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PostSubject: Default: Swords of the Jechx Republic Colony Sun Nov 30, 2014 12:26 pm
"The Extinct" - A large blade that with a successful hit can cause someone to be extinct however the individual who has been able to wield this blade in such a manner has also been extinct for quite awhile.
"The Brazen Defender" - A blade that is common among the soldiers of the Jechx Republic who have studied and trained to use the broad sword as both a two handed and one handed weapon (one handed techniques still taking more energy but just as fast as two handed).
"The Sultan's Scimitar" - A scimitar that is more flashy than other scimitars in the Jechx Republic. This is because this scimitar is common among the nobles of the Republic.
"The Common Man's Can Opener" - A scimitar for the common folk of the Republic. Not as flashy as the Noble's but just as deadly if the common folk can keep it sharpened.
"The Utilitarian's Axe" - A battle axe that is either paired with the "The Common Man's Can Opener" or is the main weapon of those choosing to focus in axe as their specialty.
"The Screamer" - Due to the unique shape of this blade it causes the air around it to scream as if a large wind was being blown.
"The Grim Reaper" - Unlike it's brother "The Extinct" this blade has been customized over the years so that an individual is able to take advantage of an uncharacteristically light broad sword causing this sword to be one of the deadliest in the Republic.
"The Shopkeep" - This Scimitar gets it's name from being used by the hired soldiers of the Republic. They like to keep their busy going in anyway they deem fit.
"The Lawless Deceiver" - Characteristically shaped like a scimitar this blade is also the length of a longsword giving the wielder an advantage. This blade is uncommon to civilians unless they have a decent income.
"Redemption" - The scimitar used by the religious order of Glaurang in the Jechx Republic in all of their ceremonial rituals.
"The Lawless" - This sword is known for being used by the renegades (like the admin) and the lonely vigilante.
"The Blacksmith" - A hammer that looks like it could be used in battle or in the smithy.
"Tor's Hammer" - After getting a lost signal about a guy named Thor the hammer was named Tor in his honor.
"The Celestial" - A hammer said to be smithed by the Gods.
"The Pick" - A warhammer reminiscent of an ice pick that was necessary to dig into the underground that is now the Jechx Republic.
"Dragon King" - A war axe with a secret dagger in the hilt of the weapon. How's that for being serpentine?
"Bone Grinder" - An axe that is specialized in being used for quick strikes to amputate.
"The Phoenix" - A rapier with the blade length of a great sword, and named after the Fabled Beast in creation stories. It's blade shines red with the blood and flames of war.
"The Overseer" - A rapier styled blade utilized by the Overseers of the Glarung Worshipers and of the Jechx Court.
"l'Mockingjay" - An expensive and noble blade utilized by the upper class of the Jechx Republic.
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The World of Runa :: Rules and Compendium :: Status Ailments, Race Histories, and Transportation :: Weapon Hold-
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Rigging elections to steal the White House
Monday, February 11, 2013 | Posted by Jim Hightower
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Since being thumped hard by voters last November, Republican leaders have gone through a period of reflection, introspection, and contemplation – and they now say they must make fundamental internal changes to become realistic political contenders.
Does this mean they're finally going to quit being a political front for the Koch brothers' plutocratic fantasies, jettison their tea party nuttiness about everything from nullification to "legitimate rape," or stop their destructive fixation on budget slashing? No, no – it's not their own, deeply-flawed fundamentals they intend to change, but the inner workings of America's election mechanics. The problem, they say, is not their unpopular policies or their offensive strategy of attacking whole swaths of the electorate – but that states are not allocating their electoral votes in ways that would throw the election to Republicans.
For some time, we've seen GOP governors and election officials openly rigging rules and voting procedures to shut out students, minorities, seniors, and other likely Democratic voters from casting ballots. But now top Republicans are going all out to "fix" vote allocation rules in selected swing states, enabling their presidential candidates to "win," even though they lose. For example, last fall, Obama won Florida, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and Wisconsin. But, with Republicans in control of those state governments, the GOP is scheming to award the electoral votes of those states in the future not to the statewide winner, but to the winner in each congressional district. If it had been fully-implemented for last years election, this arbitrary slicing and dicing would have diverted enough electoral votes to Romney to hand him the presidency.
For more on the GOP's plot to steal the White House, see a full report at www.americanprogressaction.org.
Bookmark and Share | dclm_baseline | {'bff_contained_ngram_count_before_dedupe': '1', 'language_id_whole_page_fasttext': "{'en': 0.9603847861289978}", 'metadata': "{'Content-Length': '18301', 'Content-Type': 'application/http; msgtype=response', 'WARC-Block-Digest': 'sha1:BFANPHNUEOXCJMK7NJN577QJDANQPMMR', 'WARC-Concurrent-To': '<urn:uuid:20945faf-178c-413e-a4d5-2977aab821f4>', 'WARC-Date': datetime.datetime(2014, 12, 22, 5, 35, 52), 'WARC-IP-Address': '64.71.151.93', 'WARC-Identified-Payload-Type': None, 'WARC-Payload-Digest': 'sha1:AHOEGOQHW6SPK77BFU7YRUXDL7432VYA', 'WARC-Record-ID': '<urn:uuid:927fa48b-1c8b-4cf1-b5ee-97ee9965884b>', 'WARC-Target-URI': 'http://www.jimhightower.com/node/7957', 'WARC-Type': 'response', 'WARC-Warcinfo-ID': '<urn:uuid:a5e22c83-6ce5-441e-bbce-88c86da10919>', 'WARC-Truncated': 'length'}", 'previous_word_count': '299', 'url': 'http://www.jimhightower.com/node/7957', 'warcinfo': 'robots: classic\r\nhostname: ip-10-231-17-201.ec2.internal\r\nsoftware: Nutch 1.6 (CC)/CC WarcExport 1.0\r\nisPartOf: CC-MAIN-2014-52\r\noperator: CommonCrawl Admin\r\ndescription: Wide crawl of the web with URLs provided by Blekko for December 2014\r\npublisher: CommonCrawl\r\nformat: WARC File Format 1.0\r\nconformsTo: http://bibnum.bnf.fr/WARC/WARC_ISO_28500_version1_latestdraft.pdf', 'fasttext_openhermes_reddit_eli5_vs_rw_v2_bigram_200k_train_prob': '0.029569566249847412', 'original_id': '703c92639992a7ebad2328cb964e6f2633ce9fbbeec27dcd6684ef858c65d80e'} |
What’s the Deal with American Thanksgiving?
Yesterday I found myself stating out loud “I miss my family a lot today.” It was American Thanksgiving, the day for family in a ginormous way.
Living in Canada, many people ask me what the big deal is about American Thanksgiving. Why is it the holiday that everyone goes home for, even more than Christmas?
It has nothing to do with Black Friday.
Growing up in a country where everything was on, open, and available 24/7 to have the whole, and I mean whole, country turns everything off on the same day, spend time with the people they love, and remember why they love them is a powerful thing.
There are no Thanksgiving gifts, cookie exchanges, cantatas, church services, lights, trees, great expectations, corporate events, or cards.
Being yourself with the people you love most in the world without having to be or do anything more is something we rarely participate in.
There is nothing quite like:
• Laughing together as you try to shove stuffing into a slippery bird at 7 am
• Playing games as the smell of turkey wafts through the air
• Sharing what you are most thankful for in word and deed.
• Dumping sugar on top of the pumpkin pie because we missed it on the ingredient list
• Grafting people into your family who don’t have family
• Dozing by the fire and sipping hot cider as the day winds down
I am blessed to have grown up in a family that always paused and chose to be grateful whether we had a lot or a little.
Gratitude turns a little into more than you ever thought possible.
The big deal is pretty simple.
It is love.
Love changes the world.
Thanksgiving reminds us to pause and choose love over comparison, busyness, and striving.
When you have more than enough, you have love to share.
How are you changing the world with love?
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Cowbirds' Secret Identity Is Unlocked By A Vocal Password
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Adult male brown-headed cowbird (Molothrus ater). (Credit: Kelly Colgan Agar / CC-BY-SA 2.0)
Kelly Colgan Agar via a Creative Commons license
The behavioral and neural mechanisms for how songbirds learn their songs resembles the process that humans use to learn speech. This learning process starts by recognizing and learning appropriate songs from one's own species. For this reason, songbirds are widely studied as model systems for understanding the fundamentals of human social recognition and learning. But some songbirds learn differently: some bird species rely on other species to raise their chicks, which means these foster chicks are faced with an identity crisis that affects every aspect of their lives. Yet, these foster chicks are able to overcome this crisis and learn to recognize others of their own species.
Cowbirds as avian changelings
When a baby bird first hatches, it generally "imprints" on the first moving creature that it sees, and thereafter, it recognizes that individual as its parent. Imprinting is important as the chick matures because it provides the bird with a sense of identity; young birds tend to hang around with others of the same species and adult birds seek mates that resemble their parents. A bird that imprints on the wrong species suffers an identity crisis that interferes with nearly every aspect of its life, often preventing reproduction and creating a social misfit.
But cowbirds are not like other birds. Instead of building a nest and raising their own chicks, cowbirds adopted a different sort of lifestyle: they are brood parasites. Female cowbirds sneak their eggs into the nests of other bird species and leave them for these other birds to foster-parent. When it comes to different avian reproductive strategies, brood parasitism is very unusual: just 1% of all bird species are known to rely upon it.
Eastern Phoebe (Sayornis phoebe) nest with one speckled Brown-headed Cowbird (Molothrus ater) egg in it. (Credit: Galawebdesign / Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported license.)
Galawebdesign via a Creative Commons license
The chatter call is the cowbird's vocal password that unlocks their secret identity
Brood parasitism raises fundamental questions, such as: how do cowbird chicks avoid mis-imprinting on their foster parents? How does a cowbird know it's a cowbird despite being fostered by birds of different species?
These are some of the questions that have long inspired behavioral ecologist and ornithologist, Mark Hauber, a professor in the psychology department at Hunter College and the Interim Vice Provost for Research at The City University of New York (CUNY).
The ability to recognize members of one's own species (also known as conspecifics) is the critical foundation upon which most social interactions are constructed for humans as well as many animals. Recognizing conspecifics is either inherent or learned during early development (or both).
An earlier study in brown-headed cowbirds, Molothrus ater, conducted by Professor Hauber when he was a graduate student, proposed that a young parasite recognizes conspecifics when it encounters a particular species-specific signal or "password" -- a vocalization, behavior, or some other characteristic -- that triggers detailed learning of the password-giver’s unique traits (ref).
Brown-headed cowbirds are especially interesting because they do not specialize on parasitizing just one or a few bird species. Rather, they are known to parasitize more than 220 different species of North American birds. Thus, the young cowbirds are exposed to a vast diversity of foster parents and to an array of distinct social cues and vocalizations that they potentially could mis-imprint upon.
A cowbird chick in another bird species' nest. (Credit: Mark Hauber / doi:10.1080/09524622.2017.1303645)
Mark Hauber
Professor Hauber's previous study found that adults, fledglings and even nestlings as young as six days old respond strongly and preferentially to the brown-headed cowbird chatter call, and this call may act as a "vocal password" that triggers species recognition (ref).
"After our discovery of the password as a behavioral mechanism in parasitic cowbirds over 15 years ago as a graduate student, it is rewarding for me to be working on an NSF [National Science Foundation] grant to identify the neural basis of this behavior as a professor," said Professor Hauber.
Professor Hauber's "password hypothesis" proposes that young brood parasites first recognize a particular signal, which acts as a password that identifies conspecifics, and the parasites learn other species-specific characters only after encountering that password. One of the important features of the password hypothesis is that the password must be innate and familiar to the animal from a very early age. This suggests that encountering the password triggers specific neural responses early in development -- neural responses can actually be seen and measured.
Hearing the chatter call triggers rapid production of an important protein in the brain
Behavioral correlates point to the chatter call as the likely password in cowbirds because it is frequently produced by females and occasionally by males; it is produced throughout the breeding season when young cowbirds are hatching and fledging; and it has no regional dialects despite the cowbirds' large geographic range, indicating this call is innate, not learned. Young cowbirds have a strong bias towards the chatter call, suggesting this may trigger social recognition before song learning can occur. Also consistent with this timeline: cowbirds delay memorizing their own species-specific song (see video) until their second year, practicing it with a poor imitation, and only start singing a good quality rendition in their third year (ref). This contrasts sharply with the song-learning habits of other songbird species, who learn their songs from their fathers when they are fledglings.
This study revealed that the cowbirds' brains change after the birds hear the chatter call by rapidly increasing production of a protein known as ZENK. This protein is ephemeral; it is produced in neurons after exposure to a new stimuli, but disappears only a few hours later, and it is not produced again if the same stimuli is encountered. The production of ZENK occurs in the neurons in the auditory forebrain, which are regions in the songbird brain that respond to learned vocalizations, such as songs, and also to specific unlearned calls.
Interestingly, young cowbirds can still be tricked into mis-imprinting on their foster parents: if they do not locate and socialize with flocks of other cowbirds from an early age onwards, they will mis-imprint on their foster parents. This can be seen by increased levels of ZENK in the auditory forebrain when the foster parents sings their own species-specific songs.
"Our study reveals a neural basis for this password as well as a neural signature of misimprinting in young brood parasites that have prolonged exposure to host species songs," said lead author of the study, Kathleen Lynch, Assistant Professor of Biology at Hofstra University, in a press release.
Brood parasites' learning process has evolved to be quite different from that of most other songbirds. By learning more about the molecular mechanisms occurring in the brain that underly song learning in these birds, we can better understand how brood parasitism arose and evolved, and clarify the neural mechanisms for song learning in birds. Cowbirds provide fundamental information about the molecular mechanisms occurring in the brain for guiding how social recognition and learning actually occurs in birds as well as in other organisms -- such as people.
Kathleen S. Lynch, Annmarie Gaglio, Elizabeth Tyler, Joseph Coculo, Matthew I.M. Louder, and Mark E. Hauber (2017). A neural basis for password-based species recognition in an avian brood parasite, Journal of Experimental Biology, published online on 18 April 2017 ahead of print | doi:10.1242/jeb.158600
Also mentioned:
Mark E. Hauber, Stefani A. Russo and Paul W. Sherman (2001). A password for species recognition in a brood-parasitic bird, Proceedings of the Royal Society of London B: Biological Sciences, 268(1471):1041–1048 | doi:10.1098/rspb.2001.1617
Eliot A. Brenowitz and Michael D. Beecher (2005). Song learning in birds: diversity and plasticity, opportunities and challenge, TRENDS in Neurosciences, 28(3):127-132 | doi:10.1016/j.tins.2005.01.004 (free PDF)
Read more about bird song:
Birdsong: It’s More Than Just Music to Your Ears
Sing for your supper: fairy-wren chicks must sing vocal password for food
PCBs cause birds to sing a different tune
Cowbirds' Secret Identity Is Unlocked By A Vocal Password | @GrrlScientist
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/**
* $Id$
* Copyright (C) 2008 - 2014 Nils Asmussen
*
* This program is free software; you can redistribute it and/or
* modify it under the terms of the GNU General Public License
* as published by the Free Software Foundation; either version 2
* of the License, or (at your option) any later version.
