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Thursday, January 9, 2014
Faith, belief, and agnosticism: a guest post by author Cly Boehs
My dear friend, the author and artist Cly Boehs, was inspired by one of my posts from two weeks ago to write an essay of her own responding to the points I brought up, and I have invited her to present it here. You can (and should!) read Cly's short stories, posted on her wonderful blog Mind at Play, and I encourage you all to buy her brilliant collection of four novellas, The Most Intangible Thing, available at Amazon here. I know you'll be as entertained and intrigued by Cly's writing as I am.
On Skeptophilia on December 24th, 2013, in an article entitled, "Elf highway blockade," you ask the question, “…how do specific counterfactual beliefs become so entrenched, despite a complete lack of evidence that entire cultures begin to buy in?” You state that you get how individuals can become superstitious but are perplexed by how cultures can do this—supposedly because more heads should be better than one? The underlying question seems to be—why wouldn’t there be enough dissenting voices in such groups to stop such ridiculous claims? How can so many be so wrong about something so outlandish?
Since I’ve spent quite a bit of time researching, thinking and writing about why people (as individuals and groups) believe what they do, I’d like to take this question on, at least offering an opinion in brief form. Over time, I’ve come to two major conclusions (1) groups don’t use factual evidence any more than individuals to come to their beliefs; and (2) once individuals’ beliefs are strengthen by numbers, the believers take on a superior hue such that they disavow any other claims than their own—they are right and that’s that. You seem to be asking how this can happen when there is contrary factual evidence readily available for them to see. To a rationalist, a term like “factual evidence” is redundant because both “facts” and “evidence” imply objectivity. To a person basing evidence on faith or will-to-believe, “evidence” lies in subjective truth; and since that truth’s validity is based on personal experience, the more of those will-to-believers you can gather together, the greater the validation of truth (see below).
I’d like to draw attention to two points about both individuals and groups that allow any belief (superstition or not) to become foundational to them. First, culture, the state, the church, all organizations and institutions are made up of individuals and studies have shown that what the individuals in the group believe becomes strengthen by numbers. Which brings me to my second notion: that belief(s) of the group are held together because they believe they are right, often the only right. The strength of belief gained in numbers produces a feeling of superiority such that the group forms an “us vs them” mentality and most often (depending on how significant the belief is to the group) takes it to battle against other beliefs. Lord knows we have enough examples of this throughout human history and in foreign affairs today.
It is tremendously important that we remember that groups are made up of individuals—that in the most important way, groups do not exist in and of themselves. When we begin thinking that they do, we end up in extreme situations such as with the Nazi mentality of World War II, the mass execution of 1862 in Mankato, Minnesota and the Guantanamo Bay detention camp. The defendants at the Nuremberg trials (or any others for that matter) can claim immunity on the grounds of mass-think. Which leads me to this business of feeling superior and safe because of being right.
I realize in your article you are talking specifically about superstitious group beliefs—beliefs way, way out there like believing that elves not only exist but have rights. But I ask you, how far off is this from the now institutionalized belief that our supreme court recently translated into the law of the land, that corporations are individuals with rights? And how far away from beliefs such as transmigration of souls and transubstantiation is the belief in elves? Or that Buddha’s mother, before his birth, was struck on her right side by a white bull elephant that held a lotus in its trunk, an elephant that then vanished into her— or as another story goes—the elephant entered her womb and shortly after disappeared? This is after the elephant walked around her three times—well, of course it was three times. Three is the magic number of fairy tales and religious triads, right?
We all know stories from sacred texts that defy objective evidence—water into wine, an ass speaking on the road to Damascus, parted water to expose dry land (Buddha performed this one before Moses), a Hindu holy man changing jackals into horses and back again at will and the list goes on and on. Miracles or superstitions as a foundational belief arises out of “faith,” as a belief not based on facts. In fact, such beliefs as miracles and superstition are a demonstration of faith. Actually, it’s why they are there. Faith of this kind produces massive power in individuals especially when socialized and politicized, which makes faith-based belief(s) concrete in ritual and activism. Superstition works in this way because when individuals, strengthened by groups, believe against “the odds,” e.g., the Anabaptists against the Catholics and Protestants; the American Revolutionaries against English and French militaries—such polarities only strengthens each in what they believe is right. [A study demonstrating this clearly showed up recently on the site in which two psychologists demonstrated that the more extreme a person’s views are the more they think they are right.] The most important component in any cultural or polarized situation is belief, not reasonableness, facts. And this is because facts change by necessity; while belief can remain consistent and constant if founded in faith, the will-to-believe. The validity of a belief is often expressed in this constancy down through time, e.g. the Vedas are 3500 years old and Christian time is counted since Christ and so forth. There is comfort in not only being right but being so with such consistency and constancy.
So how does a group of people (note that a singular verb is used for the term “group”) end up believing that elves should be given rights to stop a highway through their sacred territory? By individuals comprising the group believing elves-are-individuals-with-rights. And these individuals find strength in this belief by numbers in the groups and by the outlandishness of the belief as proof of faith in that belief. According to this logic then, the crazier the idea, the greater the faith needed to believe it; therefore, the greater the proof of its validity. Trust of this sort and the will-to-believe—a trust to act in faith before any supporting evidence, one of William James’ terms for this is “confidence”—can be constant in a way reason based on facts cannot. And the stronger the faith of an individual or group is, the stronger the belief. And because of this, psychologist and philosophers of all kinds of stripes have opted for head over heart, reason over emotion-and-feeling, reason over will. And it’s easy to see why. When people fear that their faith or will-to-believe is taken from them, they know that what they regard as constant, permanent, is gone; living in a constantly ambiguous state-of-affairs leaves one too vulnerable. ‘Tis unsafe.
But polarity is not the answer. An alternative to rightness-in-belief lies in the willingness (note the word) to believe conditionally—not to give up belief. We will believe (again, note the word). We have to believe in order to function, actually to literally live at all. We don’t have all the facts for what we believe, never will. But in order to develop more fully as individuals, our beliefs have to be founded with an open heart and mind. And in order for this to happen, individuals have to believe in the self over groups, have to understand how culture can be an obstacle to self-identity, and have to be willing to die because believing this is deeply threatening to those caught in the whole system of belief that states “being right” is all there can be, especially when it comes wrapped in the outrageous intentionality of religious fervor.
And what about imagination and creativity in all of this? The human capacity for ambiguity is at the heart of creativity, true self-identity, justice and all human endeavors with inherent freedom for the individual in them. Ambiguity is not waffling between one held belief and another—it is remaining open to the possibility that states-of-affairs can be other than they are perceived to be. In other words, we can be wrong. And the human ability to be wrong is inherent in so much of what we learn. [Gordon pointed out to me recently Kathyrn Schulz’s TED talk, “On Being Wrong,” which is a beautiful declaration on why we seek solace in being right.]
My view is not that we should evolve to a state of rationalism over beliefs based on faith or will, but become individuals with an ability to suspend belief just as we suspend facts. By “suspended belief or facts,” I mean lift the total-rightness-of-belief, out of its foundational bedrock, i.e. hold what is known either as fact or belief-through-faith in regard, even respect, even act on it until something else replaces it. But when suspended belief of this kind is presented to individuals as a possibility, they usually become more radicalized in their position than before. They can’t give up the constancy of faith over the inconstancy of facts, when in order for all of us to live as fully as possible, we have to give up both so that we can embrace both. What’s interesting is that when suspended belief is presented to a rationalist, meaning they have to take the agnostic position over the atheistic one, there is just as much fluttering of feathers and great resistance. Since rationalism is based on evidence (observable facts) and without it, there can be no belief, they are just as adamant in their position as Faith-and-Will believers are in theirs. Suspended belief doesn’t mean no belief. It means not knowing or even not knowable—which is what agnosticism is.
So what to do with the Friends of Lava and the project detrimental to elf culture?
What would “suspended belief” look like for both sides in this dispute? Why not negotiate and do it while applying Gordon’s suggestion of critical thinking thrown into the mix…mess—the discussion being along the lines of how far traditions in culture should/could be allowed to influence progress of a practical nature. But also, discussion with some open-mindedness has to be there as well, lifting that desire to be right and listening to the other side, working together to meet some middle way in the situation. We have these negotiations going on all the time—the ten commandments monument in the Alabama Judicial Building and another one in Oklahoma on its state capitol grounds as examples. Is this really too terribly different from the Icelandic version of respecting the Little People and their territory? Unfortunately we haven’t found a way yet to discuss such disputes without the rush to polarities and the superiority of our views—so until such time, it is left to the settlements in the courts.
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When it comes to man's relationship with God it is all about the heart condition. The question is, how is your heart?
Luke 8:15 But the seed in the good soil, these are the ones who have heard the word in an honest and good heart, and hold fast, and bear fruit with perseverance.
An honest and good heart is essential in order to be a true follower of Jesus Christ.
Ignorance about God is due to a hard heart; it has nothing to do with a lack of intellectual ability.
An unrepentant heart cannot produce a desirable result.
Luke 21:34 "Be on your guard, so that your heart will not be weighted down with dissipation and drunkenness and worries of life, and that day will not come on you suddenly like a trap;
Heart health is important in order to be ready for the return of Christ.
Acts 1:24 And they prayed and said, "You, Lord, who knows the hearts of all men, show which one of these two you have chosen
You can fool men into believing your heart is functioning properly, however, the Lord knows your heart. Jesus can help with heart surgery, it is up to you.
Dishonoring God results in a foolish and darkened heart. This is not a heart condition anyone should seek.
Peter preached the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus to the three thousand on the Day of Pentecost. That was the heart biopsy. (Acts 2:22-36)
A Christian's heart must remain faithful till the end.
(All Scripture quotes from: NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE)
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Rising of the Womb
We live in concrete structures
In houses and towering apartments
And need to meditate to feel
The earth beneath us
I sat a long time and felt
The earth below the base
Of my body
The house stood on firm ground
I could feel it rise to meet me
At my bed as I lay down
Oh Mother
I have missed you
Why must I wait so long
To see you
And she said
Why must I wait so long
For you to hear me
I’m always with you
In the morning light
And the moon that peels
Away your sadness.
The air in your home
Came from somewhere
The womb of breathing
Is not just for babies
You are the newly born
Awake, awake to this day
You are water, dear,
Running for your life
Just close your eyes
And the dirt will appear
Between your toes
And sprout new plants
In your mind like wishes
Instead of sinking
See yourself being held
By my hands.
Cover image is Danaë, by Gustav Klimt.
Image above is Head of a Woman with Closed Eyes, Looking Right, by Gustav Klimt.
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TASOKARE HOTEL Mod Apk (Unlimited tickets/coins) + Obb
- The Escape & Adventure Novel is a new type of mystery game (escape game) with a long story. You can enjoy reading stories and solving mysteries in Escape & Adventure Novels.
- Scenario volume is more than ten times the other Escape games. Basically, you can play for free (in-app purchases).
- This is a mystery and detective game by uncovering the mystery of the incident as well as enjoying the story.
-There is a gallery mode for viewing graphics you get in full-screen stories.
- Everyone can play the game easily.
* This story is fiction. There is no relationship between real people and the organization.
* Saving data is automatically done when you complete the stages etc.
TASOKARE HOTEL Mod Apk (Unlimited tickets/coins) + Obb
Iklan Atas Artikel
Iklan Tengah Artikel 1
Iklan Tengah Artikel 2
Iklan Bawah Artikel
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Thursday 05/04/18
Whether you stay at home or get as far away from your regular routine as possible, holidays are a great opportunity to forget about your troubles for a week or two. But don’t get too relaxed, you’re only on holiday from your job, not everyday life. Have you ever given much thought to what would happen if disaster struck during your vacation? Of course you haven’t; I doubt many people have.
If you’re holidaying at home when disaster strikes; no problem. You grab your Bug Out Bag (or BOB) and go. If you’re enjoying a camping trip when disaster strikes, then you’re way ahead of everyone else. You’ve already got all the gear, food, and supplies you need, and you’re miles away from any major population centre. But what do you do if disaster strikes while you’re stuck in a strange city or country?
Obviously, you can’t travel with your BOB if you’re not driving to your holiday destination. In fact, the security team at the airport may be less than impressed if you try to bring your BOB onto the plane (especially if you have included a hunting knife or other similar items in your kit).
If the resort/suburb/city your staying is ordered to evacuate due to an impending disaster, you’ll have to do so very quickly. You won't have time to pack your suitcases before you leave; remember how long it took you to pack them in the first place? And you sure as hell aren’t going to be able to lug them very far – especially if you are stuck with hundreds, or thousands, of panicky tourists. So; what is the solution?
A fold-up backpack.
A what?” I hear you ask.
A fold-up backpack is a lightweight nylon sack with thin shoulder straps that can be rolled or folded down to the size of a pencil case. They are inexpensive, don’t take up much room, and can be used as an emergency BOB.
What goes into the bag? Essentials only. A change of underwear, a couple of pairs of socks, your medicines, hygiene supplies, sunscreen, bug repellent, your phone’s charging cable and plug, a roll of toilet paper, and as many bottles of water as you can find. Don’t forget a jumper or jacket. If it is hot, tie the arms around your waist (this will save room in your emergency BOB).
Leave your laptop, expensive camera, and souvenirs in your hotel room. This stuff will only slow you down (and you will probably abandon it anyway). You can go back and claim your gear when the danger is gone.
Don’t forget; every person in your party needs their own fold-up backpack. Due to their size they can’t hold much gear, so each person needs their own bag. The good news is the price; they only cost $5 - $10 each, and they’re available at just about every chain department store.
If you benefited from the information in tonight’s blog, please share it with your friends and family on social media.
Thursday 01/03/18
It’s not that I’m technophobic, but it worries me when people leave home for the day with nothing more than a smartphone and an EFTPOS card. These are only two of your everyday carry items. In addition to these items, you should never leave home without a watch, a small amount of cash, and a pen.
Always wear a watch. “My phone just died; does anybody know the time”? I’ve lost track of how many times I’ve heard this question over the years. Smartphones perform a lot of functions and as a result they quickly chew through their batteries. Unfortunately, many people fail to charge their phone before leaving home for the day. Although smart watches have their place, they suffer the same battery issues. A good quality analogue watch is a smart addition to your wardrobe and should last many years, if not a lifetime (unlike smartphones). Obviously, you can tell the time with your watch (and maybe the date and/or day), but did you know you can also use your analogue watch as a compass?
Always carry cash. A little while ago I enjoyed a quiet Sunday lunch in a usually busy café. This wasn’t due to lack of customers, it was due to the chalkboard sign outside the front door “EFTPOS DOWN. CASH ONLY”. While I ate I watched at least twenty people arrive at the shopfront, read the sign, then walk away. It was disturbing how few people carry cash with them anymore (not even $20). During a natural disaster (bushfire/flood/cyclone – all are common in Australia), EFTPOS infrastructure may fail so petrol stations and other retailers may implement a temporary CASH ONLY policy (especially if they are profiteering). Do you carry a small amount of cash with you when you leave the house? If not, how would you cope if you were out for the day and EFTPOS was suddenly unavailable? You don’t need to carry enough cash with you to do your weekly grocery shopping, but $20 should be enough to catch a taxi ride away from trouble.
Always carry a pen.Hang on, I’ve just got to turn my phone on to take notes”. That’s ok if you aren’t in a hurry; but if it is an emergency, you don’t have time. If you’ve witnessed an incident that requires details to be noted, a pen in your pocket is instantly accessible. “What could be so damned important that it can’t wait for two seconds while I get my phone”? Good question. If you witness something like a hit & run, the perpetrator will be long gone before you can snap your first photo. You need to start writing details immediately, before your brain starts merging or forgetting them. No paper? No problem! The skin on your forearms and legs make great notepads.
And there you have it; three everyday items that will save you lot of grief during your day-to-day activities. If the information in tonight’s blog was helpful, please share it with your friends and family on social media.
Thursday 01/02/18
Beyond the urban environment, there is a basic set of rules that everyone familiar with the outdoors will follow religiously; that is The Rule Of Threes. And you should follow them too.
Don’t panic! It isn’t anything as foreboding as memorising an ancient incantation to stop an undead army rising from their graves. ‘The Rule Of Threes’ is an easy way to remember the fundamentals for survival away from home.
What are these rules?’, I hear you ask.
3 Minutes.
1. Cold: If you fall into icy water, you have approximately three minutes to escape the water and warm-up before hypothermia sets in.
2. Oxygen: If you are unable to breathe (ie: due to drowning or asphyxiation), you only have a three-minute window to receive help (ie: mouth-to-mouth resuscitation) before permanent brain damage or death occurs.
3. Blood loss: If you damage/sever a major blood vessel, you will bleed to death in three minutes if the bleeding is not stopped.
3 Hours.
In extreme cold, you can only survive for three hours without shelter. Hypothermia and frostbite will soon make their presence felt if you do not have shelter. Do not disregard this rule if you live in a more temperate climate. Sunburn and heatstroke can do terrible things to your body in a survival situation. Depending on your environment, shelter can be anything from a solid structure (like a building) that will protect you from blizzards, right down to a simple lean-to made from palm fronds that will provide shade from the harsh midday sun.
3 Days.
You can survive for three days without water before your body starts to shut down. Renal failure isn’t pretty, and it can’t be fixed with anything in your First Aid kit.
3 Weeks.
You can survive for three without food before your body shuts down. If you don’t eat, your body will cannibalise itself to get the kilojoules it needs; and not just your fat reserves, it will break down your muscles too. (Coincidentally, this is why starving yourself to lose weight doesn’t work). The longer you go without food the weaker your muscles become, and the less reliable cognitive abilities become (leading to poor or dangerous decisions). This rule has more leeway than the other rules. In this situation, people carrying a few extra pounds will survive for a little longer than someone with little-to-no body fat.
There you have it. Four simple and easy to remember rules to help you survive in the outdoors. As always, if you found the information in this blog useful, please share it with your friends and family on social media.
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Thursday, November 29, 2007
Something like Lisp
Ever since compilers class in college, I've toyed with the idea of creating a new programming language. Every year or so a spend a few days thinking about one and get off to a short start. The problem is I often try to bite off more than I can chew and start dealing with the most difficult parts first. So I recently decided to get a minimal language up and running. Something with simple syntax, no concern for efficiency, and an easy to build base.
Lisp has some of the simplest syntax of any of the languages I've worked with (perhaps with the exception of BF). I was looking for something simple which I could quickly implement, so I used it as a model and created an interpreter in Python. The whole project took just a couple of hours, but I was able to write an interpreter that would run the following program:
set[x 5]
set[x add[1 2 3 4 5]]
set[y add[1 2]]
As you might have guessed, this program displays the following in the terminal:
I implemented a simple parser using Python's regular expression module re (The group method can come in quite handy), and I defined each of the above functions in a dictionary which maps function calls in my custom language to functions in a Python script which I import. You might have noticed that each of the methods is designed to take a variable number of arguments (thought only they may not all be used), and all function calls are made recursively, with nested functions being evaluated first. The syntax looks slightly like s-expressions but it's a bit more accessible for someone who has worked with C-like languages (except there's no need to reach for the shift key for those tricky parenthesis). I haven't added a mechanism for lambda expressions yet, but defining new functions might look something like this:
function[my_fun group[x y] group[multiply[x add[x y]]]]
The above would define a function named my_fun which takes two arguments, and multiplies the first by the sum of the two arguments.
I just made up this micro language, and haven't given this a great deal of thought. The idea was to create something quick and dirty to create a working interpreter, rather than the usual of intense planning without a working prototype. This language will probably never see any further development. It was a mental exercise, but I found it quite enjoyable. If you'd like to see the source code for the interpreter, please let me know (I get the feeling Matt might be somewhat interested).
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MBA Essays
Foster School of Business, Washington—Essay Analysis for 2016-17
So the school that we’re going to be looking at in this video is University of Washington’s Foster School of Business.
One thing about Foster obviously is the location. Being in Seattle, you have Amazon, you have Microsoft, you have Starbucks, but more importantly Amazon and Microsoft are the two giants of IT.
Being right there in Seattle helps—it’s not just recruitment for these two companies but also a lot of ancillary companies, a lot of consulting companies that work for these two larger organizations.
So that’s what we’re going to be looking at. A lot of Indians end up applying to Foster as well, especially for those who are from a tech background.
Optional Essay
Please include this essay if you have additional information that you believe would be helpful to the admissions committee in considering your application. (500 words maximum)
Three essays, third one optional, you know the rules for the optional essay—write only when you think there is something important. If you think it’s not important, perhaps it’s not.
Usually I would encourage writing only gaps in academics, gaps in work experience or something that is very pressing for you mention there. Apart from this let’s take the first essay.
Essay 1
Post-MBA Plans– Tell us your ideas about what lies ahead for you in your career. What are the gaps or deficiencies currently preventing you from pursuing these potential career paths? How do you plan to use your time in the Foster MBA program to fill these gaps and advance your career? (750 words maximum)
Though 750 words are plenty of words, we need to structure it very well.
You cannot tell the first part until and unless you walk them through your career progression till date.
Remember this is not a repetition of your CV; this is not a repeat of what you’ve written in your resume. This is stuff that tells others how you have grown. That upward trajectory should come through.
You’ve grown, no doubt, but at some point you’ve hit a glass ceiling. You’ve arrived at this point in your career where you say, “I’ve done so much but now I’ve realized that I have to go to the next point”.
What is that next point?
You have to be very clear as to what lies ahead of you in your career.
So complete the first paragraph telling what lies ahead.
In the second paragraph you start off with what are the gaps or deficiencies you’ve identified.
What are the things that you need to equip yourself with?
It could be like a Swiss army knife. You might need multiple tools to equip yourself for that career path.
So you need to ask yourself, what it is that you need to achieve that career goal.
In the third paragraph, be very specific.
Why Foster?
Don’t keep it generic. Don’t just say great faculty and excellent infrastructure. It has to be very specific to Foster. So that forms the last 250 words.
So 250-250-250, in 750 words, your entire structure is done.
Get your MBA essays reviewed
Essay 2
Inspiring Experience Essay – Please tell us about an experience that inspired or confirmed your decision to pursue the MBA. (500 words maximum)
Here is the deal. You have to talk about something that made you think about why you should pursue an MBA.
Now if we go back to the first essay, it has shown your career progression and what you want to do next. But, you haven’t said why you want to do it.
This is the essay where you want to talk about why you’ve felt that career path is important for you.
Let me give you an example.
There was someone we knew, who got into Foster last year. He wrote about his experience of being a developer and about most problems that he would face that were technical in nature.
But after a few years he realized that more and more of technology wasn’t getting him anywhere. But he had this opportunity to work with a product manager. And he said, that really opened his eyes.
He said, “I saw that the product manager sees the same world, but I tend to have a limited perspective of looking at things only from a technical standpoint while he had a wider approach to looking at things. Working with him on that project for 6 months made me realize that I wanted to be a product manager.”
Obviously the other product manager had an MBA so that also motivated him to do an MBA. He realized that though he could take up other courses, this was the shortest and cleanest path to get there.
So try to make sure that you also touch upon a personal angle—as a person what attracts you towards the career path.
The first two essays, if crafted well, should get you an interview call and what you say afterward can help you get into the B-school.
In case you think there’s a conversation we can have and if you need any help, do let us know. We’ll be glad to be a part of your MBA application journey.
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Reservoir of Ebola Discovered
Scientists track down the source of Ebola virus infections...
04 December 2005
Writing in this week's edition of Nature, Eric Leroy and his colleagues have solved a thirty year puzzle about the lethal Ebola virus - where it comes from, and where it goes when it's not causing outbreaks amongst humans and primates.
To track down Ebola's 'natural' host, the researchers set traps to catch all of the small animals that they could close to sites of Ebola outbreaks in Gabon.
In all they collected over 1000 specimens which they then analysed for signs of the virus.
The tests showed that three species of fruit bats were positive.
The researchers suspect that the virus could be finding its way into humans when hungry locals capture and eat infected bats, and are urging people to avoid this practice - so we'd better keep an eye on Ozzy Osbourne if he pays a visit to the Congo at some time in the future.
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How to write an RFP executive summary that boosts win rates
Could a well-written RFP executive summary improve your win rate for bids? It’s very possible. A summary of your company’s capabilities that is both powerful and concise can be the difference between RFPs that get shortlisted and those that lie unread gathering dust.
Your full proposal will detail your organization’s capabilities, the team who will execute the project, case studies, awards your organization has received, and how you will meet each requirement. This means your proposal could easily end up as a lengthy document. For this reason, it’s important to know how to write an RFP executive summary that will capture attention.
What is an RFP executive summary?
An RFP executive summary sums up the whole proposal document, but in reality it is more than simply a shorter version of it. It’s your first real chance to make an impact, and an opportunity to distinguish yourself from the competition. For that reason, the executive summary should grab and hold the reader’s attention, highlighting your most important points, and how you’re uniquely positioned as a service to meet the needs of their RFP.
It’s where procurement managers and other decision-makers with dozens of proposals to read decide whether or not to continue reading yours. If you want to stay in the running for any given bid, a powerful yet concise RFP executive summary can give you the competitive edge.
What is the difference between the RFP Cover Letter and executive summary?
When it comes to an RFP, a cover letter is an introduction, it explains what the attached document is about. An executive summary on the other hand is a condensed version of the RFP highlighting the key points within it.
While there may be a degree of overlap in the content found in each document, a cover letter is not a concise summary of your proposal document. On the other hand, a strong RFP executive summary should give a clear picture to readers who choose not to read further.
6 tips for writing an RFP executive summary
Are you ready to start writing? Your executive summary should be readable as a standalone document with the power to persuade decision-makers to read your RFP in depth. Here are some tips to help you win more proposals from the moment your clients’ pick up your proposal.
• Write it last: Although the executive summary sits at the beginning of the document, you should write it last. By then, you will have an in-depth understanding of the organization you’re addressing, their problem, and how you can provide a solution.
• Be concise: In most cases, a one-page RFP executive summary is more than enough. Keep it high-level, you can go into detail in the rest of the RFP, this isn’t the place for the nitty-gritty.
• It’s not all about you: Many proposal teams use templates to create their RFPs and that’s a useful time-saver for the parts of the proposal that are about your organization. But you shouldn’t just be talking about yourself, make sure your executive summary is balanced between highlighting your own offerings and demonstrating that you understand the organization you’re bidding to work with and their goals.
• Prove it: It’s easy to make lofty claims. Through the Covid-19 pandemic, when the RFP process was often rushed because it was an emergency, many companies won huge contracts by making promises they couldn’t follow through on. If you want to win a contract, offer proof you can follow through: numbers, case studies, and testimonials in your RFP and mention them briefly in your executive summary.
• Avoid hyperbole: Don’t use words like ‘ground-breaking’ or ‘state-of-the-art’ unless you can back them up. Even then, it’s better to show how your technology or service is groundbreaking than to simply state it.
• Style and tone: Your tone should be positive and confident and your brand voice needs to be consistent throughout your executive summary. This can be a challenge when different departments are contributing across multiple versions of a document. You need to ensure that you’re using the same grammar, tenses, and acronyms throughout the document.
How to format an RFP executive summary
The way you structure your executive summary is important – but there are no rules written in stone. That said, there are some guidelines that are relevant in almost all circumstances:
• A compelling opening: Capture the procurement team’s attention with an opening statement that shows you understand the sector and the problem the organization is facing. Then explain what your company does in an engaging way.
• Describe the problem: Include a short paragraph describing the pain points highlighted in the RFP. Show that you have a deep understanding of the barriers that the client is facing and how your solution reduces friction and supports their buyer’s goals.
• Offer a solution: You have shown you understand the problem, so now offer the solution. Give a short overview of your understanding of the requirements, your capabilities in this space, the team you will deploy, and an overview of how you will successfully deliver their project.
• Close: End with a paragraph on the project’s deliverables and why your company is the right organization to meet them. Reiterate any unique benefits or similar projects your company has successfully worked on in the past.
Example of an RFP Executive Summary
Here’s a fictional example we wrote for an IT contractor responding to an RFP from a government health department in the US:
As the Department for Health in Texas, you are responsible for promoting health and wellbeing for millions of Americans. As part of that role, you hold sensitive health data, financial details, and contact information for those you serve. A data breach has the potential to be catastrophic; costing millions, damaging lives and undermining trust in your services.
At ABC IT services, we have an innate understanding of these problems, since we have carried out IT services for state health providers in New Jersey, Nevada and Delaware. We onboarded our technology on time and within budget in each case, and we are confident we can do the same for Texas. You will find the full details of these projects on pages 8-12.
When your data is stored in an on-site server, it is vulnerable to hacking. By moving your data to a secure cloud, we ensure that it is safe. Our highly qualified team of security professionals is available 24/7 in case of any threat, and we provide on-site training to ensure your staff has a strong level of IT security awareness. The team we have selected to execute this project is detailed on pages 20-26.
Our extensive experience working with other states means that we are ready to hit the ground running. There is no learning curve. We’re ready to get to work for the benefit of your organization and Texans today.
Stand out from the crowd
The power of a concise RFP executive summary can’t be underestimated. It can have a direct impact on your bottom line by improving the proportion of your bids that you win.
At its heart, your executive summary is about showing you understand the problem and you’re capable of providing the solution. Beyond that, it must make your organization stand out from the crowd, tempt procurement managers to read on, and show that you have the capability to execute the project successfully.
Find out how VisibleThread can improve the clarity and compliance of your RFPs.
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Get to Know What Procrastination Is and How To Overcome It
Get to Know What Procrastination Is and How To Overcome It
Although the aim is to protect the public from the contagion of COVID-19, the measures to implement social restrictions that are currently ongoing have also had a significant impact on individual performance, particularly students and workers. One of the perceived impacts is the increasing attitude of procrastination.
It is undeniable, many of us are starting to experience a decrease in motivation. Whatever the reason. Worse, this situation makes us procrastinate. Even though there are many things that need to be done, they are busy lying down, or playing on cell phones, or doing other unimportant work. So, in this article, we will try to deal with procrastination.
We’ll start by finding out first. Why do people like to procrastinate? Why is procrastination so delicious? Until the day passes, and the nights we regret not being productive. From there, we’ll look for influencing factors, and various simple productivity tools that you can use to address that going forward.
The difference between procrastinators and slackers
People who are procrastinating are often labeled as lazy. However, these two things are different. This means that the solutions to the two problems are also different. Procrastination is an active process in which you choose to do something other than the task you are supposed to do. On the other hand, laziness shows apathy and reluctance to act. Procrastination usually involves neglecting tasks that you find unpleasant or difficult but maybe more important.
Why People Like to Procrastinate
A person’s motivation is influenced by several variables. Starting from Expectations, Values, Impulsivity, and Time.
Hope that shows how confident we can get a job done. If you feel that your work can be completed easily, you are good at it and confident, of course, your level of hope to be able to complete the work will be high. As a result, the motivation to do it also increases.
For example, you are a person who is good at doing work in the field. Then, you will have higher motivation, than the job desk. Because, yes, you feel the task is easy. You can do it well, fast, and there is no burden. From here, your chances of procrastinating work are small.
On the other hand, when you get an assignment related to the job desk, you will find it difficult first. So, the value of your Hope to be able to finish it will be low, and it will make you lazy first. As a result, your chances of resigning from work will be high.
Another variable that affects is the value. This value is a “reward” that you will get when you successfully complete the job. Rewards don’t just mean gifts in the form of physical goods, yes. But, are you happy when you do it, what experience do you get when you do it. What kind of satisfaction do you get after completing the job?
For example, you are the type of person who likes to do tasks alone. When one day comes and it’s noisy, your chances of procrastination will be high. Because, you don’t like your experience when doing assignments.
Impulsivity is how easily you get distracted. Of course, the easier it is to get distracted, the higher your chances of procrastinating. Open your laptop, want to open a work file, suddenly you get a notification from Instagram. Then, you are provoked to open social media and end up playing with your cellphones for a few hours.
The last factor is Time. This is the amount of time from now until you get rewards for completing work. The longer the time frame, the more likely you are to procrastinate. Well, this is indeed human nature, anyway, how are we more interested in rewards that are obtained instantly rather than having to wait a long time first.
How to Overcome the Habit of Procrastination
Since we already have a formula for increasing motivation, of course, the answer is easy. To overcome the habit of procrastinating, we only need to play the variables in the formula, according to their respective conditions.
For example, you are skilled in doubt if you can complete the job easily and quickly. That is, the variables you can tinker with are “Value” and “Impulsivity”.
Yes, okay. We just need to increase Value and Reduce Impulsivity. The method? Lots, and of course everyone is different.
You can commit to giving rewards when your work is done. You can modify your experience at work (for example some like to work in a rather crowded place, so try working in a cafe. Some like to listen to songs to stimulate their passion. Some like to wear neat clothes to get a real work atmosphere. Some want to To improve the experience of doing it by working with friends, then you can create study groups, for example, doing assignments while video calling together).
It’s really okay. Because again, everyone is different.
Then, how to reduce Impulsivity? That’s a lot too. It depends on your character and the type of work you are doing. If you’re a squeamish person when you’re holding your cell phone, try putting your cell phone in another room while doing activities. If your activity doesn’t actually need internet, try turning off the internet connection to your laptop for a while.
In essence, you just see which variables from the formula you can control to reduce the desire to procrastinate.
Simple, but it does take practice to do this.
Various Productivity Methods To Not Procrastinate
If you already know conceptually how to overcome procrastination, now we can help you from a technical point of view. What practical things can be tried to prevent that from happening?
To-Do List
The simplest thing you can try is to make a To-Do List every time you go to sleep. Why do you want to sleep?
So that when you wake up, you don’t bother thinking about what to do.
The feeling when we wake up, then “What am I doing today, how good is it?” sucks and makes it unproductive. Wake up sitting. Take the phone. Thinking. Stunned. I know I’ve spent 2 hours in bed. Mesmerized, but not awake.
Compare it to you who wake up and look at the To-Do List notes. “Oh yeah, today I want to do such and such and this.” Of course, this To-Do List function is not a very sacred thing for us to do. Can we modify it again in the morning, or not do everything there. But, your goal is to make it so you don’t lose your way.
At least in the morning, you know that there is something you want to do. And that, subconsciously, will boost our energy.
The work environment always has various kinds of challenges such as a heavy workload.
By developing a resilient career, you have anticipated various challenges that may occur. develop resilience can help you deal with job risks, strengthen your mind, and prepare you for potential opportunities in the future.
Currently, resilience does not only act as an additional skill but has become the main competency that must be possessed by employees. As technological, social, and business changes occur, professional skills must also change. More and more companies are looking for employees who are able to learn new skills and can easily adapt to changes. Not just meeting qualifications in the world of work, developing personal and professional resilience will help you provide a sense of security when you have to face unexpected conditions or situations.
4 Ways to build career resilience
1. Have a willingness to learn
One of the keys to having resilience is to stay informed about current issues and learn about new emerging technologies. By taking online courses, registering for professional development workshops, and attending conferences, you can develop your skills according to industry developments. It will also increase your confidence and you will appear more competitive in front of the company.
2. Strengthen professional network
Having a strong professional network can help you cope with unexpected changes in your career. Start looking for opportunities to connect with other people who share the same interests as your industry. You can take advantage of your social media, participate in online discussions, and attend industry conferences to help build and strengthen the circle around you. Building relationships with professionals in your field can help develop a career, even in the midst of the uncertainty of the current pandemic.
3. Actively manage career
You can manage and develop your career by first reflecting on your strengths, future opportunities, past experiences, and current role. Next, define and write down professional goals in the short and long term that you want to achieve. Review these goals from time to time, you can consistently analyze and revise them as needed.
4. Optimistic to see the future
The toughest professionals can bounce back from the past and be optimistic about the future. Try to see every change that occurs as an opportunity for growth and self-improvement. Stay optimistic, live the development, and be prepared to accept other opportunities that are more potential.
By applying the methods above and knowing the importance of this resilience, you will be able to go through even difficult situations in your life, including in dealing with situations of uncertainty in the midst of a pandemic like this.
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(ISC)² Security Congress 2021 - Career Center & Recordings
1778594 - Cyber Incident Response and Litigation: Today's Incident Response Determines Tomorrow's Legal Outcomes
Oct 19, 2021 3:00pm ‐ Oct 19, 2021 4:00pm
Credits: None available.
The bad guys are once again held at bay, everything is locked down, the incident is wrapped and your work here is done. Or is it? More and more of today's cyber incidents are leading into civil litigation where your best defense strategy starts with the first steps of incident response. Litigation preparedness needs to be a key aspect of your incident response plan; and if it's not, you are likely leaving your organization open to significant risk and future expense. Join us while we cover the basics of litigation, the rules you need to prepare to follow and why actions you take during incident response can be deciding factors on how that future litigation unfolds.
Learning Objectives:
• Describe the actions needed during incident response to prepare an organization for potential future litigation.
• Describe how to avoid the pitfalls and simple mistakes that can cause significant adverse assumptions against an organization during litigation.
• Update incident response plans to include litigation preparedness aspects to help protect an organization against the risk of incident-related litigation.
Tags: Intermediate
• 1.00 - CPE
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Private Hire Drivers Association - Registration
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Seizing the Day with Sports
Outside hitter Is the Most fun Position.
Angelina Kangail , Writer
Imagine this, you only need one more point to win the game and the ball is set to you. You’re an outside hitter and this is your chance. You make your approach, swinging your arms up to give you momentum while bringing your right (or left) arm back. And BAM! You get on top of the ball with your hand and smack it down with a satisfying top spin. The ball whizzes down and makes contact with the other team’s side of the court. You just scored the winning point for your team. You guys won!
Being an outside hitter is the most fun position on a volleyball team. Yeah you can get some kicks at being the setter or a middle, but who doesn’t love getting to hit (spike) a ball? That’s why being an outside hitter is the best. The spiking, the adrenaline, and playing back row is exhilarating. Not to mention the occasional targeting when spiking. To get a good spike you can practice by throwing a ball up and hitting it like a high five and following through with it, (your arm should end by your side or a little past it). You can keep doing that against a garage door, a wall, and fence.
Also practice your vertical. A vertical is how high you can jump. By doing calf raises, working on your leg muscles, and jumping, you can achieve a good vertical. A good vertical is essential when spiking because you have to get on top of the ball. This is why I am most definitely not a hitter, but I am a setter and I’m not too bad if I say so myself. You have to communicate with your teammates when playing by calling “mine”, “got it”, and “me”. When you call the ball you get the ball. This is important when being a hitter because you can call out to your setter, “set it to me” or something like that and they can set it to you if possible.
Anyways, outside hitter is the most fun position on a volleyball team hands down.
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Menu Home
Thievery considered harmful
A bit of a tempest in finance news involving accusations of sensitive code stolen from a major trading desk. For emerging details see:
For me this triggers some strong (and sad) personal memories.
No matter what inappropriate “Robin Hood” intellectual property fantasies you have this (if true) is just wrong. I have never been a huge fan of the ACM Code of Ethics (which does cover this situation, but fails to seriously address much beyond having responsibilities to your employer) but this sort of incident reminds me why computer science needs some approximation of a shared set of ethics that we can try to refer to.
A particularly sad part of the story that attracted my attention was the reliance on “bash history” to try and establish what happened. Attempting to “prove” something using a “bash history” is something I have painful experience with. The “bash history” system is incredibly inadequate even for what it was designed for (caching recent commands). Simply having two shells open can cause non-deterministic overwriting, deletion, clobbering and time disorderings in the history file. Furthermore bash history has no dates, times, directories or any other contextual hints written into it. Finally bash history has no hashes, signatures, nonces, sequence numbers or any other device that helps establish authenticity.
Now for my story. We (by chance) caught somebody walking off with our group’s entire source tree. In the end all we had to go on was the bash history. To hostile eyes bash history is nowhere near what you would call “forensic grade evidence.” Unfortunately for us the theft was intramural, the thief was merely taking the code to another group in the same company to later mine and represent as their own work. At this point even language worked against us- every time we accidentally said something like “our code” (as in the code we produced, not the code we own) we were perceived as being anti-company. Evil prevailed (the thief was promoted) and I looked stupid for working so hard to try to interpret such low-quality evidence. But we live in an objective world- just because you can’t prove something doesn’t mean there isn’t some buried ugly truth.
So what was stolen? Not the code, that moved from one pocket of the corporation that owned it to another pocket of the same corporation. What was stolen was reputation. The thief presumably appeared to out-produce both his old colleagues and his new ones (who don’t have a few absconded person-years of development to draw from). So an apology to anyone who was asked why they could not code as fast as our escaped “genius,” it was certainly not our intent to so equip him. And a larger apology to the rest of the team, sorry we could not prove the misappropriation of your work.
Of course Shakespeare said it much better (from Othello):
Good name in man and woman, dear my lord,
Is the immediate jewel of their souls:
But he that filches from me my good name
Robs me of that which not enriches him
And makes me poor indeed.
Categories: Finance Opinion Rants
Tagged as:
1 reply
1. Great one. Thanks. I now have a better thievery story to tell you. I will wait until we meet.
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Tag Archives: Camille Biros
Worth Movie Review
What is a human life worth? Is it the emotions we create in others? Is it the experiences that define our lives? Or is it in a check that is given to our loved ones when we are gone?
The new Netflix movie, Worth, follows the story of real life lawyer Kenneth Feinberg (Michael Keaton) as he tries to help the victims of 9/11. He has been assigned to help the survivors and the families of the nearly 3000 people who died that day. His job is to lead the 9/11 Victims Compensation Fund, but it will not be easy. With the help of associate Camille Biros (Amy Ryan), he and his team must determine what each person was worth.
Challenging Kenneth are two surviving spouses. Charles Wolf (Stanley Tucci) lost his wife when the Twin Towers fell. A community organizer, he is continually nipping at the team’s feet, pushing them to think with their heart and not with their calculators. Karen Donato (Laura Benanti) is torn between her needs and what she is hearing from her brother-in-law.
Kenneth knows that the task he has ahead of him will be grueling, in every sense of the word. Money can never replace the ones we love. Whatever happens, he knows that he must succeed, even with the difficulties that lay before him.
This movie is riveting and powerful. Based on a true story, it is a reminder that the souls who died that day were not just names on a spreadsheet. They were human beings whose loss represent a black hole that can never be filled. It also a reminder that there is still hope in this world. Kenneth starts the film as the typical cynical bureaucrat who is just doing his job. By the end of the film, he understands the grief and heartache of those who he is trying to help.
Do I recommend it? Yes.
Worth is available for streaming on Netflix.
1 Comment
Filed under History, Movie Review, Movies, Netflix, New York City
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What is Transcription and Its Types?
Transcription is the process of converting audio or video into text format. The conversion can be done on any written format like over a word document and many transcription services companies offer word-perfect transcription in which every single word spoken is written down including expressions or exclamation reactions or other similar words.
As per the experts, the process of transcription is far more than turning speech into text or written language. And now it has reached the next level by using automatic speech recognition technology, human transcriptionists, or with the combination of both resources.
Read More: How to Transcribe an Audio Recording to Text for Free?
