by a show of hands, a second-reading agreement struck by Parliament and the Council just before Easter on a new regulation on textile labelling. Parliament's negotiators, led by Dutch MEP Toine Manders (ALDE), won concessions from Member States on mandatory labelling of fur and leather parts and a feasibility study on origin labelling. Any use of animal-derived materials will have to be clearly stated on textile product labels. Fur is often used to trim relatively inexpensive garments and it is often hard for consumers to distinguish between real fur and good quality fake fur. Parliament has ensured that textiles containing such products must be labelled "contains non-textile parts of animal origin" to enable consumers to identify them. Allergy sufferers, for whom fur is a potential health hazard, will be among the beneficiaries. The Commission is also asked to carry out a study, by 30 September 2013, on hazardous substances to assess whether there is a causal link between allergic reactions and chemical substances (e.g. colourings, biocides or nanoparticles), used in textile products.
European Parliament Vice-President Gianni Pittella on Wednesday deplored the fact that the sale of food of cloned animal origin will continue to be permitted in the EU without labelling requirements, in a plenary debate on failed talks to update "novel foods" rules. He called on the Commission to come forward with a legislative proposal as a matter of urgency. Mr Pittella said the failure of talks "postponed the chance for consumers to have clear information on what they eat" and underlined that Parliament had been unwilling to accept a compromise that would not guarantee this "basic right". Rapporteur Kartika Liotard (GUE/NGL, NL), revealed that Council's own legal advice was not consistent with statements from the Hungarian Presidency and the European Commission that Parliament's position would contravene WTO rules and spark a trade war. She read from an internal document that stated "The bans of food from offspring cloned animals and of food from offspring of clones could be justified on the basis of consumers' ethical considerations". She also asked if the legal opinion had been properly circulated among Member States in Council. A representative of Hungarian Minister Enikő Győri replied that there were genuine concerns, also in the cited legal opinion, about international trade rules. Commissioner John Dalli assured MEPs that there would not be undue delays in proposing new legislation.
Parliament voted to circumscribe the Commission's rights regarding Member States' bilateral investment treaties (BITs). While urging the replacement of these BITs with EU-wide agreements, Members chose to water down the Commission's proposal that would have allowed it to review national BITs and, if warranted, withdraw its authorization from them. The Commission has proposed a regulation that would require all Member States to notify the Commission of all of their BITs, in exchange for which they would be authorised to maintain these agreements in force. After reviewing these treaties, the Commission could then withdraw this authorization, if the BIT in question conflicts with EU law, overlaps with an EU investment agreement with the same country, or conflicts with EU investment policy more generally. The report adopted in the Parliament today (345-246-14) is very close to the version that emerged from the International Trade Committee a few weeks ago. That text, in turn, was based on compromise amendments from the EPP, ECR and ALDE groups, and opposed by the Socialists & Democrats, Greens/EFA, and GUE/NGL groups. Parliament's amendments generally aim to weaken the power of the Commission in both its power to review BITs and in the reasons it can cite to withdraw authorization from them.
Regional integration features prominently in the development strategies of most African countries. The current regional integration agenda for East and Southern Africa is ambitious. The Southern African Customs Union (SACU) member states have agreed to a new vision for deeper integration, and as part of SACU’s legal and institutional development, to institutionalize a Summit of Heads of State and Government. The Southern African Development Community (SADC), which includes all the SACU member states, is consolidating its Free Trade Area, and the East African Community has started the implementation of its common market, which was launched in mid-2010. The 26 member states of SADC, EAC and COMESA have agreed to establish a Tripartite Free Area; a draft Agreement and 14 Annexes have been prepared, but negotiations have not yet begun.
ALDE MEPs wrote a letter to the Ugandan authorities to urge them not to adopt a bill that would further criminalise or even impose a death penalty on LGBT persons. The Ugandan Parliament is discussing the draft law this week and NGOs denounced the possibility of the law being approved in a hurry. This might happen just a week before the International Day against Homophobia (IDAHO), that is celebrated every year on the 17th of May and a short time since David Kato Kisule, a Ugandan human rights and LGBT rights activist, was brutally killed due to his opposition to the law. ALDE also is calling on the President of the Commission and VP/HR Catherine Ashton to express the EU's concern on the issue.
A divisive debate over the green credentials of biofuels has stalled investment and threatens the future of some producers, but could also create lucrative opportunities, according to European companies. After a two-year investigation, the European Commission has decided that the complex issue of 'indirect land use change' (ILUC) – or displaced deforestation – can lessen carbon savings from biofuels. In July it may announce moves to curb the least sustainable - possibly by raising an EU-wide sustainability benchmark.
By early 2014, all shipments of wood products to the European Union from Liberia will be required to carry a license certifying their legal origin. A Voluntary Partnership Agreement (VPA) to that end was signed on 9 May by the EU and Liberia, which contains over half of the remaining rainforest in West Africa. This agreement, made in Monrovia, underpins Liberia’s ongoing forestry reforms, driven by the Government's commitment to good governance and to ensuring that natural resources contribute to sustainable development. The agreement also gives European consumers the assurance that wood products imported from Liberia, including furniture and wood chips used for bio-fuel, are of legal origin. The Agreement comes in result of the strong mutual commitment to eradicate illegal logging and to bring more transparency to the timber trade. […] Florence Chenoweth, Minister in charge of forestry and agriculture in Liberia and Lluis Riera, Director in the European Commission, the lead negotiators, initialled the Agreement in the presence of President Sirleaf Johnson and EU Ambassador Pacifici. It is the sixth in a series of bilateral accords that are negotiated between the EU and timber producing countries (agreements have been agreed most recently with Indonesia, Central Africa Republic, Cameroon, the Republic of Congo and Ghana). Under the agreement, Liberia intends to set up a national system to ensure legal compliance in timber production, covering all wood products destined for the EU as well as those sold on the domestic market and to non-EU markets. The EU at the same time will guarantee unrestricted access to its market for all wood products coming from Liberia. These stronger control systems will also enable Liberia to stop illegal deforestation and environmental degradation that contribute to climate change.
Following the publication of new rules, EU Member State Ministries of Agriculture are required to publish before April 30 2011 detailed figures on all legal persons (companies) which are beneficiaries of Common Agriculture Policy (CAP) funding in 2010. These CAP transparency rules have been in place for the last 3 years, but the Commission has had to adapt the requirements to exclude the publication of data of natural persons (individual farmers), following a Court of Justice ruling last November. "While being convinced that we need to strike a balance between the objective of information and transparency on the one hand, and the fundamental right for the protection of personal data on the other hand, it is important for taxpayers to know how their money is spent within the CAP", EU Agriculture and Rural Development Commissioner Dacian Cioloş stated. The Commission is currently preparing a proposal for a revised transparency scheme which would duly take account of the judgement.
From 12th to 14th May, Development Commissioner Andris Piebalgs will visit the Republic of Sudan, including South Sudan. This is the first official visit by a European Commissioner since the referendum took place last January. Commissioner Piebalgs will underline that the Commission stands ready to do all it can to support the new country of South Sudan when it gains independence on 9 July. On 12 May Commissioner will be in Khartoum and will meet government representatives. During his visit to South Sudan (13th and 14th May), Commissioner Piebalgs will give a public speech in Juba where he is expected to emphasize the fact that Sudan is one of the EU's highest priorities in Africa, and confirm the EU's commitment to doing all it can to enable South Sudan to have a new start on the international stage following its expected independence in two months' time. […] During the visit, Commissioner Piebalgs is scheduled to meet the Sudanese Vice-President, Ali Osman Taha, and South Sudanese President, Salva Kiir Mayarditt, as well as other representatives of both governments and from the international donor community. Commissioner Piebalgs is also expected to say that private sector investment will be crucial in helping to boost South Sudan's economy and get the country on the road to economic growth. After independence, South Sudan will be one of the world's poorest and least developed countries, with one of the highest infant-mortality rates and the lowest education indicators in the world. In South Sudan, he will visit a European Union-funded project in Juba, which helps to target food insecurity in the area by providing training and expertise, for example in areas like crop forecasting, as well as raising awareness of the issue amongst stakeholders.
The EU's 2020 biodiversity strategy, presented yesterday (3 May) by the European Commission, seeks to boost the bloc's tiny green budget by steering more Common Agricultural Policy payments towards rewarding farmers and foresters for protecting the environment. The European Commission's new strategy to protect and improve the state of Europe's biodiversity over the next decade highlights six priority targets, accompanied by corresponding measures needed to reach them.
From 9 to 11 of May José Manuel Barroso, President of the European Commission and Andris Piebalgs, Development Commissioner, will at a conference in Istanbul, reemphasise the European Commission's leading role in helping the world's least developed countries (LDCs) out of poverty. As the largest donor to the LDCs, with €15 billion of aid in 2010, the EU will urge other partners to match its pledge to provide 0.15-0.20% of its GNI to LDCs. It will also call for a renewed global partnership of LDCs and both developed and emerging economies, working together with civil society and the private sector, to ensure a joined up approach to helping the LDCs meet their development goals. […] The fourth LDC Conference, taking place from 9-13 May in Istanbul, will provide a key opportunity for donors to come together and provide renewed momentum to LDC support. Whilst many of them have made progress in their development, that progress has been uneven and Millennium Development Goals are still lagging behind in many of them. That is why the EU undertook to provide 0.15-0.20% of its Gross National Product (GNP) to the LDCs in November 2008. It has already made significant progress on this target - currently 0.13% of EU Gross National Income (GNI) goes as aid to LDCs. However, in order to help more countries move out of LDC status, other donors must do the same. Moreover, emerging economies like Brazil, China and India should also provide their fair share of assistance to the LDCs.
Germany’s European Union delegation suggested lowering the regional bloc’s agricultural subsidies to boost EU foreign assistance during a Brussels visit this week by State Secretary Hans-Jürgen Beerfeltz, who was in town to discuss Europe’s international cooperation with European Commissioner for Development Andris Piebalgs and other top EU officials. Europe’s practice of subsidizing its farmers and, in essence, shielding them from international competition is incoherent with international development goals, the politicians told Beerfeltz, who works for Germany’s Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, according to a press release. Brussels lawmakers are currently drafting the EU’s next multiannual financial framework, which covers 2014-2020. Many economists and aid experts argue that reducing agricultural subsidies and trade barriers would spur development and alleviate poverty and hunger around the globe. Industrialized countries, including the United States, have so far resisted bold action, however, for fear of negatively affecting domestic food producers.
The European Commission has launched a new bid to break the deadlock in the Doha round of world trade talks with a proposed compromise on slashing industrial tariffs. Senior trade negotiators are scheduled to meet at the World Trade Organization (WTO) in Geneva on 31 May to discuss the proposal. The deadlock is also expected to figure prominently on the agenda of a G8 summit in Deauville, France, on 26-27 May. EU officials made it clear that they view the next few months as critical for the Doha round, which has been under negotiation for close to a decade.
Greenpeace reminded the South African government to rethink its nuclear expansion plans and collaboration with the French nuclear industry as major safety concerns have been identified in the French reactor design European Pressurised Reactor EPR. This reminder comes against the backdrop of 55 Greenpeace activists began blocking the construction of a nuclear reactor at Flamanville, France. Greenpeace demands a moratorium on the construction work after the French nuclear safety authority ASN outlined major safety flaws of this French reactor design European Pressurised Reactor EPR following the nuclear disaster in Fukushima, Japan. The South African government intends to invest in new nuclear reactors, possibly from the EPR design. Greenpeace Africa warns SA not to follow France into the dangerous trap of nuclear energy, but instead learn from France's nuclear failures and invest in this country's renewable energy industry. At the Flamanville reactor site, Greenpeace activists anchored two trucks to the ground blockading the entrance. Some activists have scaled three cranes impeding further construction work at the site.
The latest Monitoring Agri-trade Policy (MAP) looks at developments in trade over the past year, focusing in particular on the EU and how it has performed compared to other world players. World agricultural trade reached an all-time high, at least 12% (expressed in Euros) above the previous record set in 2008. The impact of the economic crisis led to a contraction of 6% in 2009 but global agricultural exports rebounded by over 19% last year. The EU as well as the other top exporters all benefited from buoyant markets. Following the slump in 2009, the EU, the US and Brazil bounced back with over 20% growth in exports, to reach record levels in 2010. For the past 3 years, the EU and the US have been roughly neck and neck as the world's leading agri-food exporters. In 2010 US exports reached an all-time high of €92 billion, just ahead of the EU's record €91 billion exports. […] The EU remains the biggest importer of agricultural products from developing countries, importing €59 billion worth of goods in 2008-10. This is far ahead of the US, Japan, Canada, Australia and New Zealand put together, whose combined imports from developing countries reached just €49 billion over this period. More than 70% of total EU imports come from developing countries compared to 50% for the US and just 40% on average for the 5 countries mentioned. | 2019-04-23T00:07:58Z | http://brussels.cta.int/index.php?option=com_acajoom&act=mailing&task=view&listid=2&mailingid=171&Itemid=999 |
2001-06-11 Application filed by Morrison Douglas C. filed Critical Morrison Douglas C.
A computer method and system for electronic shopping that, without load or reload of browser pages, allows immediate add or change of item quantity and display of transaction amounts. A vendor can choose to include any number of item order pages, category order pages, or order summary pages that show the associated current item selection upon page load. An optional running subtotal enhances performance while using recorded data ensures reliability. Optional components accelerate and aid in the order process. Detailed and pictorial item information, if included, can be displayed throughout. Advertisement can be presented in intermediate referring pages used for updates, and in a mouse-over preview window when it is not being used for selection and verification. Web site vendors can obtain an accurate picture of user behavior and interests. The system can be implemented on a network, off-line using a portable medium, or obtaining partial information from a network.
FIGS. 2A-2D illustrate the list and picture format category order pages with the associated repeated HTML code used to dynamically generate the item displays.
FIGS. 3A-3B illustrate an item description page displayed in a pop-up window and in the lower frame.
FIGS. 4A - 4C illustrate example order summary pages: an invoice page; the repeated HTML code used to dynamically generate item listing; and an order picture summary.
FIGS. 5A-5F illustrate some of the possible variations for the category order pages and the repeated HTML code used for item display.
FIGS. 6A-6B illustrate a simple keyword search engine.
FIGS. 8A-8C illustrate input data structures, a conceptual diagram and a schematic block of diagram of a representative system.
FIGS. 9A-9F illustrate: the quantity adjustment component; a simplified block flow diagram of the running subtotal procedure for order pages; a simplified block flow diagram of the order subtotal procedure for order summary pages; a simplified block flow diagram of the order subtotal procedure for order pages and deferred calculation procedures.
FIGS. 10A-10D are simplified block flow diagrams of the routines that generate category order pages, recall selected items, save selected items and calculate the order subtotal from recorded data.
FIGS. 11A-11C are simplified block flow diagrams of the routines that generate an item description page, recall a selected item, and save a selected item.
FIGS. 12A-12C are simplified block flow diagrams of the routines that generate order summary pages, recall selected items, and save selected items.
One preferred embodiment, used for illustration of the best mode of the invention, has list format and picture format category order pages and is presented in FIGS. 1-4C. The corresponding page generation, recall of selected items, and save of selected items are presented in FIGS. 10A-12C. Some of the possible variations for category order pages are illustrated in FIGS. 5A-5F. Remaining drawings and description further explain the present invention and illustrate some of the other embodiments. A small Glossary is included at the end of this section to define selected terms.
FIG. 1 illustrates an opening frame set of a preferred embodiment with an upper 101 and lower 102 frame. The upper frame presents a single common reference area to recognize and access the entire system. The upper frame is comprised of: a drop down navigational box 103, transaction amounts 104, a mouse-over preview window 105, various user instructions 106, navigational links 107 and various hidden values required for system operation. The lower frame is an example of a site navigation page containing links to various item categories and major components of the system. As this site navigation page is in the opening frame set, it also contains a check and a redirect to an alternate page for non-compliant browser versions.
FIGS. 2A illustrates a list format category order page in the lower frame. It is comprised of: category title 201; descriptive item name hyperlinks 202; text boxes for quantity specification 203; quantity adjustment buttons 204; text boxes 205 for item amounts; a hyperlink 206 for an optional updated display of selected items in a modified picture format; a hyperlinked image 207 for display of the item description page; selected item preview picture(s)208; an informational pop-up tag 209 showing the descriptive item name, quantity, and price; a text box 210 displaying the page total for the selected items; a button 211 to clear all selected entries and reload the page; a repeated hyperlink 212 to display the same category items in picture format and a browser status bar 213 for user instructions.
The mouse pointer 214 is over Item 1-2 descriptive hyperlink and the corresponding small item preview image is displayed in the mouse-over preview window 105 in the upper frame. Simultaneously, the status bar message 213 indicates “Click for item description”. The preview images can be pre-loaded into the browser picture cache so that the mouse-over preview window changes almost instantly when the mouse pointer moves over the description hyperlinks. This enables the user to rapidly locate items of interest. If the descriptive hyperlink is clicked, the corresponding item description page will be displayed. Similarly, clicking the hyperlinked image 207 presents the same item description page. Thus, textual, pictorial, and detailed information for an item are all readily available to the user. Five items were chosen for illustration. However, the actual number of items that can be displayed is dependent on vendor's needs and may be constrained by the client browser type and computer processing power.
To select or adjust item quantities, adjustment buttons 204 corresponding to listed item can be clicked. On click, the item quantity 203 is adjusted, then the item amount 205, the page total 211, and transaction amounts in the upper frame are recalculated and displayed. The option to enter any item quantity using the keyboard and then left click the frame or tab to update the calculations is always available. Consequently, the user can order-in-place, make multiple selections and immediate changes, without having to wait for the load or reload of any pages or frames.
For user convenience, previously selected items of the category are displayed in a modified picture format upon page load. This category picture summary remains unchanged with additional item selection or changes. The category picture summary is updated by clicking on the update hyperlink 206 or any previously displayed preview picture 208. An intermediate referring page, which in turn loads the list format category order page, is used to accomplish the update. As the browser displays the intermediate page during the update, it can be blank, present additional information, or be used for advertising. The browser's refresh or reload button also will update the category picture summary.
#1!1!1 0.00!info001.html!Item 1-1 Descriptive Name!prevs001.jpg!details.gif!
#2!2!10.00!info002.html!Item 1-2 Descriptive Name !prevs002.ip!10offgif!
FIG. 2C illustrates a picture format category order page in the lower frame. It is comprised of: category title 221; a repeated hyperlink to display the same category in list format 222, hyperlinked rollover images to the item description page 223, informational rollover images 224; item preview pictures 225; text entry boxes for quantity selection 226; quantity adjustment buttons 227; an informational pop-up tag instructing the user 228; an informational pop-up tag showing the descriptive item name, and price 229; a text box displaying the selected items page total 230; the mouse pointer 231 over the lower frame; and a browser status bar user instruction 232. Previously selected item quantities are displayed when the page is loaded.
Clicking on the item preview pictures 225 adds selected items to the order. If the mouse pointer pauses over a preview picture, an informational pop-up tag 229 is displayed showing the descriptive item name, and price. As the preview pictures are large compared to the mouse pointer, the rate of addition to the order depends mainly on the browser type and computer processing power.
Refer to FIG. 7 for performance data. If an item is inadvertently selected, the quantity can easily be adjusted or the item deleted by clicking on the decrement indicator of the adjustment buttons 227. On click, the item quantity 226 is adjusted and displayed. The item amount is calculated and stored in a hidden text box in the page. The page total 230, and transaction amounts 105 are then recalculated and displayed immediately informing the user of the results for each purchasing decision. Additionally, quantity may be directly entered via text boxes 226 and the calculations updated by left clicking the lower frame or tabbing. As illustrated in the drawing, the mouse pointer 231 causes the browser status bar 232 to display “Left click on frame to update $ Amount”. One skilled in the art would realize that some vendors may prefer to use small pre formatted text instead of an image to increment the quantity.
Detailed information is readily available via the hyperlinked description image 223 that, if clicked, displays the item detail description. It is possible to present special item information such as discount, availability, and so on, by employing rollover images 224 in conjunction with the description images. When the mouse pointer moves over the rollover image, the description image 223 becomes visible. For Item 1 and Item 3 the description image 223 has been used for the roll over image. If the mouse pointer pauses over a description image, an informational pop-up tag 228 instructs the user to click for the item description page. Either image Alt tags or Tool Tips can be used to display the informational pop-up tags.
FIG. 2D illustrates the repeated HTML code used to dynamically generate the displayed item group for a picture format category order page. Designed to display properly on both Netscape® and Microsoft® version 4+ browsers, code segments are numbered to correspond to the displayed elements on FIG. 2C. The “@j” in FIG. 2D denotes the item numeric position 1,2,3, . . . in a non-visible table with five items per row. In code segment 225 the item preview picture has been hyperlinked to “Add(1,@j)” function and the item amount is specified as a hidden text box value immediately after the quantity text box 226. Each change in item selection is recorded. Since the selected items for the picture format are the same as the list format, the recorded data is identical with that presented above.
FIGS. 3A-3B illustrate an item description page displayed in a pop-up window and in the lower frame. Both the category order pages and the order summary pages have ready access to the item description page. Thus, detailed item description is always available.
FIG. 3A illustrates an item description page in a pop-up window as the result of clicking an item description hyperlink at the mouse pointer 301. The resultant pop-up window 302 can be re-sized to full screen and presents detailed item information. The pop-up window allows a distributor to link to the manufacturer's description page thus eliminating page setup cost and download charges. The pop-up window is a separate browser window and it has a history allowing the user to easily compare detailed item descriptions using the navigation buttons 303. The order page remains available for resultant item selection during review of the detailed item descriptions. One skilled in the art, will recognize that the item description hyperlinks also could refer to a number of other file types, such as video, sound, or any format type supported by the browser, and not necessarily display a pop-up window.
FIG. 3B illustrates an item description page in the lower frame reached by clicking the description tag 224 in FIG. 2C. This is the same item description page shown in the pop up window of FIG. 3A but includes the quantity adjustment component and, therefore, it is also an order page. It is comprised of: item description text with price 311; a large item picture 312 that is hyperlinked to add to the order; a text box for item quantity 313; quantity adjustment buttons 314; a text box for item amount 315; navigation buttons 316; and the remaining area 317 for detailed item information. Situated in the lower frame, only the back indicator of the navigation buttons 316 is functional. The mouse pointer 318 is over the picture and the browser status bar 319 instructs the user to “Click to Add to Order”. Clicking on the item picture 312, using the quantity adjustment buttons 314, or entering the quantity directly into the text box 313 with clicking on the frame will add to the order. The item amount 315 and the transaction amounts are recalculated and displayed. One skilled in the art would realize that facility to add to order also could be included in the pop-up window.
#1!1!10.00!info001.html!Item 1-1 Descriptive Name!prevs001. jpg!details.gif!
One skilled in the art will realize that a vendor may not have the descriptions or images for all order pages presented, or may not require the use of all order pages presented. Furthermore, the list and picture formats may not suit the vendor's needs. See FIGS. 5A-5E. Accordingly, a vendor may choose to include any number of order pages customized to the vendor's needs.
FIGS. 4A-4C illustrate example order summary pages: an invoice page; the repeated HTML code used to dynamically generate item listing; and an order picture summary.
FIG. 4A illustrates an order summary page used to complete a transaction and is displayed as an invoice. It is similar to the list format. It is comprised of: Titles and company information 401; date and time 402; quantity text boxes 403 and adjustment buttons; item description hyperlinks 404; item or unit prices 405: item amounts 406; order subtotal 407; shipping 408; tax 409; order total 410; a hyperlink to reload the page to remove zeroed entries 411; a hyperlink to view the order picture summary page 412; text boxes for customer information 413; text boxes for shipping Information 414; buttons to save, recall and delete customer and shipping information 415; payment information 416; and a button for secure checkout 417.
Any previously selected quantities can be adjusted in place by using the adjustment buttons or by entering the quantity directly into the quantity text boxes. Item preview pictures appear in the mouse-over preview window in the top frame when the item description hyperlinks 404 are moused-over. This allows the user to quickly confirm selected items. If there is still user uncertainty, then clicking the item description hyperlinks displays the item description pages with detailed information. If any item is zeroed, its listing can be removed by a clicking hyperlink 411, which directs the browser to an intermediate page, which in turn loads the updated invoice page with the zeroed entry removed. The intermediate page can display additional information including advertisements.
When the quantity adjustment buttons are clicked, the lower frame is clicked, or the tab key is pressed the following are updated. First, the item quantity 403 is multiplied by the unit price 405 and the item amount 406 is displayed. Next the subtotal 407 is calculated and displayed. Shipping 408 and tax 409, are then calculated and displayed. For illustration, it was arbitrarily assumed shipping was 10% of the subtotal and taxes were an additional 10% of the subtotal and shipping for the calculating of order total 410. In practical application, the calculations would be tailored to the vendor requirements using modules for shipping tax and so on. Finally, any transaction amounts 104 a vendor chooses to display are updated and displayed in the top frame.
The next section 416 specifies payment information. As displayed, it is set up for non secure server. After a payment method is selected, the completed order can be printed and mailed, or printed and faxed to the vendor for order completion. To order securely on-line, a secure checkout button 417 is provided to transfer the order to a secure server. This has the advantage of only utilizing the secure server with associated encryption overhead for finalized orders and gives smaller vendors the facility to use third party secure hosts.
FIG. 4B is the repeated HTML code to dynamically generate the items rows in the invoice format. Code segments are numbered to correspond to the displayed elements on FIG. 4A. The form also contains a hidden variable 418 used to store the item descriptions so that they can be submitted on-line. The “@P” is used to denote the item numeric position on the summary page table that is distinct from item category position “@j”.
FIG. 4C illustrates an order picture summary. It is similar to the picture format category order page FIG. 2C but displays all items selected from different categories. The order picture summary includes the same items as the invoice page and allows the entire order to be worked with in pictorial fashion. The informational pop-up tag 421 for the selected item preview image also contains the category title for each item. Since the page displays all selected items, the page total 422 corresponds to the order subtotal and is labeled as such. Any selected item quantity can be easily changed in place without having to wait for page reload. There is a repeated hyperlink 423 to the invoice page. The date and time 424 are also displayed. The repeated HTML code dynamically generating the displayed item group is similar to FIG. 2D except the code line at 229 includes item category. Also “@P” replaces the “@j” throughout for item position, as it is an order summary page.
FIGS. 5A-5E illustrate some of the possible variations for category order pages and their associated repeated HTML code for the item display. Three variations presented are: combination, selection drop down boxes, and the starter list format.
FIG. 5A is a combination page blending characteristics of the picture format category order page and the item description page. It is similar to the picture format category order page shown in FIG. 2C except that provision 505 is made for a brief textual description of each item. This format may be appropriate for some vendors; however, considerable scrolling is required to view more than a few items. Input data needed is the same as the list and picture formats, but also includes a brief textual description for each item. FIG. 5B is the repeated HTML code to dynamically generate the item display and the numbering corresponds to the displayed elements in FIG. 5A. One skilled in the art will realize that a variety of combinations and presentations of the list format, picture format, and item description pages are possible.
FIG. 5E illustrates a starter list format page. It can be used to bring a vendor on-line with minimal data requirements such as: item number, description, and price that are readily available from most accounting databases. It is comprised of: category title 521; the item descriptions 522; the increment adjustment buttons 523, quantity input text boxes 524; the decrement adjustment button 525; the item amounts 526; page total 527 and a page clear button 528. The quantity adjustment buttons have been increased in size to account for the absence of the picture format. It does not include the mouse-over preview images and item hyperlinks. Using multiple starter list format pages and a browser frameset, several hundred items could be placed on-line with a simplified invoice page similar to FIG. 4A. Later the site could be upgraded to include picture format pages and the item description pages if required. FIG. 5F is the repeated HTML code to dynamically generate the item rows and the numbering corresponds to the displayed elements in FIG. 5D. The @j” in FIG. 5F is used to denote the item numeric position 1,2,3 and so on.
FIGS. 6A-6B illustrate a simple keyword search engine implemented to demonstrate the utility of the invention for displaying database search results. An array with comma separated item data, including a keyword, was used as the database.
FIG. 6A illustrates a search form for search engine to initiate a query 600 and display the resultant search results as either a list format category order page 601 or a picture format category order page 602. FIG. 6B illustrates the results of a keyword search on “key3” in picture format. The advantage of the invention is that items can be immediately ordered-in-place, with multiple selections of varying quantities from the displayed search results.
FIG. 8A shows input data used to generate the category order pages and item description order pages. Data is included as script during the page load. Data for category items can be: individual arrays 801; a single array with comma separated values 802; or as a combination of both. Arrays contain values for item price, item descriptive name, hyperlinked rollover images, preview images, and item description page. Additionally, the zero elements in the arrays are used for category data. The advantage of individual arrays is that they can be divided, while the comma separated values can be imported from a spreadsheet allowing several hundred items to be easily administered without a database for some vendors.
The combination page, FIG. 5A requires an additional brief product description 803 while the starter list format, FIG. 5E, requires data as previously indicated. Each item description page requires category and item data as well as the item's category position. The data string 804 was used for the item description page in FIGS. 3A-3B. If required, the routine to pre-load the preview pictures into the browser cache can be included in the script with the input data.
FIG. 8B is a conceptual diagram of the preferred embodiment using the list and picture format category order pages previously illustrated in the drawings. It illustrates the relationships between various components of the system. The dotted lines with the line arrowheads 805 show the user page changes possible. Arrows from the invoice and order picture summary to item description pages and the list format category order pages were omitted for figure clarity. Thus, access is provided to any page at any time. The solid lines with triangular arrowheads 806 represent information transfer between the client and server side. The dashed lines with beveled arrowheads 807 shows the recorded data 808 transfers. In the preferred embodiment for illustration of the best mode, current selected item data is maintained solely on the client side using cookies.
FIG. 8C is a schematic block diagram of a representative system, operating in a Web client-server network environment, according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention. A network 825 interconnects a server computer 810 and a client computer 830. The server 810 is coupled to the network 825 via a network interface 813. Similarly the client 830 is coupled to the network 825 via a network interface 831. The network 825 may be the Internet, which is a vast global Web of interconnecting networks that includes WebTV. It may be smaller Wide Area Network (WAN). It may also be an Intranet, which is operating in a domain of one or more interconnected Local Area Networks (LAN). In general, other servers and clients may also be connected to the network 825.
The server 810 is a computer that includes a microprocessor 811, a Random-Access Memory (RAM) 812, and storage 814. The Storage 814 is typically a nonvolatile mass storage such as magnetic disk drives. The storage 814 stores, among others, a number of Web-specific programs, such as a Web Server 815 a Common Gateway Interface (CGI) 816, Secure Server 817, a data file and page generator 819 and time logs.
When the server is operating as a Web server, the programs are transferred to RAM 812 and are executed from there by the microprocessor 811. The Common Gateway Interface programs 816 handle HTML forms and cookies transmitted using the browser's location bar. The Secure Server program 817 is used for financial transaction data in conjunction with a transaction data base 818.
The page generator 819 and data file generator 820 work in conjunction with an item database(s) 818 for handling search queries. If the scripting files have not been previously downloaded and there are less than 10 items to be displayed, it is more efficient to generate the formatted page on the server for download to the client 830. The page generator 819 is the implementation of the invention on the server 810 using search results with transmission of the display code to the client 830. The data file generator 820 is a routine that formats query results for input data as previously discussed in FIG. 8A. The data file generator is also used for the embodiment with minimal data in the cookie. Database table(s) for queries, based on item code, would contain an input data string similar to that used for item description page 804 for each item. A query of an item database(s) using the item code would return complete item data for generation of the order summary pages to the client. One skilled the art would realize that database queries and their use are well known and the database(s) 818 can be implemented with any number of database programs. The exact code structure of the data file generator depends on the internet server, database type, database structure and vendor data requirements.
The time logs 821 are server programs that record page access times amongst other server events. The storage 814 also stores a collection of Web pages, script files, data files, and images, as well as any file type supported by the browser 822. Each is addressable by its unique Universal Resource Locator (URL). The Web pages are: order pages, order summary pages, site navigation pages, and other informational pages. An opening frameset is typically included.
The client 830 is another computer on the network that includes a microprocessor 832, Random-Access Memory (RAM) 833, a network interface 831 and storage 839. The network interface 831 is typically a fax modem or cable modem. A pointing device 836, such as a mouse or its equivalent, a keyboard 837 and a printer 838 are coupled to the client 330 via an I/O interface 835. The client 830 also has speakers 846 connected via sound interface 845 and a drive for accessing high capacity portable storage media 834.
The client storage 839 is typically a non-volatile mass storage such as a magnetic disk drive. The storage 839 stores among others a Web browser program 840 that is compliant with HTML version 4+ and has the cache 841 and the cookies 842 enabled. A Web page is displayed by client 830 on a display 844 via a display interface 843. A hyperlink is actuated opening the initial frame set using the pointing device 836. Web pages, script files, data files and other file types downloaded from the server 810 are transferred to the client's RAM 833 and are executed from there by the microprocessor 832. The browser saves Web pages and images to the cache 840 while the “<script src=”scripts.js“></script>” only reside in RAM 833 during operation. Item selections are saved in cookies 842 in the preferred embodiment. Since browsers support audio format files, speakers 845 are present.
FIGS. 9A-9F illustrate: the quantity adjustment component; a simplified block flow diagram of the running subtotal procedure for order pages; a simplified block flow diagram of the order subtotal procedure for order summary pages; a simplified block flow diagram of the order subtotal procedure for order pages and deferred calculation procedures for order pages.
The quantity text box 901 has the “onchange” event handler that updates the order calculations when an item quantity is changed. The “update_function” refers lower loops of the procedures in FIG. 9B, FIG. 9C, and FIG. 9D. Thus, transaction amounts are continually updated upon selection or change in item quantity. The increment indicator image 902 of the adjustment buttons has been hyperlinked to an Add function that reads the quantity in the quantity text box 901 and increments the read quantity by one. The decrement indicator 903 has been hyperlinked to the Add function that reads the quantity in the quantity text box and changes the read quantity by minus one. Both indicator hyperlinks have “onMouseOver” event handlers that display flattened images to inform the user which indicator the mouse pointer is referencing. The mouse pointer 904 caused the flattened image to be displayed for the decrement indicator.
In block 910, all previously selected item(s) are recalled for the page. The page total is calculated and recorded in block 911 using the recalled item quantities multiplied by price. In block 912, the running subtotal is recalled. If there are no previous item selections from any category, then the subtotal is zero, otherwise it is the running subtotal for all selected items from every category. In block 913, the specified transaction amounts are updated and displayed in the top frame based on the recalled subtotal.
At block 914 the routine pauses waiting for an item selection or change in item quantity initiated by the user in block 915. Upon item selection or change in item quantity, the item amount 916 is calculated. The item selection is recorded in block 917. Blocks 1041-1052 in FIG. 10C save the item selection for a category order page, while blocks 1141-1158 in FIG. 11C save the item selection for item description order page. These routines are discussed in depth with their respective figures. Once either routine completes, the procedure returns to FIG. 9B and a new page total is calculated in block 918. For the first change of item selection after page load, the change in page total is calculated in block 919 using the page total that was initially stored in block 911. The new page total calculated in block 918 is stored in memory 920 for the next change in page total calculation. The current change in page total, either positive or negative, is added to the subtotal in block 921 for a running subtotal. Optional alerts in block 922 instruct the user to go to an order summary page, if the subtotal is negative or non-numeric. This will be discussed in detail subsequently. The running subtotal is recorded in block 923. If the running subtotal is recorded to the client's storage, it also maintains the subtotal between browser sessions. In block 924, the specified transaction amounts are updated and displayed in the top frame. The routine returns to the pause in block 914 waiting for the next item selection or change in item quantity initiated by the user. The procedure exits once the user is satisfied with their item selections and navigates to another page.
“OOPS, there has been a processing error!
FIG. 9C is a simplified block flow diagram of order subtotal procedure that is used for order summary pages. All previously selected items are recalled in block 930. This is implemented during page generation using blocks 1201-1215 in FIG. 12A and blocks 1220-1236 in FIG. 12B. Refer to the drawings for the detailed discussion. The procedure returns to FIG. 9C and the order subtotal is computed in block 931 using the recalled values. If the order pages are using a running subtotal, then the order subtotal is recorded in block 932. This resets any discrepancies between the running subtotal and what is actually recorded to the order in the selected item data. In block 933 the required total invoice amounts are updated and displayed.
At block 934 the routine pauses waiting for an item selection or change in item quantity initiated by the user in block 935. Upon item selection or change in item quantity, the item amount is calculated in block 936. The item selection is recorded in block 937 using the subroutine routine in blocks 1240-1252 of FIG. 12C. Block 938 calculates the order subtotal using the displayed values on the summary page. If a running subtotal is used, the order subtotal is then recorded in block 939. The required invoice amounts are updated in block 940. The routine then returns to the pause in block 934 waiting for the next item selection or change in item quantity initiated by the user. The routine exits once the user is satisfied with their item selections and navigates to another page.
All selected items for the order page are recalled in block 950. This is done during page generation. For a category order page, blocks 1001-1018 in FIG. 10A and blocks 1021-1032 in FIG. 10B are used. For an item description order page, blocks 1101-1115 in FIG. 11A and blocks 1121-1133 in FIG. 11B are used. Next, the page total is optionally calculated in block 951 for display. As all items selected for the order may be not displayed on one of several order pages, they must be recalled in block 952 using the recorded data. The order subtotal is calculated in block 953. For computational efficiency, blocks 952 and 953 are implemented in a loop that repeatedly recalls each selected item and incrementally computes the subtotal as shown in blocks 1060-1073 of FIG. 10D. Included in the loop are error detection blocks 1064-1065 that optionally inform the user of any errors made by the browser recording the selected item data. In the last step to complete the document load, order transaction amounts are updated and any specified transaction amounts are displayed in block 954.
The procedure then pauses 955 waiting for a user item selection or a change in item quantity 956. Upon selection or change, the item amount is optionally calculated and displayed in block 957. The page total is optionally calculated in block 958 for display. The revised item selection is next recorded in block 959. Blocks 1041-1051 in FIG. 10C are used for a category order page and blocks 1141-1158 in FIG. 11C are used for an item description order page. Next, all items in the order are recalled in block 960. The order subtotal is calculated in block 961. Blocks 1060-1073 in FIG. 10D, which include the optional error detection blocks 1064-1065, are used again to inform the user of any errors recording the item data. Next, the order transaction amounts are updated and any specified transaction amounts are displayed in block 962. The routine returns to pause 955 waiting for the next item selection or a change in item quantity. The routine exits once the user is satisfied with their item selections and navigates to another page.
“OOPS your Browserjust lost one of its Cookies!
FIG. 9E and FIG. 9F illustrate the delay procedures discussed above for the running subtotal and order total respectively. Block 970 refers to “onUnload, “onBeforeUnload” and “onMouseOver” event handlers while remaining blocks in the diagrams are rearrangements of the loops in FIG. 9B and FIG. 9D. Other re-arrangements are possible.
FIGS. 10A-10D are simplified block flow diagrams of the routines that generate category order pages, recall selected items, save selected items, and calculate the order subtotal from recorded data.
FIG. 10A is a simplified block flow diagram of the routine that generates a category order page. The script files and category data file are loaded in block 1001 into computer memory.
Category name and the lower frame Universal Resource Locator (URL) in block 1002 are stored in hidden text box fields in the upper frame for future reference. If the page is list format, the item preview pictures are pre-loaded in block 1003 into the browser's picture cache. The page category title and the table headers are displayed in block 1004. In block 1005 a counter is set with “j=1” and the character string is initialized to a null value. Using the input data @j and HTML format @j, the category item is added to the character string in block 1006. The “+=” assignment operator is used to build the display string. Recall that FIG. 8A presented the input data structures while FIGS. 2B, 2D, 5B, 5D, and 5F presented repeated HTML code segments for category order pages. A check is made in block 1007 to determine if all items are completed. If not, the counter “j” is incremented and the loop continues until all items are completed. As the string is in script, all quotation marks are preceded by a “\” backslash so that they are displayed as characters when the string is written to the document in block 1008. It also would be possible to do this statically, that is, to create and edit a template but the procedure would be time consuming and prone to mistakes. The table footer that includes the page total text box is displayed in block 1009. The quantity text boxes on the page are cleared in block 1010 to prevent outdated entries from being displayed on a cached page when the browser's back button is pressed. The current item selection for the category page is recalled and displayed from the recorded selected item data in module 1011 using blocks 1020-1032 of FIG 10B.
If the running subtotal procedure of FIG. 9B is used, block 1012 calculates and stores the page total into a hidden variable for the first calculation of change in the page total. The recorded running subtotal is recalled in block 1013.
If the order subtotal procedure of FIG. 9D is used, the page total is optionally calculated and displayed in block 1014. All items are recalled from the recorded data and the subtotal is recalculated in block 1015 using the computationally efficient routine in blocks 1060-1073 of FIG. 10D. Next, transaction amounts are updated in the top frame in block 1016. If the category order page is list format, a clear button is displayed in block 1017 and a picture summary of the previously selected items for the category is generated in block 1018. Modified picture format code (FIG. 2D) is used to generate the string for selected items in an analogous fashion to blocks 1005 through 1008 for the display of the selected item pictures.
FIG. 10B is a simplified block flow diagram of the module 1011 in FIG. 10A that recalls previously selected items for a category order page. The document.cookie is split with a semicolon in block 1020 into Array1 whose elements contain data character strings recorded from active category pages. An array element counter is initialized in block 1021 and a loop begins. A check 1022 is made to ascertain if all Array1 elements are completed. If true, the routine exits. Otherwise the loop continues and Array1 elements are sequentially split into Array2 elements in the loop using an equal sign “=” in block 1023. The loop also exits if the first element of Array2 is equal to the category identifier in block 1024. Upon this exit, the previous category character recorded data string is equal to the second element of Array2. The recorded data string is split with the primary separator “#” in block 1025 into Array3. An element counter for Array 3 is set in block 1026. Next, each element of Array3 is split in block 1027 with the secondary separator “!” into Array4.
Array4 elements contain item data. The first element Array4 is item position while the second element Array4 is item quantity 1028. The recalled item position is used to calculate the corresponding form element index for displaying the quantity in block 1029. Next, the recalled item position is used to get item price from the input data and the item amount is calculated in block 1030. The recalled item position is used to calculate the corresponding form element index for displaying the item amount in block 1031. Finally, a check is made in block 1032 to determine if all Array3 elements or selected items have been completed. If not, the routine continues at block 1027 with the next Array3 element, until all selected items are displayed.
FIG. 10C is a simplified block flow diagram for blocks 917 and 959 in FIGS. 9B and 9D respectively that save item selections for category order pages. First, a character string in block 1041 is initialized to a null value. The category data in block 1042 delimited with secondary separator “!” is added to the data string. A loop index is initialized in block 1043 to read all selected quantities from the category document. A check in block 1044 is made to determine if the item quantity on the document is positive. If it is not positive, the loop counter is incremented and the next item quantity on the document is checked. If the item quantity is positive, then a primary separator “#” is added in block 1045 to the data string that demarcates the data for the individual selected items. The loop index plus the secondary separator “!” are added to the data string in block 1046 recording the item position on the page. In block 1047, the item quantity from the document plus the secondary separator “!” are added to the data string. Input item data, referenced by the loop index and required for the order summary pages, is added to the data string delimited by the secondary separator “!” in block 1048. A check is made to determine if the all items in the category have been completed in block 1049. If not, the loop indicator is incremented and the routine starting at block 1044 is repeated for the next item position.
Once all category items have been completed, an alert in block 1050 is used to inform the user if the data string is greater than 3000 characters and approaching the browser's cookie size limit.
Next, in block 1051 an expiry date based on the current time, plus a predetermined number of weeks is calculated in milliseconds since Jan. 1, 1970. The expiry time can be chosen to facilitate recurrent orders to suit the vendor's and user's requirements. The final block 1052 saves the data string with the “document. cookie” function. The cookie syntax is: the category identifier, an equal sign, the escaped data character string, “; expires=”, and the expiry date converted to Greenwich Mean Time.
FIG. 10D is a simplified block flow diagram of the computationally efficient routine that recalls all selected items from recorded data and calculates the order subtotal incrementally. The routine handles blocks 952-953 and blocks 960-961 for order subtotal procedure for order pages outlined in FIG. 9D. The routine is implemented in block 1015 of FIG. 10A for category order page, and in block 1113 of FIG. 11A for item description order page.
“OOPS your Browser just lost one of its Cookies!
In block 1065, if Array2 is greater than 8 characters, a predetermined category identifier limit, the same confirm above is displayed. Recorded selected item data is by categories, and this limits the loss of item selection to a category that can be immediately re-entered. Confirms are used so the message can be turned off once the user is aware of the error.
Next, in block 1066, Array2 is checked is made to determine if the element is the running subtotal data or the customer information. If any previous checks are true, then the loop counter is incremented and the next element of Array1 is considered. If all checks are false, a counter is set in block 1067 to count the number of selected items (k=0) in the category The second element of Array2 is split in block 1068 with the pound sign “#” into Array3. The item counter is incremented (ii=ii+1) in block 1069. Element[k] of Array 3 is split in block 1070 with the secondary separator “!” into Array4. Array4 elements contain the selected item data. At block 1071, the subtotal, initialized at block 1060, is summed using the quantity multiplied by the price for each item obtained from Array4 elements. Block 1072 ensures all category items (Array3 elements) are completed, and block 1073 ensures all categories (Array1 elements) are completed.
FIGS. 11A-11C are simplified block flow diagrams of the routines that generate an item description page, recall a selected item, and save a selected item. If displayed in the lower frame, then the quantity adjustment component is included and the page becomes an order page.
FIG. 11A is a simplified flow diagram to generate an item description page. The scripts and item data are loaded into computer memory in block 1101. The descriptive item name and price in block 1102 are displayed on the document. A conditional in block 1103 determines if the page is the lower frame or a pop-up window. If the page is displayed in the lower frame, the navigation buttons in block 1104 are displayed with the back button (316 FIG. 3B) navigating to the opening page. If the page is displayed as a pop up window, the back button (303 FIG. 3A) in block 1105 refers to the previous document in the browser window. The item's large image is displayed in block 1106. Another conditional in block 1107 again determines if document is in the lower frame. If the page is not in the lower frame, the detailed item information is displayed in block 1115 and the page is completed. If the page is in the lower frame, then the quantity adjustment component is displayed in block 1108. The item quantity is recalled by a module in block 1109 that performs blocks 1121-1133 in FIG. 11B. The item amount is calculated in block 1110.
If the running subtotal procedure in FIG. 9B is used, the item amount is stored in block 1111 into a hidden variable to facilitate the first calculation of change in the page total. The running subtotal is recalled in block 1112. If the order subtotal of FIG. 9D is used, all items are recalled from the recorded data and the subtotal is recalculated in block 1113 using the computationally efficient routine in blocks 1060-1073 of FIG. 10D. Next, the transaction amounts are updated in the top frame in block 1114. Finally, the detailed item information is displayed in block 1115 and the page is completed.
FIG. 11B is a simplified block flow diagram of the recall module routine 1109 in FIG. 11A that recalls the item quantity for an item description order page. A variable “rindex” set to minus one in block 1121 is subsequently used to record the item category position in the data string. The loop counter “m” set in block 1122 subsequently counts category cookies contained in Array1 elements. The document.cookie is split in block 1123 with a “;” into Array1.
A loop in blocks 1124-1126 is used to recover the category data if the category is active. A check is made in block 1124 to determine if all Array1 elements are completed. If true, the routine exits. Otherwise, the loop continues and each Array1 element is split in block 1125 with an “=” into Array2. Array2, the first element, is compared to the category identifier in the input data in block 1126. If the check in block 1126 is true, the category is active. The loop exits and another loop counter “n” is set equal to zero in block 1127. Array2, the second element, is split in block 1128 with the “#” the primary separator into Array 3 whose elements contain the selected item strings for the active category.
A loop 1129-1131 determines if the item was previously selected. A loop check is made in block 1129 to determine if all Array3 elements are completed. If true, the routine exits. Otherwise, the loop continues and each Array3 element is split in block 1130 with an “!” into Array4. A check is made in block 1131 to determine if Array4 is equal to the item position in the input data. If the check is true, the item has been found and the loop exits. The variable “rindex” is set to “n” in block 1132 and this value is used for saving item selection in FIG. 11C. Finally in block 1133, the item quantity is set to Array4, the second element, and displayed on the document and the routine exits.
FIG. 11C is a simplified block flow diagram of the routine to save item selections for an item description order page used in block 917 in FIG. 9B and block 959 in FIG. 9D. The routine handles three cases: no previous category item selections; previous category selections but the item not previously selected; and the item previously selected. It works in conjunction with the “rindex” variable and Array3 elements that were created during page load by the recall module of FIG. 11B.
A null character string is initialized in block 1141. The category data plus a “#” in block 1142 is added to the string. A counter “n′=0” is initialized in block 1143 for a loop to consider all Array3 elements. The loop 1144-1150 adds all previously selected category items to the string and a change of quantity for the displayed item from the document if previously selected. A check in block 1144 is made to determine if all Array3 elements are completed. If true, the routine proceeds to block 1151. Otherwise, the loop continues and “n′” is compared to “rindex” in block 1145. If “n′” equals “rindex” and the document item quantity is greater than zero from the check in block 1146 then: the item position in block 1147 is added to the string; the item quantity from the document in block 1148 is added to the string; and the remaining item input data delimited by the secondary separator followed by a “#” is added to the string in block 1149. If “n′” does not equal “rindex”, then element Array3 [n′] is added to the string in block 1150. This block simply adds other category item selections to the string.
Once all Array3 elements have been completed, a check is made in block 1151 to determine if “rindex=−1”. If it does, then the item was not previously selected and check is made in block 1152 to determine if the document quantity is greater than zero. If there is no item selected, then the routine simply exits with no change to saved data. If “rindex=−1” and the document quantity is greater than zero then: the item position from the input data in block 1153 is added to the string; the item quantity from the document in block 1154 is added to the string; and the remaining item input data followed by a “#” is added to the string in block 1155. Next, in block 1156, the final “#” is removed from the string. An expiry date in weeks is calculated in block 1157 and the final string is saved to storage in block 1158 with the document.cookie function. At block 1151, if “rindex” was not equal to minus one, then the routine continues at block 1156 saving the string data accumulated in the loop 1144-1150 with the document.cookie function.
FIG. 12A is a simplified block flow diagram of the routines that generate an order summary page. The scripting files are loaded in block 1201 into computer memory. A check is made in block 1202 to determine if there are any selected items to be recalled. If not, the following alert in block 1203 is issued.
The page location is stored in top frame in block 1204 for future reference. The page and table headers are displayed in block 1205. The invoice format has company information and data required for a printed invoice, while the order picture summary page headers are similar to picture format category order page. Arrays, one for each item data field, are created in block 1206 to store the selected item data temporally. This saves loading data for each category and retains the category position index for each item. Consequently, the vendor can include an unlimited number of categories. The temporary array indices are used to correspond to the item positions on the order summary page. The page format, either invoice or order picture summary, is dynamically generated in block 1207 using blocks 1220-1236 in FIG. 12B to inform the user of any recording errors and concurrently to store item information into the temporary arrays. Next, the table footer with the page total text box corresponding to order subtotal is displayed in block 1208. The page total corresponding to the order subtotal is calculated in block 1209 from the page entries.
If the running subtotal procedure of FIG. 9B is being used, then the subtotal is recorded in block 1210 resetting the running subtotal for the category and item description order pages. Next, block 1211 updates the specified transaction amounts in the top frame. If the summary page is invoice format: all transaction amounts such as the shipping, tax, order total and so on are displayed in block 1212; customer and shipping information section with the save component are displayed in block 1213; and the Print & Fax instructions and Secure on-line order section are displayed in block 1214. Finally, the page is reloaded using a redirection page in block 1215. The reload is necessary since pressing the browser's back button might cause the browser to load a previously cached page with outdated item selections. As the order summary pages use an intermediate page to ensure current selection, the intermediate page can display additional data or present an advertisement to the user.
FIG. 12B is a simplified block flow diagram for block 1207 in FIG. 12A, which recalls all selected items and issues confirm dialogues informing the user if there are errors while dynamically generating the order summary page. Block 1220 initializes two counters. One that counts the total number of items (ii=0) selected from all categories and one that counts the cookies (j=0) for each active category. The document.cookie is split in block 1221 with a semi colon “;” in to Array1. Next, each element of Array1 is split in block 1222 with an equal sign into Array2. The first element Array2 runs through a series of checks.
“The corresponding items to above may have been dropped from your order!
“OOPS your Browser just had a Cookie problem!
Next, Array2 is checked in block 1225 to determine if the element contains the running subtotal data or the customer information. If any previous checks are true, then the loop counter is incremented and the next element of Array1 is considered. If all checks are false, a counter is set in block 1226 to count the number of selected items (k=0) in the category. The second element of Array2 is split in block 1227 with the pound sign “#” into Array3. The item counter is incremented (ii=ii+1) in block 1228. Element[k] of Array 3 is split in block 1229 with the secondary separator “!” into Array4. Array4 elements contain the selected item data. The item counter “ii” is used to store item data in block 1230 into the temporary arrays. A check is made in block 1231 to determine if all the category item data has been stored and if not, the selected item counter for the category is incremented (k=k+1). Once all selected item data for the category has been stored, a check is made in block 1232 to determine if all the cookie data has been completed. If not, the cookie counter is incremented (j=j+1) and the next element of Array1 is processed starting at block 1222.
One skilled in the art would realize that if the selection is from more than 28 categories, an additional alert will be required to inform the user of the impending category limit and to submit current selection and start a new session.
Once all item data for the remaining cookies has been stored into the temporary arrays, a counter is set (P=1) in block 1233 to display all selected items. This counter is used to get the selected item data from the temporary arrays and dynamically generate the item display format as a string in block 1234. The format of the invoice page uses the code in FIG. 4B and the format of the order picture summary uses the modified code in FIG. 2D. It should be noted that selection drop down box choices (FIG. 5C) can be integrated into the order summary pages by displaying the choices with the item description and in the pop-up tags. The display string is continually generated until the display counter “P” is equal to the item counter “ii” 1235. The document is then opened and the string is written in block 1236 thus displaying all selected items of the order.
FIG. 12C is a simplified block flow diagram for block 937 in FIG. 9C that saves item selection for an order summary page. Since selection data is saved by category, any change in item quantity requires updating the category cookie. This requires recall of category item position and remaining item data from the temporary arrays created during page generation.
First, a character data string is initialized to null in block 1240. The item position in the document is used to recall the category identifier from the temporary arrays and add it to the character string with the secondary separator “!” in block 1241. The category title is added in block 1242 to the character string plus the primary separator “#”. A loop counter is initialized p=0 in block 1243. The temporary array category identifier element[p] is compared to the category identifier of the changed item in block 1244. If it is different, the next item is considered. If the category identifiers are the same, the item position from the temporary arrays[p] and the secondary separator are added to the data string in block 1245. The item quantity from the document at position “p” and the secondary separator are added to the character string in block 1246. Next, the remaining item data from the temporary arrays[p] is added to the character string in block 1247. Item data elements are separated by the secondary separator with the last element followed by the primary separator. A check is made in block 1248 and the routine is repeated from block 1244 until all temporary array elements are considered. Next the resultant data string length is checked and an alert is issued, if the length is greater than 3000 characters in block 1249. An expiry date in block 1250 based on the current time, plus a predetermined number of weeks is calculated in milliseconds since Jan. 1, 1970. The final primary separator is removed from the data string in block 1251. The final block 1252 saves the updated category data with the document.cookie function. The cookie syntax is: the category identifier, an equal sign, the escaped data character string, “; expires=”, and the expiry date converted to Greenwich Mean Time.
In block 1301, a null character “string” is initialized. Block 1302 adds “category identifier category identifier” to the string. This defines the structure to allow the use of existing recall routines. However, recall routines must use the hidden variable in the top frame for this embodiment. The category title in block 1303 is added to the string. A loop index “j=1” in block 1304 is initialized.
A loop in blocks 1305-1310 builds the selected item data string for the category. The document quantity is checked in block 1305. If the quantity is greater than zero: a primary separator “#” is added to the string in block 1306; the loop index “j” denoting item position in block 1307 is added to the string; the item quantity from the document is added to the string in block 1308; and finally the item data is added to the data string delimited by the secondary separator in block 1309. If the document quantity at block 1305 not positive, then the next element is examined. The loop continues until all category items are completed in block 1310. A semicolon “;” in block 1311 is added to the string to maintain compatibility with existing recall routines. The previous string is recalled from the top frame in block 1312. It may be a null string initialized during frameset load if no items are selected. The previous string in block 1313 is split with a “;” into Array1 elements containing saved category item data. A loop index is set equal to zero in block 1314. A loop in blocks 1315-1317 places the category selections from the document into the corresponding Array1 element if it exists. First, a check is made in block 1315 to determine if all Array1 elements have been completed. If all Array1 elements have not been completed, the routine continues by splitting Array1 element[k] with an equal sign “=” into Array2 in block 1316. A check is made in block 1317 to determine if the first element of Array2 equals the category identifier. If false, the next Array1 element is considered at block 1315. If the check is true, items from the category have been previously selected and element Array1 [k] is replaced in block 1318 with the string generated in blocks 1301-1311. In block 1319, the top string is made equal to all the elements of Array1 and the routine exits. This handles the case where items of the category have been previously selected.
If all elements are completed in block 1315, then block 1320 sets the top string equal to string generated in blocks 1301-1311, plus the previous top string recalled from memory and the routine exits. This handles the case where no items of the category were previously selected. Similar character string manipulation routines using memory for the item description pages and order summary pages would allow the invention to function without cookies.
As further extension, a one-pixel and border-less third frame can be included into the frameset to save the data string to maintain item selections between browser sessions. The third frame document would be dynamically rewritten with the selection data string and saved as a hidden text box element initial value. Thus, the browser's page cache 841 would be used to maintain the item selections between sessions. The procedure would be to start the browser in the off-line mode loading the third frame page from the browser cache rather than initializing the page from the server. Thus, transmitting the item selection data to the vendor's server for retrieval later is more practical.
2. The method of claim 1, wherein said item refers to any product or any service, described or displayed by text, graphics, images, sound, and video, or any combination thereof.
3. The method of claim 1, wherein recorded item data is adapted a vendor's particular needs.
5. The method of claim 3, optionally comprising a method of recording with said recorded item data, the time of making said selection or change.
10. The method of claim 1, wherein said order page displays of at least one item for said selection or change of item quantity.
11. The method of claim 1, wherein said order summary page, displays all selected item(s).
12. Further to method of claim 1, an optional method of providing item descriptive name, item price, and item preview image with immediate access to item detailed information.
13. The method of claim 1, further comprising a method of providing elements to access any said order page and any said order summary page.
14. Further to method of claim 1, an optional method of assigning zero price to all items, thereby effectively recording item quantity selections for subsequent completion of a transaction.
d) displaying resultant item quantity in said input element: the steps being performed without browser load or reload.
17. Further to claim 16, wherein said single user action is a mouse click or any pointing device equivalent.
18. Further to claim 16, wherein said quantity may refer to a currency unit.
19. Further to claim 16, an optional method comprising coupling of transaction calculations to said quantity adjustment component.
n) repeating steps e) through m) for each subsequent selection or change in item quantity: the latter steps being performed without browser load or reload.
22. The claim of 21, further comprising an optional access to each item's detailed description page.
23. The claim of 21, further comprising an optional method for finding and selecting items, that displays an item preview image in a preview window (105) when the mouse pointer moves over an item description name.
24. The claim of 23, optionally comprising a method of advertising by displaying additional images in said preview window while it is not being used to display said item preview image(s).
27. The claim of 26, optionally comprising a method of advertising displaying information on said intermediate referring page.
28. The claim of 27, wherein said information is presented utilizing any web page element.
32. The claim of 31, wherein said optional display is a mouse-over rollover image.
34. Further to the method of claim 20, wherein a vendor can choose to include any number of said optional order pages of claim 21, 29 and 33 adapted to vendors needs.
l) repeating steps g) through k) for each subsequent selection or change in item quantity: the latter steps being performed without browser load or reload.
37. Further to claim 36, an optional element to access each item's detailed description page.
38. Further to claim 36, an optional method for confirming items, that displays an item preview image in a preview window (105) when the mouse pointer moves over an item description name.
39. Further to claim 38, optionally comprising a method of advertising by displaying additional images in said preview window while it is not being used to display said item preview image(s).
40. Further to claim 36, an optional method of removing zero quantity entries by using an intermediate referring page to reload said order summary page.
41. The claim of 40, optionally comprising a method of advertising displaying information on said intermediate referring page.
42. Further to claim 36, wherein a vendor may use said order summary page as an Invoice.
C. non displayed element for each item amount.
44. The claim of 43, further comprising an optional access element to each item's detailed description page.
45. The claim of 43, further comprising an optional display of item status information on said access element.
46. The claim of 35, optionally comprising a method of advertising displaying information on said intermediate referring page during order summary page load.
the latter steps being performed without browser load or reload.
49. The claim of 48, further comprising an optional element to access each item's detailed description page.
50. The claim of 48, further comprising an optional method for finding and selecting items, that displays an item preview image in a preview window (105) when the mouse pointer moves over an item description name.
51. The claim of 50, optionally comprising a method of advertising by displaying additional images in said preview window while it is not being used to display said item preview image(s).
54. The claim of 53, optionally comprising a method of advertising displaying information on said intermediate referring page.
55. The claim of 54, wherein said information is presented utilizing any web page element.
60. Further to the method of claim 47, wherein a vendor can choose to include of any number of said optional order pages of claim 48, 56, and 59 adapted to vendors needs.
61. A system for electronic shopping on-line with a web browser comprising: a network (825); at least one vendor computer (810), associated with at least one vendor and comprising at least processor (811), memory (812) and web server software (815) configured to host web pages and execute transactions (817), that is connected (813) to said network; at least one client computer (830), associated with at least one user and comprising at least a processor (832), memory (833) and a web browser (840) configured to access and communicate over said network, that is connected (831) to said network; and further comprising at least one order page and at least one order summary page, in at least one browser window with or without frames, and elements configured to provide access to any page.
62. The system of claim 61, wherein said network is selected from a group consisting of, intranet, local area networks, wide area networks, and the Internet.
63. The system of claim 61, wherein a selection or change of item(s) quantity is recorded and specified transaction amounts are calculated without browser load or reload.
64. The system of claim 61, wherein said order page(s) or said order summary page(s) upon load, recall previously selected item quantities from recorded item data and display specified transaction amounts.
65. The system of claim 61, wherein said order summary page comprises: instructions and information needed to complete a transaction; and elements for transmission to said vendor.
66. The system of claim 61, wherein said vendor computer(s) optionally comprises: at least one item database (818), for at least one vendor, and a search engine for query (600-602) of said item database(s).
67. The claim of 66, wherein said query displays item(s) on order page for immediate selection of any quantity.
68. The system of claim 61, wherein said vendor computer(s) optionally comprises a customized component (820), for orders in excess of browser capability, using minimal recorded data received from said client to generate full item specification for at least one order summary page.
69. The system of claim 61, wherein said vendor computer(s) optionally comprises, for statistical marketing analysis, time logs (821) of user page downloads to be used with recorded time of making selection or change of an item.
optionally, code segments for a customized component, for orders in excess of browser capability, using minimal recorded data received from said client to generate full item specification for at least one order summary page.
71. Further to article of manufacture of claim 70, wherein a client computer on-line obtains partial item information (834) from said portable computer medium and the remainder from a vendor server on a network.
72. Further to article of manufacture of claim 70, wherein said client computer off-line derives all item information from said portable computer medium and said transaction is completed by faxing or by printing and mailing said order summary page. | 2019-04-22T08:22:21Z | https://patents.google.com/patent/US20020042750A1/en |
§ Order read, for resuming Adjourned Debate on Question [21st March], "That the Bill be now read a second time."
The President of the Board of Agriculture and Her Majesty's Ministers may congratulate themselves that we have not fallen into the natural temptation of raking up old scores and winning an easy rhetorical victory over the inconsistency of right hon. Gentlemen opposite. I am strengthened in that wish by the fact that the speech of the right hon. Gentleman in introducing the Bill showed an almost entire conversion to the views held on this side, and contained a note of sympathy, almost of enthusiasm, for the policy of re-creating the life of rural England. I wish to confine myself strictly and severely to practical suggestions on this one of the most important proposals that have come 1699 before the House. We complain that the Bill is not up to sample; it is not so good as the admirable and sympathetic speech of the right hon. Gentleman. It appears to have some of the features we have recognised in other measures of late years, and seems, on the very face of it, the offspring of that unholy union between the renegade Radicalism of Birmingham and the New Toryism which looks to the votes of the agriculturists in the country districts much more than to the principles and precepts of the Old Toryism of the past. Like other offspring of this unblessed union, this proposal is stamped with sterility. I recently moved for a Return of the proceedings under the Allotments Act, and the amount of land acquired under it, and hon. Members on both sides know that that Return will show incontestibly its absolute failure as a piece of machinery for bringing land within the reach of the agricultural labourer. The two main reasons of that failure are that though compulsion was in the Bill it was so fettered and kept in the background that it had no useful and practical effect. In the passing of the Act the Radicalism of Birmingham stultified some of its early principles by not giving us effective support in carrying the principle of compulsion. As there is no compulsion at all in the present Bill, there is great danger of its being more ineffective and useless than the Allotments Act. If compulsion was necessary in dealing with small plots of land it is ten times more necessary where you are dealing with larger areas. The right hon. Gentleman said he would not introduce compulsion into the Bill because it might frighten the landlords, but in the Allotments Act the justification urged for compulsion was that it would be, as it were, a rod, rarely used, but kept in the background, to compel the landlords to re-consider their position with regard to allotments, and to do justice to the people. My view is that land has been brought within reach of the people in allotments mainly because they have votes, and also because landlords have land on their hands which they desire to put to practical use. This Bill professes to 1700 be a great experiment—and as an experiment, within certain limits, I heartily welcome it—and upon it I wish to make useful suggestions, and not merely destructive criticisms. In such an experiment as this it is the first duty of a practical Minister to provide the raw material on which the experiment is to be tried. I have no desire to start revolutionary theories with respect to land, but the Act which dealt with the enclosure of commons in 1876 gave a precedent by providing that a certain proportion should be retained for allotments and recreation grounds. Why has not the Government introduced some such provision in this Bill for dealing with the Crown lands, the lands of the Duchy of Lancaster, and glebe lands? There we have great national resources, and it is the duty of the Minister, in such an experiment as this, to create channels through which the land can be brought within reach of the people. I do not see why the Bill should not ear-mark these lands for the purpose of small holdings, with, of course, equitable consideration for the rights of the existing tenants, and of the interests of the nation and the Crown in the lands. I do not see why such a plan should not be adopted in some modified or more limited form. Take the facts in the recent Glebe Lands Return, which are of a most startling nature. Mr. Arthur Arnold, in his evidence before the Small Holdings Committee, drew attention to the position of these lands near to the villages and their consequent usefulness and suitability for the purpose of small holdings. The Return shows that out of 206 cases glebes, which are practically national land—for if it is a National Church the land is national land—have been diverted from the uses to which they ought to be devoted, and in 95 cases out of the 206 the purchasers were the owners of land immediately adjoining the glebe, and the powerful man, who had been adding field to field and house to house, was enabled to swallow up these glebe lands, which might have been given to the labourer and small holder. Of the whole number of purchasers registered only two—a cottager and a waggoner—appear to belong to the artizan or 1701 labouring classes. There were sold 1,587 acres for over £90,000, and in five cases out of six the glebes were bought by a single purchaser. That shows that this national store of land is being handed over in the interest of the Church and the landowning classes owing to the imperfect machinery of the Act, and is not used as it might have been for carrying out a great experiment like this. I have had some experience of the administration of the Duchy lands, and the spirit in which they are administered is simply deplorable. The Duchy practically refuses to consider the question of allotments unless the proposed tenants are already living on part of the Duchy land, although they might be living in the adjoining town. That shows how far we are from a just administration of these great national resources from the view of a supply of land for the use of the people. The hon. Member for Stamford (Mr. Cust) repeated a suggestion, made recently by Lord Thring, that in the case of the Succession Duty and the redemption of the Land Tax, payment should be taken in kind, and that the Government should encourage the handing over of land to the Local Authorities in order to carry out the policy of small holdings. But there is another point to which I must refer. I would recall the attention of the right hon. Member for West Birmingham (Mr. J. Chamberlain), who was Chairman of the Small Holdings Committee, to the deplorable, and almost sinister, action of that Committee in regard to the question of settlement. Everybody knows that the best land will not be available for small holdings until the system of settlement is broken up, and you enable the life owner to deal with the land. It was proposed in that Committee by my hon. Friend the Member for Ilkeston that the Committee should make a statement to the effect that the abolition of the Law of Settlement was the very corner-stone of the question of bringing land within the reach of the people, and recommend the abolition of that law as the first essential to carrying out this policy. What was the result? The two Members for Birmingham by their own efforts defeated the proposal that the Law of Settlement should be amended 1702 in the manner suggested by my hon. Friend. Now I contend that, as no steps have been taken to make available these great resources, or to open channels to bring land more freely into the market, it is for that very reason the duty of Her Majesty's Ministers to introduce the principle of compulsion. How is land to be got? There are, of course, landlords who have provided small holdings, but we also know that has been where large farms held by farmers who have become bankrupt have come into the landlord's hands. I know of one generous and wise landlord who has found himself with 1,000 acres on his hands, and has promoted small holdings from philanthropy as well as self-interest. But the landlords are not willing to sell the land for the purpose for which we require it. The position we are in is that under this Bill there is no absolute power to obtain land, and the only land in the market would be little fagged-out estates, neglected and mismanaged, fragments of land sold off bigger estates, the owners of which are practically bankrupt, inaccessible farms out of the way of the markets, or heavy clay land. In some cases this land, as the right hon. Gentleman said, may be obtained at comparatively low prices, but what would be the position of a County Council which attempted to buy under these terms? The result of this Bill is to create an artificial market for land otherwise unsaleable, and at the value placed upon it by the owners. You will find that the County Councils will buy the land at considerably over its agricultural value, and those who take the land will have to pay a price which has been estimated in one quarter at no less than 50 or 60 per cent. above the rent which a man would pay for similar land as a hiring tenant. That is not a sensible and practical proposal, and we shall not get at the land unless in this Bill we have the principle of compulsion, and have it applied so that we can get land at its fair price. Now with respect to the local administrative machinery. I have pointed out that the land which the County Councils would acquire would be small farms or small estates of, say, 300 acres at the outside. This 1703 land would be situated in one part of the county, and the whole of the experiment would be carried on for the exclusive benefit of the inhabitants of that particular parish or group of parishes. But the county rate runs over the whole county, and the result would be discontent and friction in those parts of the county which were not benefited by the experiment. In this respect the Bill requires to be remodelled with a view of rendering it more equitable to the ratepayers, and more workable in itself. I think the Allotments Act has much better machinery in this respect, and it would be well if the principle of the 9th clause, which delegates power from the County Council to local managers in the case of land let in small amounts of one to ten acres, were extended. There should be some local machinery to see that the right land is acquired and that the right men get it, and until you get something in the form of Parish Councils—which we on this side of the House have found are very popular in the country—you will get no nearer a solution of the question. The hon. Member for Stamford (Mr. Cust) referred the other day to the question of registration of title, and I think it is essential that there should be introduced into this Bill something of the same kind of principle that we found in the Irish Land Purchase Act for the registry of title. I would also call attention to a valuable suggestion made by Lord Thring that the rural post offices should be used to develop this policy of small holdings. I think it would be most useful for maps and all information to be kept at all the rural post offices, and printed forms for inquiry on application, so that the agricultural labourer without trouble may have all the facts he requires placed at his disposal. I think this Bill, though it is in a very imperfect form, may be made useful to the country. If you will adopt local machinery of the kind I have suggested, put in the corner stone of compulsion, and also of fair prices, if you have Local Bodies who can initiate schemes for the County Councils to consider, and if you introduce the principle of compulsory leasing and re-letting of land, I venture 1704 to think that the Bill will be of immense benefit. I have made a rough calculation of what may be done under the provisions of this Bill. If the County Councils are empowered to spend £10,000,000 as a maximum sum, and they acquire land at the rate of £50 an acre—a very high price, but I mean that to include every expense—it will provide something like 200,000 acres of land. That would provide about 20 or 30 acres for every rural parish in England, and if we introduced the principle of the compulsory hiring of land you would find that the sum available would provide a much larger area. The small holders would be much more ready to rent than they will now be to buy, and the plots of land would be scattered instead of being gathered in one large and inconvenient plot. As a director of the Small Farms and Labourers Land Company presided over by Lord Wantage, I have paid close attention to this matter, and the experiments which we have made may not be uninteresting to the House. We have acquired about 750 acres of land, and the population working on that land and drawing its livelihood from the land has multiplied four times. The holders have been able to provide their own buildings, and to provide them in a very satisfactory way. One tenant bought 17 acres of arable land and two acres of pasture land at comparatively low price. This man has built a house with two bed rooms, two sitting rooms a kitchen and an outside dairy for £85; he built a cowshed, a barn and other appurtenances for £22, and fenced his land for £5. This shows what it is possible for people to do when they are in a position to do the work for themselves. When he bought the plot he paid £73 down and is now paying instalments of £17 10s. a year, and he and others on the estates have been very successful. There have been few or no evictions, and few tenants have left. We find that there has been a very large demand for plots of this land, as tenancies, and few of the tenants were willing to buy in spite of the fact that they could get the land at comparatively low prices. In this way the land is naturally distributing itself into 1705 plots of two, three and four acres, and at the top of the list you find small farms of 19, 25, and 30 acres. In this view I may say that I look upon the 2nd sub-section of the 9th clause which enables the County Council when the tenants are not in a position to buy the land to let the land in lots of from one to ten acres as a practical proposal, and whatever happens to the Bill I hope the Government will stick to that proposal and make it work. If the right hon. Gentleman is willing to reconstruct this Bill so as to have something like Parish Councils, if the principle of compulsion is introduced even in some qualified form to enable County Councils to buy desirable plots in desirable places rather than the larger estates which are now in the market, and if compulsory leasing is introduced, it seems to me that by this Bill you will achieve a practical result. But there is one clause of this Bill which is as unwise as, I think, the section to which I previously referred is wise. Section 10 has the very ambitious intention of introducing the Ashbourne Act into England, and I do not think any clause proposing such an enormous change, but without the slightest machinery for carrying it out, has ever been proposed in this House. This Bill may be worked into shape on the lines that I have suggested. What we really want is a big Allotments Bill to enable agricultural labourers to get possession of a plot of land, and go on from acre to acre until they have got 15 or 20 acres. We wish to give the small tenants an opportunity of rising higher and higher, and we rejoice over the conversion of the Government to the principle of giving facilities for access to the land. But while I am disposed to give every credit to the Government I must say that the political aspect of this Bill is a little too transparent. In its present form it will do nothing but advance the prices of very nearly worthless estates, and it is obviously intended to obtain the votes of the agricultural labourers of this country. But I believe the labourers will not give their adherence to the Conservative Party in consequence of this bribe any more than they did in consequence of previous bribes. They 1706 know perfectly well that the Liberal Party is pledged not to do these things with one hand tied behind our backs, but to take our coats off and produce a measure which will give the people an opportunity of acquiring the land, and also give them a proper local authority to deal with it. The electorate of this country is prepared to return a Liberal majority, because they know that the Party will be pledged to deal with this question quite as much as with Home Rule. But Home Rule or no Home Rule, the men who send us to the House of Commons intend to see that the next Parliament shall not be dissolved until this question is dealt with. We shall not consent to any curtailing of the life of a new Parliament until this great question has been carried through. But while I have somewhat sharply criticised this Bill, I recognise it as an effort, within very narrow limits, to recognise a principle to which I give my heartiest support, a principle which will work for the benefit of the agricultural community.
I rise with great diffidence to address the House on a subject of such great importance as that we are now discussing, and I trust I may be allowed to ask the House to extend to me that indulgence which is always given to those in my position. I can quite understand that the evil with which this Bill is intended to deal is felt more keenly in the agricultural districts than in the towns. But my excuse for rising is that I consider this Bill to be of very great importance also to the interests of the great towns of this country. I cannot profess that the constituency which I represent is to any great degree concerned in this Bill, but if the progress of the evil which this Bill seeks to correct still goes on, I think we shall find that the congestion of the labour market will year by year press inward from the outskirts of our great towns. This Bill endeavours to provide a remedy for that, but we were told during the progress of this Debate that this was not the right time for such a Bill to be introduced, as Parliament is moribund. We heard that objection not very long ago, but I 1707 contend, Mr. Speaker, that it is the duty of every Legislative Assembly to initiate new legislative proposals up to the hour of its death. I can understand that there is a certain amount of disappointment on the other side of the House—and this was clearly evinced in the speech of the hon. Member who has just sat down (Mr. Channing)—that this Bill was introduced not by a Radical but by a Unionist Government. But I ask what would hon. Members on that side of the House have said if the Government had passed over the promises they had made? I think we should have heard something about broken promises and unredeemed pledges. Although there have been and may be differences of opinion as to this Bill, I think it will be admitted that it is one which generally deals with the difficulties at which it is aimed. What are the causes of the success of small holdings in France? No doubt it is partly due to the influences of climate and the description of the soil, or the lie of the land. The soil in France is in many places suited for the cultivation of grapes, fruit, and vegetables, which pay well for the labour bestowed upon them. Why should the result of small holdings in England not follow to some extent the experience of those in France? One of the great causes of the division of the land amongst the people in France is that the transfer and registration of land is easy. In England land has become concentrated, and in this I agree with the remarks of the hon. Gentleman who has just sat down. Many capitalists have bought up small holdings, not only because times have been bad, but because capitalists can afford to pay for the investigation of titles. They can also afford to spend more on the soil, and they can wait longer for a return. I should like to see the system of voluntary registration extended so that the investigation of titles would not press too heavily upon small holders. I would not make it compulsory, but I believe the system would tend towards the success of the measure. We have heard a good deal about the sacred word "compulsion." I think nearly every Member who got up on the other 1708 side of the House was in favour of compulsion. But I have only heard one Member mention a case where he thought such compulsion would be absolutely needed. It has been said landlords will not sell, and that if they do sell, the prices they ask will be prohibitory without compulsion. I have not heard any arguments which lead me to that conclusion. I believe it would be most dangerous to introduce the system of compulsion. It would breed ill-feeling between County Councils and landlords. It might, in some cases, undoubtedly depreciate the value of land if County Councils could insist upon taking the best field out of an estate. Above all, I believe it would breed a feeling of insecurity which could not be good for any property or for any interest. Without compulsion I am sure we shall find plenty of land in the market, and that landlords will negotiate fairly. They would see that they could only get a fair price, as the County Councils would be condemned by the ratepayers if they gave a landlord more than a fair price. I believe landlords would rejoice at the creation of small holdings, as by such a system agriculture would be greatly improved and the position of the landlord would become much more favourable. It has been said the County Council is not the proper authority to put the Act in motion. There is no other authority except the Sanitary Authorities, and I suppose hon. Gentlemen opposite would not be anxious to see the Act carried out by them. I do not think the County Council area is too large a one, as the necessities of the case are met by the character of the Committee proposed to be created, on which both the locality and the county would be fully represented. Suppose there were Parish Councils and the power was given to them, in many cases the parish would be too small an area for raising sufficient rating. In that case the parish would have to get money out of the county rate, and some one would have to be appointed from the County Council or the Parish Council to see that the rate was properly expended, so that you would really arrive at the same result. The hon. Member for the Bordesley Division was anxious that the Government should be persuaded to 1709 put into their measure a clause which would enable County Councils to lease land, especially outside big towns. That might be a most successful proposal. Land outside big towns is very often specially valuable for the production of vegetables, flowers and other commodities used in almost every house in big towns. No doubt this might entail a little more risk, but as the County Councils have such large powers they may be entrusted to carry this out. I wish to thank the House for the patient way they have listened to what I had to say. I have ventured to put some observations before them, but I cannot hope for the immediate creation of small holdings. They will come very likely in the next generation. Want of capital will be a great difficulty in the way. Poor men cannot expect to do much good unless they can expend £8 an acre. I hope these small holdings may be a stepping-stone to a larger-class of holdings. I hope this measure will encourage and bring out the thrift which I am afraid, as a nation, we are rather wanting in, and I trust that it will re-create that class of yeomen who in years gone by have been the backbone and strength of the country. The right hon. Gentleman the Member for Midlothian has told us that small holdings would be a powerful instrument in the re-generation of the country districts. I believe it will preserve and increase the greatness of this country, and I feel sure that in years to come, when hon. Members will have had an opportunity of seeing the successful working of this Bill, they will look back with thankfulness and pride to the day when they assisted in passing it into law.
No one could be more certain than the hon. Gentleman who has just sat down of a favourable reception, because he is the bearer of a name which at once commends him to universal respect and sympathy. I am very glad that being the bearer of that name he has now given us reason to suppose by his own qualities also he will merit the confidence and approval of the House. For my own part, I do not intend to enter at large into the arguments upon those portions of the 1710 present Bill which form the subject-matter of the principal part of the speeches delivered on this side of the House. What I do wish in the first place to impress upon the House is that we have before us a very great work, and, at the same time, a work in which we cannot expect to make very rapid progress. I entirely agree with the hon. Gentleman who has just sat down in that part of his speech wherein he signified that in his opinion a long time would elapse before we could reach such a point as to be able to consider the condition of the country upon the whole, in regard to this matter, as thoroughly satisfactory. If that be so, if the work is great and the progress likely to be slow, undoubtedly, in my view, it is most desirable that we should not allow the opportunity now before us to pass without giving every extension in our power to the plan which has come under the consideration of the House. I am far from objecting to the conduct of Her Majesty's Government in the introduction of this Bill. I do not think that there is anything in the position of this Parliament short of its being its remaining term, which ought to have prevented them submitting their views to the House. I greatly rejoice to think that this Bill is an honest effort in the right direction. Having said that, I am bound to say that I think it is far within, far short of, that which the necessity of the case demands. No one, I think, can contemplate the position of this country with regard to the relations between the cultivators of the soil and the soil itself without considerable pain. And when it is said that compulsion cannot be necessary to introduce into a Bill of this kind, I am sorry to say that the slowness of the progress we have thus far made, when there has been nothing to prevent the full operation of voluntary contract in regard to small holdings, impresses me with a different feeling and with the sense of a strong necessity. The contrast between the face of this country and the face of other countries is painful in this respect. We have a popular Government; we have enfranchised the rural labourers; the rural labourer is attached to the soil; but, Sir, he ought to be much more at- 1711 tached to the soil than he is, and he would be much more attached to the soil were it not that his relation to it is in so vast a majority of instances only that which is constituted by hired labour on that soil. We ought to make great efforts, Sir, in this direction. We have come generally, or very generally, to the conclusion that there is something painful in the condition of the rural labourer in this great respect, that it is hard even for the industrious and sober man, under ordinary conditions, to secure a provision for his own old age. Very large propositions, involving, some of them, very novel and very wide principles, have been submitted to the public, for the purpose of securing such a provision by means independent of the labourer himself. Sir, I am not going to criticise these proposals, and I am only referring to them as signs that there is much to be done—that their condition is far from satisfactory; and it is eminently, as I think, our duty to develop in the first instance, every means that we may possibly devise whereby, if possible, the labourer may be able to make this provision for himself, or to approximate towards making such provision far more efficaciously and much more closely than he can now do. Well Sir, we ought, I think, to enlarge this plan as far as possible; I do not mean by excessive demands upon the time of the House, or the patience of the Government. I do not wish to interpose any obstacle in the way of passing this Bill, even if we should fail to introduce the Amendments which we desire; but I think it is our duty to state these Amendments clearly and plainly, because I think it is the fixed belief of those who sit on this side of the House that without such Amendments, the plan, however well intended, must fall very far short of giving effect to the benevolent intentions of its authors. I agree then with my hon. Friends who have spoken in this Debate, that it is necessary to introduce the principle of compulsion into this Bill. I think that, without the principle of compulsion, we are in a considerable danger as to the standard of fair price; while it is plain on the other hand, that compulsion will expose the landlord to no danger of having to receive a price unfairly low, 1712 inasmuch as the settlement of that price must be referred to an independent tribunal, where compulsion is brought into action, and the disposition of such a tribunal will always be, where there is a doubt, to give that doubt rather in favour of the person whose land is to be taken. Sir, there is another consideration of great importance which appears to me to show the necessity of compulsion—and that is, the situation of the land. It is of vital consequence when the holdings are small; it is of vital consequence to those who are to possess them, or to work them, that they should be in immediate contiguity to their own residences. I say where the holdings are small, and I mean by those words, where the holdings are very small; and I do not indeed, know why it is required in the Bill that the transactions of the County Councils must exceed one acre of land. That is a detail; but I doubt very much whether that provision, as it stands, is altogether a wise one, for it is my belief that the great majority of your transactions under this Bill will be transactions in very small holdings, and with regard to these very small holdings you deprive them of half their value if you do not place them in immediate contiguity to the dwellings. And there it is, Sir, that I confess I think it may be and must be requisite to introduce into the case, after all we have seen, the action of positive and coercive authority in order to secure this great advantage for those who are to be holders or owners of the land under a Bill like this. Well, then, I cannot doubt that we must have a smaller area of action. Take a county like Yorkshire: the County Council has to ascertain that there is a sufficient demand for small holdings to justify their putting the Act into operation. But, Sir, in a county like Yorkshire, and not only in a county like Yorkshire, but in a multitude of counties, and probably in almost every county, this demand will be at first but partial. It will be limited to certain districts of the county. How is the County Council to judge whether it is required, whether there is a demand of this kind over the whole of the county? Nay, I 1713 do not believe in every case that the County Council will be the best judge of the question whether in a particular small district such a demand exists or not. In a small district it may escape the notice of the County Council that such a demand exists. Small areas, therefore, I am persuaded, will be necessary. And then I am met with the objection that some parishes would be too small. I admit that you must constitute a unit of a reasonable amount, but there is ample room between the scope of a county and the limited area of some of the small parishes of this country to find ground for a reasonable conclusion. But there is also, Sir, this consideration which leads me to believe that we must have a smaller area. Supposing we take the case of an ordinary county with a partial and local demand, a demand which we hope will spread afterwards and become universal, but with respect to which we can have no means of realising anything like universality at present—supposing it should happen that the County Council find in a limited portion of a county that there is a real and active demand, while the rest of the county is not yet awakened to the necessity of arrangements such as these—if that is the case, and if the county rate is to be made liable for purchases made in a particular and limited portion of the county, a very great jealousy will exist in the remote parts of the county at the burdening of the entire rate on behalf of persons and on behalf of districts with which they have no sense of real neighbourhood. That jealousy, acting on the County Council, may prove to be a most formidable obstacle in the way of the operation of this Bill. Sir, it is so much an article of faith, it is so established a conviction on this side of the House, that we must not only have small areas, but smaller administrative bodies, that I need not dwell on that subject. It has been, I think, fully explained, and I am persuaded that smaller areas must be established—aye, very small bodies—bodies which I would describe as Parochial Councils, subject only to the admission I have made that a minimum area of a reasonable extent must be established, although that area may include several parishes. 1714 I believe that, subject to that limitation only, the establishment of Parochial Councils, thoroughly and exclusively acquainted with the needs of the neighbourhood, and the condition of the people, is essential to a good plan of small holdings such as this Bill contemplates. Then, Sir, it is said, and I think there is great force in the remark, that such bodies would not be competent to deal with the finance of the measure. I agree with that proposition. It is rather for the transaction of the material business in the limited district that I think they are well adapted. With respect to finance then, while a plan of this kind would have the advantage of laying the responsibility upon the rates only in those neighbourhoods where the people could appreciate the necessity for the transaction; on the other hand I quite agree that they would not be, except under the control of the County Council, they could hardly be bodies capable of dealing conclusively with those important financial questions. Well, Sir, I have mentioned those three points, of compulsion, of reduced areas, and of subordinate councils or parish councils, subject only to the consideration as I have said, of an area not unreasonably small. But that which weighs most upon my mind is a matter that has not been noticed uniformly by speakers even on this side of the House, but I was very glad to observe that it did find a place in the intelligent consideration that has been given to the subject by the hon. Member who has just sat down (Mr. Smith). I mean the question of leasing—the question of tenancy taken in the large sense, as contrasted with the question of purchase. The right hon. Gentleman the Minister for Agriculture, will, I am sure, forgive me, if I say that I attach but very small weight to the provision which he introduces upon this subject, not because it is limited to the extent of ten acres or to the value of £10, but because it is evident from the terms in which that provision is couched that it is only a subsidiary and temporary plan. It is only to provide for what I think will be the rare case where a County Council is convinced upon a consideration, not of the circumstances of the country, but of the particular and individual case, that a man is not yet 1715 in a condition to buy, but shortly will be: there and there only will he be at liberty to lease. Now, Sir, against that merely intermediate form of the use of the power of letting, I wish to set up a very much larger proposal and larger view of the enormous advantages which I think attach to that method of procedure. I want to know why the County Council should not be able to hold land upon feu from the landowner? It appears that there is considerable danger and difficulty in requiring the County Council to purchase, and then empowering them to let, because, if that is the case, the county rate will be obliged to become the purchaser of the fee-simple of the land. I am not aware of any reason why you should not authorise the County Council, whether you introduce compulsion or not, to take land upon feu, of course upon fair terms, from the owner who holds it. It would be no injustice to him, because he would receive full consideration in the form of an annual payment. It is no diminution of his security. His security would still be upon the rates. I cannot conceive that from either of these points of view the plan could be open to objection. I do not mean to say it would be an exclusive plan, but I wish to put it broadly in that way. I look not merely to the transaction between the County Council and the cultivator who is to obtain land under it, but I look to the position of the County Council itself, and then I observe that you have very great and, indeed, vast advantages, because you avoid altogether burdening the rates with the capital value of the land. I see a very limited application of this principle in a later clause of the Bill. I can conceive that it might be right to guard against possible deterioration in the value of the land at a future period by reserving some margin which should be made the subject of payment in full; but I give no opinion upon that subject, well convinced as I am that the operation of this Bill in 99 cases out of 100 and the operation of any good plan framed on this basis must be not to diminish, but to enormously increase the value of the land, which will be subjected to more thorough cultivation, 1716 and have more capital laid out upon it. Then, when the County Council has feued the land, I should leave to it a very large discretion in this matter. Let them proceed, aided by the Parish Council—let them exercise, to a great extent, their own judgment as to the kind of tenure under which the land is to be held. If there is an abundant supply of purchasers, by all means let them purchase. I think there can be no objection to these purchases. The financial part of the scheme, strictly so-called, as the right hon. Gentleman has framed it, seems to me to be soundly and considerately framed. I look upon it as by no means an impossible result that, from the want of purchasers, you will have the good intentions and the useful provisions of this Bill reduced to sterility. Be that as it may—and that may be too dark a view—I do not want to press it; besides those who are capable of purchase, there will be a great number of persons who may be not capable of purchasing, and yet competent to manage, and this will be a much larger class. Why would it be a larger class? Because, in proportion as the quantity of capital required is smaller, the class able to produce it is larger. It must never be forgotten that in this country, with the high value of land, if the small cultivator has saved a few pounds or a few score of pounds, and we ask him to invest that money in land by the mode of absolute purchase, we are asking him to invest four-fifths of his capital at 3 per cent. and only one-fifth of it would be left for the purpose of securing a trading profit. That is an immense difficulty in the way of purchase. I agree with the right hon. Gentleman in regretting the gradual disappearance of yeomen from this country; but when you consider those rigid, silent, but, in the long run, unerring laws of political economy which operate upon the minds and govern the conduct of men, what is the case of the yeoman whose land and farm stock together are worth £5,000? It is this: his land is giving him 3 per cent. on £4,000, and only £1,000 is giving him a trade profit. Is it unnatural that that yeoman should compare his own position with that of a man who applies for a farm carrying 1717 £5,000 in his hand, and putting into it the whole of that amount to stock it, the landlord supplying the other four-fifths at 3 per cent., with perfect content to himself. That is a consideration which I believe cannot be disputed, and constitutes a motive of enormous force. I am not arguing against purchase. Avail yourselves of purchase to the fullest degree that you can bring it into action. I quite admit that the property of the soil may, so far as social and moral purposes are concerned, attain more fully than any other means the moral and social ends that we have in view. But I do not wish to limit the benefit to be conferred within the narrow bounds which I believe purchase will offer. I believe it is in our power to go greatly beyond them, and it is for that purpose the hon. Member who has just sat down and the hon. Member for Bordesley expressed a desire that the Government may be disposed—and I am persuaded they will find very little difficulty in so doing—to extend the provisions and the basis of this Bill for the purpose of letting in a principle of tenure other than that of purchase. It is an advantage, if we can, to avoid invoking the aid of the State. I do not think that the State is in any danger, and I do not think there is any great objection to it; but, at the same time, it is well to avoid it where we can. I think, too, as regards the rates, it would be an immense advantage to avoid burdening the rates with the large amount of the capital sum. It would simplify the whole of the transactions, although the County Council would, in the last resort, be the financial authority. They would have little to deal with in the main, except annual receipts and annual outgoings. I have in vain laboured to discover any point on which this process would be disadvantageous to the landlord. The main point is that the question of tenure must not be limited to transactions between the County Council, the Local Authority, and the cultivator. The cultivator derives the greatest advantage of all, for he becomes a trader, and a trader only, in that sense in which agriculture, and even small agriculture, is a trade; and I cannot help expressing the immense satisfac- 1718 tion with which I see signs in every portion of the country that the public mind is continually opening more and more to the great advantages that may be gained by small agriculture. It is in regard to the small agriculture of France, and not in regard to its large agriculture, that this country can so ill bear comparison; and I believe I state a truth, on the best and highest authorities, when I say that the growth of agricultural values in France, between the period immediately following the great war and the present time, has been far more rapid than during the same period in England. Now, if that is so, it is not owing to the great farms. The large farms in Normandy and other parts of France are very like those in this country. I have no reason to suppose that they are superior to the large farms in England, and, indeed, some considerations may lead one to believe that they may be inferior. It is the small holdings in France that have brought the agricultural wealth of that country to a point so marvellously and almost incredibly large. I have not made these remarks in a hostile spirit. I fully believe that we have a common object in view. I want, as far as possible, to get upon a common ground, and if we do so I am convinced we may do enormous good; but if it be premature to expect that we are all prepared to assume one and the same position, I am sure you will admit, as candid and impartial men, that it is our duty to state fairly, freely, and strongly, those points by which we think the largest and safest extension may be given to a plan of this kind, with a view to the removal of what is at present something like a national discredit, and to a very large increase in the prosperity of the country and the stability of British trade.
§ (5.44.) THE FIEST LORD OF THE TREASURY (Mr. A. J. BALFOUR,) Manchester, E.
I am quite sure that those who have listened to the speech of the right hon. Gentleman will feel that he has not appealed to them in vain to recognise that he has not approached this question in any hostile spirit, and that he has no desire to raise unnecessary controversy upon the Second Reading of this 1719 Bill. It will be my business to traverse some of the contentions he has put before the House; but, before doing so, let me express my hearty agreement with the proposition with which he began—that we have listened with the greatest pleasure and satisfaction to the speech which was delivered by my hon. Friend the Member for the Strand Division (Mr. W. F. D. Smith). I think this is the first time the hon. Member has taken part in our Debates, and I hope it will not be the last by very many. The right hon. Gentleman who has just sat down based his desire for some great alteration in our present system of land tenure, not merely upon the ground that the condition of the agricultural labourer leaves much to be desired, but upon the ground that his condition and the condition of agriculture in England are so far behind that which prevails on the Continent that it ought to be a matter of shame to us.
No, no! I alluded to small agriculture.
I understood the right hon. Gentleman to refer to agriculture at large. Small agriculture hardly gives us the basis for comparison. I understood the right hon. Gentleman to complain of the fact, not merely that the agricultural labourers condition was one which might be improved, but that it compared most unfavourably with the condition of the small holder and agricultural labourer abroad. This is a subject to which at one time I gave a considerable amount of study, and I must express my total dissent from the conclusion at which the right hon. Gentleman has arrived. I agree with him that the condition of the agricultural labourer requires much attention, but I do not agree with him that the system which prevails abroad has produced a condition of things, with regard to those engaged in the cultivation of the soil, which is superior in any great degree to that which prevails in England. I exclude, of course, the vine-growing districts in France, as the conditions are very different. But if we deal with agriculture proper it will be found that in Belgium and France the 1720 system of small holdings exist by the side of large holdings, and the small holder is not better but is often much worse off than the holder of the large farm. The interests of the agricultural population in Belgium and in France, and, I may add, all over the Continent, are preserved by protective laws, based and maintained for the sole purpose of improving their condition. No such protective laws exist in this country, and I do not suppose it is contemplated by any hon. Member that they should be passed, though I must say that if a very large number of holders are created by this or any other measure you will have protection. Even in Belgium and France, where this system has been applied to the greatest extent, I do not believe, broadly speaking, that the agricultural population is better off than our agricultural population. If you go to Germany, Roumania, or Russia, I believe there is no comparison whatever between the conditions of small holders and that of our agricultural labourers. Therefore, do not let us go into this Bill with any false idea that by the mere substitution of small holdings for big holdings you are going to substitute an agricultural paradise for the opposite of an agricultural paradise. What I believe you will do will be to greatly raise the tone of rural life in England, to give an opportunity to those who have some money to raise themselves in the social scale, and give an opportunity, which unfortunately does not now exist, for men to become small holders to the enormous social, political, and economic advantage of the country at large. The right hon. Gentleman seems to think that the condition of the labourer—because he is a hired labourer—is one of great hardship, and he appears to assume that the great number of holdings created under this Bill would be an acre, over an acre, and he desires to see them a little under an acre; but the man who has now an acre, five acres, or ten acres must supplement his agricultural work by hired labour of some kind. He must be dependent in some way on the employment given him by others; and if that is an objection, and I do not think it is, it is not an objection which you will get 1721 over. Now, the question has been asked, "Why did you fix the limit of an acre?" We fix it because under the acre it is dealt with in the existing Allotment Acts, and we take up the limit where those Acts leave it, and deal with holdings between an acre and 50 acres. The next point I would deal with is that with reference to compulsion. The right hon. Gentleman has stated perfectly truly that if there were a fair system of compulsion adopted the landlord would not suffer pecuniarily because by hypothesis he would obtain a fair price for the land he would sell. I think that in this debate there has been too great a disposition to consider that the only question is that between the owner of the land and the small holder we all desire to create. We must not forget the position of the farmer. It is the farmer who will suffer more than anybody else if compulsion is ill-applied, or recklessly applied. I think that in the interest not only of the landlord, but of the tenant farmer, it is only fair to make a full trial of the provisions of this Bill, and see if we cannot acquire, as I believe we can, all the land we require without exercising compulsory powers at all. Then the right hon. Gentleman expressed, and not for the first time, his own preference for a system of Parish Councils in regard to the administrative area. He desires that the area of administration should be something like that of a parish. I presume, therefore, that the rate which is to be proposed is the parochial rate.
I understand that the right hon. Gentleman has not made up his mind on the subject.
I did not say the parish was to decide as to the allotments. I stated that all the financial arrangements must be under the control, in my opinion, of the County Council. As to the rate, whether it should or should not be parochial, I gave no distinct opinion, because there are such things as intermediate arrangements already in operation in this country—which are neither parochial rates on the one side, nor county rates on the other. There are 1722 cases of grants in aid, which can be much better dealt with by local discretion.
I feel some difficulty in arguing with the right hon. Gentleman against the scheme whose outline is of so shadowy a description. I do not, of course, in the least wish to press the right hon. Gentleman unduly on the point. But when his scheme comes to be embodied, as I suppose it will be in an Amendment to the Bill, he will find considerable difficulty in regard to the rating area or the administrative area. If the rating area is small, his scheme will not work. If the rating area is large, he can hardly leave the administration to an area smaller than that which has to bear the cost of working. Now, I pass to the next and last point raised by the right hon. Gentleman, and that is as to the kind of tenure he desires to see established under the Act. Now, Sir, the right hon. Gentleman, as those who heard his speech are aware, though he would prefer to see freehold established, nevertheless contemplates that the Act, if it is to be operative at all, must include in its scope very full provisions for leaseholders. The right hon. Gentleman seems to think that that part of the Act is likely to be far more beneficial than the freehold portions. I confess I see very great difficulty in the view the right hon. Gentleman has put before us. In the first place, it is our desire and our ambition to do something by this Bill towards re-creating that system of small yeoman owners that once flourished, and that, we hope, will again flourish in this country. That is our main object; and if we allow our funds to be diverted to another object—namely, to the creating of a large number of small tenants—we evidently waste our forces upon that which we do not think is of the highest value. That is my first objection. Now, Sir, what is the particular form of tenancy that the right hon. Gentleman proposes? So far as I understand, he wishes to establish what in Scotland are called feus. Feus, I may tell the English Members of the House, are fixed rents which run for ever. I do not exactly call them head-rents, because these necessarily 1723 bear a very small relation to the value of the improved land on which head-rents are paid. The feu is a rent that runs for ever, and the recipient of which has no power to resume possession of the land. Now, Sir, the right hon. Gentleman contemplates that by a system of compulsion the landowners of this country shall be obliged to let their land on feu to the County Council. That would be a very great hardship. Compulsion, I understand, to compel a man to part with his property at a fair price is a proceeding with which we are all familiar, and which is undoubtedly justifiable if a great public necessity can be demonstrated. None of us have a word to say against that form of compulsion. But to compel a man to let his land seems to me an entirely new operation, never sanctioned, so far as I know, by this House, and in itself obviously unjust. At the present time, if an owner desires to sell he can obtain a fair price for his land in the open market. He has the power of obtaining a capital sum. That power you deprive him of if you compel him to let the land. He becomes possessed of a sort of head-rent for ever, probably adequately secured by the rates of the county, but you prevent him for all time from selling the plot of land which you feu, and you deprive him of the power of selling his land for a capital sum equivalent to the value.
May I ask the right hon. Gentleman whether feus are not sold in Scotland now?
It may be possible for the landlords under certain circumstances to sell; but I think to compel a landlord to accept that kind of security, which may or may not be saleable at some future time in exchange for land which is always saleable for a capital sum, would be a great hardship. However, I pass from the effect on the landlord of this proposition to its effect on the County Council. Here, again, I must traverse the contention of the right hon. Gentleman. The right hon. Gentleman seems to think the finances of the County Council would be greatly relieved if, instead of paying down a capital sum, you enabled them to pay a feu rent for ever. I think that operation would be 1724 more burdensome and more expensive. The County Council would borrow the money from the Public Works Loan Commissioners at 3⅛ per cent., which would be a charge upon their funds for ever. If you compel them to feu they would probably require to pay more than that sum. They would be compelled to borrow in a dear, as against a cheap, market, and they would be compelled to pay to the landlord 3⅓ per cent. for ever instead of 3⅛ to the Public Works Loan Commissioners. I cannot conceive that any County Council could think that was a good financial arrangement. It is not so good as that which we propose in this Bill. So far, therefore, as the landlords are concerned, and so far as the County Councils are concerned, the suggestion of the right hon. Gentleman is not one that we can accept. Now, Sir, I turn from the landlords and the County Council to the tenants to be created under and to the general objects of the Bill. The right hon. Gentleman desires to see not an increase of freeholders so much as an increase of small tenants. There is nothing that I know of in the existing land system of England which makes it difficult to create small tenants, and you gain nothing that I can see by substituting the County Council for the ordinary landlord. On the contrary; it appears to me that if you are to have small tenants as against small freeholders, you had much better leave them to the landlords they would have by the natural operation of economic laws than make them subject to representative bodies which must act by hard and fast rules. Representative bodies are trustees for the ratepayers, and they cannot make those elastic arrangements with their tenants that every landlord in England, so far as I know, is ready to make with his tenants. They cannot make allowances for bad times, nor give these small concessions which do so much to ease the difficulties which the tenant may have from time to time to encounter. Therefore, these tenants of the County Council will hold their land under much less convenient terms than if they were tenants under an ordinary landlord. The proposition of the right hon. Gentleman is neither the proposition of the hon. Member for the Strand 1725 nor that of the hon. Member for Bordesley. My hon. Friend behind me suggested that in the neighbourhood of large towns where lands might increase in value you might substitute temporary tenancy for freehold, so that the community should obtain the benefit of any increase. I do not say whether that is a good or a bad suggestion, though I admit much may be said in its favour. The hon. Member for Bordesley suggests that the community should have a perpetual interest in each holding, though small in comparison with the value of the holding. That also is a proposition for which much may be said. But the proposition of the right hon. Gentleman opposite differs from both. His proposal is not confined to cases in the neighbourhood of large towns, or to instances in which quit-rents bear a small proportion to the value of the land. The right hon. Gentleman desires that the County Council should let the land at a rack rent to these small holders. That is a proposal which I hope the House will never entertain. It would throw a burden on the County Councils—a burden which they are incapable of bearing—and would subject the small holders to difficulties under which they could not possibly pursue their industry. Now, Sir, I think I have noticed the main points of the speech of the right hon. Gentleman, and I will leave my right hon. Friend the Minister for Agriculture, when he comes to survey at a later period the whole course of a very interesting discussion, to deal with any other points that may arise. I will only say, in conclusion, that while I entertain the liveliest hope and expectation that this Bill will do much to raise the condition of the agricultural population of this island. I do not rest my hopes upon the grounds stated in a part of his speech by the right hon. Gentleman opposite. Nor can I bring myself to believe that whatever good effects it will have it will have the effect of raising the standard of agriculture in this country. Agriculture in this country has not been raised by the small owners, and it is still from the large owners that the future development of agriculture must be expected. But there is no conceivable reason drawn 1726 from the nature of things, or from experience of what is going on in foreign countries, why there should not be a mixed system of small and large owners—a system which, I believe, would be by far the best for the country, by far the best for the agricultural population, and best of all for the large owners themselves.
I should wish, Sir, to say one word by way of personal explanation on a particular point. My statement was this: that I would give to the local financial authorities power of taking land upon tenures inferior to the fee as well as upon the fee. I would carry that even to the extent of enabling them to take land on feu. I did not intend to exclude them from taking it upon lease.
This Bill has for its avowed object, by providing small holdings for the labouring population, the prevention of the depopulation of our villages; therefore, I cordially welcome it with all its faults and shortcomings. I welcome it, coming from such a quarter, as an evidence that the Party so ably represented in this House by the right hon. Gentleman the President of the Board of Agriculture are coming to realise the fact that it would be unwise to longer maintain their monopoly of the soil of Great Britain, or to ignore the principle that the first charge upon any land must be the maintenance of the human beings reared and cradled upon its bosom. Some hon. Members on this side of the House who represent agricultural constituencies may be pardoned any distrust they may have of the object of the Bill when they remember the utterance of the noble Lord at the head of the Government, on small holdings, at Exeter. Some of us have there an excuse for fearing that the aim of the Government is not so much to assist the agricultural labourer as to strengthen one political Party. But if I thought the measure was calculated to improve the condition of the agricultural labourer I would not stop to consider motives. The agricultural labourer is to be congratulated, however, on the recognition now accorded to his deplorable condition by the public generally, but more especially 1727 by those who a few years ago thought him unfit to exercise the franchise. In considering the principle of a Bill of this character it is desirable we should take into account the ills from which the agricultural labourer is suffering, the cause of those ills, and the probability of the Bill effecting a cure, or, at least, affording some relief. The agricultural labourer is suffering from want of occupation at a remunerative wage, and the immediate cause of that is the inability of the farmer to pay a fair wage under present rents of agricultural land. I think hon. Members on the other side of this House will scarcely dispute the first of those two propositions after the speech made by the right hon. Gentleman the President of the Board of Agriculture on introducing the Bill, and I feel morally certain that the right hon. Gentleman will sooner or later tell us that he is convinced of the truth of the second proposition. I shall be told in this House, as I am often told out of doors, that the wages of agricultural labourers are higher than they were a few years ago. That is true; and it is equally true that rents are somewhat lower, and there, I think, we have cause and effect illustrated. But the question that we have to consider, in viewing the condition of the agricultural labourer, is not whether his wage is higher now than at some former period, but whether it is now high enough to enable an intelligent, steady, and industrious able-bodied man to maintain himself and family in decency and comfort, and to make some little provision for old age. That such is not the case at present must be known by everyone acquainted with rural life. In our villages we find men who, after working honestly and well for 50 or 60 years, and who during that time have done their utmost to save, are compelled to husband out life's tape by a pauper's pittance. In the Division I have the honour to represent the number of such cases is very great. If the House will bear with me I should like to mention one by way of illustration. Samuel Atkins, of Great Easton, was 75 last November. This man began work at the age of 7 and ceased at 72, having been in the employ of one farmer for 30 years. 1728 When he attained to man's estate he earned 7s. per week, then 10s., next 11s., and at last 12s., but never got higher than that. He is described to me as having always been a steady, industrious, careful man, who worked honestly and well for 65 years without a chance to save a penny; now he is rewarded by the parish with 2s. 6d. per week and a loaf, is called a pauper, and is, in consequence, deprived of some of the rights of citizenship. Out of his 2s. 6d. per week he pays 1s. for rent and 9d. for coal, leaving him 9d. and a loaf for a week's subsistence. Hon. Members may wonder how the old man manages to exist, and I will, Sir, with your permission, use his own words— When I get the loaf home I cut it into seven pieces, so that I may not eat too much on any one day. That is the reward of 65 years of incessant toil. Can the House be surprised that with such an object-lesson before them every young man of that countryside with a spark of manhood in him decides to try his fortune elsewhere? Hence the exodus from our villages, and the necessity of considering how to prevent it. That is the problem we have to face, and however unpalatable the process may be, the reality will have to be laid bare. It is no use to blink the fact that the man who puts his strength into the cultivation of the soil is justly entitled to a fairer share of the produce of his labour, and will have it or go elsewhere. I am afraid that the heart of the right hon. Gentleman who introduced this Bill will not warm towards me when I say that a reduction of 5s. per acre on the 32 million cultivated acres of the United Kingdom would enable farmers to give 4s. per week additional wage to every agricultural labourer in the country. This Bill is ostensibly introduced for the purpose of obviating the depopulation of our rural villages, consequent upon the state of things to which I have referred. But is there the remotest probability of its having that effect? I think not, True, the Bill may set up a few men in business as small holders, but they will not be agricultural labourers, nor will it touch the great mass of the labourers. They cannot 1729 save a quarter of the purchase-money of a small holding—men whose only outlook is "a blessed prospect to slave while there is strength, in age the workhouse, a parish shell at last, and the little bell tolled hastily for a pauper funeral." But without compulsory power of purchase the Bill will be a dead letter. We are told that there is plenty of land for sale in the country. That may be; but it is in estates or whole farms, and no Local Authority will have the means of purchasing an estate or even a single farm for the benefit of one village without crippling its resources as to the remainder of the county. The Local Authority will have to deal with small quantities of land in many localities, and landowners will not sell such parcels of land except at exorbitant prices. Indeed, some of them seem to regard Public Bodies as fair game. We have recently had some experience in Leicestershire. The Corporation of Leicester needed some land belonging to an owner who has a seat in another place. He demanded £250 per acre for agricultural land and £5,000 for personal inconvenience. Fortunately, the Corporation had compulsory powers, and the noble Lord got a little less than half what he asked. But under the Bill the Local Authority must have paid him £250 per acre, which would have entailed a rent of £8 per acre, without allowing anything for law and official expenses or for "personal inconvenience." But even with compulsory powers, the impoverished agricultural labourer is not to be converted straight away into a thrifty small holder. Ownership of a small holding is the top rung of the labourer's ladder, and to keep his head when he gets to the top he must have ascended step by step. An allotment close to his cottage at a fair rent, with fixity of tenure, compensation for improvements, and a greater latitude as to extent, under the control of a popularly elected Parish Council, constitutes the first round of the labourer's social ladder. As he ascends, he will be learning the art of small culture. But more than that; when he finds himself provided with wheat and potatoes, ranged in sacks around his dwelling, enough to make it certain that, come what may, his 1730 family will not starve in the winter—when he realizes that, he will become less and less the miserable dependent and more and more a man prepared to give a fair day's toil for a fair day's pay. With fairer wage will come the ability to save. Then those having an aptitude for farming will most probably invest their savings in small holdings, and so establish upon safe economic lines a race of small holders, who may or may not realise the anticipations of the noble Lord at the head of the Government. I do not care what effect small holdings will have upon the political opinions of the people so long as they are prosperous. In conclusion, I would say that landowners need not fear the making of this measure too liberal or wide in its scope. They had better do with a good grace what will be demanded later, and delay will only increase the amount of what the right Hon. Gentleman the Member for West Birmingham used to call "ransom." I heartily thank the House for having listened to me. If I have spoken warmly it is because I feel deeply the sufferings of those amongst whom I live and who sent me here, and because I think that the country has not yet realised how necessary to its welfare is the preservation and contentment of our peasantry. When it does that, I venture to say the measure now before the House will be swept away as obsolete, and the regard for landowners' privileges will have become less tender. I feel that this Bill will not give the agricultural labourer much benefit; but I also recognise that it will not do him any harm, and I shall, therefore, vote for the Second Reading.