*
* This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
* but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
* MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the
* GNU General Public License for more details.
*
* You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License
* along with this program; if not, write to the Free Software
* Foundation, Inc., 51 Franklin Street, Fifth Floor, Boston, MA 02110-1301, USA.
*/
#pragma once
#include <gui/graphics/color.h>
#include <gui/layout/borderlayout.h>
#include <gui/layout/flowlayout.h>
#include <gui/image.h>
#include <gui/imagebutton.h>
#include <gui/window.h>
#include <sys/common.h>
#include <map>
class Shortcut {
friend class DesktopWin;
public:
Shortcut(const std::string& icon,const char **args)
: _icon(icon), _args(args), _btn() {
}
const std::string& getIcon() const {
return _icon;
}
const char **getArgs() const {
return _args;
}
private:
std::shared_ptr<gui::ImageButton> getButton() const {
return _btn;
}
void setButton(std::shared_ptr<gui::ImageButton> btn) {
_btn = btn;
}
private:
std::string _icon;
const char **_args;
std::shared_ptr<gui::ImageButton> _btn;
};
class DesktopWin : public gui::Window {
class WinButton : public gui::Button {
public:
WinButton(DesktopWin *inst,const std::string &title)
: Button(title), _sub(clicked(),mem_recv(inst,&DesktopWin::onWinBtnClicked)) {
}
private:
onclick_type::subscr_type _sub;
};
class Background : public gui::Panel {
public:
Background(std::shared_ptr<gui::Layout> l) : gui::Panel(l) {
}
protected:
virtual void paintBackground(gui::Graphics &g) {
const gui::Color &bg = getTheme().getColor(gui::Theme::CTRL_BACKGROUND);
g.colorFadeRect(gui::VERTICAL,bg,bg + 30,gui::Pos(0,0),getSize());
}
};
public:
static const gsize_t PADDING;
static const gsize_t ICON_SIZE;
static const gsize_t TASKBAR_HEIGHT;
public:
DesktopWin(const gui::Size &size,int childsm);
void addShortcut(Shortcut *sc) {
// do that first for exception-safety
std::shared_ptr<gui::Image> img = gui::Image::loadImage(sc->getIcon());
auto btn = gui::make_control<gui::ImageButton>(img);
sc->setButton(btn);
btn->clicked().subscribe(mem_recv(this,&DesktopWin::onIconClick));
_shortcuts[btn] = sc;
_iconPanel->add(btn);
_iconPanel->repaint();
}
// no cloning
private:
DesktopWin(const DesktopWin &w);
DesktopWin &operator=(const DesktopWin &w);
void onWinBtnClicked(UIElement& el);
void onWindowCreated(gwinid_t id,const std::string& title);
void onWindowActive(gwinid_t id);
void onWindowDestroyed(gwinid_t id);
void init();
void onIconClick(UIElement& el);
private:
int _childsm;
std::shared_ptr<gui::Panel> _winPanel;
std::shared_ptr<Background> _iconPanel;
WinButton *_active;
std::map<gwinid_t,std::shared_ptr<WinButton>> _windows;
std::map<std::shared_ptr<gui::ImageButton>,Shortcut*> _shortcuts;
};
| mini_pile | {'original_id': '0ff3c9e56e6899edbaad69e22830926255bb5ab3973fc27b4c3d51550198bae0'} |
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<h1 id="Hyperledger_Indy_PoolApi_PoolConfigNotCreatedException" data-uid="Hyperledger.Indy.PoolApi.PoolConfigNotCreatedException" class="text-break">Class PoolConfigNotCreatedException
</h1>
<div class="markdown level0 summary"><p>Exception thrown when attempting to open pool which does not yet have a created configuration.</p>
</div>
<div class="markdown level0 conceptual"></div>
<div class="inheritance">
<h5>Inheritance</h5>
<div class="level0"><span class="xref">System.Exception</span></div>
<div class="level1"><a class="xref" href="Hyperledger.Indy.IndyException.html">IndyException</a></div>
<div class="level2"><span class="xref">PoolConfigNotCreatedException</span></div>
</div>
<div class="inheritedMembers">
<h5>Inherited Members</h5>
<div>
<a class="xref" href="Hyperledger.Indy.IndyException.html#Hyperledger_Indy_IndyException_SdkErrorCode">IndyException.SdkErrorCode</a>
</div>
</div>
<h6><strong>Namespace</strong>: <a class="xref" href="Hyperledger.Indy.PoolApi.html">Hyperledger.Indy.PoolApi</a></h6>
<h6><strong>Assembly</strong>: Hyperledger.Indy.Sdk.dll</h6>
<h5 id="Hyperledger_Indy_PoolApi_PoolConfigNotCreatedException_syntax">Syntax</h5>
<div class="codewrapper">
<pre><code class="lang-csharp hljs">public class PoolConfigNotCreatedException : IndyException</code></pre>
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| mini_pile | {'original_id': 'b6dbdc05ff3b690543e07429b1ed271bbd267eaa0193e86026da348c26f067a1'} |
/**
* Copyright 2019 Google LLC
*
* Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
* you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
* You may obtain a copy of the License at
*
* http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
*
* Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
* distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
* WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
* See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
* limitations under the License.
*/
'use strict';
/**
* Setup keyboard shortcuts
*/
window.addEventListener('keydown', (e) => {
// console.log('key', e.code, e.ctrlKey, e.metaKey, e.shiftKey, e.key);
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app.saveFileAs();
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| common_corpus | {'identifier': 'https://github.com/mkruisselbrink/text-editor/blob/master/src/inline-scripts/keyboard-events.js', 'collection': 'Github Open Source', 'open_type': 'Open Source', 'license': 'Apache-2.0', 'date': '2020.0', 'title': 'text-editor', 'creator': 'mkruisselbrink', 'language': 'JavaScript', 'language_type': 'Code', 'word_count': '235', 'token_count': '554', '__index_level_0__': '28237', 'original_id': 'cdc0f84b8793a7ca2c67029656b623fc60bfee903b82439f183967a1a69cde49'} |
Case Profile
The Cigarette-Smoking Man (now terminally ill) enlists the help of a reluctant Scully in an elaborate con to capture a fugitive from DARPA, a doctor code-named Cobra, who holds the science for curing every human disease. The Cigarette-Smoking Man and Scully go on a road trip and the Cigarette-Smoking Man confesses many of his thoughts and worries. Cobra is executed but the Cigarette-Smoking Man lets Scully live. However he does not give Scully the science as promised, but prefers to destroy it.
Field Report
Season 7 is more than any other the season of the actors: 3 episodes are written by the cast. En Ami is William B. Davis' third pitch to Chris Carter and the first that passed the test to be developed as an episode. In En Ami, Davis' character the Cigarette-Smoking Man steals the show and Davis writes himself scenes with Scully, when we were used to see him interact with Mulder -- he even writes himself a scene with a face-to-face dinner with Scully wearing a beautiful dress! More than an important part of the mytharc, this episode is an interesting character study for (what would have been) the Cigarete-Smoking Man's penultimate appearance.
The miraculous science
The science research and experiments done for hybridization and biological warfare are considered here under a more humanitarian light. Scully sees 'miracles' -- a child dying of lymphatic cancer saved from certain death, a healthy woman at her 118th year -- that were performed with advanced technology that she's very familiar with: she carries it herself (5X03: Redux II)! Scully notes the presence of scars in the back of the neck of the boy and the woman the CSM presents to her. The CSM: "You're not at all curious? About the chip that's been put in that boy's neck? You, a medical doctor who has the same technology in your body? Has witnessed this wondrous 'miracle' first-hand?" The chip in 5X02: Redux was supposed to cure a cancer caused out of uncontrolled growths created by hybridization residues of Black Oil in the abductee's genome. And the science behind these chips can not only cure any cancer, but anything: "It's the holiest of grails, Dana. It's the cure for all human disease"! They come from a "closely guarded" "genetic research".
The origin of it is of course alien ("It's from that final frontier. It's largely extraterrestrial."), the alien's propensity to heal their wounds for example, adapted to human genetics. Playing god is obviously something the CSM fancies! The 118 year old woman, Marjorie Butters, was to be the CSM's mother in an early draft of the script (!) but this was dropped because even if the CSM is old, the age difference is too big! Marjorie is just a person the CSM takes some pleasure to see happy, an artificial relationship the CSM has created thanks to the power he yields with this curing technology: "Can you imagine what that's like to have the power to extinguish a life or to save it and let it flourish?"
'Cobra', the doctor that is the source of all this, was working for the "Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency", DARPA, already encountered regarding bioweaponry in Redux. He was probably working for the Syndicate to some extent as well (for him to use science developed in the hybridization experiments). Cobra gets tired of the secrecy and decides to go public; he becomes a "federal fugitive". His communication with Scully was diverted from its intended source by the CSM. The CSM creates all this elaborate scam around Scully -- the visit to the CSM's offices, the road trip -- only to reach Cobra, who had gone under the radar. The CSM maintains an liberal stance throughout, as in Mulder's dream in 7X04: Amor Fati: "You're free to go, of course. The choice is still yours." Scully visits the CSM's office in an apparently normal busy office building. This could be the same building the CSM had a conference in in 6X22: Biogenesis, perhaps the headquarters of the new Syndicate the CSM is trying to build. The fact that all of this is evacuated at the end shows the importance of the Cobra leak to the CSM and his associates. Scully retrieves the disk that contains all this knowledge and the CSM's henchman the Black-haired Man (last seen in Fight the Future!) kills him.
In a very quick instant barely offscreen and off Scully's eyes, the CSM pockets Cobra's disk and hands Scully a blank one. The "perfectly executed con" is complete.
The Cigarette-Smoking Man and Scully
But as with any professional liar it's difficult to discern what was part of the con to gain Scully's trust and what was genuinely the CSM. In their little road trip, the CSM confesses to Scully his thoughts, his feelings, his weaknesses and his hopes for his short future. He is dying from the operation he had in 7X04: Amor Fati ("Cerebral inflammation, a consequence of brain surgery I had in the fall. The doctors give me just a few months."); the work of his life in the Syndicate is gone (6X12: One Son); he wants to leave a legacy behind, something for which to be remembered as a good man. Scully: "So you want to use me to clear the slate, to make you a respectable person." By saving the world by curing all disease -- the right appeal for Scully, a doctor, as well. The counterpoint for this is his more pessimistic feelings that humanity is, after all, doomed -- from its own bestial and selfishly profiteering nature, or from the hand of God (ie the Colonists). What good will alleviating some physical pain will do? The CSM might be able to cure himself with this science, to extend his life, but what good will it do to him? For him to assist powerless in an apocalypse (the colonization) of his own making? For extending his miserable and lonely existence? His will to resist, if there was any to begin with, is completely gone: "I've tired of Mulder's mule-headedness, his foolish ideas of overthrowing the system." This nihilistic finding makes him destroy the disk and light his eternal cigarette, becoming with it his old selfish self. Throughout the series, he was vulnerable when he was not smoking; lighting a cigarette makes him become the man he tries to escape from but fails to do so. In the end, the CSM prefers to go down with the rest of the world rather than become a saviour to everyone.
Could Scully's chip be a cure to any disease? Is Scully thus protected from anything? (Could this tie in with Scully's half-jokingly alleged immortality from 3X04: Clyde Bruckman's Final Repose and 6X09: Tithonus?!)
There is also a detail that spawned quite a reaction: Scully falling asleep in the CSM's car, the CSM wearing gloves, and Scully waking up wearing a different set of clothes. What happened there? Did the CSM touch her in some way? Insert into her an updated chip that protects her not only from cancer but from all disease? Manipulate her so she could find her fertility again? Did the CSM artificially impregnate her himself, leaving another legacy to this world? Or are all these conspiratorial theories too much? The CSM explains "I only wanted to make you comfortable" and Scully was tired enough not to wake up during all this. The gloves were there as a kind of symbol: the CSM does not want to soil Scully with his own hands, evil protects itself from purity; even unconsciously, the CSM does not consider himself pure enough to touch her. (As 9X11: Providence proves, all this was just a red herring.)
Whatever happened there, he kills his own henchman the Black-haired Man and lets Scully live, again. Of all the things that the CSM told Scully, one sticks out that particularly moved him and must be true: "I'm a lonely man, Dana." All the people he knows are either dead, often by his own hand, or he betrayed them; the women he loved (Cassandra, Tena, Diana) are gone. What Scully refers to in the end, "a longing for [...] something he could never have", is human affection, mutual care, love -- something he now sees as going on between his son Mulder, and Scully. The CSM confesses a certain affection for Scully, but not an attraction: an affection like the one a man has to the woman that will carry his grandchild. After all, the title is French for "as a friend".
Surveillance Recodings
Scully: "What the hell are you doing?"
Cigarette-Smoking Man: "God's work, what else? [...] You see, I'm dying myself. A dying man who wants to make right; to share his secrets; to bequeath this cure to millions of others just like that boy."
Scully: "So you want to give it to us."
Cigarette-Smoking Man: "To you, Agent Scully. I've tired of Mulder's mule-headedness, his foolish ideas of overthrowing the system."
Cigarette-Smoking Man: "In the end...a man finally looks at the sum of his life to see what he'll leave behind. Most of what I worked to build is in ruins and now that the darkness descends, I find I have no real legacy. [...] I've destroyed a lot of things in my life including the people most precious to me. All I want is a chance to do something in service to man before I go."
Scully: "You're going to smoke?"
Cigarette-Smoking Man (tosses cigarette out): "It's time I quit."
Scully: "Just like that."
Cigarette-Smoking Man: "No sacrifice is purely altruistic. We give expecting to receive."
Scully: "What exactly is it you expect to receive?"
Cigarette-Smoking Man: "Your trust. You question my sincerity. You think I'm heartless. Would it soften your opinion of me if I confessed that I've always had a particular affection for you? I assure you my intentions are honorable. I have affection for Mulder, too. My affection for you is special. I held your life in my hands. Your cancer was terminal. I had a cure. Can you imagine what that's like to have the power to extinguish a life or to save it and let it flourish?"
Skinner: "She says she's fine."
Mulder: "She's in trouble."
[Scully wakes up with no recollection of how she got there]
Cigarette-Smoking Man: "How do you take your coffee?"
Scully: "Unadulterated, thank you."
[The Lone Gunmen storm Skinner's office]
Mulder: "I believe you've all met."
Langly: "Is this place secure?"
Skinner: "Is it secure?!"
Frohike: "Don't get testy, G-man."
Mulder: "He did it all for himself, to get the science on that disk. His sincerity was a mask, Scully. The man's motives never changed."
Scully: "You think he used me to save himself at the expense of the human race."
