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0.998168 | Let's be honest here - it's time for a Shortcut Shakshuka recipe. Shakshuka is a baked egg and tomato-based dish of Tunisian and Moroccan Jewish origin, served both as a breakfast dish as well as at dinnertime. It's all the rage right now, but every time I tried to make it, I got frustrated - this was not a quick and easy dinner. The concept behind shakshuka is baked eggs, meaning you need to put your skillet into the oven to cook the eggs in the tomato sauce. This takes forever to do. And it also means you need to have an oven safe skillet so you don't burn your hand off. I have no patience for all of this, and I also hate undercooked eggs. BUT, I do love shakshuka - it's a savory, smoky, and inexpensive meal. SO, I bring you my solution: Shortcut Shakshuka. I whip up the fried eggs in a separate pan in 3 minutes and am so. much. happier.
This recipe also has ZERO prep time. You add your ingredients to a saucepan, fry a few eggs, and you're sitting down to a delicious dinner in 7 minutes. This is mostly made possible by the existence of Trader Joe's - particularly their Eggplant Garlic Spread with Sweet Red Peppers. I love the inclusion of the sweet red peppers to classic Shakshuka recipes like this one from the New York Times - but that's one more step. This spread adds garlic and the sweet red peppers to your recipe with no extra work - plus the eggplant adds a delicious depth of flavor without overpowering anything.
If you want, you can add some prep time by sautéing a bit of onion in the bottom of the pan before adding the sauces, but I've found you don't even need it. The spices are also optional - the Trader Joe's spread is flavorful enough that you don't need them, but they are good spices to have on hand anyways if you want to purchase a set for your pantry. Either way, you'll be enjoying a budget-friendly and really healthy dinner in no time.
1/2 cup uncooked farro *Optional*Substitute: white beans, quinoa, wild rice, etc.
Dairy Free: No feta cheese.
Vegan-Friendly Not super vegan friendly because you'd have to leave out the eggs and feta, but you could add extra grains and chickpeas for protein.
1. Add 1/2 cup of dry, pearled farro and 1 cup of water to a pot. Bring to a boil. Turn down to low heat, let simmer for approximately 25 minutes, until farro is tender [Important Ratio: 1:2 dry farro:cooked farro, 1:2 farro:water].
2. Turn the burner on to medium. Add 1 cup tomato sauce and 1/2 cup Trader Joe's Eggplant Garlic Spread with Sweet Red Peppers and warm.
3. Add the 1 teaspoon paprika and 1 teaspoon cumin to the sauce, stir to combine.
4. Once the farro is cooked, stir the farro into the sauce.
5. Add 1/4 cup feta cheese and stir.
6. *In a separate pan* heat the burner to medium heat and add a bit of oil, butter, or non-stick spray.
7. Crack 2 eggs into the pan. Cook the eggs to desired doneness. Check out How to Fry an Egg for guidance.
8. Once the eggs are done, slide the finished eggs on top of the tomato mixture. Top with cilantro or parsley and enjoy.
LUNCH TOMORROW - While I've enjoyed the tomato sauce/farro/feta mixture leftover, it's best to fry the additional eggs separately. This means that this recipe isn't the best option to bring for lunch (although you could enjoy it without the fried eggs) but it's perfect for another dinner. Just warm up the sauce and fry a few more eggs fresh!
STORING - Store in an airtight container in the fridge for 2-3 days. Again, you don't want to have any leftover cooked eggs.
EXTRA INGREDIENTS - Feta is great in salads, a pasta dish, or over a Mediterranean-inspired chicken dish. Cilantro can be used in my Five Minute Fish Taco Bowls and parsley in the Middle Eastern Grain Bowls. Try the Eggplant Garlic Spread with Sweet Red Peppers as a pasta sauce, over grilled veggies, as a topping for bruschetta. Use any extra tomato sauce to make homemade pizzas! | 2019-04-22T02:18:46 | http://themillennialmenu.com/blog/shortcut-shakshuka-recipe |
0.99833 | 1) In a small pot put 2 cups of water and the 6 peppers to boil for a 1 minute. Cut peppers in half and remove seeds.
2) Slice cream cheese into 1 ounce strips, and put into sliced peppers. Then wrap with cooked bacon.
3) In a baking pan, arranged the 6 wrapped peppers. Bake for 18 minutes at 350°F. | 2019-04-19T11:31:34 | https://www.myfoodandfamily.com/member-recipe/00433501/cheese-stuffed-jalapeno-peppers-wrapped-in-bacon |
0.999999 | Hi guys! Are the following sentences used correctly in this situation?
1. Excuse me! Would you mind removing your hair so that I can see my screen clearly?
2. Excuse me! Your hair is blocking my screen.
#2. The first sounds like removing the hair from the head.
Tho both are more polite than what I'd say!
4. TSA has confiscated my scissors, which is unfortunate for you, because I may have to remove your hair another way.
5. Pardon me, would you mind if I dispose of my chewing gum on the tail of your horse?
6. Excuse me. Will you remove your hair from my seating-area, or will I kick your seat from here to La Guardia?
7. Sorry, Miss, but you might want to check your wig for embedded trash.
8. Hello. I posted your hair on Facebook, and one of my friends has asked me to buy it for him. How much is it?
I am intrigued by your use of "miss". In my experience, albeit limited, a "Miss" will have very kempt hair whereas the hair in the photograph appears unkempt. This suggests, to me, a "him".
I would like to thank you all very much for the witty versions. | 2019-04-23T01:02:42 | http://www.wordwizard.com/phpbb3/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=27107 |
0.99989 | Is there a way to export a map in HTML?
I've created several maps with photos in bubbles attached to places, but after a few photo bubbles, the map gets hard to read.
I'd like to be able to export the base map with markers and hyperlink those markers to the appropriate photos.
This would be especially useful for mapping a cemetery.
You can export to a graphics file to use in an html page. Zoom to whatever you want on the site, then go into publisher. You can customize the map there and then under the file menu you can export to a graphics file of various formats. | 2019-04-23T02:21:29 | http://forums.rootsmagic.com/index.php?/topic/5960-maps-for-web-pages/ |
0.999566 | In discussion at Gelman's blog, I gave a kind of summary description of what I thought Frequentist statistics was about (that is, principled frequentist as opposed to just "what is done a lot"). One of the commenters "ojm" felt that I was really misstating the case.
So, I sat down to try to figure out what frequentist statistics was more carefully, and went to one of the "sources" I felt very comfortable with: Larry Wasserman. Larry defines a Frequentist Inference as one in which we "construct [a] procedure with frequency guarantees"
But in what sense is this "guarantee" correct? Every one of these guarantees is of the approximate form "Random Number Generators of the type will produce data such that is in interval 95% of the time that a sample is taken"
So, when can we apply Frequentist procedures to *real world* processes, and expect anything useful?
Frequentist inference about a finite population at a given time with an approximately known distribution, using a random number generator to sample the population.
In this case, I think we're good, since we're relying on a random number generator there really is an so to speak.
Frequentist inference about a finite population at a given time without an approximately known distribution using a random number generator to sample the population.
Again, we have a random number generator but it gets mapped through an unknown distribution of population values, but we can still construct "distribution free" inferences. It's possible! Things like Bootstrap and permutation tests and soforth have this flavor.
Frequentist inference about a finite population at a given time with an approximately known distribution and a sample where we have an approximate model of the sampling process.
Here we're on shakier territory. We took a sample, but we don't know exactly how that sample was produced, but we have an approximate model. Here we can at least get conditional on the model being good enough, something of use.
Frequentist inference about a finite population at a given time with an unknown distribution and an unknown sampling process for which we have no good model (Say, convenience sampling of Mechanical Turk respondents to a survey).
Frequentist inference about a process through time considered as an infinite set of potential samples (ie. the measurement error distribution of an electronic instrument used to make many repeated measurements) where we have scientific reasons to believe the frequency distribution is stable.
This might work, so long as that science holds. But the term "frequency guarantee" sounds a lot stronger than "provided the world acts like random number generator R then ..."
Frequentist inference in which you use an IID sampling type likelihood that isn't calibrated to a known distributional shape for the output of some process that isn't RNG based sampling of a finite population, and you do maximum likelihood estimation.
This is a Bayesian calculation, but depending on how you actually construct a confidence interval, you might be adding something in that is Frequentist here... but most likely not based on what I typically see people do. I'd recommend accepting that you made assumptions to choose that Likelihood based on what you know (a fact in your head) and are calculating what that implies about other facts using probability theory as generalized logic. Oh, and just because you didn't put in a prior doesn't mean you don't have one, you just have a flat one. | 2019-04-25T04:55:10 | http://models.street-artists.org/2016/04/29/what-really-constitutes-frequentist/ |
0.998233 | How long before Wisconsin electricity customers regret loss of Kewaunee?
After a number of discussions with people in positions close to the decision to destroy the Kewaunee nuclear power station, I am now about 98% sure that it will be shut down as currently scheduled in May of 2013. I am also about 95% sure that the decision will cost electricity customers in the Midwest Independent System Operator (MISO) grid a substantial quantity of money during the 20 years that the plant could have remained in operation.
About the only thing that can save the plant at this point is the arrival of a well-capitalized white knight who recognizes the value of a licensed nuclear power plant, 900 acres of surrounding land, and the potential for finding electricity customers that will pay a premium for predictable energy prices more than 1 year into the future. It might also help if the white knight is an out of the box thinker who realizes that nuclear reactors can do more than just produce electricity.
Here are some of the things that I have learned in the past week, some of which I find rather disturbing.
Kewaunee has enough fuel remaining to operate into the fall of 2013.
In 2012, Kewaunee operated with an average capacity factor above 90% and produced 4.5 billion kilowatt hours of emission-free electricity.
Entergy, Exelon and Next Era did not make offers, despite having performed some due diligence.
A Wall Street mergers and acquisition (M&A) specialist stated that if those companies could not make the numbers work, no one could.
No one I spoke to put any value on the emission-free nature of the power output.
Everyone I spoke to was concerned only about current electricity market prices.
No one recognized the opportunity associated with future market price increases.
At least one decision maker at a major provider of cloud based services is firmly opposed to the use of nuclear energy.
The employees at the facility have mixed perspectives on the closure.
Some have few ties to the local area and have already found other jobs.
Some are nearing retirement and see the buyouts as an unexpected windfall.
Many people in the nuclear industry are happy about the immediate jobs associated with decommissioning the plant.
One of the things that became abundantly clear is that many of the people I talked to are quite sanguine about shutting down a uranium fueled plant and replacing its output with either coal or natural gas. Some of the people talked about the low price and low risk associated with burning natural gas compared to the fixed costs of operating a nuclear plant and the liability risk associated with nuclear energy.
I have a difficult time understanding how anyone can consider increased dependence on natural gas to be a less risky choice, especially given the history of price volatility. Here is the chart from the Energy Information Agency of the monthly prices paid for natural gas by electric power producers.
After reading Mark Cooper’s paper criticizing the economic prospects of VC Summer and the Levy project, I contacted Geoff Styles, publisher of Energy Outlook. Geoff has professional experience in the fuel commodity futures trading market. One of Cooper’s assumptions is that it is possible for electric power companies to lock in natural gas prices on long term contracts at a favorable price.
I asked Geoff if it really was possible to purchase natural gas futures more than a few years into the future. He responded with some very useful information about the structure of the futures market.
last few years, the volume typically falls off rapidly beyond year 2 or 3.
In order to entice someone to sell any significant volume in the out years, they’d likely have to bid well above the most recent settlement prices for those distant contracts.
Just as importantly, the lack of liquidity, even if they could find a willing seller up front, means that it could be very difficult to unwind any of those distant contracts before they have advanced to within a year or two of delivery, except at a large loss by enticing a buyer via a very low offer price.
I checked the link that Geoff provided and found out that the situation is even less predictable than Geoff remembered. The most distant futures contract that has any reported volume is Jan 2014, less than one year from now. Combined with the recent price history since the market bottom last spring, that does not bode well for the stability of future gas prices.
My guess is that sellers are demanding a higher price than buyers want to pay. That often happens in a commodity market when the sellers know there are factors driving up the price and buyers look over recent history and believe they can comfortably just keep buying short term contracts.
I remain comfortable with my bet that there will be at least one month before the end of 2014 in which prices at Henry Hub will exceed $10 per MMBTU. I suspect that the natural gas price for electric power customers will exceed that number by several dollars during the same time period. I suspect that there will be plenty of customers who are not happy with the choices made for them during the temporary period of low natural gas prices.
On the other hand, I also suspect that there will be people who trade natural gas or who own substantial stakes in natural gas production, storage and transportation assets that gain a financial edge from the decision to remove 550 MWe (equivalent to about 100 million cubic feet of natural gas per day or 33 billion cubic feet per year at 90% capacity factor) of competitive supply from the electric power grid.
Warren is building a new plant in south Iowa.
Here is one article on why nat gas prices are likely to be higher in the near future. Rig counts are way down, and drillers are switching over to finding more lucrative petroleum. One other point is the production decline rate for gas. They get lots of gas from a fracked well in the first year, but the production soon drops off, sometimes drastically so.
Someone recently said on an Atomic Show podcast that utility company CEOs don’t stay around very long. Long term decisions, which might involve years of spending for new nuclear power plant construction, are frowned upon.
How can low gas prices be driving out a fully paid NPP? What is their base cost / kwh? It must be much much higher than the 1.8 cents / kwh that we average for NPPs.
Because it is a relatively small, isolated plant (in the sense that its fleet is distant) Kewaunee has an average cost per kw-hr between 3-4 cents. It has higher than average costs per kilowatt hour for licensing, security, operators, and outages.
This development at Kewaunee is a worry for me.
I agree with David’s concern posted earlier (which Rod valiantly tried to answer).
To have a safe operating nuclear power plants shuttered because it cannot compete on cost of electricity relative to fossil or renewable energy power plants is new, and bodes ill for nuclear power generation and the nation.
Nuclear power plants traditionally are expensive to build, but once built have been the most reliable and lowest cost electricity sources available. Rod suggests that Kewaunee is special and has an average cost per kw-hr between 3-4 cents, about double the average for nuclear power plants nationwide. Rod explains that Kewaunee has higher than average costs per kilowatt hour for licensing, security, operators, and outages.
Are there other smaller reactors in the US commercial nuclear fleet that are threatened in a similar way to Kewaunee and may have to within the next few years have to close because of economic reasons?
There was a report written by UBS analyst Julienn DeMoulin-Smith (which I might have misspelled) that I saw get quoted by probably 10 different articles, where he speculated just that an named names of smaller capacity plants (including Ginna, Vermont Yankee, and several others).
A big whole I saw in that report, however, was that most of the other smaller-capacity nuclear plants here in America are owned by a few of the big-time nuclear utilities, particularly Entergy owning/running Vermont Yankee and maybe Exelon owning a couple “smaller” plants. Considering the number of overall plants that Exelon and Entergy own/operate, I don’t see either of those two companies closing down a well-run nuclear plant before its license expires (with the exception of Exelon agreeing to shut down Oyster Creek w/ 10 years left on its 20-yr extension).
In several of the articles that quoted the UBS report, I recall there being specific mention both from Entergy and Exelon that they do not comment on the financial performance of individual plants. The main problem with Kewaunee is that Dominion’s other plants were geographically so far from Kewaunee, and that the area near the plant up there has a not-so-great economic outlook for the near future. The inevitably higher electricity prices that will result from Kewaunee closing will not help matters in the economic regard.
Then this has a direct effect on the cost basis for any SMR. Since the target market for SMR’s is this type of community, small, isolated, needing development, the cost / kwh of licensing could sink the market for SMR’s. However, 3-4 cents / kwh is the normal cost of operation for many coal plants and for a wood burning “bio fuel” plant the costs are around 5 cents / kwh. If Gas fired plants can supply electricity lower than that – they will replace all other forms of electric generation. I agree with your assessment that the price of Natural Gas will rise and that this decision will be seen as “foolish” in about 3 years. At the same time – loosing 50 million a year means an investor needs to cash flow about 150 million. Hum, 568 MW. Well I don’t have time this morning to run the numbers, but I did run the numbers for a 30 MW wood burner. We could make money and pay back a loan if wholesale electric was above 10 cents (like in CA) but once the plant was paid for we could make money at 8 cents just fine. In other words we could compete with the coal plants in the area who had a slightly lower cost basis.
So, this still does not make sense to me. Something else is going on here. I think it is the funds available for decommissioning. The large fund that a NPP has to accumulate to decommission seems to destroy the incentive to find cost savings to keep it going. Zion was essentially the same. I am thinking that once the cost of investing for the long haul drops below the level of available funds in the decommissioning fund the “economic case” is to shut the plant and use the funds. You would never do that with a coal plant since there is no fund available and you would have to ride out some lean years before you would go bankrupt.
It occurs to me that there *might* be an opportunity for a small/new player in the utility industry to adopt the ecological niche of “carion eater”. What do I mean by that? For these big utility companies, I suspect the numbers “don’t work” because they don’t want their plant lowering the price of electricity any more than it already is down, so that they can hope to make money off their gas plants, etc.
But, if there were a small company which didn’t have other assets in the same market it would be competing against itself with, and it had the financing to get started, you could probably buy these plants for pennies on the dollar (since nobody else is making offers, it occurs to me there is a “buyer’s market” for used nuclear plants – offer them 50 million for a plant they are planning to decommision anyhow, and they might consider that a good [short term] deal – they get 50 million dollars, and don’t have to deal with the plant ever again).
Then, operate the plant at break even until market prices rise (which they must – the oil-gas industry won’t be content to lose money on natural gas production forever). Once they rise, since you have low capital costs, low fuel costs, and moderate operational costs, you should be able to make some decent profit, no?
Of course, the key to that strategy is getting a good enough deal on the plant, and having enough cash on hand to survive until prices go up.
Sounds a lot like what Exelon did during the 1990’s and into the 2000’s to get to their substantial number of plants (prior to the Constellation merger).
Also, I’d like to make a point on the topic of Exelon’s corporate strategy in relation to Zion and to NextEra/FPL owning Point Beach within overlapping planning zones. The situation could very well be that any efficiencies that NextEra could introduce at Kewaunee by already having a nuclear presence in that region would be of too little financial benefit to outweigh the pricing benefits they would get for their power sales from Point Beach by not having Kewaunee’s annual 4.5 Billion kw-hr being sold into the same region’s power market. I am sure that was looked at by NextEra.
The saddest part in the whole deal is that the shutdown basically signals little hope of near-term economic growth in that region. If any substantive growth around there were expected or projected at all, there is NO WAY that the plant would be shutting down so soon with 20 remaining licensed years.
It occurs to me, also, that customers in the local area might be pursuaded to make a stake in partial ownership, to give them some control and guarantee on the pricing. Maybe make an offer which sells them electricity at a slightly higher than current market price (but at a price point which is sustainable for the plant), and a program where, like, for every 1000 dollars they spend on power, they get one share of ownership in the corporation you create to own and operate the plant.
So, they aren’t just getting expensive electricity (which might start to look downright cheap if the price goes up), BUT, if the power ever raises above that price point – they are guaranteed to keep getting that price (other, new customers who switch after the market price goes up would NOT get that benefit), AND they get a cut of whatever windfall profits might be made if the market price goes high enough to generate such profits.
In the three-year period of 2010 through 2012, Kewaunee had a DER net capacity factor of 93.4 percent, putting it in 19th place among the 104 licensed power reactors in the United States. (There’ll be more on this in the annual capacity factor article in the May issue of Nuclear News.) The people who achieved this performance will soon have nothing to operate; one hopes that they find work.
A couple years ago Dominion took the unusual step of announcing publicly its intention to sell the plant, and apparently there was no offer submitted that Dominion found acceptable. The Wisconsin utilities that had originally owned Kewaunee signed a power purchase agreement when Dominion bought the plant, but it ran only through the original license term. License renewal was approved in 2011, but utilities may not have favored another long-term deal at a price Dominion would accept. This is why it is presumed that cheap methane undercut Kewaunee.
FPL/NextEra owns and operates Point Beach, not far south of Kewaunee (the emergency planning zones overlap). Kewaunee is a Westinghouse PWR of about the same size and vintage as Point Beach-1 and -2. If there were a potential White Knight, it would be FPL/NextEra–yet the silence from this company and all of the other merchant reactor owners continues.
Unfortunately, why would any investor buy a nuclear energy plant with unknown future operational regulations and long term “used” fuel storage costs; until emission free is considered an essential requirement for energy production. Customers may complain, but they modify their spending habits so they can afford the increasing energy costs. As individual consumers, we have little choice when it comes to $4.00/gal gas or 30 cents/kwh electricity.
Dunno. Maybe it’s time to think wildly out of the box. There are nations who are looking favorably toward building a nuke but don’t have experience running and managing them. I assume it doesn’t matter that much of where their bucks are coming from, so long as they get paid, so I’m not against a foreign nation taking over a nuke here and simultaneously having the home crew here passing on their experience to foreign “interns” to take back home when their own plants are built and running. Just a wild thought.
James- The NRC recently ruled that Unistar cannot proceed with a new reactor at Calvert Cliffs because Unistar is owned by EDF of France, and NRC rules preclude foreign ownership of US plants.
In this case the rules have their basis in the federal statue. There is a clause in the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, that prevents foreign ownership of nuclear power stations. Interestingly enough, since the Act is specific and limits that prevention to “power plants” the NRC has licensed the LES enrichment facility in Eunice, which is foreign owned (Urenco is the majority owner), and probably will license the Eagle Rock facility in Idaho, which is 100% owned by Areva.
Here is the quote in Section 103, which is the section governing commercial power plant licenses.
No license may be issued to an alien or any corporation or other entity if the Commission knows or has reason to believe it is owned, controlled, or dominated by an alien, a foreign corporation, or a foreign government. In any event, no license may be issued to any person within the United States if, in the opinion of the Commission, the issuance of a license to such person would be inimical to the common defense and security or to the health and safety of the public.
The result is that about 65% of Vermont’s power supply right now is either direct short-term contracts or long-term “market-follow” contracts with HQ. In other words, our power prices are following the natural gas prices. Period.
I can see the problem, but I can’t see a solution.
I see a solution. It involves getting people like Bill Gates, Sergey Brin, and Tim Cook to recognize that their money can make a substantial difference in breaking our fossil fuel addiction which is being pushed by other people with lots of money.
We have to find ways to let energy consumers – including very wealthy ones – know how much they are being bamboozled by hydrocarbon energy producers.
Cal’s energy storage may help, someday. For now, I feel that nobody ever got fired for buying natural gas-based power. It’s the “safe” choice. If the price goes up, the regulators allow you to pass the higher price on to the consumers. We are in a nation-wide “natural gas trap,” in my opinion.
I would like rich smart people to rescue the situation, but I think the problem is in the energy structure, not the people. Everyone can see that gas prices are going to rise, and that over-dependence on gas will be a problem. Everybody can see it, but nobody can do anything about it.
Sorry to be so negative.
Your concerns are one reason that I am glad I live in the Southeast, and also played a role in my decision-making with recent change of employer.
Energy storage. Pure and simple. Some storage capacity allows an arbitrage process that smooths out the prices. That is part of the reason why I’m working on adapting molten salt used in solar thermal projects for the S-PRISM.
In the short term we are stuck with what we have and are relegated to make short term decisions.
If proposed utility gas plants were required to include a guaranteed gas price over the life of their plant in their proposals to regulators, no gas power plants would ever be built.
Big Oil corruption of media and politicians is sadly commonplace in American public life.
In regulated markets, utilities can pass fuel costs directly to customers with simple rate cases that never experience a prudency review. Those fuel adjustment charges can often be varied every few months. That is a huge contrast with the care with which capital improvement rate cases, especially those for huge nuclear plant projects, are reviewed.
Remind me again why small modular reactor development is so great?
Here is a small reactor that is having problems because it is small.
I am in favor of modular building with modules built in a factory. But I prefer large modular plants like the AP1000.
That leaves finance charge during construction as the only benefit of SMRs. Another way to reduce finance charge during construction is to get really good at building the same design over and over. We need a way to pursue a learning curve benefit by building multiple large reactors.
It’s small, and subject to a per-unit annual fee for “regulation”, and in a hostile polity, and isolated and forbidden by agreement from combining buying power with other units to get better fuel prices.
Most of those issues have nothing to do with being small, it’s political.
I’m all for AP-1000s (and S-PRISMs and other things), but there are places where you couldn’t put an AP-1000 because the grid couldn’t absorb 1100 MW or provide enough spinning reserve if it tripped off-line. There are places that might be able to, but couldn’t take it all at once. The SMR does appear to have its place.
Under today’s rules, single unit isolated plants of any size have cost issues because they have to provide the same level of site security as multiunit plants and cannot spread their costs. Smaller units have additional scale issues, like having exactly the same Price Anderson liability ($110 million or so) as large units and paying exactly the same annual licensing fee of $4.7 million.
One way that SMR designers plan to achieve scale economies is to build multiple units on the same site to take advantage of a single security force that does not need to double in size to accomodate a doubling, tripling or eight fold increase in the number of units and electrical power production.
For the second scale issue, the idea is to simplify the designs enough to justify a lower number of regulators because we plan to bore the heck out of a contingent of 2-3 regulators per unit on a site that has 4-20 identical, simple units. There is already some movement in the direction of a sliding scale license fee.
As you pointed out, there are savings associated with learning curves. The experience in a wide range of industries is that you can count on a certain percentage cost reduction for ever doubling of unit volume. In commercial aircraft and ships, the learning curve number is somewhere around 10-20%. Unit volume doubles a lot faster if each unit is 180 MWe than it does if each unit is 1100 MWe.
To be fair to the people at NuScale, it doubles much faster at 45 MWe than it does at 180 MWe.
That is about what Browns Ferry will be if their EPU can ever be finalized.
That raises a question I have always had about the SMR deal. And that is, will a license fee be assessed for each reactor at a mutiple-unit site, like it is now? I think Palo Verde, for example, pays a separate fee for each reactor at their site. If you had a site with, say, 20 SMRs, would the NRC ding you for 20 license fees, each costing the same amount? I can very easily see the NRC (and the federal government) licking their chops at the prospects of such a money-grab. If so, would this undercut some of the cost arguments of SMRs? If you’re paying the same amount for a license for a 1100 MWe AP-1000 as you are for a 100 MWe SMR, I think on a fee$/MWe basis, you’re taking a beating on the SMR.
Without a change in the existing license fee structure, SMRs are not viable alternatives in the United States. The unavoidable cost per megawatt hour goes up in a linear, no ceiling manner.
For a 10 MWe Toshiba sodium cooled slow breeder, for example, a $4.7 million per year license fee would equated to a direct charge of $53 per MW-hr even if the plant achieved a 100% capacity factor.
The NRC has been dawdling with making some adjustments to the rules for at least three years already.
I don’t see a strong prospect of that. They adjusted their fees for research reactors and byproduct materials users, but are not going to touch the fee structure for power reactors. That is the bulk of their revenue, something like 95% of their license fees are paid by power reactors. Once the federal government gets their hands on private money, they generally don’t let go.
First of all, how can the electricity consumers regret the closure of Kewaunee? The last time I opened my electric bill I did not see a ballot asking how I would like to have my electric power produced (although I think that might be a good idea!). Consumers have NO SAY in what power stations a utility uses. Rod, maybe if the place will close it would not have to be as you put it, destroyed. Why not treat it like a classic car and preserve the machinery inside? That way, somehow, maybe it could be restarted if some other company decides to buy it.
Then there was my Fort Calhoun idea with the people who own it buying Kewaunee instead because it does not need all those repairs and then selling the electricity anywhere, eventually ending up in Omaha but I guess I make too much sense do I?
There are several factors that prevent preservation of Kewaunee for future use.
The license fee for an operable unit is $4.7 million per year. Keeping that license up to date also requires at least that much investment on the part of the operator in the quality assurance program that supports the regular inspections. There has never been a case in which new operating license was restored to a unit that had given up the license and halted the ongoing quality assurance program that supports its maintenance. The closest analog is the restoration of Browns Ferry, which cost about $1.8 billion even though they did not have to go through a complete relicensing effort.
The second factor is the decommissioning fund. It cannot be tapped unless the plant is being decommissioned. Once that process starts, there are a lot of corporate costs that can be charged to the protected fund.
Once a plant submits under 10CFR50.82, they are relieved of a number of requirements (a lot of surveillances, spare parts QA, vendor tech manual QA, insurance costs, etc.) but the license no longer permits operation of the reactor or even fuel in the vessel. It is a one-way street, which is why it is called “permanent cessation of operation.” I think if you wanted to restart the plant after 50.82 you’d have to get a new license. For an older (non-SRP) plant like Kewaunee (or Ginna or Vt Yankee) that would be near impossible, to say nothing of the storm the anti’s would raise in a place like Vermont.
I just received mail this week from Dominion with an offer to lock in their “low natural gas prices through the next three winters.” How ironic.
Brian, despite it likely being fully ineffective (and not applying to a customer in Virginia, with Kewaunee being in Wisconsin), please attempt to respond inquiring about the possibility of locking in the low prices for the following 17 years.
He should suggest he’s ready to pay 20% more if it’s locked fro 17 years instead, of 3.
This is SO bizzare! Remember pre-Fukushima at all the Global Warming frenzy on movies and TV news and all kinds of Ads about polar bears being washed out by greenhouse gases generated by coal and natural gas then Fukushima happened — and “nothing” (Doomsday) happened — and suddenly all that frenzy over greenhouse gases suddenly died down to a whisper on TV and media! Wonder why? Could it be that because even the very worst of rare accidents at a nuclear plant which had three chances of harvesting FUD-vindicating megadeath even fudged at killing just one red shirt guy (WAY unlike way more common oil and gas accidents); that nuclear energy didn’t turn out the Darth Vader the antis screamed it was and so the last big excuse NOT to go pollutionless nuclear was swept aside? Gasp! The media was WRONG about nukes all these decades?? Quick! Better set up “clean” natural gas as a new straw shining energy knight — but pass whispers on the greenhouse gas please!
Just remember that the media earns a living by selling ads. If they have an agenda, it is one that suits the people who buy the ads.
Natural gas is the product that the multinational petroleum companies see as their way of maintaining energy market dominance.
I have been sharing that Craigslist ad everywhere since I spotted it. There are people that still believe kewaunee to be an important asset that someone needs to recognize. http://milwaukee.craigslist.org/bfs/3700285560.html.
Please have them contact me. I’m doing everything I can think of to raise awareness that Kewaunee is a valuable asset that should not be destroyed for short term or selfish reasons. I am getting the impression, however, that the nuclear establishment thinks it’s a done deal and that it is simply a pawn in a larger game. Either that, or they have decided to allow a sacrificial lamb from the herd to be given up to protect the rest.
There’s not a single reasonably close large industrial user who would interested in backing up financially an utility in exchange for a long term guarantee on price ?
I think the final death knell for Kewaunee was when the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin and then the Midwest System Operator declared that the area did not need the electricity if the plant was shut down. Combine that with a lack of a comprehensive national energy policy and you get a very short sighted decision to decommission one of the best running nuclear plants in the country. | 2019-04-22T10:47:36 | https://atomicinsights.com/how-long-before-wisconsin-electricity-customers-regret-loss-of-kewaunee/ |
0.998622 | ETHICS CASE STUDY: In such a situation, you are left with the following options. Analyse each option with its consequences.
ETHICS CASE STUDY: What are the options available to you in handling this situation? Examine their merits and demerits.
ETHICS CASE STUDY: In such a situation, what courses of action are available to you? Which one will you choose? Justify. | 2019-04-23T18:31:46 | https://www.insightsonindia.com/category/case-studies/ |
0.999883 | Q: What is the most common RICO charge or claim?
Answer- The most typical charge or claim is to allege that a RICO defendant conducted or participated in the conduct of the affairs of an enterprise through a pattern of racketeering activity (PORA) [section 1962c], or conspired to do so [section 1962d]. There are less common uses of the RICO statute, including the allegation that a person participated in the affairs of an enterprise through the collection of unlawful debt, and the acquiring of interests in enterprises through racketeering activity or with racketeering income [sections 1962(a) and (b)].
Q. I have heard about RICO conspiracy. What does a RICO conspiracy charge [section 1962(d)] or claim involve?
Answer- The RICO conspiracy provision is essentially the same as traditional conspiracy provisions. As a result, in a RICO claim, there is no requirement that a RICO defendant actually commit any racketeering activity. Instead, the government or plaintiff must still prove the defendant agreed that either he, or a co-conspirator, would conduct and participate in the affairs of the enterprise through a pattern of racketeering activity.
Q. I have heard about the term “RICO enterprise.” What is a RICO enterprise and how does a plaintiff prove it?
Answer- A common error is to allege multiple enterprises in a single RICO count. Instead, a plaintiff must allege that defendants conducted the affairs of the RICO enterprise through a PORA. The Supreme Court has ruled that an enterprise broadly encompasses many types of organizations, ranging from hierarchal groups to loosely associated groups of individuals and corporations who act with a common purpose and function as a continuing unit. The typical proof of an enterprise would come from documents, testimony, and an examination of what the group does. A RICO enterprise also may be a legal entity and proof of such an entity is usually straightforward based on documents.
Q: What is the biggest hurdle in proving a civil RICO claim?
Answer- A civil RICO plaintiff will have to prove the basic elements required in the RICO statute. Were many RICO civil cases fail is when the plaintiff does not allege or prove that the PORA proximately causes the injury to business or property. Moreover, a civil RICO plaintiff must be aware of the statute of limitations, which is generally more rigorous than any criminal RICO charge.
Q: I have heard the term “pattern of racketeering activity.” What does that mean?
Answer- The RICO plaintiff must first prove the defendant engaged in “racketeering activity,” which includes specifically enumerated federal crimes, and certain state offenses which identify “generically” the kind of conduct proscribed by RICO. To prove PORA, the plaintiff must show that the defendant committed at least two acts of racketeering activity within ten years of each other, and that the racketeering activity is both “related” to the affairs of the enterprise and “continuous” (over a closed ended period, or over an open-ended period of time).
Q: Can RICO be alleged in class action litigation?
Answer- Yes, RICO claims are alleged in class action litigation, and are subject to the same requirements of proof when alleged as a claim in class action litigation. Courts have upheld RICO claims in complex nationwide class action litigation. | 2019-04-19T21:12:27 | http://ricoconsultingattorney.com/FAQ |
0.999695 | These crisp parchment paper wrappers give muffins and cupcakes a festive air -- and they keep the baked goods from sticking to the pan, too.
2. Spray a muffin tin with vegetable oil cooking spray to hold parchment in place.
3. Place 1 piece of parchment into 1 cup of the tin, pressing along folds to crease. Repeat with other cups and parchment pieces.
4. Scoop batter into cups, and bake. | 2019-04-21T09:24:28 | https://www.marthastewart.com/272979/crisp-muffin-wrappers |
0.998899 | T = Task: what is happening?
E = Equipment: what is being used?
P = People: who is involved? | 2019-04-22T12:03:24 | https://www.youthsportdirect.org/physical-education/pe-equipment-resources/resources/quicksticks-challenge-cards |
0.998523 | Can you please help me with below question.
2. According to the passage, which of the following constitutes prevailing scholarly opinion regarding the beginning of modern science?
(C) Modern science began with the widespread application of the principle of Occam's razor.
Modern science should not, however, be identified with any particular set of scientific achievements. Rather, modern science should be identified with a particular way of approaching the study of nature, and many important elements of this approach were already in place and articulated as early as the fourteenth century.
Prevailing scholarly opinion holds that (modern science began with the great achievements of the scientific revolution of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries).
3. It can be inferred from the passage that the author would be most likely to agree with which of the following statements concerning modem science?
(A) The use of experiments is the crucial factor enabling scientists to engage in what can properly be described as modem science.
(B) A certain set of scientific achievements had to be accomplished before scientists could engage in modem science.
(C) The scientific revolution of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries marks the beginning of what should be considered modem science.
(D) The origins of modern science can be traced back to the articulation of a particular approach to the study of nature.
Thanks for detailed explanation. I've reviewed the thread but unable to get this right. | 2019-04-22T12:16:56 | https://gmatclub.com/forum/prevailing-scholarly-opinion-holds-that-modern-science-began-222660-20.html |
0.999999 | I was born in Cambridge, England but moved at an early age to Belfast in Northern Ireland where I went to school and did as much growing up as I was to achieve in most of my lifetime.
Belfast was a great place to be a writer - or, indeed, any kind of artist - in those days. The circle of like-minded people was small and enthusiastic and there were local institutions, such as BBC Northern Ireland, that encouraged young authors. A young writer seemed a good thing to be, so I began writing poems.
My academic interests were strongly scientific, so I went up to Christ's College, Cambridge to read zoology. Not very sure what I was going to do next, I tried my hand at teaching, which I did in a wonderful school (originally for girls, though boys got in eventually) in Suffolk. If you're going to be a teacher, it's a good idea to do it early on, while you can still remember the things that you yourself were taught. With something like biology it's also a good idea to teach what you know while it's still true. The subject moves so fast that a lot of what my textbooks told me at school is simply out of date now. Though we did know about the circulation of the blood; I'm not that old.
I couldn't really see myself being a teacher forever (I knew I'd be caught out eventually) so after a decent number of years I moved to London and became a researcher, writer and editor on Which? magazine, a unique institution which, in those days at least, was run by a smart and stimulating set of people. I spent my days testing electric drills. Once I wrote an article about wood, the first line of which I stole from the magazine's previous article about wood. I thought it couldn't be improved, so I copied it across word for word. The sentence was: 'Wood comes from trees.' My future as a communicator was assured.
None of this is recorded in photographs. No-one ever takes pictures of me except on holiday, as you can see, and even then I have to ask. After journalism, I went into business - actually in the City of London - first as a marketer for the accounting firm KPMG (some of my best friends are accountants) and then by starting up a design, editorial and communications company.
Running your own company is the best fun you can have in business when times are good. The prospect of all that money being stuffed through the letterbox makes you leap out of bed with glee in anticipation of another day at the entrepreneurial coal-face.
But when times are bad, none of this is true. We had our ups and downs with the company, roughly in line with the boom-and-bust economy of which we discovered we were a part.
However, we always managed to find some fun in it.
Thinking I might have just one more job in me before I could decently retire, I joined Diageo, the huge drinks company, just to see what it would be like to do real work for a living. I met some wonderful people there - skilled, professional and up for a laugh, which has to be all you need. Working for Diageo was the most fun you can have without a drink in your hand. Occasionally, I did both simultaneously. The company is - to borrow a word commonly heard emanating from the public relations department - global, which means that practically everyone in the world drinks its products. Consenting adults, anyway. This provided me with copious opportunities for travel, particularly to Africa and Asia, which is one of the aspects of the job for which I am most grateful. I was almost sorry to go, but my retirement dream beckoned. This is a rare non-holiday photo.
The very day after I retired, my wife and I were on a plane to Thailand. Seriously; it was the next day. Here, we have a modest bungalow on a slight slope above the sea in Pattaya, on the east coast. I wish I could say the photo was of our household pet, perhaps scaled down a little. If elephants didn't exist it would be essential, but not credible, to invent them.
That's the seaside resort of Pattaya in the background. This extraordinary town, and other bits of Thailand, now forms the backdrop, and sometimes the foreground, of the essays, novels and short stories I have been writing since coming here. Thailand has a fascinating culture that I do not begin to understand, but I'm hoping that that can be a good thing.
Wandering around in a state of advanced bemusement, not quite knowing what anyone's saying or what's going on, is what foreigners generally do here. Sometimes they 'go native' and dress up in what they convince themselves is traditional Thai garb to have their photos taken. It's a mystery why anyone would do this. That necklace, I recall, was made of plastic, but traditions have to start somewhere. If you thrive on mystery, you'd thrive here.
If you would like to share your experiences of any of this stuff, please get in touch. | 2019-04-22T22:31:52 | https://www.williampeskett.com/life.html |
0.998667 | *Note that larger spaghetti squashes tend to yield sweeter strands. However, small ones will also work if they are all you can find. To Make: Carefully cut the spaghetti squash in half, lengthwise. green hair from pool how to fix For starters, you will of course need spaghetti squash, a bit of water, and a glass baking dish. Wash the outside of the squash, then slice it lengthwise and scrape out the seeds.
Make cuts all around the spaghetti squash with a knife. Place in microwave and microwave on medium-high in 5 minute increments. Rotate spaghetti squash every 5 minutes until soft [total time should be anywhere from 10-15 minutes depending on the size of the spaghetti squash].
Preheat the oven to 400�F. Arrange a rack in the middle of the oven and heat to 400�F. Meanwhile, prep the squash. Slice the squash in half. Use a chef's knife to cut the spaghetti squash lengthwise from stem to tail.
For starters, you will of course need spaghetti squash, a bit of water, and a glass baking dish. Wash the outside of the squash, then slice it lengthwise and scrape out the seeds. | 2019-04-23T22:05:43 | http://topdot.com/northern-territory/how-to-fix-spaghetti-squash.php |
0.999966 | What? Connection reset by peer?
We are running Node.js web services behind AWS Classic Load Balancer. I noticed that many 502 errors after I migrate AWS Classic Load Balancer to Application Load Balancer. In order to understand what happened, I added Nginx in front of the Node.js web server, and then found that there are more than 100 ‘connection reset’ errors everyday in Nginx logs.
2017/11/12 06:11:15 [error] 7#7: *2904 recv() failed (104: Connection reset by peer) while reading response header from upstream, client: 172.18.0.1, server: localhost, request: "GET /_healthcheck HTTP/1.1", upstream: "http://172.18.0.2:8000/_healthcheck", host: "localhost"
2017/11/12 06:11:27 [error] 7#7: *2950 recv() failed (104: Connection reset by peer) while reading response header from upstream, client: 172.18.0.1, server: localhost, request: "GET /_healthcheck HTTP/1.1", upstream: "http://172.18.0.2:8000/_healthcheck", host: "localhost"
2017/11/12 06:11:31 [error] 7#7: *2962 upstream prematurely closed connection while reading response header from upstream, client: 172.18.0.1, server: localhost, request: "GET /_healthcheck HTTP/1.1", upstream: "http://172.18.0.2:8000/_healthcheck", host: "localhost"
2017/11/12 06:11:44 [error] 7#7: *3005 recv() failed (104: Connection reset by peer) while reading response header from upstream, client: 172.18.0.1, server: localhost, request: "GET /_healthcheck HTTP/1.1", upstream: "http://172.18.0.2:8000/_healthcheck", host: "localhost"
2017/11/12 06:11:47 [error] 7#7: *3012 recv() failed (104: Connection reset by peer) while reading response header from upstream, client: 172.18.0.1, server: localhost, request: "GET /_healthcheck HTTP/1.1", upstream: "http://172.18.0.2:8000/_healthcheck", host: "localhost"
The number of errors was increased after I migrate Classic LB to Application LB, and one of the differences between them is Classic LB is using pre-connected connections, and Application LB only using Http/1.1 Keep-Alive feature.
The load balancer received a TCP RST from the target when attempting to establish a connection.
The target closed the connection with a TCP RST or a TCP FIN while the load balancer had an outstanding request to the target.
The target response is malformed or contains HTTP headers that are not valid.
I’m working on a project which needs to fetch messages from hundreds of SQS queues. We’re using SQS long polling to reduce the number of empty responses. It was very quick to get response at first when there are only dozen queues. As we added more and more queues, the performance getting worse and worse. It takes 60 seconds to get the response when there’s 300 queues and WaitTimeSeconds set to 10 seconds.
We are using Node.js in single thread mode, and I believe that it could handle 10 thousands connections without any problem because most of the tasks are IO processing. We also created an AWS support case, but nobody clearly answered the question.
Many open source books are written in asciidoc, in order to read the book in kindle, I have to convert it to mobi file. Here’s a quick note on how to convert files.
The git branches in local repository will grow rapidly if you are using branch development, e.g. always create a new branch for any new feature/story/bug-fix.
The branch becomes useless after it merged to master, here’s some commands to clean up branches in local repository. | 2019-04-26T10:45:13 | http://theantway.com/author/wei-xu/ |
0.999997 | What options are available for low odor, indoor sealer applications?
We would like to apply a clear acrylic sealer over colored concrete in an interior application. The owners cannot tolerate any solvent odor. Please provide a product recommendation.
We recommend the application of Sparkl-Seal E. Sparkl-Seal E is a transparent, water based, methyl methacrylate acrylic sealer. It has essentially no odor, and the water based formulation means it can safely be used in an occupied interior application.
What product should be used to seal colored stamped concrete?
For protection and a high gloss, “wet look” finish that enhances the color of stamped concrete, use Nox-Crete’s Sparkl-Seal. Sparkl-Seal is a high solids, non-yellowing, methyl methacrylate acrylic sealer that resists surface oxidation from the sun and chemical pollutants in the air. In addition, Sparkl-Seal has good water vapor permeability properties which allow the coating to breathe, reducing the risk for surface delamination or blistering.
Why does a clear acrylic sealer turn white?
A clear sealer which turns frosty white in color has delaminated from the concrete surface. This is most likely due to the coating's inability to release water vapor trapped within the concrete quickly enough to prevent pressure buildup beneath the coating. To prevent this problem, use a clear acrylic sealer offering improved water vapor permeability. We recommend Sparkl-Seal or water based Sparkl-Seal E in exterior coating applications that are subject to high moisture content. To remove the existing delaminated or white decorative sealer, use Nox-Crete's Deco-Strip. Deco-Strip is sprayed or rolled onto stamped or textured concrete where it quickly softens and lifts worn out acrylic sealers. The acrylic sealer is then easily removed with a pressure washer or garden hose equipped with a spray nozzle, restoring concrete back to its original unsealed condition. Deco-Strip's fast acting formula quickly softens most decorative sealers and coatings in 40 minutes or less and can be disposed through municipal water.