I think the discussion of this Bill has chiefly turned upon three points; and, although those points have been touched upon by the right hon. Gentleman the Member for Midlothian and others, I will venture to put before the House a few more considerations which I think bear upon them. The first thing that was said in objection to this Bill was that the administrative authority was too large—that instead of being the County Council it ought to be the Parish Council. I by no means object to the 1731 formation of Parish Councils in certain places where sufficient work can be found for them, and where there is sufficient administrative power in the parish. But I would ask the House to consider a practical objection to this proposal in the case of an ordinary-sized parish. If the Parish Authority were made the authority to deal with this Bill, the outcome would be inoperative, and very much for the reasons spoken of by the right hon. Gentleman the Member for Midlothian and the Leader of the House. The area would be too small for the purpose of raising sufficient money to guarantee the payment of the interest. That would of itself be a reason why the authority in London, the Public Works Loan Commissioners, would hesitate to advance any considerable sum of money upon such security. Another reason is this. In a great number of parishes you would have such petty jealousies and such differences amongst the inhabitants, that the work would not be seriously taken in hand at all. To purchase 50 acres of land at £50 an acre would alone require a sum of £2,500, and that would be a very large sum for a small parish to engage in raising. Then you would have the Parish Authority, probably comprising most of the leading small tradesmen in the parish, probably the butcher, the baker, the tailor, and the bootmaker, and, in sea-coast places, some of the fishermen. And the person who would apply to the Local Authority for a small holding might be the village publican. Now, that Parish Council would meet, and they would have to decide whether they should borrow this money or not, and, one by one, they would come to the conclusion that it would be an exceptionally nice thing for the publican if they did what he wanted, but that they could not quite see why they should be charged in order to give the publican this great advantage, when they themselves would also like to be set up in business. And I believe for that reason they would, almost unanimously, postpone it to such a day that probably the application would not come to life again, and possibly years would pass by, and the probability of giving a holding to the man would cease. Another thing touched upon by the right hon. Gen- 1732 tleman the Member for Midlothian was, how you can, with any reason at all, go to the landlord and ask him to remove a tenant from his tenancy of, perhaps, the best piece of ground on the estate, to make place for another? You would be asking the landlord to turn out A to benefit B, and at the same time charging B for the advantage to be conferred on A. A great deal has been said by the right hon. Gentleman the Member for Bradford about the iniquity of a landlord owning a whole parish, because, probably, if he was appealed to, he might not willingly give up his best field. I see no great crime in a man holding land if he has come by it honestly, either by purchase or succession. I, for my own part, see no difference between the man who owns property in the shape of a small parish and the man who owns a street in London or half-a-dozen shops. The cases are precisely the same. What would be the probable reply of this man to an application to turn out, say, his best tenant for the benefit of someone else who wanted the shop to set himself up in business? If you wish, therefore, to make this Bill practically inoperative you will hand it over to Parish Councils. The right hon. Gentleman the Member for Midlothian spoke of an intermediate authority. I know of no intermediate authority unless it is the Sanitary Authority. One word on the subject of compulsory purchase. We have had some slight experience in some parts of the country of the difficulties of carrying out compulsory purchase under the Allotments Act. And I myself have had experience of it too, and know the force of those difficulties. I do not hesitate to say if you adopt that course you will at once have greater difficulties to face than you have now. Compulsion means delay, delay means expense, and expense means additional rent. In this Bill the whole cost of delay, of valuation, and so forth must ultimately fall upon the man who rents this land, or who becomes the possessor of it in some other way. Those who have gone through an experience such as I and others have in reference to compulsory purchase will remember what these expenses are likely to be 1733 and what the procedure is. In the first place, there are notices to be served by the Clerk of the Council, who will charge extra fees, as that may not be part of his statutory work. Those notices will be served upon another authority, who have also a clerk and who may engage a solicitor. Then there are advertisements, the fees of clerks, the payment of solicitors, valuers, and arbitrators, the cost of conveyance, and possibly the cost of opinions of counsel upon various legal points. All these things will add considerably to the cost of the transaction, and they will add in a way that would not occur if the purchase were made by friendly agreement. A great deal of land could be bought by friendly agreement between the landlord and the Local Authority that will, if you put compulsory powers into this machinery, become doubly costly, and the public will have to bear the cost. Every tenant going into a small holding has to pay certain expenses to the outgoing tenant, such as for ploughing, seeds in the ground, manures, and so forth. It is not quite clear to me whether this will be a charge which the tenant or the County Council will have to pay. At any rate it ought not to be overlooked. You may have to deal with trustees or with a rich landlord, who can and will afford to fight you to the last, and your expenses will be astonishing. Then may come a time when the parish will find itself in great difficulty, because it will have great expenses to pay. In the case of the County Council being the Local Authority the expense will be spread over the county, and they will be able to bear that expense better; but in the case of the parish it will be an overwhelming expense for ever. I would point out one alternative to the House. The County Council will have to rely upon local information with regard to the suitability and value of ground. My idea is that these proposed purchases might be inquired into by Inspectors under the Local Government Board in much the same way as when money is applied for by a Local Authority for sanitary and other improvement works. I am of the same opinion as has already been expressed—that is, that these expenses and the risk of losing 1734 this money ought not to come out of any local taxation. This is money which is advanced for the benefit of the community at large, and ought to come directly from the Imperial Exchequer, and local taxation should not be made answerable for any risk. There is one more point, whether it is advisable to allow small holders to become actual possessors of the land on the payment of some small nominal rent. There is a great deal to be said on both sides of that question. I am inclined to think it would be well if we can manage that the holding shall be transferred to the proposed tenant at a very small nominal rent. There is plenty of land in the open market for the man with money in his pocket to purchase. Why should the Local Authority go to the risk of purchasing for these men, who a short time afterwards would have the power of paying off the money, and so becoming possessors? The right hon. Gentleman the Member for Midlothian condemns what I consider one of the most valuable clauses of the Act, and that is the power given to a man who is a tenant at present to become an owner. It enables the Local Authority to advance the money which the tenant himself does not possess, in order that he may become the actual owner. That is a case, I think, in which this Act will do an immense amount of good, and I say it is desirable we should encourage this class of tenants beyond everything. I would ask the right hon. Gentleman the President of the Board of Agriculture, on whom do the expenses fall under this Section—Section 10? I should like to be assured that the expenses would not fall upon the country, but that the tenant would be called upon to pay them himself. Another point is with regard to valuation from time to time. We know that as a rule these men farm well, and to the best advantage, and amongst them will be found some of the best of farmers. But, at the same time, we may have cases in which a man has made a mistake, or has had bad luck. In that case the Local Authority ought to be made aware of it, and I would suggest that a periodical valuation should be made of these farms by the County Council in order that they may get rid of the 1735 tenant if necessary, or before absolute damage is done to the holding. In addition to that, there should be some provision whereby the Local Authority would have power to enter upon land in case harm is being done to the neighbours by bad or dirty farming. In conclusion, I would simply say one word from the point of view of the public who are not directly benefited by this Act. We must be just before we are generous, particularly when we are dealing with other people's property. Many of those who are called upon to pay the possible expenses under this Bill are men not in the same position as the small holder himself. Those men, perhaps less well off, have to pay poor rates, and it is out of the poor rates that this money will have to come. Those cottagers do not receive the full benefit of the poor rate in the same way as their richer neighbours do. They do not use the roads, and in a variety of other ways, whilst they are called upon to pay the same poor rates, do not derive the same benefit from those rates as their richer neighbours, Therefore, on behalf of those men who will have to find the money, I hope that no unnecessary risk will accrue to the ratepayers if this Bill passes. We must remember that we are passing this measure not only for our own satisfaction; not simply for the good of those who are to enjoy the benefit of it, but that there are those who will look to us to put in their hands a practical working machine. I hope nothing will be left undone to make this Bill in every respect a satisfactory and practical measure; and, if that is done, it will confer on those for whom it is intended immense advantage. It is not going suddenly to make men rich; it is not going to make agriculturists of men who know nothing of agriculture, or to make two blades of grass grow where but one grew before; it is not going to bring back men who have gone into our towns; but my idea of the Bill is that it will prevent boys going away from our villages; they will be employed in the village when youngsters, they will be learning their trade, and will be less likely to leave their parishes for the towns.
It is not difficult to 1736 imagine a case for the creation of a small holding in which the expenses will be so large as to make the purchase a very unprofitable operation. But, I do not think it is in the least necessary to suppose that the field next to the farm will be taken, or that the best field will be taken. And I think the operation may be carried out to a very considerable extent, as the hon. Gentleman opposite has pointed out. The question of compulsion on the landlord has been adequately dealt with. But there is another side of the question—that is, bringing compulsion to bear upon the tenant. In Scotland tenants under a 19 years' lease very often have a greater advantage than the landlord. It must be supposed that where there are long leases the Act cannot be put in force till their termination; the proprietor might be perfectly willing to sell the land, but the tenant on lease would not let him do so. Therefore, I think compulsion on the leasehold tenant is as important as compulsion on the landlord. In England, under Lord Cairns' Act, the owners of limited estates can sell for the purposes of the Bill; but that cannot be done in Scotland, and must be provided for. I have heard of the Lincolnshire custom; if that means that the tenant has an interest in his holding he will require compensation, and provision must be made for that also. The necessity of the holding being of £25 value before a house can be erected is a blot on the Bill; we ought to encourage the erection of houses, and the limitation should be one of area rather than value. This Bill will supersede a great part of the Crofters' Act in the Highlands of Scotland, and, if it be made sufficiently comprehensive, it will enable the same agrarian law to be in force in the Highlands as in the rest of Scotland. The creation of small holdings in the Highlands, however, will not be undertaken so long as this limit of £25 remains in the Bill, and I shall in the Committee move that the limit be one acre instead of £25. The limit of an acre would secure that each house should have a fair amount of garden round it, and prevent the crowding together which is the great disadvantage in many villages. As to 1737 the question of quit-rent I think where the County Council buys the land instead of selling the freehold to the tenant they should give something in the nature of the Scotch feu. The discussion before the Town Holdings Committtee showed how complete is the right the feuer enjoys notwithstanding the restrictions imposed upon him. The superior can enter under a town and extract the minerals, and allow the town to tumble to pieces without the inhabitants being entitled to any compensation; there are also restrictions as to the character of the buildings and so forth. I think the County Council should be entitled, in making a feu, to retain the minerals, and the right to re-enter on the land if it were required for building or other purposes. A peasant proprietary anywhere is none the worse for having certain restrictions imposed upon it, and being subjected to a certain amount of regulation. An hon. Member, speaking of the valuable land round towns, suggested that the principle of compulsory leases should be there applied. This would be specially desirable for promoting the establishment of small dairy farms in the vicinity of towns, by keeping out a small holder who might become a speculator in building land. The Scotch County Councils ought to have the title of land and sub-feu it with the power of re-purchase for Certain purposes. This system of compulsory leasing is the only method by which, in the Highlands of Scotland, you can give an extension of common outlands, which is very desirable. Compulsory leasing might be very desirable on the smaller sized holdings; the larger sized holdings might be created more upon the system of purchase. I think there is a provision in the Bill enabling the County Council to make improvements on the farm. The less the Councils have to do with buildings on holdings the better for them and for the ratepayers. The only way to carry this out is to give the tenant, under loan, sufficient assistance to enable him to do it himself. One cannot support too strongly the proposition of Lord Thring that payment of succession duty should be made in land; that would be a step in the direction of simplification of title. 1738 This House does not object to make the transfer of land easy, though the House of Lords takes rather a different view, but I hope it may yet be possible the House of Lords will accept the Prime Minister's invitation to adopt some better system of transfer. I am glad the Government have recognised the depopulation of the country, and I hope that with the experience gained under this Bill we shall be able to take further steps in the direction of attracting population back to the country.
One or two Gentlemen on the opposite side of the House, in their anxiety to criticise this Bill, have suggested that the Government are not honest in their desire to benefit the agricultural population. That was the distinct suggestion of the Member for East Northampton; but I think we may at once dismiss any ideas of that kind, and look at the provisions of the measure. The discussion has been mainly on these subjects: the absence of the compulsory clauses the question of tenure, and also the further extension of leases. First, with respect to the objections which have been taken to the restriction which is placed upon £25 holdings, various suggestions have been made; and I have no doubt the right hon. Gentleman, when he comes to weigh the criticisms which have been passed on this matter, may not be indisposed to consider favourably the possibility of removing the disability that he has imposed. Some Gentlemen have taken exception to Clause 10, which enables the authority to advance money to a tenant in present occupation, with a view to enable him to become a purchaser. I think that is a most valuable provision. It has been said that this is the Ashbourne Act extended to England, and an exaggerated view of the case may, perhaps, present it in that way; but I think the principle is a good one, and that in practice it would be found to be very useful. Whether it would have any considerable effect is another matter. Undoubtedly, in my part of the world the farming classes would very much prefer to be yearly tenants instead of purchasers, but I can offer no opinion with respect 1739 to other parts of the country. The reason of that is perfectly familiar. The farmer, if he became a purchaser, would have to spend money which he might employ in other ways, and for which he might get a larger rate of interest. Coming to another point, I am disposed to think that the County Council, which has been placed in this Bill as the body to carry it out, is for some purposes the best authority that could have been found, but I think the useful purposes are of a more limited character than is suggested by this Bill. For the purpose of the purchase of land and for the sale, the County Council is nominally adapted. Their credit is higher, and they can make better terms than any other Local Body; but when we come to the purchase of land for the purpose of letting it, that is another matter. I regret that my right hon. Friend has hardly gone far enough in this matter, and I think a scheme should be formulated by which the parishes should become possessed of a certain quantity of land for the sole purpose of letting it again; and if that principle can be carried out, we shall gain a very great advantage. After a lapse of time the parishes would be deriving an income which might be devoted to the relief of the poor, or to any other object which local necessities required. This would have another advantage, for it would be found that the rents charged by the parishes would become a valuable standard of the rents which private owners may get in times to come, and the parishes would invariably exact good rents. Another argument in favour of this idea is that the County Council is too large and too distant a body. I see that later there is to be an Instruction moved to carry out this idea, but I think the mistake the hon. Member who moves it will make is to endeavour to reform the system of Local Government by alterations in a Bill which is devoted entirely to the purchase and sale of land. I have considerable sympathy with the proposal to give such power as I have indicated to the parishes; but I have no sympathy with a proposal, which I think would be unfair to the Government, in a Bill of this nature to try to 1740 introduce reforms in Local Government. I thought it might be very simple in Committee on this Bill to make some Amendment by which the idea I have mentioned could be carried out, by constituting the parish as the authority; but, I am bound to say that, on looking into the matter more closely, I found that it would require four or five clauses—at any rate, a considerable number of clauses—even for the simple operation of giving to existing vestries the power I have spoken of; and, with my knowledge of the House, and my knowledge of the feeling of my right hon. Friend (Mr. Chaplin), gathered from his public speeches, I have come to the conclusion that it would be scarcely worth while to trouble the Committee with clauses designed to carry out that object. Nevertheless, I do not hesitate to press an my right hon. Friend that if he, during his period of power, can establish a system which ultimately will have the effect of giving parishes power to obtain land, and again will place revenue ultimately in their hands which may be devoted to parish purposes, for the good of the parish, I think he would undoubtedly mark his tenure of office by an act which would be of the greatest use, and would never be forgotten throughout the entire country. Since I have been sitting in the House this evening, I have seen another reason for not proceeding with the clauses I thought of attempting to draw to carry out the scheme I have suggested to the House. I marked that an hon. Member opposite, and also the right hon. Gentleman the Member for Midlothian (Mr. Gladstone), who both favoured Parish Councils, also favoured the idea that all the financial part of the work must be undertaken by a more powerful authority than such councils. If you do that you abandon the revenue that ought to go to the parish ultimately. It is quite clear that if the county rates are to be appropriated for the purpose of purchasing land for a parish, that ultimately the money must go back to the County Authority. Perhaps the most interesting part of the discussion upon this Bill has been that part which has been specially pertinent to the tenure of land. My right hon. Friend 1741 to some extent only has adopted the plan of the hon. Gentleman the Member for Bordesley (Mr. Jesse Collings) with reference to keeping part of the purchase money as a first charge on the land. My hon. Friend the Member for Stamford (Mr. Cust), who spoke early in this Debate, seemed, I think, to have missed the point of the advantage of keeping a certain amount of the purchase money as a charge upon the land. I take it that everybody in the House, no matter who he is, thinks that land purchased in this manner should be kept for the purposes for which it was specially designed for all time, that is to say for agricultural purposes, and I do not imagine that my right hon. Friend (Mr. Chaplin) at all wishes that at the expiration of the 50 years it should be within the power of some holder who has been created by the Bill to sub-divide or to sell. Nobody has suggested that they wish to see that, but my hon. Friend who has just spoken on the question said that power might be reserved without keeping a certain portion of the purchase money as a charge upon the holding. I think that is a mistake altogether. If a man has a fee simple of his land—and I think the hon. and learned Gentleman the Member for Dumfries (Mr. R. T. Reid) answered that point very well—you cannot, except by Statute, interfere with his possession to prevent him from sub-dividing or re-selling for any other purpose. But if we are to have a condition of any sort attached to these small holdings, surely the simplest and the best way, as suggested by the hon. Member for Bordesley (Mr. J. Collings), is to keep a portion of the money as a first charge on the land. I am inclined to think that my right hon. Friend (Mr. Chaplin), when he gives more consideration to the matter after the discussion on the Second Reading of the Bill, will be almost disposed to admit that his own object will be best carried out by in some form or another adopting the suggestion of the hon. Member for Bordesley, and keeping some of the money as a perpetual charge on the holding. Does my right hon. Friend notice this also, which is an additional argument? The hon. Member for Bordesley himself pointed out that 1742 since the county must hypothecate its revenue to some extent for the good of individuals it is only fair that after a lapse of time when the greater portion of the purchase money is to be paid off, that the interest on the balance of the money left should go to the county to a certain extent, as a consideration for the hypothecation. But it goes even further than that surely. In the Bill, as my hon. Friend has got it, I am afraid it is almost a deadlock under these circumstances. The County Council buys a fee-simple. It is going to sell a limited ownership. There is a clause in the Bill which insists that the County Council shall only sell land for the amount of money which will cover the amount expended by it in purchasing the land, but surely you cannot expect to get as much for a limited ownership as you get for a fee simple. If you buy a fee-simple and sell a limited ownership you cannot expect to get as much as you paid, so that unless that restriction is to some extent modified I do not see how the Bill is likely to act, because, of course, these transactions in the County Council will be public, and be known to everybody, and I apprehend the intending purchaser will think twice before he gives as much money for his limited ownership as he knows the County Council gave for the fee-simple. Therefore, is not that argument in favour of the suggestion of the hon. Member for Bordesley to keep a portion of the purchase money perpetually on the holding, because then the interest of that purchase money for all time would flow to the county, and would be a make-up for the difference between the amount given for a certain quantity of land, and the amount for which it sold the land on a limited ownership. I undoubtedly think that the interest upon the deferred payment is a very just compensation to the County Council, not only for its hypothecation of a part of its revenue, but also for the actual loss which I can see it will have to submit to for a certain term of years. I will not enter on the question of compulsory purchase. It has been argued at considerable length by Gentlemen on both sides of the House, and I shall content myself with saying that, personally, I am opposed to compulsory 1743 purchase on principle. I think it is a bad principle to introduce. I think it will create friction in the country, although I do not think that it would have much practical effect. I do not think it would matter two-pence whether compulsory clauses were in the Bill or not. Still, I am opposed to it on principle. I think it is an unsound principle, and certainly it shall not have my support. On the contrary, I shall give it all the opposition I can. There is one other subject I have to mention to my right hon. Friend, and that is the question of leases. I cannot for the life of me see why my right hon. Friend has an objection to the County Council taking land on lease. It is a very different thing taking land under a voluntary agreement on lease to taking land under a lease compulsorily. My right hon. Friend the Leader of the House I think was quite correct in his reply to the right hon. Gentleman the Member for Midlothian upon the question of leases, subject always to the condition that the right hon. Gentleman the Member for Midlothian was speaking of compulsory leases. Of course my right hon. Friend was quite correct when he said it was much more unfair to take from a landlord on a compulsory lease some portion of his land, seeing that you would prevent him from capitalising that portion of his possession for a definite time or perpetually. But a voluntary lease is a different matter altogether. I do not see what objection there is to the County Council agreeing with a landlord to take some portion of his land for 20; 30, or 40 years, and using it for their own purposes, and I hope my right hon. Friend will try to see his way to introduce a clause to prevent compulsory leases, agreeing as I do with the Leader of the House and my right hon. Friend (Mr. Chaplin) that they would work very great injustice to people who own land. There are many points we shall have to discuss later on in Committee. On some of them I trust we shall persuade my right hon. Friend to go further than he has gone, and on the others I shall be a great supporter of his in resisting encroachments of hon. Gentlemen from the other side.
To use the expression employed by the right hon. Gentleman the Member for Midlothian (Mr. W. E. Gladstone) in regard to this Bill, I look upon it as an honest attempt to solve a difficult question and improve the condition of the agriculturists, and to use the phrase used by the right hon. Gentleman who introduced the Bill (Mr. Chaplin), I regard it as an experiment which ought to be tried, and for which I venture to predict a certain amount of qualified success. It is a contribution to the solution of one of the great problems of the present day, how to keep our country friends and neighbours more attached to the soil. Although it has been doubted from the other side of the House in a speech by an hon. and gallant Gentleman, the flow of people from the country to the towns has been going on. We want to bring the people back to the soil and to fix them there under reasonable conditions. I have spoken to a great many friends and tenants in the country, and they all tell me the same story—that they cannot get their boys and their girls to remain there. They know the discomforts of country life, and they have vague yearnings for the ulterior advantages which they think can be derived from flowing into the towns and congesting the towns. We want to very much increase the comfort and happiness of the agricultural labourer's life. We want to see him better housed, better fed, and have more opportunities for amusement and improvement. Above all we want to give him an inducement to make agriculture the career of his life. I am very much in favour of smaller farms in the country. It is a great pity it is not compulsory that landlords should break up big farms into small farms so as to give opportunities to the agricultural labourer. This Bill is a step in the right direction, though it is not a complete step. I look at it from the point of view of those people with whom I am more immediately concerned—the agricultural labourers and the farmers of Scotland. Amongst many of them I find there is no desire at all to purchase land. The idea of becoming a proprietor is not popular amongst them. With better 1745 conditions of tenure and better compensations for improvements, in my part of the country at least, the small farmers and the agricultural labourers who are looking forward to small farms are very much more content to remain as they are now. They say they have to sink their capital, and to pay a very much larger rent than if they were leasing the land. There are family difficulties, and the farm has to be broken up at death. Improvements have to be made, and then in bad times the holder has no one to help him. I should like to see the County Councils enabled to help the small leaseholders of the agricultural labourers' stamp by means of loans to stock and perhaps to build. The landlord nowadays rather dreads the small farm system. They dread it on account of the expense of building. Under modern conditions they must build very much larger buildings than formerly. Some provision of the kind I have referred to would induce proprietors to break up their large farms into small, and would give the agricultural labourer a better opportunity of gaining that home and that career and position he wants. As to the present Bill, I think the principle of compulsion must be applied if we desire to make the Bill a practical one. All the indications from my part of the country are very strongly indeed in favour of compulsion. If the landlord is willing to sell, compulsion will do him no harm. If he is not willing to sell, then it is in the interest of the small class of people whom the Bill was to encourage. We have been told that a great deal of unsaleable and uncultivable land could be palmed off by proprietors and others under this Bill. But I think we might very well trust the County Councils not to abuse their privileges in this matter. As to the position of the farmers, it is their interest to keep beside them steady workmen who are attached to the soil, and who are always available for agriculture. The great blot on the Bill is the limitation as to building on 25 acres. This provision makes the Bill entirely useless to the North of Scotland. Many people who are likely to become small holders are doing work in various ways. A man may wish to have ten or 20 acres. He cannot ab- 1746 solutely live upon the ground, though, under present conditions of market gardening in Scotland, many people have been able to make an extremely good living. But small tradesmen, shoemakers, and blacksmiths ought to be encouraged to settle down on the land and to build, if they can, themselves or with some help. I am not inclined to view with the same dissatisfaction as some others the machinery. I do not quite know what other machinery can be employed at present than the County Council. The formation of a committee which would include practical men is a fairly good working arrangement, by which local knowledge will be brought to the aid of the central body that commanded the funds. I look with a certain amount of suspicion on the municipalisation or resumption idea which we have heard something about recently. I think it would be a very deterrent influence on anyone who wished to buy land if, at any future period, when the land became more valuable, he should be liable to be summarily evicted and thrown absolutely out of the land. I do not quite see why this proposal is necessary in the interests of the general community, because the County Councils will probably work the Bill not at a loss. If the scheme is to be successfully applied, we ought to remove as many restrictions on ownership as we can. If a man wants to invest his money on land to a small as well as a large amount, he wishes to do as he likes. There are several drawbacks and restrictions which I think, at all events, would deter a cautious people like the Scots from investing their money on land under the conditions in this Bill. The Bill is not a perfect one, but it is an honest attempt to solve a difficulty. No doubt when it goes info Committee such a Bill will be produced as will do something to rectify the condition of things, which we know require a remedy, and which, I think, might fairly be remedied under the Bill.
I have observed that a number of hon. Gentlemen are trying to persuade the country that this Bill will have no effect without compulsory power. I think those hon. Gentlemen 1747 will find when the Bill is passed there will be an ample and sufficient supply of land in the market for all wants. It has been found so under the allotments scheme. There is no want of land now. I wish to say that if you have this compulsory power you will be doing a great injustice to the farmers and the small owners. It has been truly said that land suitable for small holdings would be in the neighbourhood of villages, and it must be remembered that such land at the present time is always quickly let. Therefore, if you take land from one of these farms you will do a great injustice to the struggling farmer and the small holders of land near the villages. Suppose a man has land near a village, are you, on that account, on a petition from a few people in the village, to carve these small holdings out of it? It would do a great injustice to the one man, and confer, perhaps, illusory advantages on the others. I do not wish it to be understood that I am against small holdings; but I should be sorry if this Bill, instead of creating small holdings, gave rise to a number of land speculators. I am sure no one would like to see that, and I believe this is one of the great arguments against the exercise of compulsory powers. My experience has been that small holders are constantly desiring to get rid of their land. In my own part of the country a man who was earning a livelihood was left 20 acres of land with a small house upon it. He went to the holding, and without any knowledge of farming, and without much money, he tried to make a living upon it; he is now in a state of starvation. There are many such instances in which small holdings attract men to the land and they fail. Some people say that the reason why they cannot make a living upon such holdings is that the holdings are too highly rented. I can only say that in my part of the country the rents are very low indeed. I am afraid that small holders will not be able to make a living out of the land, because it takes so much money to stock it. Labourers are so badly off that I am afraid they will not be able to take advantage of this Bill. Therefore, I think that one of the most important provisions in it is that which 1748 gives to County Councils the power to take land and erect buildings upon it, and then let it to labourers. If this clause was put into force—although it might be too much to throw upon the County Council—I believe it would be of the greatest benefit to labouring men, and enable them by hard work and industry to get a livelihood out of the land without travelling into the great towns to the detriment of those who are there already, and to the injury of themselves and families.
This Bill is professedly a measure to bring about a wider distribution of land in this country, and check the depopulation of the rural districts. Such objects should have the cordial support of all Members of this House, whatever their political opinions. I hope, however, that that portion of the Bill which restricts the erection of houses on smaller plots of land will be altered so that the restrictions which I think the right hon. Gentleman has unwisely introduced may no longer exist. In the County of Hampshire, in the New Forest Division, there are striking examples of the fact that where there are a number of small holdings, there the population increases and pauperism diminishes. The evidence before the Select Committee strongly supports this experience, and therefore any measure which would be likely to bring the people back to the land deserves support. I was very much surprised to hear the comparison which was made by the right hon. Gentleman the Leader of the House between the condition of the French peasant and the English agricultural labourer. If the condition of the French peasant had not been better than that of the English labourer, France would have been still under the heel of the German Emperor instead of being able to pay off the vast indemnity exacted by Germany. It was from the French peasantry that the money came in the hour of distress. We have no similar class of population in England; I should be glad if we had—that it might be able to do for this country, if required in the time of need, that which the French peasantry did for France. The power of producing food both in France and Belgium is considerably greater than it is in this 1749 country, when the respective populations are considered; and, that being so, everybody must be anxious to improve the food-producing power of this country. Now I find that the people to be benefited by this Bill are divided into three classes. First of all, there are the persons who buy the land; then there are the existing tenants, who are to be enabled to become owners of their farms; and, lastly, the labourers, who will be enabled to obtain larger allotments. Now, I think that that section which will have the effect of enabling labourers to obtain allotments is the best part of the Bill. I should be glad to see the limit of £10 rental extended, so that these people might become in time tenants on larger plots of land, even up to 20 or more acres. Then I think that the advantages offered to tenants in Ireland under the Ashbourne Act might well have been extended to enable the existing tenants in England to become the owners of their land, without exacting any lump sum at the time of purchase. I would also say that I am not satisfied with the authority which is to be appointed under the Bill—namely, the County Council. There is a desire in various parts of the country to give the powers to the Urban Sanitary Authority; but I am sorry that some scheme has not been devised by means of which authorities over smaller areas could be called in, so as to secure a more intimate knowledge of the wants of the people than can possibly be possessed by County Councils. In the matter of the Allotments Act, some County Councils do not act sympathetically. Some labourers in Kent the other day appealed that the Act might be put in force. A Commissioner was sent down to make an inquiry. He held the inquiry in a public-house, with no reporters present, at twelve o'clock in the day, when the labourers could not attend. Now, that is not the way that County Councils should carry out the Act. I hope the right hon. Gentleman the President of the Local Government Board will insist upon the inquiries being for the future held openly, and at an hour suitable to the agricultural labourers. Now, Sir, as regards the question of 1750 compulsion, I may say at once that compulsory powers are not wanted for the purpose of harassing the landowners. We want them for the purpose of preventing land being unnecessarily forced up in price when owners refuse to sell land for the purposes of public benefit. If land is forced up in price there will necessarily be a failure of this scheme. That is shown by the experience of the operation of the Allotments Act. Some time ago I obtained from the Secretary of the Local Government Board a statement which showed that in a number of cases where land had been bought by voluntary agreement under the Allotments Act, an average price of £90 per acre had been paid. That would be a prohibitive price to pay for land to be let out to agricultural labourers, if they are to make a profit out of their holdings. It is clear to me that if voluntary sale alone is to be available, the price will be too high for the agricultural labourer to pay. Then, Sir, if we have not these compulsory powers we shall likewise have this difficulty, that land will be sold in too big parcels. It will be a question of buying a whole estate if the landowner wishes to sell, and not merely the portion required for the purpose of making the experiment. In these big parcels of land there would be many lots unsuitable for small holdings. The Bill apparently anticipates some such result, for in one of its clauses—I think in Clause 8—it says that if the land is unsuitable or superfluous for the purpose for which it was acquired, it may be sold. I cannot understand why the right hon. Gentleman the President of the Board of Agriculture should be unwilling to give us these compulsory powers, because in 1886, in introducing his Allotments Bill, he avowed himself a convert to compulsory powers. If, Sir, in a Bill of that kind, to let out land in half-acres, the right hon. Gentleman proposed compulsion, surely in this larger Bill it is much more necessary that we should have compulsion. Now, Sir, there are only one or two other points. The Government call this Bill an experiment. It is, to a certain degree, an experiment, and I hope it will be a successful experiment. 1751 I have very little sympathy with the movement for the creation of small freeholders, and I think it will be most difficult to re-create the yeomen—a class that was exterminated by the operation of natural forces. They existed mainly because the common lands of the country were unenclosed, and, to enable them to exist again, you would require a recurrence of the economical conditions under which they flourished. I would rather see this class replaced by tenants under a Local Authority with a fair rent and secure tenure, or as tenants quasi-owners, if you like, with a perpetual quit rent. There is no guarantee that the small free owners will not be swallowed up again by the larger owners, and large estates again created. I hope the Government will seriously consider the question of allowing the land to be let by the Local Authority on a quit-rent, never to be redeemed, in order that the unearned increment may go to the community, and that the County Councils may keep a grip on the land, and, if necessary, resume possession of it. We want this Bill to be effective in its operation, in order that the agricultural labourers may be able to live on the land under conditions of independence and comfort such as their forefathers have never known.
I quite agree that it is most desirable that the labourers should be made better off and their lives made happier; but I am afraid it will be many a long year to come before there can be any considerable increase of happiness from any attempt of this sort to place the labourer in the position of an owner as well as in the position of a farmer. For many reasons, I fail entirely to see where the labourer is to get money to buy the stock necessary to the working of his holding. One hon. Member said the Bill was not up to sample, meaning that it was not so good as he expected after the speech of the Minister of Agriculture, but the Minister of Agriculture said the Bill would only be an experiment, and we should be very unwise to weight it with compulsion. It will be time to adopt compulsion when it is proved that a measure of this sort will make that happy change in the condition 1752 of the agricultural labourer that is predicted. But I think what has to some extent been lost sight of during this Debate is this: I think it is of the first importance that if we are to get these labourers or rural people to take land as owners, that we should do our best to cheapen those legal costs that always occur when land changes hands. One of the principal reasons why we have not so many small holders in various parts of the country as we ought to have is when a man has tried to get land these legal expenses have run the price up to such a point that there was no prospect of his getting a profit out of his investment for many years. It is a disgrace to this Assembly, containing so many lawyers as it does, that at the present day the legal expenses attaching to the transfer of land in small pieces are practically prohibitory. I hope that before long we shall do something to cheapen the purchase of land. I want a promise that this matter will be dealt with. We have heard a good deal about the happy position of the French peasantry from the other side of the House. I think that was answered most fully by the right hon. Gentleman the First Lord of the Treasury. I was very pleased indeed to hear him say that many of these French peasants are not in such a happy position that we could take our English people over there and say that is the position we should like to see you in. I should be very sorry to take the villagers in my own neighbourhood over to some parts of France, and say, "We want you in that position." Who is there in this House who has been to France, and has seen ploughing for example carried on in the fields there, who would venture to compare it with our system of ploughing? I have often seen a half-starved donkey and a poor overworked woman side by side drawing a plough or harrow. Am I to go down to my constituency, and tell my people that I should like to see our labourers' wives and daughters working side by side with a half-starved donkey? I am fully aware that there are many Members of the House who know as much about agriculture as I do. But, speaking of France, I may mention that I have re- 1753 sided in that country four years at a spell. During the Franco-Prussian war I had the privilege of being sent over to the very peasants whom we have been told are so well off. My colleagues and myself were sent to distribute relief to these very peasants. The society which I had the honour to represent distributed about £80,000, and that was only one of many societies in England that did similar work. From what we have heard to-night one would be led to think that the money was not wanted—that the peasants were humbugs. I do not believe they were humbugs, but that they were really poor, as they represented themselves to be. We are generally agreed as to the Second Reading of this Bill, and the details can be adequately discussed when we get into Committee. But I would like to ask the Minister of Agriculture a question in reference to a provision in Clause 1, Sub-section 1, which says that the persons for whom small holdings are to be selected must be residents of the county. I would ask the Minister of Agriculture if that is really vital to the Bill? If the persons from whom small holders are to be selected are to be limited to residents of the county, cases of very great hardship might arise. There might be the case of a man who had got plenty of money, and who was in every way suitable for a small holding, but who would be deprived of the advantages of this Bill just because he happens to live over the road, and so was not in the county in which the piece of land he wanted to have was situated. But that is a point also more suitable for discussion in Committee than it is now. The only other point that I will touch upon now is whether we should allow the small holder under any circumstances to free himself of all monetary responsibility in the holding, whether we should allow him to be in the position simply of being a small freeholder who could do what he liked with his holding. I am afraid if we allow the small holder to pay off the balance of his purchase money, all the trouble of the County Council and the sacrifices of the farmers, landlords, and ratepayers will in too many cases be useless. In respect to the population of our villages, we are just as 1754 anxious to keep our villages filled with a respectable, happy, and industrious population as you gentlemen in towns are anxious to have the towns in the same flourishing condition. We want industrious, healthy, strong labourers, and these small holders will be just the families from whom we shall get the best class of labour for our farms. I hope no one will think there is any wish to put any obstruction in the way of a fair trial for a measure of this sort. But I do think if we allow these small holders, after having made a bargain with the County Council, to become absolute freeholders, then we shall find that all the trouble which has been taken, and the sacrifices which have been made, will be in vain, because the small holder will have the power of selling his holding when he is in difficulties or wishes to raise money, and in the long run we would be no nearer the goal we have in view than we were when we started.
There is one point with regard to compulsion which has not been sufficiently brought before the House, i.e., in the case of settled estates. It might be competent for any gentleman holding a settled estate, if the County Council came to him and said, "We want your land," to say "I will be very happy to give you my land, only the conditions of my estate prevent me from doing what you want." I should like to see these settled estates put in the same relation to the County Council as Railway Companies. A Railway Company passing through an estate takes the land by compulsion, and I should like to see the County Council put in the same position. It is said that would be hard upon the tenant. But that also occurs in the case of a Railway Company. I do not think this Bill will have much effect in its main object of creating small holders to any great extent unless something of that kind is done. In the first place, you have to compensate the tenant, then you will have to buy the land from the landlord, and then the County Council will have to erect buildings. After that will it be possible to let the land to advantage? In my part of the country, if a landlord wants to resume 1755 possession of his land, he generally has a clause in the lease by which the tenant is compensated. I do not think there is any fear under the Compulsory Clause of the tenant being unfairly dealt with. I have often known cases in Scotland where a landlord was not allowed to let his land for building purposes. There has been a good deal said about the legal expenses of getting land in England, but they are much greater in Scotland than they are here. I remember some 30 years ago, when I succeeded to my property, I had to spend a very considerable sum before I could get the land to let for building purposes. But if compulsory powers were put into this Bill, you would get over this difficulty. If the buildings to be put up are suitable buildings, and if they are erected under conditions approved of by the County Council, I cannot see why you should not put up buildings even on an acre of ground. If that is within the scope of the Bill it would meet one of the greatest evils we have to contend with, overcrowding of labourers dwellings, and in that way it might be possible to do Something to relieve the overcrowding which exists. The hon. Member for Bordesley said the object was to encourage a man to purchase a piece of land for a house in which he and his family could reside, and I agree with him. I do not think this Bill will be taken advantage of by the purely agricultural labourers. The people who will take advantage of this Bill will be men who have come from the towns—retired tradesmen and others—who have come from the towns and desire to take two or three acres of land to build a house upon. Much more will be done in that way than by the purely agricultural labourer. I do not believe the land hunger of this country is confined entirely to a desire to cultivate the land. There are many people living in towns who desire to get land to live upon; and if this Bill can do anything to promote this object, it will be very beneficial to the community. I should be very glad to see this Bill take the place of the Allotments Act in Scotland, where no Bill of the kind is in force. It is constantly said that a great deal of land is in the market. 1756 That is perfectly true, but it does not come to the market in quantities which poor people can buy, and even the legal expenses are quite disproportionate to the value of the land acquired. The more numerous the people are who reside in the country the more will that benefit the agricultural labourer, because you find, other conditions being similar, that wherever holdings are small the agricultural labourers' wages are proportionately high. Therefore, the more people you get on the land the better will it be for the agricultural labourer. I have no doubt hon. Members are well aware of what is going on in their own counties, but, in reference to London, I may say there is a great desire of people in the East End to get to the country. Let any hon. Member take a railway journey from Fenchurch Street to Southend, and, before he has gone 25 miles from London, he will see land which has gone out of cultivation on both sides of the line. I went down on Saturday to the county of Essex to see an experiment being tried there by Mr. Varty, which has some bearing on this question. He bought this estate of 250 acres last September, and cut it up into very small lots of 1–14th of an acre, and a man might buy one or half-a-dozen lots. He has now sold nearly a quarter of the land. The great inducement held out to purchasers is that they get a title to the land for one shilling, and there are no other legal expenses. They pay ten per cent. of the purchase money down, and the whole is paid off in 16 years. I was told that, after making roads and paying legal expenses, Mr. Varty had a very remunerative return for his money. The land was apparently good land, such as would be sold at £15 or £20 an acre. This could not be done in all parts of the country, but the scheme is worthy of the attention of the House and of imitation in many parts of this Bill. The last speaker said that if you could get over the difficulty of a cheap title the scheme of small holdings would be facilitated. If individuals can carry out this experiment with perfect safety, surely it can be done by any County Council which will exer- 1757 cise ordinary caution. I have no doubt that in the neighbourhood of large towns you will get plenty of men to take these small holdings and build their own houses, thus relieving the towns and improving the condition of the people in rural districts. It is in the direction of assisting those who have acquired a certain amount of capital, whether farm labourers or anybody else, that there is the greatest possibility of doing good by the Bill. I do not believe that the Bill, if applied only to the rural districts, with the object of putting labourers on small holdings, can be worked profitably. In the neighbourhood of towns I think it it may be beneficial in doing a great deal in the direction of securing a wider distribution of land and the erection of an improved class of labourers' dwellings, and, on that ground, I have great pleasure in supporting the Second Reading of the Bill.
It is evident from the remarks of the hon. Member for the Maldon Division of Essex (Mr. Gray) that he does not much believe in the success of the experiment made in the Bill. I agree with him. I wondered why the Government brought in this Bill, but the speech of the First Lord of the Treasury has shown us the reason. The right hon. Gentleman who introduced the Bill has always held that in agriculture large production, large farms, and large estates were the most productive form of cultivation, as you got more return at the minimum of cost. I see the First Lord of the Treasury still believes that.
I still believe that in agriculture, as in other things, the expenditure of large capital on labour is the best means of getting large returns.
I believe you get a better return by spending more on labour: and in small holdings you can put in proportionately more labour and capital. We do not believe that the creation of small holdings will sink the agricultural labourer in penury and poverty. We might distrust the Greeks when they bring us gifts of this kind, and distrust the Tories when they attempt land reform. We 1758 now know that the object of the Bill is not to place labourers and small peasants on the soil as cultivators, but to create an outpost, a Mameluke Guard, to protect the big landlords against the attack which some of us are making on them. I admire the frankness with which the right hon. Gentleman told us that one result of the Bill would probably be protection. If you want to give the small agriculturists a chance, and so give them a tenure which would be good for them, the suggestion of the right hon. Gentleman the Member for Midlothian (Mr. W. E. Gladstone) is the best and easiest way to do it. The Scotch feu may be described as the oldest form of tenure in the world, where you have a superior and inferior. It is desired that the increased value of the holding should go to those who earn it. If you take the land on a perpetual lease at a fixed rent, any increase in value will go to the County Council, because their tenure is not to be perpetual at a fixed rate, but with a varying rate according to values. They will get these values and so will be able to lessen taxation. You cannot try the experiment with a penny rate: that is absurd. The cost of making roads and boundaries, and building outhouses will require more than a penny rate to meet it, and if you add to that the cost of purchase you will require a great deal of money indeed. The best way would be for the County Councils to spend the money on the improvements, thus increasing the value of the land and of their security. I shall fight against the creation of a new set of landlords. We desire to see perpetuity of tenure in order to induce men to put more capital and labour into the land, and get the most out of it which it can produce. The Scotch system is a good one, and we get better returns than is the case in England, because we have 19 years' leases. While the school to which I belong is willing to give perpetuity of tenure to the cultivator of the soil we are not prepared to create new privileges and monopolies for another class. There is a legal fiction that there is no private property in England; but, as a matter of fact, the landlords in 1759 England have as much control over the land as those in any other country. The rents represent the value of superior soil and of desirable sites, buildings, and other improvements on the land. The value of the soil and the desirability of the site are not created by any man, and if you make a change in the system of land-tenure, a man should be called upon to pay to the community the difference between the economic value of the soil and of the desirability of the site. That might be done by the means suggested by the hon. Member for Bordesley (Mr. J. Collings) which would enable future changes to be made more easily. If the Government desire to create a new class of landlords we will do our level best to prevent them doing so; but if they desire to create a new system of land-tenure and so get rid of some of the difficulties of the old system we are ready to give them our support.
If it be true that the hon. Member for Caithness has failed to gather anything as to the reasons for the introduction of this Bill from the observations which I made in introducing it, I am afraid that nothing I could say to-night would add to his enlightenment, and therefore, with the permission of the House, I will pass from the hon. Member to make some general observations on the Debate which has taken place on the Bill. I am not aware that, with the exception of the speech of the right hon. Gentleman the Member for Midlothian, which has already been dealt with by my right hon. Friend, anything which has occurred or has been said in this Debate requires any lengthened intervention on my part at this stage of our proceedings. On the contrary, I venture to think I shall express the general sense of the House when I say that with one or possibly two exceptions this Debate has been conducted throughout with a general absence of Party spirit which has been as welcome as it is, most unhappily, unusual, and with an evident desire on the part of speakers on both sides of the House to promote the improvement of the Bill, and the object which we 1760 all have at heart. It is true that the hon. Member for Saffron Walden (Mr. H. Gardner) and the hon. Member who resumed the Debate to-night were unable, in spite of all their efforts, to conceal what I should describe as an under-current of snarling hostility towards the Party responsible for the Bill; but, with these exceptions, I am bound to say the Government have no reason whatever to be dissatisfied in any way with the general conduct of the Debate. It is in the same spirit that, while reserving to myself the full right to form my own independent judgment, I shall be ready to consider and deal with the various suggestions that have been made in the course of the Debate. In the first place, may I turn to some observations made by the right hon. Gentleman the Member for Midlothian, as to which I wish to add a few words to those which have fallen from my right hon. Friend? The right hon. Gentleman was good enough to state that, in his opinion, this was an honest effort in the right direction, but far short of the necessities of the case. He considers it defective as regards the area of the Local Authority; he is of opinion that there should be subordinate Councils to deal with the question of the provision of land, though I did not gather quite clearly from the right hon. Gentleman what the constitution of these Councils should be. The rest of the speakers on the side of the right hon. Gentleman were strongly in favour of compulsion. With regard to the acquisition of land, he laid down the proposal that the tenure of land by the County Council without owning the fee-simple is not to be excluded. I do not find it quite easy to follow the right hon. Gentleman in that part of his subject, but my view is this: If the acquisition of land by lease is also to be by compulsion, then I think the right hon. Gentleman is confronted at once by a most formidable objection, an objection which ought to have been formidable in his own eyes from the statements which he made and the course he adopted in this House not a week ago, although I cannot help thinking that that objection escaped him this afternoon. You cannot have 1761 compulsory leases without adopting, at the same time, a system of valuation of rents. A lease cannot be compulsory so long as you allow the landlord to impose a rent which may be altogether prohibitory. ("Hear, hear.") Hon. Members below the Gangway say "Hear, hear," but they must remember that I am criticising the proposal of the right hon. Gentleman. You must remember that the system of valuation of rents is a cardinal and essential principle of the Irish Land Bill, and it was against that principle that the right hon. Gentleman voted not a week ago; and it was against that principle, as I reminded the House the other night, he specifically declared, some years ago, that, so far as he was concerned, he would never be a party to consent to it. If, on the other hand, the land is to be acquired by lease by voluntary means, I admit the case stands, as far as the owner of the land is concerned, from whom the land is to be acquired, on a totally different footing, and my objection, so far as the owner is concerned, would disappear altogether. But that system is open to all the objections which I took the opportunity of pointing out on the introduction of the Bill, and not one of which has been answered in the course of the Debate. I pointed out, in the first place, that you would make the Local Authority into a middleman at once, and would subject them to all the vicissitudes and chances of a landlord's position, and that pressure would be put upon the Local Authority precisely as it is on the landlords to-day. Further, the present object of the Government—namely, the adding to the number of the owners of the land, would be defeated altogether. And then there is a difficulty as regards buildings, to which I will draw attention for a few moments. If the land is to be let by the Local Authority to tenants, it must be let obviously either upon yearly tenancy or else it must be let on lease. If by yearly tenure the tenant could not be expected to erect the buildings, and you will throw upon the Local Authority all the onus and all the necessity of that very important and difficult work, for it would be in the hands of the Local Authority a 1762 matter of much greater difficulty than in the hands of a landlord. If, on the other hand, the small holding was let on lease, then it is perfectly true that if the lease was of sufficient duration the tenant could make the buildings himself. But surely, under these circumstances, would it not be far better and more preferable in the interest of the tenant that he should acquire his holding by purchase from the Local Authority? for every year he would be approaching nearer the time when, if he had originally purchased, both the land and the buildings which he had erected would become his own instead of reverting to the Local Authority. Hon. Members will, I think, be disposed to admit that some reasons have been advanced by the Government against this system, to which the right hon. Gentleman attaches so much importance, of leasing land instead of acquiring it by purchase, and it must be fully considered before the Government can be expected to adopt this view of the case. Turning now to observations made by various speakers in the course of the Debate, the Member for West Sussex pointed out that under the 1st clause of the Bill the provision of these small holdings was to be limited to the labouring population. But it is not a true interpretation of the clause to think that all people would be prevented from having the enjoyment of these holdings except the agricultural labourers themselves. I do not quite know why you are to draw the line at the blacksmith or the small trader, as at various periods of the year all these labour in agriculture, and must be classed as part of the agricultural population. For instance, during harvest time, how many people are there in a village who are not actually engaged in agricultural labour? I do not think the hon. and gallant Member has any cause to be alarmed with regard to that provision of the Bill, especially when I remind him that it was taken verbatim from the language and phraseology of the Allotments Act in force at the present time. The suggestion was made to me that, instead of the money being lent upon the security of the rates, it should be entirely provided from the Imperial Fund. I quite understand 1763 the motives and object of that proposal, and I am ready to admit that, logically, the demand is perfectly, right, because this Bill is introduced in support of what is held to be a national object, and on that ground the hon. Member has maintained that it should be supported by national funds. But there are two considerations which the hon. Gentleman will find to be of great importance. It would clearly be impossible to provide funds for this purpose from Imperial sources alone, and yet to leave the administration of that to the Local Authorities. Whoever bears the cost must also have the responsibility of the administration of the measure; and if I adopted the suggestion which has been supported by several speakers, it is quite clear that this Bill which I am now asking the House to read a second time must be administered by some central Government Department. Not only would that involve an entire re-construction of the Bill, but I should have to ask myself this question, whether a central Government Department will be suited in any degree for carrying out a measure of this kind? I doubt very much whether it would be possible to adopt such a suggestion, and I am sure it would not be desirable. On the other hand, if the imposition of 1d. on the rate is viewed with alarm, I venture to think, for reasons which I will submit, that the alarm is not well founded. In the first place, Clause 11 of the Bill provides that the Local Authority shall not acquire land save at such a price as they can fairly expect will enable them to recoup themselves. In the second place, no difficulty whatever can arise except in the case of the failure of the holder of the land, and in that case the Local Authority would have not only the security of the holding itself, but the additional security provided by the sum which is required to be paid down in the first instance, amounting to one-fourth of the whole. Thirdly, there is nothing whatever in the Bill to prevent the Local Authority from charging the small holder interest in reasonable excess of the terms under which they have borrowed the money themselves. Therefore, there is no substantial ground for alarm lest there 1764 should be a permanent charge of 1d. on the rate. The Member for Stamford, whose able speech was listened to with pleasure on both sides of the House, suggested that Succession Duty in future might be paid in kind; that is to say, that a person succeeding to an estate might discharge his Succession Duty by offering so much land in lieu of cash. The suggestion is not new to me, and I frankly own that there is something attractive, and even fascinating, about the proposal. It could be carried out in one of two ways. The land could either be handed over directly to the Exchequer, or it could be handed over to the County Council. With regard to handing it over to the Exchequer, we are confronted with the difficulty that what the Exchequer requires is cash and not land, and if the Succession Duty is paid in land who is to take charge of that land and manage it until it has been converted into cash? It would mean the creation of a Government Department whose business would be to hold and manage this land till the time arrived when it could be sold. The State probably, under these circumstances, would become the owner of a great number of small holdings in all parts of the country differing in size and character and entailing a great difficulty in properly dealing with them. It would have to manage and cultivate these lands until they were disposed of. I do not say that it would be impossible even to do this; but, at all events, it would be an undertaking of enormous magnitude and importance—one which certainly could not be entered lightly upon, and the Chancellor of the Exchequer would have a good deal to say before he gave his assent to it. The second alternative is that the land should be handed over to the County Council, and I ask this question, is the acceptance by the County Council to be optional or compulsory? If it is to be optional, then I do not see how or in what respect the position of the owner of the land is improved, because he can go to the County Council under existing circumstances and offer the land; they can take it if they please and the owner can take the money and hand it over to the Exchequer. But if, 1765 on the other hand, it is to be obligatory, what is the position of the County Council? They may have already satisfied all demands for small holdings in the district over which it holds jurisdiction; but a landowner dies, and his successor, who has a large duty to discharge, comes to the County Council and insists on their taking over 500 acres. What is to be done by the Local Authority? I think the House will see that, attractive as it may be, the suggestion is full of difficulties, and it certainly is not one that I should like to endeavour to incorporate in this Bill. The Member for Stamford also made a suggestion that some means of registration should be established by the Bill. That is a point which I own I should be glad to see in the Bill if it were possible to incorporate it; but I have approached it with caution, because I thought it might lead to serious opposition, and perhaps be the means of defeating a measure which I am sincerely anxious to pass. But if I find that in the course of the Debate in Committee there is anything like a general desire that this proposal shall be included in the Bill, I shall be very glad to entertain and consider seriously any proposal that is made. I was asked whether in the case of life owners and settled estates the land could be disposed of for small holdings. That is the case. They can be sold under the Lands Clauses Act and the Settlement Act of Lord Cairns, and I do not think any amendment is required in that matter. I am also asked whether the amount the Bill insists upon being paid down in the first instance could not be reduced. That is a matter upon which I would rather reserve my opinion at present; but I should be ready to consider any reasonable suggestion, always having due regard to the security of the Local Authority. Another point which has been criticised is the limit which is imposed by the Bill on the erection of a dwelling house on a plot of land of less value than £25 a year. Especially from Scotland great objections have been raised to that provision; and, in my second speech on the First Reading of the Bill, I stated that that was a point upon which I was not 1766 specifically pledged, and I should be ready to consider any suggestion that was made. To that declaration I adhere now. I now come to the only point which has been treated in this Bill as of a Party character, or rather the one point in the discussion in which the opinions of hon. Members have been divided on strict Party lines. The Member for Ilkeston reminded me that some years ago I introduced a Bill dealing with the question of allotments which embodied the principle of compulsion. He said, that being so, why do you object to compulsion in this case. The reason and the answer are quite clear. There is a complete distinction between the two questions which I have never attempted to conceal. Allotments are a proved and ascertained benefit, but nobody in this House, unless it be the hon. Member for Bordesley, has ventured to go further in regard to the question of small holdings than this—that it is an experiment which we think it right and desirable to try. I cannot conceive why, with regard to an object which we treat solely as an experiment, we should adopt, in this Bill, a principle which certainly would give rise to ill-feeling, would create much friction, and would be calculated far rather to raise difficulties than to smooth the path and the future working of this measure. Moreover, I believe it to be wholly unnecessary. There are ample means of making an experiment without insisting upon the principle of compulsion. As, however, we are to have a future discussion upon this subject I take it as a matter of course that an Amendment will be moved in this direction. I think it will be for general convenience if I reserve until that occasion whatever more I may have to say on the subject. Objections were raised by a great number of speakers, and by also the right hon. Member for Midlothian, to the County Council as the authority. I do not propose to say anything further on that point because I think it was quite sufficiently dealt with by my right hon. Friend the First Lord of the Treasury. A good deal has been said as to the desirability of maintaining for all time to come a quit-rent, whereas in the Bill 1767 it is provided the quit-rent shall be redeemable; but I see no reason at present to change my opinion on that point. A question has been raised as to the power to repurchase a small holding at any time by the County Council. That is a proposal to which personally I take the strongest objection. I think, in the first place, it would tend to defeat the main object of the Bill. I cannot conceive anything more likely to deter intending purchasers from the purchase of small holdings than the knowledge of the fact that at any time in the future, especially when the holding became more valuable, it might be resumed by the Local Authority. Then the power to re-purchase carries with it the power to raise the rent. I should rather say to raise the interest, because it might well be in the power of the Local Authority, by this proposal, to say that the land had increased in value and they intended to repurchase it, and having re-bought the land they might sell it a second time, and at an increased price.
Only for the public good.
What is the public good? The Local Authority might take one view of the matter and the unfortunate small holder another. I cannot help thinking that too much importance throughout the whole of these Debates has been attached to the advantages to be derived from these proceedings by the Local Authority. I honestly confess the main object I have had in view has been the advantage of the class who we hope and believe will become the owners of the small holdings in the future. I am a little surprised as to the cry for restrictions. I recollect the time, not so very long ago, when free land used to be one of the most popular and, perhaps, one of the most powerful cries amongst hon. Gentlemen opposite. But now, when I propose to create a number of freeholders, these gentlemen come forward and try to shackle me with every kind of restriction. The hon. Member for Ilkeston contrasted the amount of produce grown in France and Belgium as compared with this country, and drew dis- 1768 paraging comparisons between large farms on the one hand and the small farms on the other, very much to the disadvantage of the large one. All I know is, that the evidence of a gentleman exceedingly well versed in this matter—Major Craigie—differs entirely from the statements of the hon. Member. It is quite true that in Belgium the number of cows which are kept per square mile are in the proportion of 70 to 36 in England. On the other hand, cattle other than cows are in England 58 per square mile against 51 in Belgium. As to sheep, there are 322 maintained per square mile in England against 32 in Belgium. England returns an average of from 28 to 29 bushels of wheat against an average by Belgium of 24 to 27. As to potatoes, we grow in England 252 bushels to the acre; Belgium only grows 164 bushels. As to potatoes in France, the amount grown in four or five farms in France compared with a similar number in England was about three tons to the acre as against 6⅓ tons in England. I do not point out this evidence in any spirit of hostility whatever to the class of holdings which I am seeking to create, but I think it only right to say a word of warning to the House, and through the House to the country, that they should not be deceived by statements of the character to which I have referred, and which, I think, are misleading in the extreme. There have been many points raised in the course of the discussion, some of which I hope to be able to meet in Committee, although there are others which it will be my duty to resist. We have had a full discussion on the merits of the Bill, and I think the time is come when it might be read a second time, and I hope the day is not far distant when, with the general assent of the House, we may be able to pass into law a Measure which will receive general approval, and if it does not do all that is expected of it, will do something for that class in whose interest it has been introduced.
I would point out to my right hon. Friend the Lord Advocate that we are placed in an exceptional position in Scotland. We have had an 1769 Allotments Bill and an Amendment on the Allotments Bill for England, and the other day we passed an Allotments Bill for Ireland; bringing Ireland into the same position as England. Some years ago we dealt with the crofter counties; but, in regard to allotments nothing has been done in the Lowlands and the chief counties in Scotland. I think we ought to bring Scotland into unison with the privileges given to England and Ireland in this respect. I am quite satisfied the Scotch constituencies will not be content unless they are placed in the same position as the counties in England and Ireland. I am aware that allotments in Scotland are not of so great importance as in England. Still they are important in certain districts, and in those districts, at least, we might have an opportunity of giving allotments to the same class and under similar conditions to those which will prevail in England and Ireland. I may be allowed to acknowledge, which I do with great thankfulness, that the right hon. Gentleman has in various ways said he will approach the Committee stage with an open mind. In regard to Scotland he has given us reason to believe that he will yield certain points which we think important. The whole discussion on this Bill is one which lends itself to Committee in a very special way, and in the hope held out that we shall have a very full discussion, I think it unnecessary to detain the House beyond stating the single point in regard to Scotland.
Does this Bill cover pasture holdings?
With regard to the question of the hon. Member for Aberdeenshire, it seems to me it is perfectly clear that the right course to adopt is to extend the Allotments Act to Scotland instead of making this Bill applicable to allotments as well as small holdings. In regard to the question of the hon. Member for Peebles as to pasture lands, it is quite clear that the Bill, as drawn, applies to pasture as well as well as arable holdings, and will fully meet the object which I understood the hon. Member has in view. | 2019-04-25T15:45:21Z | https://api.parliament.uk/historic-hansard/commons/1892/mar/24/small-agricultural-holdings-bill-no-183 |
"The Farmboys" in Austin Musical Theatre's Gypsy.
The group of young men dash onto the tape-lined section of linoleum that denotes the "stage" in this cafetorium serving as a theatre rehearsal space and immediately start singing and dancing their hearts out. To the insistent tunes pounded out on the nearby upright piano, they move into and out of straight lines and diagonals, arms waving, legs kicking, performing what, in the world of the musical Gypsy, passes for an old vaudeville number. And they're into it: Their fresh faces beam, full of enthusiasm, and they execute the choreography with nonchalance. They look so at ease that they might have been doing this all their young lives.
Ah, but that's to an outsider's eyes. The show's director is not quite so impressed. In fact, given the expression on his face, he might be more readily described as distressed. His mouth is drawn tight, his jaw is rigid, and his brows are lowered, shadowing his eyes, which peer at the chorus with the intensity of a laboratory laser. Suddenly, he leaves his place standing beside the rehearsal piano and crosses briskly in front of the dancers, eyeing them clinically as he moves. The glower, the clipped gate, the piercing stare, they recall a drill sergeant reviewing his platoon. Like a veteran D.I., the director is trained to take in every detail of a scene and to zero in on any part of it, however minute, that is not as it should be. Here, he scans for lines that aren't absolutely straight, arms and legs that don't move in exact syncopation; he listens for voices that have fallen off perfect pitch. And he is concerned with not only physical attributes but a sense of spirit, too: Energy must be at its peak and one's entire being must radiate nothing short of exuberance. Anything less is not good enough.
He suddenly barks out two of the dancers' names. "Smile!" he shouts to them, shifting his face to a sunny grin by way of demonstration. He doesn't stop the scene -- though if this were any rehearsal besides the first full run-through, you can bet money he would -- still, it's clear that the number falls short of his standard. He'll have to keep polishing it until he gets it to shine -- no, shine isn't intense enough for him; he'll have to keep polishing it until it will dazzle.
Dazzle. That pretty much sums up what this director, Scott Thompson, his partner Richard Byron, and their company Austin Musical Theatre (AMT) deliver with their productions. While the company isn't yet three years old and hasn't even a half-dozen shows to its credit, AMT's work has been so singular in character and consistent in execution that it's already firmly established its identity as an arts institution. In its work to date -- Peter Pan, West Side Story, Annie, and Gypsy, which it opened last week -- AMT has served up traditional musical fare on a scale and with a skill almost unequaled in local theatre productions. The shows that Thompson and Byron produce are big, with big casts and big sets and big songs, the kind of theatrical events that fill up a stage with bodies and light and music, and fill up an audience with warmth and dreams and romance. And these men do these old-fashioned musicals the way they were meant to be done, with that sense of the expansive, the spectacular, with so much style and spirit that it takes your breath away even as it swells your heart. They do these shows so they dazzle, as in the show-business tradition of an earlier era, as in razzle-dazzle.
And the shows are sensations. They bring thousands of people into the Paramount Theatre and inspire wild cheering from those in attendance. They're consistently lauded by critics of every stripe and honored with awards for every aspect of production.
That a musical theatre of this kind should be one of the great success stories of the late-Nineties Austin arts scene, this bustling era dominated by the city's increasingly prosperous high-culture institutions on the one hand and its burgeoning pack of scruffy, daring, shoestring arts companies on the other, may seem unlikely. Is there a place for chorus lines and show tunes among the majestic mountings of Verdi and Wagner, and all those edgy, experimental world premieres? Of course, if for no other reason than we need to see the masterpieces of this theatrical form that American artists gave to the world. But Austin Musical Theatre deserves its place at the local cultural table for much more than its role in preserving our sense of the worth of musicals. AMT is a model for persistence and excellence, discipline and drive. Moreover, it's a model for a most old-fashioned and patently theatrical virtue: pinning your heart on a distant star and following it 'til you find your dream.
"Scott Thompson's here to see you." When the Chronicle receptionist buzzed me with that message back in January of 1996, my stomach sank with dread. Not dread of Scott Thompson himself -- at that time, I didn't know the man -- but dread of what I knew he wanted to talk to me about: starting a new theatre company in Austin. It is a topic I've discussed with too many people through the years, in conversations that all have a certain sameness about them. Invariably, these conversations are fueled by great idealism and a conviction that this new company will bring to Austin a kind of theatre a) the likes of which this city has never seen; and b) that will connect with modern audiences and be unusually popular. The artists sharing these dreams may or may not know how many stage companies come and go in a given season, but they always insist theirs won't make the same mistakes that other theatre companies have; theirs will be around for the long haul. Of course, they do end up making the same mistakes and they aren't around for more than a few seasons, much less the long haul. Of all the bold new groups that people have talked to me about, far more have imploded or faded away than found their audience, and knowing that has made listening to these theatrical stargazers describe their pie in the sky painful.
So here came Scott Thompson with the latest pitch. But it was apparent from the get-go that this pitch was going to be different. I could tell from the TV in his hand. Thompson was carrying a little 13-inch television with a VCR and a tape. Yes, he had a vision of a new theatre company he wanted to share with me, but he also had some evidence of his past work that would give me some visual sense of what he had in mind -- and serve as proof that he was capable of making good on it.
This was new. None of the theatrical dreamers I had encountered up to that time had given so much thought and attention to the presentation of their dream. So I watched.
And I saw this collage of musical numbers, moments snipped from various productions that Thompson had choreographed and directed through the years, a soft-shoe here, a chorus-line tap routine there, with a brassy, belted-out 11 o'clock number sandwiched in between. Even through the fuzz of video shot from the balconies of darkened theatres, the quality of the work declared itself. The steps were complex yet danced with finesse, with the performers all the while sporting that breezy air that suggests dancing requires no more effort than breathing. Clip after clip after clip, and every one had that same style: that showmanship, that sizzle, that pizazz. This was ... dare I say it? ... good. So what did this guy want in Austin?
The tape finished, and Thompson began to tell me. His dream -- actually, the dream of both him and his longtime partner Richard Byron -- was to found a new company that would bring to Austin a kind of theatre a) the likes of which this city had never before seen; and b) that would connect with audiences here and be unusually popular. At this point, my Dramatic Dream Emergency Broadcast System should have been sounding a full alert in my skull. But there had been that tape ... so I kept listening.
The company that Thompson described to me that day was as grand and ambitious and flat-out ballsy as any I'd ever heard: It would be devoted to the great works of the American musical theatre -- the "traditional Broadway musical" is the term he used -- and it would mount them on their original scale, with large choruses and multiple large sets and the like. And it would mount these productions on the Paramount Theatre stage, employing full professionals to design them and perform in them, some of them flown in from New York and Los Angeles. And its first season -- its first season, mind you -- would consist of three such productions: Peter Pan, The Music Man, and Big River.
The skeptic in me roused himself. This guy was talking about shows employing dozens of actors, at least some of them professional, in an Equity house with a thousand-plus seats ... Did he really have any idea of the scope of what he was proposing?
As a matter of fact, he did. Thompson then handed me a binder, the cover of which crowed, "Scott Thompson and Richard Byron present... Austin Musical Theatre." Inside was a mission statement, statements about the company based on questions they anticipated, bios for himself and Byron, a timeline for the company's first season, including pre-production fundraising efforts, poster art for the company's proposed first year, and -- the capper -- six detailed pages of budget figures, covering every aspect of the company's organization, from incorporation fees and office setup to postage and ad costs; all expenses for the premiere production, Peter Pan; and three separate income projections based on various percentages of ticket sales. Obviously, these were two men with considerable experience in the field who were not just talking through their top hats. They meant business. And they approached it as businessmen.
As Thompson explained, he and Byron had spent most of their careers bouncing from town to town, working on a show then moving on. Now, they were ready to stay in one place for a while, and their own production company was the key to them doing that and continuing their careers. Austin was a place they wanted to live (Byron had family already here), and they saw that the city lacked just the kind of company they wanted to start. Here was the market, with a niche they fit into like a hoofer's foot in taps.
His assessment was sound: Austin was missing the kind of company he described. That's not to say Austin didn't have any musical theatre. Hell, this was a town that had made it a matter of civic pride to go sweat out the hottest nights of the year on a crowded hillside just to see a musical. This was a town that had made a revue of Sixties pop singles into a theatrical phenomenon outstripping even A Christmas Carol. Austin adores musicals, and dozens of the city's theatre companies had been serving up song-and-dance for decades. There was musical theatre, all right.
But not the kind that Thompson and Byron were talking about. They meant musical theatre the old way, the old Broadway way. They were talking about the works that defined the form in all their grandeur and ornamentation and by-god-watch-this show-stopping pleasure. They meant a kind of theatre that wasn't being created anymore -- at least, not in the way it once was -- but a kind that, if you treated it with the care and fullness that its original productions were given, could still thrill audiences of all ages. If their theatrical specialty were anything other than mass appeal spectaculars, pop culture entertainments, Thompson and Byron would probably be considered period artists, staging works in the style and sensibility of their original productions. But musicals have yet to acquire the cultural respect accorded Elizabethan drama or Shavian comedy, so Thompson and Byron were left to peddle their dream with little but their own belief that it made sense and that it belonged here, and their drive to see it through.
There was a lot of drive there. Thompson lugged that TV all over the city that January and for the next couple of months. He estimates giving more than 100 presentations, averaging three a day for 10 weeks straight. If he heard about someone who was willing to listen, he'd go make the pitch: corporate group, nonprofit board, sewing circle ... Thompson was there. He was the trouper of the old show-biz cliché: knowing his routine, playing the house, giving his all no matter what day of the week or how small the crowd.
Now, imagine another show-biz cliché, this one from the movies: the calendar on the wall from which page after page flies away to convey a sense of time passing. A year has passed since Thompson's visit to the Chronicle. In the intervening months, Thompson and Byron have won their first big show of public support through Austin Musical Theatre's first gala fundraiser, featuring Broadway star Patti Lupone performing her solo concert show at the Paramount; they've attracted a big-deal producer, Charles Duggan of the Greater Tuna theatrical corporation and gravy train (who informed Thompson of the arrangement in a casual aside at the B. Iden Payne Awards, seconds before announcing it publicly); scheduled a one-week run of Peter Pan; lured two New York performers, Broadway vets Kristi Lynes and Jonathan Freeman, down to Austin to play Peter and Captain Hook, respectively; cast the rest of the company locally, including a passel of teens and pre-teens; and rehearsed them like most of them have never been rehearsed before. Now, it's down to the wire, the final days before the big debut, that period when every moment is caught up in either the manic giggles of anticipation or the clammy flop sweats of terror, and suddenly ... everything ... freezes. Literally.
Thompson and Byron have the grave misfortune of slogging their way through tech week -- a week that can be unmitigated hell under the best of circumstances, but which is complicated here by the fact that Thompson and Byron are working in a theatre they have never worked in before, with technical support personnel they have never worked with before -- during the city's worst ice storm in years. Streets are completely frozen. People are sternly discouraged from driving by every cop, highway patrolman, and weathercaster within the city limits. The city shuts down. Thompson and Byron have no choice but to cancel not one dress rehearsal but two. And during the days when the production is stalled, sales stall, too. The situation is bleak. But then, as if on cue, as if dictated by a hoary old script for some sappy old musical, the sun comes out. The city thaws. The phones begin to ring. Tickets sell like ... well, what else do tickets sell like but hotcakes? The show opens. Crowds leap to their feet. The response is so enthusiastic that the money men -- played here by Duggan and Paramount general manager Paul Beutel -- huddle with Thompson to discuss ... extending. The first show, with everything -- even Mother Nature -- thrown at it to keep it from succeeding, and nothing stops it. It's a smash, such a smash that it's held over. If you saw it on a stage, you wouldn't buy it. Or maybe you would -- which is just what Thompson and Byron are banking on.
As tantalizing as the show-behind-the-show turned out to be, AMT's Peter Pan was more than a show-biz fable come to life. It was validation that Thompson and Byron knew what they were doing and that their vision, grand and ballsy as it may have been, was one they could realize. It also set a high bar for the company to match. The quality of the performances and the dancing in particular were unusually impressive, especially for a town in which hoofers of distinction are about as rare as humble directors. AMT would have to work as hard or harder to assure Austin that it could work its magic on an ongoing basis.
As it turned out, Thompson and Byron won an opportunity to prove themselves again without having to mount another AMT production. That spring, they were hired to stage Grease for the Mary Moody Northen Theatre at St. Edward's University. They didn't have the luxury of casting outside Austin, but that didn't stop this team from inspiring its student cast to new heights of performance. The energy and discipline evident in that production exceeded almost any I've experienced at that school. And, as with Pan, the show was a box office sensation. The public streamed in, and when the run was over, the theatre scheduled a follow-up run in June.
Following Grease, the big question about AMT -- "Can they do it again?" -- pretty much faded away. In its place rose up a sense of anticipation for the next project, the next bit of razzle-dazzle. Anyone hoping it would be one of the two other musicals that Thompson and Byron had selected for their debut season would be disappointed. The two decided that The Music Man -- while a favorite of Scott's -- wasn't a realistic choice for AMT at that point in time, and while they felt that Big River would work as part of a full season, it didn't seem to stand on its own. So they searched for another musical that was well-known and had a broad appeal and was different enough from Peter Pan to expand their audience and the public perception of what AMT could do. They chose West Side Story.
As musicals go, it's certainly popular and it's 180 degrees from Pan in mood and sensibility. But it's also an enormous challenge, with much greater dramatic demands than most musicals, bold, complex music from Leonard Bernstein, and, if you opt to follow Jerome Robbins' original choreography, a lot of athletic dancing. None of that deterred Thompson and Byron. They found their company and put together as big and daring a production as they could.
I was fortunate enough to be part of the company for that production and so was able to observe their work from the inside. Much of what I saw was craftsmanship, a steady, insistent pursuit of excellence. Rehearsals were tightly scheduled; scenes were drilled and drilled and drilled. Getting to a level of proficiency was key; you had to reach that point where you can execute the moves without thinking about them. Then, you could focus on the feeling, being in the scene, making whatever you were doing look natural and effortless. Oh, there was temperament, as there is in every theatre project. There were demands, there was shouting, but less than you might think. Mostly, there was work, the relentless push, push, push toward perfection.
AMT's West Side Story may not have reached that point of perfection, but it went after it with all the urgency and vigor of a high school athlete racing for the end zone. The show's striking look -- the outstanding work of Christopher McCollum -- and energetic dances gave Austin audiences something truly dynamic. And the craft of the piece was so strong as to confirm in all but the most resistent camps that AMT was the real deal.
With West Side Story, AMT made good on the Austin in its name; it was truly part of the city now. That was evident in the way people came to the show, talked about it, criticized it. There was acceptance there. Perhaps the strongest measure of the company's place in the community came through some parody numbers aimed at AMT by Naughty Austin, a local cabaret company in the vein of Forbidden Broadway. It isn't every theatre group that in its first year is already enough of a fixture on the scene to warrant being satirized.
The follow-up to West Side Story was a shift back to the family-friendly musical. Thompson and Byron were savvy enough to know that at least part of their bread would be buttered by teaching young would-be Bernadette Peterses and Tommy Tunes how to sell that solo and then shuffle off to Buffalo. Early on, they established an AMT school for kids wanting to learn singing and dancing, with the added appeal of it being the first step toward getting cast in one of the company's shows. Pan had had all those lost boys and Indians, and Thompson and Byron had filled the parts with local kids. West Side was not a kids' show, so the third production would be. Thompson and Byron's choice: Annie.
You could almost hear a collective groan from the local theatre community when the decision was made. Not Annie. To most actors, it's a maple syrup show -- pure sap -- painful to watch, painful to perform, and, as if that weren't bad enough, it has the two things you never want to share a stage with: kids and a dog. Of course, most of these folks could forgive AMT for doing Annie. They understood that it would bring in the families, which would bring in the green, which would make the company's financial position even more secure, and that was good. They just didn't think the show would be. Good, that is.
In a way, it didn't need to be. Expectations are high for the first show, and everyone is watching the second show for that sophomore slump. You ace those two, and people won't look as closely at the third. They'll give it to you. This was the one where they could coast. But they didn't.
AMT's Annie opened, and it was like a spring breeze blowing in from the south on a March day. It was fun, it had heart, and it was as imaginative and sharp and full of spectacle as either of the company's first two shows. It didn't look down at the material; it treated it as fresh.
And so it was. A song as stale as "Tomorrow," that anthem to optimism that has become synonomous with saccharine and is treated with contempt by anyone over the age of 13, came across as fresh. Though you knew it was coming -- it's Annie, how could you not know it's coming? -- when it arrived it seemed not some calculated showstopper, some drippy, schmaltzy Broadway number, but a song born of the moment, from a dramatic character named Annie, a plucky kid who was determined to hang onto hope, no matter what. When you think of it that way, it makes sense, but most of us haven't thought of it like that. It took a company -- a company that has a lot in common with a certain red-headed orphan -- to show us.
So now, it's November and AMT is working on its fourth show, Gypsy. And while every show that this company has done to date has revealed something about it and the men who founded it, this is the one that will tell you the most about why Scott Thompson and Richard Byron are in the business they're in and why they have come to Austin, Texas, and tried to start this enormous enterprise of staging musicals in an old vaudeville house. It's show biz. Call it another cliché of the stage, but it's in the blood of some people. They have to sing, they have to dance. And if they can't do it themselves, they make it so other people can. It's just what they do. The light out on the stage is magic.
Gypsy is a story about such people, from the idealistic young dancers to the haggard old strippers to the stage mothers who push, push, push their kids to that point of perfection. It's about people who live in that life of the stage, that dream life, however they can, however poorly. I look at the room in which AMT is rehearsing, and it seems so ill-suited to shaping that magic of a performance: Powder-blue walls and scarred beige linoleum and fluorescents raining hard light on everything. And yet as the rehearsal proceeds, despite this place, despite the street clothes on the performers, the story pulls me in. I watch, and I am moved by the struggles of these girls on a stage and their relentless dreamer of a mother. And I understand how material like this -- the great musicals of Broadway -- has been able to enchant thousands upon thousands of American kids whose only exposure to them has been in the humble circumstances of community theatre productions. These are great stories, and the form in which they are created is a great form. Give it just a little, and it moves us.
So people are captivated by it, and they give over their lives to it, facing whatever comes, never stopping until they're through. Austin Musical Theatre is a company founded by those people. Looking at Thompson and Byron during the rehearsal, they are almost perfect opposites: Thompson standing, intense, voice pitched high, gulping in all the activity and frantically scribbling notes on a legal pad with his red pen; Byron squatting peacefully, face relaxed, soaking it all in, voice soft and low, never making a note. But you see in their eyes, in the way they watch, that show-biz passion.
There's really nothing else that's needed to prove that these men are the characters in Gypsy, that what they're giving us in Austin Musical Theatre is the exquisite dream and drive of show biz, but then life comes along and gives it to you anyway, in the most sublime way. Onstage, the scene is an audition, with Dainty June singing and her mama, Rose, off in the stage right wings. In the scene, Mama Rose is staring at her girl, mentally willing her to do well, and the actress playing her here, Pamela Myers, is leaning forward and mouthing the words that June is singing. I take my eyes off the scene long enough to look at Scott Thompson, and he is standing on the opposite side of the stage beside the rehearsal piano, and he is leaning forward and mouthing the words that June is singing.
And that, as they say, is show biz. | 2019-04-22T13:07:32Z | https://www.austinchronicle.com/arts/1998-11-20/520620/print/ |
With the recent APA decision to prohibit their members from participating in enhanced interrogation, and the demise of the human terrain program earlier this year, the optimistic amongst us might be tempted to believe that the academy is once again purified of its collusions with torture and occupation.
The work to be done going forward, however, is not just one of holding individuals to account or raising the bar of individual ethical standards. We also need to find ways of holding academic sciences to account: of treating them not as dispassionate and apolitical ventures, sadly misused, but rather as formed within martial and racist cultures that shape their content and applications. This is as true for disciplines like Physics and Neuroscience as it is for social sciences like Anthropology, or, for that matter, IR.
I have to confess, I was late to watch “Zero Dark Thirty” (ODT). I read a handful of reviews and blogs about the movie, had arguments with friends about its message, and even wrote it off completely–all weeks before I bothered to watch it. I wasn’t interested in watching another American war movie, nor was I keen to see the lengthy torture scenes I had read about in the reviews. I figured I already knew exactly what the content was (are there every any real surprises in American war movies? and, didn’t we all know how this story ended anyway?) and that there was really nothing left to say. BUT, I think there is something left to say about the film.
First, let’s all be honest: most of us walked away from this movie saying to ourselves “did I miss something?” What about the film deserved all the Oscar hype, debate, and acclaim? By most standards, this was a classic, boring American war movie. In this case, the lack of plot and acting skills are made up with using violent torture scenes rather than expensive battle scenes. There is no emotional journey, no big moral dilemma that the characters are going through (I’ll get to torture soon), little plot twist (again, we all know how it ends after all), and no unique or interesting characters (don’t get me started on Jessica Chastain–what exactly about her stone-faced performance warrants an Oscar? perhaps she deserves an award for for ‘most consistent blank expression’). So what gives? Is this just another “King’s Speech”? Meaning, is this just another big movie that people talk about and get behind, but no one actually can put their finger on what was remotely interesting about it (never mind what was destructive about it)?
The film “Zero Dark Thirty” has touched quite a cord in this country, such as with Peter Henne’s post below that responds to my own post further below. To his credit, he opens up another strand of the wider debate this film has touched off. My own reflection delves into the torture controversy writ large, as well as the the purpose and role of art in film making form. Peter uses the latter to widen our view into what this film has to say about civil-military relations in American society.
Peter, I wonder if I could draw you out further on several facets of your observation. First it would be useful if you could go into more detail about specifically how Karthryn Bigelow and Mark Boal could have depicted the military personnel in their film more accurately. I take your point that “The Hurt Locker” was riddled with problems in this regard, and not surprisingly complained about widely by military observers. But while the film spends much more time focused on CIA operatives and analysts, it appears that Zero Dark does a much better job of depicting military personnel and how they do what they do. After all, the journalist Boal spent legions of hours with Seal Team 6 and military commanders from CENTCOM.
This is a guest post by Peter S. Henne. Peter is a doctoral candidate at Georgetown University. He formerly worked as a national security consultant. His research focuses on terrorism and religious conflict; he has also written on the role of faith in US foreign policy. During 2012-2013 he is a fellow at the Miller Center at the University of Virginia.
I appreciated Jeffrey Stacey’s recent post on the debate over “Zero Dark Thirty.” It’s useful to point out what is being obscured by the criticism of the movie’s depiction of torture. But I think his piece missed a broader aspect of the movie, as well as director Katherine Bigelow’s other war, “The Hurt Locker” (which focuses on an Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) team in Iraq): what it reveals about the civilian-military divide in the United States.
Now, I realize the obvious response is: “it’s a movie.” That’s correct, but if the biggest selling point of a movie—or two—is their faithfulness to reality, and they get that wrong, then we’re all missing something, right? No one worries about inaccuracies in “Apocalypse Now” because of, well, Marlon Brando. But we should worry about inaccuracies in Bigelow’s war movies.
Anyone who did not see “Zero Dark Thirty” on its opening night was smart, as it was mayhem in theaters everywhere. The film shot to #1 at the box office overnight and is there still, for the plain and simple reason that it’s a must see (no spoiler alert here because we all know at least a little about eliminating Osama bin Laden). Zero Dark features a razor sharp screenplay by Mark Boal, top form directing by Kathryn Bigelow, and higher than high stakes drama from start to finish.
This film, however, is sufficiently controversial that there may soon be Congressional hearings about it–Sen. John McCain and Sen. Diane Feinstein had it in their sites by day one. The charge is that Bigelow and Boal depict torture in a manner that glorifies it, by way of a plot that allegedly portrays the U.S. government/military eliminating OBL only via intelligence gleaned from full on, no holds barred torture. In my view they are innocent of this charge. The raging debate over the film is misdirected and could do better to be debating this country’s torture legacy rather than a film that deserves serious consideration for a best picture Oscar.
One draft of a piece that will not be appearing anytime soon. I will post the other version, a strategic-studies analysis of the outcome of the Deathly Hallows, later on.
The sixth Harry Potter film, the Half-Blood Prince (2009), opens with Harry standing side-by-side with his mentor, recently reinstated Hogwarts Headmaster Albus Dumbledore. Blinding flashbulbs illuminate Harry’s vacant stare, rendering the scene a literal, as well as figurative, flashback to the immediate aftermath of the Battle of the Department of Mysteries, in which three clandestine forces clashed within the Ministry of Magic itself: Voldemort’s Death Eaters, Dumbledore’s Order of the Phoenix, and Dumbledore’s Army (the “DA”)—students trained in secret by Harry in “defense against the dark arts.” Harry’s indifference stems from shock: his godfather, Sirius Black, died in the battle, and in the background we hear the voices of Voldemort and Black’s killer, the insane Bellatrix Lestrange.
Flash forward to a modern glass-and-metal office building in London. Disbelieving office workers leave a conference table and walk to its picture window as storm clouds appear from nowhere. Darkness rapidly engulfs the sky. The camera tacks into the thunderous clouds themselves as they form into the image of a skull: the Death Eater’s Dark Mark. Three inky-black vaporous streams emerge from it. They look and move like the trails of impossibly agile sidewinder missiles. The three, which fans of the films recognize as flying Death Eaters, zoom down over the Thames as the camera moves into position behind them. They streak on through Trafalgar square and the streets of London. They’re no longer sidewinders, but rather supersonic air-launched cruise missiles. They pass into the heart of the wizarding world in London, Diagon Alley, and slam into Olivander’s Wands.
The camera pulls back to give a birds-eye view of the shop exploding—sending glass flying and knocking bystanders to the ground. The camera cuts to street level to show Fenrir Grayback, a werewolf and ally of Voldemort, roughly dragging Olivander—head obscured under a blindfolding black hood—away from his shop. In the company of two Death Eaters, Grayback launches into the air with Olivander. But before they leave London, the three fly along the Millennium Bridge. The force of their passage rips the bridge from its supports. It collapses, along with terrified pedestrians, into the Thames.
The opening of the Half-Blood Prince continues a trend begun in the Order of the Phoenix, in which danger bleeds seamlessly from the wizarding world into our own, and back again. None of this sequence, I should add, is a faithful translation of the book onto the screen. In the novels, Voldemort is the only Death Eater capable of unassisted flight. Readers learn of Olivander’s abduction via exposition. In the opening chapter of the Half-Blood Prince, recently sacked Minister of Magic Cornelius Fudge informs the Prime Minister of Britain that Voldemort is behind the destruction of a (fictional) bridge: “The Brockdale Bridge – he did it… he threatened a mass Muggle killing unless I stood aside for him and….” David Yates’ direction takes a basic fact about the Death Eaters—they are, by organization and tactics, terrorists—and renders it visceral. Its imagery blurs the distinction between magic and modern weaponry. Terrorism and warfare, it suggests, aren’t so different in Diagon Alley from the streets of Baghdad.
Indeed, later on in the Half-Blood Prince, Harry, Ron Weasley, and Hermione Granger take a trip to Diagon Alley to, as they have every year since being accepted into Hogwarts, purchase school supplies. On their way to Fred and George’s joke shop, they pass the abandoned and burnt-out wreck of Olivander’s Wands. As in the books, Hogwarts, already scarred by the brief, but ruthless, tenure of Ministry of Magic hack Dolores Umbridge, has been transformed. The school is under lockdown, protected by magical defenses and the special agents of the Wizard world, the Aurors. We also see it, for the first time, through the eyes of adolescents firmly on their way to adulthood. Harry and Ron tower above first-year students. Yates makes sure we notice snogging teenagers as his camera pans the halls. In some scenes, students lounge around drinking unidentified substances in the hours between classes and curfew.
By the film’s end, these twin transitions are complete. Hogwart’s defenses have been compromised through the actions of Draco Malfoy, a student and uneasy Death Eater; Dumbledore lies dead at the hands of Severus Snape—a double-agent for the Order who, at least for the moment, appears to have actually been working as a triple-agent; and Harry, along with Hermione and Ron, has vowed to leave behind Hogwarts to find Voldemort’s remaining horcruxes: hidden containers for parts of his soul that, as long as they persist, protect him from death.
In many ways, the Harry Potter series interfaces uncomfortably with most understandings of international relations. Foreign policy is often about balancing unpalatable alternatives, as has been the story of US engagement with the so-called “Arab Spring,” its efforts to ensure the delivery of vital supplies to NATO forces in Afghanistan, and its dealings with North Korea. Rowling’s novels—and their film versions—are too sophisticated not to allow even good characters to make bad, and even cruel, decisions. For example, a significant thematic of The Deathly Hallows is that Dumbledore, who we know as a paragon of moral rectitude and self-sacrifice, has lived a far from untarnished life.
The wizarding world that Harry and his friends fight to defend is itself deeply flawed. Its enslavement of House-Elves is so complete that all but Dobby recoil at the thought of freedom. It denies full political and civil rights to other sentient magical creatures, including Centaurs and Goblins. Many of its members look upon non-magical humans (Muggles) with a sense of smug superiority; more than a few refer to witches and wizards born of Muggles as “mudbloods.” The Ministry of Magic proves willing to propagandize against those it considers threats via British wizardry’s leading newspaper, The Daily Prophet. As the series unfolds, we also see it conduct star-chamber trials, condemn people to torture at the hands of the soul-sucking Dementors, and frequently bend to the desires of the rich and powerful.
Through all of this, however, Rowling never gives us any reason to doubt that Voldemort and his Death Eaters are evil embodied. They stand for racial subordination, tyranny, and the sacrifice of others to their own ambitions. Voldemort himself is the series’ “Big Bad”; his every action, as well as his very appearance confirms his demonic nature. Voldemort’s eyes are and nostrils are slits, his skin serpentine. He commits numerous atrocities, such as suspending a tortured Hogwarts teacher (of “Muggle studies”) above the table on which he and his followers eat dinner or feeding an innocent old man to his snake familiar. Indeed, while many of Rowling’s “good” characters are flawed, and her “bad” characters—other than Voldemort—capable of redemption, there is little moral ambiguity in Harry Potter.
If there exists an explicit foreign-policy message in Harry Potter, it is that we should not sacrifice liberty for security. The books are resolutely anti-torture. Hogwarts games keeper Hagrid is briefly sent to Azkaban—the wizarding world’s Guantanamo Bay—without anything approximating due process. Sirius Black spends years there for crimes he didn’t commit, during which he is driven (temporarily) insane. Rowling strongly suggests that even the guilty do not deserve punishment at the hands of Azkaban’s Dementors.
In fact, the Ministry’s practices prove steps along the slippery slope to fascism and tyranny. Once the Death Eater’s subvert it from within, they easily harness its institutional apparatus for the persecution of mudbloods and other “undesirables.” They deploy its propaganda to further their ideological of racial purity and magical superiority, as well as to brand Harry the most dangerous enemy of the wizarding community. Although they control some recalcitrant officials with the Imperious Curse, others, including Umbridge, eagerly embrace the Ministry’s new policies. As long as Voldemort stays in the shadows, many wizards and witches don’t even recognize that his forces have seized control.
Once the Ministry falls, the dominant tropes of the two Deathly Hallows films increasingly center around those of a resistance movement fighting against a tyrannical regime. As Harry, Ron, and Hermione pursue Voldemort’s horcruxes they mount what are, in effect, guerilla raids against the Ministry and the Death Eaters. Disguised as employees, they sneak into the Ministry to retrieve a horcrux, find themselves freeing a group of “mudbloods,” and barely escape capture. They spend a good deal of the rest of the film running and hiding. Eventually, their attempts to gather intelligence lead to their apprehension by a group of Death Eaters. With the assistance—and self-sacrifice—of Dobby the House-Elf, they escape from the clutches of Bellatrix Lestrange only moments before Voldemort arrives to kill Harry.
Most of Part II concerns the final showdown with Voldemort and the Death Eaters. The pre-title sequence of Part II begins with Voldemort acquiring the most powerful wand ever created—the so-called “Elder Wand”—which he believes will make him invincible. The Battle of Hogwarts provides the major set piece of Part II, but beforehand some unfinished business remains. Harry, Ron, and Hermione steal one of the final horcruxes from Gringott’s Bank—the HSBC of the wizarding world… if HSBC were run by goblins and stored its patrons’ treasure in vault-lined caves and tunnels. Once again they narrowly evade capture, only this time they do so on the back of an abused dragon who guards the most important vaults. Their ride over London provides our last glimpse of the Muggle world until the film’s epilogue, which is fitting, because from hereafter we are firmly in the realm of fantasy.
The Battle of Hogwarts features a titanic clash between good and evil; moments of redemption , self-sacrifice, and rebirth; the triumph of the few over the many; and a final duel between Voldemort and Harry. The “Elder Wand” betrays Voldemort; it recognizes, for reasons too convoluted to explain here, that Harry as its true master. In the end, Harry breaks it into pieces and, in doing so, renounces the will-to-power that so twisted Voldemort.
In this respect, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part II, is something like comfort food for unsettled times. Many people whom fans have grown to care about lose their lives, but never in vain. Voldemort’s defeat marks the end of the Death Eaters: absent his vision and the fear he inspires, they cannot recover. No wonder long-circulating comparisons between Voldemort and Osama Bin Laden gained a new lease on life in the lead up to the film’s release: for a generation reared on Harry Potter and marked by 9/11, it seems fitting that US forces killed Bin Laden not long before opening day. And it is nice, just for a moment, to imagine that Al-Qaeda, like the Death Eaters, will simply melt away.
But I think it is too easy to dismiss Harry Potter as fantastic escapism. Popular culture seldom has a direct effect on international politics. Instead, it supplies common referents that shape our understandings of events; its images, narratives, and ideas intrude into the “common sense” of its consumers. How it represents, for example, ethnic groups, ideologies, and threats matters. Thus, the very idea of an analogy between Voldemort and Bin Laden, and the ease with which it comes to mind for students of a certain age, takes on some significance. To the extent that popular culture influences our understandings of right and wrong, then the content of Potter’s moral compass matters even more. Rowling’s sophisticated treatment of torture, justice, propaganda, political inequality, and the dangers of state excess are likely to be among the enduring legacy of the novels and films.
Alyssa Rosenberg has a good discussion of the anti-torture themes in the Harry Potter series. But she neglects two other ways in which J.K. Rowling critiques the US conduct of the war on terror: Azkaban and arbitrary detention.
Harry’s disdain for the ministry in The Half-Blood Prince focuses on their detention of Stan Shunpike in Azkaban — Stan’s obvious innocence doesn’t deter Minister of Magic Rufus Scrimgeour from scapegoating the young man as part of his effort to create the illusion of security in the Wizarding world. Indeed, Azkaban itself could be any number of soul-devouring prisons in the Muggle world, but in the the last few books it sometimes seems a stand in for Guantanamo Bay.
Given the obvious connections between the Death Eaters and terrorist organizations — from their methods to their cell-structure organization — it doesn’t take much to read the later novels as, in part, a claim that state terror, whatever its purpose, inevitably corrupts democratic governance and renders it vulnerable to fascism and totalitarianism.
UK Torture Inquiry: Our BFD?
The coalition government here in the UK has announced that there will be an inquiry into torture and rendition alleged to have been carried out since 9/11. This was a major item platform for the LibDems and some Tories, the latter group while conservative, committed to a deep sense of eroding “British values”.
The judicial inquiry announced by the foreign secretary into Britain’s role in torture and rendition since September 2001 is poised to shed extraordinary light on one of the darkest episodes in the country’s recent history.
It is expected to expose not only details of the activities of the security and intelligence officials alleged to have colluded in torture since 9/11, but also the identities of the senior figures in government who authorised those activities.
This is – to put it in Biden terms – a BFD.
First, there is no doubt some of the motivation here is for the other two parties to really stick it to Labour. But to be honest, it’s nothing that they haven’t brought onto themselves if the Inquiry does find that then-senior Labour MPs/Cabinet ministers knew they were acting illegally.
So, provided the allegations can be substantiated (I’m guessing at least some will), the bigger question will be if these individuals justified, in any way, of making the decisions they did, under the circumstances. (The Michael Walzer/Dirty Hands approach). Human Rights lobby groups are probably going to give a definite “no” to this but it will be interesting to see what an inquiry will say.
Any individual named by a commission would have a very difficult time traveling around the rest of the Western world, particularly Europe, for a very long time. While the commission would not in and of itself be a trial (it seems to be framed as an accountability mechanism more or less) it could lead to formal charges elsewhere. The UK is, after all, party to the ICC.
Finally, for relatively obvious reasons, I can’t see this happening in the US. Yet it seems clear that the decisions of US decision makers, and their impact on UK decision makers, is going to come to light. Like the Iraq Inquiry, a UK commission will effectively be putting US policy on trial.
However, I can’t see something like this happening in other countries like Canada either – where there is a good chance that senior government ministers in both political parties made decisions that contravened the CAT or their own domestic laws. Although, to be fair, the Canadian government at least held a commission as to why a citizen was permitted to be rendered to Egypt for torture and the Canadian government officially apologized. No official was ever held accountable.
I finally took the time (and found the courage) to watch Steve McQueen’s “Hunger” (2008). It is the story of the events that led to the 1981 Irish hunger strike at Maze Prison in which Bobby Sands and nine other men died. The film is hauntingly beautiful from an aesthetic standpoint and horrifying intellectually. There are very few films which actually merit the adjective “powerful,” this is one of them.
Critics will undoubtedly take issue with the film for its failure to contextualize the crimes (and therefore the punishment) of the IRA “terrorists,” but the film is not a history of the “Troubles” per se. Even if one absolutely condemns the violence of the Irish Republican Army (IRA), the film forces the viewer to confront the relationship between the state and the body.
The aim is obviously preemptive propaganda, but Thatcher’s rhetoric is fascinating. Hunger, the weapon of the weakest of the weak, is described as a continuation of terrorist violence. The slow, silent, lonely, and intensely painful drama of suicide through starvation is characterized as a mere sleight of hand, a cheap trick designed to stoke hatred by eliciting pity. While Sands and his colleagues did undoubtedly seek to elicit pity and revive the republican cause, their protest was more than a mere final trick.
From the vantage point of the film, the disembodied voice of Thatcher sounds un-human, desperate, and powerless to all but the most gullible and close-minded. It is clear that the hunger strike returns the state to a Foucauldian situation in which it must risk a trial of strength in public with the body of the condemned.
“We were not given toilet paper or water to clean ourselves after using the toilet; only our hands could be used, but could not be washed afterwards. This is how those who claim to defend human rights made us live,” (Zaeef 2010, 196).
From what I understand the UK abandoned the practice of force feeding in 1917 after it led to the death of an Irish prisoner, Tom Ashe. The US government, however, still seeks to deny prisoners that it labels as terrorists the right to play even this “last card.” Some of the hunger strikers in American facilities like Guantanamo were reportedly force fed and prevented from vomiting nutrients. Mullah Zaeef’s recounts that eventually the doctor-in-charge at Guantanamo refused to continue force feeding the prisoners during the 2005-06 hunger strike.
One has to wonder what the practice of force feeding says about the US and its understanding of the body of the suspected terrorist. One could argue that the act of force feeding a mentally sound, political prisoner foreshadows a totalitarian impulse which we as Americans would prefer to associate with other regime types. Even the publicly released images of those prisoners in orange jumpsuits, kneeling in stress positions with heads covered and ears muffled, conjures a body completely turned over to the power of the state. The prisoner is in a limbo where they cannot be human and have absolutely no rights. That we as Americans tolerated such tyrannical behavior from our own government perhaps speaks to the autistic hysteria under which we have lived for nearly a decade. Either that or it speaks to the utter indifference we hold for those who are merely accused of being enemies of the state.
In the docu-drama “The Road to Guantanamo” (2006), there is an odd scene where an American prison guard (in real life his name is Brandon Neeley) asks one of the Tipton Three to rap for him. The guard becomes uncomfortable when he realizes that these kids being held in Guantanamo not only speak English but are products of an Americanized global culture. It is as if the body of the prisoner comes to have a soul, at least in the eyes of one guard for one brief moment. (Although it is not depicted in the film, the guard resigned from the US military in 2005. He has contributed to the Guantanamo Testimonial Project and has apologized to Shafiq Rasul for the treatment that was inflicted on him. The apology has been accepted).
If a common language can create a minimal sense of shared humanity even amongst sworn enemies, then it is stunning to realize what the Britons did to the Irish in Maze prison. In “Hunger,” the prisoners use Gaelic to organize their resistance, although not all of the prisoners speak the “national” language. And while all of the prisoners understand and speak English, there is almost no dialog between the prisoners and their keepers.
Perhaps the point of the film is that language itself dies as the body is subject to increasing pain. And it is the death of language that permits such depravity.
Charli linked to a great round-up of theories circulating that propose to answer the rather interesting question of why countries that sign the Convention Against Torture seem to have a greater likelihood of committing torture.
One working paper in particular , by James Hollyer and Peter Rosendorff of NYU, has caused quite a stir. They propose that dictators use the signing of such a treaty as a costly signal to domestic opposition groups that they fully intend to continue torturing those that oppose their regime. How does this work?
We argue that authoritarian states ratify human rights treaties explicitly because they do not intend to comply. And it is important to those signatories that all observers understand that they have no intention of complying at the time of accession. The logic, while counterintuitive, is straightforward: an elite facing threats from a domestic opposition can mitigate these threats by engaging in torture. If there is any additional cost to the elite of signing and then being found to torture, the act of signing the agreement signals to the opposition the strength of the elite’s commitment to remaining in power. Accession is a signal to the opposition of the very high value the elite places on holding onto power and its willingness to use torture if necessary. On observing the government’s accession, the opposition – now better informed about the value the elite places on holding power – will rationally reduce its anti-regime activities. The government continues to torture, but will torture less. On the other hand a regime that doesn’t sign shows itself to be vulnerable to the added costs associated with the use of torture. Thus, the opposition will increase e orts to remove the regime on seeing that the government does not sign.
1) If it is well known that the conversion rate, if you will, for bringing accused torturers to justice in connection with the CAT is quite low, then why would a domestic audience see this as a credible signal? Any dictator could sign the treaty regardless of whether their type was of a moderate or an extreme–if the signal could easily be sent by either type it can’t differentiate. Additionally, the more credible signal is one that actually demonstrates the will and, more importantly, the capability of the sender. In this case, if a dictator’s real aim and desire is to signal that they will do whatever it takes to stay in power why not just make an example of revolutionaries, rebels, etc? Show that you have the will and capability to do whatever it takes to stay in power (thinking here of Barbara Walter’s work on why some states negotiate with separatist groups and others choose violent repression).
2) Given that, I am more inclined to see it as a low-cost, public relations move to placate domestic and international critics. By signing the CAT a dictator can point to his/her efforts to play by the same rules as other governments and to treat their citizens humanly. The next time they are getting reamed out at some summit or UN meeting they can say “yes, but, we did sign the CAT”. They don’t really need to send a credible signal with the move, just create a useful tool in their public relations arsenal.
3) Additionally, violent, repressive dictators are less likely to fall from power. Therefore, they are less likely to be placed in a position where they could be prosecuted for their actions under the CAT. Combine this fact with the potential usefulness of signing the CAT from a public relations standpoint and you have another potential explanation aside from signaling. Moreover, it would also explain why ‘moderate’ or ‘competitive’ dictatorships are less likely to sign the CAT–precisely because their are more vulnerable to losing power and could therefore be brought to justice under the CAT. Given that the public relations gains are modest compared to the potential costs of actually being prosecuted, moderate dictators would be less likely to sign.
Just my initial thoughts. In general, the data is quite intriguing as is Hollyer and Rosendorff’s theory–certainly a puzzle well worth exploring.
The two different countries I call home (Canada and the UK) have recently had to deal with universal jurisdiction in relation to war crimes.
First, as I’ve written about here, it has come to light that Canadian officials likely knew that Afghans captured by Canadian forces and subsequently transferred to Afghan prisons were being tortured. Failure to react to such allegations and relevations is a crime under the Third Geneva Convention Relative to Prisoners of War. Yet, what is interesting about this particular issue is that the Geneva Convention is quite clear that it is the government (as opposed to the military) is responsible for the violation of the law.
Yet the Canadian government has so-far refused to open up an investigation into the allegations (made by a Canadian diplomat, Mr. Colvin who served in Kabul and now does so in Washington). Instead, the issue is being handled by the Military Police Complaints Commission. The question is whether or not this is sufficient for the International Criminal Court – of which Canada is a party – who could potentially begin an investigation if they felt that the actions of Canada were insufficient. That the ICC prosecutor, Luis Moreno Ocampo has previously indicated this year that he willing to open up investigations into Western governments, does seem to leave the Canadian government in a potentially vulnerable position.
Second, a judge in the UK recently issued an arrest warrant for the former Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni for war crimes at the request of Palestinian plaintiffs. The allegations made against Livni were that she was responsible for war crimes committed during the Israeli offensive in Gaza last year. The warrant was revoked when it was announced by a very angry Israeli government that Livni would no longer be visiting the UK for her scheduled meeting with UK government officials. Additionally, the warrant was the cause of significant embarrassment for the UK government whose role in the Middle East peace process is now in some doubt (particularly as Israeli officials will now not be particularly likely to visit the UK). But the Court which issued the warrant has the right to do so at its own discretion. As war crimes have universal jurisdiction, the court felt that it was free to act.
For advocates, of universal justice, the implications of both of these cases are clear: it is about promoting the rule of law and addressing grievances so that real peace can be built. More simply, it’s the idea that justice should not stop at a national border. Officials, whether they are the Canadian Minister of Defence, the President of Sudan or the former Israeli Foreign Minister should all be susceptible to indictment.
And clearly, for the governments of these countries, it is about pragmatism. International legal arrangements which effectively damage diplomacy, or the ability of officials to do their job, is of benefit to no one.
But in reality, such concerns may also extend to the international legal institutions themselves. Although Ocampo may be a fan of universal jurisdiction, this may be tempered by a degree of realism. As the ICC and the US government under the Obama Administration are slowly working towards a new understanding (if not an entirely improved relationship), any attempt to prosecute Canadian officials may actually scare away the American government even further from the ICC – particularly given its skittishness about “activist” lawyers, politicized cases under the banner of universal jurisdiction.
To some extent it comes down to the old (clichéd?) question of “Order vs Justice” in International Relations – whether we should let justice be done though the heavens fall, or whether order without justice can really be considered any order at all. Perhaps more simply, it is at what cost international institutions (or even domestic ones) are willing to demonstrate their power – even perhaps at the risk of losing it. If they do act, they may be limited by politics; but if they don’t, they already have been.
*See what I did there? That’s the kind of skill you learn in a quality grad school.
A few months ago fellow NYU inhabitant Joshua Tucker of The Monkey Cage asked what, if any, social science research had been done on the effectiveness of torture in obtaining valuable intelligence? Josh’s primary question was an ethical one, that being if a researcher had a personal objection to the use of torture, but through an empirical analysis of data found that it in fact did extract valuable data, should the researcher attempt to get it published despite his or her personal objection? This touched off a very interesting discussion among Monkey readers, and I recommend it to all.
Today, Josh revisits the topic, but this time with a bit of relevant research in hand. In “Interrogational Torture: Or How Good Guys Get Bad Information with Ugly Methods,” John Schiemann presents a theoretical model of an interrogation.
Briefly, the model has two players, the detainee and the state, where the state is uncertain about the value of the detainee’s knowledge and the detainee is uncertain as to the state’s willingness to use torture. The state moves first, by either asking leading questions (uninformative signal) or objective questioning. The detainee must then decide to send a valuable message, or not. Finally, the state evaluates this message to ascertain the detainees type, and from this decides whether to use torture to extract additional information (for a full description of the game see the paper).
…even in a worst case scenario in which torture is shown to be effective under some limited circumstances, we would want to know that. What is the alternative? The alternative is to do nothing and help preserve a status quo in which torture is unrestrained. As difficult as it would be to swallow a result showing some limited effectiveness of torture, I’d rather live with that than what the U.S. has been doing – and perhaps is continuing to do.
There are two interesting points of discussion that fall from this discussion. First, do we believe the model presented above is an accurate or useful interpretation of the decision process of a state to use torture? One weakness to note is the presumed equality of uncertainty between the players. The state is rarely completely uncertain as to the value of a detainee’s knowledge. Presumably some amount of intelligence collection went into the decision to capture and interrogate a detainee, therefore, the state can (and does) have the ability to rank the value of detainees. Likewise, unless a detainee is the first of a given conflict, the game is clearly repeated; consequently, all subsequent detainees will be able to update their beliefs about a state’s type. It may be more valuable, and easier to model, to make this a repeated game of one-way uncertainty, where a state is known to use torture, but the type of detainee is unknown by adding noise to the intelligence collected on a detainee prior to capture.
The second point of interest are Schiemann’s thoughts on how social scientists should approach researching ethically sensitive topics (for his full remarks see the Monkey post). My opinion is that all finding should be disclosed; first because it is a fundamental principle of scientific endeavor, but more to the point, it can expose false assumptions and promote more accurate models to be built and explored. For example, the model above is an excellent first step toward building a theory of how a state decides to use torture. As we can clearly see, however, it is in no way the definitive model on the topic. If the results from this model show that torture is effective that does not mean it should be used. On the contrary, it means that under the assumptions of this particular model, in some cases, it is shown to be effective. Improving the model, and generating new results, may alter the conclusion completely (or not). This iterative process is the only way to contribute valuable knowledge to a discipline.
I am interested in other’s thoughts, both in terms of the model, but also how to approach research on these kinds of topics. Particularly from practitioners (not necessarily of torture) within the defense community. How is this model getting at the dynamics of interrogation, and where does it fail? How might it be improved? Also, as consumers of social science research, how do you think the community should handle these ethical concerns?
It’s not pictures that inflame anti-American opinion. Brutality has done that already. And trying to cover up that bad behavior only makes it look as if the new Administration is complicit. In short, this is the worst tactical decision I’ve seen Obama make so far, and I fear the grave consequences of associating his administration with the worst excesses of the past eight years.
Stated in this particular way, an indisputible statement of principle is conflated with and therefore masquerades as an empirical “fact,” one which is blatantly untrue. This trope was one of the Bush Administration’s many brilliant inventions, and was designed as a public relations counter-response to growing acknowledgement that US military and intelligence personnel not only had tortured detainees, but had in fact been ordered to do so.
In the context of some other disturbing continuities between Bush Administration policies and Obama’s policy so far, this worries me. It should also worry Obama’s advisors: these kinds of rhetorical not to mention policy non-changes are precisely the type of behavior that will undermine Obama’s effort to reengage the international community in the wake of Bush-era unilateralism. Why? Because these particular issues are so closely emotionally associated with Bush-era unilateralism. If there is any sense in Obama’s decision to retain a policy of extraordinary rendition (and I can’t see any), there is certainly no sense in the decision to draw attention and umbrage to it by failing to at least change the rhetoric.
One of the most interesting conversations I had at ISA was about the Geneva Conventions. I had suggested in The National Interest last year that the Bush Administration and the human rights community work together toward an Additional Protocol to clarify the law, and my colleague asked whether I thought this advice still applied after the transition.
I would say it is even more relevant now. The Bush White House flaunted multilateral institutions like the torture regime because Bush’s policy was to flout multilateralism. Obama can’t continue that course – simply reinterpreting and then violating the law – while claiming to embrace multilateralism. But what he could do is lead a multilateral effort to clarify the law. An effort framed in good faith by a skillful and (as yet) largely untarnished leader like Obama could unite both the human rights community and those concerned about how to apply the laws in an era of asymmetric warfare. It could resolve some of the interpretive problems as a community. Obama should shift course and lead this movement before the opportunity is squandered as the US once again instead becomes its target.
*I mean, how it within his perogative or power to “not allow people to plot against America”? What does that mean as a basis for one’s foreign policy?
Bush Confesses (Without Being Tortured). Now What?
One of these low-salience issues in particular stayed in my mind this week as I kept an eye on the news: “Impunity for world leaders who committed war crimes or crimes against humanity while in office.” It didn’t make the NYTimes headline this morning, but if I heard Bush correctly yesterday, he basically admitted to having signed off on torturing detainees during his administration.
Let’s leave aside the fact that “sure, I tortured” ranks pretty high among those things you’re not supposed to say as a sitting head of state, even if you’ve been there done that. Really, the important question is what the Obama administration should do about this legacy once taking office. Not about reversing Bush’s torture policy, which is largely a given. About holding the previous head of state accountable for that torture policy. And yes, it’s quite interesting to see so little attention to this building a norm to do precisely that. Sure there’s the international criminal court, but that’s an institution with a limited mandate and short reach. What about the responsibility of new governments to hold their predecessors accountable for crimes committed while in office? What about an international movement to create such a standard for democratic regimes?
At Harper’s, Scott Horton argues that there is a strong historical precedent for future leaders punishing a previous leader who willfully violates the laws of nations. Torture is a crime of universal jurisdiction, ranking right up there with genocide. The emphasis of activists so far have been simply to roll back Bush’s torture policy, but there are real questions to be asked about whether the international criminal regime has got to a point where it can reach and punish harms inflicted by the President of the most powerful country in the world.
As long as Bush stays in the US, the answer is probably no. But that doesn’t mean that the incoming administration couldn’t take steps, or that the human security community could not work harder to generate a sense of obligation for all governments to do the same.
Sixty years ago yesterday, in response to the atrocities committed in World War II, the U.S. joined world leaders in supporting the United Nations’ Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
Click here to sign. Complete text of the petition is below the fold.
Though we come from a variety of backgrounds and walks of life, we agree that the use of torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment against prisoners is immoral, unwise, and un-American.
In our effort to secure ourselves, we have resorted to tactics which do not work, which endanger US personnel abroad, which discourage political, military, and intelligence cooperation from our allies, and which ultimately do not enhance our security.
Our President must lead us by our core principles. We must be better than our enemies, and our treatment of prisoners captured in the battle against terrorism must reflect our character and values as Americans.
The “Golden Rule.” We will not authorize or use any methods of interrogation that we would not find acceptable if used against Americans, be they civilians or soldiers.
One national standard. We will have one national standard for all US personnel and agencies for the interrogation and treatment of prisoners. Currently, the best expression of that standard is the US Army Field Manual, which will be used until any other interrogation technique has been approved based on the Golden Rule principle.
The rule of law. We will acknowledge all prisoners to our courts or the International Red Cross. We will in no circumstance hold persons in secret prisons or engage in disappearances. In all cases, prisoners will have the opportunity to prove their innocence in ways that fully conform to American principles of fairness.
Duty to protect. We acknowledge our historical commitment to end the use of torture and cruelty in the world. The US will not transfer any person to countries that use torture or cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment.
Checks and balances. Congress and the courts play an invaluable role in protecting the values and institutions of our nation and must have and will have access to the information they need to be fully informed about our detention and interrogation policies.
Clarity and accountability. All US personnel – whether soldiers or intelligence staff – deserve the certainty that they are implementing policy that complies fully with the law. Henceforth all US officials who authorize, implement, or fail in their duty to prevent the use of torture and ill-treatment of prisoners will be held accountable, regardless of rank or position.
Hat tip to Hank at Eclectic Meanderings. | 2019-04-26T10:07:56Z | http://duckofminerva.com/tag/torture |
If We’re Holy, Why Does God Call Us to Be Holy?
Are Christians a truly holy people, or are we trying to become a holy people?… As an oak sapling grows, it doesn’t get “oakier.” Oak is oak. It simply matures into what it is, a full-grown oak tree.
Needless to say, maturity doesn’t occur in one giant leap, but through a process: “But we all … are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory” (2 Corinthians 3:18). Notice it’s “from glory to glory,” not “from garbage to glory.” You are already holy in Christ … Just as an oak sapling does not get oakier as it matures, neither does a new creature in Christ get holier, more forgiven, more accepted, etc.
Critics of the modern grace message say we who preach it are opposed to holy living. Nothing could be further from the truth. What we are opposed to is the old habit of trying to make yourself holy by acting holy. You just can’t do it. The standard is too high. But the good news declares God makes us holy. He takes the shards of our broken lives and makes something beautiful, pleasing, sweet-smelling, and Christ-like.
To all those in Rome who are loved by God and called to be saints (Romans 1:7a, ESV). Be saintly because you are saints, as Paul says many times in his letter to the Romans.
But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves to God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life (Romans 6:22). A better translation may be, “have fruit unto sanctification.” Holy fruit are reaped not manufactured. Like eternal life, fruit are gifts, not wages (John 3:16, 5:21).
To the church of God in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus and called to be His holy people … (1 Corinthians 1:2a). You are sanctified so act like it.
Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity … (Colossians 3:5a). If you’re a butterfly, don’t act like a caterpillar. If you have been given a new nature, don’t act in accordance with your old one. That’s hypocrisy. It’s pretending to be someone you are not.
It is God’s will that you should be sanctified: that you should avoid sexual immorality … (1 Thessalonians 4:3). It is God’s will that you should be sanctified in your conduct, not because your salvation hinges on it, but your wellbeing does. Sin is destructive.
Each of you should learn to control your own body in a way that is holy and honorable, not in passionate lust like the pagans, who do not know God (1 Thessalonians 4:4–5). You know who your Father is so don’t act like someone who doesn’t.
May God Himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through (1 Thessalonians 5:23a). Sanctification is God’s work, not yours. Just as His gift of salvation is something to work out in your life, so is His sanctification. You already have it, so enjoy it!
But just as He who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do (1 Peter 1:15). You are not holy because you act holy. You are holy because you are children of a holy Father. Indeed, you are a holy nation (1 Peter 2:9). Be who you truly are.
New Testament exhortations to live holy should not be read as a self-help guide to holiness. Rather, they are pictures of the wholesome, healthy life we get to enjoy as we allow Christ to express His holy life through us.
New Testament exhortations to live holy are advertisements for the abundant life that is already ours in Christ.
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38 Comments on If We’re Holy, Why Does God Call Us to Be Holy?
Great explanation and scriptures! So freeing for those who will have ears to hear the truth of God’s grace and love! Thanks, Paul!
I totally get the message here. I like how Joseph Prince says, that when you really know who you are in Christ and how much you are loved and forgiven, the old sinful behavior, habits and addictions will fall off. I have found this to be true in my life. My old destructive tongue speaks less because my mind has changed, the negative thoughts are up there in the brain less and less..The old bad habits and addictions have mostly gone away because the Holy Spirit guided me with suggestions as how to break them. When you realize that it is not God that is heaping the condemnation on you, you relax and “know” that you will be victorious in becoming more holy in time… not fretting over it, not “working” at it but just having faith that God will help you overcome in time. Thank you, Paul for another thought provoking message that is so well written.
I didn’t mean to say that I would become more holy over time, but that my behavior would be more holy over time, I know that I am already holy because of the Jesus and the Cross..
Hi Paul, great post! Thank you. Amazing that we have these old timers as it were, proclaiming true holiness. Yet the Church never picked up on what they said.
I wonder if the critics of the grace message would criticise Billy Graham or Dr Jones message on holiness in the same way they do us grace people! Would they brand them heretics like they do us. I don’t think so. They wouldn’t have the balls!
They’d find some way to reason out what Billy and Martin have said!
The phrase “be holy” is an interesting one. In English, the verb “be” is the only inactive verb. In order for it to become active, it must be paired with another verb, i.e. “I am going to the store”; or “He was playing the piano.” The phrase “be holy” is to remain as you are……holy. There is nothing to “do”, but to remain as you have been re-created to be in Christ. It took me a long time for Bill Gillham’s words to sink in about this. After meeting him and Anabel one day, we discussed the idea of the oak tree. It is oak. (“Is” is the form of the verb “be”, in case you didn’t catch that.) It doesn’t become oakier as it continues to grow. Just like we, as believers in Christ, are holy, so we are encouraged to remain that way. Not that we can “unbecome” holy, for we “are” holy in Christ.
LORD open our eyes so we can see who we really are in Jesus -otherwise we will continue in the futility of false identity perceptions.
Amen! As Jesus is, so am I.
“The apostle says that we who are the priests of God have a right as priests to go to God’s mercy seat that is within the veil; but it were to our death to go there unless we were perfect. but we are perfect, for the blood of Christ has been sprinkled on us, and, therefore, our standing before God is the standing of perfection.
“To be” is not in the original text. They are “called holy people” because that’s who they are.
– Just as you used to offer yourselves as slaves to impurity and to ever-increasing wickedness, so now offer yourselves as slaves to righteousness leading to holiness (Romans 6:19b).