Mulder: "No, he knows what that science is worth, how powerful it is. He'd let nothing stand in his way."
Scully: "You may be right. But for a moment, I saw something else in him. A longing for something more than power. Maybe for something he could never have."
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Tuesday, January 11, 2011
Natalie Portman: "I thought I was going to Die"
This story just keeps on getting more and more intense. Yes, we already knew that the stunning Star Wars actress had to drop down to a very unhealthy weight for her role as a ballerina in Black Swan. While being ballerina thin is the norm for some, Natalie differs in that she is publicly speaking out about the overall experience of going down to such a low weight - weight that she barely had on her body to lose in the first place! Natalie is candidly speaking about the struggles, challenges and dangers she faced while living with anorexia, which is really inspirational and a wonderful cautionary message to women everywhere to take note of...especially when the topic of death is involved!
“There were some nights that I thought I literally was going to die. It was the first time I understood how you could get so wrapped up in a role that it could sort of take you down," said the star in a recent interview. In order to achieve the look and technique of a ballerina who had been training for many years, Portman trained for 16 hours a day and barely ate. Real ballerinas often skip breakfast, have a small salad for lunch, a few nuts here and there and fruit for dinner. That can't be more than 300-500 calories a day. Subtract the calories burned from dancing all day and you've got anorexia! In addition, many ballerinas smoke, drink tons of coffee and do yoga to calm their minds. How can a person live like that? Compared to real dancers, Portman had to expedite the process for filming, which took a toll not only on her body but also on her mind. Her role consumed her life. Even though she achieved a body that a lot of young girls and some women would die for - Portman didn't want it because it was literally killing her.
Now that filming has wrapped, Portman has bounced back to a healthy weight - and then some. The petite star is now a mommy-to-be! Promising to never put her body through such torture again, at least she can say that the hard work more than paid off - Natalie has been nominated for a Golden Globe award, a SAG award and there is a ton of Oscar buzz surrounding Black Swan. | dclm_baseline | {'bff_contained_ngram_count_before_dedupe': '0', 'language_id_whole_page_fasttext': "{'en': 0.9839972257614136}", 'metadata': "{'Content-Length': '163976', 'Content-Type': 'application/http; msgtype=response', 'WARC-Block-Digest': 'sha1:XDB252Q43T2NOGBSQBOOMU7WMR65JFZ3', 'WARC-Concurrent-To': '<urn:uuid:83ab4c14-c757-499b-92ce-a322a3d72214>', 'WARC-Date': datetime.datetime(2019, 11, 14, 10, 46, 3), 'WARC-IP-Address': '172.217.7.179', 'WARC-Identified-Payload-Type': 'application/xhtml+xml', 'WARC-Payload-Digest': 'sha1:GFY2L43JNLSJCWENBIFS7OCRVGE7QSM2', 'WARC-Record-ID': '<urn:uuid:6769429b-8427-48c3-a8cd-a170d8875f7d>', 'WARC-Target-URI': 'http://blog.nimdiet.com/2011/01/natalie-portman-i-thought-i-was-going.html', 'WARC-Type': 'response', 'WARC-Warcinfo-ID': '<urn:uuid:476b0017-bfd7-4544-83d3-974d856ce2c4>', 'WARC-Truncated': None}", 'previous_word_count': '400', 'url': 'http://blog.nimdiet.com/2011/01/natalie-portman-i-thought-i-was-going.html', 'warcinfo': 'isPartOf: CC-MAIN-2019-47\r\npublisher: Common Crawl\r\ndescription: Wide crawl of the web for November 2019\r\noperator: Common Crawl Admin (info@commoncrawl.org)\r\nhostname: ip-10-67-67-24.ec2.internal\r\nsoftware: Apache Nutch 1.16 (modified, https://github.com/commoncrawl/nutch/)\r\nrobots: checked via crawler-commons 1.1-SNAPSHOT (https://github.com/crawler-commons/crawler-commons)\r\nformat: WARC File Format 1.1\r\nconformsTo: http://iipc.github.io/warc-specifications/specifications/warc-format/warc-1.1/', 'fasttext_openhermes_reddit_eli5_vs_rw_v2_bigram_200k_train_prob': '0.16070473194122314', 'original_id': '5bfa9bc17eb61c00ec27e03ede8b53bfe50bcf4fa811940f272969db4dbf51a4'} |
La supériorité numérique des musulmans et leur prépondérance morale porte tous les chrétiens à se rapprocher, à faire cause commune pour se soutenir et se fortifier mutuellement. Aussi je n'ai pas été médiocrement surpris de voir l'entente et l'accord qui règnent généralement entre catholiques et non catholiques, entre Grecs, Syriens, Jacobites et. Maronites. Nous y gagnons de pou voir annoncer la vérité, sans crainte de brusquer ou froisser per■ sonne. Ce nous est également un motif d'espérer qu'avec le temps bien des yeux s'ouvriront et plus d'un frère séparé rentrera dans le giron de notre sainte mère l'Eglise. Nous semons présentement et la semence lèvera au moment fixé par la divine Providence. Les chrétiens de Homs sont heureux de notre venue. Ils sont persuadés que notre présence au milieu d'eux les fortifiera vis-à-vis des infidèles dont le nombre et la puissance les humilient et leur créent une position très précaire depuis bien des siècles. Ils espèrent en outre, que nous instruirons leurs enfants, que nous les rendrons par l'éducation bien supérieurs aux musulmans et que nous les ferons ainsi sortir de l'ornière où ils devraient sans cela se traîner péniblement jusqu'à la mort. Ils tiennent surtout à ce que leurs enfants apprennent le français qui ouvre déjà la voie à plus d'un emploi honorable et qu'ils considèrent comme la langue future de la Syrie. Quant aux musulmans, ils ne nous voient pas de mauvais œil. Ils voudraient que leur ville ne restât pas plus longtemps en dehors du mouvement civilisateur qui gagne et transforme la partie occidentale de la Syrie et l'Egypte tout entière. Ils ne voient pas sans peine, il est vrai, l'élément chrétien puiser dans ce mouvement une force qui tourne à sa prospérité et ils commencent à comprendre qu'ils vont perdre en influence et en prestige tout ce que les chrétiens sont en train de gagner. Ils sont donc forcés de s'élever au-dessus de leurs vieux préjugés et dé s'avouer que notre intervention peut être avantageuse à leur pays et y établir un courant d'idées et de connaissances dont leurs enfants profiteront aussi. Six mois après mon arrivée à Homs, je fus assez heureux pour faire l'acquisition d'une vaste maison, propriété d'un Grec schismatique. Située au centre de la ville et au beau milieu du quartier chrétien, elle nous offre un local suffisant pour l'établissement des œuvres diverses que nous projetons. Deux pièces assez spacieuses, avec leur cour respective, sont déjà prêtes pour les écoles de garçons. Il y a déjà de la part des chrétiens, redoublement d'instances pour l'ouverture de nos écoles d'arabe et de français. Mais l'achat de la maison et les réparations que nous avons dû y faire pour la rendre habitable ont épuisé toutes les ressources dont nous disposions. Nous n'attendons plus que vos prochaines allocations pour faire face aux premières dépenses d'écoles qui doivent être absolument gratuites. En attendant, nous avons accordé une demi-satisfaction à nos chers chrétiens, en ouvrant deux écoles pour leurs petites filles, dans la maison qui nous avait servi, dans le principe, de pied-à-terre et d'habitation provisoire. Ces écoles sont confiées à deux de nos Sœurs Libanaises, dites des Sacrés-Cœurs de Jésus et de Marie. Nous n'avons pas même eu besoin d'en annoncer l'ouverture; car nos bonnes Sœurs étaient à peine arrivées qu'elles ont vu venir à elles une foule de petites filles extrêmement désireuses d'apprendre. Elles abandonnaient sans retour les écoles protestantes, preuve manifeste selon moi, que ces écoles n'inspirent pas, ici, plus de confiance ni de sympathie qu'au Mont-Liban et dans les autres parties de la Syrie. Dieu sait cependant à combien d'industries l'on a recours pour les rendre attrayantes et pour retenir les enfants qu'on est parvenu à y amener. La plupart de ces enfants ne sont pas catholiques; mais les Grecs non unis, qui sont quinze fois plus nombreux que tous les catholiques réunis, regarient nos écoles comme les leurs. En classe, elles sont émerveillées des travaux à l'aiguille auxquels nos Sœurs les initient. On leur enseigne aussi la lecture arabe, les prières, le catéchisme, toutes choses qui leur ont été jusqu'ici parfaitement inconnues. Voilà donc un début encourageant. Nos écolières seront aussi nombreuses que notre local le permettra. Nous comptons déjà une cinquantaine d'enfants dans chaque classe, c'est-à-dire une centaine d'élèves de tout rite. Dieu aidant, nos écoles de garçons seront encore plus prospères que celles de filles. C'est sur elles que nous comptons pour bien nous poser, surtout aux yeux des musulmans de Homs et des fonctionnaires ottomans, à commencer par le Pacha et le Caïd. Ce premier point acquis, nous aurons à nous occuper des écoles à ouvrir dans les villages circonvoisins. On nous en demande de divers côtés. Les Maronites des villages de Tesmvit, de Ribla (la Rébla de la Bible), d'Aoutan sont en instance, depuis les premiers jours de notre installation. Les Grecs catholiques de Dément, de Kara, de Guissé, etc., n'insistent pas avec moins de persévérance. Viennent ensuite les Syro-catholiques de Zaïdane, de Nabke et de Kariataine, à la limite du,désert, sur la route de Palmyre. Zaïdane n'est qu'à une heure de Homs et le bon curé Syrien y tient déjà une petite école de garçons que Mgr Grégoire Chahine, archevêque Syrien de Homs, a bien du mal à soutenir, faute de ressources. Mais on y voudrait une école de filles et une classe de français pour les garçons. A Sadhad (la Zédad de la Bible), à Hafaï, à Hamah, bon nombre de jacobites demandent à Mgr Grégoire Chahine de les réunir à l'Eglise catholique et je crois même que plusieurs d'entre eux ont déjà fait leur abjuration entre ses mains. Mais ce mouvement n'aura un résultat sérieux que par l'éducation solidement catholique de la jeunesse. Une école dans chacune de ces localités serait pour l'archevêque comme un pied-à-terre qui lui permettrait de visiter plus souvent ses néophytes et de les instruire avec plus de suite.,En attendant mieux, une partie du local de l'école servirait de chapelle. Ce serait une sorte de prise de possession qui assurerait à tout jamais la persévérance des jacobites convertis, Vous le voyez, Monsieur le Directeur, il y a énormément à faire dans cette partie si délaissée de notre chère Syrie et l' Œuvre des écoles d'Orient, qui a obtenu des résultats si considérables depuis un quart de siècle, est appelée à rendre les plus signalés services à cette contrée désolée. C'est un vrai pays de conquête que son isolement lui-même rend digne de tout intérêt. Je viens de recevoir de Mgr Grégoire Chahine une bonne lettre où il m'expose l'extrême besoin qu'il aurait d'honoraires de messes, pour venir en aide à ses pauvres curés. Tous ceux-ci sont à sa charge, parce qu'ils n'ont rien à attendre de leurs ouailles, pas même le faible casuel que perçoivent ailleurs les prêtres ayant charge d'âmes. Tous leurs ministères doivent être exercés gratuitement pour ne pas effaroucher une population pauvre et peu généreuse. Et le premier pasteur du diocèse a lui-même bien de la peine à se suffire ; car il ne reçoit pas de ses diocésains un seul honoraire de nlesse ni une obole en secours, et sa mense épiscopale lui rapporte tout au plus 2 000 francs par an. Avec des honoraires de messe, il pourrait venir très utilement au secours de ses pauvres .prêtres. D'ailleurs, ce prélat ne peut se dispenser d'ordonner de nouveaux prêtres, pour donner des curés aux jacobites nouvellement convertis, dans des localités où il n'y a que des prêtres hérétiques. Or, ces nouveaux curés auront encore plus besoin que les autres d'être secourus par l'archevêque, si l'on veut, comme on le doit, assurer la persévérance de leurs ouailles encore si faibles dans la foi. Je vous serais donc bien obligé, Monsieur le Directeur, si vous aviez la bonté de vous souvenir de Mgr Grégoire Chahine, archevêque de Homs, dans la répartition des honoraires de messes qui sont à votre disposition. Pour les écoles dont il réclame la fondation, nous nous en occuperons directement nous-mêmes, de concert avec ce prélat qui nous honore de sa confiance, aussitôt que nous pourrons faire face aux dépenses exigées par la fondation et l'entretien de ces écoles. Rien n'empêche toutefois votre conseil de mettre à la disposition de ce prélat les fonds qu'il pourrait lui allouer pour ses écoles. On peut compter sur sa fidélité et il n'est pas douteux qu'il aurait intérêt à ouvrir et entretenir lui-même les écoles en question ; car ce bienfait affermirait son autorité et la relèverait considérablement aux yeux de ses diocésains, qui ont souvent le grand tort de ne pas lui tenir compte de la modicité extrême de ses ressources. Agréez, je vous prie, etc. Ph. CUCHE, s. J. Lettre de Mgr Kouyoumji, évêque Grec-Catholique de Saida et Daïr-el-Kamar à Son Eminence le Cardinal Préfet de la propagande à Rome. Saïda, 7 février 1883. Eminence, C'est avec une douleur profonde que je viens exposer à votre Eminence les progrès que font les protestants dans quelques-uns de nos villages, malgré tous mes soins, mes exhortations et mes mandements, car ils ont malheureusement trouvé le moyen le plus efficace pour réussir ; c'est d'ouvrir des écoles gratuites ; et, sous prétexte de vouloir simplement faire du bien au pays et d'instruire les enfants, ils profitent de la crédulité de ces pauvres enfants pour vider leur venin dans ces jeunes cœurs, qui ne tardent pas à se corrompre et à finir par renoncer à l'Eglise catholique leur mère, à son enseignement et à ses ministres, et ne veulent plus entendre parler, ni de ses mystères., ni de ses sacrements. Leurs parents aussi sont attirés par leurs paroles flatteuses et leurs promesses séduisantes. ils ont déjà douze écoles dans les villages de mon diocèse, et deux pensionnats à Saïda pour les garçons et pour les filles, et un à Aïne-Zèbelté, le tout gratuit, et ils sont toujours disposés à ouvrir de nouvelles écoles. Quelle peine n'ai-je pas à mettre des obstacles à un si grand dégât! J'emploie tous les moyens possibles pour l'empêcher de se propager. Mais, Monseigneur, tout serait inutile, si vous ne venez à mon aide ! Je vous ai déjà exposé la pauvreté de mon diocèse et surtout la misère des villageois qui ne peuvent pas même suffire pour payer les honoraires de leurs curés, et par conséquent ne peuvent rien payer pour l'enseignement de leurs enfants. Il leur faut donc des écoles gratuites pour les empêcher d'aller chez les protestants ; c'est pourquoi je viens solliciter Votre Eminence pour m'aider, par quelques moyens, dans cette grande œuvre de charité, et empêcher le loup de pénétrer dans le bercail et de disperser les brebis qui ont coûté le sang du pasteur des pasteurs. Je suis certain que Votre Eminence ne voudra pas me laisser longtemps dans l'embarras où je me trouve et qu'Elle viendra à mon secours pour me consoler dans mes vieux jours. Que le Seigneur daigne exaucer mes prières pour le triomphe de notre Eglise, pour la conservation de N. S. P. le Pape et pour la prolongation de vos jours si utiles pour nous. Veuillez, Monseigneur, agréer l'assurance des sentiments très respectueux avec lesquels J'ai l'honneur d'être, etc. t Théodose KOUYOUMJI, Evêque du rite Grec-Catholique