Types of Transcriptions
The types of transcription are mainly categorized into three types - verbatim, edited and intelligent transcription. All these transcriptions can be used for audio or video files only the process could be different, depending upon the requirements and resource availability.
The First Kind Verbatim Transcription – is considered the most complicated and time-consuming process. This process is also expensive because it involves making sure each word spoken word, every emotion, laughs, shouting, background noise, even muttered or murmuring or jumbled sentences or words is transcribed carefully and time-codded in the written format making it like a replica of audio or video file as recorded. Such transcription is mainly used for legal records or movies, films, and video commercials, etc.
Read More: Why You Need to Use Audio Transcription Service in Your Business?
The Second Type of TranscriptionEdited Transcriptions are often used when the transcriber can omit the parts from the video or audio file, without disturbing the meaning of the recording does not change at all. Though, this type of transcription is time-consuming as the transcriber must know what is important to keep into adios or video files and what is not important. Edited transcriptions require the transcriber to understand the sense or purpose of the video or audio file and just clean up the odds of retaining the reliability of the audio or video file. Such kinds of transcriptions are generally used for seminars, conferences, public speeches, and editorial classes.
The Third Type of Transcription – Intelligent Transcription process does not involve any kind of emotions, half-sentences, mumbled or garbled speech in the written text format. The actual result of this transcription is that it’s straightforward and the final words would be full of inelegance to make it worth it. To perform this audio or video to text transcription a well-qualified and trained transcriber required having the experience to do such jobs carefully, as they need to have a complete understanding of what the speaker is trying to convey to the audience. This type of transcription process involves a lot more editing and less transcription effort.
Read More: What is Transcription of Documents and how it is done?
However, all these three types of transcriptions have their pros and cons, hence it is very important before choosing the audio or video transcription services always evaluate the actual needs of the client to choose the right one or most suitable format of transcription as per the client’s usability to make it worth from every perspective.
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Mitad del Mundo, Sights, Tourist Attractions
Mitad del Mundo means "The Equator". Even though the equator runs through many cities around the world, Quito has become famous for it. Mitad de Mundo consists of one dominant monument, smaller monuments that lead up to it, a small village that has been constructed around the equator site and a quaint museum. It is a truly fascinating and exciting attraction in Ecuador and is located just approximately 20 kilometers outside of Quito. The Equator was discovered and mapped out by a French geodesic expedition team that was led by an explorer named Charles-Marie de La Comdamine in the year 1736. Even though those early geographers were about 250 meters off the mark, it was an extraordinary feat at the time.
Due to the misguided efforts of the French, the thirty-meter monument that is the focal point of the Mitad del Mundo Square, complete with a painted line
to indicate the equator, is basically a false equator indicator. But these are mere details and many visitors cannot resist the photo opportunity, to prove to family and friends that they are indeed capable of being in two places at once. Namely the southern and northern hemisphere!
The Equatorial village that has been constructed around the monument has been built to closely resemble an authentic village and includes homes, a church, stores and even a cockfighting ring. Here visitors will be able to purchase keepsakes, explore the little shops and enjoy refreshments. The smaller monuments situated nearby stand as a memorial to the men who lost their lives in the wars.
The Museo Inti Nan is where the great adventure lies. It is built on the true equator and has a signpost that will indicate when you are standing in the center of the earth. This is an interactive museum and it is the experiments and events that take place at the museum that make The Equator such a popular attraction in Ecuador. You will be witness to the Corollas effect; when water is run over a globe, the water will run straight over the equator and will rotate over the globe clockwise to the south of the equator and anti-clockwise to the north of the equator. You will also learn how easy it is to balance an egg on a nail and experience the difficulty of walking straight when walking on the equator line.
And if you have always wondered how to make a shrunken head, you will be able to see step-for-step instructions on how to make your own shrunken head. Not for the weak at heart. Before leaving you will receive a certificate stating that you have stepped across the equator at Mitad del Mundo – a memento for you to remember the adventure and experience of this site and country by for years to come.
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Job Directory High-Performance Computing Postdoctoral Researcher
High-Performance Computing Postdoctoral Researcher
Livermore, CA
Companies like
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Sign up to start matching for free.
Job Description
Join us and make YOUR mark on the World!
We have an opening for a Postdoctoral Researcher to perform research in the area of scalable optimization algorithms and high-performance computing (HPC) solvers for the optimal design and control complex engineering systems. You will develop optimization algorithms, provide the supporting mathematical analysis of such algorithms, support ongoing efforts in solver development, and deploy the resulting HPC tools for problems related to power grid and additive manufacturing. This position is within the Computation Directorate, Center for Applied Scientific Computing (CASC) Division.
Essential Duties
* Research new strategies and explore existing techniques to develop scalable optimization algorithms that are efficient on existing and next-generation DOE leadership supercomputers.
* Perform mathematical analysis (iteration complexity, convergence, rates of convergence) of the algorithms and ensure that these algorithms perform efficiently on massively parallel HPC environments.
* Provide parallel programming implementations in C++ and corresponding code optimization and profiling on select HPC machines.
* Develop a portfolio of optimization models in power grid and additive manufacturing and assist with the integration of the optimization solvers into simulation and application codes.
* Participate in the establishment of future research directions and contribute to group grant proposals, including proposal presentations and preparation of proposals.
* Document complex research and development progress via technical reports, journal publications, and conference presentations and collaborate with a broad spectrum of scientists internally and externally to accomplish research goals.
* Perform other duties as assigned.
* PhD in applied mathematics, computational science, or a related field.
* Demonstrated knowledge of numerical optimization, numerical linear algebra, and numerical analysis, and, in particular, of higher-order algorithms for continuous optimization.
* Experience in scientific computing and parallel programming with MPI.
* Demonstrated knowledge of optimization theory in general.
* Experience programming in C/C++ in a Unix/Linux environment.
* Demonstrated ability to conduct high quality research and to develop implementations to evaluate the results.
* Demonstrated effective verbal and written communication skills necessary to interact in a clear and concise manner, author technical and scientific reports and papers, and deliver scientific presentations.
* Demonstrated initiative and interpersonal communication skills necessary to work effectively in a dynamic team environment.
Desired Qualifications
* Experience with PDE-constrained optimization.
* Expert knowledge of the algebraic modeling languages JuMP or Pyomo.
* Experience with power grid modeling and/or topology optimization.
Security Clearance: None required.
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Whoop’s new health tracker is improved many thanks to a battery breakthrough
Health enterprise Whoop has a new tracker that squishes 5 LEDs, 4 photodiodes, a pulse…
Health enterprise Whoop has a new tracker that squishes 5 LEDs, 4 photodiodes, a pulse oximeter, pores and skin temperature sensor, and more into a deal that is 33 per cent smaller sized than its predecessor — all although even now supplying 5 times of battery existence. But a particular adjust to the tracker’s battery chemistry is just one of the most important reasons Whoop was equipped to do all this in the initially place.
The change was pioneered by a Silicon Valley firm named Sila Nanotechnologies, which was co-started in 2011 by Gene Berdichevsky, one of Tesla’s earliest employees. And it is a person that, if it scales up, could aid crack some of the biggest limitations now going through lithium-ion technological know-how.
On paper, it’s a easy adjust: the battery’s anode is now made of silicon in its place of graphite, which makes it possible for for bigger electrical power density (up to 20 p.c, Sila statements). Greater vitality density means unit makers can use a more compact battery to carry out the exact same tasks — or no cost up additional space to do factors they couldn’t ahead of. And it doesn’t involve any components modifications to the mobile generation process. In reality, that is one of Sila’s major advertising factors to battery makers: its silicon anode is extra or considerably less plug-and-participate in.
In follow, while, this change was only possible following a long time of trial and mistake and millions of pounds invested. Sila toiled with a amount of different so-known as “precursors,” or raw resources, in order to uncover the correct mix to be equipped to produce its breakthrough silicon powder. And it did this with a mandate from Berdichevsky that individuals precursors experienced to be greatly offered — even if that produced it more durable to arrive at the theoretical performance jumps silicon anodes can deliver.
“Those constraints, they sharpen the innovation,” Berdichevsky tells The Verge. “[But] they make it more challenging. So you have much less levels of freedom.”
As a consequence, Berdichevsky claims it took Sila about two times as prolonged as he originally hoped to get into a purchaser item. But thinking about the supply chain shortages at present strangling just about every field possible, it was a prescient determination to construct on these a basis. He also suggests it is helped Sila entice a deep roster of sensible minds from various very competitive fields.
“Creative people today adore these seriously, genuinely difficult challenges. And so I imagine that is truly what distinguishes us from from so quite a few other [startups in the space],” he suggests. “You have significantly less levels of competition when you solve the most difficult complications.
Sila also experienced to struggle the natural inclination of silicon to broaden and break down when made use of in a battery, because the motive it can keep extra lithium ions is that they basically briefly bond with the silicon — which means the ions form of have to be ripped out of the anode.
All of this is why Berdichevsky is so visibly content to lastly get his company’s battery science into the to start with shopper unit when we discuss by means of videoconference. It is both of those a evidence of the thought and of the myriad positive aspects that arrive with a much more productive battery.
Berdichevsky states he originally envisioned the very first spot Sila’s tech would appear would be in smartphones, because the batteries they use occupy so substantially space that could normally be allocated for flagship features like superior digicam systems. What he did not hope when founding Sila, however, was the growth in wearable tech, which opened up a large amount of new doors. Whoop initially begun talking to Sila around two yrs in the past, Berdichevsky says, and the company’s tech is coming to a number of other client equipment soon (even though he declined to say what those would be).
“Having innovative technologies wherever dimension seriously matters is a seriously terrific area for a engineering like ours,” Berdichevsky says.
The most significant potential for Sila’s silicon anode could be with a great deal larger sized batteries, like the ones that ability electrical automobiles. It could assist automakers generate smaller sized, extra very affordable EVs without having sacrificing vary, or get even much more miles out of the major battery packs uncovered in bigger automobiles. And as long as the organization has in simple fact located a way to make absolutely sure the silicon powder it’s building can stand up to staying constantly charged and discharged, it is feasible that Sila-driven EVs could fill up quicker than present day types.
At the consumer unit amount, Berdichevsky states that Sila doesn’t necessarily give companies like Whoop a shot at price tag price savings, since right now the output of its silicon powder is so constrained. Sila would have to make far much more of its product if it ended up to deliver ample to support power fleets of EVs, but the benefit of scaling up to that level is that the relative charge of manufacturing would go down.
None of that will come about right up until at minimum mid-10 years, even though. Berdichevsky says his company is arranging to build a much more substantial production facility, applying the $590 million it raised in January. Right until then, Berdichevsky says the corporation will have “very confined capacity.”
By the time that new facility is up and running, Sila is destined to have some company. Tesla CEO (and Berdichevsky’s previous boss) Elon Musk said late very last yr that Tesla is doing work to boost the amount of silicon in the anode of the batteries it takes advantage of. Other organizations are doing the job to swap graphite for silicon, way too.
But Berdichevsky claims he thinks there is a great deal of place for Sila to preserve rising — not only for the reason that of the efficiency gains, but also due to the fact of how Sila’s enterprise is presently structured. “We enable [battery companies] provide a larger executing battery that we do demand a quality for, and then we break up that quality with them,” he claims. “At the end of the working day, if you are earning a greater products, and customers just want to acquire it, then there’s a lot to go around.”
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Global warming is a severe problem affecting the environment worldwide, primarily due to the excessive consumption of fossil fuels for transportation, which accounts for a fifth of global carbon emissions.
E-bikes are good for the environment and for you too
As a result, many environmentally conscious people are looking for sustainable alternatives to replace fossil fuels.
Enter electric bikes. They have shown great promise as an effective and environment-friendly transport solution. Not only are they affordable but they are easily portable as well.
They also cost a lot less than cars. The purchase cost of a fossil fuel-based vehicle is just one of many expenses. As soon as you buy a car, insurance fees, daily fuel expenses, and routine maintenance costs soon start to pile up.
By comparison, e-bikes are far cheaper and you don’t have to worry about any other running costs. By the time you reach 18 months of use, the bike would most probably have paid for itself. On top of the financial benefits, folding electric bikes are much more portable, easier to store, and require barely any space.
Yet the biggest advantage of electric bikes is that they allow you to significantly reduce your fossil fuel consumption. By owning an e-bike, you can minimize greenhouse gas emissions and your overall carbon footprint.
True, electric bikes need to be charged regularly, but even basic e-bikes offer a range of 20-30 miles on a single charge. That is more than enough for people to commute in cities. However, you can also find options that yield higher ranges. Mid-range electric trikes or bikes offer a traveling range of 50-70 miles on a single charge, whereas top-end bikes deliver a range of approximately 100 miles.
You don’t have to wait hours to get your bike fully charged, either. Because of rapid advancements in battery technology, you can get faster-charging speeds. Another benefit is that an e-bike charges if you pedal on easy roads rather than using the throttle.
Lowering CO2 emissions and easing traffic congestion
Major cities attract many people in search of new opportunities from different places. As the population increases, so do the number of cars and motorcycles on the road. This eventually leads to traffic congestion, stretching the time it takes for you to reach your destination.
Heavy traffic also increases the consumption of fossil fuels as cars have to keep moving at much slower speeds and for a longer time. This results in more emission of carbon monoxide (CO), which pollutes the air and harms our health.
Instead, you can take advantage of battery-powered bikes to cruise through city traffic with ease. E-bikes can significantly lower the traffic on the roads, cutting down the time required to get to places. Consequently, you can also do your part in lowering air pollution and helping the environment.
As people are getting more conscious about the consumption of fossil fuel, electric bikes and tricycles for adults are gaining popularity. Not only are they a more sustainable option for our environment, but they also help you adopt a healthy lifestyle despite a sedentary routine.
All in all, e-bikes are one of the best and most viable transportation solutions that empower you to decrease your environmental footprint and combat climate change on an individual level.
Some countries around the globe still consider an e-bike to be a bicycle. If you want to avoid the tedious and time-consuming process of vehicle registration, getting a license plate, or getting it insured, electric bikes are a splendid choice worth considering.
Unlike a gas-fueled car or motorcycle, you can visit your local dealer or cycle shop and purchase it without the hassle of getting the paperwork done.
As electric bikes are getting more accessible, cities across the world are planning to develop the infrastructure for public charging stations to encourage massive adoption.
And there is more.
By owning an e-bike, you can also adopt a healthy lifestyle by mitigating the side effects of a deskbound lifestyle. Electric bikes allow you to travel long distances, ensuring that you build endurance and give your muscles a steady workout.
Other health benefits of riding an e-bike include better cardiac health, lower stress levels, increased metabolism, better core muscle strength, improved coordination and increased blood flow.
The pedal-assist feature on bikes allows you to set the level of assistance from the electric bike motor, so you get a good workout even after using the throttle.
All age groups can easily use an electric bike, even the elderly. If you want to stay active despite your old age, you can do this by hopping on three-wheel bikes for seniors. The moving speeds of these bikes are relatively easy to control, but you can also restrict the speed limit if the elderly and children are to use them.
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Preface to the Special Issue on "Typhoon Morakot (2009): Observation, Modeling, and Forecasting"
• Author(s): Chun-Chieh Wu and Ming-Jen Yang
• DOI: 10.3319/TAO.2011.10.01.01(TM)
• Keywords: Typhoon Morakot
• Citation: Wu, C. C. and M. J. Yang, 2011: Preface to the special issue on “Typhoon Morakot (2009): Observation, modeling, and forecasting.” Terr. Atmos. Ocean. Sci., 22, I, doi: 10.3319/TAO.2011.10.01.01(TM)
Typhoon Morakot was the deadliest typhoon or tropical cyclone (TC) to strike Taiwan in recorded history. It brought catastrophic damage to Taiwan, leaving 619 people dead, 76 others missing, causing roughly $16.4 billion NTD ($547 million USD) in agricultural losses alone. The storm produced a huge amount of rainfall, peaking at 2855 mm in 4 days (nearly the world record for peak accumulated rainfall of a landfall TC), which triggered enormous mudslides and severe flooding throughout southern Taiwan. One mudslide buried the entire village of Shiaolin, killing approximately 500 people in the village alone. This slow moving storm also caused widespread damage in China, leaving nine people dead and causing $8.9 billion RMB ($1.3 billion USD) in damage. Nearly 6000 homes were destroyed and 136000 more were reported to have sustained damage in China. The storm also caused severe flooding in the northern Philippines where it killed 26 people. Consequently, the scientific advance and the improvement of forecasting techniques and early warning systems for TCs reaching landfall are among high priority tasks for scientists and governmental agencies in Taiwan and other TC-prone countries.
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Happy Valentine’s day
Read them a book,
buy them a painting,
go to a circus,
Boat you may be renting
bungee jumping or para gliding,
skiing (definitely the season),
day of silience,
just talk in kisses, smile
frowns for a while
Fill your day with red roses
Play in the garden, water hoses
Whatever you do today
Don’t forget
get flowers on the way 🙂
20140213-105129 pm.jpg
Near stillness
Water, boat, floating I
Everything passing by
Zooming, zipping, overtaking
As if in a hurry to see everything
consume every bit, before it dies
Should I be worried, am I missing the boat
while being in one, world gloats,
worthless possessions, in my eyes,
heart sighs, keep looking for questions!
20140417-093905 am.jpg
Trashed, smashed in pieces
listen to a fork on the road,
a dork on the road
a log, was part of a stump,
cut in pieces, left as a rump
million bottles of plastic, rubber dump
thousand refuse sites, garbage jumps
more and more,
more landfill, more to store
future generations,
your future so sore, let’s ignore
this subject so bore,
talk about beauty and glamour
parties and clamour,
for each new product, to throw the old
where, which way, on street,
in what fold, more and more sold
and we are just told,
it is going to be fine,
here is some wine,
I recommend a beautiful place to dine,
they only serve fresh,
any food what is left,
will be not be kept,
goes to a trash
ironic, isn’t it, hash and rehash,
all stories, still they end up in a stash
pilling up, one by one, filing up,
apparently the only reusable
place on this terrain, humble brain
Perhaps one day that become disposable,
human dose-able, with daily intelligence,
throw away your useless thoughts,
apparently they are not polluting,
ignoring what is best,
for next generation and the rest,
we, the self proclaimed lords of this universe,
miserably failing that test,
left in the mouth ignoble taste
Nothing can be undone in haste,
takes time to change behaviours,
million thousands saviours
are required before even first green shoot comes out,
Earth smiles again, the mother who has lost all her
conscientious daughters, valiant sons,
to unnecessary violence and million guns,
can see the revolution, and final resolution to all ills,
annihilation still, being too late, tempting fate’s ironic hand
World’s riches, nations wealth
accumulated by fortunate few
Rest of us could lie and linger
Rest of us could die in hunger
Rest of us could sleep on the streets
Rest of us find food as a treat
Rest of us should wake up one day
Irony is, why it is not today!
20140417-041455 am.jpg
Emotional baggage
Start of an affair
In deep blue sea
bodies get hot
from ever shining sun
minds just wander
into the depth of bay
he sees a girl
with eyes like ocean
Reaching his emotions
nearly drowns
in shallow water
words fumble
slow starter
Finally gather thoughts
Tell her a lie,
Tell her a joke
Make her smile
Make her hope
Get her hooked
start of the day
Let her carry him
All the way!
20140122-043946 am.jpg
Last mile
Long journey, on a winding road
Mood swings, pendulum moves
Reflects the scene been seen
Who are you with, where one has been
Drum beats, hearts pump
Jubilation and million songs
Want this journey to prolong
Sorrows of some when want to share
Eyes shed tears, melancholy you hear
Distances appear, too much, hard to bear
Tryst in mind, sparrows sing sweet
songs of longing, and impending meet
possibilities endless, fly on your feet
All such journeys end one way or another
destinations you reach, memories you gather
further and further, until reaching the last mile
20140416-022538 pm.jpg
Above the clouds
In the white gleam
Inspiration from
a beautiful dame
Smile so pure
Welcoming to
the core
Eyes telling
of hope and
Joy endured
With her hidden
blushing smile
Makes flowers
Blossom in
a while
Thank you
For being there
and for all
and care
20140104-062624 pm.jpg
20140104-062631 pm.jpg
Unending wait at Piccadilly circus
Pulse moving
aimlessly, desire free
Nothing changes
view ranges
far to infinity
devil to divinity
Insinuating lust, love
depends who is
watching, wonder
rain and thunder
thoughts asunder
colossal blunder
Youth plunder
away sense,
nonsense of being
nuisance it seems
of life so far
mere mortal
to a star
reaching highs
suddenly, lies
of day dreams shattered
Touch of loved one mattered
the most, mere thought
of distance takes away breath
filling it with poison air
heart has never been fair
who cares, I don’t, while
I wait in this aimlessly
selfish, devilish crowd
eyes shamelessly
searching, knowing
you will never be backIMG_2124-3.JPG
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Daniel Triumph
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The Solune Prince
Novella 1
Chapter 4
Mental/Physical Resistance
“Why did I say anything? Was it nerves perhaps?”
Chloe exited the castle. The city had been built around the stone building’s backside, which meant that in order to get into the city, she had to exit from the front, walk half a kilocubit, and re-enter through the impenetrable main gate. In concept, it was an effective way to keep the citizens safe from bandits and raids, but in everyday life, it was nothing more than a detour.
To assemble a research team, the university would have been a good first stop. It was not where Chloe went. Her default response to meeting new people was simple—don’t. She was aware that such an approach was flawed and impossible given her task, but that didn’t mean she couldn’t procrastinate. Chloe, instead, headed for the home of someone she did know.
The door opened after a few tolls on the bell. A pale man with dark hair and bright eyes opened the door. He was an entire head shorter than Chloe, so eye contact was a chore for both of them.
“Good morning, Chloe.”
“Did you just wake?”
“Yes, but not because of you. I live with the earliest bird in the tree. As a result, I enjoy waking up an hour before even the sun on a daily basis. Even off days.”
“Right. Where is she?”
Finch, Chloe remembered, had married somewhere between three and seven years ago. (Her memory for such things was limited.)
He said, “Well, while it is a weekend, she should be leaving…” he looked to the sun, “A little while ago. Alice!”
Finch called out behind him, and a muscled, bare-chested woman skipped to the door, her upper half jamming itself into a top that seemed too small.
When she had dressed, she said, “Hi Chloe, I have to go! Visit me some time?” And then sprinted away.
They watched for a few moments as she ran towards the heart of the city, and then Chloe said, “Ah, can we sit maybe?”
“Sure, I happen to own a kitchen table.”
They sat and caught up. Finch had left the guard to study kemia and physics. Chloe told him about her trip, and the Lussa, and then finally her current mission.
“Oh nice. Isn’t that the whole thing you’ve been complaining about this past month?”
“Yes. I’m wondering if you know of anyone I could bring. Anyone academic.”
“You should check out the university.”
“Yes, but who for?”
Finch considered. He really didn’t know anyone. “Oh, well, you could always try my cousin Alexandre.”
“Yeah? What field?”
“Kemia, but more recently the hormonal differences between the kingdom’s various ethnicities. We are all quite unique, it seems. Especially the N’Tarial, and Riley like myself.”
“Oh. Is he married? Okay with leaving town for a few months?”
“She should be fine.”
They ended up having tea, and then eventually lunch before Chloe finally stood to leave. Before she went out the door, Finch added, “She’s just out of prison a couple years ago though, so she can be a little rough around the edges.”
“Ah…” Chloe lost what little momentum she had at this. I guess it would be right to assume that she is going to be something of a hassle.
As usual, the university’s flora was entirely overgrown. The grass was knee-high, and vines draped over trees and buildings. There had been a set of large stone letters that read ‘THE SOLUNE ACADEMY’ but the rock was new entirely covered in lichen and leafed plants. At least it is still readable. I can understand everything else, but why not clean off the lettering?
The paths that lead from building to building were where the health and safety concerns really began. The cobble had a thick layer of moss, and it would detach and slide if you stepped on it incorrectly. The liberal and academic solution was simply to put up a sign, ‘slipping hazard.’ Luckily for the faculty and the students, there was someone more conservative and practical who had added ‘shovel walkways’ to the list of janitorial tasks.
The only thing that kept the path up to municipal code was the footpath of stone that ran through the moss, wide enough only for one person, and cleared weekly.
Chloe sighed. I love it here.
She headed first to the administration building. Then, because it was locked and unlit, she went to the biokem building to see if anyone was there. Also locked. The lounge building maybe?
There was only two people in the lounge. What is going on? Chloe surveyed the building. Lunch tables, some longer seats, a café area, and a woman who looked like she was from the Djeb. Chloe looked around and saw a calendar.
Oh no, it’s Secast, ah, it is the weekend. Of course everything is closed!
Chloe spun around so fast that she lost her balance and fell forward. She was caught by the Djeb woman.
“Oh, ah, thank you.”
“Sure! Are you a student her?”
Chloe looked at her. She had sand coloured hair, and down-turned eyes. Her skin seemed a touch darker and thicker than her own. Not that much different than other Djeb people she had seen—not even that much different than Solune when she thought about it. The woman also had the universal Djeb neutral expression, one of both constant joy and concern.
“I’m Alumni.”
“Oh! Even better! Would you like to do an interview with me?
Chloe squinted, “Not right now. I am, ah, I’m looking for Alexandre Dirge, but I do not think she’s here today.”
“Oh, probably not.”
“You, you’re a little frustrating to engage.”
“Why’s that?” The Djeb smiled.
Chloe frowned, “Do you need something?”
“Yes—but wait, aren’t you busy?”
“Not if Alex isn’t here. Not until next day.”
“Wonderful! My name is Senica, I’m an anthropologist from the south!”
“You mean the west, where the Djeb is.”
“Nope,” Senica grinned, “south.”
That does not make sense, there’s only a mountain to the south. Chloe decided, despite the contradiction, not to get into it.
“I came here to do some research and ask people some questions.”
“I am not in a good mood, Senica.”
“Oh, well… okay.”
They parted ways. Chloe went homeward.
On the way back, passing through the market, she saw someone with short black hair and pale skin. Finch? No, far too tall… and feminine. Who…
The woman was arguing with a stall keeper. Chloe got close enough to hear.
“Look, I’ve even used these before. I’ve worked with the guard too.”
Chloe saw that she was at a smith, a swords booth.
“It doesn’t matter, you need a permit.” Then he added under his breath, “This is why I hate coming to market.”
Chloe, feeling bored, failed and frustrated, decided to step in and see if could help one of them; she just wasn’t sure which one. I just need… an outlet, a distraction. Maybe I can solve this, or at least try.
“What is, ah, what’s happening here?” She slipped up in her first sentence, and the Riley noticed. She also noticed Chloe’s nervous tone of voice.
“This Riley wants to get a hard edge sword, but lacks the permit. She’s not allowed to purchase a weapon, no one can without a permit!”
Chloe thought for a moment, and then said, “No one?”
His eyes widened with recognition, but he quickly returned to his unhappy expression. “Well, there are exceptions.”
“Not exceptions. They are clear and in the law. There are no exceptions in Solune governing. And,” she turned to the Riley. Her speech was beginning to speed up, she was reaching her limit. “What of you? Who are you?”
The Riley spat on the dirt. “I am Jutt. Soon, you would call me Dr. Dirge.”
“Are you Alexandre Dirge?”
“Don’t worry about it, Prince.” Alexandre turned to leave.
Wait! No, I need to say something more forceful than wait. “No.”
Alexandre glanced back apathetically and stepped away. Chloe, who was both taller and broader, grabbed the Riley’s wrist.
“I have been looking for you. You are a student of Kemia, right?”
Alexandre tried unsuccessfully to wrench away.
Chloe sort of lost herself in thought. I am stronger than someone who wishes to wield a sword. I wonder why? Perhaps that is why she wants one, because she’s weak? Wait… Chloe remembered what Finch had told her. Why was she imprisoned?
“I’m not working for the castle.”
She wrenched again.
“No, not the castle, I am going on an expedition to study the Lussa, I, ah, I’m assembling a research team.”
Chloe let go. Alexandre skulked away, rubbing her wrist only when she thought she was out of sight. Chloe still saw. She turned back to the blacksmith and said goodbye, and scanned the market.
She stood in the middle of the bustling market, and entered a state of deep thought.
Chapter 5>>
<<Table of Contents>>
<<Chapter 3
Daniel Triumph.
2 comments on “The Solune Prince: Mental/Physical Resisance
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Crazy Predictions: Amazon Kindle
Yeah, I tend to get overly enthusiastic about new devices. And so does a large part of the “tech press.” But, once in a while, a device comes which pretty much everyone predicts will fail. So, recently, I’ve been thinking about playing devil’s advocate with those predictions. Basically, stating that some device which seems to be doomed from the start (”a dud,” “another DOA product”) will in fact succeed. Kind of a creative exercise.Case in point, Amazon’s just released Kindle eBook Kindle: Amazon’s New Wireless Reading Device: Kindle StoreThe consensus opinion seems to be that it’s “too little, too late” or that the product doesn’t meet its set goals. In other words, a big “hype factor” (hyperbolic language surrounding its release) for something which isn’t that revolutionary. Tech enthusiasts aren’t impressed. But they do get to think, yet again, about books from a technological standpoint.I happen to think that the Kindle will likely fail. But if it does eventually succeed, what will I need to rethink?
1. Screen readability trumps everything else.
• I tend to read a lot of things (including student assignments) on computer screens. But many people keep saying that they can’t read from a computer screen for a very long period of time. If E Ink is in fact so much more readable than a computer screen that it makes a real difference, maybe the Kindle is one of those things you adopt once you try them.
2. The hardcover’s form factor can work.
• Looks like the Kindle is too big to fit in a pocket. “Conventional wisdom” (and experience with Newton MessagePad devices) says that handheld devices should fit in pockets. So, if the Kindle works, it means that the form factor isn’t an issue. And, in this case, there’d be some logic to it. Compared to a hardcover book, the Kindle is relatively small. And it’s incredibly small when compared to the number of books it could replace. I tend not to like hardcovers because of their form factor but having a single hardcover to replace any number of books and magazines could make me change my mind.
3. There’s room for single-function devices.
• What is already discussed with the Kindle is that multipurpose devices (say, Apple’s iPhone) can serve the “book-reading function” to a certain extent. If it is the case, then people are unlikely to spend as much on a device which only does one thing than on a device which can do a number of things. Yet, “book-reading” is among the trickiest things computer-based technology can do and a case is often made for a device which “does one thing and does it well.”
4. Free wireless access is a “killer app” and Sprint’s EVDO (used by Kindle) could do. For now.
• I tend to think a lot about free wireless connectivity, these days. In my mind, the stage seems to be set for the true “wireless revolution.” So I imagine convenient devices which do all sorts of neat things thanks to ubiquitous wireless access, either from cellphone networks or from computer networks. In fact, I keep imagining some kind of “cross-technology mesh network device” which could get connectivity through WiFi/WiMax and/or cellphone 3G, and redistribute it to other devices. Partly the model used for the OLPC’s XO, but brought to an even broader concept. Speeds are sufficient at this point for simple use and there could be ways to alleviate some bandwidth problems.
5. People are willing to pay for restricted content.
• I’m a proponent of Open Access and I really think openness is the direction where most Internet-manageable content is headed. But it’s quite possible that people are passionate about some compelling content that they will be willing to pay for access to it regardless of what else is available. In other words, if people really want to read some specific books, they are going to pay for the privilege to read it when they want. That’s probably why some public libraries have fees on best-sellers. I still don’t understand why people would need to pay to access blog content, but maybe paying for blog content will make blogs more “important.”
6. Not needing a computer is a cool feature.
• Some people simply don’t have computers, others only have access to public computers, yet others would prefer to leave computer use as a part of their work life. It’s quite likely that, as a standalone device, the Kindle could win the hearts of many people who would otherwise not buy any portable device. In fact, I kind of wish that other handheld devices were less reliant on computers. For instance, even MP3 players with wireless capabilities usually need to be connected to computers on occasion (though Microsoft’s new Zune firmware does eliminate the need for a computer to synchronise podcasts). The difference can be huge in terms of “peace of mind.” Forgot to add new content to your device? Easy, you can fetch it from anywhere.
7. Battery life matters.
• At this point, most handheld devices have pretty decent battery life in that you only have to recharge the batteries once a day. But, if the Kindle really does get 30 hours of battery life, it could have an excellent “peace of mind” factor. Forgot to plug in your device, last night? That’s ok, you still have a long time to go before the battery is drained. When you’re travelling for a few days, this could be really useful as it’s often annoying to have to recharge your devices on a regular basis. There’s also something to be said about non-volatile memory (that’s one reason I miss my Newton MessagePad).
8. Design style needs not be flashy.
• The Kindle looks rather “clunky” from pictures but it seems that part of this might be on purpose. The device isn’t meant as a fashion statement. It’s supposed to be as “classy” as a book. Not sure the actual device really looks “classy” in anybody’s view but there’s something to be said about devices which “look serious.”
9. People don’t need colour after all.
• Grayscale displays have been replaced by colour displays in most handheld devices, including MP3 players and PDAs. But maybe colour isn’t that important for most people.
10. Jeff Bezos is a neat fellow
• Maybe the current incarnation of the Kindle is just a way to test the waters and Bezos has a broader strategy to take not only the book world but also all the “online content” world with the Kindle. So, maybe the next Kindle will do audio and/or video. And maybe, just maybe, it could become a full-fledged “Internet appliance.”
So… Just for fun, I’m predicting that the Kindle will be a huge success.
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We get it, but chill on the “representation” in video games
Annnnnnnnd we’re done. That’s not a fact, and also has NOTHING TO DO WITH THIS THREAD.
Only Brick matches my criteria at all… and he is an awesome character, but he is obvious comic relief. They make fun of him for lacking in intelligence WAY to much, he isn’t a real leader nor a serious character in BL2 or BL3, Brick is supposed to be a joke, btw, the point that I was making in my original post.
The rest of the characters don’t fit at all.
Brick did have his moments though. Like when he confronted Roland at their reunion in BL2 and again Lilith in the Commander Lilith DLC. Brick has depth. (Haven’t got to meeting him in BL3 yet.)
Borderlands’ story is about subversion. Think about why that means they don’t put the typical cliche hero at the helm.
With the exception of Marcus, none of them are competant. Apparently people are saying Zane is pansexual, Rhys is bi and has basically become a damsel in distress, Vaughn… Really?
Temporary close while overly personal posts are removed.
Thread will re-open once folks have had a chance to read, digest, and reflect.
This topic was automatically opened after 68 minutes.
Okay, long response incoming - plenty going on in this thread that I’d like to respond to.
Okay. Let me try and explain. There is a certain push, especially in media circles for ‘diversity’ - which does seem to be code for ‘non male, non straight, non white’. If you want evidence of this, an Apple employee was forced to apologize when she said that a room full of straight white people could be diverse, and was sacked.
This is not just about BL3. There are people - and you can see it in this thread - claiming that sexual orientation is not biological, and is a choice. And that being straight is not the correct choice.
This sort of stuff is what people are pushing back on. It’s definitely not a majority, but it’s a very load and surprisingly powerful minority that has a lot of gaming companies by the throat.
For example - just look at this post:
See what I mean?
Bingo. And yet…this sort of constructivism is the zeitgeist in a lot of academia right now. And it’s…nonsense.
Huh? For a long time, most main characters in games weren’t ‘straight white males’. They were animals, weird pixel things and robots/planes/aliens.
Didn’t they say ‘no more characters’ this time?
I think this was meant in the context of BL3.
There are people in this thread, and certainly in this industry who would definitely say that any straight, cis male main character is problematic…
Just look at the responses to other games. I can provide examples if you want.
The PCs aren’t ‘main’ characters. They are mostly a player surrogate.
It’s…not though. It’s incorrect, but how it is homophobic?
In BL3…maybe. But you need to look at it in the context of what is going on in the industry today. There is a definite strain of thought that diversity is, in and of itself, a good thing. And this can create some very strange situations and controversies. Just look at all the flak CDPR have received over Cyberpunk not being ‘progressive’ enough.
No, this is the wrong way to go about it. I don’t think anyone in this thread has a problem with LGBTQIAP or whatever the full acronym is now existing, and to say this is ludicrous.
What people have a problem with is this new mindset in the media that says:
• Straight white men are problematic.
• Diversity should be a goal in and of itself.
• Diversity means non straight, non cis, non male.
• Everything is a social construct and thus a choice.
This is what is getting pushback. And rightfully so.
Except that when you push ‘diversity’ to a certain degree, you are going to leave people out. The majority of people. Who will then be told that them being the majority is a problem in and of itself.
Except that this is a utopian fallacy. And as we’ve seen in Cyberpunk and some other games, this quickly becomes ‘even having a gender binary is deeply problematic’.
I’m an old fart too, but one who spends a lot of time in academic circles. I’ll try to explain.
It’s the current zeitgeist, growing out of a movement that can best be described as social-constructivism, growing out of a combination of Hegelist and Marxist thought. Essentially, it posits that all boundaries are bad, everything, including the idea of biological sex and gender is problematic and that anyone who isn’t straight, white and male is oppressed. It then follows the Marxist axiom that the oppressed have a right to hate and oppress their oppressors. Extend this out, and you have the modern climate in gaming - where any game featuring a straight white male protagonist is problematic.
Honestly, the Supmatto thing was pretty concerning too - and seldom mentioned.
And this is why you are seeing pushback. This whole idea of ‘fragile masculinity’. It’s acceptable to bash and deride straight men for being straight men, and any problem that straight men have with this is further evidence of ‘fragile masculinity’. It’s wonderfully designed Kafkatrap.
And I refuse to believe that this thread was even created in good faith. It’s been a troll from the start to get people fighting about it.
So, because OP doesn’t get his straight white hero to lead the charge, there’s a problem? When can a game exist without that? Sorry, not sorry.
It actually sort of does. The thread has gone on to the whole ‘being cis is problematic’ and ‘fragile masculinity’ tripe. The topic is now pretty damn broad.
RBG was being glib. And if you tip things the other way, in a few decades you are going to need to tip it back once again.
But I guess the oppressed have the right to oppress the oppressor…right?
Bingo. But as you can see from the general tenor of this thread, your inclusion is ‘problematic’ in and of itself. As we’ve seen from the Cyberpunk controversy, even the idea of a simple binary of ‘male’ and ‘female’ is now wrongthink
Always remember the mindset that this stuff is coming from. And read some Hegel, if you really want to know it’s origins.
The Frankfurt School was a mistake…
The majority of society is straight and cis-gendered, and every study that has attempted to disprove this is complete bunko.
I’m not sure what we are permitted to link here, but from what I’ve read, the majority of shooter fans are straight males. Which is what people like Anita Sarkeesian and Bob Chipman are constantly complaining about.
Actually, there is extremely strong evidence that not having a father in your life is an indicator of potential criminality and poverty, and that having a stable, two parent household is a greater advantage than private schooling.
I’ve only really seen, in this thread and others before it, people saying that a lack of them shouldn’t be while others say that the lack of them is. This seems to be an issue of people complaining about snowflakes but wanting to be snowflakes.
Again, I’ve not read anything that says this. Rather, I am getting that people feel there should be no “wrong” choice.
Um, no. Maybe the idea that it is possible is a utopian fallacy, but most ideals fall apart in real world practice. Generally speaking, it appears that rather than “equality” what people want is a chance to hold the whip. But we’re not really talking about equality here, I was using that sentence to say that we shouldn’t be playing tit for tat with game characters. If this isn’t a big deal then we should be able to dispense with scoreboards. Which you seem to understand given this next bit:
I doubt we completely disagree, but it feels as though some of the language being used is being taken without the context that makes it relevant. In the grand scheme of things, this is a non-issue being made into an issue, by folks who are so used to being ubiquitous that they have a hard time seeing themselves less than that.
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Where I live, if I walked in to a room full of only white people it would not be considered diverse. But that’s Canada for you… :canada:
Bottom line is pretty simple. What does it change to your life? I’m a white, goth straight metal head. I dont need representation in a game to feel good. If there is then its cool, ill be like : Hey, thats nice. Other than that I realy dont care about sexual orientation/look/what did they eat last night of any character in a game. What matters to me is the quality and the originality of the characters and for that, Borderlands always delivered.
what does it have to do with canada
I’m really not sure what Feculator described is a thing in academia. I’ve worked in 3 universities over a span of 10 years. In my experience ‘straight white males’ are not disadvantaged there (I’m actually grinning as I type that!), and there is no pressure for me to be ‘more attracted’ to any gender or person that I’m not. I haven’t seen publications arguing for that (there are plenty of weird and wonderful articles on sexual politics around but I wouldn’t say any have lodged the prevailing norms you describe). I know a lot of people who wish sexual harassment of younger, usually female students wasn’t a thing in universities - that’s much more of an issue… Of course, your experience may be different.
Unless by ‘constructivism’ you’re talking about the art movement started by Tatlin? I’m really interested in Russian revolutionary art, wish I knew more about it!
I haven’t really seen this in the thread.
And yes, people say things I disagree with all the time about ‘straight, cis male main character[s]’, and the word problematic gets thrown around too much in my opinion - I don’t see it much on the forums, fortunately, though the post I’m replying to is an exception!
I haven’t actually seen their hair choice criticised. I know you want to link stuff to wider issues, but the post you quoted was quite specific, and in response to the claim that female’s hair is too similar in the Borderlands games. I thought it was an odd point, made odder by the gender focus.
This seems a slightly mangled summary of some academic arguments that were very popular in the '80s. They’ve got loads of pushback since then. I’m not sure how it links to the thread at hand, i.e. whether or not too many gay people and women are represented in Borderlands 3.
If I’m reading your stance right, we share some of the same perspectives on post-structuralist trends… but I think bringing it up here may be giving those ideas more than they’re due. It seems quite likely that, for instance, Fl4k is a nonbinary character because their creator is non-binary, worked at Gearbox, and wanted to use their chance to write a character by representing an experience they identify with. I doubt the diehard Foucauldians who still haunt the halls of my uni had anything to do with that really!
Again, I thirst for linked evidence on how many fans of Borderlands are ‘able-bodied, cis-gendered, straight men, who display masculine traits’. Maybe they are. You’ll dig the academic concern for supported statements though.
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Thank you, nice read and respectful.
As if the people not fitting of your preferred look for society aren’t “all” humans, lol.
@Hattie, I’ll play.
It doesn’t matter what percentage of the player base is able-bodied, cis-gendered, straight men, who display masculine traits, this point is irrelevant to my real claim:
Why don’t you address my real claim:
I think that the writers of this game were trying to be inclusive to may different types of folks, while at the same time also trying to exclude able-bodied, cis-gendered, straight men, who display masculine traits.
In this case, the writers excluded, and think that they would admit it. It is pretty heavy handed.
Side thought: I believe that the writers of this game took a great risk by trying to start this, exact conversation… it baffles me that the mods insist on continuously interrupting in in this topic by locking or temporarily closing the dialogue. Just let if flow… if we cross a line give us our warning as established in the “Forum Rules”.