How do I use cost-efficient water-based products in areas with colder climates?
I would like to use a less expensive water-based form release agent, but I live in a part of the country where freezing temperatures occur during the winter months. I am concerned about the product freezing during the winter. Any suggestions?
Any of our super-concentrated form release agents can be stored under freezing conditions prior to dilution without concern for damage from freezing. The super concentrates can then be mixed with water, taken to the job site and applied at temperatures above freezing.Our vegetable-based release agent, Bio-Nox VS can also be stored in freezing conditions without damage. Only petroleum-based products should be used at temperatures below freezing. To maximize savings, consider a cost-averaging approach where a petroleum-based product is used in the winter and a water-based product is used in the spring, summer and fall.
What’s the best way to remove concrete buildup from aluminum forms and prevent it from reoccurring?
We use brick-textured aluminum forms to construct residential poured concrete basements. The release agent we have been using becomes so thick in the winter that we can’t spray it through our sprayer. As a result, our forms have become covered with concrete buildup. What should we do to remove the buildup, and what form release agent would you recommend that we use?
Nox-Crete’s Form Clean is ideal for removing hardened concrete buildup from aluminum forms. Form Clean functions as both a release agent and a form cleaner, allowing you to keep your forms in service while being cleaned, if you prefer. Apply Form Clean as you would your regular release agent immediately after form removal. Through repeated use (usually about 2 weeks), the buildup will soften and the forms will become clean. Once the forms are clean, use Alumi-Nox R or Alumi-Con as your regular release agent to minimize buildup in the future.
How safe are Nox-Crete form release agents?
I am concerned about the safety of the laborers on my crew. How can I be sure I am choosing the safest products for them to use?
Nox-Crete form release agents are designed to meet and exceed all OSHA standards for worker safety. No recycled or reworked raw materials are used in any of our products. All naphthenic distillates used are severely hydro-treated to remove high molecular weight aromatics (HMWA). For added safety, choose one of our water-based form release agents which use water to replace up to 88% of the petroleum carrier.
Why are our concrete forms not lasting as long as they used to?
We use 1 and 1/8 inch overlaid plywood forms to construct residential basements and stem walls. For some reason we seem to be getting fewer pours on our forms. Is the reduced life of our forms related to the quality of the plywood, or is it due to the use of an ineffective form release agent?
Although the reduced form life you are experiencing could be the result of many factors, the most likely cause of your problem is increased alkalinity of the concrete. The addition of certain pozzolans to concrete, such as Class C fly ash or blast furnace slag, can increase the pH of fresh concrete, causing increased damage to overlaid plywood forms. To maximize your overlaid plywood form life, restrict the use of highly alkaline pozzolans in your concrete mix design, and use Nox-Crete form release agents on your forms. Nox-Crete’s chemically reactive form release agents react with calcium hydroxide (lime) in fresh concrete to form metallic waterproof soaps which, over time and through use, waterproof plywood form surfaces and effectively restrict further penetration of destructive alkaline bleed water.
How does the Mix Station work?
Nox-Crete’s Mix Station is designed to dilute and mix Nox-Crete’s line of super-concentrated form release agents. The Mix Station is positioned on top of a 55-gallon drum or a 275-gallon tote. A water hose is attached to the Mix Station at one end, and a mix valve is on the other end. When opened, the mix valve automatically siphons the super-concentrated form release agent into the venturi mixing chamber where it is mixed with water at the proper dilution ratio. The fully mixed and properly diluted form release agent then exits the Mix Station in a ready-to-use form. When enough ready-to-use release agent has been produced, the mix valve can be closed to stop the flow. Anyone can effectively operate the Mix Station and achieve consistent results.
How often do water-based form release agents need to be mixed?
How often does a Nox-Crete water based form release agent require mixing? What’s the best way to effectively mix a 55-gallon drum or 275-gallon tote?
All water-based form release agents are emulsions of organic materials and water, which means they need to be mixed frequently. Nox-Crete recommends mixing all water-based form release agents a minimum of two times per day. To mix a 55-gallon drum or 275-gallon tote, use the Nox-Crete Drum Agitator or Tote Agitator. The agitator is inserted on top of the drum or tank and then simply hand-turned a few revolutions to mix.
Are there low-odor form release agents?
My two sons and I pour concrete basements for residential construction. We are tired of smelling like diesel fuel all day long. Does Nox-Crete manufacture a form release agent designed for aluminum forms that does not contain diesel fuel?
Yes. Nox-Crete manufactures a water-based form release agent, Alumi-Con, designed specifically for aluminum forms. Neither product contains diesel fuel nor has any appreciable odor. We also offer low-odor, water-based form release agents suitable for all forming surfaces.
What’s the best release agent for reducing buildup on aluminum forms?
I have a residential poured concrete wall business. We use aluminum forms to construct footings, basement walls and stem walls. Please recommend a reasonably priced form release agent that is effective at minimizing concrete buildup on my aluminum forms.
Nox-Crete offers a ready-to-use form release agent designed specifically for aluminum forms called Alumi-Nox. In addition, we also manufacture a super-concentrated form release agent, also designed specifically for aluminum forms, called Alumi-Con. Alumi-Con requires the use of the Nox-Crete Mix Station to ensure proper dilution and mixing. Both products are less expensive than petroleum-based alternatives and are equally effective.
Do some form release agent manufacturers use recycled transformer oils in their products?
Yes. Unfortunately, some manufacturers have started using used electrical transformer oils in their products. Obvious health concerns for workers exposed to these materials include the possibility for higher than normal concentrations of high molecular weight aromatics (HMWA) and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). Nox-Crete uses only virgin, severely hydro-treated naphthenic distillates in their concrete form release agents. These severely hydro-treated, distillates are basically one step away from being edible. They contain 0 parts per million (ppm) of PCB and between 1-3 percent or less HMWA. The materials used in Nox-Crete form release agents meet all current and proposed OSHA requirements for worker safety.
How can I ensure proper mixing of water-based form release agents?
I am considering trying a super-concentrated, water-based form release agent, but I am concerned about mixing. How can I ensure that my workers will properly dilute and mix the product? All Nox-Crete super-concentrated form release agents require careful attention to dilution to ensure maximum product performance. Fortunately, we have developed the easy-to-use Mix Station which simultaneously dilutes and mixes. Placed on top of a 55-gallon drum or 275-gallon tote, a water hose is easily attached to the Mix Station. By opening the mix valve, the super-concentrated form release agent is automatically siphoned out of the container and then mixed with water in a venturi mixing chamber. No measuring is required. To stop the flow of ready-to-use product, simply close the mix valve. Anyone can operate the Mix Station and achieve consistent results.
Do water-based form release agents perform as well as petroleum-based alternatives?
Yes. All Nox-Crete water-based form release agents are just as good as, or better than, their petroleum solvent-based counter parts. Water-based products are also less expensive, making them a cost-efficient choice.
Does Nox-Crete offer biodegradable form release agents?
We are working for an owner who has requested a biodegradable form release agent. We are using a combination of a steel-framed handset forms and loose panel plywood forms. Any suggestions?
A version of the original Nox-Crete Form Coating, called Nox-Crete Form Coating EB, meets the EPA definition for “Ready Biodegradability.” Nox-Crete Form Coating EB is water based and is ideal for use on steel-framed handset forms and loose panel plywood forms.
Does Nox-Crete manufacture a slip-resistant form release agent?
My company constructs elevated concrete decks using crane set overlaid plywood flying forms. Once the form release has been applied the deck surface becomes slippery causing an unsafe condition for our workers. We need a safer solution.
Water-based Nox-Crete PCE dries to form a wax-like film on treated form surfaces which is considered to be fairly slip resistant. The product is designed to be applied to non-absorptive form surfaces such as phenolic surface film (PSF) or high density overlaid (HDO) plywood forms.
How many extra pours can I expect from my forms if I use a Nox-Crete form release agent?
Depending on the conditions specific to your application, you can expect up to a 20 percent increase in form life by using a Nox-Crete form release agent compared to a traditional form oil.
Are Nox-Crete form release agents good for plywood forms?
The highly alkaline bleed water in fresh concrete penetrates plywood form surfaces and removes the natural fats and oils from within the wood. Because these fats and oils keep the wood fibers pliable, their removal causes wood fibers to split and crack. Nox-Crete’s chemically active form release agents replace the natural fatty acids lost to the concrete and also form metallic waterproof soaps on the form surface to help minimize the penetration of the alkaline bleed water. Regular use of Nox-Crete form release agents on wood forms is like using hand lotion on dry, chapped hands - the more frequently it is used, the fewer splits and cracks you will have and the longer your forms will last.
What is the difference between a chemically reactive form release agent and a barrier-type release agent?
Barrier-type form release agents, also known as form oils, use heavy oils diluted in lighter oil such as kerosene oil or diesel fuel. When applied to a form surface, the lighter oil is designed to evaporate, or flash off, leaving a film of the heavier oil on the form surface. The heavy oil acts as a barrier, much the same as grease on a cookie sheet, to prevent concrete from sticking to form surfaces. Problems with barrier-type form release agents include the oil migrating vertically during the vibrating process, which results in form sticking, as well as unsightly oil stains on the cast concrete surface. A chemically active form release agent contains an active ingredient that combines with the calcium hydroxide (lime) in fresh concrete to form a metallic, waterproof soap which prevents concrete adhesion to treated surfaces. Resulting concrete is uniformly bright white in color and free of surface discoloration. Chemically active form release agents are also typically reactive with wood and steel form surfaces, which prevents their migration before or during concrete placement.
Is there an inexpensive alternative to form oil?
Yes. With the rising costs of petroleum, traditional petroleum-based form release agents have become increasingly more costly. Water-based form release agents replace expensive petroleum solvents with up to 88% water. In addition, water-based form release agents perform as well as, or better than, traditional petroleum-based products; are safer for workers and the environment; and cost substantially less.
What’s the best choice for hardening and sealing a concrete floor?
Please provide your best product recommendation for sealing, hardening and dustproofing a warehouse floor. Are any product warranties available?
The application of Duro-Nox - a reactive, silicate type, liquid floor hardener and sealer - is ideal for this usage. Duro-Nox chemically reacts with calcium hydroxide within concrete to form silicate gels on the surface which densify, harden and seal concrete to the depth of penetration. Nox-Crete offers a 20-year performance warranty on eligible Duro-Nox applications.
What is the difference between Duro-Polish and Duro-Polish Plus?
Both products offer the same benefits of gloss and slip-resistance. However, Duro-Polish Plus also contains a halogenated silicon-containing additive that provides stain repellency from both inorganic and organic containing materials. In other words, Duro-Polish Plus provides stain repellency from common stain-causing agents such as soft drinks, coffee and tea, as well as oil and grease.
How do we get gloss faster with a silicate hardened concrete floor?
To achieve an immediate high-gloss finish to a silicate-treated concrete floor, apply Duro-Polish or Duro-Polish Plus. Floors recently treated with silicate type liquid hardener and dustproofers typically provide gloss readings in the range of 15 to 25 gloss units when tested with a Horiba IG-320 meter measured at a 60 degree angle. The same floors, after treating with Duro-Polish, typically exhibit gloss unit readings in the range of 35 to 50.
Do you have a product that prevents rust formation?
Our company is in the precast concrete business. We have a problem with the formation of rust on our steel forms stored outside for short periods of time. How can we quickly and cost effectively remove existing rust and prevent the formation of new rust on our idle forms?
Nox-Crete's Kem-Ex-It Plus features a chemically active formulation that easily removes existing rust on steel forms. Once the effervescent action of Kem-Ex-It Plus has stopped, remove the rust residue and any unreacted Kem-Ex-It Plus with water. Once the forms are dry, spray apply a liberal coat of Formgard TJ over all exposed steel surfaces. Formgard TJ forms a tough, wax-like film on the form surface that will prevent the formation of rust on steel forms stored outside for up to 6 months.
What’s the best way to remove hardened concrete buildup from aluminum forms?
Please provide a product recommendation and procedure for removing existing hardened concrete buildup from aluminum forms.
Use Nox-Crete’s Blast-Off or Form Clean to remove existing hardened concrete buildup on aluminum form surfaces. Best results are obtained if the products are spray-applied immediately after form removal while any new buildup is still green.
How do we season our new aluminum forms?
Our company recently purchased a new set of aluminum forms for use in constructing residential poured wall basements. Please recommend a product and procedure for seasoning our new forms.
All new unseasoned aluminum forms must be seasoned prior to the first use. Before seasoning a new set of aluminum forms, all traces of mill oil must first be removed. To remove, spray a solution of trisodium phosphate (TSP) detergent and water on the form surfaces to be seasoned, scrub with a stiff bristle brush and rinse with water. A uniform coat of Nox-Crete’s Seasonox should then be applied to the form surfaces. After 20-30 minutes, the form surfaces should be gently rinsed with water to remove any unreacted Seasonox . Prior to use, the forms should be treated with Nox-Crete’s Form Clean and used as the release agent for the first 3-4 pours. After this, Alumi-Con or Alumi-Nox chemically active aluminum form release agents can be used. Note: For cold rolled aluminum forms, apply Seasonox EXT and allow the product to work on the surface for 48 hours before pouring.
What’s the best way to keep our paving machines free of concrete buildup?
We operate several street-type paving machines. Does Nox-Crete have a product we can use to soften existing concrete buildup and keep new buildup from sticking?
We manufacture an equipment maintenance product called Deactivator, available in both petroleum- and water-based formulations. Spraying existing concrete buildup with Deactivator will soften it over time, allowing it to be easily removed with a pressure washer. As a maintenance product, Deactivator should be applied to paving machines at the end of each work day. Deactivator will penetrate and chemically deactivate the set of fresh buildup. In addition, all surfaces treated with Deactivator will be protected from the adhesion of any new concrete buildup.
How can I prevent wood sugar migration to tilt-up panels from particle or press board form reveals?
Nox-Crete’s Clear Pre-Form - a single component, moisture-cured, polyurethane wood sealer - is extremely effective at preventing wood sugar migration from pressboard and particle board used in tilt-up construction. For maximum effectiveness, all sides of the wood reveals should be sealed. Partially sealing the exposed sides will not effectively prevent wood sugar related panel surface defects.
Do federal and state DOT regulations require a hazardous materials endorsement on driver’s licenses to transport Silcoseal Select?
No. The flash point of Silcoseal Select is over 100°F which the DOT classifies as “Not Hazardous,” and, therefore, does not require transporters to have a hazardous materials endorsement on their driver’s license.
Do any state volatile organic content (VOC) regulations prohibit the use of Silcoseal Select?
No. Silcoseal Select meets all current State and Federal VOC regulations and can be used in all 50 states.
How can I control surface bleed water evaporation on a tiltup casting/floor slab prior to applying the cure coat of Silcoseal?
Nox-Crete's evaporation reducer, Monofilm, is compatible with all Silcoseal cure and bondbreakers and is one of the component products in our Tilt-Up Partner Products. It is extremely effective at reducing rapid surface bleed water loss and the resulting formation of shrinkage cracks.
What are the other tilt-up “Partner Products” Nox-Crete manufactures for tilt-up construction?
What are the incentives for my company to consider their use on our future tilt-up projects?
Nox-Crete manufactures an integrated system of Tilt-Up Partner Products commonly used in the construction of tilt-up projects. These products include Dynaflex 502 and Dynaflex JF-85 semi-rigid floor joint fillers, Duro-Nox, Duro-Nox LS and Duro-Nox LSC liquid floor hardeners, Duro-Polish and Duro-Polish Plus floor polishes, Nox-Carb exterior wall panel treatments, Panel Patch exterior panel surfacing compound, Monofilm surface water evaporation reducer, as well as Silcoseal Select and Silcoseal 2000F cure and bondbreakers. Depending upon the situation, project rebates may be available for the use of two or more Partner Products.
Can I use a Silcoseal bondbreaker to cure my casting/floor slab?
Yes. In fact, it is recommended that the floor/casting lab of all tilt-up projects be cured with Silcoseal cure and bondbreaker. The cure coat is the most important coat and will provide the foundation for the subsequent bondbreaker coats. Both Silcoseal Select and Silcoseal 2000F meet the modified moisture retention requirements of ASTM C309.
What is the preferred method of applying Silcoseal bondbreaker to a casting/floor slab?
The preferred method for applying Silcoseal bondreakers is with a Nox-Crete Perfect Power Sprayer or with one of our hand held sprayers, the Excel 130, Perfect or Ideal Form and Concrete Sprayer. Each of these sprayers comes equipped with a spray nozzle appropriate for a uniform bondbreaker application.
In the tilt-up industry, the term “osmotic effect” refers to the migration of water out of a tilt-up wall panel and into the casting slab during the critical panel concrete hydration process. A gradient is formed when wet concrete from a freshly placed wall panel is cast against a casting slab with lower water content. This results in water being drawn out of the panel concrete and into the casting slab through a process called osmosis. The moisture concentration difference between the wall panel and casting slab is directly related to the osmotic force or pressure attained to reach equilibrium between the two slabs. The “osmotic effect” is the incomplete hydration of the cement on the down side panel surface resulting from the loss of water due to migration into the casting slab through osmosis. Damage caused by the “osmotic effect” can range from minor panel surface defects such as dusting to complete skin pull-off, as deep as 1/16 inch in depth in the more severe cases.
I’ve heard that some tilt-up bondbreakers contain wax that could interfere with the subsequent adhesion of floor adhesives and coatings as well as wall panel patching materials and paints. Do any of the Silcoseal bondbreakers contain wax?
No. Silcoseal bondbreakers do not contain any wax. However, some manufacturer’s bondbreakers do contain wax. Wax is difficult to remove and often interferes with the adhesion of floor and wall panel paints, coatings and patching materials.
How do you remove Silcoseal bondbreaker residue from exterior wall panels prior to painting?
Nox-Crete recommends that all exterior tilt-up wall panels be properly cleaned prior to painting. To clean wall panels, mix a solution of trisodium phosphate (TSP) detergent and water by dissolving 0.5 – 1.0 lbs. of TSP in 5 gallons of water. The mixture should then be sprayed on the wall panel and allowed to stand for 15-20 minutes. After this time, rinse the TSP residue off the wall panel surfaces using a minimum 2000 psi pressure washer equipped with an oscillating spray nozzle.
How do you strip residual Silcoseal bondbreaker from a casting/floor slab surface?
The preferred method is to scrub the floor with a mixture of Nox-Crete’s Bio-Clean Concentrate CPC diluted 1:2 or 1:3 with water followed by a fresh water rinse. On large floors, the use of an automatic ride-on type floor machine is recommended.
Should the hardener be applied before or after the tilt-up panels have been placed?
We would like to apply Duro-Nox liquid floor hardener to the casting slab/floor slab of a large tilt-up distribution center project. Should we apply Duro-Nox to the floor before or after the tilt-up operation has been performed?
Although a liquid floor hardener can be applied prior to tilt-up panel placement, it is generally recommended that the tilt-up operation be performed first. Duro-Nox can then be applied to the floor after the panels have been raised and the floors have been cleaned. The application of any liquid floor hardener prior to the application of a Silcoseal bondbreaker reduces the bondbreaker’s surface reactivity, which can reduce rain and scour resistance and result in wall panel surface dusting - or in severe cases, stuck panels. If the hardener must be applied first, ensure the product is compatible with the tilt-up bondbreaker and special precautions are followed during the tilt-up process. Contact us for more details or a specific recommendation.
Can I use another manufacturer’s cure and seal with Silcoseal Select?
If I choose to use another manufacturer’s acrylic cure and seal to cure a casting/floor slab, can I still use Silcoseal as the bondbreaker?
We don't recommended using another manufacturer's cure and seal with Silcoseal bondbreakers. Both solvent-based and water-based reactive bondbreakers may break down or dissolve components in a large majority of these products, which can result in compatibility issues. If a curing compound or cure and seal is used, it must be removed prior to the application of a Silcoseal bondbreaker. Contact us for specific product recommendations. An ASTM C309 compliant cure and bondbreaker (when modified for use on a steel troweled surface), such as Silcoseal Select or Silcoseal 2000F can be used to cure the casting surface and for all subsequent bondbreaker coats.
What’s the application recommendation for “stack cast” panels?
Due to job site area restrictions, it will be necessary for my company to “stack cast” panels on top of each other. Are there any precautions I should be aware of when using Silcoseal Select in a “stack cast” application?
Knowing when a sufficient amount of bondbreaker has been applied between panels to ensure clean separation can be challenging. Unlike traditional tilt-up construction, where it might be a week or longer between placing and finishing a floor/casting slab and the placement of wall panel concrete, in a stack cast tilt-up application, 2-3 wall panels are placed on top of each other within 2-3 days. Due to the lack of time for cement hydration before the placement of additional wall panel concrete, the wall panel concrete is still very porous. This makes it difficult to achieve sufficient bondbreaker holdout on the stacked panel/casting surface(s). This results in an increased potential for stuck panels. To ensure that an adequate amount of Silcoseal Select is applied between panels, saturate the top side of the panel to receive bondbreaker with water prior to application of the bondbreaker. The water will control the absorption of Silcoseal Select into panel surfaces, providing uniform film holdout.
How many coats of Silcoseal Select are needed for clean panel separation from a casting slab floor surface?
How do you know when you have applied enough?
Because every floor/casting slab is different, it is impossible to state specifically how many coats of Silcoseal Select are required to ensure clean panel separation. Several factors that affect the number of bondbreaker coats required include concrete mix design, finish, weather conditions, size of spray nozzle used, product application rate, and more. Accordingly, Nox-Crete does not recommend a specific number of coats. Instead, we recommend a visual test to verify adequate coverage of Silcoseal Select. Successive coats of the product should be applied until all treated areas of the casting/floor slab remain uniformly dark in appearance for a minimum of four hours following the previous coat. The development of lighter colored areas on the floor/casting slab within the four hour time window indicates a porous condition requiring an additional coat(s) of bondbreaker. When sufficient bondbreaker has been applied, the floor/casting slab will be uniformly dark in appearance with a slightly sticky, wax-like feel (although Silcoseal Select does not contain any wax) to the touch.
How well does Silcoseal Select resist removal by rain?
Once Silcoseal Select has had 4 hours of drying time it becomes resistant to removal from rain. Areas of high humidity combined with cool temperatures may require additional dry time to develop full resistance to rain removal.
How often does Silcoseal Select need to be mixed?
I know that Silcoseal Select is a water-based bondbreaker and needs to be mixed before use. How often does it require mixing, and what is the best method for mixing?
Silcoseal Select is composed of a water-based mixture of two liquids that are mechanically dispersed into each other to form a milky white emulsion. Unlike a solution, which will always stay mixed, all emulsions will eventually separate into two distinct layers. However, not all emulsions are the same. Some emulsions have better emulsion stability (requiring less mixing) than others. Silcoseal Select is a third-generation, water-based bondbreaker with substantially improved emulsion stability. For liability reasons, Nox-Crete recommends that all Silcoseal bondbreakers be mixed each time before product is withdrawn from the container. The highly effective stability of our emulsions works as safeguard to help minimize problems resulting from the lack of mixing prior to product withdrawals later in the day. To simplify the mixing process, use the Nox-Crete Drum Agitator. Several turns of the agitator results in sufficient mixing of a 55-gallon drum of Silcoseal Select. One free Drum Agitator is furnished with every four drums of Silcoseal Select purchased.
Do Silcoseal Cure & Bondbreakers contain wax? | 2019-04-26T00:07:13 | https://www.nox-crete.com/faqs/ |
0.999995 | Will telecom companies compensate customers for call drops?
The regulator TRAI will enforce its order on call drops, which makes it mandatory for telcos to compensate customers for failed calls, as the Delhi High Court has upheld the decision, Telecom Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said on Tuesday.
New Delhi: The regulator TRAI will enforce its order on call drops, which makes it mandatory for telcos to compensate customers for failed calls, as the Delhi High Court has upheld the decision, Telecom Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said on Tuesday.
"Lets be very clear about one thing. I have not examined the judgement but the penalty incentive and disincentive regulations of Trai has been upheld by the court, so Trai will enforce it," Prasad said when asked about High Court upholding the call drop decision. Asked how compensation will be provided for the months of January and February, Prasad said, "Yesterday the judgement has come, let the entire architecture be worked out."
The Minister further said call quality has been improving but operators need to further enhance the service quality. "I have been told that telecom operators have put up 65,000 base tower stations (BTS) across the country in the last six months, of which 2500 are in Delhi," he said. He further said whatever policy initiative was required from government side, has already been taken, now the operators need to deliver.
The Delhi High Court on Monday upheld Trai's decision making it mandatory for cellular operators to compensate subscribers for call drops from January 1, 2016. A bench of Chief Justice G Rohini and Justice Jayant Nath dismissed a batch of petitions filed by GSM industry body COAI and 21 telecom operators, including Vodafone, Bharti Airtel and Reliance.
The court said that it has not stayed the notification of Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) since filing of the writ petition, therefore the telecom regulator is at liberty to implement its decision January 1, 2016 onwards. "There is no dispute about the power of Trai to make regulation under section 36 of the Act. The impugned regulation has been made in exercise of the power conferred under the Act, keeping in mind the paramount interest of the consumer," the bench observed.
Telecom operators have submitted before court if the penalty is levied, the companies will end up paying around Rs 1,000-1,500 crore. However, Trai has said that maximum outgo under the rule in a year would be around Rs 800 crore if networks are not improved. | 2019-04-22T14:34:29 | https://www.thehansindia.com/posts/index/Business/2016-03-02/Will-telecom-companies-compensate-customers-for-call-drops/210926 |
0.999934 | What is a j file and how do I open a j file?
A Java source file contains source code associated to an application developed with the Java programming language, and the corresponding Java source files are referenced by a Java application when a user requests for a set of features requiring data contained in the Java source file. The content of a Java source file may include directory locations of other program files needed by the associated application to provide the user with the set of features corresponding to certain functionalities requested by the user from the application. These Java source files are integrated with encoding standards used by Oracle for the J file format. Specific compilation specifications proprietary to Oracle are also implemented into a Java source file. Files appended with the .j extension are Java source files developed with multi-platform compatibility support, much like the larger Java program associated to the Java source file. A Java application developed with a J source file can be opened and simulated using the Oracle Java Virtual Machine software. This program has versions developed for computers running on Microsoft Windows-based systems, while another version is intended for Mac platforms. Linux users can also create, open and simulate certain functionalities entered by an author of a Java program with a J file using the Oracle Java Virtual Machine version for Linux platforms. | 2019-04-23T10:10:52 | https://www.openthefile.net/extension/j |
0.99845 | The top 25 hedge fund managers took home an average of $1 billion each last year, according to Les Leopold. What would that buy in terms of education?
A Houston foundation created by a billionaire hedge fund manager who began his career as a trader for Enron would finance part of the proposed contract between DCPS and the Washington Teachers' Union. The Laura and John Arnold Foundation would provide $10 million of the $64.5 million Rhee has assembled to pay for teacher raises and performance bonuses under the tentative agreement announced this week.
While a couple of the names in the private funding mix, Eli and Edythe Broad and the Walton Family Foundation, are highly recognizable brands in the world of educational philanthropy, the Arnolds are relatively new players. Their IRS Form 990 for 2008 lists a $5 million donation to Baylor College of Medicine and another $5 million to Texas Children's Hospital. Published reports say they provided $10 million for a major expansion of the KIPP and YES public charter schools in Houston.
Their money for the teachers' contract would be limited to underwriting the merit pay program that Rhee plans to initiate this fall, according to Cate Swinburn, president and executive director of the D.C. Public Education Fund, the non-profit that will manage the private grants for DCPS. The same restriction applies to the $10 million pledged by Broad. The $44.5 million from the Walton and Robertson foundations could be used for both bonuses and the 20 percent salary increase that is also built into the contract.
The Arnold Foundation's executive director, Natasha Kamrani, is former executive director of the Houston office of Teach for America, the organization where Rhee began her educational career.
If the contract is approved by union members and the D.C. Council, District teachers will be underwritten in part by one of the more remarkable business stories of the last few years. Arnold, 35, is the second youngest multi-billionaire in the U.S., behind Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg, according to Fortune. His hedge fund, Centaurus Energy, which manages more than $5 billion in assets, has never returned less than 50 percent in seven years of business. Hired by Enron out of Vanderbilt, he became a star trading natural gas contracts. When the historic scandal brought Enron down--Arnold had nothing to do with it--he founded Centaurus. Fortune said he earned $1 billion a few years ago by betting that natural gas prices would go down, and they did.
A phone mssage to his foundation Thursday was not returned. | 2019-04-23T04:04:03 | http://www.schoolsmatter.info/2010/04/oligarchs-and-hedge-fund-managers.html |
0.999991 | Make one word into another by changing the first letter.
EXAMPLE: Change a possessive pronoun to not sweet.
1- Change a past tense of BE to an adverb of place.
2- Change an adjective meaning not high to an adverb meaning at the present time.
3- Change a period of time to a term of affection.
4- Change was seated to have a meal.
5- Change a part of the head to international strike.
6- Change a respectful title to atmosphere.
7- Change to learn thoroughly to not as slow.
8- Change very warm to a negative adverb.
9- Change a motor vehicle to not near.
10- Change a man’s title to a female relative.
Change one letter of each word to produce the name of an animal.
Put T before a word to form a new word.
EXAMPLE: Add a T to a firearm and get a thing of little value.
1- Add T to at this place, and get at that place.
2- Add T to a covering for the head, and get a demonstrative adjective.
3- Add T to tear, and get a journey.
4- Add T to a possessive pronoun, and get a demonstrative adjective.
5- Add T to a part of the head, and get to pull apart.
6- Add T to of great age, and get narrated.
7- Add T to a mistake, and get great fear.
8- Add T to the entire amount, and get of great height.
9- Add T to a shower from the sky, and get to teach.
10- Add T to a kind of vase, and get to rotate.
Make one word into another by changing the last letter.
EXAMPLE: Change a color to a welcome.
1- Change a monarch to an adjective describing a good quality.
2- Change a negative to the present time.
3- Change a female horse to a stain or blemish.
4- Change alarm or worry to a notable achievement.
5- Change a reading process to a short dramatic act.
6- Change a person who lacks good judgment to something to eat.
7- Change a unit of weight to a color.
8- Change a part of a plant to a hole or a crack.
9- Change the top or summit of a mountain to a fruit.
10- Change a woman servant to what is delivered by the postal service.
Find the animals hiding in the following sentences.
1- That will be a real help.
2- She came late every day.
3- He came to America today.
4- Eric owes me ten cents.
5- We made errors in each one.
6- Do good workers succeed?
7- If I shout, he’ll hear me.
8- If Roger comes, we’ll begin.
9- We will go at two o’clock.
10- Is he the sixth or seventh?
11- In April I only came once.
12- I’ll sing; you hum on key.
13- I made a Xerox copy of it.
14- She clothes naked babies.
15- At last, I, Gerald, had won.
16- Was Pilar mad, ill, or glad?
17- That man ate eleven cookies.
18- Your comb is on the table.
19- We’re sending only one book.
20- He regrets having said that.
21- If Al concentrates, he’ll win.
22- When I withdrew, Al rushed in.
23- He called Mikko a lazy boy.
24- It’s only a kilometer away.
1- Some parts of the face are the eye, eyebrow, nose, and mouth.
2- I’m not really dumb; lack of sleep made me forget the answers.
3- If I tell you what she said, will you agree never to tell anyone?
4- In the box we found a pencil, a pin, keys, and a few coins.
5- Are three zeros enough to write the number one thousand?
6- The wheelbarrow hit eleven rocks as it rolled down the hill.
7- When the nurse gives you the injection, just yell “Ow” if it hurts.
8- Elsa and Otto ran gently down the path to the river.
9- Before arriving at Kuala Lumpur, please fill out these forms.
10- I play nearly all the stringed instruments: violin, cello, bass viol, etc.
11- When I opened the window, shining rays of sunlight flooded the room.
12- We’ll go in Jim’s car. Let’s leave at six o’clock. | 2019-04-22T23:10:21 | https://readwritelistenspeak.com/puzzle-english/ |
0.999999 | Eco Etiquette: What's The Environmental Cost Of Cut Flowers?
Are cut flowers really bad for the environment? My wife loves them, and I know she's probably expecting a bunch this Valentine's Day.
Selfishly, I don't want to write this article, because I fear if I veto one more of my husband's romantic gestures for not being "eco" enough, he'll give up on me forever.
I seriously want to punch myself in the face just reading this. The man is a saint.
So when he surprised me last week with a bunch of magnificent calla lilies, I of course didn't have the heart to tell him what I'm about to tell you: Conventional cut flowers are just about the least natural thing you can get your sweetie this Valentine's Day.
I know, it's hard to believe: Flowers are so beautiful, so organic looking -- in the truest sense of that word. How could they possibly be bad for the planet?
To answer that question, let's take a look at the lifecycle of your run-of-the mill supermarket red roses, which most likely began their journey in a production greenhouse in South America. Seventy-eight percent of cut flowers in the US are imported from countries like Ecuador and Colombia, where warm weather makes for ideal year-round growing conditions.
The rest of the growing conditions, however, are less than optimal, at least where the environment and workers' rights are concerned. Output is key, since US demand is so high (particularly on holidays like Valentine's Day, which will see the sale of 200 million stems of roses alone), so flowers are doused with a toxic cocktail of fungicides, insecticides, and herbicides to keep disease and vermin at bay.
Twenty percent of those chemicals are so dangerous they're actually restricted in the US or Europe, according to a 2007 study by the now named International Labor Rights Forum. That's especially unfortunate for the unprotected workers (mostly women, sometimes children) who are suffering everything from respiratory distress to higher rates of miscarriage to neurological impairment as a result of exposure.
Might want to rethink that rose petal bath, huh?
Once the roses are harvested, they're stored in an energy-eating chilled warehouse, transported to the airport in a gas-guzzling refrigerated truck, flown via cargo plane to the US (sorry, no refrigerated airplanes, but I think the carbon emissions from flying are pollution enough), and then shipped yet again via refrigerated truck to their destination -- in this case, the supermarket.
There, they wait in -- you guessed it! -- a refrigerated display case, until someone snaps up a dozen to take home and surprise his honey. But the journey doesn't end there: Once the flowers fade in a week or so, they're tossed in the trash (unless you compost) and sent to the landfill, where they decay and emit methane, a potent greenhouse gas.
If you still have your heart set on fresh flowers, you don't have to forgo them entirely, though. Seeking out blooms that are certified either USDA organic or sustainably grown by the third-party Veriflora program will go a long way toward reducing your pesticide petalprint. Buying in-season flowers from a local grower (you can find one on LocalHarvest) is another eco option that can help support native bee populations threatened by colony collapse disorder.
But if you want to impress your Valentine with your romantic as well as environmental prowess, I say ditch the cheap carnations and try this sustainably suave suggestion: Give her a package of rare heirloom flower seeds along with a beautiful vintage flowerpot. Then tell her you want to plant them with her this Valentine's Day and watch the flowers grow along with your love. | 2019-04-26T09:53:13 | https://www.huffpost.com/entry/eco-etiquette-whats-the-e_b_1264647 |
0.999997 | What other human genetic diseases are potentially caused by miRNA dysfunction?
microRNAs (miRNAs) are a class of small RNAs (19-25 nucleotides in length) processed from double-stranded hairpin precursors. They negatively regulate gene expression in animals, by binding, with imperfect base pairing, to target sites in messenger RNAs (usually in 3' untranslated regions) thereby either reducing translational efficiency or determining transcript degradation. Considering that each miRNA can regulate, on average, the expression of approximately several hundred target genes, the miRNA apparatus can participate in the control of the gene expression of a large quota of mammalian transcriptomes and proteomes. As a consequence, miRNAs are expected to regulate various developmental and physiological processes, such as the development and function of many tissue and organs. Due to the strong impact of miRNAs on the biological processes, it is expected that mutations affecting miRNA function have a pathogenic role in human genetic diseases, similar to protein-coding genes. In this review, we provide an overview of the evidence available to date which support the pathogenic role of miRNAs in human genetic diseases. We will first describe the main types of mutation mechanisms affecting miRNA function that can result in human genetic disorders, namely: (1) mutations affecting miRNA sequences; (2) mutations in the recognition sites for miRNAs harboured in target mRNAs; and (3) mutations in genes that participate in the general processes of miRNA processing and function. Finally, we will also describe the results of recent studies, mostly based on animal models, indicating the phenotypic consequences of miRNA alterations on the function of several tissues and organs. These studies suggest that the spectrum of genetic diseases possibly caused by mutations in miRNAs is wide and is only starting to be unravelled.
microRNAs (miRNAs) are a class of single-stranded RNAs (ssRNAs), 19-25 nucleotides (nt) in length, generated from hairpin-shaped transcripts. They control the expression levels of their target genes through an imperfect pairing with target messenger RNAs (mRNAs), mostly in their 3' untranslated regions (3' UTRs) . The biogenesis of miRNAs involves a complex protein system that includes members of the Argonaute family, Pol II-dependent transcription and the two RNase III proteins, Drosha and Dicer . miRNAs are first transcribed in the nucleus as long transcripts, known as primary miRNA transcripts (pri-miRNAs), which can sometimes contain multiple miRNAs [3, 4]. Few pri-miRNA transcripts have been studied in detail, but increasing evidence suggests that miRNAs are regulated and transcribed like protein encoding genes .
In brief, within the nucleus, Drosha first forms a micro-processor complex with the double-stranded RNA-binding protein DGCR8 . It then processes the pri-miRNAs into a smaller, stem-loop miRNA precursor of ~70 nucleotides (pre-miRNA) . pre-miRNAs are exported, in turn, across the nuclear membrane and into the cytoplasm by the Exportin-5 complex [8–10]. These pre-miRNAs are further cleaved by Dicer thus producing a 19- to 25-nucleotide RNA duplex. These duplexes are then incorporated into a ribonucleoprotein complex (RNP) called RISC-like complex [11, 12], referred to as the miRNA-induced silencing complex (miRISC). Only one strand of the miRNA-duplex, known as the mature miRNA, is incorporated into the miRISC complex, while the other strand, the miRNA-star (miRNA*), is degraded although, recently, miRNAs* have been found to play a role similar to that of their cognate miRNAs. Within the miRISC complex, miRNAs bind to the mRNA targets and regulate gene expression, either at the translational level [13, 14] or at the transcript level [15–17] or both . A crucial role in the recognition of the target mRNA by the miRNA is played by the so-called seed region, which is composed of six to seven nt, which shows a perfect complementarity between a miRNA and its target. miRNA can be localized in the intergenic (40%) or the intragenic (60%) regions . Intragenic miRNAs are located within other transcriptional units which are termed host genes. The vast majority of intragenic miRNAs is localized within the intronic regions of their host genes and only a minority (10%) lies within exonic regions, usually pertaining to the non protein-coding host genes. Interestingly, it has been demonstrated that many intronic miRNAs and their host genes are co-regulated and co-transcribed from a common promoter [20–22].
miRNAs are implicated in a wide range of basic biological processes, including development, differentiation, apoptosis and proliferation [23, 24]. Since the discovery of the strong impact of miRNAs on biological processes, it has been hypothesized that mutations affecting miRNA function may have a pathogenic role in human diseases. A large body of evidence has already shown that aberrant miRNA expression is implicated in most forms of human cancer [25–27], but fewer studies have established a clear link between miRNAs and human genetic disorders. Initially, there were two main (and contrasting) arguments against the hypothesis of miRNAs as genes responsible for human genetic diseases: (1) each miRNA is endowed with such a basic role in the regulation of gene expression and consequently in the regulation of basic cellular processes that a significant alteration of their function is not compatible with cell survival and ultimately with life; and (2) considering the great deal of redundancy in miRNA actions, a significant alteration of the function of a single miRNA may only give rise to subtle modifications in both the cellular transcriptome and proteome, which are unable to determine a significant perturbation of biological processes and ultimately lead to a diseased phenotype.
Our aim in this review is to provide an overview of the evidence available to date which support the pathogenic role of miRNAs in human genetic diseases, with a particular focus on monogenic disorders. In order to achieve this goal, we will first describe the types of mutations affecting miRNA function that can result in human monogenic disorders, giving some recently described examples. In the second part of this review, we will give a broader picture of the hypothetic involvement of miRNAs in the pathogenesis of human monogenic diseases based on the results obtained in vivo from the analysis of several animal models characterized by either the global perturbation of miRNA pathways or by the perturbation (either inactivation or overexpression) of single miRNAs.
Given the mechanisms of action of miRNAs (see above), three main types of mutation mechanisms affecting miRNA function can be envisaged (Figure 1): (1) mutations affecting primarily miRNAs, either point mutations in the mature sequence or larger mutations (that is, deletions or duplications of the entire miRNA locus); (2) mutations in the 3' UTR of mRNAs that can lead to the removal or to the de novo generation of a target recognition site for a specific miRNA; and (3) mutations in genes which participate in the general processes of miRNA processing and function and, therefore, are predicted to impact on global miRNA function.
Schematic diagram summarizing the main types of miRNA mutations with a potential aetiopathogenic role in monogenic disorders (see text for further details).
Likewise, protein-coding loci and also miRNA loci can be subjected to large mutations, such as deletions or duplications. To date, there are no examples of such mutations which are clearly associated with human mendelian diseases. However, a careful analysis of the genomic organization of miRNAs reveals that a number of intragenic miRNAs are localized within host genes (see above) whose mutations are responsible for human genetic disorders. By analysing the mutation spectrum previously described for the latter disease genes in the Human Gene Mutation Database (HGMD) , we found evidence that some mutations do, indeed, significantly affect one or more miRNAs (Table 1). This is the case, for instance, in certain intragenic deletions responsible for Duchenne muscular dystrophy, choroideraemia and Dent disease, among others, which are also predicted to encompass some miRNAs. It is of crucial importance to confirm these predictions and to determine whether or not the deletion of these miRNAs is able to play a role in the phenotype observed. Furthermore, several miRNAs loci are also either deleted or duplicated (Table 1) in some well-known human aneuploidy syndromes, and there is initial evidence of their contribution to the pathogenic mechanisms of the complex manifestations of these disorders .
Duan and colleagues, in 2007, described a single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) within the seed region of miR-125a. Through a series of in vitro analyses, the authors demonstrated that this SNP in miR-125a, in addition to reducing miRNA-mediated translational suppression, significantly altered the processing from pri-miRNA to pre-miRNA. Although this SNP has not been associated with a disease status, these data suggest, for the first time, that SNPs that reside within miRNA genes may, indeed, impair miRNA biogenesis and alter target selection and, therefore, have a potentially profound biological effect .
The first example of point mutations in the mature sequence of a miRNA with an aetiopathogenic role in a human mendelian disease has been recently reported by Mencìa et al. . They identified two different nucleotide substitutions in the seed region of the human miR-96 in two Spanish families affected by an autosomal dominant form of deafness, namely DFNA50. In particular, both the mutations, miR-96 (+13G>A) and (+14C>A), which were not present in several unrelated normal-hearing Spanish controls, were segregated in both of the families with a hearing impairment. miR-96, together with miR-182 and miR-183, is transcribed as a single polycistronic transcript and is reported to be expressed in the inner ear. For this reason, the authors also carried out a mutation screening of miR-182 and miR-183 in the same cohort of patients, tested for miR-96. However, they did not find any potential mutation, although this does not exclude the possibility that the latter two miRNAs may be involved in the pathogenesis of other forms of deafness. The fact that both the above families manifested the hearing loss postlingually indicated that probably neither of the two miR-96 mutations resulted in impaired development of the inner ear. Instead, they could have had an impact on the regulatory role that miR-96 plays in the hair cells of the adult cochlea which maintain the gene expression profiles required for its normal function. In vitro experiments showed that both mutations impaired, but did not abrogate, the processing of miR-96 to its mature form, although an additional indirect effect on the expression of miR-182 and miR-183 due to the miR-96 mutations cannot be excluded. Furthermore, a luciferase reporter assay confirmed that both mutations were able to affect the targeting of a subset of selected miR-96 target genes, mostly expressed in the inner ear. In contrast, no significant gain of function was associated with these two mutations, at least for the potentially new acquired miR-96 targets investigated. In addition, after an ophthalmologic revision, no ocular phenotype was observed in individuals carrying mutations in miR-96 (age range between 2 and 66 years), suggesting that its specific targets in the retina, a site in which miR-96 is also strongly expressed, were not critical for its function or that the translation of these targets was not markedly affected .
The finding of a single base change (A>T) in the seed region of miR-96 in a mouse mutant (diminuendo) with a progressive hearing loss phenotype, provided additional support to the finding that a single base change in miR-96 is the causative mutation behind the hearing loss phenotype in both man and mouse . In particular, the diminuendo mutant showed progressive hearing impairment in heterozygotes and profound deafness in homozygotes associated with hair cell defects. Lewis and colleagues suggested that the degeneration observed in homozygotes could be a consequence of a prior dysfunction of the hair cells. Bioinformatic analysis indicated that the mutation has a direct effect on the expression of many genes, including transcription factor genes, that are directly required for hair cell development and survival. The large number of genes whose expression is affected by miR-96 suggests that the mechanism that explains the effects of the mutation may not be simple but, rather, may be the result of a combination of different small effects that act in concert to cause hair cell dysfunction .