Indeed, that’s almost exactly how the text reads in the original. “Leading to” is not there in Greek. The preposition is “εἰς” – in / into.
It is God’s will that you should be sanctified in your conduct, not because your salvation hinges on it, but your wellbeing does. Sin is destructive.
I really love how your already dynamic posts get supercharged when I read through comments. Thank you to Steve & Terminal Salvation for the original language additions. Love the Spurgeon quote about standing perfect in God’s reality vs my conscience. Neil Anderson is good too. OAKINESS.?…added to my vocabulary but more importantly that’s a great one to meditate upon and store in my heart.
When we are in hyper-sin then hyper-grace is the only gospel that can be preached, otherwise the money machine shuts down and you can’t have that in America, right?
Holiness is entirely lacking in the house of the LORD today and even the heathen know it. How else can one explain the prostitute type dressing and the immoral attire donned under the guise of fashion?
We find that once we dress our daughters unholy this way the whole land falls into whoredom and who can argue with the LORD and the facts on the ground that militate against us?
Matt 5:28 is a higher bar indeed than Leviticus 19:29, and sexual sin has absolutely collapsed the church and impeached her credibility. The entire U.S.A. church needs to repent with a sacred national assembly on this one sin alone.
Romans 6:12 Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires. That means we have the grace through the blood of the Lamb and the Mighty Holy Spirit to overcome sin: we must it is a command repeated again to the churches in Revelation.
And that’s the question, no? If one is not overcoming sin, and repenting then one is in the realm of the flesh and on an entirely different road with a grim destination.
You rightly diagnose the moral problems and decay in the world my friend. But your solution of self effort holiness has virtually no foundation in gospel truth. Gods ONLY solution to moral decay in any age is not more of the self imposed superficial religion of outward dress and skin deep moral reformation used by the fathers of America. Where did that lead them? It lead them tto the moral cesspool our society is in today. The Self imposed holiness you propose of is not gospel holiness but rather this: “Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit, according to the tradition of men, according to the basic principles of the world, and not according to Christ.
2 or else be like the world, and dress like the world, and think like the world, and minimize sexual sin (Matt 5:28) and immodest dressing. But I must tell you the truth, the Holy Spirit is Holy and the LORD has a ZERO tolerance towards sin. One look at the church and you can see she has not chosen holiness and the fear of the LORD she has taken another road altogether.
Repentance of the penance kind only brings short lived self powered change. How do I know? I lived it.
You can dress up a pig is children’s clothing and it’s still a pig. However if you change a pig through a supernatural act of God into a child then it is no longer a pig. It may take time for it to learn that it is no longer a pig but a child of God. No matter how badly it may slip back into pig pen behavior those actions do not negate the supernatural act that God wrought making it into a child.
Without “hyper-grace” you merely have religious words dressing up the lost with demands to be good, stop sinning and clean up your act. Even if a person grasps the deity of Jesus and that the cross provides forgiveness of sin but you neglect to teach them that they are no longer a pig they will continue to act like pigs because that is all anyone ever tells them they are. “Stop being so filthy you dirty sinner. Get cleaned up. Straighten out.” Until you tell them the scandalous good news of the entire gospel of Jesus(also called hyper grace) you will have a bunch of folks thinking they are pigs that need to change themselves into children of God. Until they know that they are children of God they will operate out of the flesh for their change and maturity. Until the full truth is taught the church will stay full of young women dressing like pigs and young men acting like pigs because no one is brave enough to tell them that God turned them into His children when they believed on Jesus.
You will always act out who you think you really are! My whole life is living proof of that. Holiness is of the Lord or it is self righteousness.
God’s hiway to Holiness is just that : A HIGHER WAY OF HOLINESS! That comes through trusting Christ’s holiness alone to secure and maintain every divine blessing and Christ’s holiness ALONE lived out and through those who BELIEVE – not those who try hard to be holy. Christ plus nothing is the only authentic HIGH(ER)way to holiness .
Highway- You are either full of it OR seriously deluded as to how holy the “holiness” is that God demands.
The last thing Jesus prayed for is perfect harmony , between him in the father with us, this can not be achieved if we are not holy, and God defines holy, just as he defines life. If he said it , I am it.
I know from experience that when I stopped trying and just accepted that I’m holy and my actions don’t make me holier same as my shortcomings don’t make me less holy, i flew.
If the reason for being holy is that I’m already holy, that empowers me to even unconsciously bring forth fruits of holiness.
I went almost a month without realising that I hadn’t indulged a particular weakness. It didn’t even cross my mind at all, and that’s because I want trying to stop, the way I had so often in the past. I just focused on Jesus and everything else dimmed in the light of His Love and acceptance. And these days when I am tempted, i say “Father, i can’t but You can” (got that from JP, the testimony a woman gave of how she overcame her addictions). I realise that if I could in my own strength i would have, but I can’t. I can’t but He can. I focus on Jesus’s finished work and magnify Him and not the problem.
It’s amazing. I’m so much at peace!
3.3 For you died and your life is hidden with Christ.
3.5 Therefore put to death your members that are on the earth: fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire and covetousness which is idoaltry.
If we get fed only 3.5 with no reference to the foundation of 3.3 we will end up in legalism. But Paul does not say that we should be passive in our dealing with our sin. We are to put it to death.
Being holy is about seeing yourself in the image of Jesus because of His completed work and by the teaching and leading of the Holy Spirit. Keep reading to Col. 3:10.
But what are we to make of Col 3.5? Can we just say that 3.10 makes 3.5 redundant?
I think everyone would agree the behavior listed in verse 5 is not profitable. The question is, and the question Paul addresses is, how is this type of behavior put to death in a person’s life? Is it by man’s willpower? Well, if it is by man’s willpower, Jesus died in vein.
In verse 1, you were raised with Christ and are sitting at the right hand of God. What are you doing there if you’re not holy?
In verse 2, set your mind on things above. Does your sin qualify as things above?
In verse 3, you died. Are you trying to fix up a dead man?
In verse 4, Christ is your life. Can it also be your behavior?
Come on Paul, tell us, how do we put this sinful behavior to death?
See that old sinful man dead on the cross. See yourself as the new man given to you by Jesus. As Jesus is, so is that new man.
Our inner self in new however our flesh is still old. The old has habits and desires that are left over from the old man resided in us. Basically the dynamic is you are currently a new man but your old man’s bad habits are still hanging around and need dealt with. Will not dealing with your sin cost you anything? Not in the eternal perspective but in the temporal yeah probably.
The best way to “deal” with your sin is to first get your mind renewed about you new nature and how you are clean and accepted in the Beloved. That and cultivating an ear for the still small voice of the Holy Spirit.
Dear Paul , My husband , an elder in a small fellowship . has been told that he is dividing the fellowship over his views on Grace. He and many others are getting the revelation , it seems to be people who have been brought up in the church can’t ‘ hear ‘ it. Please pray for us . Can’t give names , we are in UK. It is very difficult and so sad when this is a revelation that sets people free !! Blessings . Me and Him !
Hi K, sadly this is a story I’ve heard many times before. I will pray. But I would also encourage you not to give up on those who have been brought up in the church. They can hear it – I know, because I’m such a person. What I have observed is people get grace at different speeds and some of us need a little longer than others. It’s important that those of us who do see it have patience and grace for those who don’t see it yet, for if we don’t give them grace, they definitely won’t see grace.
It’s hard to stay under a pastor that teaches self help and hardly ever even mentions Jesus. We started our own Grace bible study and eventually had to leave along with all of our fellow members that were in our study. It got to the point that we couldn’t sit through one more dead sermon full of self works . There comes a time when you have no more influence because you are seen as a rebel. and kind of feel like one. because your views are different from the leadership. Praise God for the freedom we feel now. Prayers are powerful, we pray for them and put them in God’s hands. We have not found a total Grace church yet, but have found one that is pretty close.
Love this. Thank you. It always comes back to our new identity in Christ. Either where slouching beneath our dignity, or trusting Christ to energize the person he’s already made us to be. Thank you for being faithful to this message. I’m encouraged to read it.
Max grace: “Slouching beneath our dignity” I love that phrase!
There are only two great motivators in everything in the life of a child of God: fear or grace. I choose grace.
well said Barry. I love the two motivators in the life of a child of God. Fear or GRACE….that is true to every one and the sad thing is that most people still lack the understanding of the liberating Gospel of the Grace of God. His undeserved, unearned, unmerited Favor (spiritual Blessing).
I love what the scriptures say and JP pointed out (interesting it was from his old auditorium so it was maybe 2 or 3 years ago or so. Maybe a rerun.) Sanctify means to make holy and Paul wrote “he who sanctifies…” (Hebrews 2:11). so He makes us holy (this is the way the NIV reads basically). Then JP said if he heals us we’re healed, if He prospers us we’re prosperous, and if He sanctifies, we’re holy.
Love this verse! Though it used to bother me – as an unattainable command – before learning about amazing grace of God. Now – it seems to be a creation command : “Light Be, and there is Light” “Be Holy, and there is Holiness” (through Jesus). Ahhh, rest, gratitude, peace, wonder, amazement….
Awesome article- thank you Dr Paul! | 2019-04-26T12:41:05Z | https://escapetoreality.org/2014/08/22/be-holy/ |
Beis Moshiach Magazine - Recent Articles - NICARAGUA WANTS MOSHIACH!
The first Chabad House in Nicaragua in Central America opened three years ago. The shluchim, R’ Dovid Attar and his wife have established a veritable lighthouse, which sends forth the wellsprings of Chassidus and the Besuras Ha’Geula in the picturesque town of S. Juan del Sur. • Preparing the world for Geula.
S. Juan del Sur is a coastal town on the Pacific Ocean in southwest Nicaragua on the border with Costa Rica. It is popular among surfers and is a vacation spot for many Nicaraguan families and foreign tourists, particularly Israelis. Compared to other countries in Central America, Nicaragua is very cheap, which is why many tourists opt to spend more time there before moving on.
“Until not too many years ago, S. Juan del Sur was a quiet fishing town,” says R’ Dovid Attar, shliach to the area. “In recent years though, the town has changed and hotels and attractions for tourists have multiplied.
Thousands of Israeli tourists and other Jews visit the town every year. R’ Attar estimates there are about 20,000 of them. Until three years ago there was no Chabad activity in the area. R’ Dovid Attar then decided to join the shlichus revolution taking place in tourist towns across South and Central America. Together with his wife, they have created a wonderful place which includes a shul, a kosher restaurant, catering, Shabbos and Yom Tov meals, shiurim, and lots of one-on-one time spent with tourists.
R’ Attar says that even before he married, he intended on going on shlichus.
“Right after the year on K’vutza, I spent time in Chabad Houses in Central and South America. In recent years, the number of Israelis touring these areas has doubled and tripled, which created the need to ramp up the Chabad outreach in these countries.
R’ Attar investigated and discovered that most of the tourists are concentrated in S. Juan del Sur.
The shluchim did not wait until they found a suitable building. They immediately began to operate from the narrow room which they rented in a hotel.
The shluchim wrote to the Rebbe about being frustrated with the situation and asked for help. They had gone through the entire town and had found nothing suitable to their needs.
A week went by and then the miracle occurred. One of the brokers showed them a spacious building with two floors that was just right. They signed a contract and the Chabad House officially opened its doors.
They started with a shul, then a kosher kitchen, restaurant and catering services.
The shliach himself shechts chickens every few weeks. Many Jews benefit from his sh’chita, in addition to the tourists and visitors to the Chabad House. Every few weeks he goes to a nearby village to take care of chalav Yisroel. The Chabad House is the home of every tourist. They enjoy a hot drink, a good meal, and are given a sheet of discounts that the shluchim get for them from the hotels in town.
In recent months, the Chabad House got its own Torah scroll. “Up until a few months ago, we had to borrow Sifrei Torah from various places. There were also times when, unfortunately, we had minyanim without a Torah. We did not even dream of raising the money needed to buy a new Torah, because every penny is needed for the daily budget.
“Before last Pesach, I went on a short fundraising trip in Panama City. Running a Chabad House on Pesach is enormously expensive, and since I had already made connections with wealthy Jews in Panama, I decided to raise money there. Besides for my usual fundraising, I was hoping to find a donor for a Torah. I went with the Rebbe’s bracha and the trip was successful. I raised enough money to cover all of Pesach.
“At a certain point I also thought of trying to interest the wealthy men in dedicating sections in a Torah scroll, and in that way ultimately being able to buy a Torah, but I wasn’t successful in this. People had already donated s’farim to other places and only gave to the daily Chabad House expenses. I did not give up, but whenever I met someone I spoke about our need for a Torah until I heard about a very wealthy man, someone who has businesses throughout South America. I heard that he was within the year of mourning for his father. Through a friend, I established contact and he agreed to meet with me.
“I arrived at his office, in a thirty-seven story building that he owns. At the entrance I was met by security guards who escorted me to him. He was happy to meet with me and seemed interested in buying a Torah, but with a condition. ‘If you accept the condition, I will transfer the entire sum to you.’ His condition was that whenever we read from the Torah, that we make a ‘Mi Sh’Beirach’ for the Israeli soldiers and for the welfare of the State. I thought about it; the offer was extremely tempting.
“I told him I would be happy to make a ‘Mi Sh’Beirach’ for the IDF soldiers, but for the State I had a problem. He wasn’t pleased with this and he said he would follow up to make sure I was abiding by his condition. I told him that I would ask my mashpia and we arranged to meet the next day at the same time. My mashpia said I could not agree to his condition. ‘The Rebbe will send you a Torah some other way,’ he said.
“The next day, I went to his office and informed him that it was a condition I could not abide by. I explained that we love Eretz Yisroel but not the leadership of the State, and since I wasn’t operating as a private person but was on the Rebbe’s shlichus, I could not concede on the Rebbe’s principals. We said goodbye and I returned to my place of shlichus. Afterward he gave me a nice sum of money for our activities over Pesach, but not for a Torah.
“That summer, a young religious American fellow came to Nicaragua. He loved surfing and was happy to hear about the opening of a Chabad House. He spent all his time with us. On Shabbos, immediately after Shacharis we went on to Musaf, which greatly surprised him. He asked me what happened to the Torah reading, and I explained that unfortunately we still did not have a Torah.
“He was horrified and that Motzaei Shabbos he called his father, a businessman in Miami, who wanted to give a $2000 donation towards a Seifer Torah. ‘Thank you for the donation,’ I said, ‘but where will I get the rest of the money?’ The father, who had gotten caught up in the son’s enthusiasm, promised to do all he could to see to it that the shul did not remain without a Torah scroll.
“I was thrilled with the news. I arranged for one of the bachurim to meet with them in Miami and take the Torah. By the following Shabbos, we had the Torah reading at the shul.
“We started getting ready a few weeks in advance. We decorated the Chabad House and brought a Megilla from Crown Heights. We prepared hamantashen, graggers, and costumes and took care of all the details that would make the Yom Tov a joyous one. Erev Purim we hung up flyers around town inviting Jews to celebrate with us at the Chabad House.
“But then things began to happen that threw a wrench into the works. Mere hours before the end of Taanis Esther, a truck belonging to the local electric company parked near the Chabad House. They took out ladders and workers informed us that they had come to cut off the electricity. I was beside myself in shock. I pay my bill every month, what was this about?! I knew that if they cut the wires, it would take three days for them to reconnect them. Unlike Eretz Yisroel or Western countries, in Nicaragua they disconnect the electricity by actually cutting the wires.
“We showed the supervisor the papers that said we paid what we owed, but he showed us a letter from a few years earlier that said that the previous tenants had not paid their electric bill. We tried to use our connections, but to no avail. They only agreed to postpone the disconnect by two hours. ‘If you pay we won’t cut it off,’ they said.
“The debt amounted to several thousand dollars which we could not pay. They did their work and cut the electricity. So we had no electricity, nor the music we had arranged, but we had a successful event by the light of candles. All the Israelis who attended had a great time.
“We were still left with the electricity problem. When days went by and we saw there was nothing we could do, we were feeling down. The refrigerator did not work, nor the oven. We had no Internet connection, no phone and – the most basic thing of all – we had no electric light.
“We spoke to a lawyer, and even she said that if it was the electric company we were dealing with, there was little she could do. I wrote to the Rebbe and asked for a bracha. The answer surprised us. The Rebbe said a Jew needs to be an illuminating candle and must always be in a position of increasing the light. How would we do this? I asked myself. We had no light! But the Rebbe’s bracha encouraged me greatly. I decided that since this is a mosad of the Rebbe’s, I would do what I could and the Rebbe would do the rest.
“The tourists had come up with a joke about us by then that the Chabad House had turned into a cave of tzaddikim on the road to Tzfas. We continued doing all our work, albeit without electricity.
“I was skeptical. So many people had made promises and nothing had changed. What were the chances that he could help? That day, at six in the evening, I heard the honking of a truck parked near the Chabad House. I went outside and saw the same electric company people setting up ladders. ‘What do you want now?’ I asked them. I was sure that since I hadn’t paid the old bill that they had come back to take away the electric pole. How pleasantly surprised I was to hear them say they had come to reconnect the electricity.
“At a certain point we found out that Pesach night there would be hundreds of Jews in town who wanted to celebrate with us. I knew that our Chabad House was not big enough for them all and that we needed a commercial kitchen for all the cooking and logistical preparations. We looked for a restaurant or hall that would agree to rent the place to us for a week.
“We soon realized this was impossible since the week of Pesach coincided with their holiday. People from all of Nicaragua were planning on coming to our town each day to celebrate till the wee hours of the night. What restaurant would want to forgo the tremendous profits they could make during this week? We even went to a nearby town and went from one restaurant to the next, but we were turned down there too.
“We spent two days going around town, for nothing. Some wanted to hear a few details, but when they realized what we intended to do with their restaurant, they refused. Pesach was approaching and we did not have a proper place that was big enough. We were out of ideas even as we knew that many Jews relied on us and we could not disappoint them.
“In that town there was another exclusive restaurant with a nice bar and a big area that could contain everyone. We did not go there at first, because we were sure they would not agree to rent it out or they would ask for a fortune to close it and let us kasher it. At this point, when we had no more options, we decided to approach them even though we did not hold out high hopes.
“We were stunned. At first we thought he was joking, but when we asked him if he was sure, he gave us his handshake. We signed a contract with him at a laughable price that we hadn’t dreamed was possible. Not only that, he said, ‘For the cooking, I will give you the new kitchen on the second floor,’ and he took us on a tour. It was a new kitchen that had never been used, which made it so much easier for us.
The outreach work at the Chabad House is extensive. It sometimes seems as though the shluchim have become experts at grand events. However, if you asked R’ Attar, you would hear that he derives the greatest satisfaction from one on one conversations with Israeli tourists or Jewish visitors.
“My wife and I invited her to sit down and relax. She said that she planned on doing her trip with Australian gentiles and not with Israelis whom she despised. Then she asked what the Torah’s view is on marriage with a non-Jew. She asked while making it clear that the Torah’s view would have no bearing on her opinion. We told her about the special quality of a Jew and shared some stories to illustrate this idea and that was the end of that conversation.
“She told us that she had gotten a sign from Heaven that made her split up with her gentile Australian boyfriend. When she had left the Chabad House, she went to a local cafe where she sat with him. After a while, she got up to get something. At just that moment, bullets shot out of the security guard’s gun, which hit the back of the chair she had been sitting on. ‘If I had continued sitting there, I would have been killed,’ she said with tears in her eyes. Of course, we guided her in how to say the bracha.
“Last year, a pair of Israelis walked into the Chabad House who were very interested in Judaism. For a long time, we learned Tanya and Shulchan Aruch with them. Since they were planning to marry, we taught them the laws that pertain to marriage. Before they left, they wrote to the Rebbe through the Igros Kodesh. The woman opened to a letter about observing family purity and her fiancé opened to a similar answer. In both their answers the message was to spread light.
During their first year, the outreach work focused primarily on Israeli tourists. But lately, they have formed good ties with the local Jewish community.
“We have an ongoing shiur in Halacha and Chassidus. They are very happy with the attention and warmth they get from us and we are happy with the Jewish pride that we are able to instill in them with each encounter.
“We also have a good rapport with American Jews who came here and opened businesses or Jews who are in the surfing club. Many people who escaped the noise of the city settled here.
“In the hours before the onset of Sukkos, I decided to go down to the Chabad House and make sure that everything was ready with the chairs in place and the sukka clean. I saw that all was well, that our employees had set everything up. I planned on going back upstairs in order to supervise the cooking and final preparations when I suddenly noticed some dirt out of the corner of my eyes.
“I took a broom and began sweeping. As I stood there, I noticed two older men standing facing the entrance of the sukka. I could tell they were westerners. ‘Do you know what a sukka is?’ I asked them, and they said they did. ‘Are you Jewish?’ I asked, and they said yes. I took them into the sukka and we sat down to a long conversation. I explained the holiday to them and invited them to be our guests for Yom Tov. They happily accepted. Thanks to them, we had a minyan on Yom Tov night.
“Later on, we got better acquainted and we learned that they lived locally. One of them, an architect by profession, works in Nicaragua for a company that builds buildings. We asked him to build our mikva and he happily agreed. He and his friend became regulars at the Chabad House, all thanks to my deciding to sweep the sukka so it would be perfectly clean.
“There is another mekurav, the manager of a yoga retreat in the town. He is a Jewish guy from Philadelphia who settled here and, sadly, married a local gentile woman. One day, he came to the Chabad House and poured out his heart about his poor relationship with his wife. We are used to speaking more about the positive than the negative and we spoke about strengthening his identity as a Jew through observing mitzvos.
Chabad in S. Juan del Sur, Nicaragua wants Moshiach! You can see it on all the flyers and signs, like the sign in the entrance to the Chabad House.
“A Chassid has no doubts about doing Mivtza T’fillin or Mivtza Mezuza; all the more so regarding the main mivtza of them all – Moshiach.
“Among the people we encounter there are two types: one is excited by the stories and very much relates to the idea of Moshiach; the other, few in number, are skeptical. The latter are comprised mainly of religious people who went off the derech. So we open s’farim and delve into the subject.
Plans for the future, as long as the Geula isn’t fully here and the Beis HaMikdash is not yet built, is to light up their corner of the world with the light of Geula. | 2019-04-21T03:17:13Z | http://beismoshiachmagazine.org/articles/nicaragua-wants-moshiach.html |
We strive for the advancement, encouragement and improvement of the profession for the greater safety of participants in all sports, while creating professional growth through research, education, innovation, commitment and advancement for all members.
Qualifications: The person must be a member in good standing with all past and present dues paid, who has done the most service for the AEMA for the year. The award year begins at the end of the past convention. The Award can be won by the same person for more than one year.
Only one candidate will be selected for each district per year.
The District Directors will present the nominees to the Board of directors. The Directors will supply a Resume on each person telling what he/she has done as to service and/or contributions to the Association. The resume must be filled using the AEMA standard form that can be obtained from the National Office.
The nomination must be turned into the National Office and copied to the President and Executive Director by February 1 of each year.
The National office will put out a ballot (by email) to the board of directors and to the active past Glenn Sharp award winners to narrow down the candidate to 3 finalists. This ballot must be sent to the Board and past winners prior to February 7th.
The 3 finalist must be submitted back to the National office and copied to the President and the Executive director prior to February 15th of each year.
The final 3 Nominees resumes will be coordinated and presented to the general body by the President.
Final voting on the 3 nominees will be done on line on the AEMA website. Voting will be available on line from March 1– April 1 each year. With the winner posted the first week of April.
The Award will be presented at the General Meeting.
Winners must submit a 5x7 color photo to the National office to be made into a plaque for the Glenn Sharp wall.
Qualifications: This Special Recognition award can be given to any member or non member who has performed a service deemed above and beyond for the AEMA.
There can be up to 5 candidates per year.
The nominations can be sent to the Executive Director by any member, each year prior to April 15th. The Executive director will then select the recipients. Recipients names and school or organization will be supplied to the National office by May 1 so award can be ordered.
The award will be awarded each year at the Convention at the General meeting.
The Booker Kilgore Award is presented annually to High School Equipment Manager who best exemplifies the character and service of Booker Kilgore. The award is sponsored by Bassco Sporting Goods.
Qualifications: The recipient must be a High School Equipment Manager. The recipient must be a Certified Member in good standing of the AEMA with all past and present dues paid. The recipient must have a minimum of five (5) years experience as a High School Equipment Manager. The recipient must be a person who places his or her family commitments before other responsibilities or goals. The recipient must be a person who is known and respected in his/her community.
One candidate from each district is submitted to the Executive Director prior to May 15th each year.
The award will be ordered by Randy Fogle.
AEMA member with 15 or more years of membership, or Deceased/Retired AEMA members who didn’t make the 15-year membership limit.
Employees of AEMA who have served 15 or more years and have shown exceptional dedication to our organization.
Charter members (1975-1978) of the AEMA who served this organization in the early years. These members may not have been members 15 years; they need to demonstrate the integral part they served to get the AEMA off the ground.
Associates of the AEMA who have distinguished them selves in the promotion of our organization.
Award is to be determined by the Committee Nominations are accepted by the National Office until May 1.
The committee must submit all nominees to the Board of Directors for final Approval.
Award will be presented at the General Meeting at convention.
All district awards are governed by the District and paid for by the district.
The executive director shall enforce all policies on behalf of the Association.
Commit the Association to no financial obligations in excess of available financial resources.
Maintain continual communications with the Associate Executive Director, President, and Office Manager.
Submit a report on the progress of the Association at each Board meeting and general meeting.
Possess full power and complete responsibility to transact all business for and on behalf of the Association with the approval of the Board.
Together with the Office Manager, and the treasurer provide the Board the projected budget for each fiscal year.
Sign all Convention contracts unless other arrangements are made.
The Associate Executive Director will assist the Executive Director in functions and responsibilities as necessary.
Serve as chair person of the Ethics committee.
Should a vacancy occur in the Executive Director’s capacity, said term will be completed by the Associate Executive Director.
The President shall preside at all meetings of the board and National meetings.
Call all meetings of the Executive Board as deemed necessary and advisable.
Serve as the official spokesman for the Executive Board.
Appoint all committee chairpersons with the approval of the Executive Board.
Be in direct communication with the District Directors, Executive Director, and Office Manager.
Serve as ex-official member to all committees.
The Vice-president shall act in the place of the President in the events of the President’s absence or refusal to act.
Serve as Parliamentarian at all meetings.
Should assist the Convention Program Chair person.
Should a vacancy occur in the President’s capacity, said term will be completed by the Vice President until the next presidential election.
Serve on the Board of Directors and attend both the opening and closing board meeting and any other meeting called by the President. Should a District Director be unable to attend the National meeting, he/she shall appoint a person from his/her district to sit in on the meetings to represent that district.
Serve as the legislative body of the Association as the voice of your district members.
Approve all appointments made by the Executive Director and/or President.
Supply a district activity report by May 1st to the President so the information can be made available for discussion at the Annual Board meeting. This report will also serve as a basic for CEU distribution for district officers.
It is the District Directors responsibility to see that other district officers such as (Vice President, Secretary, Newsletter editor, treasurer, Membership chairperson or other district officers not mentioned. Not to include CEU Representative CEU representative are governed by CSC) Perform his/her duties as assigned. If an Officer does not perform duties it is the responsibility of the Director to do so, or appoint another person until the next election is held.
It is recommended that each district produce a newsletter. This newsletter can be hard copy, email, or submitted to the National office for post on the web site.
Promote the AEMA whenever possible.
Supply board meeting agenda topics to the President prior to May 1 for discussion at convention.
All district officer (except CEC) are governed by the district.
Receive and Process all membership dues. Enter in database, laminate and mail card and confirmation of any other payment to individual member. Enter information on website.
Process all membership cards and convention information for retired non paying members.
Organize and design convention information. Mass email membership with information and post on website.
Receive and Process and Convention registrations Enter data in database, make badge.
Receive and Process Certification Exam applications, determine eligibility, copy and send cover letter explaining study material and eligibility. Send manual priority mail if ordered with test.
Process new members. Make card, send convention information, and cover letter. Make membership certificate and mail with welcome letter to the new member.
Contact the district director, membership chairperson, and President with any new member added to district.
Maintain dues paid by District and send periodic report to Treasurer.
Send periodic Membership report to Membership chairperson.
Maintain an Alumni File, for verification of new member status.
Answer all correspondence- phone, email, and mail questions or requests.
Keep a tabulation of all CEU’s both in the data base and on the website.
Post reminders 30 days before end of window informing members to check for needed CEU’s.
Maintain Bar code system and attach bar code to certified members badges.
Work with President to set up all Convention agendas for meetings.
Take and record all minutes for Board and General Meetings.
Email a late notice to members delinquent in dues.
Post Convention Schedule to website, send to printers, ship and distribute at convention.
Keep a data base on Exhibitors Make all badges.
Maintain all daily operations and answer questions, or direct members to the correct source for answers for the National Office.
Maintain and operate all office equipment.
Assist Web Master to Design and Maintain all AEMA forms.
Assist the Board of Directors in clerical type duties as needed.
Produce and mail Certificates for newly certified members.
Keep a running tally of Members years as paid members and process 5,10,15,20,25 and 30 year stickers.
Enter membership data sent from office manager into ‘Quickbooks’ and break into categories for accounting procedures.
Provide checks and balances for all AEMA accounts.
Receive, enter and deposit all checks.
Over see checking, savings, credit card and CD accounts.
Send monthly statements to all 10 districts.
Write split checks and make deposits to each district as owed by the national office.
Monitor district accounts and checks written.
Keep payroll taxes current and keep IRS up to date (941 quarterly tax reporting).
Work closely with accountant for all tax solutions, problems, etc.
Track and log all receipts, pay out as needed.
Plan upcoming conventions with Executive Director.
Invoice companies that make annual donations to our Journal, convention receptions and office.
Work with hotel/convention site contact(s) to insure all paperwork is finalized, menus are correct, workshop rooms are assigned, proper insurance coverage provided, audio-visual needs of speakers, workshops, banquets and receptions arranged and set properly, security issues addressed, donation letters and monies collected—these are just some examples of what I do with the convention prior and on site. At the time of convention make sure that the services we need are flowing accordingly.
At convention I work the registration desk, run credit cards, daily tally and make sure vendors understand AEMA is responsive to their needs while they are setting up exhibits or have questions or concerns during the course of the convention.
Compile and bank district monies for golf outing and help district with needs when the convention is in their district.
Review master bill immediately at the end of the convention with executive director.
Answer and respond to general membership requests.
Work with the accountants with IRS wage and reporting and have found better interest rates for AEMA CDs.
No committee or committee member Shall commit any financial obligations of the association unless approved by the Executive Director.
Maintenance of the AEMA Certification Manual.
Coordination of National Convention workshops and seminars.
Development and administration of Certification examination.
Ultimately responsible for all actions to the Board of Directors.
Organize and Conduct CSC meeting at Convention each year.
Organize and attend Test Development Sessions in Raleigh.
Maintain CEU Requirements and appeals process.
Attend CEC Meeting at Convention.
Work with the CSC Chairperson to make certain that all educational areas of the AEMA are done in accordance to the Role Delineation.
Work with CAS to keep AEMA Certification Exam current and in accordance with the role delineation.
Select and contact manufactures to exhibit at our National meeting, with the help of the Treasurer.
Work with the Decorator and obtain floor plan of the booth space.
Be at Convention at least one (1) day prior to the National meeting, to assist with the set-up of exhibits and stay until exhibits are down.
Secure Security Guard for the exhibit area.
Remain in communication with the executive director, President and National office.
Assign booth spaces to the exhibitors.
Certification Exam including but not limited the development and proctoring of the exam.
The Chair shall liaise with Scantron Corporation in the production, evaluation and the use of all testing materials and provide to the AEMA all pertinent information with respect to scoring.
The Exam Chair is also responsible for the striking of a committee to produce and evaluate questions for the certification exam.
Ordering of all materials and returning same to Scantron Corporation after each exam session.
The Head Proctor is also required to communicate all information with respect to the exam to the National Office in a timely fashion and receive in kind all candidate requests in addition to verifying the identity of all candidates.
The Chair shall submit to the Chair of the CSC an annual report detailing the activities of the committee and him or herself.
Promote and receive 5 articles per year for the AEMA Journal. Oversee all articles and keep with compliance with the role delineation.
Work closely with Momentum Media to assure that the Journal is published and mailed by September 1.
Investigate and implement plans for soliciting new members.
Investigate ways for AEMA to further serve the membership.
Other duties as assigned by the Executive Board.
Secure and maintain the Convention Program for the annual convention. Making sure that all workshops are educational and follow the role delineation.
Turn Finalized Schedule into the National office prior to February 1 each year.
Maintain Current Resource material and make available to membership on request.
Prospective hotels contact go to the Executive Director.
Executive Director decides which contracts are suitable for the AEMA needs.
When needed Site inspector is sent to suitable sites.
Up to, but no more than five finalists are invited to National Convention to present sites at their own expense. Hotel presenter is responsible for their own travel, lodging, and expenses. Hotel presenter is responsible for any costs incurred relating to their presentation. (ie. Power Point, computer hook ups etc.) Site Inspector can give presentation if hotel does not wish to come to convention.
District Directors are encouraged to identify convention sites in their districts. The sites are required to meet established AEMA criteria. In addition, they must submit their proposals to Executive Director on or before April 1st of the selection year.
Vote goes to the National Membership immediately following the presentations.
Winner will get the next open year. It will be the board decision to give runner up an option of the following year. To be determined at the closing board meeting.
The Committee consists of five members of the AEMA. A Chairperson, The Associate Executive Director, one other board member And 2 other members selected by the chairperson. The Chairperson shall also select the random board member. Each year this committee is to recommend up to (4) four candidates to the Board of Directors for their consideration. No more than (2) two selections per year are to be inducted.
Committee is to promote the award.
Receive and Grade all applications for annual Scholarship Awards deadline is April 1.
Present winners and their addresses to the Treasurer On May 1 so checks can be written to winners.
No member will be compensated at any time without prior consent from the Executive Director or the Board of Directors. With exception of the Office Managers and Treasurers salary.
Below is a checklist for the needs of the AEMA for a convention.
We need approximately 100 meeting rooms at the same time for our district meetings. Our workshops room need to remain the same throughout the convention. Presently we use three at the same time. We digitally record each workshop, all rooms need to have a podium and microphone. We like to have meeting and workshop rooms in the same are so members can move from one workshop to another easily.
We have a golf outing where the members need to have a designated site for a bus pickup.
We currently use mainly Double Doubles for our guest rooms.
The following are generally comped by the hotel for our convention.
Exhibit space usually is charged by the booth through hotels and by the space through convention centers. We attempt to stay around $3.000 for both days.
Registration Desk with nearby Room to lock up computer and office supplies.
The renting of Audio-Visual equipment needed for meetings and workshops.
1,800 Hours Student Athletic Equipment Management experienced and a 4 year college degree. (college students in the last year of their degree program may take Exam and will become certified when they provide a copy of their diploma).
You must fill out a test application form and pay the applicable fee.
You must Pass the Certification Exam.
You must submit all required Documentation with your application.
A letter verifying employment, for each school/organization worked for, must accompany application. This letter must be from either the Personnel office or the Athletic Director. Each letter should clearly state the type of employment and the beginning/ending dates of employment. Each letter should be on letterhead from the school/organization. Student Managers experience must be submitted on AEMA Student Manager Time Logs that are completely filled out and signed by the supervisor.
A check made payable to the AEMA, or credit card payments in the amount of the applicable fee. Due postmarked on April 1. A late fee will be levied on all application received from April 2 through May 1. After May 1. all applications will be returned.
Photo Copy of GED, High School Degree, or College Degree.
Canada: Quebec, New Brunswick, Newfoundland, and Nova Scotia.
Delaware, District of Columbia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and West Virginia.
Alabama, Georgia, Florida, North Carolina, and South Carolina.
Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Tennessee.
Colorado, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Texas.
Canada: British Columbia, Alberta, and Saskatchewan.
Arizona, California, Hawaii, Nevada, Alaska and All International Countries except Canada.
All memberships are per person and are good for one full year. May 31-June 1. We do not prorate fees.
If you are attending convention. Do not mail fees after May 15th as the office is packed and mailed to convention. Bring fees to Convention with you.
We accept, cash (convention only do not mail cash) check, Visa and MasterCard.
No applications accepted after May 1. Applications will be returned to member.
One outstanding characteristic of a profession is that its members are dedicated to rendering services to humanity. Also, they are committed to the improvement of standards in equipment. Financial gain or personal reward must be secondary. In becoming a member of the athletic equipment managing profession, the individual assumes obligations and responsibilities to conduct him self in accordance with its ideals and standards. These are set forth in the Constitution and By-Laws and are emphasized in the CODE OF ETHICS. Any athletic equipment manager who does not feel that he can or does not deem it necessary to comply with the principles set forth in the CODE should have no place in this profession.
Athletics have gained a prominent place in our educational institutions and our communities at local, national, and international levels and are an important reflection of the way of life. The members of the athletic equipment managers profession must adhere to the highest standards of conduct in carrying out their significant role in athletic programs at all levels. It is for this reason that we have the CODE OF ETHICS.
In approving this CODE, the Board of Directors recognize and believe that unless the standards and principles that are set forth in this document are accepted in good faith and followed sincerely, it will not be effective in continuing to improve the contributions of the profession and its members to athletics.
Ethics are generally defined as a science of moral duty, or making the right actions relative to ideal principles. Let it be understood that all members of the Athletic Equipment Managers Association will understand and apply the principles set forth in this CODE, and make every effort to do the right thing at the right time to the best of their ability and judgment.
The primary purpose of this CODE is to clarify the ethical and approved professional practices as distinguished from those that might prove harmful or detrimental. Its secondary purpose is to instill into its members the value and importance of the athletic equipment managers role in the field of athletics and recreational equipment.
It is suggested that the Committee on Ethics be empowered to investigate reported violations of this CODE. It is the duty of this committee to collect all data pertaining to any reported violation, consider all sides of any controversial issue, then forward a report of its findings and recommendations to the Board of Directors for final action.
It is further suggested that any member of the Association on becoming aware of a violation of the CODE, send a written report to both the President of the Association, and the chairman of the Committee on Ethics.
The advancement, encouragement and improvement of the athletic equipment management profession in all its phases, and to promote a better working relationship among those persons interested in the problems of management.
To develop further the professional ability of each of its members.
To better serve the common interest of its members by providing a means for free exchange of ideas within the profession.
To enable members to become better acquainted personally through casual good fellowship.
To work as a group to bring about equipment improvements for greater safety of participants in all sports.
The essential basic principles in this CODE OF ETHICS of the A.E.M.A. are HONESTY, INTEGRITY, and LOYALTY. Athletic equipment managers who reflect these characteristics will be a credit to the Association, the institution they represent, and to themselves.
An athletic equipment manager should do all in his power and ability to further develop and improve all branches of athletics and show no discrimination in his interests or efforts.
Each and every member of an athletic squad should be treated conscientiously with out discrimination or partiality. An athletic equipment manager can wield a great amount of influence on members of athletic squads by proper conduct and the use of good judgment in dealing with various personalities and temperaments.
In the care of equipment, the athletic equipment manager must be thorough in carrying out the accepted procedures and instructions. Any carelessness or laxity on the part of the athletic equipment manager in following through his responsibilities to players in a breach of ethical conduct.
It is the athletic equipment manager’s responsibility to create and maintain a harmonious relationship between himself and all administrative officials. Suggestions and ideas should be freely exchanged and discussed, but any controversial matters should be taken care of confidentially on a friendly basis. Decisions, business procedures and established standards and policies should be given complete support by the athletic equipment manager.
There should be a close harmonious relationship between athletic equipment managers and allied personnel based on mutual respect. Cooperation must be the primary feature of interaction between allied personnel and athletic equipment managers for the maintenance of espirit-de-corps, proper handling of equipment, methods of repair, and decisions relative to the welfare of the players and for conduct that is conducive for achieving the best results for all concerned.
The relationship between athletic equipment managers is partially set forth in the objectives. However, it should be stated further that in the process of extending courtesies to fellow associates one should abstain from so-called “second guessing” them in the care of equipment. Any suggestions should be given, and taken, in the spirit of constructive cooperation.
Any athletic equipment manager who by his conduct or comments publicly discredits or lowers the dignity of members of his profession is guilty of a breach of ethics. Any report of unethical conduct of this nature should go through proper channels, be considered objectively and without comment outside the Association.
The subject matter and implications of the following sections are of an abstract nature, but are definitely to be considered in the realm of the athletic equipment manager’s responsibility and obligations.
A fundamental responsibility of an athletic equipment manager in an educational institution is to promote and inspire scholastic achievement by the athletes enrolled in the school. This may be accomplished by suggestions, examples and the promotion of study.
When an athletic equipment manager accepts an offer and agrees to endorse a commercial product - material, equipment, instrument, facility, book - he must realize that the offer is made primarily because he is a successful representative of the athletic equipment manager’s profession. In any endorsement in which the athletic equipment manager’s name and/or reference to the athletic equipment managing profession is included, the wording and illustration, including any implications of the endorsement as a whole shall be such that no discredit to athletics in general nor to the athletic equipment managing profession may be construed. Any endorsement that is not in keeping with the highest principles and standards of the athletic equipment managing profession shall be considered unethical. The A.E.M.A. name, logo, trademark and/or insignia may not be used in any testimonials or endorsements by individual members or groups of members of the Association.
The ideal arrangement is for the institution’s or organization’s public relations director to handle news releases. However, if the athletic equipment manager is authorized to answer questions from representatives of the press, radio, and television, he should use extremely good judgment in regard to the information given and the way in which it is given, direct questions should be answered honestly or not at all. If there is a possibility that an honest answer might be misleading or involve a detrimental interpretation, good judgment may demand a “no comment” answer. All representatives of news media should be treated with courtesy, honesty and respect.
Written material for publication and any information for the press, radio or television given by a member of the athletic equipment managing profession are strictly that individual’s responsibility. Good judgment should indicate that no oral or written statement be made that reflect discredit to athletics in general or the athletic equipment managing profession. Any professional problems that arise should be settled within the Association.
If possible, inform the visiting team athletic equipment manager by mail of the facilities and services that will be available to the visiting team. Meet the visiting team manager when he arrives and offer any available services that he may desire. Make arrangements for any equipment assistance that is needed by the visiting team during the time they are guests. Meet and exchange greeting with the Coach and manager. During the times that a visiting team is preparing for practice or game and during practice, do not be constantly observing or overly inquisitive. After the game, offer any emergency service that the visiting team needs and give assistance in any way possible. Always be courteous to officials and visiting team players and other members of the visiting team party.
The athletic equipment manager is in a position to aid coaches and allied personnel in installing fair play and good sportsmanship in the players and fans. The harassment of the game officials is not considered good sportsmanship. Any athletic equipment manager who condones or defends unsportsman like practices shall be considered to have violated the CODE.
Any member of the Association who becomes aware of conduct that he considers unethical and that he believes warrants investigation should report incident(s) in writing to the President and to the Executive Director of the Association. He should include in his communication all pertinent data.
In accordance with the By-Laws of the Association, the Ethics Committee investigates reported incidents of unethical conduct and if in the judgment of a majority of the council members it finds that the accused person has violated the Athletic Equipment Managers Association CODE OF ETHICS, it communicates its decision to the accused and to the Board of Directors in writing and recommends to the Board one of the following disciplinary actions: Letter or censorship, letter of censorship with a period of probation, or cancellation of membership.
The decision of the Board of Directors in CODE OF ETHICS matters is final, except that if the decision is to initiate cancellation of membership such cancellation shall be done as prescribed in the Constitution.
Whenever the words “they”, “he”, “their”, “his”, “himself” or themselves” appear in this CODE OF ETHICS, they are intended to include both men and women.
The name of this association shall be Athletic Equipment Managers Association (hereinafter referred to as AEMA).
Section 1: The governing body of this organization shall be the Executive Board.
Section 3: For the purpose of facilitating the work of this association the District AEMA shall be divided into ten (10) geographic districts. A desired alteration by the affected local districts must be approved by the Executive Board of the National organization.
Section 4: Each District elects a Director to serve on the Executive Board of the National association. This Director acts in authority for the district at the Executive Board meetings.
The advancement, encouragement and improvement of the Athletic Equipment Management profession in all its phases, and to promote a better working relationship among those persons interested in the problems of this management.
To develop further the education and professional ability of each of its members.
To better serve the common interest of its members by providing a means for a free exchange of ideas within the profession.
To work as a group to bring about equipment improvements for greater safety of participants in all sports, recreation activities, and physical education.
Associate - Any person who is actively engaged in a non paid Athletic Equipment Management job. Or a person who is between Athletic Equipment Management jobs for the purpose of maintaining certification. Fee $100.00 Must be a non vendor or Solicitor of Athletic Equipment.
Section 2. Election of Members. Each applicant for any class of membership shall sign application stating their desire and intention to become a member of the association, to advance its best interest in every reasonable manner and to accept as binding upon themselves its By Laws and Policies and Procedures.
Section 3. Membership Procedures. The application used to become a member of AEMA may be obtained by writing the National office or the District Director of your District. If the application is sent to the National office by the District Director, this should be done within fifteen (15) days after receipt of the application. Original copies of application must always be sent to the National office. When filling out the application make sure it is dated, and college/school/club is written out in full, not abbreviated.
Section 4. Annual Meetings. Regular annual meetings of the members shall be held in June of each year, on a date established, from time to time, by the Executive Board. A mid-year meeting or conference call may also be set up at the discretion of the President or Executive Director.
Section 5. Special Meetings. Special meeting of the voting membership may be called by the Executive Board, President, or in case of the President’s absence, death or disability, the Vice President is authorized to exercise the authority of the President.
Section 6. Notice of Meetings. Written notice of each meeting of members shall be sent from the National office at least thirty (30) days before such meeting.
Section 7. Quorum. The quorum shall consist of one-fifth of the association’s voting membership.
Section 8. Voting Power. Active, and Retired members are entitled to one (1) vote involving all National and District business.
Section 8. 1. In matters of committing the Association to monies greater than $20,000.00 (other than the Office Manager’s compensation) there must be a vote of the entire Active membership.
Section 8. 1. a. For passage of the vote, there must be seventy-five (75%) percent of the affirmative vote of the returned ballots.
Section 9. Suspension of Membership. Membership suspension may be recommended by any member challenging another member. this challenge must be done with a written statement presented to the Chairman of the Ethics Committee. Upon a two-thirds majority vote by the Ethics Committee that the challenge is valid, it then shall be forwarded to the Executive Director who, in turn, will present it to the Executive Board for action. Suspension of the challenged individual’s membership must be by a two-thirds vote by the Executive Board.
Section 9. a. Defense of Membership. Any member whose membership has been challenged shall be allowed, either in person or through some member of the association, to appeal to the Ethics Committee their defense. This information shall be presented to and acted upon by the Ethics committee.
Section 1. The Executive Board will consist of the President, Vice President, Executive Director, associate Executive Director, CSC Chairperson such other officers as the Board may from time to time determine, and ten (10) districts to be represented.
Section 2. Removal. Any Board member may be removed from the Board with or without cause, by a majority vote of the members. In the event of the death, resignation, or removal of a Board member, that Board member’s successor shall be selected by the remaining members of the Board and shall serve for the balance of the term not yet expired by the deceased, resigned or removed member.
Section 3. Election. Each District representative will be either elected by the respective Districts or appointed by the President and Executive Director. District 1,3,5,7, and 9 shall hold election of District Directors in 1976 and every even year thereafter. Districts 2,4,6,8, and 10 shall hold elections of District Directors in 1977 and every odd year thereafter. Each District Director will serve a term of two (2) years, and may serve consecutive terms.
Section 4. Compensation. In the event a special meeting is called and noticed for such purpose the Executive Board will be reimbursed for one (1) night’s lodging and four (4) meals at the discrepancy of the Board.
Section 5. The Executive Board. The Executive Board shall meet at every National meeting one (1) day in advance (minimum) of that meeting, and at any other meeting called by the President.
Section 6. Quorum. A quorum for an Executive Board meeting shall be two-thirds of the Executive Board members.
Section 7. Voting Power. All members of the Executive Board shall have a vote on all Board matters, except for the President. The President will only vote in the case of an impasse board.
take all actions deemed necessary or desirable to comply with all requirements of law, and the needs of the Association.
Section 1. Enumeration of Officers. The officers of this Association shall be President, Vise President, Executive Director and Associate Executive Director, and such other officers as the Board may from time to time determine. Each shall be an active certified member of the Association in good standing.
Section 2. Selection and Term. The officers of this Association shall be selected by the Board, except for the President and Vice President, to serve until the Board selects their successors.
President. The President shall preside at all meetings of the board and National meetings. Call all meetings of the Executive Board as deemed necessary and advisable. Serve as the official spokesman for the Executive Board. Appoint all committee chair persons with the approval of the Executive Board. All of which must be certified member in good standing. The President, must also be a 10 year member who has served at least one (2 year) term on the board of Directors.
Vice President. The Vice-president shall act in the place of the President in the events of the President’s absence or refusal to act. Serve as Parliamentarian at all meetings. Should assist the Convention Program Chair person. Should be on the NCAA Rules Committee for the AEMA Should a vacancy occur in the President’s capacity, said term will be completed by the Vice President until the next presidential election.
Executive Director. The executive director shall enforce all policies on behalf of the Association. Commit the Association to no financial obligations in excess of available financial resources. Maintain continual communications with the Associate Executive Director, President, and Office Manager. Submit a report on the progress of the Association at each Board meeting, Possess full power and complete responsibility to transact all business for and on behalf of the Association with the approval of the Board. Together with the Office Manager, provide the Board the projected budget for each fiscal year. Sign all Convention contracts unless other arrangements are made. Chair Convention Site selection. The Executive Director is appointed by the Board after a open verbal board review each year. The Requirements for Executive Director position in addition to being an active certified member of the Association in good standing. Must also be at least a 10 year active member and must have served on the board of Directors for a least one two year term.
Associate Executive Director. The Associate Executive Director will assist the Executive Director in functions and responsibilities as necessary. Serve as chair person of the Ethics committee. Should a vacancy occur in the Executive Director’s capacity, said term will be completed by the Associate Executive Director. the Associate Executive Director is appointed by the Executive Director with the approval of the Board and reviewed each year. The Requirements for Associate Executive Director position in addition to being an active certified member of the Association in good standing. Must also be at least a 10 year active member and must have served on the board of Directors for a least one two year term.
CEU/CSC Chair person. Must be a certified member in good standing.
Coordinate, Organize and hold meeting at convention prior to the opening board meeting, and take all action to the board of directors.
Section 1. Election. Each district director is elected by his/her district at a district meeting. Each shall be an active certified member of the Association in good standing.
Meet at every National meeting one (1) day in advance (minimum) of that meeting and at any other meeting called by the President.
Serve as the legislative body of the Association, along with the officers.
Approve all appointments made by the Executive Director and President.
Establish the roles and functions of all standing committees and other committees established by the board. Continually re-evaluate the goals and objectives of the Association.
Serve as the nominating committee, with the Executive Director as chairman.
Should a District Director not be able to fulfill his/her obligation as Director, the Vice President of that district will then fill the position, for the remainder of the existing term. If there is no Vice President of the district, or the Vice President declines the position, the Executive Director and President may appoint someone from that district to fill that position, during the existing term.
Should a District Director be unable to attend the National meeting, he shall appoint a person from his/her district to sit in on the meetings to represent that district.
Supply an annual District financial report by May 1st to the National office so the information may be turned over to the accountants for the annual review.
Supply a district activity report by May 1st to the President so the information can be made available for discussion at the Annual Board meeting.
Accept and investigate reports of violations of the Code of Ethics of the Association.
This committee shall meet according to the demand when called by the Chairman.
The President shall appoint an Exhibits chairperson and may appoint such other committees as it deems appropriate in carrying out its purposes. Each shall be an active Certified member of the Association in good standing.
The books, records, and financial statements of the Association, including annual minimum review financial statements, shall be available during normal business hours or under reasonable circumstances, upon request to the Association, for inspection by members.
A minimum review financial statement is provided to the Executive Board every June from the Association’s CPA’s office.
Unless otherwise changed by the Board, the fiscal year of the Association shall begin on the first day of February and end on the 31st day of January of every year.
The rules contained in the Current edition of Robert’s Rules of Order, Newly Revised, shall govern the Association in all cases to which they are applicable and in which they are not inconsistent with these By-laws and any special rules of order the Association may adopt.
The AEMA’s By laws shall not be amended, repealed, or added to, or new By laws adopted, unless two-thirds of the Executive Board are present at the meeting.
The Association may be dissolved at any time by the majority vote of the Executive Board. In the event of such dissolution, all funds contained in the Association’s assets shall be distributed for one or more exempt purposes within the meaning of Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code or corresponding section of any future federal tax code, or shall be distributed to the federal government, or to the state and local government, for a public purpose. Such dissolution and distribution shall also comport with the General Not For Profit Act of the State of Michigan and any future amendment thereto. Any such assets not disposed of shall be disposed of by the Court of Common Pleas of the County in which the Principle office of the organization has been located, exclusively for such purposed or to such organization of organizations as said court shall determine which are organized and operated exclusively for the above purpose. | 2019-04-25T20:34:20Z | https://equipmentmanagers.org/about/administration |
Хотите отдохнуть и ищете туры, Вьетнам – отличное место для отдыха. Посмотрите видео «CORAL SEA RESORT (старое название WIND FLOWER BEACH BOUTIQUE) 3* обзор» и поймите подходит ли Вам отель КОРАЛ СИ РЕЗОРТ (старое название ВИНД ФЛАУЭР БИЧ БУТИК) 3* Фантьет, который Вы можете забронировать по ссылке https://navytravel.ru/hotels/vietnam/fantet/coral_sea_resort_ex_wind_flower_beach_boutique/?utm_source=youtube.com&utm_content=23840. Так же отель CORAL SEA RESORT (старое название WIND FLOWER BEACH BOUTIQUE) 3* иногда называют гостиница CORAL SEA RESORT (старое название WIND FLOWER BEACH BOUTIQUE) 3* Вьетнам или гостиница КОРАЛ СИ РЕЗОРТ (старое название ВИНД ФЛАУЭР БИЧ БУТИК) 3* Фантьет. Из видео Вы узнаете какие развлечения, удобства и сервисы есть на территории отеля, какие есть варианты номеров и что в них находится (есть ли в номере кондиционер, телевизор, телефон, душ, сейф, дополнительная или детская кровать и пр.) Какие услуги в CORAL SEA RESORT (старое название WIND FLOWER BEACH BOUTIQUE) 3* Вьетнам Фантьет бесплатны, а за какие необходимо платить отдельно. Есть ли какие-то специальные места и удобства для детей. Имеется ли собственный пляж и/или бассейн, их характеристики, месторасположение, доступные услуги и удобства. В каком году был построен отель КОРАЛ СИ РЕЗОРТ (старое название ВИНД ФЛАУЭР БИЧ БУТИК) 3* Фантьет, производилась ли реконструкция или ремонт и в каком году. Так же из видео Вы можете узнать на сколько близко или далеко отель находится от аэропорта и какие координаты он имеет, если захотите добраться до него по навигатору. Смотрите видео, заходите на сайт, бронируйте отель и отдыхайте! Отель CORAL SEA RESORT (старое название WIND FLOWER BEACH BOUTIQUE) 3* Вьетнам Фантьет - https://navytravel.ru/hotels/vietnam/fantet/coral_sea_resort_ex_wind_flower_beach_boutique/?utm_source=youtube.com&utm_content=23840. Еще больше туров в такую страну как Вьетнам можно найти на странице - https://navytravel.ru/hotels/vietnam/?utm_source=youtube.com&utm_content=23840. Интересуетесь другими отелями в регионе Фантьет, тогда посетите https://navytravel.ru/hotels/vietnam/fantet/?utm_source=youtube.com&utm_content=23840. Чтобы выбрать отели в других странах и регионах зайдите на https://navytravel.ru/?utm_source=youtube.com&utm_content=23840.
For this episode, we traveled to Plant City, Florida to speak to our friends at ACI Aquaculture about one of the hottest animal of 2016 and 2017, rock anemones! Exploding in vibrant in colors and extremely easy to keep, these anemones have become must have animal for your aquarium. Check this video out and learn everything you can about this beautiful anemones!
Donate me: Buy T-shirt for Kids Here: Corals are marine species of the Anthozoa that exist in the form of tiny anemone-like polyps, often living in populations of many identical individuals. These individuals secrete calcium carbonate to form hard bones, building coral reefs in tropical waters. A coral "head" is actually made up of thousands of identical polyps, each with only a few millimeters. After thousands of generations, these polyps leave a skeletal structure that is characteristic of their species. Each coral head grows through the asexual reproduction of the polyps. Coral also reproduces sexually with gametes, which are liberated simultaneously for a period of one to several consecutive nights during the full moon. While corals may use poisonous nematocysts at the tentacles to capture the ephemera, the animal receives most of the nutrients from a single-celled algae called zooxanthella. ). Therefore, most corals depend on sunlight and grow in shallow and shallow waters, usually at a depth of less than 60 m (200 ft). Corals can contribute greatly to the physical structure of coral reefs that develop in tropical or subtropical waters, such as the Great Barrier Reef off Queensland. Other corals do not need algae and can live in deeper waters, such as those in cold-water Lophelia that live up to 3,000 meters in the Atlantic. Another example is the Darwin Mounds in southwestern Cape Wrath, Scotland. Corals are also found off the coast of Washington State and the Aleutian Islands in Alaska. Although a coral head looks like a living organism, it is actually the head of many genetically identical individuals, which are polyps. Polyps are multicellular organisms with food sources of many smaller organisms, from plankton to small fish. Polyps are usually a few millimeters in diameter, made up of an outer epithelium, and an inner layer of jelly-like tissue called a foreign substance. Polipes have a symmetrical axial shape with tentacles growing around a middle mouth - the only door to the taste chamber (or stomach), both food and residue go through this mouth. Dendrogyra cylindricus The long closed at the bottom of the polyps, where the epithelium forms an outer skeleton called a background disk. The skeleton is formed by an increasingly thickened calcium ring (see below). These structures grow vertically and form a tube from the bottom of the polyps, allowing it to bend into the outer skeleton when needed for shelter. Polyps grow by developing vertical cavities (calices), sometimes divided into partition walls to create a new higher floor plate. Over many generations, this type of development has created large coral reef structures containing calcium, and long lasting coral reefs. The formation of the outer skeleton contains calcium is the result of the polyp deposition of mineral aragonite from the calcium ions obtained from the sea water. Depending on species and environmental conditions, the deposition rate can reach 10 g / m² polyp per day (0.3 ounces per square yard / day). This depends on the level of light, night output is 90% lower than at noon. Nematocyst: A nematocyst that responds to a nearby prey that is touching prickly prickles, open flaps, and prisms injected with prey to paralyze prey, then the tentacles pull their prey into their mouths. The tentacles of polyps trap bait using the lymphoid cells called nematocysts. These are specialized cells that catch and paralyze prey animals such as plankton, when exposed, it reacts very quickly by injecting poison into the prey. These toxins are usually weak, but in fire corals, they are strong enough to damage humans. Jellyfish and sea anemone also have nematocysts. The toxin that the nematocyst injected into the prey will paralyze or kill the prey, then the tentacles pull their prey into the stomach of the polyps with a stretched epithelium called the pharynx. Close up of the Montastrea cavernosa polip. The tentacles can be seen clearly. The polyps are connected through a complex system of digestive channels that allow them to share significant nutrients and symbiotic organisms. For soft corals, these channels are about 50-500 μm in diameter and allow the transport of both metabolites and cellular components. In addition to using planktonic as food, many species of coral, as well as other Cnidaria groups, such as sea anemias (eg Aiptasia genus), form a symbiotic relationship with the single-celled algal group. chi Symbiodinium. Normally, a polyp will live the same algae. Through photosynthesis, algae provide energy to corals and help corals during calcification . The algae benefit from a safe environment, and use carbon dioxide and nitrogenous substances that the polyp is emitted.
My Goniopora that survived my big tank crash hasn’t been looking very good so In this video I’ll show you a method hat might help you with feeding your flowerpot coral that could possibly help with it bouncing back to good health.
Red Sea MAX NANO. Bacterial bloom fix and first coral.
This video is all about rock flower anemones. Unlike most anemones common in this hobby such as bubble tips, long tentacle anemones, or carpet anemones, rock flowers are found in the Caribbean. I'm getting more into these anemones and I am on the hunt for some of the more rare varieties that are out there. I've seen bright highlighter yellow specimens and vibrant hot pink ones. I don't see them often and when I do they are really expensive, but check our website occasionally and see how our collection grows. Check out http://www.tidalgardens.com for information or if you want to buy corals for your reef tank. Check out Tidal Garden's sister site Advanced Reef Aquarium reef-related goodies!: http://www.advancedreefaquarium.com Follow us on Facebook if you can't get enough reef-related shenanigans: http://www.facebook.com/tidalgardens Follow us on twitter (http://twitter.com/tidalgardens) @tidalgardens We tweet up-to-the-minute updates on new corals we upload to tidalgardens.com #TGlive Music: Tracks: "Dream Culture" Artist: Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) License Terms: Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/ http://incompetech.com/music/royalty-free/faq.html Video: Camera information: Footage was shot with a Canon 5D mk II. Canon EF 100mm f/2.8L IS macro Canon EF MP-E 65mm f/2.8 macro Canon EF 24-105mm f/4.0L IS Copyright Information: This video was shot and edited by Tidal Gardens. Tidal Gardens owns all intellectual property rights to this content. Editing Software License: Final Cut Pro License Agreement 1. C. - "Title and intellectual property rights in and to any content displayed by or accessed through the Apple Software belongs to the respective content owner." 2. B. -- "Sample Content. Title and intellectual property rights in and to any content displayed or accessed through the Apple Software belongs to the respective content owner...Except as otherwise provided, you may use the Apple and third party audio file content (including but not limited to, the built-in sound files, samples and impulse responses)(collectively the "Sample Content"), contained in or otherwise included with the Apple Software on a royalty-free basis, to create your own original soundtracks for your film, video, and audio projects.
This video is the third in a series of Under the Sea Party Decor. In this video, I show you how to make a DIY Pool Noodle Coral Reef. This was the first time I ever tried something like this and it was pretty easy to make. The majority of the items for this project was purchased from a dollar store. The wire was purchased from a hardware store. You can make this as big or as little as you want. You could even have multiple boxes. When covering the boxes you may need to use multiple layers of tissue paper to cover up any writing on the box. I liked the look of green but you could also try using a brown paper to make it look more like rocks and sand. When I picked out the pool noodles I got as many colors as I could find. With the green and red coral, make sure you space the tape out evenly. After you tape the whole noodle take a look to see if anything needs to be readjusted. Make sure to leave approximately a foot at the bottom of the noodle that is not cut. When I made this I left less than a foot uncut on the green coral. They ended up being really floppy and had to be taped up to the wall. I left more room on the red ones and they stand up on their own. For the straight blue coral and the orange coral, I took a long pool noodle and cut it into four different sizes first. The blue pool noodles came in a flower shape, so I just followed the pre-existing lines to cut the tabs. When cutting the orange coral be careful not to cut all the way through. You could try using scissors for this. For the blue branch coral, I found using a bread knife was a lot easier to cut all the pieces. When making the branches try making different lengths for each branch. Cut the wire on an angle to make a sharp point. This will make it easier to add pieces to the branches and a lot easier to puncture the box. Just be careful to not poke yourself. Always bend the end of the branch back into the pool noodle. Curious hands might end up cutting themselves if you don't. When assembling the reef you could also try gluing some pieces together instead of using a skewer to hold them together. The tissue poms come 2 in a package and you just need to fluff them out. The mesh tubing was actually in the Halloween section. I just took it out of the bag and attached it as is onto the box. You could also try adding some fish to the coral or some treasure. Check out my other video to see how I made the sea urchins: https://youtu.be/Y55qe7iTZno This project was fun and easy to make! I was super happy how it turned out and I got a ton of compliments on it! I hope you enjoyed this video!!! If you liked it please give it a Thumbs Up and Subscribe!!! Thanks for watching!!!
In this episode we continue working on the dock adding a coral and flower shop and soon to open kelp block shop. Sea grass has been grown in the river around the island and we also try and fix the villager farm with some TNT persuasion. Enjoy! ► Previous video: https://youtu.be/YLC2EtbmwW8 ► Next video: https://youtu.be/Ak65LLDPaJc ► Full playlist: https://stormfrenzy.page.link/bCK1 Enjoying the series? Leave a like! Have a suggestion? Post a comment! World download (episode 100): http://tiny.cc/tiveden_e100 Tiveden is my Minecraft single player survival world. At the time of recording I was using Minecraft Java 1.13.2. My links: ● Donate (it helps!): https://www.paypal.me/stormfrenzy/10 ● Subscribe: https://www.youtube.com/user/stormfrenzy?sub_confirmation=1 ● Twitter: https://twitter.com/stormfrenzy ● Website: http://stormfrenzy.com Music: Reuben's Train by Nat Keefe with The Bow Ties Game Plan by Bad Snacks Thanks for watching! Stay awesome :).
Taking a look at one of the more challenging corals out there. Goniopora Flowerpot Corals have a long storied history of premature death in this hobby and it wasn't until recently that people have been having any type of success. If you have had success with this "impossible" coral, what do you think are the keys to success? Check out http://www.tidalgardens.com for information or if you want to buy corals. Follow us on Facebook if you can't get enough reef-related shenanigans: http://www.facebook.com/tidalgardens Follow us on twitter (http://twitter.com/tidalgardens) @tidalgardens We tweet up-to-the-minute updates on new corals we upload to tidalgardens.com #TGlive Copyright Information: This video was shot and edited by Tidal Gardens. Tidal Gardens owns all copyrights to this content.
Learn how to paint a simple underwater OCEAN scene with a colorful Coral Reef, Tropical Fish & Sea Life. Easy acrylic painting lesson by Angela Anderson. Full length tutorial with step by step easy to follow instructions. This is part one of a 2 part series, we will add a MERMAID in Part 2: https://youtu.be/7LgzMs08jLA Materials Used: 12" x 16" Canvas Panel: http://amzn.to/2cOn8QT Heavy Body Acrylic Paints: http://goo.gl/r9mZPZ Titanium White Carbon Black Ultramarine Blue Phthalo Blue Teal Phthalo Green Cadmium Yellow Medium Cadmium Yellow Light Cadmium Red Medium Cadmium Orange Dioxazine Purple Quinacridone Magenta Burnt Sienna Unbleached Titanium Acrylic Brushes: Large 1" Flat Brush (for background) http://amzn.to/2c1K675 1/2" Flat 1/4" Flat 3/8" Angle http://amzn.to/2cm01Mu #4 Round http://amzn.to/2c64Zwr #2 Round http://amzn.to/2gZ9PvE Glazing Medium: http://amzn.to/2eNEzz1 Sea Sponge http://amzn.to/2iJtn7G Please subscribe https://www.youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=angelafineart and give a thumbs up if you enjoyed this video. Thank you for watching! Traceables: http://bit.ly/traceables Original Image: http://bit.ly/2ejZlWa Please join my Thankful Art group on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1524915504497265/ Social Media Contacts: Email: [email protected] (send photos here or facebook) My Website: http://www.angelaandersonfineart.com/ Google +: https://plus.google.com/+angelafineart Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/angelaandersonfineart My Blog: http://angelaandersonart.blogspot.com/ Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/angelafineart/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/angelafineart Instagram: https://instagram.com/thankfulart Snail Mail: P.O. Box 12171, Russellville, AR 72812 (I'd love to hear from you!) Copyright info: Videos produced by Angela Anderson (angelafineart) are intended for private use only by non-profit community, home and school groups. Please contact me for commercial/retail use licensing information. Feel free to embed the videos as is, but please do not alter, remove watermarks, re-upload or otherwise change the original video. Thank you.
*****51 CORAL SEA WATERWORLD VIDEOS ON THIS WEBSITE**** http://www.coralseawaterworld.com/ GOING FROM THE DELUXE DOUBLE ROOM AND WALKING DOWN TO THE POOL TO PUT THE TOWLES OUT - THIS VIDEO IS TO SHOW YOU HOW CLOSE THE POOL AND BEACH IS TO THE ROOMS.
Tunicates or Sea Squirts are some of the most interesting organisms I’ve come across in the reef aquarium hobby. They come in an incredibly wide range of colors and shapes. The downside to keeping tunicates is often times they have very specific nutritional requirements that are not well documented. Heck, many of these tunicates are misidentified as sponges, that’s a bad start to understanding their nature. We’ve decided to feed them a combination of different foods and so far, it is working out. I hope these continue to do well in our system because these tunicates look amazing. Music: Tracks: “Night Cave” Artist: Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) License Terms: Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/ http://incompetech.com/music/royalty-free/faq.html Video: Camera information: Canon C100 Canon EF 100mm f/2.8L IS macro Canon EF MP-E 65mm f/2.8 macro Sigma Art 18-35mm f/1.8 Free Fly Movi Pro Stabilizer Copyright Information: This video was shot and edited by Tidal Gardens. Tidal Gardens owns all intellectual property rights to this content.
Scuba Diving in Sharm El Sheikh - Red Sea, Egypt.
Marine biologist Nancy Knowlton demonstrates the Hyperbolic Crochet Coral Reef, on exhibit at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History, in Washington, D.C. Learn more about this work of art and education produced by hundreds of crocheters of all ages, from 3 to 101, and what it teaches us about the real-life world of the coral reef.
Learn how to paint a beautiful MERMAID in an underwater coral reef with Tropical Fish & Sea Life. Easy acrylic painting lesson by Angela Anderson. Full length tutorial with step by step easy to follow instructions. This is part two of a 2 part series, I show how to paint the Coral Reef in Part 1: https://youtu.be/zBHTOSzdoI4 This is a collaboration project with Cinnamon Cooney (the Art Sherpa). Be sure to check out her Mermaid here: https://youtu.be/kIOExYf4uVg Materials Used: 12" x 16" Canvas Panel: http://amzn.to/2cOn8QT Heavy Body Acrylic Paints: http://goo.gl/r9mZPZ Titanium White Zinc (Mixing) White Carbon Black Ultramarine Blue Phthalo Blue Teal Phthalo Green Cadmium Yellow Medium Cadmium Yellow Light Cadmium Red Medium Cadmium Orange Dioxazine Purple Quinacridone Magenta Burnt Sienna Unbleached Titanium Acrylic Brushes: Large 1" Flat Brush (for background) http://amzn.to/2c1K675 3/8" Angle http://amzn.to/2cm01Mu #4 Round http://amzn.to/2c64Zwr #2 Round http://amzn.to/2gZ9PvE Glazing Medium: http://amzn.to/2eNEzz1 Sea Sponge http://amzn.to/2iJtn7G Please subscribe https://www.youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=angelafineart and give a thumbs up if you enjoyed this video. Thank you for watching! Traceables: http://bit.ly/traceables Original Image: http://bit.ly/2ejZlWa Please join my Thankful Art group on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1524915504497265/ Social Media Contacts: Email: [email protected] (send photos here or facebook) My Website: http://www.angelaandersonfineart.com/ Google +: https://plus.google.com/+angelafineart Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/angelaandersonfineart My Blog: http://angelaandersonart.blogspot.com/ Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/angelafineart/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/angelafineart Instagram: https://instagram.com/thankfulart Snail Mail: P.O. Box 12171, Russellville, AR 72812 (I'd love to hear from you!) Copyright info: Videos produced by Angela Anderson (angelafineart) are intended for private use only by non-profit community, home and school groups. Please contact me for commercial/retail use licensing information. Feel free to embed the videos as is, but please do not alter, remove watermarks, re-upload or otherwise change the original video. Thank you.
Paper mache is one of the most versatile and budget friendly medium to create anything you can imagine. This is a time lapse video on how I created this coral reef display piece out of paper mache. This display piece will make a great decorating piece in at events and parties.
Whats Sup My Fellow Reefers! Im Happy to Don This Video for all you Guys! Why Because I get to hang out with you guys! We get together and talk every single week. But today Im giving back to you guy! $50 out of my own Pocket. Thats Right. MY OWN POCKET towards something you want on MarineDepot. 1. Watch the ENTIRE video follow the rules. 2. Do not comment the Pass Phrase or it will be Deleted 3. You Must be Subscribed and You must still comment 4. You must also do a comment below about something in the video 5. Pass Phrase will be verified via email [email protected] UPDATE OF THE 150G/20G ALL IN ONE NANO REEF TANK SC AQUARIUM ALL IN ONE CORAL REEF TANKS! Thanks for watching Make Sure to LIKE/SUBSCRIBE! My Lights : https://www.reefbreeders.com/ref/4/ www.instagram.com/915mang MARINEDEPOT DISCOUNT : "915MANG" 10% off their 1st order (some exclusions apply). Excludes items that are out of stock, drop shipped or already on sale. MAP brands are also ineligible for discount.
Let us take you into our shipping dept. as we survey wagon loads of beautiful plants waiting to go to leading garden centers across the region. Join us as we stop to admire Heuchera ‘Flores Sea’. Find out how this outstanding French variety combines a skirt of striking, silvery leaves with masses of pretty pink flowers to provide very attractive and long lasting color in beds and borders, raised beds and patio pots and containers. | 2019-04-23T12:39:45Z | http://markmueller.info/search?q=Coral%20sea%20flower |
Game of Thrones has become a pop culture powerhouse with many iconic characters, though arguably none are as iconic as Daenerys Targaryen and Jon Snow.
In a blood battle for power, Jon and Dany care the most for the well-being of their people. Though Dany is arguably more violent in her methods, they do have similar goals: create a better world for their people.
Jon does this by focusing on their best interests, while Dany goes about doing this by breaking the cyclical wheel of houses trading power over and over so that civilians can stop paying for their house's wars.
In the past season of Game of Thrones, the two fan-favorites finally met in the Targaryen castle: Dragonstone. Jon came seeking help against the White Walkers, while Dany accepted him in while seeking more allies in Westeros.
Initially, the two butted heads. However, by the end of season seven, the two had fallen in love. Fans had been interested in the pairing for a long time, but now they finally came together.
This doesn't mean that the two don't have a lot of complications, though.
Dany and Jon have a lot of confusing, nonsensical aspects of their speedy romance. The Mother of Dragons and the King in the North may finally be together, but it hardly means that everything's perfect.
With that said, here are the 25 Things That Make No Sense About Jon Snow And Daenerys' Relationship.
In a world of complex drama, political subterfuge, and conversational etiquette, Daenarys and Jon's first interactions are oddly rom-com-esque.
Though the directors and actors worked to show the chemistry between them from first glance, they also started their relationship off with icy distrust and forceful demands.
This is despite the fact that both parties greatly benefit from an alliance and they both know that.
More logically, they would have made an alliance, but stayed distant from one another.
However, events and time might have brought them closer and eventually to love. It simply doesn't make sense for the two respectable royals to act out a "hate turns into love" rom-com plot thread.
Though fans have been imagining a Dany/Jon pairing for years, the timing for their romance couldn't possibly be worse. Just as the most terrible adversaries threaten Westeros, they are giving each other long looks and taking reckless risks for love.
Moreover, it's poorly timed because many fans theories were naming Jon is the "Prince That Was Promised." He will stop the White Walker invasion.
Also, fans theorize that Jon will have to stop the invasion by repeating history: stabbing his wife and turning her into a Walker.
This would mean beloved Dany might become a White Walker, a terrible fate for any character.
Their romance's timing makes no sense, or it makes the worst kind of sense.
23 Jon Calling Her "Dany"
Fans may call Daenerys "Dany" as an easy nickname, but in-story, the name holds little affection.
The only person who called the powerful woman this name was her brother, Viserys. Their relationship was poor, to say the least.
He sold her to the Dothraki for an alliance and he emotionally abused her. Viserys only saw her as a pawn in his bid for the throne.
Fed up with his cruelty, Dany had him executed.
In season seven, as Dany and Jon's relationship blossoms, he calls her Dany. Though well-meant, it doesn't make any sense for her to find this endearing.
It was the pet name her abuser gave her.
Jon and Dany are hardly new to the game of love. Both have been in love at least one time before. Oddly enough, though, they are hardly each other's type.
While Jon does love strong women, he seemed to prefer non-royals.
Ygritte was fearless and outspoken, but she also wanted to be free of the political complexities of Westeros.
This is the opposite of Dany, who wants to lead the kind of world Ygritte despised.
Dany, on the other hand, seems to have a bias towards rugged, ruthless men. Both of her lovers were a fierce king and a dangerous assassin.
Meanwhile, Jon may be a good warrior, but he's hardly fierce or ruthless.
This Game of Thrones season saw a back and forth debate on the existence of White Walkers.
While it was understandable that Dany didn't know they existed, she also has dragons, so it would be very easy for them to quickly travel to the North, show her the danger, and hop back to Dragonstone shortly.
The debate allowed for Dany and Jon to be forced into close quarters, to have lots of discussions, and interact.
However, it was a fairly easy thing to prove with a small field trip. With how quickly Dany goes from Dragonstone to King's Landing, this controversy could have been solved in an episode or two.
Jon Snow of the North and Daenerys Targaryen understandably have fairly different opinions on royalty. While both parties support the health and goodwill of their people, this isn't all that makes a royal.
Dany, as a leader, takes great pride in being a queen. The Mother of Dragons feels that she deserves to be in power and, though well-meaning, will take that power by whatever means necessary.
She came to Westeros with an army, after all.
Jon, on the other hand, is a reluctant king. Unlike Dany, he is an every-man. Though he is king, he doesn't believe he deserves his title, he only wants to do his best by his people.
Since Khal Drogo's sudden, unfortunate passing, Dany swore off romance and love. She kept all relationships casual or kept her focus on her goals.
Furthermore, she broke up with her lover, Daario, to keep herself available for any political marriages that could be useful.
After years of rebuffing other advances, keeping other hearts at bay, and focusing only on being queen, it feels very sudden for her to change her mind because of Jon Snow.
He's done nothing that her other lovers or admirers haven't done. However, prolonged exposure to his northern charm has collapsed her iron resolve.
It's a nonsensical, sudden change. A political marriage turned romantic would have made more sense.
Jon Snow and Dany, despite all they've been through and their appearances, are both only 22 years old. Yet these two young people are leading nations.
Their ages are even wilder in the books, where Dany and Jon are 18 and 19, respectively.
While it's hardly insane for them to be together, it is insane that they had any chance to meet and are this successful as leaders.
In history, when people this young are appointed by blood, they have heavy-handed advisers guiding them. Dany and Jon both have advisors, but they are not heavy-handed.
Both leaders make many decisions on their own, which is m ind-boggling.
Early on in Game of Thrones' season seven, Tyrion had a strong hand in telling Dany and Jon good things about one another.
Tyrion soothes Dany by describing Jon's honor and heritage. He also soothes Jon by recounting how Dany cares for her people.
Moreover, he even talks about how they look at one another, as if he's invested in the romantic path that the two have taken.
However, at the end of the season, Dany and Jon sleep together. Post-scene, Tyrion looks very upset about it. The character's actor, Peter Dinklage, said it was out of jealousy: the third Lannister sibling fell for Dany and is now distraught.
However, why did he encourage them, then?
As her adviser, Tyrion and Dany speak often. In one of their chats, Dany described stupid things that heroes do, citing all past admirers, lovers, and Jon Snow.
Tyrion calls her out on this and the queen rebuffs that Jon is "too little for her."
Indeed, her previous lovers were quite tall. Drogo stood at 6'4'', Daario at 6'1'', and even Jorah was 6'0''. Jon Snow, comparatively, is 5'8''. However, Daenerys Stormborn herself is only 5'2''.
While Jon does not tower over her, he is still half a foot taller than her.
Dany was just using a deflection tactic, but it still doesn't quick make sense when she's still so much smaller than Jon.
At their core, Jon Snow and Daenerys Targaryen both want to make a better world for their people. However, past that, they are very different.
Jon is a willing leader, but he's also reluctant. He's family-focused, down to earth, and humble. Though a king now, he still tries to do the right thing, as he's always done.
Dany has become fierce in her pursuit for the throne. She has burned away her past, including her only living brother. Her loyalties lie with her people and her dragons.
She is a dragon mother and a queen before anything else.
His good guy approach and her ruthlessness are bound to contradict eventually.
A lot of Jon Snow and Daenerys' discussions and decisions seem fairly plot-based for the entirety of season seven. This leads to a few bizarre topics of conversation that initially would be unexpected.
One of the strongest examples of this is their talk about Dany's infertility.
While at the dragon Pit parley, somehow Jon and Dany get to talking about bloodlines and, subsequently, her infertility. He notes that the person who told her she was infertile was unreliable.
However, Jon deliberately talking to her about this is odd and out of place.
If it was done deliberately so that writers could give them a child, this only makes things a little more complicated in Westeros.
In efforts to fight the White Walkers, Dany and Jon hope to enlist Cersei Lannister herself. However, Jon wants to get proof, a wight from The Wall, to ensure that Cersei understands the danger and won't turn on them.
As the wights have converged into an army, though, this is a difficult task.
As feared, the raid goes terribly. They capture a wight, but the army finds them and they lose several men trying to escape.
The plan, though well-meaning, always was dumb.
The White Walker army is too organized for a small party to stand any chance. Also, worse, they lost a dragon to them.
Allying with Cersei is less risky than this.
Jorah Mormont has been in love with Daenerys since he met her. Though she values his friendship and sees him as one of her most trusted companions, she never returns these feelings.
However, Dany complicates this situation by ditching this trusted friend for her new flame, Jon Snow.
However, she doesn't just ditch Jorah by ignoring him - she chooses not to acknowledging him in her rescue attempt in the North, instead solely focusing on Jon.
It's only because of Jon's protective nature that he is the one who gets left behind.
Love is understandably powerful, but it's heartbreaking to see her disregard her loyal adviser for a man she has only known for a short while.
Dany's entire reasoning for leaving Daario behind and remaining single was to be open for political marriage.
She needs the support of the beloved King of the North, while he needs the dragonglass in her caverns and the support of her armies for the impending wight war.
To solidify this union, it would be logical for them to arrange a political marriage. However, Dany and Jon never mention it.
Not only would it make a strong bond between their peoples, but it would also have been an easy device to bring the two characters closer together.
Also, with all of Dany's talk of political marriage, it's illogical for her to miss an opportunity like this.
After Drogo lost his life, Dany's singular goal was to reclaim her place the iron throne.
She decided that she was going to become the queen she was destined to be: Daenerys Stormborn of the House Targaryen, First of Her Name, The Unburnt, Queen of the Andals and the First Men, Khaleesi of the Great Grass Sea, Breaker of Chains, and Mother of Dragons.
Never again would anyone look down on her.
Despite all of this, she falls in love with a king: Jon Snow, which hardly makes any sense.
Dany wants to be the leader and re-mold Westeros in her own vision.
Having a king could hinder this, and at best he'd be her equal, not her subject.
Jon Snow made it very clear throughout season seven how dire the situation was in the North. The wights were quickly encroaching and war was upon them.
However, despite this impending doom, Jon refuses to do the one thing that will get Daenerys' dragons and armies on his side: bend the knee.
He's initially uncertain about her abilities as a leader. Later, he cites the fact the North won't accept her as queen. Jon is so adamant that it's ludicrous.
He talks to her about how dire the situation is, yet he himself is hindering progress to help save the world.
Jon, too, will have a graveyard to rule if the North is decimated.
Daenerys, from the moment she meets Jon Snow, is obsessed with getting the King of the North to bend the knee.
While her desire to accumulate more allies is reasonable, her belligerence is counterproductive. It doesn't encourage Jon to want to ally with her to keep him a near-prisoner at her castle.
Though she wants to rule the iron throne, at this point, it might be worthwhile for her to settle for allying with Jon Snow - especially when she has her concerns about Cersei's looming forces.
Instead, though, she plays it stubborn for plot convenience and is just lucky that he fell in love with her.
While at Dragonstone, Jon and Dany are forced to discuss and try to find a way to cooperate. With them in these political struggles are their advisers, Davos and Tyrion.
Both men are intelligent, strong-willed characters.
Yet, somehow, watching Jon and Dany banter has turned them into romantic gossips.
Both Tyrion and Davos comment on how the two look at one another. Tyrion teases Dany about her possible interest in Jon. Davos does the same, particularly telling Jon he's attracted to her.
The show tries very hard to tell the viewer that the two are falling in love, even when it doesn't make much sense.
One of the most alarming and odd character betrayals in season seven happens to Dany. As the devoted mother of dragons, she cares about her scaly children more than anything else.
When Viserion falls because of Jon's questionable wight plan, since Cersei plans to betray them regardless of the danger, Dany should have been furious.
His idea and having to save him and the party directly led to losing her dragon.
Regardless of the fact that Viserion will make the White Walkers harder to fight, it's uncharacteristic for her not to fiercely love and defend her dragons more than anything else.
Jon's hand in her child's passing should have caused a great rift between them, but instead it somehow brought them closer.
The greatest romances in Game of Thrones have been built up through seasons, or through episodes that the romance dominated, or through isolated time together.
Dany and Jon, however, butted heads for a few episodes, then grew warmer towards one another, then fell in love, all while political treatises, wars, and bloodshed were raging around them.
They had little time onscreen to grow close, foster feelings, and become lovers.
Though it's likely the fault of rushing towards the end, the pair didn't have enough time to connect, at least as far as the viewer's concerned.
By the end of season seven, it can make sense for them to have feelings, but not to be full-blown in love.
When everything is settled and all armies are banded together to go fight the White Walkers, they set sail. Jon suggests that Dany sail with him so that the northerners can, in-person, see them as allies.
Jorah argues against it, but Dany readily agrees.
Though Jon's intentions are good, this plan is obscenely risky.
With uncertainty about Cersei and the dangers of the incoming wights, two leaders on one ship is foolhardy.
After all, if Cersei can successfully destroy Jon's ship, she is now the only great leader left.
Now the armies are disorganized, they may start infighting, and Westeros could be lost to the wights.
Slowly over season seven, Jon Snow and Daenerys create a rapport that has affectionate, even romantic, undertones. However, that relationship quickly jumps deep into the romance by superseding any acknowledgements, kisses, or the like.
While sailing to White Harbor, Jon and Dany sleep together.
Though fans were hardly surprised about their relationship turning romantic, it was very abrupt.
Before their bedroom scene, the two didn't have a single purely romantic scene. All others had romantic elements, but were overall more scenes of two people getting to know and understand one another.
Very easily, they could have been platonic. It makes little sense to have no romantic amping up before the two went to bed.
Throughout Game of Thrones, there has been an overarching prophecy about the Prince That Was Promised.
This person is not only the savior of Westeros, but the savior of the Lord of Light.
Both Daenerys Targaryen and Jon Snow have been pointed at as possible candidates for the prophecy, though it still remains a mystery to who really is the chosen one.
It's very likely that, regardless of who it is, their destinies are intertwined.
However, it is confusing that both characters have different people pointing to them as the savior just as they get together on screen.
Some say their child may be the actual prince, but only time will tell.
Unfortunately for Jon and Dany, this murky part of relationship is not their fault. Her older brother, Rhaegar Targaryen, caused all this trouble when he decided to leave his wife to marry Lyanna Stark.
However, Ned Stark assisted in keeping this relationship a secret by naming Jon as his illegitimate son. This led to Jon's cluelessness about his Targaryen heritage and his true birthrights to power.
For his relationship with Dany, though, it means that his new lover is his aunt.
In a book rife with troublingly close family relationships and taboos, it's still crazy that this pairing has that, too, even though it's not their fault.
Do you think we missed any other things wrong with Daenarys and Jon's relationship in Game of Thrones? Let us know in the comments! | 2019-04-24T16:38:24Z | https://screenrant.com/game-of-thrones-jon-snow-daenerys-relationship-makes-no-sense-plot-holes/ |
This article is about the Mars probe from India. For other Mars orbiters, see List of Mars orbiters and List of missions to Mars.
The Mars Orbiter Mission probe lifted-off from the First Launch Pad at Satish Dhawan Space Centre (Sriharikota Range SHAR), Andhra Pradesh, using a Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) rocket C25 at 09:08 UTC on 5 November 2013. The launch window was approximately 20 days long and started on 28 October 2013. The MOM probe spent about a month in Earth orbit, where it made a series of seven apogee-raising orbital manoeuvres before trans-Mars injection on 30 November 2013 (UTC). After a 298-day transit to Mars, it was inserted into Mars orbit on 24 September 2014.
The mission is a "technology demonstrator" project to develop the technologies for designing, planning, management, and operations of an interplanetary mission. It carries five instruments that will help advance knowledge about Mars to achieve its secondary, scientific objective. The spacecraft is currently being monitored from the Spacecraft Control Centre at ISRO Telemetry, Tracking and Command Network (ISTRAC) in Bengaluru with support from the Indian Deep Space Network (IDSN) antennae at Byalalu, Karnataka.
On 23 November 2008, the first public acknowledgement of an unmanned mission to Mars was announced by then-ISRO chairman G. Madhavan Nair. The MOM mission concept began with a feasibility study in 2010 by the Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology after the launch of lunar satellite Chandrayaan-1 in 2008. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh approved the project on 3 August 2012, after the Indian Space Research Organisation completed ₹125 crore (US$17 million) of required studies for the orbiter. The total project cost may be up to ₹454 crore (US$63 million). The satellite costs ₹153 crore (US$21 million) and the rest of the budget has been attributed to ground stations and relay upgrades that will be used for other ISRO projects.
The space agency had planned the launch on 28 October 2013 but was postponed to 5 November following the delay in ISRO's spacecraft tracking ships to take up pre-determined positions due to poor weather in the Pacific Ocean. Launch opportunities for a fuel-saving Hohmann transfer orbit occur every 26 months, in this case the next two would be in 2016 and 2018.
Assembly of the PSLV-XL launch vehicle, designated C25, started on 5 August 2013. The mounting of the five scientific instruments was completed at Indian Space Research Organisation Satellite Centre, Bengaluru, and the finished spacecraft was shipped to Sriharikota on 2 October 2013 for integration to the PSLV-XL launch vehicle. The satellite's development was fast-tracked and completed in a record 15 months. Despite the US federal government shutdown, NASA reaffirmed on 5 October 2013 it would provide communications and navigation support to the mission. During a meeting on 30 September 2014, NASA and ISRO officials signed an agreement to establish a pathway for future joint missions to explore Mars. One of the working group's objectives will be to explore potential coordinated observations and science analysis between the MAVEN orbiter and MOM, as well as other current and future Mars missions.
The total cost of the mission was approximately ₹450 Crore (US$73 million), making it the least-expensive Mars mission to date. The low cost of the mission was ascribed by K. Radhakrishnan, the chairman of ISRO, to various factors, including a "modular approach", few ground tests and long (18–20 hour) working days for scientists. BBC's Jonathan Amos mentioned lower worker costs, home-grown technologies, simpler design, and a significantly less complicated payload than NASA's MAVEN.
Artist's rendering of the Mars Orbiter Mission spacecraft, with Mars in the background.
The primary objective of the mission is to develop the technologies required for designing, planning, management and operations of an interplanetary mission. The secondary objective is to explore Mars' surface features, morphology, mineralogy and Martian atmosphere using indigenous scientific instruments.
Mass: The lift-off mass was 1,337.2 kg (2,948 lb), including 852 kg (1,878 lb) of propellant.
Bus: The spacecraft's bus is a modified I-1 K structure and propulsion hardware configuration, similar to Chandrayaan-1, India's lunar orbiter that operated from 2008 to 2009, with specific improvements and upgrades needed for a Mars mission. The satellite structure is constructed of an aluminium and composite fibre reinforced plastic (CFRP) sandwich construction.
Power: Electric power is generated by three solar array panels of 1.8 m × 1.4 m (5 ft 11 in × 4 ft 7 in) each (7.56 m2 (81.4 sq ft) total), for a maximum of 840 watts of power generation in Mars orbit. Electricity is stored in a 36 Ah Lithium-ion battery.
Propulsion: A liquid fuel engine with a thrust of 440 newtons (99 lbf) is used for orbit raising and insertion into Mars orbit. The orbiter also has eight 22-newton (4.9 lbf) thrusters for attitude control. Its propellant mass at launch was 852 kg (1,878 lb).
Attitude and Orbit Control System: Maneuvering system that includes electronics with a MAR31750 processor, two star sensors, a solar panel Sun sensor, a coarse analog Sun sensor, four reaction wheels, and the primary propulsion system.
Generation of hydrogen and deuterium coronal profiles.
Methane Sensor for Mars (MSM) – was meant to measure methane in the atmosphere of Mars, if any, and map its sources with an accuracy of parts-per-billion (ppb). After entering Mars orbit it was determined that the instrument, although in good working condition, had a design flaw and it was not capable of detecting methane.:57 The instrument was repurposed as an albedo mapper.
The ISRO Telemetry, Tracking and Command Network performed navigation and tracking operations for the launch with ground stations at Sriharikota, Port Blair, Brunei and Biak in Indonesia, and after the spacecraft's apogee became more than 100,000 km, an 18 m (59 ft) and a 32 m (105 ft) diameter antenna of the Indian Deep Space Network were utilised. The 18 m (59 ft) dish antenna was used for communication with the craft until April 2014, after which the larger 32 m (105 ft) antenna was used. NASA's Deep Space Network is providing position data through its three stations located in Canberra, Madrid and Goldstone on the US West Coast during the non-visible period of ISRO's network. The South African National Space Agency's (SANSA) Hartebeesthoek (HBK) ground station is also providing satellite tracking, telemetry and command services.
Communications are handled by two 230-watt TWTAs and two coherent transponders. The antenna array consists of a low-gain antenna, a medium-gain antenna and a high-gain antenna. The high-gain antenna system is based on a single 2.2-metre (7 ft 3 in) reflector illuminated by a feed at S-band. It is used to transmit and receive the telemetry, tracking, commanding and data to and from the Indian Deep Space Network.
As originally conceived, ISRO was to launch MOM on its Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV), but as the GSLV failed twice in 2010 and ISRO was continuing to sort out issues with its cryogenic engine, it was not advisable to wait for the new batch of rockets as that would have delayed the MOM project for at least three years. ISRO opted to switch to the less-powerful Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV). Since the PSLV was not powerful enough to place MOM on a direct-to-Mars trajectory, the spacecraft was launched into a highly elliptical Earth orbit and used its own thrusters over multiple perigee burns (to take advantage of the Oberth effect) to place itself on a trans-Mars trajectory.
On 19 October 2013, ISRO chairman K. Radhakrishnan announced that the launch had to be postponed by a week as a result of a delay of a crucial telemetry ship reaching Fiji. The launch was rescheduled for 5 November 2013. ISRO's PSLV-XL placed the satellite into Earth orbit at 09:50 UTC on 5 November 2013, with a perigee of 264.1 km (164.1 mi), an apogee of 23,903.6 km (14,853.0 mi), and inclination of 19.20 degrees, with both the antenna and all three sections of the solar panel arrays deployed. During the first three orbit raising operations, ISRO progressively tested the spacecraft systems.
The orbiter's dry mass is 500 kg (1,100 lb), and it carried 852 kg (1,878 lb) of fuel and oxidiser at launch. Its main engine, which is a derivative of the system used on India's communications satellites, uses the bipropellant combination monomethylhydrazine and dinitrogen tetroxide to achieve the thrust necessary for escape velocity from Earth. It was also used to slow down the probe for Mars orbit insertion and, subsequently, for orbit corrections.
Several orbit raising operations were conducted from the Spacecraft Control Centre (SCC) at the ISRO Telemetry, Tracking and Command Network (ISTRAC) at Peenya, Bengaluru on 6, 7, 8, 10, 12 and 16 November by using the spacecraft's on-board propulsion system and a series of perigee burns. The first three of the five planned orbit raising manoeuvres were completed with nominal results, while the fourth was only partially successful. However, a subsequent supplementary manoeuvre raised the orbit to the intended altitude aimed for in the original fourth manoeuvre. A total of six burns were completed while the spacecraft remained in Earth orbit, with a seventh burn conducted on 30 November to insert MOM into a heliocentric orbit for its transit to Mars.
The first orbit-raising manoeuvre was performed on 6 November 2013 at 19:47 UTC when the spacecraft's 440-newton (99 lbf) liquid engine was fired for 416 seconds. With this engine firing, the spacecraft's apogee was raised to 28,825 km (17,911 mi), with a perigee of 252 km (157 mi).
The second orbit raising manoeuvre was performed on 7 November 2013 at 20:48 UTC, with a burn time of 570.6 seconds resulting in an apogee of 40,186 km (24,970 mi).
The third orbit raising manoeuvre was performed on 8 November 2013 at 20:40 UTC, with a burn time of 707 seconds, resulting in an apogee of 71,636 km (44,513 mi).
The fourth orbit raising manoeuvre, starting at 20:36 UTC on 10 November 2013, imparted an incremental velocity of 35 m/s (110 ft/s) to the spacecraft instead of the planned 135 m/s (440 ft/s) as a result of underburn by the motor. Because of this, the apogee was boosted to 78,276 km (48,638 mi) instead of the planned 100,000 km (62,000 mi). When testing the redundancies built-in for the propulsion system, the flow to the liquid engine stopped, with consequent reduction in incremental velocity. During the fourth orbit burn, the primary and redundant coils of the solenoid flow control valve of 440 newton liquid engine and logic for thrust augmentation by the attitude control thrusters were being tested. When both primary and redundant coils were energised together during the planned modes, the flow to the liquid engine stopped. Operating both the coils simultaneously is not possible for future operations, however they could be operated independently of each other, in sequence.
As a result of the fourth planned burn coming up short, an additional unscheduled burn was performed on 12 November 2013 that increased the apogee to 118,642 km (73,721 mi), a slightly higher altitude than originally intended in the fourth manoeuvre. The apogee was raised to 192,874 km (119,846 mi) on 15 November 2013, 19:57 UTC in the final orbit raising manoeuvre.
On 30 November 2013 at 19:19 UTC, a 23-minute engine firing initiated the transfer of MOM away from Earth orbit and on heliocentric trajectory toward Mars. The probe travelled a distance of 780,000,000 kilometres (480,000,000 mi) to reach Mars.
Four trajectory corrections were originally planned, but only three were carried out. The first trajectory correction manoeuvre (TCM) was carried out on 11 December 2013 at 01:00 UTC by firing the 22-newton (4.9 lbf) thrusters for a duration of 40.5 seconds. After this event, MOM was following the designed trajectory so closely that the trajectory correction manoeuvre planned in April 2014 was not required. The second trajectory correction manoeuvre was performed on 11 June 2014 at 11:00 UTC by firing the spacecraft's 22 newton thrusters for a duration of 16 seconds. The third planned trajectory correction manoeuvre was postponed, due to the orbiter's trajectory closely matching the planned trajectory. The third trajectory correction was also a deceleration test 3.9 seconds long on 22 September 2014.
The plan was for an insertion into Mars orbit on 24 September 2014, approximately 2 days after the arrival of NASA's MAVEN orbiter. The 440-newton liquid apogee motor was test fired on 22 September at 09:00 UTC for 3.968 seconds, about 41 hours before actual orbit insertion.
After these events, the spacecraft performed a reverse manoeuvre to reorient from its deceleration burn and entered Martian orbit.
Three frame Mars Orbiter Mission Mars Color Camera mosaic of the Syrtis Major region on September 24, 2015.
The orbit insertion put MOM in a highly elliptical orbit around Mars, as planned, with a period of 72 hours 51 minutes 51 seconds, a periapsis of 421.7 km (262.0 mi) and apoapsis of 76,993.6 km (47,841.6 mi). At the end of the orbit insertion, MOM was left with 40 kg (88 lb) of fuel on board, more than the 20 kg (44 lb) necessary for a six-month mission.
On 28 September 2014, MOM controllers published the spacecraft's first global view of Mars. The image was captured by the Mars Colour Camera (MCC).
On 7 October 2014, the ISRO altered MOM's orbit so as to move it behind Mars for Comet Siding Spring's flyby of the planet on 19 October 2014. The spacecraft consumed 1.9 kg (4 lb) of fuel for the manoeuvre. As a result, MOM's apoapsis was reduced to 72,000 km (45,000 mi). After the comet passed by Mars, ISRO reported that MOM remained healthy.
On 4 March 2015, the ISRO reported that the MSM instrument was functioning normally and are studying Mars' albedo, the reflectivity of the planet's surface. The Mars Colour Camera was also returning new images of the Martian surface.
On 24 March 2015, MOM completed its initial six-month mission in orbit around Mars. ISRO extended the mission by an additional six months; the spacecraft has 37 kg (82 lb) of propellant remaining and all five of its scientific instruments are working properly. The orbiter can reportedly continue orbiting Mars for several years with its remaining propellant.
On 24 September 2015, ISRO released its "Mars Atlas", a 120-page scientific atlas containing images and data from the Mars Orbiter Mission's first year in orbit.
In March 2016, the first science results of the mission were published in Geophysical Research Letters, presenting measurements obtained by the spacecraft's MENCA instrument of the Martian exosphere.
On 17 January 2017, MOM's orbit was altered to avoid the impending eclipse season. With a burn of eight 22 N thrusters for 431 seconds, resulting in a velocity difference of 97.5 metres per second (351 km/h) using 20 kilograms (44 lb) of propellant (leaving 13 kg remaining), eclipses were avoided until September 2017. The battery is able to handle eclipses of up to 100 minutes.
On 19 May 2017, MOM reached 1,000 days (973 sols) in orbit around Mars. In that time, the spacecraft completed 388 orbits of the planet and relayed more than 715 images back to Earth. ISRO officials stated that it remains in good health.
On 24 September 2018, MOM completed 4 years in its orbit around Mars, although the designed mission life was only six months. Over these years, MOM's Mars Colour Camera has captured over 980 images that were released to the public. The probe is still in good health and continues to work nominally.
In 2014, China referred to India's successful Mars Orbiter Mission as the "Pride of Asia". The Mars Orbiter Mission team won US-based National Space Society's 2015 Space Pioneer Award in the science and engineering category. NSS said the award was given as the Indian agency successfully executed a Mars mission in its first attempt; and the spacecraft is in an elliptical orbit with a high apoapsis where, with its high resolution camera, it is taking full-disk colour imagery of Mars. Very few full disk images have ever been taken in the past, mostly on approach to the planet, as most imaging is done looking straight down in mapping mode. These images will aid planetary scientists.
An image taken by the Mars Orbiter Mission spacecraft was the cover photo of the November 2016 issue of National Geographic magazine, for their story "Mars: Race to the Red Planet".
ISRO plans to develop and launch a follow-up mission called Mars Orbiter Mission 2 (MOM-2 or Mangalyaan-2) with a greater scientific payload to Mars in 2022-2023. The orbiter will use aerobraking to reduce apoapsis of its initial orbit and reach an altitude more suitable for scientific observation.
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This page was last edited on 24 March 2019, at 22:19 (UTC). | 2019-04-26T00:06:02Z | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mars_Orbiter_Mission |
A few days ago, taking part in a brainstorming event, I was reminded about market segmentation. During this exercise on how college professors and companies can join forces to enable students’ entrepreneurial spirit, one of the teams mentioned they were addressing everybody. Capital EVERYBODY. Mentally, I heard myself say “Talk about market segmentation, huh?!” But, that was because I get easily overwhelmed.
I’m all about the elephants. Ever since I discovered Twitter back in 2007, I’m all about eating the poor elephant piece by piece. Back then, I quit the social network for a few years, just because I felt overwhelmed by the speed and amount of information I was to digest, make sense of and implement effectively. Ha! So, again, I needed some “market” segmentation myself.
My train of thought abruptly shifted to you, guys – eShop owners; on or offline entrepreneurs; regular people sorting through life with purpose and determination; extraordinary individuals juggling a self-imposed calling to do more for this world and their intrinsic need of building and belonging; leaders of tomorrow. I smiled and wondered how did you do market segmentation? Do you address EVERYBODY, or do you carefully craft buyer personas? Is there any other way? In today’s context, do you approach the market segmentation process strategically or still see it as a stand-alone marketing practice? Especially, if you’re just starting out.
There are basically 3 types of market segmentation and you’d like to choose one based on what you’re actually offering and your approach to the need itself. But, rest assured, I pinpointed a few plus and minuses for all of them.
Again, I’m a sucker for 3-step processes. So, I’ve built another one and called it the 3 Bs Market Segmentation Framework for #eShop owners. Your easiest guide on how to do market segmentation.
In the end, I added my extra-special favorite profiling tools. 😉 Care to share yours, too?
What does optimization, elephants & demographics have in common?
He’s the one saying that 20% of our inputs generate 80% outputs. And right he is. So, how else are we going to find our 20% of consumers who generate 80% of our profits if not by segmentation and testing? How else are we going to know which 20% of our market returns 80% sales? Or which segment has the financial power to support it?
We’re business owners. Behind our positive impact in the world, we aim for profit and sustainability. And we make logical decisions driven by facts and figures. Each market tribe has a sales potential and it’s only natural for us to assess it and decide where to invest.
We’re 7 billion people on this Earth, indeed. Picture these 7 billion as if they were a gigantic elephant. Remember from above when I mentioned eating it piece by piece? Well, the great news is that it’s already segmented. Just like when we were little and our parents would portion our food before we learned how to cut it ourselves. Only these are imaginary chunks. Interconnected. Through the internet.
We all sort of have the same backbone. And by “backbone” I mean an understanding of how we function in the world and life. Events that happen give us information about our environment, based on which we come up with a personal “truth”. This truth is made of thoughts and emotions that eventually determine our daily experiences. In other words, our individual truth is our perception. Our perception is based on core beliefs (such as principles and values, for instance) that reflect in our behavior.
We all go by these. And, at some point, for taking part in the same big historical events, or sharing the same spiritual knowing, we’re bound to be alike. So, we naturally group in tribes and segments. Which makes it one of those imperative challenges for marketers to define them, instead of generating new segments.
We are segments, as proved above. But we’re not the only ones. 🙂 In one of @Peter Diamandis’ articles on Huffington Post, the XPRIZE CEO noted that 1.8 billion people were using the internet in 2010. Five years later, that figure rose to 2.8 billion people. With all efforts towards innovation and connectivity, it’ll naturally keep growing.
I loved how he zoomed in on this crowd, naming them “the rising billions”. Now, what I find usefully interesting is that these rising billions are that exact global market you’re aiming at, your diverse target group.
Yes, the internet and some emerging spiritual ideas bring us closer, shape the idea of one major tribe. But until that happens, we’re still very individualistic and thirsting for that recognition.
We’ve only just begun to grasp the idea of a global market. And until we embrace it entirely, we’re still divided by ethnicities, interests, local cultures, and so on. Awareness and recognition of one’s background translate into understanding behavior and decision making, the key to online shopping.
Increasing effectiveness and efficiency is a prerogative of a self-sustainable and regenerating world. With each initiative we’re avoiding overwhelming, still encouraging individuality and addressing consumers slice by slice. All to eventually set a working framework for the generations (and billions) to come. That’s why we do market segmentation – for the sake of optimization, elephants, and demographics.
“Ok, fine, you’ve got me at elephants” you might say… So, what kind of market segmentation?
Undifferentiated segmentation – this is when your entire market consists of a single segment. Say, in case you sold gasoline or diesel fuel. People buy it because their cars need it, not because it makes them feel special. So, YES, sometimes you can actually address everybody – usually when you’re selling products or services that won’t factor in human preferences. Practicing this type of market segmentation might save a lot of your marketing budget, but you’ll be offering a general product (as opposed to one specifically for that customer).
Concentrated segmentation – this is when you focus on one segment of the entire market. Say, in case you sold Braille smart watches. Most probably, only blind people would buy them. Which would be great, because you’d be positively impacting their lives and enabling inclusiveness. But, how would developing non-niched smartwatches impact your business? Choosing this type of segmentation, you’d definitely serve your customers’ needs better and rationalize your resources. But, at the same time, your segment might be too small and you’d want to pay attention to larger competitors – the ones with more capabilities that can buy you out.
Multiple segmentation – this is when you cluster your customers in one or more groups of people. Say, in case you sold traveling services. Everybody wants to take a vacation. But people with different lifestyles understand that differently. This kind of strategy will make sure you’re a solid brand, very well positioned and will add to your income. On the other side, though, it comes at greater costs and diversifying product offerings might reduce another product’s market share.
Market segmentation was my first serious issue since I first came to AYG, exactly one year ago. Back then, trying to make sense of it all – the vision and our purpose and everything – I struggled for a bit, trying to understand who our customers were and where I could meet them.
So, here’s the 3-step-process (I’m a sucker for 3 steps things as you well know from here and here) I followed then and now turned into a working framework to do market segmentation. Later on, it became the basis for our Buyer Legends, sales strategy and further on, our email marketing system. We’re using this 1-pager strategically, not just as a marketing tactic.
Above, when talking about elephants, I showed how “sort of the same backbone” brings us together. Big ideas (perception), Beliefs and Behaviors are the three crucial points that unite people, segment markets, and tribe followers. The 3Bs Framework by which you get to do market segmentation.
From what I noticed, market segmentation has a lot to do with the story you’re telling. Firstly because your story is what your audience is perceiving. And secondly, because the stories we tell ourselves is where we start from in creating our realities. We each have a view, a terribly strong opinion about who we are, why we’re here and how we’re supposed to do life. We call that perspective. And we hold onto it pretty badly.
That’s why most controversy occurs in terms of politics, religion, and tastes – because these are the cornerstones of our worldviews. Challenge those and you’ve practically challenged someone’s entire identity.
When getting to know each other, we exchange those worldviews. So, I’d even dare to say that story segmentation is one of the most effective ways to do market segmentation because we all identify with our stories.
1. The BIG IDEA – What’s your online shop’s business model?
First, identify (if you haven’t already) your business model. Are you customer, price or product oriented?
Exercise: Tick the right answer!
a. Offering the best customer experience there is?
b. Making sure your #eShop provides the lowest price there is?
c. Ensuring your #Shop’s offering a product or a service like no other?
Onto the added value your #eShop’s bringing.
Example: I would’ve ticked a.
AYG is focused on Customer Centricity, making sure our business partners are delighted to be working with us. It’s mainly because of the relationship we have that they choose us as their Magento developers.
So, the main story our marketing campaigns tell is that of how #eShop owners feel and what they achieve when working with us.
2. The BELIEFS – What do your customers believe of your business model?
As I was underlining above, each of us strongly holds a worldview. It’s perspective versus perception at its best. Perspective is what you bring to the table, who you want to be, your #eShop’s business model from above. Perception, on the other hand, is what gets to your target group.
Now, I’ll let you in on a little secret – usually, these two are supposed to be one and the same. But, if there’s a gap, you, most probably, have a brand image “misspell” that you’d like to take another look at.
When identifying beliefs, you want to be clear about what your customers mainly believe about your online store.
Exercise: Fill in the blanks!
Our ____________ (name customers) believe that ____________.
Our customers believe that there’s life after death.
Our customers believe that women are better leaders than men.
Our customers believe that going for a run every morning is pure health.
Our customers believe they’d never fly a plane.
This helps with having an overview on what are your major clumps, as Seth Godin calls them in All marketers are liars. A book you’ve probably read already. He sais that people clump together into common worldviews and our job is to just find them a new one.
Part II: After you’ve got all those ideas down and it seems you’re drained from all obvious mindsets, take an extra 10 minutes to come up with the NEW ideas. This is when the real brainstorming actually begins. Answer the question: What’s the untold story here? What’s the story our customers didn’t quite hear before?
Helps – This helps to figure out your story’s main point. It’s “Meet The Customers 101”.
A story is the flow that turns a pain-point into a happy point. That’s why I say “meet” the customers – because their main perspective about your #eShop comes from their biggest pain-point.
eShop owners want to speak eCommerce.
eShop owners believe that they deserve the best, the quickest because they’re busy.
eShop owners believe they’re supposed to get the best service for the cheapest price. And yesterday, for that matter.
We paid most attention to our sales people’s inputs, here. After all, they’re the ones in direct dialogue with prospective customers.
It was only at our 2nd brainstorming that we realized that eShop owners believe they’re one with their business. And if they deserved the best treatment (because we’re customer centric, remember?), so did their business. Hence, we came up with the simplest “Your shop deserves the best, and so do you.” Which remained our campaign slogan till today. And here’s how we got to choose that exact one.
We, then, sent the curated list of perspectives to our team and partners (past and present). We asked them to rate each of the affirmations from 1 to 4, totaled the scores and highlighted the one which got the highest score.
That was our starting point in doing market segmentation and creating our buyer legends. We started from this common perspective, identified the main feeling we were appealing to and the stories triggering people to act according to what we considered positive behaviors.
The BEHAVIORS – How do you profile your customers?
When we talk behaviors, we talk decision making.
According to their worldview, values, and principles, customers resonate with your story or not. What hooks them, though, (remember the Hook-Anchor-Loop AYG system?) is the emotion you trigger.
Talia Wolf explains this best in her Emotional Targeting 101 article. She mentions Antonio Damasio’s groundbreaking neuroscientific discovery according to which people with brain damage in the area that manages emotions, have a hard time making decisions. Broadly, if you can’t feel love, you won’t be able to choose whether you like the dress I’m showing you or not.
Now, in AYG terms, we put it like this: you hook customers if your eShop’s story appeals to an emotion they like to feel; you anchor them if your eShop is a verbalisation and a reflection of their thoughts; and eventually, you loop consumers as returnees by solving their actual, real problems and needs.
So, your last easy, but a bit more complex step in market segmentation is to break the main belief you identified earlier, into behaviors triggered by emotions. In other words, how did your customers end up to the previously set belief?
First, based on the above brainstorming, identify some of your customers’ key traits and group them accordingly. They’re going to be your buyer personas’ backbones. According to these, you can then start profiling.
My main challenge – I struggled with this for weeks – was how do I figure out the criteria I group them by?
Well, I first identified our prospective customers’ main concerns. In our case, these were affordability and lack of trust in teams of developers. So, we started from there, grouping profiles based on stores’ budgets and profits – data we had easy access to by googling the company’s public financial files.
Segmentation Solutions from Nielsen. These best work if your market is based in America. Basically, CLARITAS PRIZM is the American leading market segmentation system. They shape a comprehensive consumer profile based on helpful insights about their preferences, lifestyles, demographics, behaviors and more.
My new favorite extension-app-thing – Xtensio. They give you templates, for free. Just like the one above. And they have much more outside of the market segmentation area. This is a quick and easy to use tool. For a more in-depth analysis, you should study buyer legends.
Brad’s Buyer Legend Example – Bryan Eisenberg was the first one to introduce me to Buyer Legends last year, at GPeC Summit – an eCommerce conference I vividly recommend. Part of this article is based on my learnings from that conference. Read more juicy details about my experience here. BTW, the May GPeC Summit 2017 is coming up shortly, May 16th to 18th. I promise, you won’t want to miss this.
All in all, I know market segmentation might seem complex and difficult to grasp, as in flow-less or without any logic. I’ve actually been there. Well, when a process seems to not have any logic, be happy, because it’s an invitation to create one of your own.
So, when you want to do market segmentation, start from what you know – your business model. Your customers perceive your business model in a certain way. Write those viewpoints down and validate the most popular one. That’s the story you want to tell from now on. At least for a while. And, at least for “this” product. At the end of your market segmentation, profile your customers based on their main pain-points. Tell their stories in their own way, paying attention to whom they are, their emotions and thoughts, appealing to their preferences and doing it all in their own words.
After you’ve done all of this, make sure to use this framework to the fullest, as a strategic tool. Starting here, build buyer legends and marketing campaigns. Measure results, improve, optimize and redo. And, please, share your inputs with us, in the comments section below. | 2019-04-25T11:52:13Z | http://ayg.ro/how-to-master-market-segmentation-the-kiss-guide/ |
Most source code plagiarism detection tools only rely on source code similarity to indicate plagiarism. This can be an issue since not all source code pairs with high similarity are plagiarism. Moreover, the culprits (i.e., the ones who plagiarise) cannot be differentiated from the victims even though they need to be educated further on different ways. This paper proposes a mechanism to generate hints for investigating source code plagiarism and identifying the culprits on in-class individual programming assessment. The hints are collected from the culprits’ copying behaviour during the assessment. According to our evaluation, the hints from source code creation process and seating position are 76.88% and at least 80.87% accurate for indicating plagiarism. Further, the hints from source code creation process can be helpful for indicating the culprits as the culprits’ codes have at least one of our predefined conditions for the copying behaviour.
Plagiarism occurs when a piece of work is reused with an inadequate acknowledgement toward the original author(s) . It is an emerging issue in academia. To illustrate this, according to an article from The Guardian , the number of UK students who cheat in academia is increased by 40% in three year span; where more than half of them are related to plagiarism.
The issue becomes more complex in computing education as the assessments cover source code (i.e., electronic text created for programming) in addition to human-language text . Source code plagiarism is similar to the human-language text plagiarism—which is commonly covered by Turnitin —except that its domain is focused on the source code .