Because you’re a sane(probably) human.
Either VH made a joke that went over my head or he’s saying Canada is mainly white or something else. Don’t think about it that hard
looks at volderthread yeah these never end well
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Archive for the ‘Kevin J. Wicker’ Category
The Fabulous 70s: Lloyds Bank 1978
February 12, 2008
The Lloyds Bank tournament was a mainstay of European chess, taking place every August for many, many years at the posh Cumberland Hotel at Marble Arch. The hotel was near Bayswater, the King’s Head Pub (where lots of people gathered to play chess, for example, Jon Speelman, Andrew Whiteley and don’t forget its “multi quiz machines”) and Raymond Keene seemed to have a hand in the organization. Keene was often spotted hobnobbing with bank executives and other OBE and MBE types. Stewart Reuben (evidently a poker player and author) was the chief TD. Amusingly, Keene co-won the tournament with Seirawan and Miles one year (1981) and I heard him say after the tournament that his proceeds would just about cover his move (to posh Kensington). Apparently his moving expenses were rather high.
News as of 2/15/08: I just learned that “Britbase” has many of the Lloyds Bank games from various years, and I learned that 1977 was the first Lloyds Bank. Jolly Argentinian personality GM Miguel Quinteros was the first winner as I see on Britbase.
We were all very young at this, the second Lloyds Bank installment. I had just popped over to the 1978 version on the ferry boat after playing in the Belgian “ECI” tournament in Eeklo. Suzzane Wood was the British Girls representative at the ECI, and Irish player Andrew McCarthy wound up winning my junior section ahead of, among others, Danish player Erik Pederson.
Here are some games I had versus well known chess personalities.
GM Heikki Westerinen (FIN) – M. Ginsburg Sicilian Scheveningen, Keres Attack
1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 Nf6 4. Nc3 cxd4 5. Nxd4 e6 6. g4 h6
In a more recent post, I discuss 6…Nc6!? here dispensing with 6….h6.
7. Bg2 Nc6 8. h3 Heikki liked this slow treatment but it should promise zero.
8…Bd7 9. O-O Nxd4 Interesting for black is 9… Be7 10. f4 Nxd4 11. Qxd4 Bc6 12. Be3 Nd7 13. Qd2 g5!? (Too ambitious? – but it pays off) 14. Bd4 Rh7 15. e5? (White misses a chance with 15. b4! to claim an edge) 15… dxe5 16. fxe5 Nxe5 17. Rad1 Qc7 18. Ne4 O-O-O 19. Qc3 Ng6 20. Bxa7 Rxd1 21. Rxd1 Nf4 22. Bf3 Nxh3+ and black won in 31 moves, Sveshnikov,E (2525)-Lputian,S (2585)/Tilburg 1992.
10. Qxd4 Bc6 More sensible is the equalizing 10… Qc7 11. Be3 Be7 12. Rad1 O-O 13. f4 Bc6 14. f5 b5 15. a3 e5 16. Qd3 a5.
11. b4 Qb6?! Here, more natural is 11… a6 12. a4 Be7 13. Be3 O-O 14. b5 e5 15. Qd3 Bd7.
12. Qc4 Be7 13. Be3 Qd8 14. Rad1 14. b5 Bd7 15. e5 Rc8 is OK for black.
14… Rc8 15. Qb3 Qc7 16. Rd3 b6 Again, more natural is 16… a6 17. a4 O-O 18. b5 Be8.
17. f4 g6 Black can defend after 17… O-O 18. g5 hxg5 19. fxg5 Nh5 20. g6 Bd7 21. Rxf7 Rxf7 22. gxf7+ Kxf7 23. Bf3 g6 with chances.
18. Rf2 Nd7 19. Bd4?! (Indicated is 19. a4!) 19… O-O 20. f5 Bh4 21. Rfd2 Bg5 22. Rd1 Possible is 22. fxe6 Bxd2 23. Rxd2 Ne5 24. b5 Bb7 25. Nd5 Bxd5 26. exd5 Qe7 27. Re2 fxe6 28. dxe6 Kh7 and the game is level. The game toddles on with both sides continuing to commit inaccuracies.
Position after 22. Rd1 – chances are about level.
22… Rfe8 The primitive and somewhat surprising 22… exf5!? 23. gxf5 gxf5 24. Nd5 Bxd5 25. Qxd5 Ne5 26. Rc3 Qb8 27. exf5 Rxc3 28. Bxc3 Rc8 is about even.
23. Bf2 Ne5? Again, the computer-like 23… gxf5 is fine. 24. gxf5 Ne5 25. Rxd6 exf5 and black has no problems at all.
24. Rxd6 Ba8 25. Nb5 Qxc2 26. Nxa7 Qxb3 27. axb3 Rc2 28. fxe6 fxe6 29. Bd4? This is a bad blunder. The simple 29. Rxb6 gives white a significant edge.
Position after the 29. Bd4? miscue.
29…Rxg2+! Of course. Black gets an initiative.
30 .Kxg2 Bxe4+ 31. Kf1?! If 31. Kg3!, 31…Nd3! 32. Rxd3 Bxd3 33. Nc6 Be4 leads to a small white edge. The text should have tossed any winning chances down the drain.
31…Rf8+ 32. Bf2 If 32. Ke1 Nd3+ and draws.
32… Be3?? What’s this? A bad tactical blackout. The obvious 32… Bh4 33. R1d2 Nd3 draws with no problem, for example 34. R6xd3 Bxd3+ 35. Kg1 Bxf2+ 36. Rxf2 g5 37. Nc6 Be4 38. b5 Bd3 39. Ne7+ Kg7 40. Rxf8 Kxf8 41. Nc8 Bxb5.
33. Rd8! Oops. Now white just wins. Boo!
33…Bg5 34. Rxf8+ Kxf8 35. Bxb6 Bc2 36. Re1 Nd3 37. Rxe6 Bxb3 38. Re4 Bd2 39. Ke2 Bd5 40. Kxd3
Black resigns. Really a poor game.
M. Ginsburg – Julian Hodgson (2255) Tarrasch Defense
This is one of those pre-database encounters. I cannot find it in the regular online sources.
1. c4 e6 2. Nf3 d5 3. b3 c5 4. g3 Nc6 5. Bg2 Nf6 6. O-O Be7 7. Nc3 O-O 8. cxd5 exd5 9. d4 Ne4 10. Bb2 Bf6
Position after 10…Bf6. So far, so normal.
11. e3?! Much stronger is 11. Na4! hoping for 11…b5? (11… b6 is correct) 12. Nxc5! Nxc5 13. Rc1! with a white edge. Many games have seen black fall into this trap, for example Stefansson,H (2470)-Bosch,J (2305)/Arnhem 1989, 1-0, 34. The variation 11. Na4 b6 occurred in a hugely entertaining and wild game between Bent Larsen and Margeir Petursson. Let’s see it:
11. Na4 b6 12. Rc1 Ba6 13. dxc5 Bxb2 14. Nxb2 bxc5 15. Nd3 Re8 16. Re1 Qb6 17. e3 Rad8 18. Bf1 c4 19. Nf4 Nb4 20. Ra1 Qf6 21. Kg2 Nc3 22. Qc1 Ncxa2 Craziness on the board!
23. Qa3 cxb3 24. Qxb3 Bc4 25. Bxc4 dxc4 26. Qxc4 Rc8 27. Qb3 Qc3 28. Qa4 Qc4 29. Reb1 a5 30. Qxa5 Ra8 31. Qh5?? Here, the amazing shot is 31. Qf5!! and white is better. There follows 31…Nc2 (31… g6 32. Qg5 Nc2 33. Nd5 Re6 34. Nf6+ Kg7 35. Ng4 Kg8 36. Qh4 Qa6 37. Nh6+ Kg7 38. Nxf7 is overwhelming for white) 32. Nd5 Nxa1 33. Ng5 and white has successfully won the day.
31… Nc2 32. Rb6 Nxa1 This is just a bluff on white’s part. 33. Ng5 h6 34. Rxh6 gxh6 35. Qxh6 Ra6? (35… Nc2 wins; white has no discernible threat.) 36. Qh7+ Kf8 37. e4 Here Bent could have launched with 37. Nfe6+!? Raxe6? (37… Qxe6 38.Nxe6+ Rexe6 39. Qh8+ Ke7 40. Qxa1 Nb4 41. Qb1 Rab6 42. h4 Nd5 43. Qf5 Rb5 with complete insanity) 38. Qxf7 mate – the rather rude point.
37… Rf6 38. Nd5 Rxf2+ 39. Kxf2 Qd4+ 40. Kf3 Qg7 41. Qf5?? The right move is 41. Qh4! with an edge. If 41…Qg6 (41… f6 42. Nh7+ Kf7 43. Nhxf6 Rh8 44. Qf4 Qf8 45. Qf5 Qa3+ 46. Kg4 Qd6 47. Nh5+ Ke8 48. Qc8+ Qd8 49. Qe6+ Kf8 50. Qf5+ Kg8 51. Qg6+ Kf8 52. Qg7+ Ke8 53. Ndf6+ Qxf6 54. Nxf6+ Kd8 55. Qd7 mate!) 42. Qh8+ Qg8 43. Nh7 mate)
41… Qg6 Now black is winning. The crazy game with all its roller-coaster fortune changes is almost over. Poor Bent. 42. Qf4 (42. Nh7+ Kg7) 42… Nc2 43. Nf6 Rd8 44. Qe5 Nd4+ 45. Kg2 Nc6 46. Qb2 Nab4 47. h4 Ke7 0-1 Larsen,B (2520)-Petursson,M (2535)/Gausdal 1985.
Back to the Hodgson game.
11… Bg4 Young Julian has no problems at all.
12. h3?! Another bizarre choice. However, 12. Ne2 Qa5 13. Re1 Rfd8 14. h3 Bxf3 15. Bxf3 Ng5 16. Bg2 Ne6 17. Qc1 cxd4 18. Nxd4 Re8 19. Qd1 Nexd4 20. Bxd4 Bxd4 21. exd4 Re4 22. Rxe4 Qb6 and white resigned, (Young) Georgiev,V (2245)-Dobrev,N (2310)/Shumen 1995 was not a good white experience either.
12… Bxf3 13. Bxf3 cxd4 14. Nxe4 dxe4 15. Bxe4 dxe3 16. Qxd8 exf2+ 17. Rxf2 Bxd8
To sum up the opening, white has played like an idiot, lost a pawn, and faces an uphill struggle to draw. Not good “preparation.” I achieve the draw by making some tricks with the bishop pair in order to get bishops of opposite colors. Even that finale contained some dangers, but in the end I figured out a drawing formation.
18. Kg2 Bb6 19. Rd2 Rad8 20. Rad1 Rxd2+ 21. Rxd2 Rd8 22. Rxd8+ Bxd8 23. a3 g6 24. Kf3 Kf8 25. b4 a6 26. a4 Nxb4 27. Ba3 a5 28. Bxb7 f5 29. g4 fxg4+ 30. Kxg4 Kf7 31. Bxb4 axb4 32. Kf4 Kf6 33. Bd5 h5 34. Bb3 Bc7+ 35. Ke4 Kg5 36. Kf3 Kh4 37. Kg2 g5 38. Bc4 g4 39. hxg4 hxg4 40. Be6 Kg5 41. Kf2 Kf4 42. Kg2 Bb6 43. Bb3 Kf5 44. Kg3 Bc7+ 45. Kg2 Ke4 46. Be6 Kf4 47. Bb3 Kf5 48. Bd1 Kg5 49. Bb3 Kh4 50. Be6 g3 51. Kf3 b3 52. Kg2 b2 53. Bf5 Bb6 54. Bb1 Kg4 55. Bh7 Kf4 56. Bb1 Ba5 57. Bh7 Be1 58. Bb1 Ke5 59. a5 Kd6 60. a6 Kc7 61. Bd3 Kb6 62. Kf3 Bf2 63. Kg2 Kc7 64. Kf3
At least I held a draw after the gruesome debut.
Andrew Martin (2340) – M. Ginsburg Sicilian Irregular, early ….b6
1. e4 c5 2. Nc3 b6 3. Nf3 Bb7 4. d4 cxd4 5. Nxd4 Nc6 6. Be3 e6 7. Bd3 Nge7!? An interesting position that hasn’t been seen much. Also possible is 7… Nf6 8. f4 Bb4 9. Qf3 Rc8?! (Here, 9… d5! 10. e5 Ne4 11. Nde2 Nc5 12. O-O-O Nxd3+ 13. Rxd3 O-O looks OK for black) 10. O-O Bxc3 11. bxc3 d5 12. e5 Nxd4 13. cxd4 Ne4 14. f5 exf5 15. Qxf5 led to rapid white victory in 25 moves, Braghetta,S-Perovic,B/Toscolano 1996.
8. O-O The positional and sophisticated treatment, not one for a legendary hacker like Andrew, is 8. Ndb5! Ng6 9. Be2 d6 10. O-O Be7 11. a4 O-O 12. Qd2 a6 13. Na3 with a nagging edge.
8… Nxd4 9. Bxd4 Nc6 10. Be3 Be7 11. Qh5 Nb4 12. f4 Nxd3 13. cxd3 O-O 14. f5
Position after 14. f5
14…d5 It is more sensible to defend with 14… Bf6 15. Rf3 g6 16. fxg6 fxg6 and black is all right. The text looks nuts but it can be justified with a rather difficult variation on the next move (15…exf5!).
15. Rf3 h6? The most tactically alert reaction is 15…exf5! 16. Rh3 h6 17. Bxh6 g6! 18. Rg3 Qd6! threatening Qxg3 with an unclear game after 19. Bxf8 Bxf8. Weaker is 15… dxe4 16. Rh3 h6 17. Bxh6 gxh6 18. Qxh6 Qd4+ 19. Kh1 Qg7 and this is losing for black after 20. Rg3.
16. Rg3 dxe4 17. dxe4 This is bad for black, but not lost yet.
17…Bc5?? This should lose immediately. 17… Bf6 18. Qxh6 exf5 19. Qh5 Be5 holds on, with white retaining an edge.
18. Qxh6? The flaw in black’s thinking is exposed by the brutal 18. Rxg7+!! Kxg7 19. Qxh6+ Kg8 20. Bxc5 bxc5 21. f6 Qd4+ 22. Kh1 and after that spite check, black has to resign.
18… Bxe3+ 19. Qxe3 exf5 20. Rd1? Here white misses another great blow: 20. Nd5!! – the point of this zinger is to block black’s response Qd4+ when white plays Qe3-h6.
Position after 20. Nd5!! (Analysis) – A fantastic shot.
There is no defense. For example, 20…Bxd5 (20… f6 21. Nf4 Qe7 22. exf5 Qxe3+ 23. Rxe3 wins) and now the delightful 21. Qh6! g6 22. Rh3! and mates! The desperate 20…Kh8 is crushed by the nice maneuver 21. Qc3! f6 (forced) 22. Nf4! and wins.
20… Qf6 21. Rf1 Rad8 22. Rxf5 Qd4 23. Nd5 Qxe3+ 24. Rxe3 f6 1/2-1/2
Of course, white still has an edge in this ending, but it’s nothing like before. It’s quite possible he had spotted some of the decisive variations listed above after he made his move, a common phenomenon with human players and very disheartening. Disgusted, he “throws in the towel” with a draw offer and we head off to the pub.
NM Colin Crouch (2300) – M. Ginsburg Sicilian 2. c3 Lloyds Bank, Round 10
1. e4 c5 2. c3 The move 2. c3 brings a general air of irritation to the proceedings.
2…g6 3. d4 cxd4 4. cxd4 d5 5. exd5 The move 5. e5 is a whole different story. These days, 5. e5 is considered the most promising way to try to achieve a small edge. The text should achieve very little.
5…Nf6 6. Nc3 Nxd5 It’s more usual to play 6… Bg7 7. Bc4 O-O 8. Nge2 Nbd7 9. Nf4 (not 9. O-O Nb6 10. Bb3 Nfxd5) 9… Nb6 10. Bb3. In the 70s and 80s this was explored quite a bit. However, black should be OK. For example, 10… a5 11. a4 (unpromising is 11. a3 a4 12. Ba2 Bf5 13. O-O Qd7 14. Qe2 h6 15. h4 Rac8 16. Be3 Ne4 and black is active) 11… Qd6 (Nimzovich wouldn’t like using the queen as a ‘blockader’ but this move has its points, the queen eyes the important squares b4 and f4) 12. O-O Bd7 13. Qe2 and now a sample continuation is 13…Rfe8 (Is this natural move a TN? – prior games from British player Wade have seen the unnatural 13…Rfc8) 14. Re1 Rac8 15. h3 h6!? (We’ll see the point of this mysterious move shortly) 16. Nb5 (What else?) 16…Qb4 17. Ra3 Bxb5 18. axb5 a4 19. Ba2 g5! 20. Nd3 Qxb5 and black is fine.
7. Bc4 Nb6 8. Bb3 Bg7 9. Nf3 O-O 10. O-O Bg4 11. d5 N8d7 12. h3 Bxf3 13. Qxf3 Rc8 14. d6 TN A novelty from Mr. Crouch! Colin was very nervous at the board and reminded me of USA’s own Walter Browne. Previously seen was the poorly played game 14. Re1 Nc5? (Correct is 14…Ne5! 15. Qe2 Re8 16. Bg5 Qd7 and it’s equal; same goes for 16. Bf4 Nec4) 15. Bg5 Nxb3? 16. axb3 Bxc3 17. bxc3 Qxd5 18. Qxd5 Nxd5 19. c4 and white won shortly, Abbasov,F (2290)-Hussan,M (2108)/Abu Dhabi 1999. This massacre is a good cautionary tale against opening up the a-file when it’s not warranted. Objectively Crouch’s TN in my game promises nothing.
14… exd6 15. Qxb7 Nc5 16. Qf3 Qf6?! The most accurate was 16… d5! 17. Rd1 Ne6! but this requires tactical alertness. The point is 18. Nxd5 (18. Qg4 h5 19. Qb4 d4 is unclear) 18… Nd4! 19. Rxd4 Bxd4 20. Qe4 Bc5 21. Bh6 Nxd5 22. Bxd5 Qf6 23. Bxf8 Qxf2+ and black is very happy. More to the point, this line does not liquidate into a boring ending as the text does and keeps winning chances.
17. Qxf6 Bxf6 18. Nb5 d5 Playable and probably better is 18… Rfd8 19. Bf4 Rd7 20. Nxd6 Rcd8 21. Bxf7+ Rxf7 22. Nxf7 Kxf7 23. Rfd1 Nd3 24. Bc7 Rd4 25. Bxb6 axb6 26. Rd2 Bg5 and white is a very tiny bit better, maybe. Black should be able to draw it.
19. Be3 Bxb2 20. Rab1 Be5 21. Nxa7 Rc7 22. Nb5 Rcc8
Agreed drawn. White has a small edge and can and should play on, for example 23. Rbd1 Rfd8 24. Rfe1 Bf6 25. Re2 Nxb3 26. axb3 Rb8 27. Red2 Rb7 28. g4 and white can certainly try here. Maybe Colin’s nerves were frazzled from the perplexities of his innovation.
Kevin J. Wicker (2305) – M. Ginsburg Trompovsky (“Ruth’s”), Round 8 Lloyds Bank 1978
My opponent was British Boys U-18 co-champ in 1970!
1. d4 Nf6 2. Bg5 e6 3. e4 h6 4. Bxf6 Qxf6 5. Nf3 b6 6. Bd3 Bb7 7. Qe2 d6 8. Nc3 Qd8 9. O-O-O Be7 10. Kb1 a6 11. g4 Nd7 12. h4 c5 Playable is 12…b5!? The text looks suspicious but maybe it’s all right.
Position after 12…c5. Perplexing.
13. g5 cxd4?! With hindsight, 13…b5! is much better. Then, 14. dxc5 Nxc5 offers balanced chances since 15. e5 d5! promises nothing.
14. Nxd4 Ne5 15. g6!? A weird idea that leads to equality. White had the simple 15. f4 Nxd3 16. Qxd3 with an advantage.
15…Nxg6 16. Nxe6 fxe6 17. Qh5 O-O 18. Qxg6 Rf6 19. Qg4 Qf8 20. Rhg1 Rc8 20…Qf7 21. Bc4 b5 22. Bb3 Re8 23. Rd3 Bf8 24. f3 b4 25. Ne2 d5 26. h5 a5 is about even. Nothing is really going on.
21. e5?! Impetuous and not very good.
Position after 21. e5?! – one mistake leads to another.
21… dxe5? And a mistake in reply. Of course throwing in 21… Bf3! is correct; the lame 22. Qxg7+? Qxg7 23. Rxg7+ Kxg7 24. Rg1+ Kf7 leaves black better. The queen sacrifice is white’s best try but black can defend: 21…Bf3 22. exf6! Bxg4 23. fxe7 Qf4! 24.Rde1 Bf5 and black is better. White has 25. Nd5!? but black can defend simply enough with 25…exd5 26. Bxf5 Qxf5 27. e8=Q+ Rxe8 28. Rxe8+ Kf7! 29. Rb8 Qxf2 and whatever advantage there is rests with black in this ending. It is most likely drawn.
22. Ne4 Rf4 23. Qxe6+ Kh8 24. Qg6 Qf7 25. Nd6 Qxg6 26. Bxg6 Bxd6 27. Rxd6 Rxh4? Black had the simple 27… b5 28. Rb6 Bc6 29. Rxa6 Rxf2 30. Ra7 Rcf8 31. Rc1 e4 and he’s all right.
28. Rxb6 Rc6 Black uses the trick 29. Rxb7? Rxg6! with bank rank mate after 30. Rxg6? Rh1+. However, white simplifies and black still has some problems to solve.
29. Rxc6 Bxc6 30. Kc1 Kg8 31. Re1 Rh1 Now it’s no fun to play 31… e4 32. Rd1 Kf8 33. Rd6 Bb5 34. Re6 Rh1+ 35. Kd2 Rf1 36. Ke3 Re1+ 37. Kd4 Re2 38. c4 Bd7 39. Rxa6 Rxb2 40. Bxe4 Rxf2 41. c5 and white has a huge edge. Black plays the relatively best move. Still, this ending has some nasty pitfalls.
32. Rxh1 Bxh1 33. Kd2?! White isn’t playing so well either. He had 33. c4! to keep the black bishop off the d5-g8 diagonal.
33… Kf8 34. Ke3 Again, 34. c4! Ke7 35. Ke3 Kf6 36. Be8 with torture.
34… Bd5 35. b3 Ke7 36. c4 Bb7?? A dreadful blunder. After the obvious 36…Be6 37. c5 a5 no win for white can be seen. Furthermore, if white gets too frisky he can even lose! Here is a nice variation: 38. Kd3 Bd5! 39. Kc3 Kf6 40. Be8 Ke7 41. Bh5 Be4! (An excellent and counter-intuitive move, blocking a pawn, to enforce g6 to get the remote passed pawn rolling)
Position after 41…Be4! (analysis) – get the doggies rollin’
Continuing, 42. a3 g6 43. Be2 h5 44. b4 axb4+ 45. axb4 h4 46. Bf1 (or 46. Bg4 Bg2 and wins) 46…g5 47. b5 g4 and black wins! This is a good example of what happens when one side ignores the potential of the other side. Another strange and tactical variation is 36…Be6 37. Kd3 Bg4! 38. b4 h5 39. Ke4 Kf6 40. f3! Be6! 41. Bxh5 Bxc4 42. a3 Ke6 and it’s drawn.
37. b4 Kf6 38. Be8 Ke7 39. Bh5 Kf6 40. a4 Now the pawns roll and it’s all over. Terrible ending play by black.
40…g6 41. Be2 Ke6 42. c5 h5 43. b5 axb5 44. axb5 Bd5 45. b6 h4 46. Bg4+ Ke7 47. f4 Kf6 48. Bc8 exf4+ 49. Kxf4 g5+ 50. Kg4 Ke5 51. b7 1-0
It’s really too bad Lloyds Bank stopped sponsoring this fantastic August event. Can we hope for its return? It was last held, I believe in 1994, featuring a very young Alexander Morozevich capturing the honors. Indeed, as a ChessBase report on Melody Amber states, “Morozevich is a brand-name for mind-boggling chess, ever since he made his international break-through at Lloyds Bank in 1994, where at the age of seventeen he took first prize with a staggering 10.5 out of 11 score, using unusual and outdated openings. “
All hail Britbase. Here’s a frothy encounter I dug up from the 1981 Lloyds Bank, courtesy of Britbase PGN.
Entertainingly, my opponent during the game assembled 4 espressos all in a row. Maybe one too many? In the game, a perhaps unique thing occurred in the opening – check the note to my 12th move.
M. Ginsburg – Yves Duhayon (BEL) Lloyds Bank 1981, 8/25/81 Round 6 Sicilian/Hedgehog Irregular
1. c4 e6 2. Nf3 c5 3. Nc3 b6 4. e4 Bb7 5. d4 cxd4 6. Nxd4 Bb4 7. Ndb5! Nf6 8. Nd6+ This is the first Nd6+ move. See note to my 12th move. 8… Bxd6 9. Qxd6 Bxe4 10. Nb5 Na6 11. Qa3! Very energetic. White has massive compensation.
11… Nc5 12. Nd6+ Is this a world record? This is the second time a knight has arrived on d6 with check in the opening. Readers, do you know of a clever way to go through databases to search for this?
12…Ke7 13. Nxe4 Nfxe4 14. b4 Nb7 15. Qf3 d5 16. Bd3 Qd6 17. O-O Qxb4 Condemned man // hearty meal.
18. cxd5 exd5 19. Bxe4 dxe4 20. Qg3 Everything happens with gain of time, a sure sign the initiative will prevail. Black is being knocked around like a punching bag.
20…Qd6 21. Qxg7 Rag8 22. Bg5+ Ke8 23. Qf6 h6 24. Rfd1 Qxf6 25. Bxf6 Rh7 26. Rac1
A particularly gruesome mating attack is on the board. Black is forced to give up.
Readers’ Help Needed
Readers: does anyone have a summary list of the LB winners from 1977 to 1994?
Photo Time
Let’s wrap up with a photo from the 1991 Lloyds Bank.
From left: British Women’s many-time champion Sheila Jackson, the author, Sarah Christopher (now de Lisle), and Fenella Cohen. Lloyds Bank 1991, Cumberland Hotel, Marble Arch, London, England
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Religious values and morality
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An example of a likely confusion between theological beliefs and ethical principles inside a commonly-held religious belief system is defining the distinction between religious values and morality. Religious values and morality are different belief structures that guide actions. Morality is a term referring to an active manner that controls an individual’s behavior through reason whereas spiritual values are established frameworks that are designed to guide believers in understanding what is proper and wrong. The two structures usually create confusion despite having a number of avenues of interpretation such as religious leaders, holy books, as well as written and oral traditions. Morality and religion are not synonymous because religious values, as opposed to ethical principles, can extend or diverge from various commonly-held modern moral positions (Knapp, Lemoncelli, & VandeCreek, 2010).
Yes, various practices within the religious context might be critiqued as unethical, and an example of such practices is complete opposition to euthanasia. Euthanasia refers to the practice of painless killing of individuals suffering from painful and incurable diseases, or persons in irreversible coma conditions (Hardesty & Westerman, 2009). Euthanasia is a highly-contested practice between ethical principles and theological beliefs. According to religious beliefs, an individual’s right to life is the fundamental natural right upon which other human rights build. Therefore, attempts to justify acts of euthanasia by using some contemporary legal provisions have proved to be problematic since believers consider it a violation of the primary human rights granted by God (Hardesty & Westerman, 2009). Besides, according to the natural law, everyone has an equal right to live, and no individual or entity, or societal belief is entitled to deprive someone of that right, a provision firmly-held by religious believers (Hardesty & Westerman, 2009).
However, according to the fundamentals of ethical reasoning, it is unethical to intentionally subject a terminally ill person to a continuous pain, when it is clear beyond reasonable doubts that such a person’s condition is incurable (Knapp, Lemoncelli, & VandeCreek, 2010). Although it is illegal and against the religious values to terminate one’s life, certain factors and conditions may make acts of euthanasia ethical. According to the natural law, life should be lost naturally, and it is only God who has the power to control an individual’s life in any given circumstance. However, acts of euthanasia can take place under a person’s right to make personal life decisions. One may decide to ethically take his or her life, especially in situations of terminal illnesses (Knapp, Lemoncelli, & VandeCreek, 2010).
The fundamentals of ethical reasoning can be applied in a broad range of ways in the case of euthanasia. One of the ethical approaches to euthanasia is seeking the consent of the relatives of the terminally ill person (Hardesty & Westerman, 2009). Additionally, it is ethical to confirm beyond reasonable doubts that the terminally ill person is under intense pain and that the condition is incurable by all humanly means. Also, the principles of ethical reasoning should apply when determining whether euthanasia is the best option for a given patient (Hardesty & Westerman, 2009).
In overall, euthanasia remains a very controversial topic between ethical principles and theological beliefs. Believers hold on to the natural law that everyone has the fundamental right to live regardless of the circumstance, and that it is only God who has full control of one’s life. On the Other hand, ethical principles attempt to emphasize morality by seeing the sense of relieving terminally suffering individuals of pain through various practices such as euthanasia.
Hardesty, A., & Westerman, J. (2009). Relating Religious Beliefs to Workplace Values: Meta-Ethical Development, Locus of Control, and Conscientiousness. Academy of Management Proceedings, 2009(1), 1-6.
Knapp, S., Lemoncelli, J., & VandeCreek, L. (2010). Ethical responses when patients’ religious beliefs appear to harm their well-being. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 41(5), 405-412.
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• Дадому
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• Ці можа вадкасць для паласкання рота замяніць зубную пасту? Які правільны метад выкарыстання муса для мыцця рота?
Mouthwash is a kind of oral care product that many people like to use, especially when tooth brushing is not convenient. Washing your mouth with mouthwash can not only clean your mouth but also make your breath fresher. But the idea that replacing tooth brushing with mouthwash is wrong, tooth brushing and mouthwash are two necessary procedures for cleaning your mouth, and they can't substitute each other.
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With the rapid pace of people's lives, mouthwash may not replace the toothbrush, but it is expected that mousse mouthwash will substitute traditional toothpaste and mouthwash someday. The convenient portable mouthwash has gradually corresponded to people's tastes.
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Compare Sujata Bhatt's Search for my tongue poem, with Grace Nichols' Hurricane Hits England, and decide whether or not having one or more culture can be a positive experience.
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In both poems, Search For My Tongue and Hurricane Hits England, the authors are talking about being caught having more than one culture. We can see this from many different perspectives. First, where they begin to explain their story and trauma in short concentrated pieces of text and secondly where it shows that they are quite obviously unhappy and confused about their life. Evidence for this in Search For My Tongue is in lines three to six where she says 'I ask you, what would you do if you had two tongues in your mouth, and lost the first one, the mother tongue and could not really know the other' this tells us that she is very confused, desperate and would take help of anyone, it also tells us that she is unsure about what plan of action to take next. Evidence for this theory in Hurricane Hits England is where she says 'it took a hurricane to bring her closer, to the landscape, half the night she lay awake', this also shows us that in her story and experiences, she has deep thought about her situation and problems. this one theory doesn't itself show us that there may be a positive experience right now, but what it does show us and hint to us is that the poem may follow on and tell us a different outcome, slightly more positive if we were to guess, I gathered this when she said 'it took ...read more.
both of the poets are becoming more and more desperate for absolutely any kind of help with her problems and are gradually running out of patience. For example, where Sujata Bhatt expects us to know who she is and what she is going through, where she seems angry and that she has had enough of her stress and issues. More evidence for this comes in search for my tongue where Sujata Bhatt cuts out a whole bit of her poem and says it in her own language - this even deeply emphasises my point and shows us more that she suddenly may not feel confident enough to disclose a part of her story so easily - she has left it for us to work out ourselves. The other reason could be that she is, as said before, worn out, tired, upset, angry and has totally had enough of everything. I think in both poems the authors use metaphorical speech for effects and slightly also to hide their most uncomfortable topics with fantasy like ideas and conclusions (by putting human like features into plants and trees etcetera). The evidence for this in search for my tongue is where Sujata Bhatt uses her language and culture as her tongue and explains her 'tongue' with adjectives most known used to describe plants; the evidence is 'your mother tongue would rot, rot and die in your mouth, grows moist, grows strong veins, the bud opens, it blossoms out of my mouth', this shows how many uses she has for metaphorical speech In her poem. ...read more.
So not only has the experiences the authors have gone through made them feel confused and worried, happy and relieved, but it has left them feeling confident and open. Evidence for this in search for my tongue is 'It grows back, a stump of a shoot grows longer, grows moist, grows strong veins' 'It blossoms out of my mouth.' This shows us how calm and collected Bhatt is while telling the end of her story. The evidence in hurricane hits England is, Ah, sweet mystery, Come to let me know, that the earth is the earth is the earth. This also shows us how calm and collected Nicholls is after telling her story In summary, I think that from the points I have made, it is starting to show some positivity as she is telling her story openly, but in a concealed way (which is very clever) (concealed way refers to using metaphorical speech). To conclude the whole answer of the poem I think that being caught between two cultures is mixed in positivity; I can see this from the points I have made, which link up and show us that it is very negative at the start of the poems and then slowly becomes positive as the poem goes on, at the start of the poem the authors give us a hint that it will become positive and so this develops the main structure of the poem. The poem then has an aim in our minds and we can decipher easily how to understand some aspects of the poem. ...read more.
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Response to the question
This answer is in receipt of a question on how dual culture can be a positive experience. The question prescribes the poem 'Search For My Tongue' by Sujatta Bhatt, and the candidate has chosen an apt comparative poem, 'Hurricane Hits ...
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Response to the question
This answer is in receipt of a question on how dual culture can be a positive experience. The question prescribes the poem 'Search For My Tongue' by Sujatta Bhatt, and the candidate has chosen an apt comparative poem, 'Hurricane Hits England', by Grace Nichols. The focus is extremely good, but a question mark is raised over the extent to which the analysis is wholly effective considering the lack of appropriate quoting. Nonetheless, there is a very good understanding of the emotions of the poets as they speak to the reader in their respective poems.
Level of analysis
The poems selected lend themselves well to the question, and their is a good focus demonstrated throughout the answer, with the candidate identifying a number of poetic devices used to convey the positives about have dual nationality. I would argue though, that there is a lot said but very little proved. To focus more discreetly on what the question is specifically asking can be challenging, but it's where the most marks lie, and so a good level of understanding when it comes to structuring an analytical response is a prudent precaution. Use the PEE (Point, Evidence & Explanation) structure if you have trouble with this, because this answer would be so much better if there were quotes used as evidence from the poems as statements like this: "it is used in a way to show us that the topic is uncomfortable for her to discuss/write about, using paradox, metaphors, similes and more. (sic)" do not win any marks as it is barely even considered feature spotting - the candidate must provide evidence for each poetic device listed and analyse its effect on the reader and how well it conjures up thoughts that dual nationality can be a positive experience. This latter task is imperative, because the candidate must tie the analysis back to the question otherwise risk being marked down as being too general in their analysis.
Quality of writing
The Quality of Written Communication is below average, but there are no moments where the candidates answer becomes ambiguous and a challenge to read. The main issues are the lack of care for the standards of objective, analytical writing, such as capitalising the words of the title of a published piece of writing and enclosing the title in inverted commas like so - 'Search For My Tongue' / 'Hurricane Hits England'. It is not acceptable to see "Search for my tongue" written as this is not adhering to the rules of Standard English. Elsewhere, there could be a greater range of more complex punctuation used as this greatly improves the confidence of the answer.
Reviewed by sydneyhopcroft 19/03/2012
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Against all the odds, the world is becoming a happier place
This article is more than 13 years old
Over the past 25 years, economic growth in developing countries has translated into big increases in happiness, but people in richer countries have seen much more modest improvements
Sally Hawkins in Mike Leigh's film Happy-Go-Lucky
Sally Hawkins in Mike Leigh's film Happy-Go-Lucky
Wed 27 Aug 2008 13.00 EDT
Despite deepening economic gloom and impending climatic destruction the world is becoming a happier place, according to an analysis of quarter of a century of data on wellbeing from 45 countries around the globe. The finding goes against the received wisdom that a country's economic advances do not translate into increased wellbeing among its citizens.
The researchers who compiled the data believe increasing levels of happiness were not picked up until now because studies have tended to focus on rich countries where increases in wealth make little difference to their citizens' satisfaction with life.
"The classic view, which we are not disputing, is that there are diminishing marginal returns to economic development," said Roberto Foa at Harvard University. "So for initial levels of economic development people are escaping subsistence poverty and people's subjective levels of happiness will increase."
Once their basic needs have been fulfilled - having shelter, enough food to eat and so on - then further economic development doesn't lead to more happiness in a straightforward linear way, said Foa. Social scientists call this the "hedonic treadmill" – like the Red Queen in Lewis Carroll's Through the Looking-Glass, you keep running but don't make any progress.
However, the new analysis does suggest that measurable increases in happiness have been occurring over the past 25 years. It used data from the World Values Survey and European Values Study, which conduct regular standardised questionnaire studies in a group of countries that between them contain 90% of the world's population.
The present study, which is published in Perspectives on Psychological Science and is reported in New Scientist, used data from the 52 countries with the most complete data set from 1981 to 2007. Of these, 40 showed an increase in average happiness - as measured by their "subjective wellbeing" score - while in 12 countries happiness levels dropped. The average percentage of people saying they were "very happy" rose by 7%.
The advantage of comparing data from these surveys is that in each case the questions were asked in the same way, so changes are likely to reflect real changes in happiness rather than different ways of answering a slightly different set of questions.
Of the most improved countries, Ukraine, Moldova and Slovenia showed the largest hikes in average happiness while at the bottom of the table were Hungary, India and Australia. The US was firmly mid-table at 29th with Britain four places behind. However, both countries did better when it came to changes in the size of the happiest group of people. In Britain, the number of people saying they were "very happy" went up by around 13%. The equivalent figure for the US was around 8%. In Mexico, the number of people in that category went up by nearly 25%, a bigger rise than in any other country.
As in previous analyses of the data, Latin American countries come out as particularly happy – more so than you would expect based on their GDP alone. "Happiness is the gap between what you have and what you expect to have in life. If that gap is very small then you are happy, and if it is quite wide then naturally you are quite unhappy," said Foa.
To get happier you can either reduce your expectations or increase what you have. Foa believes that the strong religious and family traditions of Latin American societies have served to help people come to terms with what they have, while at the same time they have advanced steadily economically – so the happiness gap has been narrowed from both ends.
Another major finding from the survey is that personal freedoms, democracy and a tolerant society are important for a nation's overall happiness, particularly in richer societies. Happiness on a national scale correlated well with high scores in an index measuring how accepting people were of having immigrants, homosexuals and people of different races as their neighbours.
"In more affluent societies, people give higher priority to free choice and self-expression, which accordingly, play an increasingly important role in shaping their wellbeing," the authors write. "People living in more tolerant societies tend to be happier, regardless of their own beliefs."
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Computer Donation Program
With the help of the community, our Occupational Training Institute students are able to take donations of computers, refurbish them and give them to needy district students. The program relies on student interns to evaluate and refurbish the computers. This provides the student interns with valuable work experience in computer hardware and software technical support and customer service skills.
The students always reformat the hard drive to insure that all data is erased before the system is passed on to the students. To make this program work, we have to make sure that the computers that we receive meet our minimum specifications.
Computer Donations
The systems must meet these requirements: PC Desktop and laptop computers must be a 700 MHz Pentium III or faster or have comparable Intel-compatible CPU.
We do not accept Apple Computers
Software Specifications
Due to software licensing requirements, the only way you can donate software is to donate the actual software and licensing key. Software that is more than three years old is not accepted.
When OTI receives a system they erase the hard drive and remove all of the software and then install an operating system and application software. We cannot provide Microsoft Office software unless it is donated. For systems without MS Office, we install Open Office, a MS Office-like shareware product.
CompTechS and the students really appreciate your donations and understanding that only systems that meet our specifications are usable.
For additional information, contact the Occupational Training Institute: Joseph Lipsig at 408.864.5712 or
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Sophomore Class Alumni 2021
Today we're celebrating our sophomores who finished up a strong second year in the college ranks!
We had several alums awarded some serious postseason accolades, starting with Olivia Pirano (SUNY Albany) who had a great season for the Danes as a starter and was named to the America East All-Conference First Team. Liv Rauicci (SUNY Geneseo) also had a big year scoring 7 goals for the Knights, was named SUNYAC Rookie of the year, and awarded United Soccer Coaches Region Third Team honors.
Ianah Mackey (Manhattan College), Margot Nezaj (SUNY Albany), Emily Bini (University of New Hampshire), Gabbi Daumont (Utica College), and Sofia D'Angleo (SUNY Brockport) were all starters this season while Emily Drake (Iona College), Kyla Burns (Temple University), Megan Hart (SUNY Albany), Sofia Cassano (Bryant University), Ally Ross (SUNY Geneseo), Meg Piser (Union College), Mo Robinson (Assumption College), and Olivia Maltbie (Babson College) all made significant contributions and/or made several starts.
Finally, Isabella O’Clair of The College of Saint Rose, has advanced to the NCAA Division II Elite 8 today with a 3-0 win today. Congratulations to all of our super sophomores and good luck in the next round to The College of Saint Rose!
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Best Tips for Post-Workout Recovery
One of the best tips for post-workout muscle recovery is to ensure that you never skip a workout. Improper workouts can hinder your progress and cause injuries. Also, it’s important that you always stretch after a workout. Stretching helps make sure that you avoid further damage to muscles, tendons, and ligaments by stretching out the area. In fact, if you do not stretch then you are more likely to injure yourself, as well as place unnecessary stress on other parts of your body.
Encouraging your muscles to rest and increase their circulation is extremely important to aid them to release lactic acid accumulated during intense exercise and to promote quick recovery and reduce the risk of further injury. A certified massage therapist can assist in finding and working with neglected areas of your muscular tissue that may be in need of additional stimulation. This includes your hands, arms, shoulders, back, and neck; as well as the muscles and tissues in your abs, thighs, and legs.
Eating right before and after an intense workout can be one of the greatest tips for post-workout muscle recovery because the foods you consume can have a direct influence on your performance and recovery as well as the quality and duration of your workout. Eating the right combination of foods can give you the energy you need to push through your training session, but can also give you the nutrients needed to recover fully between workouts.
The first tip to recovery nutrition is to ensure you get enough protein. Protein is essential for muscle repair and growth, and consuming lean red meats, chicken, fish, legumes, nuts, and eggs are excellent protein sources. For those who are lactose intolerant or find that eating dairy products can affect their sleep, soy milk and tofu can be an effective substitute. Whey protein is also a good post-workout meal choice. However, it is important to note that consuming protein will not automatically provide the adequate nutrients and calories necessary for recovery; in fact, protein will actually take many hours to provide the necessary nutrients.