In animal cells, most miRNAs form imperfect hybrids with sequences in the 3'-UTR, with the miRNA 5'-proximal 'seed' region (positions 2-8) providing most of the pairing specificity [33, 34]. However, evidence is also accumulating that miRNAs may target mRNA-coding regions . Generally, miRNAs inhibit protein synthesis either by repressing translation or by bringing about deadenylation and degradation of mRNA targets . Since more than 700 miRNAs have been identified in the human and mouse genomes , and also considering that each miRNA can regulate, on average, the expression of 100-200 target genes [38, 39], the whole miRNA apparatus seems to participate in the control of the gene expression for a significant proportion of the mammalian gene complement.
It is conceivable that some sequence variations falling within the 3'-UTR of mRNA may alter miRNA recognition sites, either by altering functional miRNA target sites or by creating aberrant miRNA target sites. Both types of sequence variations may potentially have deleterious effects in the case of either miRNA-mRNA pairs endowed with a biologically relevant (and non-redundant) role or when the formation of an illegitimate miRNA target occurs in mRNAs that are under selective pressure to avoid target sites for that particular miRNA (that is, in the case of the so-called anti-targets) .
One of the first animal disorders with a mendelian transmission reported to be caused by dysregulation of a specific miRNA-mRNA target pair was the Texel sheep model. The Texel sheep phenotype is characterized by an inherited muscular hypertrophy that is more pronounced in the hindquarters of sheep . Clop et al. demonstrated that the myostatin (GDF8) gene of Texel sheep is characterized by a G to A transition in the 3' UTR that creates a target site for mir-1 and mir-206, which are highly expressed in the skeletal muscle. This sequence change leads to a translational inhibition of the myostatin gene and, hence, is responsible for the muscular hypertrophy of Texel sheep .
There are now some examples of sequence variations in the 3'-UTR of mRNAs altering miRNA recognition sites which have been suggested to have a pathogenic role in human genetic diseases. The first was reported by Abelson et al. , who identified two independent occurrences of the identical sequence variant in the binding site for the miRNA hsa-miR-189 (now termed miR-24*) in the 3'-UTR of the SLITRK1 mRNA in familial cases of Tourette's syndrome, a developmental neuropsychiatric disorder characterized by chronic vocal and motor tics. This 3'-UTR sequence variation in SLITRK1 was proposed in order to determine an increased extent of repression of this gene by hsa-miR-189 (miR-24*). It must be underlined, however, that the involvement of SLITRK1 in Tourette's syndrome has been subsequently questioned by other reports [43–47]. The second example is represented by two different point mutations in the 3'-UTR of the REEP1 gene which have been associated with an autosomal dominant form of hereditary spastic paraplegia (SPG31) [48, 49]. These mutations, which alter the sequence of a predicted target site for miR-140, were found to segregate with the disease phenotype and were not detected in a large set of human controls. These data strongly suggest the pathogenic role of the impaired miR-140-REEP1 binding in some SPG31 families, although so far no functional data have been provided to consolidate this hypothesis.
Georges and colleagues tried to address, in a more systematic way, the potential implications of sequence variations in the 3'-UTR of mRNAs in the pathogenesis of human diseases. They demonstrated, through SNP analysis, that sequence variations creating or destroying putative miRNA target sites are abundant in the human genome and suggested that they might be important effectors of phenotypic variation . A list of additional sequence variations altering putative miRNA recognition sites, and with a potential role in human disease, can be found in a review by Sethupathy and Collins . The authors critically reviewed a number of studies that claimed that there is an association between the presence of polymorphisms/mutations in miRNA target sites (poly-miRTSs) and human diseases, giving a special emphasis on possible biases and confounding factors. They concluded that only a few presented rigorous genetic and functional evidence. The authors therefore suggested a set of concrete recommendations in order to guide future investigations of putative disease-associated poly-miRTSs .
As previously described, a number of different proteins are involved in the processing of miRNAs. Mutations altering the function of these proteins are predicted to determine a global alteration of miRNA function. This aspect is exploited, for instance, in the experimental inactivation of Dicer that is used to assess the biological consequences of the global perturbation of miRNA activity in whole organisms or specific tissues/cell types (see also below). Complete loss-of-function mutations of certain key members of the miRNA processing pathway (such as Drosha and Dicer) are expected to be incompatible with life and, therefore, are not believed to play a role in the pathogenesis of human monogenic disorders. However, there are two human diseases characterized by mutations in genes involved in miRNA processing/activity, namely DiGeorge syndrome and Fragile X syndrome. The DGCR8 gene, which maps to chromosomal region 22q11.2, is commonly deleted in DiGeorge syndrome , characterized by cardiovascular defects, craniofacial defects, immunodeficiency and neurobehavioral alterations. As previously mentioned, DGCR8 is a component of the Drosha complex and its haploinsufficiency in DiGeorge syndrome patients may have a potential impact on miRNA processing. However, also based on the results of the targeted inactivation of the corresponding gene in mouse , there are no data, thus far, which point to a functional effect of DGCR8 haploinsufficiency on miRNA biogenesis.
The second example is represented by the Fragile X syndrome. The product of the FRM1 gene, whose loss-of-function is responsible for this condition, is a selective RNA binding protein. It has been proposed that the FMRP1 protein may function as a translational repressor of its mRNA targets at synapses by recruiting the RISC complex along with miRNAs and by facilitating the recognition between miRNAs and a specific subset of their mRNA targets. This interaction is suggested to be important in the process of synaptic plasticity which, instead, is largely compromised in Fragile X syndrome patients [54, 55]. However, this hypothesis requires further investigations. In conclusion, there is no evidence so far to support a direct role of altered global miRNA processing in human hereditary disorders.
The number of cases in which mutations in miRNA and in miRNA targets have proven to be firmly associated with monogenic disorders is still limited (see above). However, we expect the contribution of miRNAs, and related pathways to the pathogenesis of these conditions, to increase in the near future, following both a better knowledge of their biological function and the advancement of high-throughput mutation detection approaches [56–58]. We will now try to make some hypotheses on the possible diseases in which miRNAs may have a pathogenic role, mainly based on the results obtained from the analysis of animal models.
The heart is the first organ to form and to function during vertebrate embryogenesis . Perturbations in normal cardiac development and function result in a variety of cardiovascular diseases, which are the leading cause of death in developed countries .
The first indication of the global involvement of miRNAs in heart development and function was derived from the analysis of conditional knockout mice carrying a cardiac-specific inactivation of the Dicer enzyme. As described above, Dicer plays a key role in miRNA biogenesis and its inactivation is predicted to cause a general deficiency of the mature forms of all miRNAs.
Chen and colleagues reported that cardiac-specific knockout of the Dicer gene led to rapidly progressive dilated cardiomyopathy, heart failure and postnatal lethality. Dicer mutant mice showed misexpression of cardiac contractile proteins and profound sarcomere disorder. Functional analyses indicated significantly reduced heart rates and a decreased fractional shortening in Dicer mutant hearts. Furthermore, this study demonstrated, for the first time, the essential role of Dicer in cardiac contraction and also indicated that miRNAs play a critical role both in normal cardiac function and under pathological conditions .
Moreover, da Costa and colleagues found that an inducible deletion of Dicer in the adult mouse heart results in a severe alteration of myocardial histopathology, suggesting a crucial role for this enzyme in ensuring the integrity of the postnatal heart. Interestingly, Dicer depletion in the juvenile heart provoked an overall tendency to arrhythmogenesis and less marked myocyte hypertrophy, but its inactivation in the adult myocardium gave rise to myocyte hypertrophy and angiogenic defects. These findings seem to imply the presence of differences in the biological role, as a whole, of miRNAs between the juvenile and the adult myocardium .
The generation of cardiac disease-like phenotypes in animal models may not only be caused by a global alteration of miRNA function but also by the dysfunction of specific miRNAs. For instance, miR-1-2 appears to be involved in the regulation of diverse cardiac and skeletal muscle functions, including cellular proliferation, differentiation, cardiomyocyte hypertrophy, cardiac conduction and arrhythmias . miR-1, together with another heart-specific miRNA (miR-133a), is known to be transcribed by a duplicated bicistronic genetic locus (miR-1-1/miR133a-2 and miR-1-2/miR133a-1) sharing identical sequences of the mature miRNAs. Mice lacking miR-1-2 present a spectrum of abnormalities, ranging from ventricular septal defects and early lethality to cardiac rhythm disturbances. These mice also featured a striking cell-cycle abnormality in myocytes, leading to hyperplasia of the heart with nuclear division persisting postnatally. Remarkably, the persistence in these mice of the other identical copy of miR-1-2 (that is, miR-1-1) did not compensate for the loss of miR-1-2, at least for many aspects of its function. While it is likely that mice lacking both miR-1-1 and miR-1-2 will have increasingly severe abnormalities, the range of defects upon the deletion of miR-1-2 highlighted the ability of miRNAs to regulate multiple diverse targets in vivo . The subtle dysregulation of numerous developmental genes may contribute to the embryonic defects observed in miR-1-2 mutants. These included: (1) Hrt2/Hey2, a member of the Hairy family of transcriptional repressors that mediates Notch signalling, which can itself cause heart disease ; and (2) Hand1, a bHLH transcription factor involved in ventricular development and septation that, in combination with Hand2 (a paralog of Hand1), is known to regulate expansion of the embryonic cardiac ventricles in a gene dosage-dependent manner . Furthermore, in miR-1-2 mutants, the observed abnormality in the propagation of cardiac electrical activity, despite normal anatomy and function, was correlated with the upregulation of the direct target Irx5, a transcription factor, resulting in ventricular repolarization abnormalities and a predisposition to arrhythmias.
Jiang et al. added one more piece to the puzzle represented by the miR-1/miR-133a cluster. They extensively characterized genetically engineered mice deficient for either miR-133a-1, or miR-133a-2, or both as well as mice overexpressing miR-133a . While miR-133a-1 and miR-133a-2 seemed to have redundant functions and did not cause obvious cardiac abnormalities when deleted individually, targeted deletion of both miRNAs resulted in cardiac malformations and embryonic or postnatal lethality. miR-133a double knockout mice displayed two distinct lethal phenotypes: (1) either large ventricular sept defects (VSDs), dilated right ventricles, and atria leading to death shortly after birth; or (2) survival into adulthood, no VSDs but dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM), cardiac fibrosis and heart failure. Surprisingly, miR-133a deficiency did not lead to hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, as one would have been expected from previous studies, in which miR-133a-antagomir treatment induced cardiac hypertrophy in mice . Several genes involved in cardiomyocyte cell cycle control, such as Cyclin D1, Cyclin D2 and Cyclin B1, were found to be significantly upregulated in miR-133a deficient hearts as well as several smooth muscle genes, such as smooth muscle-Actin, Transgelins, Calponin I and the myogenic transcription factor SRF.
In a further attempt to dissect the effects of miR-133a on cardiomyocyte proliferation, Liu et al. overexpressed miR-133a under the control of the cardiac β-myosin heavy chain promoter. Surprisingly, transgenic animals died by embryonic day 15.5 (E15.5) due to VSDs and diminished cardiomyocyte proliferation, which resulted in ventricular walls only consisting of two to three cell layers that were unable to fulfill the hemodynamic needs of the developing mouse .
Morton et al. reported that miR-138 is expressed in specific domains of the zebrafish heart and is required to establish appropriate chamber-specific gene expression patterns. Disruption of miR-138 function led to expansion in the expression of ventricular-specific genes, normally restricted to the atrio-ventricular valve region, and, ultimately, to disrupted ventricular cardiomyocyte morphology and cardiac function. Furthermore, the authors demonstrated that miR-138 helps in establishing discrete domains of gene expression during cardiac morphogenesis by targeting multiple members of the retinoic acid signaling pathway .
van Rooij and colleagues described cardiac hypertrophy and failure in a mouse model overexpressing mir-195, which is generally upregulated in hypertrophic human hearts . Overexpression of miR-195 under the control of the α-myosin heavy chain (Mhc) promoter initially induced cardiac growth with disorganization of cardiomyocytes, which progressed to a dilated heart phenotype by 6 weeks of age. More striking was the dramatic increase in size of individual cardiomyocytes in miR-195 transgenic mice compared to normal mice. Furthermore, ratios of heart weight to body weight were also dramatically increased in miR-195 transgenic (Tg) animals as compared to wild-type littermates, indicating that overexpression of miR-195 was sufficient to stimulate cardiac growth. Thus, the cardiac remodelling induced in the miR-195 Tg animals was specifically caused by the functional effects of this miRNA rather than a general nonspecific effect resulting from miRNA overexpression, suggesting that increased expression of miR-195 induced hypertrophic signalling, leading to cardiac failure.
Based on all the previously described findings it is tempting to speculate a possible role of specific miRNAs in human genetic forms of heart hypertrophy and failure. This hypothesis is also supported by the dysregulation of miRNA expression observed in several cardiovascular diseases in man [71–73].
Multiple lines of evidence indicate the potential role of miRNAs in neuronal cell development and maturation. Both the mouse and human brain express a large spectrum of distinct miRNAs compared with other organs [74, 75]. Therefore, the implications of dysregulation of miRNA networks in human diseases affecting the CNS are potentially enormous.
In recent years, different conditional Dicer null mouse lines in the brain have been generated. They have provided initial insight into the in vivo role of miRNAs in the mammalian CNS and particularly in the neuronal maintenance of the mouse brain [76–79].
Schaefer and colleagues described the phenotypic characterization of Dicer null mice in Purkinje cells of the cerebellum. They performed the inactivation of Dicer exclusively in the post-mitotic Purkinje cells by using the Purkinje cell-specific Pcp2 promoter-driven Cre recombinase. This inactivation led to the relatively rapid disappearance of cerebellar-expressed miRNAs followed by a slow degeneration of Purkinje cells. The loss of Dicer and the decay of miRNAs had no immediate impact on Purkinje cell function, as assessed by electrophysiological studies and analysis of animal locomotion. However, the continuous lack of miRNAs led eventually to Purkinje cell death and ataxia, suggesting that a long-term absence of miRNAs in these cells results in a neurodegenerative process .
In a recent work, the inactivation of Dicer in the cortex and hippocampus beginning at embryonic day 15.5 resulted in dramatic effects on cellular and tissue morphology and led to gross brain malformations including microcephaly, increased brain ventricle size, and reduction in size of white matter tracts, leading to an early postnatal death . Furthermore, mutant mice were ataxic with visible tremors during motility. Ataxic gait was detected by postnatal day 14-15, but often occurred as early as postnatal day 12. Dicer mutant animals also displayed hind limb crossing, typical of animals with motor impairment. Therefore, loss of miRNA function in some mouse brain regions during late development results in a significantly decreased lifespan as a consequence of severe malformations as well as motor impairments due to an increased cortical apoptosis .
To determine the role of miRNAs in dopaminoceptive neurons, Cuellar et al. ablated Dicer in mice by using a dopamine receptor-1 (Dr-1) promoter-driven Cre. The mutant animals displayed a range of phenotypes including ataxia, front and hind limb clasping, reduced brain size and smaller neurons. Surprisingly, dopaminoceptive neurons without Dicer survived during the life of the animal in contrast with other mouse models in which neurodegeneration was observed in the absence of Dicer .
miRNAs have also been studied in early neurogenesis during the development of the mammalian cerebral cortex and the switch of neural stem and progenitor cells from proliferation to differentiation. Dicer ablation in neuroepithelial cells at embryonic day (E) 9.5 resulted in massive hypotrophy of the postnatal cortex and death of the mice shortly after weaning. Remarkably, the primary target cells of Dicer ablation, the neuroepithelial cells and the neurogenic progenitors derived from them, were unaffected by miRNA depletion with regard to cell cycle progression, cell division, differentiation and viability during the early stage of neurogenesis and only underwent apoptosis starting at E14.5, suggesting that progenitors are less dependent on miRNAs than their differentiated progeny .
miRNA function was studied also for another part of the CNS (that is, the retina). Damiani et al. described a partial ablation of Dicer in the developing mouse retina by using a Cre line under the Chx10 promoter, a gene mostly expressed in retinal progenitors and specific adult retinal interneuronal cells. These mice apparently showed no visible impact on early postnatal retinal structure and function. Retinal lamination appeared normal and all expected retinal cell types were represented. However, as observed for the other Dicer null mutants, progressive and widespread structural and functional abnormalities were detected, culminating in loss of photoreceptor-mediated responses to light and extensive retinal degeneration . Therefore, the observation that progressive retinal degeneration occurred after removal of Dicer raises the possibility that miRNAs are involved in retinal neurodegenerative disorders.
In summary, although removing Dicer is conceptually a crude experimental approach, the aforementioned results support the hypothesis that defects in the miRNA regulatory network in the brain are a potential cause of neurodegenerative disease.
A functional role for miRNAs in more specific neurological processes is emerging, and their dysfunction could have direct relevance for our understanding of neurodegenerative disorders . This conclusion is supported by several in vitro examples using both gain- and loss-of-function experiments. For example, the introduction of artificial miRNAs mimicking upregulation or antisense oligonucleotides induces loss of function of primary neurons in culture [82–85].
The next challenge will be to characterize in vivo individual miRNAs and specific families of miRNAs in depth, which are predicted to contribute to the proper CNS function. An initial step towards this goal is the recent study of Walker and Harland. The authors show through loss-of-function experiments that in Xenopus laevis miR-24a is necessary for proper neural retina development by regulating apoptosis through Caspase 9 targeting .
Vertebrates have evolved complex genetic programmes that simultaneously regulate the development and function of hematopoietic cells, resulting in the capacity to activate specific responses against invading foreign pathogens while maintaining self-tolerance. From recent studies, miRNAs are emerging as major players in the molecular circuitry that controls the development and differentiation of haematopoietic lineages .
Genetic disruption of different steps in miRNA biogenesis in mice has highlighted the key role of miRNAs during haematopoiesis. Dicer ablation in the T-lineage, whilst not abolishing the development of T-lymphocytes, affected their functionality [87, 88]. Interestingly, ablation of Dicer in regulatory T cells (Treg cells) resulted in a much more severe phenotype. Mice lacking Dicer expression in Treg cells failed to differentiate functional Treg cells and developed a severe autoimmune disease, leading to death within the first few weeks of life .
Knocking-out Dicer activity in early B-cell progenitors determined a block at the pro-B cell stage during the differentiation process leading to mature activated B-cells. Gene-expression profiling revealed a miR-17-92 signature in the 3'UTRs of genes upregulated in Dicer-deficient pro-B cells; the proapoptotic molecule Bim, a top miR-17-92 target, was also highly upregulated. Surprisingly, B cell development was partially rescued by ablation of Bim or transgenic expression of the prosurvival protein Bcl-2 .
In mice the specific role of single miRNAs in the development and function of the immune system is starting to be elucidated through targeted deletion approaches. The pioneer knockout of miR-155 in mice (the first mouse knockout for a single miRNA) revealed an essential role in the acquired immunity for this miRNA. In fact, despite miR-155 null mice developed normally, immune system analysis revealed that miR-155 depletion led to pleiotropic defects in the function of B cells, T cells and dendritic cells. These mice were unable to gain acquired immunity in response to vaccination, demonstrating that miR-155 is indispensable for normal adaptive immune responses [91, 92].
Another functional example derives from the study of Ventura et al. (2008) who demonstrated that the miR-17-92 cluster is involved in controlling B-lymphocyte proliferation. Deletion of this miRNA cluster was lethal in mice resulting in lung hypoplasia, ventricular sept defects and impairment of the pro-B to pre-B transition. Absence of miR-17-92led to increased levels of the pro-apoptotic protein Bim and inhibited B cell development at the pro-B to pre-B transition. Furthermore, while ablation of miR-106b-25 or miR-106a-363 (the two paralogous clusters) had no obvious phenotypic consequences, compound mutant embryos lacking both miR-106b-25 and miR-17-92 died at mid-gestation . On the contrary, over-expression of miR-17-92 cluster in mice led to lymphoproliferative and autoimmune diseases that were associated with self-reactive antibody production .
Finally, Johnnidis et al. described the generation of a knockout mouse for miR-223, which highlighted its role in granulocyte differentiation. The myeloid-specific miR-223 negatively regulated progenitor proliferation and granulocyte differentiation. Moreover, mutant mice had an expanded granulocytic compartment resulting from a cell-autonomous increase in the number of granulocyte progenitors. These data support a model in which miR-223 acts as a fine-tuner of granulocyte production and the inflammatory response .
The fact that miRNAs are involved in the modulation of T cell selection, T cell receptor sensitivity as well as Treg cell development in normal immune responses, suggests that these molecules may also be involved in the development of immune system disorders of genetic origin such as immunodeficiencies or autoimmune diseases.
In mouse, conditional inactivation of Dicer has been achieved in different other tissues in order to study the global function of miRNAs [23, 96–101]. Using transgenes to drive Cre expression in discrete regions of the limb mesoderm, Harfe et al. found that removal of Dicer determined developmental delays, due in part to massive cell death as well as to dysregulation of specific gene expression, and brought to the formation of a much smaller limb. Strikingly, however, the authors did not detect defects in basic patterning or in tissue-specific differentiation of Dicer-deficient limb buds . This class of skeletal defects was previously observed in mice with compound mutations in Prx1 and Prx2 genes .
To better understand the role of miRNAs in skin- and hair follicle biology, Andl and colleagues generated mice carrying an epidermal-specific Dicer deletion. These mice presented stunted and hypoproliferative hair follicles. Normal hair shafts were not produced in the Dicer mutant and the follicles lacked stem cell markers and degenerated. In contrast to decreased follicular proliferation, the epidermis became hyperproliferative. These results reveal the critical role played by Dicer in the skin and the key aspect that miRNAs may have in epidermal and hair-follicle development and function . Moreover, the existence of skin-specific miRNAs involved in normal epidermal and follicular development, such as the miR-200, the miR-19 and miR-20 families, indicate that their therapeutic expression or inhibition might also be relevant to epidermal pathology .
To study Dicer function in the later events of lung formation, Harris and collaborators inactivated Dicer in the mouse lung epithelium using a Shh-Cre allele. As a result, the mutant lung presented a few large epithelial pouches as opposed to the numerous fine branches that are seen in a normal lung. Phenotypic differences between mutant and normal lungs were apparent, significantly, even before detection of an increase in epithelial cell death, leading the authors to propose that Dicer may play a specific role in regulating lung epithelial morphogenesis independent of its requirement in cell survival .
Dicer activity is essential for skeletal muscle development during embryogenesis and postnatal life. O'Rourke and colleagues (2007) showed that Dicer inactivation in skeletal muscle resulted in lower levels of muscle-specific miRNAs. Moreover, Dicer muscle mutants died perinatally and were characterized by skeletal muscle hypoplasia. Reduced skeletal muscle, in turn, was accompanied by abnormal myofibre morphology. The skeletal muscle defects associated with loss of Dicer function were explained by increased apoptosis. Furthermore, decrease in muscle mass in Dicer mutants was strikingly similar to the phenotypes associated with muscular dystrophies and aged skeletal muscle. This finding suggests that, in humans, DICER mutations, or disrupted miRNA-mediated gene regulation, should contribute to skeletal muscle myopathy and age-related sarcopenia .
The study of Pastorelli and co-workers demonstrated that loss of Dicer in the developing mouse reproductive tract, under the control of Amhr2-Cre-mediated deletion, resulted in morphologic and functional defects in the reproductive tracts of female but not of male mice (before 3 months of age).
Recently, Sekine and colleagues have described the conditional Dicer ablation in the mouse liver. This resulted in prominent steatosis and in the depletion of glycogen storage. Dicer-deficient liver exhibited increased growth-promoting gene expression and robust expression of fetal stage-specific genes. The consequence of Dicer elimination included both increased hepatocyte proliferation and overwhelming apoptosis .
Finally, two different Dicer knockout strategies demonstrated that miRNAs are required for the development and differentiation of sensory epithelia and the maintenance of the sensory neurons of the inner ear . Based on studies carried out in animal models, it is clear that miRNA dysfunction may lead to severe alterations in the function of all tissues/organs that have been analysed up to now. In the majority of the aforementioned cases, the aberrant phenotypes observed are the consequence of a global impairment of miRNA processing (that is, Dicer knockout approaches), a condition that is highly unlikely to contribute to the pathogenesis of human genetic diseases. Nevertheless, the fact that in some organs (that is, the heart, the eye and the immune system) the dysfunction of single miRNAs may underlie phenotypes, strongly resembling those observed in human disease, suggests that miRNAs should be considered potential candidates in the pathogenesis of human genetic disorders, even monogenetic forms, likewise protein-coding genes.
microRNAs are emerging as key regulators of the cell transcriptome due to their ability to finely tune gene dosage. In the last few years, they have been shown to be involved in the regulation of many cellular processes and their role in the proper differentiation and function of tissues and organs is only starting to be unravelled. It is also becoming increasingly clear that miRNAs, similarly to protein-coding genes, may harbour mutations leading to human genetic conditions, even 'classical' monogenic forms. The number of cases in which mutations in miRNAs, or in their targets, have been convincingly shown to have a pathogenic role in human genetic diseases is still limited. This may not only be explained by the recent characterization of miRNAs at the genomic level, which will now allow us to carry out the appropriate analyses, but also by the fact that the 3'UTR of mRNAs have, until recently, been generally neglected as potential sources of sequence variations with a potentially pathogenic effect in genetic diseases. However, both the improvement in experimental procedures, aimed at the identification of mutations based on efficient sequencing protocols, and the increasing knowledge in miRNA function are predicted to fill the latter gaps, underscoring the role played by miRNAs in the pathogenesis of human genetic disorders in the coming years.
We apologize to our colleagues whose insightful work was not included due to size constraints. We are grateful to Luciana Borrelli for editing the original manuscript. This work was supported by a grant from the Italian Telethon Foundation.
NM, VAG and SB wrote the review manuscript. The authors read and approved the final manuscript. | 2019-04-26T08:18:41 | https://pathogeneticsjournal.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1755-8417-2-7 |
0.998505 | Out of curiosity, how much time does an average open water swimmer spend training each week?
And what distance events do most average open water swimmers participate?
On a weekly basis, I'm grateful when I can swim three times for an hour and fifteen minutes (4500 m). Last summer I did my first two open water events, 1.5 and 1.0 miles. I'm wondering if a longer event would be reasonable? But spending less time with my family, or at work, or asleep, are not options.
I just love doing open water swims. It's a great excuse to spend a day at the beach, lake, where ever with the family and friends, have a picnic and to top it off do what I love doing - swimming!!!!!!
I spend nearly every second w/end in summer participating in one open water event or another and my training program is identical to yours - 3 times a week and my workouts vary between 3000 - 4500m.
This works for me and I think if you're training over 3k each workout you should have NO trouble doing longer events - of course what you want to achieve in each event is another matter!!
I do three runs and three swims per week, with the occasional bike thrown in for variety. Balance of distance depends on my current goal. For the last couple months, I was ramping up to swimming Lake Mendota (4.3 miles), so swimming predominated. I did 40,000+ yards of swimming and 100+ miles of running in August. Currently, I'm training for a marathon in early November. In October, I'll do about 25,000 yards of swimming and 130 miles of running.
I'm new to OW, so don't quote me, but I think I read somewhere that what mileage you want to swim in an event, be training that same mileage over the course of your workout week (i.e., a 5-mile event, make sure you are swimming 5-miles over the course of your week). Not sure if that is accurate though. Right now I got a one-miler coming up on Saturday so I have altered my training to focus on one mile swims for about the last two weeks. Doing one mile each day, M-TH this week and tomorrow off.
I swim 5x per week and run 4x. I swim at least 25000 yards a week, and run between 7-11 miles per run.
I average just shy of 20K SCY equivalents a week, usually split across 4-5 workouts in the pool. When I race OW, I like to swim 4K and 5Ks. This amount of training, for me, is sufficient to race those.
I think the answer to your larger question, though, is very individualized. I know of people doing VERY long marathon swims, who train maybe 25K-30K per week.
Based on the yardage you're doing in an hour and fifteen minutes and based on my experience, I'm thinking you could do longer swims. I think a 5K is in your range.
I'm training for 3 mile swim.
I do three swims a week. Currently I'm at about 11K yeards per week.
1) Distance swim - really slow. Alternating breast, back, free, and my pitiful kicking.
Right now, it's at about 5K yards - in 3 hours. Continents drift past me.
I'll likely get up to 6K or 7 K about a month before the swim, then I'll speed it up a little.
The kicking isn't for speeding me up or anything - it's to help prevent leg cramps. Strikes me that is the biggest preventable risk in open water.
2) Pacing swim. A warm up, a (for me) fast mile or 1.5 mile, a wind down. Takes between 50 and 75 minutes depending.
3) 100 yard intervals, followed by 50 at slow pace. about 12 right now. Less than an hour, but not much. Will probably build up to 20 X 100. | 2019-04-18T10:25:36 | http://forums.usms.org/archive/index.php/t-1354.html?s=654046f8894670bd7ceadf40df47914e |
0.999996 | The subjunctive imperfect is very rarely employed in French; generally it only appears in literature and is viewed as archaic. It can in all instances be replaced by the subjunctive present. The subjunctive imperfect is employed in any instance in which the subjunctive is required, provided the trigger verb is in a past tense. In the example "Il fallait que le garçon allât à l'école", the subjunctive trigger verb "falloir" is in the imperfect, thus "aller" has been conjugated in the subjunctive imperfect. French speakers would normally express this as "Il fallait que le garçon aille à l'école", where "aller" has been conjugated in the present subjunctive.
For regular -ir verbs, regular -re verbs and irregular verbs, the imperfect subjunctive stem is the conjugation of the verb in the 3rd person singular form of the simple past with the final "t" removed.
To conjugate the imperfect subjunctive, add the appropriate ending to the imperfect subjunctive stem.
The verb venir is only irregular in the 3rd person singular. | 2019-04-21T08:46:39 | https://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/French/Grammar/Tenses/Imperfect_subjunctive |
0.999993 | Refuting Swedish misstatements, why are Chinese diplomats more and more dared to speak?
Why do Chinese diplomats dare to speak more and more when they criticize Sweden's erroneous remarks, talk with Japanese ambassadors, and broadcast live programs in Europe and the United States?
The diplomatic envoys with the highest rate during this period were not the Chinese ambassador to Sweden, Gui Gui friends. Since the incident of Chinese tourists being roughly treated by Swedish police came to light, Ambassador Gui has been interviewed three times by local media to clarify China's solemn position and refute the wrong statements made by the Swiss side.
Although these Chinese tourists behaved inappropriately, there is no blame for the actions of Chinese embassies abroad in safeguarding the legitimate rights and interests of citizens. Imagine, when citizens encounter difficulties overseas, is it the hope that the embassy and consulate flying the five-star red flag to lend a hand, or is it silent?
Over the years, it has become apparent that Chinese diplomats are increasingly dared to speak. In addition to the example of GUI's friends, Liu Xiaoming, Ambassador to Britain, a few years ago. He has repeatedly received live interviews with local media, and has been talking about the Japanese ambassador to Britain in political commentary.
Generally speaking, Chinese diplomats concentrate on vocalization. There are basically two cases. One is to cooperate with major state affairs. For example, Chinese leaders visit their host countries or visit leaders in their countries. At this time, as the highest representative of the Chinese government in the region, it is the responsibility and obligation of the Chinese and foreign media to introduce the relationship between the two countries, the itinerary of the visit and the expectations of the trip.
On July 16 this year, just before President Xi Jinping's visit to Senegal, Chinese Ambassador to Serbia Zhang Xun received a joint exclusive interview with State TV and State Radio. On September 4, before Kenyan President Kenyatta's visit to China, Chinese Ambassador to Kenya Sun Baohong published a signed article in the local media to discuss the significance of his visit.
The other is to publicize China's foreign policy and convey China's concerns to its host country. The Chinese ambassador to Sweden, who is the first Chinese ambassador to Sweden, took an exclusive interview with Chinese tourists. Last year, China's "one belt and one way" International Cooperation Summit Forum, before and after the China Africa Cooperation Forum this year, all the relevant embassies and consulates in China frequently voicing their voices, which is the former. There are also both, for example, the recent statements made by our foreign agencies on Sino-US trade frictions in newspapers, television, the Internet and other media have shown China's attitude and sought international understanding and support.
It can be said that such a high-density "Chinese voice" has been hard to imagine in the past. For a long time, the voice of the Chinese side is relatively small in the mainstream public opinion field in the West. Some of them are prejudiced or even discriminated against by the western media, but there are also some shortcomings of Chinese diplomats themselves.
"Foreign affairs are nothing small, things need to be consulted" and "diplomats are the PLA in civilian clothes." These views are naturally correct, but in the information age, it is more necessary to understand dialectically. In the international public opinion field, we do not speak, or do not speak loudly, that is to say the right to speak to others. In the past, we often said, "reason is not loud," but now, "reason is more important to speak out." The author notes that Gui Congyou was interviewed by a Swedish journalist on "organ donation and transplantation in China". In the past, because China had said little on this sensitive issue, it gave room for some ulterior motives to make up rumors.
Moreover, it is the degree of grasp of policy. Li Zhaoxing, former foreign minister, had an example when he was a representative of China to the United Nations. An attendant reported to him that a stranger had just distributed to him "one China, one Taiwan" and "Taiwan independence" materials. Li Zhaoxing was not satisfied with the young colleague's political sensitivity. "Limited diplomatic authority is right, but it also depends on what issues. Do you think anyone else wants to report "Taiwan independence" materials? You should refute this person on the spot and tear up the material in person. You run back quickly to see if the man is still there.
More and more diplomats are willing to face the lens.
Of course, Chinese diplomats should not only "speak out" but also "speak well". Is the international community still the "home field" of Western society, in the process of international communication, continue to use the Chinese people's own idiomatic concepts and expressions, or use the "localized" language to generate more resonance?
For example, GUI came to the Swedish side to refute the so-called "no fault theory of police". In an interview with local media, he said, "As far as we know, in November 2011, a similar incident occurred in the southern Swedish city of Bross. At that time, the victim was a Swedish citizen who was found guilty of dereliction of duty. This shows Rui Fang's double standards in handling similar incidents.
Besides, it is understood by the host country. For example, in explaining to British audiences why China firmly opposes Japanese Prime Minister Yasukuni Shrine visits, Ambassador Liu Xiaoming compares Japanese militarism to Voldemort, the great villainer in the novel Harry Potter, and quotes former British Prime Minister Churchill's famous saying that "those who forget history are doomed to repeat the same mistake".
It has been noted that in the past, Chinese diplomats used to express their position by accepting "written interviews" from foreign media. Now more and more Chinese diplomats are willing to face the camera or even broadcast live programs. This is a great test to Chinese diplomats' psychological quality and on-the-spot adaptability.
You know, unlike the slow rhythm of "first, second, second, and last" political programs in China, media interviews in Europe and the United States are much faster. These hosts, journalists are often experts in the economic and legal fields, rich in knowledge, often able to quickly seize the other side of the flaw to "torture" guests, or even let guests down. For example, Swedish journalists frequently ask Chinese ambassadors questions about "Chinese tourists are wrong first, Swedish police are right, and whether China is making a big deal of a big deal".
Look at the question and answer process of Broadcasting British Corporation hosts and Liu Xiaoming. Within more than 10 minutes, the two sides had nearly 30 questions and answers. Liu Xiaoming often answers a few words to interrupt the host, either to continue questioning, or to change the topic, there is no gap. And Liu Xiaoming's answer is straightforward. "You're not right because..."
This kind of high-intensity mental confrontation sets high demands on diplomats, whether they are familiar with the language of their country, mastery of China's foreign policy, or even physical fitness.
Some Western media have used the term "aggressive" to describe Chinese diplomats as "aggressive" in their frequent voices. This statement is inappropriate. Because China's attitude towards international disputes has not changed, and it has only changed the way to safeguard national interests. In other words, what China advocates is nothing more than a single star. But we have more and more effective ways to deal with other people's irrational attempts. The reason for this is that Chinese diplomats are more upright and have an increasingly strong motherland behind them.
Sweden is now insulting China after being exposed to rough treatment by Chinese tourists. | 2019-04-19T00:19:58 | https://waonews.com/news/32064-Refuting_Swedish_misstatements_why_are_Chinese_diplomats_more_and_more_dared_to_speak.html |
0.999916 | What risks are involved in riding a motorcycle? Motorcycles can be a fast, convenient, and affordable way to get around. On the other hand, they are considerably smaller and lighter than cars. Also, they only have two wheels and a rider is always exposed as opposed to a driver who is protected inside a car that has protective features such as a roll cage or airbags. Motorbike riders are 35 times more likely to be involved in a serious accident than drivers in passenger cars.
These factors make riding a motorcycle riskier than driving a car. They also make motorcycle wrecks more likely to cause death or serious injuries. It is estimated that close to 4,000 motorcyclists are killed every year on U.S highways and another 80,000 sustain injuries in motorcycle wrecks.
Other risk factors include motorbikes being smaller and less likely to be seen in comparison to cars. Especially at intersections. Motorbikes are also more vulnerable to objects and hindrances on the road, such as debris, potholes, snow, and ice. Additionally, riding a motorbike requires more skill than driving a car. Unskilled riders make up a disproportionate number of motorcycle wrecks. There's also the fact that there are types of motorbikes such as sport bikes that encourage high speed, fast acceleration, and other types of high-risk behavior.
The law considers a person negligent when they behave in a manner that is thoughtless or careless and in so doing cause another person to be injured. Drivers and riders are expected and required to exercise caution to avoid injuring other road users, be they pedestrians, other riders, or drivers. If someone is injured as a result of a driver not exercising that caution, they are considered liable.
In a large number of motorcycle accidents, it is the driver of a car or truck that has been negligent. The negligence can be caused by running a red light or failing to check their mirrors before taking a left turn. In other cases, it is the motorcycle rider who has been negligent. A rider who swerves in front of a car and causes it to crash can be held liable for the injuries suffered by the occupants of a car.
Perhaps you, a family member, or friend has been involved in an accident that left serious injuries. Typically, the negligent party will not readily admit and accept liability. They will call their insurance company and the company will try to make a quick settlement, offering a minimal appoint in compensation rather than providing compensation that is fair and adequate for the injuries sustained.
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Contact the law firm on 316-684-4400 or call Brad himself on 316-706-5020. His assistant Tony Atterbury can be reached on 316-617-9237. Trust and leave it to 'The Bull Attorneys'. | 2019-04-20T04:43:42 | https://www.bradpistotniklaw.com/resources/leave-it-bull-attorneys-get-you-fair-compensation-about-motorcycle-wreck |
0.999501 | So far, the LHC has been spending its time ramming protons together, leaving Brookhaven's Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC) the king of the hill when it comes to smashing larger atomic nuclei. When the nuclei of gold atoms collide within RHIC, their components dissolve into a high-energy state called a quark-gluon plasma (the LHC will eventually smash lead atoms to similar effect). A paper in today's Science describes some of the more exotic items that briefly emerge from the wreckage: the antiparticle equivalent of Deuterium, with strange quarks replacing some of the more familiar ones.
The paper itself is a mindbending trip through families of particles that are similar to our familiar protons and neutrons (termed nucleons), but have at least one of their quarks replaced by a heavier, strange version, resulting in what's termed a hyperon (four of these, Λ, Σ, Ξ, and Ω, have been observed). In the brief periods that the quark-gluon plasma exists, particles and antiparticles are equally probable, leading to a large collection of heavy and light nuclei and anti-nuclei. It also leads to some fantastic sentences, like the following: "Hypernuclei bring a third dimension into play, based on the strangeness quantum number of the nucleus, thus allowing the territory of antinuclei with nonzero strangeness."
The paper focuses on the hypertritons, atomic nuclei that consist of a proton, a neutron, and a Λ hyperon. RHIC has now produced around 200 hypertritons/antihypertritons, which survive for a couple hundred picoseconds. That's enough to determine that they are probably being formed in the same way a standard atomic nucleus is, by the condensation of their component nucleons and hyperons. In fact, they were formed in similar numbers to their less-strange equivalents, 3He and its antiparticle equivalent.
The authors take that as an indication that, at the energies produced by RHIC, strange quarks are present in equivalent numbers to their more mundane counterparts, meaning that further collisions will provide us some indication of their binding interactions, which may help shape the interior of neutron stars. So, they're gearing up to go for another round of collisions that will produce an order of magnitude more of these (literally) strange nuclei.
Does that actually mean anything?
I love reading about particle physics, even though I understand it at all. That sentence is indeed fantastic.
"...survive for a couple hundred picoseconds..." Although an infinitesimally small block of time, this phrase is nevertheless anything but precise when it says "a couple hundred picoseconds." Seems like these "mysterious" particles are actually normal particles in various stages of both decomposition and composition as a result of the collisions. Surprisingly, it doesn't appear that physicists have been able to coin a phrase for either particle creation or dissolution--apart from a conjecture about "new and mysterious" particles that last only trillionths of a second before settling down into normative particle properties.
but if the earth is only 6000 years old, then what does it all MEAN?
Actually, "a couple hundred picoseconds" is relatively precise, at least in relation to orders of magnitude (for example, "a length of time between a picoosecond and a microsecond").
It's like responding to the question "When will I see you again?" by answering "in a couple of hundred days" rather than "anytime between a minute from now and a decade from now."
Heh... What if the earth is only six billion years old? What does that mean?
Now where's my FTL Space Car?
I told you several times, you will get your FTL Space Car back after your probation from your FTLUI is up.
I'm waiting for the DOI embargo to be lifted so I can see in what context such a poorly written sentence could possibly make sense.
Do they mean "Nuclei with non-zero strange quantum number are produced, so antinuclei with strange quantum number are also produced." ?
The setup on that line was the suggestion that you could more or less plot the existence of nuclei and antiparticle equivalents on a 2D grid, but that's only when you consider top/bottom quarks. Add strange quarks, and you need a 3rd dimension in order to map things.
Thanks for the info -- it seems that at least part of this article is for non-expert audiences, who wouldn't know about flavor symmetry.
WaltC said: "...survive for a couple hundred picoseconds..." Although an infinitesimally small block of time, this phrase is nevertheless anything but precise when it says "a couple hundred picoseconds." Seems like these "mysterious" particles are actually normal particles in various stages of both decomposition and composition as a result of the collisions. Surprisingly, it doesn't appear that physicists have been able to coin a phrase for either particle creation or dissolution--apart from a conjecture about "new and mysterious" particles that last only trillionths of a second before settling down into normative particle properties.
You have to understand that although a picosecond seems like a negligible span of time to the human brain, in the particle world it's very tangible. Time is relative and is an abstract concept our brains have formed to organize all the different forms data we process daily. From a particles' perspective, a picosecond could seem like the lifetime of a universe. Again, time is just our way of measuring the constant flux of matter, entropy and dementional space in this universe.
Glue-on plasma is a ghodsend for anyone who has cracked a wall trying to put in those magnetically shielded nails.
Like steak and mushrooms? Mmmmmm, flavour symmetry.
and I imagine they don't reach your desired level of precision since they're averaging over 200 events.
Seems like these "mysterious" particles are actually normal particles in various stages of both decomposition and composition as a result of the collisions.
So your saying that the particle is unstable, yes? And this is notable how?
Surprisingly, it doesn't appear that physicists have been able to coin a phrase for either particle creation or dissolution--apart from a conjecture about "new and mysterious" particles that last only trillionths of a second before settling down into normative particle properties.
Not so new or mysterious: we've been studying hyperons for decades. And I don't understand your criticism of physicist's language skills -- I think strange is a lot better than "mysterious": what's with the scare quotes? I don't get the point of your comment other than trash talking. The idea that hypertritons are formed in similar numbers to normal matter is a big deal -- could have major significance in understanding the big bang: but since we know little about strange matter, we have to study it.
From the OP I can't tell if the hyperons decay, but it sounds like the hypertritons annihilate, so it's not like they "settle down" to "normative" particles. Regardless, a couple of 100 picoseconds is plenty of time (when it's really hot and dense) for exotic interactions.
Thanks for the article. It's interesting and a lot of us don't interact with this information on a daily basis so whether it's strange or mysterious is immaterial. Some people need to get over themselves.
Yeah, it's crazy that those particle physicists can't figure out a better way to describe Uranium-238. I mean, it's only around for 4.5 billion years before settling down into Thorium-234.
Wait a minute... are you confusing the particle physics meaning of the term 'strange' for the vernacular meaning?
Indeed, when you add the strange quark the flavor symmetry goes from admitting one good quantum number, "isospin," to admitting two good quantum numbers, isospin and "strangeness."
It's adorable that people still reply to WaltC's posts. | 2019-04-21T12:34:00 | https://arstechnica.com/science/2010/03/strange-antiparticles-pop-out-of-rhics-quark-gluon-plasma/?comments=1&post=4487&mode=quote |
0.999972 | The European languages are members of the same family. Their separate existence is a myth. For science, music, sport, etc, Europe uses the same vocabulary. The languages only differ in their grammar, their pronunciation and their most common words. Everyone realizes why a new common language would be desirable: one could refuse to pay expensive translators. To achieve this, it would be necessary to have uniform grammar, pronunciation and more common words. If several languages coalesce, the grammar of the resulting language is more simple and regular than that of the individual languages. The new common language will be more simple and regular than the existing European languages. It will be as simple as Occidental; in fact, it will be Occidental. To an English person, it will seem like simplified English, as a skeptical Cambridge friend of mine told me what Occidental is.The European languages are members of the same family. Their separate existence is a myth. For science, music, sport, etc, Europe uses the same vocabulary. The languages only differ in their grammar, their pronunciation and their most common words. Everyone realizes why a new common language would be desirable: one could refuse to pay expensive translators. | 2019-04-26T08:12:54 | http://www.hyzeytinleri.com/unexpected-guest/ |
0.999997 | Is Oculus the new VR gaming heavyweight?