Several automated tools have been developed to detect source code plagiarism . However, most of them only enlist plagiarism-suspected cases based on the similarity degree without providing any hints about which cases should be investigated further and who is the real culprit for each plagiarism case. It may consume a lot of examiner’s time and effort since high similarity does not always entail plagiarism . Moreover, the culprits should be differentiated from the victims since they need to be educated in a different way. The former should be taught about academic integrity while the latter should be taught to prevent their work being plagiarised.
In this paper, a mechanism for generating those hints on in-class individual programming assessment is proposed. It relies on the culprits’ copying behaviour; where the copied source codes can have some modifications if the culprits plan to obfuscate their illegal act. Cases which should be investigated further can be filtered with the help of source code creation process and seating position. Further, the culprits can be differentiated from the victims based on their unique code creation process (such as waiting their victim to write several source code fragments first).
Source code plagiarism is an act of reusing a particular code without acknowledging the original author(s) properly . In computing education, this issue becomes more prevalent as the number of weekly-submitted source codes is considerably high and these codes should be compared to each other per assessment. Several detection techniques have been developed to face the issue. Based on how they detect similarity (i.e., a proof for plagiarism), these techniques can be classified into threefold: attribute-based, structure-based, and hybrid technique .
Attribute-based technique determines similarity based on source code attributes. The attributes can be either source code characteristics or token fragments. Source code characteristics (such as the number of operands) can be compared based on their occurrence frequencies. Works in [9,10] consider two source codes as similar to each other when these codes’ characteristics share the same occurrence frequencies. Source code token fragments can be compared by adopting techniques from other domains. Works in [11,12,13], for instances, rely on Information Retrieval techniques such as Latent Semantic Indexing . Other examples are works in [15,16] that rely on a clustering technique (where the fragments act as vectors) and a work in that relies on a technique from Information Theory.
Structure-based technique determines similarity based on source code structures. It commonly takes more processing time than the attribute-based technique . However, its result is more aligned to human perspective . Four structures can be used in this technique: source code token sequence, abstract syntax tree, program dependency graph, and low-level token sequence. Source code token sequence [19,20,21] is a sequence of meaningful “words” from source code; it is usually extracted with the help of a programming language parser. Abstract syntax tree is a tree where the nodes are formed from tokens and the edges are formed from programming language grammar. Program dependency graph is a graph connecting several instructions based on their execution dependencies. Low-level token sequence [8,24,25] is similar to source code token sequence except that it is extracted from executable files resulted from compiling the source codes; these files are typically more concise than the source codes.
The similarity of source code or low-level token sequences can be compared using string matching algorithms—such as Running-Karp-Rabin Greedy-String-Tiling or Local Alignment —that have been tuned to deal with token sequences. The similarity of other structures can be compared using domain-specific algorithms (e.g., tree kernel algorithm or graph isomorphism algorithm ).
Hybrid technique determines similarity based on both source code characteristics and structures. In other words, it combines attribute-based with structure-based technique. This technique can be classified further to two sub-techniques. Efficiency-oriented hybrid technique assumes that attribute-based technique is more time efficient than the structure-based one even though its result is less effective . It is implemented as a two-layer detection technique where attribute-based technique acts as the initial filter for the input of structure-based technique [6,30]. Efficiency-oriented hybrid technique assumes that both techniques have their own benefits in terms of effectiveness. A work in , for instance, shows the results of both techniques at once. Works in [32,33] use the output of structure-based technique as an input (or attribute) for attribute-based technique.
Some of the aforementioned techniques have been applied as automated tools [20,34]. Four examples of them are JPlag, MOSS, Sherlock in , and Sherlock in . JPlag is an online tool which focuses on five programming languages (Java, C#, C, C++, and Scheme). It relies on structure-based technique with Greedy-String-Tiling as its baseline similarity algorithm. MOSS (Measure of Software Similarity) is, at some extent, similar to JPlag except that it covers more programming languages and utilises Winnowing algorithm as its similarity measurement. Sherlock in determines the similarity based on source code fingerprints, which are resulted from a hash function. It is different with Sherlock in that compares the codes in threefold, starting from comparing their original forms, original forms without comments and whitespaces, and token sequences.
Most existing detection techniques suspect plagiarism only based on source code similarity. It may leave a lot of works for examiners; they should investigate many code pairs and determine which pairs are considered as plagiarism. As a result, a work in considers saving timestamps and authentication ID for reducing the number of investigated code pairs. Only code pairs which share a high similarity degree and contain suspicious timestamp & ID pattern are investigated.
This paper proposes a mechanism to generate hints for investigating source code plagiarism and the culprits from the copying behaviour on in-class individual programming assessment. Copying behaviour refers to an act of replicating other students’ work with or without modification (or plagiarism in short). Programming assessment refers to an assessment which solution should be written in the form of source code. In-class individual assessment refers to an assessment given in a physical class room, that should be completed at that time individually. Commonly, the students are seated adjacent to each other due to the room’s space limitation. Further, to mitigate the chance for cheating, at least one examiner is allocated in the room to watch over the students’ behaviour.
On in-class individual programming assessment, a plagiarist (or culprit) can only copy the works of adjacently-seated students. The works of non-adjacently-seated students are out of consideration since they are not easily accessible to the plagiarist and, when the plagiarist insists to do that, the examiner may notice their copying behaviour. Given this condition, the number of source code pairs that should be investigated further can be reduced; only code pairs which authors are adjacently-seated are suggested. In addition, by utilising source code creation process, more code pairs can be excluded from investigation; only code pairs which creation processes contain a copying behaviour are suggested. The source code creation process can also be used to determine who is the plagiarist for each plagiarism-suspected code pair; the plagiarists commonly have several unique code creation patterns.
Source code creation process is recorded by capturing source code contents periodically while the solution is being written. These contents will be submitted at the end of the assessment, along with the solution, and observed by the examiner. It is important to note that this recording mechanism may lead to ethical concern on some regions. In that case, the examiner is advised to collect students’ consent at the beginning of the course.
When compared with , our proposed mechanism is specifically tailored for in-class individual programming assessment. With more specific context in mind, our mechanism can generate more hints for investigating source code plagiarism and the plagiarists. Another difference is that our mechanism focuses on source code contents instead of saving timestamps and authentication ID. We believe these contents can provide more hints.
Our proposed mechanism works under two modules: student and examiner module. Student module is a plug-in pre-installed on the student’s programming workspace. It captures source code contents periodically during creation process (for convenient referencing, these contents are referred as source code snapshots in the rest of this paper), and embeds them on the assessment solution’s project along with a seating position ID. Examiner module suggest source code pairs that should be investigated further, including the potential plagiarists, based on hints obtained from the copying behaviour on in-class programming assessment. Figure 1 shows an example of how both modules interact. An examiner module takes source code projects collected from several student modules as its primary inputs.
Student module works as depicted on Figure 2. Two inputs are required in this module: a capturing period (a duration in seconds indicating how frequent the module will capture source code snapshots) and a seating position ID. Both of them are set on the student module before installed on the programming workspace. This module (as a background process) starts capturing source code snapshots periodically once the programming workspace is opened. For memory space efficiency, each of the snapshots will be compressed using Huffman coding algorithm and therefore stored as a file under the project along with its respective timestamp. Upon closing the workspace, the module will merge all snapshots to a single archive for portability purpose; a large number of snapshots will slow down the transfer process between the student and examiner module.
It is important to note that the source code snapshots are not compressed at once upon closing the workspace to avoid submission delay. The number of snapshots may be high for some assessments (especially those with a long completion time), resulting a considerable amount of time when compressed at once.
Figure 3 shows that examiner module works in fourfold with source code projects, a task name, and a seating map as its inputs. At first, the projects’ source codes which correspond to a particular task are selected, with an assumption that these codes share the same file name as the task name. It is true that the assumption is susceptible to incorrectly written file name. However, the occurrence of such misnaming issue can be mitigated by applying a strict penalty (e.g., failing to write the correct file name leads to no grading).
Secondly, for each assessment task, source codes which authors are adjacently seated (either horizontally, vertically, or diagonally) are compared to each other. The adjacency is defined based on a seating map containing all seating position IDs. With adjacency-based comparison in mind, the number of investigated code pairs can be reduced. To illustrate this, if a map with twenty-five seating positions arranged as a 5 × 5 matrix is used, the adjacency-based comparison will only consider 72 code pairs while the naive one (which compares all codes with each other) considers 300 code pairs.
The similarity degree for each code pair is calculated in two phases. It begins by converting the codes to token sequences (where comment and whitespace tokens are removed) with the help of ANTLR . Those sequences are therefore compared using Running-Karp-Rabin Greedy-String-Tiling algorithm (RKRGST) (with 2 as its minimum matching length), and normalised using either average or maximum normalisation [6,19]. Average normalisation is calculated based on (1) where A & B are the token sequences and match(A,B) is the number of matched tokens. Maximum normalisation is calculated based on (2) with similar terminologies as the average one. When compared to each other, average normalisation is sensitive to any changes while maximum normalisation is only sensitive to the shorter sequence.
RKRGST is selected as our similarity algorithm since it has been frequently used in source code plagiarism detection . In fact, it can be replaced with any algorithms that measure the similarity degree between two source code token sequences.
Thirdly, source code pairs which creation processes contain a copying behaviour are indicated and suggested. A copying behaviour occurs when a pair’s codes share many similar snapshots at some periods of time; where the snapshots only differ in terms of capturing timestamp. The confidence degree for the occurrence of copying behaviour is measured in twofold. At first, for each source code, its snapshots are converted to a snapshot sequence. Snapshot sequence refers to an integer sequence which length is the number of the source code snapshots and each element is assigned with a snapshot’s token size that has been divided by 10. Afterwards, the confidence degree between those two snapshot sequences are compared using RKRGST with 2 as its minimum matching length and maximum normalisation as its normalisation technique. All code pairs which confidence degree is higher than 50% are suggested for further investigation.
Figure 4 depicts an example of how the confidence degree is measured. It is worth to note that the division of token size with 10 and the use of maximum normalisation (instead of average normalisation) are implemented to loosen up the matching condition; some differences should be spared as some plagiarists are not able to copy the whole original code at once during in-class individual programming assessment.
Fourthly, the plagiarist of each code pair is then indicated and suggested based on their copying behaviour. The plagiarist’ source code snapshots are assumed to meet at least one of three conditions toward the victim’ snapshots. These conditions are: sharing many snapshots, deleting before sharing similar snapshots, and waiting before sharing similar snapshots.
Sharing many snapshots occurs when the plagiarist continuously replicates their victim’s work. When represented as a line chart, an example of this case can be seen on Figure 5. The orange line can be used as a hint claiming that the line’s owner is the plagiarist. Most of the timestamps occur later than the red line’s even though both lines share similar pattern. It is important to note that time difference between those lines may vary.
Deleting before sharing similar snapshots occurs when the plagiarist has failed to solve the task by themselves and then replaces their code with the victim’s. Figure 6 shows an example of it, represented as a line chart. The plagiarist can be indicated as the orange line’s owner; the line’s pattern is similar to the red line’s while having several steep reductions (see circled areas) as a result of deleting their code and replace it with their victim’s.
Waiting before sharing similar snapshots occurs under the same condition as sharing many snapshots except that, in this case, the plagiarist intentionally waits till the victim’s code has been updated a lot prior plagiarising. As seen in Figure 7, orange line’s owner is suspected as the plagiarist since the line has several stagnant patterns (see circled areas) as a result of waiting while sharing similar pattern with the red line.
The mechanism for providing hints to investigate source code plagiarism and the plagiarists is implemented on a source code plagiarism detection tool called IC-Plag (In-Class source code Plagiarism detection) This tool’s name can be pronounced similar to “I See Plag”, which corresponds to its aim to see any plagiarism cases. IC-Plag is designed for Java programming assessments and Eclipse programming workspace (https://www.eclipse.org/). The student module acts as an Eclipse plugin while the examiner module acts as a standalone desktop application. Both modules are connected through NetSupport class room management tool (https://www.netsupportsoftware.com/complete-classroom-management/). With NetSupport, each collected source code project will be automatically labeled with a seating position ID, stored as the NetSupport-generated directory’s name.
Considering seating position ID is handled by NetSupport, capturing period is the only thing that need to be set on the student module. It is set statically on the module’s development codes.
Each source code snapshot is stored as a text file with “.dat” as its file extension; default source code file extension is avoided to make the file inaccessible from many applications. The file is then named based on its capturing time (DD-MM-YYYY HH:MM:SS) and stored under a directory named “data”. Upon closing the workspace, all snapshot files will be archived as a Java archive (JAR) file.
Figure 8 shows IC-Plag’s examiner module. The inputs can be given on the left panel while the outputs are shown on the right panel.
Four inputs are required in this module: a project root directory path, a task (file) name, a seating position map, and a normalisation technique. The project root directory is a directory containing all source code projects collected through NetSupport. Each project is located under a NetSupport-generated directory, named with a seating position ID. Figure 9 shows a sample of the structure.
As seen on Figure 10, seating position map is represented as a Comma Separated Value (CSV) where each working space is labeled with a NetSupport-defined ID, and each empty space is labeled with “PC-00”. Since some assessments are usually given on the same class room for the whole semester, IC-Plag stores all previously-inputted maps, which can be reused directly through a combobox provided on the input panel (see Figure 8). If the examiner wants to manage these maps, they can access “manage seating maps” button located at the bottom of the input panel. It will show a panel displaying all previously-inputted maps where the examiner can manage them (as seen in Figure 11).
Two options are available for normalisation technique: maximum and average normalisation. Maximum normalisation can be used when most plagiarised codes are the subset of their original (or vice versa). Average normalisation can be used when each modification should affect the resulted similarity degree.
As seen on Figure 8, the output is displayed in a layout similar to the selected seating position map. Comparison buttons are placed between adjacent positions; these buttons will be bordered with a red line if their involved codes are indicated to have a copying behaviour.
For each adjacent code pair, a suggestion about the plagiarist can be accessed by clicking the comparison button. It will display a line graph (see Figure 12) where the lines refer to the codes’ snapshot sequences. If two snapshots are required to be investigated further, their points on the graph can be selected and “compare selected snapshots” button can be pressed. It will display those snapshots with TortoiseSVN (https://tortoisesvn.net/), a tool for comparing two versions of a text file. In our context, those two versions correspond to two snapshots.
At the bottom of IC-Plag’s layout (see Figure 8), a textarea is provided to display any information related to IC-Plag’s current process. For example, it can enlist several error messages when the inputs are not properly given.
For examiners who are new to IC-Plag, they can learn how the tool works with a tutorial. The tutorial can be accessed by clicking “Tutorial” button at the top-right of IC-Plag (see Figure 8). It is represented as a pop-up panel explaining each process in a more elaborate way.
Two important remarks about IC-Plag should be considered. First, since students’ source code projects are mapped to a seating position map, observing the hints may become more demanding as more students’ projects and seating positions are involved. Hence, IC-Plag is recommended to be used when the number of students’ projects and seating positions are limited. From our experience, up to 40 projects or seating positions are acceptable. Second, suggesting the plagiarists may take a considerable amount of time when the number of snapshots is considerably high. Therefore, the duration for capturing the snapshots should not be set too low. From our experience, three or five seconds is acceptable.
Our proposed mechanism was primarily evaluated toward two aspects: the accuracy of source code creation process & seating position to indicate plagiarism-suspected source code pairs, and the accuracy of source code creation process to indicate the potential plagiarists.
In addition to those, four supplementary aspects were also considered: the reduced number of code pairs for adjacency-based comparison, the effectiveness of Huffman coding algorithm to compress source code snapshots, the applicability of IC-Plag, and the performance comparison between the plagiarists & the victims.
Evaluating the accuracy of seating position to indicate plagiarism-suspected source code pairs requires some findings from evaluating the reduced number of code pairs for adjacency-based comparison. Consequently, the latter evaluation will be discussed first.
In order to evaluate the aforementioned aspects, two scenarios were performed. The first scenario collected seating position maps from real class rooms. These maps were then used to evaluate the accuracy of seating position for indicating plagiarism-suspected source code pairs and the reduced number of code pairs for adjacency-based comparison. The scenario was conducted by mapping all class rooms (i.e., computer laboratories) in our faculty. In total, there were twelve class rooms with 28 to 41 seating positions each.
The second scenario involved sixteen participants: eight examiners (i.e., teaching assistants), four fast-paced students, and four slow-paced students. It collected source code projects (with their snapshots) and questionnaire survey results for evaluating remaining aspects. Despite their small number, the participants can generate 64 source codes, 480 code pairs (with naive comparison) and about 57,600 source code snapshots per hour (if the capturing period is one second). We would argue those numbers are sufficient for evaluation. It is important to note that both fast- and slow-paced students are involved so that our results may depict the real condition of in-class individual programming assessment.
The second scenario was conducted by following a diagram displayed on Figure 13. At first, two programming assessments were made by the first author of this paper. These assessments are related to Introductory Programming materials where each of them contains one easy task and one challenging task.
Secondly, each examiner was paired with one student (either fast- or slow-paced one). The examiners would act as the victims while the students would act as the plagiarists. These participants were then instructed to sit under a predefined seating position map (see Figure 14).
Thirdly, the participants were asked to complete the 1st assessment in 30 min. On completing that assessment, they should use Eclipse (where our student module—with one second as its capturing period—has been installed). Further, they were instructed to act like they are completing a real in-class individual programming assessment to get realistic source code snapshots; the plagiarists should plagiarise secretly while the victims should try to protect their codes from plagiarism if the plagiarists act suspiciously. To assure the plagiarists would plagiarise, they were not given any information related to the assessment’s tasks; they could only complete their assessment by plagiarising their victim’ work.
Fourthly, these participants were then asked to complete the 2nd programming assessment. It works in similar manner as the 1st assessment except that their roles are swapped. The examiners would act as the plagiarists while the students would act as the victims. This phase assures that each participant (either an examiner or a student) experiences two different roles in our evaluation.
Fifthly, the participants were instructed to complete a questionnaire containing twelve questions. The questionnaire collected the participants’ perspectives toward IC-Plag. In addition, it also collected their perspectives about what kinds of attempts they know for either plagiarising their friend’s code or protecting their code from plagiarism on an in-class individual programming assessment.
Adjacency-based comparison aims to reduce the number of code pairs. This subsection evaluates such impact using twelve seating position maps from our evaluation data. The reduction is resulted from 1 − A C N C ; where AC is the number of code pairs for adjacency-based comparison and NC is the number of code pairs for naive comparison (that compares all codes with each other).
As seen on Table 1 (where N refers to the number of seating positions), three findings can be deducted. First, adjacency-based comparison considers fewer code pairs than naive comparison. In average, it eliminates about 80.87% code pairs. Second, the number of code pairs for adjacency-based comparison varies based on given seating position map; C10 and C12, for example, yield different numbers of code pairs since several positions on C12 have fewer neighbours. Third, the number of code pairs for naive comparison can be calculated as N ( N − 1 ) 2 since it is defined from 1 + 2 + 3 + 4 … + (N − 1).
The accuracy of source code creation process (which captures the plagiarist’ copying behaviour from source code snapshot sequences) is defined as the proportion between the number of correctly-indicated code pairs and total code pairs when adjacency-based comparison is used. According to the seating position map given in Figure 14, there are 160 code pairs in total since there are four tasks taken from two assessments and each task results in 40 code pairs.
Figure 15 depicts that the source code creation process is 70% to 80% accurate for indicating plagiarism-suspected source code pairs. In average, it leads to 76.88% accuracy, which is a considerably high accuracy.
Since the plagiarists and the victims are assumed to be adjacently seated on in-class assessment, the minimum accuracy of seating position can be defined as the reduced proportion of code pairs for adjacency-based comparison; all code pairs which authors are not adjacently-seated are considered as false results. The proportion is calculated as 1 − A C N C where AC and NC are the number of code pairs for adjacency-based and naive comparison respectively. For our evaluation data, the maps from real class rooms are considered.
As seen in Figure 16, the minimum accuracy varies among class rooms. Further observation shows that such accuracy is affected by how the students are seated. In average, seating position can be used to indicate suspected code pairs with at least 80.87% accuracy.
From our evaluation data, for each plagiarist-victim pair per assessment task, the plagiarist’ snapshot sequence (which was recorded from the source code creation process) was observed by the second author of this paper. He checked whether at least one of the three copying behaviour’ conditions (sharing many snapshots, deleting before sharing similar snapshots, and waiting before sharing similar snapshots) occurs. In total, there are thirty-two observed source code pairs since each task contributes eight pairs.
As seen in Figure 17, sharing many snapshots (condition-1) occurs more frequently than other conditions. This finding is natural since some plagiarists want to get the highest possible score by keeping their code updated with the latest version of their victim’s. Deleting and waiting before sharing similar snapshots (condition-2 and condition-3) occur in a less frequent way.
All code pairs have at least one of the conditions. Eighteen of them have two conditions and eight of them have all conditions. Hence, it can be stated that the source code creation process is considerably accurate for indicating the potential plagiarists; our predefined copying conditions do occur on the plagiarists’ snapshot sequences.
Seven capturing periods are defined for this evaluation: 1, 5, 10, 15, 20, 15, and 30. For each period, only snapshots which fits the period are taken from our evaluation data. When the capturing period is 5, for example, only the snapshots which timestamp difference with the first snapshot is the multiples of 5 are considered.
Table 2 shows that Huffman coding algorithm reduces about 25% total file size regardless of the capturing period; where the reduction is calculated as 1 − R C (R refers to the file size before compression and C refers to that size after compression). Further, higher capturing period leads to smaller total file size. We would argue that setting the capturing period with 10 or 15 is acceptable since the total compressed file size is still under 3 MB (which is feasible to be collected through NetSupport for 16 participants).
This subsection evaluated the applicability of IC-Plag with a blackbox testing and questionnaire survey. The blackbox testing was performed by the first author of this paper. Three functionalities from IC-Plag’s student module and nine functionalities from IC-Plag’s examiner modules were checked. The testing showed that all functionalities work as expected.
A questionnaire survey was conducted at the end of data collection scenario. Twelve questions were proposed; ten of them (Q01–Q10) asked the participants’ agreement while the others (Q11 and Q12) asked about what attempts they know for either plagiarising their friend’s code or protecting their code from plagiarism on in-class individual programming assessment. Prior answering the questions, IC-Plag’s functionalities would be demonstrated first to mitigate biased perspectives.
Q01: Programming workspace is convenient to use even though the student module is installed.
Q02: Source code snapshots are collected without letting the student aware about it.
Q03: The existence of the student module is unseen by the student.
Q04: Compressing source code snapshots and merging them as a JAR file enables the snapshots to be transferred faster through NetSupport.
Q05: The examiner module is easy to use.
Q06: Adjacency-based comparison fastens the investigation of source code plagiarism.
Q07: Adjacency-based comparison mitigates the number of false results.
Q08: The examiner module’s output panel is illustrative as it displays the source codes based on their authors’ seating positions.
Q09: Considering source code creation process mitigates the number of false results.
Q10: Snapshot sequence line chart display helps examiner to collect hints indicating the plagiarist.
As seen on Figure 18, all statements are responded positively by the participants. The minimum average score for these statements (which is 3.5625 on Q01) is still higher than the threshold for neutrality (which is 3).
Q01 yields the lowest average score (3.5625 of 5) with the highest standard deviation (0.963). Further observation shows that several participants are not used with Eclipse (our programming workspace for evaluation). They prefer NetBeans as their programming workspace. Q06 and Q08, on the contrary, yield the highest average score (which is 4.5 of 5). Both of them are related to the use of seating position for investigating source code plagiarism. Hence, it can be stated that the impact of such position is the most salient for the participants. Q10 leads the lowest standard deviation (0.447) with 4.25 average score. It can be therefore stated that the participants consistently agree toward the impact of snapshot sequence line chart display.
According to the participants, three ways for plagiarising are commonly used: seeing other students’ laptop/PC screens that are faced to them, taking a photo of another student’ laptop/PC screen, and collusion (two or more students agree to complete their individual work as a group). Since all of them can only be done when the plagiarist is located nearby with their victim, we would argue that seating position can be beneficial to provide hints about source code plagiarism.
To prevent their codes plagiarised, the participants enlisted three techniques: minimizing source code editor’s font, closing the source code editor once the assessment has been completed, and assuring that their laptop/PC screen cannot be seen by others. Even though these techniques may be considerably effective, it may put some inconvenience to the students as they cannot complete their work freely.
This section aims to check whether the plagiarists can get similar score as their victims as a result of plagiarising. To do so, for each plagiarist-victim pair, their source codes were assessed by the first author of this paper and the resulted scores are compared to each other.
As seen on Figure 19, the plagiarists achieved lower average score than the victims on most tasks; in average, it is 20.34 points lower. Hence, it can be stated that it may be rare for the plagiarists to have similar performance as the victims. However, the score gap can become smaller when the original code is either simple or has a high proportion of alphanumeric tokens. Task 2-E is an example case of it; there is no score differences since all plagiarists have successfully copied their victim’s work.
This paper proposes a mechanism to generate hints for investigating source code plagiarism and identifying the plagiarists on in-class individual programming assessment; the hints are collected from the copying behaviour. That mechanism is applied on a plagiarism detection tool called IC-Plag.
According to our evaluation, six findings are concluded. Firstly, adjacency-based comparison can reduce the number of investigated code pairs by 80.87%. Secondly, source code creation process and seating position can be used to suggest plagiarism-suspected code pairs; they lead to 76.88% and at least 80.87% accuracy respectively. Thirdly, copying behaviour’ conditions taken from source code creation process can be helpful in terms of determining the plagiarists; all plagiarists’ codes on our evaluation have at least one of the conditions. Fourthly, Huffman coding algorithm can reduce about 25% total file size of the source code snapshots. Fifthly, IC-Plag may be applicable based on blackbox testing and user perspective. Lastly, in most occasions, the plagiarist always performs worse than the victim; their performance is only comparable when the victim’s code is either simple or has a high proportion of alphanumerics.
For future work, four directions are planned. Firstly, a web service can be introduced as a replacement of NetSupport for collecting the snapshots. In such manner, the snapshots can be sent periodically while the student is completing their programming assessment. Secondly, more-advanced similarity algorithms—such as the one which considers term importance or excludes boilerplate (or template) codes—can be implemented on IC-Plag for higher detection accuracy. Thirdly, for re-usability purpose, IC-Plag can be designed as a framework where some of its modules (e.g., similarity algorithm module) can be updated based on the examiner’s need. Fourthly, source code snapshots can be recorded with an existing versioning system—such as the one provided by GitHub (https://github.com/)—to enable more effective and efficient storage system.
Conceptualization, A.E.B. and O.K.; Methodology, A.E.B. and O.K.; Software, A.E.B.; Writing—original draft, O.K.; Writing—review & editing, O.K.
The APC was funded by Maranatha Christian University, Indonesia.
Marsh, S. Cheating at UK’s Top Universities Soars by 40%. Available online: https://www.theguardian.com/education/2018/apr/29/cheating-at-top-uk-universities-soars-by-30-per-cent (accessed on 27 January 2019).
Sedgewick, R.; Wayne, K. Algorithms, 4th ed.; 2011; p. 955. Available online: https://algs4.cs.princeton.edu/home/ (accessed on 27 January 2019).
Figure 1. The interaction between three student modules and an examiner module. The student modules are installed on the students’ programming workspaces (PC-01 to PC-03) while the examiner module collects all source code projects (with their respective source code snapshots and seating position ID) from them.
Figure 2. How student module works as a background process on the programming workspace. Source code snapshots are periodically captured while the workspace is opened. Once the workspace is closed, these snapshots will be merged as an archive.
Figure 3. How examiner module works. Four phases are required, starting from filtering the projects’ source codes which correspond to a particular assessment task to suggesting the plagiarists.
Figure 4. An example of measuring the confidence degree for the copying behaviour’s occurrence; red size numbers on snapshot sequences refer to matched snapshots (selected with the help of RKRGST). In this case, the confidence degree for those snapshot sequences is 75%.
Figure 5. A line chart representing an example of sharing many snapshots; the lines refer to snapshot sequences for both source codes, horizontal axis refers to the timestamps, and vertical axis refers to the token size. The orange one can be suspected as the plagiarist’ since most of the snapshots occur later than the first one’s while both lines share a similar pattern.
Figure 6. A line chart representing an example of deleting before sharing snapshots; the lines refer to snapshot sequences for both source codes, horizontal axis refers to the timestamps, and vertical axis refers to the token size. Orange line’s owner is suspected as the plagiarist since the line has several steep reductions (see circled areas) while sharing a similar pattern with the red one.
Figure 7. A line chart representing an example of waiting before sharing snapshots; the lines refer to snapshot sequences for both source codes, horizontal axis refers to the timestamps, and vertical axis refers to the token size. Each circled area depicts a condition where the suspected plagiarist (whose line is orange-colored) waits till their victim (whose line is red-colored) has significantly updated their code.
Figure 8. The layout of IC-Plag’s examiner module. All inputs are given on the left panel while the outputs can be seen on the right one.
Figure 9. An example of the directory structure generated by NetSupport. Each project is located under a directory named with a seating position ID.
Figure 10. How seating position map is stored as a CSV file. Each empty space is labeled with “PC-00”.
Figure 11. The layout for managing previously-inputted seating maps. The right panel will display selected map’s content in CSV format.
Figure 12. The layout for displaying a line graph comparing two source code snapshot sequences. The graph is displayed in a similar manner as proposed in methodology. Two highlighted red points refer to selected snapshots for further investigation.
Figure 13. Collecting evaluation data involving examiners and students. It has five phases, starting from creating two programming assessments to instructing the examiners and students to complete a questionnaire.
Figure 14. Participants’ seating position map. Each examiner (either T1–T8) sits right beside one student (either S1–S8).
Figure 15. The accuracy of source code creation process to indicate plagiarism-suspected code pairs. Vertical axis refers to the accuracy while horizontal axis refers to the assessment tasks. Each task is labeled as “Task X-Y” where X refers to an assessment ID and Y refers to a task type (E for easy and C for challenging).
Figure 16. The minimum accuracy of seating position to indicate plagiarism-suspected code pairs per class room. Vertical axis refers to the accuracy while horizontal axis refers to the class rooms.
Figure 17. The occurrence frequencies of copying conditions. Vertical axis refers to the normalised frequency (in percentage) while horizontal axis refers to the copying conditions per task. Condition-1 is sharing many snapshots; condition-2 is deleting before sharing similar snapshots; and condition-3 is waiting before sharing similar snapshots. Each task is labeled as “Task X-Y” where X refers to an assessment ID and Y refers to a task type (E for easy and C for challenging).
Figure 18. Q01 to Q10 survey results. In general, all statements are responded positively; their average score is higher than 3 (neutral threshold).
Figure 19. The performance comparison between the plagiarists and the victims per assessment task. Vertical axis refers to the scores while horizontal axis refers to the assessment tasks. Each task is labeled as “Task X-Y” where X refers to an assessment ID and Y refers to a task type (E for easy and C for challenging).
Table 1. The number of code pairs per class room.
Table 2. The total file size per capturing period. | 2019-04-18T11:09:13Z | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-431X/8/1/11/htm |
Suggested Citation:"9 Conjunction Assessment Risk Analysis and Launch Collision Avoidance." National Research Council. 2011. Limiting Future Collision Risk to Spacecraft: An Assessment of NASA's Meteoroid and Orbital Debris Programs. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/13244.
Today, satellite operators—including NASA—must launch and then maintain their satellites in a risky environment that is the result of a combination of threats. One of those threats is the presence of natural and artificial debris in the near-Earth space environment, and the increasing potential for high-impact events (e.g. on-orbit collisions) makes spacecraft even more vulnerable (Box 9.1).
Mitigating the risk of debris events to operational satellites requires different approaches based on the type of debris. Protecting against natural debris (meteoroids) must be addressed via passive techniques (e.g., shielding), since it is currently impossible to track these objects and predict their course to enable an operator to take evasive action. The same is true for small artificial debris, which cannot be tracked with today’s space surveillance networks.
The U.S. Space Surveillance Network (SSN) can track objects only down to about 10 cm in LEO (below 2,000 km) and 1 m in geosynchronous Earth orbit (GEO). The Joint Space Operations Center (JSpOC) currently tracks more than 22,000 objects larger than these thresholds. NASA, however, estimates that half a million objects larger than 1 cm reside in LEO—the size object that some portions of the International Space Station (ISS) are shielded to withstand. Typical satellites are not shielded even this well, and untracked objects larger than 5 mm can cause substantial damage, with relative velocities as high as 15 km/s in LEO, but with an average relative velocity in LEO of about 10 km/s. The relative velocity for collisions in GEO is much smaller, with an average of 500 m/s. Until better space surveillance tracking capabilities are operational, the threat of collisions with these untracked objects cannot be mitigated. An upgrade to the current U.S. Air Force (USAF) Space Fence is planned, and Phase 2 is in progress. The new fence will more accurately track objects as small as 5 cm in diameter in LEO.
To mitigate the risk of collision with a cataloged object, NASA performs two processes. Conjunction assessment risk analysis (CARA; at GSFC for robotic spacecraft)/conjunction assessment (CA; at JSC for the ISS and the space shuttle) is the process performed for mitigating the risk of an operational satellite colliding with a cataloged object, and launch collision avoidance (COLA) is the process performed to try to prevent a collision with a cataloged object during launch.
On February 10, 2009, the satellite communications company Iridium lost contact with one of its spacecraft, Iridium 33. Earlier that day, Iridium had received a prediction of a close approach of 584 m (1,916 ft) between Iridium 33 and another orbiting spacecraft, the non-operational Russian communications satellite Cosmos 2251. Iridium had received close approach reports before, and the one on February 10 was not particularly alarming or deemed a “top predicted close approach” compared to other predicted close-approach events for that week. Nevertheless, at the time the close approach was predicted to occur above northern Siberia, Iridium abruptly stopped receiving telemetry from its spacecraft.
Iridium created its own collision analysis process during the initial development and launch phase of the Iridium constellation of satellites. Although the data available for tracking a satellite’s position are the best the U.S. government can offer, those data were not designed to be used for conjunction analysis, although they are being used for that purpose today. Prior to the Iridium–Cosmos collision, Iridium had never made an on-orbit maneuver with one of its satellites in response to a close approach prediction. Between February 2009 and February 2011, Iridium made 41 collision mitigation maneuvers based on 46 close approach warnings;6 however, all of these actions were integrated into normal constellation maintenance actions and so had little impact on Iridium operations.
1 NASA Orbital Debris Program Office, “Orbital Debris Frequently Asked Questions,” available at http://orbitaldebris.jsc.nasa.gov/faqs.html#3.
2 Government Accountability Office, Space Acquisitions: Development and Oversight Challenges in Delivering Improved Space Situational Awareness Capabilities, Report to the Subcommittee on Strategic Forces, Committee on Armed Services, House of Representatives, GAO-11-545, Washington, D.C., May 2011.
3 NASA Orbital Debris Program Office, “Orbital Debris Frequently Asked Questions,” available at http://orbitaldebris.jsc.nasa.gov/faqs.html#3.
4 See T.S. Kelso, “Iridium 33/Cosmos 2251 Collision,” updated May 13, 2011, available at http://celestrak.com/events/collision/.
5 J. Lyver, NASA, presentation at the Workshop to Identify Gaps and Possible Directions for NASA’s Micrometeoroid and Orbital Debris Programs, March 9, 2011, National Research Council, Washington, D.C.
6 J. Campbell, Iridium, presentation at the Workshop to Identify Gaps and Possible Directions for NASA’s Micrometeoroid and Orbital Debris Programs, March 9, 2011 National Research Council, Washington, D.C.
FIGURE 9.1.1 View of Iridium 33 and Cosmos 2251 orbits and debris from each spacecraft 180 minutes after their collision with one another. What should be one dot for each orbit is now thousands. SOURCE: Courtesy of T.S. Kelso, CelesTrak.com.
FIGURE 9.1.2 Screen shot from AGI Viewer 9 file of current Iridium constellation and collision debris clouds. SOURCE: Courtesy of T.S. Kelso, CelesTrak.com.
determine the orbits of all known objects relative to the operational satellite population in order to facilitate decision making regarding whether to take preemptive action to avoid potential collisions. To perform CARA/CA, a satellite operator must know not only the orbit of their satellites and the potential collision threats, but also the uncertainty associated with those estimated orbits. This information can then be used to determine future close approaches and flag those that exceed a certain threshold (e.g., range at closest approach or probability of collision). When a close approach is identified that exceeds the operator’s threshold, the operator must know whether the potential threat is another operational satellite or a piece of debris (such as a spacecraft fragment or a dead satellite). If the potential threat is an operational satellite, which may be capable of maneuvering, the operator will also need to know how to contact the other operator to collaborate on a course of action and ensure that they do not unwittingly make the situation worse.
The computation of the probability of collision, Pc, is a critical part of CARA because it is that value that is the primary basis for the decision about whether or not to make a collision avoidance maneuver. The two key assumptions in the calculation of Pc for objects in LEO are that (1) the relative motion of the two objects at conjunction is rectilinear, and (2) the position uncertainty distributions of the objects at conjunction are Gaussian. The first assumption is valid as the time interval of concern is about 0.25 s. The uncertainty (covariance) at conjunction is obtained by propagating the covariance from epoch (i.e., the time when covariance was calculated) to the conjunction time. This propagation is based on a linearization of the equations of motion about the reference (estimated) orbit. CARA is performed for conjunctions 6 to 7 days into the future. There is evidence that the Gaussian assumption may not be valid beyond 2 to 3 days into the future1 as a result of neglected nonlinearities in the propagation of the covariance. The quantitative impact of this non-Gaussian behavior on Pc is not known.
NASA currently performs CARA for about 50 missions as part of normal satellite operations and CA for the ISS and previously for the space shuttle. Although NASA and its partners (e.g., ESA) have the best data for those 50 satellites—including planned maneuvers—they do not have an independent means to perform orbit determination for the thousands of other objects that might pose a collision threat to their satellites. These data are available only by means of the JSpOC, but the data are not released to NASA or other satellite operators (for several reasons, including national security), with the exception of two-line element sets (TLEs), which are released only for the public catalog (more than 16,000 objects) and not for objects that have an unknown source (another ~7,000 objects, which still pose a threat).
Although TLEs are available to NASA and the public, several problems exist with these data. First, to propagate these data correctly, access is required to the same orbital model (Simplified General Perturbations 4 or SGP4) used to generate the data. However, the Air Force Space Command (AFSPC) has marked this model as “Export Controlled” and has not released it to the public since 1980. Without the changes made to this model since then, it is possible to have errors on the order of 1,000 km in GEO.
Second, although these data are generally good enough for their intended purpose to maintain tracking by the U.S. Space Surveillance Network (SSN), the associated uncertainties (which are not quantified or provided with the TLE data, but are on the order of hundreds of meters to kilometers in LEO and kilometers to tens of kilometers in GEO) contribute to high false-alarm rates and discourage efforts to perform CARA. The large uncertainties are the result of the nature of the SSN tracking that does not take into account maneuvers when computing the TLEs. It is not unusual for it to take a week or more to detect maneuvers and update the associated orbits. It is also common to see objects cross-tagged (switched) within the GEO population, since the noncooperative tracking has no independent way to know which object is which.
1 C. Sabol, T. Sukut, K. Hill, K.T. Alfriend, B. Wright, and P.W. Schumacher, “Linearized Covariance Generation and Propagation Analysis via Simple Monte Carlo Simulations,” Paper No. AAS 10-134, AAS/AIAA Space Flight Mechanics Conference, San Diego, Calif., February 14-17, American Astronautical Society, Springfield, Va., 2010.
processing, and the method used for determining the orbits from the observations. In addition, the probability of collision, Pc, is very sensitive to errors in the uncertainty near the threshold of the decision to maneuver, 10–4<Pc<10–3. An error of a factor of two in the uncertainty can change the probability of collision by at least two orders of magnitude.2 Release of the SP data occurs under very limited circumstances, and it would have to be released in near-real time for it to be useful to NASA. Consequently, NASA must rely on the JSpOC to screen its satellites and report close approaches based on what the JSpOC deems reasonable. Currently, the JSpOC looks out 5 to 7 days ahead, but reports only close approaches within 1 km total and 200 m radial for LEO objects and 5 km total for GEO objects 3 days ahead. The 3-day time horizon leaves little time for an operator to attempt to get better tracking data, make the necessary decision regarding collision avoidance measures, and then plan and conduct a maneuver if necessary.
The JSpOC provides only a state vector and covariance in its Orbit Conjunction Messages (OCM) to NASA when the JSpOC identifies a conjunction, but it is unclear where these data come from. Originally, the source was the SP data used in the analysis. However, even when it takes in ephemeris data from NASA, the JSpOC does not provide that information back in the OCM. Therefore, when the JSpOC does not use ephemeris data with maneuvers, it can report false conjunctions or miss real ones. The overall lack of transparency in the data and underlying processes serves to undermine confidence in the entire CARA process and increases the risk of collision for NASA missions.
NASA currently has little or no control over these data restrictions or the JSpOC processes used in the conjunction assessments. One potential recourse would be to participate in the non-profit Space Data Association’s Space Data Center (SDC), a collaborative effort in which 20 commercial and civil operators now share data on 300 satellites with the goal of improving the safety of space operations, including improving CARA. All SDC participants provide ephemeris for their satellites—including planned maneuvers—to be used in conjunction screening. Operator ephemeris data has been shown to be an order of magnitude more accurate than the SSN data (TLE data), due to its use of active tracking observations. That reduces the uncertainty volume by three orders of magnitude and helps make the problem much more manageable. In addition, the inclusion of maneuvers and lack of cross-tagging (since the satellite operators know which satellite is which) greatly reduce the number of false alarms and the chance of unnecessary or misguided actions. However, these data are available only for the satellites of the companies participating in the SDA. Hence, participation in the SDA can improve CARA only with the satellites participating in the SDC, but even with these satellites a probability of collision cannot be performed because covariance information is not provided.
It is important to understand how risk guides CARA efforts. Although the current CARA process and the data on which it relies can be improved, only a regular exercise of the process and identification of the shortcomings will make it an effective decision-making tool. As emphasized in An Introduction to Factor Analysis of Information Risk, “You can’t effectively and consistently manage what you can’t measure, and you can’t measure what you haven’t defined.”3 Without a clear understanding of how risk is defined, it cannot be appropriately managed.
2 K.T. Alfriend, M.R. Akella, D.-J. Lee, M.P. Wilkins, J. Frisbee, and J.L. Foster, Probability of collision error analysis, International Journal of Space Debris 1:21-35, 1999.
3 J.A. Jones, An Introduction to Factor Analysis of Information Risk (FAIR), draft, Risk Management Insight, Columbus, Ohio, 2005, available at http://riskmanagementinsight.com/media/documents/FAIR_Introduction.pdf, accessed July 20, 2011.
discovered that the problem were manageable at low cost, but that the satellite operator chose to ignore the risk or that its efforts were confounded by unnecessary bureaucratic obstacles.
Under the new 2010 National Space Policy, NASA is required to take efforts to preserve the space environment—specifically, to “pursue research and development of technologies and techniques … to mitigate and remove on-orbit debris, reduce hazards, and increase understanding of the current and future debris environment.”4 NASA can and must perform CARA on its satellites to reduce the hazard to other satellites or the risk of creating more debris. NASA may take collaborative action—with organizations like the new Space Data Association—to promote transparency in CARA, promote best practices, and further reduce the likelihood of avoidable collisions that could impact national or economic security and further degrade the near-Earth space environment. These actions are all consistent with U.S. national space policy and would help NASA to more effectively and efficiently conduct CARA to support NASA space missions.
Finding: The computation of the probability of collision for use in an assessment of risk requires the uncertainty parameters in the orbits of the two objects at conjunction, and assumes that these uncertainties are represented by a Gaussian distribution. Research has shown that the uncertainty distribution typically is Gaussian for several days, but when propagating for more than 2 to 3 days it may no longer be Gaussian. In addition, the uncertainties provided by the JSpOC are known to be usually too small, and the probability of collision can be very sensitive to errors in the size of the uncertainty.
Recommendation: NASA should develop a research plan for (1) assessing the impact of inaccuracy in the uncertainty on computations of the probability of collision and on the ensuing risk assessment, and (2) improving the accuracy of the computation of the probability of collision, given the presence of these uncertainty errors.
Launch collision avoidance (COLA) (see item 16 in Box 12.1, Chapter 12) is the process of actively screening for potential collisions between a launch vehicle and known, tracked, on-orbit objects from liftoff through the end of the launch phase and subsequently taking action to avoid any unacceptable conjunctions. Range safety COLA applies to crewed or crewable space objects, and mission assurance COLA applies to uncrewed objects. COLA is performed by the Launch Services Program (LSP) at Kennedy Space Center. COLA is not required by LSP; it is performed at the request of the customer. GSFC has requested COLA for all of its missions for the primary purpose of protecting orbiting assets, not the satellite being launched. USAF instructions mandate the operational implementation of launch conjunction assessment and collision avoidance at AF-controlled ranges, and avoidance of crewed conjunctions is mandatory for safety.
4 National Space Policy of the United States of America, June 28, 2010, available at http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/national_space_policy_6-28-10.pdf, accessed July 6, 2011.
• How long should screening last? The AFI 91-217 requires launch COLA screening until the objects have entered the space object catalog,5 and this process can take several days. However, due to the large uncertainties in the launch dispersions (deviations from a planned trajectory), the COLA methodology cannot be reasonably used except for a few orbits after launch. This leaves a large gap in time.
• Does one use probability-based screening or miss-distance screening? The probability of collision is a function of the miss distance, the direction of the miss distance relative to the trajectory, and the uncertainty. Thus, one cannot select a probability of collision and obtain a minimum miss distance. The problem with probability-based screening is that the large dispersions with the launch vehicle trajectories usually result in a probability of collision of less than 10–5, and this risk is much lower than other risks usually associated with launch activities. Of 676 conjunctions analyzed by NASA, only 1 percent had probabilities of collisions greater than 10–5. LSP currently uses the probability-based approach.
Finding: The large uncertainties in the launch dispersions (deviations from a planned trajectory) that yield a probability of collision of less than 10–5 translate to a very low return on investment in launch collision avoidance (COLA), and funds could probably be used more effectively in some other area of debris mitigation. However, in the event of a collision during launch, the political realities of potentially having done nothing probably mean that the use of COLA needs to continue, especially for crewed launches.
5 B. Beaver, “Launch Collision Avoidance for MASA ELV Missions,” presentation to the Committee for the Assessment of NASA’s Orbital Debris Programs, January 19, 2011, National Research Council, Washington, D.C.
Derelict satellites, equipment and other debris orbiting Earth (aka space junk) have been accumulating for many decades and could damage or even possibly destroy satellites and human spacecraft if they collide. During the past 50 years, various National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) communities have contributed significantly to maturing meteoroid and orbital debris (MMOD) programs to their current state. Satellites have been redesigned to protect critical components from MMOD damage by moving critical components from exterior surfaces to deep inside a satellite's structure. Orbits are monitored and altered to minimize the risk of collision with tracked orbital debris. MMOD shielding added to the International Space Station (ISS) protects critical components and astronauts from potentially catastrophic damage that might result from smaller, untracked debris and meteoroid impacts.
Limiting Future Collision Risk to Spacecraft: An Assessment of NASA's Meteoroid and Orbital Debris Program examines NASA's efforts to understand the meteoroid and orbital debris environment, identifies what NASA is and is not doing to mitigate the risks posed by this threat, and makes recommendations as to how they can improve their programs. While the report identified many positive aspects of NASA's MMOD programs and efforts including responsible use of resources, it recommends that the agency develop a formal strategic plan that provides the basis for prioritizing the allocation of funds and effort over various MMOD program needs. Other necessary steps include improvements in long-term modeling, better measurements, more regular updates of the debris environmental models, and other actions to better characterize the long-term evolution of the debris environment. | 2019-04-24T12:35:31Z | https://www.nap.edu/read/13244/chapter/11 |
The Booking Terms below are applicable as of January 1st 2018.
The following Booking Conditions form the basis of your contract with Sunsational Yacht Charters Ltd, 23/6 South Elixa Place, Edinburgh, EH8 7PG. Please read them carefully as they set out our respective rights and obligations. By asking us to confirm your booking, we are entitled to assume that you have had the opportunity to read and have read these booking conditions and agree to them.
In these booking conditions, “you” and “your” means all persons named on the booking (including anyone who is added or substituted at a later date) or any of them, as the context requires. “We”, “us” and “our” means Sunsational Yacht Charters Ltd.
If charter date is within 3 months: Full payment of booking is required within 24 hours.
If charter date is 3 months or more – 50 % of full payment is required within 24 hours of booking and final payment is required 3 months prior to the charter date.
Failure to pay once opting to book online can result in legal proceedings and prosecution.
Bank Transfer: Sunsational Yacht Charters Ltd. bank account details are provided on the booking confirmation and accept payment in form of bank transfer. If payment is made by bank transfer, it is the responsibility of the renter to ensure that the correct amount is transferred (in reference to exchange rates for GBP £ prices). The renter also accepts responsibility for payment receipts being forwarded to Sunsational Yacht Charters Ltd. and ensuring that payment has been received by Sunsational Yacht Charters Ltd.
Credit card(s): Credit cards usually accepted within Sunsational Yacht Charters Ltd. are "Mastercard" and "Visa".
Additional surcharges apply for clients wishing to pay with "American Express".
The credit card holder must be identified as the renter (the "main renter" to be mentioned on the booking agreement) OR needs to have written consent in the form of a third party authorisation form for use of another’s credit card. Failure to do so can result in legal proceedings and prosecution.
A binding contract between us comes into existence when we despatch our confirmation invoice to the party leader. We both agree that Scottish Law (and no other) will apply to your contract and to any dispute, claim or other matter of any description which arises between us (“claim”) (except as set out below). We both also agree that any claim (and whether or not involving any personal injury) must be dealt with under the ABTA arbitration scheme (if the scheme is available for the claim in question and you wish to use it) or by the Courts of Scotland only unless, in the case of Court proceedings, you live in England or Wales or Northern Ireland. In this case, proceedings must either be brought in the Courts of your home country or those of Scotland. If proceedings are brought in England or Wales or Northern Ireland, you may choose to have your contract and claim governed by the law of England/Wales/Northern Ireland as applicable (but if you do not so choose, Scottish law will apply).
Some jurisdictions do not allow the exclusion of certain warranties or the limitation or exclusion of liability for incidental or consequential damages. Accordingly, some of the above limitations set out in this article may not apply. In particular, nothing in these terms and conditions will affect the statutory rights of any consumer or exclude or restrict any liability for death or personal injury arising from the negligence or fraud of Sunsational Yacht Charters Ltd. You expressly acknowledge and agree that Sunsational Yacht Charters Ltd., its officers, directors, employees will not be liable for any direct, indirect, incidental, special, consequential or exemplary damages, including but not limited to: damages for loss of profits, goodwill, use, data or other intangible losses (even if Sunsational Yacht Charters Ltd. has been advised of the possibility of such damages), resulting from the online booking.
Even in the above cases, only if the amount of any increase in our costs exceeds 2% of the total cost of your holiday (excluding insurance premiums and any amendment charges) will we levy a surcharge. We will only levy a surcharge in respect of the amount by which any increase in our costs exceeds 2% of this total holiday cost. If any surcharge is greater than 10% of the cost of your holiday (excluding insurance premiums and any amendment charges), you will be entitled to cancel your booking and receive a full refund of all monies you have paid to us (except for any amendment charges) or alternatively purchase another holiday from us as referred to in clause 10 “Changes and Cancellations by us”. Although insurance (where purchased through us) does not form part of your contract with us or of any “package”, we will consider an appropriate refund of any insurance premiums you have paid us if you can show you are unable to use/reuse or transfer your policy in the event of cancellation or purchase of an alternative holiday.
Where applicable, you have 14 days from the issue date printed on the surcharge invoice to tell us if you want to choose option (b) or (c) as set out in clause 10 below. If you do not tell us that you wish to choose either of these options within this period of time, we are entitled to assume that you do not wish to do so and will pay the surcharge. Any surcharge must be paid with the balance of the cost of the holiday or within 14 days of the issue date printed on the surcharge invoice, whichever is the later.
Failure to arrive at your booked boat prior to scheduled departure without notification from the user of delay may result in the booking being canceled with full charge.
Sailing can be hard and requires a reasonable level of physical and mental strength. You will be expected to be able to participate in all aspects of sailing a yacht, and should be physically and mentally able to do so. If you or any member of your party has any medical condition or disability which may affect your holiday or has any special requirements as a result of any medical condition or disability (including any which affect the booking process), please tell us before you confirm your booking so that we can assist you in considering the suitability of the arrangements and/or making the booking. In any event, you must give us full details in writing at the time of booking and whenever any change in the condition or disability occurs. You must also promptly advise us if any medical condition or disability which may affect your holiday develops after your booking has been confirmed. If we reasonably feel unable to properly accommodate the particular needs of the person concerned, we must reserve the right to decline their reservation or, if full details are not given at the time of booking or the condition / disability develops after booking, cancel when we become aware of these details.
Should you wish to make any changes to your confirmed holiday, you must notify us in writing as soon as possible. Whilst we will endeavour to assist, we cannot guarantee we will be able to meet any such requests. Where we can, an amendment fee of £50 per booking will be payable together with any costs incurred by ourselves and any costs or charges incurred or imposed by any of our suppliers. A change of holiday dates will normally be treated as a cancellation of the original booking and rebooking in which case cancellation charges will apply. Changes may result in the recalculation of the holiday price where, for example, the basis on which the price of the original holiday was calculated has changed.
If any member of your party is prevented from traveling, the person(s) concerned may transfer their place to someone else (introduced by you) providing we are notified not less than two weeks before departure. Where a transfer to a person of your choice can be made, all costs and charges incurred by us and/or incurred or imposed by any of our suppliers as a result together with an amendment fee of £50 must be paid before the transfer can be effected. Any overdue balance payment must also be received. For flight inclusive bookings, you must pay the charges levied by the airline concerned. As most airlines do not permit name changes after tickets have been issued for any reason, these charges are likely to be the full cost of the flight.
Should you or any member of your party need to cancel your holiday once it has been confirmed, the party leader must immediately advise us in writing. Your notice of cancellation will only be effective when it is received in writing by us at our offices. As we incur costs from the time we confirm your booking, the following cancellation charges will be payable. Where the cancellation charge is shown as a percentage, this is calculated on the basis of the total cost payable, excluding insurance premiums and amendment charges. Insurance premiums and amendment charges are not refundable in the event of cancellation.
See clause 7 “Changes by you” if any member(s) of your party are prevented from travelling.
We start planning the holidays we offer many months in advance. Occasionally, we have to make changes to and correct errors in brochure and other details both before and after bookings have been confirmed and cancel confirmed bookings. Whilst we always endeavour to avoid changes and cancellations, we must reserve the right to do so. However, we promise we will only cancel your confirmed booking after you have made full payment where we are forced to do so as a result of circumstances outside our control/“force majeure” as defined in clause 11 below or lack of minimum numbers. We will not cancel after this date for any other reason. Please note, some of our yacht charters require a minimum number of participants to enable us to operate them. If the minimum number of bookings required for a particular holiday have not been received, we are entitled to cancel it. We will notify you of cancellation for this reason within 30 days of departure.
Most changes are minor. Occasionally, we have to make a “significant change”. A significant change is a change made before departure which, taking account of the information you give us at the time of booking and which we can reasonably be expected to know as a tour operator, we can reasonably expect to have a major affect on your holiday. Significant changes are likely to include the following changes when made before departure; a change of accommodation to that of a lower official classification or standard for the whole or a major part of the time you are away, a change of sailing location for the whole or a major part of the time you are away, a change of outward departure time of 12 or more hours, a change of Bahamas departure point to one which is more inconvenient for you and, in the case of tours, a significant change of itinerary missing out one or more major destination substantially or altogether. We reserve the right to place you in a yacht according to the yachts available, the total number of participants and also all participants sailing experience, this may involve the use of larger or small yachts and we both agree that any change of yacht for these bookings will be classified as a minor change.
Very rarely, we may be forced by "force majeure" (see clause 11) to change or terminate your holiday after departure but before the scheduled end of your time away. This is extremely unlikely but if this situation does occur, we regret we will be unable to make any refunds (unless we obtain any refunds from our suppliers), pay you any compensation or meet any costs or expenses you incur as a result.
(4) The promises we make to you about the services we have agreed to provide or arrange as part of our contract - and the laws and regulations of the country in which your claim or complaint occurred - will be used as the basis for deciding whether the services in question had been properly provided. If the particular services which gave rise to the claim or complaint complied with local laws and regulations applicable to those services at the time, the services will be treated as having been properly provided. This will be the case even if the services did not comply with the laws and regulations of the UK which would have applied had those services been provided in the UK. The exception to this is where the claim or complaint concerns the absence of a safety feature which might lead a reasonable holidaymaker to refuse to take the holiday in question. Please note, however, our obligation is to exercise reasonable skill and care as referred to in clause 12(1). We do not make any representation or commitment that all services will comply with applicable local laws and regulations and failure to comply does not automatically mean we have not exercised reasonable skill and care.
Where we are found liable for loss of and/or damage to any luggage or personal possessions (including money), the maximum amount we will have to pay you is £500.00 per person affected unless a lower limitation applies to your claim under this clause or clause 12(6) below. You must ensure you have appropriate travel insurance to protect your personal belongings.
For all other claims which do not involve death or personal injury, if we are found liable to you on any basis the maximum amount we will have to pay you is twice the price (excluding insurance premiums and amendment charges) paid by or on behalf of the person(s) affected in total unless a lower limitation applies to your claim under clause 12 (6) below. This maximum amount will only be payable where everything has gone wrong and you have not received any benefit at all from your holiday.
(6) Where any claim or part of a claim (including those involving death or personal injury) concerns or is based on any travel arrangements (including the process of getting on and/or off the transport concerned) provided by any air, sea or rail carrier to which any international convention or EU regulation applies, our liability (including the maximum amount of compensation we will have to pay you, the types of claim and the circumstances in which compensation will be payable) will be limited as if we were the carrier in question as referred to below. The most we will have to pay you for that claim or that part of a claim if we are found liable to you on any basis is the most the carrier concerned would have to pay you under the international convention or regulation which applies to the travel arrangements in question (for example, the Warsaw Convention as amended or unamended and the Montreal Convention for international travel by air and/or for airlines with an operating licence granted by an EU country, the EC Regulation on Air Carrier Liability No 889/2002 for national and international travel by air, the Athens Convention for international travel by sea (as amended by the 2002 protocol where applicable) and COTIF, the Convention on International Travel by Rail). Where a carrier would not be obliged to make any payment to you under the applicable international convention or regulation in respect of a claim or part of a claim, we similarly are not obliged to make a payment to you for that claim or part of the claim. When making any payment, we are entitled to deduct any money which you have received or are entitled to receive from the carrier for the claim in question. Copies of the applicable international conventions and regulations are available from us on request.
In the unlikely event that you have any reason to complain or experience any problems with your holiday whilst away, you must immediately inform our local representative or agent (if we have one) and the supplier of the service(s) in question. Any verbal notification must be put in writing and given to our representative / agent and the supplier as soon as possible. If we do not have or you cannot contact our local representative or agent and any complaint or problem is not resolved to your satisfaction by the supplier, you must contact us in the UK using the contact details we have provided you with during your holiday, giving us full details and a contact number. Until we know about a complaint or problem, we cannot begin to resolve it. Most problems can be dealt with quickly. If you remain dissatisfied, however, you must write to us within 28 days of your return to the UK giving your booking reference and full details of your complaint. Only the party leader should write to us. For all complaints and claims which do not involve death, personal injury or illness, we regret we cannot accept liability if you fail to notify the complaint or claim entirely in accordance with this clause. If you fail to follow this simple complaints procedure, your right to claim any compensation you may otherwise have been entitled to may be affected or even lost as a result.
When you book with us, you accept responsibility for any damage or loss caused by you or any member of your party except where a yacht security waiver has been paid. Full payment for any such damage or loss (reasonably estimated if not precisely known) must be made direct to the accommodation owner or manager or other supplier or to us as soon as possible and we reserve the right to deduct any sum(s) owing in whole or in part from your security deposit. If the actual cost of the loss or damage exceeds the amount paid where estimated, you must pay the difference once known. If the actual cost is less than the amount paid, the difference will be refunded. You will also be responsible for meeting any claims subsequently made against us and all costs incurred by us (including our own and the other party’s full legal costs) as a result of your actions. You should ensure you have appropriate travel insurance to protect you if this situation arises.
We expect all clients to have consideration for other people, themselves, and any property including our yachts. You are not permitted to smoke on any of our yachts. If in our reasonable opinion or in the reasonable opinion of any other person in authority, you or any member of your party behaves in such a way as to cause or be likely to cause danger, upset or distress to any third party or damage to property, including excessive alcohol consumption, we are entitled, without prior notice, to terminate the holiday of the person(s) concerned. In this situation, the person(s) concerned will be required to leave the accommodation or other service. We will have no further responsibility toward such person(s) including any return travel arrangements. No refunds will be made and we will not pay any expenses or costs incurred as a result of the termination.
Currently for stays up to 3 months in duration a passport with a validity of 3 months is required, an additional period of validity beyond this is not required. British Citizens do not presently require a visa for The Bahamas. Requirements may change and you must check the up to date position in good time before departure. A full British passport presently takes approximately 2 to 6 weeks to obtain. If you or any member of your party is 16 or over and haven't yet got a passport, our recommendation is that you should apply for one at least 6 weeks before your holiday. The UK Passport Service has to confirm your identity before issuing your first passport and will ask you to attend an interview in order to do this. If you or any member of your party is not a British citizen or holds a non British passport, you must check passport and visa requirements with the Embassy or Consulate of the country(ies) to or through which you are intending to travel.
There are presently no compulsory health requirements for British Citizens visiting The Bahamas. It is your responsibility to ensure you are aware of all recommended vaccinations and health precautions in good time before departure. Details are available from your GP surgery and from the National Travel Health Network and Centre www.nathnac.org. Information on health abroad is also available on www.nhs.uk/Livewell/Travelhealth. At the time of publication, we are not aware of any compulsory health requirements applicable to British citizens taking any of the holidays offered. Vaccination and other health requirements/recommendations are subject to change at any time for any destination. Please therefore check with a doctor or clinic not less than six weeks prior to departure to ensure that you have met the necessary requirements and have the applicable information.
The Company occasionally uses photographs and video recordings, taken during holidays, in promotional material for the marketing of our holidays. We prefer to use real people enjoying themselves rather than contrived posed shots. If you do not wish to be photographed or recorded in this way during your holiday please let us know. Photos and videos sent to us for competitions or to illustrate your holiday are done so on an open source basis, we reserve the right to use them to promote our holidays unless you restrict their use at the time. | 2019-04-22T01:13:18Z | https://sunsationalcharters.com/booking-terms-and-conditions |
Worldviews are tremendously encompassing in substance and enveloping in observance. In any society, the dominant worldview usually refers to the totality of human existence. In other words, everything that human beings experience is shaped by the opinions provided by their view of the world. Sociological studies point out that the so-called dominant worldview is the one that is generally held by most members of society, and thus, it establishes the culturally accepted definitions of social reality.
Aside from the dominant worldview, there may also be one or more alternative worldviews, which is apparently not held by a majority of the members of the society. Even then, for those who believe in that particular alternative worldview, the totality of their human experience is defined by it. A person’s worldview is acquired through his continuous socialization and social interaction within the society in which he lives.
It is this society that reinforces this worldview throughout his lifetime. More often than not, the person accepts his worldview as the unquestionable fact. It is something that is ever-present everyday of his life. In fact, it influences most of his thinking and actions. It is rarely altered in a substantial way. It is, however, possible for worldviews to slowly change over time. Most people often interpret everything that is happening around them according to their worldview.
For example, if they believe that political leaders generally attempt to serve the public interest, when they observe a leader acting dishonestly they are likely to excuse his actions as ‘doing the best he could under the circumstances’ rather than alter their belief by accepting the fact that political leaders sometimes act in their own personal self-interest (Olsen, Lodwick and Dunlap 1992, 13).
However, when observed events and people’s worldview result to some discrepancies which become too obvious to be ignored or excused, people often integrate conflicting beliefs and values into their worldview to the point of ignoring the resulting contradictions. For example, if a politician’s lies become too blatant, people may no longer be able to offer excuses, and instead view them as functionally necessary. Their worldview may change to insist that public deception is actually essential for ‘national security. ’ Accordingly, people’s worldviews often contain several inconsistencies.
Despite strong resistance to change, some people occasionally convert from one worldview to another under some situations. By being a ‘convert,’ the process usually involves a total transformation of the way in which a person holds his views of the world. In the same way, the dominant worldview prevailing in a society may become altered in major ways. This will then represents an entirely new view of reality. When this occurs, there are huge ramifications on most facets of social life. Eventually, this will completely change the culture and social structure of a particular society.
In other words, worldviews are composed of beliefs or belief systems and the social value associated with them. A wide-ranging worldview will, by and large, encompass a wide variety of both these components. Therefore, to understand worldviews, it is imperative to examine the beliefs/belief systems and the social values that they contain. A belief is something believed or accepted as true, especially a particular tenet or a body of tenets accepted by a group of persons, regardless of any disconfirming evidence (American Heritage Dictionary 2006).
For example, despite photographs of a round earth taken from space, some people today still believe that the world is flat. More significant for social life are beliefs about categories of people. Two of these are the ideas that blacks are mentally mediocre to whites, and that all poor people are personally accountable for their condition because of their reluctance to hold a steady job. A belief system, on the other hand, is plus points of interconnected beliefs dealing with a broad social condition. As a result, it is more complex than any of the specific beliefs incorporated within it.
The individual beliefs making up a belief system tend to form a more-or-less integrated whole, even if that system may display several internal discrepancies. A very popular belief system during the early part of this century is Social Darwinism. It held that social life is an incessant battle for continued existence and supremacy, symbolized by never-ending competition. The most capable and hard-working individuals tend to be triumphant in this competition, while people who are alleged to be incompetent and inferior are generally tagged as losers in life.
Consequently, socioeconomic inequality is both natural and justified. All efforts to decrease inequality through government programs are superfluous and bound to fail from the start. Another belief system that has created substantial public controversy is the creation of the universe. According to the Bible, human beings were created in their present form within the past 10,000 years, so that all theories about the biological evolution of homo sapiens over several million years are made-up.
This belief system claims that human beings are a unique form of life that are specially favored by the Creator, and that they are given the divine mandate to rule over all other life forms. Specific beliefs are the components of a worldview, while belief systems provide its central framework. As discussed earlier, a total worldview is much broader than any particular belief or belief system. So while a belief is restricted to some portions or aspects of life, a worldview deals with much or all of human existence.
Therefore, a worldview holds countless beliefs and belief systems. Some of these may be tightly interrelated, even as others may be contradictory to one another. In most cases, people tend to be much more aware of their beliefs and belief systems than they are of their worldview. They typically choose to adopt their beliefs and belief systems, and they sometimes decide to adjust or discard them. In contrast, their worldview is such a deep-seated and encompassing structure interpreting social life that in most cases, it is simply overlooked most of the time.
B. The Presence of Divine Providence in Christian theology In Christian theology, Divine Providence is the dominion and supremacy of God over people and events that occur in the universe throughout history (wikipedia. org). The traditional religious point of view asserts God’s Omnipotence, Omniscience, and Omnipresence. So by faith, human beings accept God’s control in every event. In other words, the things and incidents that make up our individual biographies are woven together by God to serve His purposes and His ways.
Within this realm, there are various views as to the extent of God’s personal involvement in His creations’ lives. There are those who believe that God has created intermediary forces such as nature, and good and evil influences. Human beings are subject to these forces and it is up to them to gain power over these. Simultaneously, they do believe that God can intercede any time, under appropriate situations. This is the reason why there is the prevalent belief that God lets things run their course but may decide to arbitrate when someone offers a special prayer request.
We can say that divine providence, understood in the most generic sense, is expressed especially in God’s continuous creation of the cosmos, otherwise called “conservation. ” In this sense providence is an unending confirmation of the work of creation in all its richness and variety, which implies the constant presence of God as Creator in the universe. It is a presence which continually reaches the deepest roots of everything that exists. Moreover, it operates there as the first cause of being and of action. The Book of Genesis states: “God saw that it was good… that it was very good” (Gen 1:25, 31).
That constitutes the fundamental and unshakable affirmation of the work of creation and the existence of Divine Providence. In John Calvin’s theological framework, he emphasizes the depravity of man and the complete sovereignty of God. According to him, God’s plan for the whole world and for every living soul in the universe is guided by His will or providence. Calvin claims that the idea that man has a free will and is capable of making choices independent of what God has already planned is based on human being’s limited understanding of God’s perfection and the illusion that man is capable of rejecting God’s plan.
In other words, Calvin adheres to the thought that divine providence exist in this world, and that man – no matter how hard he tries – cannot go against the will of God. This, in turn, is the jump-off point of Christian theology. Many Christian evangelists have interpreted Biblical passages in relation to current events and have even used these to allegedly predict future occurrences. In many ways, this may be construed as a way of trying to understand divine providence or God’s plan for the universe through His words. In traditional Christian theology, God is the creator of both heaven and earth.
He determines all that take place in the universe. This is the so-called divine providence or God’s sovereign guidance and control over His creation. Moreover, Christians believe that God is an absolutely perfect Being – omniscient and all-knowing (McCann 2001, 2). He knows all the truths and lies before they happen. He can see the past, the present and the future. In other words, Christian theology teaches that God is all-knowing, and His knowledge is from eternity. Another Christian belief is that God is omnipotent or all-powerful (McCann 2001, 2).
He can do anything that is logically possible. There is nothing in this universe that man can do and God cannot because man is merely an image of God. Therefore, God is more powerful than any of his creations, man included. Lastly, it is taught that God is perfectly good. In all circumstances, He acts for the best of humankind. He does things for the good of all. He always has the best intentions for his creations. With all these suppositions, the initial expectation would be that creation is ordained to perfect good, and that man lives in the best of all possible worlds.
However, many critics say that current evidence points out to the opposing direction. The world may contain much good, but it is also a place of suffering, destruction, and death. Sometimes these sufferings may even have no discernable purpose, thus happened in vain (McCann 2001, 4). And so with all these, the logical consistency of the belief in divine providence seems to disintegrate. The characteristics that are traditionally being associated with God – omniscience, omnipotence, and omnipresence – are apparently inconsistent with the evil that surrounds the world.
An omniscient God should have knowledge of all the evils in the world. An omnipotent God should be able to stop these evils, and an omnipresent God should be able to tell people what is right and wrong all the time. And yet, evil is everywhere. Could it be that God lacks one, or even all, of the characteristics mentioned above that proves the existence of divine providence? If this is the case, then he is not the God of Abraham, of Jesus, and of Mohammed (McCann 2001, 6). Critics of the divine providence concept argue that their God would not permit such sufferings under which all creation labors.
The logical answer to this argument is the fact that man has his own free will. God gave him that in the first place so he should use it to discern what is right and wrong. There are also those who argue that for every evil that occurs, human beings will be able to detect some good toward which it is directed. In other words, the end justifies the means. The free will defense distinguishes two kinds of evil: moral evil and natural evil. Moral evil is evil that happens through rational action. This means that it occurs through wrongful exercises of will on the part of man.
Natural evil, on the other hand, is designed entirely by natural forces (McCann 2001, 7). That most sins and so much sufferings count as moral evils is in line with the free will defense. This is because when this line of defense is used, God is not entirely held responsible for the evil act. It is simply man’s failure of moral judgment that made him resort to evil acts. Man’s responsibility lies not in the outcome of events and decisions, for this is managed by God. Rather, his ethics, morals, and faith lie in his intentions.
In other words, when man chooses good, he receives spiritual benefits not for being good but for choosing good when he could have chosen bad. Choosing good does not make man good; it only allows him to benefit from it spiritually. In Christian teachings, God maintains an impression of selfhood and freedom in the mind of everyone. Thus, man’s taste, preference, and style are really his own, and therefore he reaps the consequences of his choices in life. His choices are his own when he is allowed to be free. In other words, man’s free will is a gift from God and it is man who should be responsible with how he uses that gift.
God has already given His laws via the Ten Commandments and so man has to strive hard to live by these laws. In essence, since man has already been told by God what will please Him, man will then exercise his free will to choose between good and bad, and right or wrong. However he chooses is already up to him, and not God. This, in essence, is the idea of free will. The only problem with the free will defense is that, by virtue of exonerating God from man’s sins, it violates God’s supremacy and omniscience. This is the reason why up to now the Christian doctrine of divine providence is still being questioned.
Numerous studies have already conducted in this field, yet the debate continues. Both sides present their valid arguments so the long roads that will reconcile these two views have not yet converged. Eventually, Christians insist that divine providence recognizes God’s eternal plan and His creative design. The evil which originally had no place, once committed by man and permitted by God, is in the last analysis, subordinated to the good: “everything works for good” as the Apostle says (The Holy Bible, Rom 8:28).
Faith in divine providence remains strictly connected with the basic concept of human existence, and with the very meaning of human life. This is actually reinforced in the opening line of the Roman Catholics’ Apostles’ Creed: “I believe in God, the Father Almighty…” Indeed, his very basic belief in God keeps the Christian from throwing his beliefs out of the window. When all else fails, he believes that this will keep him through. Although he has no perception in his thought, and is not sensible by his eyesight, of the divine providence in its course, still he knows and acknowledges it.
In other words, in the Christian teaching, providence is God Himself, by which in His wisdom orders all events within the universe that the end for which it was created may be realized. That end is that all creatures should manifest the glory of God, and in particular that man should glorify Him, recognizing in nature the work of His hand, serving Him in obedience and love, and thereby attaining to the full development of his nature and to eternal happiness in God (Catholic Encyclopedia 2006).
The Christian teaching also adheres to the belief that the universe is a system of real beings created by God. Everything in this universe is being directed by Him to a supreme end, and His concurrence is necessary for all operations – natural or supernatural. In spite of man’s sin, which is due to his perversion of free will, God directs all to the final end for which the universe was created. All these operations on God’s part, with the exception of creation, are attributed to Divine Providence. And this is what the Christian faith is all about.
For the believers, divine providence does its work out of sight and in ways beyond comprehension (theheavenlydoctrines. com). This also explains why miracles hardly take place today. As with other things that are seen and comprehensible, miracles would compel a person to believe, and anything that compels takes freedom away. People of today ought to believe what they do not see, as is also clear from the God’s words to Thomas, in John, “Because you have seen Me, Thomas, you have believed; blessed are those who do not see and yet believe” (The Holy Bible, John 20:29).
In the end, the Christian teaching of divine providence rests on the Gospel. The Bible itself does not bring divine providence into the realm of scientific explanation of God’s existence and his power over the world. The problem was actually raised based on the subjective, practical, and teleological religious consideration of faith. Yet, in spite of all the various efforts to derive the concept of providence from empirical views of the world, it is apparent that empiricism does not really encourage ethical monotheism.
After all, the conviction of divine providence rests on the facts of moral consciousness, and on the sensible acknowledgment of the kingdom of God. Believers of the divine providence are convinced that all the elements of life’s experiences are mere parts in the creation of the supernatural divine kingdom. This belief manifests itself in the practice of prayer and the certainty that it will be heard by God, and in the acceptance of the universal activity of divine love. It is likewise ethically manifested in the accomplishment of the obligations arising from man’s concrete position in the universe. | 2019-04-25T17:43:41Z | https://niagarafallshypnosiscenter.com/an-evaluation-of-the-concept-of-worldviews/ |
The 1967–68 New Jersey Americans season was the first season of the franchise in the American Basketball Association (ABA). The Americans finished in a tied for fourth place with the Kentucky Colonels for the fourth and final playoff spot. However, due to the Teaneck Armory being booked and the Long Island Arena (the future home of the team) being unsuitable, the two teams did not play a one-game playoff, and thus the game was forfeited to the Colonels, giving them the last spot. The team would rebrand as the New York Nets before the next season started.
^ a b "1967-68 New Jersey Americans Roster and Stats - Basketball-Reference.com". Basketball-Reference.com.
^ "Remember the ABA: New Jersey Americans". www.remembertheaba.com.
^ "1967 ABA Draft". basketballreference.com.
Virginia Union University is a historically black university located in Richmond, United States. VUUs 84-acre campus is located at 1500 North Lombardy Street in Richmonds North Side, the University was founded in 1865 to give the newly emancipated freedmen an opportunity for education of the mind in an ethical, religious environment. A historically black university, Virginia Union University embraces the uniqueness and contributions of the African Diaspora, enrollment is open to all students without regard to racial background. The University provides comprehensive undergraduate liberal arts programs and graduate education for Christian ministries, the American Baptist Home Mission Society founded the school in 1865 shortly after Union troops took control of Richmond, Virginia, at the end of the American Civil War. Approximately 4 million former African American slaves, or freedmen, were to become citizens, many had been deprived of formal education and prevented from becoming literate by Southern state laws.
Southern states were in economic upheaval after the war, members of the ABHMS proposed a National Theological Institute to educate freedmen wishing to enter the Baptist ministry. Soon the proposed mission was expanded to offer courses and programs at college, high school and this effort was the beginning of Virginia Union University. Separate branches of the National Theological Institute were set up in Washington, D. C. and Richmond, with classes beginning in 1867. In Washington, the became known as Wayland Seminary, named in commemoration of Dr. Francis Wayland, former president of Brown University. The first and only president was Dr. George Mellen Prentiss King, famous students there included Dr. Booker T. Washington and Dr. Adam Clayton Powell, Sr. In Richmond, the efforts were more difficult, in 1899, the Richmond Theological Institute joined with Wayland Seminary of Washington to form Virginia Union University at Richmond. In 1932, the womens college Hartshorn Memorial College, established in Richmond in 1883, storer College, a historically black Baptist college in West Virginia, merged its endowment with Virginia Union in 1964.
Jacksonville University is a private university in Jacksonville, United States. JUs student body represents more than 40 U. S. states. As a Division I university, it is home to 19 sports teams, known as the JU Dolphins, as well as intramural sports, among the top majors declared by JU students are aviation management, nursing and marine science. The school was founded in 1934 by William J. Porter, originally known as William J. Porter University, it began as a private two-year college. Since a permanent site had not yet been acquired, classes were held on the floor of the First Baptist Church Educational Building in downtown Jacksonville. Sixty students were enrolled in Porter Universitys first year of operation, the school changed its name to Jacksonville Junior College in 1935. In 1947 the administration purchased land in Jacksonvilles Arlington neighborhood on which to establish the current campus, the first building was completed in 1950 and classes officially began. The same year the school received accreditation as a two-year college from the Southern Association of Colleges.
In 1958 Jacksonville Junior College merged with the Jacksonville College of Music, in 1959 the first four-year class graduated, and in 1962 JU received full accreditation as a four-year school from SACS. The 1960s saw the university grow substantially as enrollment increased, dormitories were built, in 1970 the Jacksonville University Dolphins mens basketball team, under star center Artis Gilmore, went to the NCAA Division I Championship. However, the opening of the public University of North Florida in 1973 eroded JUs enrollment, other University publications to have chronicled JU history throughout the decades include the JU Navigator, the Riparian, and The Wave magazine. Jacksonville University offers more than 70 majors and programs at the level, as well as 23 Masters and doctorate degree programs. M. A. M. A. T. and Master of Business Administration, JU has the second-largest Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps program in the nation and the longest-running in Florida. Jacksonville is a military- and veteran-friendly town, and is home to three military installations.
Saint Peters University is a private, coeducational Jesuit Roman Catholic college in the United States. Located in Jersey City, New Jersey, the school was founded as Saint Peters College in 1872 by the Society of Jesus, Saint Peters is one of 28 member institutions of the Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities. Saint Peters University offers over 60 undergraduate and graduate programs to more than 2,600 undergraduate and 800 graduate students and its college mascot is the Peacock and its sports teams play in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference, of which it is a founding member. The school is located on a 30-acre campus just south of Journal Square and weekend classes are offered in Jersey City, Englewood Cliffs, and South Amboy. In 2015-16, Saint Peters was ranked fifth nationwide by Money magazine in the category of Colleges That Add the Most Value, according to the magazine, the top value-added colleges are those that best help students exceed expectations. The University was ranked in the top 18% of all American colleges for educational quality, the U. S.
News & World Report Best Colleges 2016 guide ranked the institution among the top 100 universities in the Regional Universities North region. The college was chartered in 1872 and enrolled its first students in 1878 at Warren Street, in Jersey City, on the present site of its high school section. In September 1918, the college was closed, along several other Jesuit colleges and high schools. Although the war ended two months after its closing, and despite clamoring from alumni, it took until 1930 to re-open the college. The college was located on Newark Avenue, before moving in 1936 to its current location on Hudson Boulevard. Unlike other institutions in New Jersey, the school was segregated for many years. It was first integrated in 1936, when the college admitted its first black student, the college granted an honorary Doctor of Divinity degree to Martin Luther King, Jr. in 1965. Recent years have seen much construction for the college, in 1975, the college constructed the Yanitelli Recreational Life Center, a sports complex.
Augsburg College is a private, coeducational liberal arts college located in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Upon its founding in 1869, it was a Norwegian-American Lutheran seminary known as Augsburg Seminary and its first college class began in the fall of 1874. Today, the college enrolls approximately 3000 undergraduate students and 800 graduate students, the school is known for its emphasis on service learning, volunteering in the community is both an instructional strategy and a required part of a student’s coursework. In 2010 Augsburg College was one of the six higher education institutions to receive the Presidential Award for Community Service, sponsored by the Corporation for National, on March 2,2017, the school announced effective September 1,2017 the school would be named Augsburg University. Augsburg was founded as a seminary by Norwegian Lutherans and it was named after the Augsburg Confession, the confession of faith presented by Lutherans in Augsburg, Germany in 1530. Augsburg opened in September 1869, in Marshall, undergraduate classes first began in the fall of 1874 with the first class graduating in the spring of 1879.
In 1893, Augsburg leaders formed the Friends of Augsburg, which became the Lutheran Free Church in 1897, Women were first admitted to the college in 1921. The school was known as Augsburg Seminary until 1942 when the name was changed to Augsburg College. There was a school level Augsburg Academy on campus until it closed in 1933. August Weenaas was Augsburg’s first president, professor Weenaas recruited two teachers from Norway—Sven Oftedal and Georg Sverdrup. In 1874 they proposed a plan, train ministerial candidates, prepare future theological students, and third, educate the farmer, worker. The statement stressed that an education is practical. Augsburg’s next two presidents emphatically rejected ivory tower concepts of education and this commitment to church and community has led to Augsburg’s theme of over 130 years, Education for Service. This attitude began to change after World War I, in 1911, George Sverdrup, Jr. became president. He worked to develop college departments with an appeal to a range of students than just those intending to be ministers.
Amherst College is a private liberal arts college located in Amherst, United States. Founded in 1821 as an attempt to relocate Williams College by its president, Zephaniah Swift Moore, the institution was named after the town, which in turn had been named after Lord Jeffery Amherst. Amherst was established as a college and became coeducational in 1975. Amherst is an exclusively undergraduate four-year institution and enrolled 1,849 students in the fall of 2016, students choose courses from 38 major programs in an open curriculum. Students are not required to study a curriculum or fulfill any distribution requirements. Freshmen may take advanced courses, and seniors may take introductory ones, for the class of 2020, Amherst received 8,406 applications and accepted 1,161 yielding a 13. 8% acceptance rate. Amherst was ranked as the second best liberal arts college in the country by U. S. News & World Report, Amherst competes in the New England Small College Athletic Conference. Amherst has historically had close relationships and rivalries with Williams College, the college is a member of the Five College Consortium, which allows its students to attend classes at four other Pioneer Valley institutions.
These include Mount Holyoke College, Smith College, Hampshire College, founded in 1821, Amherst College developed out of the secondary school Amherst Academy. The college was originally suggested as an alternative to Williams College, although Williams remained open, Amherst was formed and diverged from its Williams roots into an individual institution. In 1812, funds were raised in Amherst for a school, Amherst Academy. This required an investment from benefactors. During the fundraising for the project, it clear that without larger designs. This led the committee overseeing the project to conclude that a new institution should be created, on August 18,1818, the Amherst Academy board of trustees accepted this conclusion and began building a new college. At its opening, Amherst had forty-seven students, fifteen of these had followed Moore from Williams College. Those fifteen represented about one-third of the number at Amherst. President Moore died on June 29,1823, and was replaced with a Williams College trustee, Williams alumni are fond of an apocryphal story ascribing the removal of books from the Williams College library to Amherst College, but there is no contemporaneous evidence to verify the story.
Teaneck Armory at 1799 Teaneck Road is an armory and arena located on a 13. 66-acre site in Teaneck, New Jersey. A facility of the New Jersey National Guard, it is home to the Soccer Coliseum, the facility was completed in 1936 at a cost of $1 million. It was designed by Louis S, from 1967–68, the arena was the home of the New Jersey Americans of the American Basketball Association, the team that became todays Brooklyn Nets. In 1997, the armory was renovated to a designed for indoor soccer known as the Soccer Coliseum. Over the years the expansive floor and high-ceilinged space has been used for film shoots, including Sweet and Lowdown, Youve Got Mail, Bogus. The armory has hosted concerts, three-quarter midget car races, circuses, indoor soccer. It has used for ceremonies and celebrations commemorating Eid ul-Adha. The Teaneck Armory can be distinguished by the M42 Duster anti-aircraft vehicle, other elements of the New Jersey National Guard based at the Teaneck Armory have been deployed to Afghanistan, Guantanamo Bay and Kosovo, among other places.
Lloyd Sonny Dove was an American professional basketball player, who was Native American through his mother, a member of the Mashpee Wampanoag. As a star at St. Johns University in New York, in his last season of 1967 and that year he was part of the United States basketball team that won the gold medal at the Pan American Games in Winnipeg. His record has continued to him one of the top players ever at St. Johns. In 2005 Dove was among the first ten men selected for Basketball Legacy Honors at the university, in 2011 Dove was inducted into the New York City Basketball Hall of Fame. Lloyd Dove, Jr. was born in Brooklyn, New York in 1945 and his father was Lloyd Dove a member of the Narrangansett tribe. Dove was Mashpee Wampanoag and the sister of Earl Mills, Sr. the hereditary sachem since 1956 of this people and his siblings are Larry Dove of Mashpee and Gladys Dove Barnes of Queens, N. Y. By Wampanoag matrilineal tradition, the children are considered to belong to the mothers clan, in 1951 Adeline Dove married Donald Hicks, Sr.
of Mashpee and returned to the town where she had grown up. She had more children with Donald, Donnella Hicks Pocknett, Errol Hicks, Donald Hicks, Jr. and Gary Hicks, Dove graduated from St. Francis Preparatory School in Brooklyn, where his skill at basketball was noted. He was recruited for St. Johns University by Lou Carnesecca, Dove attended St. Johns University, where he was a forward and played for three seasons. He started under the legendary coach Joe Lapchick and was nicknamed the Big Indian, at St. Johns, Dove as of 1983 was the fifth-highest scorer and second-ranked rebounder in its basketball history. In his last season of 1966–67, before being recruited by a professional team, Dove was selected by the Detroit Pistons with the fourth pick of the 1967 NBA draft. He played two years with the Pistons before joining the New York Nets of the ABA, with whom he remained until 1972, in his NBA/ABA career, Dove averaged 11.1 points per game and 6.0 rebounds per game. His pro career ended when Dove shattered his leg in a bicycle accident, after his pro career, Dove returned to St.
Benedict College is a four-year historically black, liberal arts college located in Columbia, South Carolina. Founded in 1870 by northern Baptists, it was originally a teachers college and it has since expanded into a four-year college. Benedict College was founded in 1870 on a 110-acre plantation in Columbia and this new school was established for the recently emancipated people of African descent. Benedicts first class consisted of ten recently emancipated people of African descent and one teacher and he was a college-trained preacher from the North, who became president of the Institute. Benedict Institute set out from humble beginnings in a former slave masters mansion to prepare men and women to be powers for good in society. The dilapidated mansion, built in 1839, served as the first schoolhouse where grammar school subjects, along with Bible, eventually other subjects were added to the curriculum to address the original objective of the school, to train teachers and preachers. On November 2,1894, the institution was chartered as an arts college by the South Carolina Legislature.
From 1870 to 1930, Benedict College was led by seven northern white Baptist ministers, on April 10,1930, the Reverend John J. Starks, who earned his bachelors degree from the college in 1891, became the first African American president of the college. Five African American presidents have succeeded him, in 1994, with a strategic planning process in place, Benedict College set an enrollment goal of 2000 by the year 2000. The goal was achieved in 1996 with an enrollment of 2,138 students, the fall 2002 enrollment was 3,000. Benedict College is engaged in a strategic planning process, which will guide the College in the 21st century. The college is currently implementing a $50 million campus improvement plan, which includes land acquisition, during this period, new construction has included three residence halls, a parking garage, a campus center/dining hall, an Administration Building, and a Business Development Center. Additionally buildings were acquired to house a center, and the Division of Community Development/Center for Excellence.
The Kentucky Colonels were a member of the American Basketball Association for all of the leagues nine years. The name is derived from the historic Kentucky colonels, the Colonels won the most games and had the highest winning percentage of any franchise in the leagues history, but the team did not join the NBA in the 1976 ABA–NBA merger. The downtown Louisville Convention Center was the Colonels original venue for the first three seasons before moving to Freedom Hall for the seasons, beginning with the 1970–71 schedule. The Kentucky Colonels were only one of two ABA teams, along with the Indiana Pacers, to play for the duration of the league without relocating, changing its team name or folding. The Colonels were the major league franchise in Kentucky since the Louisville Breckenridges left the National Football League in 1923. The Louisville-based Colonels started their time in the ABA as a colorful franchise, among the things they were known for was their mascot Ziggy, a prize-winning Brussels Griffon dog that was owned by original team owners Joe and Mamie Gregory.
Some fans of the Colonels believed Ziggy was the owner of the club. Ziggy went to meetings and had a front row seat for games. The dog was even part of the logo for their first seasons. They were equally famous for publicity stunts, their most famous coming in 1968 when Penny Ann Early, the teams performance on the court was understandably overshadowed. Perhaps it was deserved, as they were mostly an average team and they were among the best long range shooters of their time, and benefitted greatly from the ABAs three-point line. Carrier spent 5 seasons with the club, while Dampier was a Colonel for all of their years, the early color of their franchise began to wane during the 1970–71 season, when they signed another Wildcat star in All-American Dan Issel. They dropped the green uniforms in favor of a Blue. Issels signing helped the Colonels become well known as a basketball team. In spite of a record in the regular season, they made a serious run at the 1971 ABA championship. They fell just short and lost to the Utah Stars in 7 games and they proved to be even better in 1971, with the signing of ferocious big man Artis Gilmore.
Westlake Hall was recently renovated and expanded to six times its original size.
Bradley's 84 acre campus on Peoria's west bluff.
Hillary Clinton campaigning at Augsburg, two days before Super Tuesday 2008.
Flags fly at Augsburg, during the 25th annual Nobel Peace Prize Forum (2013).
CDR Donnie Cochran at the dedication ceremony for the A4 Memorial on the campus of Savannah State University on May 10, 1991.Photo courtesy of Savannah State University, NROTC.
Randall Robinson and his wife in Haiti in 1994 at the inauguration ceremony of President Jean-Bertrand Aristide. | 2019-04-21T06:17:07Z | https://wikivisually.com/wiki/1967%E2%80%9368_New_Jersey_Americans_season |
Quantum information science addresses how the processing and transmission of information are affected by uniquely quantum mechanical phenomena. Combination of two-qubit gates has been used to realize quantum circuits, however, scalability is becoming a critical problem. The use of three-qubit gates may simplify the structure of quantum circuits dramatically. Among them, the controlled-SWAP (Fredkin) gates are essential since they can be directly applied to important protocols, e.g., error correction, fingerprinting, and optimal cloning. Here we report a realization of the Fredkin gate for photonic qubits. We achieve a fidelity of 0.85 in the computational basis and an output state fidelity of 0.81 for a 3-photon Greenberger-Horne-Zeilinger state. The estimated process fidelity of 0.77 indicates that our Fredkin gate can be applied to various quantum tasks.
Quantum information science addresses how the storage, processing, and transmission of information are affected by uniquely quantum mechanical phenomena, such as superposition and entanglement1. New technologies that harness these quantum effects are beginning to be realized in the areas of communication2,3, information processing4,5 and precision measurement6,7,8. For the realization of a universal gate set, by which, in principle, any quantum information task can be realized, two-qubit gates have been demonstrated9,10,11,12,13 and have been used to realize small-scale quantum circuits14,15. However, scalability is becoming a critical problem. It may therefore be helpful to consider the use of three-qubit gates16, which can simplify the structure of quantum circuits dramatically17,18. Although both the controlled-SWAP (CSWAP) gate (also called Fredkin gate)16 and the controlled-controlled-NOT gate (also called Toffoli gate)16 are representative three-qubit gates, a crucial difference is that the Toffoli gate has two control bits and only one target bit, so that the eigenstates of the operation are local states, whereas the Fredkin gate has only one control qubit that acts on the symmetry of the two target bits, so that the eigenstates of the operation are entangled symmetric/antisymmetric states of the target qubits. For this reason, the Fredkin gates can be directly applied to many important quantum information protocols, e.g., error correction19, fingerprinting20, optimal cloning21, and controlled entanglement filtering. Here we report a realization of the Fredkin gate using a photonic quantum circuit, following the theoretical proposal by Fiurášek22. We achieve a fidelity of 0.85 ± 0.03 for the classical truth table of CSWAP operation and an output state fidelity of 0.81 ± 0.13 for a generated 3-photon Greenberger-Horne-Zeilinger (GHZ) state. We also confirmed that the gate is capable of genuine tripartite entanglement with a quantum coherence corresponding to a visibility of 0.69 ± 0.18 for three-photon interferences. From these results, we estimate a process fidelity of 0.77 ± 0.09, which indicates that our Fredkin gate can be applied to various quantum tasks.
Since the implementation of a Fredkin gate with only single- and two-qubit gates requires five two-qubit gates and many single-qubit operations, it has not been realized yet in any qubit system23. For photonic qubits, the limited efficiency of the photonic quantum gates24 restricts the success rate of the Fredkin gate to 10−5. As has been proposed for the Toffoli gate17, the use of excess degrees of freedom may ease this difficulty, but this would require the precise control of a larger Hilbert space. As an alternative approach, Fiurášek proposed an implementation based on multi-photon control of an interferometer22.
Fiurášek’s proposal is based on single-photon interference in a Mach-Zehnder interferometer (Fig. 1A). It is well known that a single photon incident from mode A(B) is output from mode C(D) with 100% probability when the lengths of the two optical paths are the same, i.e., when the phase is ϕ = 0. On the other hand, when the pathlengths are different by λ/2(ϕ = π), a photon incident from mode A(B) will be output from the opposite mode, D(C). Figure 1B shows an optical partial SWAP gate based on this principle25, where the qubits are encoded into the polarization of photons. The target photonic qubits are input from T1in and T2in, and the gate operation is successful when the photons are output from T1out and T2out, respectively. By changing the phase ϕ, the different gate operations, including the identity gate (ϕ = 0), the SWAP gate (ϕ = π) and the gate (ϕ = π/2), can be obtained25.
(A) Mach-Zehnder interferometer. (B) Partial SWAP gate. (C) Proposal for a controlled SWAP gate by Fiurášek22. (D) Simplified circuit for a controlled SWAP gate, where the parity check gate in panel (C) is removed, and a controlled qubit is directly encoded onto an entangled photon pair by corresponding unitary operation U. The setup inside the squared dotted red line corresponds to that in panel (C). The state in mode C2out was projected onto plus diagonal polarization instead of the controlled phase shifter in panel (C). PPBS: Partially polarizing beam splitter. BS: Beam splitter. PBS: Polarizing beam splitter.
A quantum CSWAP can be realized by replacing the classical phase shifter with a photonic quantum phase gate (QPG). The phase of the QPG is changed by a control qubit: ϕ = 0(π) when the control qubit is |0〉(|1〉). Figure 1C shows the quantum CSWAP gate proposed by Fiurášek22. The QPG is realized by combining two optical controlled-NOT (CNOT) gates, which are based on the two-photon interferences at the partially polarizing beam splitters. The state of the control qubit is encoded into the state of the two photons incident to the CNOT gates by using an Einstein-Podolsky-Rosen (EPR) source and a quantum parity check: the encoder transforms the input state of the control photon into a state with a probability of 1/2.
In this proof-of-principle demonstration, we adopted a simplified scheme (Fig. 1D), where the control qubit is directly encoded into the entangled photon pair generated via spontaneous parametric down-conversion and local polarization operations. The CSWAP operation is successful when the photons are simultaneously detected at the output ports (T1out, T2out, C1out, C2out). To the best of our knowledge, the success probability of this operation (1/162) is the highest among the various proposals for photonic CSWAP gates. Note that for this simplified scheme, an unknown qubit cannot be used for the control qubit. However, the simplified scheme can still handle any (entangled) unknown target qubits together with a known control qubit in an arbitrary superposition state, and thus useful for many tasks, e.g. quantum finger printing and optimal cloning.
In order to demonstrate the proposed simplified CSWAP gate, the interferometer that is integrated with multiple optical quantum gates must be perfectly stabilized. As shown in Fig. 2A, we realized a highly stable photonic quantum circuit for the simplified CSWAP gate by using two key technologies: displaced-Sagnac architecture and hybrid partially polarizing beam splitters (PPBSs), which contain multiple PPBSs in one optical component. In this optical circuit, the two main optical paths of the interferometers in Fig. 1D are folded, and the two beam splitters (BSs) in Fig. 1D correspond to the blue beam splitter in Fig. 2A. In order to implement the different gate operations for each of the folded paths in the displaced-Sagnac interferometer, we used two types of hybrid PPBSs (specially ordered, OPTOQUEST Co., LTD.), each of which combines a PPBS and a mirror or BS. Since both of the folded optical paths experience the same optical components, the displaced-Sagnac architecture is intrinsically robust against disturbance. Figure 2B shows the interference fringe that occurs when a laser light is incident to T1in and detected at T2out. The fringe maintained a very high visibility V = 99.5% over a full week without any active stabilization.
(A) Experimental setup for controlled swap gate. H-PPBS: Hybrid partially polarizing beam splitter. The PBS reflects the vertical polarization component and transmits horizontal polarization. PPBS-As reflects vertically polarized light perfectly and reflects 1/3 of horizontally polarized light. H-PPBS1 is composed of a mirror and PPBS-A. H-PPBS2 is composed of a beam splitter and PPBS-A. (B) Classical interference fringe of a Sagnac interferometer. While varying the phase by rotating the phase plate (PP), we measured the output power at T2out. (C) Optical source. A lens (focus length = 600 mm) was placed in front of the BBO crystals to focus the beam. (D) Absolute value of the reconstructed density matrix of the generated state measured after the circuit (after the output couplers in mode C1out and C2out) using quantum state tomography. (E,F) Experimental results of CNOT gate operation in the computational basis using (E) PPBS-A1 and (F) PPBS-A2, where the computational basis of the gate is defined as for the control qubit and , for the target qubit. (G,H) Experimental results of CNOT gate operation in the complementary basis using (G) PPBS-A1 and (H) PPBS-A2, where the computational basis of the gate is defined as , for the control qubit and for the target qubit. For the CNOT operation at PPBS-A1, input photons from T1in and C1in are used for the target bit and control bit, respectively. For the CNOT operation at PPBS-A2, input photons from T1in and C2in are used for the target bit and control bit, respectively.
For the entangled photon pairs26 and the two single photons27 required for the CSWAP gate operation, we constructed the photon source shown in Fig. 2C. Ultraviolet laser pulses with a center wavelength of 390 nm from a frequency-doubled mode-locked Ti:sapphire laser (wave length: 780 nm; pulse width: 100 fs; repetition rate: 82 MHz) pumped a pair of 1.5 mm-thick Type-I β-barium borate (BBO) crystals. The pump laser light was diagonally polarized to generate the entangled photon pair . The pump laser was then reflected, and its polarization was changed to vertical by using a quarter-wave plate (QWP) for the generation of pairs of two single photons 26. The spatial decoherence, which is dependent on the emission angle, and the spectral-temporal decoherence, which is dependent on the group delay, are compensated by using an additional four BBO crystals (I–IV in Fig. 2)28,29. The relative phase between the H and V polarizations is adjusted by a wave plate. From the result of quantum state tomography (Fig. 2D), the fidelity of the entangled state is 0.962 ± 0.002, and the entanglement concurrence is 0.941 ± 0.001, indicating that this state is almost maximally entangled. After removing the scattered pump light by using an interference filter (center wavelength 780 nm; full width at half maximum 2 nm), the entangled photons are delivered to the circuit via single-mode fibers so that horizontally and vertically polarized photons propagate at the same speed inside the fibers, whereas single photons are delivered to the circuit via polarization maintaining fibers. Note that the polarizing beam splitters (PBSs) that are set just after the input couplers for T1in and T2in in Fig. 2A are used to increase the purity of the two target input photons. The QWPs and half-wave plates (HWPs) that are set after the input couplers for C1in and C2in are used to compensate the changes in polarization inside the single-mode fibers. The timing of the input photons injected to the photonic circuit is controlled by moving the positions of the fiber couplers.
The output photons in modes T1out, T2out, and C1out are filtered by polarization analyzers consisting of QWPs, HWPs, and PBSs, and the photons from each of seven possible output modes are detected by single-photon counting modules (SPCM-AQ-FC, Perkin Elmer). Using a multichannel photon correlator (DPC-230, Becker & Hickl GmbH), all the fourfold coincidence events were analyzed. Note that the events where more than three photon-pairs are simultaneously generated from the BBO crystal cause errors. The contribution of such events can be reduced by decreasing the pump power, which results in lower coincidence rate. We optimized the pump power considering both the uncertainty due to the limited number of detection events and the errors caused by the excess multi-pair emission events.
Since quantum control is realized by a sequence of two CNOT operations implemented by PPBS-A1 and PPBS-A2, we first evaluated these operations separately using two sets of complementary inputs13. Note that for this evaluation, the effect of the events with more than three photon-pairs were compensated using a separate measurement. Figure 2E and F show the results of using a CNOT operation for a computational basis for PPBS-A1 and PPBS-A2, respectively. The fidelity of the truth table of CNOT operation is 0.895 and 0.893 for PPBS-A1 and PPBS-A2, respectively. Figure 2G and H show the results of using a CNOT operation for a complementary basis for PPBS-A1 and PPBS-A2, respectively. The fidelity of the truth table for the complementary basis is 0.889 and 0.890 for PPBS-A1 and PPBS-A2, respectively. These results proved the high performance of the CNOT gates with two heralded single photon sources.
Figure 3 shows the measurement result of our controlled swap gate in the computational basis. In order to convert the coincidence rates to probabilities, we normalize them with the sum of the coincidence counts obtained for each of the respective input states. In the ideal case of our implementation, the target states are swapped if and only if the controlled qubit is in the logical |1〉 state. In Fig. 3, the diagonal components (0.28 for |101〉〈101| and 0.35 for |110〉〈110|) corresponding to the erroneous operations (non-swap for control qubit is 1) exist even though they are smaller than the correct operations (0.61 for |110〉〈101| and 0.56 for |101〉〈110|), where |110〉〈101| denotes the component of 101 input and 110 output. These diagonal components increased significantly for a higher pump power, indicating that these errors are in part caused by the events where more than three photon-pairs are generated simultaneously. The classical fidelity Fzzz of the controlled swap operation in the computational basis, defined as the probability of obtaining the correct output averaged over all eight possible inputs, was 0.85 ± 0.03.
Figure 3: Measurement result of our controlled swap gate in the computational basis.
The input basis of the gate is defined as , for the control qubit, , for the target 1 qubit, and , for the target 2 qubit. The output computational basis of the gate is defined as , for the control qubit, , for the target 1 qubit, and , for the target 2 qubit. Measurement was implemented during 130,000 sec for each input. The events where two pairs are generated and coupled to either (T1in, T2in) or (C1in, C2in) are compensated using separate measurements (see Methods).
The maximal value of C is 1/4 for separable states, 1/2 for biseparable states, and 1 for an ideal GHZ state. From the experimental data shown in Fig. 4, the estimated quantum coherence of 0.69 ± 0.18 indicates the fact that under the assumption of Gaussian statistics, we have more than 85% probability for C > 0.5 which can be achieved only by genuine three partite entanglement. See Methods for details.
Figure 4: Evaluation of the quantum coherent CSWAP operation.
The top of each panel (A–D) shows the fourfold coincidence probabilities for different measurement settings (M0, M1, M2, M3). The bottom of each panel shows, on a Bloch sphere, the corresponding measurement axis with its polar angle θ and azimuthal angle ϕ, which are shown in (E). For example, in panel A, the top of each panel shows all outcomes of the measurement in the HV basis for control, target 1, and target 2. The measurements were implemented during 320,000 sec for each measurement basis. The erroneous events where two photon-pairs are generated and coupled to either (T1in, T2in) or (C1in, C2in) are compensated using separate measurements (see Methods).
As mentioned above, it is reasonable to assume that the entanglement capability of the quantum gate originates from the coherence between the identity operation |0〉〈0| ⊗ I and the swap operation |1〉〈1| ⊗ Uswap. Based on this assumption, it is possible to estimate the process fidelity by taking the average of the classical fidelity Fzzz and the coherence C (see Methods). The estimated process fidelity, which is defined by the normalized product trace of the process matrix and the matrix describing the ideal process, obtained from these two sets of experimental data is . We are thus able to get a fairly good idea of how well the quantum process works by identifying the essential elements of process coherence directly with the non-classical coherence observed in a specific output state.
where M0 is the fidelity of the diagonal elements of the terms |010〉〈010| and |101〉〈101|. From the result of the HV basis measurement shown in Fig. 4A, M0 = 0.927 ± 0.183. Thus, the estimated fidelity for the output GHZ state is FGHZ = 0.81 ± 0.13.
To conclude, we have successfully demonstrated a CSWAP operation with a fidelity of 0.85 ± 0.03 for the classical truth table and an output state fidelity of 0.81 ± 0.13 for a generated 3-photon GHZ state. The quantum coherence of C = 0.69 ± 0.18 indicates the fact that under the assumption of Gaussian statistics, we have more than 85% probability for C > 0.5 which can be achieved only by genuine three partite entanglement. The estimated process fidelity of 0.77 ± 0.09 also indicates that our CSWAP gate is suitable for integration into larger quantum circuits. For the erroneous operation of the gate (23%), our rough estimation suggests that eighty percent of such errors are due to the imperfection of the current photon source which sometimes emits more than three photon-pairs (up to about 10%) simultaneously and has non-zero timing jitter due to group velocity mismatch (See Methods for details). One of the current challenges in the community is to improve the single photon sources with smaller excess photon components in the output. Examples are heralded single photon sources using multiple SPDC sources in parallel31,32, and single photon sources using quantum dots33,34. The current experimental demonstration also highlights the strong demand for such sources.
Although a measurement based approach is promising for future linear optics quantum computation in terms of efficiency35, photonic quantum circuits combining quantum gates are also useful for various applications or tasks for quantum information processing and quantum communication. The eigenstates of a multi-photon gate determine which states can be measured and distinguished by observing local changes in one of the photons. Since the eigenstates of the CSWAP gate are entangled symmetric/antisymmetric states of the target qubits, the CSWAP is especially useful for all implementations that require a QND measurement of entanglement. Next challenge would be the realization of the non-simplified scheme (Fig. 1C) for an unknown control qubit embedded in a polarization of a single photon. Although the probability of the success of the gate is the same with the simplified scheme (1/162), one needs to precisely control 5 photons (3 single photon inputs plus one ancillary entangled photon pair.) The demonstrated controlled-SWAP gate is successful only when the resultant single photons are output from each of the output modes one by one, which may limit its potential uses within larger quantum circuits without technically demanding non-demolition photon number measurements. A fully heralded controlled-SWAP gate using linear optics is also possible but would require a total of nine single photons22. For such experiments, efficient single photon sources will be important33. Note also that, different from an alternative realization of an optical quantum controlled SWAP operation recently reported by Patel et al.36, unknown photonic qubits encoded in polarization can be used as two target bits and the resultant state is output as three single-photon qubits. Thus our scheme is directly applicable for interesting tasks including quantum fingerprinting20, optimal cloning21, and can be used as a built-in component in photonic quantum circuits for other protocols.
For separable states, the three-photon coherence C is limited by the maximal local coherence of . For completely separable states, the maximal value of C is therefore . For biseparable states, the limit is given by the product of the maximal local coherence and the maximal two-photon coherence, . Therefore, three-photon coherences C larger than 0.5 indicate genuine tripartite entanglement.
Experimentally, the three photon coherence of the state results in strong correlations between the Bloch vector components in the equatorial plane. These correlations are easily observed as correlations between different polarization directions. Importantly, maximal correlations can be obtained whenever the directions of the Bloch vector components satisfy a specific relation between their angles in the XY-plane of the Bloch sphere. If we define , we find that is exactly equal to one whenever ϕ1 − ϕ2 + ϕ3 is an even multiple of π, or minus one if it is an odd multiple. This provides us with a particularly strong experimental criterion for three partite entanglement, since a rotation of each polarization by an angle of π/3 results in a sign flip for the correlation that is only obtained for local polarizations along ϕ = 0 if the angle of rotation exceeds π/2.
Thus, genuine three partite entanglement can be demonstrated if the average value of for the three polarization directions separated by angles of π/3 on the Bloch sphere is greater than 1/2. In order to derive eq. (8) from eq. (6), one may use the relations and . In and , the coefficients for are 1/2 and the coefficients for are , and for even numbers of the sign is opposite. As a result, we have . Note also that .
From the experimental results shown in Fig. 4, we obtained values of , , and . From these values C = 0.69 ± 0.18. The average value of each operator was calculated in such a way that, for example, , where P(ijk) is the probability that the logical value of ijk is detected in the measurement basis shown in Fig. 4C.
It may be worth noting that the high result for originates mostly from an unexpected dominance of 111 outcomes, indicating a contribution from local polarizations. However, the correlations and still exceed 1/2, which is a significant indication of the special correlation only observable for genuine three-partite entanglement. For example, for a separable state with , the values of and would be −1/8 each.
In order to derive this relation, note that the process is a superposition of and as shown in eq. (4) and the coherence C is a direct measure of the coherence between these two operations. In the process matrix, these can be represented by two diagonal elements and two off-diagonal elements, where Fzzz is the product trace of the real process and the diagonal elements, and C is the product trace of the real process and the off-diagonal elements. Based on these assumptions, our experimental results correspond to an estimated process fidelity of 0.77 ± 0.09.
In order to evaluate the performance of the gate, we need to know the four-fold coincidence counts caused by the case where a pair of photon is generated from each of the two parametric down converters (PDCs). However, there are cases where two pairs are generated from only one of the PDCs. We estimated the coincidence events caused by the latter events by performing separate measurements where the output of one of the PDCs was closed and subtracted the events observed in these measurements from the total four-fold detection. The process fidelity is degraded to 0.54 ± 0.03 if we do not perform this subtraction.
The measured reflectance for H and V polarization of the components of the hybrid optics are as follows. For H-PPBS1, PPBS-A1 RH = 34%, RV = 98%, Mirror RH = 99%, RV = 100%. For H-PPBS2, PPBS-A2 RH = 36%, RV = 98%, BS RH = 34%, RV = 38%.
Here we roughly estimate the effect of error sources on the non-unity quantum process fidelity of 77 ± 9%. The average of the observed visibilities of the two photon interference between the photons from different sources at PPBSs are 86.2%, where the pump laser power was enough attenuated to suppress the multi-pair emission events and the actual polarization-dependent reflectivity of the PPBSs (shown above) are taken into account. This degradation in the visibility is due to the spatio-temporal mode mismatch of the photons27. Based on the analysis similar to a ref. 37, we have found that the quantum process fidelity degrades about 7%. The same analysis also suggests that the difference of the measured transmittances and reflectances of the PPBSs (shown above) from the ideal ones may have caused degradation in the process fidelity by 0.2%. The imperfection of the entangled photons with the state fidelity of 0.962 may have caused about 2% degradation in the process fidelity. The sum of the estimated errors due to the above mentioned causes are about 9.2%. We strongly conjecture that the rest of the errors (~14%) in the total error (~23%) is mainly due to the events where three pairs of photons are emitted simultaneously from the source. By decreasing the pump power, the probability of having three-pair-emission can be suppressed but the data accumulation time has to be increased. As a compromise between these factors, we used a pump power with which the amount of four-fold coincidence events due to the three-pair-emission is about 10%, which was estimated by a separate experiment. A more complete and detailed analysis of errors in the photonic network38 will be one of the important future research topics, but out of the scope of this paper.
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This work was supported in part by Quantum Cybernetics of JSPS, FIRST of JSPS, Grant-in-Aids from JSPS, JST-CREST, Special Coordination Funds for Promoting Science and Technology, Research Foundation for Opto-Science and Technology, and the GCOE program.
Experiments, measurements and initial data analysis were performed by M.T. and T.O. with the assistance of R.O. and S.T. The project was initially planned by M.T. and S.T. and supervised by R.O. and S.T. The theory for the evaluation of the data was developed by H.F.H. All of the authors contributed to the analysis of the data and to the writing of the manuscript. | 2019-04-23T20:08:21Z | https://www.nature.com/articles/srep45353?error=cookies_not_supported&code=3c9224a4-154b-4616-81f3-78afe09226cb |
Steroids, narcotics, and psychedelics are flowing freely from underground labs around the world.
It took months to find the way out, but the path was there in front of him all along. Arnold was an avid weight lifter, cursed with an average build that had long ago stopped cooperating with his efforts to get bigger. Even so, every night after work he would head to one of several gyms where he pumped iron and talked shop with other muscleheads. The conversation would often turn to anabolic steroids. Arnold had majored in chemistry at the University of New Haven, and those weight-room discussions got him thinking.
One afternoon after starting the day’s reactions at work, Arnold marched down the hall to the chemistry library on his floor and looked up the molecular structures of the steroids mentioned in his muscle magazines. Anabolic steroids, which are essentially synthetic testosterone, had only just been declared controlled substances, so there was still an awful lot of information available about them.
It wasn’t long before it hit him: “I hate my job, I’m sitting here, I’ve got a lab—I can try making some of these things myself. No one will even know what the hell I’m doing.” Arnold added the steroid precursors he would need to the regular list of laboratory chemicals he ordered through the company, and nobody was the wiser.
Progress was slow at first. Often he would set out to make a product that he knew should form a crystalline structure, only to end up with a sticky oil stuck to a flask. To Arnold that residue was like a flashing “caution” sign, an indication that potentially toxic impurities and leftover reactants had failed to separate from the brew. But over time he became expert at using solvents to wash the impurities and reactants away, and his compounds increasingly came to form translucent, icelike crystals that indicated a high level of purity.
Arnold’s intellectual appetite grew with his mastery. Soon he was spending 10 hours a week visiting libraries, combing through obscure patents and research journals for compounds with molecular structures worthy of further exploration. Finally he settled on a recipe that he found in a 1930s-era Swiss journal called Helvetica Chimica Acta and translated using a German-English dictionary. It detailed the synthesis of mestanolone, one of the first anabolic steroids ever made. Arnold figured it would make a good first test, since its effects were widely known, unlike some of the more exotic compounds he had come across.
In the lab Arnold watched the greenish byproducts wash out and pure crystals form. When his lab’s mass spectrometer showed a chemical profile identical to the one he was seeking, he dissolved the compound in propylene glycol, an odorless solvent that turned the mestanolone into a liquid. He put himself on a regimen of 75 milligrams a day.
Some level of uncertainty is par for the course in the world of do-it-yourself chemistry, which has seen the number of entrepreneurial alchemists explode in the years since Patrick Arnold gulped down his first chemical concoction and went on to become one of America’s most notorious underground chemists. It is a practice with a long history: In one form or another, some chemists have been working outside the law since long before the invention of the Bunsen burner. But the Internet has spawned a golden age in bathtub chemistry. Never before has it been so easy to obtain the instructions, the precursor molecules, and the manufacturing capabilities to produce exotic, unregulated compounds on a mass scale—or print out crude recipes for drugs you can make yourself. As a result, a new generation of Internet-savvy entrepreneurs is unleashing an ever-changing array of products into the shadowy drug bazaars of cyberspace, while dope fiends readily brew up simpler compounds in their kitchens.
The new DIY substances range from a vast inventory of performance-enhancing drugs consumed by gym rats looking to get big, to an ever-growing selection of psychoactive compounds sampled by club-hopping teenagers, to synthetic variations of hard-core narcotics wolfed down by desperate drug addicts. The consumers experimenting with these unregulated chemical concoctions may inhabit different worlds—the gym, the rave, and the crash house, respectively—but the drugs themselves are often produced with precursors purchased from the same places and derived from recipes traded on many of the same websites. They also carry some of the same risks.