Another one of the tips for post-workout nutrition is adequate hydration. Drink plenty of water to prevent dehydration between workouts. This will help keep your body hydrated and reduce the risk of experiencing soreness or injury when working out. Consume sports drinks with added electrolytes like sports drinks with a sports drink mix that includes caffeine and sodium to further enhance your hydration.
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To promote healthy recovery and a pain-free recovery, you should schedule a time to rest at night. Schedule at least 8 hours of sleep, so your body can replenish the glycogen stores that were lost during your workout session. Also, a lack of sleep can contribute to muscle soreness and loss of strength, so give yourself at least 8 hours of sleep.
A final piece of advice for muscle recovery and a pain-free workout is to ensure good blood flow to the area. The increased blood flow will help repair damaged nerves and provide nutrients to the injured area. When the area is injured, you want to avoid using ice or heat to reduce swelling, and instead want to bring the warm, damp heat of a hot shower into the area to add moisture. Also, drinking a large glass of water immediately after your workout will help replenish the nutrients that were used in your workout. Also, drink protein shakes to supplement your diet for faster muscle recovery.
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06: Extra Project 1: Grade Calculator
By now you’re all pretty familiar with Python. We’ve seen how it can be used as a calculator, how it can handle large sets of information with the help of lists and FOR loops, but there’s still so much more we can do with Python (as well as other languages). You will notice the labs begin to add these elements together, so here’s a little DIY project to follow along and »
03: Lists
Introduction Many programming tasks require the programmer to manipulate data in many ways. Often, we are given a finite set of data and must perform some sort of operation on it (arithmetic, sorting, etc.). Let’s look at one way to handle sets of information in Python. Let’s say we’re given a grocery list, and told to store it into a single variable, groceryList. Python has a built in data type called a »
02: The For Loop
Introduction In all areas of business, there are often times where we need to repeat a single task several times. Sometimes, we have to do something two or three times before we can really say we’re “done”. Even more often, however, are times when we must repeat ourselves hundreds or thousands of times! Let’s say we have a simple example, where we must start with the number 20 and must subtract one from »
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The Choral Foundation preserves and promotes the unique heritage of English choral music at the Chapel Royal, Hampton Court Palace and makes it accessible to all.
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Year Published: 2020
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A Time to Be Bold
Socialism is having a moment in the sun. It's a chance to push a bold, transformative vision of what a society for the many rather than the few can look like.
A pedestrian traffic light with Karl Marx pictured on the 200th anniversary of Marx's birth in Trier, Germany. Thomas Lohnes / Getty Images
A spate of recent candidates running against establishment politicians, from Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez to Cynthia Nixon, has breathed new life into an old idea, democratic socialism. But when someone proclaims themselves to be a democratic socialist, what do they mean? What should they mean? And once armed with an alternative vision to capitalism, what should they do?
As socialists run for office or consider endorsing progressives, they face potential pitfalls — most importantly that as electoral work deepens, the vision of socialism risks being watered down or even falling from view. Electoral work is important, but our political independence as socialists depends on our fidelity to this vision.
Capitalism Against Socialism
To talk about why, we need to first talk about what’s wrong with capitalism — and what a socialist alternative would look like.
Capitalism is the chief source of human suffering today and a system that promotes the worst of human behaviors. Socialists believe that when a society’s main resources are produced and distributed by private business, exploitation, inequalities in opportunity, and egoistic behavior result.
First, exploitative relations between workers and employers are the core feature of capitalism. Because a small number of people own the productive assets of society, most people have to seek out these businesses for work. The wealth produced from this work flows to the owners of capital even though workers produced it. This is true of every employer-employee relation, even those with union representation and nice benefit packages.
Second, within capitalism, how well people do in life is hugely impacted by birth. Children born into wealthy families have a leg up on staying wealthy as adults. Children born working class and poor have a steeper hill to climb and are much more likely to be working class and poor later in life.
In other words, capitalism is a system that is built on inequalities of opportunities. And these inequalities are its life blood.
A huge number of people that need to be hired by the wealthy are reproduced every generation. Without them, firms would have nobody to exploit. While some employees might be able to climb job ladders, to become a manager, or maybe one day run their own business, as a whole the working class can’t ever achieve collective mobility under capitalism. Workers are collectively and permanently unfree within capitalism.
Finally, capitalism produces conflict rather than cooperation, competition rather than solidarity. We compete over jobs. We compete at work for promotions, and those of us that are best rewarded are the ones that are concerned above all with ourselves. We compete with workers in faraway countries and workers desperate to get into ours. And we compete as classes, as races, and as genders.
This conflict plays out on a totally unequal playing field; those that win rarely do so because of merit. That people continue to find solidarity in their communities, their relationships, their families, and their associations speaks more to people’s basic decency than anything about capitalism.
The Socialist Horizon
What is our alternative? Neal Meyer recently defined democratic socialism succinctly in a recent piece for Jacobin, saying “we want to build a world where everyone has a right to food, healthcare, a good home, an enriching education, and a union job that pays well. We think this kind of economic security is necessary for people to live rich and creative lives — and to be truly free.”
This definition echoes one recently given by Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on The Late Show:
While these reforms are crucial to countering the misery we face under capitalism, it runs the risk of equating socialism with welfare liberalism or social democracy. But these things are not the same.
To get a better sense of what socialism is, we need to consider two separate questions. First, what are the principles and values that any good society should promote? And second, what are the kinds of institutions and social arrangements that are best suited for the promotion of those values?
First is the principle of equality of opportunity. Chances in life and the ability to flourish should be equally available to everyone. Within capitalism circumstances of birth, luck, or some other inborn quality tends to determine how well people do in life — not one’s sole efforts. The distribution of most things — even the most basic necessities like food, shelter, health, and old-age security — is dependent on people’s ability to pay.
But socialists believe that everyone, regardless of those circumstances, deserves to flourish. Goods should be distributed on the basis of need, not ability to pay.
Second, the principle of solidarity. Socialists believe that people should care about and care for each other. Capitalist markets, on the other hand, divide. We think the principle of solidarity should be at the core of any good society. A socialist vision of emancipation is one where our institutions help us care about and for each other.
These are the basic principles that should guide society more broadly — people should have an equal shot in realizing their goals and dreams, and we should care for each other. In this sense, socialism is about outcomes. Capitalism not only fails to produce these outcomes — it is their chief barrier.
In capitalism, economic power appears separated from political power. The economic power derived from owning productive assets allows capitalists to get rich while keeping workers’ wages as low as possible, decide what is produced without any democratic input from the rest of society, hide harmful aspects of their products, and foist the harmful costs of doing business (“negative externalities”) onto the rest of us. Capitalists say all of this is justified because it’s “their property.”
Socialism aims to socialize that power. Capitalists shouldn’t be able to hold all that power and impact all of society — it’s undemocratic and unjust.
But socialists don’t just want to replace private ownership with state ownership. In the same way we don’t believe that capitalists should be able to have disproportionate control over economic resources, we don’t think unaccountable state officials and bureaucrats should have the power to control investment and production through “socialism from above.” In some cases, like the former Soviet Union, the failings of such a system are as clear as those of capitalism itself.
The core aim of socialism is not just the state gaining control of industry, but empowering the broad masses of people — in their workplaces, in their communities, in their homes, in their schools, in their politics — to be in the driver’s seat of society.
Even in the Nordic countries, where high levels of state ownership are combined with political democracy and a high standard of living, socialism is a long ways off. Making people’s lives materially better isn’t enough. Neither is it enough to install union representation for workers. These changes would be welcome, but socialism moves well beyond them.
What Is Socialism, Then?
So if social-democratic countries like Norway aren’t socialist, what is socialism?
Moving towards socialism involves subordinating the economic power of capitalists to the social power of the people. But fully realizing it does away with capitalists entirely. Only when the private decisions that have massive public implications are subjected to popular control will we have a democratic society.
This democratization could be achieved through a number of concrete institutions: grassroots state planning agencies, workers’ cooperatives, participatory boards. But what is essential is that the people have real, not just formal, democratic control over society’s wealth.
Our vision of socialism has no room for the following: production for the purpose of accumulating profit, private ownership of the main productive assets, markets for labor where most people need to sell their work to survive, and states that are unresponsive to the will of the people.
Only under these conditions can we begin to construct the concrete socialist institutions that will promote and reproduce equality of opportunity and solidarity.
To Be a Socialist
The socialist perspective is defined by this long-term vision. But how should this vision relate to the practical demands of politics? How should it inform our practice?
We are in a moment of new opportunity, but being a socialist requires walking a fine line between being too opportunistic and forgetting our principles, and being so rigid that we don’t let experience open new paths.
A crude rendering of socialist history divides the movement into reformist and revolutionary tendencies. Whereas reformists supposedly advocated revising socialist doctrine to better fit the day-to-day practice of politics, revolutionaries pushed socialist practice to line up with its radical alternative vision to capitalism, refusing to water down socialist theory and practice.
But the democratic socialist tradition has always rejected this dualism. Reform and revolution go hand in hand.
Socialist leadership in popular fights like Medicare for All can transform people’s consciousness and change perceptions of what’s politically possible, eventually leading to support for socialist goals. Moreover, reforms can build the working class’s fighting capacity, expose the limits of capitalism’s ability to satisfy our sense of justice, equality, and solidarity, and pave the way for more radical demands. Reforms can do more than just improve people’s lives — they can lead to revolution.
The fight for socialism requires both contesting elections and building a mass movement. Electing socialists will popularize socialist ideas, push a pro-worker legislative agenda, and provide invaluable experience for socialist governance. But a grassroots movement is also necessary, both to hold socialist politicians accountable and to mobilize against capitalist reaction to even the most modest reform agenda.
A refusal to engage with electoral politics condemns socialists to marginality. But neglecting grassroots mobilization has often meant that socialist governments were powerless to overcome anti-democratic capitalist subversion. Democratic socialists today, as in the past, have to avoid both pitfalls — of becoming revolutionaries without revolution and reformists without reforms.
In pursuing reforms and in electoral efforts, socialists will work in broad alliance with other progressive forces. But it is one thing to recognize the need for such alliances and another to consider the particular form that socialist participation within them should take. At issue is how we think about our place within the broader resurgence of progressive politics since 2016.
Socialists, and the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) in particular, have not been the only players in this resurgence. Organizations like Our Revolution, Justice Democrats, and Brand New Congress have capitalized on the energy of the Sanders campaign to push the Democratic Party to the left. Indeed, though she is a member of DSA, Ocasio-Cortez recently gave more credit to Justice Democrats and Brand New Congress for her success, as they were the first groups to seriously encourage her to run.
Socialists should welcome the vital role that these organizations have played in a left electoral revival. But what distinguishes socialists from other forces on the progressive left?
The answer, of course, is our vision of socialism.
This vision gives coherence and purpose to socialist strategy. We not only want to introduce a bit of humanity where we can in a cruel and unforgiving world, but also to transform the relations of class power that govern society.
Socialists should be good-faith partners in campaigns for progressive change. But our role is also to push them beyond their limits and make the case for more fundamental social transformation. The question is how we effectively engage in coalitions while maintaining our independent political identity. After all, without this identity and the vision behind it, why bother being a socialist?
Historically, as socialism’s political profile grew, so too did the risk of its assimilation into an amorphous “progressivism” over which its influence gradually waned. Socialists should thus beware the temptation to mistake the opportunity presented by the recent leftward political shift for a validation of socialist politics per se. Our primary goal as socialists is not to push this or that progressive reform or candidate, but to build a movement for socialism. What makes us socialists is not just our support for such reforms and candidates. Rather, it is because we are socialists that we support them.
Our strength is therefore not measured by legislative or electoral victories, important as they are, but by our ability to infuse these with a socialist significance by connecting them to our vision of the future. Pushing the political needle to the left is not enough; the point is to use this to forcefully make the case for transcending capitalism.
What’s in a Name?
This is why it is crucial for socialists to be frank about what we want and who we are. Our long-term vision is what differentiates us from other progressive forces. We have to participate in movements or campaigns openly as socialists. This is not vanity, but a strategic consideration. If we soft-pedal our political identity out of political expediency, our victories no longer become ours, and we undercut our own purpose.
For this reason, insisting on the “socialist” label and defining what we mean by it is not a trivial matter. The spectacular rehabilitation of socialism as a legitimate position within American politics, particularly among young people, is one of the most significant developments for the socialist movement in decades. So far the capaciousness of the term has been an asset, as it has helped to legitimize our political identity and brought more people into contact with socialist ideas.
As the popularity of socialism grows, we shouldn’t define it downward. Liberals will do that for us. Though centrist dead-enders will continue to red-bait socialists, more farsighted liberals will try to capitalize on socialism’s popularity.
Especially since Ocasio-Cortez’s primary upset, we’ve seen a wave of liberals hold her up as the future of the Democratic Party while downplaying the specific appeal of socialism and redefining “democratic socialism” in terms that make it virtually indistinguishable from their preferred brand of liberalism. This shows our growing influence, but it also brings the risk of cooptation. As socialists, we shouldn’t evacuate socialism of its meaning as we push Democrats left.
The current moment is exciting, but socialists shouldn’t pat ourselves too hard on the back. As socialism becomes political common sense, membership counts and poll numbers become less reliable measures of the advancement of socialist ideas. Liberals will try to claim many self-described “socialists” as their own. Socialists thus need to be clear about what distinguishes them from liberals if they are not to cede the initiative.
Whatever people actually mean by “socialism,” its newfound popularity is a tremendous opportunity. But the question for democratic socialism remains the same as ever: should we content ourselves with being the advanced wing of liberalism, or can we be something more? Socialist movements have historically become victims of their own success: as our strength grows, so does the temptation to sacrifice long-term vision for short-term gains. As part of building on our momentum, socialists should reckon with what our role is as socialists in the broader progressive ecosystem. Are we just the shock troops for various progressive causes? A canvassing army for progressive candidates, even non-socialist ones? Who is organizing whom?
The challenge for socialists has always been to live in the tension between our commitment to total transformation and the exigencies of practical politics. But our identity as socialists ultimately hangs on our long-term vision of socialism. It is what defines us and what sustains our ability to push ever-bolder demands that shift the limits of the possible. Our recent successes have brought new opportunities for growth. As we take advantage of them, we should insist on this vision. After all, what are we without it?
Update: A previous phrase in this piece read: “In some cases, like the former Soviet Union, the failings of such a system are nearly as deep as those of capitalism itself.” It has been changed to “In some cases, like the former Soviet Union, the failings of such a system are as clear as those of capitalism itself” to better reflect the views of the authors.
The authors’ intention was to point out the failure of authoritarian collectivism to meet the democratic standard of socialism, not to imply a preference for the Soviet Union. As the rest of the essay makes clear, the authors view democracy as essential to any socialism worthy of the name, and as democratic socialists we condemn all economic and social systems that disempower the vast majority of workers. We regret that our original formulation may have contributed to a misunderstanding of our position.
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Sports Sportsin partnership with NESN your connection to The Boston Globe
Patriots to tackle problem
Belichick eyes defensive lapses
FOXBOROUGH - Eyes tend to roll and heads start to shake whenever coach Bill Belichick launches into one of his diatribes about how the Patriots need to improve in this area or that area. But Belichick is looking at his team with the discerning eye of a football coach and what he sees is a defense that is letting far too many ball carriers bounce away after first contact.
Following the Patriots' 49-28 demolition of the Miami Dolphins Sunday, Belichick mentioned the team's tackling woes.
"We didn't tackle very well defensively all day, particularly in the second half," he said. "But overall, when you score those kind of points, you've got a chance, and the guys did a really good job today."
Although the game was never really in doubt, the Dolphins produced their second-highest average per carry total of the season (6.0), rushing 30 times for 179 yards and three touchdowns. Miami's Jesse Chatman came off the bench to replace an injured Ronnie Brown and ran seven times for 73 yards and a touchdown, including a 30-yard run late in the fourth quarter that illustrated the problem. Chatman broke a handful of tackles before finally being corralled by Adalius Thomas.
It was the second week in a row the Patriots defense allowed 6 yards per carry or more on the ground.
The Dallas Cowboys averaged 6.5 yards per rush (15 for 97) with running back Marion Barber pinballing off Patriots defenders. New England, which is allowing only 274.9 yards of total offense per game (92.7 on the ground), beat both Dallas and Miami while missing tackles, but bad habits have a way of catching up with a team.
This week's opponent, the Washington Redskins, have in Clinton Portis a running back known to slip a few tackles in addition to elusive receivers Santana Moss and Antwaan Randle El.
Few things irk Belichick more than a fundamental flaw in his defense. For all the awe factor of those Tom Brady-to-Randy Moss highlight-reel hook-ups, the game still comes down to the basics - blocking and tackling.
"We have to get better with that," safety Rodney Harrison said. "It comes from many things. It comes from technique. It comes from being tired, which is no excuse. We know we can do it. It's a matter of just doing it and making sure we have the proper technique and we have 11 guys running to the ball."
Belichick didn't go into specifics on why his defense, which has always been among the most fundamentally sound units in the league, suddenly is letting ball carriers squirt away, but he put some of the blame on himself.
"Well, tackling involves a lot of things and I think there are multiple reasons for it and multiple guys involved in it," Belichick said. "It's not one player or one situation. It's just we have to do a better job. We have to coach it better, we have to tackle better. We just need to do a better job."
One curious coaching call by the Patriots came on the Dolphins' fourth-and-1 play in the first quarter. Despite what appeared to be a running situation, the Patriots had their dime defense (six defensive backs) on the field, with four linebackers and one lineman. The result was the Patriots getting overpowered at the line of scrimmage and Ronnie Brown pounding the ball up the middle for a 19-yard gain.
This might have been what Belichick was referring to when he said some of the breakdowns were a result of coaching.
So, how can the Patriots tackle their tackling problem? Just like a ball carrier, you square up to and approach it head on.
"Some of it's classroom work, some of it's film work, some of it is on the field," said Belichick. "There's no way you can go out there and really play at full-speed game tempo on the practice field [because] it's practice.
"It's as close as you can make it to being a game tempo, but it's not the same. But you still do all of those things in preparation and to adjust the problem and try to improve it. It's certainly something that we can do better and coach better."
Part of the problem Sunday might have been the 42-7 halftime lead the Patriots built, although Miami averaged 5 yards per carry (14 rushes for 70 yards) in the first half. It's simple human nature to let up a bit with such a large cushion.
Harrison dismissed that as being an issue and so did Belichick. Execution is execution, regardless of the scoreboard, and a team is either executing correctly or it's not.
"I think we just have to do a better job," Belichick said. "Our leverage and where we were positioned and the actual technique of wrapping up, all of those things are a factor, and like I said, it starts with - if we don't play well - it starts with the coaching, so I need to do a better job. The players need to do a better job. I think we all can do better than we did in that fundamental aspect of the game, so that's what we'll work on."
Mike Reiss of the Globe Staff contributed to this report.
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Health care cost increased from $75 billion in 1970, to $2.6 trillion in 2010, and is forecasted to reach $4.8 trillion by 2021 making up one fifth of the United States GDP. On the international level, US health care expenditure per capita far exceeds other countries in the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development. Several significant factors are driving the changes in the healthcare landscape, primarily: an aging population, increasing Medicare and Medicaid costs, the Affordable Care Act.
The challenge for healthcare providers is to dynamically adapt to industry changes without losing focus on their strategic goals and objectives. Medical services provided by hospitals and physicians make up half of the total amount spent on health care. Facility departments for healthcare providers are constantly challenged with modifying facilities to the continuously changing industry requirements, while complying with tight budget and time constraints. Possible solutions include building of new property, renovation of existing, and leasing of external property. Facilities departments have to manage a wide variety of projects ranging in complexity (e.g. renovation of office space versus construction of a new multi-million dollar facility), type (e.g. research lab versus inpatient facility versus office space), and value (with cost ranging from a few thousand dollars to hundreds of millions of dollars). Projects often require moving staff and equipment from one location to another and inter-project dependencies are common. Numerous stakeholders are involved in a project, both internal (e.g. departments, users) and external (contractors, regulatory bodies). Facilities department frequently operate with limited project management resources and under the constraint of avoiding disruption to ongoing healthcare services or contamination of hospital facilities.
In order to face such challenges and uncertainties, facility departments for healthcare providers must:
• Create consistent processes for communicating to client the project status, including schedule, cost, and key decisions.
• Identify internal and external activities and interrelationships to achieve successful occupancy, activation, and maintenance
• Identify opportunity for design standards adoption, reducing inventory needs and improving maintenance ability
• Provide tools and processes to move from a reactive problem solving to proactive problem solving culture
• Create a formal process for providing input and review from various stakeholders early in the project’s development
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Who Lost China?
It is the 1950s. Senator Joseph McCarthy and his henchman Roy Cohn target and humiliate our diplomats for accurately reporting an eventual Mao victory in China. Jack Service and his family are at the center of the storm. How are things different...
Jeff DeLaurentis Knows a Lot About Cuba
It's hard for an American to make friends in Cuba, circa 1990. But Jeff DeLaurentis finds a way, and learns that Communists can be complicated. And what are all of those old cars doing in Havana, anyway?
Instagram feed @AmDipStories
American Diplomat Podcast
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No-spin bracelets
Do you quickly tire of bracelets that turn on your wrist? These are engineered to be weighted to the bottom so gravity does the work to prevent the bracelet from spinning. They can also be worn a bit looser if you prefer to wear them more like a bangle.
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How Harsh Are DWI Penalties in Illinois?
Illinois courts are pretty harsh when it comes to drunk driving offenses. As such, DWI penalties in Illinois carry both administrative and criminal consequences that can make your life extremely difficult.
The penalties in the state differ per case. The actual amount offenders need to pay will depend on their blood alcohol concentration (BAC), their age, whether they had a child in their vehicle when they were stopped, whether they were driving on the wrong side of the road and whether they had a previous conviction. Any of these factors can increase penalty severity.
DWI Penalties in Illinois
DWI penalties in Illinois are divided into three categories as per severity:
First Offense
A first offense is a Class A misdemeanor. It can result in a year in prison, a fine of up to $2500, and it can also lead to a one or two-year license suspension. If you are under 21 years old, you face license suspension for two years.
Second Offense
In Illinois, a second DWI offense is also considered a Class A misdemeanor that carries a mandatory prison sentence of five days or 240 hours of community service. Additionally, offenders can get their driver’s license revoked for five years if they have a previous charge.
Third Offense
A third offense is considered a Class 2 felony. If charged, offenders can face three to seven years in prison and a fine amounting to $25,000. Their license can also be revoked for ten years following the offense. To get it back, you need to apply for and acquire a Restricted Driving Permit (RDP) and maintain it for at least five years. Additionally, you can only drive to essential locations such as a medical center, school, workplace, etc.
To get an RDP, you also need to install an ignition interlock device, aka a Breathalyzer, in your car for $30 a month. You have to pay the fee out of pocket. If convicted for a third time, offenders cannot apply for a reinstated license, and if they are charged with a DWI offense again, they can face a prison sentence of up to 15 years. In case you are charged with aggravated DWI, the jail time can increase, and you can also face other consequences that can make your life extremely difficult.
Any DWI offense in Illinois can make your life a living hell, so you should avoid them as much as possible. However, if you are charged with a third DWI in Illinois, don’t lose hope. At Covert Marrero Covert, we have experienced DWI & DUI attorneys in Warrenville who can get your penalty reduced and help you secure a driving permit. We provide aggressive representation for all of our clients so you can rest easy knowing that your case is in capable hands.
Retain An Experienced Illinois DWI Lawyer
Schedule a free consultation today at our offices in Warrenville, Naperville, and Schaumburg, IL. We will be happy to sit down with you and discuss how we can help you. Our DUI attorneys have extensive experience defending clients against both misdemeanor and felony charges. As such, they can help you understand the facts surrounding your case and develop an appropriate strategy.
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Startram could usher in era of low-cost space travel
James Powell
Question 1: How did the Startram concept originate?
Gordon Danby and I invented the superconducting Maglev transportation system in 1966 when we were working for Brookhaven National Laboratory. Based on our 1966 inventions, Japan has built and is operating a 300 mph Maglev passenger transport system. Subsequently, in the 1990s, I started working on how to use Maglev to launch large volumes of payloads into orbit at very low cost. I realized that traveling in evacuated tunnels with no air drag, maglev vehicles could reach orbital speeds with extremely low energy inputs. At 8 kilometers per second, it takes only 10 kilowatt hours of electrical energy per kilogram of payload. Using magnetic levitation and propulsion, spacecraft operating in a maglev can propel multi-ton payloads to orbit, albeit at high g forces. I have collaborated with a number of people on this project and we have all come to the conclusion that this concept is feasible.
Question 2: You have developed GEN 1, and GEN 2 concepts. What distinguishes each of these generations?
GEN 1 Startram is designed to accelerate unmanned cargo craft to orbital speed of 8 kilometers per second in an evacuated underground tunnel. The cargo craft leaves the tunnels exit into the atmosphere at an altitude of about 16,000 feet. It then coasts up through the atmosphere into space. Upon reaching the desired orbital altitude, a small on-board rocket is fired to establish the payload’s final orbit. With the aid of an onboard rocket, this GEN 1 system should be able to take cargo into LEO. Due to the 30g loads as it accelerates in the evacuated tunnel GEN 1 would not be able to take humans or live animals into orbit. The GEN 2 system would be considerably more difficult to develop and implement, and would require a magnetically levitated tube leading to an altitude of 60,000 feet, where the atmospheric density is very low. GEN 2, however, would have the capacity to take humans directly to orbit.
Question 3: You have also developed a GEN 1.5 concept.
Yes, the GEN 1.5 would effectively be a hybrid between GEN 1 and GEN 2. GEN 1.5 would use rockets after it entered the atmosphere to overcome atmospheric drag forces. instead of using the GEN 2 magnetically levitated evacuated launch tube that would ascend to an altitude of 60,000 feet, where the atmospheric density is very low. It would need a longer tunnel and an optimized hybrid rocket, but it could still be built within twenty years. It could bring about 100 passengers to orbit on each launch. It could be used for tourism, and would be considerably easier to implement than GEN 2.
Question 4 : You have claimed that a GEN 1 system could be developed for $20 billion. Given the tendency of large-scale projects to go overbudget, is this cost estimate realistic?
The cost would probably be more than $20 billion. I could see this project costing $40 billion, due to red tape and developmental difficulties. But even at $40 billion, the project would be a bargain. We have already sunk $150 billion into the international space station and have little to show for it.
Question 5: You also claim that a GEN 1 system could deposit large payloads into orbit for only $50 per kilogram, or about 1% of current launch costs. How confident are you of those figures?
The costs would depend greatly on how much payload you put into orbit. The system is completely reusable, and the electricity needed isn’t very expensive, only about 1 dollar per kilogram of payload. The $50 per kilogram figure is based on putting 100,000 tons per year into orbit. The current launch rate is about 200 tons per year, so this assumes that a major push into space occurs.
Question 6: What activity could justify putting 100,000 tons into orbit?
We see space-based solar power satellites as being a main driver of startram. There have been extensive studies on solar power satellites, and the biggest hurdle is the cost of putting so much material into orbit. Startram effectively solves that problem. And if we can have enough solar power satellites beaming clean, low cost electric power closer to earth, that would greatly ameliorate the world’s long term energy situation.
Question 7: How high would the evacuated tunnels need to be? Could they be made from standard materials?
The higher the better, but we would like to get to an altitude of 4 kilometers or higher. There are places in Alaska, China, and Peru that could provide that altitude. They would be drilled using conventional boring machines and lined with concrete. The construction methods would be similar to the building of the chunnel between Britain and France, only simpler, and require a much smaller excavation volume.
Question 8: Wouldn’t maintaining an evacuated tunnel present difficulties?
Most of the time the tunnel would be mechanically sealed with a shutter, and would only open for the few seconds when the cargo craft is accelerating in the tunnel. The tricky part would be the transition from a near vacuum to the atmosphere. We propose to use a magneto-hydrodynamic (MHD) current to pump the air away. The combination of an MHD window and a steam ejection system would effectively solve the problem. The small amount of air that managed to get through the MHD would be frozen by cryopanels and then pumped out after the cargo craft had left the tunnel, and it had been reseated by the mechanical shutter.
Question 9: How would you power this system?
The best way would be through superconducting magnetic energy storage. Between launches, superconducting loops store the energy required for the launch in a sequence of superconductivity loops located along the acceleration tunnel. As the magnetically levitated cargo craft approaches a given superconducting energy storage loop, a pulsed heating coil inside the superconductor into its normal high resistance state. The stored magnetic energy created by the superconductor current then inductively transfers into a closely coupled copper loop (more than 99% of the stored energy is transferred). The copper loop then powers the aluminum propulsion windings in the acceleration tunnel, magnetically accelerating the cargo craft to higher speed . This concept has not been demonstrated but I don’t anticipate that being a major problem.
Question 10: What is the most common criticism that you receive from this concept?
The concept is sufficiently radical that many people have a hard time grasping it. The aerospace industry has been fixated on rockets for the past fifty years, and
costs have only come down marginally. Failure rates are still high. I haven’t received any trenchant criticisms regarding any specific detail of the concept. There are no potential “showstoppers” to this idea, it is simply a matter of getting enough funding.
Question 11: Assuming adequate funding, how long would it take to get a system up and running?
With an aggressive program, it could be done within a decade. With a more pedestrian effort, it would probably take 20 years. But the technical issues associated with Startram are much less than the comparable issues associated with the Apollo program, and Apollo took less than a decade to meet its objectives.
Question 12: Have you been actively seeking funding for Startram?
Not actively. I have been more focused on getting funding for our new 2nd generation maglev system, which is much lower in cost than the present 1st generation Japanese Maglev system that was based on our original 1966 inventions. The new 2nd generation Maglev system can transport fully loaded highway trucks, personal autos, and freight containers at lower cost than by highway. The much higher revenue for the 2nd generation Maglev system will enable private investors to build maglev routes without needing Government subsidies. So far, given the costs of developing Startram, neither the Government nor venture capitalists are interested. But GEN 1 could be privately financed if sufficiently wealthy individuals or corporations realized that this system could bring in revenues of hundreds of billions of dollars per year.
Question 13: Do you see the development of Startram as inevitable?
I do. If humanity is going to have a large-scale presence in space, then Startram will be need to be developed. Conventional rockets can’t get much better, and are far too costly, unreliable, and dangerous. The space elevator would require a breakthrough in materials, and collisions with space debris would be a serious problem. Once the GEN 1 and GEN 1.5 systems are developed, the entire solar system will rapidly become within humanity’s reach.
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Bill Maher on Trump Energy Policy
May 28, 2016
Trump flack predictable ignoramus. Has memorized talking points.
16 Responses to “Bill Maher on Trump Energy Policy”
1. […] via Bill Maher on Trump Energy Policy — Climate Denial Crock of the Week […]
2. The US is growing its economy and cutting carbon emissions. We have 750,000 renewable energy related jobs. There are more jobs in wind than there are in coal. And if you want to see a great middle class job — look at the guys who go up and perform maintenance on wind turbines. These guys make twice that of your average coal miner so there’s no comparison.
This notion that economic growth and high jobs are linked to dirty fuels is complete and utter bunk. Look at Sweden, look at Norway, look at Germany. The countries that are cutting carbon the fastest are among the most prosperous. Spain is a red herring in that it would be in trouble regardless of its energy policies. Spain would be having more problems if it weren’t transitioning to renewable energy. And if you want to see a country that’s being wrecked due to its dependence on single source fossil fuels or as a result of fossil fuel burning you could generate a long, long list —
Australia losing its great barrier reef, the Maldives who are under existential threat due to sea level rise, Bangladesh due to sea level rise, Vietnam losing its delta food production due to sea level rise, India facing endemic drought due to warming, Nigeria whose economy and political system has been in turmoil due to fossil fuel dependence, Syria wrecked by climate change related drought and the resource curse that is fossil fuels, Russia crashing in debt due to fossil fuel dependence, Venezuala crashing due to climate change related drought and the fossil fuel resource curse, Canada suffering city-wrecking fires due to climate change and political instability due to the resource curse, Brazil losing its rainforests due to climate change, suffering expanding Zika outbreaks due to climate change, and suffering risk of city-wrecking drought due to climate change.
I could go on and on and on. Fossil fuel burning is poverty and environmental wreckage all wrapped into one. An energy transition would employ vastly more people and save whole industries by preventing much of the wealth of the natural world from being wasted in their entirety.
• ubrew12 Says:
“I could go on and on and on.” and, briefly, I will: there are now as many dead trees in California… as people. Fire season is kicking off soon, and 40 million piles of kindling are interspersed among her forests. Lake Mead has never been lower, and its no secret she’s going away. This tragedy is here, and its ours.
3. Tom Bates Says:
We do not have 750,000 renewable energy jobs, the solar folks claim about 180,000 total. The number of jobs would be near zero if the Feds and States were not stealing tax dollars from some and giving that money as tax credits to others. The forcing from CO2 has actually been measured. it is 0.080F which is pretty small. 2/10’s of a watt when solar gain is 1360 watts per sq. meter.
• ubrew12 Says:
My accounting differs: At our current rate of increase, 450ppm CO2 in a decade, is unavoidable, after which 2C of rise is inevitable. Add 0.5C of rise due to coal aerosols raining out once we transition off coal. Add 0.5C expected this century from melted permafrost, and not accounted for elsewhere. We’re at 3C, right now, completely unavoidable (except through geoengineering). What happens at 3C? Most Scientists believe that by then the Amazon will have burned down. When that happens, another 1.5C, taking us to 4.5C: a potential extinction event. So this is all very serious, especially as that permafrost ‘fuse’, once it gets lit, never goes out again (except with some radical geoengineering).
• jpcowdrey Says:
Tom, the breadth and depth of your ignorance leaves one breathless.
• Tom, earlier on Climate Crocks, you made the following completely false claim about NASA’s global temperature work:
I responded by posting a complete debunking of that claim of yours; my response included my own global temperature results that I computed from raw temperature data. I showed that the NASA warming trend could be replicated very closely without any “estimates which are higher than the actual temperatures they replace”.
You never responded. And now you show up here pushing more nonsense. Why should anyone believe you about anything when you a post blatantly false claim such as the one above and then fail to admit that you were wrong after said claim was completely debunked?
Perhaps you didn’t see my reply. If that is the case, you should take the time to read it. For your convenience, here is the link:
I will be awaiting your acknowledgement of my response and a retraction of your completely false claim about NASA.
4. Tom Bates Says:
Per NOAA the pacific sea level ocean rise trend is 3 inches in 100 years.
5. Lionel Smith Says:
Does ‘Flawless’ (the irony) understand what ‘a half standard deviation’ could mean? She and ‘red tie’ (who is he BTW?) make a right pair who don’t want to grasp that the world has changed and so has our understanding of how global systems interact, outside of economics that is.
• jpcowdrey Says:
Flawless, Melissa Harris-Perry, has a doctorate in Poli-Sci, so yes, she probably has at least a basic grasp of statistics and sociometrics.
‘Red tie’ is Wayne Allyn Root, and he’s an idiot. His great claim to fame is suggesting Obama didn’t attend Columbia (25,000+ students) because he attended Columbia at the same time and never met him.
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Hawker Hunter Mk.58A
Saw a strange symbol on flightradar24 this afternoon near Hawaii.
It appears this aircraft has been around for awhile - a British post WW II aircraft.
My guess is the aircraft is conducting some test bed exercises or ?
Aggressor squadron maybe. Cheap to run, nice to fly.
Very versatile aircraft. Used to be used for towing gunnery targets, to fly at very low level towards (occasionally) unsuspecting warships in the hope of being mistaken for an exocet and even to spray nerve agent simulant over troops undergoing NBCD training.
Flew in a T7 once - nowhere near as slippery as a single seater, but still not a bad way to be paid to spend an afternoon. I see the guy who was pilot that day is now flying commercial spaceships.
Somebody landed a Cessna on a highway just north of Toronto, Canada, and a friend of mine posted in Facebook about how scary that is. I replied to her pointing out the general aviation aircraft are regulated for stalling and landing speed. They can match highway traffic. As an aside, I noted that your Lockheed F-104 Starfighter will come down at around 200mph.
I got curious and I checked to see what is still flying. The company in South Africa that took you for rides in English Electric Lightnings has been grounded after an accident. There is a company in Florida that flies F-104s.
Have you seen the movie Top Shots? Those are Folland Gnats, possibly license built in India.
Now you mention it, we had a 2-seater lightning as well, but I never got anywhere near flying in that (to be fair, it didn’t get out all that often). Can’t think when I last saw a Gnat airborne. The Crimson Crabs flew them when I was at school, but that was an awfully long time ago.
It has a N registration number. Meaning it is likely a civilian aircraft.
US military aircraft are exempted from needing FAA registration, although in some cases they may have them.
This particular aircraft is owned by a corporation that appears to provide contract training to military pilots.
Yes, please note the aircraft registered owner in the snippet attached to original posting just below the registration number. thanks for the faa link though.
as aside, when floating the mouse over aircraft symbols not in “typical” aircraft space, sometimes they show up as military. especially at odd hours. most have been air tankers or C17 globemasters.
With almost any aircraft, you can type the ID code into Google and find out exactly what kind of aircraft it is, who owns it, and what it is doing at the moment. People have hobbies.
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what's the meaning of model parameter?
what’s the meaning of model parameter? I can not find the Detailed explanation。
model gain pos、model gain neg、model time constant
The autotuning calculates the mathematical model of the system. The parameters it calculates are standard mathematical concepts. A first order system is defined by a gain and a time constant. The gain is in units of ((pu/s)/V). This tells us how fast the axis moves for each volt of Control Output. There is a gain for each direction. The time constant defines how quickly the axis responds. The small time constant means the axis responds quickly.
This page gives some explanation: http://facstaff.cbu.edu/rprice/lectures/firstorder.html
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Above the Fold
★ May 24, 2022 ★
The Mystery of the Terminator's Time Signature
Arnold Schwarzenegger in the Terminator
Can you tell me what time signature the theme song from The Terminator is set in? Give it a shot.
It's a lot trickier than it first seems. Unless you're one of the best musicians in the world, chances are you'll never figure it on your own.
The answer involves a Prophet-10 synthesizer and 80s recording sleight of hand, but Seth Stevenson over at Slate has this riddle whipped. It was a mystery until now. Check it out.
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Under the Hood of a Bankruptcy
Under the Hood of a Bankruptcy
When you decide to file a bankruptcy it is easy to think of the entire process as something between you and your attorney. You meet with one of the attorneys usually a few times and draft your case for filing. After the case is filed you often you only have one court hearing and might meet the bankruptcy trustee for five minutes. You do a credit counseling class before filing and a debtor education class afterwards.
These are the things you can see. You are directly involved in them. What you cannot see are all the people behind the scenes that make the system work. Like a car, if you look under the hood it suddenly becomes apparent there is a lot more going on.
In our office there are several staffers that help run the office and your case and we rely on them to keep everything moving. Your case has a paralegal that is assigned to make sure all the proper paperwork is turned in to the clerk’s office and to the bankruptcy trustee. They will check the court dates, make sure you have proper notice of all the hearings and reach out to you to help you complete any additional paperwork. In addition we have a receptionist, bookkeeper, and a computer technician to make sure everything is working.
The bankruptcy clerk’s office assigns a case number and prepares the initial notices that are sent out to your creditors. They track all the documents filed in the case. If there are any mistakes or corrections that need to be made they send out notices that let your attorney know what is missing or still needs to be done. They produce a large number of the documents in the case and they organize the dockets for the court. They are the backbone of the federal bankruptcy system. There is a chief clerk for the state and a head clerk for each office as well as numerous support staff. They support the court and provide all the required administrative work to make sure things run smoothly.
There is a bankruptcy trustee that manages your case. In chapter 7 cases they sit on a panel and they are contractors. In chapter 13 cases they are salaried people who are quasi-federal employees. Chapter 7 and chapter 13 trustees answer to the US Trustee’s office which is a branch of the Department of Justice. The US Trustee’s office in Kansas has several staff and attorneys that help manage the cases and protect everyone from bankruptcy fraud. The staff in all of theses offices help glide the cases through to completion and make sure everything that needs to be done on a case is being done. In a chapter 7 trustee’s office there is often a paralegal or case manager that helps the trustee and there might be other office staff as well. In a chapter 13 trustee’s office there might be paralegals or case managers, accountants, bookkeepers, technicians and other attorneys that help manage everything. Without all of these people the system would come to a grinding halt.
The bankruptcy Judge is the person that ultimately signs off on court orders (including the bankruptcy discharge) and decides what will happen when there are disputes. If your creditors or the trustee disagree with the way things are being handled they can file an objection or a motion and request a hearing before the judge. The bankruptcy judge is a neutral party, bound to interpret the law and decide what should be done when the people in a case cannot agree on how to move forward. The bankruptcy judges often have a clerk that is an attorney that helps them with research on cases and they have administrative support staff as well.
As you can see there are dozens of people that involved in every bankruptcy case that gets filed. There is an entire system that runs because of all the people involved. In an average chapter 7 case I think there are at least 14 people that will be involved either directly or indirectly in the management and completion of the case. This is what is under the hood of a bankruptcy and the reason the system work so smoothly despite how much work gets done.
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Join date: May 9, 2022
Lean bulking stack, best bulk stack
Lean bulking stack, best bulk stack - Legal steroids for sale
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If you want to start packing on lean muscle mass and bulk up in a hurry, the CrazyBulk Bulking Stack is for you. With its super effective, 3/4 of a gallon capacity, it will serve you well throughout the lean eating process and after you've finished bulking up. You will gain 15 kg, and a whopping 32 kg of lean muscle mass, transparent labs bulk pre workout. You'll notice that as you get stronger, you'll get heavier, lean bulking rate of weight gain. That's because at this point in time, the body of muscle tissue you'll be bulking up to is so large that it is simply impossible to make the proper amount of glycogen or fats for maximum muscle building, lean bulking tips. That's why when eating after your initial bulking cycle, your body may feel a little sluggish just from getting your glycogen intake right. There's a simple fix… 1, lean bulking macros calculator. Eat like the world is coming to an end. No more treats, no more sweets, no more carbs, and no more protein, transparent labs bulk or lean. And don't forget to take in about two thirds of your diet during the first week. Once you get that right balance, the energy stores you're going to be storing become what they are called 'solar reserves' of fat and muscle tissue that cannot be burned or used for energy by any other part of your body, lean bulking stack. 2. Then use those extra fat stores to build bigger muscles, transparent labs bulk pre workout. 3, lean bulking stack. It doesn't matter how large the muscles become, as long as they are strong muscles, lean bulking workout plan. If you want lean muscle mass, you have to consume lean proteins, fats and carbohydrates in sufficient amounts, and that means no carbs. 4, lean bulking results. Eat your calories, lean bulking rate of weight gain0. And eat the food as slowly as possible to help your body process it. So there you have it, the three most effective things you can do to gain lean muscle mass, and even improve your performance in certain sports activities. How do you gain lean muscle mass without going overboard, lean bulking rate of weight gain1? It is important that you eat your calories, in one meal or on the go to eat it. The other day I was in a restaurant and we had an excellent meal that filled up our plates, lean bulking rate of weight gain2. Instead of the usual steak and dessert I went into that restaurant with the intention of getting a quick, filling, and delicious meal, lean bulking rate of weight gain3. The next time you eat that restaurant, and you're still hungry, make another lunch purchase as well to avoid going overboard and wasting calories. And when you get home, you'll be glad you took the steps to avoid some of the most common mistakes that can happen when you eat too much and overeat.