à Saïda et Dair-el-Kamar. Son Éminence le cardinal Siméoni, en nous communiquant la lettre qu'on vient de lire, nous recommande chaleureusement le pauvre évêque grec-catholique de Saïda. En attendant l 'époque où le Conseil général fait la répartition de ses fonds, nous espérons que quelques-uns de nos charitables associés nous adresseront quelques aumônes spéciales que nous transmettrons avec empressement à Mgr Kouyoumji. PERSE Rapport de M. Bedjan, Prêtre de la Mission, Missionnaire de Perse, sur la publication d'un Bréviaire chaldéen, à M. le Directeur de L'OEUVRE DES ÉCOLES D'ORIENT. Monsieur le Directeur, Je ne trouve pas d'expression pour rendre les sentiments de reconnaissance dont je me sens pénétré envers votre admirable Œuvre des Écoles d'Orient. Oui, Monsieur le Directeur, je suis attendri jusqu'aux larmes en voyant tout le bien que vous avez fait à notre intéressante Mission de Perse; et je suis heureux de pouvoir vous offrir aujourd'hui, au nom de mon pays, l'hommage de la plus vive gratitude. La grâce que j'ai à vous demander, cette année-ci, c'est de vouloir bien accorder votre bienveillante protection au projet concernant le Bréviaire chaldéen dont je vous ai déjà entretenu l'année dernière. Il m'est doux de pouvoir aujourd'hui vous faire le rapport le plus consolant sur cette importante entreprise; vous en avez posé la première pierre, et je suis persuadé que vous ne laisserez pas inachevé votre propre ouvrage. Le Bréviaire chaldéen, qui est un des monuments les plus précieux de l'antiquité chrétienne, n'a encore jamais été imprimé, excepté le psautier et le diurnal. Aussi sa publication aura une portée considérable tant sous le rapport religieux que sous le rapport historique et philologique. Étant tombé, depuis des siècles, entre les mains des Nestoriens, il a été altéré en bien des parties, au point qu'on a la douleur de voir la fête de l'hérésiarque Nestorius figurer à côté de colle de la Mère de Dieu! Et il importe de rendre au texte sa pureté primitive. On n'a plus que de vieux manuscrits qui tendent à disparaître; et, pour les recopier, c'est un travail colossal qui demanderait des années. Ce livre est donc devenu nécessairement très rare; c'est pourquoi les catholiques se voient forcés, dans plusieurs localités, de se servir d'exemplaires pleins d'hérésies. Les prêtres chaldéens ne peuvent réciter l'office divin que lorsqu'ils ont le bonheur d'être à proximité d'églises qui possèdent un bréviaire; bien des chrétientés sont privées de ce trésor. En général, les Missionnaires venus d'Europe ne peuvent guère apprendre que les langues vulgaires, afin de pouvoir exercer leur ministère apostolique ; ils ne peuvent donc travailler à une édition du Bréviaire chaldéen. Pour moi, né en Perse, connaissant la langue sacrée et la liturgie de mon pays, je voudrais consacrer ma vie à cette OEuvre, pénible sous plusieurs rapports, mais extrêmement importante pour la gloire de Dieu, en même temps qu'elle servira les intérêts de la science. Après bien des efforts et des sacrifices, j'ai pu me procurer un exemplaire complet de toutes les parties de ce bréviaire. J'ai constaté que, ni la Bibliothèque nationale de Paris, ni celle de Londres, pourtant six fois plus riche en manuscrits syriaques et chaldéens, ni enfin celles de Rome, ne possèdent ce trésor en entier tel qu'il est entre mes mains. Les livres composant cette collection sont : 1° le Khoudra, 1,100 pages in-4°, comprenant les offices des dimanches, des Rogations et du Carême ; 2° le Keschkoul, 400 pages in-4°, les offices des fériés; 3° le Guezza catholique, 400 pages in-folio, offices des fêtes; 4° le Alimra, 200 pages in-8°, leçons et prières pour les Rogations ; 5° le DèkdèmVedvatar, ou Diurnal; et 6° les Mezmouris, ou les Psaumes. Je combinerai ensemble ces différentes parties pour faire un tout complet, divisé en deux ou quatre volumes, tout en conservant intégralement le texte et même les titres des livres qui sont si respectables par leur antiquité et par le crédit dont ils jouissent. Chaque volume sera composé : 1 ° du Commun; 2° du Propre du temps ; 3° du Propre des saints suivant les parties de l'année. Je prévois que les frais de cette publication monteront à une trentaine de mille francs. Cette somme si considérable, que je n'attends que de la divine Providence, m'effraie, il est vrai, mais ne me découragera pas. Je suis approuvé dans ce travail par l'autorité légitime dont les droits seront scrupuleusement respectés. Je suis heureux de pouvoir faire ici ma profession de foi, en confessant à la face du monde entier que Notre Très-Saint Père le Pape est, non seulement le Docteur infaillible de la vérité dans le dogme et la morale, mais qu'il a une autorité absolue sur la discipline et la liturgie de toutes les nations de la terre et de tous les rites. C'est la foi de mon pays, et je l'ai sucée avec le lait de ma mère. Je me dévoue à ce travail, ne cherchant aucun avantage personne], et n'ayant en vue que le bien immense qui en résultera pour la science et pour la religion catholique. Sans compter le Psautier et le Diurnal, nous avons donc à publier deux mille pages in-folio et zn.4° inédites, qui remontent à la plus haute antiquité de l'ère chrétienne. C'est un vrai chef-d'œuvre de littérature chaldéenne. Il abonde en pensées sublimes, exprimées dans un style pur, clair, coulant et poétique. C'est un monument qui va être, pour ainsi dire, ressuscité d'entre les morts et placé sur le chemin des savants. Et, tout en enrichissant les bibliothèques de l'Europe, il fournira les preuves les. plus éclatantes en faveur des plus anciennes traditions de l'Église catholique qui sont attaquées aujourd'hui avec une fureur vraiment infernale. Ce livre ne sera pas destiné seulement à notre Mission de Perse, mais il sera mis à la disposition de tous les Chaldéens du Kurdistan et de la Mésopotamie. Il servira au clergé uni pour célébrer les louanges du Très-Haut et attirer ses bénédictions sur le monde. Les prêtres chaldéens ont la sainte habitude de chanter l'office divin matin et soir s'ils se trouvent deux dans la même chrétienté, et souvent même, si le prêtre est seul avec un chantre ; et cela sans aucune rétribution malgré leur pauvreté. Cet usage produit une impression très salutaire sur les schismatiques comme sur les infidèles, en même temps qu'il attire les catholiques à l'église. Qui pourrait donc compter tous les actes d'adoration et d'amour qui monteront tous les jours de la Médie, de l'Assyrie et delà Babylonie jusqu'au trône de Dieu, pour être ensuite transformés en pluie de grâces pour féconder la terre ! Oui, mettre un bréviaire entre les mains de tout un clergé ; c'est la plus excellente des oeuvres ! Que de prières pendant des siècles! Maintenant plus que jamais, c'est un devoir sacré pour nous de favoriser l'esprit de foi et de dévotion en présence de cette impiété révoltée contre Dieu et contre son Christ; et c'est une douce obligation pour nous de faire chanter les louanges de l'Agneau dans toutes les langues et parmi toutes les tribus de la terre. Ce bréviaire sera en outre comme un apôtre parmi les Nestoriens qui le recevront avec joie et bonheur. Habituées à leur liturgie ainsi purgée d'hérésies, ces âmes simples deviendront catholiques presque sans s'en douter. Oh ! c'est là mon plus ardent désir. Cette publication servira de base à l'uniformité de la prière dans toutes nos chrétientés chaldéennes de la Perse et de la Turquie ; et. elle sera un vrai trait d'union entre la nation entière et le centre de l'unité catholique. Enfin, les protestants de l'Amérique, ceux de la Prusse et de l'Angleterre envahissent l'Orient d'une manière effrayante, et ils font un mal immense parleurs livres. Les schismatiques deviennent protestants tout en anathématisant le protestantisme, et les catholiques subissent également la mauvaise influence de cette presse infatigable. Toutes les maisons des Chaldéens et des Arméniens sont, pour ainsi dire, inondées de livres protestants, tandis que le prêtre catholique manque de théologie, de sermonnaires, de livres de lecture spirituelle et même de bréviaire! Le croirait-on? Nos élèves, même ceux des séminaires, étudient leur langue dans des bibles protestantes ! L'on se sent profondément humilié devant de si tristes réalités. Les œuvres catholiques qui s'occupent de l'extension de la vraie foi, négligent trop, à mes yeux, ce moyen dont nos ennemis se servent avec avantage pour nous porter des coups terribles. Oh ! si mes désirs étaient efficacement secondés par vos généreux associés, je pourrais former en peu de temps une bibliothèque bien modeste mais nécessaire, tant ,'au prêtre qu'au simple fidèle. En attendant, le Bréviaire, une fois imprimé, pourra être mis entre les mains de nos Séminaristes, comme livre d'étude, ce qui les dispensera de l'obligation d'apprendre leur propre langue dans des livres protestants. En Europe, on fait des fondations très importantes pour encourager les sciences et les arts ; on envoie des érudits parcourir à grands frais tout l'Orient pour relever quelques vieilles inscriptions! Quelle œuvre cependant plus digne de l'ambition d'un cœur noble que cette entreprise si éminemment apostolique, en même temps qu'elle est toute scientifique, je fais des vœux pour que quelqu'une de ces âmes d'élite comprenne tout l'intérêt qui s'attache à une pareille entreprise ! Si les secours arrivaient de bonne heure, l'impression pourrait commencer avec l'année 1884. On peut d'ailleurs contribuer à cette bonne œuvre par différents moyens. Les personnes riches pourront souscrire, dans vos bureaux, à un certain nombre d'exemplaires, afin d'en doter quelques-unes de nos Églises et de nos Écoles chaldéennes. Je leur affirme que le bien qu'elles feront ainsi sera considérable. D'autres, moins favorisées des biens de la fortune, pourront souscrire à un bréviaire qu'elles offriront par les mains du Missionnaire à un de nos prêtres pauvres qui priera pour elles Quant à ceux qui n'auraient qu'une offrande modique à consacrer au Seigneur, comme par exemple, dans les séminaires et les maisons d'éducation, ils pourront se cotiser plusieurs ensemble et ainsi s'assurer le secours des prières d'un prêtre chaldéen ou d'une de nos Ecoles durant tous les jours de leur vie. Je fais un appel tout particulier au zèle des membres du clergé, qui connaissent mieux que personne le prix de cette œuvre; je les conjure de m'aider dans cette entreprise en s'imposant un sacrifice personnel et en la recommandant à leurs connaissances et aux 1 fidèles dont ils sont chargés. J'offre tout ce travail et cette œuvre au Sacré-Cœur de Jésus, en le priant de répandre son amour et ses bénédictions sur les personnes charitables qui voudront y contribuer. Veuillez agréer, etc. Paul BEDJAN, Prêtre de la Mission, Missionnaire de Perse. Une lettre de Rome, adressée à M. l'abbé' Bedjan par un de ses confrères, M. l'abbé Plagnard qui accompagnait Mgr Thomas, délégué apostolique de la Perse, à sa visite ad limina, fait connaître l'intérêt qu'on porte à Rome, à cette publication, d'un Bréviaire chaMéen. Voici quelques passages de cette lettre : « Dès notre première visite à la Propagande, le cardinal Siméoni n'a pas manqué de parler à Mgr Thomas de votre travail sur le Bréviaire chaldéen. Tout le monde ici est favorable, et en désire la réussite. On a même communiqué à Sa Grandeur; le magnifique rapport du Père Ciasca sur son voyage à Paris et sur les entretiens qu'il avait eus à ce sujet avec Notre Père et avec vous, Ce rapport est rédigé dans un sens très favorable. En voici un passage : «De tout cela, il résulte que M. Bedjan, loin d'aimer les innova» tiens, est étroitement attaché aux saines traditions de son » Église. Cet esprit de sobriété, d'attachement aux coutumes re» çues et de souveraine prudence à séparer les parties totalement » inutiles et nouvelles dans le rit chaldéen, de celles qui pro» viennent de l'antiquité et sont sanctionnées, depuis des siècles, » par l'usage quotidien, cet esprit, dis-je, guidera le zélé prêtre » dans le travail plus important et plus difficile qui reste à faire, » surtout en ce qui regarde le Khoudra, vraie forêt âpre et diffi» cile où le nestorianisme se montre ouvertement... Les qualités » dont se trouve doué M. Bedjan, donnent une espérance fondée » pour obtenir un bon résultat. » » D'après cette citation, vous pouvez juger que vous serez encouragé et qu'on vous demandera bien peu de changements. TUNISIE Les écoles françaises en Tunisie. A la dernière séance de la Société Franklin, un protestant, M. Paul Melon a présenté un rapport sur la situation actuelle des écoles françaises dans la régence de Tunis. Le Parlement en cite quelques extraits qu'il fait précéder des réflexions suivantes : « On pourra se convaincre, en lisant ce v rapport, qu'avant l'occupation française, les Frères et les Sœurs avaient » déjà, par leur enseignement, propagé notre influence dans la Régence, » en y répandant l'usage de notre langue, et que, depuis l'occupation, le » cardinal Lavigerie a, par tous les moyens et avec une merveilleuse « ardeur, poursuivi l'œuvre entreprise sans jamais manquer au respect » des diverses croyances religieuses. Il est bon d'opposer les dépositions » sincères, honnêtes et désintéressées d'un protestant comme M. Paul )) Melon aux sottes déclamations des gens qui sacrifieraient volontiers en« seignement, influence nationale et colonies à leur manie de tout laï» ciser. » Voici maintenant quelques passages cités par le Parlement : « La France, en arrivant en 1881 en Tunisie, y a trouvé l'enseignement français installé. » Soutenus par l'OEuvre;ies écoles d'Orient et de la Propagation de la foi les Frères de la doctrine chrétienne les Sœurs de Saint-Joseph ont créé il y a déjà de nombreuses années dans quelques-unes des villes les plus importantes de la Régence : à Tunis, la Goulette, Sousse, Sfax, Djerbah, des écoles de filles et de garçons. » Il est devenu de mode de décrier les services que nous rendent les congrégations religieuses sur les bords de la Méditerranée; et nombre de personnes même éclairées et intelligentes gémissent de l'état d'infériorité qui leur paraît résulter pour nous du protectorat catholique. » Je n'ai pas l'intention de faire une digression pour leur prouver le contraire. Je veux seulement affirmer, parce que cela rentre dansmon sujet et que j'en ai été témoin en Tunisie, que nous devons beaucoup de notre prestige en Orient aux congrégations. » Je suis sûr que si on analysait l'influence morale que nous avons acquise aujourd'hui auprès de la population de la Régence, on verrait que nous en sommes redevables pour les trois quarts au moins, à l'action bienfaisante continue du clergé. On ne se rend pas suffisamment compte, en France, du caractère particulier des races de l'Orient ; pour elles il n'y a pas à proprement parler de patrie ; la société est basée sur la religion. De quelle autorité ne doivent donc pas jouir ces Frères et Sœurs qui savent joindre à leur caractère religieux l'art de guérir les malades et d'éduquer la jeunesse? » Pour mon compte, le fait m'a profondément frappé en Tunisie, et partout j'ai pu constater de quel crédit jouissaient, non seulement auprès de la nation européenne, mais même auprès des Arabes, les Sœurs de SaintJoseph. Car c'est une sotte calomnie de prétendre, comme on le fait si souvent, que les congrégations s'occupent surtout de la propagande