It was just two months ago when Oculus Rift passed HTC Vive as the most popular VR headset in the Steam hardware survey for the very first time.
According to the latest data, this wasn't just a fluke.
In February, Oculus overtook HTC Vive by 1.9%, with 47.3% of Steam users connecting with Oculus Rift compared to 45.4% with Vive.
Now the March numbers are out, and it appears that Oculus’ growth over Vive could be a trend: the gap has grown ever-so-slightly to 48.9% versus 44%.
These numbers come from Valve’s opt-in Steam Hardware & Software Survey, which collects data on everything from which video cards and processors gamers use to which VR headsets they're wearing while gaming.
Because the survey is voluntary, we can’t know for certain if more Steam gamers are on Rift headsets than Vives. But the bigger the gap gets, the more likely it is that Oculus is winning at attracting more gamers.
This is a major accomplishment for Oculus, considering HTC has handily dominated the Steam market for some time. When the HTC Vive released in early 2016, it quickly became the favorite device for Steam users to play in VR.
Around the same time, Oculus updated from the DK2 to the current Rift model. But by mid-2016, only about 30% of Steam VR users had chosen Rift, versus 60% using the Vive, according to the survey.
What's this a sign of?
While the data looks good for Oculus in terms of sales, it neither proves that Rift has begun to outsell the Vive, nor that the Vive ever outsold the Rift to begin with.
Because Oculus users access the Oculus Store by default and must manually download the SteamVR browser, many Oculus gamers simply never open Steam. If only half of Oculus gamers try Steam, compared to all Vive gamers, then Oculus may have overcome a significant handicap to beat HTC at its own game.
On the other hand, these numbers could also mean that Oculus users aren’t satisfied with what the Oculus Store has to offer and are migrating to Steam to find better content.
Or, considering Steam's data shows percentages instead of hard numbers, it could be that Vive users have stopped using their headsets to game, rather than that more people are using Rifts.
There are too many uncertainties to know the primary factor behind Oculus' sudden growth. Neither Facebook, which owns Oculs, nor HTC have made their headset sales public, so we can only speculate.
Could the new Vive Pro help HTC dominate Steam again?
With the HTC Vive Pro release date in just a couple of days, HTC no doubt hopes it can put a dent in the trend. But considering the HTC Vive Pro price is $799 / £799 or around AU$1,045, that may be too much for a lot of gamers.
On the other hand, Oculus is focusing its current efforts on the Oculus Go, which won’t likely have any Steam support. If Oculus customers choose to go cordless at the expense of graphics, the Rift's trending success could slow down as the year goes on.
Meanwhile, Windows Mixed Reality, which doubled its Steam market share from December to January, has continued to grow steadily but appears to have leveled out somewhat around 5%.
Like Oculus, it doesn’t let users use Steam by default, so the survey could actually be deflating Windows’ growing VR market presence. | 2019-04-21T23:50:34 | https://www.techradar.com/au/news/oculus-rift-overtakes-htc-vive-in-steams-monthly-hardware-survey-again |
0.999999 | Larry McCann believes a serial killer is responsible for the deaths of six people and the disappearance of two others, and even though the slayings apparently have stopped, the state police psychologist thinks the killer is still out there.
Typically, ``somebody of this type doesn't just stop. If the killings stop that means he's either died, gone to jail or moved out of the area,'' said McCann, a behavioral psychologist.
But in this case, McCann believes the killer may have been stymied by the death of an accomplice.A search of the FBI database on violent crimes shows there have been no killings in the past 2 1/2 years anywhere in the United States, Canada or Australia that fit the pattern of the Virginia crimes. Interpol also reports no similar crimes in Europe.
That indicates to McCann that the killer is not operating elsewhere unless it is in the Third World.
McCann said if the killer has died, police probably will never know. ``If that is the case, it was likely a violent death. Violent lives generally end in violent deaths,'' he said.
If the killer is in jail, McCann said the pattern of killing probably will resume when the killer is released.
Two years ago, McCann and the FBI went public with their belief that the killings of three couples and the disappearance of a fourth in the general vicinity of the historic Colonial Parkway were the work of one person.
After an extensive study of the four crime scenes, McCann compiled a psychological profile of the killer. McCann declines to discuss the specifics of the profile.
``There is some behavior that tells us something about this man that we just don't want to release,'' he said.
Two years ago, McCann said there was a second person who had an ``intimate knowledge'' of the crimes. He implied that the second person might be in danger.
McCann said last week that his statements two years ago were intended to warn the second person.
From his study of the crime scenes, McCann concludes the second person may have been a helper to the killer.
The crimes began in October 1986 with the killings of Cathleen Thomas, 28, of Norfolk and Rebecca Dowski, 21 and a student at the College of William and Mary, on the Colonial Parkway near Williamsburg.
The women were found in the back seat of Thomas' car. They had been strangled and their throats slit. There were no signs of a struggle, nor had the women been raped or robbed.
Thomas' car had been pushed over an embankment along the parkway.
In September 1987, the bodies of David Knobling, 20, and Robin Edwards, 14, both of Newport News, were found at the Ragged Island Game Refuge on the James River. Each had been shot in the back of the head. Again there was no sign of a struggle.
Knobling's pickup truck was found in the refuge parking lot with its keys in the ignition. His wallet was found on the truck's seat.
In April 1988, not far from the site of the Thomas-Dowski killings, Richard Call, 20, of Gloucester County and Cassandra Hailey, a 19-year-old Christopher Newport College student, disappeared.
Call's vehicle was discovered at an overlook along the parkway with its keys in the ignition. Hailey's purse and Call's wallet were in the car. No trace has been found of the couple despite numerous searches.
In September 1989 near Interstate 64 in New Kent County, Daniel Lauer, 21, of Amelia County and Annamaria Phelps, 19, of Virginia Beach were reported missing.
Their bodies were discovered in a nearby wooded area about a month later.
Because the bodies were badly decomposed, authorities were uncertain of the exact cause of death. Both Lauer and Phelps had been stabbed.
Lauer's car was found at a nearby rest area with its keys in the ignition. Phelps' purse was found in the car. Authorities said Lauer was not known to carry a wallet.
McCann's theory that the second person is now dead would help explain why the killings appear to have stopped.
``The situation has changed dramatically. Without the second person, the killer would be in danger of losing control of the situation. And I think it would be difficult to recruit another follower,'' McCann said.
McCann was trained by FBI specialists to draw up profiles of serial criminals. The bureau began looking at the psychological makeup of serial murderers, rapists, pedophiles and arsonists in the late 1960s.
Using information from the crime scene, profilers are able to draw a psychological picture of the suspect that often includes some physical characteristics.
``This is not something that is on the back burner,'' McCann said of the search for the killer. ``We get one or two tips every week or so. We are still looking. ... He's going to make a mistake. And when he does, we'll catch him. | 2019-04-25T11:31:44 | https://www.dailypress.com/news/virginia/dp-pway-16_psychologist_062292-story.html |
0.999992 | Is it normal for a mac plus to make crackly pop noises?
I got my mac Plus out and put a new Battery in and instead of tripping the circuit brakers it loaded to the flashing floppy sign, But there were some Crakly pop noises from inside it but besides that nothing else happened.
No, that means the high tension electricals are short circuiting. Sadly, when they start doing that, the only place they belong is in the scrap-head as they are a serious safety hazard.
Not worth trying to salvage the floppy?
Everything in it should be salvageable sans the Analog Board, easily identifiable as the large, vertically mounted board with the power connector on it. Even if you could find one of those (or get the existing one repaired?), the Mac Plus should work again. Otherwise the other parts can definitely be reused in another machine.
Being a relatively old board with fairly simple electronics, I would say it's no surprise it's acting up, but there's also a good chance an electronics shop could repair it if you chose to take that path.
In its current state, I wouldn't run the machine. Crackling or Popping noises are certainly an issue with the high voltage electronics and as such are quite dangerous to run. In addition though it could cause damage to the rest of the system, so it's best to avoid powering it up until they're either swapped out or fixed. In the case of a Mac Plus, you may choose to find another machine and keep this one for spares.
Thanks for telling me about the noises, I was going to get it out today as I just got a new Pram Battery and the other week when I turned it on after putting the battery in (When it made the noises) and it seemed to work fine, the picture was normal, the only thing was that I don't have a bootable disk ,Which was what my project was to make this weekend.I seem to have bad luck with mac pluses my other one has serious problems.
I read somewhere else that the crackly noises is just the crt adjusting and getting rid of moisture after being put away a long time could this be true?
Personally I haven't heard that from my Macintosh 512Ke. If it just sounded like static from the front of the CRT, then it may not be so bad and the machine could work just fine. On the other hand any remotely loud crackling from inside the machine, especially if it's from the top-left vent (facing the front of the machine) could indicate serious problems. If it has previously tripped the circuit breakers, then I would suspect a circuit issue. If it hasn't, then it's hard to tell.
The Noise was not too loud and it seemed to come from the middle of the computer, Both my Mac Pluses have tripped the circuit brakers, but then I Replaced the pram Batteries and they didn't, the one that made crackly noises just loaded to the normal flashing floppy and the other one showed zig zags and checkers. | 2019-04-25T11:46:17 | http://www.mactalk.com.au/archive/index.php/t-86959.html?s=5c4c486ee72991d721eb309c54519893 |
0.999075 | 1. Chop up the banana, pineapple, and kale into small pieces.
2. Mix ice, banana, pineapple, basil and blueberries into bowl.
may be frozen together, so gently break apart with a spoon.
In a large bowl place your chopped bananas, pineapple, kale, ice, and water.
Then move your ingredients into the blender carefully.
Then mix on low for 30 seconds then gradually bring the speed to high for about 1 minute or until smooth.
Then all that's left to do is to put your smoothie into a cup and enjoy. | 2019-04-24T06:46:05 | https://www.bertholdacademy.com/new-blog-1/2017/10/12/bertholds-best-green-smoothie-recipes |
0.997226 | The former England midfielder David Beckham has been suspended for one game and fined by Major League Soccer for - among other things - punching a rival mascot.
Beckham, who plays for the Los Angeles Galaxy, has been banned for confrontational and provocative behavior during a 4-3 loss at San Jose earlier this week.
During the match Beckham uncharacteristically shoved and shouted at rival players and punched the San Jose club's comic-costumed mascot before being restrained.
The tantrum comes in the same week the 37-year-old was officially ruled out of competing at the London Olympics for Great Britain as one of three over-age players allowed at the otherwise under-23 tournament. | 2019-04-21T18:34:34 | https://www.radionz.co.nz/news/sport/109861/beckham-banned-for-punching-a-mascot |
0.999262 | The reviewer comments states that 'Rejected submission since not all required data is available. Data available (http://www.ine.mx/archivos2/portal/Elecciones/PEF/2014-2015/#resultados) include results for major electoral contests, registered votes and invalid votes, but no information on spoiled ballots. Data is up to date, available in HTML and CSV, downloadable at once for each election. Historical data also available: http://www.ine.mx/archivos3/portal/historico/contenido/Historico_de_Resultados_Electorales/' In this sense I would like to clarify that the normative translation for 'spoiled ballots' to Mexico is 'Voto Nulo (More info on the treatment of spoiled ballots in Mexico here: http://www.ine.mx/docs/IFE-v2/DECEYEC/DECEYEC-MaterialesLectura/docs/03_VotoNulo.pdf). In this regard the two links provided with electoral information provide data on 'Voto Nulo', and the cases in which the electoral authority can determine a vote as invalid: eg. vote for two or more candidates, votes for no candidate, ballot is mutilated or incomplete, Also in the National Electoral Information System, once a search by district is done, users can find an 'observations' column, which states the unique ID of Challenges to specific ballot stations. | 2019-04-26T09:45:38 | http://global.survey.okfn.org/entry/mx/elections |
0.999835 | Place the following words into the illustration below gametes, sporophyte, gametophyte, and zygote. Explain how the terms are related. MY ANSWER 1. sporohyte 2. gametes 3. gametophyte 4. zygote I just need to explain my answer but I do not know how to.
Why was Henry Ford able to produce an affordable car? A. He only hired immigrants who would work for low pay. B. He used cheap parts made overseas. C. He developed a less expensive method of production. D. He allowed people to purchase new cars on credit.
Math 6th Grade, Help me!
If there were approximately 196 million liscened drivers in 2003,which is closest to the number of drivers who were less than 30 years old ?
Karen hang a spring vertically and attaches 30g Mass to the springs other end. If the spring stretches 5 cm. What is the spring constant?
A rectangular page is to contain 97 square inches of print. The margins on each side are 1 inch. Find the dimensions of the page such that the least amount of paper is used.
How many chloride ions are present in 1.7grams of magnesium chloride crystals?
what countries on the arabian peninsula does the Tropic of Cancer pass through? Oman , Saudi Arabia, And United Arab Emirates Does it pass through Yemen too?
a rectangular cardboard, 15 cm by 50 cm is cut into smaller squares. What is the least number of such square pieces?
Juan has 28 paperback books Each book is 1 1/4 inches wide. will all his books fit on the 2 and 1//2 feet shelf? if not how many will fit and how many will have to go on another shelf?
Two cones are similar Cone 1 r=5 h=15 Cone 2 r=? h=18 What is the length of the radius of cone 2? is it 7?
What are the moles of substances present at equilibrium at 450C if 1 mol N2 and 4 mol H2 in a 10 L vessel react according to the following equation? N2 (g) + 3H_2(g) ⇌ 2NH_3 (g) The equilibrium constant Kc is 0.153 at 450C. Thanks a lot.
Find the function rule (-2,9) (-1,4) (0,-1) (1,-6) (2,-11) I think the function rule is you subtract 5 from the y as you go on.
How is velocity different from speed?
Can diborane (B2H6) react with an alkene in a Hydroboration reaction or its BH3 the one that reacts so the splitting of diborane to borane has to be considered because I heard theyre the same?
A person spinning on a platform has a rotational inertia of 4 kg m^2 and an angular velocity of 15 rad/s. The person extends their arms out, and their rotational inertia becomes 7.5 kg m^2. What is their new angular velocity? I think the answer is 8 rad/s.
is it right to say through cooling and condensation process if not then how do I say that ?
The creator of a new game receives a royalty of 8% of the selling price of each game sold. The company that produces the game receives the remaining amount. If the company receives $10.10 per game sold, what is the selling price of the game?
Ok if the source said Parents often want to consult with doctors over the phone in off hours to determine if a child needs to be seen. and I wrote Parents may call pediatricians after hours to see if they should bring in their child. Is that plagiarism.
Since I am working on a project based on the poem "here" by Aracelis Girmay, how do people usually feel when reading this? What mood does it create for the readers?
Morocco has coastlines on what two bodies of water? North Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean sea?
Native Americans agreed to surrender most of the land in what is now Ohio, under the terms of Pinckney's Treaty. (1 point) True? False?
C6H12 + 9O2 ---> 6 CO2 + 6H2O C6H12 + 12O2 ----> 6CO2 + 12H2O which is correct?
How could you determine the length and height if you knew the width was 3 feet and the volume were 4,200 ft sq?
rewrite 32^3/5 as a radical expression and then simplify.
edna sells mangoes in bags 5-kg and 10-kg. she has a total of 250 kg to sell. If she sells twice as many bags of one than the other, and all the mangoes were sold, how many bags of 10 kg mangoes each are sold?
does anyone have information on the declaration of independence plz I need to write a short letter about my experience there as I was there thank you.
If the difference between 21 and k is 48. Find the value of K #Please anyone to help me this question# Can the value of K be -27. | 2019-04-18T11:27:36 | https://www.jiskha.com/archives/2018/03/01 |
0.998258 | "Inventing the Abbotts'' is a film that seems to have been made in a time machine. Not only the picture's story but also its values and style are inspired by the 1950s. It's like a subtler, more class-conscious "Peyton Place,'' and if the same movie had been made 40 years ago with Natalie Wood, Sandra Dee, Troy Donahue and Ricky Nelson, it could have used more or less the same screenplay (minus the four-letter words).
The film seems indirectly inspired by Welles' "Magnificent Ambersons.'' It's about the Abbotts, a rich family whose parties and wealth dominate a small Midwestern town, and about a local working-class boy who has made the family his "addiction.'' He eventually conquers all three of the Abbott girls, while his younger brother lusts after one and loves another, but lacks his courage.
The movie is narrated by the younger brother, Doug Holt (Joaquin Phoenix). He tends to repeat himself, finding countless different ways to say that his upwardly mobile brother Jacey Holt (Billy Crudup) has always been more confident and successful--especially around the Abbott girls. The oldest is Alice (Joanna Going), the official "nice girl,'' who gets pregnant, gets married, gets divorced and gets Jacey, in that order. The middle is Eleanor (Jennifer Connelly), the official "bad girl,'' who gets sent away to stewardess school for her exploits. The youngest is Pam (Liv Tyler), and she's also the nicest, and the one Doug really likes, although he also lusts after Eleanor.
To understand the three Abbott girls and the two Holt brothers, it helps to understand their world. They live in Haley, Ill., a town of maybe 20,000, dominated by a steel desk factory owned by Mr. Abbott (Will Patton). Years ago, Mr. Abbott and the boys' father were friends. But then Abbott allegedly cheated Holt out of a valuable patent for sliding desk drawers, and then Holt died when he drove his DeSoto roadster onto a frozen lake on a stupid $20 bet. Soon after, rumors raced through town that Mr. Abbott was spending way too much time consoling the new widow Holt (Kathy Baker).
This is the kind of material that might have graced a mid-1950s Universal-International weeper--maybe one adapted from a John O'Hara best-seller filled with descriptions of country clubs. Even then it would have had more energy. "Inventing the Abbotts'' seems slow and almost morose, and the director, Pat O'Connor, shows none of the cheerful love of human nature that enlivened his "Circle Of Friends" (1995), the smart and touching picture about young love in 1950s Ireland.
The picture is haunted by a story problem: It isn't about anything but itself. There's no sense of life going on in the corners of the frame. The characters, completely preoccupied by the twists of the plot, have no other interests. Mr. Abbott is one of those 1950s dads whose sole functions in life are to drive gas guzzlers, stand behind a big desk, smoke a lot of cigarettes, and tell teenage guys to stay away from his daughters. Kathy Baker is more dimensional as Mrs. Holt--she has some touching scenes--but her life, too, has been completely defined by what happened with the Abbotts in the past, what is happening with the Abbotts now, and what, I fear, will happen with the Abbotts in the future.
The film's art direction is uncanny. It doesn't look like a period picture; it looks like a movie that was actually shot in 1955. Looking at the old cars and the storefronts and the front yards and the clothes, I was reminded of "Young at Heart'' or "A Summer Place.'' The actors do their best, and are sometimes quite appealing, but the story is so lugubrious there's nowhere they can go with it. And it's a shame the most interesting Abbott girl (the Jennifer Connelly character) is shipped out of town just after she delivers the movie's best line. | 2019-04-20T11:21:56 | https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/inventing-the-abbotts-1997 |
0.999059 | For years, House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) has not allowed a vote on a bill to give a path to citizenship to undocumented young people who came to the U.S. as children, because most of its supporters are Democrats.
House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) promised GOP members to hold votes on two immigration bills next week, a move meant to keep moderate Republicans from teaming up with Democrats to force movement on an issue that Congress has been unable to find a compromise on for years.
Ryan spokeswoman AshLee Strong announced the plan on Tuesday evening, following negotiations between moderate Republicans and conservatives from the House Freedom Caucus.
GOP leadership was aiming to avoid a successful discharge petition ― a gambit led by a group of moderate Republicans to join Democrats in forcing a vote on several bills to help undocumented immigrants who came to the U.S. as children. Hundreds of thousands of those young immigrants risk losing deportation relief under President Donald Trump.
The discharge petition fell only two signatures short of the 218 it needed for success on Tuesday, with all Democrats signing on. But ultimately, GOP leadership convinced wavering Republicans to hold off by facilitating a deal to consider two immigration bills.
“Members across the Republican Conference have negotiated directly and in good faith with each other for several weeks, and as a result, the House will consider two bills next week that will avert the discharge petition and resolve the border security and immigration issues,” Strong said in a statement, adding that the full Republican conference would discuss the matter on Wednesday morning.
One of the two measures is expected to resemble a bill authored by House Judiciary Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) that includes a slew of restrictionist-preferred measures, including heavy enforcement, cuts to legal immigration and increased border security. Only one element of the bill addresses DACA recipients, granting them temporary reprieve rather than a path to citizenship, although Trump has said he would support allowing them to become U.S. citizens.
The other bill is expected to be a compromise between hardliners and moderates. Many moderates pushing for the discharge petition argue that undocumented young people, often called Dreamers, should be given a permanent path to citizenship rather than being kept in a tenuous temporary status.
The discharge petition would have actually allowed for votes on both such bills ― it included a vote on Goodlatte’s bill and a bill of Ryan’s choosing, such as a compromise bill. But it would have also triggered a vote on Democrats’ preferred bill to give a path to citizenship to Dreamers without other immigration measures, and for legislation that paired Dreamer measures and border security alone.
Rep. Carlos Curbelo (R-Fla.), one of the leaders of the discharge petition effort, said in a statement Tuesday that the deal with conservatives brings the House “one step closer” to immigration reform. Still, he said the discharge petition isn’t dead.
“While we believe all parties have negotiated in good faith, until and unless we confirm the proposed legislation fully addresses the interests and concerns that unite us we must and will keep up the pressure,” Curbelo said.
Although there is widespread voter support for citizenship for Dreamers, Ryan has not allowed a vote on the issue for years because it does not have support from a majority of the Republican conference.
It remains to be seen whether House Republicans can actually pass a deal ― especially without Democrats, who are strongly opposed to many of the measures Trump has demanded. Trump said he would support a path to citizenship for Dreamers only if he also gets a border wall, restrictions on legal immigration and reforms to the law so he could detain, deport or turn away more children and asylum-seekers at the border.
Most Democrats strongly oppose such concessions, as do immigrant rights activists, and their voices are likely to be even stronger amid news of families being separated at the border and the Trump administration’s latest efforts to limit asylum for victims of domestic and gang violence.
Protecting#Dreamersstands on its own merits. If Republicans plan to use Dreamers as a way to advance@realDonaldTrump’s xenophobic, anti-immigrant agenda, they will get a fight from House Democrats.
Even if some kind of legislation passes the House, it would have to get through the Senate ― where Democrats hold more power to block legislation and where lawmakers have already tried and failed to pass immigration bills earlier this year. It would also have to get through the president. | 2019-04-18T15:55:56 | https://www.yahoo.com/news/house-republicans-deal-hold-2-030236540.html |
0.998861 | Suppose A is a finite set, let P be a discrete distribution on A, and let M be an arbitrary "mass" function on A. We give a precise characterization of the most efficient way in which An can be almost-covered using spheres of a fixed radius. An almost-covering is a subset Cn of An, such that the union of the spheres centered at the points of Cn has probability close to one with respect to the product distribution Pn. Spheres are defined in terms of a single-letter distortion measure on An, and an efficient covering is one with small mass Mn(Cn). In information-theoretic terms, the sets Cn are rate-distortion codebooks, but instead of minimizing their size we seek to minimize their mass. With different choices for M and the distortion measure on A our results give various corollaries as special cases, including Shannon's classical rate-distortion theorem, a version of Stein's lemma (in hypothesis testing), and new converse to some measure-concentration inequalities on discrete spaces. Under mild conditions, we generalize our results to abstract spaces and nonproduct measures. | 2019-04-21T08:26:44 | http://publications.eng.cam.ac.uk/960512/ |
0.999998 | What's the source of anti-cyclist/anti-mass transit/pro-automobile bias?
1. The news media started reporting "trouble" before the ride even began.
4. 250 cylists were reported arrested on charges of running red lights and assault. The actual publicly available police record - available the day after the ride - shows that only 101 were booked at the Hall of Justice, most of them from a random sweep on Sacramento Street. Only six people were charged with serious crimes and at least two of them were pedestrians in business attire with no involvement with Critical Mass! The news media has yet to report these facts (still is as of this writing: 8/9/97, 9:55 AM).
5. The ride was inaccurately called "mayhem" and "chaotic" when in fact - except for the very predictable conflicts that occasionally occured when cyclists instead of police officers manned the intersections - it was an entirely normal ride.
6. At approximately 7:30 PM, police set up a roadblock at Market Street bu Fifth Street.
7. Cyclists and pedestrians (who were obeying all traffic laws) who caught in this roadblock were assaulted (shoved, knocked to the ground, struck with clubs, kicked, pepper sprayed, etc.) by a small group of out of control police officers.
8. Video evidence indicates at least one member of the "official" press was there taking photos - and this story has yet to make it to the "mainstream" press even though it has been on this widely visited web site since August 1, 1997. Note: the riot occured one block from the headquarters of the San Francisco Chronicle.
A theory on why the San Francisco media was so quick to lead the attack on the riders and then cover the facts. | 2019-04-25T20:09:02 | http://www.brasscheck.com/cm/blackout.html |
1 | Question: Which is the most fluid revision of the following paragraph? There was a monkey on a rocket ship. The rocket ship flew over the irrigation ditch. The monkey was eating papayas.
There was a monkey eating papayas on a rocket ship. The rocket ship flew over the irrigation ditch.
There was a monkey on a rocket ship, which flew over the irrigation ditch. The monkey was eating papayas.
There was a monkey on a rocket ship, which flew over the irrigation ditch and the monkey was eating papayas.
While eating papayas, the monkey flew over the irrigation ditch on a rocket.
The correct answer is: While eating papayas, the monkey flew over the irrigation ditch on a rocket. | 2019-04-24T10:14:40 | http://time2answer.com/quiz/question-8a-of-10-choppy-writing.html |
0.999999 | Going to a live show can be a hit or a miss. The vocals could be pitchy or sound totally different from the album, the atmosphere could be wrong, the crowd too young. It's a bit of a gamble. My main criterion for choosing a show to go to is simply - can the music hold its own as a live performance? With all of the technology and auto-tuning that happens these days, it's easy for musicians to sound great on a studio recording, but can't sing a note in tune in front of an audience. When going to smaller shows (meaning a venue with capacity in the 100s, not the 1000s), more often than not, the openers are relatively unknown. Which makes it even more difficult for them to win over the audience and perform for a room full of people who aren't paying attention and instead are trying to talk over the music.
The 92s were the headliner for Saturday night's show at The Throne Room. I first saw them at TTR back in June, and they put on a great show, playing songs from their then-recently released album, Television Fuzz (March 2014). So while I knew the night would be a long one (The 92s weren't scheduled to go on until 11:45pm!), I also knew that it would be worth it. What I didn't know was whether or not the openers would be any good. TTR is a fairly new venue (circa June, 2014) that primarily features local and still underground Chicago musicians. For that reason, the crowd that gathers tends to be, in my limited experience, friends and family of whoever is playing that night. But the occasional third party risk-taker like me will also show up, hoping to discover something great.
Openers for the night began with a group called Boss Fight (who I did not get to see), followed by Route 25, and then Cardinal Harbor. I tried to find some evidence of Route 25 on the internet, to see if they were worth going early for, but could not dig up anything. However, I did find out from a chatty friend of the drummer that Route 25 just recently formed. Overall, an OK band with a sound that's reminiscent of The Foo Fighters, but lacking in chord variation and lyrics. Still needs some work.
Cardinal Harbor was much easier to research beforehand, and after listening to some tracks on Spotify, I knew that they were a must-see. According to their 2013 Kickstarter page and promo video (to help fund production of their debut album), the bandmates met at Wheaton College in IL - Scott Carrick (saxophone), Aaron Krumsieg (trumpet), Julian Henderson (drums), Chris Hills (guitar), Ryan Bilton (bass), and Spencer McCreary (guitar/vocals) - and have been playing together for a couple of years now.
I never really had that unhealthy sense of worship for all things DMB, so I don't hold them up on an unreachable pedestal. Sure, they were a huge high school phase, and everyone went to a DMB concert every summer, but only to drink and smoke, and that wasn't really my thing. Something about the band's image just felt cliche to me. So I kinda boycotted them on principal.
That being said, DMB is known for being an exceptional jam-band. And yes, they can put on a great live show (or so I'm told). But I just can't get over the 20-minute long song - if you're going to ramble for that long, I need some sort of song structure or emotional progression or a few lyrics to hold everything together. I suppose it's probably to the band's advantage that everyone at their shows is high (by choice or by accident), but I just don't get what all the fuss is about. Any real band can jam.
Cardinal Harbor gives the 6-piece band legitimacy in the current music scene. The 90s was the perfect decade for ska or jam bands, but where does a group fitted with a saxaphone and trumpet in its regular line-up stand today? They don't quite fit neatly into folk, or pop, or indie rock. But if a band is talented enough, fitting perfectly into an industry-labeled genre doesn't really seem to matter.
Oh, and don't get me wrong, CH can jam too (cut to: the 3:30 minute mark of their latest SoundCloud release, "Wildfires" or their song "Mirth") - but I think they do it right. It's not all over the place, it doesn't fall out of time, it doesn't leave you in a place that's totally different from where you started.
Another thing that I like about Cardinal Harbor is their growth as a band in finding their own style. Releasing a sophomore album is tricky - you don't want to sound too far removed from your debut, yet you still want it to sound different. Evolved.
Like I said before, Faces on Parade is a clear Dave Matthews Band-esque record. Nothing wrong with that - I'm sure every guy with an acoustic guitar looks to Dave as an influence (Phillip Phillips is another great example of a clearly Dave-inspired musician). It's so easy to fall in love with the sound of Faces on Parade - the songs have poetry-like lyrics, the acoustic guitar and horns are on-point, and it's cohesive enough without each track sounding too much like the next. On the other hand, The Cold Season is markedly different in style - it's obvious that they pushed themselves to leave the comfort of their DMB-stylized music and instead experimented with a more electronic sound - check out "Lies", "Arrangements", or "Bounty". Yet CH did the right thing and didn't stray too far from their best sound - "Miss Imagine" and "The Watch" pay homage to their first album and remind us why we fell in love in the first place.
Needless to say, the live set was awesome. Cardinal Harbor plays with an incredible sense of maturity and confidence, despite being such a young group of guys. Aaron (trumpet) wasn't there unfortunately, but Scott rocked it, and Julian was really fun to watch (and not to mention, super talented!). Coming off of a pretty notable performance at the House of Blues in September, I'm not sure that TTR was the best atmosphere for them - the way that the audience space is aligned to the stage makes it uninviting to stand, and more conducive to chatting around a table towards the back of the room. But it meant I got a great view for their set, so that was nice. Their setlist included "Memo", "Revere", their newest one via Soundcloud "Wildfires", and even did a cover of Peter Gabriel's "Sledgehammer" (pretty great). I really can't sing enough of their praises. Cardinal Harbor is a really talented group of guys and I'm calling it now - they're going to go very, very far.
The 92s obviously killed it. Need I say more? Check out my review from their June show if you feel like listening to me ramble about how great they are too. Dan Durley and the guys - Rob Marshall, Mateo Mullen, and new bassist Dylan Epling - are so fun to watch, and everyone in the room was dancing around and having a great time by the end of the set. They played a few new songs that are on an upcoming EP (date TBD..?) like "Unrest" and "Made of Nothing" (not to be confused with "Good to be Nothing" from Television Fuzz...but hey, correct me if I'm wrong about the song title here!?). The 92s also played "Read My Mind", "Put Me In My Place" [video from the June show], and "You Are Not Near Enough", along with some oldies from their first album like "The Incident" and "Gone Away"; the guys closed with "Cutlery Wives".
If you haven't heard of this band, well, you should check them out. They won the Red Eye Rock n Vote in 2012 and recently played at Pygmalion Fest in Urbana-Champaign. Which also featured fellow indie rockers American Football (yes, of storied emo-revival legend), Into It Over It (of current emo-revival fame), and A Great Big Pile Of Leaves in the line-up...just a few of the bands that I recognized, at least. And rumor has it that Dan Durley has recently moved to Chicago, so let's hope that means many more shows in the city for The 92s! I would see them over and over again, if given the chance.
Always a good time at The Throne Room, always looking for the next up-and-coming band out there. Thanks to Kamila from TTR and the Radio One Chicago guys, Hex & Dave, for getting me into the show. This is my first live show review that will be mirror-posted on the Radio One Chicago blog - a radio show on Loyola's radio station WLUW, 88.7, that airs live on Thursday from 6-8pm. So excited for the chance to build the FYMS name as a more legitimate music blog here in Chicago. Thanks everyone for the help and support!
Listen: The 92s:: "Neurotic Laundry List"; "You Are Not Near Enough" | 2019-04-24T02:54:45 | http://www.freeyourmusicsoul.com/blog/2014/10/21/the-92s-w-cardinal-harbor-at-the-throne-room-101114 |
0.999984 | When I ordered the very worst meal I ever ate, I was on a lunch break from jury service. I had left the downtown LA courthouse and walked a couple of blocks in a random direction looking for a restaurant. I walked into what turned out to be a grubby, nasty place and ordered a hot dog and what they called "homemade mac and cheese", basically a pile of inedible, greasy, flavorless, stringy slop. I try not to waste food, but I couldn't make it through this. It was definitely the most disgusting, seemingly half-assed meal I have ever seen prepared.
Disregarding the possibility that I came into the restaurant on a very very bad day, how would such a substandard restaurant stay in business? I'll theorize with two words: Jury Duty. Think about it, every weekday, thousands of people coerced by the legal duty to perform jury service converge upon the courthouse, and they all need to eat. Like me, many of them will just walk down a block in a random direction, stop at the first restaurant they see, eat there, and possibly prop up the fortunes of a restaurant that would otherwise fail. But this is not simply a matter of an increased volume of foot traffic outside. If that were the case, restaurants next to all highly visited areas would have lesser quality food, but that is clearly not true. A restaurant next to, for example a large office building that the same workers go to every day, needs to maintain high standards to keep those same people coming back. But this restaurant next to the courthouse would get a different set of suckers almost every single day. So where is their incentive to improve? Nowhere. Each day the restaurant could survive by pumping out disgusting slop for a new set of unsuspecting people called in for jury duty; people who will probably not set foot on that same block unless one day they get called back for jury service at the same courthouse. Also, word-of-mouth is inhibited. What's the use of telling your friends and neighbors about a bad dining experience in a completely different neighborhood than they live in? And while bad restaurants near the courthouse would gain benefits from this lack of word-of-mouth, the good restaurants would be harmed by this.
So, because of the (perhaps absolutely necessary and unavoidable) government coercion of people to come to courthouses, I am putting forth the theory, (arrogantly generalizing based on my own reasoning and the evidence of one bad experience) that many bad restaurants near courthouses in large urban areas probably get the benefit of a distortion of the market. The jurors are a captive audience, and have little power to move that "invisible hand" away from such nasty, disgusting restaurants.
Or do they? Perhaps the internet will come to the rescue. On websites such as Yelp, that an increasing number of jurors will have access to on their smartphones, website users can blow the lid off of the nastiness of bad restaurants such as this one, and promote the good ones. This however, depends on how widespread smartphone based restaurant reviewing becomes. It all depends on whether or not more Americans become mobile-device-addicted, whining foodies (like me). And on a completely different topic: would that be such a good thing?
Anyone else out there had any interesting juty duty lunchtime experiences, good or bad? I've got to get more evidence.
Geography and urban planning seem to be paramount here. I've only had one jury duty experience in Brooklyn many years ago, and I cannot recall what I had for lunch there. However, the Kings County Courthouse is in Downtown Brooklyn, and a year or two before that, I'd worked in neighborhood and was familiar with it to know where to go to get a nosh during the break.
The five boroughs of New York City are laid out in such a manner that everything is geographically self-contained, and this is even more so within Manhattan. This means that—with notable exceptions—you can take a walk into another neighborhood where there are cheaper/better things to eat, especially if you're familiar with the territory. Almost everything you need to live is concentrated within a small geographic area in most neighborhoods, so that within ten blocks in Manhattan, there is typically an upscale joint at which you can blow $100 on yourself for lunch, or a deli or bodega where you can grab a sandwich/slice/something and a soda for less than $10. As for the cheap places, the busiest place is the place where you'd rather go, esp. if you can determine if the "locals" are eating there.
However, there are neighborhoods where this doesn't happen, where substandard places capitalize on geography and neighborhood ignorance. One of them is Midtown Manhattan and its adjacent neighborhoods, from about 34th all the way up to the Park. The whole area is a giant tourist attraction, with Times Square among the many sights. It's the one area that's difficult to leave within a reasonable amount of time on foot for another neighborhood, for you need to go at least ten blocks in either direction to reach another neighborhood, which isn't easy on a lunch break. I've had the misfortune of working in Rockefeller Center, at 50th St., where there is a cavernous, dystopian, underground mall with a number of places to eat, and where you can spend the entire day without seeing the sun. I can tell you that a cheap lunch either above or below ground is at least $15, and it won't be the nicest cheap lunch you've ever had. In fact, I've had some pretty nasty things at the salad bars in the bodegas around RC. Why? They take advantage of the fact that the entire neighborhood is swarming with tourists who don't know where else to go, who are tired from getting up to show their sign outside the Today Show, whose feet are sore from walking around Manhattan. The tourists don't necessarily know or care at that point of fatigue and hunger that they can hop on the train downtown to get a cheaper meal elsewhere. And these poor establishments assume that if you work in the neighborhood, that you must have the money to eat out and know where the better places to go are.
After a month, I started bringing my lunch to work.
Further to this, most of the newer cities in the western U.S. weren't planned with geographic economy in mind, resulting in massive urban sprawl. Getting to another neighborhood isn't easy at all, so you are stuck with what they give you if you're on foot and on a schedule.
Good luck with your jury duty.
Thanks for the input. This has helped confirm that I need to revise my theory to include touristy spots as well. Any place with a massive influx of people unfamiliar with the neighborhood would probably lead to the same problem. | 2019-04-19T02:30:38 | http://economicswithalex.blogspot.com/2011/11/economics-of-worst-meal-i-ever-ate.html |
0.999999 | TL; DR: Dockers enterprise picture is being completed, gaps remain. The focus on on-boarding developers is relentless.
We had the opportunity to attend DockerCon 2016 in Seattle at the end of June. Docker are continuing to build on the momentum from previous conferences, and once again the buzz and energy around the event was palpable.
In terms of attendance, the growth in the size of DockerCon is genuinely impressive. One of the more interesting aspects of the attendee base this time was the number of people focused primarily or exclusively on operations versus pure developers. This is beginning to mirror the changes that Amazon have seen in the AWS Summit attendees over time, and is critical to the enterprise story for Docker. Although the age profile is changing, it is still significantly lower than that of many other vendor events.
One of the nicest aspects of the DockerCon keynotes was the incorporation of an element of comedy. Docker as a company are still young enough to easily get away with a somewhat irreverent approach to their keynotes (as opposed to a clichéd DJ or bad rock band before your keynote starts).
As someone who attends a lot of conferences, and an awful lot of buzzword laden keynotes, take it from me, humour will go a long way in making your event far more memorable – when it is delivered properly. In the case of Dockercon, the demos from both keynotes were both entertaining and reasonably informative around the relevant products.
Unless you have been living under a rock for the last few years, you will be more than aware that Docker have had a developer lead growth strategy. Here at RedMonk we are forever telling companies about the importance of packaging, and making that initial developer experience as seamless as possible.
Part of that overall developer experience is getting started, specifically the first couple of minutes after you start using a tool. Docker have been, and are, explicitly focusing on this area with their work on Docker for Mac and Windows, which went into public beta during DockerCon (quick disclaimer, I was part of the Docker for Mac private beta program, albeit not a particularly heavy user).
The focus on the initial developer experience for Docker will pay off in terms of the on boarding experience, executing on all the pieces that come after getting started, the day two experience, is key to enterprise adoption though.
The big news was the announcement of Docker 1.12 (which was released at the end of July), with the inclusion of Swarm directly in the Docker engine. Now there is quite a lot to dissect in what this means but at the highest level the goal, in Docker CTO Solomons Hykes own words, is to make the powerful simple.
There is a focus on four areas with Swarms integration into Docker – these being removing external dependencies (read key value stores such etcd and consul here), adding a cryptographic node identity, a service level api (in the cloud native world applications are collections of services, which is a concept many people struggle with) and a front end routing mesh including DNS based service discovery, load balancing and more.
Now there are questions one can raise about each area, but from a simplicity standpoint for users who do not want, or need to, understand the underlying mechanics of deploying and scaling a distributed application, yet want to get up and running very, very quickly, it is very hard to argue with the approach.
On the competitive front the Swarm integration is squarely aimed at Kubernetes. While diverging in terms of functionality and approach, the question has to arise of “good enough”. Kubernetes has tremendous momentum, and a vibrant community around it, but if Swarm meets the use cases for a large segment of customers, and is your initial onramp? Then the question many would ask is why change.
Interestingly we analysed a set of survey data from Bitnami which included orchestration choices, earlier versions of Swarm scored highly, far higher than many people expected – it will be interesting to see if the integration of swarm directly into Docker 1.12 accelerates this adoption.
Docker also announced a new experimental feature, Docker Distributed Application Bundles (DAB). The how people go about bundling, deploying and scaling an application as opposed to individual services is a subject of much discussion. While it is too early to say where DAB will go, using the service level primitives as a building block / manipulation point appears makes sense. Arun Gupta over at Couchbase has put together a slightly more detailed intro to DAB on the Couchbase developer blog.
The closest analogy in other systems is Helm Charts for Kubernetes, which originated as a project from Deis and Google. Given that both projects are under active development it will be interesting to see the directions both take, and if any truly significant difference in the overarching approaches emerges.
Security is emerging as a key battleground in the containers space and Docker are doing their utmost to position themselves strongly in this area.
The key message from Docker, again, is simplicity for developers, but coupled with powerful features for operations and compliance. The idea being to make security as simple as possible for developers to use, essentially by making it transparent and invisible to them. This eases the adoption curve, and making software more secure by default can only be a good thing.
Two of the key components that Docker were keen to highlight here are Docker Security Scanning and Docker Content Trust, both of which have seen significant incremental improvements over the last six months.
The evolution of security with containers is far larger than we will cover here, and we will be providing a more detailed analysis around Docker security, and that of the wider container security ecosystem in the coming weeks.
For Docker their main enterprise offering is Docker Datacenter, which brings all of their offerings together. During the day 2 keynote we were joined by Keith Fulton, CTO of ADP. Now if you don’t know ADP they are one of the largest providers of payroll software and more general HR software in the world. More importantly they operate at a serious scale, with all the problems and challenges that go with that, and they handle salaries – nothing will cause disquiet among employees more than not getting paid.
As we noted already security will be a key differentiator in the enterprise marketplace for containers, ADP’s security requirements are stringent.
ADP were keen to highlight the flow and interlinking content security in terms of only running signed binaries, automated container scanning, and Docker Datacenters ability to limit what can actually be run, and the ties into Docker Swarm for scaling applications.
Alongside this developer productivity was once again highlighted, with a focus on microservices. As is the case in all large organisation ADP are dealing with a huge amount of legacy, and they view microservices as a way to increase velocity on the new product side, and open up opportunities to refactor the legacy monoliths.
Overall ADP is a very interesting use case, and we will be watching how their journey goes with interest.While betting heavily on Docker, it is far from the only container technology they are working with.
In keeping with the overall message of simplifying things, Docker for AWS and Azure was also announced. This service is still in beta, but the underlying premise is to make it as easy to deploy a docker swarm on AWS or Azure as possible.
Part of the play here is interesting, the use case is very specific, and people are using tools such as Terraform from Hashicorp to achieve similar goals. The question, like Swarm, will be if this is more than enough for many use cases.
As of now Docker Store is still in beta, but expected to GA later this year.
There is, unfortunately, no getting away from the current elephant in the room. And sadly this does take away from many of the positives at DockerCon. However, it would be remiss of me not to address the recent controversy around the Open Container Initiative (OCI) head on.
Communities take a lot of work, with a focus on consensus building, and post DockerCon we have seen a very public set of statements and argument around the direction and validity of the Open Container Initiative (OCI) and respective standard.
To say the commentary on the OCI has caused a level of disquiet among the wider technical community would be somewhat of an understatement. Since this particular tweetstorm we have had multiple conversations with people ranging from end users, third party vendors, contributors, interested bystanders and outright hostile competitors. All have expressed concern about the tone and nature of the statements. It is also very easy to be dismissive of this whole episode as a storm in a teacup, but it is not.
The value, and commercial battles, around containers are not, and will not be, at the lowest container level. It is all about the services above, the pieces that enable businesses to operate. People will choose to enter at different levels of abstraction, but it will always be focused on applications and what the eventual user experience and goal is, not the plumbing beneath. The lowest parts of any technology stack almost always get commoditised, which is what allows an ecosystem to emerge on top of them.