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Lean bulking stack, best bulk stack
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Number of new unemployment claims trending downward
Posted at 3:55 PM, Apr 30, 2020
and last updated 2020-04-30 15:56:30-04
With at least six weeks of most businesses being shut down in the United States, unemployment claims spiked to historic highs. However, the country has started to see a downward trend over the last three weeks.
In the latest jobless claims report released by the U.S. Department of Labor, there were 3.84 million jobless claims last week. That is about a half a million less than the week before, and these numbers are expected to continue going down as more businesses begin reopening.
“If you start working again, but you’re only coming back to part of your hours, you may still qualify for unemployment insurance as a partial unemployment insurance benefit,” said Michele Evermore with the National Employment Law Project (NELP).
As many begin returning to work and getting off unemployment, a lot of new questions are arising. For example, what if you feel it is unsafe to return to work, can you refuse and stay on unemployment? According to NELP, the simple answer is no.
“Workers can’t refuse suitable work if it is offered to them, but I think in some cases the work that is being offered to them isn’t really suitable if it is not safe.”
NELP is pushing for federal authorities to change that rule given the unusual circumstance of COVID-19. However, for now, you can only refuse to go back to work and maintain unemployment benefits if you are currently sick with COVID-19, have lingering COVID-19-related disabilities, or have caregiving-related responsibilities related to someone with COVID-19.
Another concern some have as they return to is over another potential spike in COVID-19 cases. What happens if there are closures again and you get laid off a second time, do you have to start a new claim all over again?
“It is not so much that a worker would have to start a brand new claim, they could continue the old claim and now the agency has verified their income and where they have worked,” said Evermore, “So all the agency would have to verify is that they indeed lose work again.”
Millions of Americans who have applied for unemployment over the past few weeks are still struggling to receive that money. In Florida alone, there have been roughly two million unemployment claims. Only 35% of the claims there have been processed and only 20% have been paid out, according to data provided by the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity.
So, what if you are someone who has been waiting for weeks for your benefits and are returning to work now? Can your claim still process, and will you get the money for the weeks you were not working?
“Workers should absolutely qualify for unemployment benefits for the weeks they were unemployed and that should apply retroactively,” explained Evermore.
If your claim is denied or retroactive benefits are denied, you can appeal the decision. Many local legal aid offices can help you with an unemployment appeal. NELP recommends appealing your claim, if you feel it has been wrongfully denied.
“Fight for your unemployment insurance rights,” said Evermore.
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Tuesday, February 25, 2014
Words of Wisdom....
1. Whoever puts their trust in Allah, Allah will never disappoint them.
2. Allah's help always comes so long as one has patience and perseveres.
3. The love and dedication that parents have for their children is extra special.
4. We need to appreciate our parents while they are still with us.
5. Practicing Islam is not an obstacle to our material progress, in fact it aids our progress.
6. Never give up hope despite the odds.
7. If we work for Allah, Allah will work for us.
"Don't tell Allah how big your problems are...
tell your problems how big your Allah is"
Keep Smiling
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How to Receive Divine Healing Energy
To receive the “heilstrom” (the divine healing energy), the only thing you must do is to “tune in”. Groening suggested that, you need to “tune in” at least once or twice per day. There are two parts to this “tuning in”: the position of your body and your mindset.
1.The position of the body
hands-upward-178x300Sit with both feet flat on the floor, a comfortable distance apart. Place the backs of your hands on your thighs so that the palms face upwards and the hands do not touch each other; and your arms (and legs) are not crossed. Your spine is straight (if possible) but relaxed.
If you can’t sit in this position, you can lie down on the floor or stand straight. Many handicapped people were reported to be held by others also. A far more important factor is your mindset.
2. Your Mindset
You need a specific mindset to receive the divine healing energy.
1. You must believe that healing is possible (for whatever the problems you are dealing with).
2. A strong and firm intention to heal (again for whatever the issues you have–physical, emotional, mental, spiritual or any other personal stuff too).
3. An open and receiving mindset–believe that “ask and it will be given.”
4. Observe–the healing energy enters into you through the top of the head, the bottom of the feet, through your fingertips, practically anywhere in your body. Observe any unusual sensations or feelings. If you don’t experience anything unusual, that’s fine too.
5. Ignore all negative thoughts or feelings; focus on positive and beautiful aspects.
Usually, Bruno Groening circle of friends groups play background music when they meditate together. Some of the most popular music they play are available on youtube:
When the actual healing occurs, some people may experience a temporary setback such as intense headaches, nausea, or even skin eruptions. These are considered to be Herxheimer syndromes that occur during intense purging processes, so don’t worry about it.
What inspired me the most was the story of a lady who was born deaf. After practicing this particular program for six months, she was able to hear in one of her ears, then after three months, the other ear “popped.” Extensive medical evaluations and tests confirmed that her hearing became “normal.” I believe this happened in late 1980s in Germany.
It really doesn’t take much to receive the divine healing energy. 5 minutes twice a day with a clear intent to heal with an open mind is all it takes. This program certainly helps me in feeling more grounded, peaceful, and energetic. Please let me know what your experiences are with this wonderful program. If you want to attend Bruno Groening meetings in New Jersey, let me know.
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Browsing Tag
Dear February…
Dear February… | 2016
Dear February,
You were a month of changes, decisions and growth. The promise of spring fills me with hope and I think I’ve begun to see your beauty for the first time, February. Usually you are a time for reflection and remembrance but your longer nights and lighter mornings have somehow captured my heart and the wind whispers sweet notes of the better things ahead. For spring is somehow better and you are in between, February; not quite winter but not yet ready for spring.
New life pops up, from tiny buds on trees to lambs leaping in fields filled with fresh grass and I watch as the cycle continues and we are only a tiny part of it. A minuscule grain of sand in an unfathomably vast Earth.
CcTTCXaWoAAsTtsI have fallen in deep, deep love with reading again, with reading for pleasure and enjoyment. I know that when I read I can switch off the tiny voice in my head that frets and worries too much, and I can become somebody else; it’s an adventure from the comfort of my own chair.
You have reminded me this month, February, not to take things for granted. Life is a cycle and I have seen both sides of it this month. It’s never easy to say goodbye to someone, even if they are only a beloved pet, but it does make it easier to know that life is continuing and will continue. It has put a smile on my face that remains even when you can’t quite see it, but I know it’s there. It makes me feel untouchable.
There is always a way to escape the labyrinth, February, and you have reminded me that we only have to find the right path. It may take time, but eventually you will get there.
I think I’m beginning to love you, February. Thank you.
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5 benefits of Residential Electrical Estimating for Electrical Subcontractors
If you have planned your residential construction plan, and you are approaching construction estimation, then electrical estimating is an essential part to consider. Acquiring accurate estimates of each and everything is necessary because it helps a person to perform an approximate cost of your home.
Electrical services play an essential and vital role in any building. It is a basic need for construction professionals. After having a proper business plan and estimating mindset, electrical estimation is a significant part of fulfilling the complete requirement. To learn the basic principle of services design Residential Electrical Estimating sets accordingly to act as a cherry on the top of the cake. In reality, it covers methods of different wiring, schemes of distribution, and protection for lightning and power installations. Systems such as protective alarms and standby supplies are generally covered. Each method is described in complete detail and set as an example of the detailed calculation is provided on different platforms.
Having electrical estimates will provide you with various benefits in which the top 5 are as below:
Accurate results:
A general accuracy means to reduce mistakes and noticeable improvements in business production and productivity before analysing results. Every business owner plans to stay ahead of competitors, and an easy remedy for this is to lower your work mistake rates. In this race, your accuracy matters before any other thing. Before implying this into your matter, having an accurate and more precise estimate helps you gain better proficiency in cost estimates related to job materials, price, and labour costs. Not only this benefit but also it provides more accurate cost estimates about different takeouts.
Hiring an electrical estimator may cause you more money to spend on him. Significantly, an experienced electrical estimator in the field of electrical estimation will insist you pay a lot to acquire his services. The quick remedy to this problem is to hire a professional electrical estimating service to have proficient services. You need to pay a fixed minimum percentage of total amounts and acquire the best results, including labour costs and raw material supplies required for the project and other cost sheets.
Boost Efficiency:
You cannot deny that efficiency plays an essential role in gaining higher results. Hence, every business or project demands to improve its efficiency. Electrical estimating can help you to elevate your overall business efficiency to another level. No matter what project you are approaching, this estimation’s features will efficiently streamline your business processes. It will make your project efficient by providing accurate and liable estimates to gain overall project growth. While having efficient growth will make your project responses run fast and gain more customers.
Fast turnaround time:
Say if you have decided to plan a residential place to build and finalise your plan along with the tender notice. You are generally acquiring two to three weeks to sign off a tender. Within this particular time frame, you have to estimate your electrical and residential project. Reliable electrical estimating companies will provide you with quick estimates and cost sheets. Quick turnaround time will increase your efficiency and make you worthy enough to stand among different competitors.
Proficient project management:
Mostly business tends to rely upon effective project management to bring projects into completion. Project management is a vast field where every other aspect is determined with a new scope and considers every scenario to be complete on top of everything. Regarding this matter, Electrical Estimating Services can help you to make sure no essential details fall through the cracks. Clear management mainly represents a good image of your project and stands out a good position.
Residential electrical estimating has various benefits for different projects. It is useful to increase your project’s productivity, procurement, project management, and accuracy.
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Mugabe: How African Despotic Leaders Are Facing Their Day Of Reckoning
The road to justice may be very long, especially if the process of delivering it is long drawn out, but no matter how long it takes, justice is sweet when it is finally done.
In a chat on the whatsapp blog of my secondary school, Ekuku Agbor Grammar school old students association, where we are currently contemplating what development project to embark on to help our alma mata, one of us noted that the last time that we were all together was in school some 37 years ago.
And it struck me at that point that it has been 37 years since we left secondary school, and Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe had been president of his country, all of that lengthy time until November 21, 2019.
After 37 years of going our separate ways, some of us may not recognise each other anymore because age and tough circumstances might have taken their toll.
And that’s in tandem with the admonition of the literary icon, Ngugi Wa Thiog’o, who noted in his epic novel, Weep Not Child, “that time and bad condition do not favour beauty”. In the light of the above dictum, it is incredible that Robert Mugabe managed to remain the ruler of his country for nearly four decades defying the natural cause of change, which is supposed to be the only constant phenomenon in life. Were he not ousted on Tuesday, 21/11/19, 93 years old Mugabe might have remained on the saddle as president until he enters his grave. Co-incidentally, just as the momentous casting down of Mugabe was unfurling in Zimbabwe, Faure, the son of the former president of Togo, Gnasingbe Eyedema, who has replaced his father as head of state, was visiting our President, Muhammadu Buhari, in Aso Rock, Abuja.
Being another family that may be aiming to make Togo a family heirloom and fiefdom, there are already rumblings in Faure Eyedema’s home country as citizens are becoming irritated by his alleged uninspiring leadership.
The Mugabe effect, which is the art of shoeing off sit-tight rulers may become contagious as South African president Jacob Zuma’s position is now under threat and therefore tenuous because he is also an octogenarian who has allegedly become a liability to that country. Aside from the huge corruption indictments hanging on his neck, in a video clip which is currently circulating in the social media, Zuma could not even coherently read out Genesis 1:1 in the Holy bible as he was pathetically stumbling over the words.
And that suggests that, like Mugabe, geriatric psychosis may be taking hold of Zuma. Despite his failing faculties, he, too, may be scheming to remain in power perpetually. But l don’t think South Africans would suffer fools like Zimbabweans did with Mugabe. The ability to leave when the ovation is loudest is the difference between the two despotic southern African region Presidents earlier listed and the late Nelson Mandela, who voluntarily served as South African President for only one term even though he was constitutionally entitled to two terms. And that’s precisely the reason the man fondly referred to as Mandiba has remained the leadership icon of all times.
In terms of integrity and good leadership, the only man who comes close to Mandela’s record is Kenneth Kaunda of Zambia who was President for 24 years and at the time he was leaving office he reportedly had only $8,000 in his bank account. Another sit-tight ruler, like Mugabe, is Teodoro Obiag Nguema Mbasogo of Equatorial Guinea who has been the president of the oil rich tiny West African country since 1979. Jose Eduado Dos Santos, president of Angola who was presiding over the affairs of the equally rich southern African country from 1979 up till last year as well as Paul Biya, President of Cameroon, who has been ruling Nigeria’s neighbouring country since 1982, are the remaining sit-tight leaders in Africa who have been heads of state in excess of 35 years.
But the day of reckoning for these monocratic leaders would be sooner than later.
And more often than not, democracy consciousness which is stirred by Non Governmental Agencies, NGOs, from advanced democracies, would trigger clamour for change from the old order.
Strangely, some of the policies instituted to protect and preserve democracy are what some autocratic rulers exploit to self perpetuate. In this instance, the wisecrack “The road to disaster is often paved with good intentions” rings true. Take the Southern African region for example. One of the treaties entered into by countries in the region like South Africa, Zimbabwe, Namibia, Angola etc is that any attempt to plot a coup to remove any head of state of any of the participating countries by the military will be met with the full weight of the joint military forces of member countries, which will attack and dislodge the coup plotters.
That explains why serious efforts were made by the Zimbabwean military authorities not to refer to the military takeover of power as a coup, so that the letter and spirit of the treaty may not be invoked.
The treaty which is aimed at discouraging coups which had become rampant in other African countries like Nigeria with calamitous consequences that mostly hindered socioeconomic development, was deemed dangerous and therefore to be averted .
But just as policies formulated with good intentions are often fraught with negative outcomes, the anti coup policy tend to serve as protective shield for sit-tight heads of government, who can’t be removed from office except through democratic processes which are cumbersome and therefore could be long drawn.
Since they can’t only be easily impeached or voted out via the ballot box, despotic leaders abuse their power of incumbency by leveraging their position to manipulate their country’s statues books by tinkering with tenure clauses in order to self perpetuate. Hence, the SADC region has been unfortunate to be led by the likes of Eduado Dos Santos, who reigned in Angola for 37 years (from 1979 to last year when he stepped aside) just like Mugabe, who also served for 37 years, until he was ousted this November.
Another blithe on Africa is that while ten of the twenty world’s longest serving leaders are from the continent, no African country is amongst the world’s top twenty richest in the world.
So African countries only lead in negative development index like: the darkest continent in the world, having the largest number of hideous diseases such as AIDS, blindness, and high infant and maternal mortality rate etc. Ugandan President, Yoweri Museveni, has been ruling since 1986, so also is Omar Al-Bashir of Sudan, who has been holding sway since 1987, as well as Idris Derby who has been on the throne in Chad since 1990. Sadly, most of the leaders who seem to have been glued to the throne of power have been presiding over the under development of their countries and they do not seem to have plans to vacate the seats any time soon.
But given how Mugabe just got disgraced out of office in Zimbabwe, the aforementioned sit-tight leaders may be literarily ‘shitting in their pants’ now, because the long suffering men and women of their respective countries may soon call them out as the Zimbabweans just did. The chance of their being shown the red card is accentuated by the speed at which democratic tenets are being imbibed in Africa.
With the increasing political awareness quotient amongst African people, a new dawn may be breaking on the continent as the sun appears to be setting on leaders who nurse the vaulting and obnoxious ambition of spending their lifetime on the throne of leadership of their countries.
But sadly, it would appear that some human beings have short memories, and more so in Africa, because the absurd and tragic comedy of people seeking life time presidency appear to be an African phenomenon.
As the pitiful and disgraceful outcome with Robert Mugabe in Zimbabwe has demonstrated, after the rain, the sun always shines again as lady justice; (blind to prejudices) brings down the sword of justice on the villains. This brings me to an interesting perspective on the obligation of the leaders in government to citizens. This was shared by John Montana, a Doctor of Jurisprudence from Colorado, USA, who was a panellist at the Institute Of Information Management, IMM, summit in Abuja recently.
In the course of the panel discussion themed; Effective Information As A Tool For Bridging Information And Communication Gap Between The Government And The Governed, the Jurisprudence and Information management specialist posited that it is pragmatic for a country’s leaders to properly identify their constituencies by viewing citizens from the prism of being customers.
Given that dynamic companies treat their customers as kings, the perspective is quite welcoming and illuminating. The information management expert illustrated his unique point of view with the analogy of a bank and its customers. He argued that customers are availed every information they need at every point in time because banks value them greatly. But not so for irresponsible rulers, who ignore the wishes and expectations of the citizens of their countries that should ideally be their customers.
Since they operate their personal and narrow agenda, instead of leading their country men and women on progressive growth path, they engage themselves in primitive acquisition, at the expense of citizens who are faced with arrested development owing to tyranny and corruption. According to him, although justice may take long, it is advisable that citizens gather facts and keep records that would be used to nail such despots when their cups are finally full as the case has been for Seseseku of Congo, Mugabe of Zimbabwe and other tyrants before them.
Mugabe has just had his day with justice, albeit in a benevolent manner as he has been given a soft landing by being allowed to resign and enjoy prosecution immunity for himself and his wife. If retributive Justice were to be applied, he could have spent the rest of his life in jail for corruption and crimes against humanity or be assassinated in a coup d’état which, incidentally, has been the lot of many dictators.
In the coming days, months and, perhaps, years, sit-tight heads of state like Paul Biya etal that are yet to face justice, will ultimately be faced with nemesis sooner or later. Unless they urgently plan their peaceful exit and execute same now, retributive Justice awaits them, wily-nilly.
And when that looming doomsday comes, today’s oppressors will become tomorrow’s scums as they would end up weeping and gnashing their teeth like their hapless victims of yester-years.
According to Saint-Just, in the novel Darkness At Noon, by Arthur Koestler, “nobody can rule guiltlessly”.
So nobody expects African leaders to be saints, but they should strive harder so that on a balance of scale, their leadership good can outweigh their guilt.
To that end, if leaders like president Julius Nyerere of Tanzania could be acclaimed for leaving lasting positive legacies and the current president of that country, John Magufuli, is following similar path way, such that slowly but surely he is liberating Tanzanians from poverty and under development, why can’t others emulate them?
Is it not William Shakespeare that wrote in his famous book, Macbeth that “the evil that men do lives after them?
As a testament to Shakespeare’s admonition, the man known as the ‘butcher of Sarajevo’ Ratko MLadic who committed atrocities against his people during the Bosnian war, recently faced his day of reckoning as the war crimes panel at The Hague sentenced him to life imprisonment. Such is the inevitable miserable end of those who try to play God-by oppressing their people as if they have the power of life and death when occupying positions of authority. But what profit would it be for a public servant- a president, governor, minister, commissioner or director general-to end up spending the evenings of their lives in and out of courts or jail houses as retributive justice for their tyranny and impropriety, while in public office? That is a billion Naira question which African men and women placed in positions of authority must ask themselves and strive to find answers to, as it would help them in inoculating themselves against oppressive and kleptomaniac tendencies.
Onyibe, a development Strategist, an alumnus of the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy and former Commissioner in Delta State government, wrote in from Abuja.
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RIA: Pedersen PA Carbine
We have done a number of videos recently on various different Pedersen long guns (the PA rifle, the Japanese copy, shooting the PB rifle, etc), but there was one version that I have not covered yet (aside from the US trials rifles). That’s the Vickers factory PA carbine. Only a small number of these were made, at the end of the Vickers-Pedersen production run.
The mechanism of the Pedersen carbine is identical to that of the rifle, the carbine simply has a barrel about 2 inches shorter and a cut down stock. These would have been used by cavalry units or by sportsmen wanting a slightly lighter and handier rifle. It certainly does look like a sporterized rifle, but this is the correct original factory configuration.
1. Actually, the stock reminds me a lot of the .30-40 Krag cavalry carbine, which for my money was the most ergonomic weapon ever adopted by the US military. If only one of my grandfathers had had sense enough to pick up a few of them when they were surplused in the 1920s for some ridiculous price ($10 @ is the number I seem to recall) and put them in storage…..
• There was also a Springfield carbine with a similar stock back in the early single heat-treatment period. Other than the brisk recoil you’re going to get from a .30-06 that light, I think it would make a nearly ideal “utility rifle”, even today, if that receiver was just a bit stronger.
2. The carbine stock certainly helps in being lighter and less likely to throw the barrel off in terms of mechanical vibrations. It is also less prone to snagging in the bushes…
3. A fine example of “Most Intriqued Autoloader Rifle Ever Produced”. Mr. Pedersen looks as an inventor liking to give approaches through hard and even sacred way. If it were not the “Momentum convertion through loose elements sharing same input”, these rifles seem not work. IMHO.
4. The carbine looks like it would have made a very handy little sporting rifle. It’s a shame that was never pursued, probably due to cost I would imagine.
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Cladding and Rains Screens
We use a range of materials to manufacture rainscreen cladding systems such as stone, timber and various metals.
Hilton Garden Inn
Rainscreen cladding is made up of an outer skin that provides both weather-resistance and aesthetic value. Underneath is a structure providing a fixing point in the form of a support grid. This allows the cavity between building and the facade to drain water and promote air flow.
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Baccarat As Well As American Baccarat Rules
Sports betting is simply placing a wager on a sporting affair. You are betting that your team, horse, dog, or driver will succeed in. If do win, so do you! If they lose, you lose your bet amount. Sports betting will happen all on the world, though in nation this associated with betting isn’t as highly accepted as is in Europe.
I know from personal expertise that big profits ufabet can be produced betting on sports. Furthermore know these kind of systems can be installed profitably if done right. But the fact remains that anybody who expects november 23 a bundle from just one single system, especially a loss chaser, gets losing all of it.
To find this out for yourself, pick an activity that dragging necessarily delight in. Go to your favorite online sportsbook site and pick a team for the sport. Research on their schedule, the their record, and discover the the members. Now, pull the trigger and bet their next game. Most of the sudden, a team you didn’t pay much attention to, playing a sports activity you don’t normally watch becomes friends that are generally actually pulling for along with your cardiovascular system. Who cannot appreciate that kind of pleasure?
There are companies giving you sports betting tips, but definitely not follow them without understanding it. There is no guarantee that these tips have any basis for success. You have to understand that calls for no short-cut to success. However, you can certainly use tips from reliable companies considering starting point for investigation just therefore you can be absolutely sure that they is useful. You will be able to make tremendously of cash a regular basis as long as you follow these tips for the actual proper way to betting on sports.
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How to Build the Perfect Green Salad
A classic green salad—one featuring crisp lettuces and raw seasonal vegetables tossed with a barely-there vinaigrette—elevates any meal. The trick to serving a properly dressed, not wilting salad is in the technique you use to build it, starting with the dressing, preferably using a large wooden salad bowl. (We’re partial to this satiny black walnut one from Andrew Pearce, but any wooden bowl broad enough to prevent flyaway leaves will do.) Begin with the acids: For balance, use at least two vinegars or citrus juices. Add a drizzle of honey or pinch of sugar—the sweetness will help balance the acids’ bite. Finally, rapidly incorporate the oil to form an emulsion. For best flavor, use a mix, such as grapeseed plus a good olive oil or a nut oil, such as walnut. A properly emulsified vinaigrette will suspend the acids and seasonings in the oil, coating each lettuce leaf without weighing it down. Toss just before serving using the trick in step 5.
Get the full recipe for our simple green salad here, and assemble it by following these simple steps:
1. Blend Acids
Pour vinegar into a large wooden bowl; add shallot. Squeeze juice from lemon into bowl, catching seeds; rub bowl with outside of lemon rind. Discard lemon rind and seeds.
2. Season
Add salt, and whisk until dissolved. Add mustard; honey, if using; and black pepper. Whisk until fully incorporated.
3. Emulsify
Combine oils in a spouted measuring cup; add oils to dressing in bowl in a slow, thin stream, whisking constantly and vigorously until oils are incorporated and dressing looks creamy.
4. Dress Vegetables
Add sliced hard vegetables such as radishes and carrots to bowl with dressing; toss to coat. Taste and adjust seasoning with more vinegar, lemon juice, or salt.
5. Add Greens
Place salad servers or tongs in bowl over dressed vegetables. Place greens and herbs over tongs, so they are suspended above the vegetables.
6. Toss
Just before serving, sprinkle greens with a pinch of salt; remove servers from bowl, allowing greens and herbs to fall into dressed vegetables. Toss gently to thoroughly coat the greens with dressing without bruising or wilting. Serve immediately.
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Falling Fruit Ireland
Urban Harvesting Project
Falling Fruit Ireland is a project to harvest the seasonal glut of local fruit (apples, pears, plums, nuts, etc.) throughout the Dublin area, and countrywide, and to give it to charities that cater for those in need. Each year hundreds of fruit trees go unpicked. Falling Fruit organises a team of volunteers to pick the surplus fruit and distribute it to local charities or other good causes. We liaise with Foodcloud.ie and other charities for distribution of the fruit.
Fruit sources could be in private gardens, on industrial waste sites, roadsides, the grounds of mansions, in backyards, church grounds, hospital car parks, industrial estates, waste land, streets, scrub, derelict property, private businesses, public authority housing, parks, green spaces.
The freshly harvested fruit is given away for free. Falling Fruit is about getting fresh fruit to local people who otherwise wouldn’t have access to it. The first share goes to the owner, the second share to the charity, and volunteers are rewarded with fresh fruit too. When there is an abundance of fruit we encourage people to eat it, juice it, cook with it, freeze it, make jams, preserves etc.
Falling Fruit is also about the prevention of food waste. We aim to have zero waste, so fruit is either eaten, stored, preserved, pressed, or fed to animals. Volunteers often take home the damaged apples (which fall in the process of picking) and use them for pies immediately.
One of the aims of Falling Fruit is to highlight the huge distances our food usually travels before it reaches our mouths. Even when food is in season, it is still imported or travels extensively around the country to processing and distribution points before reaching our plates. Falling Fruit also aims to reduce the carbon footprint by encouraging the use of local food and supporting more local growing, cultivation and harvesting.
The Falling Fruit Urban Harvesting Project was set up in 2015 by Bernie Brannick in association with WeShare. Over the past successful years the project has expanded and grown and Falling Fruit Ireland developed.
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Valve is fined $2 million for geo-blocking game sales on Steam in EU
(Image credit: Casimiro PT /
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The European Commission has fined Valve and five other big game publishers for implementing a policy of geo-blocking for Steam keys (the gaming platform owned by Valve).
For the uninitiated, you can purchase a Steam key from third-party retailers to unlock a particular game on the service, and in the EU, prices for keys can vary between countries. The practice ruled against here was Valve and the publishers stopping cross-border sales.
In other words, when someone from a certain country bought a Steam key in another country because it was cheaper, when they came to activate the game, the key wouldn’t be recognized as valid in their home country – otherwise known as geo-blocking, or policing purchases by location.
It meant gamers could only buy a key and actually get it to work if it was purchased in their own country, which might have a higher price for the title being bought. Such cross-border restrictions are a violation of EU law, and some big fines have been given out – particularly to Valve.
Executive Vice President of the European Commission, Margrethe Vestager, commented: “Today’s sanctions against the ‘geo-blocking’ practices of Valve and five PC video game publishers serve as a reminder that under EU competition law, companies are prohibited from contractually restricting cross-border sales.
Fines aplenty
Valve was fined just over €1.62 million ($1.96 million), and of the other five publishers, ZeniMax (which owns Bethesda) was hit for a very similar amount: €1.66 million ($2.01 million). Koch Media was fined €977,000 ($1.18 million), Capcom €396,000 ($479,000), and Bandai Namco €340,000 ($412,000). Focus Home was slapped with the biggest fine to the tune of €2.89 million ($3.5 million).
Valve declined to cooperate with the investigation and so was fined the full amount, whereas the other publishers did, and as a result had their penalties reduced by 10% (or 15% in the case of Capcom).
The European Commission’s investigation into this affair actually began way back in February 2017, and encompassed around a hundred PC games available on Steam, which were subject to the aforementioned geo-blocking practices between September 2010 and October 2015.
Via Engadget
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Hajimete no Otsukai
Hajimete no Otsukai
Hajimete no Otsukai is basically a show, where parents send their kids (Usually somewhere between 4 and 7 years) to run some errands. (It's mostly shopping). Also featured in those shows are various celebrities which are commenting the show and sometimes tell something about their own childhood. And don't worry about safety issues, the kids are being followed by a bunch of cameramen.
Country: Japanese
Status: Completed
Released: 2012
Genre: Documentary;
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Pinned post
u can screenshot and share my posts if you want, but dont include my handle or pfp in the screenshot
idk why free government flu vaccines isnt a thing (actually i know why but ughh)
classism, aus specific-ish
rich kids be like "i will never go on centrelink, it would be so shameful to be a dole bludger" while living off their parents' trust fund
joke, i cant rember where i saw the post it's riffing on
when will microsoft make "Direct for Wayland"
don't tell my girlfriends but i'm extremely gay
it's hilarious when straight ppl think they have a gaydar but when they actually get tested on it it fails completely
I love how even if im not "friends" w ppl on here it doesn't matter cuz I can still have fun friendly interactions and feel cared about
its called carbon cuz it helps power cars
vegan food, ph-
i had a big vegan coconut icecream milkshake and it was yummy but now i feel so bleh! idk y but if i have a lot of coconut it makes me feel ill
youtube link video of a quoll in the wild
they are very cute. they kinda drew the tail wrong on my earrings, irl they have long skinny tails, not fluffy ones
Show thread
selfie eye contact
got these cute quoll earrings!! (quoll is an australian marsupial a bit like a possum but with behaviour closer to a cat)
public health
i just wanna be able to play gigs again or eat out at a restaurant but i can't cuz so many ppl refuse the most basic courtesies of wearing a mask, doing RATs before/after going to public gatherings, washing hands etc
Show thread
public health
ppl say stuff like "we cant be expected to do basic hygiene and wear masks and isolate forever" meanwhile their behaviour is forcing disabled/chronically ill ppl and their friends/carers to isolate forever
what the heck is the point of the melodic minor scale. it sounds good but how do u even write something in that??
windows really does feel like malware these days
i feel like the first two Thief games would be great candidates for the quake II style raytracing lighting thingy, i think the shadow maps were raytraced in the first place so it should match up quite well
pls help with dual booting windows/linux
so with my experience of windows constantly overwriting the bootloader when dual booting, I decided to install one on a separate SSD cuz I think I'll need windows for a potential work opportunity. But it still fucking tries to boot windows every time i power on?? Even though windows boot manager is last in the boot priority list?? I have to manually select grub still. Whyy??
dang guess i have no reach on this website!! how is anyone supposed to market there products here :(
Show thread
(i mean plural as in, opposite of united, but we'd also support plural systems)
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Maryland Football Closes in on Fall Practice: Storylines to Watch
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Maryland football's fall practice starts in a matter of days: August 9. Who knew, right? Randy Edsall, for one; he took to the podium yesterday to address the media about where the Terrapins stand heading into the fall. Unfortunately, nothing particularly interesting was said, past that Pete DeSouza has been cleared for contact.
But still: fall practice! This is a holiday in the states of Florida, Texas, and Alabama, I'm pretty sure. We're only about a month away from real football season, and one thing I've learned over the year: Maryland may not be a football school, but football is a hell of a lot better than no sports.
So get excited, at least a little bit. And check out the things we'll be watching for when practice kicks off, courtesy of the Marines (hence the ad at the bottom of the page).
Who steps up at wide receiver? One of the reasons Danny O'Brien was so successful last year was that he was throwing to Torrey Smith and, perhaps to a slightly lesser extent, Adrian Cannon. Both are in the NFL now, and O'Brien's top targets are now neither particularly proven nor experienced. Case in point: no returning WR had more than 16 receptions last season.
Seniors Ronnie Tyler and Quintin McCree are the most experienced and the favorites to start, but neither played in the Military Bowl last year due to academics, which isn't a quick way to endear yourself to Edsall. Tyler is more well-known for his occasionally sensational grabs than his consistency; he's dropped a few easy ones over the years, which isn't traditional go-to material. And McCree has 21 career receptions to his name over the past three years.
Past that, there's a host of talent and a dearth of experience. Kevin Dorsey and Kerry Boykins, both juniors, were four-stars coming out of HS and were simply unfortunate enough to be stuck behind Smith their first three years. Adrian Coxson is another option; again a former four-star, he transferred over from Florida and will be a redshirt freshman.
With someone as talented as O'Brien throwing the ball, the wide receivers don't need to do too much work on their own (think: the Tom Brady Effect). But a poor WR corps could easily derail an otherwise promising passing game. With so little experience at the position, I'm guessing it'll be one of the most-watched spots in fall ball.
Where does Maryland draw offensive line depth from? Justin Gilbert, a starter at tackle, is out until October, and Justin Lewis, expected to push to start at guard, left the program in the fall. That left Maryland particularly thin up front, going barely two deep at some positions.
The potential return of Pete DeSouza, who has been cleared for full-contact, could be a boon, but it'd be foolish to rely much on someone who is returning from a major injury and hasn't played football in months. I'm expecting heavy reliance on true freshmen and players that have, up till now, existed under the radar, like Jake Wheeler and Cody Blue - both of which Edsall mentioned in his press conference - and DeOnte Arnett, who could push for a starting spot.
What shape is the secondary in? Maryland's passing defense was so-so last year. Having two star safeties over the top in Antwine Perez and Kenny Tate kept it from being a lot worse. Both of the safeties are gone now - Perez to graduation, Tate to linebacker - and are being replaced with Eric Franklin and Matt Robinson, two big linebacker-y types. That means much of the onus falls on Cameron Chism, Trenton Hughes, and Dexter McDougle to perform better on an island than they did last year.
Chism and Hughes are both seniors, and have had past successes. But Chism had struggles last year, while McDougle failed to live up to his out-of-HS hype. A strong fall would go a long way to calming down me (and other fans) about the passing game.
How's the kicking game looking? Nick Ferrara had a fantastic freshman year, handling both kicking and punting duties with aplomb. But then he had struggles his sophomore year, injuring his groin and missing the first two games. Travis Baltz took over the PK spot in addition to punter, and never released it. Ferrara will now be expected to kick and could potentially be asked to punt as well. Sophomore walk-on Michael Tart is also competing in that area, as is true freshman (on scholarship) Nathan Renfro. Kicking is usually "figured out" in fall practice, so this is no different, but I'm interested to see what direction things take.
The front four is made up of Joe Vellano, David Mackall, and ... who else? Right now, Andre Monroe and Clarence Murphy, if you listen to the depth chart. Both are redshirt freshmen; neither was considered a potential four-year starter out of high school. It's not as though Maryland doesn't have options here; Monroe is above junior A.J. Francis, who has started since his freshman season, and Bradley Johnson and Isaiah Ross have seen time at DE in the past.
In his press conference, Edsall mentioned that some players "up front" who had been starters in the past weren't starters now, and he wanted to see how they responded. I'm assuming Francis falls into that category, and potential Johnson or Ross as well. They certainly have plenty of time to regain their spots, and I definitely expect Francis to - he has too much talent and experience not to.
How does the team respond to a new type of coach? Edsall is a ... controversial ... guy. Disciplinarian, Coughlin-esque, blah blah blah, you know all the words that've been used to describe him. In fact, given the sponsor of this post, "drill instructor" might be the best phrase. That style can work, but the players he's coaching right now didn't sign up for that. They signed up for Ralph Friedgen, who might not've been particularly likable either but certainly was more relaxed.
So, the big question: can Edsall's tougher new rules surrounding everything from being late to practice (obvious and good rule) to no names on the jerseys (um ... okay...) to restrictions on hats (uh, what?) win over the team, or will they stifle morale? Once Edsall gets more of his own players in the program, this should become less and less of a problem, but right now he's a new thing coaching players who aren't "his" - the end result could be good, or it could be really bad. We'll find out.
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Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have already been reported to obtain regulatory
Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have already been reported to obtain regulatory functions in immune system cells which will make them alternate therapeutics for the treatment of inflammatory and autoimmune diseases. into numerous cell types, such as osteocytes, adipocytes, chondrocytes, cardiomyocytes, fibroblasts, and endothelial cells [1C3]. MSCs reside throughout the body and can be obtained from a variety of purchase LY317615 tissues including bone marrow, adipose tissue, gingiva, dental pulp, and tonsil, as well as from your immature tissues including amniotic fluid, placenta, and umbilical cord or cord blood. In addition, MSCs differentiated from induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) have been studied due to their superior self-renewal ability compared to standard MSCs, although their security and efficacy issues are still challenging [4]. Depending upon their origin, MSCs present different physiological properties such as proliferative and differentiation capacity [5]; in general, however, many reports have supported that MSCs critically contribute to the maintenance of the microenvironment for tissue homeostasis and the tissue regeneration and remodelling upon injury. Moreover, MSCs have been known to regulate the functions of immune cell from both innate immunity and adaptive immunity, that is, MSCs can suppress the proliferation, differentiation, and activation of T cells, B cells, macrophages, dendritic cells, and natural killer (NK) cells, especially when these immune cell responses are excessive [6C9]. This immunomodulatory effect of MSCs on immune cells is usually exerted by the secretion of soluble factors such as prostaglandin-E2 (PGE2), indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase-1 (IDO-1), nitric oxide (NO), transforming growth factor- (TGF-) administration [6]. In addition, conditioned media collected from MSC culture can reproduce some benefits of MSC-mediated immunosuppression [42, 43]. Therefore, it really is recognized that MSCs offer defensive paracrine results broadly, which are in least partly exerted with the secretion of EVs. Indeed, it has been reported that MSC-EVs contain numerous cytokines, growth factors, metabolites, and even microRNAs produced by MSC itself and, therefore, have comparable anti-inflammatory and regenerative effects as MSCs. Since EVs are cell free, storage and handling process can be much cost effective and security issues regarding immunogenicity, tumorigenicity, and embolism formation after EV injection are negligible compared to MSCs [44, 45]. Due to their liposome-like simple biological structure, EVs are stable compared to other foreign particles. Moreover, it is relatively easy to modify and/or improve the EV contents and surface house for enhancing the therapeutic potential or for utilizing as a drug delivery system [46C48]. In this review, we will summarize and discuss the major studies investigating the efficacy of MSC-EVs in both and models mainly focusing on their immunomodulatory properties to provide HMGCS1 up-to-date information in EVs and MSC therapeutic fields. 2. Immunomodulatory Efficacy of MSC-EVs in Animal Models of Defense Disorders In a genuine variety of observations, healing potential of MSC-EVs provides shown against several pet models of illnesses accompanied by extreme inflammation (Desk 1). Desk 1 Ramifications of MSCs on experimental pet types of inflammatory circumstances. transcripts[52]Sepsis (cecal ligation)Rat (SD)Rat ATIVDecreased degrees of inflammatory mediators in flow, bronchioalveolar lavage, and abdominal ascites[53]Mouse (C57BL/6)Individual UCIVReduction of irritation and lethality through the legislation of macrophage polarization[54]GVHD (allo-HSCT)Mouse (BALB/c)Individual UCIVSuppression of cytotoxic T cells and inflammatory cytokine creation[55]T1DM (STZ induced)Mouse (C57BL/6)Mouse ATIPSymptom purchase LY317615 decrease via legislation of Th cell subtype differentiation[56]Islet transplantationMouse (NSG)Individual BMIVSupport steady transplantation of islet via Treg cell induction[57]Burn off injuryRat (SD)Individual UCIVAttenuation of extreme irritation by miR-181c[58]Liver organ damage (ConA induced)Mouse (C57BL/6)Mouse BMIVDecrease in ALT, liver organ necrosis, and apoptosis via Treg cell era[59]Spinal cable injuryMouse (C57BL/6)Individual UCIVFunctional recovery of spinal-cord damage through downregulation of inflammatory cytokines[60] purchase LY317615 Open up in another screen IBD: inflammatory colon disease; TNBS: trinitrobenzene sulfonic acidity; DTH: delayed-type hypersensitivity; CIA: collagen-induced joint disease; GVHS: graft-versus-host disease; allo-HSCT: allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation; T1 DM: type 1 diabetes mellitus; STZ: streptozotocin; ConA: concanavalin A; BM: bone tissue marrow; UC: umbilical cable; AT: adipose tissues; IV: intravenous; IP: intraperitoneal; Breg:.
Understanding the molecular mechanisms that control β cell mass and proliferation
Understanding the molecular mechanisms that control β cell mass and proliferation is certainly very important to the treating diabetes. also modulates β cell mass through DRD2 and exerts an inhibitory effect on adenosine signaling. (create in which D2shRNA expression could be monitored as mRFP manifestation (Number?4D). The D2KD MIN6 cell lines showed that manifestation was approximately 40% that of the wild-type MIN6 cells (Number?4E). Cell number was significantly improved in D2KD MIN6 cells to a level similar to that of the DPD-treated control vector-introduced non-silencing (NS) cells (Number?4F). DPD treatment did not further increase the quantity of D2KD MIN6 cells. However due to the partial knockdown of in D2KD MIN6 cells dopamine treatment still inhibited cell proliferation but to a lesser degree than that in the vector-transfected control MIN6 cells (Number?4F NS). The addition of dBu-cAMP to the D2KD MIN6 cells did not further increase cell figures suggesting that in D2KD MIN6 cells cAMP mediates the increase in cell number. Taken collectively the results display that in MIN6 cells treatment with DPD improved cell figures by antagonizing dopamine signaling through DRD2 and that dopamine negatively regulates cell proliferation by reducing cAMP levels through DRD2. In D2KD MIN6 cells this bad regulation is shut down mimicking the effects of DPD. We then examined dopamine-dependent apoptosis in MIN6 cells. Dopamine dose-dependently induced apoptosis and approximately 6.5% of MIN6 cells underwent apoptosis in the presence of 10?μM dopamine (Number?4G). The manifestation Dyphylline of and expressions. We next examined the effects of overexpressing in MIN6 cells. MIN6 cells transfected with indicated much higher amounts of than the control vector-transfected cells (Number?4H). The effects of dopamine treatment were compared between the increased sensitivity to the signal. Dopamine Modulates β Cell Proliferation by Acting as an Inhibitory Transmission for Adenosine The adenosine signaling pathway has been reported to be a potent transmission for β cell regeneration (Andersson et?al. 2012 The adenosine agonist 5′-N-ethylcarboxamidoadenosine (NECA) which functions through the adenosine receptor A2a (ADORA2A) was reported Dyphylline to increase β cell proliferation. ADORA2A Dyphylline is definitely a GPCR that is known to mediate Gαs signaling to activate adenylyl cyclase and increase intracellular cAMP. ADORA2A and DRD2 have been reported to be highly co-localized and to form heterodimers (Canals et?al. 2003 To gain insight into the relationship between adenosine signaling and dopamine function with regards to β cell proliferation we analyzed the possible connections between ADORA2A and DRD2. Duolink in?situ proximity ligation assays revealed that DRD2 and ADORA2A are expressed and form a heterodimer in dissociated Dyphylline mouse pancreatic β cells (Statistics 5A-A″). The connections of DRD2 and ADORA2A was additional verified by co-immunoprecipitation with antibodies against ADORA2A and DRD2 (Amount?5B). DRD2-ADORA2A heterodimer development was improved by dopamine but suppressed by DPD or NECA addition (Statistics 5C-5G). The outcomes recommend an inhibitory?effect of heterodimer formation against adenosine signaling. Number?5 Synergistic Effects of NECA an ADORA2A Agonist and DPD on β Cell Proliferation and Cell Death through Interaction between DRD2 and ADORA2A We then tested islet β cells using our primary culture system (Figures 5H-5J). NECA only improved the number of β?cells and reversed the negative effects of dopamine similar to the dopamine-inhibitory effect of DPD. NECA was shown to increase EdU incorporation (proliferation) of β cells and decrease apoptosis. Much like HMGCS1 DPD NECA efficiently rescued the proliferation of dopamine-treated β cells. However NECA seemed to be less effective than DPD for rescuing dopamine-triggered apoptosis (Number?5J; p?= 0.06). We also tested the effect of NECA in MIN6 cells (Number?S4A). Treatment with NECA or DPD only improved the number of MIN6 cells when present at ≥1.0?μM (D.S. et?al. unpublished data). At lower concentrations DPD and NECA function to produce a lot more amounts of jointly?MIN6 cells. Under knocked-down history NECA was far better in increasing cellular number weighed against control wild-type MIN6 cells (Amount?S4B). These total results claim that a basal.