catholique. L'assertion est absolument fausse. Partout, dans les écoles, à Tunis comme ailleurs, on voit côte à côte, assis sur les mêmes bancs, des musulmans; des juifs, des grecs, des protestants, des catholiques; tout ce petit monde-là. vit en parfaite harmonie. Jamais rien n'est tenté pour les détourner de leur foi; s'inspirant même d'un esprit de tolérance que bien des esprits forts pourraient prendre pour modèle, les maîtres donnent à leurs élèves toute facilité pour l'accomplissement de leurs devoirs religieux, et le vendredi et le samedi sont des jours fériés pour le petit musulman et pour le petit israélite. » L'action des écoles congréganistes s'est donc fait sentir d'une façon utile et profitable à nos intérêts politiques, et si ce résultat paraît être moins la conséquence d'un plan arrêté, intentionnel et voulu que. l'effet de la force même des choses, il n'en reste pas moins acquis que les congrégations religieuses ont admirablement préparé le terrain sur lequel s'établit maintenant la prépondérance politique de la France en Tunisie. » En faut-il donner une preuve tout à fait convaincante? Voyez dans les journaux italiens les colères qu'a excitées l'hommage loyal et désintéressé rendu au cardinal Lavigerie dans un de vos précédents Bulletins. Ces emportements, ces courroux que rien ne justifie ne donnent-ils pas la mesure du dépit que cause une influence morale qui va tous les jours grandissant et s'exerce à notre profit? » Il me reste à. examiner à présent les progrès qui ont pu être accomplis depuis 1881. Ils ont été considérables, et c'est au cardinal Lavigerie qu'en revient tout l'honneur. Notre langue d'abord est devenue la langue unique de l'enseignement, car, à mesure que notre protectorat s'est affirmé, les populations, sentant que leurs destinées étaient irrévocablement fixées, ont mieux apprécié les bienfaits de l'enseignement français et les avantages qu'elles pourraient en retirer un jour pour la vie pratique. » De nouvelles écoles ont été créées à Béja, Bizerte, Monastir, Mhedia, Sfax. Les méthodes d'enseignement ont été améliorées. De nouveaux professeurs ont été appelés de France ; toutes les écoles existant à l'heure qu'il est ont été dotées d'un matériel scolaire presque complet : cartes murales, cartes de France, cartes d'Afrique, planches de l'histoire de notre pays, bouliers compteurs, globes terrestres, compendiums métriques, boites à compas, modèles de dessin, méthodes d'écritures, ardoises, bons points instructifs, médailles, lanternes magiques, etc. Plus de 3,000 livres de classes répondant aux dernières exigences de la science pédagogique et comprenant des grammaires, des livres de lectures, des leçons d'histoire de France, des atlas, des La Fontaine, des éléments de science physique, science naturelle, des arithmétiques, ont été distribués proportionnellement au nombre des élèves, qui s'éléve à près de 3,000, entre les onze écoles ouvertes à l'heure qu'il est. » En outre, une bibliothèque populaire, dont le cardinal Lavigerie a bien voulu faire les frais de première installation, s'élevant à 1,200 francs environ, va s'ouvrir dans quelque temps à Tunis. Ses lecteurs y trouveront non seulement de bons livres, mais aussi nos meilleures revues, journaux illustrés et politiques, et j'espère aussi, et surtout,}'oubli de leurs rancunes et de leurs haines de races... » Vous voyez, messieurs, que grâce aux efforts du cardinal Lavigerie, qui a tout fait par lui-même, qui a ouvert tant d'écoles, fondé tant d'oeuvres de bienfaisance, encouragé toutes les initiatives et accepté tous les concours quoiqu'il fût prince de l'Eglise, de sérieux progrès ont été accomplis. Ce n'est pas, en effet, l'un des moindres mérites de cet homme-éminent que ce large esprit de tolérance qni comprend toutes les façons de faire le bien et qui pousse, par respect des croyances d'autrui, le scrupule jusqu'à créer des séminaires spéciaux pour l'Afrique, de peur qu'un zèle intempestif n'apporte le trouble dans son œuvre toute de charité et de patriotisme. » Ce serait trop long d'énumérer tous les services qu'il a rendus à la cause française : il suffit de dire que par son inépuisable charité, sa haute largeur de vues, son grand esprit pratique, sa parfaite connaissance des hommes et des choses, son sens politique, il aura, du jour au lendemain, attaché à sa personne, et par suite à la France, la majeure partie de la population européenne, maltaise d'origine; et cela d'une façon tellement étroite que si la France demandait aujourd'hui au suffrage universel de légitimer le nouvel ordre de choses, il en sortirait une éclatante consécration. » Le clergé de la Régence nous est dévoué, et par lui la majorité de la population nous est acquise. Souhaitons qu'on ne l'éloigné pas des mesures intempestives et peu politiques ; Gambetta lui-même, président de la commission du budget ne réclamait-il pas énergiquement des augmentations de subvention pour les congrégations d'Orient et ne regrettait-il pas amèrement que le lycée de Galatha-Seraïn'eût pas été confié à des jésuites? Pourquoi ne nous inspirerions-nous pas de ces vues larges et politiques? » Puisque nous avons la bonne fortune de trouver dans les Frères et les Sœurs les instruments les plus dociles, les plus actifs et les moins coûteux de notre influence, gardons-nous de toute mesure qui pourrait entraver leur action, affaiblir leur prestige et le nôtre, et soustraire à leur direction des générations qu'ils élèvent dans l'amour de la patrie française. » Nous rappelons à nos lecteurs que la Loterie Tunisienne a pour but de doter la Tunisie d'orphelinats, d'écoles, d'hospices et de tous les établissements de charité qui lui manquent. C'est donc faire à la fois une œuvre de charité et de patriotisme que de contribuer par ce moyen, à donner, sur une terre conquise par nos armes, des hôpitaux aux malades, des orphelinats, des écoles et des asiles aux enfants abandonnés. — Le prix du billet est de un franc. Un dépôt de ces billets se trouve dans nos bureaux, où nos associés pourront s'en procurer. NÉCROLOGIE Nous recommandons aux prières, suffrages et saints-sacrifices de nos associés : Bonnet (Mlle Marie), associée de Narbonne. Catteau-Beuscart (Mme), associée de Tourcoing. Creton Sainte-Marie (Mme), associée d'Amiens. Depaul (M. le Dr), professeur à la Faculté de médecine de Paris. Deslombes-Trentesaux (Mme), associée de Tourcoing. Ducoulombier-Destailleurs (Mme), associée de Tourcoing. Duhamel-Dujardin (Mme), associée de Tourcoing. Duierte (Mme), associée de Tourcoing. Fay (Mme la comtesse A. de), associée de Fricamps. Gaillet (M. Léon), associé de Tourcoing. Grégoire-Lequenne (M.), associé de Tourcoing. Ilaller (Mme la baronne de), associée de Soleure. Hennion (M. Pierre), associé de Tourcoing. Hennion-Dewitte (Mme), associée de Tourcoing. Honoré (Mme Jean-Baptiste), associée de Tourcoing. Jacquart (Mlle Marie), associée de Tourcoing. Joire-Pollet (M.), associé de Tourcoing. Lallemand (Mme), zélatrice de Versailles. Lefebvre (MUo Louise), associée de Tourcoing, Lestienne (Mme), associée de Tourcoing. Letestu (Mmo Théodore), associée de Rennes. Leurent (M, Jules), ancien député, associé de Roncq, Mahieu-Delos (Mme), associée de Tourcoing. Malfait-Desreumaux (M.), associé de Tourcoing. Man (Mme Charlotte de), associée de Sainte-Croix-les-Bruges. Plagoust (M. Henri), associé de Tourcoing. Réfrégé (Mlle Augustine), associée de Paris. Requillart-Wattinne (M.), associé de Bondues. Riou de Kérangal (Mmc), associée de Brest. Sassier (Mme), associée de Versailles. Tiberghien-Duvillier (Mme), associée de Tourcoing, qui a fait un don à notre OEuvre, Tissart (Mme), associée de Versailles. Vandeputte (M. Emile), associé de Tourcoing. Van Elslande (Mlle Justine), associée de Tourcoing. Vendryès (Mme), associée de Paris. Verquin-Miback (M. Xavier), associé de Marseille. Vian (M. l'abbé), vicaire honoraire à Lorgues. Vivès (Mmc), née Lambert, associée de Versailles. Et tous les associés défunts de la présente année dont on a omis de nous faire parvenir les noms. ŒUVRE DES ÉCOLES D'ORIENT TUNISIE Nous recevons de Tunis la lettre suivante, écrite au nom de SON EMINENCE LE CARDINAL LAVIGERIE, par un Père de la Société des Missionnaires d'Alger : Carthage, 1er janvier 1884 « Monsieur le Directeur, » Depuis longtemps déjà, c'est Son Eminence le cardinal Lavigerie, notre vénéré Père, qui venait chaque année à cette époque vous rendre compte de l'état de nos œuvres, et les rappeler à la charité de vos associés. Sa santé, un moment ébranlée par tant de travaux, ne lui permet pas cette année de remplir lui-même ce qu'il appelait un devoir de reconnaissance et de justice. Il me délègue pour le suppléer auprès de vous. Seule l'obéissance me fait accepter un tel acte d'humilité ; car, que peut ma parole auprès de la sienne ? Je compte du moins que vous voudrez bien vous joindre à l'union de prières que nous avons formée pour le complet rétablissement d'une santé si précieuse. » Vous le savez, Monsieur le directeur, c'est en Kabylie que sont disséminées nos plus anciennes et nos plus nombreuses écoles. La situation où elles se trouvent actuellement, répond au bienveillant intérêt que vous leur avez toujours porté. Les Kabyles ont vite reconnu tout le parti qu'ils pourraient tirer de l'éducation que nous sommes venus leur offrir, et la place nous manque aujourd'hui pour recevoir les nombreux élèves qui nous sont amenés même de très loin. Pendant cette année nuus avons pu, en nous imposant de lourds sacrifices, augmenter de trois le nombre des stations. Deux d'entre elles ont été installées dans les locaux qu'avaient construits, à Djemâ-Sahridj et aux Beni-Yenni les Pères de la Compagnie de Jésus, locaux achetés par nous après le départ volontaire et bien regrettable de ces zélés missionnaires. La troisième est confiée aux Sœurs de la Mission et reçoit les petites filles des Beni-Ismaïl. Si nous avions pu accéder aux requêtes que plusieurs cheikh (anciens) de tribus viennent présenter aux supérieurs de notre Société jusqu'à la maison-mère, nous n'aurions point borné là nos fondations. Espérons que des aumônes plus abondantes nous permettront bientôt d'accomplir ce qui n'a été que différé. » En attendant, le nombre de nos écoles kabyles se trouve porté à neuf; sept pour les garçons et deux pour les filles. Elles ne reçoivent aucune subvention de l'Etat comme on serait porté à le croire ; mais demeurent totalement à notre charge. Elles sont fréquentées chacune par une moyenne de soixante enfants, tant internes qu'externes, répartis selon leurs forces en plusieurs divisions. Les plus avancés répondent couramment à toutes les questions sur la grammaire, l'histoire de France, la géographie eL les mathématiques élémentaires; plusieurs même ont été reçus au certificat d'éLudes, le mois de juillet dernier. » Pour obtenir ces résultats, nos Pères ont besoin d'une patience et d'un dévouement à toute épreuve. Ils doivent d'abord apprendre la langue de ces enfants, ensuite traduire mot pour mot les enseignements qu'ils veulent leur inculquer et les répéter à satiété sous toutes les formes, pour arriver à les leur faire comprendre et retenir. Je me hâte d'ajouter que leur sollicitude, leur douceur et leur charité sont appréciées autant par les enfants que parleurs parents. En voici une preuve entre mille : » Un petit bambin de sept à Luit ans, admis parmi les élèves internes d'une de nos stations, s'était si fort affectionné aux Pères, que ses parents, venus pour l'emmener passer quelques jours au milieu d'eux, ne purent qu'à grand renfort de bonbons, lui persuader de les suivre. Encore arriva-t-il qu'à un détour de chemin, notre héros laissa passer ses parents devant lui et remonta en courant à l'école où on fut tout étonné de le voir faire irruption. Devant une telle opiniâtreté, il n'y avait qu'à s'incliner. C'est ce que firent les parents qui nous le laissèrent. » Ce qui favorise beaucoup la formation des jeunes Kabyles, c'est l'esprit d'observation dont, plus encore que tous les autres enfants, ils sont merveilleusement doués. Le missionnaire ne peut faire le moindre pas, ni la moindre action, sans avoir une centaine d'yeux scrutateurs fixés sur lui. Ses enseignements et ses exemples tombent sans doute dans un terrain un peu pierreux, mais non stérile. « Père, nous disait dernièrement un indigène, tu » n'acceptes aucun présent et tu instruis nos enfants ; tu leur » donnes même des habits de temps à autre; nos marabouts, au » contraire, reçoivent des présents, et ne donnent rien. Je crois » vraiment que le mahométisme n'est bon que pour les cerveaux » malades. » » De la Kabylie à la Tunisie, la transition est toute naturelle. Le drapeau de la France flotte aujourd'hui sur ces rivages où saint Vincent de Paul fut captif, et Son Eminence le cardinal Lavigerie a bien voulu accepter la tâche d'y faire revivre un passé glorieux, d'y ressusciter dans toute sa gloire, sa splendeur et sa dignité, le siège primatial des Cyprien et des Eugène. Chaque jour le voit, pour ainsi dire, ajouter une nouvelle pierre à cette œuvre qui ne pouvait convenir qu'à un zèle et un génie comme les siens. Lorsqu'il prit en mains l'administration de ce pays, où on comptait autrefois les évêchés par centaines, il n'y avait en fait d'établissements religieux, que neuf paroisses, trois écoles de Frères pour les garçons, cinq écoles de Sœurs pour les filles, et un étroit logement décoré du nom d'hôpital, où vingt-cinq personnes à peine pouvaient à la fois trouver un asile et des soins. La sollicitude de Son Eminence a déjà doublé le nombre des paroisses qui se trouve maintenant porté à dix-huit. La principale a été érigée à Tunis même, dans une belle église cathédrale provisoire, pouvant contenir jusqu'à 4000 personnes, enrichie d'ornements pour les offices pontificaux, de peintures, de dorures et de grandes orgues. A côté de la cathédrale, se sont élevés le presbytère, la chancellerie, et la résidence provisoire de l'évêque. » Outre ces deux établissements, le nombre des écoles en Tunisie, comme celui des paroisses, a été doublé, et pour ne parler que de la capitale, elle possède un nouvel hôpital contenant 150 lits ; une maison de Petites Sœurs des Pauvres, une autre de Sœurs gardes-malades, une Société de Dames de Charité, une Conférence de Saint-Vincent-de-Paul, un Cercle catholique et une Ecole de musique religieuse. On le voit, Tunis n'aura bientôt plus rien à envier à Alger, sa rivale, pourvu que les cœurs sincèrement catholiques veuillent bien continuer à Son Eminence le secours de leurs généreuses aumônes. » Ce secours, Monsieur le directeur, lui est plus que jamais nécessaire; car vous le savez, la sollicitude du vénéré cardinal ne se borne pas aux provinces de l'Afrique du Nord, elle pénètre jusqu'aux plus mystérieuses profondeurs de ce vaste continent, où il a fondé les Missions de l'Afrique équatoriale, dont le développement devient de jour en jour plus consolant. Je ne parlerai pas ici de la prédication du saint Evangile aux adultes, quoiqu'elle se fasse dans nos divers postes avec bonheur, particulièrement au Massanzé (Haut Congo). Il y a trop peu de temps qu'elle s'exerce sur ces peuples entièrement barbares, pour qu'elle ait produit tous ses résultats. Les règles d'une sage prudence nous obligent d'ailleurs à éprouver longuement les postulants avant de les admettre au baptême, et alors même qu'ils auront été baptisés, il ne faut pas croire qu'ils seront parfaits. Les Francs ne sont pas devenus subitement, au sortir du baptistère de Reims, le peuple de Charlemagne ni de saint Louis. » J'attirerai votre attention principalement sur les orphelinats. Le grand et le plus lucratif commerce sous l'Equateur africain, c'est celui des esclaves. A cinq cents lieues des côtes, on comprend que tout ce que peuvent défendre sur ce sujet les nations civi lisées, est parfaitement lettre morte. Aussi les populations nègres continueront-elles d'être décimées longtemps encore par les traitants arabes. Le seul bien que les missionnaires puissent tirer de ce mal affreux, c'est celui du rachat et de l'éducation chrétienne du plus grand nombre possible de p etits esclaves ; ce bien a été immédiatement entrepris dans toutes nos stations, sur la plus vaste échelle. Les lettres que nous recevons donnent, sur ces orphelins, les détails les plus touchants. Presque toujours, ils n'ont que la peau sur les os au moment de leur entrée dans nos orphelinats, tant ils ont souffert. Ils sont timides d'abord et croient qu'on ne les a rachetés que pour les manger; la joie qui brille sur le front de leurs camarades ne tarde pas cependant à les rassurer, et bientôt ils chérissent leurs bienfaiteurs et leurs apôtres. Ils se mettent avec ardeur à lire et à écrire dans leur langue ; ils arrivent même à des résultats qui étonnent. Avec la science profane, ils apprennent la science du catéchisme, se pénètrent profondément des vérités de la foi et de la morale évangélique. C'est ainsi que nous arrivons à implanter au milieu du paganisme et du fétichisme le plus absurde, toute une génération intelligente, laborieuse et catholique, dont les exemples amèneront, par une heureuse et nécessaire contagion, des résultats admirables. Beaucoup de chrétientés, si florissantes aujourd'hui, n'ont pas commencé d'autre manière. | common_corpus | {'identifier': 'bpt6k9791672v_9', 'collection': 'French-PD-Newspapers', 'open_type': 'Open Culture', 'license': 'Public Domain', 'date': '1883.0', 'title': "Oeuvre des écoles d'Orient : bulletin périodique...", 'creator': 'None', 'language': 'French', 'language_type': 'Spoken', 'word_count': '7130', 'token_count': '11066', '__index_level_0__': '6579', 'original_id': '94f57f36f7b3e0e5952553ecda626d6b48ddcb2c428f926f2055fc38190a1f01'} |