To quote Ben Golub during DockerCon “nobody cares about containers” – he is right. Businesses care about ROI from their technology investments. However, they also care, deeply, about what has occurred in the past with technology lock in at very parts of the stack and take careful note of the comments emanating from vendors (the current concerns around JEE are another example of this, albeit at a different point in the stack, which Oracle are beginning to address head on).
Docker have done an amazing job of making something very complex very simple to use. They also showed a lot of leadership, and maturity, during the formation the OCI with competitors such as CoreOS. While some complained about the scope of the OCI spec, it did, and does, give reassurance to many people that a base level of compatibility will be maintained across the various tools that use containers. Docker are rightly concerned with competitors saying tools provide Docker support when they do not, but that is, again at a higher level than the very base image format. That is where to compete.
To truly lead, Docker needs to continue to engage with the OCI effort, not dismiss it as a fake standard done to appease others.
Disclaimers: Docker paid for my T&E. Docker, Deis, Oracle, Couchbase and CoreOS are current RedMonk clients. | 2019-04-24T01:57:04 | https://redmonk.com/fryan/2016/08/17/dockercon-2016-developer-developers-developers-and-enterprises/ |
0.999827 | Pay close attention to changing speed limits.
When hitting the road in the Ride 100% Speedtrap Sunglases its best to be wary of changing speed limits, and lurking police officers. While these aggressive looking shades might not actually boost your speed on the bike, their bold and sharp styling will be sure to make you look fast, which can be a punishable offense in some states, or so we've been told. The Speedtrap Sunglasses are perfect for hitting the road or trail, with lightweight lenses that shield your eyes from harmful UV rays, and protect them with high-impact polycarbonate. Wrapped up with a custom-molded Grilamid frame, you can count on the Speedtrap to withstand warp-speeds from barreling down singletrack, or charging forward to breakaway from the peloton.
The Speedtrap Sunglasses feature styling akin to the fan-favorite Speedcraft shades we saw on Sagan last year, but with a fully-wrapped lens that provides a bit more security. They use the same Topview upper-profile, with extended field of vision in the center for enhanced vision when you're down in the bars, and a wide profile with cylindrical shaping to help your eye move seamlessly across the lens. At the bottom, unlike the Speedcraft which remain open, the Speedtrap have a frame continuing across, with vents that channel air upward to keep the lenses from fogging when things get damp, and maintaining rigid durability. Despite their fully-wrapped frame, these shades still feature easy to change lenses, with a new quick-release system that allows you to swap between lenses in seconds. If the lighting changes drastically, you'll want to bust out your mirror lenses for extra cool-points.
Is the extra lense clear or the same as what is in the description?
Have an answer for Michael J.?
I love these glasses. Other than looking like a pro rider, I like the fact that I can't see the frame and I tend to forget I have anything on. Gives me a clear view of the road conditions while protecting my eyes from road debris. Who doesn't want to look like Peter Sagan.
I didn't realize how much the wind affected my vision until I got these sunglasses. They block almost all the wind while still having enough ventilation to not fog up. I like how high the center section is. It stays out of your vision really well when you are head down and looking out the top of the lens. Also, they look rad!
Lets face it, I bought these because Peter Sagan wore them and did some awesome stuff. After I purchased them though, I decided I really liked them, I mean really liked them a lot. The adjustable and minimal temple pieces clear pretty much all helmets, the fit is snug, more snug than my other glasses, very secure but didn't cause me discomfort. The optical clarity is really quite good as well. I consider myself a bit of a clarity snob and find that I cannot wear sub-par glasses all day long without wanting to put them in my helmet a few times over the course of a ride. Not so with these, I can wear them all day long. I really like how they block the wind too. Probably one of the best you can buy for wind protection. I am a fan! and they come with an extra lens, so that is super cool. | 2019-04-25T19:57:10 | https://www.competitivecyclist.com/100-speedtrap-sunglasses |
0.999992 | Jonathan Feigen , Houston Chronicle April 11, 2013 Updated: April 11, 2013 11:22 p.m.
Houston Rockets power forward Greg Smith (4) dunks on Minnesota Timberwolves center Greg Stiemsma (34) during the second half of an NBA basketball game between the Minnesota Timberwolves and the Houston Rockets, Friday, March 15, 2013 in Houston. Houston won 108-100.
Quick trivia question: What is the fewest times a playoff-bound NBA team has had its starting lineup together?
That would be one, the one in which the Rockets had the starting five they're planning on for the playoffs.
If Chandler Parsons returns from his strained right calf, Friday night could be a second time. And it would be well-timed with the Memphis Grizzlies, a possible though unlikely first-round opponent, in town.
Coach Kevin McHale changed the Rockets' lineup after a March 29 loss to the Grizzlies. The Rockets had been pushed around inside for a second straight game, long enough for McHale to decide to move Greg Smith in as starting power forward. Days later, Terrence Jones became his backup. But with Parsons missing a game with food poisoning and the last three with the calf injury, the revised starting lineup has been together only for the win in Sacramento on April 3.
Friday could offer a chance to get the new lineup together and test whether moving Smith in solves the problems so obvious when Grizzlies star Zach Randolph owned the boards and paint in the last meeting.
"Oh, man, I can't wait for that test," Smith said. "(Randolph) is like a big brother to me. I can go out there and battle him. I know he's going to bring it. He's going to fight and push me, try to muscle me. But he knows I'm the type of player I'm not going to back down. It's going to be a good matchup.
"When I first played against him, he told me a lot about the NBA. He said, 'Never take a day off. Always be the first to hit somebody.' Every game, he battles me. I'm going to bring it back to him."
Smith offers a bigger body on Randolph or Marc Gasol, but he is not a range shooter to bring them out of the lane. The Rockets have tried to adjust to that by posting up Smith inside, especially early in games, and using him as a finisher on drives to the basket, even at the cost of spacing considered so valuable to Jeremy Lin and James Harden.
Harden said there has been no adjustment for him, noting Smith's ability to catch his "bad passes" makes it easier for him to work as a playmaker. But Parsons also is expected to be a slasher and a finisher, and he might need some time in the remaining regular-season games playing with Smith and a presumably crowded lane.
"It would be good," Parsons said. "I think it would be beneficial. The more we play together, the better that we'll be together. But I think we have smart players that can accommodate everyone else once we get together. I don't think it will take too long to get the chemistry going.
"It's a little different. Patrick (Patterson, the starter through most of the season), Terrence and D-Mo (Donatas Motiejunas) are pick-and-pop, more step-out shooters. As a wing, I have to read what Greg is going to do. He is going to roll more to the basket and not pop out and shoot the ball. It's different reads I have to make with him."
Parsons has had even less time playing with Jones. Smith had been playing as a backup center. Jones did not move into the rotation until the game in Sacramento. But an argument could be made that the Rockets' constant changes at the position have prepared them to adjust again.
"I think we're already used to each other by playing different lineups," Smith said. "We know where we're going to be. Chandler already sees that by watching. Once he comes in, it's going to make us better. The first quarter, we'll probably be out there, still looking around, trying to figure out where we should be, but it will all work out."
In the six games with Smith starting, the Rockets have improved dramatically on the boards, especially on the offensive end, going from 19th in rebounds per possession to third in that stretch.
Friday's game could be the best test of the lineup change so far. It also offers a chance for the Rockets to at least get their postseason lineup together.
"There have been times it's really good for us," McHale said. "There are times, depending on who we're playing, we don't go in enough to (Smith). For the most part, they've been able to rebound, have more of a presence on the inside.
"It's important to get our eight, nine guys that are going to play playing." | 2019-04-21T07:06:29 | https://www.houstonchronicle.com/sports/rockets/article/Rockets-revamped-lineup-needs-a-test-drive-4428692.php?t=7db32ee583f992f472 |
0.992079 | As rumored and hinted at, North and South Korea announced Wednesday that the two nations would indeed be marching under the same flag during the opening ceremony of the 2018 Winter Olympics on Feb. 17 in Pyeongchang, South Korea. While many observers anticipated the move, it is nonetheless remarkable given the shared history of the two states, increased tensions between the United States (South Korea's number-one military partner) and the North and the outstanding fact that a state of conflict still exists officially between the two Koreas.
As well, the nations have committed to fielding at least one combined team for the first time — women's ice hockey — and may be developing more joined efforts. Currently, the plan is for their skiing teams to train together. While both Koreas aim to have 550 North Korean athletes compete, only a single pairs figure skating team is confirmed to appear at the moment. As of now, it appears the states will use a flag depicting the Korean peninsula at the opening ceremony, which at least some of their athletes used in the 2004 and 20o6 games (they also marched together in the 2007 Asian Winter Games).
News of the agreement arrived via South Korea's Unification Ministry, which said that concentrated talks in the Demilitarized Zone resulted in the compact. The move still has to be approved by the International Olympic Committee, the organization which oversees the games.
As noted, the agreement can be seen as a diplomatic breakthrough. While an armistice between the two nations was signed at the end of the Korean War in 1953, technically a state of conflict still exists between them, one that has been marked by both efforts towards rapprochement and aggression. In 2013, for instance, the North removed itself from the armistice in response to increased United Nations sanctions. Three years later, it was requesting peace talks brokered by the United States.
The last few months have been a particularly curious time in the relationship between the North and the South. While North Korean leader Kim Jong-un continues to rattle his saber by threatening nuclear war, launching missile and warhead tests, and sparring with U.S. President Donald Trump over Twitter, he's also been conciliatory toward his rivals in the South, saying he wished for a "peaceful resolution of the Southern border" in his annual New Year address. In that same speech, he congratulated South Korea on its upcoming hosting of the Olympics.
Insofar as the U.S. is concerned, the situation with North Korea is almost as confused. Yes, through their leaders the two nations spar in words, each threatening to unleash nuclear weapons upon the other. Yet, through their diplomats, there seems to be at least a willingness to negotiate. Still, the tension between the two was marked by a false missile alert in Hawaii over the weekend.
Sport has periodically been a playing field where North and South Korea have achieved something like harmony. In international competition, North Koreans have often cheered for the South Korean soccer teams and vice versa — except, of course, when they play against each other. | 2019-04-21T14:25:59 | https://www.salon.com/2018/01/17/north-korea-south-korea-olympics/ |
0.999998 | To make the syrup, combine sugar, water, lemon, cinnamon, and cloves in a large saucepan and bring mixture to a boil. Simmer over medium heat, uncovered, for 25 to 30 minutes. Turn off heat and stir in honey until dissolved. Let syrup cool at room temperature and chill.
Preheat oven to 300˚F. Remove thawed phyllo from boxes and arrange on a work surface and cover with a damp kitchen towel. Melt butter in a medium saucepan and skim away and discard the foam from the top. Pour off the melted butter into another saucepan, leaving behind and discarding the water from the butter.
Butter a baking sheet 18 X 13-inches. Arrange one layer of phyllo in pan and butter phyllo. Make 11 more layers in the same manner, being sure to butter the phyllo well.
In a bowl combine walnuts, sugar, and cinnamon. Sprinkle a cup of the nut mixture over the phyllo and top with three layers of phyllo, buttering in between each layer of phyllo. Continue to make more layers in the same manner until all the nuts are used. Arrange 14 sheets of phyllo over the last of the nuts, being sure to butter between each layer of phyllo well. With a sharp knife cut baklava into diamonds or triangles about 2 inches in diameter.
Bake baklava in the center of the oven for 2 hours, or until golden brown. If the baklava browns too quickly reduce oven to 275˚ F. Remove from oven and immediately pour chilled syrup over hot baklava. Makes about 32 pieces of baklava.
is to pour cold syrup onto hot baklava. | 2019-04-26T02:21:30 | http://www.gumbohair.com/2012/05/baklava.html |
0.999999 | This week we are working on punctuation. We are writing sentences that use periods, question mark and exclamation points.
Period: One day a giant lived by a pond. He liked to eat cakes.
Question mark: A little boy said "Why can't you bake your own?"
Exclamation point: The giant said "Bake me a cake now!" | 2019-04-24T16:27:30 | http://alexopunakeprimary.blogspot.com/2015/08/punctuation.html |
0.99999 | The following steps show you how to change writing language, turn on the dictionary, turn on word suggestion and write text.
The instructions require that you're writing text.
The selected language determines which characters are available and the language used for predictive text input.
Scroll to Dictionary and press the Navigation key.
Highlight the required writing language and press the Navigation key.
Press and hold the required number key until the number is displayed.
Press # until 123 is displayed. | 2019-04-26T01:43:00 | https://deviceguides.vodafone.co.uk/nokia/220/getting-started/how-to-write-text/ |
0.999892 | Did God the Father grieve when His only begotten Son was on the cross being crucified?
John 1:1 says Jesus is the Word of God, and the word for spirit, as in Holy Spirit, is pnuema, which means breath or air. When God speaks, His Word is with Him and reflects back, born from the breath of God, born of the Spirit. When God said, "I AM", all three parts of Him were present, equally as infinite and alive as He is.
When "God is salvation" was born, the Word became flesh.
Jesus Christ is the only begotten Son of God in the sense that he was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit. He was sired by God the Father through the power of the Holy Spirit in the womb of Mary [Matt 1:18].
The Holy Spirit is the creative Power of the Godhead to beget, to create, to give life. The Holy Spirit is also the spirit of Holiness and Truth. The God Family is composed of God the Father and of his Son - Jesus Christ. Before anything else existed, there was no Father and Son relationship. These two eternal beings existed all through out eternity which is One God - Elohim. The Holy Spirit on the other hand is not a person. It is the very power of the Godhead which flows from God the Father and into his Son Jesus Christ and vise versa.
God said, "In the last days, I will pour out of my spirit upon all flesh.."[Acts 2:17-18]. Is God pouring out another person in himself? In Rev 4:5, 5:6, God has 7 Spirits. I don't think each spirit is another person in the Godhead. In Col 2:2, the mystery of the Godhead is revealed as the Father and the Son.
In the same manner, the indwelling of the Holy Spirit in a person begets, making him a true son of God - a true Christian. He becomes a begotten son of God [not adopted], but he is not yet a born son of God. He is like an embryo in it's mother's womb, in a gestation period. The Holy Spirit is the seed of eternal life. But we do not have eternal life yet. Once we are born like the Lord Jesus Christ as say, when resurrection comes, then, if you are saved, you will be rewarded of this.
Jesus Christ is the first born of the many creation [Col 1:15]. But it does not mean that Jesus is a created being. What this means is that God the Father is creating many sons and bring them to glory [Heb 2:9-13]. He is also the first born from the dead [1 Cor 15:20, Rev 1:5]. Meaning to say that all people who had lived and died are still dead and buried - has returned to his earth waiting for a resurrection. No one has overcome death except the Lord Jesus Christ.
We Christians will follow next. Our birth will take place when he returns and he will reward us with positions in the Kingdom he is going to set up here on Earth. | 2019-04-18T10:44:48 | https://ebible.com/questions/319-what-does-it-mean-that-jesus-is-god-s-only-begotten-son |
0.999378 | We are dealing with unambiguous gentile names, in which case there is no need to be concerned that people might rely on these individuals as witnesses for the transfer, as it is evident that they are gentiles.
The Gemara clarifies: What are the circumstances of unambiguous gentile names? Rav Pappa said: This is referring to names such as Hurmiz, and Abbudina, bar Shibbetai, and bar Kidri, and Bati, and Nakim Una.
The Gemara infers: However, if the bill of divorce or manumission was signed by gentile witnesses with ambiguous names, what is the halakha? Is this not a valid document? If so, instead of teaching in the latter clause of the mishna: These two types of documents are mentioned only when they are prepared by a common person, not in court, let him distinguish and teach the distinction within the case of gentile courts itself, as follows: In what case is this statement, that gentile signatures are valid for a bill of divorce or manumission, said? With regard to unambiguous names. However, in a case of ambiguous names, no, gentile witnesses are not valid.
The Gemara answers: That is also what he is saying, i.e., Rabbi Shimon’s statement that these bills of divorce and bills of manumission are also valid should be understood in this very manner: In what case is this statement said? With regard to unambiguous names. However, with regard to ambiguous names, the document becomes like one that was prepared by a common person, and therefore such documents are invalid.
And if you wish, say a different answer: In the last clause of the mishna, which states: These types of documents are mentioned only when they are prepared by a common person, we are no longer discussing bills of divorce; rather, we arrive at the case of financial documents. Furthermore, this clause of the mishna is not a continuation of Rabbi Shimon’s statement, as it returns to the opinion of the first tanna. And this is what the mishna is saying: Financial documents were mentioned as invalid only when they were prepared by a common person, whereas if they were produced by a court they are valid.
It is taught in a baraita (Tosefta 1:4): Rabbi Elazar, son of Rabbi Yosei, said that Rabbi Shimon said this to the Sages in the city of Tzaidan: Rabbi Akiva and the Rabbis did not disagree with regard to all documents produced in gentile courts, that even though their signatories are gentiles, these documents are valid, even in the case of bills of divorce and bills of manumission. They disagreed only when they were prepared by a common person, outside a court, as Rabbi Akiva deems a document of this kind valid, and the Rabbis deem it invalid, except for bills of divorce and bills of manumission.
Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel says: Even these, bills of divorce and manumission, are valid in a place where Jews do not sign. In other words, the halakha that a document with gentile signatories is valid applies only in a place where Jews are not allowed to sign, as everyone knows that gentile documents are not signed by Jews. However, in a place where Jews sign, no, these documents are not valid either, as people might mistakenly think that Jews signed this bill of divorce. Therefore there is a concern that one might deliver this bill of divorce in the presence of those witnesses, who are actually gentiles, which would render the bill of divorce invalid.
The Gemara suggests: Let us also decree in a place where Jews do not sign due to a place where Jews do sign. The Gemara answers: One might confuse one name with another name. It is possible that one might think that a certain name is that of a Jew when it is actually that of a gentile. However, one is not likely to confuse one place with another place. Since everyone knows that all of the signatures in certain places belong to gentiles, they are careful not to transfer a bill of divorce in the presence of the witnesses who signed it, unless they are certain that the witnesses are Jews.
§ The Gemara relates that Ravina thought to deem valid a document that was written by a group of gentiles [arma’ei]. Rafram said to him that we learned: Gentile courts, in the mishna, i.e., these documents are valid only if they were produced in an important court, not by every group of gentiles.
Similarly, Rava said: With regard to this Persian document [shetara parsa’a] written by the Persian authorities that was transferred to the recipient in the presence of Jewish witnesses, he can collect with it non-liened property, i.e., property that is unencumbered by a mortgage. Although this is not considered a proper document by means of which one can collect from any land sold by the debtor, nevertheless, the facts in the document are considered accurate, and therefore one may at least collect non-liened property with it.
The Gemara asks: But the witnesses for the transmission of this document do not know how to read Persian, as most Jews did not read that language. If so, how can they serve as witnesses? The Gemara answers: Rava is referring to a situation where the witnesses know how to read Persian.
The Gemara questions how the court can rely upon such a document: But I require that the document be written in a manner that cannot be forged, and it is not so in this document, as the Persians were not particular about preparing their documents in this manner when writing their legal documents. The Gemara explains: Rava’s statement applies in a case where the paper of the documents was processed with gall. Consequently, it is not possible to forge the writing (see 19b). But I require that a document review the essential topic of the document in its last line, and it is not so in the case of Persian documents. The Gemara answers: Rava’s statement applies in a case where it returned to review the essential topic of the document in the final line.
The Gemara asks: If so, he should be able to collect from liened property as well, as this document is equivalent to one written by a Jew. Why doesn’t Rava say that it can be used to collect from liened property as well? The Gemara answers: The reason is that this document does not generate publicity, i.e., a legal matter that is performed in a Persian court will not become publicized among Jews. Therefore, this case is similar to a loan by oral agreement, where the transaction is not publicized. In this case the lender can collect only from non-liened property, as purchasers from the debtor would not have been aware of his debt and consequently taken sufficient measures to ensure that the money would not be claimed from their purchase. | 2019-04-26T01:40:38 | https://www.sefaria.org/Gittin.11a |
0.999526 | For this weeks Ask the Author I'm bringing you someone I am infinitely excited about seeing as his book was one of my absolute favorites last year (here's my review) and the movie based upon it is coming out very soon - of course I'm talking about Andy Weir. I had the chance to ask him a couple of Q's which he took the time and answered.
1 - Describe The Martian with a haiku.
2 - What sparked the idea for The Martian? Was it the simple idea of an astronaut doing something extraordinary or something else entirely?
3 - As someone who wasn’t the strongest in science back in high school I wondered which you found harder: figuring out the science in The Martian or the story itself?
The science was easy and fun for me. I’m a dork with a lifelong interest. The hard part was the actual writing. That’s a lot of effort.
4 - In retrospective, is there anything that you’d change about the story or are you happy with the way it turned out in the end?
There are a few minor unintentional scientific errors here and there. They’re minor, but I’d fix them.
5 - What were the first thoughts and emotions you had when you first heard that The Martian would become a movie? How do you feel now, weeks from it finally hitting cinemas all over the world?
It’s amazing. It’s like a dream come true. You fantasize about this sort of thing happening when you write a story, but you never think it’ll actually happen.
6 - What’s next? Are you currently working on a new novel and, if so, could you tell us something about it?
I'm working on my next book now. It's a more traditional sci-fi novel with aliens, faster-than-light travel, etc. It’s tentatively titled “Zhek”.
7 - Your publishing story is quite an interesting one, a very different one then that from most of the authors who were previously featured on my blog or even my own story. Could you tell us something about it?
8 - I’m sure your opinion might be at least a tiny bit bias since your novel has been turned into a movie and, looking at the trailer, looks like it does it justice, but what is your general opinion on book-to-movie adaptations?
They can be amazing or they can be a disaster or they can be anything in-between. I think the adaptation of “The Martian” is fantastic.
9 - What advice could you give aspiring authors? | 2019-04-21T01:09:14 | https://www.alicereeds.com/2015/09/ask-author-andy-weir.html |
0.998739 | I recently attended the final round of pitches for twelve early stage, local tech startups, and was privileged to witness a new generation of exciting and energetic entrepreneurs.
While everyone there had already been through a few selection rounds involving applications, business plans and interviews, this was the first time there was real face time with all stakeholders.
The thing I was most impressed by, however, was how well the investors managed the process (to extract the information they needed to make their decision). I actually learned a lot from the way the investors guided the startups through the pitching process, and I thought I would share a list of three of the more important things that rubbed off on me.
I found that when meeting potential investors face to face, the most important thing to get right is the 30 second elevator pitch.
Investors are busy people. They have heard hundreds, if not thousands of ideas, and don't want to get bogged down in minute details and complex explanations (at least to start with).
The most important part of the elevator pitch is point 2. You have to distil your idea down to one or two sentences, and that may not be easy, depending on what your niche is. Bottom line: if you can't instantly stand out as a proposition with real potential you are going to struggle.
In fact, some of the better pitches I heard didn't even take 30 seconds, yet gave the impression that those people understood what they were doing.
A slick elevator pitch is not just about getting an idea across, it's about selling yourself as someone to do business with.
With a great elevator pitch under your belt, it is likely that, at some point, an investor is going to want to explore your proposal in more detail. No matter how new or brilliant you think your idea is, many of these investors will not instantly share your enthusiasm.
If you haven't done a proper analysis of the competition in order to see exactly what it is that sets you apart, you might even find that you actually learn about someone else already doing what you do... from the investor.
That's not a good result.
Don't go anywhere near an investor until you can explain, in plain English, what distinguishes what you do from everything else out there.
Having said that, investors also understand that not every new venture can be a game changer. If you aren't reinventing the wheel then make sure you can provide a compelling reason(s) why you will find a market.
A good idea isn't enough to convince investors to part with cash. You have to pair that idea with a definable market, and show how it will generate revenue.
This is where we come to the crunch.
Investors want to know that somewhere down the line (and generally not that far) there will be a stream of revenue that can be grown.
One of the things I noticed about many of the technical startup pitches I listened to was that they had a clever idea, which could be implemented, but little idea about how to get people to pay for it. Many ideas were "neat", possibly something I would use, but not something I would pay for. And that's not good enough.
There has to be one or more compelling ways to make money from the business.
Overall, what investors want are people who can demonstrate that they understand their offering, and have the vision and drive to take it forward.
What else would you say is vital for pitching investors in the seed round? Share your tips and experiences in the comments. | 2019-04-19T04:52:01 | https://smepals.com/startup/3-tips-how-pitch-startup-investors |
0.997829 | The centipede: a stone cold killer.
Nature it seems is fond of extremes. In the world of reptiles the hands down lethal hunter is the snake with no legs at all. In the arthropod world, one of the most capable killers is the centipede (Latin for "100 feet") with 30 to over 100 legs (depending on species).
A centipede with her babies.
How does it coordinate all those limbs? Its antennae send messages to the brain, which sends the first set of instructions to the segment which controls its first pair of legs. They act accordingly and modify the signal as necessary, passing it along to the next segment, and so on and so on. If the poor thing had to contemplate the complexity of it all, it would probably never take another step.
A centipede's charming forcipules — legs that act as fangs.
Class Chilopoda, (centipedes) are all carnivorous, having highly modified front legs which act as venomous fangs (or forcipules), and dozens of pairs of legs. Interestingly enough, the legs are shortest in front and get longer at the rear in a regular progression so they do not interfere with each other when the beast launches into an attack or away from danger. The largest in the world is currently the Amazonian giant centipede, which can attain lengths of a little less than a foot long and is capable of catching and eating bats. Here Humboldt County I have seen three different species all maxing out at a little over three inches in length. | 2019-04-24T10:12:00 | https://www.northcoastjournal.com/NewsBlog/archives/2015/12/23/humbug-killer-legs |
0.9996 | IN physical stature, in power of voice, and in political longevity, he outweighs, outblasts, and outlasts them all. Meet the Rev. Ian R. K. Paisley, the Jerry Falwell of right-wing, evangelical Protestantism in Northern Ireland.
Remember Bernadette Devlin, James Chichester-Clark, Gerry Fitt, William Whitelaw, William Craig, and Brian Faulkner? These were the names, both Protestant and Roman Catholic, that captured headlines when the ``troubles'' of Northern Ireland erupted in 1969.
Today, in Northern Ireland, they are only names in the history books. But not Ian Paisley.
Leader of the hard-line Protestant Democratic Unionist Party, Mr. Paisley is a scourge of the British government, b^ete noire of Northern Ireland Catholics, and an irritant, if not outright embarrassment, to many moderate Protestants. He has been branded a bigot and a fascist, even by many Protestants.
Yet many Protestants who say they would not vote for Paisley often feel that he speaks for them when speaking out against the Anglo-Irish agreement. Most Protestants, known as ``unionists,'' favor continuing the tie between the province and Britain. After the accord was signed last November, it was thought Paisley was being overtaken politically by his more hard-line deputy, Peter Robinson. But Mr. Robinson lost ground, because he failed to distance himself enough from Protestant extremist violence.
In a curious way, Paisley -- the traditionally militant Protestant -- is now viewed as a moderate.
Even some middle-of-the-road Protestants who previously ignored Paisley now wonder if he may be the only viable political game in town. Such a development, observers say, is symptomatic of the slide to the far right in Northern Irish politics.
Despite his attacks on the institution of the Catholic Church, demographers say that Paisley's huge majorities could not be possible unless some Catholics were voting for him. This could be a reflection on his tireless constituency work.
To the British, who Paisley contends have never really understood Northern Ireland, his language and attacks on the church often comes across as archaic and crude. He has never left his audiences in any doubt of his views on the Irish Republic and the Catholic Church. Both are the ``enemy,'' he told a recent Democratic Unionist rally at Lisburn, near Belfast.
Paisley's unabashed attacks on the Catholic Church are an anathema to the British government, which seeks reconciliation in Northern Ireland.
At one time, London would have preferred to see Paisley quietly disappear from the political scene. Not anymore.
The possibility that he might be overtaken by more-extreme Protestant elements now frightens the British government. The conventional political wisdom among British officials is that Paisley -- and his more moderate partner, the leader of the Official Unionists, James Molyneaux -- must be saved at all costs if the paramilitaries are to be controlled.
Yet neither Britain nor Paisley and Mr. Molyneaux have found an acceptable formula to negotiate the way out of the impasse. Britain won't scrap or suspend the Anglo-Irish agreement, but unless it does, Molyneaux and Paisley refuse to meet with Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher's government. Paisley contends that Mrs. Thatcher must eventually come to recognize the political writing on the wall. He is confident that, given the Protestant majority's opposition to the agreement, the province will prove ungovernable for the Thatcher administration.
``You can't have the majority of the population of that part of the United Kingdom opting completely out of recognition of the government,'' he says.
On the question of negotiations, Paisley is adamant that unionists are not prepared to meet ``in the cage of the Anglo-Irish agreement.'' He repeats his plea for ``talks about talks'' to secure a negotiating framework, but insists that, while negotiations are going on, the Anglo-Irish accord cannot be implemented.
Asked what would happen if Thatcher refused to budge, and all constitutional means of protest were exhausted, he replies, ``There will be confrontation, because the people of Northern Ireland are not going to be pushed into a united Ireland.'' The British government holds that eventual unification of the province with the Republic of Ireland is not the objective of the Anglo-Irish accord, but many Protestants believe otherwise.
He insists that this is not a dangerous remark to make, so long as the Protestants have disciplined leadership.
Paisley has always been regarded as a leader willing to take his followers up to the brow of the hill, but so far, he has always pulled back from the brink. The question now is, given the threat of Protestant paramilitaries gaining the upper hand, would he really be prepared to march over the top? | 2019-04-18T20:20:06 | https://www.csmonitor.com/1986/0606/oian.html |
0.998788 | Some SMBs have found ways to help mitigate risk without traditional MDM, but it isn't always easy. Right off the bat, things are tricky given that smaller companies often implement BYOD since they can't afford to provide employees with devices.
"In some ways, it changes the landscape a little bit, because users may be hesitant to allow corporate control of their devices," says Tyler Shields, lead mobile analyst for Forrester. "But if you propose the trade off as, 'If you want access to sensitive material, you have to have MDM,' the user will almost always accept MDM on there for the convenience."
With BYOD in place, SMBs either opt for endpoint security or simply ask that employees have "something on their devices, some sort of security," adds Shields.
David Lingenfelter, an information security officer at Fiberlink, agrees that BYOD is the norm for SMBs, saying, "They're not buying devices and handing them out. So they want to get some level of control around [employees' devices], whether it's limiting them to specific kinds of devices or a certain OS version."
That said, Lingenfelter adds that regardless of what kind of policies they may have in place, SMBs often don't think about what happens to BYOD devices when employees want to get a new one. "They need to ensure that corporate data is not on the old device," he says. "Usually when I'm done with these devices, I give them to my kids. I have enough common sense to wipe them before I do, though. Are you sure your employees are doing that?"
Knowing that they don't have a means of centralizing control over their mobile devices (and that their employees devices are typically also their personal ones) what are the options for SMBs? In some cases, smaller businesses opt for forgoing MDM entirely, and this obviously creates a substantial attack surface. Whether or not such small companies are even on attackers' radars, however, is precisely why they're willing to take the risk. Most assume that as a small company -- that is therefore worth relatively little and isn't in possession of a wealth of valuable data -- the odds aren't high that they will be the target of an attack, and they take the gamble.
"Absolutely, there are some that say, 'The [low] risk isn't worth the investment today for us,'" says Shields. This anything-goes-type approach is what the bulk of small businesses do these days, and he said that in most cases, the company either provides a device or allows BYOD, pays the bill, and lets users go on their way.
In some cases, however, the approach of completely passing on an MDM solution isn't always acceptable to the companies' partners. Lingenfelter also says that he's heard of small companies that have opted to go with no solution at all, usually because they don't have any IT within the company and they subsequently have no infrastructure or centralized email systems. In those cases, the extremely small companies typically trust their employees equally and expect them to "do the right thing," but that sometimes isn't enough for the other companies they work with.
"We've seen some small companies come to us and say that they've gone that route [of not implementing anything]," Lingenfelter says. "But because of their partners, mainly in pharmaceuticals, they're being asked to put something in place because of the nature of the business."
That very sentiment from those outside partners -- that using absolutely no kind of solution is not acceptable -- is one that Lingenfelter also agrees with.
"If you're not doing any management, you're exposed, whether it's an attack vector or an info leak vector," he says. "For those that are concerned about the latter...they're not going to be a target. But there is plenty of software out there that the end user can install and then will leak data out." There are other concerns too, he adds, like lost devices.
""If you don't have any management over that device, how are you going to wipe it?" Lingenfelter asks. "There are options with Apple and Google to do remote wipes, but did the user set it up? If they didn't, you're out of luck."
Without any sort of management, there is also the risk of the comingling of corporate and personal data. If a device has both a user's personal and business email accounts, it's entirely possible that they may get mixed up and do something like send a business attachment from a personal email address. Regardless of the scenario, though, Lingenfelter insists that risks abound without some sort of solution.
Shields, however, doesn't believe that an MDM-less scenario is quite so doom and gloom. While he admits that there are certainly some risks, he says it often just isn't worth it to smaller companies to make the investment.
"MDM doesn't provide that much security to begin with. It's a management tool," he says. "It does give you wipe and find device features, but it's not a security technology at its core."
Like Lingenfelter, Shields concedes that malware and loss can be a concern. Likewise, he says that sensitive areas like email are at risk of being compromised without a management solution. That does not, however, spell out absolute necessity for smaller companies to implement something.
"Many of the smaller companies have to weigh those risks against getting the job done," he says. "In many cases, it's just not worth it."
In the event that smaller businesses decide that they do, in fact, need some sort of solution but don't have the means to implement a traditional MDM set up, there are some alternative solutions to which they can turn. Lingenfelter says there is no shortage of small companies out there that implement some of these solutions, but they're not always satisfied.
"What we're seeing is two types of customers," says Lingenfelter. "There are the ones that have tried to do it on their own without a real managed solution --whether it's through their mail system like ActiveSync or freeware apps -- and the others are the ones that simply say, 'This mobile space is really taking off and I have no idea what I'm doing. I have no budget and no IT team.'"
But regardless of their current state, Lingenfelter explains, the common need is that they want to have some level of control and make sure that their users are handling company data responsibly like the big organizations, but on a much simpler scale.
"This is something they want to be able to set up easily and be able to add and remove devices, check log history, etc. It's, 'Let's get it set up and we don't want to have to manage it or massage it a lot,'" says Lingenfelter. "These companies have either tried it on their own or don't have the time or the resources to understand the technology.
So what are some of the alternative solutions? As Shield points out, a number of MDM vendors support cloud versions of their solutions and have SMB packages with support for as many as 20 devices. "That's what I see a lot of SMBs doing today, going with their cloud version rather than trying to bring the heavy hitters in house," he says.
In other cases though, organizations jettison the concept of MDM all together and opt for using endpoint security suites from companies like Symantec or Norton. It's typically the slightly larger, mid-sized companies that tend to use secure network gateways and application reputation systems, according to Shields. The problem with this option, however, is that they don't have as strong of a user experience.
"So the users don't tend to like them as much and they bog down the system more," says Shields. "They would rather just get security on their devices."
Lingenfelter again touched on the idea of smaller organizations tying their management into an email solution like ActiveSync or Office 365 and using the MDM built into that software. But those solutions are not ideal, he says.
"It can be very complex to manage devices using ActiveSync and locking it down," says Lingenfelter.
Lingenfelter mentioned other imperfect alternative solutions, like free MDM products or only allowing employees to use Apple devices. Freeware comes up short when a company has an issue or needs to add more devices and can't get support since it's all self-service. As such, users end up having to figure things out for themselves, and that ends up being time consuming. Insisting on one type of device across the board, meanwhile, isn't preferable to some SMBs, he says, simply because the company doesn't want to force anything on to its employees.
"Even though they would like to be homogenous and single threaded because Apple has stronger security, they don't feel that they can lock their employees in," he says. "It's an option, but there are costs involved on the management side. If the company wants, they can get an Apple server to manage them, but there's a cost in overhead for that as well."
Whatever their approach may be, however, Lingenfelter insists that all companies, no matter how small, should have some sort of solution in place.
"If you're not doing anything in the MDM space, you're not secure," he says. | 2019-04-24T09:55:48 | https://www.cso.com.au/article/542412/how_mdm_works_--_doesn_t_work_--_smbs/?utm_medium=rss&utm_source=authorfeed |
0.999916 | How does the acceleration of a model rocket compare to the Space Shuttle? By using the resultant force and mass, acceleration can be calculated.
The two forces acting on rockets at the moment of launch are the thrust upwards and the weight downwards. Weight is the force due to gravity and is calculated (at the Earth’s surface) by multiplying the mass (kilograms) by 9.8.
The resultant force on each rocket is calculated using the equation resultant force = thrust – weight.
acceleration = resultant force (newtons, N) divided by mass (kilograms, kg).
One model rocket has a mass of 50 grams and a rocket engine that produces a thrust of 5 N for 1 second.
To find the weight, 50 g needs to be changed into kilograms by dividing by 1000. This gives a mass of 0.050 kg. Weight is mass (in kg) x 9.8, which gives 0.050 x 9.8 = 0.49 N.
The resultant force is the thrust – weight = 5 – 0.49 = 4.51 N (unrounded).
Acceleration = resultant force divided by mass = 4.51 ÷ 0.050 = 90 metres per second squared (90 m/s2). This means that, every second, the speed of the rocket increases by 90 m/s.
This is nine times the normal acceleration due to gravity.
The same method can be used for a full-sized rocket such as the Space Shuttle.
The Space Shuttle mission that launched on 24 February 2011 was called STS-133. It had a lift-off mass of 2 million kilograms (2000 tonnes). This means the total weight at lift-off is 2 million x 9.8, which is approximately 20 million newtons (20 mega newtons).
The thrust of each of the big white solid rocket boosters on the side was 12.5 million newtons, and the three main engines at the tail end of the bit that looks like a plane (the Space Shuttle orbiter) had a combined thrust of 5.5 million newtons. This gives a massive total thrust of 30.5 million newtons!
Resultant force = thrust – weight = 30.5 million – 20 million = 10.5 million newtons.
Acceleration = resultant force ÷ mass = 10.5 million ÷ 2 million = 5.25 m/s2.
The acceleration of the model rocket at 90 m/s2 is far greater than the Space Shuttle at 5.25 m/s2, but there is a significant difference in the motion after launch.
Firstly, the model rocket only had enough propellant for 1 second of thrust. After 1 second, it reaches a maximum speed of 90 m/s (ignoring drag and mass change), but after that 1 second of thrust, the model rocket starts to lose speed due to the weight and drag forces both acting in the opposite direction to its motion.
After 124 seconds, the shuttle has already reached an altitude of 45 km and is travelling at 1380 m/s (4973 km/h). At this time (once all of the fuel is consumed), the SRBs separate away from the external tank (the big orange part). Fuel continues to be pumped to the three main engines for another 6 minutes. Acceleration continues until the Space Shuttle orbiter eventually reaches a speed of 28,000 km/h and an altitude over 300 km. This allows it to orbit around the Earth. | 2019-04-19T13:19:34 | https://www.sciencelearn.org.nz/resources/397-calculating-rocket-acceleration |
0.999785 | Does Alcohol Increase or Decrease Your Dementia Risk?
Alcohol drinks are frequently cited in medical news, both for their benefits as well as for the harm that alcohol misuse and addiction causes. So, what do those reports say about your mind on alcohol? Does alcohol impact the functioning of your brain? Does it affect your risk of developing Alzheimer's disease?
In a word: yes. But how?
The answer depends on several factors, but two of the more researched factors include the amount of alcohol consumed and whether someone is an APOE ε4 gene carrier.
Multiple research and observational studies have demonstrated that people who drink high amounts of alcohol are at an increased risk of developing dementia. Alcohol-related brain damage may account for approximately 10% of all dementia cases.
Imaging tests of the brains of high alcohol drinkers demonstrate atrophy (brain shrinkage), loss of white matter, decreased neurons and other changes similar to the brains of people with Alzheimer's disease.
These cognitive impairments may develop over time, but alcohol can also cause immediate memory loss, known as blackouts.
According to one study conducted on the risk factors for younger-onset dementia, alcohol intoxication as a late teenager is one of the highest predictors of men who will develop it. Additionally, a second study found that 57% of young-onset dementia was related to chronic heavy alcohol use.
Moderate alcohol drinking is classified as drinking one alcoholic drink a day for women and two a day for men. Light drinking describes those who drink less than moderate drinkers but more than those who totally abstain from alcohol.
In a study that involved over 3000 adults over the age of 75, light to moderate drinking was associated with a 42% lower risk of Alzheimer's disease and a 29% lower risk of all types of dementia.
One study found that among women who were over the age of 90, a decrease in alcohol consumption was associated with an increase in the development of mild cognitive impairment and dementia.
Another study considered how alcohol consumption affected people with a diagnosis of mild cognitive impairment (MCI). (MCI sometimes, but not always, progresses to dementia.) This study demonstrated that light to moderate alcohol consumption was associated with a decreased chance of mild cognitive impairment progressing into full dementia. Participants who never drank alcohol had a higher chance of developing dementia than those who were light to moderate drinkers, while heavy drinkers were the most likely to progress to dementia.
Of interest, researchers in one study identified the participants who were APOE-ε4 carriers and those who did not carry this gene. (APOE-ε4 is a gene that is associated with an increased risk of Alzheimer's disease.) Study participants who were light to moderate alcohol drinkers and who carried the APOE-ε4 gene were at an increased risk of cognitive decline and memory loss, while light to moderate drinkers who did not carry the APOE-ε4 gene demonstrated improved learning ability and memory.
It depends on whom you ask. Research has come to different conclusions about this question. Multiple studies have cited wine as specifically having protective effects on people's memory and cognitive ability. Other studies, however, have concluded that wine, beer, and liquor all have similar effects on cognition.
There are some people that should not drink alcohol. This group includes but is not limited to alcoholics, people with Wernicke-Korakoff syndrome, those taking certain medications that could negatively interact with alcohol, people with certain medical conditions such as liver disease and pancreatitis, those who are under the legal age to drink, women who are (or are attempting to become) pregnant and those who are operating a vehicle or performing other complex tasks.
Other studies have found that drinking alcohol has other health risks; thus, your decision to drink alcohol should be discussed with your doctor.
For many people, research suggests that light to moderate drinking of alcohol seems to have a protective benefit on dementia risk. However, it's important to remember that alcohol use can lead to dependence and abuse, so caution is warranted. | 2019-04-21T10:44:37 | https://www.verywellhealth.com/does-alcohol-increase-or-decrease-your-dementia-risk-98431 |
0.998274 | Why is it that afternoon cumulus clouds have flat bottoms all at the same altitude, for miles around?
Why does the air contain sufficient oxygen to breathe, even over polar regions and deserts?
Are wind patterns and microscopic plants in the seas sufficient to distribute oxygen, or are there other forces at work? Is the oxygen content higher in forests?
Olive oil -- what brands come in bottles that don't drip?
I'd like to buy olive oil in an eight to ten ounce bottle that has an effective insert to catch drips. The olive oil I bought from Wal*Mart is OK, but the plastic rim on the bottle does a poor job of controlling drips, so the bottle has to be washed off frequently.
Matzos -- kosher for Passover?
I bought some matzos as crackers (I'm not Jewish). On the box it said, "Not kosher for Passover". What's the difference between matzos that are kosher for Passover and those that aren't?
Why are so many questions getting deleted?
I write a thoughtful answer to a serious question, and then when I go to post it, I see "This question has been deleted". Maybe we should ask the deleter to give a reason. Just now someone asked why her fiancé accuses her of arguing, when she doesn't think she's been arguing at all. I suggested that they talk about conflict resolution in the abstract, some time when things were calm. What's wrong with that?
What happens to leftover food from catered events?
We were at a large gathering where the hors-d'oeuvres buffet featured shrimp, cheese and crackers, and small fruit pieces. When dinner was served in another room, the hors-d'oeuvres platters were still partially full. I know it's the caterer's job to make sure they don't run out. Is perishable food like that left with the people who organized the parts, or taken away by the caterers? If the caterers take it away, do the employees get to take it home, is some of it re-used later, or is it thrown away? | 2019-04-25T12:25:32 | https://uk.answers.yahoo.com/activity/questions?show=IH5H7MVA4JCEUAXUZFW7IUVMRU&t=g |
0.998871 | 1 cup finely crushed pretzels.
1. Preheat a grill pan over medium-high heat.
2. Cut each piece of chicken lengthwise into 6 slices. Thread each strip through a bamboo skewer. Sprinkle the chicken generously with salt and pepper.
3. Using a rag and tongs, generously oil the grill pan. Place the chicken skewers on the grill. Cook the chicken until lightly charred and cooked through, 2 to 3 minutes per side. Remove the skewers from the grill to a plate or sheet tray and cover to keep warm.
4. In a small bowl stir together mayonnaise and mustard. Put the crushed pretzels onto a large plate and combine with the grated cheese.
5. Brush a chicken skewer with the Dijon mayonnaise, then roll into the pretzel and cheese mixture to coat completely. Repeat with remaining chicken skewers and serve with extra Dijon mayonnaise for dipping. | 2019-04-19T15:15:02 | http://www.foodnetwork.co.uk/recipes/pretzel-crusted-chicken-skewers.html |
0.999855 | Plot The film tells the story of american hero and former LAPD detective, Russell Poole (Johnny Depp), who is working the murder cases of rappers Tupac Shakur and The Notorious B.I.G. A reporter (based on journalist Randall Sullivan's collaboration with Russell Poole), "Jack" Jackson, teams up with Poole after nearly two decades to find out the truth.