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Top 3 New Technology Trends for 2021
When things change, they tend to be better, but sometimes, some trends exist simply because they have become trendy for a while. Trends can be good or bad, but that depends on the context and usually, history tells us what is right.
When one year ends and another comes, trends tend to change, giving us opportunities to explore new options, because some trends end up with discounts and new technology for cheaper prices.
2021 is upon us and we have new trends on the horizon. Here are some of them.
Streaming Is Very Popular – Movies and TV Shows
When the world suffers from a global pandemic, things tend to slow down. This is troublesome for many people, from large companies to small-time business owners, to individuals who have to make a living doing something, but they cannot realistically leave their houses.
Streaming became a way to handle the world, watching movies and TV shows online. This is one of the ways that people have been coping with being locked in their houses or having restricted access to shops, not to mention that socialization has also suffered.
Streaming helps and the movie and TV industry has not really stopped, giving everybody something to watch, at least something new.
Smart Gadgets – A Smart Home and Accessories
Since 2020, most people have either been confined to their homes or have worked from home due to a global pandemic. With that in mind, gadgets have still been developing and people have had access to them for a while, but only found it recently to actually purchase them.
Smart homes and gadgets have been here for a couple of years but 2021 saw a rise in their usage. From smart light bulbs to air conditioning and refrigerators and washing machines, everything is in a network and you can control it remotely. Whether this is a good or bad thing, it remains to be seen.
Smartphones with No Chargers – A “Green” Future
Large smartphone companies started removing chargers from their standard packaging and consumers would have to purchase them separately. This is a problem because what it appears is that they have made their business greener, but it is only on paper.
Consumers still need chargers and they will purchase them, only to end up spending more energy on a different package, paper, plastic, as well as the energy spent for shipping. This is a bad trend and everybody hopes that it will go away.
Trends are sometimes good, sometimes bad, but all in all, they come and go. Technology trends can be interesting, particularly because they can point us to what the future might bring. These are some of the technology trends for 2021 that were noticed so far.
Author: admin
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I survived the summer of '19 just like I did the other summers of my life - I ate through it.
Along the way I tried some amazing foods for the first time.
While most of these kind of lists may be filled with fancy-schmancy lists from upscale restaurants, this one is not. It's pretty much "normal" food from the Atlantic City area - several of the items turned out to be pretty surprising.
1. Royal Farms Chicken
Yes, Royal Farms the convenience store. Yes, Royal Farms the convenience store and gas station, newly opened on Tilton Road at Fire Road in Egg Harbor Township.
When they opened I didn't want to buy into the hype. Chicken was their "thing" and I put off my first visit. When I did step foot in the place, it was a disaster.
To their credit, Royal Farms didn't take my review lying down. They contacted me, they charmed me, they brought me chicken. They changed my mind.
Let me put this as clearly as possible: Royal Farms Chicken is amazing. There I said it. Believe the hype.
2. Wawa's Vanilla Milkshake
Honestly, I wasn't even aware that Wawa made milkshakes behind the counter. Then I realized it. Then I tried it.
Best. Milkshake. Of. The. Summer.
Oh, yeah, I've had more than one.
3. Two Mile Landing Restaurant Crab Cakes (Wildwood Crest)
I've dined at Two Mile before, but this summer was the first time I tried their crab cakes.
Delightful! Hardly any filler with big chunks of crab meat.
It's not deep fried, it's not breaded, it's so good.
Will they think I'm weird if I go back and order the same thing every night?
4. The Steak Quesadilla from Taco El Tio (Egg Harbor Township)
It's in my neighborhood, and it's a great place for Mexican food.
I love their food, and have yet to try anything I have not enjoyed.
I had not tried the Quesadilla before because I thought it was more of a kid's item.
Nope. It's awesome.
Same great steak that they use in their fajitas. Mouth-watering.
5. The Sweet Potato Fries at The Grilled Cheese and Crabcake Company (Somers Point)
I didn't like sweet potatoes when I was a kid. I still rarely eat them.
These sweet potato fries, though, are wonderful!
Brushed with cinnamon and served with a cranberry aioli.
They might need to add Sweet Potato Fries to their already long name.
6. The Banana Ice Cream at Custard Castle in Marmora
It's handmade. It's banana. It's so good!
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Analysis of sCO2 Cycles for District Heating Applications
Supercritical CO2 (sCO2) power cycles provide the possibility to significantly improve power generation from fossil fuels and renewable sources considering thermodynamic efficiency, economic feasibility, and operational flexibility. In addition to standalone power generation, the application of sCO2 cycles to cogeneration for combined heat and power processes can be a highly
attractive option with respect to further development, and commercialization.
In particular, the incorporation of a heat extraction option for district heating can be favorable regarding the overall cycle efficiency for temperate and cold climate regions because of the thermodynamic properties of sCO2. The current study thus
focuses on the modeling, simulation, and thermodynamic analysis of different, simple sCO2 cycle designs for waste heat applications incorporating heat extraction for district heating. Different technological options, like backpressure turbines, split-flow recooling, as well as turbine extraction designs, and their effects on cycle design, operation, and efficiency are analyzed. The results show
that sCO2 based cycles enable engineers to achieve high-efficiency power generation also in combination with heat extraction for district heating, comparable to conventional water-steam-based cycles. Furthermore, the split-flow recooling design provides the possibility to extract a significant amount of heat without affecting the power generation.
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Use and reproduction:
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CC BY 4.0 LogoCreative Commons Attribution 4.0 License (CC BY 4.0)
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MA Court Ignores Reality that Women and Families will Suffer Under the Trump Administration’s Birth Control Rules
Yesterday a federal court in Massachusetts issued an opinion that dangerously underestimates the harm to women and families that will result from the Trump Administration’s efforts to gut the Affordable Care Act’s birth control benefit, which guarantees insurance coverage of all FDA-approved methods of birth control with no out-of-pocket costs.
The court dismissed a lawsuit by the Massachusetts Attorney General challenging two Trump Administration rules that would allow virtually any employer or university claiming religious or moral objections to refuse to provide insurance coverage of birth control. In deciding to throw out the case, the court did not consider any of Massachusetts’ arguments as to why the rules are unlawful under federal statutes and the U.S. Constitution. Instead, the court focused only on whether Massachusetts had a right to go to court to protect the health and well-being of its residents, holding that it did not.
In its lawsuit, Massachusetts explained to the court that thousands of Massachusetts women stand to lose insurance coverage of birth control as a result of the Trump rules, which would make the state incur significant expense due to added strain on Medicaid, state-funded clinics, and other public programs.
But the court disregarded Massachusetts’ evidence. Instead, the court said that a new law passed by the legislature shortly after the Trump rules were issued – the ACCESS Act – would save the day. That law protects some Massachusetts residents from the Trump rules because it requires insurance plans governed by state law to cover birth control coverage with no out-of-pocket costs. In light of this new law, the court decided that Massachusetts did not prove it likely that the state or any of its residents would suffer any harm from the Trump rules.
But although the ACCESS Act is a huge achievement, it does not undo the harm from the Trump rules. This is because the ACCESS Act does not apply to plans that “self-insure” (because those are governed by federal, not state, law). Nearly 60 percent of Massachusetts residents who have private health insurance are enrolled in self-insured plans and could lose coverage under the Trump rules if their employer objects. The court’s refusal to acknowledge the likelihood that many Massachusetts women will lose birth control coverage under the Trump rules notwithstanding the ACCESS Act ignores reality and effectively penalizes the state legislature for doing what it can to protect its residents.
Fortunately, this decision does nothing to disturb two nationwide preliminary injunctions that are already in place blocking the Trump rules from taking effect while legal challenges are being decided. Federal courts in California and Pennsylvania issued those injunctions after determining that the rules likely violate federal law and that legal challenges were likely to succeed.
Make no mistake about it, the Trump Administration rules seriously jeopardize the health, equality, and economic security of women in Massachusetts and nationwide. As the federal court in Pennsylvania recognized, the rules’ expansive exemptions from the ACA birth control benefit are the “proverbial exception that swallows the rule.” If the Trump rules are allowed to take effect, many women will face out-of-pocket costs that may lead them to choose less effective contraception methods or forgo birth control altogether. This can result in unintended pregnancy and health complications, which undermine women’s educational and professional development. The Trump rules will disproportionately harm low-income women, women of color, and LGBTQ persons, who already face greater barriers to accessing reproductive health care, including birth control. The court in Massachusetts got this one wrong, but we will continue to fight to make sure these dangerous rules are struck down for good.
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Sensi Wi-Fi Thermostat
The highly-rated Sensi thermostat is loaded with features designed to make it easier and more convenient than ever to achieve the perfect level of home comfort. From a simple installation process to an intuitive mobile app that allows you to adjust the settings on your thermostat for complete control - Anytime. Anywhere.
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You asked: Which country is totally dependent on India?
Which country is depend on India?
Which country India likes the most?
Incredible India Arrival of tourists from:
• United Kingdom 941,883.
• Canada 317,239.
• Malaysia 301,961.
• Sri Lanka 297,418.
• Australia 293,625.
• Germany 265,928.
• China 251,313.
• France 238,707.
Is America dependent on India?
With China, U.S. dependence is limited to manufacturing industries. But just about every U.S. industry sector now relies on India for IT support. And although being dependent on India is not nearly as scary as being dependent on a geopolitical rival such as China, this is dependency nonetheless.
How much India is dependent on other countries?
In 2020-21, Indian imports were valued at $388.92 billion, an 18 percent drop from 2019-20, when the country imported goods and services worth $474.71 billion. In the last financial year, Indian exports stood at $290.18 billion, down 7.4 percent from $313.36 billion in 2019-20.
IT\'S AMAZING: Your question: Is Indian paintbrush protected?
Is Japan a friend of India?
Is South Korea is friend of India?
India–South Korea relations refers to the bilateral relations between India and South Korea. Formal establishment of diplomatic ties between the two countries occurred in 1973.
India–South Korea relations.
India South Korea
Diplomatic mission
Embassy of India, Seoul Embassy of South Korea, New Delhi
Does Japan support India?
Japan has been involved economically in India, and elsewhere in South Asia, for decades. … It is of little surprise that in the same period Japan started to offer its assistance in building such networks in India. Second, Tokyo is helping New Delhi to improve its infrastructure connections with neighbors.
Which country is not safe for Indian?
Most Dangerous Countries For Women 2021
Country Women’s Danger Index Intimate Partner Sexual Violence
Dominican Republic 551.32 50
Egypt 546.91 58
Morocco 542.75 100
India 541.25 83
Which country has no Indian population?
Are India and Russia friends?
After the Dissolution of the Soviet Union, Russia inherited its close relationship with India which resulted in both nations sharing a special relationship. Russia and India both describe this relationship as a “special and privileged strategic partnership”.
IT\'S AMAZING: Which is the diamond city of India?
Is India its own country?
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: Bhārat Gaṇarājya), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. … The Dravidian languages of India were supplanted in the northern and western regions.
Is India a third world country?
The “Second World” countries were the Communist Bloc countries, including the Soviet Union, China, and their allies.
Third World Countries 2021.
Country Human Development Index 2021 Population
Micronesia 0.627 116,254
India 0.64 1,393,409,038
Namibia 0.647 2,587,344
Tajikistan 0.65 9,749,627
Is India dependent on China?
A group of ministers in a report last year had acknowledged that India remains critically dependent on China for 86 items including items like consumer electronics, computer hardware, telephone equipment and electronic items.
What is most imported in India?
Why is India important to the world?
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What is check-in? What is a boarding pass? How do I leave my hold baggage?
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In this article we will answer some questions we receive from the "beginners" in the flight. Obviously we all had a first flight and we faced different problems due to lack of knowledge.
It's not a shame to ask when you don't know something. No one was born an expert in flights and airplanes. We all evolved through practice and started with the related questions. What is check-in? What is a boarding pass? How do I leave my hold baggage?
But first let's start with plane ticket. This is an electronic document or record, issued by an airline or travel agency, which confirms that a person is entitled to a seat on a flight. It can be purchased on the day of the flight or in advance depending on the price and preferences. It can be purchased from a travel agency or on the airline's website. If you do not know how to buy a plane ticket, ask for the help of a friend, relative, a travel agent.
Mention the period of travel and request the desired services, such as hold baggage, catering service, a favorite place. The airline's search engine is accessed, travel data is entered, parameters are set according to the desired services and a fare results. If it is ok, continue the purchase with the completion of the transaction and payment of the plane ticket. Okay, you have a plane ticket, but the stress of the first flight doesn't stop there. The plane ticket is not enough!
You've probably heard of check-in. Personally, on the first flight, I was confused about check-in. I mean, I bought the plane ticket with all the services included, but what's the check-in?
Move-in is the procedure for registering passengers and their luggage at on board an airline or at the hotel. Mainly at check-in identity documents and travel tickets are verified. It is a standard procedure when it comes to flights and accommodation.
Each airline has its own packages and in the price of the flight you can have some services included, others are for money. When it comes to low-cost companies, most extra services are for a fee. So you have to be very careful about what you have included in the ticket price, what you can buy extra and what are the fees for extra services.
Speaking of check-in, we recommend that you do it online regardless of the airline you fly with, obviously where possible. There are cases when this service is not available and then you have to do it at the airport, at the check-in counter (that's what it's called).
How to check in online? Go to the page dedicated to this service on the website of the airline you are flying with. You must be careful when filling in your personal data - name, surname, travel document data (ID - series and number; Passport) etc.
Okay, you checked in online. What's the next step? Well, check-in results boarding pass. It can be saved in electronic or printed format. This is your boarding pass. Remember: not the plane ticket, but the boarding pass you need to get on the plane. It contains the name of the passenger, the seat on the plane, the services included, the hours for each stage before take-off (the time when the airport check-in office closes, the time when the boarding gate closes, etc.). Each airline can customize the boarding pass in electronic format.
You bought the plane ticket, checked in, prepared your ID, but what do you do if you have your hold baggage?
In this case, even if you have your online check-in done, you must go to the airport check-in desk to let hold baggage. It is weighed and receives a bar code associated with the owner's boarding pass. Once you have checked in online, the airline representative will no longer put your data in the system, being automatically taken over.
Once you have left your hold baggage, all you have to do is go to the security checkpoint, the border police office to check the documents and the boarding gate at the airport terminal. When boarding, present your boarding pass and ID (plus what is required in pandemic conditions). Then go to the plane according to the instructions. Observe your place on the boarding pass. Relax and enjoy the flights!
Let's conclude all these steps
1. You buy plane ticket (online or from a travel agency / ticketing). Receive check-in information, when and where it can be done!
2. make online check-in during the period of the ticket purchased. Result boarding pass that you have all the necessary information for the flight: the time when the baggage office closes (bag drop desk), the time at which the boarding gate closes (boarding gate), name, surname, services included, place;
3. On the day of the flight, you show up at the airport at least 2 hours before the flight. If you have hold baggage, wait to be shown where the check-in desks are for the chosen flight and go to drop off your hold baggage (present your ID);
4. Go to security control;
5. After passing the security check and verification procedures, go to the boarding gate (boarding gate) registered on the monitors in the terminal;
6. Wait for boarding to begin (boarding pass and ID are shown);
7. Get on the plane and enjoy the flight!
These would be the steps you need to follow on most flights. Depending on the chosen airline, prices and services vary, but the precedent is the same.
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Nerds on Earth
The best place on Earth for nerds.
Recap and Review of Loki, Episode 5: “Journey into Mystery”
In the last episode, we saw our Loki meet his demise at the end of TVA purge stick. Only the post-credit scene showed us that Loki wasn’t quite done. But who are all these other Lokis and where exactly has he landed?
Recap of Loki, Episode 5: “Journey Into Mystery”
And after an artistic shot that takes us through the TVA, stopping by to see a beheaded Time Keeper statue and eventually finding Loki, we learn two quick things; he is in a place called the Void and a giant smoke-like monster named Alioth that seems to rule the Void with destruction is closing in on him and his fellow Lokis.
But after the credits, we switch to Sylvie, taking a TemPad from a defeated Ravonna and asking her hard questions about what she knows about the TVA and how long she has known it. But Ravonna is able to stall her own purging by telling Sylvie about the Void but, even more importantly, that Loki is there and not quite dead yet.
Claiming that they now both want the same thing, to see what and who is behind the TVA, Sylvie reluctantly gives over the TemPad.
But in the Void, we see the reality of what Ravonna described to Sylvie. The Void is the place where all timelines converge at the end. And when they purge items from the variant timelines, all of the things go there. So, we see crashed boats and spaceships, cars and vehicles abandoned from seemingly all across the universe as the Lokis are moving very rapidly to get away from the Smoke-Monster chasing them.
But our Loki stops the proceeding to ask for some basic information. Some discussion of it all ends when the elder Loki explains the Void is basically a shark tank and Alioth is the shark. And while our Loki wants to try and figure it out, these Loki have come down to one mantra really: Survive.
As they walk along, Loki questions the validity of Kid Loki, wondering what Kid Loki’s Nexus event was, and seems to be a bit shocked when Kid Loki confesses: “I killed Thor.”
Eventually, they wind up in an underground bunker and they question our Loki on why he wants to return. And while they think it is because he has lost his glorious purpose, we seem to understand that is much more about Sylvie.
Back at the TVA, Ravonna is asking Miss Minutes to give information about the beginning of time, while Sylvie is wanting her to look at the end of time. When Sylvie discovers that there isn’t a direct way to access the Void, Miss Minutes offers up the explanation of a Void spacecraft.
But Sylvie is no idiot, having watched the sideways glances from Miss Minutes and Ravonna. Sylvie demands the files on the spacecraft and when Miss Minutes cannot produce, Sylvie escapes. And cornered in the judge chambers, she uses the stick to prune herself into the Void.
In the Void, the Lokis are running through what their Nexus events were. One Loki claims to have vanquished Captain America and Iron Man, before claiming all 6 of the Infinity Stones. But Gator Loki doubts it, only to then be accused of his Nexus event being having eaten the wrong neighbor’s cat.
Elder Loki doesn’t want to tell his story but our Loki is desperate to hear it, as he knows that after Ragnarok, he is supposed to die at Thanos’ hand. Only where our Loki tries to stab Loki, Elder Loki cast a spell, faking all of that and then drifting through space. Given the time, he realized that pain seemed to follow him wherever he went. So he found a planet and isolated himself.
When he missed his brother and started to return to the universe, Elder Loki was caught and was pruned. And he has been on the run ever since in the Void. He thinks the truth is that Loki isn’t supposed to the God of Mischef but instead the God of Outcasts.
Our Loki is ever more determined, and after explaining who Sylvie is, he decides the best course is to the try and kill Alioth. But after his rousing speech moves none of the other Loki to join, he heads out, only to run into many other Lokis at the top of their secret base.
Meanwhile, Sylvie comes to, sleeping in the back of a pruned school bus and starts to move immediately when darkness falls. Because sure enough, Alioth is near her. But as she runs, she is able to connect with the Alioth for a brief moment, seeing memories and structures of some other place.
Her getaway is complete when Mobius shows up, driving a pizza delivery car. Together they are able to escape.
At the base, the 10 new Lokis show up and the strong Loki thinks he will be the new King, taking it from Kid Loki. But then President Loki (or at least he is wearing a Loki for President button) explains that isn’t how it is going to work, that he will be in charge when the rest of the new Lokis turn on him.
The fight begins when Alligator Loki bites off the hand of President Loki. But our Loki recognizes a chance to escape, and follows along with Elder Loki, Kid Loki and Alligator Loki. (But not before we get a very humorous fight amongst the rest of the Lokis).
Safe from the rest, realizing that nothing will ever change as long as the TVA is purging any Loki that tries to make themselves into something different, they agree to help our Loki, promising to get him to Alioth, though they aren’t willing to pledge to fight it.
Meanwhile, Mobius and Sylvie are driving around getting acquainted, discussing what they have both done in the name of what each has seen as their good cause. And having made their peace, they head back towards Alioth, as Sylvie thinks it may be the key to finding out who is behind all of this. Here the groups meet, working together on their now common cause. Where Loki was going to try and kill Alioth, Sylvie sees it as their guard dog and thinks the way forward is for her to enchant it.
Back at the TVA, we see the sad reality of agent B-15, who is locked away for helping Sylvie the way that she did. When Ravonna questions her, she lets her know that she thinks that Sylvie will turn her focus from the Time Keepers to whoever created them, still looking for revenge for what happened to her.
But she also sees through Ravonna’s exterior, knowing that she wants to see what is behind the puppets. So she asks Miss Minutes for the files about the start of the TVA and the beginning of time.
Team Lokis (and Mobius) are preparing for the their work. Mobius is getting to know the other Lokis, having not remembered ever capturing and purging an alligator Variant Loki. But mainly, he wants to get a shot at the TVA so that people can know the truth. The other Lokis seem to struggle with the idea that he could so quickly change and find a new purpose.
But outside and away from the others Loki and Sylvie talk. It is all kinds of romantic tension awkward, with Loki conjuring a blanket because he is cold, then offering her one. But they both seem to agree that Mobius’ theory about their Nexus event on Lamentis being when they caught feelings for each other is rubbish.
When Sylvie expresses that she isn’t good with friendship or having anyone, Loki makes his blanket larger and wraps her in it with him. And he promises that he won’t betray her in the end. Sylvie says that she isn’t sure what will happen when this is all over. But they both say that maybe they can figure it out together.
And with that Team Lokis heads into a fight with the Alioth, the others are prepared to stay in the realm. Mobius TemPads out, but not before he and Loki embrace. But our Loki promises to stay beside Sylvie as she tries to enchant the beast. And the other Lokis are staying in the realm of the Void but moving away from the fight.
Our Loki then works towards creating a distraction, lighting up the sword that Kid Loki gave him for the fight. Sylvie then starts to enchant Alioth but it turns back towards her. All seems lost when suddenly Elder Loki starts to create a whole illusionary world that the Alioth attacks.
Joining hands Sylvie and Loki work to do the magic together. Elder Loki stumbles and realizes that someone is going to be the sacrifice. And he has found his last, true glorious purpose.
That sacrifice gave Sylvie and Loki the time they needed. Alioth is enchanted. And the two of them are able to see past the monster, into another realm that they walk towards confidently hand in hand.
Thoughts on Loki, Episode 5: “Journey Into Mystery”
After taking the bold move of “killing off” their two main characters last week, it would have been easy for us to see this week’s episode as the comic book easy out. Of course Loki and Mobius were going to come back. But this world of the Void that they created is intense.
And I suspect that we will see lots of different MCU things come to light when people have time to look at lots of the artifacts in the Void scenes. Some will be subtle and some will be more obvious. (For instance, search USS Eldridge to see what was up with that ship that popped up in the back third of the episode.)
Likewise, I am sure we are going to get some fun notes about all the Lokis that were accompanying President Loki. I suspect there were numerous celebrity actors that showed up for one fun day of “fighting” for those scenes. But they also served a purpose: Can Lokis ever really change? Even if they want to, do they have the capacity to advance? That sentiment is going to play an important part at the end of the series I suspect. Will Loki betray Sylvie and undo all of his growth? Or will Sylvie betray Loki in the end?
Finally, a note about the score and music for this series. Often we can underappreciate how much good work a soundtrack can do. This series has need times of intimacy and close relationships and also moments of grand, sweeping epicness. This soundtrack has delivered across the board and it deserves an enormous amount of praise!
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The Upsie Promise
Our support doesn’t end after you purchase a warranty; we’re here to help through the duration of your coverage. It might sound odd considering traditional warranty providers do everything in their power to deny you service. But that’s why we’re the new, better way to warranty.
Our Promise To You
Calls Answered By Real Humans
Our claims reps will answer your
call 24/7/365. They’re great and
will help you through the
entire process.
Speedy Claims Approvals
Find out on your first
call if your claim is
covered. The only exception
is if our reps need
photo evidence to clarify the claim.
Easy to Cancel Plans
We hate to see you go,
but we respect your
decision. Based on the
number of days remaining
on your plan, you’ll receive
a full or prorated
(minus a 10% cancellation fee)
within 10 days of cancellation.
In Summary
We’ll reimburse your deductible or (if your plan didn’t have a deductible) credit your Upsie account $10 towards your next warranty. Why are we doing this? Because Upsie was created for the customer so the customer should benefit from it.
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8ight2wenty6ix , LLC is an apparel brand that focus on providing affordable luxury fashions. Owned, operated and founded by Chey B, with the intention and hope that 8ight2wenty6ix will reach local and national markets but also be branded to have a global appeal.
As of now 8ight2wenty6ix clothing is being delivered personally by the owner, Chey. Through hard work and continued dedication we hope to expand soon and hope that you continue on this journey with us.
Stay Tuned for more
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Great Ukrainian Graffiti Art
The style of graffiti art varies from nation to nation. The artists (who are usually poor and not formally trained) vent their frustration and anger in the form of street art. It is a symbolic form of protest against the ‘Man‘.Some may consider this art form as an eyesore, but the intentions of the artists are quite clear. They don’t want us to ignore their existence.
Here is a link to some bright and colorful street art from Ukraine. The art breaks through the bleakness and urban decay of the cold streets.
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Election-related diseases (don’t take this seriously)
Signs and symptoms:
For wannabe politicians:
1. Lock jaw due to persistent laughing
2. Calloused hands because of consecutive handshaking
3. Arm sprain due to carrying babies.
4. Sore throat due to making several empty promises
5. Constipation for trying to eat with the masses.
6. Sunstroke for staying out too long with the people.
7. Tension headache for wanting so bad to win in the elections.
For the voting public:
1. Impacted eardrums for hearing too many politicians’s speeches.
2. Mild migraine for worrying about the lack of worthy and sincere candidates
3. Babies suffering from usog due to politicians’ kisses
4. Tension headache due to reading and hearing too much about politics
1. Trust your instincts, do not get into too many political debates
2. Decide early on who to vote for and support
3. Accept all the money and other benefits a politician gives then vote for the other candidate
On election day, go out and vote!
source Healthbeat, DOH official magazine
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Osteoclasts (OCLs) are key players in controlling bone tissue remodeling
Osteoclasts (OCLs) are key players in controlling bone tissue remodeling. phagocytosis and innate immune system replies. However, while OCLs have already been examined because of their bone tissue resorption capability thoroughly, their implication as immune system cells was neglected for a long period. Lately, new evidence remarked that OCLs play essential assignments in the modulation of immune system replies toward immune system suppression or irritation. They Benfotiamine unlocked their capability to modulate T cell activation, to effectively procedure and present antigens aswell as their capability to activate T cell replies within an antigen-dependent way. Moreover, comparable to various other monocytic lineage cells such as for example macrophages, monocytes and dendritic cells, OCLs screen a phenotypic and practical plasticity participating to their anti-inflammatory or pro-inflammatory effect depending on their cell source and environment. This review will address this novel vision of the OCL, not only like a phagocyte specialized in bone resorption, but also as innate immune cell participating in the control of immune reactions. mice and reciprocal transfer of hematopoietic cells from mice induced osteopetrosis in normal recipient mice (2). The monocytic source of OCLs was first shown in colony assays of bone marrow cell fractions (3). From this moment, OCLs have been extensively analyzed to decipher the mechanisms of bone resorption leading to the recognition of key factors required for OCL differentiation, fusion, bone adhesion and bone degradation activity. These studies defined a set of specific properties that cells must fulfill to be defined as OCLs, the most important becoming multinucleation, the manifestation of markers such as the tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase (TRAcP) and the capacity to degrade bone and mineralized matrix (4). Among hematopoietic cells, OCLs belong to the monocytic family. This family of Benfotiamine innate immune cells is characterized by its capacity to sense and respond to infections and tissue damage, its phagocytic properties and its high plasticity controlled by the cells micro-environmental heterogeneity (5C7). Abundant literature addressed the origins and functions of monocytes (MNs), macrophages (M?s), and dendritic cells (DCs). Today, it is clearly established that every of these populations includes unique sub-groups that have specific source and practical properties ranging from inflammatory to immune system suppressive results (8, 9). Nevertheless, despite their common origins, the implication of OCLs as innate immune system cells continues to be neglected for a long period. The immune system encounter of OCLs surfaced only a decade ago when costimulatory indicators mediated by ITAM motifs involved with immune system cell activation had been been shown to be needed for OCL differentiation (10C12). This is additional emphasized with the identification from the essential hyperlink between DCs and OCLs through the power of DCs to differentiate into bone-resorbing OCLs under pathological circumstances (13, 14) (Desk 1). Desk 1 Pathological circumstances connected with inflammatory osteoclasts differentiated from dendritic cells. (76). General, the multiple capacities of both MN subsets to distinguish into either inflammatory or regulatory mature M? s or DCs depend over the inflammatory tissues and indication microenvironment. Oddly enough, both mouse MN subsets can get back to the BM because of a CXCR4-reliant indication (67). The respective role of Ly6Clow and Ly6Chigh MNs on bone turnover remain yet to become established. Since MNs constitute a way to obtain OCLs, it really is anticipated that both MN subsets screen OCL differentiation potential. However the culture conditions utilized to monitor OCL differentiation diverge between research, it would appear that mouse OCLs develop from BM Compact disc11b?/lowLy6Chigh monocytic progenitors (as described over) and from blood Compact disc11bhighLy6Chigh MNs. In the BM, Compact disc11b?/lowLy6Chigh monocytic progenitors are even more prone than Compact disc11b+ MNs to differentiate into OCLs (43) due to the detrimental role of Compact disc11b and 2-integrin signaling in OCL differentiation (77). comparative research predicated on BM treatment with several cytokines showed that Ly6Chigh MNs had been far more effective than Ly6Clow monocytes to differentiate into mature OCLs (78). Significantly, the BM Compact disc11b?/lowLy6Chigh population also displays an OCL differentiation capacity and Rabbit Polyclonal to NF-kappaB p65 it is extended in inflammatory arthritis choices (79). Specifically, the CX3CR1+ small percentage of the cells is extremely enriched in OCL precursors (79). In-depth phenotypic characterization permitted to additional dissect Compact disc11b?/lowLy6Chigh cells into 3 different populations with high osteoclastogenic potential predicated on the expression from the phenotypic marker Compact disc117 (c-Kit) (43). In the bloodstream, the mouse Ly6Chigh MN subset also represents the main precursor cell people of OCLs (Amount 2C). Certainly, Ly6Chigh MNs are better compared to the Ly6Clow subset to differentiate into TRAcP positive cells (55). In the framework of inflammatory joint disease, disease severity Benfotiamine is definitely associated with Ly6Chigh blood monocytosis, and Ly6Chigh MNs more specifically migrate to the inflamed joints and contribute to bone erosion because of the excessive differentiation into OCLs (56). Importantly, delivery of restorative molecules to Ly6Chigh MNs, but not to.
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Ways to Clean Up Oil Spills
1024 682 natasha
Oil is an important ingredient used in our daily activities. Oil is the mining material that many miners are looking for in high value. But the process of mining oil sometimes has its own challenges. The most frequent and detrimental to many is the oil spilled in the ocean. Not only miners who are harmed, but the environment also participate because the oil spilled oil will spread wide and difficult to clean. Moreover, marine life creatures that could have drunk sea water that mixed with oil. So, these are some of the techniques—both traditional and non-traditional—that could be used to clean up the oil spill?
1. Surface Dispersants
Chemical dispersants, which have been used throughout the oil spill, are sprayed by boats, aircraft and workers on the shore. Chemical dispersants pull apart oil particles suspended in water, reducing the oil slick to droplets that can be degraded by naturally occurring bacteria.
The major benefit of this technique is that the dispersants can be applied over a large area from specially-fit airplanes or helicopters. When the chemicals are applied, dispersed oil is significantly less toxic. However, because the chemical properties of leaked oil will change over time, dispersants may lose their ability to break apart the oil. There are also concerns about the dispersants themselves , which are also toxic, damaging the environment.
1. Underwater Dispersants
The use of underwater dispersants was purely experimental when the BP oil spill first occurred. Similar in nature to traditional dispersants, the idea is that underwater dispersants attach to the oil before it can reach the surface, thus minimizing the amount of oil that eventually lands on shore.
This technique, however, requires the use of remote vehicles to apply the chemicals, which may be less effective at extreme depths. Being that this technique is not completely tested, critics worry that breaking up oil at extreme depths may release more toxic components into the water and could potentially damage the underwater ecosystem.
1. Controlled Burns
Controlled burns have been conducted throughout the oil spill. A fireproof boom corrals leaked oil into smaller, more dense pockets that can be ignited remotely from the air and burned off. The process of burning removes large portions of oil from the water’s surface, keeping it away from the shoreline.
This technique must be conducted soon after the oil has been spilled, however, and can be severely affected by bad weather. During the current spill, controlled burn operations had to be postponed when waters made this technique dangerous. Controlled burns also produce columns of smoke, which shift the environmental impact from the sea to the air.
1. Booms and Skimmers
Another technique is using booms and skimmers to remove oil from the water’s surface. Booms are used to collect oil in concentrated areas, while skimmers separate the crude from the water.
The efficiency of skimmers is highly dependent on sea conditions and the presence of debris, which can both pose serious roadblocks to these techniques.
1. Marsh Cleanup Techniques
The report suggests several methods that have been used to clean up oil spills in the past, but notes that each carries individual risks and in most cases, mere human interaction and mobilization of equipment damages the environment in other ways. Several major techniques include:
a. Vacuum/pumping, which removes pooled oil on marsh sediment or the surface of water
b. Low-pressure flush, which pushes oil towards collection points where other equipment is operating, like skimmers or vacuums
c. Vegetation cutting, in which plants are cut and removed so that other techniques can be effectively employed, however, erosion and damage to fragile sediment and existing roots may limit or even delay recovery.
d. Bioremediation, a potential low-impact cleaning technique, uses microorganisms and their enzymes to facilitate decomposition. Nitrate or sulfate fertilizers are used to facilitate decomposition.
6. Manual/Mechanical Cleanup
Used in nearly every oil spill, the methods of manual or mechanical cleanup are the down-and-dirty techniques employed when oil spills get particularly messy. Manual cleanup consists of placing workers on the coast, armed with shovels, rakes and gloves to collect oil that has run ashore. Mechanical cleanup requires heavy machinery and is used in areas that are plagued by heavy oiled beaches, or areas which are thick in debris.
Although time-consuming, manual cleanup is preferred, as unskilled workers with minimal training can be employed in large numbers to clean affected areas. The use of heavy machinery can quickly clean up large areas, but the use of bulldozers, trucks and digging equipment can damage the affected areas in addition to the oil.
All stories by: natasha
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How To Beat The House Edge ON YOUR OWN Casino Games
How To Beat The House Edge ON YOUR OWN Casino Games
There are many different types of casino games. They can be for single players or sets of people who desire to find something fun to do together. These games change from the normal blackjack to more exotic games like roulette and baccarat. These games can take place in land-based casinos, online, or via a telephone or gaming system. The types of casino games likewise incorporate slots, video poker, roulette, craps, and other card games. Most of these are available to be used cards or coins.
casino games
The most famous forms of casino games include roulette, baccarat, slot machines, card games, and table games. Most of these are available for all sorts of casino operations, however, many may be limited for specific locations. For example, most table games must be played on the NEVADA strip. Roulette and baccarat are specially popular since they involve chance, and are designed for everyone in the casino, even if you’re playing at an online site.
In the casino game “blackjack”, the player is dealt a hand comprising seven cards. These cards are labeled with a specific number, ranging from one to nine. If someone wins the blackjack, see your face takes the total amount on their card – plus the winnings from all the other players who have played – and adds it with their winnings. There are several skill games in blackjack like the game called “card shark”, where in fact the player has to predict the quantity, color, and arrangement of the cards before getting the correct answer.
The most well-known slots are the ones that are found in the traditional brick and mortar casinos. All other types of casino games use slots. Slots are created to pay out regular wages. There are different types of slots, including video slots, reel style, software slots, touchscreen, and electronic slots. Additionally, there are progressive slot machines that let the player winnings increase over time. There are also keno and joker slots in many casinos.
The most popular casino games open to players are poker and blackjack. The very best online casinos can offer all kinds of games available to players. Some of these games include bingo, air hockey, slot machines, video poker, and the classic game of poker. Regardless of what kind of casino games available, there are several companies that offer online casino gambling services.
Video slots are a great way for people to experience the excitement of casino games without actually likely to NEVADA. Video slots allow players to choose one of many different casino games, play a video slot machine, and then walk away with a little winnings. Players can pick from a variety of software slots. Generally in most casinos, video slots aren’t allowed because of the gambling regulations. Most players do not like to risk their lives and money on machines that not have a good track record.
Blackjack is another of the casino games available which has no skill involved. Though it is purely chance that determines the outcome of a blackjack hand, it can still be considered to be a form of gambling. Some people think that blackjack has little skill to it because players should be lucky enough to get cards, place bets, and call their cards the right way. However, there are many ways to “beat” the device and earn a win.
Slots that allow players to win virtual cash at the click of a button are becoming increasingly popular among casinos. These kinds of slots are known as “house edges”. The casino houses earn more income from these kinds of slots because the house charge for every hand the user plays but never wins. There’s usually no house edge 인터넷바카라 with regards to video slots or electronic slots.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Meet our panel!
This FAQ is here to answer all of your pressing vanlife related questions. If you have any questions that you would like addressed, please contact us and we will do our best to create resources with you in mind.
How do you travel safely during a pandemic?
When we do travel, a lot preplanning and research happens way before we set a date to leave. Covid19 cases, mandates, popularity of the area, etc, are top priorities we research to ensure we’re prepared and are able to comply. Especially when it comes to where we’ll be able park/live while we’re visiting. Lately, we’ve been saving our travels for visiting family when times allows it.
I personally cut back a lot, especially initially. I actually had a contract job that provided housing at the start so I was actively struggling with the reintegration to indoors when it started. It really bummed me out because it was up in the Bay Area and I had looked forward to using it as a good starting point to get up to the PNW. When the lockdown started, I tried to make a run for Lake Tahoe but the ski resort literally closed as I pulled into the parking lot. That took a lot of wind out of my sails, then when I got back to the Bay Area, several of my dog park friends got $1000 tickets for being at the dog park after a warning. I’ll pay a $60 parking ticket like nothing happened but I wasn’t educated enough on coronavirus and everyone was taking it so seriously that I just stayed isolated. Once the job ended I drove back across the country on my yearly trek to visit family but I didn’t make all of my normal stops. Most of them were museums and centers that were closed anyway but I did make it to a bike park and it wasn’t a bid deal to wear a mask on the lift and town. While I was here things seemed to get worse back in LA. My job also closed brick and mortar stores and shifted us to live chat support. That sounds great until you find out theyre sending you a desktop. Since then, I’ve just been getting tested regularly and traveling between family homes on the east coast. I’ve taken some smaller trips but its freezing over here so there really isnt much appeal until the weather gets warm or California pulls it together and I find a position that doesn’t take 100% of my daily solar.
I wear a mask EVERYWHERE I go in public. Even the small towns that don’t require them I still wear it. Wash your hands. Living out on public lands, I’m usually with my little group of friends who are almost never in contact with other humans. It’s a lot safer than being in a city going about your normal life.
n Mexico, there are less restrictions than US but many places require you to wear mask. We wear masks whenever we go out to any public space; downtown, local markets or cafes / restaurants. We don’t go to overly crowded spaces like bars or clubs. We are also careful about camping in a street of rural areas, as some small towns refuse outsiders coming in because of Covid. We always ask for permission by talking to the local people or the police.
Traveling safely during the pandemic has been a whirlwind of experiences. At the beginning, we hunkered down on BLM, only going to replenish supplies every two weeks. We saw no one but the wildlife. After a few months we made our way back southeast towards our hometowns. Now we feel very safe as we are staying with a host while rebuilding our rig and really go no where except for grocery and building supplies. It is definitely hard not seeing friends/fam in the capacity that we want but we value social media for these reasons even more these days. When we were traveling this past year, we checked every governor mandate for each state so we knew what we were getting into.
How do you use the bathroom while on the road?
We’ve set up a mini bathroom in our van that provides pretty much everything we would need if we find ourselves camping in a place that doesn’t provide those amenities. Considering the majority of our time is in the city, we opted for a 3 gallon waste porta potti by Thetford that’s easily emptied out into a regular toilet when needed. Our shower set up includes a tub (which was originally meant for our dogs) and our Big Kahuna that holds about 5 gallons of water and comes with a pump and pressured shower head. To save as much space, a lot of our items (sinks, laundry basket, shower tub, etc are collapsible and easy to store.
I have a composting bucket toilet. I wanted a natures head but they were so expensive that I tried to build my own and it works well enough for me and its just a single garbage bag instead of however you have to clean the real ones and empty the pee. I wasn’t down. This is just a bucket from Home Depot, sawdust in the bottom, plastic bag, sawdust in the bag, reliant makes a toilet seat for a bucket and there you go. I get sawdust from hardware stores and then you just do the biz and cover the biz and when its like half full, tie the bag up and toss it out. It never smells or looks like anything but a bucket of sawdust when done properly. Having a toilet is the reason for my upgrade from the Element to the Promaster though. Without a toilet, you can’t really park wherever you want because in the morning you need to hit a bathroom. In LA the public bathrooms are locked until a certain time of morning but also… theyre terrible… I know the best ones obviously but the goal isnt to stay near the best bathroom so having your own eliminates worrying about it… not to mention an upset stomach or urge to go in the middle of the night.