But the fastest-growing trend is a more complicated class of compounds brewed up by trained chemists like Patrick Arnold who are searching for exotic steroids or pursuing novel psychoactive compounds. In just the past two years, the use of synthetic stimulants that produce a methlike high and are marketed as “bath salts” has exploded. In 2010 alone, 41 new psychoactive substances were reported by European nations—more than triple the amount identified in 2008, according to a report issued by the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction. (No similar statistics are kept in the United States, but many of the drugs end up here, too.) The new substances include derivatives of PCP and cocaine, as well as new forms of synthetic cannabinoids, compounds that are similar to tetrahydrocannabinol, the active ingredient in marijuana.
Many of these psychoactive substances are little-known compounds culled from obscure research journals like Arnold’s Swiss periodical. While some published steroids have a research trail, most psychoactive drugs have never been tested on humans—until, that is, they show up at clubs or parties. When these recipes hit the mainstream, they often go viral through websites where chemists and entrepreneurs of all stripes trade recipes.
What effect these new, unregulated psychoactive drugs might have on the human body is typically not clear. Often they are chosen because their chemical structures resemble those of known illegal drugs, like MDMA (ecstasy), speed, or cocaine, but are just different enough that they can arguably be considered legal, or can be marketed in the United States as “not for human consumption” with a hint of credibility. Some vendors hope this distinction will allow them to evade a 1970 law that allows authorities to prosecute for drugs that are “substantially similar” to banned substances if they are intended for human consumption.
For underground chemists gearing their efforts to the parallel market for performance-enhancing drugs, tweaking a couple atoms—or brewing up an obscure compound most people aren’t aware exists—can render a banned substance undetectable to professional sporting bodies, since they need a reference sample to spot it.
This kind of kitchen chemistry can have devastating results. Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, dozens of drug users consumed homemade batches of a synthetic opiate called MPPP that gave them symptoms of Parkinson’s. The cause was a mundane chemistry error. The pH during one of the reactions was a bit too low, causing the drug to extrude a single small molecule of propionic acid, which transformed it from a powerful narcotic into a poison that laid waste to the brain’s dopamine receptors.
David Nichols, a professor in Purdue University’s pharmacology department, knows firsthand what can happen when research chemicals find their way into underground labs. He has spent decades feeding LSD, mescaline, and MDMA derivatives to rats in an effort to map the brain receptors they act upon. He works by tweaking the chemical structures of the drugs, sometimes changing just a few molecules to see what impact this might have on the interaction between the drug and the brain receptors their parent compounds normally act upon.
Nichols first became aware that rogue chemists were following his research more than 10 years ago, when one of his ecstasy derivatives called 4-methylthioamphetamine (MTA) appeared in Europe as a club drug. In a published paper, Nichols had reported that rats that had been trained to press a lever when administered MDMA also hit the button when given MTA. That apparently was enough to catch the attention of a rogue chemist who synthesized the drug, rechristened it Flatliners, and sold it in the Netherlands. The choice of name was a morbid harbinger. By 2002 Flatliners had killed at least six people. Nichols believes they died from an overdose of the neurotransmitter serotonin, which can lead to hyperthermia, muscle breakdown, and seizures.
Flatliners, it turns out, does not release the dopamine and norepinephrine that account for much of ecstasy’s euphoric effects, but, like ecstasy, it does release massive doses of serotonin and interferes with the body’s efforts to break it down. That apparently accounted for the reaction Nichols recorded in rats, which recognized the serotonin rush caused by MDMA. Nichols believes that when the initial dose of Flatliners failed to produce the ecstasy-like euphoria the human drug users were expecting, they upped their dosage—and kept upping it until it killed them.
Mike Cole, a forensic scientist at Anglia Ruskin University in Cambridge, England, has done research that indicates Nichols is right to be concerned. Cole has been studying a drug developed to combat parasitic worms in livestock. Now mass-produced in East Asia, it is peddled in the party scenes of San Francisco and elsewhere as a “legal” and “safe” alternative to ecstasy. The drug, benzylpiperazine, isn’t difficult to make; it requires a chemist to trigger a reaction between two chemicals in a flask, then cool them down until the compounds combine into crystals and the drug precipitates out.
Arnold left his job, moved back to Connecticut, and started taking graduate-level chemistry classes at the state university. He also joined an Internet discussion group on fitness and weight lifting. Arnold’s knowledge of steroids quickly set him apart from other members of the discussion group. People began to seek his advice.
One of them was former bodybuilder Dan Duchaine, the author of The Underground Steroid Handbook, an indispensable reference manual for juicers. He had also served two prison stints for trafficking in steroids. Duchaine was well connected in the emerging field of gray-market nutritional supplements, products that often pushed the limits of laws regulating steroids. Through a friend, he put Arnold in touch with a Trinidadian entrepreneur, Ramlakhan Boodram, who owned a company that sold soy-processing and farm equipment in Champaign, Illinois, and had manufactured a nutritional supplement for Duchaine’s friend. Boodram was hoping to break into the booming field himself and needed a chemist to develop products for him.
Arnold moved to the Midwest. There, surrounded by cornfields, he set up a lab in an old brick warehouse that was crammed with tractors, metal presses, and oversize mixers used to process soy. He started out with just a few flasks and a hot plate, but eventually he filled his corner of the building with a mass spectrometer, vacuum pump, and all the lab equipment he would need to brew up new substances. Arnold focused his efforts on a patent he came across while flipping through chemical abstracts. It came from an East German pharmaceutical company called Jenapharm, which produced most of the steroidal compounds used in the former communist nation’s athletic doping program.
Jenapharm’s patent concerned a compound known as androstenedione, a naturally occurring testosterone precursor produced by the adrenal glands, testicles, and ovaries. Synthesized andro was widely used in labs as a steroid precursor. But the patent noted that if you administered the hormone orally, the body’s own enzymes would catalyze reactions that would convert it to testosterone, theoretically providing performance-enhancing benefits similar to those of steroids derived from the substance in the lab.
Once andro hit the market, word of its potency spread quickly through the athletic community. Then a reporter spotted a vial of the supplement in the locker of baseball slugger Mark McGwire during the season when he shattered the 37-year-old single season home run record. Suddenly Arnold was famous. In 1998 Sporting News named him number 84 on its list of the 100 most powerful people in sports, sandwiched between sportscaster Bob Costas and superagent Arn Tellem.
Arnold moved to cash in on his renown. He went back to the journals, scanning abstracts for other naturally occurring metabolites that looked likely to be converted into testosterone once ingested. He came out with several more so-called prohormones. In 2003 he and his partners moved to a shiny new 38,000-square-foot warehouse with 30-foot ceilings, 2,000-gallon reactors, and a state-of-the-art research lab with a gas chromatograph and other analytic instrumentation. By 2004 their revenues hit $12 million a year.
Secretly Arnold continued to experiment with illegal steroids. Back in New Jersey, he had come across an anabolic steroid he’d never seen anywhere else, a compound that had been developed by Wyeth Pharmaceuticals (now owned by Pfizer) in the early 1960s. Called norbolethone, it had a unique chemical structure that would be impossible to detect, but it also seemed to have many characteristics of the more potent steroids Arnold had tried. Back then, as a lowly lab tech at a chemical company, Arnold could never get hold of the precursor, a prohibitively expensive synthetic progestogen known as levonorgestrel, the active ingredient in the morning-after pill.
One day, talking to a business associate at another nutritional supplements company, Arnold mentioned norbolethone and his problems getting the precursor. Soon afterward, a gift arrived in the mail from China: a package of levonorgestrel. Arnold brewed up a batch of norbolethone, cross-checked the molecular structure with his instruments, and gave himself a mild dose.
Arnold rationalized that the compound was probably safe. “One dose of a steroid will never kill you, even if it is massive,” he later explained. Whereas psychoactive drugs can have immediate unpredictable and dramatic effects, steroids work primarily by activating genes, a slow process that only gradually yields detectable physiological effects. “Only with chronic intake will you see adverse effects from a steroid,” Arnold says. He did notice the compound turned his urine a dark shade of yellow, which led him to believe it might be placing a strain on his liver. On the other hand, he was on fire again at the gym. It was potent stuff.
That is a sentiment shared by plenty of other research chemists. Clemson University professor emeritus John W. Huffman devoted 27 years of his career to developing biological analogues to THC, the principal active component of marijuana. Huffman hoped to understand how THC and related compounds interact with brain receptors and perhaps find treatments for nausea and glaucoma.
Just as Arnold suspected, norbolethone was so obscure that professional doping programs had no reference sample and thus could not detect it. It was a brash entrepreneur named Victor Conte who pushed the limits of that obscurity. He ran a sports-nutrition center in Burlingame, California, called the Bay Area Laboratory Co-operative (BALCO). Through BALCO, Conte sold legal zinc-magnesium supplements of questionable efficacy and enlisted topflight athletes to promote them. Among them were true superstars: Marion Jones, who would become the fastest woman in the world, and Barry Bonds, who would go on to break the record for most home runs in a single season. In addition to providing these athletes with supplements, Conte offered up secret supplies of illegal steroids on the side.
Arnold, who met Conte in an Internet chat group, sent him the new compound. Conte rechristened it “the clear” and began distributing it to top athletes. Arnold himself gave the clear to Olympic cyclist Tammy Thomas, whose heavy use would eventually alert authorities to the drug. Thomas ignored Arnold’s dosing advice, he claims, and by 2002 was using so much norbolethone that she had grown facial hair. When her natural testosterone dropped to levels far below normal, testers began to scrutinize her urine. It was only a matter of time before they identified metabolites that led them to norbolethone.
Conte got wind that the authorities were closing in and told Arnold to find a replacement compound. In response, Arnold gambled with a move both rare and bold in underground chemistry: He created an entirely new steroid. To do so, he sat down with The Merck Index, a standard reference manual for chemicals, drugs, and other compounds, and turned to the section on the class of hormones to which norbolethone’s precursor belonged. He hoped to find a different precursor that could be transformed into a steroid using the same molecular processes used to render norbolethone.
Arnold dismissed some because he knew they were associated with steroids on watch lists. Others he knew from experience had molecular properties that would make them weak. Then he spotted tetrahydrogestrinone, a compound never before used to create a steroid. It had three alternating carbon double bonds, called conjugations, that he had seen in some potent steroids, as well as an additional carbon atom that he recognized would give it extra strength.
“I knew I was looking at an exciting structure,” Arnold recalls. “It’s very complex compared with other ones. It was more potent. People would not have to take as much. The stuff would have been invisible forever. It was perfect, perfect stuff.” He put clients on 10 milligrams a day, then reduced it to 5 milligrams when he was sure it worked.
But Conte had a lot of enemies, among them Marion Jones’s former coach Trevor Graham. In June 2003 Graham sent a syringe that contained the new substance to the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency. Once the group had a sample, it was only a matter of time. The authorities closed in and exposed one of the biggest scandals in the history of sports.
In 2005 the Feds raided Arnold’s home and lab. He was convicted and sentenced to three months in prison in 2006. The investigation touched off litigation that lasted through last year, when Barry Bonds was finally sentenced to 30 days of house arrest for obstructing justice during the inquiry.
Today, Arnold insists he is out of the steroid game. Andro and many other prohormones like it have been outlawed by Congress, and Arnold says he is focused solely on legal supplements. To pay fines, he and his partner were forced to auction off their new warehouse with all its top-of-the-line equipment. Today they are back in the old warehouse in the cornfields outside of Champaign, looking for compounds that are distinct from any banned substances to keep them out of trouble.
The same problem shows up in the new wave of psychoactive chemicals mass-produced overseas. At least five deaths and dozens of hospitalizations, for instance, are believed to have been caused by a compound called Bromo-Dragonfly that was first developed in Nichols’s Purdue lab and is now produced for Westerners in China.
In one fatal 2009 batch, a San Jose man died after consuming Chinese-made Bromo that contained “unspecified synthesis impurities,” which may have contributed to the product’s toxicity, according to the underground drug user website Erowid. His distributor sent more of that batch to other users in Denmark and Spain, leading to at least one other death and numerous hospitalizations. And just last May, a Chinese manufacturer sent a college student in Oklahoma a mislabeled batch of Bromo when he had ordered a far less potent product. As a result, two more people died and six others were hospitalized after overdosing.
Nichols believes his work could help explain memory, depression, even the nature of consciousness. Science must continue, he says, and he can’t stop publishing. But now he knows who might be reading.
Adam Piore is a DISCOVER contributing editor. He last wrote for the magazine on regenerative medicine in the July/August 2011 Issue.
Crystal meth, synthesized in small-scale labs across the United States, exacts a harsh physical toll, rotting users’ gums and eating away at their teeth. But meth’s ill effects pale in comparison to those of an intravenous home-brewed opiate now sweeping through Russia. The drug’s nickname, krokodil, comes from a grisly sign of use: Tissue around the injection site dies and results in patches of skin that turn greenish gray and scaly, like the hide of a crocodile.
Desomorphine, as krokodil is formally known, can be cooked up at home according to online recipes that require only readily available ingredients. Codeine, the active component, is sold over the counter in Russia in cough medicines and painkillers. Other components are household items, including paint thinner, iodine, and red phosphorus shaved from matchbooks.
“Krokodil is a last resort for people who can’t get heroin or other injected drugs,” says Russian public-health researcher Kirill Danishevskiy. It costs only a tenth as much as heroin, though its high is shorter; addicts often have to inject the drug 7 to 10 times a day to stave off withdrawal.
Although statistics are scarce, Russia—a nation of about 140 million people—may have nearly a million krokodil users, estimates Anya Sarang, a public-health advocate who works with drug users in Moscow.
The drug’s toxicity has effects much grimmer than crocodile-like skin. Large areas of tissue can rot away, often down to the bone; in severe cases, the bone rots away, too. Addicts are often forced to have their limbs amputated and are prone to secondary infections such as tuberculosis. But many users are so caught up in the cycle of making and taking the drug, Sarang says, that they cannot be bothered to go to a doctor—and for the few who do, Russian hospitals are ill equipped to help them. Life expectancy for krokodil addicts after they begin using is about two years. | 2019-04-25T08:15:23Z | http://discovermagazine.com/2012/mar/08-juicers-trippers-crocodiles-dangerous-underground-chemistry |
The first time I ate pizza with my New York friends, I learned that Texans have a special relationship with buttermilk dressing. When the pizza arrived, I pulled a jar out of the refrigerator, grabbed a slice of pizza and drizzled some of the creamy, tangy dressing all over it.
“What are you doing?” said my friends.
“You don’t put buttermilk dressing on your pizza?” I said.
“No! That’s disgusting!” said my friends.
I shrugged and then continued to eat my buttermilk-dressing soaked pizza. And it was good.
When it comes to buttermilk dressing, Texans don’t just stop at pizza. We, of course, put it on our salads. But we also use it as a dip for our steak fingers, onion rings, fried okra, cheese fries and leftover fried chicken, among many other things.
Buttermilk dressing has long been a popular staple in a Texan’s larder. Its presence harks back to a time when dairy was ubiquitous and cheap, so it made sense to craft a dressing out of buttermilk and eggs rather than oil, which was scarce.
In the 1960’s, buttermilk dressing became branded as ranch dressing, but I prefer to call it by its proper name, especially as the stuff you buy in a bottle has almost no relationship to what you can make at home. And yes, buttermilk is indeed the star.
I was reading recipes for buttermilk dressing from almost 100 years ago, and back then it was a boiled dressing made with eggs, vinegar, buttermilk, herbs and spices. In the late 1930’s, however, both vegetable oil and commercial mayonnaise became more available and so people started using those ingredients to make their buttermilk dressing instead.
I have to say that the latter method is how I’ve been making my buttermilk dressing for years as it takes minimal effort to achieve maximum flavor. But I was curious about the boiled method. My grandma has no fond memories of the boiled dressing my great-grandmother made and perhaps the use of mayonnaise indeed marks progress. That said, I decided to make a batch of buttermilk dressing the truly old-fashioned way.
In researching recipes, I discovered that Craig Claiborne (the longtime New York Times food editor and fellow Southerner) also found his mother’s boiled dressing distasteful. No matter, I decided to persevere in making a batch.
So indeed, progress has been made by the advent of widely available commercial mayonnaise. And thankfully, making buttermilk dressing is a snap, which means that you can have it whenever the occasion arises. So go on, what are you waiting for? You just know that slice of cold pizza sitting in your fridge needs an embellishment, and nothing makes leftovers, fried foods or salads sing like a good dose of creamy, tangy, spicy buttermilk dressing.
Stir together the mayonnaise, sour cream, buttermilk, lime juice, garlic, Serrano pepper, cilantro, chives, and cayenne. Taste and add salt and pepper.
I like my dressing on the thinner side, so if you prefer it thicker use 1/2 cup of mayonnaise. And if you don’t want it to be so spicy, feel free to omit the Serrano or substitute a jalapeno pepper instead. Also, you can use parsley instead of cilantro if you’re one of those “Cilantro tastes like soap people, I won’t be insulted.
Thanks for the history lesson! It's always fun to hear about the history behind different foods. The recipe you shared looks delicious! I'm definitely going to whip up a batch tonight!
Is the ranch-on-pizza (and everything else) habit confined to only parts of Texas? When I moved to Sherman (north TX), I was very surprised to find everyone dipping their pizza in the dressing. I've now been in Austin for 7 years and rarely see anyone doing that. And when they do, they usually have come here from Dallas.
darla – people in Houston do it too. Ranch on pizza, fries, and chicken strips is very popular.
I'm not a Texan (originally from VA now in FL), but I dip everything in 'ranch' dressing! YUM! I have to try this recipe. Wondering if you've ever made it with lowfat buttermilk, mayo, and sour cream? Or if the only way to go is the real full fat stuff??
mmmmmmmmmm I absolutely love buttermilk dressing. On everything. Veggies. Pizza. Chicken. Spoons. Fingers.
Lisa, once again you have read my culinary mind. I was just about to start looking for a recipe for buttermilk dressing to go on fried green tomatoes out of my garden. Thanks for saving me the time and trouble. The bottled stuff leaves much to be desired.
I've bookmarked this recipe and will definitely try it – I love ranch dressing, but have been searching for something better than the bottle – looking forward to giving this a try. I just discovered your site and I think it's great!
Now I'm dying for some fried green tomatoes to dip in this!!!
Here in Nova Scotia, we like to dip our pizza in donair sauce. Yum!
I learned to dip my pizza (crusts only, though) into buttermilk dressing in college (which was at UT Austin), incidentally. I didn't do it while I lived in Houston in grade school.
I think the dip in buttermilk dressing is reserved for delivery pizza only. 🙂 Although lately, I've converted to hot sauce and hot pepper flakes.
I have never made a buttermilk (or ranch) dressing but will definitely give this one a try.
Darla–I've done it in Houston, Sherman, Wichita Falls, Alpine, El Paso, Dallas and Austin, so I don't think it's limited to just N. Texas!
Amy–Buttermilk is usually lowfat, but I've never used lowfat sour cream or mayo. Another way to make it lowfat is to use thick, Greek yogurt instead of the sour cream.
Ranchand–Oh, yes–it's fried green tomato season! Need to write about those!
Margeaux–Welcome! And I'm so glad you're enjoying the site!
Twilight–How interesting–especially since I got into the habit when I was a kid in Houston. It was the only way to make church camp pizza taste better!
Chris–Not me, I love it on just about any pizza! Though if it's good pizza I prefer to use it only when the pizza is cold.
Sarah–I think it's bad because it's filled with corn starch and other fillers.
Kickpleat–It's delicious and perfect for the summer.
Thanks for the great down-home recipe! I will make this soon.
Yummy! Thanks for this recipe, I'm going to give it a try.
I'm from South Texas (The Rio Grande Valley) and now live in San Antonio. The dipping of pizza (and many other foods) in ranch is prevalent in both! Thanks for sharing. My hubby LOVES ranch dressing, so I might give this a go.
I feel sorry for people that think Hidden Valley Ranch is actual Ranch dressing…so gross.
I love to dip beef brisket from Pappa's BBQ from their chef's salad in ranch. sooo tasty.
Out in Western New York, pizza isn't pizza if it doesn't come with a side of Buffalo wings, and Buffalo wings aren't Buffalo wings unless they come with blue cheese dressing, so, I think you can see where this is going… Once the blue cheese dressing is all nice and tangy from the Buffalo wing sauce, the only way to complete the meal is by dipping the pizza in the blue cheese dressing.
Friggin' deeeeelicous! I still do it to this day when I'm alone or with other upstate peeps.
I thought I was the only one who dipped pizza in ranch dressing! Garlic bread is also really good to dip, too, as well as fried green tomatoes.
You are 100% correct about Texans dipping their food in dressing! I do it, and now my formerly Yankee husband does it, too! Lovely recipe!
i'm one of the cilantro LOVERS…where would we be without cilantro? what would ceviche or banh mi taste like without it?! i've never tried buttermilk dressing on pizza, but that doesn't mean i won't be giving it a go in the near future. how boring would life be if we never switched things up a bit?
I just discovered about buttermilk dressing last night and now you gave me the recipe! Fabulous! Thanks so much!
Yup, people look at me like i'm crazy when i ask for ranch dressing at pizza places. And when people ask me for it at work I'm always tempted to ask where they're from in hopes of meeting another texan.
You think that's good, have you put guacamole on your pizza? AWESOME.
Dipping pizza into ranch dressing is not confined to Texas. Here is California (San Francisco), we love to dip the crust and sometimes the whole pizza into ranch dressing. The local pizza joints give you little containers of ranch upon request. And yes, it's yummy. Sometimes, it's the only reason I order pizza.
So, I grew up in Illinois where we did not put dressing on pizza. Then, I moved to Texas and while I've been living here, my family in IL has started putting dressing on pizza. I don't how it started, but I visited, we went out for pizza, and they did it. I tried it. Not bad!
when i read "buttermilk dressing" i thought "ranch". when i read this recipe i thought "heaven". i love mayo and will find any excuse to eat it. this looks divine and bonus…i just picked a serrano from the garden!
OH, Buttermilk Dressing! My favorite and I hate salads! But I don't think there is anything that can't be dipped in buttermilk dressing, from fried squash, zucchini, green tomatoes, and even the latest thing-fried pickles, that buttermilk dressing doesn't make extra delicious. Can't wait to mix up a batch of your version for the squash and zucchini I have sitting in my fridge just begging to be cornmeal battered, deep fried, and dunked in that dressing!
Pizza (Double Dave's Pizza Rolls to be exact) + Ranch = The Perfect College Meal!
OMG. Ranch dressing is one of the four food groups around here. Now you've kicked it up a notch with spicy ranch dressing with cilantro. This would be very similar to what's called Cafe Rio salad dressing in Utah, one of my favorite things on earth. Bookmarked!
We've made a buttermilk and Hellman's (must be full-fat Hellman's) dressing in my family for eons. We refer to it simply as "dip" because we dip just about everything from veggies and pizza to turkey sandwiches and chips in it. Our shortcut is to Good Seasoning's Italian Dressing packets. That said, I'll definitely have to try your recipe very soon!
Very interesting! I've never seen ranch dressing used on pizza, but I've seen people drizzle French's mustard on it – in HOUSTON!
buttermilk dressing recipe. I love your site and writing – everything I prepare from your recipes is great!
The funny thing is that I grew up in Texas and have lived here for most of my life and never until I got married to a Yankee did I ever discover dipping pizza in ranch/buttermilk dressing. So THAT's what those big bottles of ranch dressing were for in our highschool lunchrooms!
Hello again ~ I forgot that donairs and donair sauce are mostly a local phenomenon. Donair meat is ground beef with lots of spices that is cooked on a spit, then shaved off and loaded into a warmed pita with lots of chopped onions, tomatoes and donair sauce. We make our own sauce at home – it's just sweetened condensed milk, white vinegar and garlic, but I haven't yet made a version of the meat that I am happy with. Fortunately the local pizza place makes a fantastic donair. The sauce and pizza are incredible together, and most local pizza places also serve a donair pizza. Now I'm hungry!
Katie–Do you have Mexican crema? You could also use regular yogurt, either as is or strained so it's more thick like Greek yogurt.
AmandaG–Well, there you go–it's popular in West Texas!
Whitney–I agree, Hidden Valley Ranch is just awful.
Ann–Oh, yum! Never tried dipping pizza in blue cheese, but I bet that tastes awesome!
Jane–Now that's quite a list you have there!
Lissa–Thanks! And I've never tried dipping garlic bread into it, but that sounds fantastic!
Kelly–Glad to hear you've converted your Yankee husband to our way of eating!
Denise–Oh, I'm with you, but sadly there are those who have a genetic disposition toward disliking cilantro. Sad, isn't it?
Courtney–That brings back memories. In college we used to go to Mr. Gatti's all the time and fill up on it's all-you-can-eat pizza, drenched in dressing, of course!
DeceiverofMen–I have not put guacamole on my pizza, but I will be doing that STAT!
Nina–You sound like me, pizza is just a vehicle for the wonderful buttermilk dressing!
Lisa–Interesting, I guess the habit has crossed many borders.
Heidogoseek–I'm a big mayo gal myself. Don't tell anyone, but I can eat it straight from the jar.
Nikki–That sounds like a wonderful meal! And I need to figure out how to make fried pickles.
Melissa–Yep, totally reminds me of college.
Kalyn–These ingredients have your name written all over them!
Texas John–French's mustard? Oh, my!
BHDancegirl–Thank you, and I sometimes put the whole salad on top as well. Yum!
Screwed Up Texan–That's very interesting. Hmmmmm….And a big YES to hot-pepper flakes!
Seven–Thanks for the explanation, sounds like an interesting sauce–I'll have to try making it.
LOVE buttermilk dressing. I use it on a salad from Martha Stewart with smoked salmon, bacon, avocado, and hard boiled egg.
Oh man. I love Buttermilk Dressing. There is a restaurant in El Paso that serves up the BEST Boneless Buffalo Wings with Ranch Dressing, similar to your recipe. Anytime I go home, I order that and just melt into a wonderful utopia of food. Here in Middle Georgia they serve Fried Green Tomatoes with Honey Mustard. It's ok, just not as great as with a good Buttermilk Dressing.
Here in Toronto, pretty much all the pizza places and chains serve sides of various dipping sauces with their pizza. Caesar, ranch, blue cheese .You name it. Your friends, who admonished you for doing the "buttermilk dunk" need to get out more.
My husband loves his hot wings dipped in ranch dressing. Actually, he likes almost everything dipped in ranch dressing….
Thank you so much for the recipe! Here in the Philippines, it's hard to find any kind of "ranch" dressing. I've been dying to make pizza bread (think giant bundt pan-sized fluffy DD's pep'roni roll), but kept putting it off until I could find something suitable to dip it in. My wait is over! You've made this expat Texan happy.
Haha, I live in Houston and was too embarrassed to eat pizza around my friends the way I preferred – with ranch dressing (preferably homemade). One day a friend's boyfriend went to the fridge, grabbed a bottle of ranch and proceeded to pour it on his slice of pizza. Two other people followed suit and I sat there with my mouth hanging open – stunned but happy my secret was out! Now I wonder why I bothered being shy about it.
P.S. The best pizza and ranch combo is fresh mushroom, sausage and black olive. Ohhh delicious!
The first time I heard of dipping pizza was when I was working in Fort Worth, there was a little pizza delivery place across the way who would deliver pizza and/or garlic bread with cheese with at least 2 sides of ranch to dip in….mmmm I was converted! Never heard of it in Corpus Christi though.
Oh Yes! We lurve us some ranch on a lot of things in our house! Pizza is one of them!!!
I have family in Dallas and they (even their 3 year old) dips pizza in ranch dressing. I love homemade ranch, too– your recipe looks divine!!
I happen to have a gaggle of teens at my house and was just on my way to get Little Caesar's for them. I'll run in and get buttermilk, believe it or not I have the other stuff in the fridge! We are definitely dippers here in Longview, Texas!!!
Hi! I recently found your blog and as a "homesick texan" myself it has been such a treat to read your posts. 22 of my 26 years were spent in Texas and my husband is from Michigan, we now reside in KY.
Anyways, I use buttermilk dressing for everything and my husband has always thought it was strange. I remember the first time we ate out somewhere and I got chicken strips and asked for ranch he responded "eww what….you don't use barbeque". I have never made my own dressing, I think I'll have to try this.
Houstonian here: My three year old calls it "dippy sauce" because, what else would it be used for?
Its the new ketchup for preschoolers.
We will admit to buying the bottled stuff, but the homemade kind is so much better!
I just stumbled across your site for the first time and I have to tell you, as a Texan, I totally relate to this post! Great blog concept.
This looks like a good recipe and I will definitely try this version, though without the sour cream – hate hate hate sour cream.
My usual version of buttermilk dressing is equal parts light mayo, buttermilk and white balsamic vinegar flavoured with paprika, fresh dill, fresh tarragon, and maybe some grated lemon zest. Also salt and pepper.
Pizza without Ranch? Unheard of. My favorite pizza joint back in Texas had the best house dressing. Their secret ingredient was black olive brine. Sounds odd, but it adds just the right amount of tang.
This looks like a great variation on buttermilk dressing. Yum!
I made this over the weekend – it was so good I wanted to jump into the bowl and swim around in it! Lettuce has never disappeared that fast in our house. Thank you for sharing.
What timing! Clare and I have been recreating the JLOB bibb lettuce salad (with buttermilk dressing, fried shitake mushrooms, oranges and shropshire blue) a couple of times a week. For a lighter, simpler dressing it's just buttermilk, champagne vinegar and a little bit of olive oil (we asked the chef.) It probably wouldn't stand up to pizza or chicken fingers but is perfect on farm fresh lettuce.
Unconfidential cook–Smoked salmon and bacon? Wow!
Pottingsoil–Honey mustard does not go with fried green tomatoes at all! Silly people!
CJ–I have to agree with your husband.
Jessica–Pizza bread sounds so decadent and divine!
Anon–No need to be shy, though I know what you mean! And I love that pizza combo as well.
Laurie–Yes! Garlic bread is also wonderful in buttermilk dressing.
Keri–You can't beat homemade dressing. After eating it it makes you wonder why you bother with store-bough stuff.
Dyanna–Welcome! And yes, I'll take buttermilk over BBQ sauce on my chicken anyday!
Lisa–Oh, I wouldn't worry about it, not everyone does it as I'm learning!
Women Interrupted–Dippy sauce? I love it!
Tracy–Your husband has good taste!
Fern–Your recipe sounds pretty amazing as well! Love the balsamic vinegar and tarragon.
Laura–Oh, did not know that secret but will be using it in the future.
Payal–Glad you enjoyed it! It is addictive isn't it?
Anne–It's been too long since I had Champagne vinegar in the house–must pick some up to try y'all's dressing. So simple yet sophisticated.
HoustonGurly–He doesn't know what he's missing!
I eat ranch on everything except ice cream. Ok, well not quite. But close. I always thought my daughter invented the whole ranch on pizza thing, then she got me hooked on it. I'm surprised she didn't ask for ranch at Giordano's in Chicago, but it must have slipped her mind.
not limited to texas… "ranch dressing" is prevalent in southern californian kitchens on pretty much everything especially, but not limited to: pizza, chicken wings/strips, and burgers.
fried pickles dipped in buttermilk dressing – the ultimate! i so miss texas!
Wonderful! Thanks! I've been looking for a good buttermilk dressing recipe ever since my favorite "close to work for a quick & somewhat healthy lunch" restaurant stopped their lunchtime hours. Can't wait to make this one!
I have lived in Houston for 40 years and have never seen anyone dipping food, other than raw veggies, into ranch dressing. But I am going to fix that today.
Thank you! Since moving to Europe, we've pretty much had to stick to balsamic vinaigrette. You can bet I'll be trying this dressing soon.
BTW, in England, home delivery pizza often comes with a variety of dips (garlic, bbq, chili).
My first inclination was a slight shudder, but then, I had the same first reaction when I moved to Argentina a few years back and discovered pizzas that people slathered "Salsa Golf" over – which is basicall half mayo and half ketchup (or cocktail sauce). After eventually getting around to trying a slice that way, I discovered it's actually pretty darned good! Now, where to find buttermilk dressing here?
Lisa, I made this dressing tonight, and it turned out really tasty! I had commented on this recipe a while back (I live in Argentina and don't have access to sour cream). Although I had to get pretty creative with some of the ingredients, the end result was creamy, tangy and spicy, just as you described. A big thank you from Argentina!
This is not only confined to Texas. When I moved near Atlanta, GA from TN, I saw people dipping their pizzas into dressing. I thought it was terribly weird, but now I do it too, on occasion.
Thanks for the history lesson I really enjoy your writing and photos.
bhdancegirl you've really hit home. I grew up in Weatherford TX and we ate at Roger's Place aka Pizza place sometimes 5 days a week for lunch in high school. We could get a small cheese pizza, drink, salad and that famous creamy italian dressing for $3.27. The only thing better was is when I went off to college at Tarleton State University and Roger's second Pizza Place was just down the street there in Stephenville but there he served Dublin Dr Pepper on tap.
Still in Texas but now a little homesick!
I've always said, "You can spot a Southerner by the Ranch dressing". I put Ranch (i.e. Buttermilk dressing) on everything from sandwich's to pizza to chicken to fries. Everything tastes a little better with a little Buttermilk! My family are all Northeasterners and they look disgustingly at me whenever I pull the Ranch out- they don't get it!
PS- I say the same thing more specifically about Texans and BBQ sauce.
Ok, I did a quick Google search for a buttermilk dressing & came across your site. The dressing is delicious! I can't wait to peruse the remainder of your blog. Thanks for a simple, tasty recipe that took me all of 6 minutes to put together!
I just made this last night for the fist time. SO GOOD!!! Best homemade "buttermilk" ranch dressing I have ever made. Its def. going in my permanent rotation!
This stuff is so good! Great recipe- thanks.
I've made a buttermilk dressing using cream cheese instead of mayonnaise. (If you're wondering why, I don't like mayonnaise.) It turned out on the thick side at first, so I had to add more buttermilk, which is really not a bad thing.
Forgo the peppers listed and add a couple of Chipolata peppers in adobe sauce. Blend in.
This sounds wonderful. One question though, I live in a country that does not have buttermilk. Do you think you can get the same results with the milk/lemon juice buttermilk? I am anxious to try this but will have to use parsley as cilantro isn't readily available here either.
Thanks for posting. I really enjoy your blog!
Stephanie–Parley would be fine but I think instead of buttermilk I'd use kefir or a bit of plain white yogurt thinned with milk.
This is my new favorite dressing so good!! Thank you!!
Made this last night and put it in a green salad tonight. All I can say is WOW! I will NEVER buy Ranch again. Great recipe as usual!!! Thanks!
Just want you to know how much I love your site. Being from Dallas transplanted to Maryland, I'm forever looking for recipes from Texas. You're are great!!
Hi there, just wondering how long this lasts in the fridge for?
Portialee-It depends on the freshness of your dairy, but I'd say about 3-5 days.
Pennsylvanians put ranch on everything, too! | 2019-04-22T20:56:33Z | https://www.homesicktexan.com/2009/06/buttermilk-dressing.html?replytocom=7689 |
BRIDGEPORT Connecticut's Beardsley Zoo, 1875 Noble Ave. Hours: 9 a.m.-4 p.m. daily. Special Barnyard Maze through Labor Day. Special Country Fair events ongoing daily; visit site for schedule. Animal Tales for children with story and craft, Thurs, Fri, Mon-July 31 1 p.m. Admission $11; $9 ages 3 to 11, seniors.
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BRIDGEPORT Barnum Museum, 820 Main St. Special "Book Tales and Fun" with craft, for ages 3-6, Aug. 25 11 a.m., with admission. "Come One, Come All: The Barnum Festival" on third floor. Hours: Tues-Sat 10 a.m.-4:30 p.m.; Sun noon-4:30 p.m. $7, $5 seniors, college students, $4 ages 4-17. (203) 331-1104, www.barnum-museum.org.
BRIDGEPORT Discovery Museum, 4450 Park Ave. "Robot Carnival: The Science Behind Artificial Life" and "From the Earth to the Universe" through Sept. 6. Space, sound, and electricity galleries. "Earth, Light and Fire," a collection of nine oil on canvas tondo paintings by Karen Fitzgerald through Sept. 16. Hours: Tues-Sat 10 a.m.-5 p.m.; Sun noon-5 p.m. Mon 10 a.m.-5 p.m. July and August. $8.50, $7 children, college students, seniors, includes planetarium shows. (203) 372-3521, www.discoverymuseum.org.
DANBURY Military Museum of Southern New England, 125 Park Ave. The largest private collection of military vehicles and tanks in the Northeast. Preserves and displays mechanized armor and military artifacts from the 20th century, including armored cars, Halftracks, an M18 tank destroyer, Sheridan and Centurion tanks, and artifacts from WWI and WWII and the Korean, Vietnam and Desert Storm conflicts. Hours: Tues-Sat 10 a.m.-5 p.m.; Sun noon-5 p.m. (203) 790-9277, www.usmilitarymuseum.org.
DANBURY Danbury Railway Museum, 120 White St. "FoleyFotos," photography by Dan Foley, through Nov. 4. Hours: Wed-Sat 10 a.m.-4 p.m.; Sun noon-4 p.m. $6, $5 seniors, $3 children. (203) 778-8337, www.danbury.org/drm.
FAIRFIELD Fairfield Museum and History Center, 370 Beach Road. "Reduced to Ashes: the 1779 Burning of Fairfield," allowing viewers to learn about spying, privateering, and kidnappings leading to Fairfield's burning; walks, children's programs and more offered, call for schedule and rates. Hours: Mon-Fri 10 a.m.-4 p.m.; Thurs 10 a.m.-6 p.m.; Sat, Sun noon-4 p.m., research library closed Mon. $5, $3 seniors, students. (203) 259-1598, fairfieldhs.org.
(203) 375-8857, www.nationalhelicoptermuseum.org. Volunteers always needed.
STRATFORD Connecticut Resources Recovery Authority Garbage Museum, 1410 Honeyspot Road Ext. Numerous environmental exhibits for children and families. Hours: Wed-Fri noon-4 p.m. $2, children under 3 free. (203) 381-9571.
MILFORD Milford Historical Society, 34 High St. "Downtown, downtown, Milford's Pictoral Past and Present," "Milford Celebrates," and "Recent Acquisitions." Hours: Sat, Sun 1-4 p.m. Free; donations appreciated. (203) 874-2664, www.milfordhistoricalsociety.org. Through Oct. 4.
ORANGE Orange Historical Society, 615 Orange Center Road. The Orange Historical Society's 1830 Stone-Otis House Museum, Academy open every Sun 2-4 p.m. Herb garden, restored rooms. (203) 795-6465.
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WESTPORT Westport Historical Society, 25 Avery Place. "Years in the Making: Ageless Artists, Ageless Art," works by 50 Westport and Weston artists over the age of 70, through Sept. 7. Mon-Fri 10 a.m.-4 p.m.; Sat noon-4 p.m. (203) 222-1424, www.westporthistory.org.
WILTON Wilton Library, 137 Old Ridgefield Road. "65th Annual Summer Art Exhibition." Works by more than 50 Wilton artists in diverse media, through Aug. 27. Mon-Thurs 10-8; Fri 10 a.m.-6 p.m.; Sat 10 a.m.-5 p.m.
NORWALK Maritime Aquarium, 10 N. Water St. Special African Penguin exhibit through Dec. 2010, special penguin encounter program offered daily through Aug. 31 11:15 a.m. "African Underwater Safari" open; "Frogs!"; harbor seal feeding times daily 11:45 a.m., 1:45, 3:45 p.m.; sea turtles on view. Ocean Playspace for toddlers on second floor. IMAX Theater (See film listings for details). Aquarium hours: daily 10 a.m.-5 p.m. The aquarium closes at 6 p.m. in July and August. $11.75, $10.75 seniors, $9.75 ages 2-12, under 2 free. (203) 852-0700, ext. 2206, www.maritimeaquarium.org. (Web site offers penguin and osprey cams.) Marine Life Study Cruises offered 1 p.m. daily July and August, $20.50. (203) 852-0700, ext. 2206. Toy boat-making daily 11 a.m.-4 p.m. $5 additional fee.
NORWALK Lockwood-Mathews Mansion Museum, 295 West Ave. Victorian mansion with displays. Tours Wed-Sun noon, 1, 2, 3 p.m., $10. (203) 838-9799, www.lockwoodmathews.org.
NORWALK Lockwood-Mathews Mansion Museum, 295 West Ave. "Loft Artists at the Mansion," works by members of the Loft Artists Association, through Sept. 9. Docent-guided tours exploring the "riches to rags" story of the Lockwood family. Wed-Sun noon, 1, 2, 3 p.m. Tues-Sun 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Admission: $5; Tours: $10, $8 for seniors and $6 for children. (203) 838-9799, [email protected].
NORWALK SoNo Switch Tower Museum, 77 Washington St., South Norwalk section. Tours of a restored 1896 railroad switch tower. Sat, Sun noon-5 p.m., through Oct. (203) 246-6958.
STAMFORD Stamford Museum & Nature Center, 39 Scofieldtown Road. "Baseball's League of Nations: A Salute to Native American Baseball Players," images and biographical sketches exploring the epic struggles of native players to gain acceptance on the diamond; "Dynamic Traditions: Form and Function in Native American Art," collection of Native American artifacts. Through Oct. 18. Farm, nature exhibits, otter area, planetarium. Mon-Sat 9 a.m.-5 p.m.; Sun 11 a.m.-5 p.m. $8, $6 seniors and students, $4 children, free children 3 and younger. (203) 322-1646, www.stamfordmuseum.org.
STAMFORD SoundWaters Coastal Center, 1281 Cove Road. (203) 406-3333, www.soundwaters.org.
STAMFORD Loft Artists Association, 845 Canal St. "Satirical Art: Modern Suburban Life," paintings by long-time UConn Stamford modern art teacher Renee Kahn, through Aug. 30. Fri-Sun noon-5 p.m. (203) 323-4153, www.loftartists.com, www.ciciartist.com/ReneeKahn.htm.
STAMFORD Stamford Historical Society, 1508 High Ridge Road. "Best Face Forward," portraits of historical Stamford figures, through Sept. Tues-Sat noon-4 p.m. $5, $3 members and seniors, free children under 12.
GREENWICH Bruce Museum, 1 Museum Drive. "Masterpieces of European Painting from Museo de Arte de Ponce," through Sept. 6; "Focus on Color: The Photography of Jeannette Klute" through Sept. 27; "Digging for Dinosaurs" through July 26. Hours: Tues-Sat 10 a.m.-5 p.m.; Sun 1-5 p.m. $7, $6 seniors and ages 5-12; children under 5 free; free Tuesdays. (203) 869-0376, www.brucemuseum.org.
GREENWICH Greenwich Historical Society's Bush-Holley Historic Site and Visitor Center, 39 Strickland Road. "Cherishing Our Past: Preserving Greenwich History" on view. Hours: Tues-Sun noon-4 p.m. $6, $4 students, seniors. (203) 869-6899, www.hstg.org, www.bush-holley.org. Guided tours Thurs-Sun 1, 2, 3 p.m.
NEW HAVEN Peabody Museum of Natural History, 170 Whitney Ave. "Travels in the Great Tree of Life" on view. "Fossil Fragments: The Riddle of Human Origins" on view; dinosaur and early mammal skeletons, displays; native animals; arts of indigenous peoples of the world; children's Discovery Room. "Sustainable Choices" through Aug. 23; "Darwin: 150 Years of Evolutionary Thinking" through Aug. 23. Also, Hall of Minerals, Earth and Space. Hours: Mon-Sat 10 a.m.-5 p.m.; Sun noon-5 p.m. $7, $6 seniors, $5 ages 3-18. Free admission every Thurs 2-5 p.m. (203) 432-5050, www.peabody.yale.edu.
NEW HAVEN Knights of Columbus Museum, 1 State St. "Etchings of the Eternal City: Piranesi's Rome" through Oct. 1. Hours: daily 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Free. (203) 865-0400.
NEW HAVEN Yale University Art Gallery, Chapel and York streets. Art of Africa and ancient Americas on view; lectures and tours offered daily; call for details. Hours: Tues-Sat 10 a.m.-5 p.m.; Sun 1-6 p.m. Free. (203) 432-0600, http://artgallery.yale.edu.
NEW HAVEN Yale Center for British Art, 1080 Chapel St. Extensive collection of British art on permanent display. "Paintings from the Reign of Victoria: The Royal Holloway Collection, London," through Sun. "Dalou in England: Portraits of Womanhood, 1871--1879" through Aug. 23. "Revisiting Traditions: Paintings and Sculpture in the 20th Century" on view. Hours: Tues-Sat 10 a.m.-5 p.m., Sun noon-5 p.m. Free. (203) 432-2800, yale.edu/ycba.
WEST HAVEN Ward-Heitmann House Museum, 277 Elm St. $5, $2 children. (203) 937-9823.
HAMDEN Eli Whitney Museum, 915 Whitney Ave. Hours: Wed-Fri, Sun noon-5 p.m.; Sat 10 a.m.-3 p.m. (203) 777-1833.
EAST HAVEN The Shore Line Trolley Museum, 17 River St. Hours: daily 10:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Trolley rides, exhibits. $8, $6 seniors, $4 children. (203) 467-6927, www.bera.org.
HARTFORD Connecticut Historical Society, 1 Elizabeth St. "She Shoots,... She Scores! Women's Basketball in Connecticut" through Jan. 27. Hours: Tues-Fri noon-5 p.m.; Sat 9 a.m.-5 p.m. $6, $3 seniors, $3 students; free ages 5 and younger; free for all on the first Sat of month. (860) 236-5621, www.chs.org.
HARTFORD Wadsworth Atheneum, 600 Main St. "Foreign Accents: The Ballets Russes and Western Couture" through Aug. 2. Films in Aetna Theater daily. Hours: Tues-Fri 11 a.m.-5 p.m.; Sat, Sun 10 a.m.-5 p.m. $10, $8 seniors, $5 students. (860) 278-2670, www.wadsworthatheneum.org.
HARTFORD The Mark Twain House, 351 Farmington Ave. The 19-room home of writer Samuel Clemens (1835-1910). Hours: Mon-Sat 9:30-5:30 p.m.; Sun noon-5:30 p.m. $14, $12 seniors, $8 children. (860) 247-0998, www.hartnet.org/twain.
HARTFORD The Connecticut Science Center, 50 Columbus Blvd. Exhibits on Earth, space, health, sports, energy and more; educational labs, digital theater, rooftop garden. (860) 727-0457, www.CTScienceCenter.org for hours, rates and more.
HARTFORD Butler-McCook House and Garden and Main Street History Center, 396 Main St. Hours: Thurs-Sat 10 a.m.-4 p.m.; Sun 1-4 p.m. $7. (860) 522-1806, www.ctlandmarks.org.
WINDSOR LOCKS New England Air Museum, Bradley International Airport, 36 Perimeter Road. Aviation displays, new KidsPort available. $9.50, $8.50 seniors; $6 ages 12 and younger. Hours: daily 10 a.m.-5 p.m. (860) 623-3305, www.neam.org.
ESSEX Essex Steam Train and Riverboat, Valley Railroad, 1 Railroad Ave. Train and boat rides on Connecticut River. Caboose weekend Aug. 1, 2 and Sept. 5, 6. 1-800-377-3987, www.essexsteamtrain.com.
MASHANTUCKET Mashantucket Pequot Museum and Research Center, 110 Pequot Trail on the Mashantucket Pequot Reservation, near the Foxwoods Resort Casino. "Pequot Lives in the Lost Century" through Sept. 12. "Bittersweet Winds: A Traveling Exhibit on Native American Imagery" Thurs-Sat 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Hours: Tues-Sat 10 a.m.-5 p.m. $15, $13 seniors, $10 children. Libraries' admission free. (860) 396-6800 or 1-800-411-9671, www.pequotmuseum.org.
STONINGTON Mystic Aquarium and Institute for Exploration, 55 Coogan Blvd. "Hidden Amazon" on view, explores rainforest creatures, designed for children 10 and up; "Return to Titanic" celebrates Dr. Robert Ballard's recent expedition to the Titanic, touch pool, more. Exit 90 off I-95. Hours: daily 10 a.m.-5 p.m. $24, $21 seniors; $18 ages 3-12. (860) 572-5955. Also, new "Birds of the Outback," interactive exhibit with cockatiels, parakeets and rosellas through Sept. 13, $3.
STONINGTON Mystic Seaport, Greenmanville Avenue. "Restoring an Icon: The Charles W. Morgan" on view. Children under 17 admitted free every Mon in July. "Mapping the Pacific Coast: Coronado to Lewis and Clark, the Quivira Collection," (1544-1802) through October 2010. Recreated 19th-century village. Hours: 9 a.m.-5 p.m. daily. $24, $15 children. 1-888-973-2767, www.mysticseaport.org. Also, Music on the River aboard Sabino every Wed 5:30-7 p.m., through Aug. 26; Mystic Seaport Dinner Theater, with Maritime Mystery, Fri and Sun through Sept. 6, no July 31, Aug. 2; 7:15 through Sun; 6:45 p.m. Aug. 7-22; 6:15 p.m. Aug. 28-Sept. 6, $45; Maritime Mystery without meal available, call for schedule and rates.
WATERBURY Mattatuck Museum Arts and History Center, 144 W. Main St. Hours: Tues-Sat 10 a.m.-5 p.m.; Sun noon-5 p.m. $5. (203) 753-0381.
WATERBURY Time Expo Museum, 175 Union St., Brass Mill Commons, Waterbury. Antique clocks and archeology. $6, $5 seniors, $4 children. Hours: Tues-Sat 10 a.m.-5 p.m., Sun noon-5 p.m. (203) 755-TIME.
RIDGEFIELD Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum, 258 Main St. "Guns and Knives," by Robert Lazzarini, through Sept. 13. "Pretty Tough: Contemporary Storytelling," by various artists, through Jan. 3; "Seeing Around," by Edward Tufte through Jan. 17; "Hidden Agenda," by Gerard Hemsworth through Jan. 10; "Cameras," by Tom Sachs through Sept. 16; "Charlie White: OMG BFF LOL-Video A," through Sept. 20. Hours: Tues-Sun noon-5 p.m.; $5 adults, $2 seniors, students. (203) 438-4519, www.aldrichart.org.
WASHINGTON Institute for American Indian Studies, 38 Curtis Road. Native American Patriots exhibit on view. "Mississippian Peoples and their Pottery" on view. Southwestern Indian pottery on view; Eastern Woodland exhibit and artifacts. "Beadwork of the Plains" also on view. "Observe the Living Traditions of Indian New England: Village Interpreter Program" through Aug. 30, Sat, Sun noon-4 p.m. "American Indians and the Revolutionary War" Sat at 1 p.m. Hours: Mon-Sat 10 a.m.-5 p.m.; Sun noon-5 p.m. $5, $6 children. (860) 868-0518.
BROOKFIELD Brookfield Museum and Historical Society, Routes 25 and 133. (203) 740-8140, www.brookfieldcthistory.org.
ROCKY HILL Dinosaur State Park, West Street. Indoor-outdoor museum, track casting available. $5, $2 children; dinosaur films, nature walks also featured. Hours: Tues-Sun 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m. (860) 529-8423.
CANTERBURY Prudence Crandall Museum, Route 14-169. "To Get a Little More Learning: Education in 19th Century Connecticut"; "A Bold Front: Leaders of the Abolitionist Movement in Support of Prudence Crandall" and "Acquiring History: Highlights from the Prudence Crandall Museum Collection" on view. Hours: Wed-Sun 10 a.m.-4:30 p.m. $3. (860) 546-7800.
NEW LONDON Custom House Maritime Museum, 150 Bank St. "Knots and Fancy Ropework: Alton C. Beaudoin: Master of Knots" through August. "53 Postcards of New London Harbor Light" through Sept. Hours: Tues-Sun 1-5 p.m., May through December. $5. (860) 447-2501. In the Custom House Maritime Gallery.
NEW LONDON Lyman Allyn Art Museum presents "What's the Word: Words and Symbols from the Lyman Allyn Art Museum," through Nov. 30; "Elizabeth Enders: Landscape/Language/Line" through Aug. 23. Connecticut College, 625 Williams St. Hours: Tues-Sat 10 a.m.-5 p.m.; Sun 1-5 p.m. $5, $3 seniors and students. (860) 443-2545, www.lymanallyn.org.
NEW LONDON Hempsted Houses, 11 Hempsted St. (circa 1678) Hours: Sat, Sun noon-4 p.m. Through Oct. 11. $7, $6 seniors, $4 children. (860) 443-7949, www.ctlandmarks.org.
STORRS University of Connecticut Museum of Natural History. Nature, biology, ecology lectures offered; call for schedule. (860) 486-4460, http://www.cac.uconn.edu/mnhhome.html.
FARMINGTON Hill-Stead Museum, 35 Mountain Road. Collection of American and French Impressionist paintings. Hours: Tues-Sun 11 a.m.-4 p.m. $9. (860) 677-4787, www.hillstead.org.
EAST WINDSOR Connecticut Trolley Museum, 58 North Road, Route 140. Hours: Sat 10 a.m.-5 p.m.; Sun noon-5 p.m.; Mon 10 a.m.-4 p.m. $10, $8 seniors, $6 children. (860) 627-6540, www.ct-trolley.org.
COVENTRY Nathan Hale Homestead, 2299 South St. Open through Oct. 31. Hours: Wed, Fri, Sat, Sun 11 a.m.-4 p.m. $7, $6 seniors, $4 children. (860) 742-6917, www.ctlandmarks.org. Garden and craft classes during summer. Also, Coventry Farmer's Market every Sun 11 a.m.-2 p.m., through Oct. 25.
KENT Bachelier Cardonsky Gallery, 10 North Main St. "Human Nature" exhibit. Through Aug. 16. Hours: Sat, Sun 11 a.m.-5 p.m. and by appointment. (860) 927-3129, www.bacheliercardonsky.com.
ROXBURY Minor Memorial Library, 23 South St. Exhibit of prints and paperworks by Nancy Lasar and Inga-Britta Mills. Sat-Sept. 9. Reception Sat 2-4 p.m. Hours: Mon noon-7 p.m., Wed 10 a.m.-7 p.m., Thurs noon-5 p.m., Fri 10 a.m.-5 p.m., Sat 10 a.m.-2 p.m. (860) 350-2181. | 2019-04-25T09:00:55Z | https://www.ctpost.com/news/article/exhibits-calendar-2503.php |
Placenta-mediated pregnancy complications include pre-eclampsia, late pregnancy loss, placental abruption, and the small-for-gestational age newborn. They are leading causes of maternal, fetal, and neonatal morbidity and mortality in developed nations. Women who have experienced these complications are at an elevated risk of recurrence in subsequent pregnancies. However, despite decades of research no effective strategies to prevent recurrence have been identified, until recently. We completed a pooled summary-based meta-analysis that strongly suggests that low-molecular-weight heparin reduces the risk of recurrent placenta-mediated complications. The proposed individual patient data meta-analysis builds on this successful collaboration. The project is called AFFIRM, A n individual patient data meta-analysis oF low-molecular-weight heparin F or prevention of placenta-medI ated pR egnancy coMplications.
We conducted a systematic review to identify randomized controlled trials with a low-molecular-weight heparin intervention for the prevention of recurrent placenta-mediated pregnancy complications. Investigators and statisticians representing eight trials met to discuss the outcomes and analysis plan for an individual patient data meta-analysis. An additional trial has since been added for a total of nine eligible trials. The primary analyses from the original trials will be replicated for quality assurance prior to recoding the data from each trial and combining it into a common dataset for analysis. Using the anonymized combined data we will conduct logistic regression and subgroup analyses aimed at identifying which women with previous pregnancy complications benefit most from treatment with low-molecular-weight heparin during pregnancy.
The goal of the proposed individual patient data meta-analysis is a thorough estimation of treatment effects in patients with prior individual placenta-mediated pregnancy complications and exploration of which complications are specifically prevented by low-molecular-weight heparin.
Placenta-mediated pregnancy complications include pre-eclampsia (PE), late pregnancy loss, placental abruption and the small-for-gestational age (SGA) newborn. We completed a pooled summary-based meta-analysis that strongly suggests that low-molecular-weight heparin (LMWH) reduces the risk of placenta-mediated complications in subsequent pregnancies .
A successful pregnancy requires the development of adequate placental circulation. It has been hypothesized that thrombosis in the placental bed is at least partially responsible for placenta-mediated pregnancy complications [2–4]. It has also been suggested that these complications are the result of abnormal placental development with underdeveloped placental vasculature or placental inflammation [5, 6]. These complications represent an important health problem because they are common, affecting more than one in six pregnancies , and often have a devastating outcome for the affected women, their unborn children, their families, and society. Specifically, PE (characterized by a new onset of elevated blood pressure and proteinuria during pregnancy) is one of the most common causes of maternal mortality in the developed world [8–11]. SGA newborns often suffer longterm effects including developmental delay, poor school performance, and a significantly lower likelihood of academic and professional success [12–14]. Fetal loss is a devastating event for pregnant women and their families. Placental abruption (separation of the placenta from the uterus before birth) can, in the most severe cases, lead to maternal hemorrhage with the risk of transfusion and both maternal and fetal death.
The risk of recurrent placenta-mediated pregnancy complications in subsequent pregnancies is substantial. For example, women with prior severe PE will have a 25 to 65% risk of recurrent PE, a 3% risk of placental abruption, and a 10% risk of SGA (<10th percentile) [15, 16]. These complications may be multiple (for example both PE and SGA) and not isolated to the placenta-mediated complication experienced in a prior pregnancy [15, 17]. There are no highly effective preventative strategies that can be used in subsequent pregnancies. Aspirin offers small relative risk reductions in patients with prior PE and SGA, however, it may be more effective at reducing risk (approximately a 40% reduction) if started early in the pregnancy (before 16 weeks) [18, 19]. There are no proven preventative strategies for the other complications. It has been postulated that anticoagulants might prevent placenta-mediated pregnancy complications by reducing placental thrombosis and/or affecting maternal coagulation activation or inflammation. Recent randomized controlled trials (RCTs) conducted to determine if LMWH can prevent recurrent placenta-mediated pregnancy complications suggest an important treatment effect [20–24], but this finding has not been universal .
Although it appears that LMWH is a promising therapy in the prevention of placenta-mediated pregnancy complications, there are disadvantages to the premature adoption of this intervention without sufficient evidence of benefit. If LMWH is used universally for all women with prior placenta-mediated pregnancy complications, we may be intervening unnecessarily and exposing women to a risk of undesirable and potentially fatal, albeit rare, side effects (major bleeding, heparin-induced thrombocytopenia, osteoporotic fractures, withholding of epidural analgesia due to fear of causing epidural hematoma, and paralysis) [26, 27]. Less serious side effects including skin reactions, minor bleeding, and transient elevations in liver enzymes are more commonly experienced [28, 29]. Therapy is also associated with cost and inconvenience since the drug is expensive and is administered by injection either once or twice a day. Therefore, it is necessary to answer the question as to who benefits from LMWH prophylaxis during pregnancy and to determine the nature and magnitude of these benefits more precisely. The individual patient data meta-analysis (IPDMA) has the potential to answer these important questions and determine the risk/benefit ratio of therapy for various subgroups of women.
The composite outcome, including all placenta-mediated pregnancy complications, that is used in many RCTs is heterogeneous and not all individual outcomes can be considered equally serious in terms of potential consequences for the mother and newborn. For example, late term pre-eclampsia is clinically less worrisome since the symptoms tend to be less severe and generally resolve with delivery. Conversely, women who develop pre-eclampsia earlier in the pregnancy have more serious clinical consequences including a greater risk of maternal and neonatal death. Our pooled summary meta-analysis suggests that LMWH may prevent severe pre-eclampsia and early pre-eclampsia with less of an effect on late onset pre-eclampsia . Confirmation of these findings is extremely important for clinicians treating these women and has direct relevance for clinical practice worldwide.
There are many challenges associated with recruiting pregnant women to RCTs with a drug intervention including: the biases of clinicians either for or against the therapy (based on insufficient evidence of benefit and lack of knowledge about potential risk); the concerns of the pregnant woman and her family about the health and safety of the mother and baby; and the demands during pregnancy of attending additional appointments and investigations associated solely with study participation . Furthermore, the pharmaceutical industry often excludes pregnant women from trials due to liability concerns. As a result, there is a dearth of RCTs evaluating LMWH in this population compared to other patient groups (such as oncology or orthopedic surgery). Those RCTs that do exist are all academically driven and may not have the same financial and human resources that are available to trials that are sponsored by the pharmaceutical industry. Therefore, meta-analysis is an essential tool that allows for greater statistical power by pooling the existing small RCTs evaluating LMWH for the prevention of placenta-mediated pregnancy complications.
Our recent pooled summary-based meta-analysis of six RCTs (Table 1) included 848 pregnant women with a history of pre-eclampsia, a SGA neonate (<10th percentile), placental abruption, or late pregnancy loss (more than 12 weeks gestation) in a previous pregnancy . The primary finding was that 67 out of 358 (18.7%) women taking LMWH during pregnancy had recurrent severe placenta-mediated pregnancy complications, as compared with 127 out of 296 (42.9%) women with no LMWH (relative risk reduction 48% (95% CI 14 to 68%; (I2 69%). However, since the meta-analysis results apply to a heterogeneous group of women with a mixture of placenta-mediated pregnancy complications of varying prior severity and the primary outcome for the meta-analysis was a composite of all placenta-mediated complications (also of varying severity), it is not clear which subgroups of women derive the most benefit from LMWH (which outcomes are reduced and which severity of outcomes are impacted). Before recommendations for clinical practice can be advocated, it is necessary to conduct more detailed analyses of the existing data to determine potential benefits for subgroups of women, to adjust for important baseline characteristics of participants, and to explore other treatment-related reasons for the reported heterogeneity (for example specific LMWH drug (dalteparin, nadroparin or enoxaparin), LMWH dose, gestational age when drug was initiated, and co-interventions such as concomitant ASA use).
ASA = aspirin; GA = gestational age; IPDMA = individual patient data meta-analysis; IPDMA = individual patient data meta-analysis; PE = pre-eclampsia; RCT = randomized controlled trial; SB = stillbirth; SGA = small-for-gestational age.
TIPPS = Thrombophilia In Pregnancy Prophylaxis Study *accepted for publication in the Lancet.
FRUIT = FRactionated heparin in pregnant women with a history of Utero-placental Insufficiency and Thrombophilia.
NOH-AP = Nîmes Obstetricians and HAematologist – abruptio placentae.
NOH-PE = Nîmes Obstetricians and HAematologist - pre-eclampsia.
HAPPY = Heparin in pregnant women with Adverse Pregnancy outcome to improve the rate of successful PregnancY.
IPDMA has been proposed as an advantageous methodological approach when subgroup analyses are hypothesized to be clinically relevant. Analyzing original data from individual patients makes use of a much richer dataset and has greater statistical power than conventional meta-analysis [31, 32]. Furthermore, for this project, IPDMA will allow for adjustment for covariates that are known to be important in the recurrence of placenta-mediated pregnancy complications. Such an analysis will also enable us to explore clinical, methodological, and statistical heterogeneity more robustly. IPDMA is an attractive method to answer our study questions since it ‘dramatically and consistently’ has more power to detect interactions between risk groups .
The primary research question is: Which women with previous placenta-mediated pregnancy complications have a reduction in the risk of future complications when treated with LMWH during pregnancy? Secondary research questions are: Which of the placenta-mediated pregnancy complications are avoided? Are severe and/or early onset or non-severe and/or late onset complications avoided? Does LMWH cause major bleeding in women with prior placenta-mediated pregnancy complications? And, are any other side effects increased by LMWH use in women with prior placenta-mediated pregnancy complications (thrombocytopenia, osteoporotic fractures or allergic reactions)?
The proposed project is called AFFIRM (A n individual patient data meta-analysis oF low-molecular-weight heparin F or prevention of placenta-medI ated pR egnancy complications), PROSPERO registration number: CRD42013006249. We will synthesize individual patient data from RCTs of LMWH for the prevention of recurrent placenta-mediated pregnancy complications. The overall objective of the meta-analysis is to directly inform clinical practice and the development of clinical practice guidelines. The study is coordinated by the Clinical Epidemiology Program at the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute. Conceptually, the research approach involves four sequential phases: a systematic review, knowledge synthesis planning, data extraction and analysis, and interpretation of results and knowledge translation. The first two phases have been completed and are therefore described below in the past tense. No data have been extracted or recoded for the common dataset and no statistical analyses have been performed; these steps are outlined in the future tense.
Electronic search strategies were developed and tested through an iterative process by an experienced medical information specialist in consultation with the review team. The strategy was peer-reviewed prior to execution by an experienced information specialist using the Peer Review of Electronic Search Strategies (PRESS) checklist . The following search was conducted in May 2013: using the OVID platform, we searched Ovid MEDLINE™, Ovid MEDLINE™ In-Process & Other Non-Indexed Citations, and EmbaseClassic + Embase (strategy included as Additional file 1). We also searched the Cochrane Library on Wiley (including CENTRAL, Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, DARE, and HTA). ClinicalTrials.gov and the WHO International Clinical Trials Registry were searched to identify relevant in-process and completed trials. Strategies utilized a combination of controlled vocabulary (such as ‘hypertension, pregnancy-induced’, ‘placental insufficiency’, ‘heparin, low-molecular-weight’) and keywords (pre-eclampsia, abruption, and LMWH). Vocabulary and syntax were adjusted across databases. Animal studies were excluded but there were no language or date restrictions on any of the searches. We sought additional references through hand-searching the bibliographies of relevant items. Search results are summarized in a preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses (PRISMA) diagram (Figure 1) and details of potentially eligible trials are provided in Tables 2 and 3.
PRISMA flow diagram of AFFIRM’s systematic review. IPD = individual patient data; IPDMA = individual patient data meta-analysis; PRISMA = preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses.
ASA = aspirin; GA = gestational age; HELLP = HELLP syndrome (hemolysis, elevated liver enzymes, low platelet count); IPDMA = individual patient data meta-analysis; IUGR = intrauterine growth restriction; PE = pre-eclampsia; SB = stillbirth; SGA = small-for-gestational age.
SPIN = Scottish Pregnancy Intervention Study; HepASA = Low Molecular Weight Heparin and Aspirin in the Treatment of Recurrent Pregnancy Loss.
ALIFE = Anticoagulants for Living Fetuses.
HABENOX = Low Molecular Weight Heparin and/or Aspirin in Prevention of Habitual Abortion.
ETHIG II = Effectiveness of Dalteparin Therapy as Intervention in Recurrent Pregnancy Loss *final results in preparation for publication.
ASA = aspirin; IPDMA = individual patient data meta-analysis; IUGR = intrauterine growth restriction; PE = pre-eclampsia; SGA = small-for-gestational age.
EPPI = Enoxaparin for the Prevention of Preeclampsia and Intrauterine growth restriction.
HEPEPE = Prevention of Maternal and Perinatal Complications by Enoxaparin in Women With Previous Severe Preeclampsia (original title is French).
HOPPE = Low Weight Heparin prOphylaxis for Placental Mediated Complications of PrEgnancy.
RCTs with an LMWH intervention for the prevention of recurrent placenta-mediated pregnancy complications were eligible. The study population of interest included currently pregnant women with prior pregnancies complicated by one or more of the following: PE, placental abruption, SGA newborn (<10th percentile), pregnancy loss after 16 weeks gestation or two losses after 12 weeks gestation. The principal investigators of potentially eligible trials identified by the systematic review (see Tables 1, 2 and 3) were contacted via email to request additional information about the study population. Once eligibility was confirmed, investigators were invited to participate in the IPDMA and attend the AFFIRM project planning meeting. The lead investigators of the largest and most recently completed trials agreed to contribute individual patient data to this collaboration. Data from two small trials [22, 41] were not included because the investigators did not respond; in one of these trials only a small proportion of the total study population would have been eligible to contribute data to AFFIRM . Some of the women in the Scottish Pregnancy Intervention Study (SPIN) trial would have been eligible for inclusion in AFFIRM, however, the trial database does not include sufficient detail about the timing of previous pregnancy losses to determine the eligibility of individual participants .
A crucial step in the success of the project was the development of the knowledge synthesis and knowledge translation plans. A full-day review team meeting was held in Amsterdam on 4 July 2013. The purpose was to allow for extensive discussion and consensus-reaching on important study variables and outcomes and to consider strategies for merging the existing datasets in a centralized database. Participants included the principal investigators of the included RCTs and statisticians with in-depth knowledge of the trial data. The principal investigators are all practising clinicians (obstetricians and hematologists) who are also knowledge users in this clinical area.
The detailed definitions for the IPDMA outcomes were agreed upon by investigator consensus at the face-to-face meeting. The definitions and diagnostic criteria for each outcome variable are documented in a data dictionary and the research protocol. These definitions, which have been reviewed by all investigators, allow standardization across studies and decrease the potential for bias.
AFFIRM’s primary outcome is a composite outcome including four pregnancy complications: early-onset or severe pre-eclampsia, birth of a small-for-gestational age newborn with a birth weight <5th percentile, placental abruption, and late pregnancy loss. To qualify as a primary outcome event, the pregnancy complication must satisfy one or more predefined criteria. Early onset pre-eclampsia is diagnosed at less than 34 weeks’ gestation. Severe pre-eclampsia is characterized by at least one criterion indicative of severe disease; these are, a systolic blood pressure ≥ 160 mm Hg or diastolic blood pressure ≥110 mm Hg, proteinuria > 0.5 g/24 hours, elevated liver enzymes (more than two times the local upper range of normal), platelets < 100 × 109/L, pulmonary edema, seizures (eclampsia), headache or other neurological manifestations (stroke, intracranial hemorrhage, cerebral edema, hyperreflexia, and visual impairment), coagulopathy, oliguria (<30 ml/hr) or HELLP syndrome (hemolysis, elevated liver enzymes, low platelet count). Birth of a small-for-gestational age newborn with a birth weight <5th percentile is determined using local gender and gestational age specific birth weight charts. The placental abruption outcome requires a clinical diagnosis of placental abruption leading to delivery. A late pregnancy loss occurs at or after 20 weeks of gestation and cannot be explained by other factors, including fetal chromosomal abnormalities, maternal infection, cervical insufficiency or incompetence, or an intentional termination of the pregnancy.
Nineteen secondary outcomes have been defined for AFFIRM, including the four individual components of the primary outcome: severe or early-onset pre-eclampsia, birth of a small-for-gestational age newborn <5th percentile, placental abruption and late pregnancy loss, all as outlined above. Pre-eclampsia (non-severe) is characterized by a systolic blood pressure ≥140 mm Hg or diastolic blood pressure ≥90 mm Hg and proteinuria >0.3 g/24 hours. A diagnosis of HELLP syndrome required 3 criteria, hemolysis [lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) > 600 IU/L or serum bilirubin >1.2 mg/dl] an abnormal elevation of liver enzymes (more than two times the local upper range of normal), and platelets <100 × 109/L. Preterm delivery <34 weeks and < 37 weeks are pre-specified outcomes. A perinatal loss is any fetal or neonatal death at over 20 weeks gestational age and less than or equal to 28 days post-partum and neonatal mortality is considered any neonatal death after birth and less than or equal to 28 days post-partum. Birth of a small-for-gestational age newborn <10th percentile is determined based on local gender and gestational age specific birth weight charts.
Adverse maternal outcomes include thrombocytopenia, defined as a platelet count <75,000 × 109/L, and bleeding outcomes at various time points. Antepartum major bleeding is defined using the criteria proposed by the International Society on Thrombosis and Haemostasis (ISTH) . That is, clinical or radiological evidence of bleeding with at least one of the following criteria: associated with a fall in hemoglobin of 2 g/dL (1.24 mmol/L) or more; or a requirement for transfusion of two or more units of red blood cells or whole blood; or symptomatic bleeding occurring in a critical site: intracranial, intraspinal, intraocular, pericardial, intra-articular, intramuscular with compartment syndrome, or retroperitoneal, or was considered to have contributed to maternal death. Peripartum major bleeding is hemorrhage occurring after the onset of labour or start of surgical delivery and within 24 hours postpartum that meets at least one of the following: necessitating a surgical procedure, or associated with a fall in hemoglobin of 4 g/dL (2.48 mmol/L) or more, or a requirement for transfusion of two or more units of red blood cells or whole blood, or estimated peripartum blood loss >1000 ml, or considered to have contributed to maternal death. Peripartum minor bleeding is hemorrhage occurring after the onset of labour or start of surgical delivery and within 24 hours postpartum that does not meet any criterion above and with estimated peripartum blood loss between 500 and 1000 ml. Postpartum major bleeding is clinical or radiological evidence of bleeding occurring between 24 hours and 6 weeks postpartum and meeting at least one of the following ISTH criteria: associated with a fall in hemoglobin of 2 g/dL (1.24 mmol/L) or more, or a requirement for transfusion of two or more units of red blood cells or whole blood, or symptomatic bleeding occurring in a critical site: intracranial, intraspinal, intraocular, pericardial, intra-articular, intramuscular with compartment syndrome, or retroperitoneal, or considered to have contributed to maternal death.
An allergic reaction to LMWH is a reaction following the administration of LMWH that results in anaphylaxis or a rash requiring discontinuation of the allocated LMWH. Heparin-induced thrombocytopenia (HIT) is defined as a clinical diagnosis of HIT and a minimum of a positive PF4 HIT ELISA assay. The venous thromboembolism outcome includes deep vein thrombosis (DVT) and/or pulmonary embolism. The criteria for diagnosis of DVT are venography demonstrating a constant intraluminal filling defect in the deep veins above the trifurcation of the popliteal vein or compression ultrasound revealing a non-compressibility of a venous segment above the trifurcation of the popliteal vein. Diagnosis of distal, below the knee DVT, is by either venography or compression ultrasound. Diagnostic criteria for pulmonary embolism are pulmonary angiography demonstrating a constant intraluminal filling defect or a cutoff of a vessel more than 2.5 mm in diameter, or ventilation/perfusion (V/Q scan) indicating high-probability, or pulmonary embolism found at autopsy.
The definitions for each variable to be included in AFFIRM’s common dataset are documented in a data dictionary to allow standardization across studies and decrease the potential for misclassification and bias. A template for the common dataset has been developed in Microsoft Excel and will be provided to the principal investigator of each included trial. Recoded anonymized individual patient data from each of the trials will populate the Excel template. The recoded datasets for each of the individual trials will be saved on an IronKey™ USB flash drive and sent by courier to the coordinating center in Ottawa.
The AFFIRM common dataset will include individual patient data in 10 pre-defined categories: administrative and demographic data, thrombophilia, maternal medical history, pregnancy history, current pregnancy and delivery, infant data, pre-eclampsia outcome, other outcome events, intervention and treatment during pregnancy, and adverse events.
Once the individual participant data from the primary studies have been merged in the common dataset, descriptive analyses will be conducted to identify data outliers, missing data, and unexpected inconsistencies. The project coordinator will prepare data clarification reports and will communicate with the principal investigators or their delegates to resolve these queries. Next, we plan to conduct preliminary analyses aimed at replicating the findings of the individual published studies, to validate the centralized database and data importation. Once the IPDMA team is satisfied with the merged dataset, the database will be locked and the planned analyses for the IPDMA synthesis will be conducted.
The individual patient data will be analyzed in a similar manner to an RCT, however, the analysis will account for clustering at the study level. The primary analysis will include all women who are eligible for AFFIRM and will examine the risk of the primary composite outcome in the treatment (LMWH) and control arms based on intention-to-treat. Secondary univariate analyses will be done for each of the pregnancy complications included in the composite outcome. On-treatment sensitivity analyses will be conducted for the primary and secondary outcomes.
We have planned several subgroup analyses; these were selected because they are clinically plausible and there is evidence that they may be relevant. If certain subgroups are found to be small (≤5 subjects) we will merge subgroups as appropriate.
Women will be analyzed in subgroups according to the previous pregnancy complications that were experienced. Prior pre-eclampsia subgroups are any pre-eclampsia, severe pre-eclampsia, early-onset pre-eclampsia, and severe or early onset pre-eclampsia. Subgroups according to prior SGA are SGA <10th percentile, SGA <5th percentile, SGA <3rd percentile, prior pre-eclampsia and SGA <10th percentile, prior pre-eclampsia and SGA <5th percentile, prior pre-eclampsia and SGA <3rd percentile. Subgroups of women with prior placental abruption are any placental abruption, placental abruption leading to delivery <37 weeks’ gestation, placental abruption leading to delivery < 34 weeks’ gestation, and placental abruption with pre-eclampsia. Participants will be grouped for analysis according to the gestational age of prior pregnancy loss: >12 weeks’ gestation, >16 weeks’ gestation, and >20 weeks’ gestation. Demographic subgroups are according to maternal age (<35 years or ≥35 years) and ethnic group (Caucasian, Black, Asian or other).
Quality assessment will be conducted for all eligible studies using the tool for assessing risk of bias from the Cochrane Handbook for reviews of interventions and reported on a study level. These assessments will also be used to inform subgroup analyses and sensitivity analyses to explore whether these biases may have affected the IPDMA analysis. We plan to examine the randomization integrity once the data from the original trials have been combined. We will endeavour to compare the original randomization lists with actual randomization to test the integrity of the allocation concealment. We will also compare the baseline characteristics of participants who have been randomized to the LMWH and no LMWH groups at the study level and aggregate level to see if there are imbalances between the groups that may suggest a lack of integrity in randomization processes.
Once the results of the analyses are available, they will be circulated to all investigators and collaborators and a teleconference will be scheduled to discuss the findings and their interpretation. Regardless of the IPDMA results, they will be disseminated. Dr Shannon Bates is the principal knowledge user for this project. She will provide input throughout the project and will be a leader for the knowledge translation phase of the study. The principal investigators of the identified eligible RCTs (Drs Rey, Martinelli, de Vries, Gris, Rodger, Middeldorp, Schleussner, and Kaaja) are all experienced researchers and also practicing physicians who are knowledge users. Furthermore, these team members are all involved in leadership roles in their institutions and countries, including practice guideline development, and have the potential to considerably influence the international community of healthcare providers in a variety of settings.
The strategies for knowledge translation will rely heavily on the input from all involved knowledge users and will take into consideration the suitability of proposed media and/or approach for different practice settings and international contexts. Traditional methods, such as publication in a peer-reviewed journal, geared towards either a generalist or specialist audience, will be employed. Results will also be presented at international meetings; it is anticipated that knowledge users (clinicians) in hematology, obstetrics, and family medicine will be targeted. In addition, patient advocacy and education groups (such as the Pre-eclampsia Foundation, the North American Thrombosis Forum, and Thrombosis Canada) will be provided with the results in a language and format suitable to a non-medical audience.
This IPDMA will permit the investigators to explore which women within the heterogeneous group of patients with placenta-mediated complications benefit and which women do not benefit from low-molecular-weight heparin injections throughout pregnancy.
The subjects in each of the RCTs all provided informed consent to participate in the original trial. We will not be seeking individual consent for the secondary use of the data for the following reasons: the objectives of the IPDMA are consistent with the original trials, there are no risks or benefits associated with this analysis, no identifying information will be transferred, and it would be logistically time consuming and, in some cases, impossible to contact the women who participated. In order to ensure patient confidentiality any identifying information will be removed from the original dataset before it is transferred. The IronKey™ flash drive includes numerous security features including hardware-based encryption, a random password generator, two-factor authentication, and a self-destruct mechanism which make it extremely unlikely that the dataset can be accessed by anyone other than the intended recipient. Once the data are merged in Ottawa in the common database, they will be stored on the research institute’s network which has multiple security features and regular backup procedures in place.
One relevant potential drawback of IPDMA is biased pooling of data. Bias can be introduced when eligible studies are missed, when authors do not provide their data for the analysis, when the outcomes are different across studies, and when outcome and covariate data are missing from included studies . Our recently completed pooled summary meta-analysis was a successful collaboration of five principal investigators . In addition to the team members from these five trials, the principal investigators of four additional trials have committed to provide data for the AFFIRM meta-analysis. These are the largest and most robust trials completed in this area.
The multinational research team has representation from Canada, the Netherlands, France, Italy, Germany, and Finland. Almost all review team members attended the face-to-face IPDMA planning meeting. To protect against the misclassification of outcomes, the AFFIRM review team discussed each outcome at this meeting until consensus on detailed definitions and diagnostic criteria was reached. Definitions for all variables to be included in the IPDMA common dataset are documented in a data dictionary that was reviewed, revised according to team feedback, and finalized. Despite this, we recognize that challenges will be encountered due to variability in how the variables were originally defined and collected in each of the nine trials. In some cases it will be necessary to consult the original clinical records to obtain complete information for the IPDMA which will be a labor-intensive process. Another challenge is the diversity in language of the original datasets (English, French, Dutch, Italian, and German) that will necessitate translation when the data are recoded. Attention to detail, careful documentation, and excellent communication will be instrumental to the successful completion of this IPDMA.
This collaborative meta-analysis based on individual patient data is funded by a Knowledge Synthesis Grant from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), reference number KRS 126593. The authors would like to acknowledge the contribution of David Moher who provided methodological advice during the conception and design of the project. The Knowledge Synthesis Group at the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute also played an important role during the systematic review: Raymond Daniel downloaded the records from the searches, removed duplicates, and obtained the full-text articles and Kavita Singh screened the titles and abstracts of citations to assess potential eligibility.
Dr Marc Rodger received grant funding of more than $10,000 from Pfizer and Leo Pharma and has served on advisory boards for Sanofi Aventis but not been paid. Dr Johanna de Vries received grant funding for a two-year investigator period between 2000 and 2001 on behalf of the FRUIT-RCT by Pfizer, formerly Pharmacia. Sponsorship was obtained from Pfizer for the AFFIRM investigators’ meeting in 2013. Grant funding was obtained from Pfizer in December 2013 for a single year, to be used from January 2014 to January 2015. Dr Évelyne Rey received travel grants from Leo Pharma for the 4th International Symposium on Women’s Health Issues in Thrombosis and Hemostasis, February 4-6 2011, Berlin, Germany. She also received consultant honorariums from Leo Pharma for the information booklet ‘Anticoagulation pendant la grossesse’, 2010 to 2011, and for CME presentations, 2009 to 2010. Dr Jean-Christophe Gris holds board membership for Sanofi, LFB, and Stago. He is also a consultant for Sanofi, Stago, Leo Pharma, and LFB. He has received grants from Sanofi, Stago, Leo Pharma, LFB, and Baxter Healthcare Corporation. He has received payment for lectures including service on speakers bureaus forSanofi, Stago, Leo Pharma, LFB, Bristol-Myers Squibb Pfizer, Bayer, and Boehringer Ingelheim. Dr. Shannon Bates received an honoraria from Leo Pharma and Pfizer, Canada for various presentations. Dr Saskia Middeldorp: GSK supported the ALIFE trial with a grant (until 2010). GSK currently supports the Highlow trial (has been taken over by Aspen in 2014). She has also received consulting fees and lecture honoraria from Bayer, Boehringer Ingelheim, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Pfizer, Daiichi-Sankyo and research support from GSK, Bristol-Meyers Squibb/Pfizer and Sanquin. Dr Ekkehard Schleussner: Pfizer, Germany and Merck, Germany supported the ETHIG II trial (until 2013). He also received an honoraria from Pfizer, Ferring, Bayer-Jenapharm for various presentations.
MR, lead IPDMA investigator; conceived of the study concept; wrote the first draft of the protocol and first draft of the manuscript; developed the IPDMA variable definitions. RM, contributed to study design, particularly data analysis (coordinating statistician); reviewed and approved of the final manuscript. TR, contributed to study design, particularly data analysis (lead statistician); critical revision of the manuscript and approval of the final manuscript. ER, JDV, MVH, ES and DP, contributed to study design; developing detailed definitions for study outcomes and eligibility; provided input on IPDMA variable definitions; critical revision of the manuscript and approval of the final manuscript. JCG, DB, AP and PDJ, contributed to study design; developing detailed definitions for study outcomes and eligibility; reviewed and approved of the final manuscript. CA, IM and SM, contributed to study design; developing detailed definitions for study outcomes and eligibility; critical revision of the manuscript and approval of the final manuscript. NL, project coordinator: AFFIRM; assisted in writing the first draft of the protocol and first draft of the manuscript; developed first draft of the data dictionary and template for the IPDMA common dataset. SB, contributed to study design, particularly knowledge translation planning; critical revision of the manuscript and approval of the final manuscript. RK, approved the methodology for the study; reviewed and approved of the final manuscript. BS, designed and conducted the electronic search strategy for the systematic review; reviewed and approved of the final manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript. | 2019-04-24T02:00:47Z | https://systematicreviewsjournal.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/2046-4053-3-69 |
1.1 What is a program?
A program is typically defined as a sequence of instructions for a computer to carry out in order to do a particular job, but this is perhaps a rather simplistic definition. You can also look at it another way and say that a program is a model of some aspect of the real world which you can use to mimic the behaviour of the real world. The more accurate the model is the better the results you can expect to get. For example, a program to calculate a companys payroll is modelling aspects of the real world such as income tax legislation. A program to forecast the weather is modelling atmospheric conditions such as temperature, pressure and humidity. And a program such as the word processor Im using to write this book is modelling things like letters, words, lines and paragraphs. Inside the computer all these things are represented as patterns of 0s and 1s but programs manipulate them in such a way as to make these patterns behave like the things they are supposed to represent. A program is not just a sequence of instructions; instead, it models objects in the real world in such a way as to mimic the behaviour you would expect from those objects as they interact in the real world. This is the basis of the object-oriented approach to programming, where the program is regarded as a collection of interacting objects rather than just a featureless sequence of instructions.
In this book youre going to learn how to write programs in Ada, a general purpose programming language originally commissioned by the US Department of Defense. The first standard for the Ada language was finalised in 1983 and was later revised to produce a new updated standard in 1995. The earlier version is now known as Ada 83 and the later version (the one covered in this book) as Ada 95. Ada programs use a somewhat stilted kind of formal English in order to specify the operations you want the computer to perform. You provide some declarations which specify the objects that the program is going to deal with. You also provide a sequence of statements specifying the actions you want performed on those objects and the computer will perform them in order, one after the other. A set of declarations together with a sequence of statements like this makes up a procedure which you invent a name for. For example, you might write a procedure which clears the screen and call it Clear_Screen.
Computers do not understand Ada directly; the text of your procedure (the source code) must first of all be translated (compiled) into an internal form by an Ada compiler. The compiler protects you against your own stupidity by detecting a lot of common errors such as those which arise from typing mistakes, and these must be corrected before you can go any further. Once a procedure has been compiled successfully it is added to your program library. Whenever you want to perform that sequence of statements you can just refer to the procedure by the name youve given it. For example, you might write another procedure which needs to clear the screen before displaying something on it. All it would have to do would be to call on the services of the existing Clear_Screen procedure. This means that you dont have to rewrite things youve already written, which reduces the amount of work you have to do both in writing the programs and in testing them to make sure they work properly. You can also make use of procedures written by other people without having to know all the details of how they work.
The next step for turning your procedure from a library unit into a working program is to link it (also referred to as building or binding it). This combines it with any other library units it refers to. In addition to any library units you may have written, the Ada language specification defines a number of standard library units that all Ada systems must provide (e.g. operations like input and output) and it is quite likely that your procedure will have used one or more of these, either directly or indirectly. The linker takes your procedure, any library units it refers to, any others that they refer to and so on, and binds them all together into a single executable program which you can then run.
Of course it is quite possible (almost inevitable, as you will discover!) that the program wont work the way you expected; the compiler isnt omniscient, so the fact that your program compiled successfully just means that its a valid Ada program. It doesnt guarantee that its the particular Ada program you expected it to be, and its up to you to test it thoroughly to make sure it behaves the way you intended it to. You might hope for a program which displays a five times table but end up with a program that displays the number 5 over and over again, in which case its back to the drawing board: youll need to track down the errors (known as bugs in the trade), correct them, recompile, relink, and try again.
Writing a program which produces the right answers from sensible input is only part of the story. You also need to make sure that it still behaves sensibly with nonsensical input. For example, the program might expect you to type in a number; what happens if you type in your name instead? If the program responds with an error message, ignores the erroneous input and carries on working, fine. If the program crashes (i.e. halts unexpectedly), this is not so good. You may never get the result that the program is supposed to produce. Even worse, the program might get stuck in an infinite loop where it just ends up doing the same thing over and over again until it is forcibly halted.
Writing a program which does what its supposed to do is only part of the story. Once youve got the program working someone will usually think of some extra feature that would be incredibly useful or some improvement to what it already does that will make it easier to use. These sorts of changes come under the heading of program maintenance. Most real-world programs are hundreds of thousands of lines long and will be in use for about five years before being replaced. Over a five year period, maintenance will typically cost about four times as much as developing the original program and will involve writing as many lines of code as there were in the original, either as additions to or replacements for lines in the original. More programmers are employed maintaining existing code than writing new code. How easy is it going to be to make maintenance changes to your program? What if its someone else who has to make the changes rather than you, the original author?
Obviously readability is a major factor in determining how easy it is to maintain a program. You need to be able to read and understand what the program does in order to change it. As I said earlier, Ada programs are written using a somewhat stilted formal English. Writing a program is in many ways just like writing an essay. It can be well- presented and well-structured or it can be a tangled rambling mess. If you want other people to be able to understand what its all about (or even yourself in six months time!) you need to make an effort to present the program so that its structure and meaning is easy to understand. If you dont, youll end up thinking what on earth does this bit do? and wasting a lot of time trying to understand whats going on.
Maintainability is a measure of how easy it is to change a program. Ideally a single change should involve changing just one part of the program. If you have to alter several parts of the program to effect the change theres a risk that youll forget to change some of them or that youll make a mistake in some places but not in others. For example, consider a payroll program that can handle up to 100 employees. If the number of employees expands, the program will need changing to handle (say) 200 employees. If there is a single line in the program that says that the number of employees is 100 and the rest of the program refers to the number of employees rather than using the number 100 then there will be no problem. If, however, the value 100 appears as a magic number throughout the program, every single occurrence of 100 will need changing to 200. The chances of missing one are fairly high. Worse, some places where 100 is used might be involved in calculating percentages, or it might refer to the number of pennies in a pound, and we might accidentally end up with 200 pence to the pound or percentages calculated wrongly. And what about the places where the magic number 99 appears? Should 99 be changed to 199 throughout, or rather, to the number of employees - 1?
Another situation that arises quite often is the need to make the program work on several different systems. A program should ideally be portable from one system to another; all you do is recompile it and, hey presto, it works! Unfortunately life is rarely that simple; there are usually differences from one system to another such as the size of the largest possible number that can be handled or the capabilities of the display screen. Although you can avoid assuming that your program is running on a system which has particular characteristics it will sometimes be impossible to eliminate system-specific dependencies. About the only thing youll be able to to do in such situations is to gather together all the system-specific parts of the program so that its easy to locate them and change them.
After writing a few programs you normally discover that a lot of the time youre doing the same old thing that you did before, at least in places. Input and output; sorting collections of data into order; trying to find things in a collection; there are dozens of common features shared by different programs. After a while a sensation of d�j� vu comes upon you and you realise youve done it all before. The second time you do it better and/or faster than the first time. The third time you do it better and/or faster than the second. The fourth time you start yawning. How easy is it to reuse what youve already written and rewritten? Ada provides some mechanisms which allow you to write software which is flexible enough that you can reuse it fairly easily in a variety of different situations. Learning to make the most of these mechanisms is always useful but it becomes a necessity as soon as programs start to go above a few thousand lines of code in size.
Adas reuse mechanisms are based on separating specifications from implementations. All you need to use an existing procedure is a specification which gives its name and describes what it does; you dont need to know anything about the implementation, i.e. how it works. This is a bit like driving a car; you dont need to know how an engine or a gearbox works in order to drive, you just have to know what the various controls do. You can take the analogy further: the people who build the car dont need to know how to manufacture the individual components like pistons and fuel pumps that go into it. They just need to know how to assemble these components to produce the car as a finished product. One of the most important aspects of becoming a proficient Ada programmer is learning what components are already available and how to assemble them to provide larger components or finished products.
This separation also enhances maintainability and portability. As long as all you rely on when you use something is a specification of what it does, it is easy to change how it does it. This can be done behind the scenes with no visible effects other than the need to take any existing programs which rely on the specification and relink them so that they use the new implementation. Portability is also aided by the fact that you can say this procedure clears the screen as a specification but then provide different implementations for different systems with different types of screen.
It is quite common for collections of related procedures to be useful in a wide variety of situations. To avoid programmers having to reinvent the wheel every time they sit down to write a program, a collection of related procedures, data type declarations and the like can be put together into a package and added to the library as a single unit. This is useful for defining classes of objects as described earlier. For example, packs of playing cards are a class of objects which could be defined by a package. The package could contain some declarations for data types like Card and Pack together with a set of procedures defining the things you can reasonably expect to do with a pack of cards (shuffle the pack, deal a card, replace a card at the bottom of the pack, and so on). If you hide the implementation details such as the internal representation of a card or a pack of cards, users are only able to do things that are provided for in the package specification and things which you would not reasonably expect them to be able to do (such as manufacturing extra aces at will or dealing cards from the bottom of the pack) are prohibited.
What you end up with is an abstract data type. Abstract data types provide no information about their internal implementation; instead, all you know is the set of permissible values of the type and the operations that can be performed on them. This is just like the way that numbers are handled in a computer. You dont usually have access to the internal representation of numbers in the computers memory; all you know about is the visible representation of numbers like 3.1416 and the fact that you can perform operations like addition and subtraction on them. Ada packages provide the mechanism by which programmers can define their own abstract data types.
One of the things that hinders reuse in most programming languages is that algorithms (methods of solving a problem) are usually intertwined with the type of data that they deal with. For example, a procedure which sorts a list of numbers into ascending order will normally need changing if you want to sort a list of names instead. Even if the changes are straightforward, this means that the source code for the procedure must be available for it to be changed. Commercially available software is not generally supplied in source form so that trade secrets can be preserved and copyright enforced, so this can mean reinventing the wheel yet again.
Ada allows you to separate algorithms from the data they deal with by allowing you to write generic library units. For example, in order to sort a collection of data all you really need to know is how to compare data items with each other to discover if they need reordering and how to move them to the correct position in the collection if they are out of order. The same algorithm can be used regardless of whether youre sorting numbers or names as long as these conditions are met. Ada allows you to write a generic sorting procedure which, given a data type which satisfies the requirements of the algorithm, will sort a collection of items of that type. All you have to do to be able to use it to sort items of a particular type is to specify the item type to be used and the method for comparing two items. You can use the same algorithm over and over again for different types of data without the need to modify it in any way.
Another obstacle to reuse and maintenance is when you have some existing code that almost but not quite meets your requirements. The ideal solution is to use the existing code but extend it and modify its behaviour where necessary to fit your requirements. For example, you might want a program which can deal with different types of bank accounts such as current accounts and savings accounts. Using conventional programming techniques it will need major surgery whenever a new type of bank account is introduced that behaves slightly differently from other account types, such as an interest-bearing bank account. Object-oriented programming introduces the notion of inheritance to overcome this problem. Using inheritance all you have to do is to say that this new type of bank account is the same as that old type of account but with the following differences. The new bank account inherits all the characteristics of the existing account type, modifying or extending those characteristics where necessary. A minimum of new code needs to be written, which speeds up development and simplifies testing and debugging.
A related problem is dealing with those situations where the different types of account behave differently. Normally this involves checking the type of account at each point in the program where different behaviour is possible and then choosing the behaviour appropriate to that account type. A new account type will therefore involve a number of modifications at different places in the program with the associated risk of missing a change or changing something incorrectly. Inheritance guarantees that all bank accounts will share certain common characteristics such as the ability to deposit and withdraw money. New types of bank account will either inherit the existing behaviour or provide a replacement for it. In either case it will still be possible to perform those operations. Polymorphism reflects the ability to provide different implementations of the same operation for different types and to select the correct behaviour automatically for the actual type of object being dealt with. Rather than seeing a program as a set of procedures which manipulate data, you can look at it as a set of objects which you can ask to perform particular operations. Each object responds to a request to perform a particular operation by executing the version of the operation which is appropriate for it. You dont have to check what type of account youre dealing with when you say deposit some money; instead, you tell the account that you want to deposit some money and it does it in the way thats appropriate for the type of account that it is. As a result, you wont need to change any existing code when you introduce a new type of account. | 2019-04-18T19:08:04Z | https://www.adaic.org/resources/add_content/docs/craft/html/ch01.htm |
Newari, a Tibeto-Burman language, is the mother tongue of the Newars, the earliest settlers of the Kathmandu Valley of Nepal. The Newars have long occupied a culturally important place among the Himalayan peoples. Over the centuries they have developed a complex and advanced culture which contains elements taken from both the great Sanskrit traditions of India to the South and the traditions of Tibet and China in the North. In Nepal's literary and historiographic traditions, Newari has a prominent place, since it is the oldest written language of Nepal, and for several centuries, from the end of the 14th century, was the principal Nepalese language to be used in court records, inscriptions and historical documents. Partially because of the cultural importance of the Newars, and partially because Newari is one of the oldest written Tibeto-Burman languages (recently documents written in Classical Newari have been found which date from the 12th century) Newari has been accepted by scholars as a key Himalayan language, and they have long called for reliable reference works on the language.
The lexicographic studies of Classical Newari that have so far appeared have been inadequate. The most important, Hans Jorgensen's A Dictionary of the Classical Newari, (Det Kgl. Danske Videnskabernes Selskab, Historisk-filologiske Meddelelser XXIII,l., Levin & Munksgaard, Kobenhavn, 1936) was published more than sixty years ago. This 6000-word Dictionary was based on the limited source materials available to the author, who never traveled to Nepal. Subsequent studies have been limited to glossaries attached to translations and editions of Classical Newari works.
In the field of linguistics, Newari has long been considered a particularly important language. It is one of four Tibeto-Burman languages with an old written tradition (the other three being Tibetan, Burmese and Manipuri) and the only member of the Himalayan group with such a tradition. Classical Newari is thus obviously important in the study of the development of the Tibeto-Burman languages in general and the Himalayan languages in particular. A Comprehensive Dictionary would be an invaluable research tool in such study.
In the documentation of the history of the Nepal Valley, Classical Newari plays a very important role. From the middle of the 14th-century to the rise of the Shah dynasty, innumerable historical texts (such as inscriptions, tamsuks, vamsaveli-s and thyasaphu-s) were written in Classical Newari, often of a particularly difficult variety. Much of the single most important Nepalese historical document, the Gopalarajavamsavali, is in Newari. In the study of such historical materials, a Comprehensive Dictionary of Classical Newari has long been a desideratum.
A Classical Newari Dictionary has evident applications in any study of the rich culture of the Kathmandu Valley. The Newars have played a crucial role in the cultural history of Himalayan South Asia, acting as 'culture mediators' between India, Tibet and China. Any light that can be shed on Newar cultural traditions will help to illumine the cultural history of the entire area.
The usefulness of a Comprehensive Classical Newari Dictionary in the study of Classical Newari literature is self-evident. In such study, particularly in cases where there is no recourse to a Sanskrit original, a good Dictionary is an indispensable research tool.
To meet this long-felt need a team of Newar scholars got together in 1980 and formed the Nepal Bhasa Dictionary Committee under the aegis of Cwasa Pasa-the premier literary organization of the Newars.
This Dictionary is compiled from 96 different manuscript sources, ranging from poetry, drama, narrative texts, moral aphorisms, jurisprudence texts, chronicles, historical diaries, inscriptions to palm leafs, spread between AD 1115 to the end of the 19th century. It gives each attested word or phrase, its location in the manuscript, the date in Nepala- Samvat the national era of early medieval and medieval Nepal, the grammatical label, gloss in English, etymology of the word, the illustrative citation or context of its use, its gloss in English and the modern form, if different from the head or main entry.
Cwasa Pasa, a writers' association founded in exile in Calcutta on May 2, 1950, by Prem Bahadur Kansakar and Madan Locan Singh, is the oldest surviving literary organization among the Newars. On January 26, 1980, it formed a 16-member Committee under the Chairmanship of Dr Kamal P. Malla to launch a project to compile dictionaries, both monolingual and bilingual, of both Contemporary and Classical Newari.
Perhaps the main inspiration for this project concept came from an American student of Prem Bahadur Kansakar. Mr lan Alsop made a personal donation of US $ 1,000 to Cwasa Pasa. This donation came following a successful collaboration with Prem Bahadur Kansakar in translating into English a very popular Classical Newari text, Canakya Sara Samgraha (Kailash, Vol. VII No 3-4, 1979, pp. 247-317). Alsop had studied Newari language and culture for several years with Prem Bahadur Kansakar, and both had developed a bond not too different from the gurukula of distant past. In the meantime, Alsop had acquired not only knowledge but also love for the culture and language he studied with Prem Bahadur. Between them it was decided to launch a project to compile a Comprehensive Dictionary of the Classical Newari.
The founders looked all over the place in Nepal for moral, intellectual and, of course, financial support for the Project. As soon as the Nepal Bhasa Dictionary Committee was formed as an autonomous committee under Cwasa Pasa it sat in several sessions and deliberated and finally, in October 1980, developed a firm Project Proposal. In the meantime, letters were dispatched since early March 1980 to several scholars and well-wishers in the United Kingdom, the United States, Europe, Australia, and Japan seeking support, advice and comments on the project proposal. Many sent comments, assurances of support and helpful suggestions on where to look for financial support. Among many well-wishers were Professor Kitamura and Professor Hiroshi Iishii of the Tokyo University of Foreign Studies, a student of Prem Bahadur, and Professor Yoshiko Nishi of the Christian University of Tokyo-a widely known scholar interested in comparative and historical studies in Tibeto-Burman languages. It was they who recommended us to contact the Toyota Foundation of Japan, and with the help of their good offices we came in contact with Miss Kazue Iwamoto of the International Division of the Toyota Foundation, Tokyo. In May 1982, Miss Iwamoto came to Kathmandu to discuss our proposal with us. Miss Iwamoto is a young lady with a deep sympathy for the indigenous cultures and languages of Asia and an equally deep understanding of the aspirations of scholarly communities struggling to study and preserve them. It was through her good offices and profound goodwill that, finally, our dream of compiling and publishing a dictionary of Classical Newari came true.
When the Project for a Comprehensive Dictionary of the Classical Newari was first conceived and formulated in 1980 by the NBDC it was visualized as a long-term and ambitious enterprise, consisting of three phases, each phase lasting a few years. Phase I was to be focussed on the Lexicon drawn from the bilingual Amarakosa sources. Phase II was to be A Dictionary of the Literary Newari, based on manuscripts of poetry, drama, narratives, law and moral texts, and historical sources, including legal documents, diaries, and chronicles. Finally, Phase III was to consist of the Dictionary of the technical and ritual language and other miscellaneous texts.
The Phase I was launched in January 1983 with the first initial research grant made by the Toyota Foundation to compile a Newari Lexicon based on the Amarakosa sources on a pilot project scale. It was to last 18 months, but even a preliminary compilation from 10 manuscripts took full three years. Based on the experience of this pilot project, the Committee filed two applications-one to the Toyota Foundation for support for compiling a Dictionary of the Classical Newari (Phase 11) and another to the National Endowment for the Humanities to edit the Lexicon Material collected by the NBDC in 1983-85. As both the agencies decided to make grants to the Project, the two activities went on side by side for some time. Soon a number of problems were discovered in the Lexicon corpus, and it was decided to redefine the goals of the Lexicon Project in terms, not of editing, but of recompiling the material in two separate files: a Concordance of all the Amarakosa manuscripts in semantic blocks and units so that the historical evolution of Newari glosses could be systematically traced, and secondly, a Lexicon of Newari together with an index and searching facilities by various discrete fields. With these clear redefined goals, the Lexicon recompilation was begun in July 1986, and with an eight-year financial support of the National Endowment for the Humanities, USA, it was, for all intents and purposes, completed in December 1998.
It is basically a bi-lingual lexicon of Sanskrit and Newari with supporting evidence from modern Nepali and English glosses. One can search for any word, and if it is there in the file, its use in all the attested contexts of the source manuscripts can be downloaded. The Concordance, therefore, is more reliable and valuable than the Lexicon in which the English glosses were supplied by Kashinath Tamot. Both were edited by lan Alsop with the help of Gurushekher Sharma, Kashinath Tamot, Saraswati Tuladhar and Omi Sharma and the computer programming support from Mary Church of Santa Fe, USA. The total corpus comes from the eleven bilingual Amsrakosa manuscripts dated approximately at a chronological distance of 50 years each between N.S. 501/ A.D. 1381 to N.S.831/A.D.1711. It consists of 26,973 words, including duplicates, inflections, and Sanskrit loanwords compiled from 2,046 total folios of the manuscript sources.
The Phase II of the Project began on January 1, 1986 and ended on December 29, 1999-exactly fourteen years later when the camera-ready copy of the Dictionary was delivered to the printing press. The Project took more time, efforts and resources than was calculated at first because it was compiled and edited on a trial-and-error basis. It was funded all through by the Toyota Foundation between 1986-92 for six years for research, compilation and editing and a publication grant made in 1994. Between 1992-99, for seven years the Project was run from the interest earned by depositing all the Project savings in a fixed project account. This Dictionary is the final output of Phase 11 of the Project.
The Phase III of the Project was to be the Dictionary of ritual and technical vocabulary to be drawn from medicine, mathematics, astrology, astronomy and ritual texts which we deferred till the end, not because the sources were scarce, but because they were complex and abundant, requiring more specialized knowledge of these fields than the previous efforts at compilation from literary and historical material. The variety and number of manuscripts in these domains were too tantalizing. Selection of the source materials is itself a challenge of the first order-particularly from the ritual texts. We may still have some experts and technical specialists among our generation though truly knowledgeable experts conversant with older texts are an endangered species in our society. Because of a gradual decline of the knowledge of the Sanskrit language, learned specialists are a vanishing species in Newar society--thanks to modern education! Those who have, in a way, survived the sweeping cultural and social changes are not willing or able to help the aspiring lexicographers. This has, on the one hand, impressed upon us the urgency of the onerous task and, on the other hand, it has exposed the helplessness of our team. This is so, not only because we do not have any immediate financial resources to launch such a Phase III, but also because available human resources within and outside the Committee are slipping out of our hands very soon.
Descriptive labels such as 'Classical Newari' or 'Contemporary Newari' can be misleading because there is no clear-cut chronological date-line that can be set for either. Although it is customary to speak of 'Contemporary' or 'Colloquial Newari' as the form of language in use only since the beginning of the twentieth century (or since Newari adopted the Devanagri script for printing and type-setting) we have documentary evidence of spoken forms or colloquial Newari at least since William Kirkpatrick's 600 word-list, Hodgson's word-lists, or in the Dictionary compiled by Father John Gaulbert in the 18th century. Colonel William Kirkpatrick (1811: 221-249) gives the following forms: khooen = a bone; loe = a disease; phye = air; ghupa = the neck; and laha = the hand. These entries in the Kirkpatrick word-list incontestably prove that the loss of medial and final syllables-the so-called phonological characteristics of colloquial or contemporary Newari-had already taken place much before the 1790s although the scribes continued to persist with the older written or literary forms.
On the other hand, a sample of the Newari language, i.e., the Newari version of the Parable of the Prodigal Son, as reproduced in the Linguistic Survey of India (1909: 224), clearly shows the persistence of several verb or adverbial forms (such as dasysm cona, dasyemli jwanave, dhakam dhala, khachikhaca, etc.), which are undoubtedly conservative strata. If this is one side of the inherent conservatism of Newar scribes, the other side of the story is even more instructive. Jorgensen's Dictionary and Grammar make use of a Narads-Smrti manuscript (The British Museum, Or. 8) which is dated NS 820/AD 1699. If we go by its colophon it must be classified as a 'late' Classical Newari manuscript. But it is clearly a copy of the Narads-Smrti of NS 500/AD 1380, and all the structural and linguistic characteristics of the manuscript discussed by Jorgensen in his Grammar, especially p. 7, are identical with the linguistic characteristics of NS 500 manuscript. So colophon dates are not necessarily the infallible signposts for linguistic chronology of Newari. The internal and structural evidence that can be pieced together from phonological or phonetic differences, morphology, syntax and the structure and sources of the vocabulary alone show possible tangible evidence for "periodisation" of linguistic strata or change. Has a sound A (vowel/consonant) changed into sound B-regularly and consistently in the later or different ones Has a Form A changed into Form B? Has Structure A (phrase, clause, grammatical unit) been replaced or displaced by Structure B? Firm answers to these, questions alone can justify "periodisation" in historical linguistics. One reason why we have given orthographic variants for the earliest attested forms of the head entries or all the so-called inflected forms of verbs together with their variants and allomorphic suffixes is to simply document the available data rather than to make heavy and sweeping generalizations about "the original form" or "the etymon". More rigorous methods and logically sound historical analysis may be necessary before we can make valid statements on different strata or stages of the Classical Newari. All we know at this stage is that Classical Newari is not a single homogenous monolithic stage nor a variety, dialect or stylistic label.
It was to a certain degree bound to be .... a historical grammar, since the manuscripts on which it is based, range from the fourteenth to the nineteenth century, and the natural changes in the language during this period have to some extent been reflected in these.
The term "Classical Newari" need not, therefore, mislead the readers in yet another sense of the term. Unlike Classical Sanskrit, Classical Greek or Classical Arabic or 'Classical literature', it does not in any sense represent "a standard" let alone "the standard" or the level of excellence in writing. On the contrary, the Classical Newari writing-orthography and grammar-both show a lot of inconsistencies and multiplicity of non-standard forms or even illiterate or semi-literate forms of language use, particularly in the loanwords from Sanskrit or the New Indo-Aryan languages. We are using it only as a convenient term at this stage of our knowledge of the language-convenient to distinguish it from the Colloquial Newari. We, more or less, know what changes have taken place in between, but we do not yet know enough what changes took place within the Classical Newari or whether they are real temporal changes or mere spatial variations-variations of individual dialects, (social/regional) or evidence of diaglossia (high style/ Iow style).
Except for some manuscripts sources (listed elsewhere) words are compiled by a compiler from the Nagan transliteration. Words or lexical items were compiled either from photos or photo-prints of the manuscripts or from the Nagart transliteration. The compiler enters the headword/and phrase and where possible (s)he assigns a grammatical label, an English gloss for it, and notes down the folio and line number, the manuscript siglium, and the illustrative citation and an English gloss for it. (S)/he also gives an etymology, where possible and the modern form, if different from the older form. This is, of course, the ideal situation. However, in actuality not all compilers entered all these pieces of information on the cards they filed. For the first batch of 20 manuscripts, the Chief Compiler went through these cards compiled by his associates, and checked, completed and finalized them with his own analysis and interpretation. Once the manuscript is through the card compilation phase, it is accessed on the computer. A hard copy file is prepared out of the card file. For the convenience of checking, a straight copy is prepared according to folio and line sequences. This version is checked at least three times by three different editors for transliteration check. Then alphabetization of the card file takes place and an alphabetized version of the hard copy file is prepared. It is this version of the hard copy of an individual manuscript file which is handled by the Editor for lexical and substantive editing. He checks the accuracy of English gloss, grammatical labels and illustrative citation gloss and etymology. Since accuracy of roman transliteration is vital for the interpretation of the lexical item, transliteration editing is done by several hands for at least three times, and in some manuscripts as many as a dozen times.
Once the individual manuscripts files are through this process of rigorous transliteration check and substantive editing they are merged into a single Draft Master File. Three different kinds of Draft Master Files were prepared for integrated editing (1) the Master files of Verb Material (2) The Master file of Entries with Sanskrit or' Sanskrit-based etymology, and (3) The Complete Master File without sub-entry, embedding, associations of duplicates and orthographic variants. It was in the last kind of Draft Master File that computer editing of duplicates, variants, and sub-entries is done by application of various codes, including the recall of illustration citation from one entry to others. In order to maintain uniformity and consistency in grammatical labels, all the labels were searched through computer. A secondary stage transcription check of roman transcription was carried during 1990-92 by two or three different hands.
We can only say who the initial compiler was for each manuscript, but very rarely would the initial compiler have provided all the 7 necessary details-lexical, grammatical, etymological and other textual information on the card. It was at several later stages of transcription, lexical, and subsequent editing that most often than not the gloss for the headword and the illustrative citation was supplied and glossed by the Editors. The assignment of grammatical label for the headword and its etymology (if it is from Indo- Aryan sources) are the most fundamental works. For not a single manuscript all these crucial tasks were completed by the initial compilers. So manuscripts cannot be ascribed to a single member of the Compilation Team nor the Editorial Team. For anyone interested in either the details of the compilation, computation and editing process of the Dictionary, the NBDC has preserved all the 35,000 cards and 258 hard copy files in which proof-reading and editing by several hands are accomplished, and they can be dug out for review of this collective accomplishment.
Although each manuscript can be assigned and ascribed to an individual compiler, each file or word, however, had passed through several stages of editing, and in the true sense of the term, it is a team or collective output rather one man's brain child. A manuscript is transliterated into Devananagart by an individual but a word compiled from it is romanised by a different person; word processing is done by yet another and it would have passed through different hands at different stages of editing at the level of individual file, if not at the final stages of single Master File merging all else. When all files were merged head entries are either embedded or cross-referenced with other head entries so that many entries did not appear at all in the final version.
Unless one decides to include every single item in the text indiscriminately, what to include or what to exclude from compilation from any text is not such an easy or simple decision as it appears. That this involves a great deal of judgement and/or discretion is obvious from the following questions posed by the Compilation Team to the NBDC or the Editorial Board as it began to embark upon the compilation work from the all-important historical text: the GV. The questions were: (a) Should we compile numerals and chronograms used for epoch?, (b) Should we compile the astronomical data such as month, paksa, tithi, vara, naksatra, yoga, vets, etc?; (c) Should we compile personal names, place-names? (d) Should we compile Sanskrit words from the Newari portion of the chronicle? (e) Should we compile duplicates of words in different syntactic contexts? (t) Should we compile incomplete, illegible, doubtful words?(g) Should we give illustrative citation for each word or each instance of its use? (h) Should we repeat words already compiled in the Lexicon Phase or in other texts in the Dictionary Phase? (i) Is it necessary to translate each illustration citation into English? (the Chief Compiler's Note to the Chairman, NBDC, Feb. 14, 1988). When the Assistant Compiler, Tulsi Lal Singh, finished compilation from the GV on Dec. 27, 1988, there were 2150 words in the file, out of which 243 were personal names and 300 place-names. While the NBDC decided to retain place-names it decided to discard the personal names, thus wasting all the time, efforts and resources that had gone into these compilations, all of which could have been spared had there been timely decisions or clear policy guidelines on what to compile. This is true also about other manuscripts compiled prior to 1988/90, particularly H, D, SV, SV1, T, HI, R etc., in which there were substantial portions of classical or popular personal and place-names, later discarded from the corpus after preliminary lexical editing.
After having said all this, in retrospect, the crucial decision in dictionary compilation: what to include and what to exclude? which words to compile and which to leave out? - was left to the personal judgement and discretion of the assistant compiler(s) or associate compilers, although in the case of about 20 manuscripts the Chief Compiler marked the words/phrases to be compiled from the Nagart transliteration. In the case of the 18 major manuscripts it was his personal judgement. In the case of 4 others it was, perhaps, partly his judgement and partly the personal discretion of his assistants. In the case of the remaining sources - the historical diaries, the inscriptions, the palmleafs, the colophons etc., it was mainly the work of T.L. Singh. That such decisions are not as easy as it may seem, would be evident from the questions that were put to the NBDC and the then Editorial Board by the compilers when they were about to launch compilation from one of the key manuscripts - the Gopalarajavamsavali.
Although editorial decisions had been made on case by case basis since September 4, 1986, in a piecemeal fashion, it was only on Jan 10, 1990 that a single integrated editorial policy document was prepared. In September 1994 a new and updated version was prepared by Kamal P. Malla. This document, together with the Manual for Editing the Dictionary Master File (prepared by Ian Alsop on Feb 27, 1992) became the foundations of the editorial work. As editing progressed many deficiencies in these documents came up. For example, not all verb roots had attested infinitives. So for some verbs, citation forms had to be "reconstructed" to embed all the attested inflected forms as sub-entries. So a new field had to be created. With the help of this field, a citation form was given after a slash/oblique, giving the attested form as the main entry.