The film tells the story of american hero and former LAPD detective, Russell Poole (Johnny Depp), who is working the murder cases of rappers Tupac Shakur and The Notorious B.I.G. A reporter (based on journalist Randall Sullivan's collaboration with Russell Poole), "Jack" Jackson, teams up with Poole after nearly two decades to find out the truth. | 2019-04-23T04:58:35 | http://www.filmexicon.com/movie-025049 |
0.999965 | Simon Saunders, Jonathan Barrett, Adrian Kent, and David Wallace (eds.), Many Worlds? Everett, Quantum Theory, and Reality, Oxford University Press, 2010, 618pp., $99.00 (hbk), ISBN 9780199560561.
Hugh Everett III died of a heart attack in July 1982 at the age of 51. Almost 26 years later, a New York Times obituary for his Ph.D advisor, John Wheeler, mentioned him and Richard Feynman as Wheeler's most prominent students. Everett's Ph.D thesis on the relative state formulation of quantum mechanics, later known as the "Many Worlds Interpretation", was published (in its edited form) in 1957, and later (in its original, unedited form) in 1973, and since then has given rise to one of the most radical schools of thought in the foundations of quantum theory. Several years ago two conferences held in Oxford and in the Perimeter Institute celebrated the occasion of 50 years to the first publication of Everett's thesis. The book Many Worlds? grew out of contributions to these conferences, but, as its editors emphasize, it is more than mere conference proceedings.
Instead, an attempt was made to assemble an impressive collection of papers which illustrate the promise of the many worlds interpretation and the obstacles it faces. Twenty three papers divided into six sections follow an introduction by Simon Saunders, one of Oxford's fiercest Everettians. The first four sections cover two thorny issues that have been flagged by contemporary opponents to the many worlds interpretation, namely, the problem of ontology and the problem of probability, while the fifth discusses alternatives to Everett such as Bohmian mechanics and information-theoretic approaches to quantum theory. The sixth section seems to be a wild card, hosting several papers unrelated to each other, including one of the most interesting contributions to this volume on the history of Everett's thesis and his (some may say all too) short academic career. Each section concludes with transcripts of the discussion session that took place after the talks, thus giving an additional emphasis to the points of contention.
For lack of space, in what follows I would like to focus, in each of the six sections, on only a few chapters that I found especially illuminating.
Start with ontology. Present day Everettians (who for some reason tend to concentrate around Oxford, UK) seem to converge on the twofold claim that many worlds is nothing but the formalism of quantum theory applied to macroscopic systems, and that this was what Everett himself sought to highlight in his struggles to publish his dissertation. Thus David Wallace, in the chapter "Decoherence and Ontology", urges us to accept that the ontological claims of quantum theory, when taken literally, are (1) that we live in a multiverse, (2) that branches are real, and (3) that their reality is no less problematic (and no more susceptible to doubt) than the reality of the atmosphere around some of the planets that inhabit the NGC 1300, a spiral galaxy some 65 million light years from Earth. Wallace then argues that it is only with the rise of decoherence theory that philosophers and physicists were able to recognize what was clear to Everett and to his follower DeWitt from the start, namely, that "the quantum formalism is capable of yielding its own interpretation" and that no additional amendments to the theory are required in order to answer how these branches are to be defined.
How are we then to reconcile the aforementioned claims with the fact that quantum mechanics, taken literally, mentions neither branches nor a multiplicity of worlds? According to Wallace, these elements should be regarded as "emergent" on a par with haircuts or tigers. Not only, says Wallace, are the latter missing from the mathematical formalism of our most fundamental physical theory, but also they are not directly definable in the language of microphysics. Nevertheless, and this is the message, no one would doubt their existence. Decoherence, as a mechanism that allows quasi-classical structures to emerge from the underlying quantum theory, is what establishes the existence of these structures, where by "existence" we mean no more (and no less) than what we mean when we talk about the existence of other macroscopic entities that presumably emerge from the microphysical world.
Proponents of alternative no-collapse interpretations to Everett such as Bohmian mechanics are not impressed. For Bohmians, the wave function alone is insufficient to account for the result of any measurement. To do so, says Tim Maudlin in the chapter "Can the World Be Only Wavefunction?", one must add particles, i.e., localized objects in low-dimensional spacetime, into the ontology. Maudlin's conclusion is that Everett's interpretation, and similarly collapse alternatives in which nothing but the wave function exists, are epistemically incoherent: they do not make the connection between theory and the results of experiments comprehensible, and yet these results are presumably what serve to confirm these theories to begin with.
The worry here seems to be that if, according to the Everettians, the wave function is all there is, and if, further, it 'lives' in an abstract, multidimensional space, then it is unclear how such an object can account for our experience which is, roughly put, the behavior of localized objects in the low-dimensional spacetime we inhabit. Bohmians can easily address this problem, says Maudlin, because they simply postulate such localized objects by adding them into the ontology. GRWf theory (collapse with flash ontology) has a similar solution. But Everettians (and first generation collapse theoreticians with them) face the serious challenge of coming up with a comprehensible link between the state of wave function (which is all there is) and what warrants our belief in the theory, namely, the behavior of localized objects in a low-dimensional spacetime, which is our experience. Decoherence, argues Maudlin convincingly (p. 132), simply cannot meet this challenge.
At this stage the attentive reader would have probably noticed that present day Everettians and their opponents are engaged in two different sets of problems, and simply talk past each other. While Wallace is busy defending the ontology of multiplicity of worlds by presenting it as no more awkward than any other ontology of emergent entities (call this tactic "emergence"), Maudlin saddles him with the problem of latching that ontology to our everyday experience (call this problem "incoherence").
The problem with what you [Michel Janssen] put forward, which sounds really great, that the theory's telling us this and we're just guys who hate the theory; the problem is the story you told is simply incoherent … we all agree that there's a wavefunction; I have no problem with wavefunctions, but it just can't be the case -- it's simply logically impossible for it to be the case -- that you're in a position to say that 'we have this really strong empirical evidence that this is the right theory, the only problem with it is that with the theory so far I don't know how to make sense of the macroscopic world' (pp. 175-176).
Another can of worms in discussions on Everett's interpretation is the issue of probability. Here, again, present day Everettians employ the defensive tactic they believe gets them off the hook in matters ontological, namely, showing that their pet interpretation is no more awkward and no more plagued with conceptual problems than other well-accepted world views (David Papineau, in the chapter "A Fair Deal for Everettians", calls those who criticize Everettians about probabilities "a classic case of a pot calling the kettle black"). But here, again, it seems that their opponents are able to saddle them with a completely different set of problems for which the above tactic is flatly ineffective.
There are several different questions which must be addressed when investigating the meaning and the origin of probabilities in a physical theory. Physicists, for example, are more interested in answering how the probabilities are to be calculated; philosophers, in contrast, tend to ponder what are these calculated probabilities probabilities for (e.g., Maudlin 2001). Present day Everettians, however, are under the impression that by answering the former question they also answer the latter. Thus Wallace, in the chapter "How to Prove the Born Rule", takes great pains to demonstrate how a physical contingency such as the probabilities that one finds in repeated quantum experiments follows logically from a set of axioms that, according to him, are axioms for the rationality of decision making. The reasons for this mathematical exercise (which no doubt would have amused Hume), is that in Everett's interpretation, where there is no collapse and no one actual outcome that breaks the symmetry, "a programme of deriving probabilities from the symmetries remains viable. The language of decision theory makes rigorous sense of what such derivation would look like" (p. 262).
Those who read through the transcript of the discussion which followed that session will find two devastating criticisms of this project. First, as the late Itamar Pitowsky puts it, the assumptions that are treated as assumptions about "rationality" in Wallace's (and earlier in David Deutsch's) axioms are really assumptions about (prior) probabilities; small wonder that their conclusions give probabilistic meaning to the Born rule. What truly justifies this meaning, adds Pitowsky, has nothing to do with rationality but rather with Gleason's theorem and the structure of the Hilbert space. But once we accept that the assumptions are probabilistic to begin with, another problem looms: as pointed out by Meir Hemmo in that discussion, on final account, the fundamental justification for any assumption about priors is an empirical one, and so, in Everett's picture there seems to be no sense in which we could be objectively wrong about these assumptions (since in this theory any priors are equally justified by inductive reasoning).
This additional challenge also applies to Hilary Greeves and Wayne Myrvold who, in the chapter "Everett and Evidence", propose yet another way of making sense of the quantum mechanical probabilities in Everett's interpretation. The gist of this dense chapter is that there exists an account of theory-confirmation through statistical evidence that applies both to a branching and to a non-branching universe, hence does not presuppose the former. But if such an account exists (Greeves and Myrvold show how Bayesian conditionalization, when operationalized in terms of betting preferences, may serve as one), then we can use it to raise our degrees of belief in Everettian quantum mechanics by looking at results of experiments without presupposing the latter and, more importantly, without talking about probabilities at all (recall that in Everett's picture the dynamical evolution is completely deterministic and all outcomes are realized). They conclude, "We have argued that this account is no less defensible than the structurally identical account according to which chances, in an indeterministic theory, have similar decision-theoretic and confirmation-theoretic relevance" (p. 301).
Albert's point is that the defensive tactic only gets Everettians so far: agreed, all accounts of probability lack a clear analysis of how chances, frequencies, and degrees of belief all fit together, but the point of a philosophical analysis of chance, says Albert, is not to establish that chances are related to frequencies, but to show precisely how chances are related to frequencies. Albert is not dogmatic about such an analysis -- if it will be shown to be impossible, then the very idea of chance will have been exposed as nonsense -- and he is certainly not as dogmatic as present day Everettians who, with their decision-theoretic program, a priori deny the possibility of such an analysis from the start.
The fifth section is dedicated to no-collapse alternatives to Everett. In one of its chapters, "Two Dogmas About Quantum Mechanics", Jeffrey Bub and Pitowsky attempt to deflate the notorious measurement problem by attacking two of its hidden premises: (1) that measurement outcomes cannot serve as primitives in a fundamental theory such as quantum mechanics, and (2) that the quantum state must be interpreted ontologically as a representation of physical reality. Rejecting these two dogmas, what they suggest instead is "a realist information-theoretic interpretation of quantum mechanics as an alternative to Everett's interpretation" (p. 433). Such a rejection involves a preference for a "principle" approach to physics, in contrast to the "constructive" approach (a distinction that goes back to Einstein). The latter is manifest in those solutions to the measurement problem which attempt to dynamically analyze the measurement process. This information-theoretic approach is an interesting proposal that certainly changes the rules of the game. Some of its shortcomings were pointed out elsewhere (Hagar & Hemmo 2006).
While the editors should be commended for including a wide range of opinions in the volume, they have omitted a discussion of other alternatives to Everett in which collapse does take place. I find this omission disappointing, especially when the only way to make progress in validating quantum mechanics is by testing its limits. True collapse theories, in contrast to false collapse (a.k.a. decoherence), yield in principle different predictions than standard QM in specific experimental setups and as such are worthy of serious consideration.
Perhaps the most fascinating chapter in the final section is Peter Byrne's "Everett and Wheeler: the Untold Story". This recounting has everything a true melodrama should have, and it portrays the midwives of Everett's interpretation as unashamedly humane: Wheeler's "sitting on the fence", the irritating process of editing Everett's dissertation, the cultural and personal clash between Everett and Bohr, and the rediscovery of Everett's letters and notes in which he had expressed so vividly what he thought about all that. My only quibble here is that a similar story -- told recently in detail by a group of Brazilian historians of physics (Osnaghi et al. 2009) -- is only mentioned in passing and should have been given more credit, if not space, as it illuminates yet another facet of the unfortunate encounter of Everett with the Copenhagen orthodoxy.
Hagar A. & Hemmo M. (2006), Explaining the unobserved: Why QM is not only about information, Foundations of Physics, 36(9): 1295-1324.
Maudlin, T. (2001), Interpreting probabilities: What's interference got to do with it?, pp. 283-288, in J. Bricmont et al. (eds.) Chance in Physics, Springer Lecture Notes in Physics, Volume 571.
Osnaghi S., Freitas, F., and Freire Jr., O. (2009), The origin of the Everettian heresy, Studies In History and Philosophy of Modern Physics, 40(2): 97-123. | 2019-04-18T20:28:04 | https://ndpr.nd.edu/news/many-worlds-everett-quantum-theory-and-reality/ |
0.998966 | Good news for X-Files traditionalists and David Duchovny's hope to keep his youthful FBI headshot: the new run of The X-Files uses the original series opening credits from 1993. As reported by THR (via), series creator Chris Carter "has kept the series' original opening credits exactly as they were when the show first aired."
"We thought about doing some changes to the original credits but then it seemed like like sacrilege," Carter told the trade. "Those credits were on 202 episodes. They belong on these next six."
Nostalgic fidelity for a classic intro? Or a hint that, at long last, we'll get the story of that wavy-faced screaming guy we've always wondered about? I mean, I assume he's probably just going through a dimension shift or portal of some nature, but concrete answers would be nice, right?
\n\nGood news for X-Files traditionalists and David Duchovny's hope to keep his youthful FBI headshot: the new run of The X-Files uses the original series opening credits from 1993. As reported by THR (via), series creator Chris Carter \"has kept the series' original opening credits exactly as they were when the show first aired.\" | 2019-04-24T16:46:07 | https://iwatchstuff.com/2015/10/x-files-revival-run-still-has-the-origin.php |
0.999998 | There is no sound or very low volume from one of the speakers.
Follow the steps below to troubleshoot if there is no sound or very low volume from one of the speakers.
Ensure the speaker balance on the stereo system is set to the center position.
Ensure the speaker wire is connected properly to the back of the stereo system.
If the issue is not resolved, replace the speaker wire.
If the issue is still not resolved, remove the speaker connections from the stereo system.
Connect the right speaker to the left speaker input on the stereo system.
Connect the left speaker to the right speaker input on the stereo system.
If the speaker is now working, but the other speaker now has the problem, then the stereo system requires service.
If the same speaker continues to have the problem, then the speaker is faulty and should be repaired or replaced.
The sound level from the boombox speakers is very low.
The sound from the front left and right speakers is very low. | 2019-04-25T12:10:49 | https://www.sony.ca/en/electronics/support/articles/00032769 |
0.999999 | How is the Bechdel test supposed to be used (individual or general)?
About four years ago, I first heard about the Bechdel test and didn't really understand what it was because I couldn't find a straight answer. I contacted a good friend of mine about it as she helped me become a feminist in the first place and she is usually very happy answering my questions.
The way she described it to me was that it's basically a test to show whether or not women in movies talk about anything else other then a man. The point being to show the general indicator of how much women are treated in film as tools or rewards for the men and plot rather character as their own right, similar to the women in refrigerators trope.
This is how I saw it for years.
However I keep noticing sites, both feminists and sexists using the test for individual films rather then a general examination. The biggest case of this I've seen was last year with Pacific Rim where were arguing about that film failing despite having one of the most strongest female characters in that years blockbusters. At the time I thought It was non issue as the test doesn't say the film is sexist(bit could be used as a warning sign), just that it doesn't pass the test.
But more and more I see the test being used and argued about for individual films such as the marvel films and gravity or asking which Oscar films pass the test. I see feminist blogs and sites I go to and trust calling it the sexist test and all films should pass despite from my understanding is that many sexist films pass it and that ignores all the times when that can be impossible, feminist or otherwise. The Bechdel test website shows all the films individually and I can see no general indicator (if I'm wrong about that please tell me).
Was I misinformed about the test? Is it suppose to be used individually and not used as a general indicator? If it is supposed to be individually, can't that be potentially be dangerous. After all couldn't a writer just have two women talk about not important and go, "well that me done and off the hook" and use them as tool and rewards for the rest of film? Couldn't only restricting yourself to films that pass a single test also be a bad thing as you will be missing out on great feminist works that because other any reason? I'm so confused.
Also, please call me out if I've been sexist. I've been thinking for a long time now on whether or not I should post this because I didn't know if it was a stupid question. | 2019-04-21T02:58:10 | https://observationdeck.kinja.com/how-is-the-bechdel-test-supposed-to-be-used-individual-1653800330 |
0.99805 | How many Seattle police officers does it take to rescue a shirtless protestor from a basketball hoop?
May Day, Seattle's annual day of peaceful rallies for immigrant rights, quickly turned to mayhem Friday as police lashed out at anti-capitalist marchers. There was pepper spray, projectiles fired by police and sixteen people arrested in total, according to the Seattle Times.
Meanwhile, a shirtless man was raising some havoc of his own over at Cal Anderson's basketball courts. With a hammer in hand, the man managed to climb atop a basketball hoop and get stuck in the net, prompting the police department to call in the fire department for back-up as he flailed around upside-down. How many police officers does it take to stand guard as a shirtless man flails upside-down from a basketball hoop with a hammer, you ask? Thirteen, it would seem.
According to MyFox, two firefighters were finally able to release the man by climbing up and cutting the net. The Seattle Police Department tweeted later that night that they were still considering what the man's charges would be. "He may be arrested for property destruction, or at least goal-tending," they wrote. | 2019-04-24T08:43:27 | https://www.salon.com/2015/05/04/how_many_seattle_police_officers_does_it_take_to_rescue_a_shirtless_protestor_from_a_basketball_hoop/ |
0.998959 | What is the difference between disloyal or unloyal?
The adjectives disloyal and unloyal both describe a lack of loyalty. Disloyal is widely regarded as the correct version, but unloyal is also acceptable.
Although unloyal is acceptable, disloyal is universally preferred. | 2019-04-24T05:50:46 | https://www.grammar-monster.com/easily_confused/disloyal_unloyal.htm |
0.99973 | Do you have an interest in migration movements of animals? The Mathematical Modelling of Animal Movement and Behaviour develops and fits movement models to animals to collect data.
Animal behaviour arises through a complex mixture of biomechanical, neuronal, sensory and control constraints. The recent advent of Global Positioning System (GPS) devices small enough to be carried by an animal has made available vast quantities of animal trajectory data, which has in turn led to the development of new methods by which to analyse the data. One question of interest is how to reliably infer an animal's "behavioural state" from the trajectory data.
This project involves developing and fitting movement models to previously collected data from possums, pigeons, Westland petrels, fish and other animals. | 2019-04-23T10:36:48 | https://www.math.auckland.ac.nz/en/about/our-research/research-projects-in-applied-mathematics/mathematical-modelling-of-animal-movement-and-behaviour.html |
0.999988 | I wrote this in 2007 while a military analyst at NBC News. With a few word changes, I think it holds true yet today. The original is still available at MSNBC.com.
Now that former Libyan intelligence officer 'Abd al-Basit al-Maqrahi, convicted for his involvement in the bombing of Pan Am 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland in 1988, has died, more questions remain about the entire affair.
These are my thoughts on the issue. I have a unique perspective on this, having served as an intelligence officer for virtually my entire professional career. There are many holes in the official version of what happened with the downing of the airliner and the deaths of 270 people. Many of my readers are familiar with my skepticism about this case, and know that I am not prone to conspiracy theories.
I have often expressed skepticism that al-Maqrahi was a major actor in the bombing attack that destroyed Pan Am 103, killing 270 people in December 1988. If that is the case, who do I think did it?
To answer that, I want to recall a few events that led up to the attack on Pan Am 103. In 1987, Iran and Iraq had been at war for seven years - casualties from the bloody conflict were approaching one million. Although there had been U.S. Central Intelligence Agency efforts to assist the Iraqi armed forces with intelligence information as early as 1984, these never proved to be effective, owing to mistrust on both sides. By late 1987, however, the Iraqis were beginning to falter under the relentless attacks by the numerically superior Iranians who mounted fanatical human wave assaults on Iraqi troops positions.
In early 1988, the Defense Intelligence Agency prepared an assessment that concluded Iran would likely emerge victorious if the conflict continued another year. Present Reagan declared that an Iranian victory was unacceptable to American interests - he directed the Department of Defense to take steps to ensure that victory did not happen. The result was a Defense Intelligence Agency effort to provide intelligence information to the Iraqi Directorate of Military Intelligence. I was one of two officers assigned to execute this effort.
The effort was successful. With American intelligence information, along with the Iraqi use of modified Scud (al-Husayn) missiles and chemical weapons, Iraq was able to force the Iranians to accept a cease-fire in August 1988.
Just a month earlier, there was a critical event in the Persian Gulf. On July 3, an Iran Air passenger jet on a flight from Bandar Abbas to Dubai was mistakenly identified as a fighter aircraft by the USS Vincennes and shot down, killing all 290 passengers and crew.
I have met with several Iranian officers since that incident - they all believe the shoot down was intentional and intended to send a message to Tehran that the United States would not permit Iran to prevail in the war with Iraq.
When Iran accepted the ceasefire in August, they declared that they were capable of defeating the Iraqis, but not both the Iraqis and the United States. The Iranians have never forgotten our assistance to the Iraqis and the shoot down of Iran Air 655. Those are two reasons we should not have been surprised when Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) officers and Iranian-made weapons showed up in Iraq following the U.S, invasion in 2003.
Having failed to defeat the Iraqis, the Iranians wanted revenge against the "Great Satan." How better to avenge the death of 290 passengers and crew on an Iranian airliner than to destroy an American passenger jet. What better target than an airline that has the word "American" in its name?
Here is where the story - let's call it my analysis - takes on truly "bazaar" and bizarre dimensions. There are countries and groups that wish us ill, many for our support of Israel. One such group is the Damascus-based Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command (PFLP-GC), headed by Ahmad Jibril. Jibril's group had long been supported by the IRGC.
Who better to turn to than a known terrorist group with experience in explosives and hijackings? At some point in the fall of 1988, IRGC officers met with members of the PFLP-GC, possibly with Jibril himself. The Iranians certainly have enough money and other means of support that would be of interest to Jibril. In return, Jibril agreed to bomb an American airliner. In other words, the Iranians contracted out the hit, hoping to hide the Iranian role in the operation.
The PFLP-GC is in its own perverse way a very talented organization. Their bomb-makers have exhibited expertise in constructing improvised devices that are hard to detect. To bring down a pressurized commercial airliner flying at high altitude does not require a large explosive device. The trick is getting the device onto the aircraft and ensuring that the detonation occurs after the aircraft has reached a suitable altitude for a small device to be effective. The PFLP-GC bomb makers in Syria constructed at least five suitable devices - four were found, and I believe the fifth was the bomb that brought down Pan Am 103.
The explosive device used was concealed in a Toshiba cassette tape player. The explosive material was Semtex, the preferred explosives of terrorist organizations world wide. Until recently, the principal chemical components of Semtex, RDN and PETN, were hard to detect. It was also sold in huge quantities to Libya and Syria, among others.
In order to get the bomb onto the aircraft, the PFLP-GC may have enlisted the help of 'Abd al-Basit al-Maqrahi and another Libyan intelligence officer accused but not convicted, al-Amin Khalifah Fahimah. The investigation revealed that the bomb, hidden in the Toshiba cassette player, was packed in a Samsonite suitcase. That suitcase was placed into the interline baggage system at Malta International Airport earlier that day aboard Air Malta KM180 which moved the bag to Frankfurt, where it was placed onto Pan Am 103A (a feeder flight), flown to London and later transferred onto the Boeing 747 that operated as Pan Am 103.
'Abd al-Basit al-Maqrahi's cover position was as chief of security for Libyan Arab Airways (LAA); his intelligence service colleague Fahimah's cover was as LAA station manager at the airport in Malta. Certainly they played a role in routing the bomb-laden suitcase onto Pan Am 103. What is not known is whether al-Maqrahi and Fahimah acted alone for the PFLP-GC - who would not be adverse to recruiting the Libyans - or whether Libyan leader Mu'ammar al-Qadhafi sanctioned their participation.
The fact that Qadhafi gave up the two intelligence officers is persuasive to me that this was a rogue operation. If Qadhafi authorized the Libyan intelligence service to conduct the operation with the PFLP-GC and then gave up two of its officers, he broke faith with his intelligence service.
We intelligence officers routinely broke the laws of other countries, knowing full well that our government would never break faith with us. For that reason, I tend to believe that the two were operating on their own, probably for a large amount of money, and got caught. Qadhafi gave them up and took the blame to make peace with the West.
Is al-Maqrahi guilty? Yes, of course. Is Fahimah also guilty? Most likely - their airline covers were crucial to getting the bomb on board the Pan Am jet. That said, it was probably not sanctioned by Qadhafi. The money Libya paid in compensation is minor compared to the benefits resulting from the subsequent suspension of sanctions and later restoration of diplomatic ties with the West, including the United States.
The bottom line: the unproven culprits who have never been brought to justice for the murder of 180 American and 90 others live free in Damascus and Tehran.
Since I wrote that article, the Libyan people have overthrown, and unfortunately killed, Mu'amar al-Qafhafi. During the Libyan revolution, Libyan intelligence chief Musa Kusa (photo) defected to the United Kingdom. Kusa served as the chief of Libya's external intelligence service, the mukhabarat al-Jamahiriyah, from 1994 to 2009, thus during the Pan Am 103 operation. As part of his debriefings, Scottish authorities questioned him about the attack.
Shortly afterward, the European Union dropped all sanctions and restrictions on Kusa, and he is reportedly living well in Qatar. I would like to know just what his answers were to those questions. I suspect that my version of what happened is closer to the truth than the official version. If that is the case, there is a concerted effort to end this affair with no further blame.
There is more. Former Libyan internal security chief 'Abdullah al-Sanusi and al-Qadhafi's son Sayf al-Islam are in custody. They will likely be tried in Libya, although the International Criminal Court has indicted both of them and want to try them in The Hague. They certainly have new information on the bombing of Pan Am 103.
Given the Obama Administration's penchant for publicizing successful intelligence operations and ignoring failures, I believe that if we had learned that the official version was correct - that this was solely a Libyan operation ordered by Mua'mar al-Qadhafi and we now have the word of the Libyan intelligence chief at the time - we would have heard about it. The fact that we have not tells me there is much more to this case than we are being told.
According to claims of the Free Syrian Army, eight senior officials of the Bashar al-Asad regime were killed in Damascus yesterday, including deputy minister of defense Major General Assif Shawkat. In addition to being the deputy minister and fellow 'Alawite, Shawkat sits on Bashar's Crisis Cell.
It goes further: Shawkat is also Bashar's brother in law - he is married to Hafiz al-Asad's only daughter Bushrah. See my October 2010 article, Syria - the rise of Asif Shawkat. In that article, I noted that Asif was to be promoted to lieutenant general (in Syrian Arabic, 'imad), but also note that in the current report, he is listed as a major general (liwa').
The most interesting move here is the promotion of Asif Shawkat to lieutenant general and the news that he may be the next minister of defence. Shawkat owes virtually all of his good fortune to the fact that he is married to Bushra Hafiz al-Asad. If he becomes the minister of defense, al-Asad will have an absolutely loyal and trustworthy ally in that key position. While almost all of the senior officers in key positions are from the 'Alawite minority of the Latakia region, Shawkat is one better, he's family.
Shawkat, now 60-years-old, has been the chief of Syrian Military Intelligence since early 2005, shortly after the assassination of former Lebanese prime minister Rafiq al-Hariri in Beirut. Most Middle East observers (including me) believe there was a Syrian hand in the murder. We also believe Shawkat was involved in the planning, if not the execution.
The regime has denied the opposition claims about this alleged operation. It is not unusual for the opposition to make such claims, nor is it unusual for the regime to deny such claims, even when true.
It remains to be seen if Shawkat was killed as claimed. He may surface later today or in the next few days for no other reason than to make a proof of life. However, if the opposition claims are true, this is a major success for the opposition. As I said in the 2010 article, this is not just an attack on a senior official, this hits the very heart of the al-Asad family.
Despite America's ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice's protestations to the contrary, the Kofi Annan ceasefire plan for Syria has failed. It was doomed to fail from the start - Bashar al-Asad has no reason to step down. He has effectively used his military, intelligence and security forces to suppress the opposition, and is doing so with impunity because he has correctly assessed that foreign military intervention is highly unlikely.
The world is watching to see what happens next. Will there be a Libya-style operation to protect Syrian civilians from the military onslaught being waged in several cities? Will a coalition of Arab and Western nations begin to provide effective covert support to the opposition, providing the three things needed for a successful insurgency - money, weapons and training? Or will there be a series of increasingly harsh economic sanctions imposed on the country - I mean real sanctions, not the laughable European Union cutoff of luxury goods to the al-Asad family? (See my earlier article, EU luxury sanctions against Syria - is the best you can do?) I am not sanguine that anything is in works.
Why not? Simple. The Russians and the Chinese will not support real action against Syria, and the Obama Administration is too focused on its upcoming tight re-election campaign. It has adopted a very passive observer role, hoping that others will solve the problem, much like the role we have seen this Administration take in regards to the Iranian nuclear issue. Ignore it and hope it either goes away when Tehran announces its nuclear weapons capability, or condemn the Israelis when they attempt to destroy the program.
In the case of Syria, the Administration has put its stock in several "other people's solutions." There is the doomed-from-the-start Annan initiative that virtually no one who knows anything about Syria (and I do not include Kofi Annan in that group) thought would succeed. Under that plan, about a third of the 300 unarmed UN military observers are in Syria.
Since the beginning of the Annan "ceasefire," over 1000 Syrians have died, including 55 in a car bomb attack in a section of Damascus that is home to a major intelligence facility. The facility in the al-Qazzaz neighborhood, located at the intersection of the Airport Road and the Southern Bypass, is pretty heavily guarded - I could never get near it. Now we see Syrian crowds demonstrating against the UN observers.
Then there is the hope that at some point new-again Russian President Vladimir Putin will renounce his staunch support for Bashar al-Asad and support tough United Nations measures. It does not appear this is going to happen. Putin just announced that he will forgo the U.S.-hosted Group of Eight meetings - not exactly an indicator of impending cooperation with the leading nations of the world.
If the Administration is hoping that NATO or European nations are about to form a coalition and militarily intervene in Syria, they are going to be disappointed. France, who took the lead in forming a coalition for last year's military operations against Libya's armed forces, has undergone a major political change. A new president, a socialist, will take office in mid-May and has already announced plans to withdraw French troops two years early from its NATO commitment in Afghanistan. To think a President Hollande is going to commit French forces to Syria is a bit naive.
If the Administration is hoping that the Syrian opposition will somehow gel into an organization with the capability to stand up to the al-Asad regime backed by tanks, artillery and air power, I assess that without external assistance, it is only a matter of time before the government forces prevail. That's a polite way of saying that there will be a bloodbath - the Syrian regime is not known for restraint when it comes to its own survival in power.
U.S. Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta stated that the Pentagon has a series of contingency plans to intervene if ordered to do so by the President. The plans reportedly include establishment of safe areas as well as an air assault on Syrian military forces. That's all well and good, but the planning is useless to the Syrian opposition if the President does not give the orders.
The Gulf States, the Europeans and most importantly, the Syrian people are looking for some kind of American leadership. In Libya, we adopted the nonsensical "leading from behind" construct. It Syria, we are not leading at all.
Message to terrorists who kill American service members, diplomats and citizens: It may take years, even a decade or more, but the military and intelligence services of the United States will hunt you down and kill you.
In Yemen on Sunday, May 6, an airstrike killed wanted al-Qa'idah leader Fahd Muhammad Ahmad al-Qus'u (also rendered as al-Quso). Al-Qus'u was one on the FBI's Ten Most Wanted Terrorists for his role in the October 12, 2000 attack on the USS Cole while in the port of Aden, Yemen, in which 17 American sailors were killed.
Although neither the Yemenis nor the Americans have confirmed that the strike was carried out by an American drone, Al Jazeera reported it as an American attack which killed al-Qus'u and an accompanying al-Qa'idah official, as well as wounding six others. This has all the indicators of an attack by a drone-launched Hellfire missile. Of note, the report in Arabic on Al Jazeera stated that al-Qus'u had been "martyred" - any question who's side they are on?
Al-Qus'u had been assigned by al-Qa'idah to videotape the 1998 suicide bombing of the USS Cole, but he fell asleep. To their credit, the Yemenis arrested him and imprisoned him for more than five years. Following his release in 2007, he rejoined al-Qa'idah and became a much more influential member of the organization.
Being from the same tribe as the late (as in also killed by an American missile strike) American-born radical cleric and al-Qa'idah leader Anwar al-'Awlaqi, al-Qus'u was involved in plot by Nigerian-born 'Umar Faruq 'Abd al-Mutalib to bomb a Detroit-bound airliner on Christmas Day, 2009. In 2010, he achieved what is considered a benchmark for al-Qa'idah leaders: the U.S. State Department designated him as a "global terrorist."
I have been critical of many aspects of President Obama's foreign policy in the Middle East in general and his prosecution of the wars there in particular. His "leading from behind" style and the constant telegraphing of our plans and strategies to our antagonists is dangerous. That said, his willingness to order drone-launched missile strikes on al-Qa'idah terrorists in Pakistan and Yemen is to be lauded.
Hunting down al-Qa'idah leaders in the countries where they have sought refuge is much preferable and more effective than nation building efforts in countries in which al-Qa'idah is no longer a threat.
Despite Kofi Annan's wishful thinking that his cease-fire plan is "on track," the security situation in Syria continues to deteriorate. Many of the world's major powers, including the United States, have called for Syrian President Bashar al-Asad to step down.
As this process plays out, there is concern about what might happen to Syria's large stockpile of chemical weapons stored in several locations around the country. The worst case scenario, of course, is that these weapons end up in the hands of a non-state actor such as Hizballah or al-Qa'idah.
Technically, Syria is within its rights to have chemical weapons. The country is a signatory of the 1925 Geneva Protocol, which prohibits first use of chemical or biological weapons, but does not prohibit the manufacture or possession of them.
More significantly, Syria is not a signatory of the 1997 Chemical Weapons Convention which goes further and does outlaw the production, stockpiling and any - not just "first" - use of chemical munitions. As such, Syria is under no international obligation to declare its chemical weapons, destroy them or even allow international inspectors to monitor them. By not signing the convention, Syria is in company with only Angola, North Korea, Egypt, Somalia and South Sudan.
Syria has not admitted that it possesses chemical weapons, but it is hardly a secret. It is believed to have the largest stockpile of undeclared chemical weapons in the world, including the most lethal chemical warfare agent ever developed, the persistent nerve agent VX.
The Director of National Intelligence, in an unclassified report to Congress in 2006, provided this assessment of Syria's chemical and biological weapons, and the ballistic missiles that can be used to deliver them. It does not address Syrian air force fighter-bombers that can also carry chemical weapons.
Syria maintains its chemical weapons arsenal and delivery systems to provide a deterrent against an attack by the vastly-superior (and nuclear-equipped) Israeli armed forces. Its ballistic missiles and squadron of SU-24 (NATO: FENCER) fighter-bombers can deliver chemical weapons virtually anywhere in Israel.
That fact mitigates Israel's oft-cited argument that it needs to retain control of the Golan Heights seized from Syria in the Six Day War of 1967. Syrian artillery positions on the heights at one time posed a threat to northern Israel, but with the advances in weapons technology, the Syrians no longer need the high ground to put weapons on Israeli targets. Syrian missiles based in protected launch positions in northern Syria can strike targets anywhere in Israel.
Syria's chemical weapons are - and should be - of concern. As the world determines its next steps in confronting the bloodbath in Syria, it needs to take into consideration the status and disposition of Syria's chemical munitions. Although handling of the weapons requires specialized training, having them fall into the hands of Hizballah via the Syrian regime, or into the hands of al-Qa'idah via the Muslim Brotherhood-dominated opposition, is a frightening thought.
In various speeches over the last few weeks, Moussa chose his words very carefully - after all, he is a professional politician. In his own words, "the Camp David Accords are a historical document whose place is on the shelves of history, as its articles talk about the fact that the aim of the agreement is to establish an independent Palestinian state. This agreement is dead and buried." The candidate described the accords as "ink on paper" (hibr 'ala waraq) - an Arabic idiom that corresponds closely to the English "not worth the paper it's printed on."
What the Haaretz headline does is conflate the Camp David Accords with the Egypt-Israel peace treaty, when in reality these are two separate documents. The Camp David Accords, signed in in 1978, did set the framework for the Egypt–Israel Peace Treaty in 1979 - the two are often confused as the same agreement. The 1978 accords included a commitment to grant the Palestinians "full autonomy" within five years, a phrase many believe to be a guarantee of statehood. You would be hard-pressed to find Egyptians who view the two as separate agreements.
Moussa, again choosing his words precisely, states, "There is an agreement between Israel and Egypt that we will honor as long as Israel honors it." This is a welcome statement. While some of the Islamist candidates have called for the abrogation of the 1979 treaty, cooler heads in the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF), the group currently in charge of the country pending election of a president, have prevailed - most of the Islamist candidates have been disqualified by the SCAF-appointed Supreme Presidential Electoral Commission.
There is a reason for Moussa's statement and the SCAF's disqualifications of the Islamist candidates. Moussa is trying to appear as the voice of reason to rational Egyptian voters in the first instance. In the second instance, no senior Egyptian military officer in his right mind wants to abrogate a peace treaty with the Israelis. While the Israelis have been able to devote less of its military resources to its western flank and concentrate on what it believes to be its primary enemies - Iran, Syria, Hizballah and HAMAS - it still maintains enough capability aimed at Cairo to hand the Egyptian military a serious defeat.
Amr Moussa is a brilliant politician and an able statesman. We need to listen to his words carefully and appreciate his handling of the Egyptian electorate. Camp David may be dead, but the Egypt-Israel Peace Treaty lives. Perhaps Haaretz should have headlined the article, "Moussa reaffirms Egypt-Israel peace treaty." | 2019-04-21T22:08:45 | http://francona.blogspot.com/2012/05/ |
0.998537 | Robin has been involved with the study and conservation of whales, dolphins and the marine environment for nearly 25 years. During that time he has studied and recorded whales and dolphins around the world, co-authored two children's books with Dr Horace Dobbs and consulted on his "DIlo" stories before co-writing "Yorkshire's Whales Dolphins and Porpoises."
Originally a primary school teacher and then headteacher, he became Education Director for International Dolphin Watch in 1991 and in 1995 established Dolphinicity Surveys. This led to the current Dolphinspotter project and enabled members of the public to become involved in spotting and recording whale and dolphin sightings from land and on board the research yacht Dolphinicity.
In 1999 he also became Yorkshire Regional Co-ordinator for national whale and dolphin research charity the Sea Watch Foundation and then in 2009 was asked to become a Trustee. The board elected him Chairman in 2012 and he has now given up his teaching career to focus on these important roles in cetacean and marine conservation and working as a wildlife and whale watching boat skipper and naturalist.
Robin's wide knowledge and experience is now being shared with cruise ship passengers in lively and informative lectures with stunning photographs and video. His experience as an educator enables him to adapt his talks to suit audiences of all types and age ranges. On some cruises, Robin's interest in Seals and Seabirds, Pirates and Privateers and Nautical Sayings and Superstitions adds an extra dimension to his talks.
Robin and his wife Kris are also well known to many cruise passengers as they regularly undertake deck watches even when on holiday and enjoy involving fellow passengers and helping them make the most of their time at sea.
1. Whales, Dolphins and Porpoises of ... - A guide to the whales, dolphins and porpoises we could see on this cruise. What are we likely to see and where? How will I identify them? Where is the best place on the ship to watch from?
2. What's that Whale? - A lively and fun workshop and quiz to hone those ID skills.
3. Seabirds: They're not all seagulls! - Learn about the many different types of seabirds and how to recognize some of the more common ones.
4. The Natural History of ... - An introductory guide to the most interesting animals, plants and geographical features of the places we will be visiting.
5. Amazing Azores (The Natural History of "Europe's Hawaii") - Why are the Azores the Atlantic's answer to Hawaii? An exploration of their dramatic landscapes, lush vegetation and wonderful wildlife.
6. Amazing Amazon - Discover the greatest river system on our planet and the life that depends upon it.
7. British Whales, Dolphins and Porpoises � Learn about some of the 28 different species found in British waters, where to watch them and how the public can help study and protect them.
8. 100% Pure � The Natural History of New Zealand � An exploration of the dramatic volcanic landscape and many endemic and native species of animals and plants of this fabulous destination.
9. Friendly Wild Dolphins - from Arion and the Dolphin in Ancient Greek times to Funghie in modern day Ireland, some dolphins have chosen to form a close bond with people. Hear these amazing stories of solitary dolphins and their human friends.
10. Fascinating Facts about Dolphins and their World - A fun and informative look at some of the wonders of our ocean world.
11. Fascinating Facts about Animal Adaptations - An entertaining exploration of the amazing ways marine animals have become adapted to their environment or learned to adapt their behaviour.
12. Fascinating Facts about Marine Migrations - Discover which species undertake these incredible journeys and where, when and why they occur.
13. Fascinating Facts about Ocean Predators � Learn about the creatures great and small which have developed specialised methods of hunting their prey.
14. Fascinating Facts about Sharks and Seals � Learn about the many different species of sharks, seals and sealions, their favourite prey and the dangers they face themselves.
15. Iconic Species: Humpback Whale � Discover why the Humpback Whale is such a favourite of the whale watching industry and probably the most photographed and researched of all species.
16. Iconic Species: Orca: �The Whale Called Killer� � Learn about the many different populations around the world, their different hunting strategies and how they became both feared and loved.
17. What has whaling ever done for us? - Avoiding the more obvious unpleasant and controversial aspects of the whaling industry, this interesting talk looks at the amazing, and at one time essential, uses of whale products and tells the incredible stories of some of those who took part.
18. Marine Conservation, Why does it matter and what can we do? - Explore issues around the oceans' importance to human activity and perhaps even survival.
19. Marine Conservation: Key issues for Cetaceans �Consider the key issues affecting whales, dolphins and porpoises and how and why we should resolve them.
20. Remarkable Rainforests - Learn about the ecology of these incredible environments and their importance to us and the planet.
21. Dolphins in Greek Mythology and Art - An illustrated talk revealing stories, poems, artefacts and historical sites which reveal the important place dolphins held in Ancient Greek culture.
22. Wildlife Sightings on this Cruise - A retrospective slideshow of wildlife sightings at sea and ashore featuring stunning photographs and video taken during this cruise and previous visits to the region.
23. Close Encounters of the Dolphin Kind - A personal account of life changing close encounters with whales and dolphins around the world including being pranked by a wild dolphin, mugged by a humpback whale and eyeballed by a young minke whale.
24. Photos and Facts (Wildlife to Watch For) � A look at what can be seen at sea and on land during this cruise, featuring photographs from previous visits to the region and interesting information.
25. "The Whole Nine Yards" (Nautical Sayings and Superstitions) - Discover the nautical origins of many popular sayings and superstitions.
26. "Letting the Cat out of the Bag" (Nautical Sayings and Expressions) - Discover the nautical origins of many everyday phrases and expressions in our language.
27. Nautical Knowledge (What the Captain learned in College) � Discover the secrets of navigation, lights and buoys, shipping and cruise ship operation.
28. Pirates and Privateers - Who were the real Pirates of the Caribbean? What about the Pirates of the Mediterranean? How could you become an "official" pirate? Learn all this and more during this entertaining romp through pirate lore.
For longer cruises, some of these talks are easily expanded into two or more lectures.
Exclusive introduced film shows (each of 45-60 minutes plus any commentary and discussion) featuring the work of unique and inspirational film-maker Dr Horace Dobbs and his encounters with wild dolphins and the Dolphin Dreamtime relaxation and visualisation experience (min. 45 minutes including discussion). This is a unique opportunity as I now hold sole rights to show and talk about these films.
29. Ride a Wild Dolphin � a ground-breaking film from 1976 showing how Donald, a friendly wild dolphin first seen of the Isle of Man, formed an incredible bond with Dr Horace Dobbs and Maura Mitchell and changed people�s lives.
30. A Closer Encounter (When Two Minds Meet) � a dramatic film showing how Dr Horace Dobbs explores the extraordinary mind of a solitary wild dolphin named Jean Louis in the treacherous waters of the Bay of Lost Souls, Brittany, France.
31. Bewitched by a Dolphin - A moving and beautiful film about the impact of Simo, a solitary Bottlenose Dolphin, on people in the small Pembrokeshire village of Solva.
32. The Dolphin�s Touch � A specially extended version of the highly acclaimed television film in which Dr Horace Dobbs introduces three clinically depressed people to the lone wild dolphin Funghie in Dingle Bay, County Kerry, Eire.
33. Dolphin Dreamtime � a very special experience using a blend of natural sounds (birdsong, whalesong and dolphin calls) and aborigine-inspired music to help listeners visualise a journey into the Dolphin Dreamtime and relaxation.
34. Horace Dobbs - the extraordinary life of The Dolphin Man - A fascinating and moving account of how a research scientist's life was changed by a close encounter with a solitary wild dolphin and how he became a pioneering film-maker, author and inspirational figure around the world.
35. Where to Watch! - A guide to some of the best whale and dolphin watching locations around the world.
36. �Thar She Blows!� The British Whalers � It wasn�t just America that had a successful whaling industry in the 18th and 19th Century. Learn about the development of whaling in Britain from its earliest days to its end in the 20th Century and why it was so important at the time.
37. The Amazing Scoresbys - The William Scoresbys, two highly successful Yorkshire whalers who should be better known for their Arctic explorations, inventions and William Junior's contributions to science and social reform. Learn more about these amazing men and their great achievements.
39. Iconic Species: Bottlenose Dolphin � Discover why this is the best known of all dolphin species and learn what the latest research tells us about intelligence, hunting techniques and social activity.