In my Honda Element, I would dig a hole outside. We as humans have been doing that for over 150,000 years. It’s pretty normal. If I’m in a city, I’ll find a Starbucks, gas station, fast food joint, Walmart etc. In the bus I have now there is a natures head composting toilet that I use if there’s campers out n about. When I was living in the woods in Bend, Oregon I would head to the nearest trailhead since they had pit toilets. Thats about it, I made a video on pooping outside on my Instagram as well.
Gas stations, restaurants and cafes, public bathroom (you pay $0.25 for each use) or… nature..Yuko uses a female urination device (pee funnel) when we’re on the road.
We have several ways we use the bathroom while on the road. We decided against a toilet in our rig the first build as to save space. It was not a real problem as there are plenty of public facilities all around the country and we spent most of our time on BLM/national forest land where we used the leave no trace methods for doing our business. We have decided to upgrade our new rig with a compost toilet mainly for when in cities at certain hours and when we travel outside the country as bathrooms are not necessarily readily available in certain countries. We want to feel completely comfortable/self sufficient in our new home. Peeing in a jug is getting old!
How do you access clean drinking water during the pandemic & shutdowns?
Before the pandemic/shutdowns we use 3 and 5 gallon refillable bottles. Every week we would take them to the grocery store and use their refill stations. Luckily a few weeks before shutdown, we invested in a Berkey Water filtration system that allows us to use potable water sources to ensure our water was healthy to drink and cook with. We pretty much rely on both systems now days.
I’ve always kept gallons of water that I refill in the machines. My sink also runs off of a seven gallon container that I usually fill with the machine but I have been forced to just buy the jugs if I can’t find an operational refill machine.
Water. I have a 46 gallon tank aboard my bus and I’ve found campgrounds to be the best. Gas stations will have potable water sometimes as well and using the iOverlander you can find the ones that do. When I was in my Honda Element I would take my 7 gallon blue jug you can get at Walmart and fill it at a water station which is usually outside most grocery stores. Also as for filling my bus with water I highly recommend an RV water filter which screws onto the water spigot. Better be safe than sorry.
There is no complete shutdown in Mexico. We usually purchase water from water purification stations, which cost about $0.50 for 5 gallons. We actually wrote an article about how we get purified drinking water in Mexico –
Accessing clean drinking water during shutdowns definitely was harder. We typically fill at National parks’ potable water stations or check I-overlander for free potable water sites but during shutdowns, we did have to just pay for jugs for awhile/fill up at friends’ houses.
How do you work online with limited WiFi access & service?
This questions a bit tough, since there’s not just one answer. We pretty much cycle through our options to find which one works best for where we are. We’re still working on optimizing our internet service or access. Currently we just pay for all of our tablets and phones to have their own internet services. So if we don’t have access to wifi, we plan to be in areas where we have cell service when we need to work. If we do have access to open wifi, we use a signal repeater and VPNs to secure the network a little more. Luckily, as city dwellers, we have a few spots we rely on for wifi access. .
Right now I have to stay near someone that I know so that I can stop by and work. My primary personal internet access in the van is an iPad with a cellular connection. I have a computer but mainly only use it for editing videos or the sims so I don’t need a dedicated hot spot yet. Hopefully I’ll be able to break free from the desktop soon and then I should be able to upload what I need for work with a hotspot.
There is Verizon coverage almost everywhere now and I use a MiFi Jet Pack. Some spots are slower than others and with that I use OpenSignal to test the upload speeds, which you can download to your phone. I work for Tiny Home Tours on YouTube so I’m always uploading gigabytes of footage, so when the service is slow and I know I have to upload something, I’ll head into the nearest town where the signal is stronger and let it rip. 80% of the time I can stay at camp and do my work. The MiFi Jet Pack is a game changer. Before the pandemic and while I was in my Honda Element I would be at Starbucks almost everyday for a few hours then go about my day. Also one last tip, you can send files n such to your phone via airdrop or email and upload stuff with your normal LTE coverage. I use to do that when I would upload podcasts to Podbean for clients or YouTube videos and even uploading big videos to the google drive app. Worked very well.
I work as much as possible offline in our van (creating graphics or writing) and we usually find cafes to upload our files or to do work that needs to be done while online. We also purchased local Sim cards in Mexico, which are cheap and easy to recharge when you need more data.
Abi and I work online by going to coffee shops and breweries when in cities. When off grid, we use our 4G WEboost which uses satellite to pick up weak signals and makes them stronger, wherever we are. We really enjoy it and have found it 95 percent effective in most off grid sites. Currently, we are fortunate to have WiFi at the home we are staying at during our rebuild. We did have trouble in Baja, Mexico, uploading our YouTube videos. In the future, we may consider added options for when traveling into South America as we are upgrading our power bank.
How much does vanlife cost?
For me, van life specific costs about $1000 a month. I bought my van new from a dealership in Virginia that was getting rid of the last years models for about $26k out the door. I had already been living out of my Honda Element in LA and I intended to drive this back out to California for more space, surf for a while longer, and then sell it for more than I bought it for with the west coast inflation. I took the shortest time/highest payment option, so my payments are $550 for 4 years and that ends in October so I don’t think I’m going to sell it anymore :). I’m a whole adult so my insurance is only like $65/month, Planet Fitness is $20/month (when its showers are open). Then I always a few hundred is for staying busy so gas, activities on rainy days, spontaneous road trips. I can’t say I keep great tabs on those expenses. I just spend it because I know I have it. I’m not a wilderness van lifer so I was able to keep my normal pre van mall job and just transfer it to California so I dropped down to part time and still feel like I can do whatever I want financially. There are certainly places where the dollar goes further than Los Angeles but in general I would say it takes about $1200 max to live and eat comfortably and anything else is just me spending money on a good time… or a student loan.
When I first started out, May 2019, I was in a camper ($1900) that I pulled with my truck. That cost WAY too much for the amount of income I had. I spent maybe $4000 with campgrounds, food and gas. After 5 months I had to be honest with myself and recognize I needed to be more mindful of my financials. I purchased a Honda Element for $2500 and maybe put about $1500 back into it over the span of a year and sold it to break even. Luckily, the nomadic lifestyle can cost as much as you want. ’Vanlife’ which I feel should be called vehicle dwelling, can be as affordable as you want it. Not everyone can afford a new Promaster, Transit or Mercedes and they find other means to support their plan. I have friends that live in cars, SUVs, A-Frame campers, Scamps, old 1980s vans etc. Most of them keep a budget well below a few thousand dollars. Skoolies are an affordable endeavor as well, most builds can cost about 15k with the purchase of the bus. At the end of the day, you need to do it YOUR way.
In general it cost roughly 50usd per day for 2 of us while we’ve been here in Mexico. Most of this budget goes to gas. Here is an article that we wrote answering all of your vanlife financial questions.
Vanlife costs vary based on each nomads’ needs and lifestyle. You can live vanlife on a very tight budget or you can live luxuriously. Abi and I fall some where in the middle. We save money for months at a time and then hit the road for months at a time, not having to have steady jobs. This allows us to enjoy the freedom this life offers without being equally focused on digital nomadism. We spend roughly $1400-$1800 per month for us and our two dogs. This includes all expenses (ie. Fixed bills, food, fuel, memberships, entertainment) we also have our savings where we keep emergency funds. If you own your vehicle outright and don’t make vehicle payments, you basically pay no rent. Stopping to work for blocks of time then makes our money go way further. So far on our journey, we saved for a year while building out our first build and didn’t work for a year and a half. Now we are rebuilding/working this winter and will live off our savings for hopefully another year or two to come!
Lifestyle preferences determines your vanlife budget, and we are minimalists. Here’s a little breakdown: Gas costs depend on if you’re hypermobile, or stationary in a city or campsite. We are relatively stationary, but spend a decent amount of time exploring local and national parks, so our monthly gas is $250 per month. Vehicle insurance is approx. $120. Food costs also depend on your dietary needs. As vegetarians who cook three meals per day and enjoy fresh produce, we spend $500 each month. Van maintenance and park fees ccasionally add $100 per month, and sometimes we need new outdoor gear or indulge in self-care. But we try to trade, thrift, and re-purpose as much as possible.
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Lano is a leading HR software provider that enables any team to manage their contractors smoothly and without admin hiccups. It automates payments to freelancers all over the world and ensures companies stay fully compliant in every country where they contract workers and operate. If Humanitec is the magical glue to your DevOps setup, connecting all components of your infrastructure and automating Ops overhead, Lano provides a similar integration layer for your HR toolchain, automating away talent admin tasks.
As Covid hit last year and many teams shifted to a partially or fully remote setup, Lano’s customer base exploded. Though already an established business at the time, they were suddenly growing their team at double percentage points month over month. Great news of course, but that also brought about a whole new set of challenges, especially for their engineering infrastructure. Despite adding new engineers almost on a weekly basis, Markus, the CTO, was confident their setup could scale to accommodate the new workforce and the tools they requested. They were running their services on a solid infrastructure with Google Compute Engine (GCE) and CloudSQL instances.
An Ops nightmare
Soon however, cracks started to open in the day to day workflows of the development teams. Most of the new hires had issues with the deployment processes that were in place, either due to their lack of experience (in the case of more junior developers) or of familiarity with the evolving toolchain. More tools were being introduced to keep up with the overall growth and demands of the new developers, complicating this even further.
Webinar: How we built a PaaS for 1500 Engineers
To maintain this increasingly complex setup, the Ops team had to resort to a growing number of custom scripts that functioned as an unstable glue for the CI/CD toolchain. In turn, this meant workflows easily broke if someone from the Ops team wasn’t constantly involved in maintaining them.
Things got so complicated that if an engineer simply wanted to deploy a new service version they had been working on to some test environment, they would have to touch more than 8 different tools and scripts. Because of these extra steps and the constant context switching, the end Developer Experience (DevEx) was inevitably deteriorating.
This extra cognitive load on developers not only meant they were frustrated and often had to wait hours or days to get an environment up and running to deploy their code, but it also highlighted the massive dependencies app development teams had on the Ops team. This, together with the accumulating maintenance overhead (understanding what was running where was increasingly challenging), led to the Ops department coming hugely under pressure and ultimately turning into a bottleneck for the engineering organization and the overall growth of the company.
It’s just an integration, they said
With Marketing and Sales posting another record quarter, it became clear the situation wasn’t sustainable. The entire engineering organization basically came to a halt when a Stripe integration (apparently not fun to QA) completely blocked Staging for about 2 weeks. As QA was done sequentially, there was no way for other teams to go around it and deploy new changes to Production.
This clearly showed what everyone already knew, the current CI/CD setup wasn’t going to scale the way they needed it to. It can be incredibly frustrating to know the direction you want to move into as an organization, but then finding yourself stuck in a dysfunctional infrastructure, due to the lack of specific knowledge required to scale.
To accomplish what they were asked to, Lano’s engineering needed everyone to be comfortable deploying with YAML, HELM and all the tools they had introduced, but that just wasn’t going to happen as the team was growing. However, relying on the Ops team for everything also proved to be a sure recipe for disaster.
Instead of trying to follow the “you build it, you run it” paradigm, which worked at a smaller team size, but just didn’t scale along with the growing team, the tech management took a step back and decided for a different approach.
Internal Developer Platform and merrily ever after
To relieve pressure on their Ops team, while at the same time improving the end DevEx of application developers, Lano implemented an Internal Developer Platform (IDP), built using Humanitec.
By introducing the IDP’s lightweight API layer into their setup, Lano’s Ops are now able to connect their whole infrastructure into one single point of truth, where they have an overview of everything that’s going on (what is deployed where and by who, at any time) and, more importantly, can set clear golden paths for the rest of the engineering team around their CI/CD workflows.
Developers self-service: The key to DevOps
The IDP enables true developer self-service, where every engineer can now spin up an environment, provision resources like DBs and DNS to it, and deploy their containerized images. All completely independently from a UI or CLI, without anyone from the Ops them having to jump in to support.
With the need for specific knowledge around YAML, HELM and the rest of the CI/CD toolchain bound only to Ops, every team can now deploy autonomously and can run as many QA environments in parallel as they please.
Lano’s engineers are now running 4 different QA environments concurrently (and could run many more) and deploy 5x more frequently than they used to before the IDP was introduced. MTTR has dropped by 40%. More importantly, developers can focus on coding and shipping features, instead of getting stuck (and frustrated) in dealing with tools and scripts. The Ops team can support a much larger number of application developers without hiccups. Markus (the CTO) is happy and sleeps like a baby.
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Honey Tobacco Mist
The Honey Tobacco Mist is the most versatile option in the line. For those of you who love the scent but don't use products on your skin, now you can spray this in your hair and waft it around with you.
Use it year round, this is the best smelling hair and body product you'll find.
• 50 ml = Travel-Friendly
Ingredients: filtered water, Honey Tobacco Fragrance*, Polysorbate 20 (solubilizer)
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Does creatine help gain size?
Does creatine make you bigger?
Which creatine is best for size?
The 10 Best Creatine Supplements for 2021
• Best overall: Thorne Research Creatine.
• Best unflavored: Creatine Monohydrate.
• Best flavored: Muscle Tech Cell Tech Creatine Powder.
• Best vegan: Naked Creatine.
• Best for bulking: CytoSport Cyto Gainer.
Why creatine is bad for you?
Is creatine good for skinny guys?
Other supplements that can effectively help a skinny guy gain muscle are: -Creatine: 0.3 g/kg bodyweight for 5-7 days followed by 5 g/day. -Carnitine: 750 mg, 2,000 mg/day, in 2 doses. -Citrulline: 6-8 g, 30-60 minutes before exercise.
Will I lose my gains if I stop taking creatine?
IMPORTANT: How do I get a six pack without working out?
Are creatine gains fake?
Creatine increase the size of muscle fibers disregarding muscle growth due to protein synthesis, although creatine does aid protein synthesis. Creatine also increases the amount of water and blood going to your muscles. … But many call the expansion of muscles due to creatine “fake muscles”.
Is creatine safe for teens?
How long does creatine take to work?
Which is better BCAA or creatine?
Creatine is a great option for those that are strength training and building muscle mass. For enhancing lean muscle, BCAA supplements are a better option. Regardless of the supplement you choose, the supplement quality is of utmost importance.
Can creatine affect your mood?
Is creatine worth using?
IMPORTANT: What should I wear for gym class?
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Map Unavailable
Date(s) - 09/13/2019
7:30 pm - 9:30 pm
The Robin's Nest
The God: Mabon
The Sabbat that we celebrate around September 21st is named after the God Mabon. He is the child of light who was stolen from his mother when only three days old. Other names that we know from myths are entwined with his story, such as King Arthur and his knights.
The holiday that takes his name is a time of balance of light and dark, and this light god is taken into the darkness, his journey sparks the adventures of other journeys, reminding us that even tho the dark is coming, the light can always be found within.
Come and learn of their myths, and discover for yourself the light within and find peace within the dark.
Bookings are closed for this event.
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Brexit, British Government, Michel Barnier, Negotiating, Theresa May
After #Brexit #FlorenceSpeech: Has Anything Changed?
This piece was written on September 24, 2017
857546_1UK Prime Minister Theresa May’s speech in Florence last Friday was designed to unlock the stalled Brexit negotiations between the European Union (EU) and the UK over an agreement on the departure of the UK from the EU. In her speech May said essentially four things:
1. She repeated that the UK would leave the EU at midnight on March 29th, 2019. On March 30th the UK will no longer be a member of the EU, the Single Market and the Customs Union.
As we have said before, this is a decision that can only be reversed by a vote in the House of Commons and agreed to by the European Union, though as we have also noted the EU would be unlikely to allow the UK to simply cancel its exit notice and return to the status quo ante. New conditions for continued membership would be required.
2. However, for two years, there or thereabouts, after that date the UK wanted a transition arrangement during which it would continue to behave as if it were still a member of the Single Market and the Customs Union, as it readied itself to fully leave the EU. During the transition the UK would continue to abide by all EU laws and procedures, including the principle of free move and it would continue to accept the jurisdiction of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU).
3. The UK would meet its financial obligations to the EU, though she declined to put a figure on the amount involved.
Further, Mrs. May failed to indicate if the money involved simply covered accrued obligations or was also intended to “buy” future access to the EU Single Market.
4. She gave new assurances on the rights of EU citizens living in the UK and on the legal mechanisms through which those rights would be protected, though no direct role for the CJEU was mentioned.
By contrast, Mrs. May failed to say anything of substance about the Irish issue, which revolves around the need to avoid a hard or economic border between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland, something that is impossible to achieve if the UK insists on taking Northern Ireland out of the EU Customs Union.
For the future the UK wants a “bespoke” trade agreement with the EU that would be better than either the European Economic Area (EEA) status of Norway or the trade agreement, CETA, between Canada and the EU, that has just come into force.
Reaction from the EU and EU member states was lukewarm, with a reemphasis on the need for the UK to first finalise negotiations on the three Article 50 (A50) issues that the EU has identified as key to an exit agreement – the rights of EU/UK citizens living in the UK/EU respectively, matters relating to Ireland, and the UK’s financial obligations to the EU.
Now it is no secret that Mrs. May’s Conservative Party is deeply divided over Brexit. The “business friendly wing” wants as long a transition as possible and thereafter, what might be called “Brexit in Name Only”, so as to keep to an absolute minimum any disruption to trade between the UK and the EU. The other wing, the sovereignty wing, isn’t much bother about trade disruptions with the EU as long as the UK has full and unfettered control over its borders, immigration, law making and the freedom to do trade deals with far-flung places.
The Florence speech represented an uneasy truce between the two factions. It didn’t last long. By my calculation from 15:00 on Friday afternoon to late Saturday night when the early editions of the UK’s Sunday papers carried stories that UK Foreign Secretary, Boris Johnson, was letting it be known that he would not agree to any new EU laws adopted during the transition being implemented in the UK and that he wanted the UK to be free to negotiate and sign trade deals with other countries as well. He also opposes paying into the EU for Single Market access at the end of the transition period. In this he was echoing the already stated views of other hard Brexiteers.
Responding to May’s Florence speech, Michael Barnier, the EU’s Brexit negotiator, said:
He also reminded the UK that during any transition period that
“…existing Union regulatory, budgetary, supervisory, judiciary and enforcement instruments and structures (continue) to apply.”
In light of Johnson’s latest remarks what “precise negotiating position” is David Davis, the UK’s Brexit negotiator, supposed to outline to Barnier on Monday morning when they meet for the next round of negotiations? Who speaks now for the UK: Johnson or Davis? How can the EU do any sort of deal with the UK when senior government members appear to openly contradict the Prime Minister with impunity?
The EU has been consistent in its position since the UK voted for Brexit. An A50 agreement must first be finalised. That agreement must cover, as noted earlier:
• The rights of EU/UK citizens living in the UK/EU respectively.
• Issues relating to Ireland
• A full financial settlement covering accrued UK financial obligations, which have been identified as somewhere between €60 and €100B.
Once sufficient progress is made on these issues the discussion can proceed to scope out the framework for future UK relationship with the Union, i.e., what sort of arrangement does the UK want with the EU when the Brexit process is completed. While the UK has failed to say, to date, what it wants, it seems clear that what it wants is a “common commercial space” agreement with the EU that would mimic the Single Market and the Customs Union i.e., frictionless trade between the two, but with the UK freed from the jurisdiction of the CJEU, able to restrict free movement and free to negotiate trade deals with third countries. No such cake and eat it deal will be on offer from the EU. And even if it were, it would come with a price tag at which the UK would baulk.
From the tenor of Mrs. May speech it seems that the UK sees itself as being on a par with the EU, negotiating a future partnership of equals. This overlooks the fact that the EU27 is 5 times bigger than the UK and in any negotiation the bigger and stronger party generally is the one that sets the terms of the deal. Overestimating your leverage in any negotiation can be fatal, even more so in a divorce negotiation when you are the one that has walked out.
Once the long-term future relationship is identified only then can a transition agreement be discussed. You have to know where you are going before can you build a bridge to get you there, if a bridge is required. At the moment talk of transition by the UK government looks very much like a “bridge over a troubled cabinet” rather than a bridge to a new relationship.
Even if, very, very big ifs, all of the above could be done, only once the UK becomes a “third country” after it leaves the EU in March 2019 can discussion on the substance of a future relationship begin. It is not going to happen beforehand. Which means that the UK Parliament will not be able to vote on the future UK/EU relationship before the UK leaves the EU in 2019 because the details of that relationship simply will not be known. I’m not sure that this has yet dawned on the majority of members of parliament.
But it is unlikely ever to get to that.
Because, as of today, Sunday, September 24, given the divisions in the UK cabinet, I can see little hope that an Article 50 agreement can be concluded between the EU and the UK that will allow the talks to move on to scoping the future relationship between the two. To get to an agreement it would require a major backing down on the part of the UK. The EU has been crystal clear in its position from the start. It is not going to change. Why should it? It is the UK that is leaving the EU. Not the EU that is leaving the UK. The problems that Brexit creates for the UK are of the UK’s making.
We will know a great deal more about the direction of travel after next week’s round of negotiations between the EU and the UK.
A week is a long time in Brexit.
But a caveat. The above “no deal” scenario is premised on the current Conservative government staying in office. Given the divisions with the cabinet and the Conservative Party there can be no guarantee of that.
It is a long way from here to March 2019. Anything can happen.
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Saltar al contenido principal
Resilient and inclusive public financial management systems enable governments to better respond to disasters
World Bank
Fecha de publicación
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When Hurricane Maria hit Dominica in 2017, it destroyed over 90 percent of the country’s infrastructure. Electricity and communications networks were down for months. Losses and damage amounted to 226 percent of Dominica’s GDP.
The staff at the Ministry of Finance later reported that their public financial management (PFM) practices—while appropriate during normal operating times—were ill-suited for disasters. Standard control processes were at odds with the need to expedite spending. The lack of complete and accurate records—vehicles, equipment, buildings—made it challenging to determine what assets had been lost or damaged, and what the cost implications were. Lack of an adequate mechanism for funding disasters—whether from reserves or insurance programs—delayed the emergency response.
To understand how countries can better prepare for, respond to, and recover from disasters, we identified the following eight aspects in an assessment to help improve the governments’ capacity to manage disaster-related risks and sustain PFM functions afterward (see the figure below).
1. Have the appropriate institutional arrangements in place: While natural hazards are unavoidable, appropriate regulatory and institutional arrangements for disaster resilient and responsive PFM (DRR-PFM) can help mitigate their impacts. Close collaboration between central finance and national disaster management agencies ensures adequate, effective, and inclusive preparation for, response to, and recovery from disasters.
2. Building resilient information systems and records: PFM institutions can prepare information systems and digital records to respond to and continue to operate following disasters. Having robust backup routines and adequate arrangements for the continuity of data centers are critical to improved disaster resilience.
3. Planning and budgeting: Ministries of finance should proactively assess risks and help ensure that funding mechanisms are available to address the foreseeable impacts of disaster events. Effective planning and budgeting can reduce the exposure of people and assets to disasters and improve resilience.
4. Arrange for disaster-informed asset management: Project design, physical placement, and construction should consider vulnerability to natural hazards using projections of the frequency and intensity of extreme weather events over the assets’ intended lifetime. Countries can use a variety of arrangements to monitor physical assets, including employing geo-referenced platforms as a tool for disaster risk management.
5. Ensuring transparency and accountability: When disasters strike, governments have to act expeditiously to provide relief for affected populations and restore services. However, urgency is not incompatible with adequate control and accountability. Governments should demonstrate that funds are allocated fairly and support those most in need.
6. Preparing procurement plans ahead of time: Governments can prepare procurement plans during normal operating conditions to be ready when disasters hit. This includes market research, sourcing strategies, framework agreements, and memoranda of understanding. Governments can also use expedited procurement procedures and training programs to be effectively implemented when needed.
7. Implement disaster-responsive audit and oversight: The Supreme Audit Institutions, the legislature, and the public all have a role to play in examining disaster-related expenditures to ensure compliance with legislation and regulations and discourage fraud, waste, and abuse.
8. Be inclusive: Governments can identify the needs of different segments of the population and address these needs in plans, budgets, and program implementation in response to disasters. Collection and analysis of disaggregated data plays a key role in understanding social inclusion gaps and informing the policy design.
The DRR-PFM Assessment focuses on rapid-onset disasters caused by natural hazards (see the figure below). The frequency and severity of meteorological and hydrological hazards will likely increase over time as a result of climate change. However, elements of the DRR-PFM Assessment are also relevant for building institutional resilience and responsiveness for epidemics.
Ministries of finance have a unique role in helping governments anticipate and manage disaster risks. By putting in place policies and procedures early on that can be activated in the event of a disaster, ministries of finance help governments be more resilient and better able to withstand the fiscal and social impacts that may arise. As weather-related disasters increase in intensity and frequency, the time is now to invest in resilient, responsive, and inclusive PFM.
Bernard Myers
Senior Public Sector Management Specialist
Urška Zrinski
Public Sector Specialist
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Featured Technology
Are NFTs Killing our Planet? The Darkside of NFT Explained
NFTs have exploded in popularity since the beginning of 2020. With the astounding rise in sales by 1,700% between December 2020 and February 2021, the newest tech sensations have led many artists to earn millions over the auction of a single picture.
However, there is a dark side to these digital assets. NFTs may be the future of digital art – but they are putting our planet’s future in grave danger.
So, what are NFTs? Are they bad for the environment? What makes them so dangerous for the planet? And, is there a future for green NFTs?
What are NFTs?
NFTs are being heralded as the next big thing in the high-growth crypto investing world. These tokens, which are seen as the digital equivalent of collectibles, have already attracted millions of dollars in investments in a range of NFTs and NFT-related enterprises.
But, what exactly is NFT?
The idea of cryptocurrency is that each unit of the currency is interchangeable. They are all identical and worth the same amount; therefore, they are known as a fungible tokens. NFTs, on the other hand, are Non-Fungible Tokens.
An NFT is an information stored on a ledger maintained by a distributed network. However, each NFT is different from one another; therefore, not interchangeable.
My Trap Card NFT (which was sold for $17,000)
My Trap Card NFT (which was sold for $17,000)
NFTs (non-fungible tokens) are gaining traction in the digital world, and they may take the shape of artwork, music, metaverse real estate, and even selfies. They provide new ways for artists to profit from their work, as well as a means for purchasers to support creators while also gaining the bragging rights of having exclusive content. However, they have faced criticism for their environmental impact.
But, what makes NFTs bad for the environment?
Are NFTs Bad News For The Environment?
Yes, NFTs have a devastating impact on the planet. And one of the primary perpetrators behind NFT’s environmental impact is mining. Mining is a procedure that uses enormous processing power and energy to solve complicated mathematical problems to ‘mint’ an NFT on the blockchain and hand over the ownership to the buyer.
Ethereum, an open-source blockchain, is the most popular marketplace for NFTs. To construct these digital assets, Ethereum employs a purposeful inefficient ‘Proof of work‘ (PoW) approach.
Powerful computers can try an infinite number of new block creations each second. And the first miner to find the solution is rewarded with their unique assets, which are then added to the blockchain.
However, the puzzle becomes even more complex as more money fuels the NFT industry and more computers join the race to solve the problems. To stay competitive, miners constantly need to upgrade to higher computing power, large warehouses, and more powerful cooling systems. Thus boosting the carbon footprint.
Take, for example, Space Cat,‘ a GIF NFT of a cat traveling to the moon in a rocket. According to Crypto Art, the Space Cat’s carbon footprint is the same as an EU resident’s electrical usage for two months.
Finding the Worst Offender of Carbon Footprint
Given a sequence of steps involved and little to no research in determining the emission during each stage; finding out the actual carbon footprint of each NFT is challenging.
However, we know that Ethereum is one of the most carbon-intensive NFT platforms. Thus any digital asset purchased through it would have a significant carbon footprint.
Unfortunately, most NFTs today are stored in the Ethereum blockchain that operates on a proof-of-work (PoW) model. Digital Artist Akten examined the carbon emission of 18,000 NFTs and discovered that an average digital asset uses energy equivalent to a month’s worth of power consumed by an EU resident.
The PoW system of Ethereum consumes over 31 terawatt-hours (TWh) of power every year, an approximate equivalent to the annual energy usage of Nigeria.
“Since NFTs are getting mainstream, more people are transacting on Ethereum. As long as proof-of-work still exists in that chain, the environmental impact is still high,”
Angeline Viray, a trader and investor in NFTs and cryptocurrencies
Is Proof of Stake (PoS) Model the Way to Green NFTs?
Thre are two widely used blockchain consensus for cryptocurrency and NFT that ensures the legitimacy of the transaction on the network:
• Proof of Work (PoW)
• Proof of Stake (PoS)
While most networks today operate on a power-intensive PoW model where miners are rewarded for solving a combination of ‘digital locks,’ PoS might be the future of green NFT and the crypto industry.
PoS is when a validator (a person in charge of validating a transaction on a blockchain) holds a portion of their crypto holdings as collateral (stake). The system periodically awards one of the validators with the ability to produce the next ‘block’ in the blockchain.
However, there are still a lot of hurdles for PoS to become the primary consensus tool of the blockchain networks.
For one thing, shifting to the PoS model while maintaining functionality is quite challenging for blockchain. Furthermore, because specific systems favor validators willing to gamble the largest amount of stake on the line, the process may drift towards centralization (opposite to the core of blockchain tech, i.e., decentralization). Moreover, the consensus is yet to prove its security as PoW already has.
Ethereum, on the other hand, claims to have made progress toward a proof-of-stake paradigm. According to Tim Beiko, the coordinator for Ethereum’s protocol developers, the ultimate transition will minimize Ethereum’s environmental effect by 99 percent.
NFT Industry Towards a Cleaner Future
The energy consumed in generating and operating NFT platforms is enough to power large countries like Argentina and Nigeria. But should this really be prioritized when so many people worldwide still lack access to dependable power while many are already suffering from the consequences of climate change?
However, the bright side is that the crypto and NFT industries are now marching toward a more environment-friendly future. Furthermore, there does seem to be a push in the crypto industry for more sustainability. Therefore, from the current trajectory, we can expect to see an increase in renewable energy and a steep reduction in emissions in the near future.
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Opening Article for Teaching Juneteenth
I would recommend lecturing from this article or providing it for students to read before you meet for discussion. It gives a broad overview of what Juneteenth is as a holiday, its historical context, and what you can typically expect at a celebration.
Cultural Activity #1: The Black National Anthem
While Juneteenth often coincides with the end of the school year on June 19th, celebrating the holiday can take place anytime during the month as its imprecise date is indicative of how enslaved Texans learned of the Emancipation Proclamation.
Most Juneteenth celebrations involve singing what is now known as the black national anthem or “Lift Ev’ry Voice and Sing” written by NAACP president and composer James Weldon Johnson and his brother J. Rosamond Johnson at the turn of the twentieth century.
First, have students read the lyrics, analyze its meaning verse by verse in the context of Jim Crow America.
Lift ev’ry voice and sing,
‘Til earth and heaven ring,
Ring with the harmonies of Liberty;
Let our rejoicing rise
High as the list’ning skies,
Let it resound loud as the rolling sea.
Facing the rising sun of our new day begun,
Let us march on ’til victory is won.
Stony the road we trod,
Bitter the chastening rod,
Felt in the days when hope unborn had died;
Yet with a steady beat,
Have not our weary feet
Come to the place for which our fathers sighed?
Out from the gloomy past,
‘Til now we stand at last
Where the white gleam of our bright star is cast.
God of our weary years,
God of our silent tears,
Thou who has brought us thus far on the way;
Thou who has by Thy might
Led us into the light,
Keep us forever in the path, we pray.
Shadowed beneath Thy hand,
May we forever stand,
True to our God,
True to our native land.
Afterward, you can watch and analyze Beyonce’s performance in her Netflix “Homecoming” special (2018). Discuss the use of black sorority, fraternity, and university marching bands. What is the significance? How does this relate to Reconstruction or conceptions of freedom?
Activity #2: Reading and Analyzing the Emancipation Proclamation
Here is the full text of the Emancipation Proclamation. Have students read and analyze the first passage. Who was included in the proclamation? Who was not included? When did it go into effect? What does that mean for Juneteenth? How did Abraham Lincoln imagine the territory and political power of the United States vs. the Confederacy in this order?
–Abraham Lincoln
Additional Activity Ideas
• Have students pick their favorite song by a black artist and create a Juneteenth playlist for their home celebrations
• Listen to or analyze traditional spirituals or gospel songs by music groups like the Fisk Jubilee Singers
• Hold an art competition celebrating black innovation
• Recite famous speeches by black intellectuals like Frederick Douglass or Barack Obama
• Look into other celebrations like Emancipation Day (January 1) or Decoration Day (Memorial Day) and debate how or why recognizing Juneteenth as a national holiday instead of a regional holiday in Texas is significant or important in this moment of time
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Pay What You Need
Pay What You Need
Factory Automation
Adaptable Welding Control: Only Pay for What You Need
An automotive manufacturer would like to increase resistance spot welding productivity at its site in Germany. It would also like the welding control used to be Industry 4.0-ready. However, everything should continue as before at the subsidiary in India. So, the company just acquires a site-specific license for the required functionality – and will test it out over a limited period of time. The licensing system for the new PRC7000 welding control is what enables the company to do this. As part of this system, customers only pay for what they actually need. As such, Bosch Rexroth is setting new market standards in terms of flexibility, savings and enhanced business models.
These days, automotive manufacturers need flexible and versatile production processes that are able to respond to fast-changing requirements, which in turn require adaptable solutions. As such, Bosch Rexroth’s new PRC7000 welding control is able to meet the needs of modern factories. Firstly, the solution is Industry 4.0-ready on account of the integrated IoT interfaces, AI-capable hardware components and web-based control solutions. Secondly, the systems can be configured in line with actual requirements, meaning that either a full end-to-end solution consisting of software and hardware can be used or just the individual components that are required.
There isn’t a more cost-effective approach out there: software is deployed and paid for as and when required
There isn’t another solution out there on the market that is as flexible and scalable as the PRC7000 welding control. As such, it can be tailored to suit both simple and complex applications. This is thanks to the strictly modular software and hardware concept.
When new requirements on the market suddenly need to be met, customers can easily make any necessary adaptations with software extensions and (re)act at any time, as and when required. And they will only pay for the software that they need as Bosch Rexroth has adopted the “only pay for what you need” approach for the PRC7000. As a result, no one will pay for any (often) unused functions or underutilized software.
There are currently 15 licenses to choose from. There is strong demand, for example, for functionalities designed to increase productivity and meet Industry 4.0 requirements, such as the IoT Connector.
There isn’t a more personalized approach out there: customization at its best
However, there is much more to the PRC7000’s licensing system than is commonly understood by “only pay for what you need”. The impressive benefits become apparent when you drill down into the detail.
Licenses can, for example, be time-limited and restricted to a particular unit. As such, functionalities can be tested out across the board or just for individual controls over a specific period of time.
Project and site-specific licenses are also possible. This means that a company can acquire a license just for a particular site where the functionality will provide the greatest benefit.
The licensing system provides mechanical engineers with even more impressive added value. On the basis of the Bosch Rexroth welding solution already available on the market, they have the opportunity to generate additional high-margin revenue. As such, based on specific requirements, they can present attractive software offers designed to optimize customers’ systems and ensure that they are always cutting-edge.
Users will also benefit from continuous improvements. Bosch Rexroth will regularly upgrade the PRC7000 with new functionalities that can be licensed at any time, as and when required. If a piece of software is acquired for the PRC7000 but is not required immediately, there is the option to simply license it subsequently at a later time of the user’s choosing via an upgrade using a license code. This unique selling point sets Bosch Rexroth apart from the competition.
In short: in order to ensure that the resistance spot welding product range is always ready for whatever the future holds, Bosch Rexroth continuously scrutinizes the current state of its solutions and integrates new functions into the portfolio. The modular software concept means that users can install extensions at any time, obtain licenses as and when required and hence respond swiftly to market changes – and all as flexibly as necessary and as cost-effectively as possible.
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ACER Tattoo piercing OH copie .pdf
Nom original: ACER - Tattoo - piercing - OH - copie.pdf
Titre: Tattoos, Piercings, and Alcohol Consumption
Ce document au format PDF 1.3 a été généré par Arbortext Advanced Print Publisher 9.0.114/W Unicode / Mac OS X 10.7.3 Quartz PDFContext, et a été envoyé sur le 26/04/2012 à 16:37, depuis l'adresse IP 77.200.x.x. La présente page de téléchargement du fichier a été vue 1091 fois.
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Aperçu du document
Vol. **, No. *
** 2012
Tattoos, Piercings, and Alcohol Consumption
Nicolas Gue´guen
Objective: Previous studies have found a link between body tattoos or piercings and risky behavior.
However, these studies only examined survey data but not real behavior.
Methods: Young men (mean = 20.6 years) and women (mean = 20.2 years) leaving a bar were
asked whether they wore tattoos and piercings or not and were requested to breathe into a breathalyzer
in order to evaluate their alcohol consumption.
Results: It was found that participants with piercings and/or tattoos as well as combined piercings
and tattoos revealed higher levels of alcohol consumption.
Conclusions: Piercings and tattoos could serve as signs of alcohol consumption for educators,
parents, and physicians.
Key Words: Tattoos, Piercings, Risky Behavior, Alcohol.
ATTOOS AND BODY piercings have become increasingly popular in Western societies. Multiple motivations
for getting tattooed and pierced exist and include desire for
beauty, for distinction from the other, for maintenance of
one’s self-identity, for the need to test one’s threshold for
pain and endurance, for group affiliation and endurance,
and as a form of protest against parents and society (for
reference, see Wohlrab et al., 2007).
A host of previous studies routinely show that individuals
with body piercings or tattoos are more likely to engage in
risky behavior than nonpierced or nontattooed people. Koch
and colleagues (2007) found that 83% of women with piercings declared to have engaged in premarital sexual intercourse as opposed to 63% of women without piercings.
Koch and colleagues (2005) reported that tattooed men
became sexually active at a significantly earlier age than
nontattooed men, whereas no statistical difference was found
between tattooed and nontattooed women. Roberts and
Ryan (2002) reported that tattooed adolescents reported
more substance use, violent behavior, sexual intercourse, and
school problems than nontattooed adolescents. These differences were found with both male and females respondents.
Carroll and colleagues (2002) also found that tattooed and/
or pierced adolescents reported greater disordered eating
behavior, gateway drug use, hard drug use, and violence than
adolescents with no piercings or tattoos. Roberts and colleagues (2004) controlling for sociodemographic factors
found that piercings were associated with more widespread
From the Universite´ de Bretagne-Sud (NG), UFR LSHS, Lorient
56321, France.
Received for publication July 12, 2011; accepted November 6, 2011.
Reprint requests: Nicolas Gue´guen, Universite´ de Bretagne-Sud, UFR
LSHS, 4, rue Jean Zay, BP 92116, Lorient 56321, France; Tel.:; Fax:; E-mail: nicolas.gueguen@
Copyright © 2012 by the Research Society on Alcoholism.
DOI: 10.1111/j.1530-0277.2011.01711.x
Alcohol Clin Exp Res, Vol **, No *, 2012: pp 1–4
smoking and marijuana use. In a Swiss survey conducted
among 18-year-old boys and girls, Suris and colleagues
(2007) reported that pierced individuals of both sexes
reported more smoking and illegal drug use than nonpierced
Some studies also found that tattoos and piercings were
correlated with alcohol consumption. Armstrong and colleagues (2004a) showed that college students with piercings
reported binge drinking in the previous month more often
than those who had no piercings. Roberts and Ryan (2002)
comparing tattooed adolescents with nontattooed ones came
to the same results. Koch and colleagues (2010) also found
among American college students an increased propensity
for those with higher incidence of body art to binge drinking.
These studies used surveys to evaluate the link between
risky behavior including alcohol behavior with piercings
and/or tattoos. On the basis of findings that tattoos and/or
piercings are perceived as a form of deviance and/or rebellion
(Armstrong et al., 2002), it could be argued that, perhaps,
tattooed and pierced individuals overreported risky behavior
to act in conformity with people who perceived them as
unconventional and/or nonconformist (Pitts, 2003; Swami
and Furnham, 2007). Our study, therefore, sought to examine real alcohol consumption in bars depending on whether
patrons displayed tattoos and/or piercings on their body.
Most of the cited studies have been conducted in the
United States. According to Mermet (2010), wearing tattoos
and/or piercings is recent in France. He reported that only
13% of the 25- to 35-year-olds wore a tattoo and/or a piercing, whereas there were 22% in the 18- to 24-year-old
bracket. He also reported that 40% of the 14- to 18-year-olds
planned to wear a tattoo and/or a piercing in future (in
France, tattoos and piercings need parental authorization for
children under 18). Thus, given the recent interest for young
French people for tattoos and/or piercings, it appeared interesting to study whether wearing tattoos and/or piercings was
associated in France with risky behavior and particularly
alcohol consumption. In France, and particularly in the
Western area where this study was conducted, alcohol
consumption is higher than in other areas and it has been
recently found that binge drinking events have increased in
the young adult population (Ruelle et al., 2008). However,
among the youth, alcohol consumption varies considerably
with 8%, revealing that they never drink, 23% drink once a
month, 27% twice, 21% 3 times, 11% 4 times, and 10% drink
alcohol at least twice per week.
Young men and women in bars were asked whether they
wore tattoos and piercings or not when leaving a bar. They
were then requested to breathe into a breathalyzer in order
to evaluate their alcohol consumption. It was hypothesized
that more alcohol consumption would be associated with
wearing tattoos and/or piercings.
The study was conducted on Saturday nights as that is when
French youth usually frequent bars before going dancing; 2,970
patrons (1,710 men and 1,260 women) were solicited as they were
leaving a bar.
The survey was conducted in 21 bars situated in 4 medium-sized
cities (from 40,000 to 70,000 inhabitants) in very attractive spots
located in the west of France on the Breton Atlantic Coast. Precaution was taken to select popular bars for youth in the 4 towns, where
the experiment was carried out. A previous study conducted in these
bars had revealed that most of the patrons (73% of the men and
81% of the women) were college students (Gue´guen et al., 2008).
Ninety-nine (57 men and 42 women) interviewers (average age 20
to 22 years old) were called upon to solicit the participants and to
conduct the survey. All of them were undergraduate students in
business management, and the experiment was presented as survey
field exercise. They were neatly dressed in the traditional fashion for
young people of their age (jeans/sneakers/T-shirt). Each interviewer
was instructed to test 30 patrons of the same sex as him/her.
The interviews were conducted in the street near the bar entrance
during 4 Saturday nights with the consent of the bar owners. The
objective of study, the procedure, and the dependent variables
measure were approved by the ethical committee of the laboratory.