Conservative commentary: Tax that man behind the tree!
For far too long, many in the Steamboat area have foisted the myth on Routt County voters that the cost of tax increases will actually be borne by others - vacationers, second home owners, businesses, landlords or "some other man behind a tree." This is not merely a myth - it is fraud! It appears from Tuesday's election results that this time the wool did not quite cover the eyes. Only small and targeted taxes were approved while large and ill-conceived tax plans lost badly.
Hopefully we have learned two things. First, we, each of us, are that man behind the tree. Consequently, if we allow the philosophy described by Senator Long to prevail, each of us will be directly and adversely hit by the cost of increased taxation.
The second point, while more subtle, is in reality far more important. The actual cost of taxation does not just fall on the person remitting the tax. When taxes on the local grocery are increased, the grocer passes this cost on in the form of increased food prices, lower wages, reduced employee benefits, and/or fewer employees or hours worked. All of this reduces the local standard of living for everyone, rich and poor alike, but lands particularly hard on the poorer members of the community.
Had the City been allowed to enact the proposed property tax, the cost of home ownership would have increased. More significantly, due to the Gallagher Amendment (which generally requires the bulk of property taxes to come from commercial property), businesses and commercial property owners would have incurred a substantial new cost. This cost would be passed on in the form of higher rents and increased prices, thus driving up the local cost of living and driving down the standard of living. These effects are directly at odds with the City's purported concern for the plight of locally owned small businesses and affordable housing.
"Robin Hood" programs, whereby money is taken from some in the form of taxation for the benefit of others deemed more deserving, really do not work well. Increased taxation limits the opportunities of society as a whole and reduces the prosperity and options of every individual. A flourishing economy, by contrast, increases opportunity for all.
Here is the message to take home: Lower tax rates stimulate the creation of real wealth and generate more dollars for the treasury. History has shown this to be true every time it is tried. As Nobel Laureate, Milton Friedman (who won a real Nobel Prize - in Economics - not a "Peace Prize"), observed, "Most economic fallacies derive from the tendency to assume that there is a fixed pie, that one party can gain only at the expense of another." Increased taxation makes for a smaller economic pie, while limited government and taxation makes for a larger pie.
I hope that we have learned our lesson well, and that we will continue to look at new proposals to increase levels of taxation and the size of government with significant skepticism.
Voters, I congratulate you, but conclude this piece with this admonition. You can bet that you will be presented with a new bevy of tax proposals in the next election. Stand strong. Remember what Will Rogers said, "The only difference between death and taxes is that death doesn't get worse every time Congress meets."
Rick Akin is an Attorney practicing in Steamboat Springs and Austin, Texas, a former member of the Pilot and Today Editorial Board, and a Director of the Conservative Leadership Council of Northwest Colorado. His great-grandparents moved to Steamboat in 1926. He holds a BA from Oklahoma and a doctorate from the Univ. of Texas. He will never win a Nobel Peace Prize.
thefarmer 6 years ago
Maybe the best article I've read in this news paper.
id04sp 6 years ago
How interesting that an attorney, who makes his living in a system funded 100% by the taxpayers, would lecture the rest of us on this subject.
If you want access to the justice system in Routt County, you must pay a lawyer to obtain it. Attempting to represent yourself results in an outright dismissal of any argument you put forward in favor of that submitted by an attorney licensed in this state.
The state bar associations and their buddies in the judiciary branches of state government make sure that attorneys stay employed and get paid, or us average citizens don't get access to the court. Criminals are guarenteed representation at state expense, but not so when the guy who robbed you had the help of a licensed attorney on a non-meritorious claim.
All the various negative impacts of taxation pale in comparison to the impacts of the U. S. bar associations on honest businessmen who get victimized by fraudulent claims for injuries, workmen's compensation, etc. The reason we pay high medical fees is because doctors and manufacturers of drugs and medical equipment and hospital facilities pay such high costs for insurance and redundant safeguards due to the threat of mega-dollar litigation against them. Even the hamburger you buy carries an unbelievable insurance premium load in its cost of delivery, and must be insured by everyone from the slaughter house, to the packer, to the distributor, to the ultimate server and to every form of transportation from the birth of the calf until the burger winds up on the table.
Listening to this crap from an attorney is irksome. Attorneys are the only people in a courtroom who are not required to tell the truth. Mr. Akin just happens to be right in this column, but it's a bit like listening to a cobra advise you not to leave your baby outside under a tree in the shade for risk of snake bite.
I only know of two professions where you get charged a set price, up front, and have to deposit the full amount of money before any service has been performed. Those two professions are prostitute and attorney.
Oh, and if you're wondering, I don't want to hear conservative commentary from a prostitute, either. Fair is fair, right?
Jon_Casson 6 years ago
Rick- While I may not always agree with what you write, you're commentary is typically well thought out and well written. That is, until you throw in little, juvenile "digs" such as:
"...Nobel Laureate, Milton Friedman (who won a real Nobel Prize - in Economics - not a "Peace Prize")"
Just because you dont like the current Nobel Peace Laureate, doesn't mean the award has no validity or that the Economics prize is somehow more "real". Do your homework on the Nobel Prizes before you make comments. Stick to your points; your writing is intelligent enough to stand on its own merits. You just make yourself look silly and petty by making completely irrelevant and inaccurate remarks.
CoJustice 6 years ago
Good Article !
ido4: Interesting comment you made.
id04sp 6 years ago
Yeah, look it up. An attorney can stand in front of a jury and lie to them all day. Most people don't know that, and this is why when an attorney lies people tend to believe them. The average person assumes that attorneys are required to be truthful. The caveat which protects them is that a novel interpretation of the law made in good-faith is not perjury. So, asking a jury to find your client not guilty, despite the law, counts as a "novel interpretation" of the law. Pretty slick, eh?
Al Gore is a perfect example, as are most politicians.
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bestschoolessays Essay Writing
Please read carefully
HR Plan
You are a Human Resources (HR) program of one. Based on information learned in this course, create a Human Resources plan of the steps needed to create a one-person HR department. The design of the HR department must correspond to the various dimensions of the organization. For example, if there are multiple customers, products, or locations, then HR needs to support them all.
In your paper: Provide a clear and concise summary of the business (name, industry, number of people, etc.). Create a detailed plan by completing the following:
Develop a recruitment and selection plan. Design a training and development plan. Design a compensation package for the people hired. Discuss legal issues the company should consider (e.g., the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission). Develop a performance appraisal system. Provide support from scholarly sources in regards to the decisions made in the creation of the HR department.
Writing the HR Plan
The HR Plan Must be eight to ten pages in length (not including the title and reference pages) and must be formatted according to APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center. Any exhibits or appendices are also not included in the paper length. Must include a title page with the following:
Title of paper Students name Course name and number Instructors name Date submitted Must begin with an introductory paragraph that has a succinct thesis statement. Must address the topic of the paper with critical thought. Must end with a conclusion that reaffirms your thesis. Must use at least five scholarly sources, three of which must be from the Ashford University Library, in addition to the text. Must document all sources in APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center. Must include a separate references page that is formatted according to APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center.
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Here is a summary of the four market valuation indicators we update on a monthly basis.
• The Crestmont Research P/E Ratio (more)
To facilitate comparisons, we've adjusted the two P/E ratios and Q Ratio to their arithmetic means and the inflation-adjusted S&P Composite to its exponential regression. Thus the percentages on the vertical axis show the over/undervaluation as a percent above mean value, which we're using as a surrogate for fair value. Based on the latest S&P 500 monthly data, the market is overvalued somewhere in the range of 58% to 116%, depending on the indicator, unchanged from the previous month.
Standard Deviations
The chart below differs from the one above in that the two valuation ratios (P/E and Q) are adjusted to their geometric mean rather than their arithmetic mean (which is what most people think of as the "average"). The geometric mean increases our attention to outliers. In our view, the first chart does a satisfactory job of illustrating these four approaches to market valuation, but we've included the geometric variant as an interesting alternative view for the two P/Es and Q. In this chart, the range of overvaluation would be in the range of 70% to 129%, down fractionally from last month's 70% to 130%.
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I’ve watched enough episodes of the TV show “Flashpoint” to come to the conclusion that hostage negotiations have much in common with raising a strong-willed two year old. Phrases like “I understand that’s what you want, and I’d like to give it to you, but first I need you to do this one thing (lately, go pee-pee on the potty) for me,” are invaluable. The negotiator must be creative, persistent, and calm in the face of unbelievable circumstances, rising tensions, and impossible demands. Force may be used, but only as a last resort.
You know, I’d love to meet the guy who first made a distinction between “Housewives” and “Working Mothers.” I’d really like to see how long he could make it alone, behind closed doors, with a strong-willed toddler! | mini_pile | {'original_id': '4dbac532e736190e42eea659985e85b4ba0e86d7a35dc28d5d741ff8affb0bca'} |
POM_ARTIFACT_ID=retrofit
POM_NAME=Retrofit
POM_DESCRIPTION=A type-safe HTTP client for Android and Java.
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95 F.Supp. 441 (1951)
BLUE et al.
v.
DURHAM PUBLIC SCHOOL DIST. et al.
Civ. A. No. 136.
United States District Court M. D. North Carolina, Durham Division.
January 26, 1951.
*442 Hugh Thompson, J. H. Wheeler, Durham, N. C., Hill, Martin & Robinson, Richmond, Va., for plaintiff.
Fuller, Reade Umstead & Fuller, Durham, N. C., Harry McMullan, Atty. Gen., of N. C., Ralph Moody, Asst. Atty. Gen., for defendant.
HAYES, District Judge.
The plaintiffs, children of school age and their parents as guardians or next friends appointed by the court, are citizens of, and reside in Durham, N. C. On May 18, 1949, they filed their complaint against Durham Public School District, the school Committee of the Town of Durham, known as Board of Education of the City of Durham, J. Stacy Weaver, Superintendent of Schools, J. L. Woodward, Business Manager, referred to hereafter as the local defendants and the individual members of the State Board of Education, and Clyde A. Erwin, State Superintendent of Public Instruction, referred to hereafter as the State Officials. It is alleged that the defendants are depriving the plaintiffs of their rights under the 14th Amendment to *443 the Constitution of the United States in that the Negro school children are being denied the equal protection of the law, on account of their race and color, by discriminating against them in the public school facilities.