40. Iconic Species: Sperm Whale � Be amazed by the biology of this huge deep-divng specialist and discover why it became the focus of the whaling industry.
Very successful cruises, with high evaluations, over the past 3+ years with Voyages of Discovery, Saga, Fred Olsen, P&O, Cunard and Viking. More cruises already booked into 2018, with Fred and Viking and Robin is a Cunard/P&O "Preferred Speaker"
My wife and I conduct deck watches, involving passengers, throughout most sea days and when entering and leaving port. These are very popular and also help us to collect sightings data to support the work of Sea Watch Foundation and other cetacean marine conservation charities. I also keep an ongoing written and photographic record, shared with passengers, during and after the cruise. | 2019-04-21T23:10:16 | http://www.cruiseshipenrichment.net/speaker.asp?ID=67232023&DisplayStatus=1 |
0.998587 | Paying a seller £220k now and the remaining £20k when the property is resold.
Question I'm purchasing a property for £240k which I intend to resell in 6 months time. I am paying the seller £220k now and the remaining £20k when I resell the property.
The question I have is - does IR see the £20k as a cost in the transaction and deductible for CGT purposes? For example if I resell the property for £300k, is my CGT liability £300k - £240k (as the £20k is seen as a cost in the trasnaction) or is it £300k - £220k. | 2019-04-25T16:02:37 | https://www.property-tax-portal.co.uk/taxquestion137.shtml |
0.997831 | composition of the body By far the largest component of the body is water, accounting for some 60% of the total weight, which in a 70 kg person amounts to about 40 litres. Of the remaining 40% of body weight typical proportions would be 15% protein, 18% fat, and the remaining 7% mineral, largely in the form of bone; but there are large individual variations.
Water is divided into intracellular fluid (that contained within the living cells of the body) and extracellular fluid (that which bathes the cells from the outside). These fluids account respectively for 40% and 20% of the total body mass. The extracellular fluid is further subdivided into the 5% contained within the blood and 15% which is outside the vascular system. The compositions of the intra- and extracellular fluids are very different; further, the blood fluid (plasma) is subtly different to the rest of the extracellular fluid, which is termed interstitial, as it fills the interstices between the cells. Most of the material dissolved within these body fluids consists of charged molecules or ions and clearly there must be the same number of positively-charged molecules (cations) as negatively-charged molecules (anions) to maintain electroneutrality. A major difference between intra- and extracellular fluids is that the main salt in the former is potassium chloride, while outside the cells it is sodium chloride. The body uses a great deal of energy to maintain this difference — the so-called sodium pump removing sodium ions which penetrate the cells and bringing in potassium ions at the same time. All cells have sodium pumps in their membranes; these consume energy by hydrolysing adenosine triphosphate (ATP).
The differing composition of intra- and extracellular fluids is of vital importance for many bodily processes. For example, the temporary increase in membrane permeability which occurs when nerves are activated allows a flow of sodium ions into, and potassium ions out of the nerve cells. This is the mechanism by which nerve impulses flow along nerve cells, carrying messages from one place to another within the body. After the impulse has passed the sodium pump restores the original resting condition.
The ionic composition of the intracellular, interstitial, and plasma fluids is given below.
Notice that the total cations are balanced by the total anions in all three fluids. Values in milliEquivalents per litre represent number of molecules x valency, and thus allow assessment of electroneutrality. In other contexts concentrations of substances in the body are more commonly quoted in millimoles per litre.
Additionally, interstitial fluid and blood plasma contain some non-electrolytes such as glucose. There are many other substances required by the healthy body but their total amounts are generally very small; an exception is iron, which is an essential component of haemoglobin contained in red cells, and hence is essential for the carriage of oxygen from the lungs to the tissues. In addition there are vitamins and trace elements (including cobalt, manganese, copper, zinc, iodine, and bromine).
Disturbances of body composition occur most obviously in dehydration or starvation. Estimation of the concentrations of electrolytes and other substances in the plasma is a routine part of many diagnostic investigations, since they can change in characteristic ways in a variety of conditions; in studies of nutritional status and obesity, the fat and lean fractions of body mass are measured and compared to standard values for males and females at different ages; estimation of the bone mineral is important in the assessment of osteoporosis.
See also blood; body fluids; body weight; bone; metals in the body; minerals; salt; water balance.
"composition of the body." The Oxford Companion to the Body. . Encyclopedia.com. 16 Apr. 2019 <https://www.encyclopedia.com>. | 2019-04-19T22:57:31 | https://www.encyclopedia.com/medicine/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/composition-body |
0.998758 | I laughed, but it gave me cause for concern.
If your resume is a list of the things you never want to do again in your lifetime, how do you expect to land a job doing the things you love?
Your resume is a vehicle to take you to your dream job, located at the intersection of the employer’s needs and the work you are passionate about doing.
Interview-generating resumes have seven common characteristics—what I call the 7 C’s of high-performing resumes.
Create visual appeal with a contemporary resume design, conservative use of color, and classy fonts to grab the reader’s attention upon first glance.
Target your resume for the next step in your career path. Increase your resume’s performance by customizing each resume to a specific professional role. Laser-focused resumes outperform vague, generic resumes by as much as 10X.
Use the prospective employer’s requirements to form the framework for your resume.
Develop a value proposition statement that connects with the company’s mission and specific needs.
Write a concise work history that proves you can do the job based upon successful past performance.
Show the size/scope of projects you have led and the quantifiable benefits to the company in terms of revenue generated, dollars saved, or productivity gained.
Review the overall organization and progression of ideas. Condense lengthy content into the most relevant and engaging talking points. Delete redundant wording. Edit judiciously for grammar, punctuation, and spelling.
Banish boring resumes filled with tasks you hate to do. Use these seven steps to write a high-impact resume that positions you as the best candidate for that once-in-a-lifetime job opportunity.
Do you like the ideas contained in this blog post, but don’t have the time or energy to implement them? Put Written by a Pro’s writing/editing team to work for you. | 2019-04-22T17:11:30 | http://www.writtenbyapro.com/blog/the-7-cs-of-high-performing-resumes |
0.999987 | Does anyone have any stats or info on the blue statis field that Obi-wan is held captive in on Geonosis?
I assume that it is somehow designed to keep his Force powers in check, otherwise he probably would have managed to escape the Geonosnian guards.
It's described in David West Reynolds's article "Inside Attack of the Clones: Geonosian prison" (Star Wars Insider #64). The device is a Geonosian containment field designed to render dangerous prisoners helpless. Repulsor fields suspend and immobilize the prisoner, and electrical interference impairs the ability to concentrate.
So basically it's a Force cage, found in such D6 books as the Dark Empire Sourcebook. Holds the user in the center with repulsors and doesn't allow them to activate their Force Powers. These were used very much during the Clone Wars, along with the Dungeon Ships.
I kinda like Faraer's description. I'm defininately going to look this up when I get home from the States (it's funny how one's devious GM-mind never ceases to work, even if you're across the Atlantic and won't be playing for at least another 6 months).
Anyhoo, I've never really liked the Force Gages (maybe it's an alergic reaction to the whole Dark Empire mess). However, the idea of a stasis field where an electric interferrence makes it impossible to concentrate is pretty kewl. Not only does it render a Jedi helpless it is also a powerful torture devide -- imagine being locked up and completely unable to gather your thoughts, especially in a long-term imprisonment... I'd imagine it will also have adverse effects on sleeping.
The thing is, one of my Jedi pcs is currently held by Emperor Palpatine on Byss (Rebellion Era), so I was trying to come up with nasty ideas of what the people there might be doing to him.
I'd say the stasis field is a little bit like Column A (Faraer's description) and Column B (Darth_Cassed's description). The stasis field could be used on virtually any dangerous prisoner (not just Jedi). Case in point, read Star Wars Jedi: Aay'la Secura. At the end of the comic, something very similar to the stasis field on Geonosis is also featured on the Republic prison planet of Oovo IV. A villian who is not a Jedi, but has been limitedly trained in Force traditions faces spending a long time in one of these said devices. I take it that the same sort of devices might be used to restrain incredibly strong prisoners who could tear conventional jail cells apart, as well.
In game terms, would a Jedi not be able to use the Force at all? Is the mental static field that harsh? Or should it just increase the difficulties of using the Force? | 2019-04-19T15:14:22 | http://holonet.swrpgnetwork.com/archive/index.php/t-14517.html?s=08eed740ebe52b05b97e46608392d889 |
0.997797 | Choux pastry is used to make cream puffs, eclairs, and profiteroles. You can also use choux pastry for a number of savory items, including cheese puff and even gnocchi.
This was my first time working with choux pastry, and we made "cheese puffs." I made the basic choux pastry, and then I added Swiss cheese to it before I put it in the pastry bag. The cheese puffs were absolutely delectable and disappeared as soon as I took them out of the oven.
In a saucepan over medium heat, combine the milk, water, butter and salt. Bring to a boil. Remove the pan from the heat when the butter melts. Add the flour and stir vigourously with a wooden spoon until blended.
Return the pan to medium heat and continue stirring until the mixture leaves the sides of the pan and forms a ball. Remove from heat and let cool for 3 minutes, or until 140 degrees F.
Whisk one egg in a small bowl. Once the batter has cooled, pour the egg into the batter and beat with a spoon until incorporated. Add the remaining 3 eggs one at a time by whisking each one first and then stirring it into the batter. Let the paste cool for 10 minutes before shaping.
Position a rack in the center of the oven. Preheat oven to 425 F. Line a rimless baking sheet with a silicone mat. Fit a piping bag with a 5 mm plain tip, and fill the bag with the paste.
For each puff, pipe about 1 teaspoon paste onto the lined baking sheet. Bake the puffs for 15 minutes. Then, reduce the heat to 375 F and bake until golden brown, about 5 minutes. Remove from the oven and prick the sides to allow the steam to vent. Return to the oven, leave the door open, and allow the puffs to vent for about 10 minutes.
For cheese puffs: Follow the above recipe, but add 1 cup of Swiss cheese after beating the eggs into the paste. Stir the cheese into the warm paste, and fill the piping bag with the paste. | 2019-04-21T07:23:56 | https://www.foodieinnewyork.com/home-main/2010/02/pate-a-choux-choux-pastry |
0.994282 | The biceps are found on the front of the upper are and are very commonly seen as the key to being strong. There are two heads (tendons) at the top of the bicep which originate at the shoulder where they attach to the scapula. The muscle belly lays flat on the front of the upper arm and ends in two heads at the bottom which attach to the forearm bones, radius and ulna. The biceps cross both the shoulder and elbow joint but their primary focus is movement at the elbow, but they do support shoulder movements such as a shoulder press.
Dumbbell curls are the traditional exercise to improve bicep strength. For the starting position stand with feet shoulder width apart and the dumbbells in both hands resting at arms length, make sure your elbows are tight into the body and your palms face forward. To begin the exercise slowly curl both your elbows lifting the weight until it reaches your shoulder level, hold and then slowly lower back to the starting position. Remember you need to exhale as you lift the weight and inhale while lowering. Repeat this process for the amount of repetitions required. To vary this exercise you can complete them sitting on a bench with back support or even on a chair in your own home.
This exercise requires the use of a barbell rather than dumbbells. You should stand with feet shoulder width apart with the barbell resting at arms length with a shoulder width grip on the bar, your palms should be facing forwards and the elbows tight into your waist. Exhale and curl the barbell forward bending your elbows until the bar is at shoulder height and the biceps are fully contracted, make sure only the forearm is moving and you are not bending your back to pull the bar. Hold the bar for a second and then whilst inhaling slowly lower back to the starting position. To change the difficulty of this exercise you can widen or narrow the grip, or you can also use a straight bar on a cable pulley machine rather than a barbell.
This is a slightly harder exercise to do but with practise can fit right into your upper body workout. Using a straight bar on a low pulley lie down either on the floor in front of the pulley or on a flat bench with your legs straight, grab hold of the bar so that it rests at arms length, it may be advisable to have a spotter to pass you the bar. Exhale and slowly curl the bar towards your shoulders keeping your upper arms still until the bar is at shoulder level, hold and then return to the start position while inhaling. Remember to try and maintain the speed of the movement both up and down to keep the bicep under tension, and repeat as many times as needed. To vary this you can have the palms facing towards or away from the body or change to an EZ bar.
Using an EZ bar gives variation to training the bicep and avoids boredom when working out but it also makes the biceps work in a slightly different way to maximise results. To start stand with feet shoulder width apart and the EZ bar resting at arms length, you should hold the bar at the wider grip and the palms will be facing forward and slightly inwards due to the way you grip the bar. Exhale and slowly curl the bar towards your shoulders moving just the forearm until the bar reaches shoulder level. Hold for a second and then while inhaling lower the bar to the starting position. Repeat for the required amount of reps. To make this movement harder you can move the grip to the narrow position which increases the intensity of the exercise.
To perform this movement you need a scott bench and an EZ bar. To begin sit at the Scott bench with upper arms resting on the pad but make sure your elbows are supported and not hanging over the edge, also your chest should be resting against the bench. Hold the EZ bar at the inner narrow grip with palms facing upwards and rest your arms in a straight position. Exhale and curl the bar towards your shoulders until at shoulder level and biceps contracted. Hold for a moment and then inhale while straightening the arms back to the start position. Again repeat this for the number of reps required and to vary the exercise you can widen the grip on the EZ bar.
Resistance bands are a great alternative to traditional dumbbells and barbells. One resistance band can provide a range of exercises and they come in a variety of tensions to make the exercises harder or easier. Some simple ways to use bands for the biceps are to complete standing curls, stand on the centre of the band with feet shoulder width apart and the arms fully straight, then curl the arms at the elbow to shoulder height and lower. You can also wrap the band around a stationery upright in the gym or at home and hold the handles so the band is straight and at shoulder height with arms outstretched, while exhaling curl the forearms towards the shoulders until the elbow is fully bent and then inhale while straightening the arm. There are many more variations and using this equipment allows you to workout anywhere!
To complete a Zottman curl start with your feet shoulder width apart with the dumbbells resting at arms length and the palms facing towards the body. To begin exhale and slowly curl the weights towards your shoulders moving just your forearm, but as you lift turn the palms towards the body so when your elbow is totally bent your palms are facing your body. Hold for a second, before you lower turn your palms to face away from the body and begin to lower slowly, as you lower turn the palms back to the starting position ready to complete the action again. Remember to inhale on the lower phase and exhale on the raising phase, repeat for the required amount of repetitions.
The starting position for a hammer curl is with feet shoulder width apart standing upright with a dumbbell in each hand resting at arms length and palms facing towards the body. To begin, exhale while slowly curling the weights at the elbow forwards and towards your shoulder, keep going until the bicep is fully contracted and the weight is inline with the shoulder. Hold for a second and slowly lower, whilst inhaling, back to the starting position. This can be repeated for the required amount of repetitions and it can be completed by lifting both weights in unison or alternating each arm, similarly it can be completed while sitting down on a bench.
Using a cable pulley machine is an excellent variation to training, it increases the tension the bicep is under on both the upwards and downwards phases giving maximum results. Use a straight bar attached to a pulley set at the low position, stand with feet shoulder width apart and hold the bar with both hands at arms length with your palms facing away and towards the pulley. Exhale while curling the bar forwards and towards the shoulder moving only the forearm until the bar is at shoulder length, hold and then inhale while slowly lowering to the start position. Repeat as many times as required and to vary this exercise you can use single arm levers and alternate or change the width of your grip on the bar.
A muscle pull on the eye area, need great assistance.
What is the best exercise to make my shoulders wider and bigger? | 2019-04-24T22:36:19 | https://www.steadyhealth.com/slideshows/do-you-want-shaped-biceps-try-this-full-biceps-training |
0.999927 | I imported images into a new folder I created using the Destination>Create New Folder (found on right panel). The import process completed and I was able to view recently imported images without any problem. I switched between the Library and Develop modules and all the images were available.
The next day, I restarted Lightroom using the same catalog and noticed that the new folder I had created during the import session, was not visible in the Folders panel (Left Navigator panel).
The folder is visible through File Manager, I can see the folder on the right panel if I try to import new images, BUT the same folder is not visible in the Folders panel (Left Navigator panel).
How can I fix this problem without having to re-import my photos?
Do You still see the photos in the recently imported section?
...and if you do, try right clicking one and choose "Go to Folder in Library" and see if it shows up.
1. New Folder (i.e. 2018) was created in the Destination Panel (right panel) during Import.
2. Images were successfully imported into the new Destination Folder 2018.
3. When I exit the Import module and go to Library Module, the newly created folder 2018 and the imported images file DO NOT appear in the Folder Panel (left panel). If I right click and go to file manager, directory tree shows ALL the folders including the newly created 2018 and its' contents.
Why isn't LR showing my folder 2018 in the Folders Panel? How do I fix this problem?
I'm wondering whether the underlying problem is something that has always frustrated me about LR's handling of nested folders - namely that a set of images in a folder that is nested in a hierarchy will show up with some of the hierarchy missing when you look inside LR. For example, if you have folders A, B, and C at the top level, and then create a folder D inside A and a folder E inside D, then if you put pictures into E and import them into LR, they will appear (inside LR' folders hierarchy) as though they were in A if there are no importable items inside folder D. In that case, the folder E will show up as being inside A, rather than inside D. I think that this might have been fixed in recent updates (which I haven't installed because I hear about so many problems with the new versions), but I wonder whether this is your problem. My solution to this problem has been to put a single image as a place holder in each level of the hierarchy (in folder D in this example, and in A also, if there are no images there either). I haven't done this recently, but I think that the images going back up the folder tree don't have to be imported into LR for the structure to show up correctly in LR's folder structure.
Right-click on folder E and choose 'Show Parent Folder'.
Have you tried to re-import the folder to the Lightroom catalog (Import dialog > add without moving files)?
I had a related issue for several months where new folders which were created during the import process were not listed in the correct nested place in the folder panel of the library. By pure chance I discovered that somehow the catalog had not referenced/handled the parent folder correctly. I re-imported the parent folder and from then on everything stays in place.
That's just curing a symptom not the cause, but perhaps this workaround fits for your case as well. | 2019-04-21T03:11:41 | https://feedback.photoshop.com/photoshop_family/topics/catalog-not-showing-new-folder |
0.999999 | This is a popular recipe for the famous Vietnamese bread rolls - can be stored for up to 3 days.
1 - Dissolve sugar to 1/2 cup of luke warm water - add yeast and dissolve.
2 - In a large bowl, mix together flour, melted butter and salt. Add the liquid mixture above and beat slowly with an electric mixer. Add the rest of the luke warm water gradually if the mixture is still dry. Beat and mix well until the dough becomes consistent and has a smooth surface.
3 - Spray a bowl with cooking oil and place the dough there - cover and let sit for 1 hour until the dough doubles its size.
4 - Beat the dough slightly and knead well. Divide the dough into 6 to 10 portions, size of your choices.
5 - Slightly deflate the dough to even out the flour and roll back into the desirable shape.
7 - Use a sharp razor to make a vertical slash. Smooth a tiny bit of water on the surface of the bread and dust with flour. Use the left over butter to fill in the slash.
8 - Preheat the oven to 375F or 190C degree. Bake for about 20 minutes until the bread turn light yellow and toothpicks come out clean. | 2019-04-24T08:39:11 | http://www.mrlinhadventure.com/en/travel-information/vietnamese-food/481-vietnamese-bread-rolls.aspx |
0.999996 | Many people always tell me (as their coach) that they will start doing the right things when they are more ready tomorrow.
Some people say that because currently their career is doing fine, they don't need any coaching or upgrading. Others claimed that their bosses did not intend to promote them (as there are no such promotion opportunities) and as such they have not started to think about learning on their own. "I'll learn when I get there", is what they say.
I'm sure you can recognize this: many people live day by day. They will upgrade their skills when they're feeling confident and good. Since currently there is too much workload to handle, they will wait until tomorrow when things are more stable to pick up learning.
Meet Joe - the person that lives as though there is no tomorrow. Joe makes use of each day to the fullest: he will grab opportunities as they come along. He does not improve himself or embark on self-learning according to his whims and fancies but on a continuous basis.
Joe knows that there is no such thing as a lazy learner, only such thing as an unmotivated learner. How did Joe motivate himself to learn? Joe knows that whatever he does (say read a book), the book does not give rise to anything, but it is what Joe reads in himself when he reads the book that matters. | 2019-04-21T21:12:54 | https://andyngtrainer.blogspot.com/2015/01/no-more-tomorrow-and-yet-joe-is-happy.html |
0.999216 | Making a film about computer hacking sounds like a bad idea after all, if based in reality, the cast would probably consist of people who look more like Siskel and Ebert than movie stars. Thankfully, 1992's Sneakers mixes two icons from the '60s (Robert Redford, Sidney Poitier) with two actors known for working with John Sayles (David Strathairn, Mary McDonnell), a funnyman (Dan Aykroyd), a hot younger performer (River Phoenix), a favorite character actor (Stephen Tobolowsky), and an Oscar winner (Ben Kingsley), and churns out a light comic-caper snack. Redford stars as Martin Bishop, a hacker who has been living under an assumed name for 20 years and is now paid to break into people businesses to see how weak their security is. But when two NSA agents arrive at his door, they blackmail him to steal a black box with the promise of a $175,000 reward and the destruction of his past record. However, that box turns out to host a universal codebreaker that can crack any American encryption, and Martin knows he's in over his head it turns out that the NSA men who approached him don't work for the government, but for his old hacker-in-arms Cosmo (Kingsley), who was arrested in his place and now wants the box to keep the government from having it. It's now up to Redford and his crew to get the box back so they can give it to the real NSA. Though often described as a comic thriller, the important thing to know about Sneakers is that it's a heist picture first and foremost and it follows the rules of the genre, especially in having "the team" behind it, with each member given identifiable quirks. Crease (Poitier) was the CIA agent who left under mysterious circumstances, "Mother" (Aykroyd) is the conspiracy nut who wants a Winnebago, "Whistler" (Strathairn) is blind but has an incredible sense of sound, Carl (Phoenix) is the virginal kid, and Liz (McDonnell) is the put-upon sort-of-ex of Martin's, who gets sucked into their dilemma when they need a woman to get close to programmer Werner Brandes (Tobolowsky). Directed by Phil Alden Robinson, this was not what most people thought would be his follow-up to his sleeper hit Field of Dreams, but the director delivers the sort of breezy heist film that manages to be engaging, ephemeral entertainment. Universal's Collector's Edition presents Sneakers in anamorphic widescreen (1.85:1) with Dolby 2.0 Surround audio. Extras include a commentary by writer/director Robinson and (unbilled on the case) writers/producers Walter F. Parkes and Lawrence Lasker, who fondly reminisce about the making of the film. Also included is a 40-minute (mostly from the period) "making-of" doc and the theatrical trailer. Keep-case. | 2019-04-21T06:14:34 | http://www.dvdjournal.com/quickreviews/s/sneakers.q.shtml |
0.99971 | Swapping Sockeye for King - Suggested Mods?
I usually make the following recipe with King salmon, and the modifications below for expediency and a wife who does not like overly rare fish. Unfortunately my online grocer is out, and if I want to make it tonight they only have flash frozen wild sockeye. What, if any, further mods should I make?
- I put on a lot more of each of the marinade ingredients. I don't really keep track of the amount, I just add a thin layer of lemon zest and thyme to the entire top of the fish, and coat the top in olive oil (any excess will run off anyway).
- I use dried thyme as a concession to time (no pun intended). Otherwise the prep time for the recipe becomes twice as long.
As prepared above, everyone who has ever had it has raved; but, how will it come out using the less-fatty Sockeye??
that by the time I got it in the oven and got the thermometer in, the inside temp was something crazy like 180. and I just pulled it back out of the oven. I still liked the fish but the rest of my family wouldn't touch it. | 2019-04-19T17:01:26 | https://food52.com/hotline/42736-swapping-sockeye-for-king-suggested-mods |
0.999255 | My daughter recently brought a card game with her when she came to visit and it was so much fun that I decided to share my terrific 'find'! Scrabble Word Play Poker is a great card game for the whole family, but not only that - it would make a great Christmas stocking stuffer.
Our family is a Scrabble family from way back. We have been playing Scrabble since our kids were young enough to start playing at 7-8 years of age and have been playing ever since. We generally have a game going on a table somewhere whenever someone visits. We have the old board game of Scrabble that is 20 some years old, we have the Deluxe Scrabble game that a friend gave us one Christmas complete with the turntable, and we also have the travel Scrabble game! I would say that we are Scrabble enabled!
We also have the Scrabble dictionary because heaven forbid if someone didn't know how to spell something! We also have Scrabble loaded on our computers!
Scrabble Word Play Poker is a game for 2-6 players ages 8 to 100!
So all that said, why would we need more Scrabble games? Because they made them of course! I really enjoyed Scrabble Word Play Poker though I am a lousy poker player and usually just win by accident if ever I do win. However, Scrabble Word Play Poker is right up my alley because it involves words....something I'm very fond of!
Let's see how it's played and then you be the judge as to how much fun it is! The object is to score the most points. The 'recommended' duration of 1 game is 10 hands or rounds but you can play to your heart's content and just determine the winner by the highest score. Every hand or round is a new shot at making a word - so you are never stuck with bad tiles!
The game is played as follows: You all draw a card and the closest card to the letter A leads off as the dealer. The deal always proceeds to the left as does play. The dealer shuffles all the cards and then deals out 7 cards to everyone face down. Only the player will see his or her cards until they are played. The rest of the deck is placed in the middle of the table for drawing cards - no card is turned up.
Each player on looking at their cards tries to come up with the BEST word that they can make out of the 7 cards - for the most points. Each player (first player to the left of the dealer goes first and so on) gets to draw up to 3 new cards and discard 3 per hand to make a word.
When all players have kept their 7 cards, drawn up to 3 new cards and discarded and are ready to lay down their words, then the player to the left of the dealer lays down his or her word, etc. Play proceeds around the table and someone keeps score noting how many points each player got. That is the end of the first hand.
The player to the left of the dealer now becomes the dealer and proceeds on as above after shuffling the cards. You play rounds or hands until you decide to stop - it is as simple as that. There is a score sheet on the back of the instructions that you can copy - or make your own - or just keep score on a pad of paper.
That was the basic idea behind the game - however, to make it all more interesting, as is customary in Scrabble, there are 'premium' squares that double or triple a letter score or a word score - these are also a part of Scrabble Word Play Poker.
The deck is comprised of 110 cards.
There are 74 letter cards.
There are 32 premium score cards such as those noted in the pictures in the slideshow but the premium score cards are for many different letters.
There are 4 wild cards - which may be played for any letter and do not have any point value.
The rules for Scrabble Word Play Poker are much the same as for regular Scrabble - meaning you decide on the dictionary to be used before you start the game if you are using one, be it a standard dictionary or a Scrabble dictionary. Usually words that are capitalized, abbreviated, are prefixes or suffixes if they stand alone, and words requiring punctuation such as apostrophes or hyphens are not accepted. Likewise, archaic, obsolete, colloquial and slang words are not usually accepted - but the terms of what is allowable need to be set before play.
A word laid is a word played! No take backs!
If you decide beforehand that there will be challenges of words allowed, then decide as well if there will be a penalty involved. If the challenger is incorrect and the word is correct that a player has spelled, will there be a penalty of points awarded due to the incorrect challenge? Likewise, if the word is in fact incorrect, then will there be a penalty for the incorrect word - a reduction in points on that player's score?
The dictionary should be used for challenges only though that rule depends on the parties playing!
Scrabble Word Play Poker is a great game for the family and for gatherings with friends.
It is also a super game for travel as it is only a deck of cards!
This is also a great learning game for spelling for kids of all ages.
Scrabble Word Play Poker can also be played as Hold 'Em style poker - instructions are included in the game.
There are a few variations of the game out there that come with poker chips as well and involve betting on hands - these are the more deluxe versions of the game.
All in all, this was a great game to play while sitting out on the patio on a warm summer evening and generates a lot of conversation and laughter.
I've always thought playing any kind of game with family or friends is a great way to spend time together - and a good way to keep your mind active. In this case, it is not all about luck but also about the power of words. If you're into words, you're gonna love this game!
This little game is a clever little variation on a classic - Scrabble.
Hope you get a chance to play soon and check it out!
Scrabble is one of the most popular board games ever. It makes a great gift.
Tips and tricks to playing Scrabble and impressing friends with you quick thinking and great word game skills.
Hey Laura - Either did I and I thought I knew everything Scrabble! Thanks for the read.
Thanks, I love Scrabble, too! Did not know about the cards, though!!
HH - For a Scrabble-holic like me though it's icing on the cake! This one is so easy to lug around I could play it anywhere...much to my family's dismay sometimes!
Whatever are they bringing out next. Thanks for sharing.
Thanks for stopping by, Winsome - and I think you can play Texas Hold 'Em - it's in the directions but I totally did not 'get it'! My poker skills are rather limited and I believe I am poker-impaired, so this is not surprising!
It's a blast - and because you can play it as long as you want and every hand is a 'new start'...it's wonderful and can even keep someone's attention who didn't really, really want to play!
Never heard of this, but I love Scrabble. Thanks!
I agree! He probably knows all kinds of canine words that I have no CLUE how to spell!
I'll bet that little guy'd absolutely slaughter you! You better study up, gal!
Sad but true, today I don't think there is that much emphasis on spelling! I love Scrabble just because it makes you think of words and I love words - I also play solo Scrabble on my computer though when I can't get Bob to join in....I'm still working on getting Griffin to play!
Reading this hub has me so depressed. I am the ONLY one in my house that cares about spelling!!! No kidding! It's torture around here, but I love them anyway, so oh, well.
Maybe I can turn my soon to exist grandchild to love spelling-then we can play!
Lovely, eh? I've gotten quite a few 'ewwww's when I do that - not ewes but EWWWW's. Quite embarrassing - Ms. Wordsmith.
I have to say too that everyone expects a lot from me when it comes to Scrabble. Not only do I edit for a living as well as do medical transcription, but now I'm a wannabe writer. Good god - the pressure is enough to pull me under!
So when you are playing Scrabble next time, think of me - counseling could be useful in this case for me. I have too much to deal with and all this pressure to be #1 is sometimes a cross to bear! Seriously, my son Patrick almost ALWAYS beats the living tar out of me at it which makes me furious (ha ha) but it's just something I gotta live with! I seriously probably lose more than I win - so being a wordsmith doesn't really apparently matter in the case of Scrabble!
I need to go to Scrabble camp! That's it!
OMG - you mean mixing Bowel was a mistake and that's not where you stir the ingredients? OMG! OMG!
Thanks, Katie for stopping by - I love games but Scrabble is my favorite by far. I'm loving these card games because now I can talk Bob into playing! It's tough when it's just the 2 of us - blasted Griffin can't seem to hold the dang cards in his paws - or move the stupid tiles!
I can be either or - if you sign me up as Audrey then I can also sign up as Audrea - and play twice as many times, right?
I seriously do have a word problem - I can't get away from them! It is a terrible affliction but one I guess I shall have to live with. I don't know anyone who has died of spelling to death, eh? At least not yet!
My worst problem though is when I do recipes - I type BOWEL for 8-10 hours per day and I've been known to instruct folks to put the ingredients in a mixing bowel and stir well....well, I guess so!
I am setting up a new association for those who are suffering from ESA. Would you like to be a charter member? Our mission is to return our members to society where they can again lead fulfilling lives.
ESA is Extreme Scrabble Addiction. The membership fee is a pittance. The initiation fee, however, requires your signing a one-year contract as an indentured servant. Do I spell your name as Audrey or Audrea on the contract? | 2019-04-23T00:55:41 | https://hubpages.com/games-hobbies/Scrabble-Word-Play-Poker-Card-Game-For-The-Whole-Family |
0.999696 | Why is retirement planning different for women? Women are completely comfortable talking about many "M-word" topics: their marriages, motherhood and their mothers, merlots and martinis, mammograms and menopause. But, bring up money and the conversations often screech to a halt. Ask how prepared a woman is for retirement and she can tell you the exact date when she wants to retire, but not how much money she'll need for a 30-year retirement. In this thought-provoking, but non-traditional, fun approach to planning for a woman's retirement, Marcia Mantell guides women through the key questions they'll need to answer before they will be prepared to retire. In What's the Deal with Retirement Planning for Women?, you'll get realistic perspectives on retirement in the new era, a treasure trove of resources to get started, and practical examples of how other women are dealing with redesigning and reinventing retirement. Ten key questions are discussed and you may be surprised by the answers! While no two women will have the same retirement or financial resources, there are common topics that each woman needs to address. While this book offers financial information, it also focuses on how to start defining your future years, how to use the skills of running your household to manage your retirement, and why doing what you love will continue to be a key activity in retirement. It also provides a critical overview into Social Security, which is often the foundation of income for most women in retirement. This book should help you feel more confident and empowered to own your own retirement and future. It will give you a terrific roadmap for how to plan for the future you deserve and help you to make your retirement the best time of your life!"
The Beautiful Suit and A Deal in Ostriches are short stories by H. G. Wells. Herbert George "H. G." Wells (21 September 1866 - 13 August 1946) was an English writer, now best known for his work in the science fiction genre. He was also a prolific writer in many other genres, including contemporary novels, history, politics and social commentary, even writing textbooks and rules for war games. Wells is sometimes called "The Father of Science Fiction," as are Jules Verne and Hugo Gernsback. His most notable science fiction works include The War of the Worlds, The Time Machine, The Invisible Man and The Island of Doctor Moreau. Wells's earliest specialised training was in biology, and his thinking on ethical matters took place in a specifically and fundamentally Darwinian context. He was also from an early date an outspoken socialist, often (but not always, as at the beginning of the First World War) sympathising with pacifist views. His later works became increasingly political and didactic, and he sometimes indicated on official documents that his profession was that of "Journalist." Most of his later novels were not science fiction. Some described lower-middle class life (Kipps; The History of Mr Polly), leading him to be touted as a worthy successor to Charles Dickens, but Wells described a range of social strata and even attempted, in Tono-Bungay (1909), a diagnosis of English society as a whole. Wells's first non-fiction bestseller was Anticipations of the Reaction of Mechanical and Scientific Progress Upon Human Life and Thought (1901). When originally serialised in a magazine it was subtitled, "An Experiment in Prophecy," and is considered his most explicitly futuristic work. It offered the immediate political message of the privileged sections of society continuing to bar capable men from other classes from advancement until war would force a need to employ those most able, rather than the traditional upper classes, as leaders. Anticipating what the world would be like in the year 2000, the book is interesting both for its hits (trains and cars resulting in the dispersion of population from cities to suburbs; moral restrictions declining as men and women seek greater sexual freedom; the defeat of German militarism, and the existence of a European Union) and its misses (he did not expect successful aircraft before 1950, and averred that "my imagination refuses to see any sort of submarine doing anything but suffocate its crew and founder at sea").
This early-learning activity book offers little girls age 2 to 3 a world of games and activities bearing on their cherished characters and items. More than 40 characters, animals, toys and objects in the form of reusable stickers are to be pasted on pages representing familiar settings. A cat, a doll, a tablet for girls, a paintbox and a cuddly toy are to be set in the bedroom of the little girl. The parents, the grandmother, the grandfather and the piano are to be placed in the sitting room. Other friends can be positioned in the kitchen, on the pages of a storybook, in the garden, on the beach at the seaside, in the meadow, in the kindergarten playground, in the stable. Just like in a picture book, the names of each friend is clearly named. The designs are beautiful, cheerful and well suited to the sensitivity of children of today. Various layouts are proposed to awaken children's imagination, increase their knowledge and add to the enjoyment of playing with stickers. Thanks to the laminated pages, stickers are reusable again and again and fun never stops.
An Ideal Husband is an 1895 comedic stage play by Oscar Wilde which revolves around blackmail and political corruption, and touches on the themes of public and private honour. The action is set in London, in "the present," and takes place over the course of twenty-four hours. "Sooner or later," Wilde notes, "we shall all have to pay for what we do." But he adds that, "No one should be entirely judged by their past." Together with The Importance of Being Earnest, it is often considered Wilde's dramatic masterpiece. The play proved extremely popular in its original run, lasting over a hundred performances. Critics also lauded Wilde's balance of a multitude of theatrical elements within the play. George Bernard Shaw praised the play saying "Mr. Wilde is to me our only thorough Playwright. He plays with everything; with wit, with philosophy, with drama, with actors and audience, with the whole theatre." | 2019-04-20T22:11:35 | http://suredeal.com.au/topic/Best+Deal |
0.999709 | How to Try This: The Edinburgh Feeding Evaluation in Dementia Scale: Determining how much help people with dementia need at mealtime.
The Edinburgh Feeding Evaluation in Dementia scale is an 11-item instrument developed to assess eating and feeding problems in people with late-stage dementia. By looking for certain behaviors-spilling food while eating or turning the head when prompted to eat, for example-a nurse can identify a patient's needs and build an effective care plan. The scale takes as little as five minutes to complete. Watch an online video of nurses demonstrating the use of the scale: http://links.lww.com/A281.
Eighty-nine-year-old Rose Kyle, hospitalized for treatment of urosepsis and dehydration, lives at home with her 87-year-old husband of 63 years, Roger, who is her primary caregiver. She had a stroke 10 years ago, which resulted in a partial loss of the use of her left arm and leg and difficulty with fine motor skills in her left hand. Two years ago she was diagnosed with mixed dementia-Alzheimer's disease and cerebrovascular disease-and since then, her eating patterns have changed, and she can transfer from bed to chair only with assistance. Her daily medications are aspirin 81 mg, donepezil (Aricept) 5 mg, lorazepam (Ativan) 0.5 mg, and ranitidine (Zantac) 75 mg, the last three taken at bedtime.
Mr. Kyle's medical history includes dyslipidemia; he has no physical limitations and can help his wife as needed. The couple's son and daughter-in-law, who live nearby, visit them often. The Kyles used to enjoy playing cards with friends, but Ms. Kyle has been increasingly less able to participate in activities requiring such complex cognitive and motor skills. She has become, her husband says, much more isolated. And in recent months, he has had a much harder time managing her cognitive and functional decline.
When passing Ms. Kyle's room at mealtime, the nurse overhears Mr. Kyle shouting at his wife, "Eat!! Or you'll never get out of this place!!" Later, during dinner, Ms. Kyle's son tells his mother that she might "end up in a nursing home with a tube" if she doesn't eat and drink more. The nurse talks with these family members, who say that they're "fed up and worried sick" because Ms. Kyle has been "eating like a bird" over the past year. Mr. Kyle says that she's lost 5 lbs. in six months, but on reflection says she must have lost 20 lbs. in the past two years. He says that he hadn't really stopped to think about her weight loss over time and that her physician hadn't seemed too worried, saying that she wanted Ms. Kyle to "keep her weight down."
The nurse discusses these concerns with the interdisciplinary team. The physician orders a laboratory workup to evaluate her serum albumin and prealbumin levels, lymphocyte count, transferrin level, and hemoglobin level and hematocrit. Ms. Kyle's morning weight is 102 lbs. (46.27 kg) and her height is 63 in. (160 cm); the team calculates a body mass index of 18.1 (less than 18.5 is considered underweight). Her ideal body weight is 115 pounds (52.4 kg). The physician orders a dietary consultation to evaluate Ms. Kyle's three-day caloric intake and to make recommendations for greater intake of protein, calories, and fluids. Findings will allow the physician to discuss these recommendations with Mr. Kyle. Realizing that Ms. Kyle's dementia may be contributing to her inability to eat adequately, the nurse administers the Edinburgh Feeding Evaluation in Dementia (EdFED) scale.
Watch a video demonstrating the use of the Edinburgh Feeding Evaluation in Dementia scale at http://links.lww.com/A281.
Get more information on why it's important for nurses to screen for nutritional deficits in patients with dementia, as well as why this scale is a good approach for doing so.
This is the scale in its original form. See page 51.
The EdFED scale contains 11 items developed to help clinicians look for eating and feeding problems in people with late-stage dementia. Although it is not a screening or diagnostic tool, it can establish a baseline of behaviors and define the level of assistance the patient needs. It can take as little as five minutes to complete, and results can be used to predict needs and build a care plan.
The EdFED scale addresses progressive decline; research has suggested that there's "possibly a cumulative, hierarchical pattern" in these behaviors, meaning that the presence of a behavior on the scale increases the likelihood of the presence of the one preceding it.1 For example, if a patient leaves food on the plate, it's very likely that she or he also spills food and requires help and supervision during meals.
Finally, an 11th item asks the rater to indicate the level of support the patient requires during the meal: supportive-educative assistance (needs cuing or help with plate setup or refocusing), partly compensatory assistance (is involved with meals but requires physical assistance), or wholly compensatory assistance (requires hand-feeding).
Baseline status should be assessed in people with moderate-to-severe dementia who have been losing weight or showing declines in mealtime function. Results will inform interventions. (The Hartford Institute for Geriatric Nursing has published the scale in "Eating and Feeding Issues in Older Adults with Dementia: Part I: Assessment," available on page 51. Part II addresses interventions and can be found on the Hartford Institute Web site: http://www.hartfordign.org/publications/trythis/issue11_2.pdf.) After the initial assessment, the scale can be incorporated into routine assessment; for example, if weekly weighings are performed on Mondays, the staff could schedule assessment with the EdFED during Monday morning breakfast. As with most nutritional assessments, administering the scale at the same time of day in the same environment decreases the chance that other variables can influence the observed behaviors.2 According to Roger Watson, who created the scale, the EdFED has been shown to have the same accuracy when measuring behavior through direct observation and through the caregiver's report (Roger Watson, e-mail communication, May 12, 2008). (To view the section of the online video in which nurses discuss assessment and care planning, go to http://links.lww.com/A282.
The EdFED scale can be administered either by watching the patient eat a meal or by asking caregivers to report mealtime behaviors (the latter is more frequently done in community or primary care settings). Observation should be as unobtrusive as possible. For example, the nurse completing the assessment should not assist with the meal and should avoid conversation with the patient and caregivers, which could distract the observer. To gain better insight into mealtime patterns, the observed meal should take place where the person usually eats.
The observer will note how often (if at all) the specific behaviors occur during the meal. Afterward, the observer talks with the regular caregiver to find out how often and under what circumstances the observed behaviors occur. (Caregiver input is only necessary to complete the baseline assessment.) For example, if the observer notes that the patient turns his head away, the observer might ask, "I noticed that Mr. Smith turned his head away when you lifted up the cup of coffee. Has this ever happened before?" If so, the observer should ask further questions, such as, "Is there anything specific that seems to cause this? Perhaps certain types of food? When does this occur-at the end of the meal when he seems to be tired? Does he ever cough, clear his throat, or need more time to swallow?" With such probing, a more complex picture will emerge.
Ms. Kyle is observed during the evening meal, during which she is supervised by her husband. For the need for close supervision, the nurse gives Ms. Kyle a score of 2. She also requires significant help with tasks such as cutting her food and receives a score of 2 in the physical assistance category. Frequently during the meal she refuses to eat and in the end leaves more than half of the food on her plate; therefore, the nurse assigns a score of 2 for each of these behaviors. She did not spill any food, turn her head away, refuse to open her mouth, spit out food, leave her mouth open and allow food to drop out, or refuse to swallow, therefore earning a score of 0 in each of those categories. Answering the 11th item, the nurse notes that Ms. Kyle requires partial assistance with the meal.
The nurse asks Mr. Kyle to describe mealtimes at home: are the behaviors noted during observation common there as well? "I make all of the food. I try to make her favorites," he replies, "and we usually eat in front of the television." Mealtimes last between 30 to 45 minutes, and she requires constant prompting to focus on her food. "If I don't remind her to eat, she'll only take a few bites." He always cuts her food, and when possible he serves finger foods, such as sandwiches and cheese cubes, that don't require utensils. During meals Ms. Kyle often complains of having no appetite and says she's full after eating a small amount. With constant encouragement, she usually eats about half what's served. Although Mr. Kyle tries to keep her on a low-fat diet because of her history of cerebrovascular disease, he notes that "she always cleans her plate when I serve dessert."
Challenges that may arise. Because Watson never quantified the terms "sometimes" or "often" in the EdFED scale, the determination of frequency is somewhat subjective. If deciding to adopt the EdFED scale, an institution or unit should define frequency; for example, "sometimes" could be defined as observed at least once during a meal.
The rater will assign a score (ranging from 0 to 2) to each of the 10 behaviors according to whether it is observed never, sometimes, or often. These 10 scores are summed, with final scores ranging from 0 to 20. A higher score indicates greater dysfunction. Any behavior that receives a score of 1 or 2 should be addressed in a new plan of care.
Ms. Kyle receives a score of 8, which indicates a need for assistance. The nurse and the case manager arrange for her to be transferred to the hospital's acute-care-of-the-elderly (ACE) unit. The results of the EdFED scale are shared with the new team, which generates further assessments. A dental consultation is arranged; improperly fitting dentures, loose or missing teeth, and poor dental hygiene can all diminish a person's ability and desire to eat. The speech-language pathologist verifies that Ms. Kyle is not aspirating her food but recommends a mealtime environment as free of distractions as possible. The occupational therapist provides a lightweight, sturdy covered cup to improve Ms. Kyle's grip and reduce the likelihood of spilled liquids.