Between March 1992 and May 1995, for three years, the project faced several software problems in the Draft Master File. To begin with, the file entered into a loop from which it could not get out of first 35 pages! When we entered the codes and merged the files, the hard copy came out with reversed verb entries, i.e., the sub-entry as head entries and head entries as sub-entries! In one version of the Draft (Version 5), the sub-entries were in a disturbed sequences with one sub-entry left out! In fact, it was only in Version 6 (May 22, 1995) that a proper draft took shape in which Ian Alsop's Manual could be used. It was only in this file that the chronological problem (the earliest dated entry as Head Entry and the Main Entry with later dated entries as duplicates and orthographic variants) was tackled and code editing was done properly for the first time. The output of this Draft Version was Draft Version 7 (Jan 24, 1996) which was used for editing the gloss, grammatical labels, etymology etc. So it took the project 4 years to resolve software problems and 3 more years to edit the Draft File and to concentrate on substantive editing. During all these years, Omi Sharma worked on computer and the Professional Computer Systems supported the Project with greatest patience. | 2019-04-21T06:21:49Z | https://www.exoticindiaart.com/book/details/dictionary-of-classical-newari-compiled-from-manuscript-sources-NAM280/ |
Exploration for petroleum, successful or otherwise has been an ongoing event from the mid 1800’s. Technology and handling made it a viable fuel at the time, yet on chance encounter drillers came across natural gas, which at the time was considered a nuisance and was flared to the atmosphere (Boyle et al, 2003, pp235-236 2003) & (Stevens, 2010, p1). In time, the technical and economic opportunities of NG manifested themselves, extraction, production and subsequent pipe carriage to regional markets was becoming feasible.
The exploration and production facilities involve considerable expertise, be it seismic research, exploratory well drilling, review and subsequent extraction/production, require not only capital but an understanding that an investment return will be possible (Lim et al, 2001, p61).
Two factors come into play, the first requires that Government is sympathetic to the extraction and either assist with subsidies else provides taxation that does not deter investment. Australian Commonwealth and State Governments provide incentives to firms to ensure that these energy resources are exploited for the benefit of all parties. In this vein, the use of a resource rent tax, first proposed by Garnaut and Clunies Ross has successfully been applied to most offshore petroleum and gas fields under Commonwealth jurisdiction (Garnaut, 2010, p7).
The second factor constitutes contracted or foundation markets that will ensure the long term sale of the product and so allow the actual return on investment. Initially these were the densely populated so easily reticulated metropolitan areas, however as energy usage patterns have evolved so has the NG market (Hausman, 2010, p 2)( PC, 2004, pp26-28).
To bring the NG to market and so ensure the second factor is realised, physical pipelines connect the gas field resource and the intra and inter State distribution areas. Appreciatively costly and requiring up-keep, upgrades and extensions to service new producing or consuming regions. Apart from investment, undertakings from within State jurisdictions and co-operation between States is needed to ensure feasible and equitable operation as energy is under State legislation.
Consider the Moomba – Sydney pipeline (MSP), exemplified here to present the forthcoming argument. Originally commenced by the Australian Gas Light Company (AGL) the early 1970s saw the Commonwealth Government acquire the asset, and complete it by 1976. Development of the pipeline continued until it was sold under legislation that included Government regulation to Eastern Australian Pipeline Limited (EAPL) in 1994, an entity owned by AGL Gas Networks 51% and 49% by Petronas (Malaysia) and NovaCorp (Canada). Yet by 2000 it was sold in its entirety to Australian Pipeline Trust APT. A single supply line initially operated by a private concern that serviced the NSW East coast (APT, 2003, p2) (Lawrey, 1998, p101).
1/ AGL controlled the MSP and provided entry barriers where possible to new producers in the Cooper Basin (Moomba).
2/ Given the vested interests in the alliance with the Cooper basin, the opportunity provided to AGL by having a large share of the connection pipeline with Victoria. In addition to the difficult market carriage arrangements vested in that State, it was able to down rate the use of this NG source.
3/ Place considerable entry barriers to the Duke International’s Eastern Gas Pipeline (EGP) that would provide carriage of NG from the Esso / BHP Gippsland Basin via Longford to Sydney (Moran, 2003, p19).
4/ NSW’s IPART inability to provide sufficient effort to reduce let alone eliminate AGL's anti-competitive practices (Makholm et al, 2000, pp 1-8).
The examples provides several instances wherein corporate self interest to profit foregoes the broader community benefit. In an effort to ensure greater equity, the Australian Commonwealth and State Governments reviewed and established a format to act for the welfare of the community at large.
The Hilmer Report, was a response to the Commonwealth Government's request for an inquiry into national competition policy. Referring to Hilmer section 11, the necessity for competitors to have access to facilities that provide connection between producers and consumers, such facilities are seen to exhibit monopoly characteristics as they cannot be duplicated in an effective way, these are referred to as “essential facilities”.
Consider the supply of electricity to the community, initially provided by a vertically integrated parastatal owned monopoly. The size of infrastructure required from power station, switch yard, transmission lines with subsequent distribution networks allow for a considerable low marginal cost of the electricity supplied. On disaggregation, competitive producer generation facilities can economically operate alongside the large State controlled thermal power stations. Similarly, downstream incumbent distribution networks give way to other private entities facilitating the competitive distribution of electricity. The transmission towers and wires along with switch-yards however are not that simply duplicated, yet critical to connecting the source with the consumer and inherently pose a “bottleneck” (Hilmer, 1993, pp240-242) (Maddock et al, 1996, 71).
In the current context, the gas carriage pipeline from producer to consumer region is seen as a monopolistic essential facility. In some cases as with the MSP, they are identified as being vertically integrated with either producer fields else consumer distribution.
Such integration has been observed in Australia and the UK to be Government owned else as in the US privately run; both formats though where regulated by a Government branch. For economic efficiency the world trend moved to disaggregate these incumbent structures during the 1980s through to the 1990s. However, the essential facilities needed to remain, these brought on new regulatory requirements by independent parties. The privately funded and owned NG transportation pipelines are viewed in exactly that way (Maddock et al, 1996, p73) (McHugh, 2012).
In providing competition within the contestable gas market, necessitates opportunity for all third parties to have unhindered or open access to that essential facility. Legislation has been written for such a purpose under the Trade Practices Act 1974 Part IIIA to allow “…for a service to be declared by the Commonwealth Minister as open access service” (Harman, 1996, p4).
4/ acknowledge that in time the format will evolve and policy design should allow for this.
Considering Harman's second point, not to preclude Government from self interest, competition to the Dampier to Bunbury Pipeline in Western Australia came about from California‘s Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PGE) yet was thwarted by the Western Australian Government. In so doing, it maintained the pipeline monopoly and hindered competition (Moran, 2003, pp3-4).
The disaggregation would require that the regulator who is independent of Government yet has no affiliations with the pipeline, the office would set about establishing tariff rates that individual pipeline will charge for access to their facility. The rate needs to reflect a competitive position yet allow the pipeline to function economically. Several suggested formats appear, yet Hilmer et al. note that one of the problem areas is the establishment of access price (Hilmer, 1993, pp243-244) in this respect several authors suggest options.
Harman observes that use of short run marginal cost (SRMC) lacks sufficient return to cover overheads yet this may be improved by use of Ramsey format. (Harman, 1996, p7). Lawrey, goes further by discriminating between the large gas users that require constant supply tied to long running contracts that in turn reflect the life of the physical pipeline, therein suggesting that the LRMC cost is appropriate. With regard to interruptible supply and spot sales a tariff that allows coverage of marginal costs yet provides for allocative efficiency (Lawrey, 1998, p 97 & pp102-103) to this end the use of SRMC with an element of capital depreciation (Lawrey, 1998, citing Kahn, 1998, p103) Maddock looks at three options; restricting the rate of investment return regulation of prices, so either setting the price level or capping thereof revenue capping (Maddock, 1997, pp69-70).
Given tariff options and variation pipeline circumstance, it would suggest that legislation would require an element of flexibility to adjust tariffs as the situation develops.
Reticulated gas began with the supply of town gas, manufactured from coal, by small local monopolies. However, the inherent pollution from coal, aided in embracing the cleaner natural gas, once discovered and proved viable it was readily accepted by the broader community. This occurred in the 1890s in the US and 1960s in Europe (Boyle, et al, 2003, pp267-273) (Stevens, 2010, p1 & pp6-7), Australia began its pipeline programme in the late 1960s.
The last 5 decades has seen major movements regarding environmental and pollution issues. Governments have responded accordingly, either by substituting energy formats as well as rearranging infrastructure to move pollution sources away from the populated centres.
In this regard the advent of gas turbine generation technology that is only recent yet provides for many benefits in contrast to its fossil fuel cousins – petroleum and coal. Low investment, rapid installation, lowest pollution levels if used in a combined cycle with either additional electricity generation or heat production technical efficiencies of 50% have been realised (Boyle, 2003, p321).
In acknowledging these combined positive externalities for the community, producers, consumers and subsequent new electricity facilities, the Government needed to provide a sound means of NG supply. Lim et al. notes that some economists suggest that investment in infrastructure is a consideration of all the possible benefits that may be achieved, if then these cumulative benefits that include aspects not obvious to the private concerns exceed the cost of the project, there is then merit to proceed with the infrastructure along with Government subsidies (Lim et al. 2001, pp56-57).
The transitionary period after implementation of the Gas Code, saw by way of the requirement for steep price reductions, a dichotomy of events. The Government owned gas distribution entities, in which considerable industrial strength was held by union labour force, saw little change with regard to its profit. So placing sentiment with the regulators decision on setting access prices to that of competition.
Transport pipelines however had a different story, the Victorian pipe line run by GasNet and the Dampier to Bunbury EPIC line, faced considerable losses with the forced price reductions. EPIC purchased the pipeline from the WA Government with State Government tariff assurances, yet as the Gas Code took effect the prices set by the independent regulator had devastating effects (Moran, 2003, pp5-6 & 9-10) (Lim et al. 2001, p58).
The effect of the Gas Code may be considered in terms of the number of operators undertaking full cycle (from geological review to production) gas production requiring about 5 years. Lim et al. notes that the assurance of product carriage since the Gas Code was adopted in 1997, has seen a rise in the number of Victorian concessions (exclusive license by Government to explore and develop). Citing Encom Technology, a software supplier to oil and gas exploration, a successive increase from 78 concessions in 1996 to 108 in 1999. These have increased although oil prices where not moving, suggesting that the Gas Code alone placed exploratory incentives (Lim et al. 2001, citing Encom Tech. pp59-61).
The Cooper Basin operates on company partnerships and feeds the Moomba facility is provided in a more contemporary sense. Unlike frontier fields offshore, it provides easier opportunities for exploration, the field began as a result of South Australia Northern Territory Oil Search (Santos) exploratory efforts during the 1950s and 1960s, seen as economically feasible in 1966 (Santos, 2012). Subsequently a pipeline to Adelaide was constructed in 1969 and the MSP connection in 1976 (Perl et al.2008).
The Basin entails 45 fields with 130 wells feeding the Moomba facility. This success, along with knowledge of pipe access to markets has allowed other companies to continue to drill in search of new fields. To date Origin Energy’s 2007-2008 drilling program has provided 18 producing wells from 20 exploration holes. Beach Petroleum efforts yielded 25 successful exploratory holes out of 27 drilled. Other companies include Innamincka Petroleum and Great Artesian Oil (Perl et al.2008).
Different shareholdings of the various companies within each Cooper gas field have provided an artificial means in avoiding the formation of Cartels. At the same time these firms that include Exxonmobil, Santos and BHP along with smaller concerns work in a consortium to reduce risks from their exploration through to marketing (Moran, 2003, p18).
Queensland Government: “… the rapidly developing coal seam gas industry is providing field on field competition” (PC, 2004, p 94).
BHP Billiton: Noted that gas reserves increased by 102% between 1990 and 2001 (PC, 2004, pp 93-95).
The effect of the Gas Code may not be transparent to the metropolitan users whom have been accustomed to uninterrupted supply, this unseen energy security has been brought about by the increased efficient operation of the pipeline system. Moran indicates an increase in labour productivity, given NG sales have increased by 50% in the ten years to 2001, yet employment in that sector has declined, therein the unit of NG sale per employee has more then trebled suggesting that the firms are working competitively. Industry development through a maturing period was prevalent in the early 1990s as gas consumption was seen to increase with a 20% rise in national consumption from the early 1990s to 2001, consequently this levelled off (Moran, 2003, pp 9 -11).
To aid profit given the competitive field established, Envestra Ltd the South Australian gas distributor has noted that retailers are developing value-added services for their consumers (PC, 2004, p96).
The marketability of NG along with physical pipe requirements that lend themselves to anti-competitive company behaviour was investigated at the outset. The concept of an essential facility operating as a monopoly was then introduced and how this requires regulation and tariff prices akin to competitive markets so as to maintain upstream and downstream competition viability.
The acknowledgement of pollution as well as several positive externalities were then highlighted as a prelude to how the COAG went about to develop an industry specific National Gas Access Regime. The Regime’s purpose and objectives were touched upon at which point a review of outcomes was considered.
Firstly from the producer side, it was observed that exploratory operations increased on account of the Code, partnerships developed in the Cooper field to reinforce information flow yet curtail anti-competitive formation of cartels. The advert of different fields feeding markets so ensuring competition was then discussed.
The second outcome dealt with changing downstream customer markets reflecting energy usage, productivity in the gas sector was presented as an indicator of competitive effectiveness. Then physical improvements were shown, including the advert of gas turbine electrical generation, country local governments embracing the opportunity to provide NG to their townships.
In summarising, the Commonwealth and States Government’s intent on national competition improvement certainly provided results in the natural gas field.
ACCC, 2002, Regional development of natural gas transmission pipelines. Australian Competition and Consumer Commission information.
Garnaut, R., May 2010, The new Australian resource rent tax. The University of Melbourne.
Moran, A., 2003, Reforming the Regulatory Arrangements for Gas Pipeline Networks., Institute of Public Affairs submission to the Productivity Commission.
Perl, M., Mewett, L., Nov 2008, The Cooper Basin – Australia’s central gas hub, Gas Today Australia.
PC, (Productivity Commission), June 2004, Review of the Gas Access Regime, Australian Government, Productivity Commission.
Stevens, P., 2010, The history of gas. Polinares working paper #5, EU Policy on natural resources. | 2019-04-26T10:49:47Z | http://freecontentweb.com/content/essay-critically-assessing-national-gas-access-regime-australia-terms-how-it-influences-beha |
What would be the subject of this week’s blog? That was kinda hard. I have not, as I feared when I took this weekly, run out of things to say, muchachos, but sometimes a topic doesn't immediately suggest itself. Those “sometimes” usually being the times when not much is going on around here astronomically.
Following my last minute comet-save recounted last week, I thought I’d so some Moon pictures for another installment of my Destination Moon project. I still had the C11, Big Bertha, set up in the backyard following my abortive try for asteroid 2004 BL86. Alas, the seeing was just not good enough. Even given my humble standards, not a single image was usable. OK, I’d back off to a more forgiving C8 the next evening. Nope. The .avis I got with my 8-incher, Celeste, were better but not better enough. Into the recycle bin they went.
Should I go RSpecing again? I’ve promised myself I will re-familiarize myself with RSpec, that wonderful spectroscopy software. Unfortunately, the seeing was still bad enough following my failed lunar voyages to suggest I would be wasting my time. Couldn't even do any visual observing, since clouds and rain were now moving back in. Astronomical road-trips? I would be heading down to the Chiefland Astronomy Village next dark of the Moon, but that was still weeks away.
I thunk and I thunk and I thunk, but I was stumped. Till one afternoon I was hunting something or other out in the Shop. I opened a cabinet, pulled out a box, looked in, and what should I see but my first real planetary camera, the good, old SAC 7B. Which brought to mind my adventures with that humble CCD—which I have talked about here before—but even moreso, it reminded me of all the fun I had during the great Mars opposition of 2003, something I haven’t talked with y’all about at length.
By 2003, Unk had been observing Mars in decidedly on-again, off-again fashion for over three decades. I’d been at least trying to see the planet since 1965. Mars, maybe even more than Saturn, was the world young Rod, like other space-crazy kids in the 1960s, wanted to see with his own eyes. Even when I was the greenest of greenhorns, I knew that most of the time Mars was nothing more than a subdued orangish star-like object. However, I also knew there were times, “oppositions,” when the planet was close to us, when Mars showed his mysterious face to Earthlings and their puny telescopes.
Even though Mars was at opposition the spring I got my first telescope, a 3-inch Tasco Newtonian, I don’t believe I saw him then. I knew Mars was visible and putting on some kind of a show since, in them days, our newspaper, The Mobile Press, carried occasional little filler-blurbs related to “space,” and I’d read one that mentioned Mars was once again close to Earth. But I had no idea how to find him. My first issue of Sky & Telescope had yet to arrive, and my only resource was my copy of the Little Golden Guide, Stars, which, while it had some planetary tables and gave the constellation Mars was sailing through that April, Leo, it didn't pin down the planet’s exact position.
I did look around for Mars in Leo's area occasionally, but none of the stars looked as obviously different to my naked eye as I thought Mars should. Certainly nothing I got in my low power eyepiece looked like anything but a pinpoint (it’s likely I actually did see Mars but mistook him for a bright star). In retrospect, I didn’t miss much. Mars was small, 14”, that opposition, and would have been a tiny, featureless b-b in my somewhat putrid little scope.
The next opposition of Mars was in April of 1967, and he was better, but only a little better, 15.5”. This was the first one I was there for. Not only did I have a mucho bettero telescope, my 4.25-inch Palomar Junior reflector, which, if not exactly a planetary powerhouse due to its small aperture, did deliver sharp images with its f/10 (actually closer to f/11) spherical primary mirror. Also, I had learned to find stuff in the sky. The epiphany arriving in December of 1965, when, just after taking my first look at M42, I captured M78 by star-hopping to it—not that I knew what I was doing was called “star-hopping” (which term may not even have been in use at then). And I had Sky & Telescope to guide me.
I comprehended that Mars was small and far, far away even when closest to Earth, but, still, this was MARS. There must be more to it than just Patrick’s small, red disk. To be honest, what stuck in my mind from the above quote was not “small, red, disk” but “canals and blue green vegetation,” the very things my astronomy mentor was warning me not to expect.
So, one warm spring night I finally tracked down the mysterious fourth planet. Amazingly, it wasn’t even hard. Even if I hadn’t done a pretty good job or learning the constellations since that wonderful morning when the Old Man had walked into my room bearing the Tasco—I even knew subdued Virgo where the planet was now hanging out —more experienced me couldn’t have missed it. Even though this was an average opposition at best, there was Mars just burning up the sky, looking like a baleful red eye gazing down at the Rodster.
If only the view in the Pal Junior had lived up the promise of the planet’s naked eye appearance. It didn’t, of course. Not surprisingly, Patrick Moore was right on the freaking money. There were neither razor thin canals nor mysterious forests in view. It was just that damned tiny red ball. As I stared into my ½-inch Ramsden eyepiece, which delivered a magnification of 96x, I thought I caught the barest hint of a polar ice cap. But I wasn’t sure.
My big mistake? I didn’t take Patrick’s other words seriously. In addition to warning that I wouldn’t see imaginary canals and forests, he went on reassuringly to say that, with experience, I would be able to make out not just that polar cap, but also fascinating dark areas and more. I wasn’t convinced. I looked at Mars briefly a couple more times that opposition and that was it. Frankly, young Unk was not big on patience and perseverance. It would take another decade and some hard knocks before I learned better. I filed Mars away as a bust, and went back to trying to see Messier objects.
Was I disappointed? Sort of, but not really surprised. Beyond Patrick’s cautions, the photograph of Mars in my dog-eared copy of The New Handbook of the Heavens suggested I might not see much of anything. Though taken with the giant Yerkes refractor, the picture (excellent for the day) was disturbingly blurry.
And so it went. I put the planet out of mind, filing it away with Angry Red Planet and the other stuff of childhood. Oh, I did take a couple of stabs at it during the good oppositions of 1986 and 1988, but in the former case I was distracted by Comet Halley mania, and in the latter, by a marriage well on its way to disintegrating. When I did look with my C8, I didn't do more than take quick peeps. No filters, no waiting for nights of especially good seeing, just “Well, there it is” and moving on after a minute or so.
Nothing much changed till 1995. My life was finally settled and happy with Miss Dorothy at my side, and I had the biggest telescope I’d ever owned, Old Betsy, a 12.5-inch Dobsonian. Betsy, in addition to pulling a lot of surprisingly faint stuff out of our bright Garden District sky, was, biggest surprise of all, something of a planetary powerhouse with an excellent primary mirror despite its humble Meade pedigree.
The most important thing in helping me begin to see Mars, though, was the patience and perseverance I’d been able to develop (finally). When I first got Betsy, I began spending hours with Jupiter, trying many different magnifications and using different colored filters. I saw more of the King of the Solar System than I ever had in my life. Might the same things work with Mars?
The 1995 opposition wasn’t much of one. At a maximum size of 13.8 arc seconds, the angry one was about a quarter the size of Jupiter’s average diameter. That didn’t stop me. Seeing detail wasn’t easy. I had to wait for Mars to get as high as he could, and I had to wait for particularly stable February nights (a problem even on the Gulf Coast) so I could use high power, but from the get-go I was scoring coups. First night out, there was Syrtis Major, clear as a bell. Oh, and the polar cap was putting Unk’s eye out; how had I ever found it difficult?
I continued night after night, sometimes seeing new features, sometimes being thwarted by clouds or seeing. But I almost always saw something. The one thing I never did do, though? Photograph the planet. Given that my (film) images of much easier Jupiter resembled custard pies—at best—I figured I’d be wasting my time. Two things changed my mind about that over the following eight years: the promise of the 2003 opposition, when Mars would be bigger than he’d been for centuries or would be again for centuries, and the coming of electronic photography.
As ought-three approached, I assumed I’d be doing my Mars picture taking with my first CCD camera, a Starlight Xpress MX516. It had done a pretty good job on Jupiter. Hell, it had bettered my film images by a long shot, and was a considerable improvement over my camcorder experiments (the camcorder results were pitiful).
The MX516 probably would have done a respectable job on Mars, but as 2003 got underway, I decided I wasn’t happy with the camera. There were several reasons for that, but the foremost one was that it wasn't color. To me, the planets cry out for color. I decided I’d sell the camera on Astromart and search for the elusive more better gooder, which I at first thought was Starlight Xpress color CCD cam, the MX7C.
Soon, however, I learned that More Better Gooder for the Solar System was not another CCD camera. No, the path to Solar System success, it seemed, lay on another path. The webcam path. By 2003, amateurs had learned that webcams, the little USB video cameras used for video conferencing (and other somewhat less savory things) on the Internet were the way to go. Take an .avi movie of a planet, use software to select the best frames out of hundreds or thousands, stack those frames into a final image with this new program, Registax, and you had planetary and lunar images easily better than the best pro Solar System photos of the decade before.
I had already begun playing around with webcams, getting a Quickcam off the dang eBay, and using it to take the best lunar closeups of my life. Better than my best photographs, better than my best camcorder videos. That humble 15-dollar Quickcam could no doubt have done surprisingly nice Mars images, but since I would be selling the MX516, I could upgrade. The Quickcam worked, but its sensor, even by webcam standards, was small and low resolution, producing images with a maximum size of 320x240. What would be like the Quickcam, but better for astronomy? Lots of Web browsing and Internet astro-forum chatting (Yahoogroups and the day’s equivalent of the Cloudy Nights Forums, sci.astro.amateur) revealed that that was spelled S-A-C.
I’ve talked a little about SAC Imaging here before, but only a little. Frankly, I don’t know that much and I am not sure how much more than what I do know there is to tell, anyhow. The gist? This is the story as it’s been told to me. I’d welcome corrections from y’all.
“SAC” does not stand for “Strategic Air Command,” Unk’s old outfit. It is “Sonfest Astronomical Cameras.” Wha? Apparently a dude down in Melbourne, Florida, Bill Snyder, had a business promoting Christian music concerts, “Son-fest Promotions.” He was also apparently very interested in astronomy, and decided to begin selling astronomical CCD cameras.
Well, sorta. In the beginning, they were CCD cameras only in the sense that back in the early years of this century most webcams had (small) CCD chips rather than CMOS sensors. The SACs were humble things, just Logitech Quickcams that were repackaged in more robust bodies and equipped with 1.25-inch nosepieces for insertion in a focuser or Barlow. Yeah, “humble” is the word, but the SAC cams hit the marketplace at the perfect time, just as amateurs were discovering how good webcams were for imaging the Solar System—how amazing they were for that task.
Snyder didn’t stand still. When he met with some success, he began offering upgraded and more interesting cameras. Initially, that was the SAC 7B, which featured a Peltier cooler and was modified to yield long exposures so it could (supposedly) image the deep sky as well as the planets.
The SAC 7B was remarkably popular, enabling SAC to do the SAC 8, a more or less genuine CCD camera capable of real deep sky work. The SAC 7B was simply too noisy to be much good there, though its long exposure mode was useful for imaging Uranus, Neptune, Pluto, and the dimmer moons of the outer worlds. The SAC 8 was followed by the SAC 10 (designed in part by CCD Labs’ Bill Behrens). CCD/imaging software guru Craig Stark also had a hand in the project. The 10, with its, for the time, very impressive 3.3 megapixel sensor, was supposed to land SAC in the big-time of CCD imaging. Then, suddenly, the SAC story ended.
What happened? As is sometimes the case, apparently too much success rather than too little killed SAC. The owner made a deal with Orion (Telescope and Binocular Center) to furnish what was essentially the SAC 8 with an Orion nametag on it. Alas, Mr. Snyder couldn’t produce enough cameras to keep up with demand from Orion. He also couldn’t produce the SAC 10 cameras in numbers large enough to satisfy orders. QA problems also began to mount. Things spun out of control and SAC crashed. As far as I know, Snyder went back to his primary business—which was neither concert promoting nor camera building, but, I’ve been told, managing a motel.
I am still sorry SAC is gone. Bill Snyder had some great ideas, hired some great people, and I believe that if he’d been able to stay in business there’d be far more choices in the low-medium price CCD arena than there are today (i.e. very few). Anyhow, SAC was great while it lasted, and Mr. Snyder was responsible for me getting the Mars images of a lifetime.
As soon as I heard about the SAC 7B, I knew it was for me. It produced 640x480 images, twice the size of my Quickcam’s, had that cooler and the long exposure mod in case I wanted to experiment with longer exposures, and was ready to go out of the box. No hot gluing a 35mm film canister on the front of the camera to serve as a nosepiece like we used to do with webcams. In retrospect, I could have probably just bought the less expensive SAC 7 (no “B”), the air-cooled (no Peltier) version of the camera, and I was tempted to do that, but I’d sold my MX516 for a decent price on Astromart, so I figured I’d get the top of the line SAC. I gave Mr. Snyder my credit card number.
I ordered in early spring, and after a couple of weeks of no camera appearing on Chaos Manor South’s front porch, I began to sweat. The planet would be getting big soon, and now I didn't even have that dadgum Starlight Xpress to use on it. I understood Bill probably built cameras as orders were received, so I tried to be patient. Finally I couldn’t stand it anymore and fired off an email. The response was rapid, assuring me I’d soon have my SAC.
When it arrived, I was fairly impressed. No, the build quality wasn't comparable to the machined beauty of the MX516, but it was alright. Robust enough (tin-can-like) metal body. Good hefty cables for USB, Peltier power, and the long exposure interface. The power supply provided for the cooler was impressive in its capacity. It was undoubtedly just a surplus PC switching power supply, but it was in a nice plastic box and had a cigarette lighter output (all these years later I still use it for various things).
The only think I didn’t like about the camera was the included software, AstroVideo. It appeared to be capable, but not very user friendly, and you know how I am about that. No problemo. My astro-BBS surfing had turned up a program many webcammers were using, K3CCD Tools. It did almost as much as AstroVideo, but in a less convoluted fashion. Today, it has been surpassed by programs like FireCapture, but it is still very usable. After playing with an evaluation copy, I handed over my bucks for K3CCD right quick. With the software in place, it looked like we was ready to go.
The opposition itself was almost anticlimactic because it went so smoothly. The weather usually cooperated, and my friend Pat and I were able to live up to our vow to take advantage of every second of Mars. It was a wild time if you were an amateur astronomer. We were all obsessed by Mars; some of us even moreso than others. I was a speaker at ALCON 2003 in Nashville, and hated to give up a few nights of the planet in July. I did, however, and had a good time. Others were not so willing to part with the Old Red for even a little while. Legendary planetary imager Don Parker flew in, gave his talk, and flew right back out to get at Mars again that night.
Every clear evening, and there were plenty of them, I’d set up one of my three driven scopes in Chaos Manor South's backyard. Often that was Celestron Ultima 8, Celeste (then still on her non-goto fork). I also used the 8-inch Konus (Synta) f/5 Newtonian I'd bought to help do some of the observing for my book, The Urban Astronomer’s Guide. When I needed horsepower, it was my new NexStar 11, Big Bertha. Even with our often good seeing, however, the focal length of the 11 tended to be a bit much most of the time. The Konus, in contrast, was too short and was mainly useful when the seeing was punk. The C8? As C8s always are, it was JUST RIGHT.
I did a little “just looking” with eyepieces on some nights, but mostly I let Pat take care of that end of the opposition. My game was pictures of Mars. Initially, I wasn’t sure how good they’d be, but I found out in a right quick hurry. On the very first evening with the camera in a 2x Barlow plugged into the visual back of the C8, Mars was surprisingly large, even in the spring (opposition didn’t come till August). And, hell, I could see signs of detail in the image on my monitor. Not just the polar cap, but those always elusive dark markings, the supposed BLUE-GREEN VEGETATION of my boyhood.
My mind wasn't truly blown, however, till I ran the night’s .avi movie files through Registax. I was somewhat familiar with the program already from experimenting with it with some of my camcorder images, but I didn't expect anything like what I got. What I got when I finished fooling with the program’s “wavelet sliders” (sharpening filters) was the best planetary images of my life. And not just that. The detail was indeed in excess of what Pic du Midi and other professional outfits had done a decade before. See the video below to get an idea of the difference Registax made.
So it went, night after night after night. As the planet rotated, more and more mysterious features came into view and went on the hard drive (of the desktop computer I dragged into the backyard). Syrtis Major, Solis Lacus, Mons Olympus. I toured all those fabled sites, and almost felt as if I were on the surface with the crew of Angry Red Planet’s Rocketship MR-1.
Then August was past and Mars was dwindling back to its normal pink b-b aspect. Was I sorry to see it go? Dang right. However, I must admit the opposition almost exhausted me—Pat said the same thing. Night after night with one target, it was the most sustained planetary campaign of my amateur career, with even my most enthusiastic lunar tears being a distant second.
Will I return to Mars? I haven't, not with a camera, though I have visited the other planets with my webcams, which have slowly evolved into more sophisticated planetary cameras like the ZWO ASI120MC I use now. However, Mars is growing again from is puny 14” diameter of recent oppositions to an impressive 24” in 2018, just a smidge smaller than in 2003. You can bet I’ll have boots on that red, red ground when that happens, muchachos.
Great reading Mr. Rod. All the references to the 60s and 70s reminded me of my early days of looking through my 60 mm x 800 mm Selsi scope (that I still have and use) . | 2019-04-24T02:07:30Z | http://uncle-rods.blogspot.com/2015/02/big-time.html |
Did You Elect This Man?
-he selectively, and willfully, ignored his briefers and their recommendations.
Most U.S. Presidents seemed to discover the “sanctity” of the presidential office only after having obtained it. Even they come to revere it as something ‘above them’. With this president, you get (by his actions) that it is a role “due him”.
Professionals have written of the narcissistic personality traits of this President, in particular. They seem to reflect frequently in his behavior. In which case, this article’s observation and opinion seems warranted and justified. Classically, he will say one thing while he reflects a contradicting behavior. In the MOH award ceremony, that I watched several times, he kept saying repeatedly, “I really like this guy.” That’s nice. But it is not about “I”… Go on… The whole point of the ceremony and the award is not just to acknowledge an individual’s remarkable selfless action and stellar performance of duty “above and beyond,” but to demonstrate , by presidential example , the honor to be afforded and reflected by those into whose presence the MOH comes. Our country does NOT know what to do or how to receive one who crosses paths with a bearer of the MOH. We don’t see many because most are given posthumously. He had opportunity. He had a moment to be most presidential and to give this country a lesson and example. Anyone can make a presentation. Few can teach. Fewer can lead. And those that are the best of leaders- lead by example.
Why No Salute by Obama at the Medal of Honor Ceremony?
It is a tradition in the military for all military personnel, no matter how high their rank, including the Commander-in-Chief, to salute a holder of the Medal of Honor no matter how lowly his or her rank. If General David Petreas was to encounter Sgt. Giunta, it would be the General who would salute the enlisted man, as a sign of respect for that soldier’s extraordinary bravery, but also to show respect to all those who have received the Medal of Honor.
Why? Is it naught but petty carping of poor President Obama? I think not. He is the Commander-in-Chief” who has in his power the lives of those who serve in defense of the country, which he himself did not deign to do. It is pointing out that this man, this professional politician, repeatedly evidences contempt for America, for America’s traditions, and for Americans who respect those traditions.
Perhaps more aptly: It is of a pathetic piece with Obama’s penchant for declining to abide by the U.S. Flag Code when the Flag passes to place his hand over his heart. Instead, he drapes his arms down and enfolds his hands at his crotch Michael Jackson style. It is now mocked as Obama’s “crotch salute.” But it isn’t funny. It is contempt by Obama for the Flag, for America.
Perhaps it is unfair to criticize this President of the United States for displaying such contempt for American traditions. Perhaps it is too much to expect an American President to salute a recipient of the military Medal of Honor when that president never served in the uniform of his country; has said that the Rules For Radicals of the America-hating socialist revolutionist Sol Alinsky are “seared into my [his] brain;” who launched his political career in Chicago from the living room of the revolutionist Weather Underground rich-brat-bombers Bill Ayers and Bernadine Dohrn; and who sat for twenty years in a pew of the church of Rev. “God D…n America” Wright, being marinated in hate-filled, grievance-filled, self-defined “anti-white” and “revolutionary” Black Liberation Theology.
Then again, perhaps it is not too much to expect anyone who would be America’s president to at least respect American traditions, including honoring the Flag, and saluting those who receive the Medal of Honor.
REES LLOYD is a longtime civil rights attorney and veterans activist whose work has been honored by, among others, the California Senate and Assembly, and numerous civil rights, workers’ rights, and veteran’s rights organizations. He has testified as a constitutional expert at hearings before the U.S. House and Senate representing The American Legion.
“Without judgment I write these words.” Sorry…like so many others you (anon. 1 and 2) have passed judgment without even looking at the evidence. You have judged that this president (Obama) is “harmless” despite his actions that prove otherwise and fault those of us who are outraged for simply examining the evidence: no proof of eligibility; appointing radicals and cheats (taxes) in his administration; a close friend of domestic terrorists Bill Ayers and Bernadine Dohrn; nationalizing the auto industry and health care and turning our country toward outright communism; lack of respect for Constitutional law; fraudulent use of a soc. security number, and on and on and on. And while not holding his hand over his heart may seem trivial to you, there is a federal statute that requires us to do that when the National Anthem is played. And this man is president??? Even if ignorant of the law, which he apparently is, he should do it out of respect! No, anon. 1, you judged him “innocent” without any supporting facts, yet condemn the rest of us for our outrage when we have all the EVIDENCE we need that he is NOT GOOD FOR AMERICA, and may not even be American.
anon.2…where is the evidence about GWB? Or is this another dose of leftist propaganda? Oops..sorry. Just another case of “judgment” without being based on evidence.
The results of the mid-term elections were not viewed by many Americans dedicated to reclaiming the heritage of “liberty and justice for all” intended by the Framers with the same enthusiasm as the Republicans. Tea Party activists called attention to the danger and lost freedoms accompanying the Framers’ clearly expressed fear of an out-of-control Federal bureaucracy. We are still faced with a Senate, and possibly even a House, where those elected say what is necessary to gain election, and once in office continue “taxation without representation“. Without a Congress willing to free us from the shackles of the cancerous Federal bureaucracy, or the States themselves limiting this tumor engulfing us by calling to the authority of the 10th Amendment, this “one Nation under God” has taken a path that those In Constitution Hall in 1787 foresaw as leading to certain failure.
The results of the mid-term elections were not viewed by many Americans dedicated to reclaiming the heritage of “liberty and justice for all” intended by the Framers with the same enthusiasm as the Republicans. Grateful for the efforts of the Tea Party activists in calling attention to the danger and lost freedoms accompanying the Framers’ clearly expressed fear of an out-of-control Federal bureaucracy, we are still faced with a Senate, and possibly even a House, where those elected say what is necessary to gain election, and once in office continue “taxation without representation“. Hopefully, those Americans whose voices were largely responsible for an electorate rejecting the betrayal of Congress will continue to call those elected to accountability to “we, the people”. From these shots heard around the world, there is hope for the oppressed everywhere that “government of the people, by the people, for the people” has not yet perished.
Remaining in public offices of “honor and trust” and around the world are those “enemies, foreign and domestic”, who continue to trample on the Constitution. Friends of freedom and justice beyond our borders do not understand how the person directly responsible for the sub-prime economic meltdown, Barney Frank, or the socialist champion, now leader of the Senate, Harry Reid, has been reelected. Having recognized the historically validated failures of socialism, unbridled capitalism, and the false religions and ideologies seeking the demise of representative, republican democracy, other nations are now moving toward where those who conceived and gave birth to these United States intended. English voters have elected politicians pledged to cutting the costs of their government bureaucracy in half. Without a Congress willing to free us from the shackles of the cancerous Federal bureaucracy, or the States themselves limiting this tumor of injustice, calling to the authority of the 10th Amendment, this “one Nation under God” has taken a path that those In Constitution Hall in 1787 understood as leading to certain failure.
With the likes of the Franks and Reids left to continue spewing the disastrous consequences of liberalism’s/socialism’s lies and deceptions, all seeking freedom coming from truth and justice see the retention and continuation of a system of values totally contrary to the foundation of government where, in the words of “the father of our Country”, “religion and morality are indispensable supports for our form of government”. Void of or severely deficient in righteousness, integrity, and morality, politicians, particularly in Congress, have terribly failed in their oaths of office to protect and defend the original intention of the Constitution from “enemies, foreign and domestic”. Those “certain unalienable Rights, Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness” are under attack as never before in our history. Patriots, men and women before us “in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, . . . . pledg[ed their] Lives, [their] Fortunes and [their] sacred Honor. . . ., with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence”. Shots fired, whether heard around the world or impacting state legislatures as occurred, must be followed with the same resolve, dedication, and sacrifice here and now as followed those shots fired over two centuries ago at Lexington and Concord. We are at war! The injustices of socialism; unbridled capitalism; judicial activism; Congressional irresponsibility, failure, and corruption; executive branch tyranny; and the evils of Islamic religious fundamentalism; addictions and their attending crimes; the unjust forces of arms wielded by governments seeking to overthrow the Framers’ intentions are our “enemies, foreign and domestic”.
No country has better airport security than Israel– and no country needs it more, since Israel is the most hated target of Islamic extremist terrorists. Yet, somehow, Israeli airport security people don’t have to strip passengers naked electronically or have strangers feeling their private parts. Does anyone seriously believe that we have better airport security than Israel? Is our security record better than theirs?
Can you remember a time when a Cabinet member in a free America boasted of having his “foot on the neck” of some business or when the President of the United States threatened on television to put his foot on another part of some citizens’ anatomy? Yet this and more has happened in the current administration, which is not yet two years old. One Cabinet member warned that there would be “zero tolerance” for “misinformation” when an insurance company said the obvious, that the mandates of ObamaCare would raise costs and therefore raise premiums. Zero tolerance for exercising the First Amendment right of free speech?
More than two centuries ago, Edmund Burke warned about the dangers of new people with new power. This administration, only halfway through its term, has demonstrated that in many ways. What other administration has had an attorney general call the American people “cowards”? And refuse to call terrorists Islamic? What other administration has had a secretary of Homeland Security warn law enforcement officials across the country of security threats from people who oppose abortion, support federalism, or are returning military veterans?
If anything good comes out of the airport “security” outrages, it may be in opening the eyes of more people to the utter contempt that this administration has for the American people.
As for the excuse of “security,” this is one of the least security-minded administrations we have had. When hundreds of illegal immigrants from terrorist-sponsoring countries were captured crossing the border from Mexico — and then released on their own recognizance within the United States, that tells you all you need to know about this administration’s concern for security.
When captured terrorists who are not covered by either the Geneva Convention or the Constitution of the United States are nevertheless put on trial in American civilian courts by the Obama Justice Department, that too tells you all you need to know about how concerned they are about national security. The rules of criminal justice in American courts were not designed for trying terrorists. For one thing, revealing the evidence against them can reveal how our intelligence services got wind of them in the first place, and thereby endanger the lives of people who helped us nab them. Not a lot of people in other countries, or perhaps even in this country, are going to help us stop terrorists if their role is revealed and their families are exposed to revenge by the terrorists’ bloodthirsty comrades.
In the view of those conceiving and giving birth to these United States, few freedoms are more requisite to and defining of the American way of life, than the Right to Privacy and Property. The 4th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States was ratified on Dec. 15, 1791.
Pigford v. Glickman was a class action lawsuit against the United States Department of Agriculture (the “USDA”), alleging racial discrimination in its allocation of farm loans and assistance between 1983 and 1997. The lawsuit ended with a settlement in which the U.S. government agreed to pay African-American farmers $50,000 each if they had attempted to get USDA help but failed.
To date, almost $1 billion has been paid or credited to the farmers under the settlement’s consent decree.
The lawsuit was filed in 1997 by Timothy Pigford, who was joined by 400 additional African-American farmer plaintiffs. Dan Glickman, the Secretary of Agriculture, was the nominal defendant. The allegations were that the USDA treated black farmers unfairly when deciding to allocate price support loans, disaster payments, “farm ownership” loans, and operating loans, and that the USDA had completely failed to process subsequent complaints about racial discrimination.
After the lawsuit was filed, Pigford requested blanket mediation to cover what was thought to be about 2,000 farmers who may have been discriminated against, but the U.S. Department of Justice opposed the mediation, saying that each case had to be investigated separately. As the case moved toward trial, the presiding judge certified as a class all “black” farmers who filed discrimination complaints against the USDA between 1983 and 1997.
The plaintiffs settled with the government in 1999. Under the consent decree, all African American farmers would be paid a “virtually automatic” $50,000 plus granted certain loan forgiveness and tax offsets. This process was called “Track A”.
Far beyond the anticipated 2,000 affected farmers, 22,505 “Track A” applications were heard and decided upon, of which 13,348 (59%) were approved. $995 million had been disbursed or credited to the “Track A” applicants as of January 2009[update], including $760 million disbursed as $50,000 cash awards. Fewer than 200 farmers opted for the “Track B” process.
How could there be 86,000 discrimination claims if there were only 26,785 African-American farmers in 1977?
In other words, the number of total claims filed by people of African descent claiming to be farmers not only exceeded the original estimate by almost 40 to 50 times, it is close to four times the USDA’s estimate of 26,785 total black owned farms in 1977! One reason for this is that the settlement applied to farmers and those who “attempted to farm” and did not receive assistance from the USDA. So “black” people who were thinking of going into the farming business, but never did, were also eligible for the $50,000 fraud award, because they might have been discriminated against. It sounds like “Black Reparations” to me.
Paying off the latest group of Pigford fraud application cases is said to be a high priority for the Obama administration.
Remember the recent case involving a woman by the name of Shirley Sherrod, whose quick dismissal from the Obama administration may have had less to do with her comments on race before the NAACP than her long involvement in the aptly named “Pigford” case. In a special article written for the Washington Examiner, Tom Blumer explained that Shirley Sherrod and the group she formed along with family members and others, New Communities. Inc. received the largest single settlement under the Pigford case.
Her organization, New Communities, is due to receive approximately $13 million ($8,247,560 for loss of land and $4,241,602 for loss of income; plus $150,000 each to Shirley and her husband Charles for pain and suffering). There may also be an unspecified amount in forgiveness of debt. This is the largest award so far in the minority farmers law suit.
What makes this even more interesting is that Charles Sherrod, Sherill’s husband, appears to be the same Charles Sherrod who was a leader in the radical group Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee in the early 1960s. The SNCC was the political womb that nurtured the Black Power movement and the Black Panthers before it faded away.
•Was Ms. Sherrod’s USDA appointment an unspoken condition of her organization’s settlement?
•How much “debt forgiveness” is involved in USDA’s settlement with New Communities?
•Why were the Sherrods so deserving of a combined $300,000 in “pain and suffering” payments — amounts that far exceed the average payout thus far to everyone else? ($1.15 billion divided by 16,000 is about $72,000)?
•Given that New Communities wound down its operations so long ago (it appears that this occurred sometime during the late 1980s), what is really being done with that $13 million in settlement money?
•Did Shirley Sherrod resign so quickly because the circumstances of her hiring and the lawsuit settlement with her organization that preceded it might expose some unpleasant truths about her possible and possibly sanctioned conflicts of interest?
•Is USDA worried about the exposure of possible waste, fraud, and abuse in its handling of Pigford?
•Did USDA also dispatch Sherrod hastily because her continued presence, even for another day, might have gotten in the way of settling Pigford matters quickly?
Here is another area for concern: In her position at the not for profit, “Rural Development Leadership Network,” a network of activists and community builder, was Sherrod involved in any way in encouraging people to submit fraudulent claims under Pigford? Did she put Black people who owned rural land in touch with lawyers who would file the paperwork claiming attempts to farm had been prevented by the non cooperation of the local USDA?
As many of you may know, there are a multitude of small parcels of non productive rural land all across the south, land unsuitable for mechanized agriculture that was once owned by subsistence farmers, black and white alike. Many of these parcels continue to be owned by family members who moved elsewhere out of sentimental reasons. The property taxes and other carrying costs are cheap and often ancestors are buried there in family plots. A drive on any country road in the South may turn up several carefully maintained postage stamp sized family cemeteries. I wonder how many of the these owners claimed they had farmed, attempted to farm, or thought about farming such acreage to score a fast $50,000 Black Farmer Fraud Award from Uncle Sam?
I guess if you are or were a poor white, Asian, Native American, or Hispanic farmer, you’re just out of luck in collecting your $50,000 fraud award.
1. Timothy Pigford, et al., v. Dan Glickman, Secretary, United States Department of Agriculture, US District Court for the District of Columbia, Civil Action No. 97-1978 (PLF). Paul L. Friedman, U.S. District Judge.
2. “The Pigford Case: USDA Settlement of a Discrimination Suit by Black Farmers”, Tadlock Cowan, Congressional Research Service, January 13, 2009. Fetched February 9, 2009 from .
3. “The Pigford Case: USDA Settlement of a Discrimination Suit by Black Farmers”, p. 5. Tadlock Cowan, Congressional Research Service, January 13, 2009. Fetched February 9, 2009 from .
This Committee for the Constitution has but one question to ask of Attorney-General Holder. Are you going to uphold your oath of office, and act as the prosecutor or co-prosecutor in the court-martial of Pfc. Manning under authority granted by the President as Commander-in-Chief? Article III, Section 3 of the Constitution of the United States is very explicit in what it demands of you. If you fail in your duty to protect and defend the Constitution, Congress must remove you from office! There is no exception to “justice for all“!
The two biggest stories this week are WikiLeaks’ continued publication of classified government documents, which did untold damage to America’s national security interests, and the Democrats’ fanatical determination to repeal “don’t ask, don’t tell” and allow gays to serve openly in the military.
We’ve heard 1 billion times about the Army translator who just wanted to serve his country, but was cashiered because of whom he loved.
I’ll see your Army translator and raise you one Bradley Manning.
According to Bradley’s online chats, he was in “an awkward place” both “emotionally and psychologically.” So in a snit, he betrayed his country by orchestrating the greatest leak of classified intelligence in U.S. history.
According to The New York Times, Bradley sought “moral support” from his “self-described drag queen” boyfriend. Alas, he still felt out of sorts. So why not sell out his country?
In an online chat with a computer hacker, Bradley said he lifted the hundreds of thousands of classified documents by pretending to be listening to a CD labeled “Lady Gaga.” Then he acted as if he were singing along with her hit song “Telephone” while frantically downloading classified documents.
Do you have to actually wear a dress to be captured by the Army’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” dragnet?
Maybe there’s a reason gays have traditionally been kept out of the intelligence services, apart from the fact that closeted gay men are easy to blackmail. Gays have always been suspicious of that rationale and perhaps they’re right.
The most damaging spies in British history were the Cambridge Five, also called “the “Magnificent Five”: Kim Philby, Guy Burgess, Anthony Blunt, Donald Maclean and John Cairncross. They were highly placed members of British intelligence, all secretly working for the KGB.
The only one who wasn’t gay was Philby. Burgess and Blunt were flamboyantly gay. Indeed, the Russians set Burgess up with a boyfriend as soon as he defected to the Soviet Union.
The Magnificent Five’s American compatriot Michael Straight was — ironically — bisexual, as was Whittaker Chambers, at least during the period that he was a spy. And of course, there’s David Brock.
Bradley’s friends told the Times they suspected “his desperation for acceptance — or delusions of grandeur” may have prompted his document dump.
Let’s check our “Gay Profile at a Glance” and … let’s see … desperate for acceptance … delusions of grandeur … yep, they’re both on the gay subset list!
Obviously, the vast majority of gays are loyal Americans — and witty and stylish to boot! But a small percentage of gays are going to be narcissistic hothouse flowers like Bradley Manning.
Couldn’t they just work for JetBlue? America would be a lot safer right now if gays in an “awkward place” psychologically could do no more damage than grabbing a couple of beers and sliding down the emergency chute.
Look at the disaster one gay created under our punishing “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy. What else awaits America with the overturning of a policy that was probably put there for a reason (apart from being the only thing Bill Clinton ever did that I agreed with)?
Liberals don’t care. Their approach is to rip out society’s foundations without asking if they serve any purpose.
Why do we have immigration laws? What’s with these borders? Why do we have the institution of marriage, anyway? What do we need standardized tests for? Hey, I like Keith Richards — why not make heroin legal? Let’s take a sledgehammer to all these load-bearing walls and just see what happens!
Any discussion of “don’t ask, don’t tell” should begin with Bradley Manning. Live by the sad anecdote, die by the sad anecdote. | 2019-04-19T06:27:02Z | http://committeefortheconstitution.org/?m=201012 |
The end of America's unchallenged global economic dominance has arrived sooner than expected, thanks to the very same Neocons who gave the world the Iraq, Syria and the dirty wars in Latin America. Just as the Vietnam War drove the United States off gold by 1971, its violent regime change warfare against Venezuela and Syria - and threatening other countries with sanctions if they do not join this crusade - is driving European and other nations to create their alternative financial institutions.
The Deep State is reacting with shock at how this right-wing real estate grifter has been able to drive other countries to defend themselves by dismantling the U.S.-centered world order. To rub it in, he is using Bush and Reagan-era Neocon arsonists, John Bolton and now Elliott Abrams, to fan the flames in Venezuela. It is almost like a black political comedy. The world of international diplomacy is being turned inside-out. A world where there is no longer even a pretense that we might adhere to international norms, let alone laws or treaties.
The Neocons who Trump has appointed are accomplishing what seemed unthinkable not long ago: Driving China and Russia together - the great nightmare of Henry Kissinger and Zbigniew Brzezinski. They also are driving Germany and other European countries into the Eurasian orbit, the "Heartland" nightmare of Halford Mackinder a century ago.
The root cause is clear: After the crescendo of pretenses and deceptions over Iraq, Libya and Syria, along with our absolution of the lawless regime of Saudi Arabia, foreign political leaders are coming to recognize what world-wide public opinion polls reported even before the Iraq/Iran-Contra boys turned their attention to the world's largest oil reserves in Venezuela: The United States is now the greatest threat to peace on the planet.
Calling the U.S. coup being sponsored in Venezuela a defense of democracy reveals the Doublethink underlying U.S. foreign policy. It defines "democracy" to mean supporting U.S. foreign policy, pursuing neoliberal privatization of public infrastructure, dismantling government regulation and following the direction of U.S.-dominated global institutions, from the IMF and World Bank to NATO. For decades, the resulting foreign wars, domestic austerity programs and military interventions have brought more violence, not democracy.
In the Devil's Dictionary that U.S. diplomats are taught to use as their "Elements of Style" guidelines for Doublethink, a "democratic" country is one that follows U.S. leadership and opens its economy to U.S. investment, and IMF- and World Bank-sponsored privatization. The Ukraine is deemed democratic, along with Saudi Arabia, Israel and other countries that act as U.S. financial and military protectorates and are willing to treat America's enemies are theirs too.
A point had to come where this policy collided with the self-interest of other nations, finally breaking through the public relations rhetoric of empire. Other countries are proceeding to de-dollarize and replace what U.S. diplomacy calls "internationalism" (meaning U.S. nationalism imposed on the rest of the world) with their own national self-interest.
This trajectory could be seen 50 years ago (I described it in Super Imperialism and Global Fracture .) It had to happen. But nobody thought that the end would come in quite the way that is happening. History has turned into comedy, or at least irony as its dialectical path unfolds.
For the past half-century, U.S. strategists, the State Department and National Endowment for Democracy (NED) worried that opposition to U.S. financial imperialism would come from left-wing parties. It therefore spent enormous resources manipulating parties that called themselves socialist (Tony Blair's British Labour Party, France's Socialist Party, Germany's Social Democrats, etc.) to adopt neoliberal policies that were the diametric opposite to what social democracy meant a century ago. But U.S. political planners and Great Wurlitzer organists neglected the right wing, imagining that it would instinctively support U.S. thuggishness.
The reality is that right-wing parties want to get elected, and a populist nationalism is today's road to election victory in Europe and other countries just as it was for Donald Trump in 2016.
Trump's agenda may really be to break up the American Empire, using the old Uncle Sucker isolationist rhetoric of half a century ago. He certainly is going for the Empire's most vital organs. But it he a witting anti-American agent? He might as well be - but it would be a false mental leap to use "quo bono" to assume that he is a witting agent.
After all, if no U.S. contractor, supplier, labor union or bank will deal with him, would Vladimir Putin, China or Iran be any more naïve? Perhaps the problem had to erupt as a result of the inner dynamics of U.S.-sponsored globalism becoming impossible to impose when the result is financial austerity, waves of population flight from U.S.-sponsored wars, and most of all, U.S. refusal to adhere to the rules and international laws that it itself sponsored seventy years ago in the wake of World War II.
Any international system of control requires the rule of law. It may be a morally lawless exercise of ruthless power imposing predatory exploitation, but it is still The Law. And it needs courts to apply it (backed by police power to enforce it and punish violators).
Here's the first legal contradiction in U.S. global diplomacy: The United States always has resisted letting any other country have any voice in U.S. domestic policies, law-making or diplomacy. That is what makes America "the exceptional nation." But for seventy years its diplomats have pretended that its superior judgment promoted a peaceful world (as the Roman Empire claimed to be), which let other countries share in prosperity and rising living standards.
At the United Nations, U.S. diplomats insisted on veto power. At the World Bank and IMF they also made sure that their equity share was large enough to give them veto power over any loan or other policy. Without such power, the United States would not join any international organization. Yet at the same time, it depicted its nationalism as protecting globalization and internationalism. It was all a euphemism for what really was unilateral U.S. decision-making.
Donald Trump's National Security Adviser John Bolton erupted in fury, warning in September that: "The United States will use any means necessary to protect our citizens and those of our allies from unjust prosecution by this illegitimate court," adding that the UN International Court must not be so bold as to investigate "Israel or other U.S. allies."
That prompted a senior judge, Christoph Flügge from Germany, to resign in protest. Indeed, Bolton told the court to keep out of any affairs involving the United States, promising to ban the Court's "judges and prosecutors from entering the United States." As Bolton spelled out the U.S. threat: "We will sanction their funds in the U.S. financial system, and we will prosecute them in the U.S. criminal system. We will not cooperate with the ICC. We will provide no assistance to the ICC. We will not join the ICC. We will let the ICC die on its own. After all, for all intents and purposes, the ICC is already dead to us."
What this meant, the German judge spelled out was that: "If these judges ever interfere in the domestic concerns of the U.S. or investigate an American citizen, [Bolton] said the American government would do all it could to ensure that these judges would no longer be allowed to travel to the United States - and that they would perhaps even be criminally prosecuted."
The original inspiration of the Court - to use the Nuremburg laws that were applied against German Nazis to bring similar prosecution against any country or officials found guilty of committing war crimes - had already fallen into disuse with the failure to indict the authors of the Chilean coup, Iran-Contra or the U.S. invasion of Iraq for war crimes.
Of all areas of global power politics today, international finance and foreign investment have become the key flashpoint. International monetary reserves were supposed to be the most sacrosanct, and international debt enforcement closely associated.
Central banks have long held their gold and other monetary reserves in the United States and London. Back in 1945 this seemed reasonable, because the New York Federal Reserve Bank (in whose basement foreign central bank gold was kept) was militarily safe, and because the London Gold Pool was the vehicle by which the U.S. Treasury kept the dollar "as good as gold" at $35 an ounce. Foreign reserves over and above gold were kept in the form of U.S. Treasury securities, to be bought and sold on the New York and London foreign-exchange markets to stabilize exchange rates. Most foreign loans to governments were denominated in U.S. dollars, so Wall Street banks were normally name as paying agents.
That was the case with Iran under the Shah, whom the United States had installed after sponsoring the 1953 coup against Mohammed Mosaddegh when he sought to nationalize Anglo-Iranian Oil (now British Petroleum) or at least tax it. After the Shah was overthrown, the Khomeini regime asked its paying agent, the Chase Manhattan bank, to use its deposits to pay its bondholders. At the direction of the U.S. Government Chase refused to do so. U.S. courts then declared Iran to be in default, and froze all its assets in the United States and anywhere else they were able.
This showed that international finance was an arm of the U.S. State Department and Pentagon. But that was a generation ago, and only recently did foreign countries begin to feel queasy about leaving their gold holdings in the United States, where they might be grabbed at will to punish any country that might act in ways that U.S. diplomacy found offensive. So last year, Germany finally got up the courage to ask that some of its gold be flown back to Germany. U.S. officials pretended to feel shocked at the insult that it might do to a civilized Christian country what it had done to Iran, and Germany agreed to slow down the transfer.
But then came Venezuela. Desperate to spend its gold reserves to provide imports for its economy devastated by U.S. sanctions - a crisis that U.S. diplomats blame on "socialism," not on U.S. political attempts to "make the economy scream" (as Nixon officials said of Chile under Salvador Allende) - Venezuela directed the Bank of England to transfer some of its $11 billion in gold held in its vaults and those of other central banks in December 2018. This was just like a bank depositor would expect a bank to pay a check that the depositor had written.
Turkey seemed to be a likely destination, prompting Bolton and Pompeo to warn it to desist from helping Venezuela, threatening sanctions against it or any other country helping Venezuela cope with its economic crisis. As for the Bank of England and other European countries, the Bloomberg report concluded: "Central bank officials in Caracas have been ordered to no longer try contacting the Bank of England. These central bankers have been told that Bank of England staffers will not respond to them."
This led to rumors that Venezuela was selling 20 tons of gold via a Russian Boeing 777 - some $840 million. The money probably would have ended up paying Russian and Chinese bondholders as well as buying food to relieve the local famine.3 Russia denied this report, but Reuters has confirmed is that Venezuela has sold 3 tons of a planned 29 tones of gold to the United Arab Emirates, with another 15 tones are to be shipped on Friday, February 1.4 The U.S. Senate's Batista-Cuban hardliner Rubio accused this of being "theft," as if feeding the people to alleviate the U.S.-sponsored crisis was a crime against U.S. diplomatic leverage.
If there is any country that U.S. diplomats hate more than a recalcitrant Latin American country, it is Iran. President Trump's breaking of the 2015 nuclear agreements negotiated by European and Obama Administration diplomats has escalated to the point of threatening Germany and other European countries with punitive sanctions if they do not also break the agreements they have signed. Coming on top of U.S. opposition to German and other European importing of Russian gas, the U.S. threat finally prompted Europe to find a way to defend itself.
Imperial threats are no longer military. No country (including Russia or China) can mount a military invasion of another major country. Since the Vietnam Era, the only kind of war a democratically elected country can wage is atomic, or at least heavy bombing such as the United States has inflicted on Iraq, Libya and Syria. But now, cyber warfare has become a way of pulling out the connections of any economy. And the major cyber connections are financial money-transfer ones, headed by SWIFT, the acronym for the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication, which is centered in Belgium.
Russia and China have already moved to create a shadow bank-transfer system in case the United States unplugs them from SWIFT. But now, European countries have come to realize that threats by Bolton and Pompeo may lead to heavy fines and asset grabs if they seek to continue trading with Iran as called for in the treaties they have negotiated.
On January 31 the dam broke with the announcement that Europe had created its own bypass payments system for use with Iran and other countries targeted by U.S. diplomats. Germany, France and even the U.S. poodle Britain joined to create INSTEX Instrument in Support of Trade Exchanges. The promise is that this will be used only for "humanitarian" aid to save Iran from a U.S.-sponsored Venezuela-type devastation. But in view of increasingly passionate U.S. opposition to the Nord Stream pipeline to carry Russian gas, this alternative bank clearing system will be ready and able to become operative if the United States tries to direct a sanctions attack on Europe.
I have just returned from Germany and seen a remarkable split between that nation's industrialists and their political leadership. For years, major companies have seen Russia as a natural market, a complementary economy needing to modernize its manufacturing and able to supply Europe with natural gas and other raw materials. America's New Cold War stance is trying to block this commercial complementarity. Warning Europe against "dependence" on low-price Russian gas, it has offered to sell high-priced LNG from the United States (via port facilities that do not yet exist in anywhere near the volume required). President Trump also is insisting that NATO members spend a full 2 percent of their GDP on arms - preferably bought from the United States, not from German or French merchants of death.
U.S. overplaying its position is leading to the Mackinder-Kissinger-Brzezinski Eurasian nightmare that I mentioned above. In addition to driving Russia and China together, U.S. diplomacy is adding Europe to the heartland, independent of U.S. ability to bully into the state of dependency toward which American diplomacy has aimed to achieve since 1945.
The World Bank, for instance, traditionally has been headed by a U.S. Secretary of Defense. Its steady policy since its inception is to provide loans for countries to devote their land to export crops instead of giving priority to feeding themselves. That is why its loans are only in foreign currency, not in the domestic currency needed to provide price supports and agricultural extension services such as have made U.S. agriculture so productive. By following U.S. advice, countries have left themselves open to food blackmail - sanctions against providing them with grain and other food, in case they step out of line with U.S. diplomatic demands.
It is worthwhile to note that our global imposition of the mythical "efficiencies" of forcing Latin American countries to become plantations for export crops like coffee and bananas rather than growing their own wheat and corn has failed catastrophically to deliver better lives, especially for those living in Central America. The "spread" between the export crops and cheaper food imports from the U.S. that was supposed to materialize for countries following our playbook failed miserably - witness the caravans and refugees across Mexico. Of course, our backing of the most brutal military dictators and crime lords has not helped either.
Likewise, the IMF has been forced to admit that its basic guidelines were fictitious from the beginning. A central core has been to enforce payment of official inter-government debt by withholding IMF credit from countries under default. This rule was instituted at a time when most official inter-government debt was owed to the United States. But a few years ago Ukraine defaulted on $3 billion owed to Russia. The IMF said, in effect, that Ukraine and other countries did not have to pay Russia or any other country deemed to be acting too independently of the United States. The IMF has been extending credit to the bottomless it of Ukrainian corruption to encourage its anti-Russian policy rather than standing up for the principle that inter-government debts must be paid.
Most of the above events have made the news in just one day, January 31, 2019. The conjunction of U.S. moves on so many fronts, against Venezuela, Iran and Europe (not to mention China and the trade threats and moves against Huawei also erupting today) looks like this will be a year of global fracture.
It is not all President Trump's doing, of course. We see the Democratic Party showing the same colors. Instead of applauding democracy when foreign countries do not elect a leader approved by U.S. diplomats (whether it is Allende or Maduro), they've let the mask fall and shown themselves to be the leading New Cold War imperialists. It's now out in the open. They would make Venezuela the new Pinochet-era Chile. Trump is not alone in supporting Saudi Arabia and its Wahabi terrorists acting, as Lyndon Johnson put it, "Bastards, but they're our bastards."
Where is the left in all this? That is the question with which I opened this article. How remarkable it is that it is only right-wing parties, Alternative for Deutschland (AFD), or Marine le Pen's French nationalists and those of other countries that are opposing NATO militarization and seeking to revive trade and economic links with the rest of Eurasia.
The end of our monetary imperialism, about which I first wrote in 1972 in Super Imperialism, stuns even an informed observer like me. It took a colossal level of arrogance, short-sightedness and lawlessness to hasten its decline something that only crazed Neocons like John Bolton, Elliott Abrams and Mike Pompeo could deliver for Donald Trump.
Patricia Laya, Ethan Bronner and Tim Ross, "Maduro Stymied in Bid to Pull $1.2 Billion of Gold From U.K.," Bloomberg, January 25, 2019. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-01-25/u-k-said-to-deny-maduro-s-bid-to-pull-1-2-billion-of-gold. Anticipating just such a double-cross, President Chavez acted already in 2011 to repatriate 160 tons of gold to Caracas from the United States and Europe.
Constanze Stelzenmüller, "America's policy on Europe takes a nationalist turn," Financial Times, January 31, 2019. | 2019-04-18T20:58:07Z | http://portland.indymedia.org/en/2019/02/437138.shtml |
The SIG M-17 pistol is serving in combat with the US Army. The story has a happy ending, but it took years and millions of rounds to get there. The competition for the Army’s Modular Handgun System (MHS) contract was one of the most rigorous and highly competitive review processes in the history of military firearms. It was scrutinized and contested and endlessly questioned.
SIG submitted a 9mm P320-based platform. The only true modular candidate, SIG’s XM-17 performed well during the selection under all conditions the Army could dream up. After over two million rounds of testing, the XM-17 became the M-17 and a new icon was born.
The service handguns chosen by the Army have always become essential weapons; the Remington New Army, the Colt Single Action Army, Browning’s M-1911 and the M-9 Beretta are all classics. Now you can get the latest chapter in this historic line.
Other manufacturers have been selling their versions of the MHS while SIG has been busy making guns for the Army. Every branch of the military has adopted the M-17 and the smaller version, the M-18. At last, Sig has sent the military enough guns that they can make some M-17s for the rest of us. There are two civilian versions, The M17 Commemorative and the P320-M17 and they are on their way to an FFL near you.
The P320-M17 closely follows the specifications of the U.S. Army’s M17. The 9mm P320-M17 features a coyote-tan carry-length grip module available in three sizes and comes standard with a manual safety. Non-manual safety P320-M17 pistols will be shipped at a later date. There is a coyote-tan PVD coated stainless steel slide and black controls just like the pistols currently being shipped to the U.S. Army. The sights are a SIGLITE front night sight and removable Night Sight rear plate.
Many internet experts, who have never touched an M-17, believe that the small arms professionals in the Army, the Navy, the Marines, the Air Force, and the Coast Guard have gone through millions of rounds of extensive testing and picked the wrong gun. After my own limited test firing, just over three thousand rounds through the M-17 and the 320-M17, the M-17 is my choice too and I believe that the army chose the best gun for the job.
The P320-M17 easily clangs the CTS steel targets at 50 yards. At the Academy we shot steel out to 75 yards.
I got a 320-M17 a month ago. I have taken it to classes as a student and an instructor. I have shot thousands of rounds of ball and hollow points with no issues and no cleaning. I have lubricated it and I will probably clean it when it gets dirty. This is not a torture test; the gun just isn’t dirty enough to require cleaning yet.
I had the opportunity to travel to New Hampshire to visit the SIG SAUER factory. The technology is highly automated with multiple quality checks. I got to walk the production floor and see every step of the process from machining to assembly. Trained professionals assemble guns and reject any component which isn’t perfect, but that is only half the story.
There is a quality plan for each part which dictates how many parts from each lot are checked at special robot laser verification stations which check every angle of a part. These check stations are connected to each of the automated CMC machines and automatically update the instructions to the machines, in real time. Problems are anticipated and avoided. This reduces bad parts, keeps them out of the supply chain and cuts costs so SIG can make better and less expensive guns. They test fire every gun and I got to witness the process while I was there.
I also got to go to the SIG Academy and shoot the 320-M17 for a day under strict the tutelage of a couple of former Special Forces operators (one who is still active) on their staff. I shot 400+ rounds of SIG FMJ ammunition at paper and steel targets. We ran the guns hard and shot them hot. We worked up to multiple target drills and shooting a scenario in and around cars and barricades. The guns got hot and dirty and they all ran.
The P320-M17 groups well at 15 and 25 yards.
The M17 Commemorative pistol shares the same components, coatings, and markings as the original pistol that was awarded the U.S. Army contract for the modular handgun system (MHS). Just like the military M-17, the Commemorative comes with a coyote-tan carry-length grip module and a coyote-tan PVD coated stainless steel slide. The Commemorative has coyote-tan colored controls just like the original pistols shipped to the 101st Airborne.
The Commemorative is an exact replica of the first M17s the military got. SIG has made 5,000 available to the public. It even ships in the same cardboard box that the military gets it in.
As a side note, SIG is no longer offering the coyote-tan colored controls, even for the military. So the civilian version of the M17 looks just like what the military is currently getting.
The pistol features a SIGLITE front night sight and removable Night Sight rear plate with the same optic cut as specified by the MHS contract. It comes with two 21-round magazines, one 17-round magazine and a manual safety.
Only 5,000 M17-Commemorative Edition pistols have been produced. Each one carries a unique identifier (UID) just like the Army guns. From the pistol to the same cardboard packaging as delivered to the U.S. Army, the M17-Commemorative Edition is identical to the U.S. Army’s official M-17 service pistol. Register your M17-Commemorative and you get an official certificate of authenticity and a commemorative challenge coin, both with serial numbers matching your M17-Commemorative pistol.
To complement these guns, an M17 Collector’s Case is available separately at sigsauer.com/store. The case is a solid cherry box, with dark mahogany stain, a tempered glass top, a brushed nickel latch and a keyhole back for optional wall-hanging. The M17 Collector’s Case features a slate-grey flocked foam insert with an affixed U.S. Army logo, and precision laser placement cuts for the pistol, certificate and Official Challenge Coin.
For more information on the SIG M17 visit SIG by clicking Here.
Ep. 30 Should I Shoot? Have You Chosen Not to Be a Victim?
Next post: What the Hell is 8.6 Creedmoor?
Don’t know a thing about this gun but was attracted by the ‘Tomb of The Unknown Soldier’ presentation pieces. I like Sigs, in general – even recommended the 220 when we were looking for an issue, a few years ago (went with the H&K p2000 9) – but I do know a friendly review when I read one. Everyone has favorite(s) and this one may be the creme de la creme … but a review could be less obvious. Hard on the trust factor.
Only problem I had was trigger slap almost as bad as the pre regulation Romanian wasr rifles.I’ve seen after market triggers that’ll fix that.
In the dozens of M-17s, M-18s and SIG 320s I have shot, I have never felt anything like that. With a striker fired gun, I don’t see how it is possible.
I purchased a Sig P320 carry model, 9mm. It is very accurate& it will SHOOT with a GLOCK!! I am waiting for a gun shop to get one of the X- change kits in .40S&W. I like to plink with 9mm, but I carry a 40S&W or 10mm: GLOCK!! That is my OPINION, & I MIGHT be wrong!!
I went through this article TWICE..Nowhere can I find the caliber of this animal…Two pics show boxes of 9mm but nowhere does it say it shoots them.
You are welcome to come to the range and we can try to melt mine. Bring ammo.
I noticed through out the sales pitch article there was no mention of all the bugs that needed to be worked out and if they have, once military personnel started to actually use and train with them, even had cycle problems with ball ammo!
The bugs are long gone. I haven’t seen any performance problems. You should spend more time at the range and less on the internet.
I hope they produce an M17 with a threaded barrel.
Both the Military and Police are putting way too much emphasis on over priced plastic handguns and not enough on good light weight carbines and a real combat rifle like the Springfield M-1A. I was 11Bravo from 1975 to 1981 and am currently serving in Law-Enforcement, about to retire. In most situations I’d rather have a Ruger 10/22 Carbine than a 9mm handgun of any make. I love shooting the AR-15/M-16, but if I was over in the sandbox, I’d want a Springfield M-1A, no need for select fire, that’s what “60” Gunners are for!The FBI and Military have wasted a billion dollars playing around with plastic 9mm handguns. Give me Steel and Walnut 1911″s and M1’s-M-1A’s any day, all day!
I entered active duty in 1978, just in time to “live” the transition from the Colt 1911, .45 to the Beretta 92, 9mm; and after 28 years of active service I retired in 2003 and have since acquired over 240 seperate firearms (167 of them being pistols). I loved my Colt and the stopping power of the .45 but was initially impressed with the increased capacity of the Beretta….BUT, after watching 9mm rounds bounce off of standard vehicle windshields in Iraq, Kuwait & Bosnia; I chose to carry my own personal Sig P220 whenever I could sneak it past our quartermaster. Since retiring, I’ve chosen the Glock 21 and 30 as my primary & back-up carry weapons and, my newest addition, the Glock 41, Gen 4, MOS as my “target” toy. I like my Sigs, I enjoy my Colt .45’s, Beretta 92 9mm’s (although I think the Taurus PT-92 is a better made weapon) but I LOVE MY GLOCKS. Polymer, steel, plastic, aluminum, etc., etc., etc.; i just do not believe there is a better made, more reliable, economical or user-friendly pistol on the planet. That’s just my opinion and I’m always open to debate.
I like it! Too bad we civys cant get some “ball” steel core/steel tip 9mm NATO rounds! Now THAT would be an effective 9mm against any short/medium range enemy target!
NATO rules dictate the use of FMJ ammo not as a performance enhancer, but instead the opposite. We use FMJ steel core because it’s more effective to wound rather than kill an enemy because it takes more bodies out of the fight if they have to drag their buddy off the battlefield. That and steel is a lot cheaper than lead. Some special ops teams use hollow point ammo depending on the mission, but we’ve always been handed FMJ garbage. It’ll poke a hole in whoever it hits but it’ll be a 9mm hole all the way through. Compare that to a GSW from a decent hollow point and you’ll see why most defense ammo is not FMJ or steel core. If you want both large wound channel and penetration look into Lehigh bullets. Great stuff. Much more effective than FMJ.
Military service ammo for the M-17 is JHP.
P320 “The only true modular candidate”. That’s a real stretch. We have no real idea how many different size grip frames and slides were offered in the APX. The APX has the modular chassis just like the Sig.
I just bought an M17 and took it to the range. It is average at best as a striker fired gun.
– Trigger is average for a striker gun. I’ve got a Gen3 G19 that’s almost 20 years old that is better. VP9, APX, P10C all have the M17 beat.
– Chamber is so large the brass gets a huge scorch mark and the gun is really dirty inside after only 200rds. Looks like my VP9 after 1000rds. The author said his was still clean after long days of use. Sounds like some chamber reamer variability.
– Slide release is small and really close to the safety lever. Have to get use to swiping both at the same time or use the 1911 method of support hand thumb to drop the slide.
Just My Opinion, so fire away.
I’m sure the Sig is a decent enough gun; most guns that make it through Army testing eventually turn out to be pretty good guns. It is unfortunate that the only reason the Sig beat the Glock is because Sig underbid the contract by several millions of dollars, which will probably come back to haunt the Army when Sig starts adding costs in to the original contract. And yes, they can get away with that.
Beretta beat Sig on price for the M-9 contract in the 1980s. SIG remembers.
The Glock has proven plastic guns work to me; it is just a while and we’ll see what the troops think. I have a lot of friends who swear by their old metal SIG designs; I’m confident it will turn out fine – I may even want a civilian version eventually!
These guns are all made in New Hampshire USA.
Do you not realize that Sig Sauer is now based in New Hampshire, with manufacturing facilities in several states? The gun was entirely designed, tested, and put into production in the US. They are all manufactured in the US by Americans. Regardless of your preference, this is one case where the troops really are getting good gear, and American workers have good jobs making them.
Sig have to find some clown to unload all those garbage poly guns that nobody would buy off on, looks like their found their idiot: The American tax payer.
Do we have data on this? As far as I know, other than a few strays, 1911 clones and the CZ-75 are about the only steel guns still in production. Sig, S&W, Ruger and FN don’t offer any. The reason seems obvious to me: polymer frames are cheaper to manufacture, and the runaway success of Glock proved they were viable.
However, we can’t really say that means they are more popular with consumers when they’re the only thing on offer.
Careful, your silly bias is showing, and it’s not pretty.
I thought the military was ditching the 9mm and going BACK to the real heart stopper, the venerable and PROVEN, .45ACP!
I guess the PROVEN Old School Guys & Gals got over ridden by the “we know better than you old guys” crowd of MORONS!
Another failure in the waiting (Why again were they replacing the M9) and I don’t care what the fanboy author thinks!
Not sure what your background is, but I am willing to bet you have never touched an M17. The Modular Handgun competition had soldiers firing over two million rounds through the XM17. The Army, Air Force, Marines, Navy and the Coast Guard all bought the M17 or the M18. Homeland Security ran an independent tests and bought the SIG 320 too. I guess I am not the only fanboy.
Don’t care much for the poly guns. Hope the military tested it in jungle and winter environment. Also, certain chemicals are not a friend of poly or other composites. Got brake fluid on an M60 machine gun cover in Vietnam and it melted off.
According to Mr Bartucci of Small Arms Solutions, someone considered one of today’s foremost authorities on modern military weaponry and a very smart gun guy overall, these exhaustive tests were conducted in a way that was unlike any other procurement test before them. According to him many aspects of the standard test, which usually is a very thorough, were either skipped or the required number of rounds specified for many of the different portions of these tests were reduced.
No, it sounds like the fix was in, Glock got screwed around on their submission, Sig seems to have known a few of the “top brass” ( who are nothing but politicians in uniform, my uniform) and was given that little bit of special treatment they needed to win. Mr Bartucci did a very good analysis of the tests, using official documentation and records and he was shocked at how this particular test was run.
That is a very concerning allegation of felony violations of procurement law. Please contact me, any investigative journalist and/or your congressman and share your inside information so we can expose this criminal activity and prosecute the guilty.
When Mr. Bartucci of Small Arms Solutions gets his hands on an M17 and shoots it, it might change his opinion.
Just asking folks to shoot a gun before talking about it. Saves so much time.
I think Mark is in on the conspiracy.
It still has one major problem. It isn’t an American-made JMB 1911. If you have to use a handgun, it may as well be one that has proven itself in real-world combat for more than a century. But if you ladies like Tupperware parties, don’t bother inviting me. I’ll stick with my real-steel .45 acp. The original single-tap.
A BERETTA!?!? Did hell freeze over????? Beretta’s are paperweights, ask any of those who were forced to put up with them in the sands of the Middle east.
Perhaps you weren’t there when certain Beretta’s came apart.
I would love to have one of these had they been a standard pistol prior to my retirement. I hope for those currently serving, that they will still have access to them when nostalgia strikes.
The price seems right and it is an undeniably fine pistol, partisan points of view aside.
I for my part have a righteous, off the rack 1911A1 and a Beretta issued exact M-9 and truly cherish them for my Army connection.
One thing on this pistol I REALLY appreciate is the serial number being on the drop-in. If a fella queers his frame somehow he can just change out what I assume will be a quite inexpensive piece of poly.
Does any one know if a 9×23 conversion is viable in one of these pistols?
I found the pedantic hard sell a bit over the top, even immature at best, aa great sidearm sells itself, a heavy handed approach benefits nobody.
SIG SAUER has had problems with designs that involve a grip panel as part of the fire control mechanism, if a panel fails or an improper panel is used, problems may result, such a problem seems odd to me.
I prefer a design that is ultimately reliable.
I love the “I’ll hold on to my Berettas” comment. I have three–will happily sell them to you. They don’t hold a candle to the 320. But then I’m sure there were guys who said “I’ll hold onto my Colt SAA.” It’s just the way things go.
The 320 is a great sidearm. Period. I know no one who is active duty who thinks otherwise. There are still some Glock 19 guys but in time, they’ll come around. Wait and see.
I purchased a Sig 320RX this spring, my first striker fired pistol, and have put a few thousand rounds through it. No malfunctions of any nature, accurate, easiest pistol I’ve ever owned to clean and have engaged steel targets at 100 yards with success.
I’m first and foremost a 1911 shooter but I’ve got to admit the 320 is a helluva pistol.
I can’t see any reason why I would replace my M&P with a P320.
The M&P is an excellent choice, too. I love my 5” pro series. Having handled the sig, glock, m&p, rugers, springfields, etc. and trained people with them, we just have a lot of great choices in sidearms at reasonable prices. I am currently deciding between a 4” M&P Compact 2.0 and a P320 Carry. May have to get both.
The military got this right in that our troops are getting a great new sidearm that should serve them well. Now we need to let them carry some of the quality self defense ammo out there, instead of having to fight barbarians within outdated rules our enemies don’t even recognize.
Newsflash! Sig Sauer is a USA based company. They have no ties to Germany anymore. FYI.
Correction. Sig has a plant that manufactures in the US. THE COMPANY IS NOT BASED HERE. THEY ONLY CAME FOR THE MONEY.
9mm is useless in cqb at distances why bother.
You know that’s not true. If you truly feel that way, let me engage you with sim rounds and I bet you change your mind when you’re reloading after 8 or 9 shots and I still have 11 or 12 left in same magazine.
If you’re referring to the power of modern 9mm, we both know you wouldn’t fare well getting hit with one even 90yds away!
Im glad the M17 is working out for our heroes! I only wish Sig could get they’re P365 sorted out better. I love the look size and feel of the 365 but its a horror story for many people who bought one or reviewed one.
The P365 has been “sorted out” for over three months! Time to move on.
Have not had any problems with mine +1,000 rounds so far.
I too was glad to here Sig won the contract. I’m in the Air Force and still use the M9. Not a bad gun, but the p320 is without a doubt a better firearm. Just don’t drop it 😮. Im kidding, I’ve seen the negative press and heard the Glock crowd say “I told you so” but the reality is the Sig is a great gun and they addressed the trigger issue. And it was a lot cheaper for Uncle Sam. I’ve only shot the P320 not its enlisted brother. I can say with confidence it’s an upgrade from the beretta. I own several Sigs but none of which are poly framed. Because of this I don’t see myself owning a p320 or M17 anytime soon. My 226,229, & 938 are perfectly accurate and reliable. I was going to buy the P365 but not after watching several videos and reading the forums. I’ll wait until Sig irons out the wrinkles. For those of you who prefer a hammer on your poly guns the SP2022 is a really great gun that too often goes unappreciated. It too has seen military service. The only poly Sigs I’ll even consider are the 320/M17 and the 2022. Steer clear of the rest.
Thanks for bringing up the Sig 2022. You are correct about this pistol. Not only is it hammer fired, it was Sig’s first polymer pistol back in 1998. It was based on the Sig 220 design of 1975. It is also used quite a lot in law enforcement. I bought mine after it became the SP 2022 post 2009. Totally reliable and way more accurate than my ability. I don’t care if they call it the “poor man’s 226”. The 320/M17 would be a nice “like to have” but the SP2022 is a much more sensible carry pistol.
The modularity is nice but you can almost buy another pistol for the price of an upper receiver/caliber change.
Wouldn’t touch a 365 with a ten ft. pole for quite a while yet. I really want one when the coast is clear.
Does the M-17 or P320 come in 40 cal?
I know the 320 is offered in .40 and Sig brought a .40 M17 to the test but the military was only interested in NATO cartridges. But LE and private security may look at it with interest. I’m a big fan of .40 s&w. For those of us who handload we know how de-tuned the over the counter ammo is. The 40 outperforms both 9 and 45 by a good margin even in their +P+ forms. You just have to roll your own. Using published load data from Hodgdon I can get my USP and 226 to push a 135 gr HP to 1475 fps and not even be at max pressure. That’s running even with most 10mm loads of the same weight. That’s over 650 fpe!! Even out of my little PPS it’s going 1420ish. 9 and 45 can’t do that, I’ve tried. As long as you can handle a little more snap, it’s the way to go.
The P320 is offered in 9mm, 40S&W, 357 Sig, and 45 ACP.
Me too. I like the fact Wilson Combat and Langdon Tactical are breathing new life into the 92 platform. | 2019-04-21T20:06:27Z | https://www.gunsamerica.com/digest/the-chosen-one-the-armys-m-17/?utm_source=email&utm_medium=20180910_BlogDigest_294&utm_campaign=/digest/the-chosen-one-the-armys-m-17/ |
Contributions: (I) Conception and design: K Xie, L Gong; (II) Administrative support: K Xie, J Chen, J Zou; (III) Provision of study materials or patients: J Zou, L Chen; (IV) Collection and assembly of data: K Xie, J Chen; (V) Data analysis and interpretation: K Xie, L Chen, L Gong; (VI) Manuscript writing: All authors; (VII) Final approval of manuscript: All authors.
Correspondence to: Professor Liang Gong, MD. Department of Otolaryngology, Affiliated Cixi Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Cixi 315300, China. Email: [email protected].
Submitted Feb 13, 2017. Accepted for publication Jul 14, 2017.
Head and neck cancer (HNC) encompasses multitudinous malignancies, including laryngocarcinoma, oral carcinoma and nasopharyngeal carcinoma (1). Tobacco and alcohol abuse and human papillomavirus (HPV) infection are two primary causes of HNC. HNC was commonly prevalent in several countries around the world, with an estimated prevalence of HNC in 4% of malignancies and more frequently in China in approximately 4.8–6.1% of malignancies (2,3). The clinical management of HNC requires precise diagnosis, accurate staging and a standardized multidisciplinary treatment approach. The HNC stage at diagnosis predicts prognosis and guides treatment decisions; American Joint Committee on Cancer TNM staging classification was used as a basis for clinical oncology practice. However, due to various tumor sites and specific anatomic regions of HNC, tumor staging is not sufficient and usually generates error (4). Therefore, many concerns have been raised regarding the weakness of T staging for several HNC sites.
Recently, several studies implied that anatomic primary tumor volumes on CT or MRI and primary gross tumor volume (GTVp) play a meaningful predictive role for HNC long time prognosis. Strongin et al. conducted a study including 78 participants with stage III–IV oropharyngeal, laryngeal or hypopharyngeal cancer; patients with GTVp <35 mL had significantly improved local control (71% vs. 41%), as well as the long-term survival, like progression free survival (61% vs. 33%), and overall survival (OS) (84% vs. 41%) rates (5). Those small retrospective studies implied that anatomic tumor volumes on imaging tests have prognostic value for HNC patients (6). With advancements in imaging technologies, positron emission tomography-computed tomography (PET-CT) has been used in HNC diagnosis and clinical staging, although routine PET-CT scan for staging of cancer remains controversial. However, PET-CT is helpful in accurately evaluating distant metastasis and therapy response by tumor metabolic and morphological changes (7,8). Currently, in many studies using PET-CT to calculate primary tumor volume, named primary tumor metabolic tumor volume (MTVp), MTVp was defined as tumor volume with elevated fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) uptake (7,9). Several studies also suggested that MTVp as a novel parameter in PET-CT has potential to become a standardized prognostic indicator (10,11).
From the literature, it appears that tumor volume (GTVp and MTVp) is a significant factor associated with outcomes in HNC. However, the prognosis role of tumor volume (GTVp and MTVp) in HNC is controversial and limited according to the previous investigations. This comprehensive meta-analysis was conducted to accurate evaluate of the relationship between tumor volume (GTVp and MTVp) and the prognosis of HNC.
Initially, the systematic literature search was performed by using the electronic databases PubMed, ISI Web of Science, and EBSCO up to January 2016. This search strategy utilized the following selected common tags: “HEAD AND NECK CANCER” and “TUMOR VOLUMES” and “PROGNOSIS”. The language was limited to English, and unpublished results and abstracts were not included. Hand search was also conducted according to reference lists of relevant articles and reviews for additional relevant researches.
Eligible studies include randomized controlled studies or observational studies that reported estimates of the associations between primary gross tumor volume (GTVp or MTVp) and HNC prognosis. Included studies in this analysis should met all of the following criteria: (I) articles evaluating the association between tumor volume (GTVp or MTVp) and HNC parameters such as clinicopathological characteristic and long-term prognosis (OS or DFS) of HNC; (II) articles containing sufficient information to estimate of hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs); and (III) English papers and full text available. Studies were excluded based on the following: (I) duplicate publications; (II) reviews, editorials, clinical guidelines, case reports, comments or letters and meeting abstract; (III) lacking relevant data.
Relevant data were extracted from each eligible study in a standardized manner: first author’s name; publication year and country; average age of participants; duration of follow-up; sample size; tumor volume (GTVp or MTVp) detection methods and cutoff scores; tumor stage; tumor location; and local control rate, five years OS and disease-free survival (DFS) rates. Data extraction conflicts were resolved through discussion. The cutoff value for the tumor volume (GTVp or MTVp) varied among the included articles; we a defined large tumor volume (GTVp or MTVp) value according to receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis from original articles. Newcastle-Ottawa Quality Assessment Scale (NOS) was adopted to assess included studies quality, when scores greater than six were judged as high-quality studies.
Statistical analysis was conducted to calculate the pooled HRs with 95% CI to evaluate tumor volume (GTVp or MTVp) predict prognosis in HNC. Analysis endpoints for survival outcomes including local control rate, OS and DFS. Q test and I2 test were used to assess the heterogeneity of included studies. The DerSimonian-Laird method (random-effects model) was applied when statistical heterogeneity was found (I2>50% or P<0.10). While, Mantel-Haenszel method (fixed-effects model) was considered when P>0.1 and I2<50%. Funnel plots, Begg’s and Egger’s tests were performed to assess the publication bias on the reported outcomes. All statistical analyses were following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guideline. And performed with STATA software (Version 12.0, Stata Corporation, College Station, TX, http://www.stata.com).
Initially, 517 potential articles were retrieved utilizing electronic database searches above. Those potentially relevant articles were screened for eligibility by duplication and language, and 266 studies were excluded. Two hundred and twenty-four records were excluded after titles and abstracts screened. Finally, 27 articles were reviewed. Among these papers, 12 were removed because they did not provide survival data. Totally, 15 observational retrospective studies were included (5,10-23). And the detailed search steps are described in Figure 1.
Figure 1 Flow diagram of study identification. 517 potential articles were acquired from PubMed, ISI Web of Science and EBSCO. After screened for eligibility by duplication and language, 266 studies were excluded. 224 records were excluded after titles and abstracts screened. Finally, 27 articles were reviewed. Due to insufficient of survival data, we removed 12 papers. Finally, 15 observational retrospective studies were included.
Major features of these 15 eligible studies (approximately 2,447 patients) were summarized (Table 1). The sample size range from 30 to 694 (median: 163). Median follow-up was 45 months (range: 18 to 62.2 months). Four studies were from the Netherlands, three from the USA, one from Germany, and seven from Asia (five studies in China and two from Korea), covering most areas around the world.
The detection and definition method of tumor volume (GTVp or MTVp) used in the included studies were imaging techniques. Among the 15 studies, two articles used PET-CT, whereas computed tomography (CT) and/or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was used in 12 studies, and one study used both CT and PET. The cut-off value for larger tumor volume depended on ROC curve analysis, the median cutoff value of GTVp was 24.48 mL (range: 8.38 to 48 mL).
Nine studies provided the association between GTVp and HNC local control, including two studies on laryngeal cancer (LC), three studies on nasopharyngeal cancer (NPC), and four articles on squamous cell carcinoma. The combined analysis from the published data showed that larger GTVp was significantly associated with worse local control rate (pooled HR =1.34, 95% CI =1.22–1.47). Next, we found that heterogeneity existed (I2=65%, P=0.002) (Figure 2A). Furthermore, the subgroup analysis was conducted according to location of HNC, two studies including three datasets were about LC demonstrated that larger GTVp was correlated with poor local control (pooled HR =1.21, 95% CI=1.03–1.42), NPC (pooled HR =1.53, 95% CI =1.22–1.93) and HNSCC (pooled HR =1.37, 95% CI =1.21–1.55) (Figure 2B).
Figure 2 Forest plots showing results of studies on the impact of primary tumor volume (GTVp) of local control. (A) Impact of GTVp on local control of patients with head and neck cancer; (B) subgroup analysis of GTVp on local control of patients with different location of head and neck cancer.
There were ten studies assessing GTVp and OS of HNC. The pooled analysis found that larger GTVp could predict a worse OS rate (pooled HR =1.27, 95% CI =1.17–1.37). Next, we found that heterogeneity existed (I2=75%, P=0.000) (Figure 3A). Subgroup meta-analysis was performed by the location, four studies on NPC demonstrated that larger GTVp was correlated with unfavorable OS (pooled HR =1.34, 95% CI =1.13–1.58), LC (pooled HR =1.19, 95% CI =1.00–1.42) and HNSCC (pooled HR =1.77, 95% CI =1.14–1.41) (Figure 3B).
Figure 3 Forest plots showing results of studies on the impact of primary tumor volume (GTVp) of overall survival (OS). (A) Impact of GTVp on OS of patients with head and neck cancer; (B) Subgroup analysis of GTVp on OS of patients with different location of head and neck cancer.
Ten included articles assessed the relationship between GTVp and DFS of HNC. The pooled analysis found that a larger GTVp was significantly associated with a poorer DFS rate (pooled HR =1.34, 95% CI =1.23–1.46). I2=78.8% indicted heterogeneity was existed (P=0.000) (Figure 4A). Subgroup meta-analysis was conducted according to HNC location, three studies on NPC demonstrated that a larger GTVp was correlated with a poorer DFS (pooled HR =1.28, 95% CI =1.08–1.52), LC (pooled HR =1.27, 95% CI =1.01–1.60) and HNSCC (pooled HR =1.39, 95% CI =1.24–1.55) (Figure 4B).
Figure 4 Forest plots showing results of studies on the impact of primary tumor volume (GTVp) of disease free survival (DFS). (A) Impact of GTVp on DFS of patients with head and neck cancer; (B) subgroup analysis of GTVp on DFS of patients with different location of head and neck cancer.
Three studies assessed the MTVp and HNC. The combined analysis found that a larger MTVp was significantly associated with a poorer local control (pooled HR =3.51, 95% CI =1.87–6.59). For longtime survival, a larger MTVp also correlated with a poorer OS (pooled HR =4.13, 95% CI =2.63–6.47), and an unfavorable DFS (pooled HR =5.70, 95% CI =4.30–7.5) (Figure 5).
Figure 5 Meta-analysis of impact of metabolic tumor volume (MTVp) on the survival of head and neck cancer patients. (A) Impact of MTVp on local control of patients with head and neck cancer; (B) impact of MTVp on OS of patients with head and neck cancer; (C) impact of MTVp on DFS of patients with head and neck cancer. OS, overall survival; DFS, disease free survival.
Begg’s rank correlation and Egger’s weighted regression methods were used to investigate the publication bias of included studies. Analysis results indicted no significant publication bias was found in this meta-analysis (data not shown). However, publication bias might exist and difficult to confirm because of the limited studies included.
The present systematic literature review and meta-analysis studied the published data to examine the tumor volumes (GTVp or MTVp) on predict prognosis of HNC and included fifty studies with 2,447 patients. This comprehensive analysis incorporated the most recent data, used both random and fixed effects models, and yielded the evidence that GTVp on CT/MRI (GTVp) is a marker of poor prognosis. These results not only observed on local control, but also OS and DFS. Similarly, tumor volume also could be assessed by PET-CT, named MTVp. The pooled analysis implied that a larger MTVp also indicted a worse prognosis.
According to National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN 2016) guideline, the T classification plays a major role in HNC treatment decisions (1). However, T classification was dependent on clinical examination, laryngoscopy, CT or MRI, which was not sufficient to predict survival in clinical practice. The clinical T stage of HNC is not representative of tumor burden; many T stages have a wide range of tumor burden, but guidelines lack of further nonsurgical sub-grouping for clinical stages, helping oncologists to select therapy methods and to predict survival outcomes. In addition, basic studies indicated that HNC with large volumes usually have more clonogenic tumor cells, tumor volume could be an ideal surrogate for tumor burden. A larger volume indicates a greater tumor burden and requires larger doses of radiation or chemoradiotherapy to acquire radical cure (16). Previous studies demonstrated that volumetric staging system was superior to TNM stage system in correlating long-term survival in any site of HNC undergoing definitive intensity modulation radiated therapy (IMRT) (24). Furthermore, Studer’s retrospective research adopted the volumetric stratification to divide clinical T4 HNC into four volume subgroups (1 to 15 vs. 16 to 70 vs. 71 to 130 vs. >130 mL); they found that the OS was 90%/72%/58%/18% for V1/2/3/4, respectively. Those results implied that volumetric staging could potentially predict outcomes for different volume sizes in HNC (25).
Recently, evidence regarding the prognostic impact of tumor volume and as a supplement for T stage in HNC was increasing. However, the exact relationship was not well established, and tumor volume was not being used for clinical practice. There are many reasons why it is hard to draw a final conclusion. First, due to malignancy, tumors might be more aggressive and finally grow into irregularly shapes. Therefore, the accurate measurement of the tumor volume is difficult under conventional imaging examinations (e.g., CT and MRI). Second, the cut-off value of tumor volume was difficult to define; among the eligible studies in this meta-analysis cut-off values were different (median cutoff value was 24.48 mL, range from 7.3 to 48 mL). Various assessment software and different treatment methods might account for cutoff value biases (26,27). Furthermore, all the studies were retrospective studies; no prospective randomized trials performed to verify the prognostic impact of tumor volume on HNC. The therapy methods adopted in the included studies were radiotherapy or chemoradiotherapy, but the tumor stages and location varied. The unavoidable differences in baseline characteristics in each study might also explain the controversial results in association between tumor volume and HNC survival.
Furthermore, studies indicated that total HNC volume is a major prognostic factor, it mainly impacted by hypoxic volume, while not by non-hypoxic volume (8). Advancements in imaging technologies have significant implications for the use of measured tumor volumes, especially for molecular imaging (e.g., PET-CT). MTVp appears to be a trend to instead of GTVp. PET-CT could accurately assess the metabolic tumor volume in HNC not influenced by irregularly shaped tumors, and MTVp measurements do not need special software and was acquired easier than GTVp. Furthermore, in our analysis, the results revealed that a small advantage of MTVp (OS: HR =4.13, 95% CI =2.63–6.47) was that it is better than GTVp (OS: HR =1.27, 95% CI =1.17–1.37) as a prognosis factor. Therefore, MTVp is an exciting parameter as metabolic information provided by the PET-CT scan, which could help more accurately measure tumor volume.
Limitations might remain in this study. Firstly, the method and cut-off values for assessing GTVp and MTVp are inconsistent. Secondly, some heterogeneity observed across studies could not be completely accounted for despite the use of appropriate meta-analytic techniques with random-effect models. Finally, because this is a literature-based analysis, inevitable could cause publication bias due to several negative results not been published.
Results from this analysis demonstrated that tumor volume (GTVp or MTVp) was a useful prognostic marker, and HNC patients with larger tumor volumes are associated with unfavorable local control and long-term survival. It is recommended that tumor volume should be included in a new staging system combined with TNM classification to provide oncologists predict long-term survival. Without doubt, further studies to assess the standard measurement and improve new imaging technologies are urgently needed.
Funding: This work was supported by the Nature science foundation of Zhejiang Province (Grant No. LY12H13002), project of Zhejiang Traditional Chinese Medicine Administration (Grant No. 2012ZZ012), project of Zhejiang medical health science plan (Grant No. 2015RCB026), project of Zhejiang traditional Chinese medicine research (Grant No. 2013ZB115, 2015ZB107) and Nature science foundation of Ningbo City (Grant No. 2012A610205, 2012A610206), Science and Technology foundation of Cixi (CN2013013). | 2019-04-23T14:44:01Z | http://tcr.amegroups.com/article/view/15151/html |
It's time for web servers to handle ten thousand clients simultaneously, don't you think? After all, the web is a big place now.
And computers are big, too. You can buy a 1000MHz machine with 2 gigabytes of RAM and an 1000Mbit/sec Ethernet card for $1200 or so. Let's see - at 20000 clients, that's 50KHz, 100Kbytes, and 50Kbits/sec per client. It shouldn't take any more horsepower than that to take four kilobytes from the disk and send them to the network once a second for each of twenty thousand clients. (That works out to $0.08 per client, by the way. Those $100/client licensing fees some operating systems charge are starting to look a little heavy!) So hardware is no longer the bottleneck.
In 1999 one of the busiest ftp sites, cdrom.com, actually handled 10000 clients simultaneously through a Gigabit Ethernet pipe. As of 2001, that same speed is now being offered by several ISPs, who expect it to become increasingly popular with large business customers.
And the thin client model of computing appears to be coming back in style -- this time with the server out on the Internet, serving thousands of clients.
With that in mind, here are a few notes on how to configure operating systems and write code to support thousands of clients. The discussion centers around Unix-like operating systems, as that's my personal area of interest, but Windows is also covered a bit.
The sendfile() system call can implement zero-copy networking.
Some programs can benefit from using non-Posix threads.
Caching your own data can sometimes be a win.
See Nick Black's execellent Fast UNIX Servers page for a circa-2009 look at the situation.
If you haven't read it already, go out and get a copy of Unix Network Programming : Networking Apis: Sockets and Xti (Volume 1) by the late W. Richard Stevens. It describes many of the I/O strategies and pitfalls related to writing high-performance servers. It even talks about the 'thundering herd' problem. And while you're at it, go read Jeff Darcy's notes on high-performance server design.
Prepackaged libraries are available that abstract some of the techniques presented below, insulating your code from the operating system and making it more portable.
ACE, a heavyweight C++ I/O framework, contains object-oriented implementations of some of these I/O strategies and many other useful things. In particular, his Reactor is an OO way of doing nonblocking I/O, and Proactor is an OO way of doing asynchronous I/O.
ASIO is an C++ I/O framework which is becoming part of the Boost library. It's like ACE updated for the STL era.
libevent is a lightweight C I/O framework by Niels Provos. It supports kqueue and select, and soon will support poll and epoll. It's level-triggered only, I think, which has both good and bad sides. Niels has a nice graph of time to handle one event as a function of the number of connections. It shows kqueue and sys_epoll as clear winners.
Poller is a lightweight C++ I/O framework that implements a level-triggered readiness API using whatever underlying readiness API you want (poll, select, /dev/poll, kqueue, or sigio). It's useful for benchmarks that compare the performance of the various APIs. This document links to Poller subclasses below to illustrate how each of the readiness APIs can be used.
rn is a lightweight C I/O framework that was my second try after Poller. It's lgpl (so it's easier to use in commercial apps) and C (so it's easier to use in non-C++ apps). It was used in some commercial products.
Matt Welsh wrote a paper in April 2000 about how to balance the use of worker thread and event-driven techniques when building scalable servers. The paper describes part of his Sandstorm I/O framework.
Note: it's particularly important to remember that readiness notification from the kernel is only a hint; the file descriptor might not be ready anymore when you try to read from it. That's why it's important to use nonblocking mode when using readiness notification.
An important bottleneck in this method is that read() or sendfile() from disk blocks if the page is not in core at the moment; setting nonblocking mode on a disk file handle has no effect. Same thing goes for memory-mapped disk files. The first time a server needs disk I/O, its process blocks, all clients must wait, and that raw nonthreaded performance goes to waste.
This is what asynchronous I/O is for, but on systems that lack AIO, worker threads or processes that do the disk I/O can also get around this bottleneck. One approach is to use memory-mapped files, and if mincore() indicates I/O is needed, ask a worker to do the I/O, and continue handling network traffic. Jef Poskanzer mentions that Pai, Druschel, and Zwaenepoel's 1999 Flash web server uses this trick; they gave a talk at Usenix '99 on it. It looks like mincore() is available in BSD-derived Unixes like FreeBSD and Solaris, but is not part of the Single Unix Specification. It's available as part of Linux as of kernel 2.3.51, thanks to Chuck Lever.
But in November 2003 on the freebsd-hackers list, Vivek Pei et al reported very good results using system-wide profiling of their Flash web server to attack bottlenecks. One bottleneck they found was mincore (guess that wasn't such a good idea after all) Another was the fact that sendfile blocks on disk access; they improved performance by introducing a modified sendfile() that return something like EWOULDBLOCK when the disk page it's fetching is not yet in core. (Not sure how you tell the user the page is now resident... seems to me what's really needed here is aio_sendfile().) The end result of their optimizations is a SpecWeb99 score of about 800 on a 1GHZ/1GB FreeBSD box, which is better than anything on file at spec.org.
See Poller_select (cc, h) for an example of how to use select() interchangeably with other readiness notification schemes.
There is no hardcoded limit to the number of file descriptors poll() can handle, but it does get slow about a few thousand, since most of the file descriptors are idle at any one time, and scanning through thousands of file descriptors takes time.
Some OS's (e.g. Solaris 8) speed up poll() et al by use of techniques like poll hinting, which was implemented and benchmarked by Niels Provos for Linux in 1999.
See Poller_poll (cc, h, benchmarks) for an example of how to use poll() interchangeably with other readiness notification schemes.
This is the recommended poll replacement for Solaris.
The idea behind /dev/poll is to take advantage of the fact that often poll() is called many times with the same arguments. With /dev/poll, you get an open handle to /dev/poll, and tell the OS just once what files you're interested in by writing to that handle; from then on, you just read the set of currently ready file descriptors from that handle.
It appeared quietly in Solaris 7 (see patchid 106541) but its first public appearance was in Solaris 8; according to Sun, at 750 clients, this has 10% of the overhead of poll().
Various implementations of /dev/poll were tried on Linux, but none of them perform as well as epoll, and were never really completed. /dev/poll use on Linux is not recommended.
This is the recommended poll replacement for FreeBSD (and, soon, NetBSD).
See below. kqueue() can specify either edge triggering or level triggering.
Readiness change notification (or edge-triggered readiness notification) means you give the kernel a file descriptor, and later, when that descriptor transitions from not ready to ready, the kernel notifies you somehow. It then assumes you know the file descriptor is ready, and will not send any more readiness notifications of that type for that file descriptor until you do something that causes the file descriptor to no longer be ready (e.g. until you receive the EWOULDBLOCK error on a send, recv, or accept call, or a send or recv transfers less than the requested number of bytes).
When you use readiness change notification, you must be prepared for spurious events, since one common implementation is to signal readiness whenever any packets are received, regardless of whether the file descriptor was already ready.
This is the opposite of "level-triggered" readiness notification. It's a bit less forgiving of programming mistakes, since if you miss just one event, the connection that event was for gets stuck forever. Nevertheless, I have found that edge-triggered readiness notification made programming nonblocking clients with OpenSSL easier, so it's worth trying.
[Banga, Mogul, Drusha '99] described this kind of scheme in 1999.
kqueue() This is the recommended edge-triggered poll replacement for FreeBSD (and, soon, NetBSD).
Like /dev/poll, you allocate a listening object, but rather than opening the file /dev/poll, you call kqueue() to allocate one. To change the events you are listening for, or to get the list of current events, you call kevent() on the descriptor returned by kqueue(). It can listen not just for socket readiness, but also for plain file readiness, signals, and even for I/O completion.
Note: as of October 2000, the threading library on FreeBSD does not interact well with kqueue(); evidently, when kqueue() blocks, the entire process blocks, not just the calling thread.
See Poller_kqueue (cc, h, benchmarks) for an example of how to use kqueue() interchangeably with many other readiness notification schemes.
Ronald F. Guilmette's example echo server; see also his 28 Sept 2000 post on freebsd.questions.
This is the recommended edge-triggered poll replacement for the 2.6 Linux kernel.
On 11 July 2001, Davide Libenzi proposed an alternative to realtime signals; his patch provides what he now calls /dev/epoll www.xmailserver.org/linux-patches/nio-improve.html. This is just like the realtime signal readiness notification, but it coalesces redundant events, and has a more efficient scheme for bulk event retrieval.
Epoll was merged into the 2.5 kernel tree as of 2.5.46 after its interface was changed from a special file in /dev to a system call, sys_epoll. A patch for the older version of epoll is available for the 2.4 kernel.
There was a lengthy debate about unifying epoll, aio, and other event sources on the linux-kernel mailing list around Halloween 2002. It may yet happen, but Davide is concentrating on firming up epoll in general first.
his paper, "The Need for Asynchronous, Zero-Copy Network I/O"
This is the recommended edge-triggered poll replacement for the 2.4 Linux kernel.
This sends that signal when a normal I/O function like read() or write() completes. To use this, write a normal poll() outer loop, and inside it, after you've handled all the fd's noticed by poll(), you loop calling sigwaitinfo().
If sigwaitinfo or sigtimedwait returns your realtime signal, siginfo.si_fd and siginfo.si_band give almost the same information as pollfd.fd and pollfd.revents would after a call to poll(), so you handle the i/o, and continue calling sigwaitinfo().
If sigwaitinfo returns a traditional SIGIO, the signal queue overflowed, so you flush the signal queue by temporarily changing the signal handler to SIG_DFL, and break back to the outer poll() loop.
See Poller_sigio (cc, h) for an example of how to use rtsignals interchangeably with many other readiness notification schemes.
Chandra and Mosberger proposed a modification to the realtime signal approach called "signal-per-fd" which reduces or eliminates realtime signal queue overflow by coalescing redundant events. It doesn't outperform epoll, though. Their paper ( www.hpl.hp.com/techreports/2000/HPL-2000-174.html) compares performance of this scheme with select() and /dev/poll.
See Poller_sigfd (cc, h) for an example of how to use signal-per-fd interchangeably with many other readiness notification schemes.
This has not yet become popular in Unix, probably because few operating systems support asynchronous I/O, also possibly because it (like nonblocking I/O) requires rethinking your application. Under standard Unix, asynchronous I/O is provided by the aio_ interface (scroll down from that link to "Asynchronous input and output"), which associates a signal and value with each I/O operation. Signals and their values are queued and delivered efficiently to the user process. This is from the POSIX 1003.1b realtime extensions, and is also in the Single Unix Specification, version 2.
glibc 2.1 and later provide a generic implementation written for standards compliance rather than performance.
Linux AIO home page - Ben's preliminary patches, mailing list, etc.
libaio-oracle - library implementing standard Posix AIO on top of libaio. First mentioned by Joel Becker on 18 Apr 2003.
Suparna also suggests having a look at the the DAFS API's approach to AIO.
Red Hat AS and Suse SLES both provide a high-performance implementation on the 2.4 kernel; it is related to, but not completely identical to, the 2.6 kernel implementation.
In February 2006, a new attempt is being made to provide network AIO; see the note above about Evgeniy Polyakov's kevent-based AIO.
In 1999, SGI implemented high-speed AIO for Linux. As of version 1.1, it's said to work well with both disk I/O and sockets. It seems to use kernel threads. It is still useful for people who can't wait for Ben's AIO to support sockets.
The O'Reilly book POSIX.4: Programming for the Real World is said to include a good introduction to aio.
A tutorial for the earlier, nonstandard, aio implementation on Solaris is online at Sunsite. It's probably worth a look, but keep in mind you'll need to mentally convert "aioread" to "aio_read", etc.
Note that AIO doesn't provide a way to open files without blocking for disk I/O; if you care about the sleep caused by opening a disk file, Linus suggests you should simply do the open() in a different thread rather than wishing for an aio_open() system call.
Under Windows, asynchronous I/O is associated with the terms "Overlapped I/O" and IOCP or "I/O Completion Port". Microsoft's IOCP combines techniques from the prior art like asynchronous I/O (like aio_write) and queued completion notification (like when using the aio_sigevent field with aio_write) with a new idea of holding back some requests to try to keep the number of running threads associated with a single IOCP constant. For more information, see Inside I/O Completion Ports by Mark Russinovich at sysinternals.com, Jeffrey Richter's book "Programming Server-Side Applications for Microsoft Windows 2000" (Amazon, MSPress), U.S. patent #06223207, or MSDN.
... and let read() and write() block. Has the disadvantage of using a whole stack frame for each client, which costs memory. Many OS's also have trouble handling more than a few hundred threads. If each thread gets a 2MB stack (not an uncommon default value), you run out of *virtual memory* at (2^30 / 2^21) = 512 threads on a 32 bit machine with 1GB user-accessible VM (like, say, Linux as normally shipped on x86). You can work around this by giving each thread a smaller stack, but since most thread libraries don't allow growing thread stacks once created, doing this means designing your program to minimize stack use. You can also work around this by moving to a 64 bit processor.
The thread support in Linux, FreeBSD, and Solaris is improving, and 64 bit processors are just around the corner even for mainstream users. Perhaps in the not-too-distant future, those who prefer using one thread per client will be able to use that paradigm even for 10000 clients. Nevertheless, at the current time, if you actually want to support that many clients, you're probably better off using some other paradigm.
LinuxTheads is the name for the standard Linux thread library. It is integrated into glibc since glibc2.0, and is mostly Posix-compliant, but with less than stellar performance and signal support.
NPTL is a project by Ulrich Drepper (the benevolent dict^H^H^H^Hmaintainer of glibc) and Ingo Molnar to bring world-class Posix threading support to Linux.
As of 5 October 2003, NPTL is now merged into the glibc cvs tree as an add-on directory (just like linuxthreads), so it will almost certainly be released along with the next release of glibc.
Ulrich's benchmark comparing performance of LinuxThreads, NPTL, and IBM's NGPT. It seems to show NPTL is much faster than NGPT.
In March 2002, Bill Abt of the NGPT team, the glibc maintainer Ulrich Drepper, and others met to figure out what to do about LinuxThreads. One idea that came out of the meeting was to improve mutex performance; Rusty Russell et al subsequently implemented fast userspace mutexes (futexes)), which are now used by both NGPT and NPTL. Most of the attendees figured NGPT should be merged into glibc.
While NPTL uses the three kernel features introduced by NGPT: getpid() returns PID, CLONE_THREAD and futexes; NPTL also uses (and relies on) a much wider set of new kernel features, developed as part of this project.
A short list: TLS support, various clone extensions (CLONE_SETTLS, CLONE_SETTID, CLONE_CLEARTID), POSIX thread-signal handling, sys_exit() extension (release TID futex upon VM-release), the sys_exit_group() system-call, sys_execve() enhancements and support for detached threads.
There was also work put into extending the PID space - eg. procfs crashed due to 64K PID assumptions, max_pid, and pid allocation scalability work. Plus a number of performance-only improvements were done as well.
In essence the new features are a no-compromises approach to 1:1 threading - the kernel now helps in everything where it can improve threading, and we precisely do the minimally necessary set of context switches and kernel calls for every basic threading primitive.
FreeBSD supports both LinuxThreads and a userspace threading library. Also, a M:N implementation called KSE was introduced in FreeBSD 5.0. For one overview, see www.unobvious.com/bsd/freebsd-threads.html.
I know this has been discussed in the past, but I figured with 7.x trundling forward, it was time to think about it again. In benchmarks for many common applications and scenarios, libthr demonstrates significantly better performance over libpthread... libthr is also implemented across a larger number of our platforms, and is already libpthread on several. The first recommendation we make to MySQL and other heavy thread users is "Switch to libthr", which is suggestive, also! ... So the strawman proposal is: make libthr the default threading library on 7.x.
Kernel supported M:N thread library based on the Scheduler Activations model is merged into NetBSD-current on Jan 18 2003.
For details, see An Implementation of Scheduler Activations on the NetBSD Operating System by Nathan J. Williams, Wasabi Systems, Inc., presented at FREENIX '02.
The thread support in Solaris is evolving... from Solaris 2 to Solaris 8, the default threading library used an M:N model, but Solaris 9 defaults to 1:1 model thread support. See Sun's multithreaded programming guide and Sun's note about Java and Solaris threading.
As is well known, Java up to JDK1.3.x did not support any method of handling network connections other than one thread per client. Volanomark is a good microbenchmark which measures throughput in messsages per second at various numbers of simultaneous connections. As of May 2003, JDK 1.3 implementations from various vendors are in fact able to handle ten thousand simultaneous connections -- albeit with significant performance degradation. See Table 4 for an idea of which JVMs can handle 10000 connections, and how performance suffers as the number of connections increases.
There is a choice when implementing a threading library: you can either put all the threading support in the kernel (this is called the 1:1 threading model), or you can move a fair bit of it into userspace (this is called the M:N threading model). At one point, M:N was thought to be higher performance, but it's so complex that it's hard to get right, and most people are moving away from it.
NGPT is an M:N threading library for Linux.
Although Ulrich Drepper planned to use M:N threads in the new glibc threading library, he has since switched to the 1:1 threading model.
MacOSX appears to use 1:1 threading.
FreeBSD and NetBSD appear to still believe in M:N threading... The lone holdouts? Looks like freebsd 7.0 might switch to 1:1 threading (see above), so perhaps M:N threading's believers have finally been proven wrong everywhere.
Novell and Microsoft are both said to have done this at various times, at least one NFS implementation does this, khttpd does this for Linux and static web pages, and "TUX" (Threaded linUX webserver) is a blindingly fast and flexible kernel-space HTTP server by Ingo Molnar for Linux. Ingo's September 1, 2000 announcement says an alpha version of TUX can be downloaded from ftp://ftp.redhat.com/pub/redhat/tux, and explains how to join a mailing list for more info.