This is not a suit against the State of North Carolina as contended by the State officials. The constitution of North Carolina and the public laws of the State require the officials to conduct the free public school system and to require the children of the white race and the children of the colored race to be taught in separate public schools: but there shall be no discrimination in favor of or to the prejudice of either race. G.S. § 115-2. The Constitution of the State contains the same language and the Constitutional provision is mandatory and may not be disregarded either by the Legislature or by officials charged with the duty of administering the law. Smith v. Board of Trustees, 141 N.C. 143, 53 S.E. 524. There is no law of this State which requires the school officials to discriminate against Negro school children. If discriminations are permitted or practiced, the officials are not executing the laws of the state: therefore a suit against the officials is not a suit against the state. Taylor v. Louisville & N. R. Co., 6 Cir., 88 F. 350; Greene v. Louisville & I. R. Co., 244 U.S. 499, 500, 516, 37 S.Ct. 673, 61 L.Ed. 1280; Williams v. Chicago & N. R. Co., 273 U.S. 670, 47 S.Ct. 474, 71 L.Ed. 832. See also Cook v. Davis, 5 Cir., 178 F.2d 595, 599.
Until 1933, the public schools of this state, while constituting a so-called statewide system, were financed by ad valorem taxes and each county provided school buildings and equipment and the entire expense of operation, but the state, in order to equalize the educational opportunity, created an equalization fund to supplement the inadequate funds raised in the poorer sections of the state. The school machinery Act of 1933, which was re-enacted each biennium until it was made permanent in 1939, G.S. § 115-347 et seq., made provision for state support of a uniform system of public schools throughout the state. In 1943 the term was extended to nine months. G.S. § 115-347. It is the duty of the State Board to administer the funds for the operation of a nine months school term. G.S. § 115-350. The expense of erecting, repairing and equipping school buildings is still to be borne by the county, G.S. §§ 115-83 and 84, and title to site and buildings vests in the local administrative unit. G.S. § 115-85; The objects of expenditure of state funds are enumerated in G.S. § 115-356. The powers of the State Board are set forth in Sec. 115-31.2, Subsection 1 specifies: "To have the general supervision and administration of the free public school system, and of the educational funds provided for the support thereof". Subsection 7 authorizes it to "make all needful rules and regulations in relation thereto." The state superintendent is granted specific powers in Section 115-31.7, subsection 10 being: "Such other duties as the board may assign to him from time to time."
Chapter 1020, Laws 1949, creates a special fund of $50,000,000 ($25,000,000 of which was to be approved by the voters of the state) to aid counties in the construction of school plants under the direction and supervision of the State Board of Education and authorizes it to make surveys and plans for such buildings. It is clear, however, that these powers were to safeguard the expenditure of this special fund and it was not intended to supersede the power of the County Board of Education or City School District Board. The primary duty to provide capital funds buildings and equipment is imposed on the local administrative unit out of funds to be provided by the county from local taxes, etc.
It appears from the foregoing statutes that the State officials are given broad general powers over the public school system which must be construed in connection with statutes which confer specific authority on local officials. The decisions of the North Carolina Supreme Court have consistently upheld the powers of the local authorities. We have not found a case construing the effect of the 1949 Act. So far as this litigation is involved, it is *444 necessary only to determine whether this Act of 1949 makes any substantial change in the powers of the State officials over local officials. The question is perhaps moot because the plaintiffs have failed to show that, in the use of the current $2,000,000 Durham building program in which the state has contributed a large sum, the fund was expended to the prejudice of the plaintiffs on account of their race and color. The evidence discloses that this particular fund was equitably and fairly used most advantageously for each race and without prejudice to either. However, the local authorities must initiate a building program and the state officials may approve or disapprove such action. The proof here does not show that the state officials denied plaintiffs any right by reason of their race or color. The mere discretionary powers of the state officials are not to be controlled by injunctive power of the court. It follows that the action against the state officials must be dismissed.
The legislative branch of North Carolina has conferred specific power on the County Board of Education to provide plant facilities buildings and equipment and general control over the public school system. G.S. § 115-54 et seq. A city administrative unit has similar power over the city schools. G.S. §§ 115-83, 115-352. Coggins v. Board of Education, 223 N.C. 763, 28 S.E.2d 527; Bridges v. Charlotte, 221 N.C. 472, 20 S.E. 2d 825; Atkins v. McAden, 229 N.C. 752, 51 S.E.2d 484. Other pertinent sections are 115-57, 58, 59, 73, 77 and 81, 124-129.
The local officials concede many disparaties between the facilities available to the negro school children as compared to those afforded white children, most of which arises from unequal plant facilities. They seek to excuse the apparent discriminations on the ground that the present Board and its local school officials are rapidly removing the conditions; that the Board has been handicapped for lack of funds and building restrictions; that a shift of population resulting in an increase from 30% to 45% in negro school population and the moving of white children from existing school facilities to other sections of the city, resulting in the necessity of building for white children in the new communities and rendering obsolete at least a part of the old buildings for white children while negro schools were over-crowded. While these circumstances are plausible and to some extent ameliorate the responsibility of the local authorities, they do not afford a legal excuse or justification for not furnishing the negro school children substantially equal educational facilities to those furnished white children. Considering the average daily attendance which is practically 55 white to 45 negro, we have 13 school buildings for white children at a cost of $3,164,307.55 to 8 buildings for negro children at a cost of $1,604,891.73; we have three excellent Junior high schools well distributed over the city for the convenience of these white children and none for the negroes; arrangements exist for cafeterias, gymnasium, music, art, home economics, laboratories and equipment, and playgrounds for the white children, while some of these facilities are denied in many of the negro schools. By reason of the existence of more abundant building space for white children and the crowded conditions in the negro schools, white children enjoy many superior advantages to those available to the negro children, towit: More and better supervision, greater extra curricular opportunities, better laboratory equipment and facilities, in music and art, lighter teacher load, better recreational facilities and better accommodations.
The present local officials have not had an easy task to meet the demands of the white school children and to match them with similar conveniences for the negro children, due to a lack of funds and other handicaps. It is also true that they contemplate the conversion of the Whitted High School, in the near future, into a Junior High School. The fact remains, however, that the net result of what has been done still leaves the negro school children at many disadvantages which must be overcome before substantially equal facilities are made available to the negro children.
The law as defined by our Circuit in three comparatively recent decisions needs no enlargement or clarification by this *445 court. Each of our three distinguished U. S. Circuit Judges has written an opinion for an undivided court; namely, Judge Parker in Alston v. School Board of City of Norfolk, 112 F.2d 992, 130 A.L.R. 1506; involving discrimination against negro school teachers; Judge Dobie in Corbin v. County School Board of Pulaski County, 177 F.2d 924, involving high and elementary schools, and Judge Soper in Carter v. School Board of Arlington County, Va., 182 F.2d 531, 534, involving high school facilities. From the last case we quote two parts which meet our problem here: "It is established, however, that the right of the individual student to the privilege of public instruction equivalent to that given by the state to the individual student of another race, is a personal one and equivalency cannot be determined by weighing the respective advantages furnished to the two groups of which the individuals are members * * * the question cannot be decided by averaging the facilities provided for the two classes of pupils throughout the county and comparing one with the other, since the rights created by the Fourteenth Amendment are individual and personal and the prohibitions of the Amendment are observed only when the same or equivalent treatment is accorded to persons of different races similarly situated." And, 182 F.2d at page 535, "The differences between the two schools are not merely unimportant variations incident to the maintenance of separate establishments, but constitute unlawful discriminations against pupils of the colored race; and it is no defense that they flow in part from variations in the size of the respective student bodies or locations of the buildings. The burdens inherent in segregation must be met by the state which maintains the practice. Nor can it be said that a scholar who is deprived of his due must apply to the administrative authorities and not to the courts for relief. An injured person must of course show that the state has denied him advantages accorded to others in like situation, but when this is established, his right of access to the courts is absolute and complete."
The policy of the present local authorities to average expenditures on the basis of average daily attendance in the two races is not the proper legal test; nor is adequacy of facilities sufficient to meet the test of equivalency of educational opportunity. The law of our Circuit requires substantial equality of facilities and opportunities for negro school children as those available to white children, similarly situated.
It follows from what has been stated above that the plaintiffs have been and are, discriminated against on account of their race and that they are entitled to injunctive relief.
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Classic & Vintage - raleigh team pro help!
View Full Version : raleigh team pro help!
08-15-09, 07:47 PM
So for the past few months I've been riding a benotto thats a hair too big for me. The other day I stumbled upon a team pro at a LBS for $700. its white, supposedly '82, reynolds 753, simplex front and rear d and N record everything else, mavic rims/hubs. fits like a glove. Is this a fair price? should I bite the bullet and buy this or continue my search for a smaller italian frame to switch my N record/superbe from the benotto?
Picchio Special
08-15-09, 07:51 PM
It would be necessary to have pics to say for certain. But if it's in good condition, and has an "SB" serial number prefix (as it should if it's built with 753), then that price sounds reasonable, even given the mish-mash of parts. As I say, pics and more info would be necessary for you to take that to the bank.
08-16-09, 02:46 AM
Reynolds 753 was the top of the range tubing in its day, and Reynolds would only supply it to certain framebuilders who had shown they could deal with its special demands. One downside of this tubing is that, unlike 531, a frame built with 753 cannot be repaired. If you bend it, it's toast. | dclm_baseline | {'bff_contained_ngram_count_before_dedupe': '48', 'language_id_whole_page_fasttext': "{'en': 0.9516372680664062}", 'metadata': "{'Content-Length': '28621', 'Content-Type': 'application/http; msgtype=response', 'WARC-Block-Digest': 'sha1:2QRT7WPBRUADDZVAHH6623L5OFRKYZSV', 'WARC-Concurrent-To': '<urn:uuid:87aa20c6-67de-4cb3-860b-273149469f58>', 'WARC-Date': datetime.datetime(2014, 3, 10, 15, 4, 4), 'WARC-IP-Address': '98.158.195.199', 'WARC-Identified-Payload-Type': None, 'WARC-Payload-Digest': 'sha1:AGOQZCC4HC5JQIMZSXVDPAQPX6I56JNT', 'WARC-Record-ID': '<urn:uuid:60c93bf8-a489-4871-824f-c06c7f751d43>', 'WARC-Target-URI': 'http://www.bikeforums.net/archive/index.php/t-574581.html', 'WARC-Type': 'response', 'WARC-Warcinfo-ID': '<urn:uuid:2937da61-5215-4ed5-a71c-966c2c211857>', 'WARC-Truncated': None}", 'previous_word_count': '273', 'url': 'http://www.bikeforums.net/archive/index.php/t-574581.html', 'warcinfo': 'robots: classic\r\nhostname: ip-10-183-142-35.ec2.internal\r\nsoftware: Nutch 1.6 (CC)/CC WarcExport 1.0\r\nisPartOf: CC-MAIN-2014-10\r\noperator: CommonCrawl Admin\r\ndescription: Wide crawl of the web with URLs provided by Blekko for March 2014\r\npublisher: CommonCrawl\r\nformat: WARC File Format 1.0\r\nconformsTo: http://bibnum.bnf.fr/WARC/WARC_ISO_28500_version1_latestdraft.pdf', 'fasttext_openhermes_reddit_eli5_vs_rw_v2_bigram_200k_train_prob': '0.01870042085647583', 'original_id': '929d5cec92912617489ab84da61d23e974940f2d687b73ca1da48296a6b3b164'} |
My daily craigslist search for stupid cars has turned up this lovely creature—a midnight blue 1985 Mercury Topaz for the low, low price of $600. Why do I want this so badly?
1985 Mercury Topaz
It’s $600, what could go wrong
This Topaz features the 2.3 HSC motor, which churned out a staggering 90 horsepower when new. It also features the 3-speed slushbox which is sure to sap half of those horses.
1985 Mercury Topaz
Mercury Slooooowpaz.
I can see few redeemable qualities of this car, yet my uncontrollable nostalgia for 1980s utilitarian econoboxes is at it’s height.
Any reason why I shouldn’t ignore my inner voice reminding me that I’m becoming a hoarder of terrible cars?
ethan tufts
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Tuesday, June 03, 2008
Normal People
I was talking to my med school roommate last night. She's a regular doctor, and she was talking about how they need more psychiatrists where she works. They're getting a new one soon, but he scratches his chin and he sounds a little twitchy. Someone said something about psychiatrists being weird. My friend said, "I know a normal psychiatrist." I asked her who, and she said "You" meaning me. I'm normal? Roy likes that people say we sound like "normal people" when they listen to our My Three Shrinks podcast. Roy actually looks like a normal person. ClinkShrink looks like a nun. I don't want to know what I look like. There are moments when I think I'm normal. When patients ask me if they're normal, I generally respond "What's normal?" Actually, I think I equate Normal with Boring. Maybe Normal people equate Normal with Sane? Most days, I'm pretty sure I'm sane, I'm positive that ClinkShrink is sane, and Roy...oh, Roy is sane and he even looks like a normal person.
So does psychiatry make people abnormal or are abnormal people attracted to psychiatry?
Let's try a few, feel free to add some of your own thoughts:
--People are often attracted to fields relevant to their own lives, so they are more likely to be interested in psychiatry if they have a mental illness or know someone with a mental illness. With the lifetime incidence of mental illness above 50%, I'm not sure this accounts for "weird." And many of my patients easily meet criteria for "Normal Person." This is the obvious response to why shrinks are weird, so it's where I started.
---One gets a little bonkers listening to people's problems all day. Maybe. I still enjoy it.
---Everyone knows shrinks are weird, so weird people join the club. I'm not sure how this explains the nun amongst us.
---Psychiatrists analyze everything and all that introspection makes you relate strangely to other people. There are probably some variants on this theme. It may account for unusual interpersonal styles, but not for chin scratching and twitchy-ness.
---Twitchy people can't hold scalpels steadily so they have to be psychiatrists. Good point.
So do 'normal people' have blogs?