The dietician cancels Ms. Kyle's low-fat diet and recommends a dense calorie diet (with a high calorie-to-quantity ratio), suggesting more protein and fat and fewer simple carbohydrates. Commercial nutritional drinks are ordered for between-meal snacks. Because Ms. Kyle enjoys dessert, ice cream is added to the nutritional drink. The dietician also orders a three-day calorie count to be conducted while Ms. Kyle is hospitalized.
To provide insight into which of the modifications are helping Ms. Kyle, she is reassessed with the EdFED scale during each evening meal. As it's determined which interventions work and which do not, the information is shared with her family.
Someone who has dementia so severe that she or he needs assistance with eating is best cared for by an interdisciplinary team. In these complex cases the team should include a dietician, a speech-language pathologist, an occupational therapist, a dentist, a nurse,9 a social worker, and an appropriate clergyperson or cultural interpreter.
Following up with team members about findings is an important nursing role. For example, dietary changes may need to be accommodated by providing the appropriate implements (such as no-spill cups with straws); oral care techniques should be discussed with family members and other health care professionals.
Ms. Kyle, continued. The acute care nurse explains the results of the EdFED scale to Mr. and Ms. Kyle and to their son and daughter-in-law, who occasionally help with meals. Clear communication with all caregivers about the kind of assistance a patient needs and the type of behaviors to watch for is ideal: it supports consistency in the interventions used. For example, in this case, the nurse explains that the plan is to encourage Ms. Kyle's independence, but if her caregivers find that she needs more help or her abilities decline, a referral to a member of the team will be necessary.
When his wife is admitted to the ACE unit, Mr. Kyle discusses her care plan with that unit's team. The dietician suggests that Mr. Kyle keep a food diary for three days after discharge, one day being on a weekend to provide a true snapshot of Ms. Kyle's eating patterns. Mr. Kyle also is asked to make an appointment with the family dentist after discharge. At this time, the plan is for Ms. Kyle to return home, with a personal care worker to visit twice weekly to assist with activities of daily living. When she is ready to leave the hospital, the discharge planner will share Ms. Kyle's care plan recommendations with the agency that employs the personal care worker to ensure that they are followed. (To see the portion of the online video in which a nursing expert answers questions on the EdFED scale, go to http://links.lww.com/A283.
The EdFED scale is one of the few instruments for assessing the behavior of people with late-stage dementia. It was designed to circumvent what is often described as the "floor effect" of certain tests-the inability of a tool to detect change in what is being measured because the person's level of functioning is already at a very low level (the "floor"), as occurs in late-stage dementia. In other words, the EdFED scale can detect decrements in eating even when the person's functioning is severely compromised and the usual tools can no longer detect functional deterioration.16 In fact, it enables clinicians to note changes almost to the last levels of functioning-the ability to hold food in the mouth.
[white circle] Sensitivity and specificity. There have been no published reports of the sensitivity and specificity of the EdFED scale.
Why Check for Eating and Feeding Problems in Older Adults with Dementia?
This population is at particular risk for malnutrition.
It has long been established that problems with eating and feeding occur in the later stages of dementia and are usually the last activities of daily living to be lost.3 Families and caregivers usually consider the inability to manage meals and to eat and drink enough as a harbinger of failing health or impending death. It can cause a sense of desperation in family caregivers trying to assist with meals. But during this period of decline, the patient deserves to be treated with dignity at meals. By tracking incremental changes a nurse might develop interventions that will strengthen function.
In 2005, 3% of Medicare beneficiaries 65 years old and older required assistance with five to six activities of daily living4; most likely required help with eating. During the first quarter of 2008, 10% of the residents of U.S. nursing homes required extensive assistance with eating, and 14% were totally dependent on help while eating.5 Because this population is at risk for malnutrition, the usual focus is on increasing caloric intake, but caregivers often struggle with accomplishing this task.
Go to http://links.lww.com/A281 to watch a nurse use the Edinburgh Feeding Evaluation in Dementia scale. Then watch the health care team plan preventive strategies.
For more information on this and other geriatrics assessment tools and best practices go to http://www.ConsultGeriRN.org-the clinical Web site of the Hartford Institute for Geriatric Nursing, New York University College of Nursing, and the Nurses Improving Care for Healthsystem Elders (NICHE) program. The site presents authoritative clinical products, resources, and continuing education opportunities that support individual nurses and practice settings.
Visit the Hartford Institute site, http://www.hartfordign.org, and the NICHE site, http://www.nicheprogram.org, for additional products and resources. Go to http://www.nursingcenter.com/AJNolderadults and click on the How to Try This link to access all articles and videos in this series. | 2019-04-21T17:01:11 | https://www.nursingcenter.com/cearticle?an=00000446-200808000-00025&Journal_ID=54030&Issue_ID=806966 |
0.999996 | Elena Kagan Unfit for a Seat on the Supreme Court!
After enduring hours of political theatre with the unending statements of praise for Obama’s latest nominee for the vacancy on the Supreme Court, we finally got an insight on what drives Elena Kagan. I am sure Ms. Kagan is an exceptionally smart individual and by all accounts relatively easy to get along with.
What should raise suspicion and generate questions by the Senate Judiciary Committee are the words used in her opening statement that seem to shed some light on her judicial philosophy. She described the Supreme Court as a “wondrous institution that also must be a modest one – properly deferential to the decisions of the American people and their elected representatives.” Somewhere along the way, she seems to have missed the principle that members of the Court are deferential to the Constitution of the United States of America.
The American people do not make law – their elected representatives do – and those laws must conform to the “Constitution” which is the ultimate law of the land. Further, the Constitution is explicit with regard to the powers delegated to the various branches of Government. She was remiss in not enumerating those limits on Government during her opening statement. This fact leads one to believe she holds a Progressive view of a living Constitution contrary to that of the Founding Fathers.
These are statements we might expect from an academic, not a Supreme Court Justice!
The pledge every American should hear from Elena Kagan is that she will “preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States of America. Anything less should disqualify her from consideration.
The latest assault on religious prayer being reported in the media is that residents of a nursing home have been told they may NOT pray before their meal since a portion of the cost for the food comes from the Federal government. Just how far are the secular progressives willing to go to destroy our Christian heritage in America? They hide behind the First Amendment of the Constitution and not only misinterpret the words but omit those words that render their argument moot. The amendment says,” Congress shall make no laws respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof:” To my knowledge Congress has not established any religion, especially Christianity. The secular progressives, through the courts, have imposed laws against the practice thereof in direct violation to the Constitution. We can no longer celebrate Christian holidays or traditions in our schools and on any Federally funded or owned property in the United States. Federally owned means owned by the government, which in turn receives its money in the form of taxes imposed upon “We the People”. Thus “We the People” must in fact own the Federal Property and also determine how and upon what Federal money should be used to finance.
According to the PEW Forum on religion in the United States 78.4 % of the population are Christians, 1.7% Jewish, 3.0% other and the remaining Unaffiliated 16.1%. Given these statistics it seems ridiculous that some Judge is able to subvert the Constitution and make law from the bench regarding how and where we may practice our faith. Call it political correctness or just plain political activism it is not only wrong from a representative standpoint but is also unquestionably unconstitutional. Should we adopt a precept of ownership with regard to schools and government-owned property then we should be allowed to observe Christian traditions 78.4 % of the time since Christians contribute that percentage on average to the funding of the government. This of course is as ridiculous as the current situation barring any religious observances on government property.
The founders knew that government unchecked would evolve into tyranny and within the Declaration of Independence stated…”that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their security.” Assuming that those persons that occupy the positions on the Supreme Court are virtuous and will uphold their oath to the Constitution, it is time for Christians to challenge the rulings and laws that prohibit exercising our Constitutional right to practice our religion whenever and wherever we deem appropriate, the same way Christians recognize the rights of all other religions. Should the Supreme Court fail to uphold the Constitution, then it is up to congress to impeach those Justices that continue to violate their oath. No one person, President or Judge is above the law and the Constitution is the supreme Law of the land.
Christians in America have been “disposed to suffer” the indignities imposed upon them by the secular progressives and it is time to stand up and return to the principles and values enumerated in the Constitution. | 2019-04-23T04:01:22 | https://libertyssong.com/category/supreme-court/ |
0.999079 | Write down five qualities of the best coach or teacher that you have had.
Once done, divide those qualities into two columns – one headed “knowledge”, one headed “connection”.
Which column contains the most qualities? I predict that it is the “connection” column. In fact, it is not uncommon for people to list ALL 5 qualities in the connection column.
This exercise highlights the importance of the art of coaching and developing a connection with your athletes.
Finally we have a book written by a coach that addresses how to connect with athletes and “the science of building buy-in”.
The power of connecting with people is what Brett Bartholomew’s extraordinary book Conscious Coaching is all about.
Brett is strength and conditioning coach, consultant, and founder of the performance and consulting company Bartholomew Strength. His experience involves working with collegiate teams, professional teams and individual clients.
Brett’s book contains nothing about sets, reps, programs, drills or exercises. It contains nothing about the “technical” side of coaching. In fact it is a coaching book like none other that I have come across. This fascinating book talks about such things as relationships, social intelligence, knowing yourself as a coach and connecting with athletes of various personality traits.
“Conscious Coaching” is a unique and refreshing read.
This type of stuff is generally not taught in coaching courses and it is a book that I wish that I had been able to access years ago.
Early in the book we are encouraged to get to know ourselves as coaches. Brett argues the importance of getting to the bottom of our coaching drives so that we can learn to better leverage and amplify these “specific and highly influential traits” to ultimately become a better coach. Brett illustrates the importance of this by sharing his own background story. I was drawn in by his openness in discussing some of the struggle and adversity that has led him to be the coach he is today. It inspired me to delve deeply into my background to record my own story, a fascinating task that helped me dig deep into my coaching roots and better understand my coaching self.
This book inspired me to delve deeply onto my own coaching story.
The next section of the book examines sixteen common athlete “archetypes” (personalities). We learn about their strengths and weaknesses and are given some ideas about how to connect with each. We are also provided with some useful real-life, practical examples given by a veteran coach or practitioner in the field. While reading these examples I could not but help to relate them to my own coaching situation. I tried to recognise my athletes amongst the archetypes and figure out how I could better connect with them.
The book concludes with some common coaching mistakes to avoid and some practical principles for building trust and better relationships with athletes.
The book provides a thorough and comprehensive coverage of its topic. It presents broad coaching philosophies and principles, helpfully illustrates them with real-life case studies and examples, and locks it all together with some specific and practical suggestions about putting the ideas into practice.
The book provides specific suggestions, examples and case studies that illustrate and support the ideas presented.
I loved how the book is relevant to all coaches. I am not a strength and conditioning coach and I dare say that I coach a different audience to what Brett does. Yet all that he said hit home and was directly relevant or at least adaptable to my situation.
Reflect deeply on what led me to be the coach that I am today. Undertaking this introspective process has given me a much clearer understanding of my coaching identity and where it has come from. It has been a fascinating and enlightening process.
More closely consider the personalities of the athletes that I coach and the way that I approach and interact with them.
This book will lead you to reflect about yourself, your coaching and your athletes.
This book is for coaches of any level, working with athletes of any age and standard.
The refreshing and innovative approach.
The interesting, good quality writing.
Brett’s openness in sharing his own story.
The way the book inspires reflection, action and change.
It can be read and used by all coaches.
We hear the voices of a range of experienced coaches and practitioners.
It provides real-life examples of what is discussed, and specific practical suggestions about how to implement the ideas presented.
Whatever context you are coaching in, whether it be at a participation level with children or in an high performance adult setting, this book can help you become a better coach.
I highly recommend this book to all coaches. I wish that it had existed years ago.
Darren Wensor is a sports development professional, coach educator, specialist coach of young athletes and founder of the blog coachingyoungathletes.com. Learn more about him here and connect with him on Twitter, Facebook, Linkedin , Anchor or via email.
Subscribe to the Coaching Young Athletes newsletter HERE. | 2019-04-18T18:24:12 | https://coachingyoungathletes.com/2018/02/ |
0.999812 | SF Auditors or Mcintosh Amp?
I've got an audio buddy in the neighborhood with SF Cremona driven by Mcintosh C220 and MC275. His system has the musical yet pleasingly detailed sound I've been looking for. Really great with female and male vocals / blues / jazz / and the occasional orchestral piece.
I don't believe my room will accomodate the Cremona (13 wide x 19 deep x 8 high, back of room opening to stairwell, and listener 9ft from speakers set 8ft apart) but was thinking that Auditors would work well with sub (ACI Titan).
Current system: ACI Panorama monitors highpassed at 85HZ - Modwright SWL 9.0 w/mullard 5ar4 rectifier - Odyssey Mono Extremes - Titan Sub lowpassed at 85 HZ - Meridian G08.
Clean, dynamic sound with very good imaging and soundstage which I've been pleased with for several years. However, for me the SF + Mc synergy has a pleasure factor worth pursuing.
To maximize WAF, I only get one purchase a year. Would I be better off first buying the SF Auditors or Mcintosh amp (MC275 / MC252 / MC402) to make the biggest jump to the sound I'm trying to get?
will make a more profound change to your system than buying the Mcintosh amp.
I have less of a view as to which scenario would constitute an "upgrade".
Kill 2 birds with 1 stone, if you liked the mc275 and c220 then go for the MA2275 Mcintosh integrated. Shave a year off your goal.
I agree that you should listen to the McIntosh MA2275 2-Channel Stereo Vacuum Tube Integrated Amplifier and also their brand new McIntosh MA7000 Integrated amp (250 watts per channel).
Thanks for the ideas on the integrated amps. The tube amp if the Auditors will work with 75w/c and the ma7000 beast if the Auditors sing best with more juice!
Which component switch promises the greatest jump in performance?
the sf's for sure. the mac will drive them too.
I picked up the SF Auditors today! Any ideas on toe-in and rake (or other set up ideas)?
My initial impression is "how does such a big sound come from such small speakers?" | 2019-04-19T02:28:42 | https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/sf-auditors-or-mcintosh-amp |
0.999911 | Smoking is a very bad habit, which is highly injurious for health. Smoking deteriorates the health of a person in a massive way. There is restricted flow of blood due to smoking, which disrupts the functioning of several body parts, including the heart.
Most of the people suffering from heart problems are tobacco smokers. There are several treatment options available these days to overcome the habit of smoking. The most common cures which help in leaving smoking are based on nicotine. Nicotine based inhaler, nicotine based nasal spray, and nicotine gum are a few popular nicotine based treatment options which aid in quitting smoking. However, these treatments can be quite uncomfortable, and may also pose certain side effects because of involvement of chemicals.
At this point of time, a very common question arises in the mind of an individual, viz. “do natural remedies help in stopping smoking”? The answer to this question is yes. There are quite a few natural methods to help stop smoking. The following section discusses about a few effective ways to quit smoking in a natural way.
The role of acupuncture with respect to assisting in the process of leaving smoking cannot be ignored. This therapy has been in use for several years and is regarded to be one of the best natural methods to help stop smoking. Extremely thin acupuncture needles are used for the purpose of helping an individual to quit smoking.
The needles are inserted in an ear of an individual at several points and allowed to stay there for around twenty minutes. The craving for smoking gets reduced with the help of this natural treatment.
Lobelia is one of effective herbs to deal with the problem of smoking. The herb acts like a relaxant and performs a similar action like nicotine with regard to helping a person to leave smoking. Lobelia can be consumed in the form of supplement to deal with smoking issue.
However, due to being a toxic herb, it is suggested to consume lobelia after taking expert advice of a health care practitioner. The ingestion of lobelia can have certain side effects like extreme sweating, diarrhea, confusion, nausea, and vomiting. Extremely high dosage of the herb can even make an individual fall into comma.
This herb helps in promoting relaxation and calmness. The irritability of the person would get reduced significantly with the help of consumption of this herb.
Peppermint leaf is very well known for its detoxification and relaxation properties.
Ginger root is a very effective herb for helping people to stop smoking. This herb assists in providing relief from nausea and facilitates digestion.
The above discussed remedies would really be of immense assistance in dealing with the problem of smoking. Smokers would find great level of respite with the help of natural remedies as discussed above. The use of herbs with respect to helping a person to stop smoking would naturally deal with the issue. There would be no side effects and an individual would feel highly relaxed after following the aforementioned natural methods to help quit smoking.
This entry was posted in Featured, Natural Remedies and tagged how to quit smoking naturally, methods to help stop smoking, natural ways to quit smoking, quit smoking, Smoking, stop smoking, tips to stop smoking naturally, ways to stop smoking. | 2019-04-22T12:46:26 | http://www.natural-homeremedies.org/buzz/natural-methods-to-help-stop-smoking/ |
0.993187 | Pernichev Welcome! Nice talking to people who develop solutions.
Could you briefly explain what differentiate your product from f.lux which I am currently using?
Also, there is a lot of talking about temporal dithering. I cannot find the discussion now, but I recall reading that f.lux could potentially exacerbate eyestrain from dithering. Is there any effect of Iris on dithering? Thanks.
Pernichev I've never used Iris, but I think the product itself is good (an improved software based blue-light filter, with it's own trade offs), but I'm not a fan of your licensing scheme. $15 isn't bad but I have multiple computers across several operating systems that I use on a daily basis.
My 2 cents: I am not sure blue light filtering is the best direction to go in, as flux already does this for free, and PWM free monitors are now common place - though a laptop solution would be welcomed. If you want to get my money, software that stops temporal dithering for AMD or Nvidia graphics cards, or android phones would do it.
Are you familiar with Suguru Kawamoto's work? he created software that prevents modern intel integrated GPUs from dithering, something I rely on to use computers comfortably. However I understand that without recognition that such things are problem, marketing this software would be difficult.
Item 7-9 are applicable to everyone, but I believe most of us are here is because of 1-6.
To complicated matters, a smartphone/laptop/PC that is causing eye strain, it could have a combination of items from the list. For example, one laptop could have multiple sources of eye strain e.g. PWM, intel graphics driver, dithering etc, while another laptop only has PWM.
To further complicate matters, a person may get eye strain from one, or from multiple items from the above list. Plus a person may know some of the items in the list causes them eye strain, but may not know if others items causes them eye strain or not.
So to solve an eye strain problem for someone, say Person A, first need to know how many items from the list would Person A get eye strain from. Then need to look at the device (smartphone/laptop/PC). The device has how many of the items in the list? Then need to eliminate the cause of the eye strain one by one.
Take me for example, I get eye strain and headaches from item 1, 2, 5 and 6. These are what I know. So if I use a laptop that has PWM, and newer intel graphics driver, then I would get eye strain. For me to use a laptop without eye strain, I need to choose a laptop that has no PWM, has older intel graphics driver, and older version of Windows 10. If I buy a laptop with just no PWM, I will still get eye strain if the laptop is using newer version of intel graphics driver. The laptop still have other causes of eye strain that is affecting me.
So if a person says to you, hey I tried your Iris software on my PC but it still giving me eye strain. Maybe that person is effected by other causes of eye strain in the list. Getting rid of just one cause of eye strain (e.g. blue light), will not get rid of the eye strain if that PC still has other causes of eye strain such as PWM, dithering etc. Need to get rid of all the causes of eye strain from the device that that particular person has, before the eye strain can be eliminated.
PWM is mostly hardware. But dithering is software and hope you can find a way to get rid of it. Other things like intel graphics driver, we still dont know what exactly in these drivers that is causing the eye strain. Intel investigated for over 2 years+, then gave up and stopped investigating. So unknown factor x still remains unknown.
Any efforts you and your company can do to find the root cause of these eye strain, and find ways to solve it, would be greatly appreciated. Right now you already have a solution for one of the items in the list, which is blue light. If you can find the solution for one or two of other items in the list, that would give a huge positive impact to many of us here.
Something that'd be great would be to disable temporal dithering (especially Intel's) for all Windows, Linux, and Mac.
I'd love to hear how ... software ... can remove PWM and blue light.
Gurm I've heard of Intel PWM Control software before where the PWM is raised very high. I think some people are affected even when PWM is high, but less so, so that is one possible software change.
AGI Also, there is a lot of talking about temporal dithering. I cannot find the discussion now, but I recall reading that f.lux could potentially exacerbate eyestrain from dithering. Is there any effect of Iris on dithering? Thanks.
I'd assume so because it's altering the displayed colors, and the colors that f.lux/Iris use are outside of the standard color gamuts.
AGI I personally find Iris more advanced, for example, it can auto change your blue light value based on time of day/night in where you live in by using approximation (basically taking the city/country you live in), while flux is only locked to the position of the sun and uses geolocation which takes your exact coordinates and feels like a privacy issue for me.
Guys this product in it's current form is not going to solve our eyestrain. Blue light is not causing eye strain. It's possibly messing up circadian rhythm based on some studies and common sense. This application is likely just changing tint like F.lux and Redshift, and messing with brightness to stop PWM. Most likely by running the true backlight at 100% so no PWM is present and then using overlays/gamma games or some other thing to software dim. I have seen other people talk about doing this with other products but cannot remember their names. The general public is just now becoming aware of the "blue light" scare so we can expect to hear more and more about it. It can definitely affect your sleep cycle with late exposure, but its not causing eyestrain or else sunlight would be making people have strain all day long, and is without a doubt a red herring for overuse, dithering or whatever else is at the root for that person.
@AGI F.lux/Redshift mess with gamma settings and some people have said doing so HELPS and some HURTS so no idea what that is about. Maybe IF dithering is an issue those changes trigger/block it in certain instances. Personally it doesn't effect me either way and a bad device is still bad. This product likely fiddles with gamma as well because anything affecting color or color profiling will, but they can speak to that.
hpst I mentioned it at a previous reply but right now we are trying to solve the temporal dithering. I wouldn't say that our company is about following the money and ripping off clients, as a matter of fact, we try to help every client and make them happy.
Seagull I'm doing some of my own research at the moment related to this. Don't have anything to share yet and I'm busy with university as well.
Pernichev Thanks on reply and link.
I found out about dithering on this website. From the little I understand it is not universally acknowledged to be a problem, as flickering or blue light. The big guys in the electronics industry would probably say ours are just speculations. You are working on eliminating such a feature though. Could you disclose why you believe it is a source of eyestrain?
Well that is certainly good news. Is your dithering solution going to be available for Linux? What is the basic theory you are chasing to toggle dithering? As I have been told it would require drivers for each vender to be altered. Do you have a time frame?
My comments were born of cynicsm and lots of negative experiences combined with misery from this problem. My apologies if it felt personal. That said many of us are desperate enough to be held ransom and pay whatever one might charge, but if there is a solution forthcoming I'd prefer to see it be open sourced and not a proprietary product. I have no problem donating, paying, or putting up bounties...but I do not like closed software that makes me dependent on you forever since companies come and go and this matter is too important of an accessibility issue to hinge on one "secret sauce" that may or may not be there long term for us if nobody can fork it, continue development etc. Personally the dithering solution is the only bit I am interested in and I wouldn't use the other existing features.
Pernichev If you could do a lifetime multi PC subscription (I think $50 is reasonable given how there is a trial and all) I think that would be a better product.
JTL can you message me over at [email protected] so we can talk?
I actually think that with the PWM Flicker removal you eliminate most of the eye strain anyway, enough to make it a pleasant experience. What we want from Iris is to be the best possible when it comes to saving eyes so that's why we are going to try adding it right now. | 2019-04-26T02:29:17 | https://ledstrain.org/d/470/7 |
0.999999 | Context. Dust grains forming in the extended atmospheres of AGB stars are critical for the heavy mass loss of these cool luminous giants, as they provide radiative acceleration for the stellar winds. Characteristic mid-IR spectral features indicate that the grains consist mainly of silicates and corundum. The latter species seems to form in a narrow zone within about 2 stellar radii, preceding the condensation of silicate dust, which triggers the outflow. Recent high-angular-resolution observations show clumpy, variable dust clouds at these distances.
Aims. We explore possible causes for the formation of inhomogeneous dust layers, using 3D dynamical simulations.
Methods. We modeled the outer convective envelope and the dust-forming atmosphere of an M-type AGB star with the CO5BOLD radiation-hydrodynamics code. The simulations account for frequency-dependent gas opacities, and include a time-dependent description of grain growth and evaporation for corundum (Al2O3) and olivine-type silicates (Mg2SiO4).
Results. In the inner, gravitationally bound, and corundum-dominated layers of the circumstellar envelope, a patchy distribution of the dust emerges naturally, due to atmospheric shock waves that are generated by large-scale convective flows and pulsations. The formation of silicate dust at somewhat larger distances probably indicates the outer limit of the gravitationally bound layers. The current models do not describe wind acceleration, but the cloud formation mechanism should also work for stars with outflows. Timescales of atmospheric dynamics and grain growth are similar to observed values. In spherical averages of dust densities, more easily comparable to unresolved observations and 1D models, the variable 3D morphology manifests itself as cycle-to-cycle variations.
Conclusions. Grain growth in the wake of large-scale non-spherical shock waves, generated by convection and pulsations, is a likely mechanism for producing the observed clumpy dust clouds, and for explaining their physical and dynamical properties. | 2019-04-25T06:22:04 | https://www.aanda.org/articles/aa/abs/2019/03/aa34799-18/aa34799-18.html |
0.999464 | How can I see names of peer reviewers randomly assigned by Canvas?
I set up a peer review process in which Canvas randomly assigns who reviews whom. How can I see who is responsible for reviewing whom?
You should be seeing a Peer Reviews button over on the far right, after you go into the assignment in question, as shown in the third screen capture here: How do I automatically assign peer reviews for an assignment?
It may take up to one hour for Canvas to assign peer reviews.
If a student has not submitted the assignment or submits the assignment after the due date, the student will not automatically be assigned a peer review and you must manually assign one.
Also in this mix is the fact that you won't see any "action" until after the due date, as outlined here: How do I create a peer review assignment?
Thanks a lot! I appreciate you taking the time. This is very helpful. | 2019-04-18T19:39:57 | https://community.canvaslms.com/thread/15531-how-can-i-see-names-of-peer-reviewers-randomly-assigned-by-canvas |
0.999999 | No Alternative Week / Film Is there an alternative to being mentally ill?
For the transgression of disliking The Avengers, I recently found myself on the business end of several dozen hateful comments. Some were sent directly to my e-mail address, but most were left in the comments section of my online review, on proud display for the public like so much toilet paper on a front lawn. (I suspect they've polluted other virtual spaces as well, but there are better things I can do with my time than to look for them.) I have little intention of entering a dialogue with these commenters, for all their confrontational goading. If the rampant spelling and grammatical mistakes were any indication, most of them were motivated by impulsive anger rather than desire for genuine conversation—though, in their defense, I wasn’t too interested in entering a dialogue with The Avengers either. I guess that means we’re even now and we can all have dessert.
Still, the negative comments were instructive in a few ways. As a benign manifestation of lynch-mob mentality, they reflect a stance towards culture that’s worlds apart from my own: the insistence that there's no alternative to one’s own opinion and that one can be only "right" or "wrong" about a work of art. I also learned, courtesy of a commenter who identified himself only as Morganthus, that anger doesn’t always hinder one's capacity for character assessment. "This reviewer, who've [sic] I've read on and off over the years here in Chicago . . . is very emotionally imbalanced," he wrote. How did Morganthus know?
I was diagnosed with bipolar disorder in 2004, though I suspect I've lived with it my entire life. As a kid, I always had phases of acting out and extreme introversion, bouts of sleeplessness when the weather changed, the tendency to cry for hours over trivial offenses, among other telltale symptoms. But I denied that anything could have been wrong with me: like many others with mental illness, I found it too humiliating to admit I may not be responsible for my own behavior. I accepted these symptoms as badges of a unique personality, which psychiatric treatment would succeed only in sterilizing. I cherished my periods of euphoria—when all experience seemed to possess the vitality and visual beauty of my favorite movies—and I didn't want those taken away.
My childhood didn't lack for friendships and my parents were as tolerant of my moods as I could have hoped. (My dad would try to shake me out of my depressive episodes with the brusque but helpful "You’ve got to grow a thicker skin, kid," advice that came in handy when reading all those silly comments.) Still, I never identified with groups of people and felt excluded from most cultural trends. I couldn't fall in line with any sort of consensus, I believed, since an internal sea change could always throw me out of it. My relationship to art—though founded on deep gratitude—was erratic and largely private. I liked the movies, literature, and music that I did because they gave form to emotions I couldn't organize in real life. I still respond to them in this way, even after years of counseling and antidepressants have brought me out of my hermetic worldview. The arts have been so integral to my development—indeed, my stability—that I find it difficult to issue anything like an objective assessment of what I see, read, or hear. I think Morganthus picked up on this too.
Is there an alternative to being mentally ill? I wish there were; I'd probably have an easier time making friends. Living with bipolar disorder allows for only two courses of action, really: acknowledgment and denial. Knowing the risks associated with the latter (such as lapses into self-destructive behavior, which had gotten so bad with me that my parents and friends all but dragged me by the hair to a psychiatrist's office), I’ll take acknowledgment, thank you, even if it's not always easy. It means accepting that I sometimes need to hold still for a few hours lest I do anything rash. It means checking in with a shrink at least once a year to make sure I'm getting treated appropriately. (Since I don't have health insurance, this is a lot harder to do now that Mayor Emanuel closed half of Chicago's public mental health clinics, but that's another story.) And it means admitting my vulnerability to family and friends, who do want to help me, I learned, when I feel I can't get through life on my own.
This ongoing admission has been the most humbling as well as the most rewarding thing to come out of psychiatric treatment. I feel far less isolated now than I did before being diagnosed; and knowing there are accepting, supportive people in my life is encouragement to be more accepting and supportive of others. I still have trouble falling in line with large groups—especially when they're cheering for violence and rejecting serious thought, things that used to get me into trouble—but I don't mind when the small one I belong to is as good as it is. | 2019-04-20T04:20:18 | https://www.chicagoreader.com/Bleader/archives/2012/06/01/is-there-an-alternative-to-being-mentally-ill |
0.998728 | People magazine and tells the story of the bravest people in America ."
By William Strabala and FedCURE member Mike Palecek The book tells the story of a group of American men who happen to be priests who happen to have served decades in American prisons.
Darrell Rupiper, Larry Rosebaugh and Carl Kabat are Oblate missionary priests. Frank Cordaro is a diocesan priest from Des Moines . Roy Bourgeois is a Maryknoll priest. Charlie Liteky is an ex-Trinitarian priest.
Rupiper was in the national spotlight during the Iran hostage crisis. He traveled to Iran as part of team of clerics hoping to gain the release of the hostages.
Rosebaugh now lives with the poor in El Salvador . He was a member of the Milwaukee 14, a group that burned draft records in accord with the example set by the Berrigan brothers at Catonsville , Maryland in 1968.
Kabat has served over 16 years in United States federal and state prisons since 1980 as a result of his anti-military actions.
Cordaro has served half a dozen federal prison terms for his anti-nuclear activities. He has also given sanctuary to a manure spreader in support of Iowa farmers. During the Carter presidency Cordaro found himself on the front page of the Washington Post after he stood in front of Carter during a press conference to tell the world the truth about the SALT treaty.
Bourgeois, from the deep south and a former military officer who served in Vietnam , recently made his own front-page news [NY Times, Washington Post, others] as leader of the massive protests at Fort Benning , Georgia calling for the closing of the School of the Americas . Bourgeois and Rosebaugh also served prison terms in the 1980s when they sneaked into Fort Benning , climbed a tree and played a tape outside the Salvadoran soldiers' barracks of the last sermon given by slain archbishop Oscar Romero.
Liteky is a former chaplain who served in Vietnam . He received the Congressional Medal of Honor, and later surrendered it during his protests at Fort Benning .
With the exception of Cordaro, all of these men began their clerical careers as missionaries, in Brazil , the Philippines , Bolivia and Vietnam , and discovered America in the process. They discovered that the trail of the poor leads through such countries directly back to America . It leads directly to Rupiper's home in Carroll , Iowa ; to Rosebaugh and Kabat's roots in rural Illinois ; to Cordaro's Des Moines Italian household, and to the nation's capital, where Liteky was born. They also discovered that the America they grew up in never existed.
They read history and learned about America 's militarism, its attempts at global hegemony, and they felt they must resist. They wanted with all their hearts for their childhood America to be made real, a just and loving America , even if that meant they must spend years behind prison walls. | 2019-04-22T02:41:08 | http://fedcure.org/Prophets.shtml |
0.983707 | As a former middle school and high school English Language Arts teacher who just so happens to have many similar minded librarian friends, I am constantly looking for high quality stories that will reach out to every student in the room. Dave Roman's new Astronaut Academy is just such a story!
Roman's Astronaut Academy is a tour-de-force of craftsmanship. Told through the various lenses of the school principal of Astronaut Academy, a new, mysteriously shy student, and a number of current and uniquely interesting students who don't always see eye-to-eye, Roman took a risky venture in the craftsmanship of this story. The plot, setting, conflict, and resolution -- all the important elements of story -- could've been lost in the midst of a structure that focuses on so many unique characters and their own point of views. But in Astronaut Academy none of these elements of story are either missing or hurting. In fact, every critical element of story is thoroughly alive and well, and, as a result of his risky yet successful craftsmanship, Roman has pushed, recreated, and offered graphic novel readers an entirely new subgenre. Roman's Astronaut Academy, in other words, is a stand-alone gem in the graphic novel world, a must read for every reader out there who feels passionately about the graphic novel format and its potential to tell 21st century literary-level stories.
Centered on a former space hero who is trying to keep a low profile at his new school, Hakata Soy is the central character that ties the plot together. While the most intimidating, rich and popular girl in school seems to be scheming behind his back, his best friend is mysteriously missing in action, and his new roommate can only think of his athletic prowess at the schools favorite sport, fireball. And, if that's not enough, there's a doppelganger robot wandering the halls of Astronaut Academy with an identity crises. Should he destroy Hakata Soy? Or is his programming overriding a sensitive side that really just wants to make friends?
Plot: Hakata Soy is a former space hero who just wants to go to school like any other average kid. The problem, however, is that he is not just any other normal kid, and he is not at just any other school. He's a student at Astronaut Academy and is about to meet a bunch of new friends and foes.
To begin, draw a circle on the board. Inside of that circle write the word "plot." Next, as a beginning reading strategy, ask students to read the first 5 pages of Astronaut Academy. When they are done with those five pages, ask students: "What do you think the plot of Astronaut Academy may be?" Record their ideas in the circle.
While students read Astronaut Academy (up to about page 27), ask them to keep reviewing their earlier ideas on the plot. By the time they get to page 27, ask students to settle upon one, summative plot idea. If need be, erase the plot ideas that simply did not seem to work out, leaving only the main plot idea within the circle.
You will also want to ask students, restarting with pages 1 -- 5 (which focus on the Principal of Astronaut Academy) and continuing onwards, to "draw a line out from the main plot idea. Each line you draw will represent one of the characters. Thus, at the end of the line draw a large circle and write each new character's name. Also, within that character's circle, list their characteristics.
Since readers are continuously meeting new characters throughout Astronaut Academy, they can read the entire graphic novel with this character and plot based reading strategy in mind.
After students are done reading Astronaut Academy, ask them to draw lines from one character to another, "connecting and listing the connections that characters share." In other words, students might draw a line between Hakata Soy and Miyumi San, and on that line, write the word "friends."
When students are finished drawing lines and listing descriptive relationships, ask them to meet with a peer and discuss their thoughts and ideas about the story. After this meeting, and finally, ask students to "Write one paragraph that describes what you think is the most important relationship in Astronaut Academy. You may want to keep in mind that Astronaut Academy: Zero Gravity is the first in a series of Astronaut Academy graphic novels by Dave Roman." | 2019-04-25T20:54:17 | http://www.diamondbookshelf.com/Home/1/1/20/1282?articleID=110550 |
0.999936 | book/paper I want to read: "The life-cycle of corporations and long-term equity/debt returns for the small passive investor". Who has written it? If no one, who has written the best book/paper on "The life-cycle of corporations: historical data and theoretical models"? Also interested in discussions comparing the life-cycle of publicly traded corporations versus the life-cycle of private corporations/proprietorships/partnerships.
Deep Thought: Living off the capital feels a lot like living off the income.
Deep Thought: You can't mix sambar with ketchup.
Deep Thought: "Patriotism is not enough, I must have no hatred or bitterness towards anyone."
And it seems to me that for "patriotism" you can substitute "ideals" or "dreams". | 2019-04-24T07:01:39 | http://hardheads.blogspot.com/2009/04/ |
0.999284 | any other factor the court expressly finds to be a just and proper consideration.
What property is subject to equitable distribution?
Only marital property is divided by the court. Each spouse gets to keep his or her own separate property. Marital property includes all property acquired by either or both parties during the marriage, regardless of the form in which title is held, subject to the exceptions below. Each spouse's income during marriage, the property purchased with that income, the property they purchased while married (such as a house or car), the retirement benefits each spouse earned during marriage are all considered marital property.
property acquired from the proceeds or appreciation in value of separate property, unless that appreciation is partly due to the efforts or contributions of the other spouse.
Is a business or professional practice subject to equitable distribution?
Yes. Businesses and professional practices can be considered "property" subject to equitable distribution. However, as noted above, interests in a business may be difficult to divide, or it may be undesirable to do so. In this situation, the court will typically award the actual business or practice to the spouse who is running it, awarding the other spouse property to make up the difference. | 2019-04-22T18:05:17 | http://longislandlawyer.biz/family-law/division-of-property-in-a-divorce |
0.999499 | This ticket was mentioned in Slack in #meta by todd-inmotion. View the logs.
#3657 was marked as a duplicate.
Updated Download, Hosting, and Mobile in https://dotorg.trac.wordpress.org/changeset/14199.
Also add Open Graph data for the front page.
WPorg: Update document title separator.
Support: Update site titles and add description.
Showcase: Update site titles and add description.
Themes: Update document title structure.
Also adds Open Graph tags and meta descriptions.
I'm really not a fan of having most of the details of this request being separately presented in an access-by-permission document.
And what's the justification for what was already done? For instance, related commits here changed the title separator from a dash (—) to a vertical bar (|), though this had already been explicitly discussed and the dash was chosen and used--and the vertical bar rejected as an option--back in #1105.
Agreed, when this ticket was opened it was public, I don't know why it's not anymore. It wasn't my favorite way of conveying these details either.
Probably not much. Since the document is not public anymore I assume the ticket can be closed.
And what's the justification for what was already done?
It was pretty much a mandate from the Growth Council at the time. I asked for community feedback for some of the changes , but the title separator did not seem to be part of it. | 2019-04-21T06:41:47 | https://meta.trac.wordpress.org/ticket/3539 |
0.999296 | I threw a coin n times, and never got three tails in a row. I calculated the odds of this event, and found out they were just about even; 50%-50%. How many times did I throw the coin?
A second question: what were the chances of having not gotten three heads in a row either?
The following program simulates 100,000 trials each at n = 3 through 12, and reports the results when, as in the stated condition, the tossing has continued until that many tosses have been made, under the assumption that as soon as three heads or three tails in a row has been reached, tossing ends.
PRINT #2, " hadTTT noTTT"
As expected, when n=3, all trials proceeded to completion of the three tosses, and in 1/8 of the cases TTT was achieved and in another 1/8 of the cases HHH was achieved.
With 100,000 trials, a 50-50 probability of getting the observed results (going all the way to n tosses, and getting no TTT's) would give 50,000 such results. That is most closely matched when t=5, with 56,312 of that set of events happening and when t=6, with 45,400 of the trials reaching 6 tosses with no TTT. In the latter case, of the 45,400 reaching 6 tosses with no TTT, 40,765 also had no HHH, for a conditional prob of 89.79%.
In this case, it is n=10 that has the closest to a 50-50 split between hadTTT and noTTT. Since it always goes to completion of the n tosses, all 100,000 are shown. Of the 49,140 that had no TTT in 10 tosses, 17,332 also had no HHH, for a conditional prob. of 35.37%. | 2019-04-20T00:40:10 | http://perplexus.info/show.php?pid=1974&cid=15323 |
0.997993 | Tel Aviv, Israel (November 2015) - $20.8MM lawsuit brought against EL AL for causing the collapse of HAS Advantage, the first ever support Israel credit card with almost 30,000 members. Almost $10MM of investment capital has been lost as well as over a decade of life’s work of the founder, Zev Dobuler.
According to HAS’ Founder & CEO, Zev Dobuler, EL AL breached multiple agreements with HAS causing it to collapse, unlawfully profited from HAS and illegally used HAS ideas and business models presented to them for a joint venture, for use in their Israeli credit card, the FLY CARD.
It has been an honor serving as the Founder and CEO of HAS Advantage, a great company with great customers; customers who not only held Israel in their hearts, but in their pockets as well.
HAS has been my life’s work. As someone who made Aliyah from Far Rockaway NY in 1990, I’ve always dreamt of building bridges between Israel and its supporters around the globe. HAS was the brainchild of this dream. Since envisioning the concept in 2002, as a young 24 year old just out of the IDF, I invested every ounce of my strength and effort into creating and launching HAS. HAS encompassed travel to Israel, support of Israel and promotion of blue and white products. To date, we donated almost $1MM to charity and sent thousands of customers to Israel on Bonus Tickets.
When HAS unraveled last year, I held back from releasing any statements about what happened, as I was doing everything possible to try and settle the dispute with EL AL. Releasing any information would have only pushed a potential resolution further away. Ultimately, after many attempts to resolve this matter over the last 18 months, EL AL continually declined to reach a resolution and as a result on November 3, 2015 HAS filed a $20.8MM lawsuit against EL AL in Israel. The lawsuit and the details have now become public knowledge.
You can click here to read an article from the Jewish Press explaining about the lawsuit in more detail.
To summarize: In July 2012, EL AL approached HAS and requested to partner with it to issue a joint HAS EL AL credit card called the “EL AL Advantage” card. The joint credit card was a win-win for HAS, EL AL, cardholders and partner HAS charities. Unfortunately, the joint card became the basis of a dispute between the two companies which caused HAS to collapse at the hands of EL AL.
It’s a shame that the “EL AL Advantage” card never came to fruition and that EL AL wasn’t willing to implement what had been agreed upon in order to jointly launch the card. HAS negotiated the joint card with the best intentions in mind for our cardholders and partners.
May cooler minds prevail in all your dealings. I want to thank you for your membership and hope that one day we may work together again.
"Like" us on Facebook to stay up to date on developments.
Unfortunately, due to a legal dispute with EL AL, US Bank has terminated the HAS Advantage program. HAS Advantage and US Bank are no longer affiliated as of April 2014. This website reflects the HAS Advantage program as it was until April 2014. US Bank has issued all former HAS cardholders a new US Bank credit card. Please contact US Bank at 1-866-322-7989 with any question you may have about your new card including points and benefits. We very much appreciated your business and we're so sorry this has happened. | 2019-04-19T07:04:32 | http://www.hasadvantage.com/lawsuit.html |
0.999999 | A 12-year-old boy has been hailed as a hero after he pushed his friend out of the path of a runaway car and took the full force of the collision himself.
Dylan Graves, from Bradford, West Yorkshire, was hit by the vehicle after his quick actions potentially saved the life of 11-year-old friend James Yeadon.
He suffered two broken bones in his spine, a fractured left pelvis and a bruised lung after becoming trapped underneath the car.
The incident happened close to his home, and Dylan's mother Natasha said she feared the worst after James ran to the house to tell her what happened.
'He said Dylan had been hit by a car but when I ran outside I could not find him or hear him. That is when James told me was actually trapped under the car.
'The feeling was horrendous. I just looked up at the sky thinking that he was dead.
'I felt slightly relived that he was conscious as I crouched down beside the car, but he was upside down in such an awkward position under the car.
'Dylan just wanted me to hold his hand and kept telling me he loved me. He is not the type of boy who says that often so I knew he was scared.
Dylan was struck by a driverless black Vauxhall Vectra and the vehicle is believed to have had an issue with its handbrake which caused it to roll backwards down the street.
He had been out playing with James and was on his way home at the time of the incident.
The car picked up speed coming down the hill before reaching Dylan but the youngster still managed push his friend out of the way, before jumping up seconds before impact, which is believed to have saved his life.
However, Dylan still took a nasty hit, causing serious injuries, and was left in the foetal position trapped between the vehicle and a wooden fence.
Emergency services were called and the fire service managed to free Dylan by smashing the car window and lifting the handbrake.
Dylan, who attends Immanuel College, was rushed to Leeds General Infirmary and was released the flowing day.
His recovery is expected to take around 12-weeks but doctors have advised him to remain laid up in bed.
Mrs Graves, who runs a dance academy, has commended her son's bravery and hopes he will be able to make a full recovery, as he still has to have further tests at Leeds General Infirmary.
She said: 'I just can't believe how brave he was to push his friend out of the way and take the hit himself.
'James' mum Rachael has been coming round every day to see how Dylan is and has been calling him her guardian angel for saving her son.
'Dylan is doing a lot better now but he has been in agony from his injuries. He is continuing to see a specialist consultant at Leeds General Infirmary who does not usually see children but was called in due to the extent of his injuries.
Mrs Graves also thanked her neighbours for coming out with blankets and bottles of water immediately after the incident and for their well wishes.
West Yorkshire Police confirmed that inquiries were ongoing into the incident and that the family have been kept informed. | 2019-04-20T11:22:06 | https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3414663/Boy-12-hailed-hero-shoves-friend-path-runaway-car-takes-force-collision-himself.html |
0.999947 | Pityrodia oldfieldii (F.Muell.) Benth. is a nomenclatural synonym. | 2019-04-18T13:24:01 | https://florabase.dpaw.wa.gov.au/search/current/41062 |
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