All interviews were conducted from 23:30 to 24:00 because it had
been previously observed that most of the patrons left the bars during this interval. In France, bars legally close at 1:00 in the morning
and are sometimes authorized to close at 2:00. The interviewer
approached a patron leaving the bar and said while smiling: “Hello,
I am conducting a short survey on young people and their consumption. Would you agree to answer to some questions?” If the participant agreed, then the interviewer began the survey. Three hundred
and eight men and 153 women refused to participate. The sample
was therefore constituted of 1,402 men and 1,107 women who had
consented to participate in the survey.
The interviewer informed the participant that the first 2 questions
were related to body appearance. Patrons were asked how many
piercings they had (range 0 to 5) and how many tattoos they had
(range 0 to 5). If the participant admitted to wearing tattoos and/or
piercings they were requested to specify where the tattoos/piercings
were displayed on their body, then they were asked for their age.
Afterward, the patron was requested to evaluate his/her blood alcohol content with the help of a breathalyzer. Three hundred
and twenty-one men and 223 women refused to use the breathalyzer
and thus were debriefed and thanked. One thousand, nine hundred
and sixty-five participants (1,081 men and 884 women) consented to
use the breathalyzer. This was the final sample used to analyze our
data. The mean age for the men was 20.6 years (SD = 1.60),
whereas it was 20.2 (SD = 1.70) for the women.
The interviewer then displayed the breathalyzer (an Electronic
breathalyzer Model ZAPHIR 709-CDP2000; Quirumed, Valencia,
Spain) in one hand and a new nozzle enclosed in a sterile bag in the
other. If the patron agreed, then the interviewer put the new nozzle
on the breathalyzer and gave information on how to proceed. All
the interviewers had received training to ensure that they correctly
used the device with the participants. The interviewer reported the
percentage of blood alcohol content calculated by the breathalyzer
that measured the mass of alcohol per liter of exhaled breath. The
participant was then thanked for his/her participation in the survey.
A preprinted information form was then given to the participant
who was asked to provide information for the experiment (name,
age, address, phone number). Information concerning the role of
the experimenter and our laboratory web site was also indicated on
the form. This was in accordance with the laboratory’s ethical committee’s suggestion. In this form, the address of the web site presenting the project was given as well as the personal phone number of
the director of the laboratory. To date, no participant has phoned
to obtain information about this research.
We found no difference in the number of refusals to use
the breathalyzer according to participants’ gender, v²(1,
N = 2,509) = 2.76, p = 0.10, r = 0.03. Neither did we find
a difference between the number of refusals according to
presence versus absence of body piercings and tattoos for
both male participants, v²(3, N = 1,402) = 1.45, p = 0.69,
r = 0.03, and female participants, v²(3, N = 1,107) = 1.11,
p = 0.77, r = 0.03.
Preliminary analysis revealed that the number of participants who had several tattoos and/or piercings was very low:
only 6 participants (0.30%) had 5 tattoos and/or piercings,
18 (0.9%) had 4 tattoos and/or piercings, 26 (1.32%) had 3
tattoos and/or piercings, and 143 (7.28%) had 2 tattoos and/
or piercings. On most occasions, when the participants spoke
of 2 tattoos and/or piercings, they had one tattoo and one
piercing (112 among the 143). Only 3 participants (1 man
and 2 women) also reported piercings located on their genitals. On the basis of these data, 4 groups were constituted for
both sexes: participants with a tattoo only, a piercing only,
both piercing and tattoo, and neither tattoo nor piercing.
Mean age and mass of alcohol per liter of exhaled breath are
presented in Table 1.
A one-way between groups analysis of variance (ANOVA)
was performed for both sexes. No age statistical difference
was found for both male and female participants attesting
that there was no significant difference between the 4 groups
according to their age.
With the mass of alcohol per liter of exhaled breath, a 4
(experimental group) 9 2 (gender) ANOVA was performed
and revealed a main effect of groups, F(3, 1,957) = 26.91,
p < 0.001, g2p = 0.04. Post hoc tests revealed that the
tattoo-only condition was significantly different from the
Table 1. Mean (SD in Brackets) of Age and Mass of Alcohol per Liter of Exhaled Breath According to the Presence or Absence of Piercings
and/or Tattoos
Men (N = 1,081)
Mass of alcohol
Women (N = 884)
Mass of alcohol
No piercing
no tattoo
Tattoo only
Piercings only
20.6 (1.6)
0.18 (0.15)a
20.9 (1.7)
0.19 (0.13)b
20.3 (1.4)
0.12 (0.08)a
19.9 (2.3)
0.14 (0.10)b
Piercing and tattoo
20.6 (1.5)
0.23 (0.10)a
21.0 (1.6)
0.26 (0.21)ab
F(3, 1,077) = 1.27, p = 0.28
F(3, 1,077) = 5.26, p = 0.001
20.1 (2.0)
0.20 (0.15)abc
20.2 (1.76)
0.24 (0.16)abc
F(3, 880) = 1.60, p = 0.19
F(3, 880) = 42.79, p < 0.001
Mean with the same letters are statistically different using the Bonferroni correction to adjust for multiple comparisons.
piercing-only condition (least significant difference [LSD]
test, p < 0.001) and the combined tattoo and piercing condition (LSD test, p < 0.001) but not different from the no
piercing and no tattoo condition (LSD test, p = 0.63). The
piercing-only condition appeared significantly different from
the combined piercing and tattoo condition (LSD test,
p = 0.02) and the no tattoo/no piercing condition (LSD test,
p < 0.001). The combined piercing and tattoo condition also
appeared statistically different from the no tattoo/no piercing
condition (LSD test, p < 0.001).
A main effect of participant gender was found, F(1,
1,957) = 16.16, p < 0.001, g2p = 0.01, revealing significantly
high mass of alcohol per liter of exhaled breath for men
(mean = 0.19, SD = 0.15) than for women (mean = 0.15,
SD = 0.11). No statistical interaction between participant
gender and experimental condition was found, F(1,
1,957 = 1.30, p = 0.27, g2p = 0.00.
In this study, using a real alcohol consumption measure,
we confirmed the data observed in several previous studies,
where survey was used to measure the drugs and alcohol consumption of participants (Armstrong et al., 2004a; Carroll
et al., 2002; Roberts and Ryan, 2002). Pierced and/or tattooed individuals had consumed more alcohol in bars on a
Saturday night than patrons in the same bars who were nonpierced and nontattooed. This effect was found regardless of
the participants’ sex. It was also observed that more alcohol
per liter of exhaled breath was found in association with
combined tattooing and body piercing as opposed to when
tattoo only or piercing only were compared and especially in
regard to women. However, we found that the level of alcohol consumption was not significantly higher with the tattooonly group compared with the no tattoo no piercing group.
This effect was found both in male and female participants
and contradicts the data of Roberts and Ryan (2002) who
found that tattooed adolescents reported more binge drinking episodes than nontattooed adolescents. These differences
were found both with male and females respondents. However, the cited study used self-reported behavior and not real
alcohol consumption and it involved participants nearly
3 years younger than those in our study. Our study was conducted in several towns situated along the Breton Atlantic
Coast of France. This area is well known for problems with
alcohol consumption particularly among young people (17
to 21 years old). Thus, wearing a tattoo or a piercing is probably not the only factor associated with such behavior.
This study has some practical interests. Tattoos and piercings are easy to detect. Therefore, observing such body signs
could serve as signs for educators, parents, and physicians.
Contrary to Koziel and colleagues (2010) statement that tattoos and piercings could serve as signals of biological quality,
several studies have concluded that tattoos and body piercings are indicators of risk-taking behaviors. Roberts and
Ryan (2002) stated that “tattooing in an adolescent can serve
as a useful, easily visible, clinical marker that may identify
adolescents who are at a higher risk for engaging in risk
behavior” (p. 1061). Carroll and colleagues (2002) also concluded that “the presence of tattoos and body piercings in
adolescents is associated with greater risk-taking behaviors
of these adolescents in the areas of gateway drug use”
(p. 1026). Other studies have also come to the same conclusion that tattoos/piercings are indicators of risk taking
(Roberts and Ryan, 2002; Roberts et al., 2004). Given these
findings, several scientists have suggested that practitioners,
clinical psychologists, and/or social workers should screen
adolescents and young men or women for tattoos/piercings
during their clinical interview. Armstrong and colleagues
(2004b, p. 278) stated that tattoos and piercings could serve
as a “warning signal or screening device leading to medical
monitoring and/or counseling,” and Carroll and colleagues
(2002) recommended that questions about risk-taking behaviors should be a part of every adolescent’s health visit. Given
the relation this study has found between tattoos and piercings and alcohol consumption, it could also be interesting to
display information (flyers, booklets, posters…) about alcohol abuse and treatment in tattoo and piercing stores and to
inform tattoo and piercing artists about the risks associated
with this practice.
Of course, this study has some limitations. Only bar
patrons were surveyed and solicited for their alcohol consumption. However, many places exist where alcohol is consumed, and recent studies conducted in France have shown
that binge drinking events frequently occur at home (Ruelle
et al., 2008). It has also been found that in addition to the
bars frequented on Saturdays nights, young people also
drink alcohol in night clubs, which they like to frequent at
the end of the week. It would therefore be interesting to conduct the same study in different locations. In this way, different populations could be approached and this would enable
us to verify our general findings. Given the small number of
participants wearing several piercings and/or tattoos in our
study, it was difficult to create subgroups according to the
number of piercings and tattoos on their bodies. It was also
impossible to differentiate those with piercings and or tattoos
on their genitals (only 3 participants among 1,965). A recent
study (Koch et al., 2010) found a link between the number
of tattoos and/or piercings reported by American college students and risky behaviors. These authors observed that
respondents with 4 or more tattoos or 7 or more body piercings were significantly more likely to report regular marijuana use, binge drinking, and occasional use of other illegal
drugs. They also reported the same effect with respondents
with piercings on their nipples or genitals. However, contrary
to our data, a larger number of subgroups with 4 or more
piercings (8.15%) or 2 or more tattoos (5.01%) were
reported, whereas in our study, <1% of the respondents
spoke of 3 or more tattoos and/or piercings. The same difference was found when examining intimate piercings: 2% in
the study of Koch and colleagues (2010) against 0.15% in
our study. Such differences can possibly be explained by the
fact that wearing tattoos and piercings is a more recent practice in France (Mermet, 2010) than in the United States.
Among our participants, only 27% reported wearing at least
a piercing or a tattoo, whereas they were 50% in Koch and
colleagues (2010) study. This is possibly explained by the difference in the population studied. However, in our study,
most of the respondents were college students as in Koch
and colleagues’ (2010) study. In a survey conducted in Switzerland, Suris and colleagues (2007) found that individuals
wearing more than 1 piercing compared with those wearing
only 1 piercing were more likely to be regular smokers and
cannabis or illegal drugs users. However, this effect was only
found with women. Given these differences in risky behav-
iors according to the number of body tattoos or piercings in
these 2 recent studies, it would be interesting to control in
future for the number of tattoos and/or piercings and their
location, especially as the practice becomes more widespread
in France.
Armstrong ML, Owen DC, Roberts AE, Koch JR (2002) College students
and tattoos: the influence of image, identity, family and friends. J Psychosoc Nurs Ment Health Serv 40:20–29.
Armstrong ML, Owen DC, Roberts AE, Koch JR (2004a) Contemporary
college students and body piercing. J Adolesc Health 35:58–61.
Armstrong ML, Roberts AE, Owen DC, Koch JR (2004b) Toward building
a composite of college student influences with body art. Issues Compr
Pediatr Nurs 27:277–295.
Carroll ST, Riffenburgh RH, Roberts TA, Myhre EB (2002) Tattoos and
body piercings as indicators of adolescent risk-taking behaviors. Pediatrics
Gue´guen N, Jacob C, Le Guellec H, Morineau T, Lourel M (2008) Sound
level of background music and alcohol consumption: an extending
research. Alcohol Clin Exp Res 32:1795–1798.
Koch JR, Roberts AE, Armstrong ML, Owen DC (2005) College students,
tattoos, and sexual activity. Psychol Rep 97:887–890.
Koch JR, Roberts AE, Armstrong ML, Owen DC (2007) Frequencies and
relations of body piercing and sexual activity in college students. Psychol
Rep 101:159–162.
Koch JR, Roberts AE, Armstrong ML, Owen DC (2010) Body art, deviance,
and American college students. Social Sci J 47:151–161.
Koziel S, Krestchmer W, Pawlowski B (2010) Tattoo and piercing as signals
of biological quality. Evol Human Behav 31:187–192.
Mermet G (2010) Francoscopie. Larousse, Paris.
Pitts V (2003) In the Flesh—The Cultural Politics of Body Modification.
Palgrave Macmillan, New York.
Roberts TA, Auinger P, Ryan SA (2004) Body piercing and high-risk behavior in adolescents. J Adolesc Health 34:224–229.
Roberts TA, Ryan SA (2002) Tattoing and high-risk behavior in adolescent.
Pediatrics 110:1058–1063.
Ruelle L, Dourgnon P, Jusot F, Lengagne P (2008) Les proble`mes d’alcool
en France: quelles ont les populations a` risque? Questions d’Economie de
la Sante´ 129:1–6.
Suris JC, Jeannin A, Chossis I, Michaud P-A (2007) Piercing among adolescents: body art as a risk marker. J Family Pract 56:126–130.
Swami V, Furnham A (2007) Unattractive, promiscuous, and heavy drinkers: perceptions of women with tattoos. Body Image 4:343–352.
Wohlrab S, Stahl J, Kappeler PM (2007) Modifying the body: motivations
for getting tattooed and pierced. Body Image 4:87–95.
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Unlike our daily commuters that are here to make our life easier in all conditions, vintage and classic cars usually spend the winter away from the damp, wet, icy and salted roads. Whether they were bought as an investment, a passion project or a weekend getaway, classic cars require special winter care to stay on the roads for longer.
After all, it’s the condition that keeps a value of a classic car and driving one in unfavorable weather without proper care before and afterhand can only increase the risk of it deteriorating. Rain, mud, snow and especially road salt are classic car’s worst enemies, so it’s common consensus that classics should hibernate during winter.
When storing your cherished classic car over the cold season, you should take several factors into consideration. Winterizing a classic car is definitely different than winterizing a regular car as it requires more preparations and some special care to keep it preserved while it waits for longer days and warmer nights. This is especially applicable to older, unrestored collector cars which often have inferior rust protection compared to their fully restored or more modern counterparts.
Properly winterizing your car isn’t just about protecting the body. A complex mechanical device it is, an automobile needs its internals preserved as well. This article is there to cover the most important steps for winterizing and winter proofing your classic car. So, without further ado, let’s go!
Ideal storage conditions for your classic car
Vintage BMW in garage
Vintage BMW in garage
Courtesy of Pexels / Tyler Clemmensen
In short, an ideal storage unit for your classic car is heated, ventilated and has electricity. It’s also big enough for you to approach the car from any angle without rubbing against it. So, let’s elaborate further.
Optimal temperatures for storage
Keeping a classic car stored at an optimal temperature will maintain the properties of all in-car fluids while also ensuring longevity of rubber parts and interior trim alike. For example, frozen rubber seals are more prone to cracking, but that can be applied to rubber hoses, bushings etc. More so, a heated garage will also make it easier for you to start up the car from time to time during the cold season.
Keep the rats out
A warm garage is a perfect shelter for your classic car, but also to rodents which might try to use it to go through their winter, so you should keep that in mind as well. Rodent repellents come in various forms, so you can use either one or a combination of them to keep critters away.
Garage ventilation and humidity
Proper garage ventilation is equally, if not more important than the temperature as it ensures constant airflow which in turn helps keep the air fresh and dry. If your garage is electrified, a dehumidifier is advisable, but you should do so with care as overly dry air will affect everything else you store in your garage. An ideal air humidity level is at around 55%.
When it comes to additional security, a fire extinguisher is a must and an alarm is advisable too, both for obvious reasons.
Don’t forget car insurance
A final, invisible layer of protection is classic car insurance. Provided that your car is eligible for it, classic car insurance will give you a peace of mind by keeping you covered in case of a number of unforeseen circumstances.
To qualify for classic car insurance, a car needs to be a rare, appreciating antique or exotic car in presentable condition, not normally used as a daily driver or a race car. Insurance houses have various approaches to eligibility, but these are the most common requirements most of them share. Additionally, some insurance companies require classics to be provided with wintertime storage and that’s one more reason to garage your car.
Even in ideal conditions, you never know what might happen to your classic and you don’t want to bang your head too much either if it does. A classic car insurance will keep you covered from theft, or any potential damage caused by the elements which are sadly possibilities even if the car is in storage.
Preparing your classic car for storage
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By: Djordje Sugaris
Title: Properly Winterizing & Storing Your Vintage Collectors Car
Sourced From: sportscardigest.com/properly-winterizing-and-storing-your-vintage-collectors-car/
Published Date: Thu, 20 Jan 2022 21:19:31 +0000
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Mobilization and Ethnicity in Kazakhstan during World War II
A review of “A Fortress of the Soviet Home Front”: Mobilization and Ethnicity in Kazakhstan during World War II, by Roberto Carmack.
Roberto Carmack has made a major contribution to our understanding of Soviet society during the Second World War. His dissertation, completed at the University of Wisconsin, expands our knowledge of the wartime functioning of the Soviet state, economy, and society outside of the ethnically Russian heartland that dominates the historical literature. Drawing on a wealth of sources, including archival records from the party and state (mostly Russian) and mass media (Russian and Kazakh), he gives a clear and convincing picture of the fundamental dynamics of Kazakhstan at war, looking at both the Kazakhs and their Russian-speaking neighbors.
If there is a single, overarching theme that Carmack presents, it is of grandiose state projects undermined by reality. The Soviet regime as well as the local party-state authorities of Kazakhstan had goals they wished to achieve, whether the mobilization of manpower into the Soviet Army, the ideological integration of Kazakhs into the Soviet state, the economic exploitation of German and Chechen exiles, or development of raw material and industrial resources for the war effort. These fell afoul of inertia and lack of administrative capacity, or something as mundane as inadequate knowledge of the Kazakh language among republic-level officials. At the same time, however, two paradoxical subtexts run through Carmack’s narrative, one explicit and one more hidden, which suggest another story. As Carmack rightly notes, the Soviet regime did manage to mobilize one million ethnic Kazakhs out of a population of 2.3 million for service in the Red Army, and did manage to extract labor and resources from Kazakhstan for the war effort. The regime fell short of the goals it set for itself, but did manage, after all, to win the war.
There is a second, more subtle, counter-narrative. As no expert on Kazakh or Central Asian history, what struck me most was something Carmack does not stress: how little role key events of pre-World War II Central Asian history had on the story Carmack tells. Carmack’s introductory materials do discuss the pre-war history of Kazakhstan, but those events seem to have little bearing on wartime experience. Kazakhstan does not fit neatly into patterns historians have drawn from Russian history, but Kazakhstan at war seems to show little impact from, say, the 1916 rebellion against tsarist conscription, the Soviet institutionalization of ethnic categories in Central Asia, Stalinist anti-religious policies, and the devastating loss of life from sedentarization and collectivization of Kazakh nomads. In what may be a back-handed testimony to the effectiveness of the Soviet project, Carmack can tell a clear and coherent story of wartime Kazakhstan with almost no reference to those earlier events, which seem to have fallen into a Stalinist memory hole. The Soviet regime had, to a very large degree, successfully remade Kazakhstan in its own image.
The bulk of Carmack’s dissertation is a discussion of particular aspects of life in the republic during the war, beginning with conscription. Kazakhstan did serve as a reservoir of manpower, as around one million Kazakhs were conscripted into the Red Army during the war. Some served heroically, including among the famed 28 Panfilovtsy (though that heroism has been considerably dimmed by recent research). Under conditions of mass conscription during the war, Kazakh service showed a striking pattern. Until December 1941, Kazakh draftees were steered to labor battalions and kept out of combat. It remains unclear whether this policy was predominantly driven by lack of trust in Kazakh loyalty or belief that lack of strong Russian language skills among many Kazakhs made their service in combat units problematic. Soviet military officers did tend to view Kazakhs as particularly likely to break and run under stress. This policy of exclusion was abruptly reversed in December 1941, presumably due to a desperate need for manpower, and Kazakhstan’s Kazakhs and Slavs alike served in combat. Symbolic national units were created, though these were never homogenous groups of ethnic minorities. By October 1943, however, Kazakhs were once again relegated to rear area construction and labor duties, and national units were gradually regularized over the last two years of the war to become essentially identical to standard Soviet units.
In economic terms, the political leadership of Kazakhstan wished to see the republic transformed from a mere source of raw materials into a more balanced economy with a mature industrial sector. These desires only occasionally coincided with Moscow’s priorities. While the evacuation of over 200 industrial enterprises to Kazakhstan jump-started the region’s industrial development, Moscow pulled 200,000 laborers from Kazakhstan for work elsewhere, and as early as 1943, skilled labor began to flow back out of Kazakhstan in order to repopulate and rebuilt the devastated western regions of the Soviet Union. Maximizing wartime production and reconstructing Soviet power in previously-occupied territories trumped any development project from the republic’s leadership.
Both the regime in Moscow and the government of Kazakhstan wanted to integrate Kazakhs ideologically into the Soviet state. In keeping with much recent literature on Soviet nationality policy, including that by Terry Martin and Yuri Slezkine, Carmack sees this not as an effort to compel Kazakhs to assimilate to a dominant Russian linguistic and cultural milieu, but to use the development of a socialist Kazakh identity as a path towards belonging to an overarching and supernational Soviet identity. Reaching Kazakhs in their native language was a necessary step, as was reflecting Kazakh cultural concepts in Soviet propaganda. Isolated pieces of Kazakh history were hijacked into the service of an overall Soviet narrative. The early eighteenth-century Russian incorporation of the steppe, even though carried out by absolutist tsars, was an objectively progressive step in forestalling even more backward Mongol domination. The 1916 uprising against tsarist conscription was celebrated as popular resistance to colonialism and an exploitative feudal elite. During the war, Islam and traditional Islamic religious leaders were rehabilitated and used for propaganda decrying German atrocities against Muslims in Crimea and the Caucasus.
In practice, though, these efforts, just as those in the economic sphere, ran up against hard reality. In this case, the regime lacked enough party activists skilled enough in both Russian and Kazakh to carry out meaningful agitation. The cultural familiarity necessary to translate Russian-language Marxist concepts into meaningful and relevant Kazakh parallels was woefully low. Kazakh soldiers from rural settlements often know no Russian at all, and so were wholly dependent on a handful of Kazakh-speaking agitators and poorly distributed Kazakh-language literature. Political officers serving Kazakh-dominated units were forced into a two-track policy of simultaneously educating their soldiers in basic Russian and carrying out agitation.
Carmack’s dissertation also looks at those truly outside the bounds of Soviet society: the political exiles, Germans and North Caucasians, dumped in Kazakhstan to remove them from regions near the fighting front and punish them collectively for perceived disloyalty. Germans were the first to arrive, hastily pushed off trains in August and September 1941. Disproportionately women and children, these refugees were indiscriminately dumped on collective farms to serve as labor without sufficient supplies of food, and without accounting for useful skills that they might possess. German exiles with useful experience had to liberate themselves—moving to urban areas, tools in hand, to offer their services in hopes of better pay and living conditions. Large numbers of German men were funneled into a Labor Army, working alongside the existing network of NKVD camps. Peoples from the North Caucasus, notably Chechens, followed the Germans into exile in 1943 and 1944 but found the infrastructure to feed and shelter them no better. These refugees, with no political friends, found themselves universally unwanted, as local officials resented the drain on limited supplies of food and worked to ship the deportees on to become someone else’s burden.
As the war progressed, those exiled populations increasingly became the focus of state suspicion. At the outbreak of war, state repression was directed more-or-less evenhandedly across social and ethnic groups and particularly aimed at rumor-mongering and defeatism, which generally equated to seeking and relaying news about the war effort. Once first Germans and then North Caucasian exiles arrived, authorities in Kazakhstan created what Carmack calls a “hierarchy of loyalty,” with Russian and Kazakhs more or less presumed to be loyal, and exiles presumed to be disloyal and working towards their liberation either by Germany or, in the case of the North Caucasus, Turkey. The result was surveillance and infiltration on a massive scale, with approximately 1% of the exile population recruited as police informants.
On the whole, Carmack’s work adds depth and nuance to the history of the Soviet Union at war. While recognizing that there is much truth in the school of historiography in the Soviet Union and independent Kazakhstan, stressing heroic and selfless sacrifice for victory, he particularly notes the shortfalls, shortages, and internecine struggles that were conveniently eliminated from official histories. He skillfully integrates archival and media sources to give a comprehensive and compelling account of a hitherto neglected aspect of the Soviet Union at war.
David R. Stone
Strategy and Policy Department
US Naval War College
All opinions expressed are solely those of the author.
Primary Sources
Archive of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan
Central State Archive of the Republic of Kazakhstan
Soviet newspapers (Russian and Kazakh language)
Dissertation Information
University of Wisconsin, Madison, 2015. 367pp. Primary advisor: Francine Hirsch.
Image: “Guardsmen Calculating Anti-Tank Fire.” Central State Archive of Films, Photos, and Sound Recordings of the Republic of Kazakhstan (TsGAKZRK). File number 2-10230.
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Zak Jarvis is an artist, writer, and vaguely obsessive cyclist living in Pacifica, California. Over the course of many careers he has animated for children’s television, worked on numerous doomed multiplayer game designs, created commercial websites, and published a variety of images and stories. He attended Viable Paradise X in 2006. In an effort to save money on shaving he accidentally became a recognized expert in the history of straight razors, specializing in 18th and 19th century Sheffield.
He started writing seriously because his wife Sharon Mock encouraged him to stop dabbling and do it for real.
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Saturday, July 10, 2010
[Fantasia day 3] Gallants - FUCK YEAH!
Well during the introduction to Ip Man 2, King, the kung fu programmer for Fantasia said that Clement Cheng, the director of Gallants, is a part of the new wave of kung fu cinema coming from Hong Kong. That's a big statement but I am very pleased to say that if Gallants is indicative of Cheng's future work then King was not exaggerating.
This screening seemed to be a much bigger event for the sponsor, the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Society, compared to that of Ip Man 2, possibly because the director and one of the stars, Bruce Leung, were here to present it. There was a camera crew from Fairchild News, which is I guess a satellite network playing to the Chinese diaspora.
Bruce Leung has been working in kung fu films in Hong Kong for over 40 years, but you probably best know him as The Beast from Kung Fu Hustle, the humble old man who fights on all fours and inflates like a toad. He was wearing a pretty rough toupee and for a while, I thought he was the director's mom or something!
(That's him in the middle and the director, Clement Cheng, on the right.)
Real actors are often strangely bland and shy outside of the movies and Bruce Leung is definitely a real actor. When you see him on screen, he is so full of energy and charisma and utterly unmistakable. But in real life, he just looks like any middle-aged chinese dude with a bad wig.
I will have to admit that my critique of this movie has been strongly influenced by seeing it at Fantasia with Bruce Leung and the director there to present. Bruce Leung's speech in particular was really heartfelt and inspiring. After a basic greeting in strongly accented, but understandable english, where he said he hadn't gone to high school and thus couldn't speak english, he spoke the rest of the time in Cantonese with a translator. So his words were delivered in short segments, followed by the translation and then loud applause and cheering from the appreciative crowd. After many very generous and kind comments about us, he thanked many people, including the Hong Kong government (who paid for his trip). But he followed that up with an oblique political critique, which left the translator stammering and saying she didn't know if she should translate it for fear of getting punished! He said that the Hong Kong government had done a really good thing in sending him here, after having done many bad things since 1997. Quite interesting. I read over on the Fantasia blog that he had been out of movies for 15 years because of "a misunderstood diplomatic visit to Red China". I would love to know what the backstory behind that was!
Before the movie, we saw a neat little business promo short vaunting the many attributes of Hong Kong, narrated by Chow Yun-Fat in english. Very cool. It had a hilarious part where an Australian guy, looking exactly like one of the British expat heavies from Ip Man 2 said "I've been living here for 8 years and I haven't had to learn a word of Cantonese!". The audience burst out laughing.
Gallants starts out with a bang. It's the story of a total loser, low man on the totem pole in his real estate firm (he is literally beaten by his co-workers and boss) whose only period of ascendancy in his whole life was when he was 8 years old and used to bully this one other kid. This is all explained with tons of jump cuts and a hilarious, portentous voice over. And then some super lively credits, reminiscent of the old Shaw Brothers movies. The whole movie is just full of energy, in the lighting, in the cuts, in the actors themselves. Energy is what Hong Kong cinema does best and the look of Gallants does appear to be another step forward in style.
The nerdy guy, because of one more fuck-up at work, is sent on a 7-week, no pay vacation/project to settle some real estate dispute in a small town. Starting with an altercation with a little boy, things go from bad to worse for him until he stumbles upon a tea house that happens to be the property in dispute. It's a world of old, forgotten people, far from the importance of the big city. But everyone here has their role and there is a hilarious stand-off, where the protagonists and antagonists are established, each announcing their nickname and their low-level position in the community ("I am JADE KIRIN, night watchman for the Southern district!"). In the tradition of the old kung fu movies, the actor's name and the name of their character show up on the screen when they first appear.
Thematically, Gallants isn't such a big departure from other Hong Kong movies. The respect for old kung fu stars and the appreciation of the spirit of kung fu can be found in Kung Fu Hustle. The romance of the old time neighbourhood and local community is rife, but particularly strong in movies like "He Ain't Heavy, He's My Father". But it's all given such a rich, energetic spin and the actors are all so much fun (tons of old faces with a particularly hilarious spin from Teddy Robin Kwan, whom one could argue steals the movie), that it feels fresh and new.
It's funny, because I loved the trailer for this movie (if you want a sense of the style and energy of the movie, check out the trailer), but I didn't have any expectations. I think the title is the problem. My wife just looked up the word Gallant and confirmed that it can be used as a noun or an adjective. In the movie, it is referenced to mean old time heroes and it is the perfect word for the movie. But it's one of those weird words that nobody uses in english (at least not as a noun anymore), but because of Hong Kong's colonial past and British education, it pops up in a popular movie.
There was a Q&A at the end and the director said the movie, which opened up last month, is currently 10th in the HK box office for the year, which is not bad at all and bodes well for Clement's future (and ours as Hong Kong movie fans). Also, he thanked Andy Lau, who bankrolled it and got a producer credit. Good on you, Andy, for not only having a kickass acting career that went well beyond your pretty boy "Heaven King" early days, but for also being a positive force behind the scenes. Things are looking up.
Tomorrow it is Vietnamese ass-kicker Clash followed by (dear god help me) the remake of I Spit on your Grave. The latter is my wife's doing. She is much more hardcore than I am.
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Chapter 324: Discovered
The Evil Dao forces were much more crafty than imagined. They would frequently use fake arrays and fake blood red arrays to confuse the Azure Water Sect’s scouts. For the past month, all four Supreme Elders of the Azure Water Sect were all at least duped once.
But the good news was, apart from the Azure Water Region, the Evil Dao forces were also wreaking havoc in the Heaven Fiend Region and Violent Saber Region.
As such, the Azure Water Sect would only have to take care of their own region and that would do. They didn’t have to worry about the other sects taking the chance to strike at them, and they wouldn’t have to be concerned about the Heaven Fiend Sect’s coercion.
Of course, the situation might be like this, but the upper echelons of the Azure Water Sect all had a huge headache when so many Evil Dao practitioners were causing chaos in the Azure Water Region.
It would have been better if the Evil Dao forces were to go directly to war with the Azure Water Sect. The crucial point was that the Evil Dao forces were hard to track. As of now, they were only able to eliminate a few of the smaller Evil Dao forces and nothing else. Instead, the casualties of the Azure Water Region had already reached more than five million and it was still drastically increasing.
“Casualty count of more than five million?”
In Azure Water Sect, Li Fuchen12Li FuchenMain Protagonist had this awful expression.
Cloud Mist City’s population was just slightly more than 200,000 but the territory had just barely reached the one million mark. The Evil Dao forces had already slaughtered more than five million individuals, which was relative to five Cloud Mist City pieces of territory.
“Damn Evil Dao forces.”
The Li Clan might have already migrated to the Azure Water Sect and he didn’t have to worry about them, but Li Fuchen wasn’t the kind of person that would ignore such situations. He could imagine how many children and kind-hearted people were among those five million casualties. These people had been working diligently for their lives but were all reaped like rice straws and slaughtered in huge groups. Li Fuchen’s heart was filled with anguish and killing intent.
Azure Water Grand Hall…
Ouyang Wentian had a fatigued expression. Five million casualties… It was probably going to reach six million by now!
How many more lives could the Azure Water Region afford to lose?
“It is time for the disciples of the Azure Water Sect to go out and temper themselves.” Ouyang Wentian thought to himself.
He originally didn’t want the disciples to venture out of the sect, as he could imagine how many disciples would die under the hands of the Evil Dao practitioner. But now that they were lacking in manpower, and he wasn’t going to send out all the disciples. He was merely going to send out 30% of the inner sect disciples and a portion of the direct disciples.
On the other hand, it was a great opportunity for the disciples to hone themselves in this chaos brought by the Evil Dao forces.
Some of those disciples with ordinary talent might be able to find a breakthrough in this tribulation.
“Grand Elder, I want to go on the battlefield.”
On this day, Li Fuchen came to the Direct Disciple Grand Hall and spoke to Zhao Wujin.
Zhao Wujin knitted his brows. “Fuchen, you are different from others. The others need to go temper themselves, but you don’t need anymore. What you need to do is to peacefully cultivate and progress into the Heaven Realm.”
Not only Zhao Wujin, but the other upper echelons of the Azure Water Sect also didn’t wish for Li Fuchen venture out.
Li Fuchen’s current cultivation was too low and even if he had the ability to exceed levels in battle, he would only be able to go against lower leveled Heaven Realm martial artists. He wouldn’t have too great an impact on the situation and it would be much more effective after he had progressed to the Heaven Realm.
Li Fuchen responded, “Grand Elder, tempering and honing are effective for everyone. Cultivation isn’t merely about cultivating the qi, it is also about cultivating the heart. I cannot stand idly by and watch as the Evil Dao forces wreak havoc while I cultivate in peace. This doesn’t conform to my sword dao.”
“This?” Zhao Wujin was a little hesitant.
Li Fuchen made sense in his reasoning and Zhao Wujin knew that elite prodigies always had their own views and once they decided on something, not even ten bulls could hold them back.
“I will go report to the Sect Patriarch. Wait here for me.”
Zhao Wujin was unable to make this decision by himself.
Azure Water Grand Hall…
Ouyang Wentian frowned and said, “He wants to venture out?”
“Yes.” Zhao Wujin nodded.
After taking a deep breath, Ouyang Wentian said, “Then let him go! Arrange for two middle level Heaven Realm inner sect elders to protect him.”
The Azure Water Sect was having a tough time with manpower and it was already at their limits to send two middle level Heaven Realm martial artists to protect Li Fuchen.
“Understood.” Zhao Wujin let out a breath of relief.
With the protection of two middle leveled Heaven Realm martial artists, as long as there weren’t any huge incidents, Li Fuchen would be safe.
The place that Li Fuchen rushed for was naturally the Cloud Mist City’s territories. That was the place where he had lived for a large part of his life and he had a deep affection for that place.
In the skies above, Li Fuchen and two Heaven Realm inner sect elders were seated cross-legged on the Giant Sickle Terror Bird5Giant Sickle Terror BirdFlying spirit beast that Ouyang Wentian gave to Li Fuchen.
These two middle leveled Heaven Realm inner sect elders were called Qin Ming and Xu Chang.
Qin Ming said, “The Azure Water Region is split up into four major areas and forty minor areas. Every major area is overseen by a Supreme Elder and every minor area is overseen by over a dozen Heaven Realm martial artists. Cloud Mist City is in the third major area’s seventh minor sector. If I remember it correctly, the one overseeing the place is Elder Mao Qiuhai.”
“Yes, it is Elder Mao Qiuhai.” Xu Chang nodded.
Elder Mao Qiuhai was one of the top-ranked inner sect elders of the Azure Water Sect and was at the 9th level of the Heaven Realm.
“Did they discover any Evil Dao forces in the seventh minor area?” Li Fuchen asked.
The seventh minor area had a total of 15 cities and Cloud Mist City was one of them.
“None have been discovered for now.” Xu Chang replied.
Li Fuchen nodded. It was best if they weren’t discovered yet. It was hard for Li Fuchen to imagine the scene of citizens of Cloud Mist City, all were slaughtered in a single night.
At the pace of the Giant Sickle Terror Bird, the trio arrived at Golden Cloud City in a few days.
Golden Cloud City was the largest city in the third major area’s seventh minor sector, which had naturally become the temporary base of command.
In the grand hall of the city lord’s residence…
Mao Qiuhai had personally came to welcome Li Fuchen.
Li Fuchen wasn’t just any ordinary direct disciple. In terms of status, Mao Qiuhai might not even be superior to Li Fuchen.
After meeting with Mao Qiuhai, Li Fuchen didn’t stop over in the Golden Cloud City and immediately rushed for Cloud Mist City. For the next period of time, he intended to oversee Cloud Mist City. Of course, if he was needed in other places, he would also go over.
Golden Cloud City and Cloud Mist City were in the same minor area and it took less than one hour for Li Fuchen and the two elders to arrive.
The current Cloud Mist City wasn’t the Cloud Mist City of before.
The former four major clans of the Cloud Mist City had already moved out and they were replaced by the former second-rate clans of the city.
They were the He Clan, Si Clan, and the Sun Clan.
Back at Cloud Mist City’s genius competition, He Ping had placed fourth, while Si Fei and Sun Di had a commendable placing as well. These three individuals came from the three current He, Si, and Sun Clans.
But if the Zhu Clan didn’t just vanish, they would probably be one of the major clans in Cloud Mist City as well. It was a pity as to why Zhu Hongxiu and the Zhu Clan would vanish without a trace, as though they had never existed. This was a doubt that had been in Li Fuchen’s mind and he would occasionally recall about it.
Li Fuchen didn’t appear with great fanfare and had casually rented a courtyard to stay instead.
It was natural that Qin Ming and Xu Chang were staying together with him.
During the day, the trio wouldn’t step out of the courtyard and would only ride the Giant Sickle Terror Bird in the night to patrol the surroundings of Cloud Mist City, with the occasional patrol toward the other nearby cities.
According to the information, the Evil Dao forces were very crafty and would frequently put up fake arrays to wear out the Azure Water Sect’s members.
For an entire week, Li Fuchen and the elders didn’t discover anything strange and it seemed as though this area was very safe.
‘I must not be careless.’ Li Fuchen thought to himself.
On this night, Li Fuchen and the elders continued their patrol.
On the back of the Giant Sickle Terror Bird, Qin Ming took out three flasks of wine from his belongings and was going to hand it over to Li Fuchen and Xu Chang.
“There is a commotion.” Li Fuchen didn’t receive the wine and ordered the Giant Sickle Terror Bird to descend.
In the western suburbs of the Cloud Mist City, a group of black-robed individuals were busy with something.
“Evil Dao practitioners?”
Qin Ming and Xu Chang’s eyes lit up. They had been out for several days and had yet to kill any Evil Dao practitioners. Their hands were already itching for a fight.
“Let’s observe first.” The Giant Sickle Terror Bird maintained an altitude of 1000 meters as Li Fuchen said.
It was late into the night, but Qin Ming and Xu Chang were Heaven Realm martial artists who had incredible eyesight. Night surveillance was a basic ability that they had. However, Li Fuchen was even more incredible than the two of them, as his insane awareness had heightened all his senses to astounding levels.
Below them, there were at least more than a hundred black-robed men. They would bury some materials in the ground from time to time and gradually an array was starting to take form.
Li Fuchen squinted his eyes and saw that these materials were all oozing with sinister and wicked qi presences. They were obviously materials that were used for setting up evil arrays.
What Li Fuchen didn’t know, was that concurrently, there was a group of black-robed individuals setting up an array in Native Peace City as well, which was 1000 miles2miles1 Chinese mile = 500 meters away from Cloud Mist City. But these people were already discovered by a scout that was sent out by Elder Mao Qiuhai.
“It doesn’t matter if it is real or fake. I have to send the message to Elder Mao first.”
Hidden in the dark, the scout crushed a message token.
The message tokens were separated into mother and child tokens. There was only one mother token which was with Mao Qiuhai, while there were several child tokens. When a child token was crushed, the mother token would be able to sense it.
In the city lord residence of the Golden Cloud City, Mao Qiuhai took out his mother token.
Only allowed on
The mother token was engraved with directions on the front, which were: East, West, South, North, Southeast, Northeast, Southwest, and Northwest, a total of eight directions. Right now, the southwest direction was lit up with a red spot, and after flickering for a few times, it dimmed.
“Southwest direction. It is Native Peace City!” Mao Qiuhai’s eyes flashed with a severe light.
Native Peace City had a population of over 300,000. He was certainly not going to allow any casualties within his jurisdiction.
Just as Mao Qiuhai was preparing to lead people, the mother token shook again. This time it was the southeast direction that had a red spot.
“Southeast direction. It is Cloud Mist City.” Mao Qiuhai’s brows were knitted very tightly.
For two cities to have a commotion at the same time… It was obvious that this was the scheme of the Evil Dao forces.
Soon enough, Mao Qiuhai had a decision.
Cloud Mist City only had a population of 200,000 and wasn’t as important as Native Peace City. He decided to split up the troops. He was going to lead his group to Native Peace City, while another high leveled Heaven Realm inner sect elder would lead another group of men to Cloud Mist City.
Although the military strength would be dispersed, it was better than abandoning a location.
Of course, just in case… Mao Qiuhai took out a special token and crushed it.
Supreme Elder Liang who was overseeing the third major area felt a vibration from a token in his belongings.
“It is the seventh minor area?”
Supreme Elder Liang stood up and with a flash, he departed at a breakneck speed. His speed was several folds faster than the Giant Sickle Terror Bird and it wasn’t exaggerating to say that he was as fast as lightning.
In the western suburbs of the Cloud Mist City, Li Fuchen had determined that they were truly setting up an evil array. It wasn’t a fake and was a real sinister array, as his awareness could sense the fluctuation from the array, which contained shocking malevolence which made his heart palpitate.
It was why Li Fuchen didn’t hesitate and crushed his token.
Just one hour after Li Fuchen crushed the token, the array had been completed. The qi presence of the array had been completely hidden, but with Li Fuchen’s astounding awareness, he was still able to feel the existence of the array.
“A huge group of people is coming over.” Qin Ming spoke with a voice that had a little anxiety.
“Fly higher.”
Li Fuchen ordered the Giant Sickle Terror Bird to fly up to a higher altitude.
He wasn’t so silly enough to go against the Evil Dao forces with just the three of them.
With a flap of its wings, the Giant Sickle Terror Bird ascended up an altitude of 5000 meters before stopping.
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