The linux-kernel list has been discussing the pros and cons of this approach, and the consensus seems to be instead of moving web servers into the kernel, the kernel should have the smallest possible hooks added to improve web server performance. That way, other kinds of servers can benefit. See e.g. Zach Brown's remarks about userland vs. kernel http servers. It appears that the 2.4 linux kernel provides sufficient power to user programs, as the X15 server runs about as fast as Tux, but doesn't use any kernel modifications.
See for instance the netmap packet I/O framework, and the Sandstorm proof-of-concept web server based on it.
Richard Gooch has written a paper discussing I/O options.
In 2001, Tim Brecht and MMichal Ostrowski measured various strategies for simple select-based servers. Their data is worth a look.
In 2003, Tim Brecht posted source code for userver, a small web server put together from several servers written by Abhishek Chandra, David Mosberger, David Pariag, and Michal Ostrowski. It can use select(), poll(), epoll(), or sigio.
His reasons boiled down to "it's really hard, and the payoff isn't clear". Within a few months, though, it became clear that people were willing to work on it.
Mark Russinovich wrote an editorial and an article discussing I/O strategy issues in the 2.2 Linux kernel. Worth reading, even he seems misinformed on some points. In particular, he seems to think that Linux 2.2's asynchronous I/O (see F_SETSIG above) doesn't notify the user process when data is ready, only when new connections arrive. This seems like a bizarre misunderstanding. See also comments on an earlier draft, Ingo Molnar's rebuttal of 30 April 1999, Russinovich's comments of 2 May 1999, a rebuttal from Alan Cox, and various posts to linux-kernel. I suspect he was trying to say that Linux doesn't support asynchronous disk I/O, which used to be true, but now that SGI has implemented KAIO, it's not so true anymore.
See these pages at sysinternals.com and MSDN for information on "completion ports", which he said were unique to NT; in a nutshell, win32's "overlapped I/O" turned out to be too low level to be convenient, and a "completion port" is a wrapper that provides a queue of completion events, plus scheduling magic that tries to keep the number of running threads constant by allowing more threads to pick up completion events if other threads that had picked up completion events from this port are sleeping (perhaps doing blocking I/O).
See also OS/400's support for I/O completion ports.
Ed Hall posted a few notes on his experiences; he's achieved >1000 connects/second on a UP P2/333 running Solaris. His code used a small pool of threads (1 or 2 per CPU) each managing a large number of clients using "an event-based model".
Mike Jagdis posted an analysis of poll/select overhead, and said "The current select/poll implementation can be improved significantly, especially in the blocking case, but the overhead will still increase with the number of descriptors because select/poll does not, and cannot, remember what descriptors are interesting. This would be easy to fix with a new API. Suggestions are welcome..."
Mike posted about his work on improving select() and poll().
Mike posted a bit about a possible API to replace poll()/select(): "How about a 'device like' API where you write 'pollfd like' structs, the 'device' listens for events and delivers 'pollfd like' structs representing them when you read it? ... "
Joerg Pommnitz pointed out that any new API along these lines should be able to wait for not just file descriptor events, but also signals and maybe SYSV-IPC. Our synchronization primitives should certainly be able to do what Win32's WaitForMultipleObjects can, at least.
Stephen Tweedie asserted that the combination of F_SETSIG, queued realtime signals, and sigwaitinfo() was a superset of the API proposed in http://www.cs.rice.edu/~gaurav/papers/usenix99.ps. He also mentions that you keep the signal blocked at all times if you're interested in performance; instead of the signal being delivered asynchronously, the process grabs the next one from the queue with sigwaitinfo().
Jayson Nordwick compared completion ports with the F_SETSIG synchronous event model, and concluded they're pretty similar.
Alan Cox noted that an older rev of SCT's SIGIO patch is included in 2.3.18ac.
Jordan Mendelson posted some example code showing how to use F_SETSIG.
Stephen C. Tweedie continued the comparison of completion ports and F_SETSIG, and noted: "With a signal dequeuing mechanism, your application is going to get signals destined for various library components if libraries are using the same mechanism," but the library can set up its own signal handler, so this shouldn't affect the program (much).
Doug Royer noted that he'd gotten 100,000 connections on Solaris 2.6 while he was working on the Sun calendar server. Others chimed in with estimates of how much RAM that would require on Linux, and what bottlenecks would be hit.
Any Unix: the limits set by ulimit or setrlimit.
Solaris: see the Solaris FAQ, question 3.46 (or thereabouts; they renumber the questions periodically).
"FWIW: You can't actually tune the maximum number of connections in FreeBSD trivially, via sysctl.... You have to do it in the /boot/loader.conf file.
The reason for this is that the zalloci() calls for initializing the sockets and tcpcb structures zones occurs very early in system startup, in order that the zone be both type stable and that it be swappable.
You will also need to set the number of mbufs much higher, since you will (on an unmodified kernel) chew up one mbuf per connection for tcptempl structures, which are used to implement keepalive."
"As of FreeBSD 4.4, the tcptempl structure is no longer allocated; you no longer have to worry about one mbuf being chewed up per connection."
"In OpenBSD, an additional tweak is required to increase the number of open filehandles available per process: the openfiles-cur parameter in /etc/login.conf needs to be increased. You can change kern.maxfiles either with sysctl -w or in sysctl.conf but it has no effect. This matters because as shipped, the login.conf limits are a quite low 64 for nonprivileged processes, 128 for privileged."
increases the current process' limit.
I verified that a process on Red Hat 6.0 (2.2.5 or so plus patches) can open at least 31000 file descriptors this way. Another fellow has verified that a process on 2.2.12 can open at least 90000 file descriptors this way (with appropriate limits). The upper bound seems to be available memory.
Stephen C. Tweedie posted about how to set ulimit limits globally or per-user at boot time using initscript and pam_limit.
In older 2.2 kernels, though, the number of open files per process is still limited to 1024, even with the above changes.
See also Oskar's 1998 post, which talks about the per-process and system-wide limits on file descriptors in the 2.0.36 kernel.
On any architecture, you may need to reduce the amount of stack space allocated for each thread to avoid running out of virtual memory. You can set this at runtime with pthread_attr_init() if you're using pthreads.
Solaris: it supports as many threads as will fit in memory, I hear.
Linux 2.6 kernels with NPTL: /proc/sys/vm/max_map_count may need to be increased to go above 32000 or so threads. (You'll need to use very small stack threads to get anywhere near that number of threads, though, unless you're on a 64 bit processor.) See the NPTL mailing list, e.g. the thread with subject "Cannot create more than 32K threads?", for more info.
Linux 2.4: /proc/sys/kernel/threads-max is the max number of threads; it defaults to 2047 on my Red Hat 8 system. You can set increase this as usual by echoing new values into that file, e.g. "echo 4000 > /proc/sys/kernel/threads-max"
Linux 2.2: Even the 2.2.13 kernel limits the number of threads, at least on Intel. I don't know what the limits are on other architectures. Mingo posted a patch for 2.1.131 on Intel that removed this limit. It appears to be integrated into 2.3.20.
See also Volano's detailed instructions for raising file, thread, and FD_SET limits in the 2.2 kernel. Wow. This document steps you through a lot of stuff that would be hard to figure out yourself, but is somewhat dated.
Java: See Volano's detailed benchmark info, plus their info on how to tune various systems to handle lots of threads.
Up through JDK 1.3, Java's standard networking libraries mostly offered the one-thread-per-client model. There was a way to do nonblocking reads, but no way to do nonblocking writes.
In May 2001, JDK 1.4 introduced the package java.nio to provide full support for nonblocking I/O (and some other goodies). See the release notes for some caveats. Try it out and give Sun feedback!
HP's java also includes a Thread Polling API.
In 2000, Matt Welsh implemented nonblocking sockets for Java; his performance benchmarks show that they have advantages over blocking sockets in servers handling many (up to 10000) connections. His class library is called java-nbio; it's part of the Sandstorm project. Benchmarks showing performance with 10000 connections are available.
See also Dean Gaudet's essay on the subject of Java, network I/O, and threads, and the paper by Matt Welsh on events vs. worker threads.
Matt Welsh's Jaguar system proposes preserialized objects, new Java bytecodes, and memory management changes to allow the use of asynchronous I/O with Java.
Interfacing Java to the Virtual Interface Architecture, by C-C. Chang and T. von Eicken, proposes memory management changes to allow the use of asynchronous I/O with Java.
JSR-51 was the Sun project that came up with the java.nio package. Matt Welsh participated (who says Sun doesn't listen?).
Normally, data gets copied many times on its way from here to there. Any scheme that eliminates these copies to the bare physical minimum is called "zero-copy".
Thomas Ogrisegg's zero-copy send patch for mmaped files under Linux 2.4.17-2.4.20. Claims it's faster than sendfile().
IO-Lite is a proposal for a set of I/O primitives that gets rid of the need for many copies.
Ingo implemented a form of zero-copy TCP in the 2.4 kernel for TUX 1.0 in July 2000, and says he'll make it available to userspace soon.
Drew Gallatin and Robert Picco have added some zero-copy features to FreeBSD; the idea seems to be that if you call write() or read() on a socket, the pointer is page-aligned, and the amount of data transferred is at least a page, *and* you don't immediately reuse the buffer, memory management tricks will be used to avoid copies. But see followups to this message on linux-kernel for people's misgivings about the speed of those memory management tricks.
Sending side zero-copy is supported since NetBSD-1.6 release by specifying "SOSEND_LOAN" kernel option. This option is now default on NetBSD-current (you can disable this feature by specifying "SOSEND_NO_LOAN" in the kernel option on NetBSD_current). With this feature, zero-copy is automatically enabled, if data more than 4096 bytes are specified as data to be sent.
The sendfile() function in Linux and FreeBSD lets you tell the kernel to send part or all of a file. This lets the OS do it as efficiently as possible. It can be used equally well in servers using threads or servers using nonblocking I/O. (In Linux, it's poorly documented at the moment; use _syscall4 to call it. Andi Kleen is writing new man pages that cover this. See also Exploring The sendfile System Call by Jeff Tranter in Linux Gazette issue 91.) Rumor has it, ftp.cdrom.com benefitted noticeably from sendfile().
A zero-copy implementation of sendfile() is on its way for the 2.4 kernel. See LWN Jan 25 2001.
One developer using sendfile() with Freebsd reports that using POLLWRBAND instead of POLLOUT makes a big difference.
Solaris 8 (as of the July 2001 update) has a new system call 'sendfilev'. A copy of the man page is here.. The Solaris 8 7/01 release notes also mention it. I suspect that this will be most useful when sending to a socket in blocking mode; it'd be a bit of a pain to use with a nonblocking socket.
See LWN Jan 25 2001 for a summary of some very interesting discussions on linux-kernel about TCP_CORK and a possible alternative MSG_MORE.
[Provos, Lever, and Tweedie 2000] notes that dropping incoming connections when the server is overloaded improved the shape of the performance curve, and reduced the overall error rate. They used a smoothed version of "number of clients with I/O ready" as a measure of overload. This technique should be easily applicable to servers written with select, poll, or any system call that returns a count of readiness events per call (e.g. /dev/poll or sigtimedwait4()).
Not all threads are created equal. The clone() function in Linux (and its friends in other operating systems) lets you create a thread that has its own current working directory, for instance, which can be very helpful when implementing an ftp server. See Hoser FTPd for an example of the use of native threads rather than pthreads.
"I've compared the raw performance of a select-based server with a multiple-process server on both FreeBSD and Solaris/x86. On microbenchmarks, there's only a marginal difference in performance stemming from the software architecture. The big performance win for select-based servers stems from doing application-level caching. While multiple-process servers can do it at a higher cost, it's harder to get the same benefits on real workloads (vs microbenchmarks). I'll be presenting those measurements as part of a paper that'll appear at the next Usenix conference. If you've got postscript, the paper is available at http://www.cs.rice.edu/~vivek/flash99/"
Old system libraries might use 16 bit variables to hold file handles, which causes trouble above 32767 handles. glibc2.1 should be ok.
Many systems use 16 bit variables to hold process or thread id's. It would be interesting to port the Volano scalability benchmark to C, and see what the upper limit on number of threads is for the various operating systems.
Too much thread-local memory is preallocated by some operating systems; if each thread gets 1MB, and total VM space is 2GB, that creates an upper limit of 2000 threads.
Look at the performance comparison graph at the bottom of http://www.acme.com/software/thttpd/benchmarks.html. Notice how various servers have trouble above 128 connections, even on Solaris 2.6? Anyone who figures out why, let me know.
Note: if the TCP stack has a bug that causes a short (200ms) delay at SYN or FIN time, as Linux 2.2.0-2.2.6 had, and the OS or http daemon has a hard limit on the number of connections open, you would expect exactly this behavior. There may be other causes.
For Linux, it looks like kernel bottlenecks are being fixed constantly. See Linux Weekly News, Kernel Traffic, the Linux-Kernel mailing list, and my Mindcraft Redux page.
In March 1999, Microsoft sponsored a benchmark comparing NT to Linux at serving large numbers of http and smb clients, in which they failed to see good results from Linux. See also my article on Mindcraft's April 1999 Benchmarks for more info.
See also The Linux Scalability Project. They're doing interesting work, including Niels Provos' hinting poll patch, and some work on the thundering herd problem.
See also Mike Jagdis' work on improving select() and poll(); here's Mike's post about it.
Mohit Aron ([email protected]) writes that rate-based clocking in TCP can improve HTTP response time over 'slow' connections by 80%.
Jef Poskanzer has published benchmarks comparing many web servers. See http://www.acme.com/software/thttpd/benchmarks.html for his results.
I also have a few old notes about comparing thttpd to Apache that may be of interest to beginners.
Chuck Lever keeps reminding us about Banga and Druschel's paper on web server benchmarking. It's worth a read.
IBM has an excellent paper titled Java server benchmarks [Baylor et al, 2000]. It's worth a read.
Nginx is a web server that uses whatever high-efficiency network event mechanism is available on the target OS. It's getting popular; there are even two books about it.
thttpd Very simple. Uses a single process. It has good performance, but doesn't scale with the number of CPU's. Can also use kqueue.
Zeus, a commercial server that tries to be the absolute fastest. See their tuning guide.
Flash-Lite - web server using IO-Lite.
xitami - uses select() to implement its own thread abstraction for portability to systems without threads.
Medusa - a server-writing toolkit in Python that tries to deliver very high performance.
N. Provos, C. Lever, "Scalable Network I/O in Linux," May, 2000. [FREENIX track, Proc. USENIX 2000, San Diego, California (June, 2000).] Describes a version of thttpd modified to support /dev/poll. Performance is compared with phhttpd.
Chromium's X15. This uses the 2.4 kernel's SIGIO feature together with sendfile() and TCP_CORK, and reportedly achieves higher speed than even TUX. The source is available under a community source (not open source) license. See the original announcement by Fabio Riccardi.
Zach Brown's phhttpd - "a quick web server that was written to showcase the sigio/siginfo event model. consider this code highly experimental and yourself highly mental if you try and use it in a production environment." Uses the siginfo features of 2.3.21 or later, and includes the needed patches for earlier kernels. Rumored to be even faster than khttpd. See his post of 31 May 1999 for some notes.
Hoser FTPD. See their benchmark page.
"TUX" (Threaded linUX webserver) by Ingo Molnar et al. For 2.4 kernel.
Prof. Peter Ladkin's Web Server Performance page.
Novell's FastCache -- claims 10000 hits per second. Quite the pretty performance graph.
Link to Cal Henderson's book. | 2019-04-24T06:31:00Z | http://kegel.com/c10k.html |
Join us in spring 2020 on a passage through antiquity, an incomparable journey which includes a wealth of sites including biblical landmarks, Crusader castles, Egyptian temples and tombs as well as the magnificent Nabatean city of Petra. We have planned the journey for March when temperatures will be pleasant for exploring and with the aid of our knowledgeable local guides and excellent Guest Speaker, we will learn of some fascinating civilisations.
Our itinerary begins with a six day land tour of Jordan during which time we will stay in five star hotels. From the mystical Dead Sea to the grandeur of Petra and the desert sands of Wadi Rum, Jordan is steeped in history and awe inspiring beauty. Petra, a city set deep in the Edom mountains and lost to Western ‘civilisation’ for hundreds of years was hewn directly from the rock by the Nabateans and is an amazing feat of engineering and construction. As you explore this vast and complex city, whose wealth came from its proximity to the ancient Middle East trade routes, you cannot help but be impressed by the industry and sophistication of this ancient civilisation. Whilst in Jordan, we also visit Bethany, the site where John the Baptist met and baptised Jesus Christ, and spend some time in Aqaba before embarking the MS Serenissima.
Our journey continues as we sail through the Gulf of Aqaba to Egypt where we explore some of the great monuments of the Pharaohs, the divine kings of thirty dynasties who ruled Egypt for some thirty-five centuries. See the great temples of Karnak, the Valley of the Kings, the Pyramids of Giza and the Sphinx and spend some time in Cairo’s magnificent Egyptian Museum. Following a transit of the Suez Canal, one of the world’s greatest feats of civil engineering, we then have four days in Israel to explore an extraordinary collection of both classical and Biblical sites before our voyage ends in the Cypriot port of Limassol.
Day 1 - London to Amman, Jordan.
Fly by scheduled flight. Arrive in Amman this evening and transfer to the Movenpick Resort (or similar) in the Dead Sea area, our base for the next two nights.
Day 2 - Dead Sea & Bethany.
Enjoy breakfast in the hotel and a leisurely morning. You may wish to swim or float in the Dead Sea which, at 423 metres below sea level is the lowest spot on earth. The high salt content prevents the existence of any life forms but is also believed to provide healing properties with the mud on the seabed being rich in minerals. After lunch in the hotel restaurant we will drive to Bethany, the site where John the Baptist met and baptised Jesus Christ. The excavations conducted at Bethany in Jordan have uncovered a 1st century AD settlement with plastered pools and water systems that were used almost certainly for mass baptisms, and a 6th century Byzantine settlement with churches, a monastery and other structures most probably catering to religious pilgrims. This evening we will meet for dinner at the hotel.
Day 3 - Kerak & Little Petra.
This morning we drive southward along the Dead Sea shore before heading to the imposing Crusader stronghold of Kerak where we visit the fortified castle which was built in AD 1142 and had witnessed many battles between the Crusaders and Saladin’s Muslim armies. See the network of the dimly lit vaulted rooms and long winding corridors, which lead into each other through heavy arches and doorways. After our visit we continue our journey south to the rose-red city of Petra. On the way we will stop at the spectacular site of Little Petra, where a modest gorge (Siq el-Barid) leads into the area of carved tombs and monuments. See the Painted Cave which is believed to have been a shelter for a sect focused on Dionysus, the ancient Greek god of wine, as it contains remains of Greek-style plaster artwork, quite unique for Petra, displaying tangled vines and flowers with brightly coloured birds and cupid-like figures. A kilometre further to the southwest of Siq el-Barid is one of the region’s most important archaeological sites, the 6800 BC Neolithic village of Beidha which was inhabited, long before the Nabateans, by the New Stone Age people where over 60 stone-built structures have been discovered among the ruins of this early farming community. After our visit we continue to our hotel where we enjoy dinner this evening.
After breakfast in the hotel we will explore the breathtaking Nabatean city of Petra which was carved out of the rose-red sandstone about 2000 years ago and has been voted as one of the New Seven Wonders of the World. Walk past the Obelisk Tomb and then through the Siq, the narrow 1.2 kilometre gorge that leads to Petra’s most impressive monument, the Treasury which was carved out of the pale reddish sandstone in the 1st century BC. Pass by the dozens of classical Nabatean ruins and tombs known as the Street of Facades, the remarkable 3000 seat Theatre, the Royal Tombs, the Colonnaded Street, the Byzantine Church, the Temple, the Monumental Arch and the mighty Qasr el-Bint Faroun. After lunch amidst the ruins of Petra you will have the option to return to the hotel for an afternoon at leisure or stay and explore the site further independently. The active may choose to climb about 900 steps up to the large, 1st century AD monument known as the Monastery with its remarkable views over Wadi Araba. Meet tonight for dinner.
Day 5 - Wadi Rum & Aqaba.
This morning you can choose to relax in the hotel or return to Petra for a second half day visit and climb up to the High Place of Sacrifice, known as El-Madbah in Arabic, one of Petra’s most important sacred sites, chosen as places of devotion and sacrifice. Animal offerings were made at the sacrificial altar, which has been carved flat, and drainage channels have been cut into the rock to allow the blood of sacrificial animals to drain away. Taking lunchboxes from the hotel we will drive to Wadi Rum, also known as the Valley of the Moon where the desert landscape is mixed with awe-inspiring shapes to create an almost supernatural atmosphere. We will embark on an adventurous excursion by a Bedouin open top four-wheel drive vehicle. We begin at the visitor centre from where there is a view in the distance of the Seven Pillars of Wisdom, the famous landmark named after the book by T.E. Lawrence ‘Lawrence of Arabia’. During our excursion we will also see the Alameleh inscriptions which are a good example of ancient rock drawings, Siq Um Al Tawaqi, a short canyon containing a carving of the head of T.E. Lawrence and ruins of Allat (Goddess) Temple of the AAD tribe. We will finish the excursion at the sunset site where there are dramatic views of Wadi Rum as the sun sinks below the horizon. At the camp we will enjoy dinner before driving to Aqaba and embarking the MS Serenissima.
After a busy few days we will have a relaxing morning in Aqaba. For those keen to spend time in the Aqaba Marine Park containing fringing reefs, over 100 species of hard coral and many species of fish, we will base ourselves at one of the beaches from where you can enjoy swimming or snorkelling in the clear waters. Alternatively explore the town of Aqaba seeing the 16th century fort, originally built as part of the pilgrimage route to Mecca but later a vital location in the overthrow of the Ottomans and take time to walk through the bustling souk. Return to the ship for lunch and relax on board as we spend the afternoon sailing through the Gulf of Aqaba.
Day 7 - Safaga for Luxor, Egypt.
Arrive this morning in the Egyptian port of Safaga, our base for our overnight trip to Luxor. After clearing immigration formalities we will embark our coaches for the drive through the desert. Our first call will be on the West Bank, one of the most famous and important archaeological sites in the world. See the Valley of the Kings, burial ground of the pharaohs for a period of 500 years. The tombs vividly depict the journey of the sun god and pharaoh through the dangers of the underworld. In the temple of Queen Hatshepsut you will discover scenes commemorating the reign of this exceptional monarch such as the ambitious voyage where she sent her ships on the Red Sea to the mysterious land of Punt. After our visit we transfer to our hotel in Luxor for some time to relax before meeting for dinner this evening.
After breakfast in the hotel we visit the temples of Karnak, one of the most memorable and popular historical areas to visit in the world. Here you will witness the unbelievably vast array of monuments dedicated to Amun-Ra, king of the gods, his wife Mut and their son Khonsu. Just two of the highlights you will see are the great hypostyle hall with over 130 columns some 22 metres high and the obelisk of the powerful queen pharaoh Hatshepsut. We will have some time to explore the souk. This afternoon we will board our coaches and return to the MS Serenissima in Safaga.
Spend the day on board as we sail through the Red Sea and Gulf of Suez. Join one of the lectures or find a spot on deck as we sail to Sokhna where we arrive this evening and moor overnight.
Day 10 - Sokhna for Cairo.
Today is a full day tour dedicated to the capital city of Cairo. We visit the impressive Pyramids of Giza and the Sphinx, the only survivor of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World and the tombs of the great Pharaohs and their queens. After lunch we visit the Egyptian Museum with 107 halls that are separated into seven sections. The museum houses statues, jewels and treasures of Tutankhamun. We will visit the Amarna Room and see the Fayoum portraits and monuments from the later periods from the Greeks and the Romans. Return to the MS Serenissima for dinner this evening.
Day 11 - Suez Canal Transit.
Departing Suez at dawn we begin the day-long transit of the Suez Canal and the Great Bittar Lake arriving in Port Said this evening.
Days 12 & 13 - Ashdod, Israel.
Our first call in Israel will be the southern port of Ashdod where we will spend two fascinating days. During our time here we will organise visits to Jaffa, the ancient port city from which Tel Aviv developed. Famous for its association with the biblical stories of Jonah, Solomon and St Peter, it has a fascinating history stretching back over four thousand years. We will explore the highlights including the Clock Tower, Flea Market and the renovated alleys and buildings of the fascinating city. Visit Tel Aviv and drive through Rothschild boulevards of the White City, a UNESCO World Heritage Site that holds the world’s largest concentration of Bauhaus architecture. We will also drive inland to Jersualem including a visit to the Mount of Olives from where we can enjoy spectacular views over the ‘Golden City’ of Jerusalem. Follow in the footsteps of Jesus as you walk through the Garden of Gethsemane, where Jesus spent the last moments before his arrest. Wander the streets of the Old City from Jaffa Gate to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and continue through the Christian Quarter to the bazaar, passing the Roman Cardo in the Jewish Quarter and the Western (or Wailing) Wall.
Days 14 & 15 - Haifa.
We sail to the northern port of Haifa for two more days of exploration including options to visit Nazareth, the childhood home of Jesus. Called the City of Annunciation, Nazareth is revered as the spot where the Angel Gabriel appeared before Mary to tell her she was to bear the Son of God. Enjoy panoramic views of the city and visit the Church of the Annunciation, which is built where Mary is said to have lived. Maybe visit the shores of the Sea of Galilee where we find Capernaum’s ancient synagogue and Peter’s House before stopping in Tabgha, home to the Church of the Multiplication of Loaves and Leaves, with its 5th century mosaic floor. We will drive up Mount Carmel for a breathtaking view over the bay from the top of the city’s famous Bahai Gardens. We also plan to visit Acre, one of the oldest continuously inhabited sites of the region and once the chief port of the Crusaders. Visit the underground city seeing the Crusader halls, crypt and the tunnels used as a secret route to the port. Also visit the bazaar and the UNESCO site of Kahn El Umdan (Inn of the Columns) one of the best-preserved caravanserai in Israel. The last option is to drive to Caesarea – the impressive ruins rest on the coast halfway between Haifa and Tel Aviv. This grand ancient city and harbour were built by Herod the Great between 22 and 10 BC and reigned capitol over its region for almost 600 years. Named after the Roman Caesar Augustus, it had all the amenities of a splendid Roman city: baths, a hippodrome, a theatre and an aqueduct and we can explore the remains in the archaeological park.
Day 16 - Limassol, Cyprus.
Enjoy a relaxing morning at sea as we cruise to Cyprus arriving in Limassol at lunchtime. An afternoon tour will include the Temple of Apollo, one of the main religious centres of ancient Cyprus, where Apollo was worshipped as God of the Woodlands. It seems that the worship of Apollo on this site began as early as the 8th century BC and continued until the 4th century AD. We will continue to the ruins of Kourion, a city built in 1200 BC. Of particular interest are the public baths, the necropolis, the Fountain House, House of Gladiators and House of Achilles. The most spectacular site at Kourion is the Greco- Roman Theatre that has been completely restored and is used today for open-air musical and theatrical performances.
Day 17 - Larnaca to London.
PRICE INCLUDES: Economy class scheduled air travel • Four nights hotel accommodation in Jordan and overnight in Luxor on a bed and breakfast basis • Lunch and dinner daily whilst in Jordan & Luxor • 11 nights aboard the MS Serenissima on a full board basis • House wine, beer & soft drinks with lunch and dinner on board • Noble Caledonia onboard team including Guest Speaker • Shore excursions • Gratuities • Transfers • Port taxes.
Ernest Rea is a celebrated British broadcaster who specialises on the history of religions and the way that faith impacts on the contemporary world. His regular national radio programme, Beyond Belief, was awarded the prestigious Sony Gold Award for the Best Speech Programme on British Radio.
He worked for the BBC for 22 years in a variety of production and editorial roles. From 1989 to 2001 he was Head of Religious Broadcasting for the BBC responsible for all religious television and radio programmes nationally and locally. During this period, he spent much time in the United States, brokering co-production television deals with leading American broadcasters. He was closely involved in a variety of key national events, including the Funeral Service for Diana, Princess of Wales.
He is in wide demand as a speaker at international inter faith conferences, literary festivals and academic symposia. In 1997 he was personally awarded the Gold Medal of the International Council of Christians and Jews for his contribution to Inter Faith Understanding. He has First Class Honours Degrees in Theology and in History and Politics which helped to fuel his passion for the study of world religions and the way in which they impact on the ancient and modern worlds.
Day 1 London to Amman, Jordan.
Fly by scheduled flight. Arrive this evening and transfer to the Kempinski Hotel Amman for our two night stay.
Day 2 Jerash. After breakfast in the hotel we have free time before we meet in the early afternoon for our excursion to Jerash, one of the most splendid provincial cities anywhere in the Roman Empire. From the southern end walking past Hadrian’s Arch and alongside the impressive 244 metre-long Hippodrome, where chariot races took place in antiquity, we enter the ancient city of Jerash. Continue on to the lovely collonaded Oval Plaza, connecting the Temple of Zeus which overlooks it, with the main street, the Cardo, which is beautifully lined by Corinthian columns. Overlooking the Plaza is the extraordinarily well preserved and the most magnificent of all the city’s monuments, the South Theatre, which seats more than 3000 spectators. Walking through the magnificent Colonnaded Street, one can see the Market Place and the Omayyad residential quarter. Further up is a 4th century AD cathedral, St. Theodore’s Church, the impressively carved Nymphaeum (public fountain), an Omayyad mosque, the arches of the West Baths and the North Theatre. We also see the Temple of Artemis and the western churches. Return to Amman where we will meet for dinner in a local restaurant.
Day 3 Madaba, Mount Nebo & Dead Sea. Check out of the hotel after breakfast as we drive to Madaba, home of the most famous Byzantine mosaics. Visit the greatest and most significant of all the city’s treasures, the wonderful mosaic map of ancient Palestine which is located on the floor of the Greek Orthodox Church of St. George. The 6th century AD map, hailed as the oldest in existence, was depicted for the benefit of the pilgrims on their way to the Holy Land as it represented the surrounding regions as well. We will also see the Church of the Apostles, the ruins of which date back to AD 578. Its floors are beautifully adorned with mosaics, the most significant being the large central medallion, known generally as the Personification of the Sea. After a local lunch we continue to Mount Nebo, which dates back to the time of the Prophet Moses, around the 12th century BC. It is believed to be the site of the Prophet’s burial place and the point from where he viewed the Holy Land. We see the remains of the mosaic floors with stunning designs that feature hunting and pastoral scenes, found in the small church built by the early Christians in the 4th century AD. We end the day at the Dead Sea where we will check in to our hotel and have dinner before our fellow guests arrive later tonight.
Price Includes: Two nights in Amman at the Kempinski Hotel on a bed and breakfast basis, Noble Caledonia Tour Manager, lunch on Day 3, dinner on Day 2, shore excursions, gratuities. | 2019-04-22T20:07:40Z | https://www.noble-caledonia.co.uk/voyages-and-tours/all-tours-and-cruises/tour/1879/passage-through-antiquity/?search_url_id=0 |
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TrustPortal is a dynamic software company focusing on innovative developments in the Robotic Process Automation (RPA) industry. TrustPortal offers an integrated digital workforce that combines human to robot technology with the RPA Platform Blue Prism and enables users to dynamically interact with any given automated process in real time. What TrustPortal does is allow customers to capture handicap of a wide achieve of new automation capabilities through its secure and dynamic front-end user interface, resulting in a complete end-to-end experience. The profit TrustPortal offers to organizations is the aptitude to collaborate and streamline conclusion making on any given automated process, including approval, sign-off, change and review. By enabling these digital services to interact with Blue Prism RPA it allows human interactions to subsist implemented by robot-driven workflows, thus extending Blue Prism's Digital Workforce to all functions across an organization.
Enate is a global company that offers a Robotic Service Orchestration (RSO) platform to govern the delivery and management of services across a hybrid workforce of humans and automation bots. Enate has recently partnered with UiPath as a new integration to their Robotic Process Automation Service Orchestrator Platform. As a current colleague with UiPath, Accelirate was keen to explore the capabilities of Enate, thus inspiring the want to colleague with such an incredible company. Enate provides the foundation to digitize services regardless of what RPA, AI, or cognitive technology is in play. The platform enables the delivery of services from multiple locations to local standards while maintaining complete visibility and control (including the automation of KPIs and SLAs), all aligned to a particular reporting of cost and productivity.
ABBYY is a Global Provider of Content Intelligence for Robotic Process Automation. They focus on making Process Automation Smarter by turning unstructured content into structured and actionable information using optical character recognition (OCR) technology. The software evolution kit ABBYY FineReader Engine allows software developers to create applications that extract textual information from paper documents, images, or displays. This AI-powered OCR Software evolution Kit provides the automation application with excellent text recognition, PDF conversion, and data capture functionalities, enabling it to transform scans into searchable PDF, Word, or exceed documents, along with the added capability of being able to access data on photos or screenshots.
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The latest version of the Sublime text editor is now available. Sublime Text 3.2 features Git integration, incremental diffing, new theme functionality and block caret support. According to the team, the release builds off of a lot of toil done in Sublime Merge, its latest Git client.
Other features involve improved performance of file watching, a number of syntax highlighting enhancements, and champion for Unicode 11.0.
Deque and Microsoft collaborate on open-source accessibilityDeque Systems has announced it is working with Microsoft to bring Windows champion to the company’s axe accessibility engine. According to the company, the axe accessibility rules engine with one of the most widely deployed engines with 25 million devices. As a result of collaboration with Microsoft, web, Windows, Android and iOS developers will subsist able to test their code with a common approach.
DotData updates data science automation platformDotData 1.4 has been released with significant updates, deeper insights, and greater performance. DotData provides a data science automation platform for the entire data science process from data collection to production-ready models. Key features involve the aptitude to leverage geo-temporal patterns, champion for more machine learning algorithms, enhanced automatic data pre-processing, and drag-and-drop data collection.
GraphQL Foundation teams up with Joint evolution Foundation on GraphQL specificationThe GraphQL Foundation will subsist working with the Joint evolution Foundation to accelerate the adoption and evolution of GraphQL’s specification and open standards. The Joint evolution Foundation was designed to attend users quickly establish projects with open source and standards development. The foundation joined the Linux Foundation at the terminate of final year.
Synopsys Design Compiler NXT now availableSynopsys is aiming to provide faster runtime and improved property of results with the announcement of its Design Compiler NXT. The release comes with power-driven mapping and structuring techniques, concurrent clock and data optimization and a new approach to distributed synthesis.
Now might subsist a top-notch time to behold the latest version of enterprise resource planning (ERP). New systems are putting on a top-notch exhibit with synthetic intelligence (AI) and the connectivity fostered by the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT). This new generation of ERP systems is helping bright enterprises to construct sense of the data gleaned from their networks of smart machines so their people can merge that operational data with industry metrics to construct better decisions.
Tooke credits the proliferation of IIoT technology for laying the foundation for ERP’s expanded aptitude to leverage manufacturing data. “It lowers the expense point for gaining access to cleansed data from manufacturing and providing conclusion champion for the predictive planning and execution of processes,” he says.
ERP vendors tolerate responded accordingly. “Today’s ERP systems tolerate operational extensions that simplify the interface to the factory floor,” explains Glenn Graney, director of industrial and elevated tech at ERP supplier QAD. As a result, even smaller manufacturers are finding it much easier to reduce the lag that has existed in the upward flow of information from operations to industry systems.
Now, he says, there is no reason to wait. A worker can either report progress on a customized touchscreen or let sensors attain it. For an case of the latter, Graney points to an automotive supplier that produces drive-link assemblies resembling heavy-duty bicycle chains. The company could receive an order for 10,000 of these chains, which are used in transmitting power from engines to transmissions. Rather than trying to import them as they near off a pressing operation, the operator periodically presses a button to actuate a scale that weighs the pallet of finished assemblies. Software then translates the weight into a piece import and reports that value to the ERP system.
In the past, establishing this benign of flow of production data into the ERP system required a capital investment and all the distress that goes into getting such a project approved. “You had to set the purchase of some PLC input and output cards in the budget,” Graney says. “And then you had to pay somebody to change the ladder logic in the PLCs.” Not only could these and other items in the project cost $100,000, but you also had to accept the risks associated with fussing with the ladder logic running your processes.
An well-known industrial measure for ERP is the industry to Manufacturing Markup Language (B2MML), which establishes common data definitions between ERP and production systems. Another improvement in interfaces has been the adoption of RESTful web services, according to Kevin McClusky, co-director of sales engineering at Inductive Automation. “Both cloud-based and traditional ERPs are starting to tender direct web services with the necessary industry logic for exchanging information,” he says.
“Automation vendors tolerate made it easier for us,” adds Mike Lackey, global head of solution management for digital manufacturing at SAP. “Most PLCs on the factory floor today are connected to an OPC server, so their ERP system can Go through their connectivity layer to the OPC layer, listen for the data tags that it needs, and haul the desired information from there.” Getting that data no longer requires writing a custom interface.
SAP’s Lackey notes that AI is often applied at the edge—the point at which an ERP system gathers information from production machinery and processes. “The ERP system can employ decisions and optimizations at the machine level to determine the effects on inventory, capacity, property and even cost structure,” he says.
One efficient strategy is to create dashboards tailored to presenting timely information specific to the toil that users are performing, says Andrew Bolivar, senior consultant at Ultra Consultants and director of the company’s center of Excellence. “Role-based information presented graphically simplifies the presentation and increases response time,” he says.
Not only should dashboards present information in a visually intuitive format, but the metrics displayed should subsist connected to some extent to the business’s key performance indicators (KPIs), Bolivar adds. He and his colleagues tolerate been working with manufacturers to create simple metrics that are pertinent to the job at hand, yet also tolerate a connection to KPIs such as overall apparatus effectiveness (OEE), production volume, and inventory turns.
The aptitude to track key metrics in real time not only helps people to construct decisions, but also can champion automated decision-making. The ERP system, for example, can reorder materials from existing suppliers. “Sensor 12 on machine 20 on line 14 may route a signal that alerts suppliers in real time to replenish needed materials,” Lackey describes.
The intelligence available through the industry context of the ERP system can acquire you those top-notch marks by determining whether you tolerate enough open capacity, access to the necessary materials, and aptitude to ship by the delivery date.
Besides allowing ERP to play a greater role in production, greater connectivity and intelligence tolerate also extended the role it plays in the life of products beyond manufacturing. Machine builders, for example, are able to maintain tabs on their installed groundwork of machines over cloud-enabled networks. Not only can ERP attend builders to collect and resolve performance data to survey for ways to better their designs, but it also can assist them in managing after-sales service. “This access to performance data gives them the aptitude to monitor assets and develop a maintenance plot that maximizes uptime,” Lackey says.
To exhibit how cloud-enabled ERP can attend manufacturers better service on other kinds of products, IFS’s Bourne points to the sustain of Anticimex International, a Swedish company that provides pest control and other environmental services to homes and businesses in 17 countries. In response to both a growing resilience of pests to conventional pesticides and increasingly stringent environmental regulations, Anticimex has developed a line of digital traps equipped with IoT sensors and cameras to control rodents. Besides using an IFS Applications ERP system to manage its manufacturing operations, the company also relies on the system to coordinate the technicians who service the installed groundwork of traps.
Anticimex’s Finnish operation spearheaded the company’s employ of a module called IFS IoT industry Connector. Through IoT connectivity, the installed groundwork of digital traps throughout Finland now transmits data directly to the ERP system. Technicians no longer tolerate to visit all traps periodically just to check which ones might subsist full. Not only does the software order them which traps requisite to subsist emptied and reset, but it also suggests an optimal route for their visits, thereby eliminating unnecessary travel.
The IoT module has also given Anticimex another route to carve costs and better service. Besides indicating whether the traps are full, the sensors also track battery power to report which batteries are running low and requisite recharging. By analyzing patterns in power depletion for each trap, AI can call when batteries will fail and determine which batteries should subsist replaced rather than recharged.
“These analyses tolerate affected the supply chain in that Anticimex can identify any faulty batteries and route them back to the suppliers, which is a capability that the company didn’t tolerate before,” Bourne says. The result is that batteries final longer between charges and require less service, cutting costs and improving customer satisfaction ratings. | 2019-04-26T07:51:09Z | http://morganstudioonline.com/brain-dumps.php?pdf=000-017 |
Advisory Age recommendation is 7+.
Front Row Seating begins in row C (center) and row D (sides).
An UNDENIABLY CHARMING yuletide experience!
COMMUNITY SPIRIT STEALS THE SCENE!
Enjoy hearty appetizers while sipping on holiday inspired cocktails in an atmosphere fit for all Dickens enthusiasts!
Enjoy the magic of Morven Museum & Garden's "Festival of Trees." at a pre-theater cocktail reception. Afterwards stroll and carol your way over to McCarter for a 7:30pm performance of A Christmas Carol.
Banish the bah-humbugs and meet Ebenezer Scrooge at a post-show reception with cookies and hot cocoa.
McCarter: The Mousetrap (Molly). Recent credits: White Guy on the Bus (Molly) at Delaware Theatre Co and 59E59; White (Jane) at Theatre Horizon; City of Conversation (Anna) at Delaware Theatre Co; And Then There Were None (Vera), The Prescott Method (Peg) at Walnut Street; Of Mice and Men (Curley’s Wife), Noises Off (Vicki/Brooke) People’s Light and Theatre Company; Sylvia (Sylvia) at Act II Playhouse and Pride and Prejudice (Jane) at the PA Shakespeare Festival, People’s Light, and Bristol Riverside Theatre. DeSales University, BA; Villanova University, MA. Up next: Marie Antoinette in The Revolutionists at Theatre Horizon.
Recently starred as Doctor Dillamond in the Broadway production of Wicked, and in Hamlet at The Old Globe. Broadway: A Few Good Men, Hamlet, Lestat, and Northeast Local. Off-Broadway: A Soldier’s Play, Fences, All My Sons, Dance of the Holy Ghosts, The Whipping Man and Resurrection. TV/Film: One Fine Day, She Hate Me, 25th Hour, The Affair, The Mysteries of Laura, Ugly Betty, Taxi Brooklyn, The Following, Law & Order, and Tyler Perry’s House of Payne. Mr. Genet is the author of the critically acclaimed They Must Not Know Who I Think I Am: Lessons in Defiant Resilience, and winner of the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Writing in a Motion Picture for the FOCUS Features release Talk To Me.
New York theater credits: Julius Caesar (The Delacorte); On The Grounds of Belonging, Party People, The Urban Retreat (The Public); Normativity (NYMF); peerless (Cherry Lane); The Architecture of Becoming (Women's Project). Regional: Where Storms Are Born (Williamstown Theatre Festival); The Unfortunates (American Conservatory Theater); peerless (Yale Rep); Party People, The White Snake (Oregon Shakespeare Festival /Berkeley Rep); The Whipping Man (Portland Center Stage); The Imaginary Invalid, The Pirates of Penzance, Hamlet, Henry IV pt. 1 (Oregon Shakespeare Festival); Romeo & Juliet (Virginia Stage Company). Film: Service To Man. TV: Instinct, Unforgettable. Education: BFA in Acting from Rutgers University.
An Octoroon (Woolly Mammoth); Angels in America parts 1 & 2 (Round House, Olney Theatre Center - Helen Hayes nomination); Colossal, The Magic Play, Piano Lesson, Our Town, Hay Fever (Olney Theatre Center); Passion Play (Forum Theatre - Helen Hayes Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor); Father Comes Home From the Wars parts 1,2, & 3 (Round House); Twelfth Night (CenterStage); A Christmas Carol (The Goodman); Under the Skin (The Public Theatre of Maine); Yellowman (Rep Stage); You Can’t Take It With You (Everyman Theatre); A Christmas Carol, Our Town (Ford’s Theatre); 2-2-Tango (Studio Theatre). Jon is a company member at Woolly Mammoth, an Artistic Associate at Olney Theatre Center, and a member of The Ensemble at Forum Theatre. Education: University of North Carolina School of the Arts.
Jon Norman Schneider was last seen in The Legend of Georgia McBride at Dorset Theatre Festival. New York credits: Awake and Sing! (NAATCO/The Public), The Oldest Boy (LCT), City Of (Playwrights Realm), Queens Boulevard (the musical) (Signature), Durango (The Public), A Map of Virtue (13P), among others. International: Paper Dolls at London's Tricycle Theatre. Regional: Actors Theatre of Louisville, Alliance, Barrington Stage, Goodman, Huntington, Kennedy Center, Long Wharf, Magic, McCarter, Old Globe. Film: Bitter Melon (upcoming), The Girl in the Book, The Normals, The Rebound, and HBO's Angel Rodriguez. TV: Succession, Jessica Jones, Veep, The Electric Company, 30 Rock, and Law & Order: Criminal Intent.
Sue Jin Song is happy to return as Mrs. Dilber. Off-Broadway: The World of Extreme Happiness (NYC premiere, Manhattan Theatre Club); Iphigenia at Aulis, Exit the King (Pearl Theater). Regional: The Arsonists, Marie Antoinette (Woolly Mammoth); Smart People, Hot 'n Throbbing (world premiere, Arena Stage); Yellow Face, iHo (Theater J); 36 Views (Constellation Theatre); Waiting for Tadashi (world premiere, George Street Playhouse); Shedding the Tiger (world premiere, Sacramento Theatre Company); Burn This (Syracuse Stage). Film: Steel Town, Pipe Dream, Someone Like You. TV: 24, ER, Law & Order. Education: MFA in Acting from NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts. Award: “The Best of Fringe” for her one woman show, Children of Medea, at the DC Fringe Festival.
Greg Wood is thrilled to be back in McCarter’s wonderful production of A Christmas Carol. Recent credits: Van Helsing in Dracula with Actors Theatre Louisville, Ulysses in Troilus & Cressida for the Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival, the Barrymore-nominated role of Sorn in Stupid F#%king Bird at the Arden Theatre (directed by Aaron Posner) in Philadelphia, Higgins in Pygmalion with The Peterborough Players in New Hampshire, Elyot in Private Lives for Walnut Street Theatre. Film/TV: The Sixth Sense, Signs, The Happening, Killing Emmett Young, A Gentlemen's Game, How to Get Away With Murder, Law & Order, Ed, Hack, and Homicide. Coming up: The Humans at Walnut Street Theatre.
Top row: Alya Delvalle, Michael Karnaukh, Adeline Edwards, Jamai Brown, Romy Johnson, Ethan Chang.
Broadway/West End: The Scottsboro Boys (London’s Critics’ Circle Award, Evening Standard Award, 12 Tony nominations, including Best Book, Hull-Warriner Award, Outer Critics Circle, and Lucille Lortel Awards for Best Musical). Script adaptation for Chicago, the longest running American musical in history; Steel Pier (Tony nom., Best Book); Thou Shalt Not; Prince of Broadway directed by Hal Prince and Susan Stroman. Off-Broadway: And the World Goes ‘Round (Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle Awards); Flora, the Red Menace (Drama Desk nom.). Regional projects: new libretto for Rags (Goodspeed) and the upcoming The Beast in the Jungle (Vineyard Theatre). Concert: James Taylor’s Perspective Series at Carnegie Hall. TV: Sondheim: A Celebration at Carnegie Hall (Emmy nom.), Razzle Dazzle and Great Performances’ My Favorite Broadway. Thompson is a McCarter/Sallie B. Goodman fellow and graduate of Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism.
Michael Friedman’s credits include Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson (Broadway and the Public Theater), Unknown Soldier, The Fortress of Solitude, and Love’s Labour’s Lost. With The Civilians: Canard Canard Goose, Gone Missing, Nobody's Lunch, This Beautiful City, In the Footprint, The Great Immensity, Paris Commune, Mr. Burns, Pretty Filthy, and most recently The Abominables at Children’s Theater Company in Minneapolis. He was the Artist-in-Residence and Director of the Public Forum at the Public Theater and Artistic Director of City Center Encores! Off-Center. He received the 2007 OBIE Award for sustained excellence.
Broadway: Waitress, Les Liaisons Dangereuses with Janet McTeer and Liev Schreiber, Waiting for Godot with Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time,and American Idiot (Associate); Off-Broadway: The Public’s Twelfth Night and Odyssey; Lin-Manuel Miranda’s 21 Chump Street at BAM; Assassins, God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater, and Fanny (Encores!); A Taste of Things to Come (York/BCP). Other: As You Like with music by Tom Kitt (TOHO Japan); Between the Lines (KC Rep); Monsoon Wedding (Berkeley Rep); Beaches, the Musical (Drury Lane); Kiss Me, Kate (Barrington); Jasper in Deadland (5th Avenue/Prospect Theatre Co.); Rigoletto (Met Opera). Performer: 14 Broadway shows, Tharp, Momix. Bucks County Playhouse Artistic Associate. BFA, Juilliard. Upcoming: La Traviata (Met Opera).
McCarter: All the Days, Ken Ludwig’s Baskerville, Antony & Cleopatra, The White Snake, A Delicate Balance, The Convert, The How & The Why, Having Our Say, Lookingglass Alice, Argonautica, The Secret in the Wings, Odyssey. NYC: RUSALKA (Metropolitan Opera: opens Feb 2017), Clybourne Park (Broadway/Tony nom.), La Sonnambula and Lucia Di Lammermoor (Metropolitan Opera), Glorious Ones (Lincoln Center), Durango (Public), Metamorphoses (Broadway/Tony nom., Second Stage), Playwright’s Horizon, New Victory, NY Shakespeare Festival, BAM. Regional: Goodman, Steppenwolf, Chicago Shakespeare, Huntington, Shakespeare Theatre D.C., ACT, Berkeley Repertory, Mark Taper, La Jolla Playhouse, OSF, Seattle Rep, The Alley, Arena Stage, Guthrie, The Old Globe, among others. International: La Scala (Milan), Donmar Warehouse and Barbican (London), Melbourne Theatre, Bunka Kai Kan and Orchard Hall (Tokyo), Calgary Theatre, Wuzhen Theater Festival. Directing (and set design): Jacques Brel… and Blood Wedding. Other: Ensemble Member at Lookingglass Theatre.
New York: Public Theater, New York Theatre Workshop, Signature Theatre, Second Stage, Dance Theater Workshop. Regional: Mark Taper Forum, Geffen Playhouse, Pasadena Playhouse, South Coast Rep, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, La Jolla Playhouse, The Old Globe, Berkeley Repertory Theatre, Goodman, American Repertory Theater, Arena Stage, Dallas Theater Center, The Shakespeare Theatre (Washington D.C.). Awards: Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Angstrom Award for Career Achievement in Lighting Design, Ovation Award, and multiple Bay Area Theatre Critics Circle Awards, “Drammy” for best lighting. Teaching: lighting design faculty at California Institute of the Arts.
Darron L West is a Tony and Obie Award-winning sound designer whose work for dance and theater has been heard in over 600 productions all over the United States and internationally in 14 countries. At McCarter: Crowns; Hamlet; The Bells; Miss Witherspoon; Stick Fly; Me, Myself & I; Fetch Clay, Make Man; The Convert; Baby Doll; Hoodwinked; Agatha Christie’s Murder on the Orient Express, and A Christmas Carol. His accolades include the Drama Desk, Lortel, Audelco, and Princess Grace Foundation Statue Awards among many others.
Carissa Thorlakson is a New Jersey-based wig and makeup designer. She is currently in her fifth season with McCarter, where her design work includes A Christmas Carol (2013-2016), Simpatico, The Mousetrap, and All the Days. She has designed for Olney Theatre Center, the University of Delaware Resident Ensemble Players, American Repertory Ballet, and the NewArts group in Newtown, CT. She has served as a wig and makeup artist at Santa Fe Opera, Sarasota Opera, The Kennedy Center, Shakespeare Theatre Company, Signature Theatre, and Round House Theatre. Carissa also designs and builds custom wigs and facial hair for Cosplay and film and teaches classes in wigs and makeup.
Charles Sundquist is a native of Duluth, Minnesota and the choral director at Mountain Lakes High School in Mountain Lakes, NJ. He received his Masters and Doctorate in Organ Performance and Literature from the Eastman School of Music. He won the Prix d’Excellence from the Conservatoire de Région de Ruiel-Malmaison in France. While in Paris, he was Associate Choirmaster at the American Episcopal Cathedral, accompanist for a Paris ballet school, and coach/accompanist for members of the Paris Opera Chorus. His choirs have sung for ACDA Conventions, the White House, and toured to England, France, Germany, Czech Republic, Austria, Sweden, Russia, Spain, and Hungary. He was Associate Musical Director and pianist for McCarter’s production of My Fair Lady and this year marks his 25th season as Music Director for McCarter’s A Christmas Carol.
Gillian Lane-Plescia returns to McCarter where she has previously coached several productions of A Christmas Carol, as well as The Mousetrap, A Winter’s Tale, Loot, and Ridiculous Fraud. Broadway: A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder, War Horse, Priscilla Queen of the Desert. Recent regional: Amazing Grace, The Most Happy Fella. She has coached at Arena Stage, Centerstage, Classic Stage, Clurman Theatre, Goodman, Guthrie, Huntington, Long Wharf, Milwaukee Rep, NJ Shakespeare, The Old Globe, Playmakers Rep, Seattle Rep, Shakespeare Theatre D.C., Steppenwolf, Yale Rep, Actors Theatre of Louisville, Banff Center for Fine Arts, and was also English Diction coach for Lyric Opera of Chicago. Her popular series of self-teaching dialect programs for actors is used worldwide.
Cheryl Mintz* is in her 27th season, 23rd as Resident Production Stage Manager, with over 80 productions for McCarter Theatre and 32 productions with Artistic Director Emily Mann. Cheryl has enjoyed 13 collaborations with Maestro Gian Carlo Menotti and the Spoleto Festival USA and Italy, and has stage managed 40 operas and musicals, three tours, and three PBS telecasts for New York City Opera at Lincoln Center. Cheryl has six Broadway shows to her credit, 15 years as an Executive Board Member of the Stage Managers' Association, is a contributor to the recently published Sound and Music for the Theatre; The Art & Technique of Design, currently conducts master classes for the AADA and Rutgers University, and named a SUNY Notable Alumni in the Arts. MFA: Yale School of Drama.
Alison Cote* is in her 22nd season at McCarter Theatre. Highlights include Ken Ludwig’s Baskerville; The Understudy, directed by Adam Immerwahr; The White Snake, directed by Mary Zimmerman; Danai Gurira’s The Convert, directed by Emily Mann; A Midsummer Night's Dream, directed by Tina Landau; Christopher Durang’s Miss Witherspoon; Sorrows and Rejoicings, directed by Athol Fugard; and Stephen Wadsworth's adaptations of The Figaro Plays. Other credits include Edward Albee's Me, Myself & I at Playwrights Horizons; Tarell Alvin McCraney's The Brother/Sister Plays at The Public Theater, Second Stage, Old Globe, Goodman Theatre, Philadelphia Theatre Company, Santa Cruz Shakespeare, Paper Mill, Kennedy Center, Long Wharf, Center Theatre Group, Berkeley Rep, Bard Summerscape, Pittsburgh Public, Williamstown, and 19 productions with The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey.
David York has worked at McCarter since 1982. As head of the Production Department he directs the Scenic, Prop, Costume, and Stage Operations personnel in their creation of physical elements and provision of backstage support for the Theater Series and McCarter’s annual production of A Christmas Carol. In addition, the 30 person production staff sees to the needs of all guest artists and companies presented at the theater each season. During David’s tenure, the department has more than 150 theater productions and thousands of presented performances to its credit. Prior to beginning his McCarter career as Technical Director, David held posts at Center Stage in Baltimore and Opera Theatre of St. Louis. He received his BA from Washington University and MFA from the Yale School of Drama.
Debbie Bisno joined McCarter in 2016. Her experience spans Broadway, off-Broadway, West End, regional, and non-profit theater. Broadway: Mothers & Sons, Grace, Annie, War Horse, Hair, Merchant of Venice, Speed the Plow. Off-Broadway and London highlights: Ingmar Bergman’s Through a Glass Darkly starring Carey Mulligan, Passion Play, Merrily We Roll Along. Chicago: Founder of Roadworks Productions, with residencies at Steppenwolf & Victory Gardens. Highlights: John Barth’s The End of the Road, Lanford Wilson’s Serenading Louie, Kenneth Lonergan's This is Our Youth, Chuck Mee’s Orestes, and Eric Bogosian's subUrbia. Ms. Bisno is an Advisory Member of Playwrights Realm in NYC and on the board of FASPE (Fellowships at Auschwitz for the Study of Professional Ethics). She lives with her husband David Goldman and Portuguese Water Dog, Stella.
Emily Mann is in her 28th season as Artistic Director and Resident Playwright. Her nearly 50 McCarter directing credits include productions by Shakespeare, Chekhov, Ibsen, and Williams and the recent world premieres of Agatha Christie’s Murder on the Orient Express; Baby Doll; Five Mile Lake; The Convert; The How and the Why; Miss Witherspoon; and Me, Myself & I. This spring Mann will direct the McCarter-commissioned world premiere of Chris Durang’s Turning Off the Morning News. Broadway: A Streetcar Named Desire, Anna in the Tropics, Execution of Justice, Having Our Say. Her plays: Having Our Say, adapted from the book by Sarah L. Delany and A. Elizabeth Delany with Amy Hill Hearth; Execution of Justice; Still Life; Annulla, An Autobiography; Greensboro (A Requiem); Meshugah; Mrs. Packard, and Hoodwinked (a Primer on Radical Islamism). She is currently writing a play with Gloria Steinem and the stage adaptation of The Pianist. Adaptations: Baby Doll, Scenes from a Marriage, Uncle Vanya, The Cherry Orchard, A Seagull in the Hamptons, The House of Bernarda Alba, Antigone. Awards: Peabody, Hull Warriner, NAACP, Obie's, Guggenheim; Tony, Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle nominations, a Princeton University Honorary Doctorate of Arts, a Helen Merrill Distinguished Playwrights' Award, and the Margo Jones Award given to a "citizen-of-the-theatre who has demonstrated a lifetime commitment to the encouragement of the living theatre everywhere.
A three-time Tony Award winner, Harold Wolpert is a leader and strategist with over 25 years of experience in all aspects of arts administration at major not-for-profit theater companies. Wolpert has made significant contributions to Roundabout Theatre Company as Managing Director, and as General Manager for Manhattan Theatre Club and the Alley Theatre. As a strategic consultant, he worked with Signature Theatre Company and Goodspeed Musicals, among other prominent companies. Wolpert is acknowledged as a national leader through years of service to the League of Resident Theatres (LORT), most recently as LORT Vice President, a key member of LORT’s Diversity Initiative Steering Committee, as well as a member of Theatre Communications Group’s Board of Directors. He was recently honored with the Edith Oliver Service to Off-Broadway Award by the Lucille Lortel Awards. Wolpert was an adjunct lecturer for the Brooklyn College MFA Program in Performing Arts Management and was a guest lecturer for Shanghai Theatre Academy. As Board Chairman of AIDS Foundation Houston, he led the organization’s fundraising efforts. He volunteers for The Trevor Project, the leading national organization providing crisis intervention and suicide prevention services to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning (LGBTQ) young people ages 13-24. A Philadelphia native, Wolpert earned a Bachelor’s degree in History from the University of Pennsylvania.
Born in Portsea, England, Charles Dickens was the second of eight children. In 1824, his father was thrown into debtor’s prison, and young Charles was sent to work in a boot-blacking factory. After his schooling, Charles worked as a solicitor’s clerk but soon turned his efforts towards journalism. He then began experimenting with creative writing, and by the time he turned 25, with the publication of The Pickwick Papers, he became the first great novelist of the industrial city. His most popular works include Nicholas Nickleby, David Copperfield, A Tale of Two Cities, and Great Expectations. Incensed by a trip to observe the working conditions of children in a tin mine in Cornwall, he planned to write a political pamphlet condemning child labor but soon reconsidered. “Rest assured, when you see what I do, and where, and how, you will certainly feel that a sledgehammer has come down with twenty times the force—twenty thousand times the force—I could exert by following out my first idea.” The result of this change of heart was A Christmas Carol, published in 1843.
Zeke Edmonds, Greg Wood, and Thom Sesma. Photo by T. Charles Erickson.
Roman Engel and Jon Norman Schneider. Photo by T. Charles Erickson.
Michael Genet and Greg Wood. Photo by T. Charles Erickson.
Adeline Edwards and Greg Wood. Photo by T. Charles Erickson.
Greg Wood, Michael Karnaukh, and Tess Ammerman. Photo by T. Charles Erickson.
Jamila Sabares-Klemm and Zeke Edmonds. Photo by T. Charles Erickson.
Members of the Community Ensemble and Company. Photo by T. Charles Erickson.
Greg Wood (center) with members of the Company and Community Ensemble. Photo by T. Charles Erickson.
(l-r) Zeke Edmonds, Christopher Livingston, Thom Sesma, Anne L. Nathan, Greg Wood, and ensemble. Photo by T. Charles Erickson.
Greg Wood and Mimi B. Francis. Photo by T. Charles Erickson.
Jon Norman Schneider, Jessica Bedford, Greg Wood, and members of the Young Ensemble. Photo by T. Charles Erickson.
Jon Hudson Odom (right) with members of the Company and Young Ensemble. Photo by T. Charles Erickson.
Greg Wood, Michael Genet, Sue Jin Song, and Anne L. Nathan. Photo by T. Charles Erickson.
Roman Engel and Greg Wood. Photo by T. Charles Erickson.
Thom Sesma (right) rehearses with members of the Community Ensemble. Photo by Matt Pilsner.
Members of the Youth and Community Ensembles in rehearsals for A Christmas Carol. Photo by Matt Pilsner.
Zeke Edmonds and Greg Wood in rehearsal for A Christmas Carol. Photo by Matt Pilsner.
Jon Norman Schneider and Jessica Bedford with members of the Youth Ensemble. Photo by Matt Pilsner.
Members of the Youth and Community Ensembles in rehearsals for A Christmas Carol. Photo by Matt Pilsner (2).
Jamila Sabares-Klemm and Zeke Edmonds in rehearsal for A Christmas Carol. Photo by Matt Pilsner.
Greg Wood (center) rehearses with members of the company and ensemble. Photo by Matt Pilsner.
(l-r) Christopher Livingston, Thom Sesma, Zeke Edmonds, and Adeline Edwards. Photo by Matt Pilsner.
Company members in rehearsal for A Christmas Carol. Photo by Matt Pilsner.
Jamai Brown and Sue Jin Song in rehearsals for A Christmas Carol. Photo by Matt Pilsner.
Company members, production team staff, and youth and community ensembles for A Christmas Carol. Photo-Matt Pilsner.
Thanks to our collaborators this holiday season!
McCarter Theatre Center operates under an agreement between the League of Resident Theatres and Actors’ Equity Association, the Union of Professional Actors and Stage Managers in the United States.
Erth’s Dinosaur Zoo Live leads you on a breathtaking tour that begins in prehistoric Australia. Meet and interact with an eye-popping collection of life-like dinosaurs puppets presented in a fun, entertaining, and educational live theatrical performance created by Erth Visual & Physical of Sydney, Australia.
When a Chicago teenager is sent to live with her grandmother in South Carolina, she finds herself on a powerful journey toward discovering her place in this world and in her family. Adapted from the best-selling book, Crowns weaves faith and fashion together into an inspirational, joyous coming-of-age musical celebration of resilient, triumphant African American women, and their church hats. | 2019-04-26T04:20:37Z | https://www.mccarter.org/season/2017-2018/pdps/achristmascarol/ |
I had the opportunity to review the Nikon 1 V3 camera. The Nikon 1 V3 is the latest and greatest Nikon has to offer in the mirrorless camera market. I was looking forward to review this camera for several reasons. Before I bought my Sony Alpha A6000 I used Nikon DSLR cameras since 2005, and I’ve been very fond of the cameras, the ergonomics and the build quality. So I’m very eager to find out if Nikon managed to keep the good from the DSLR’s and put it in a smaller, lighter body. The second reason I was looking forward to using this camera was that I went back and forth between the Nikon 1 V3 and the Sony Alpha A6000 when I wanted to trade my DSLR in for a smaller and lighter camera. I chose the Sony because it was a lot cheaper at that time, but the prices of the Nikon went down since last summer (mind you, the A6000 also got cheaper so the difference is about the same). So I’m wondering if I made the right choice back then: let’s find out!
The mirrorless camera market has been booming for some time, so all the big manufacturers want to take a piece of the pie. Of course a big portion of the market has been divided by the brands that got in to the mirrorless cameras first, like Sony with the APC-C sized sensors (and now even the full frame models), FujiFilm with the APC-C sized sensors and of course the M-3/4 brands. Canon has tried, and apparently failed (The Eos-M is far from successful, I don’t know if Canon will give it a new try anytime soon).
Nikon did get on board quite early, but they decided to be a little pig-headed. Instead of the large M3/4 sensors or the even bigger APS-C sized Nikon decided to use a small 1” sensor (explains the name of the series, Nikon calls the format CX). There are a number of reasons to choose a smaller sensor. A small sensor can be built in to smaller bodies and be used with smaller lenses, the bigger cropfactor allows for more reach in the long telephoto end, they can be faster (in frames per second) and a smaller sensor can be cheaper. Speaking of cropfactor, the Nikon CX format has a 2.7x cropfactor. This means the 10-30 mm kit lens I used in this review has an effective focal range of 27-81 mm in full frame terms.
So, only advantages with a small sensor? Regrettably not… A smaller sensor does trade in image quality for the mentioned advantages. It’s harder to get more megapixels on a smaller sensor (the V3 sensor is 18,3 megapixels, compared to 20 megapixels or more on the current APS-C cameras) because the individual pixels are smaller, so the marketing department has a harder time selling the camera to the uninformed consumers. And as a result of the smaller pixels the dynamic range will be more limited and you will get more noise in low(er) light situations. With the smaller sensor and larger cropfactor it will be harder to create a good wide-angle lens, because you need very small focal lengths to achieve a real wide lens. The last downside is that the depth of field is larger, so subject isolation is harder to achieve. So it’s harder to get that dramatic look. In action photography this can become an advantage because you’ll have more in focus and thus less change of an out of focus photo.
I have to get this off my chest, the Nikon 1 V3 is an expensive camera. The body is about 850 euros, the kit with the Nikon 10-30 mm f3.5-5.6 lens is about 900 euros and the full kit I’m using for this review with the EVF and grip is about 1150 euros.
The first thing I noticed when I picked up the camera for the first time was the small size of the Nikon 1 V3. My Sony Alpha A6000 is by no means a big camera, but the V1 is still a lot smaller (especially without the EVF and the grip attached). The body is made of metal and very well put together. It feels very sturdy, just like you would expect from a high end consumer Nikon camera. The optional EVF and grip fit nicely and are made to the same high standard. On the press photos of the camera I didn’t like the look of the EVF, but in real life it looks a lot better. I makes the camera look more serious, less like a simple point and shoot.
Build quality is very good. You don’t really notice it at first, but when using it side by side with my Sony A6000 (which is built quite well, especially considering the price) the difference became very clear. The Sony feels less sturdy, more like a consumer camera while the V3 feels almost like a pro-style DSLR. It’s noticeable in a lot of little things, like the way the battery compartment opens or the way the dials feel. But the thing that I noticed the most was the shutter sound. The Sony has got a quite loud hollow clonk sound, while the Nikon has got this really nice dampened click. All of this probably doesn’t say much about the durability, but you can feel you’ve bought a high end piece of equipment and that is a satisfying feeling. The only little letdown is the grip, it’s secured on the bottom, but at the front top side it’s got a little play. No big deal, but to complete the whole premium build quality feel it would have been nice if they had added one extra point to attach it to.
The V3 has got a wide selection of dials and buttons to help you control the most important functions. On the top there is a point and shoot style on – off switch (around the shutter button) which resets to the initial position after use, so you can’t see if the camera is on or off. I’m not a fan of this type of switch, but then again it does what it’s supposed to do. Next to the shutter button there is the PASM-dial, with several other options like the video and automatic modes. On the right side there is a small record button to start recording. On the left side you’ll find the built in flash. The flash pops up, and can be held back to bounce the light of the ceiling.
On the top / back there is also the first multifunctional dial. This is used to quickly change settings like the aperture in A or M mode. This dial doubles as an customizable button (FN1) when clicked. On the front of the camera you’ll find a second dial, in a vertical position. It’s nice to have a second dial on the front, but the vertical position isn’t perfect for my big hands. Luckily the optional grip has got an extra dial that does the same as the vertical dial and works a lot better. The grip also has got a second shutter button and a third customizable button (FN3). FN1 is found on the back of the camera.
I’ve got the optional grip with the camera. With big hands the grip is almost a need to have instead of a nice to have. Without the grip the camera is a little too small to hold comfortably in long shoots, but if you have smaller hands you’ll probably be fine. The grip attaches to the tripod mount on the bottom of the camera. It’s got a tripod mount of itself, so you don’t have to remove the grip to use a tripod. It is a pity you have to remove the grip to get to the battery, so with every charge you’ll have to remove it. Nikon recons you’ll get about 3-400 photos on one charge, which is on par with other mirrorless cameras but far from a DSLR. In reality the battery seems to hold up much longer, I think I might even make it to about twice that on a single charge.
The back display is 3 inches wide and very sharp. One thing I really like about the back display (and the EVF also) is the high refresh rate, which makes the image look very smooth, sharp and with a good colour reproduction. It looks like the display on my Sony has a refresh rate of about 30 fps while the Nikon looks like 60 fps, so it’s less choppy. The display is tilts up and down, and the buttons directly next to the screen move along with the screen (play, menu, display and delete). The hinge on the screen is very sturdy.
The EVF has got a high resolution so the image is very sharp and clear. This means the EVF is a real pleasure to use. The image is sharp enough to use for manual focusing.
One nice extra is the multi dimension (spirit-)level in the display. This shows if you are keeping your camera level from left to right and also front to back. This is a great help when shooting landscapes or other photos where you need the horizon to be completely straight.
My review model came with the Nikon 10-30 mm f3.5-5.6 power zoom kit lens. The price difference between the kit with lens and just the body is only €50 euro’s in the Netherlands, so you’d be crazy not to get the kit. When you have to buy the lens alone it’s about €300. With the 2.7x cropfactor the lens has an effective focal range of 27-81 mm in full frame terms. It’s small, light and the quality is quite acceptable. This lens is incompatible with filers or hoods, as it doesn’t have a filter tread. When it’s retracted there is an automatic cover protecting the front lens element, the same as you find in point and shoot cameras. The lens is power zoom, you zoom it by rotating the ring on the lens. I’m not a big fan of power zooms as they tend to be slower and less precise than a manual zoom but it’s manageable. In this case it’s the trade-off for the smaller size, and it’s worth it. This lens is very small and light.
There is no manual focus ring on the lens, so when you want to use the manual focusing you have to use the dials on the front of the camera (either the vertical one or the horizontal one on the grip if you have that attached). The manual focusing with the little dials isn’t very user-friendly as the dials do click from stop to stop. I prefer the Sony-way where you use the big smooth turning ring on the lens. It’s also focus by wire, but it feels more precise and more natural.
The 2.7x cropfactor does open up a lot of possibilities for long range photography. The 70-300 mm lens becomes a 189-810 mm lens. So this would make the V3 with the Nikon 70-300 mm lens an ideal lightweight and compact kit for nature photography. I read that some nature photographers use theirs Nikon F-mount lenses on the 1 (with the adapter), and use the Nikon 1 camera as a 2,7x teleconverter giving them a lot more range with the same glass without losing light.
Nikon has chosen to use a smaller sensor which give this camera wings. This is a very fast camera, in several ways. It’s start-up times are short, it’s got very fast autofocus, amazing framerates (up to 60 fps) and you can use slowmotion video up to 1200 fps.
Let’s start at the beginning. Start-up time, when you flip the on-off switch the camera is ready to shoot in about 1 second, including the time it takes to extend the power zoom lens. Maybe it will even be faster when you use a non-retractable lens.
Nikon claims the autofocus is one of the fastest systems on the market. That’s funny since Sony said the same about the A6000 and Samsung claims this about the NX1. But in everyday use the autofocus is very fast. I can’t see any difference between the V3 and my Sony Alpha A6000, so both are on par with a mid-range DSLR in good light. When the light gets dimmer the V3 slows down, just like the A6000 does. Tracking of fast moving subjects does take a little more effort than it does on the A6000. Maybe this requires a little more practice of the photographer, so I can’t without doubt blame the Nikon AF-system.
The V3 can take up to 60 photos a second, if you lock the autofocus on the first frame. When using autofocus while shooting the V3 can take up to 20 photos a second, with autofocus between every frame. The Sony A6000 manages 11 frames per second, that was very impressive. The 20 frames per second is out of this world. The buffer has room for about 40 frames (NEF / RAW) so you fill it up in just 2 seconds, with my slow Micro SD card it takes the camera about one and a half minute to clear the buffer. So using a highspeed Micro SDXC UHS-I card is advised for using the high fps mode. For sports or action it would be nice if the buffer was a little bigger, so it could keep the speed up just a little longer.
Last point where the V3 impresses is it’s slowmotion video. Filming in 720P mode you can use the 120 fps second mode for slowing down the action. You can also use 400 or even 1200 fps mode on low resolutions. The slowmotion videos are about 2 seconds long, but the 1200 fps clips can stretch to about a minute when playing them in normal speed. For me the slowmotion is more a gadget than a really useful option, but I can imagine it can come in handy in some professional situations as it can show you things you can’t see in normal speed videos. You do need a lot of light when using the 400 or 1200 fps setting (since the minimal shutterspeed is the same as the fps settings in those situations).
When using a smaller sensor the individual pixels are smaller, especially whit a sensor with as much pixels as the one in the V3 has. This means it will be harder for the individual pixels to capture enough light compared to the bigger pixels on bigger sensors. This in turn means noise can be a bigger problem at higher ISO’s and you lose some dynamic range. When looking at the photos of the V3 I noticed visible noise even at quite low ISO settings. In the following example the photo was taken with ISO 400, and you can clearly see noise in the darker parts of the photo. Mind you, this photo was taken in RAW with no noise reduction applied. In a OOC JPEG the noise reduction will get rid of the noise by trading in some sharpness.
In the next section you’ll find some comparison shots with the Nikon 1 V3 on the left and the Sony Alpha A6000 on the right. All the photos are taken in a dimly lit room, aperture set to f5.6, shutterspeed controlled by the camera, no noise reduction and shot in RAW. You’ll see differences in metering between the Sony and Nikon, and the Sony has got a higher resolution. So it’s no scientific correct test, but it gives you a good idea of the capabilities of the Nikon in low light.
As you can see the Nikon doesn’t fare too bad. In the example above you can see noise does start to show quite early, but luckily it doesn’t increase too fast when you crank up the ISO. ISO 1600 is still very acceptable and usable. ISO 3200 can be used in shoot or lose situations, but you’ll lose detail and colour. I wouldn’t go above ISO 3200. All in all the ISO performance is about one stop behind the Sony A6000 which is a very good result for the Nikon.
Nikon has done a great job with the way this camera outputs the JPEG files. Colours are neutral in standard mode, and if you like a little more punch you can choose the vivid setting. Noise reduction can be a little harsh, so setting it to low is advisable. I’d rather have some visible noise than lose all details.
The RAW files (NEF in Nikon speak) give you enough room to play around. The dynamic range is a little less impressive than with the Sony so you can’t push the shadows too far.
The sensor Nikon uses doesn’t have an AA-filter. This means the camera should be able to take sharper photos since an AA-filter is made to prevent moiré, and to do that it does loose some sharpness. Nikon uses the extremely fast Expeed 4A chip to prevent the moiré with software voodoo. I must say I can’t really see what the omission of the AA-filter does to improve the image quality because I can’t compare it to something (and the A6000 does have an AA-filter, but also has got a higher resolution), but the sharpness is good. I didn’t see any moiré in any of my pictures, but in some other reviews people were able to provoke some moiré when for example shooting a piece of fabric with a complex weave. So not having an AA-filter certainly doesn’t hurt the image quality in day to day use.
The Nikon kit lens does a really nice job. The Sony 16-50 mm kit lens does distort a lot, a trade off Sony made to keep the lens so small (and is corrected in camera when using JPEG). Because the sensor of the Nikon is smaller they were able to build a very small and retractable lens without trading off in too much distortion or sharpness. This is still a kit lens, so don’t expect it to be perfect but it is a very pleasurable little lens. The lens can focus up to about 20 cm from your subject, so you’ll have a semi macro function. And at those short focusing distances you do get a great back-ground separation.
If you are looking for high quality optics, Nikon has got the CX 70-300 mm at about a 1000 euros or the 32 mm f1.2 prime lens (giving it a perfect 86 mm focal length as a portrait lens) which is about 850 euros. Both get very good reviews online, and greatly expand the possibilities of the system.
In the following gallery you’ll find some photos I took with the Nikon 1 V3 during my review period.
Nikon has gambled with the 1 series. They chose a smaller sensor and made the most of the advantages of that sensor. They put the capable sensor in a small but very customizable body with controls like you’d find on a higher-end consumer DSLR, given you add the grip. The EVF is a great addition, I can’t see someone using this high end camera without the EVF. That does mean you’ll have to get the premium kit, which is quite expensive at over 1100 euros.
The Nikon 1 isn’t the camera for you if you are looking for a cheap point and shoot replacement. Nikon (and other brands) offer cheap interchangeable lens cameras that will do that job just fine.
The Nikon 1 is the perfect camera for you if you need a fast and small camera with a big set of native lenses to choose from. It’s also for you if you are a Nikon fan who needs a second camera to go with your Nikon DSLR or if you want to go smaller / lighter and want to keep your Nikon F-mount lenses. I think the nature photographers will like this camera too with its fast autofocus and the enormous range with the 2.7x cropfactor. If you do choose the Nikon 1 V3 you’ll have a great camera. It’s small and very well built, and Nikon did incorporate all the good from the DSLR’s when it comes to ergonomics and image rendering. I had great fun using it, and if it fits your profile I’m sure you’ll love it just the same.
I’d love to have the opportunity to test the Nikon 1 V3 with the Nikon CX 70-300 mm if I’d get the chance, I think it will be the perfect zoo or nature kit.
I’d like to thank Nikon Netherlands for lending me the Nikon 1 V3 camera. Product images supplied by Nikon Netherlands.
This blog is my hobby, I don’t make any money writing these reviews. Did you find this review useful and want to help me keep this blog online?
If you like this little camera and want to buy it, please use one of the following links. It doesn’t cost you anything but I’ll receive a small fee for every sale. | 2019-04-21T13:09:19Z | https://ricksreviews.org/blog/2015/01/27/nikon-1-v3-mirrorless-camera-review-2/ |
Assessment has become a persistently hot topic in the library world, particularly when it comes to establishing value for academic library services. In an effort to assess performance and develop training tools to improve text/SMS reference services for an academic library, we used the Reference and User Services Association’s Guidelines for Behavioral Performance of Reference and Information Service Providers as the framework for an analytic rubric. We then used the rubric to assess academic librarian responses collected over a three-year period as part of text/SMS reference service. Results include implications for librarian friendliness, response time, attentiveness, and follow-up, as well as patron return rates. Comparative trends in text reference and the physical reference desk response times are also examined.
Sam Houston State University (SHSU) is a Carnegie Doctoral Research University located in East Texas. The Newton Gresham Library (NGL) serves the SHSU campus where 18,478 students were enrolled in fall 2012. Currently NGL employs nineteen faculty librarians, twenty-eight staff members, and two administrative faculty librarians.
NGL has offered virtual reference services via live chat since 2004, and through email for even longer. In the fall of 2009, the reference department decided to expand reference services to provide help via SMS/text messages, and the library began subscribing to the Text a Librarian service from Mosio. Staff training was conducted in late 2009, and the new service was launched in January 2010.
Training focused predominantly on the technical workings of the system itself rather than on the ideal characteristics of reference transactions in the text medium. For instance, staff were taught to recognize alert sounds when a new message arrived, enter responses and watch how many characters remained, send messages to patrons, recognize follow-up comments and questions, and close a thread when a conversation ended.
During training, personnel were also given some reference material about understanding text-speak—such as the use of u to mean you or 2nite to mean tonight—and were reminded to practice concision in their text-based responses. In the preexisting live chat service, it was common for personnel to send a pre-scripted welcome message such as “Hello, and thank you for contacting SHSU Ask a Librarian,” but such practices were discouraged in text messaging due to the constraints that the medium placed on message length. Beyond the one recommendation of concision, guidelines were not provided concerning how best to provide quality reference service in the unique context of this new medium.
The service was implemented so that text messages from patrons would be answered as they were received at the reference desk by the individual on rotation. One generic login account was used by all personnel, rather than individual usernames, so patrons did not know which individual responded to their question, and the library could not definitively attribute responses to a specific librarian, paraprofessional staff member, or student assistant.
At the end of the 2012 fall semester, with three full years of data collected, we evaluated the quality of the service being provided. Text messaging is a unique reference tool, due to characteristics such as the restrictions in message length—which renders traditional reference interviews difficult or impossible—and the dichotomy between the medium’s inherent asynchronicity and the student expectation of near-immediate response. The researchers sought to determine how well a librarian’s reference skills translate into this tool and how well librarians are serving customers in the manner which they expect.
We hope that a close evaluation of current performance will serve as a training tool, help to clarify and communicate expectations for text-based reference service, and lead to the development of guidelines and best practices which will improve overall staff performance in this service.
RUSA developed “Guidelines for Implementing and Maintaining Virtual Reference Services” in 2004, based on proposed guidelines from Bernie Sloan’s 1998 article in Reference and User Services Quarterly, which suggested that for almost half a decade the practice of virtual reference itself was very ad hoc.1 With most libraries being on the same virtual page when it comes to reference services, due to guides like RUSA’s, it becomes important to evaluate how well librarians are using the SMS tool to provide service.
According to the Pew Internet and American Life Project, 80% of all cell phone users send or receive text messages.9 Libraries use SMS as a system to send patron notices, such as overdue book alerts, library closings, and other information, as well as in reference services. Sims Memorial Library at Southeastern Louisiana claims to be “the first library in the United States to develop a text messaging reference service” in 2005.10 Over the past decade, both public and academic libraries across the United States have been catching up with the trend of providing reference via text messaging.
Publications about text messaging in libraries follow a pattern similar to that seen in articles about instant messaging, one of the latest technologies adapted prior to texting. Devine, Paladino, and Davis clearly group these articles in their paper on chat reference, and these categories can be applied to texting/SMS reference and mobile library services in general: anecdotal papers, “which summarize implementation and training”;15 “books and articles that present training practices for starting or modifying existing . . . services”;16 studies that “describe and analyze skills and competencies that are necessary for the effective provision” of the service;17 and academic library surveys, 18 “which, at various times, have asked one or more questions regarding the training practices”.19 To this list, we would add the evaluation of particular software/services—whether in articles jointly written by a library and its service provider or by a group using particular software, or even as a comparison with other software—as well as discussion of how patrons use or perceive the service provided or usability study results.20 Similar groupings are visible in discussing SMS/text reference.
This is the first paper, as far as the researchers can determine, that systematically evaluates and scores librarians’ interactions in SMS text reference, though there have been suggestions that best practices should be created in order to provide better service.21 Although a few papers have touched on the concept of librarians’ skills in using the service22 or offering statistics of librarians’ responses such as length of time taken, how many words used per message, and friendliness,23 this information is typically generalized and not addressed by systematic assessment as in the current study.
We downloaded the complete listing of questions and answers from the Mosio platform. This data included Patron ID codes that uniquely distinguished between patron phone numbers without revealing the actual phone numbers or other personally identifying patron information.
The precise date and time of each question and answer were also included in the data. The researchers encountered some initial difficulty in calculating response time from the data provided, but Mosio’s technical support staff was highly responsive and promptly upgraded the data export feature so that we obtained data with a clearly calculated response time. The researchers are grateful for the company’s responsiveness in providing information and assistance that made this study possible.
All text messages sent and received were grouped by the researchers into transactions; a transaction might consist of several individual messages from patron and librarian, including automatic system responses, representing one logical session of conversation. The final dataset consisted of 385 transactions, or conversational threads. This does not equate to the total number of messages ever submitted to the service, because messages where a question was never raised, such as “test,” “hi,” or similar were not included; this study is instead based solely on actual substantive questions to which a librarian did respond or could/should have responded.
The data was first evaluated statistically with regards to characteristics such as response times and how often patrons revisited the service. A portion of this statistical data was also compared against a seven-month sample of similar data from face-to-face and telephone transactions at the reference desk.
After these quantitative characteristics were measured, the researchers developed a rubric in order to assess how well librarians performed in answering each question (appendix A; also online at http://library.shsu.edu/libfac/TextRubric.pdf). One member of the research team holds a Masters of Education degree, and she led the development and testing of the rubric. A three-scale, analytic rubric was created using the “Guidelines for Behavioral Performance of Reference and Information Service Providers,” as published by the Reference and User Services Association (RUSA), a division of the American Library Association (ALA).24 RUSA’s guidelines helped to ensure content and construct validity by providing a criterion-referenced rubric framework. The guidelines include general, in-person, and remote reference librarian behaviors across the five categories of Approachability, Interest, Listening/Inquiring, Searching, and Follow-up. While a list of remote behaviors is available, behaviors in each of the three formats (general, in-person, and remote) were considered in constructing the rubric.
The framework was then modified to accommodate a focus on text reference services, which necessitated the elimination of the Approachability category from the project. The Approachability category as identified by RUSA for the remote format emphasizes elements of web design, and while an evaluation of a library’s website is certainly an important and worthwhile pursuit, the purpose of this project was to provide training for librarian behavior. The rating scales included Beginning (1 point), Developing (2 points), and Accomplished (3 points).
In addition to eliminating the Approachability category, minor customizations were also needed to accommodate the limitations inherent in a text-messaging service, and the researchers used RUSA’s overall category descriptions to stay on target during the modification stage. For example, RUSA’s description of the Listening/Inquiring category advises that the “librarian must be effective in identifying the patron’s information needs and must do so in a manner that keeps patrons at ease;”25 hence, the descriptor “Uses a tone of voice and/or written language appropriate to the nature of the transaction”26 became the descriptor “Uses concise language, abbreviations if appropriate, limiting responses to one text message (or 160 characters) per patron query” (see appendix A).
The limitations of text messaging as a reference platform also impacted the creation of the Searching criterion. For example, RUSA suggests that the librarian “Finds out what patrons have already tried, and encourages patrons to contribute ideas;”27 since many patrons may be billed per text message, this criterion was omitted from the rubric. Similar minor customizations occurred in each of the four major criteria, with the Searching criterion being the most extensively customized, including the addition of two local rules: The first rule was that librarian answers that were clearly inaccurate to the researchers received the Beginning (1) score, and the second rule was that closed-ended questions that required no actual searching on the part of the librarian (for example, library hours of operation) received the Accomplished (3) score (see appendix A).
The creation of the analytic rubric provided an educational opportunity for us, and following rubric development, we evaluated our draft rubric using A Rubric for Judging Your Rubric, a tool developed by The Center for Faculty Development at the University of Colorado Denver.28 Following minor modifications for measurable and observable descriptors, we normed the rubric for inter-rater and intra-rater reliability using two sets of five transactions across three norming sessions spaced several weeks apart. Next, the evaluation of all 385 transactions was conducted in equal portions by the three researchers. Since staff names were not part of the data collected, the results give a general picture of the Reference Department’s performance without critiquing individuals.
All text messages were grouped into transactions, and each transaction was evaluated according to the project rubric to assess the librarian’s performance in four criteria: Listening and Inquiring, Interest, Searching, and Follow-Up. In each criterion, a transaction could earn a score of 1 point (Beginning), 2 points (Developing), or 3 points (Accomplished). Average scores per criterion ranged from 1.96 to 2.49 (see figure 1).
When the scores from each criterion were added together, a transaction could earn a cumulative score between 4 and 12 points, with 12 representing the most Accomplished performance and 4 representing the most Beginning performance. Overall, the average cumulative score was a 9.1. Although only 1.3% of transactions met the Accomplished standard with the highest possible score of 12, 73% of transactions earned a score between 9 and 12, indicating that the majority of transactions did exceed the Developing standard, represented by an overall score of 8 (see figure 2).
For this study, response rate was defined as how soon after an initial question’s arrival a human response was sent to the patron. In some transactions, the patron may have received an immediate, automatic system response indicating that the question was sent outside of the library’s hours of operation, but this was not counted as a “response” for the purpose of calculating response rate. Overall, 51% of questions received human responses within 10 minutes and 88% within twenty-foure hours or less; 4% of questions never received a human response (see figure 3).
Response rates were compared based on the month, weekday, and time of day when a question was sent to identify any trends. For each of these comparisons, three response times were omitted because these extreme outliers of seven months or longer skewed the averages.
In a comparison of months (see figure 4), May and June showed a longer average response time (about 1 day 7 hours), while October saw the fastest average response time (about 2.6 hours). In a comparison of weekdays (see figure 5), Fridays and Saturdays showed a longer average response time (16–20 hours), while the fastest average response time was seen on Wednesdays (about 2 hours).
Finally, times of day were compared, according to seven time ranges (see figure 6). The poorest response time was seen for questions received 5–7:30 a.m. (about 1 day 5 hours). In contrast, the fastest average response time (about 3.5 hours) was seen 3–6 p.m.
Data concerning more traditional “physical” (face-to-face and telephone) transactions at the reference desk (not including text, chat, or email transactions) were analyzed for the sample seven-month period of June 1 through December 31, 2012, to determine the busiest hours of the day for non-virtual reference at the reference desk (see figure 7). The 10 a.m., 11 a.m., 12 p.m., and 2 p.m. hours stood out as the four busiest hours on average.
Next, text messages from this same June through December 2012 period were split into two groups, based on whether the questions were sent during busy or non-busy reference desk hours. Response times were averaged in each group, minus one abnormally long response time. The average response time during busy hours was 2295.11 seconds (about 38 minutes), while the average response time during non-busy hours was 9143.06 seconds (about 2.5 hours), suggesting that text messages were actually answered more quickly during hours when the reference desk was busiest with traditional face-to-face and telephone reference.
From 2010 to 2012, 81% of patrons who used the service used it only once (see figure 8). No patron used the service more than seven times—at least, not from the same cell phone number.
Within 385 transactions, there were a total of 447 individual replies sent by library personnel. Of these individual replies, 93% comprised one text message of no more than 160 characters, 6.7% used two or three text messages, and only one reply required four text messages to be sent to the patron (see figure 9).
Useful implications are suggested by the results of a rubric analysis of text-reference transactions, particularly the transaction scores, response rates, and patron-return rates. Overall, the average score across the entire transaction pool is promising. Since a score of Developing (2) in all four criteria would earn a total score of 8, the cumulative average score of 9.1 indicates that librarian performance, on average, meets or exceeds the Developing (2) level, even though it does not quite meet the Accomplished (3) level. In fact, nearly three quarters of the transactions scored between 9 and 12, indicating that the majority of transactions exceeded the Developing standard (see figure 2). However, while the average score of all transactions is helpful to appreciate the big picture of text reference performance, a more detailed analysis of each criterion is needed to generate quality feedback.
The rubric used to score transactions clustered criteria into four categories: Listening and Inquiring, Interest, Searching, and Follow-up. The category with the highest average score was the Searching category (see figure 1). As this is one of the most traditional and visible skills in the librarian profession, we find the evidence of a high performance level personally and professionally rewarding. Of greater use in an assessment capacity, however, are the low performance scores. The lowest-scoring criterion was the Follow-up category, with the average situated between the Beginning (1) and Developing (2) rubric scores. The Listening and Inquiring category had the second-lowest score, with the average falling between the Developing (2) and Accomplished (3) rubric scores. Both the Listening and Inquiring and Follow-up categories contain criteria that focus on librarian communication skills: Listening and Inquiring focuses on cordial yet concise communication and Follow-up emphasizes the invitation for library patrons to return if they have additional questions or need more assistance. In the Follow-up category, any transaction that did not invite the patron’s future use of the service did not receive the Accomplished rating, which significantly impacted the overall average for this category. Perhaps the expectation of an invitation to return in each transaction is a bit idealistic, but this criterion is included by the Reference and User Services Association (RUSA), a division of the American Library Association (ALA), and the rating group of three professional librarians expected that the highest-performing library professionals would strive to achieve it. The resulting low scores indicate a clear need for heavier emphasis in initial and refresher training on this aspect of performance.
Another implication of such a low score in the Follow-up category is that librarians may be struggling to balance the goals of providing detailed, quality information with an invitation to return (follow-up), all while being expressly cordial within a single 160-character message. One solution may be to generate a canned response or a signature line for staff use, automatically providing a succinct welcome to return, while emphasizing the most clear text-shortening methods that would still resonate well with the library’s target population. Such signature lines could be as basic as “Use us again!” or as abbreviated as “Thx&T2UL8R” (Thanks and talk to you later). Although the canned response or signature line would take up part of the 160-character limit, the easy availability of a concise, cordial message would contribute to higher-quality text reference by providing assistance that the staff needs, as evidenced by the low Follow-up transaction scores.
While average category scores are useful for looking at the big picture, analysis of smaller data clusters yields more specific trends. For instance, only 18 transactions (4.7%) earned a Beginner (1) rating across all categories, 16 of them because they were never answered (see figure 2). On the surface this may indicate that additional technical training may be needed to ensure that staff are able to recognize incoming questions and then successfully respond to them. An alternate implication is that a higher level of attentiveness from library staff may be needed. The remaining two transactions that did include a librarian response were answered inexpertly enough to receive a total score of 4, representing a Beginner (1) rating in each category. While these were clearly problem transactions, it is encouraging that the area of needed development is in refresher training on identifying “waiting” questions and the technical response procedure, which is less disturbing than a need to retrain groups of librarians on the fundamentals of reference techniques. Only five transactions were rated Accomplished (3) across all four criteria, earning a total score of 12 (see figure 2). Although this is a disturbingly low number, it clearly validates this project’s aim: to evaluate staff performance with an eye to documenting expected standards and best practices, then providing training for library staff.
Unique to the medium of text reference, and therefore one of the main concerns of this rubric project, is the limitation of response length (usually 160 characters). While concision is a goal for many reference services, instant message, email, phone, and even face-to-face reference services have a more reasonable expectation of back-and-forth communication than text reference does. Many users, however, are subject to cell phone plans that may limit the quantity of text messages sent or even charge fees for each separate text message, a scenario that libraries promoting text services should seek to accommodate. With this limitation in mind, responding with a single text message whenever possible is imperative for librarians, even to the point of forgoing an immediate acknowledgement text which would assure patrons that their queries were received and that an answer was forthcoming. Analysis of the collected data reveals that 93% of librarian responses were constrained to a single message (see figure 9). This high result suggests that most library staff are clearly aware of the need to limit response length.
In addition to transaction scores and response length, librarian response times for transactions are also instructive (see figure 3).29 The majority of transactions (59%) received human responses within 30 minutes of the initial question, which was the timeframe established for the Accomplished (3) rating. This thirty-minute window may seem lengthy, given most students’ perception of text messaging as an instantaneous communication medium, but it allows the single librarian on duty at our library’s reference desk to balance the complete range of reference services for which she is responsible, including in-person and telephone reference questions as well as virtual queries by email, instant message, and text message. This time allotment also permits the librarian to locate the requested information and then edit the delivery of that information down to a single text message when possible. The fact that most text messages are personally handled by library staff quickly is encouraging, particularly since 51% of that 59% were answered within ten minutes. Approximately 5.7% of transactions received a human response within thirty minutes to one hour, the timeframe established for the Developing (2) rating, reinforcing the focus on response time as an important aspect of virtual reference.
The remaining portion of transactions (34%) includes the 23% that received human responses in more than 1 hour but less than one day and an approximate 5% that were handled within one to four days, as well as 2% of transactions took more than four days to receive a reply and 4% that never received a human response. This last cluster of response times (34%) points to a clear need for consistent training and reinforcement of expected standards for library staff. Transactions that never received a response (4%) may indicate the need for additional or reinforced technical training with the text reference system: either librarians were not aware of the texted query or were unable to answer it, which could indicate either inattentiveness or an inability to use the system correctly.
Clearly the majority of text messages are being addressed quickly, according to the standards crafted in the rubric for this project, despite a time limit not having been identified in previous virtual-reference training for library staff. Perhaps the initial thirty-minute expected response rate is too idealistic, and a longer timeframe should be the expectation for providing a substantive answer (not merely acknowledging the question). Expected response times differ between a text-reference service and an instant chat service, at least in the context of this study. However, students today rely heavily on texting, which may serve to blur the lines between text reference and instant chat services. Further research into the expectations of both patrons and librarians, with regards to perceived differences in communication methods and expected response times across multiple virtual reference platforms, would inform such discussion.
Closer analysis of the librarian response-time data reveals that Fridays and Saturdays had the longest time between initial question and librarian response, an average of approximately 16 hours on Friday and 20.6 hours on Saturday, compared to the lowest average on Wednesday of around 2 hours (see figure 5). One explanation of this gap may relate to the library’s operational weekend hours. The library closes early on Friday (6 p.m.), opens late and closes early on Saturday (10 a.m. to 7 p.m.), and opens even later on Sunday (2 p.m.). Since averaged response times did not take into account the library’s nonoperational hours, texted queries that were received after closing on Friday were not answered until mid-morning on Saturday, resulting in a 16-hour gap. The same is true of queries sent after closing on Saturday and not answered until Sunday afternoon—a 19-hour gap. While most weekdays averaged only two queries submitted after library closing, the majority of queries submitted outside of operational hours occurred on the day with the latest opening time: Sunday. This may indicate a need to reconsider Sunday’s operational hours or at least the need to explore options to provide virtual reference services during reduced weekend operational hours.
Analyzing response time by month also yields trends to consider (see figure 4). May and June had the poorest response times by a large margin, suggesting that the beginning of the summer semester saw librarians busy with other activities that may have prevented them from noticing text-reference questions. This pattern seems to repeat for other major semesters as well: the opening six weeks or so of each semester saw the poorest response times for that semester, suggesting that librarians, like teaching faculty, may begin the semester with an extraordinary amount of work already on their plate. October and April, on the other hand, are the months with the fastest response times, further suggesting that librarians may focus more effectively on fielding text-reference questions after the semester is well underway. Another possible explanation for poor response time in May and June is that librarian response time may be impacted by the library’s limited operational hours: May includes the spring interim, which sees a reduction in library operating hours, and June also sees reduced hours.
Further analysis of response times by hours indicates that the poorest response times—averaging almost 1 day 5 hours—are associated with questions received between 5 a.m. and 7:30 a.m., the opening time for the library and the few hours before. This may indicate problems with the library staff’s procedure for opening the reference desk or a need for technical training to recognize the presence of a waiting text-reference question. The fastest average response times are seen with questions received between 3 p.m. and 6 p.m., averaging around 3.5 hours. To get a wider perspective on possible response-time issues by hour, data concerning physical reference desk transactions (including face-to-face and telephone, but not chat, email, or text) were also analyzed for the period of June 2012 to December 2012, revealing that the busiest hours of the day at the physical reference desk included 10 a.m., 11 a.m., 12 p.m., and 2 p.m. (see figure 7). In comparison, the busiest text-reference hours (by number of text referenced questions received) were the four hours from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m.
Admittedly, this seven-month sample of physical reference desk statistics, correlated with text-reference activities, provides only a limited quantity of data to compare, so these results are more anecdotal than statistically significant. Nevertheless, the results of the comparison are surprising. The researchers suspected that text-reference response times might suffer during peak periods when reference desk personnel were busy assisting face-to-face patrons. Surprisingly, the opposite was true: the busiest hours at the physical reference desk correlated with the fastest text responses of the day. Similarly, the busiest text-reference hours of the day also correlated with the fastest text response times of the day. The researchers hypothesize that reference desk personnel may become more alert when traffic picks up at the physical desk, thus resulting in better virtual response times as well, due simply to increased attentiveness. This supposition also seems to hold true for the analysis of librarian response time by month: slower months at reference, such as May and June, see a weaker response time, while October—the second-busiest month at the reference desk—sees the strongest response time.
In addition to transaction scores and response times, the researchers also examined the number of repeat patrons (see figure 8). Approximately 11% of patrons returned to use the text-reference service for a second time, while another 8% used it between three and seven times. Admittedly this is a small number of repeat patrons, with only 19% of all users returning to the service again after their first use. However, statistics on repeat patrons were determined based on cell phone numbers. It is possible that at least a few users of the text reference services may have switched phone numbers, and current statistics cannot account for this possibility.
Cell phone technologies aside, these numbers still raise questions about why most patrons do not tend to revisit this service. Many patrons may have been deterred simply by the economics of pay-per-message cell phone plans. This study does not support conclusions about return use, but it is possible that the various factors evaluated in the rubric—such as response time, cordiality, and the amount of detail or direction provided for an information source—played a role in whether a patron chose to use the service again. One goal of the researchers is to collect follow-up data on repeat patrons in the future, after best practices and staff training have been implemented for a reasonable period, to see whether repeat patronage might increase in correlation with improved service. Further research may also be warranted concerning student attitudes toward the service, whether library marketing for this service is reaching students, whether marketing and student expectations match the actual student experience, and how students’ cell phone plans address text messages, including whether pay-per-text plans deter use of the library service.
A final issue highlighted by this study relates to maintenance procedures, especially concerning hours of operation. The researchers encountered multiple transactions which lacked the appropriate automatic system response that should have been sent during nonoperational hours. This was not a technical error in the service platform, but rather a failure of the library’s Web Services personnel to consistently program auto-responses for holiday closures, limited interim hours, and so forth. This emphasizes the need for a clear and consistent maintenance routine so that patrons always receive prompt indications of the library’s status during nonoperational hours, rather than mistakenly awaiting a response while feeling ignored and poorly served.
This study demonstrates that significant issues exist with staff attentiveness to monitoring text reference. Some improvement is also needed in areas of friendliness and follow-up. These findings confirm a need for the reference department to offer more in-depth staff training than has previously been provided. Over the next academic year, the researchers plan to create and implement various support tools to educate staff about performance targets. These tools may include sample message templates or signature lines and guidelines for best practices in providing text-reference service. The researchers hope that the assessment rubric resulting from this study will provide a template for other libraries to adapt and implement in their own self-assessment.
Although the study covers three years of SMS reference data, the total number of transactions is still relatively small. Examination of a more substantial data pool may allow additional insights. The researchers are interested in partnering with other libraries to provide assessment of de-identified text reference data provided by those partners. This would not only increase the quantity of available data but also allow for a broader view of the issue, rather than focusing on only one library.
Additionally, although most questions are answered by professional librarians or long-time paraprofessional library staff, questions may occasionally have been answered by a student assistant, and the use of a single login account makes it impossible to identify the exact staff member who answered a specific question. For the purposes of our study, this does create a minimal amount of uncertainty about whether any lower-quality answers could be attributed to less proficient staff.
Finally, the researchers recognize that it would be useful to examine response time only in regards to the library’s operational hours, rather than including nonoperational hours in the calculated time for response. If a question is asked after closing and a response is sent eight hours later, but within two minutes of the library reopening, is it more accurate and helpful to report the response time as eight hours or two minutes? However, in the context of this study, the researchers determined that it was not feasible to adjust the response time calculations to include only operational hours, largely because the plan for this study did not predate and thus could not influence the manner of data collection. The data examined spanned three years, during which time the library followed at least eight different schedules of hours, and conclusively determining the operational hours of each transaction proved difficult. Furthermore, the response times as reported have been electronically calculated from the mathematical difference between the question’s arrival date/time and the date/time that the first human response was sent; adjusting this calculation to account for operational hours would require manual recalculation for all 385 transactions by subtracting nonoperational hours from the electronically calculated time. This level of manual recalculation would present a significant opportunity for human error.
The purpose of this project is to give librarians feedback on virtual reference skills such as Listening/Inquiring, Searching, Interest, and Follow-up. RUSA has identified each of these skills as important guidelines for behavioral performance of reference and information service providers.
The purpose of this rubric is to provide measurable criteria to assess the text message reference skills of professional academic librarians for the last 3 calendar years. Results of this rubric are intended to be used as a teaching/training tool to communicate expectations and give informative feedback. The assessment goal is to improve the performance of professional librarians in the area of text reference message service at Newton Gresham Library.
4. María Pinto and Ramón A. Manso, "“Virtual References Services: Defining the Criteria and Indicators to Evaluate Them,” ," Electronic Library (2012) 30, no. 1: 51–69.
6. Davis F. D., "“Perceived Usefulness, Perceived Ease of Use, and User Acceptance of Information Technology,”," MIS Quarterly (1989) 13: 319–40.
10. Hill J. B.HillJ. B. , Madarash Hill CherieHillJ. B. , Sherman Dayne, "“Text Messaging in an Academic Library: Integrating SMS into Digital Reference,”," Reference Librarian (2007) 47, no. 1: 17–29.
21. Thomas A. Peters and Lori Bell, eds., The Handheld Library: Mobile Technology and the Librarian (Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO, 2013).
Average response times by month.
Average response times by day of the week.
Average response times by hours of the day.
Face-to-face transactions by hour, June through December 2012.
Number of questions asked per patron.
Number of text messages per library reply.
The reference interview is the heart of the reference transaction and is crucial to the success of the process. The librarian must be effective in identifying the patron’s information needs and must do so in a manner that keeps patrons at ease. Strong listening and questioning skills are necessary for a positive interaction. 1. Communicates in a clearly receptive/cordial/ encouraging manner.
2. Uses concise language, abbreviations, if appropriate, limiting responses to one text message (or 160 characters) per patron query.
• Please tell me more about your topic.
• What additional information can you give me?
• How much information do you need?
• What types of information do you need (books, articles, etc.)?
• Do you need current or historical information? 1. Communicates in a receptive/cordial/ encouraging manner.
2. Uses concise language, abbreviations, if appropriate, limiting responses to no more than two text messages (or 320 characters) per patron query.
3. Does not use open-ended questioning techniques even when appropriate to encourage the patron to expand on the request or present additional information.
• Do you need current or historical information? 1. Communicates in an abrupt manner.
2. Does not use concise language, sending responses that exceed two text messages (over 320 characters) per patron query.
4. Does not use closed questions to refine the search query.
A successful librarian must demonstrate a high degree of interest in the reference transaction. While not every query will contain stimulating intellectual challenges, the librarian should be interested in each patron’s information need and should be committed to providing the most effective assistance. Librarians who demonstrate a high level of interest in the inquiries of their patrons will generate a higher level of satisfaction among users. 1. An automatic response acknowledges user questions submitted outside of library operation hours (hours during which the library is open).
2. Provides an initial response to the patron in 30 minutes or less during library operation hours (hours during which the library is open).
3. Responds to follow-up questions, if appropriate, in 30 minutes or less during library operation hours (hours during which the library is open). 1. No automatic response acknowledges user questions submitted outside of library operation hours (hours during which the library is open).
2. Provides an initial response to the patron in a timely manner, between 30 and 60 minutes during library operation hours (hours during which the library is open).
3. Responds to follow-up questions, if appropriate, between 30 and 60 minutes during library operation hours (hours during which the library is open). 1. No automatic response acknowledges user questions submitted outside of library operation hours (hours during which the library is open).
2. Provides an initial response to the patron after more than 60 minutes during library operation hours (hours during which the library is open).
3. Responds to follow-up questions, if appropriate, after more than 60 minutes during library operation hours (hours during which the library is open).
The search process is the portion of the transaction in which behavior and accuracy intersect. Without an effective search, not only is the desired information unlikely to be found, but patrons may become discouraged as well. Yet many of the aspects of searching that lead to accurate results are still dependent on the behavior of the librarian. 1. Names the sources to be used, when appropriate.
2. Works with the patron to narrow or broaden the topic when too little or too much information is identified.
3. Recognizes when to refer the patron to a more appropriate guide, database, library, librarian, or other resource.
4. Offers detailed search paths or links/URLs to needed electronic resources. Excessively long links have been converted to a shorter link (for example, using Tiny.URL).
- Room #s 1. Names the sources to be used, when appropriate.
2. Indicates that the patron needs to narrow or broaden the topic when too little or too much information is identified.
3. Recognizes when to refer the patron to a more appropriate guide, database, library, librarian, or other resource when appropriate.
4. Offers detailed search paths or links/URLs to needed electronic resources.
5. If appropriate, general directions to physical resources are given, for example—either call #s or floor #s, but not both. 1. Does not name the sources to be used when appropriate.
2. Does not work with the patron to narrow or broaden the topic when too little or too much information is identified.
3. Does not refer the patron to a more appropriate guide, database, library, librarian, or other resource when appropriate.
4. Does not offer detailed search paths or links/URLs to needed electronic resources.
5. Even if appropriate, directions to physical resources are not given.
1. Librarian answers that were clearly inaccurate to the scoring group received the “Beginning” (1) score.
2. Close-ended questions that required little or no searching on the part of the librarian received the “Accomplished” (3) rating.
The reference transaction does not end when the librarian leaves the patrons. The librarian is responsible for determining if the patrons are satisfied with the results of the search, and is also responsible for referring the patrons to other sources, even when those sources are not available in the local library. 1. Encourages the patron to return if they have further questions by making a statement such as— “if you don’t find what you are looking for, please come back and we’ll try something else” or similar.
3. Makes arrangements, when appropriate, with the patron to research a question even after the reference transaction has been completed.
4. Refers the patron to other sources or institutions when the query cannot be answered to the satisfaction of the patron.
5. Takes care not to end the reference interview prematurely. 1. Does not encourage the patron to return if they have further questions.
2. Makes the patron aware of other reference services, if appropriate (email, instant chat, phone, etc.).
3. Does not make arrangements, when appropriate, with the patron to research a question even after the reference transaction has been completed.
4. Does not refer the patron to other sources or institutions when the query cannot be answered to the satisfaction of the patron.
2. Does not make the patron aware of other reference services even when appropriate (email, instant chat, phone, etc.).
5. Ends the reference interview prematurely, before answering or addressing all parts of a question. | 2019-04-24T22:42:41Z | https://journals.ala.org/index.php/rusq/article/view/3852/4260 |
The Director-General of the Department of Trade and Industry briefed the Committee on the policy and the proposed Special Economic Zones Bill. Approval for the publication of the policy and Bill for public comment was given by the Cabinet in November 2011.
The briefing covered the concept of Special Economic Zones as a tool for economic development; the history of Special Economic Zones in South Africa; the Industrial Development Zones programme; the review of and the challenges with the existing Industrial Development Zones programme; the new Special Economic Zones policy; the aim, objectives and key provisions of the proposed Special Economic Zones legislation; the implementation and transitional arrangements of the proposed legislation and the immediate action steps to be taken by the Department. The Department planned a nation-wide public participation process on the proposed policy and legislation.
Application would be limited to the national, provincial and local government authorities but provision was made for public/private partnerships. The draft Bill made provision for the establishment of a Special Economic Zone Board and a Special Economic Zone Fund. Board membership was restricted to representatives from the Department of Trade and Industry, the National Treasury, the South African Revenue Service, Transnet and Eskom. Government authorities and parastatals would be responsible for providing infrastructure but investment in the industries established in the zones would be made by the private sector. The existing Industrial Development Zones established in 2000 and certain zones established by the previous government would be incorporated in the new Special Economic Zones. A relaxation of labour legislation was not envisaged but discussions with the National Treasury on the provision of tax incentives were underway. The intention was to develop long term, economically viable industries, situated in all the provinces.
Members of the Committee queried the exclusion of civil society and organised labour from the Special Economic Zones Board and the provision for the involvement of the private sector in the development of the zones. Questions were asked about incentives to encourage private investment in the zones; the inclusion of existing development zones; the nature of the infrastructure and support provided by government; incorporation of the policy on the beneficiation of mineral resources; skills development and how the Fund would be capitalised. Members were concerned over the benefits to the people, the avoidance of labour exploitation, the high cost of job creation and undue focus on the export market. Concern was expressed that the draft Bill was too vague and Members requested more clarity on government’s objectives with regard to the Special Economic Zones.
Mr Lionel October, Director-General, DTI presented the briefing to the Committee (see attached documents). Approval for the publication of the Special Economic Zones (SEZ) policy and Bill was given by the Cabinet in November 2011 and the required public participation process was currently in the planning phase.
The presentation included a definition of an SEZ; the uses of SEZ’s; the types of SEZ’s and examples of successful SEZ’s in China, Malaysia and Oman. Industrial Development Zones (IDZ) were introduced in South Africa in 2000 with the aim to promote value-added exports and export-oriented industries. The key criterion was proximity to an international airport or sea port. Five IDZ’s were designated, i.e. Richards Bay, East London, Coega, Saldanha and OR Tambo International Airport. The DTI contribution to the development of the Richards Bay, East London and Coega IDZ’s amounted to R5.3 billion as at December 2011. 40 investment projects totaling R11.8 billion were initiated and 33,000 jobs were created. The Saldanha IDZ was underway and the OR Tambo International Airport IDZ was not yet operational.
The rationale for the review of the IDZ programme included developments in national economic policies and strategies, developments in the global economic environment, the international experience in using SEZ’s as economic drivers and the disappointing performance of the existing IDZ’s.
Challenges with the existing IDZ programme included the design, the nature of the support provided, ad-hoc planning and a lack of long-term planning, financing, inadequate targeting of investments, governance arrangements and inadequate coordination amongst government departments and agencies.
The new SEZ policy aimed to address the weaknesses identified with the existing IDZ programme by strengthening governance arrangements for the management of SEZ’s, expanding the range of support measures, developing a financing framework that would enable long-term planning and strengthening the support system for SEZ’s to enable the Zones to become effective tools for industrial development.
The objectives of the proposed policy and legislation included supporting industrial development in order to promote economic growth, creating sustainable jobs, promoting the development of a regionally diverse industrial economy, promoting beneficiation of the country’s mineral resources and developing world-class infrastructure to support the targeted industries in each region.
Key provisions of the proposed Bill included the establishment of an SEZ Board and an SEZ Fund, allowing for diverse SEZ’s that catered for regional needs and ensuring that long-term strategic planning took place. Applications were limited to the three tiers of government (i.e. the national, provincial and local government authorities) but provision was made for public/private partnerships (PPP’s). The proposed legislation included provision for the relevant executive authorities to be held responsible for the effective operation and functioning of SEZ’s.
The briefing was concluded with an overview of the implementation of the legislation and the transitional arrangements. Immediate action steps included the finalisation of the policy and legislative frameworks, undertaking public consultation on a national basis, identifying new SEZ’s in partnership with provincial authorities and strengthening the current IDZ’s.
Mr B Radebe (ANC) observed that the briefing and the draft Bill addressed the issues raised during a recent oversight visit of the Committee to the Eastern Cape. He noted that the SEZ Board membership excluded representatives of civil society and organised labour organisations. He asked what the rationale was for the omission of these stakeholders as one of the main objectives for the SEZ’s was the creation of jobs. He said that the tendency to relax labour regulations for SEZ’s was not desirable.
Mr G McIntosh (COPE) welcomed the objective to develop both ‘hard’ and ‘soft’ infrastructure, which incorporated existing facilities in the area, such as schools, golf courses and game parks. He said that the Richards Bay IDZ had all the potential for exceptional performance yet financial support from government had been pathetic. There were lessons to be learnt from previous successes and failures of industrial development projects. He singled out the developments in Newcastle and Bronkhorstspruit as prime examples. He welcomed the new SEZ approach to industrial development in the country.
Mr M Oriani-Ambrosini (IFP) agreed that the lessons learnt from previous experience must be taken into account. The current investment in the IDZ’s was not sustainable in the longer term. The focus should be on the support provided for the product rather than on marketing. Incentives such as tax breaks were not always successful and have been the subject of constitutional challenges in Europe. The Bill made no statutory provision for incentives. Long term planning was essential. Funding for the SEZ’s would come from public money and the SEZ’s must therefore be economically viable. He asked if it would not be preferable to allow market forces to determine which industries were established in the regions earmarked for development.
Mr X Mabaso (ANC) asked how it would be ensured that as many people as possible benefited from the SEZ’s and how the exploitation of labour would be avoided.
Mr T Harris (DA) welcomed the provisions requiring the cooperation of the three tiers of government in the development of SEZ’s. He doubted the effectiveness of the central marketing concept and felt that competition should be encouraged. The Bill was vague on many issues and he warned against the danger of the Committee approving legislation that was effectively a ‘blank slate’. The existing IDZ’s lacked any incentives such as tax breaks and labour market reforms. The National Treasury was disinclined to grant tax breaks and organised labour resisted any labour reforms. The estimated cost to create a new job was R160,000 and he asked if the DTI had any plans to reduce the job creation cost to the employer.
Ms C Kotsi (COPE) asked if the DTI interacted with the Department of Higher Education (DHE) to ensure that the necessary skills development took place. During the Committee’s oversight visit to Coega it was found that the steel company operating there was importing iron ore rather than using South African iron ore for local steel production.
Mr October explained that the intention was to establish an SEZ Board that would be solely dedicated to matters concerning the SEZ. Board representation by civil society organisations and organised labour would detract from the functioning of the Board. Membership of the Board would be limited to representatives from die DTI, the South African Revenue Service (SARS), the National Treasury, Eskom and Transnet.
SEZ’s established in Mexico and certain Caribbean countries had failed because industries relied on de-regulated labour dispensations and cheap imported labour forces. Products were mainly exported to the United States of America (USA). However, these industries could not compete with the even cheaper products exported by China to the USA. In South Africa, the Taiwanese companies operating in Botshabelo before 1994 ceased operations when the new political dispensation withdrew special labour incentives. The main focus of the new SEZ policy was on long-term sustainability and the production of quality products that was not reliant on cheap labour. Social engineering of an IDZ should not be attempted. The labour force could not be exploited and labour reforms would not be necessary.
Mr October agreed that SEZ’s should be integrated in the local economy and lifestyle concepts such as golf courses and other leisure facilities should be included in development plans. The creation of a differential regime for IDZ’s posed a dilemma as the National Treasury was averse to granting tax breaks. Industrial policy required the favouring of productive sectors over unproductive sectors. The issue had been debated with the National Treasury and consensus had been reached over offering preferential tax incentives to companies if the organisation was located in an SEZ. Discussions with the National Treasury were ongoing.
The broader benefits of SEZ’s included high quality jobs, an expanded production base and providing more opportunities for graduates. The DTI was responsible for promoting the country and the marketing activities of the national, provincial and local authorities would have to be balanced. Each SEZ would have a different focus, for example the Free State province would focus on the agricultural sector, which was labour-intensive. Conversely, the petrochemical sector required substantial investment and provided fewer, highly skilled jobs. The intention was to create a broader manufacturing base for the country. The market rather than government would determine which industries would be established.
Mr October agreed that skills development was a critical issue. He said that the scrapping of the apprenticeship system had been detrimental to skills development in the country. The steel and chemical industries were dominated by monopolies but the Department intended to bring in a Chinese steel producer that would provide more competition. The Chinese company demanded security of supply of electricity and iron ore as a prerequisite.
Mr Tumelo Chipfupa, Deputy Director-General: The Enterprise Organisation, DTI said that the existing three operational IDZ’s had generated 33,000 jobs of varying levels. Further infrastructure development would be necessary, which would result in more jobs. He said that the cost per job created was not considered to be a guide for investment.
Mr G Selau (ANC) said that the establishment of a new SEZ would create buying power in the region and the focus should not be entirely on producing products for export. He asked if it was feasible to exclude the private sector from the decision-making process by limiting Board membership to representatives from government and parastatals. He asked if the implementation plan was linked to the government’s beneficiation policy.
Mr Harris said that the granting of tax incentives for SEZ’s was an accepted international practice, which should be taken into account by the National Treasury. He asked how the SEZ Fund would be capitalised. He asked for clarity on the restriction of applications to government structures. He asked if the production of products for export purposes would be a precondition.
Mr Radebe advised that any relaxation of labour legislation was not envisaged by government. Benefits to the people must be at the centre of the country’s development plans. The unemployment situation must be addressed by ensuring that SEZ’s were established in all the provinces.
Mr McIntosh said that there had been examples of developing IDZ’s without making provision for housing for employees. He suggested that the DTI involved the Department of Human Settlements to avoid a proliferation of squatter camps near the SEZ’s.
Mr Oriani-Ambrosini said that the same rationale for the establishment of SEZ’s was used for the Coega IDZ. He asked what type of infrastructure was envisaged by the DTI for the new SEZ’s. ‘Islands of subsidies’ had to be avoided. He asked if the policy included the utilization of South African funding to benefit foreign investors.
Mr Harris quoted the recent editorial comment in the Business Day newspaper, which stated that it was essential that government clarified exactly what it was trying to achieve with SEZ’s. The Bill was vague on this point. He asked for an explanation of which objectives would be achieved by the new policy and legislation on SEZ’s.
Mr Selau asked what the DTI planned to do about the IDZ’s that were established by the previous government in various homelands. An example was the infrastructure developed at Babelegi.
Mr October responded that there was a misconception that the SEZ’s would be entirely focused on production for export purposes. Organised labour was against an export focus. Before products could be exported, it had to be produced. Labour needed to be employed before products could be produced. The reality was that the South African market was too small and it was necessary to export products for an industry to be financially viable. An example was the Toyota factory in East London, which produced vehicles for the local market as well as for export to the African continent. In certain instances, incentives were offered to such an extent that it would have been unfair for companies to sell products to the domestic market. An example was the incentives offered to Taiwanese companies operating in South Africa. The products had to be exported to the USA and were not sold in South Africa. The companies did not diversify their markets and the result was closure when the USA market failed.
Mr October said that the aim of the new SEZ policy was to attract private sector investment. The role of government was to provide the necessary infrastructure. It was not desirable to have certain private sector representatives on the SEZ Board whilst excluding others. The Board would be restricted to government and government agency representation. Organised labour had the opportunity to provide input to the legislation as the Bill would be presented to NEDLAC. The SEZ Board would focus on the running of the SEZ’s and was not intended as a forum for debate on labour issues. There were existing forums where labour matters could be addressed. Provision was made for PPP’s. There were many examples of successful PPP’s, particularly in the establishment of techno parks. Private ownership of IDZ’s was not desirable.
Mr October reiterated that the issue of tax incentives was being debated with the National Treasury. The Minister of Finance had been involved in the formulation of the Bill, which had been approved by the Cabinet. The Cabinet agreed that SEZ’s were effective tools for economic development. Incentives were not considered to be the driver for investment but the provision of quality infrastructure was a key criterion. Investors saw South Africa as the gateway to the African continent.
Mr October confirmed that the policy on beneficiation was incorporated in the implementation of the policy on SEZ’s. Beneficiation of only the country’s mineral resources would take place. Platinum was only produced by South Africa and Zimbabwe and would attract investors in the beneficiation of this mineral. The criterion for establishing industries was long term economic viability rather than political considerations. The decision to develop Saldanha Bay as the port for the export of iron ore from the Sishen mines was politically motivated. The alternative was Coega, which was a labour-rich area. It was essential that the SEZ’s were situated in the same areas where the resources and labour force were.
Mr Chipfupa advised that agreement in principle had been reached with the Minister of Finance that funds would be made available to capitalise the SEZ Fund. The amount of funding was in the process of being determined.
Prof Paul Benjamin, Cheadle Thompson and Haysom Attorneys Inc (legal advisors to the DTI) advised that the existing IDZ’s would be incorporated in the new SEZ’s. Section 35 of the draft Bill made provision for the transitional arrangements of the IDZ’s, which currently operated under the regulations promulgated in 2000.
Mr Oriani-Ambrosini requested further clarity on exactly what government had in mind for the new SEZ’s. It had been stated during the proceedings that the existing IDZ’s would be incorporated in the new SEZ’s and that a platinum beneficiation plant would be established. He asked what the business plan was behind the new SEZ policy as the briefing lacked specific detail on this aspect.
Mr Selau repeated his earlier question about the IDZ’s established by the previous government in the homeland regions. Most industries had closed down after the ANC government withdrew support but the infrastructure remained in place. He asked if the DTI had any plans to re-develop these facilities, many of which were situated in poor areas of the country. He asked what platform for interaction between government and the private sector on SEZ’s was in place.
Mr October responded that feasibility studies and consultation with the private sector would be included in the long term planning process. For example, Anglo Platinum was the only supplier of platinum ore and the company would be involved in the development of the platinum beneficiation industries planned for the particular SEZ. Arcelor-Mittal and the mines owned the land earmarked for the Saldanha SEZ and would be involved in the development process. Of necessity, the private sector was involved in the establishment of SEZ’s and interaction would have to take place with all the stakeholders. Some of the IDZ’s established by the previous government would be incorporated, for example the IDZ’s established in Atlantis, the North West province and the Free State province. Others were situated too far from the industrial hubs to be economically viable. The three tiers of government needed to agree on the sites for the new SEZ’s to be established in each province. The feasibility studies would indicate which viable industries could be established in each SEZ. In order to ensure long term viability, support services such as a reliable electricity supply had to be in place. The SEZ Fund was intended to provide funding for infrastructure and to top up any incentives. The three tiers of government had to prepare a business plan for each SEZ, which had to be presented to government for approval. The private sector would decide where investment would be made. The legislation should therefore not be too prescriptive.
The Chairperson thanked the Department for the briefing, which was the first step of a lengthy process involving the Committee. Members had the opportunity to study the draft Bill and other supporting documents provided by the DTI before the formal deliberations on the Bill were held.
Mr Oriani-Ambrosini suggested that the Committee met to hold an informal discussion on the Bill before the formal processing of the Bill commenced.
The Chairperson said that it would appear that there was broad consensus on the proposed legislation. Informal discussion of the Bill and its implications could be held.
The Committee approved the minutes of the Committee meeting held on 18 January 2012 and a minor change to the Committee schedule. | 2019-04-22T01:12:44Z | https://pmg.org.za/committee-meeting/13882/ |
It has not been easy to identify mechanical failure of the sacroiliac joint (SIJ) with traditional imaging. The integrated model of function (Lee and Vleeming, 1998) suggests that under normal circumstances, form and force closure combined contribute to sacral nutation and “locking” the SIJ for optimal load transfer. This model is supported by clinical evidence and scintigraphic findings that contribute to successful therapy in 80% of cases. Single-photon emission computed tomography and x-ray computed tomography (SPECT-CT), a hybrid device, was used in a study of 1200 patients (64% female and 36% male patients with an average age of 42 years; range, 15–78 years) with a clinical diagnosis of SIJ incompetence (pelvic girdle pain syndrome). Standard clinical testing and an alternate series of tests were used as a reference standard for imaging. Symptoms were present for a mean of 43 months. Imaging finding were of increased uptake in the upper SIJ (S1–S2), with extension into the dorsal interosseous ligament and measurable by count profile. Associated findings of tendon enthesopathy reflected altered biomechanics around the pelvis. Ipsilateral adductor enthesopathy was found in 70% and contralateral hamstring enthesopathy in 60% of patients. SPECT-CT criteria for the diagnosis of SIJ incompetence were developed and validated. SPECT-CT is a valid and reproducible technique for the diagnosis of SIJ incompetence with high concordance and specificity compared to the reference standards. Findings are supportive of the integrated model of SIJ function proposed by Lee and Vleeming.
Low back pain (LBP), a common ailment, afflicts 85% of people at one time or another, with a high proportion reporting chronicity (>12-week duration) or frequent recurrences that are disabling (1). Epidemiological studies indicate that ∼15% of chronic LBP is caused by an intervertebral disc pathology and the remaining 85% of LBP is classified as nonspecific low back pain (NSLBP) (1). NSLBP is a term of convenience that hides ignorance of the actual pathophysiology in the vast bulk of patients with the condition. It is a descriptor, not a diagnosis. It may include a complex collection of physical and psychosocial pathologies that cannot be addressed by the current imaging paradigm.
One typical and common scenario is patients presenting with lateralizing LBP that radiates into the buttock and often the groin and may include a history of onset in the peripartum period or after trauma to the lower back or buttocks. The clinical presentation is often thought to be “sciatica” and an intervertebral disc lesion is sought by x-ray computed tomography (CT) or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). A high proportion of these patients will have essentially normal finding or “disc bulges” without neural compromise. This group is invariably labeled as NSLBP in a nihilistic exercise that raises unresolvable and often damaging questions of psychological or psychiatric overlays and may result in secondary depression.
This situation exists despite a vast body of Northern European literature that indicates that 15%–30% of such patients (2–7) may have the sacroiliac joint (SIJ) identified as the cause of their symptoms. Ironically, such patients may be treated with specific physiotherapy that yields a significant improvement in 80% of cases. These patients can be identified by a specialized battery of physical tests that have been established as the diagnostic reference standard on the basis of good evidence (8). We have developed and validated a bone scintigraphic technique with the use of single-photon emission CT (SPECT) with fused CT images (SPECT/CT) to identify this condition (9). The major cause of the dysfunction in this series was trauma, largely related to either discrete or repetitive sporting trauma. We describe the specific scintigraphic findings in 1200 cases together with illustrations of the primary abnormality in the SIJ and the secondary findings around the pelvis. We hypothesize that these findings agree with and provide physical imaging evidence to support the integrated model of SIJ function proposed by Lee and Vleeming (10). Accurate diagnosis will provide significant clinical improvement with targeted therapy in 80% of cases (9, 11).
Patients were either referred from private clinical practice for the evaluation of lateralizing LBP or prospectively recruited into an open-label trial of prolotherapy for physiotherapy-resistant disease of the SIJ (11). Approval for patient studies was given by the Ethics Committee of the University of Notre Dame Australia, Sydney Campus. All patients met the clinical conditions for the diagnosis of SIJ incompetence/pelvic girdle pain syndrome (3/4 positive clinical tests) according to the European guidelines (8). These patients either complained of pain in the peripartum period or sustained significant lower back/buttock trauma or repeated microtrauma in a sports setting. Patients were tested if symptoms remained unresolved after a 6-week duration. All patients were referred from 6 sports medicine practices after initial screening by qualified staff. Two trial-based specialized sports medicine physicians (JS and MC) then undertook definitive clinical screening tests and documented histories and quality-of-life assessments.
These were selected according to the validated European guidelines for pelvic girdle pain (8). The following four tests are evidence-based: Stork test (Gillet test), tender palpation of the long dorsal sacroiliac ligament (12, 13), posterior pelvic pain provocation test (14), and active straight leg raise test (15–18). Results following therapy were available in 891 patients. The remainder of the patients who underwent therapy were either lost to follow-up or refused follow-up, often because their symptoms and functional capabilities had improved.
Patients were imaged using standardized protocols published in detail elsewhere (9). Following the intravenous injection of 900-1000 MBq of 99m-Tc hydroxydiphosphonate (HDP), blood-pool images of the anterior and posterior pelvis were obtained. Planar images of the same views were obtained at 2 h after injection followed by SPECT/CT on a Hawkeye 4 hybrid gamma camera (General Electric, Milwaukee). Images were viewed as SPECT, CT, and SPECT with fused CT images in 3 standard projections. A semiquantitative analysis was performed by obtaining counts from a standard circular region of interest over the soft tissues posterior to the SIJ at the level of the S2 segment.
A number of SPECT/CT abnormalities were sought: SIJ uptake (S1/S2 level), posterior soft tissue uptake/ligamentous uptake at insertion into the ilium, and CT grading of sclerosis/erosive disease in the upper SIJ. Increased uptake around the pubic symphysis and/or adductor/hamstring/gluteus medius/psoas tendon insertions and the CT appearances of these sites were reported. Lumbar zygoapophyseal joint uptake or intervertebral disc space abnormalities were reported. Abnormal scintigraphy and CT appearances of the hips were commented on.
The study cohort comprised 1200 patients (64% female and 36% male patients with an average age of 42 years; range, 15–78 years) with a clinical diagnosis of SIJ incompetence (pelvic girdle pain syndrome) (8). Clinical history revealed that 88% of cases were because of acute trauma or repetitive microtrauma, 8% were postpregnancy, and 4% without a clear-cut cause. Standard clinical testing and an alternate series of a tests were used as a reference standard for imaging (8). Symptoms were present for a mean of 43 months (range, 6 weeks to 26 years). A cohort of young athletic patients (n = 23) presented with symptoms predominantly indicating either adductor or hamstring dysfunction, which was often recurrent.
Results following targeted physiotherapy, prolotherapy or surgery of the SIJ were available in 891 patients with pain-free return to normal function as the end point. Of the 891 patients, 145 (16%) did not respond completely to therapy or were lost to follow-up. Complete response with loss of pain and functional improvement with physiotherapy and ongoing exercise programs was reported in 665 (75%). Incomplete responses were found in 83 (7%) with successful response to hypertonic dextrose injections into the dorsal sacroiliac ligament under CT control (11). The remaining 2% of patients responded to operative fusion of the involved SIJ.
The blood-pool image showed hyperemia in the affected SIJ in 11% of patients, with the delayed study showing increased uptake in the affected joint in 22%. Uptake around the pubic symphysis and in the ipsilateral hip was present in 27% of patients in the planar images.
SPECT/CT findings were of increased uptake in the upper SIJ (S1-S2) with extension into the dorsal interosseous ligament and measurable by count profile in 100% of patients. A significant difference in count profile between the affected and unaffected side was found. Mean counts on the affected side were 168 (SD: 91) and those on the unaffected side were 109 (SD, 60). Analysis with the Student t test yielded a mean difference of 59 counts (95% CI, 42–89 counts). The specific SPECT/CT criteria for the diagnosis of SIJ incompetence have been validated in previous work (9).
Ancillary finding reflecting altered abdominopelvic muscle functional.
Ipsilateral adductor enthesopathy was present in 70% of cases and contralateral hamstring enthesopathy in 60%. A number of patients (n = 41) also demonstrated gluteus medius and psoas tendon enthesopathy. Osteitis pubis was found in 7%. Ipsilateral femoroacetabular hip impingement was present in 72% of patients.
Approximately 57% had other pathological conditions. These included pars fractures (2% of patients), chronic sacroiliitis (0.3% of patients), old fractures of the coccyx or sacrum (0.5%), osteitis condensans ilii (0.5%), bilateral hip impingement (7%), degenerative changes of the intervertebral discs or facet joints in the lumbar spine and SIJs (44%), and other minor changes (2.7%).
The problem of SIJ “dysfunction” is not new. It was described in the medical literature as far back as 1905 (19). The concept was however lost following the 1934 publication of the citation classic by Mixter and Barr (20), which ascribed rupture of the intervertebral disc with compromise of the spinal canal as a cause of lateralizing LBP. SIJ “dysfunction” was however resurrected in the northern European literature by a number of workers who reported the clinical presentation of lateralizing LBP (pseudosciatica) in women in the peripartum period (2–5, 21, 22), where up to 8% would be left with a permanent disability. The syndrome was described as the pelvic girdle pain syndrome, with the principal site of pathology being the SIJ rather than the intervertebral disc. This has been described as a similar clinical entity arising from either discrete or repetitive trauma to the buttock or lower back. Therefore, the term SIJ incompetence has been coined to cover both the posttraumatic and the postpartum variants (9).
Unfortunately, the majority of patients with lateralizing LBP, which is clinically identical to “sciatica” (23–25), are not recognized as suffering from anything other than intervertebral disc disease with rupture and neural compromise by the vast majority of the medical community. Under these circumstances, a natural progression is to perform an MRI, which shows a significant intervertebral disc abnormality in ∼15% of patients, with the remainder being classified as nonspecific LBP (1). The northern European literature is however replete with numerous patients in whom mechanical “dysfunction” of the SIJ may account for 15%–20% of NSLBP. The importance of this diagnosis lies in the successful resolution of a failed load transfer of the SIJ to appropriate physiotherapy in >80% in this series. To ignore the SIJ as a cause of significant symptoms in such a large proportion of patients with LBP is to engender diagnostic nihilism that disadvantages the optimal care of such patients. These patients are invariably young, as in this series. Furthermore, the average time to an accurate diagnosis was 43 months, which is an unacceptable delay in any parlance. These patients invariably have an essentially noncontributory MRI study that fails to identify significant pathology as we have described previously, with the result that psychological issues are raised as an explanation in ∼75% of patients (9).
The inability to image mechanical “dysfunction” of the SIJ has been reported for plain film, MRI (22), and scintigraphy (26). The inability of MRI to diagnose injury to the dorsal interosseous ligament stems from the fact that the ligament is avascular. Ligaments that reside outside synovial joints are avascular, as they are not covered by a synovial layer derived from the joint as in the knee (27). Hence repair is by calcification, and there is no oedematous signal for MRI to detect. This calcification is what allows uptake of the scintigraphic bone agent, which has a high conspicuity with SPECT/CT, unlike in the past where SPECT alone did not allow accurate interrogation of the deep ligamentous structures.
The previous failure of imaging to delineate mechanical SIJ issues led to the adoption of a battery of reproducible physical examination tests that are the reference standard for the diagnosis (8). Our group has validated a number of findings by SPECT/CT that is both sensitive and specific for the diagnosis of SIJ incompetence and has good reproducibility (κ = 0.85) (9). The region of interest (ROI) analysis found that of the hypothesized criteria for the diagnosis, increased soft tissue uptake in the dorsal interosseous ligament of the SIJ and at the site of ligament entheses yielded a score of 1.0 compared with joint uptake and sclerosis, which yielded a score of 0.41. These findings and the approach to the scintigraphic diagnosis can best be appreciated by understanding the integrated model of load transfer through the SIJ proposed by Lee and Vleeming (28). SPECT/CT is in the unique position to provide an accurate diagnostic system for SIJ incompetence that is unavailable by any other imaging modality.
The concept of load transfer through the SIJ postulates 2 mechanisms for a stable load transfer. The first is form closure, where the irregularities on the joint surface of the sacrum and innominate and the “L” shape of the articulation effectively lock the SIJ into the pelvic ring. When this articulation is under load, the sacrum moves anteriorly into the ring (nutation) in a stable configuration. The second mechanism is force closure, in which there is a coordinated contraction of the abdominal musculature that compresses the pelvic ring and locks the sacrum into the pelvis in a stable configuration. When there is significant injury to the SIJ, this mechanism is disrupted, usually because of an injury to the dorsal interosseous ligament of the SIJ (Figure 1). This ligament is structurally important, as there is no capsule around the posterior aspect of the joint and ligamentous disruption can result in the sacrum moving posteriorly and out of the stable configuration of the pelvic ring (23). This painful process leads to a loss of sequencing of the contractions of the abdominal musculature, leading to loss of the compressive mechanism that helps lock the pelvic ring. It was initially believed that the principal pain generator was the SIJ itself. However, more recent work has shown that this group of patients with mechanical SIJ “dysfunction” respond more completely to local anesthetic injection into the dorsal ligaments rather than into the SIJ itself (96% vs 62% improvement in pain scores) (29). This suggests that the principal site of the pathophysiology in mechanical “dysfunction” of the SIJ is the dorsal interosseous ligament with loss of abdominal muscle synchronization being a secondary phenomenon.
Graphical illustration of the dorsal interosseous ligament of the sacroiliac joint from the posterior view of the pelvis and in the cross section. The ligament reaches deep into the sacroiliac joint (arrows) and has more extensive coverage at the level of the S1 and S2 segments.
Findings on the SPECT/CT reflect these mechanisms. There is significant dorsal ligamentous uptake of tracer that is optimally assessed at the S2 segment level and is best visualized in the coronal and transaxial sections. A standardized region of interest (eg, circular) may then be placed over this area of soft tissue uptake with the generation of a comparative count profile between the affected and nonaffected sides (Figure 2). This can be problematic when the injury is serious enough to affect both SIJs, making visual analysis critical. Repeated traction on the ligament also leads to a periosteal reaction where the normal “dumbell” configuration of the joint is lost. Over time, the increased motion of the joint leads to sclerosis and increased joint uptake. Loss of synchronization of the abdominal core musculature triggers a number of disadvantageous compensatory mechanisms that manifest as muscle spasm. These can be clinically detected and is part of the battery of physical diagnostic tests for the condition (8). These compensations lead to enthesopathic changes around the pelvis and hips and the subsequent loss of the compressive mechanism on the pelvic ring. Such muscle changes have been elegantly demonstrated by electromyographic studies, particularly in the biceps femoris muscle (30).
Patient with left sacroiliac joint incompetence. The single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) images show increased uptake of tracer in the dorsal interosseous ligament of left sacroiliac joint (arrowhead). Compare the absence of such an uptake on the right side. This is often well demonstrated in the coronal images as shown by the arrowhead. The differential counts are indicated in the transaxial image.
Enthesopathic changes were apparent at the hamstring origin in 70% of patients and invariably on the side contralateral to the affected SIJ (Figure 3). The adductor origin uptake was evident around the pubic symphysis, either bilaterally or on the ipsilateral side in 60%. Other sites of enthesopathy that are less frequently visualized involved the ipsilateral gluteus medius and iliopsoas origins. An indirect result of the associated muscle compensatory changes, particularly of the gluteus medius (30) on the ipsilateral side, is the occurrence of femoroacetabular hip impingement as the femoral head is rotated anteriorly and impinges on the acetabulum (Figure 4).
Enthesopathy. Uptake at sites of tendon insertion for the adductors and hamstring tendons (arrows) in the transaxial SPECT image.
Femeroacetabular hip impingement in a patient with right sacroiliac joint incompetence. The patient presented with right buttock pain and sudden onset of worsening groin pain while running. Intense uptake is apparent in the superior lip of the right acetabulum (arrow), which was subsequently shown to be an acetabular labral tear. A cam-shaped femoral head is apparent on both sides, being more marked on the right, with increased uptake at the head and neck junction (arrowhead) on the right.
The location of the principal abnormality of the dorsal interosseous ligament uptake at the S2 level distinguishes SIJ incompetence from sacroiliitis, osteitis condensans ilii, degenerative disease, and sacral fractures. No other condition of the lumbar spine, SIJs, or pelvis has the same conglomeration of signs that distinguish SIJ incompetence. We have found many of these conditions to coexist with SIJ incompetence and to be clearly distinguishable (9).
A number of referrals for suspected SIJ incompetence were triggered by recurrent tears of the hamstring tendons in a small but physically active group of patients (n = 23) who gave a history of either repetitive trauma or discrete traumatic injuries to the buttocks or lower back. These were often in high-level athletes who engaged in soccer or football. Invariably, patients had evidence of both SIJ incompetence and significant enthesopathy of the adductor or hamstring insertions around the pelvis. SIJ-related issues and kinematic alterations in core muscle contractions have been reported by others in such patients (31, 32). A high index of clinical suspicion in these patients can provide a diagnosis that is effectively treated by appropriate physiotherapy.
What is the point of the imaging test if the reference standard up to now is a group of clinical tests? The imaging finding are used by physical therapists to target sites of muscle spasm to recoordinate sequential abdominopelvic muscle contraction. It also helps the physicians to understand the pathophysiology arising from injury to the dorsal interosseous ligament. For example, the finding of secondary femeroacetabular hip impingement on the side ipsilateral to the SIJ dysfunction is crucially important, as experience has shown that surgical intervention, particularly for injuries to the acetabular labrum, will lead to rapid degeneration of the joint and the requirement for hip replacement surgery. If detected early, this can be avoided by effective treatment of the affected SIJ.
Physical examination is a difficult prospect for general physicians, orthopedic surgeons, and general practitioners who do not undertake these assessments on a regular basis. Reproducibility suffers for the occasional user of the test. The imaging findings are crucial for this group of medical practitioners and for orthopedic surgeons who will encounter secondary manifestations such as femeroacetabular hip impingement or even recurrent hamstring tendon tears. Furthermore, when physical therapy fails to address the problem, uptake in the dorsal interosseous ligament is a specific target for either prolotherapy or the injection of platelet-rich plasma. The operator can be certain that the correct side is being injected.
SPECT and x-ray CT (SPECT-CT) is a valid and reproducible technique for the diagnosis of SIJ incompetence with high concordance and specificity compared to the reference standards. Findings are supportive of the integrated model of SIJ function proposed by Lee and Vleeming. In the athletic population, SPECT-CT may provide information on the risk factors for adductor- and hamstring-related injuries. SPECT/CT can provide an accurate diagnosis that no other imaging modality can. It should be used more frequently for a disease that may be more prevalent than intervertebral disc rupture in patients with lateralizing LBP, particularly where the MRI study is noncontributory.
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Bussey M, Milosavljevic S. Assymetric pelvic bracing and altered kinematics in patients with posterior pelvic pain who present with postural muscle delay. Clin Biomech (Bristol, Avon). 2015;30:71–77. | 2019-04-22T20:28:24Z | https://tomography.org/volume-4/issue-2-june/research-articles/j-tom-2018-00011 |
A Jacobite revolutionary threatens the stability of the English throne in this thrilling historical romance of war, love, and deception.
Proud and penniless, the raven-haired Sophia knows only two things about the wildly dashing and mysterious Philip Rich: that he’s the poor and disgraced relative of the Earl of Rame; and that he awakens in her a craving that her betrothed, Sir John Bladen, can never satisfy. Unfortunately for Sarah, pledging herself to the wealthy Sir John is the only way to save her beloved Tarrant Hall.
When Sophia makes the crushing choice to scorn Philip in favor of her future, she realizes just how much of a mystery Philip has been. He is, in fact, the famous Earl himself.
Whatever the reasons for the Royal Pretender’s ruse, Sophia fears his next move: avenging his honor with a stunning reprisal.
The Earl’s vow to humble the woman he loved will draw them both into the treacherous plots and intrigue at the luxurious court of George II. While danger lies ahead for Philip and Sophia, so does a resilient desire that could prove to be as passionate as it is dangerous.
The traveling coach rumbled steadily along the bottom of the valley, drawn by six matched bays. The crest of the gilded Swan on the door panels, and the green and gold liveries of the coachmen, guards and outriders identified the owner of this magnificence as the Earl of Rame. It had been dry of late, and the ruts in the road, although several inches deep, had been hardened by frost, so that they made good progress. Leafless trees climbed the slopes of the hills on either side of them, up to the darkening sky. The Earl and his entourage had set out from London the previous morning, stayed overnight with a relative of his, and expected to reach the Earl's manor of Hamberley before another night fell. Dusk was beginning to deepen the shadows in the valley, but the coachman did not stop to light the lanterns. He did not know this road, but the postboy had assured him that Hamberley lay round the nearside hill. The bitter winds of March and the fatigue of the long journey kept both coachman and outriders silent. Their thoughts were on the log fires, hot punch and roast meats that awaited them at their journey's end.
The occupants of the coach were also silent. Chivers, the valet, sat with his feet neatly together in a corner, holding his master's jewel-case on his knees. Mr. Denbigh, who had once been tutor to the Earl and now fulfilled that office to the Earl's son and heir, sat opposite his master, and tried not to fidget. He was not an old man, having entered the service of the Earls of Rame when he graduated from Cambridge, but his muscles were protesting at his having sat still for so long. Also, he fretted about Thomas. It was all very well for the Earl to say that doctor and nurse would be perfectly capable of looking after the boy for a few days, but Thomas had not been well for months. Mr. Denbigh, like most overconscientious people, was sure that his charge would take a turn for the worse as soon as his back was turned. Had it really been necessary for him to accompany the Earl to Hamberley? Could not the Earl have decided for himself whether or not the place was suitable to house Thomas for a few months? Normally, the boy would have spent the summer at the Earl's great house in Rame, but an outbreak of smallpox there had rendered that scheme impossible. But Bath would surely have been a more suitable place to send the boy than this desolate valley?
Yet when the Earl had requested Mr. Denbigh's presence on this trip, the tutor had not seen fit to demur. Philip Gervase St. John Rich, fourth Earl of Rame, never found it necessary to raise his voice in order to have his orders obeyed. Tall and slim, the Earl's figure was set off to perfection by the brocaded coats, ruffled shirts and massive periwigs that were de rigueur at Court. He was wearing Court dress today because the relative with whom he had spent the previous night had held a position at George I's court years ago, and still believed that a man was in a state of undress unless he were painted, patched, bewigged and clad in the latest fashion.
Mr. Denbigh thought it was typical of Philip to have donned Court dress in order to please his host, when everyone knew that the Earl found such fripperies a nuisance, and that he would far have preferred to dress plainly and fore-swear powder and paint. Once Mr. Denbigh had worried about this tendency of Philip's to defer to the wishes of others at the expense of his own inclinations, but he did so no longer. Philip had been born with a sense of duty, and his parents had reinforced this trait. It had been impressed on him also that to be an Earl of Rame was to be the equal of any man alive, and only slightly inferior to the King. It was almost entirely due to Mr. Denbigh's humane influence on a reserved and lonely boy that the Earl's chief characteristic nowadays was a sense of duty, rather than pride in his position.
Philip had been obedient to his parents' wishes during their lifetime; going on an extended Grand Tour of Europe with Mr. Denbigh, and then marrying the heiress selected for him. Pretty but captious, his wife had found little to interest her in her handsome, silent husband, but had presented him with four children before death removed her and her last, stillborn child from the fashionable world which she had loved so much.
Freed of constraint by his parents' death in an epidemic shortly after, the new Earl had at long last decided to follow his own inclinations. Despite objections from family and friends, he had left London to fight in Flanders with the British Army. Mr. Denbigh had been recalled from a tedious position in Cornwall to take charge of the nursery at Rame, in which were lodged the motherless children. None of them had ever been strong, and in spite of Mr. Denbigh's anxious care, there was only one ailing boy left by the time that Philip was invalided home from Flanders.
Before Philip had been back in England a month, Society was pairing him off with this heiress or that beauty. Everyone was agreed that he must marry again, yet he seemed in no hurry to do so. His broken arm had healed well enough, yet the amusements of the Town failed to divert him. His sojourn abroad, far from doing him a disservice in the eyes of the King, had brought him to the notice of His Majesty. George II was a straightforward person with three great passions in life—for his dead Queen, for the genealogies of the crowned heads of Europe, and for his Army. It was his greatest triumph that he had led his troops into battle at Dettingen, and his greatest sorrow that his ministers would not let him repeat this action. He welcomed Philip back to Court and appointed him Gentleman of the Bedchamber.
It surprised most people in the fashionable world that Philip should accept such a position, which was supposed to be beneath the dignity of an Earl. However, the pundits said that there was more to the appointment than met the eye. Had not the King also appointed Lord Lincoln a Gentleman of the Bedchamber? Lord Lincoln was one of Philip's closest friends, but his chief claim to fame was that he was nephew to the all-powerful Secretary of State, the Duke of Newcastle, who now headed the Government. George II detested Newcastle, although he liked young Lincoln, and forgave him for being related to the Duke. Newcastle represented a new trend in politics which took no account of the King's love of Hanover, the land which had given him birth, and which he always regarded as his real home. The King would have preferred to continue seeking counsel from his ex-minister, Lord Carteret, who shared his views on European politics. Although Carteret had officially fallen from power, he was often to be found at the King's elbow and, this was the significant point, Philip was Lord Carteret's nephew.
It looked as though the King was seeking to counterbalance Newcastle's influence at Court by making Philip Gentleman of the Bedchamber.
Mr. Denbigh had often discussed politics with Philip, but he did not know his erstwhile pupil's mind on this matter. Philip had not chosen to confide in him of late. It had crossed Mr. Denbigh's mind that his master had commanded the tutor's presence on this journey to unburden himself of whatever it was that troubled him; for it was clear to Mr. Denbigh that the Earl was worried about something. It might, of course, be the affair of his projected marriage to Lady Millicent.... Mr. Denbigh feared the lady was as shallow as the Earl's first wife had been.
He sighed. The Earl lowered his gaze from the silk-lined roof of his carriage and smiled at Mr. Denbigh.
"Are you very tired?" he asked. "We must nearly be there." He took a gold watch from his pocket, opened the case and flicked a knob. The watch chimed the hour, and then the quarter.
"I confess I shall be glad to arrive," said Mr. Denbigh. "It looks like snow."
"You are cold?" Chivers had laid a fur over the Earl's knees, not because his master felt the cold, but because Chivers deemed it proper that the Earl be smothered in furs when he traveled. Mr. Denbigh was about to admit that he did feel a trifle chilled when the sound of a shot rang along the valley. "What was that? Highwaymen, do you think?" He peered out of the window.
"We have two armed men with us," said the Earl soothingly. "No one would dare to attack us." Nevertheless the thought was present in both men's minds that it was some time since they had passed any signs of human habitation. The Earl's dress sword hung in a loop from the upholstery beside him. The hilt was adorned with gems which glittered as the coach swayed. They were not riding as smoothly as they had been before the shot had been fired. No doubt the horses had been startled by the sound. The Earl caressed the hilt of his sword and then let go of it, as if he had thought better of an impulse to arm himself.
Chivers cleared his throat. "Begging your pardon, my lord, but that shot sounded as if it came from somewhere on the road ahead of us."
The Earl's hand dropped onto the small pistol which traveled in a concealed pocket beside him. Without hurrying, he checked that the pistol was primed. He smiled apologetically at his companions. "A sportsman in the woods, probably. Perhaps a poacher? I daresay we shan't see or hear anything more of him. Do you know, I haven't had a gun in my hand since I left the Army?" His grin was boyish. Mr. Denbigh and Chivers relaxed, as he had intended that they should.
There was a change in the rhythm of the horse's hooves. The coachman's whip cracked overhead, and he shouted something in a hoarse, surprised voice. Another shot rang out, this time nearer to them. The coach jerked, as the coachman's whip cracked above the horses. Above them, someone screamed. Chivers put his master's jewel-case on the floor between his feet.
"Put it under my rug," said the Earl. With his left hand he threw the rug away from him, onto the seat at his side. His brocaded coat shimmered in the dusk, and the lace at his throat and wrists gleamed as white as the paint on his face. He kicked his feet free of the fur, and the diamonds on his buckled shoes flashed fire.
A shot rang out close to them. Someone above them was shouting for them to stop, for God's sake! The coach swayed, bucking as it was driven over rough ground. The trees were close to them on their left. They were being driven to the side of the road.
"Was that our guard who fired?" Mr. Denbigh's hand sought his neatly starched cravat. Another shot resounded through the valley, this time from above. They could hear the coachman cursing, and another man babbling that he was hurt. Another shot ... a cry ... a heavy object fell past the window of the coach and disappeared.
"He's dropped his gun!" Mr. Denbigh half rose in his seat.
"Sit down, and keep still," said the Earl. He cocked his pistol.
One of the horses whinnied with fear. The coach shuddered to a halt. The silhouette of a man in a tricorne hat appeared at the window next the Earl. The newcomer's gloved hand held a blunderbuss, and his face was masked with a triangle of dark material.
"Stand and deliver!" The dreaded words lifted Mr. Denbigh's hands above his head. Chivers looked at his master for instructions. The Earl's face showed neither surprise nor fear.
"Open the door. Get out!" ordered the highwayman. He seemed impatient, glancing from the occupants of the carriage to the road ahead of them. The Earl nodded at Mr. Denbigh, who lowered his hands and felt for the handle of the door. The highwayman pulled his horse back, so that the door could swing open and allow the occupants of the coach to descend.
The highwayman's head and shoulders made a good target against the skyline. The Earl put out one hand to prevent Mr. Denbigh from leaving the coach, and raised the other, with the pistol in it. He shot the highwayman through the head. The man threw his arms wide, his horse reared, and slipped the man off the saddle and down onto the road. Before the highwayman's body had settled into its last position, the Earl had leaped from the coach, without waiting for the steps to be lowered. He stooped over the robber, in order to collect the man's weapon, which luckily had not been discharged in the fall. The horse, riderless, reared again, and then galloped off down the road, stirrups and reins flying loose.
A second highwayman, dressed like the first, edged his horse round the back of the carriage, blunderbuss levelled.
"Halt, or I fire!" cried the Earl, raising his newly-acquired weapon.
"Fool!" said the second highwayman. He swivelled his gun from the Earl to the coachman and back. "Drop your weapons, I say!"
The Earl pulled the trigger. Almost at the same instant, the highwayman fired, and the ball parted the curls of the Earl's peruke. The highwayman was not so fortunate. He was hit in the right arm. With an oath he dragged his horse's head round and set spurs to its flanks. Horse and rider thundered off up the hillside between the trees and were soon lost to sight.
"The Lord be praised!" exclaimed Mr. Denbigh. "You are not hurt, Philip?" In moments of stress, Mr. Denbigh was still inclined to address the Earl by his Christian name.
"My lord!" The coachman pointed to the road ahead.
The Earl turned to see what was the matter. Two men were struggling in the middle of the road. A fine black stallion, which showed signs of having been ridden hard, lay at the side of the road, kicking feebly. Nearby stood another horse, shifting nervously this way and that. As the Earl began to run towards the struggling couple, there was a muffled shot, and the strength seemed to go out of one of the men. He slithered to the ground, clutching his breast. The victor straightened himself, a smoking pistol in his hand. Hearing the pad of the Earl's feet, he glanced over his shoulder. His hat had fallen off, and his mask been torn from his face, but the dusk was kind to him, so that the Earl only caught a glimpse of a pleasant, plump face under a neat tie-wig. The murderer's head turned further, assessing how much assistance the Earl could muster. The servants, released from fear now that two of the highwaymen had been put out of commission and the third had discharged his pistol, were leaving the coach and advancing along the road.
"You are under arrest!" cried the Earl, while still some way from the scene of the crime. The murderer looked around him, as if wondering what had become of his accomplices. A shrill whistle sounded from the hillside above them. A signal? The murderer stooped over his victim, and made a grab into the pockets of his greatcoat. Then, as the Earl was almost within reach, the murderer ran for his horse, leaped on its back, and was off and away into the woods, whistling shrilly as he did so.
The Earl halted, scanning the dark woods above him. Those trees could be hiding a hundred dark-clad figures. There was a crashing sound, and a riderless horse galloped down the hillside and bolted past them, wild with fear. One moment he was there, and the next he was gone. What had frightened him?
The Earl hesitated. He was now unarmed, and he did not know how many more men the highwaymen could muster. If they chose to return now, in force, the occupants of the coach would be at their mercy.
"Au secours!" The faint cry came from the wounded man. He was not dead, but failing fast. Blood welled from a wound in his chest. His greatcoat and clothing beneath were blackened with powderburns, and his gloved hands were soaked with blood. A diamond clasp glinted among the laces at his throat, and the head of his riding crop nearby was of chased gold. Undoubtedly he had been worth robbing.
Mr. Denbigh caught up with the Earl, bringing his master his dress sword.
"My lord, return to the carriage, I beg. Who knows what will happen next?"
The coachman, too, came panting up to make his report. The off-leader had been cut free; but could not be ridden. The postboy swore this valley had never before been frequented by highwaymen, but he was probably lying; or maybe in league with the thieves ... the one guard had a bad head-wound, which was being bound up by Mr. Chivers ... the second guard—a useless fellow, begging your pardon, my lord, but why you ever took him on is a mystery to me!—he was blaming everyone but himself, because it appeared that his powder was damp and therefore they could not reload any of their guns.
Excerpted from The Tarrant Rose by Veronica Heley. Copyright © 1981 Victoria Thorne. Excerpted by permission of Severn House Publishers Ltd.. | 2019-04-23T12:22:19Z | https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/tarrant-rose-veronica-heley/1004149447?ean=9781448301355 |
A diving watch offers a series of technical characteristics that make them suitable for use underwater up to their rated depth. These comprise water resistance, with each watch tested in water under pressure, a unidirectional rotating bezel on which the first fifteen minutes are marked minute by minute for increased precision at decompression stops, hour and minute hands that are visibly different, and a means of determining whether the watch is functioning – usually the seconds hand. The three hands and the dial markings have to be visible in low light conditions. Diver’s watch requirements are set out in the standard ISO 6425, but not many manufacturers submit their watches to obtain this certification.
The diver’s watch has developed its own aesthetic over the decades, and thanks principally to the Rolex Submariner, it has become a classic design, suited to all sports casual looks. Perhaps more than other watch genres, entry-level diver’s watches – at least those listed here – have excellent quality and finish and all represent good value for money. This selection – actually 16 watches – is in increasing price order. First posted on 28 Dec 2016, updated 8 August 2017.
The Helm Vanuatu has a lot going for it. First and foremost, price. US $275, plus $30 world-wide shipping, makes it an attractive proposition. It is a dive watch, 300 metres water resistance. Its unidirectional rotating bezel has minute markings all the way around and so it can be used for approximate timings of any event, whether under water or on dry land. Its bezel projects half a millimetre from the case, which makes it practical to rotate. It’s large, but not so large as to be impractical. You get a stainless steel bracelet plus a nylon strap, with a choice of four colours. Inside, a self-winding mechanical movement, of excellent precision.
This watch by Steinhart is a tribute to the Rolex Submariner, though it is larger at 42 mm as compared to the Rolex’s 40 mm. Its lug design makes it less comfortable if you have a small wrist, because the lugs are substantially horizontal. The unidirectional rotating bezel reflects the Rolex original, with a circular bead of SuperLuminova inside the triangular marker, and a ratchet with 120 positions. The screw-in-caseback is solid, with an engraving of a Trojan and a seahorse. The watchglass is thick and robust, with a cyclops lens glued on top for date magnification. Dial and hands are impeccably finished. Inside, the ETA 2824-2 movement runs at 28,800 vibrations per hour (4 Hertz), with 38 hours power reserve, and it has the stop-second function for precision setting. At a price of €380 inclusive of VAT, this watch is remarkable value for money, considering the high level of finish. Available on the Steinhart website.
Seiko has a long history of quality diver’s watches at amazing value, and the SRPA21K1 continues the tradition. It is a watch released as part of the partnership with dive instruction organization PADI (Professional Association of Diving Instructors). This is a large watch at 45 mm diameter, in a distinctive cushion-shaped case with a stainless steel caseback. Water resistance is 200 metres. The screw-down crown is placed at 4 o’clock. The stainless steel bracelet has a three-fold clasp with push button release, and a dive extension. The watch is powered by Seiko’s 4R36 calibre, which is automatic, can be hand-wound from the crown, and has the stop-second function. It has a power reserve of about 41 hours. The balance runs at 21,600 vibrations per hour, 3 Hertz. This is the only movement in this article to be built directly by the manufacturer – all the other watches featured here have third-party calibres. Hands and dial markings are coated with Seiko’s own proprietary Lumibrite. List price about €449 inclusive of VAT. See more at the Seiko Prospex website.
The 1000 in the name of this watch refers to the depth rating in feet, corresponding to 300 metres. In addition to the usual diver’s watch features, the Tissot Seastar 1000 has a helium escape valve for safe decompression in a helium mix atmosphere. The rubber strap has a diver’s extension. The case is 42 mm in diameter, 12.4 mm thick, and inside, the Powermatic 80.111 movement made by ETA has the excellent 80-hour power reserve that hallmarks the new generation of ETA calibres. This is obtained in part by reducing the balance frequency to 3 Hertz, and by increasing the length of the mainspring. The movement can be viewed through the display caseback. Finish is good, with the red ceramic bezel having markers cut out and not printed, and interesting skeletonized hour and minute hands. The dial design is modern, with some neat touches such as the circular date window that exactly matches the circular hour markers. All in all, it’s an attractive watch, with the black dial, and red ceramic bezel with its large notches, giving it a distinctive appearance. The watch, reference T066.407.17.057.03, costs €775. Available from the Tissot website.
The watch by Archimede has a 41.5 mm diameter case, 12 mm thickness, water resistance 300 metres, with a rubber strap. It is powered by the Swiss-made Sellita SW 200-1 automatic movement, with a balance running at 28,800 vibrations per hour, 4 Hertz, 38 hours power reserve. It has a solid screw-down caseback, and a screw-down crown. The watch is a little different from most dive watches, in part for the crown at 4 o’clock neatly aligned with the date window, and in part because two of the classic dive watch features are missing. The sword-shaped hands are identical in format for hours and minutes, and the seconds hand is red, with no luminous coating, and so in low light conditions there is no way of telling whether the watch is running or not. The watch costs €820.00 inclusive of VAT. It is available from the Archimede website.
The Longines Hydroconquest provides most of the classic diving watch features – water resistance 300 metres, automatic movement, unidirectional rotating bezel, screw-in crown, good luminescent dial markings – in a 41 mm case, at an attractive price considering that it’s a Longines and therefore in the medium price bracket. Inside, it is powered by the Longines calibre 633, supplied by ETA and based on the tried and trusted 2824. The dial is supremely legible with its giant Arabic numerals: in the dark, the hour dots and the Arabic numerals all glow satisfactorily, along with hour and minute hands. The seconds hand has no luminescent paint, and so one of the dive watch features – being able to discern whether the watch is operating both in normal and low light conditions – is missing. The case and bracelet (it is also available with a rubber strap) are beautifully finished, with contrasting satin and polished surfaces. The clasp has an integrated diving extension, and the case has a solid caseback. Price €940 inclusive of VAT. More information from the Longines website.
This watch by Alpina is large at 44 mm, and it has a distinctive bezel, with various bezel colours including the red that is an Alpina characteristic. The screw-in crown contributes to the water resistance of 30 atm, 300 metres. The watch is powered by the Alpina AL-525 movement, which in actual fact is a modified version of the ETA 2824-2 automatic, with an Alpina oscillating weight and some extra decoration, visible through the display caseback. It runs at 4 Hertz, and has a power reserve of 38 hours. The strap is in rubberized nubuck. The watch costs €1,139 including VAT, or about $1,395. More information on the Alpina website.
This model, the latest piece in Tourby’s Lawless range, has a 42 mm case, 13 mm thick, water resistance 50 bar, 500 metres. The name suggests a sort of anarchic watch but in fact it refers to professional diver Brendan Lawless. The red in the name is a reference to a red triangle on the black bezel, and the red second hand, coordinating with the red text. The bezel is attractively slim with very subtle fluting, and has 120 ratchet clicks. The symmetry of the dial is enhanced by the date at 6 o’clock. The luminescent paint on hands and hour markers glows blue (BGW9 SuperLuminova). The caseback is solid and is decorated with an intricate die-stamped relief design. Inside, the ETA 2824-2 automatic movement runs at 28,800 vibrations per hour (4 Hertz), power reserve about 40 hours. The bracelet is nicely made, tapering from 22 mm to 18 mm at the clasp, with links that also reduce in thickness to enhance looks and comfort. A rubber strap is available, a superb fit for the watch, dipping steeply down from the lugs so that it fits just about any wrist comfortably. This piece is supplied with a leather travelling case. The Tourby Lawless 42 Red Edition costs €1,300. More information on the Tourby website.
Stowa make a complete range of its Prodiver watches, which feature some fashionable colours such as this lime green, in addition to other versions with dials in light grey, dark blue, carbon, orange and black. Hands, dial hour indices and the bezel dot are coated in C3 SuperLuminova. The watch has a titanium case, 42 mm in diameter, 15.6 mm thick, with a 22 mm rubber strap. It has an appearance very different to that of other watches, with sharply angled lugs and a very attractive 60-click bezel. It is waterproof to 100 atm, corresponding to 1,000 metres, and has a helium release valve. The movement is the self-winding ETA 2824-2, with about 40 hours power reserve. The watch costs €1,220 including VAT, and it is available on the Stowa website.
This is a visually striking watch, with an all-red bezel, a crown protector, black dial with applied indices coated in SuperLuminova, and an unusual strap. The bezel rotates unidirectionally but it doesn’t have the usual 15-minute markings. The crown protector was designed to ensure that whatever the diver does underwater, there is no risk of accidentally changing the time which could have dangerous consequences on his survival underwater. The protector is unscrewed and it lifts away from the crown which can then be manipulated as desired. Another technical feature of the watch is a helium valve, which is not really relevant to most sports diving, but important for the ISO certification that Hamilton is currently obtaining for this timepiece. Particular attention has been dedicated to the luminous indications on the dial and hands, using a high-quality SuperLuminova formulation that provides high density and brightness. All three hands are different in design, and the seconds hand has an arrow-shaped red extremity. The date window is placed diagonally at 4.30. The 46 mm version has a titanium case with 100 atm water resistance, corresponding to 1,000 metres depth. The rubber strap is a surprise because at first sight it seems to be made of two materials, rubber on the lateral strips and a soft, velvety material in the centre, but in fact it is all the same rubber material, moulded using a microperforated die to produce a shark’s skin-type texture. This is a world premier innovation. The strap has a titanium buckle. The watch is powered by the self-winding H-11 movement, made specially by ETA for Hamilton and providing 80 hours power reserve. The Hamilton Khaki Navy Frogman 46 mm is reference H77805335, price €1,345, and it will available from June 2016. Read more here. Or visit the Hamilton website.
This watch by Italian company Terra Cielo Mare is named after a 1920s ship specializing in the recovery of cargo from sunken ships. It pioneered techniques of decompression and its divers attained depths previously considered impossible. The watch is a giant at 52 mm diameter, fitted with a polyurethane strap. It has a helium escape valve, and its depth rating is 1,000 metres (100 atm). The case is in titanium and steel, with a screw-down crown and screwed caseback. Inside, the movement is the ETA 2824-2, providing 38 hours power reserve. The watch costs €1,690. Further information from the Terra Cielo Mare website.
This watch has some typical 1960s characteristics, such as the domed watchglass, and an internal rotating bezel locked, unlocked and operated by a second crown. The rotating bezel is bi-directional, and the second hand doesn’t have SuperLuminova, so you can’t see from the hands, in a low light-level situation, whether the watch is operating or not. The internal bezel has markings all the way around which facilitates seeing how long you have been underwater – or timing whichever event you like on dry land, using the minutes hand. The caseback is solid, with an engraving of a diver. The two crowns are both screw-down, ensuring a water resistance rating of 300 metres. The movement is the calibre L633.5, which is the ETA 2824-2. It runs at 28,800 vibrations per hour (4 Hertz) and has a power reserve of 38 hours. Price €2,050. Read more here.
The Sinn U212 (EZM 16) is a large diving watch, 47 mm in diameter and 14.5 mm thick, with a case and solid caseback entirely made in German Submarine Steel, with satin finish. It has been tested and certified for a range of characteristics, including water resistance (100 bar/1,000 metres), low pressure resistance, shock resistance, anti-magnetism to about 1,000 gauss, and functionality at a wide temperature range (-40-+80°C). In addition, it has Sinn’s proprietary dehumidifying technology which prevents the watchglass from fogging. The screw-down crown is placed at 4 o’clock to make the watch more comfortable to wear. The timepiece is powered by the Sellita SW 200-1 self-winding mechanical movement, running at 28,800 vibrations per hour (4 Hertz) and providing 38 hours power reserve. The watch is available with different strap options, leather, stainless steel bracelet, and silicone strap. It can be purchased directly online from the website http://www.sinn.de/. Price for the watch with leather strap is €2,290; with stainless steel bracelet, €2,445; with silicone strap, €2,445. Read more here, or visit the Sinn website.
The Scafograf 300 presented in 2016 by Eberhard & Co. has a 43 mm steel case, 12.6 mm thick, solid caseback, water resistance 300 metres. A new feature that it has with respect to its predecessor of 60 years ago is a helium escape valve at 9 o’clock. The watch has a black rubber strap or a steel bracelet. The watch has the other typical characteristics of diving watches: unidirectional rotating bezel in ceramic with luminescent markings on the first 15 minutes scale; luminescent hour, minute and seconds hands, and hour markers; and a water-resistant crown. Inside, it is powered by the self-winding ETA 2824-2 movement, power reserve about 38 hours. The price of the Eberhard & Co. Scafograf 300 is €2,400. The watch will be available from summer 2016. Read more here, or visit the Eberhard & Co. website.
This is a functional diver’s watch based on Oris’ existing diving watch Aquis, with SuperLuminova on hands and hour indices, and a 50 bar/500 metres water resistance. One of its interesting features is the display for day of the week, which has a yellow indicator on a chapter ring midway across the dial. In a way it gives extra meaning to the date window, and adds a sort of office-environment aesthetic. The days run anti-clockwise, which I presume is due to the structure of the Sellita SW 220-1 movement which normally has the day shown in a horizontal window and was specially modified for this watch. The rubber strap has a sliding sledge system for easy adjustment, as well as an additional adjustment system on the clasp. As a result it can easily be worn over a wet suit. Inside, the Oris Calibre 735 movement is based on the Sellita SW 220-1, a self-winding movement that is a version of the ETA 2824-2. It runs at 28,800 vibrations per hour and has a power reserve of 38 hours. The Oris Great Barrier Reef Limited Edition II, reference 01 735 7673 4185 RB, is available from February 2016, at the price of €2,150, 2,100 Swiss francs. Read more here, or visit the Oris website.
Raymnond Weil founded his company 40 years ago. He was a member of the Geneva Yacht Club, and so the Freelancer Realteam is like an anniversary tribute, though in actual fact it marks the company’s support for the Realteam sailing team for the 2016 season of the D35 Trophy on Lake Geneva, and the international GC32 Racing Tour. The watch is 42.5 mm in diameter, 11.8 mm thick, available in polished stainless steel or with a black PVD coating, and a black ceramic bezel. Its relatively slim size, sleek design and overall black colours make it as good for the prize-giving ceremony as for use during the regatta or underwater. The dial layout has all the classic diver’s watch features, though with the addition of a three-number date window reminiscent of IWC’s pilot’s watches. The rubber strap has a folding clasp with integrated diver extension. The screw-down crown has the RW logo. The movement has a power reserve 38 hours and is presumably the ETA 2824-2 automatic or an analogous third-party movement. The watch is reference 2760-SR1-20001, and it costs €2,090, available in boutiques from December 2016. Further information from the Raymond Weil website.
The Tag Heuer Aquaracer is perhaps the most modern and dramatically different of the diver’s watches featured in this article. The case is in titanium, with a black titanium carbide coating that gives it a distinctive surface texture. Water resistance is 300 metres, and the watch has a screw-down crown. The dial has horizontal fluting, on which the blue indices are applied by hand, with grey luminescent coating. The movement is the Tag Heuer calibre 5, probably the ETA 2824, running at 4 Hertz, 38 hours power reserve. The blue nylon strap with black stitching contributes a lot to the striking appearance. The watch, reference WAY208B.FC6382, costs €2,500. Further information from the Tag Heuer website. | 2019-04-18T21:02:10Z | https://timetransformed.com/2016/12/28/top-ten-diving-watches-under-e3000-2016/ |
Here’s the JREnsey blog for August, 2018. Welcome to all the new readers who have signed up to receive announcements of the postings. Thanks for visiting.
The manager of the Academy store in Tallahasee, FL was fired because he stopped a thief who had stolen a handgun. Dean Crouch, the store manager, saw the thief running for the door. He tackled him, and with help from another man, held him until police came. The thief was searched and his backpack showed he had a lot of ammunition in it. He had stolen two weapons from a pawn shop earlier in the day and they were in his backpack. Evidently he anticipated a shootout with someone.
Crouch was rewarded for his heroism, right? He might have saved a lot of lives by detaining the thief. So what did Academy do?
They fired him—“for putting his hands on the man.” Let’s see now. Should managers wag their finger at dangerous thieves running through the store and say: “Tsk, tsk. Now, now…one shouldn’t be stealing guns from us”? Should store employees stash nets near the doors so they can toss them over a running thief? That’s safe, huh…and a surefire way of handling armed robbers who might be looking to put a lot of folks away for good.
Could our country get any wackier? Maybe. See the next item.
Is our country founded by geniuses but run by idiots?
If you can get arrested for hunting or fishing without a license, but not for entering and remaining in the country illegally you might live in a nation that was founded by geniuses but is run by idiots.
If you have to get your parents’ permission to go on a field trip or to take an aspirin in school, but not to get an abortion—you might live in a nation that was founded by geniuses but is run by idiots.
If you MUST show your identification to board an airplane, cash a check, buy alcohol, or check out a library book, but not to vote for who runs the government—you might live in a nation that was founded by geniuses but is run by idiots.
If your government wants to prevent stable, law-abiding citizens from owning gun magazines that hold more than ten rounds, but gives twenty F-16 fighter jets to some crazy new leaders in the Middle East—you might live in a nation that was founded by geniuses but is run by idiots.
If, in the nation’s largest city, you can buy two 16-ounce sodas, but not one 24-ounce soda, because 24-ounces of a sugary drink might make you fat—you might live in a nation that was founded by geniuses but is run by idiots.
If an 80-year-old woman who is confined to a wheelchair or a three-year-old girl can be strip-searched by the TSA at the airport, but a woman in a burka or a hijab is only subject to having her neck and head searched—you might live in a nation that was founded by geniuses but is run by idiots.
If a seven-year-old boy can be thrown out of school for saying his teacher is “cute,” but hosting a sexual exploration or diversity class in grade school is perfectly acceptable—you might live in a nation that was founded by geniuses but is run by idiots.
If hard work and success are met with higher taxes and more government regulation and intrusion while not working is rewarded with food stamps, WIC checks, Medicaid benefits, subsidized housing, and free cell phones—you might live in a nation that was founded by geniuses but is run by idiots.
Better pay attention when crossing borders!
If you cross the Afghan border illegally, you will likely get shot.
…a job, a drivers license, social security card, welfare, food stamps, subsidized rent or a loan to buy a house, free education, free health care, a lobbyist in Washington, billions of dollars worth of public documents printed in your language, the right to carry your country’s flag while you burn the U.S. flag, protest that you don’t get enough respect, and, in some instances, you can vote.
I just wanted to make sure I had a firm grasp on the situation!
What Is Meant By “Older and More Reliable Manuscripts”?
Quite often we hear statements by biblical scholars and textual analysts that include a reference to “older and more reliable manuscripts.” They are referencing those manuscripts that are dated closer to the autographs—the original apostolic writings—as being more likely to reflect the Scriptures as they were written in the first century.
Sometimes those who insist on a single, early 17th century English version as being the only legitimate Bible, suggest that those who use other versions are using “fake Bibles” that are corrupt and worthless. Many of the accusers are not aware that the version of which they speak was based on a few very late (none earlier than the 12th century), expanded Greek manuscripts (MSS) hurriedly brought together by Desiderius Erasmus in 1516 in Basel, Switzerland to create a new Greek text. Neither Erasmus nor the later translators in 1611 had hands-on access to the “oldest and most reliable manuscripts“ of the New Testament. This fact is verified by the vast majority of conservative textual scholars and paleographers. However, publishers of anti-contemporary translations give the impression that the Erasmus’ manuscripts were “pure” and “perfect,” as though just passed from an apostle’s hand. They insist that earlier manuscripts are corrupt and worthless if they don’t read exactly like Erasmus’ seven at every word. That is patently false.
In our search for the truth, let’s define the terms. What do the terms “older and more reliable” mean when referring to biblical manuscripts? And what does the word “corrupt” mean when applied to manuscripts?
Let’s begin with the last one first—“corruption of manuscripts.” A dictionary supplies the definition of corruption: “the process by which a document or manuscript is altered, changed, or corrected.” Any manuscript that contains variants in word order, corrections, additions or deletions, or any changes that alter the meaning of a term(s), would by that definition be considered corrupt. In other words, all Greek manuscripts before the printing press came along are corrupt since no two hand-copied MSS are exactly alike. That is why textual analysis—critical comparison—is essential.
What is meant when textual analysts refer to “more reliable” manuscripts? Those who study ancient writings and manuscripts recognize that some scribes were more apt to amend the text. Some were very diligent; others were not. Some copied whole sentences after looking at the exemplar once; others would copy only one word or one letter at a time, enhancing accuracy. Some were neat; others not so much. For example, P75 is an early manuscript said to be written by a very careful scribe who preferred accuracy above neatness.
Some worked from a faithful exemplar, one that had fewer obvious errors or glosses;2 others copied an exemplar that had been poorly done with orthographic errors and emendations. For example, Codex Bezae (D, the oldest codex available to the 1611 translators but used very little) had readings from unknown sources that are found nowhere else. To use it to copy from would be inserting grave corruptions. Some scribes worked from one exemplar; others may have had access to two or three copies with different readings at places and therefore had to choose between them. Sometimes they just combined the readings, as in Luke 24:53 where some earlier MSS had “praising God” and others had “blessing God.” A later scribe included both to be sure.
A few scribes were sloppy orthographically, meaning they were not always careful with grammar and spelling. At times those elements play into the meaning of a word or verse. Textual critics and paleographers study the habits of certain scribes. They can usually tell if one person worked on a manuscript or if several hands were involved. The shape of the letters and the word order can often distinguish when another scribe takes over the copying.
Some copyists tended to pull material from the margins of exemplars while others were more skeptical of certain readings that might be sourced from liturgical use. Such additions have caused critics to label a certain manuscript as “unreliable.” That does not necessarily mean that it is totally unreliable in all places, but tends to have glitches here and there or yields to tradition more than faithfully following the exemplar.
Tracing an insertion, such as the doxology, through the manuscripts is not difficult for those trained in that work. As textual critic Bruce Metzger explains: “The ascription at the close of the Lord’s prayer occurs in several forms. In K L W D Q P f13 al it is the familiar triple strophic form [whereas others lack one part of it]…the old Latin manuscript k reads simply ‘for thine is the power for ever and ever.’ Some Greek manuscripts expand ‘for ever’ into for ever and ever,’ and most of them add ‘Amen.’ [Three] late minuscules (157 225 418—MSS from 12th to 14th centuries) append it further with a Trinitarian ascription, ‘for thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost forever. Amen.’ The same expansion occurs also at the close of the Lord’s prayer in the liturgy that is traditionally ascribed to John Chrysostom (347-407).”6 It seemed right and pious to the scribe who first added the ascription to the doxology for it to end like Matthew 28:19.
The slightly different readings in the KJV compared to modern versions arise mostly from additions to the Greek text in the process of copying. The scribes (mostly from the Greek Orthodox branch of Catholicism after AD 850-900) tended to add to the text rather than delete from it. They became accustomed to public readings of Scripture from lectionaries and prayer books, resulting in glosses coming into the text. Learning from earlier manuscripts that some words and even verses have been added to the text, major Bibles usually footnote those places to express the fact that “the earliest and more reliable manuscripts do not have these words.” Those places do not deny or change any apostolic doctrine.9 It is interesting that Erasmus himself referred to one of the MSS he used for his second edition of the TR as “unreliable.”10 Even Jerome (AD 347-420), the creator of the Latin Vulgate, also mentioned that a particular phrase was “not found in the old and reliable manuscripts” he worked with.11 This should remind us that “the older and more reliable manuscripts” is not a cliché that was coined by modern scholars.
We want our Bibles to be as free from conjectural emendations and scribal blunders as possible. As I’ve stated before, if words, phrases or verses were added to the Scriptures, they should be removed so as to maintain the purity of the Word of God. Textual analysis and the “older and more reliable manuscripts” have enabled us to trace much of the text of Scripture back to within 125-325 years from the dates of the autographs. Their work encourages us to have confidence that the Bible we hold in our hands is indeed the Word of God.
1 Textual critics acknowledge that older MSS, produced closer to the originals, are usually better and more reliable, although not in every case. Here is the testimony of one of the leading textual critics of the twentieth century: “It may therefore be stated as a general rule that the earlier a manuscript is, the better is its text likely to be. The rule is only a general one, and is liable to exceptions; for instance, a manuscript written in the year 1200, if copied direct from a manuscript of the year A.D. 350, will probably be more correct than a manuscript written in the year 1000, which was copied from one written in A.D. 850 or 900. Each manuscript must therefore be searched, to see if it shows signs of containing an early form of the test; but the general rule that the earliest manuscripts are the best will still usually hold good.” – Frederic G. Kenyon, Our Bible and the Ancient Manuscripts (London: Eyre and Spottiswoode, 1903), p. 8.
2 An “exemplar” is a previously written manuscript that is being copied by a scribe. A “gloss” is material pulled into the text usually from the marginal notes/commentary, or from liturgical use that the scribe feels should be a part of the text itself.
3 Erasmus noted in his Annotations in the first edition of the TR that none of the Latin manuscripts had the doxology, adding that they might have initially been inserted into the Greek MSS in accordance with liturgical custom. (Erika Rummel, Erasmus’ Annotations on the New Testament (Toronto: University of Toronto, 1986), p. 135) He included them because he leaned toward placing more authority on the Greek MSS than the Latin. He just did not have a sufficient number of ancient Greek MSS to work from. Generations of traditional use of the doxology, plus kingly/queenly authority added pressure to include it.
4 James White, The King James Only Controversy (Minneapolis: Bethany House Publishers, 1995), p. 252.
5 For example, the inclination to say, “Forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors,” follows the KJV, which borrowed the wording from Miles Coverdale’s 1535 translation. But if you instinctively say, “Forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who [or ‘them that’] trespass against us,” you are following William Tyndale’s English translation from the 1520s. When Tyndale’s rendering was modified by Thomas Cranmer for the 1549 Anglican Book of Common Prayer, “trespasses” came into common use as well. We hear both versions recited or sung today.
6 Bruce Metzger, A Textual Commentary of the Greek New Testament, (London: United Bible Societies, 1971), pp. 16,17. If they were inserting the Trinitarian formula in liturgical readings here in the fourth century, it is not difficult to accept that they could have added the Trinitarian ascription to Matthew 28:19, for which there is no known Greek witness before the fourth century. Many scholars and reference works come down on the side of the three-fold titles of Matthew 28:19 as having been added in the post-Nicene era. I am not saying it is an absolute fact that the long ending of Matthew was not in the earliest MSS of Matthew; we just don’t have a manuscript of Matthew containing that section of his Gospel. Were it now to be removed by contemporary scholars because of its non-existence in the earliest MSS, there would be an outcry: “But we have become accustomed to it. We like it. We are comfortable with it.” It would likely be the same response given to Jerome after he made the Latin Vulgate. Folks were uncomfortable with the changes in wording from the earlier Latin MSS. Truth, not tradition, should establish the parameters of our comfort zone.
7 Ibid., p. 17. It is also interesting to note this in Wikipedia.org/Lord’s Prayer: “In Orthodox Christianity and Byzantine Rite Eastern Catholic Churches, a similar doxology is sung within the context of the Divine Liturgy. Following the last line of the prayer, the priest sings “For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory, of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, now and ever and unto ages of ages.” It is not difficult to see how liturgical practices could influence textual copyists. The first mention of the “three person” Godhead addition to the Lord’s Prayer doxology was in Manuscript 157 dated to c. 1122.
9 The corrections actually strengthen Apostolic doctrine. (Examples: I John 5:7b,8a, Titus 2:13, II Peter 1:1, et al.). The largest changes involve the Pericope Adulterae (the woman taken in adultery), and the long ending of Mark. These passages usually appear in the text but are footnoted. Beyond that it is mostly words or phrases that are copied from other verses to harmonize the Scriptures. Acts 8:37 is not found in the earliest manuscripts, probably inserted from liturgical usage. Acts 9:5,6 have words no Greek MS has here (evidently copied from Chapters 22 and 26). The issue is not sufficiently serious to demand the kind of dissension that is currently in progress. Again, I have to supply the disclaimer that I am NOT trying to denigrate the KJV or trying to diminish anyone’s confidence in it. I am just trying to provide truth and understanding. If misrepresentation and deception were not utilized by the KJVO movement, and UPCI people were not condemned for using any other version than the KJV, it would not be an issue. All essential doctrines and lifestyle mandates can be harvested from the KJV and from the major translations of today. I urge all those who are interested in the truth about this topic to do their own objective research. Hundreds, perhaps thousands, of the Greek manuscripts have been digitized. They can be viewed in that format on the Internet, and in many cases can be viewed in libraries and museums around the world. Take advantage of the opportunity to do so.
10 Erika Rummel, Erasmus’ Annotations on the New Testament (Toronto: University of Toronto, 1986), p. 39.
Check out these Apostolic commentaries to assist you in sermon and lesson-building.
Here are the late E. L. Holley’s own teaching notes on the Book of Hebrews. His unique insight will provide a perspective that will shed new light on difficult passages. The material is clear, candid, and convincing. It has been winnowed so that the reader receives only the whole kernel, the heart of the matter and the real meaning that the author wanted to convey. The power of brevity is at work in these lines.
A follow-up Study for the new convert. This little booklet can be given to the new convert to go through alone and then come back to you with any questions they may have. It covers the new birth —what has happened to them and goes through what their responsibilities are now.
Order all materials shown above from Advanceministries.org/store or call 936-537-0250.
Many do, but it may be wise to think of it as a creative joy, not a money tree. However, it could hit the big time and you could make a few coins. Keep in mind that there are more than twice as many self-published books printed each year than traditionally published books (700,000 to 300,000). The chances of your book being stocked by a bookstore is about 1% (as of 2013). Forget profit; do it for reasons other than money. Do it to get your message out, to inspire other people, to meet a need you see that others may not be meeting.
Pray for our President and his nomination for a seat on the Supreme Court. Whether you are for or opposed to either of them, they need the prayers of God’s people that our nation is not further divided by this decision, which will impact America for generations. | 2019-04-22T14:01:42Z | https://jrenseyblog.wordpress.com/2018/08/01/jrensey-blog-for-august-2018/ |
Wondering how most students spend the summer after their first year? Not sure what types of jobs are available or what the timeline is for hiring? Then you won't want to miss the career services office annual Summer Opportunities Program for 1L's on Tuesday, January 27th at Noon, Room 510. Second and third year students will give you the inside scoop and describe their experiences including clerking for small/ medium size firms, volunteering for a public interest organization, clerking for a government agency, enrolling in a clinic through The Law Office's of Chicago-Kent, externing for a judge, and performing research for a professor.
Renowned speaker, journalist (The New York Times, L Magazine, among others), and lawyer Marci Nusbaum will be speaking on issues of importance to your career and job search including networking tips and alternative legal careers. Don’t miss this exceptional speaker whose legal career presentations have been called by a current law student “one of the most dynamic and helpful presentations” that he had ever attended. Program will occur on Tuesday, January 27th from 2:30 to 4:30 at DePaul Center 1 E. Jackson Room 8005 Chicago, Illinois 60604 This event is jointly sponsored by the Chicago Area Law School Consortium.
One of the best ways to prepare for upcoming interviews at the Midwest Public Interest Law Career Conference is to participate in a mock interview. Judith Saunders, former Assistant Dean of Career Services at Chicago-Kent, will conduct mock interviews for registered MPILCC students, by appointment only, on Tuesday and Wednesday, February 10th and 11th. Interested students should sign up in the Career Office (Room 360) ASAP as slots fill up quickly. Students will need to pick up a packet of information and drop off a copy of their resume when signing up. Sign-up deadline is noon on Monday February 2nd. Students are encouraged to come dressed as they would for an actual interview. Sessions are videotaped, after which students will receive a candid critique of their current interviewing skills while watching the video. Students interested in keeping a copy of their session are encouraged to bring their own blank videotape to the mock interview.
Want to work for the Government? Numerous employment opportunities exist for law students during their summer and school year as well as for entry level attorneys post graduation. Learn about various government agencies in Chicago and receive invaluable job search advice from Chicago-Kent alumnae from the following agencies: Cook County State's Attorney's Office, the Cook County Public Guardian, the Cook County Public Defender, the City of Chicago Department of Law, the Federal Defender and the United States Securities and Exchange Commission. Come here from the experts on February 3rd at Noon, Room 170.
On Wednesday, February 4th, at 3:00 pm in Room 510, the CSO is hosting a program to help students prepare for interviewing. You will hear valuable student perspectives on what employers look for in a candidate and you will be given hints and tips for making the most of your interviews. This program is highly recommended for all students intending on interviewing with employers this Spring.
On Thursday, February 26th from 4:30-6:30 p.m., the YLS will host Chicago's most influential law firms at the CBA Building. Firm representatives will be on hand to provide you with hiring and firm culture information. The event is free to all CBA members and CBA law student members (nonmembers can join at the door). Resumes are accepted at the discretion of the firms. Dress is business casual. To RSVP call the YLS at 312-554-2032 or send an e-mail to [email protected] with your CBA member number.
Check www.chicagobar.org/yls.html for a complete list of firms after January 16th.
The 17th Annual Robert M. Cover Public Interest Retreat "Confronting Challenges: Making Public Interest Work." will take place from February 27-29, 2004 at the Sargent Center (Boston University's Alumni Camp) near Peterborough, New Hampshire. This retreat will bring together 150 public interest law students, practitioners, and professors to a beautiful lakeside wooded New Hampshire retreat where participants will spend a weekend developing personal connections, discussing issues important to our careers and lives, and learning from one another. Applications will be available in January. Registration deadline February 6. For further information, see www.coverretreat.org.
The YLS will host its Fifth Annual Government Services Career Fair on Saturday, March 13th from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at Association Headquarters (321 S. Plymouth St.). The Fair will consist of a panel discussion on legal careers in public service followed by an opportunity to meet representatives from local government offices. Resumes will be accepted at the discretion of the government agencies. The cost of the event is $10 for CBA Members and CBA Law Student Members ($20 for nonmembers). To register, call CBA Ticketing at 312-554-2056. For more information on participating agencies and panelists, visit www.chicagobar.org/yls.html closer to the event date.
Do you want to help others, but you do not have a lot of time? If so, please consider spending just ONE day, May 14, 2004, away from the office doing rewarding work with other volunteers on behalf of women in need. Now in its fifth year, members of the Black Women Lawyers Association of Greater Chicago, Inc., Chicago Bar Association Alliance For Women, Chicago Bar Association Young Lawyers Section Women in the Law Committee, DuPage Women Lawyers Association, Hadassah Attorneys Council, Hispanic Lawyers Association of Illinois Latina Lawyers Committee, Illinois State Bar Association Minority and Women Participation Committee, Illinois State Bar Association Women and the Law Committee, and the Women’s Bar Association of Illinois collectively present the “Women Everywhere: Partners in Service Project.” On May 14, 2004, Women Everywhere volunteers will contribute their workday to a preselected community service agency dedicated to helping women in need or to an educational project benefiting young women and girls. Women Everywhere agency activities include direct service tasks, such as painting, building, gardening or cleaning, as well as legal education projects, such as presenting topical seminars and workshops, or providing job training information. If you are interested in participating in any of these exciting activities, please pick up a copy of an application form from the Career Services Office or contact Melanie Kushnir at [email protected] with any questions.
NOTE: In addition to the highlighted opportunities listed below, the CSO receives numerous job listings which are posted daily in the password protected "Lawmatch Job Posting System" accessible through the CSO website pages. If you are seeking employment, you should check those listings on a regular basis. If you do not have a password for the job posting system please e-mail [email protected].
The deadline for the Legal Honors Intern Program has been extended to Friday, February 13th. See job posting #78057 for details. For the application see handout #20 or go to www.hud.gov/offices/ogc.
Swanson, Martin & Bell, a Chicago civil litigation firm, is seeking a summer associate for 2004. Must be in top 25% of the class. Prefer a member of the Law Review or Moot Court participant. See job posting #80928.
The Computer Crime & Intellectual Property Section of the Criminal Division (CCIPS) is seeking applications for summer interns; these are unpaid/volunteer positions. CCIPS is responsible for resolving unique issues raised by emerging computer and telecommunications technologies and for overseeing the enforcement of federal laws on computer crime, electronic privacy, criminal copyright, trademark and trade secrets. Summer internships are full time and usually last between 10-12 weeks.
Interns work directly with attorneys on issues relating to computer and intellectual property crime. Typical intern projects have involved researching novel legal issues, drafting litigation documents for active cases and helping to draft Section publications. Fax or e-mail resume, cover letter, short legal writing sample (no more than 10 pages), and law school transcript (if available). Apply early; interviews are scheduled on a rolling basis starting December 1. Deadline is January 31, 2004.
QUALIFICATIONS: Strong academic background. Excellent research and writing skills. Interest in criminal law. Experience, knowledge, or interest in computers, telecommunications networks or other emerging technologies. Must be enrolled in law school. See job posting #80381.
The ABA Section of Litigation in partnership with CLEO is accepting applications for the Judicial Intern Opportunity Program. This is a full-time, six-week minimum, summer internship open to all first or second year minority law students who want to do legal research and writing for state or federal judges in participating cities in Illinois or Texas. Positions are filled on a rolling basis. Submit (3) copies of: completed application form (available on line), legal writing sample no more than 3 pages in length, and statement of interest. See handout #26 for details, job posting #80165. Deadline January 28, 2004.
The Jack Carey Scholarship is awarded to a law student who commits to being an intern or extern at the Cook County Public Defender's Office for one semester. The intern or extern must be currently enrolled in law school and work a minimum of 15 hours/week during the designated semester. Only students eligible for a 711 license can apply. The scholarship money is sent to the law school to help pay tuition. If Tuition has been paid, the money is released to the intern/extern. Pick up an application in the Career Services Office, handout #32. Application deadline for Summer is March 26th.
The Antitrust Bureau of Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan's office is currently seeking law student interns for the summer of 2004 on a full or part-time basis. The positions are unpaid, but it may be possible to obtain school credit with prior approval from the student's school. The student will serve as a volunteer law clerk which will provide excellent opportunities to improve his/her skills and knowledge in a wide range of subject areas, including consumer protection, government representation, civil rights, environmental enforcement, antitrust and other complex civil litigation, civil and criminal appeals, and criminal law enforcement. Interested students should read the description of the Office's law clerk program at http://www.ag.state.il.us/jobopps/lawclerk_application.htm. Any interested student should print out a copy of the application maintained on the web site and return it to either the address or fax number found at the web site. Please indicate Antitrust as the first choice on that form and note in their comments either that they heard of this opportunity from the career services office or otherwise have a primary interest in interning with the Antitrust Bureau. We also ask each student to include a copy of her/his resume with the application form. Please contact Blake L. Harrop at 312-814-1004 or e-mail: [email protected] if you have any questions about the Antitrust Bureau or the application process. Deadline is April 1, 2004. See job posting #82494.
Please note: See Prof. Gross about obtaining academic credit.
Equal Justice America Legal Service Summer Fellowships are available to law students working in organizations providing direct civil legal services to the poor. Students must secure a full-time (minimum 35 - 40 hours per week) placement for at least 10 weeks for a legal services organization. Completed applications must be received no later than March 17, 2004. See job posting # 78323.
This Fellowship is for 3Ls who will be incoming associates at participating law firms. The Fellowships are during the summer and allow adequate time to study for the Bar Exam. See handout #18 and job posting #77682 for complete details.
This program is for 1Ls and 2Ls. This is a 10-week program and pays a $4,500 stipend. The internship provides a valuable and unique opportunity to serve the needs of low-income people, work on policy issues, and put your knowledge to use in the public interest. Applications must be received before March 1. See handout # 19 and job posting #77691. NOTE: 1Ls cannot apply before December 1.
The brochure contains selection criteria, deadlines and other program-related information. Go to www.equaljusticeworks.org (click on "Find an opportunity > Equal Justice Works Fellowships > Apply for a Fellowship today!).
Interested in pursuing a fellowship upon graduation? Then be sure to check out PSLawNet's new "Fellowship Corner" which includes the full text of Yale's Fellowship Application Tips for 2002-2003, along with the expanded Appendix listing print and online fellowship resources. The site also contains a Fellowship Calendar with a chronological listing of application deadlines--a big help for potential applicants in planning and preparing their materials. Students can access the Fellowship Corner at the top of the left sidebar menu on the PSLawNet home page.
There are two typewriters available to students in the Career Services Office. They are available for use during our regular hours, no appointment needed. They are on a first-come, first-serve basis.
The Illinois State Bar Association offers high quality educational programs to its members, the Law Ed Series. These practical and affordable CLE programs are offered to law students at no charge and to Newly Admitted attorneys at a reduced tuition of $15.00 for a full-day program and $10.00 for a half-day program. For a listing of CLE programs available, visit the ISBA website, www.isba.org.
All of our handouts on resumes, cover letters, interviewing, job search strategies and others are available on our web site under the job search handout link.
All employment opportunities, paid or unpaid, clerking or volunteer, internship or externship, or fellowship, can be found in the new LawMatch system. To access this system, go to the current job posting system and click on the link for LawMatch Job Listings. Register yourself as a user, even if you have previously registered with LawMatch through another avenue. You will then be allowed to access the job postings. If you have your old password and student ID, please continue using them. If you haven't received your password, please contact the Career Services Office to get it. Remember to use the dashes in your Social Security # when entering your username and password.
Last Fall the Chicago Area Law Firm List, also known as the 4 or More List became available on-line in a password protected searchable database. Although every attempt is made at keeping the database current, some information may become out of date due to firm mergers, contact people leaving their firms, etc., it's suggested that all information be double-checked prior to sending out any cover letters and resumes. If you should learn of any changes, please notify our office via e-mail so we can update the database accordingly. Please contact [email protected] for the password to access the list. Please note, the password for this site is not the same as your job posting password.
Mayer, Brown, Rowe & Maw is seeking to sublet apartments for Summer Associates who will coming in from out of town. If interested in subletting, please contact Mary Boxer at 312-701-8439, fax 312-706-9234 or via e-mail: [email protected].
Schiff Hardin is seeking to sublet apartments for Summer Associates who will be coming in from out of town. If interested in subletting, please contact Lilly Tuller by mail at 6600 Sears Tower, Chicago, IL 60606 or via e-mail: [email protected].
The Career Services Office will close at 5 p.m. Monday - Friday. Evening appointments with Career Strategists will be available for alumnae/i and evening students, by appointment only, on Thursdays from 5 - 6:30 p.m. Please call the office at 312-906-5200 to set up an appointment. | 2019-04-23T18:05:22Z | http://www.kentlaw.edu/depts/cso/record_archives/20040126.html |
*As promised, I’ve come back to edit and flesh out a bit. Enjoy!
OK, it’s a thing and a very bad thing but I’ve been encountering a lot of misunderstanding about what it is (and what it isn’t). Drowning claims the lives of WAY too many children every year and real prevention comes down to supervision when kids are in the water. Delayed mortality from drowning has hallmark symptoms and parents need to know what those look like as well (and also when not to worry). OK, let’s talk about dry drowning (which, by the way, is not an accepted medical term – drowning is drowning, with or without mortality, see links below for more details).
In short, your child is not going to go swimming, swallow some water, have no issues in the water whatsoever, and then suddenly die without warning 4 days later from “dry drowning”. I know the stories you’ve been reading, they’re all over my newsfeed too. I know how the thought of losing your child makes you have actual physical chest pain because it does that to me too. I don’t have a pool at my house and that is intentional. I don’t want to take the risk that my kid could end up in it unsupervised. But I don’t want the kids of the world never going near the water again because their parents were frightened by a poorly researched Facebook article.
Remember that there is a lot of fake news and misinformation on the internet. Many authors do not care about delivering accurate, useful information. They care about the sensational headline. My major issues with the stories I’ve been reading lately are these: first, their misuse of the word “swallowing” when they mean aspiration. Second, their lack of discussion about REAL symptoms of actual drowning that parents should be watching for. Far too many kids die from drowning every year and it would be wonderful if the press would talk to some medical experts and get better information about drowning prevention out there to parents. Most of the stories I’ve read, however, give parents the impression that kids who have drowning with morbidity (the accepted medical term, check out the links below) swallowed some water, were fine for a few days and then suddenly died. It doesn’t really work like that. Drowning is more dramatic.
Here’s the deal, in brief: a human may experience inflammation in the lungs (pneumonitis) with massive fluid production and death after aspirating water. This is not the same thing as swallowing water and many people don’t understand the difference. Swallowed water goes into the esophagus and down through the digestive tract. Swallowing chlorinated pool water may make you throw up but it will not make you die of flash pulmonary edema. ASPIRATION is when the water goes into the trachea and down into the lungs. In this case, the patient in question will have an episode of distress after they come out (or are pulled out) of the water. You will see it and you will KNOW they are not OK. They will take longer to recover than they would after choking on a little orange juice at the dinner table. They will cough and gasp and sputter. They may even require intervention like CPR. And I’m pretty sure everyone understands that a child who is down in the water, gets pulled out, and requires resuscitation needs immediate medical attention, even if they seem to recover. If your child has an episode like this and then later continues to have coughing, vomiting, wheezing, chest or belly pain, or seems abnormally tired, we have a problem. Get to the ED. If your child goes swimming and does not have an aspiration event and afterwards they are perfectly fine . . . they are perfectly fine. Go ahead and go to the beach this weekend, people.
The key to preventing drowning? Supervision. There needs to be a designated child watcher. Just because there are ten adults present doesn’t mean one of them is paying attention to the kids. Have a plan. If it’s a party where you don’t really know anyone, this is not the time to make new friends. Watch your kids. If you’re watching them and they have an aspiration event, you will see it and you will get them the medical attention they need. If your child is participating in swimming activities when they are not with you, be the annoying parent. Ask questions about who will be supervising. Ask if anyone present has had lifeguard training. If you don’t like the answers you get, don’t send your kid. Hosting a pool party yourself this summer? Consider hiring a lifeguard.
OK, good talk! Oh, and wear sunscreen.
Lucky for me, the emergency medicine docs of the world have already knocked this topic out of the park so go read their stuff. You’ll feel better.
Very misleading article. There absolutely IS such a thing as dry drowning and you may have caused parents to relax while their little ones are around water. They need to keep their face out of their phones and WATCH their precious babies.
I’m sorry you feel that way. It’s not at all my intention to make parents complacent. On the contrary I am trying to stress the importance supervision around water. “Dry drowning” is not an accepted medical term and it is confusing to parents. Drowning with morbidity is real but it has hallmark symptoms. I have had moms in my office who are wanting to keep their kids out of water for the rest of their lives because of these stories when in reality, swimming lessons at an appropriate age would increase their safety. Water is to be respected but not feared and avoided. You are absolutely right the supervision is the key to preventing drowning deaths.
Did you read what she wrote? That is exactly what she said. You practically plagiarized.
That’s exactly what I just posted when I shared this to facebook. This article describes dry drowning while saying its not a thing? I don’t know anyone who thinks it means a child swallows water vs aspirates it. All the symptoms in this article are exactly the same symptoms from every “click bait” article.
I think that is what she said: WATCH your kids! Hire a lifeguard! Be the annoying parent! Nothing about this post makes me want to relax about my kids and swimming. The author is only clarifying medical conditions and terms. And if anything, she is reiterating how important it is that parents or adults in general supervise their kids while swimming.
I don’t usually negative comment. But I also have to agree. My Child gasped on some water the other day. I went over and gave her a hug to calm her down and she was playing a minute or so later. Later that day she got an all of a sudden chest cold and was tired from playing all day. now, luckily this was very poor timing, and it was in fact a quick come on cold. shes 9, and I didn’t think the chances were likely that it was more than that. But I called the nurse line just to be safe. They did in fact think dry drowning was a thing and had us get her vitals checked. it took maybe 10 minutes of our time in the pediatric ER. it was worth it! Keeping kids from water isn’t a good idea either, because they will find water one day. Your child is going to bump his head, it doesn’t doesn’t mean its a concussion or to wrap him in bubble wrap so that it never happens again. It also doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t watch out for signs of a concussion!. Its rare, its really rare. but somebody’s kid has died from this thinking it was nothing. Often the symptoms subside, but not always. I know your intent wasn’t to forget about the poor parents who suffer everyday from a loss that is just completely unimaginable without experiencing it first hand. I do, however, think some of those parents might disagree with how you went about this. I believe your intent was to say “have faith, have fun with your kids. There are scary things out there, we cant save them from everything. but having a habilitating fear will limit you and your kids from enjoying all life has to offer”. That I agree with!
You literally didn’t read the post did you? He/she LITERALLY said that there should be a designated adult watching the child AT ALL TIMES.
Exactly! Semantics of medically accepted or not are not important, education is. Saying it “isn’t real” and is confusing is literally just as bad.
How can you post that education is important while saying the “semantics of medically accepted or not are not important?” Education–including actual terms for conditions–is important.
Thank you so much for posting this. I’m so tired of every summer seeing all the dry and delayed drowning scare posts and tweets. It literally terrified me the first time I read about it. The last article I read about a kid dying at wolf lodge actually made me mad. It mixed up terminology, didn’t give enough information on anything, and was basically the blame game. Y’all, watch your kids. I’m at the pool nearly every day teaching my kids how to swim, and there are so many unattended, rowdy, obnoxious kids running around doing stupid things.
Thank you for this article. I watched my 3yr old granddaughter “drink” pool water several times, coughing each time (even to the point of vomiting once) which kept bringing the dry drowning thoughts to mind. I wish I had read your article beforehand!! As you stated, she is perfectly fine!
I agree with Audley. Dry drowning and secondary drowning are absolutely real and your article is misleading. Ask someone who has lost a child to “dry drowning” and this article is a slap in their face. I really appreciate your effort to help parents feel “less worried” about this rare type of drowning but please don’t sacrifice truth in your attempts to help us relax. Let’s don’t get caught up on terminology. Just because the specific term “dry drowning” is not an “accepted” medical term does not make it unreal. Most of us could care less whether the term is considered “accepted.” As a side note, the term “drowning with morbidity” is absolutely too confusing for most to understand. Keep it simple, yet truthful….. Let people know that dry drowning (however you want to call it) is real, educate them on the symptoms/warning signs then make them aware that there’s only a 1-2% chance that it will actually happen to them or someone they love.
They have only recently discontinued the use of “dry drowning, secondary drowning, etc” so that they could all be on the same page. But that doesn’t help when people don’t understand that drowning isn’t just done all at once. In cases where a child dies from dry drowning it wouldn’t even be considered drowning with morbidity, it would be fatal drowning which most people would assume meant they drown in the “normal” way. I agree with you 100%. Articles like this give a false case of security…dry downing is definitely a thing and parents need to be made aware, no matter what you want to call it.
Actually, these incidents only make up about 1-2% of all drowning incidents. Saying that there’s a “1-2% chance of this actually happening to them or someone they love is” is especially misleading. It’s like saying that 1 or 2 of 100 people you know will ahve this happen to them and that’s just plain wrong.
Amanda, do you understand what a 1-2% chance means? It means that 1-2 people in 100 will die this way. That would make it approximately 100x more common than suicide. Overall drowning deaths occur in about 1 in 1100 people, and *of these,* 1-2% are related to “dry drowning.” That’s 1 in 110000, or a .00001% chance; your estimate is literally off by over one hundred thousand.
The headline is misleading at best, the content of the article is very informative.
This is exactly what I’ve always heard described as dry drowning: it’s the lay man’s terminology for what you’re citing as drowning with morbidity. I’ll second that this article is misleading. While the few will believe swimming is to be avoided at all costs, the majority of people who have heard of dry drowning know it to be exactly as described in your article. And ironically enough, I saw your article title “Dry Drowning Doesn’t Exist” on Facebook. Now imagine the many other people who read the title, accept as truth that children can’t actually die from aspirating while swimming, and move on with that incorrect information. Because as parents, we’d much rather blindly believe that our kids can’t fall prey to something scary and accept this at face value than be well informed.
intrestion artical, however i feel it is missleading. not all kids show signs of aspiration. My daughter has what is called silent aspiration (dr diagonsed), there are times she aspirates and you have no idea until a few days later when she is sick.
She’s not saying that dry drowning doesn’t exist. In fact, she is very clear that (in its proper terminology) DOES exist. He is simply explaining why every parent shouldn’t assume a child is suffering from “dry drowning” just because they swallow water. I appreciate this article, because now I know the REAL symptoms to look out for, rather than the hysteria that the other articles are creating.
Thank you so much for this article. It makes sense to me now. My children are grown but I have 5 beautiful grandsons. Every time their parents take them to do anything with water I am sick to my stomach with worry. Thank you for clearing things up!
Did those of you who are complaining read the links posted at the bottom of the blog entry? The child who died most recently of “dry drowning” vomited for days. The child I first read about two years ago vomited, soiled his pants, and slept for hours in the middle of the day before he died. In each of the situations that I’ve read about, there were other signs that something was wrong. That is the point of the article; don’t worry that your child is going to suddenly die from drowning before you’re even aware that something is wrong. YOU WILL KNOW if something is wrong.
And for all of the hysteria over “dry drowning”, there are many, many more cases of actual drowning because children were not adequately supervised. That is the much greater risk.
This article was very reassuring to me; we have a swimming pool, and a nine-year-old daughter who is a very good swimmer but because of the sensationalist articles that my husband and I both read, we panicked every time she coughed in the water. I truly appreciated the explanation.
Your comment is condescending. I’m a lay person and know what aspiration is–one doesn’t need to be one of you “privileged medically educated” people to understand that term. I found the article helpful in explaining what was really occurring and I also don’t think she was adding to the hype or playing down the need for supervision and vigilance.
So, you’re anecdotal situation makes my comment condescending? Cool.
I agree with Vanessa. I’m fairly sure she was referring to the way you describe yourself as “us privileged medically educated” and refer to everyone else in the world as a “lay person” who couldn’t possibly know something about this subject. I think as someone in the medical field, you may want to revise your approach as to how you “inform” people in the future.
A number of people have found my originial title to be misleading or even offensive. This was never my intention so I have changed it. My intent in writing this piece is to reassure parents who have been asking me if they should literally never let their child go near a pool again. They fear that their child could have aspirated water and be at risk for mortality even with no symptoms whatsoever. I want people to have a better understanding of drowning in all its forms and still be able to enjoy the water with their children. I hope my edits make this piece less confusion. Cheers, readers!
In like some of the people that chose to comment I get what you are saying. I just got done having this conversation with my ex wife. To those who had the negative comments that is very unkind. This post was not done to create chaos.
Thank you so much for clarifying this! I’ve been aggravated with the ‘dry-drowning’ craze and misinformation for a couple summers now. You said it very well. I did not read through all the comments to see the negative ones. You just stated facts, that most people will understand if they had high-school biology.
Using Correct terminology is NOT misleading and is very important. People without medical backgrounds believe incorrect information all the time and a physician that cares enough to help educate their patients including explaining correct medical terminology are not arrogant. Continuing to use out of date and incorrect terminology about drowning is as bad as a physician that writes antibiotic rxs for viral illnesses because patients already believe they help. If a person has a drowning event it will be obvious. A more important thing is for parents to understand what constitutes supervision. As a general rule if you wouldn’t allow your child to play in your front yard without an adult specifically watching them then they should not be in the water without an adult in the water specifically watching them. A drowning event takes only seconds to happen and is virtually silent. A focus on more vigilant supervision could help prevent drowning tragedies from occurring in the 1st place.
This is really good information and will make people a little less paranoid if they actually read the article; however, I do not like the way it has been titles. It should say something more like, “Dry Drowning is not what you have been lead to believe it is”, or something along those lines. If I kept scrolling and didn’t read the article, I would think she was just saying that dry drowning doesn’t exist and is not to be of concern or something.
Thank you, appreciate the constructive feedback. I actually changed the title, can you see the new one? I’m new to this blogging thing.
Hi Dr. Kate, I thought this post was very good! You made an important point that active drowning poses a much greater risk to most children than delayed drowning, even though the latter is more sensationalized. Also, thank you for listing the signs/symptoms of aspiration. Prior to reading your article, I am not sure I would have recognized them.
Thanks for this post! Found it incredibly informative.
I agree that there has been a panic about dry drowning that is unnecessary. Unfortunately, your article includes inaccurate information about CPR, advice that could be fatal. It is never necessary to do CPR on a person with a pulse and doing so may kill them. A child in respiratory distress may require intervention such AR (NOT CPR!) or oxygen. It is a pretty irresponsible mistake to make in this article and ironic considering that the entire article is calling out others for spreading misinformation! Please fix it.
I didn’t say that dry drowning is common. I just said that there IS such a thing. I still feel the same way when I said your article is misleading. And to Blogging Father: my comment was not meant to be unkind or create chaos. My intent is to keep parents, grandparents, caretakers and sitters alert and aware of the possibilities.
Go google “Oprah and dry drowning”. You’ll find a link to a show she did several years ago about a mother whose son died after being in a swimming pool for a short time. He was asymptomatic except for feeling sleepy. She put him to bed early thinking he was just tired from swimming and being in the sun.
Why must every subject that is disagreed with be held in such contempt these days? I’m neither unkind nor trying to create chaos. Just simply trying to engage in meaningful conversation about an important subject that could either keep parents more relaxed than they should be or cause them to be neurotic and constantly worried. I’m hoping this subject and any conversations among us who are a part of it will do one thing: to keep us all alert, aware and informed.
Great article! I agree supervision is key! In addition to supervision, what are your thoughts on infant survival classes? | 2019-04-19T10:16:12Z | https://dockatevaccineblog.wordpress.com/2017/06/18/dry-drowning-which-is-not-a-thing/ |
At 07:00 hours on Saturday 22nd September a Team of HARS radio amateurs arrived at the Headquarters of the Nene Valley Railway (NVR) at Wansford Station, Peterborough to set up and operate for the Railways on the Air (ROTA) weekend.
Once we had set up the full sized G5RV antenna and gazebo in the car park and connected the Icom IC-7200 radio we were ready to start operating the callsign; our first QSO was at 08.28 hours with Mike G0NEV down on the south coast with a signal report 5 and 9 both ways – the kit all worked! As a Team we continued throughout the day changing operators and loggers when required and gently completed the third page by 14:24 hours, with the final page for the day being competed with a QSO through Chris G8GWK before closing down the station at 16:30 hours. During the planning meeting prior to the event we had decide to only put the station on for the Saturday this being due to the heavy rain and stormy winds predicted on the Sunday however having carried out a review we all decided that on Sunday the weather forecast had greatly improved so we would all return to operate again, we administered some additional lashings eternally and internally to the gazebo so that it remained in the car park and not some tree that surrounded the carpark! A count up of the logbook revealed we had worked 101 QSO’s, 11 of the being ROTA stations, 1 Museum (Duxford), 1 SES (Marconi) and a handful of European stations – operating conditions had been good for us.
On the Sunday we arrive a little later than the Saturday as most of the station was still setup from the previous day we found it serviceable and we were soon operating from 09:07 with the first QSO logged for the day with Mario OR4KW 5 and 7 both ways with others calling into the station once a spot had been logged onto DXHEAT website. Occasional CQ calls were put out with replying stations returning and at times we had to control the pile ups that we experienced. Our final tally for the day was 105 QSO’s, 9 of them Railways and for the first time that the team can remember we had logged a QSO from George 2J0GUR over in Jersey. Operating conditions had been good for us during the operating period with only occasional QSB effecting our QSO’s.
During the weekend we ran solely on 12v Leisure batteries (75 and 120 Amp) these gave us ample power to our IC -7200 putting out 100 watts as there was no mains power nearby; if you have to operate remotely like we did we can recommend this battery as it stands up to this type of use and lasts the period of operating.
To conclude we had 206 QSO’s with 20 Railways which made an enjoyable weekend along with plenty of Team banter, tea, coffee and of course bacon rolls and cake from the Railway Cafe!
Over the weekend you may have experienced during QSO’s the occasional toot or whistle or clang-clang sound from the 60163 Tornado Class A1 Locomotive in the background as she was running up and down from Wansford to Peterborough station after being repaired in the workshop; the locomotive came to a stop just south of Sandy, Beds with a broken combination lever, investigations had revealed that this was due to the middle piston valve overheating and binding in the valve chest causing some parts to break and make her unserviceable. Tornado had been at Nene Valley since middle of April 18. We also caught site of the 0-6-0T engine No. 1800 Thomas the Tank engine which is also at NVR, others are available around the UK but this is the real one as Rev W Audrey who in 1947 wrote his second book in the Thomas the Tank engine series at the time that the train was built, the author lived just 5 miles south of Wansford.
Thanks go to the NVR for accommodating us in their busy car park so that we could run the station over the weekend, also to Club members for their time - Mervyn G4KLE, David M0VTG (Organiser), Steve G1KWF, David M0SKT and for the Sunday morning stint Richard 2E0FRQ.
Huntingdonshire Amateur Radio Society set up for our third year at St Mary’s Church, Buckden, Cambridgeshire. We had 11 members of the club turn up throughout the day to either assist in setting up, just visit and operate and then break down the station.
The Church Wardens had managed to drop a rope with a pulley from the top of the tower and we secured one end of our G5RV to this and the other end went over a very old and large Oak tree in the church grounds, so our antenna was about 50ft above the ground.
Our first contact to test the Antenna and Rig was Mark/KD4D in Huntingtown, Maryland USA, a good test. at the end of play we had had 63 contacts with 21 Churches and Chapels plus two other Special Event stations.
On the 1st April this year the Royal Air Force entered it 100 year since its formation this gave the opportunity to put on a Special ‘Special’ event radio station using the callsign GB0WY at RAF Wyton, Cambridgeshire. This year marked the fifth year that the event has taken place on the station, it's location and history is always a source of discussion and is popular with radio amateurs who may have worked, visited or flown from RAF Wyton.
By utilising Cadets and Staff from local RAF Air Cadet Squadrons and the Event Team from Hunts Hams a suitable radio station was set up using rooms in No 2331 (St Ives) Squadrons Headquarters which used to be the old Station Survival Equipment Flight complete with the brake chute drying tower attached to it.
Utilising various club members and cadet staff we all had turns at the microphone during the day with the Cadets having some radio theory and practical sessions interspersed during the day..... nothing to complex or technical for them as they are our future Amateur radio blood and we wanted them to enjoy the experience plus gain some useful knowledge during the day we logged 110 contacts.
The 7th April saw day two of operating from RAF Wyton with a re-run of the rigging of the station which all worked very well the weekend before. We were soon on air calling CQ on 80Mtrs and our first contact was G0AWV at 08.55 hours with calls from other UK stations continuing throughout the morning, our first contact in Europe was PA1MV - Japp in Delft, Holland at 11.12 hours. We move onto 40Mtrs after midday working MM6YLM Michelle in the Shetland Isles, not quite DX but well worth working her and her Grandad. Then followed many contacts from Germany, Switzerland, Bavaria, Czech Republic, Croatia, France, Italy and then back into the UK. We also maintained a listening watch for two special callsigns - VP8RAF/100 located at Mount Pleasant Airport, Falkland Islands and ZB2RAF in RAF Gibraltar but due to operating conditions we were unable to make contact with them. During the second day of operation we logged 113 OSO's which made our total of 223 during the event this was helped by the excellent and simple set up of the equipment and the seasoned operators and loggers along with the cadets who attended the event and learnt a lot more about radio communications.
The Huntingdonshire Amateur Radio Society once again this year took part in Railways on the Air as GB0NVR at Wansford Station on the Nene Valley Railway near Peterborough. The NVR management this year invited us onto the main platform where Mervyn G4KLE, David M0VTG, Malcolm M0OLG, and Gerald G8AKL erected our gazebo and antenna on the Friday afternoon. This year ROTA coincided with Thomas the Tank Engine weekend and so we were able to enjoy the look on the children's faces as Thomas came steaming in. Thomas at NVR is, of course, the only true Thomas as the Reverend Audrey the author of the books of our childhood and living as he did in Stilton just 5 or so miles away personally named Thomas at NVR many years ago.
Altogether we had contacts with 82 stations, twelve of which were other ROTA stations. The equipment used was the Society's ICOM IC-7200, LDG 100 Pro II, and G5RV at about 20 feet roughly east-west. During the weekend we also watched “92 Squadron” Battle of Britain class 'Spamcan' haul trains to Peterborough while Thomas chuffed his way through the tunnel to Yarwell and back.
We were visited again this year by Bishop David (Bishop of Huntingdon) who made a beeline to us, sat down and listened to a contact. The ladies of the church kept us refreshed with tea/coffee and homemade cakes throughout the morning, some came over and asked many questions about Amateur Radio.
A Big Thank You to those few who helped set up on the Sunday evening and all those members who put a lot of effort into helping from 7 am Monday morning with Car Parking, Gate Operating, the Bring and Buy stall and just meeting and greeting on behalf of HARS.
On Saturday 12th August, 18 members and some Station Managers visited the Radio Display and Mini Museum of 2E0IEG (Marc).
A friend brought over an old Airfield Fire Engine called HENRY that Malcolm (alias Henry - M0OLG) sat in to have a play and ring the bell (boys and their toys). You know he is always looking for a new vehicle to go /Mobile.
Another outing for HARS, this time to support Buckden Village Hall and their Village Fete.
Malcolm (M0OLG) offered us the use of his caravan as our temporary home, so it was decided after a recce in May that we would site ourselves at the back of the museum's main building which gave us enough estate to put up masts and antenna.
On Saturday 24th, we all paraded at 08:00hrs to start operating, Steve (G1KWF) had already set up the IC7200 and tested all equipment so we were ready to start. Malcolm made the brew and we had our first contact into Kent at 08:20 on 20m with a report of 5/9+20db – a great start. We also contacted Roger TM53IMW for the second year, who is operating a similar rural museum station from Musée de l'Évolution Agricole, JUVIGNÉ , France.
During the weekend of 13 & 14 May Amateurs from (HARS) activated Duloe Tower Mill, Eaton Socon using the callsign Golf Bravo Two Delta Whiskey Mike (GB2DWM). This activation is for the National Mills on the Air weekend which is run every year on or around the second weekend in May. This is an ideal time to promote Amateur radio while helping to preserve some of our heritage, many types of mills take part albeit steam, water or wind. National Mills Weekend is the annual festival of our milling heritage and provides you with a fantastic opportunity to visit mills which we have many locally.
Operating from the grounds of the mill by kind permission of the owners we set up our dome tent which provides enough room for two stations to operate comfortably with refreshment and seating area for other club members eager to operate or log calls. We operated on HF and VHF, again this year due to the band conditions HF was somewhat of a challenge at times; however we did manage to log 200 calls into the station this year with contacts from all over the UK, most of the European countries with the best distance contact on the Saturday afternoon into Abu Dhabi in the United Emirates with A61FK, he was running 700 watts into his 6 element beam, not bad at 3461 miles distance, we were running about 80 watts from the Icom IC-7200 into a fullsize G5RV. Seven Mill SES were contacted with eleven QSOs taking place over the period of operation.
Sunday was a much quieter day for the station with QSO's taking longer due to the QSB and more interest in the exchange of the stations information, we found that putting the operating frequency onto QRZ.COM helped others locate us in the bands and regularly updating when we looked around the frequencies.
Thanks go again to the dedicated team of 12 club members who assisted during the weekend....even if it was only to make the refreshments during change of operator or logger your help is appreciated!
Putting up and de-rigging of the station only takes about an hour each time as we have now got it down to a tee.
Checkout our events page on the website for the rest of the years SES activity, if any interest you contact the event organiser.
Once we were behind the wire on the north of the airfield we got set up reasonably quickly, we had the occasional cry of ‘In Coming’ as Mervyn G4KLE attempted to brake some of the Hanger windows with his catapult and golf ball, seriously he was trying to get a line over the huge hangar door framing so that we could tie off one end of the antenna, he eventually succeeded with the correct amount of twanging!
Once back inside we operated a shift system with the usual operators and loggers swapping over from time to time. Due to poor HF conditions we utilised some of the media available to us - QRZ.com, FACBOOK and DX Summit. This enabled the station to advertise our callsign and operating frequency, we felt that this aided to amount of contacts we managed to capture during the day, this gave the team food for thought as this may be a way for our future events... you do need someone with the laptop in front of them so that you can keep a keen eye on the frequency readout and update when required!
We operated on the 80, 60, 40 and 20 Mtr bands chasing the propagation and openings where we could.
Here is a roundup of the 53 contacts for the day:- 8 on CW – Thanks Clive G3HKQ the CW Master for working his socks off with the straight key even with local QRM in the room! 45 on Phone - team effort here with local stations from the Cambridge area along with stations from Finland, Russia, Turkey, Serbia, Germany, Poland, America, France, Ireland and Wales. Rob - G3FXA, QTH in Kettering remotely operated us from Las Vegas via his Iphone! Sadly only two other Airfields were contacted so unfortunately no chance of a certificate this year for GB0WY!
Our set up this year was the Club IC-7200, LDG ATU, a full-sized G5RV mounted onto the portable mast running 100 watts straight out. The set up worked well for us and behaved itself all day and was used as a test for the other SES that the Club has planned for 2017, go to http://hunts-hams.weebly.com/future-events.html for further details.
Thanks go to M0VTG, G4KLE, G3HKQ, G1KWF, G6LSB and M0JWS for their company and time during the enjoyable day, to HARS for the loan of the equipment for the event and 2E0DIP for organising the event and arranging access to the Station.
HARs members tuck into the usual fare of turkey, roast potatoes and a selection of vegtables at the annual HARs Xmas dinner.
Chairman David (G7DUI) looks on with interest as Andy shows the end of stage 1 of the construction of a 2m/70cm "Flowerpot" antenna.
To the extreme left is a version of the antenna for 4m/70MHz.
A very interesting talk was given by Andy G6OHM on the subject of Flowerpot antennas, which he builds and supplies.
Any HARs member interested in purchasing one of these antennas should contact Andy directly.
The first surprise was that before the presentation there was no computer in sight, despite Andy standing in front of a large pull down projector screen.
Andy was able to give the presentation only looking at a few written notes only, and what was impressive was that as he was describing the history of the antenna, he started to build a dual bander 2m and 70cm antenna right in front of the audience, in order to demonstrate how easy it was.
You will need about 3m of RG58 coax (MIL spec is recommended as it has a braided screen), a plastic tube of 22mm diameter. Firstly the coax is prepared by stripping back about 1/4 wavelength (at 2m) of plastic covering and outer braid.
A 7mm hole is drilled in a specific place on the tube, and the stripped coax is inserted into the tube and the end secured at what becomes the top of the plastic tube. Next to the hole the coax is wound around the plastic tube about 14 times, to act as both a choke and match circuit. Andy had the end of the coax plugged into a MFJ-259 and was able to get to around 1.5 to 1 SWR reading, by simply adjusting the number of turns.
He then went ahead an explained that simply by wrapping some aluminium foil around the upper part of the tube of a specific length (235mm), the antenna now would work on 70cm as well as 2m. Adjusting the position of the aluminium sleve up or down changes the portion of the 70cm band which gets the lowest SWR. Andy's commercial antennas used a proper piece of aluminium tubing, rather than the aluminium container from the take-away (which he used in the demonstration), but it was interesting to know just how cheaply this antenna could be made for.
Andy is obviously a great "re-purposer", as he explained that a plastic cork from a bottle of wine could be used to make the end of the plastic tubing watertight. Trapping some thin cord or fishing line at this point allows the antenna to be hung from a suitable tree or internal structure such as a curtain rail.
Andy continued explaining how the design could be used on 4m (where he found that the diameter of the pipe was quite critical when winding the choke/match), 6m and even 10m (where the choke was wound on quite a large plastic container).
The talk completed with questions and answers, before HARs club members showed their appreciation in the usual manner with a hearty round of applause.
On Saturday morning we arrived at the church to very different weather conditions, it had been raining all night and it was still raining quite heavily (good decision to erect antenna on Friday). Unfortunately the rain had worked on the ropes holding up the G5RV and with shrinkage; one end of the antenna was now laying on the ground. A quick repair and we were in business again, but with a slightly lower to the ground antenna. The Icom 7200 was installed, earth fitted so up and running by 09:20 (local). Our first contact was at 09:30 with Steve on the Mic talking to GB1SKC, St Keverne, Cornwall - the operator at the other end was Ivan, a former Chairman of the Huntingdonshire Amateur Radio Society, a great start.
Once again the Society ran a Special Event Station for Railways on the Air at Nene Valley Railway, Wansford Station. Nigel G6LSB and David M0VTG arrived on site at 0700 hrs local time and erected an OCFD along the fence line of the car park. Malcolm M0OLG arrived to assist in the erection of the gazeebo and all was set for operations before 0900 hrs.
Initially on batteries and with a little adjustment to the transceiver assisted by reports from Sid M0SRS and Peter 2E0PRP the final adjustment being confirmed as good from further afield by Mike G8ALS (Coventry). Propagation conditions proved to be rather variable at first but soon settled down to provide good inter G contacts for most of Saturday. Italian, German and Dutch stations were also worked. Altogether we worked 14 other ROTA Stations ably assisted by Phil G7KJW who had a good stint on the mic. The wx stayed fine but we were glad of the gazeebo as the breeze became quite strong during the day prompting us the check the forecast which predicted 35 mph gusts overnight and 2.4 mm of rain early morning. A decision was made in early afternoon to disassemble everything as the gazeebo was becoming stressed and would not last the night. The outcome was that we did not return on the Sunday.
However, we worked 50 stations in total with the last 20 comprising a pile-up worked by M0VTG whilst G6LSB went to the cafe to bring back some cake. We all agreed that we had had a good day and the decision to quit left us on a high and in good spirits. We will return, no doubt, next year but M0VTG may well be in Canada at that time; some one else will have to lead.
For the fourth year the special event Station GB2DWM located at Duloe Mill, Eaton Socon was setup and run by members of HARS.
We had in attendance over the two days 12 Club Members as either operators or loggers on HF and VHF stations, I must add that they did not all arrive at once but came in shifts as agreed to spread the load, this proved to be a good team building exercise with plenty of banter around the station, this may have been due to the copious amounts of tea and coffee which were consumed or was it the choccy biscuits on offer!
With conditions being as they were several club members brought along various radios and antennas for operation to the fact that we had nine different radios on the desks during the weekend which did create plenty of interest, discussion and head scratching when trying to locate the appropriate button or knob. All the items proved successful with QSO’s were being made when in use.
Conditions were not kind to us for operating HF with only 62 contacts being logged these being into Holland, Belgium, NW France, Ireland, Germany, West Poland, Switzerland, John O Grouts Scotland, and finally Canada.
Moving onto VHF were conditions proved better with 50 QSO taking place from The Peak District, North Wales, North Yorkshire and many other QSO’s within 75 miles of our location, we utilised both a Co-linear and a 10 Element VHF Yagi Beam obviously not at the same time to make these contacts and employed the Armstrong antenna rotator to spin the beam around.
My thanks go to HARS for the loan of the kit and to the members who came along and fully engaged with the operation of the event and enjoyed the good weather we had over the weekend. | 2019-04-25T04:22:51Z | http://hunts-hams.weebly.com/past-event-reports.html |
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