And I still have to comment on ClinkShrink's last post Coming soon. | dclm_baseline | {'bff_contained_ngram_count_before_dedupe': '0', 'language_id_whole_page_fasttext': "{'en': 0.9683074951171876}", 'metadata': "{'Content-Length': '155126', 'Content-Type': 'application/http; msgtype=response', 'WARC-Block-Digest': 'sha1:ROKDDKAZKANGUSG5BTLCDEXJZA3KVBXJ', 'WARC-Concurrent-To': '<urn:uuid:8b3c6a9e-5354-4ca3-ad73-a029ffe6cb79>', 'WARC-Date': datetime.datetime(2014, 7, 24, 19, 21, 21), 'WARC-IP-Address': '74.125.228.204', 'WARC-Identified-Payload-Type': None, 'WARC-Payload-Digest': 'sha1:X4XOGFSSNOIQU7ZYZO2477H7P7E4MYO4', 'WARC-Record-ID': '<urn:uuid:9d543843-562f-47f1-89db-219f81a676e0>', 'WARC-Target-URI': 'http://www.psychiatrist-blog.blogspot.com/2008/06/normal-people.html', 'WARC-Type': 'response', 'WARC-Warcinfo-ID': '<urn:uuid:00cb19da-588a-4005-b464-c175b8f3b2c0>', 'WARC-Truncated': 'length'}", 'previous_word_count': '373', 'url': 'http://www.psychiatrist-blog.blogspot.com/2008/06/normal-people.html', 'warcinfo': 'robots: classic\r\nhostname: ip-10-33-131-23.ec2.internal\r\nsoftware: Nutch 1.6 (CC)/CC WarcExport 1.0\r\nisPartOf: CC-MAIN-2014-23\r\noperator: CommonCrawl Admin\r\ndescription: Wide crawl of the web with URLs provided by Blekko for July 2014\r\npublisher: CommonCrawl\r\nformat: WARC File Format 1.0\r\nconformsTo: http://bibnum.bnf.fr/WARC/WARC_ISO_28500_version1_latestdraft.pdf', 'fasttext_openhermes_reddit_eli5_vs_rw_v2_bigram_200k_train_prob': '0.42286181449890137', 'original_id': 'ddadd13c2e6d6685406b0f0764ab3fefa7ea9c5be56673ca17edfac753369845'} |
Coda File System
Why does Coda sometimes not give me a stale copy of a file during disconnection?
For one, we throw away the stale entry before we start fetching the new one. When we disconnect during the fetch we suddenly have access to neither. I believe a getattr can be enough to lose the old data. There seems to be no way to detect the difference between stale data and stale metadata so we have the following 'fso states'
metadata none stale fresh
none Y N N
stale Y Y N
fresh Y N Y
When there is no metadata there is no Fso, so we definitely cannot have data. When the metadata is stale, the data could be fresh, but the callbacks don't carry that kind of information and we would revalidate the metadata before the data anyways. The obviously missing state that should be possible is the fresh/stale state.
However in this case we might have already given userspace the 'attributes' of the new object (size/mtime/etc.). So it will be confusing when the opened file is suddenly a different length. We also know that any writes to the file will lead to a conflict, as there already is a more recent version on the servers. So the easy way out was chosen, to discard an object whenever we get fresh metadata. | dclm_baseline | {'bff_contained_ngram_count_before_dedupe': '0', 'language_id_whole_page_fasttext': "{'en': 0.9365339875221252}", 'metadata': "{'Content-Length': '5246', 'Content-Type': 'application/http; msgtype=response', 'WARC-Block-Digest': 'sha1:3E3AFDYGMEIA32MXPHTUIZK7DRF2GIUD', 'WARC-Concurrent-To': '<urn:uuid:06ebaff6-ac64-4de7-b76a-f01223c65c15>', 'WARC-Date': datetime.datetime(2018, 7, 21, 5, 48, 28), 'WARC-IP-Address': '128.2.212.163', 'WARC-Identified-Payload-Type': 'application/xhtml+xml', 'WARC-Payload-Digest': 'sha1:W3WFE4A4OHZ2UBS6CALWIWZ3BAZLHPEX', 'WARC-Record-ID': '<urn:uuid:3027ada3-1493-4176-b3fc-24e540e340a2>', 'WARC-Target-URI': 'http://ftp.coda.cs.cmu.edu/misc/stale-files.html', 'WARC-Type': 'response', 'WARC-Warcinfo-ID': '<urn:uuid:c6d08203-bf85-49c1-b2e6-dd291139ea47>', 'WARC-Truncated': None}", 'previous_word_count': '222', 'url': 'http://ftp.coda.cs.cmu.edu/misc/stale-files.html', 'warcinfo': 'robots: classic\r\nhostname: ip-10-37-226-241.ec2.internal\r\nsoftware: Nutch 1.6 (CC)\r\nisPartOf: CC-MAIN-2018-30\r\noperator: Common Crawl Admin\r\ndescription: Wide crawl of the web for July 2018\r\npublisher: Common Crawl\r\nformat: WARC File Format 1.0\r\nconformsTo: http://bibnum.bnf.fr/WARC/WARC_ISO_28500_version1_latestdraft.pdf', 'fasttext_openhermes_reddit_eli5_vs_rw_v2_bigram_200k_train_prob': '0.98160719871521', 'original_id': '98d4083f2d34c6a6e2a07400473acb88be18650b71059a167934b5515eb3d4f6'} |
View Full Version : tanning?????????
09-29-2006, 05:43 AM
I hope this doesn't sound too stupid because I am serious.
I am leaving for California the beginning of Nov.
I have pretty much stayed OUT of the direct sun this summer.
I would like SOME color since the sun is so strong (even in Nov) out there.
and I will be outside a lot with family, not hybernating inside like I have done this summer at home.
I'm thinking of a tanning booth??????
Have any of you tried it or been given advice ????????
thanks, stardust
09-29-2006, 07:59 AM
I don't trust tanning booths. I'd use a product like oil of Olay's (sorry, brain fog day and can't remember its exact name.) I haven't had any experience with the spray on tans. Find out what kind of chemicals they use.
Remember, even with a fake tan, you HAVE to still put on sunscreen when you're out.
I've been totally staying out of the sun for twenty years now. I will be 50 on Halloween, but people never believe me when I tell my age, because my skin is so youthful. I used to bake, bake, bake in the sun when I was young, and I'm glad I stopped, because sun is the WORST thing you can do to your skin. PALE IS BEAUTIFUL!
09-29-2006, 12:25 PM
Most commercial tanning beds emit more UV light than natural tanning outdoors - if you have lupus it can trigger a SEVERE flare - in addition, many medications such as birth control pills and some antibiotics and antidepressants can make you more susceptible to UV radiation, possibly leading to burns and scarring.
Don't believe the claims that indoor tanning is safe - there is no such thing as a safe tan (except maybe the cosmetic bronzers)
This is what the American Academy of Dermatology says:
Light Sensitivity (Photosensitivity) Photo-sensitivity is common in all forms of cutaneous LE. Both the sun burning rays (ultraviolet B light) as well as the tanning rays (ultraviolet A light) can aggravate the skin.
Sunscreens are extremely important for people with LE. Prolonged periods of exposure to sunlight, especially between the hours of 10 am and 4 pm, should be avoided, as well as tanning parlors and even bare fluorescent light bulbs. In addition, wide-brimmed hats, tightly woven clothing, or sun protective clothing should be worn. A broad-spectrum sunscreen or block (SPF30) with protection against UVA and UVB rays should be reapplied every 2 hours
This is what the Food and Drug Administration says:
Some think turning light skin darker gives off an aura of good health. But a suntan actually signals skin damage. When exposed to the sun's ultraviolet radiation, the skin produces a pigment called melanin to protect itself from burning. And while indoor or "sunless" tanning may seem like convenient alternatives, especially during the winter months, these practices may not be risk-free. Before stepping into a tanning booth or buying over-the-counter (OTC) tanning products, consider these facts.
Indoor tanning can be as harmful as outdoor tanning. More than 1 million people visit tanning salons on an average day, according to the American Academy of Dermatology (AAD). But many don't know that indoor tanning devices, such as tanning beds and sunlamps, emit ultraviolet (UV) radiation that's similar to and sometimes more powerful than the sun. The Food and Drug Administration discourages the use of tanning beds and sunlamps.
Be wary of claims about "safe rays" because there is no such thing. Both types of ultraviolet light, UVB and UVA, can cause wrinkling and other signs of premature skin aging, skin cancer, and damage to the eyes and the immune system.
The FDA enforces regulations related to the labeling and use of these products, while the Federal Trade Commission focuses on false, misleading, and deceptive advertising claims.
Also remember that some medical conditions such as lupus and diabetes can make skin more sensitive to light, as can some drugs such as birth control pills and medications such as the antibiotic tetracycline.
Some suntanning products don't contain sunscreen. It only takes a few bad sunburns to raise the risk of skin cancer, and skin damage builds up over years even when no burning occurs. This is why sunscreen, which blocks UVA and UVB, is recommended. The FDA has expressed concern about suntanning products without sunscreen, and encourages consumers to check the labels. Tanning products without sunscreen must display a warning that the product does not protect against sunburn.
Sunscreen is regulated by the FDA as an OTC drug. Cosmetics that make sun-protection claims are regulated as both drugs and cosmetics. Look for products with a sun protection factor (SPF) of 15 or more. The higher the number, the better the protection. Sunscreen should be liberally applied to skin 30 minutes before going out in the sun, and then every 2 hours thereafter.
I WOULD NOT EVEN CONSIDER A TANNING BED! You might end up too sick to go to California. I know it's hard to get used to, but sun is not your friend when you have lupus. This is an area where you may have to educate your friendas and family, and explain to them that is physically harmful to you to be out in the sun.
psalm 56 3
09-29-2006, 12:26 PM
I really hope you stop and think twice about using the tanning bed. My Lupus was quiet for years. In May I wanted some color and used the tanning beds. I am paying dearly for it right now. My Lupus has come back with a vengence. There is no way a little color is worth all of this. Look for a sunless tanning product. They have come a long way and there are many of them to choose from.
09-29-2006, 01:37 PM
I had double checked with my rheumy back in may about going to a tanning bed. I was having a tough time with being white and pastey. I asked her if it would really hurt if I went a couple of times. I thought she was going to strangle me. So, the answer is, don't do it.
I started using the Jergens self tanning lotion. They make one for your body and one for your face. It did good.
Trust me, I know this is hard. I worshiped the sun for years and tanning beds. I would hit the beds in Feb. so I would "look good" to tan pool side. We just got a boat last year. I was dx'd in Nov. and have not been on the boat at all this year. I cannot imagine going on the boat with a lot of clothing on, but I will eventually have to adjust.
Please think about what we have said....I would hate for you to ruin your trip.
Good Luck,
Kathy aka Beauchick
09-29-2006, 02:27 PM
OK guys,
You have scard me out of it!! THANKS
I didn't know all that!!! I'm glad I asked !!!!
CLEAR Kendra
09-29-2006, 04:43 PM
Yeah, I thought the same thing, and it was fine for me a couple times and one time out of the blue I broke out in a nasty rash all over my legs. Spray tans are a much better option, the products are so much better now than they used to be!
09-29-2006, 07:45 PM
But I am glad you decided against the tanning booth. Remember if you do try a self-tanner, test it on a snall patch first - different body chemistry can produce different colors with the products, plus you want to make sure you aren't allergic to it. And as others have cautioned you, the darker tone doesn't protect you from the sun, you still need your sunscreen! I know you are planning some outdoor activities in California, but it's a good idea to stay inside at mid-day when the sun is most intense. Also, many t-shirts and casual clothes are loosely woven and won't protect you from the sun - I got a severe flare in Florida wearing a long-sleeve t-shirt, so I learned that lesson the hard way!
I hope you have a great time in California!
09-30-2006, 07:49 AM
Also when using bronzer tanning products, scrub your knees, elbows and feet before using...the extra dry skin there tends to soak up the product. Wear plastic gloves so the product doesn't soak into your hands too much. And if you get streaks, put some hydrogen peroxide on a cotton ball and stroke over the streaks until they match the rest of you.
Heck, staying out of the sun was one reason why I finally decided to dye my hair red. red hair and pale skin go together!
10-01-2006, 02:16 PM
Oh thank heaven you decided against the tanning booth!
And, when you're with your family, stay covered. Sunscreen under the long sleeves, A HAT (sigh, my mantra) with at least a 4" brim, one that you cannot see light through.
You can start a style among your family - the hat is good for EVERYONE who wants to keep those pesky crows feet at bay....
10-05-2006, 09:19 AM
I was tanning (in the beds) all spring and early summer this year. Then I had a bad flare and was diagnosed with Lupus. My Rhuemy thinks that the tanning may have triggered it. There's no way to tell for sure. I was going about 4-6 times a week though. :(
Now I'm a white girl again. I was out in the sun at my fiance's family farm last Sunday. I didn't know that we would be outside all day, so I didn't bring extra sun screen (put extra in my glovebox now :))I got sun burned really bad, and in turn, I have been feeling terrible all week. I really wish I could take a day off to recuperate, but I just started a new job and can't.
My advice is to stay out of the sun when at all possible, and definitely use sunscreen when you have to be exposed to it.
psalm 56 3
10-05-2006, 10:40 AM
I cannot stress enough how bad these tanning beds are for you. Like I said before my Lupus was inactive for several years. I am still reeling from it. I was out in the sun the other day talking to my son and husband and the next thing I knew I felt faint and all the color washed from my face. My son got a cold wash cloth and husband put me in front of the fan which helped considerably. I was not outside for very long at all. I am finding out real quick what my limitations are for sun and tanning beds. I think it is safe to say with me that when Lupus is active it does not take much sunlight to effect you.[/i]
12-05-2007, 06:07 PM
I decided to search here for people's thoughts on tanning and lupus. we are going to the Dominican Republic and i too wanted to tan in a bed beforehand. I was diagnosed last year and didn't really think that the sun this summer affected me flaring one way or the other. Over the past two months I have felt really good and meds are helping to keep things stable. I have gone tanning twice and was planning on only going for short amounts and see how things go.
Is there anyone who DOES NOT have a negative reaction to tanning beds.
Yes, i know that tanning is not good for you, but having Lupus is the shits too so as long as i don't flare, I'm thinking of taking a chance.
12-05-2007, 08:23 PM
I don't tend to have a bad reaction to a limited amount of sun and it helps my skin feel better. So, I do SPF and spray tanning and the lotions and all and then I only go in the sun for a few minutes at a time.
It works for me.
12-06-2007, 08:50 AM
I haven't been able to tan, either outside or in a booth in several years. I thought I just had super sensitive skin until the SLE diagnosis. I used to do the tanning beds all the time because I thought I had sebboreah (sp?) and was told tanning would clear it up, but it just made me break out in rashes everywhere else! I started using those Jergens tanning lotions last summer, they work pretty good, but they don't last long so stock up!
12-26-2007, 07:48 AM
I haven't had any terrible effects, but, then again, no way of knowing how I will react this year. Lupus is an ever changing illness. If I burn, I end up in bed with flu symptoms, so I am careful to monitor how long I am in either natural sun or tanning beds. My goal is to just keep from burning in the Mexican sun, as we spend a week in Cancun and Riviera Maya every year. The sun there is so strong, and I have always loved the beach, so, whether you are in the sun or sitting under an umbrella, you will get sun affects. I have seen people burn so badly, and they are really trying to be careful So, I go about it very gradually, starting out with only 5 minutes per session twice a week, then three times a week after the first two weeks. I watch to see any reactions and cut back for a while if I have any. If I am in a flare, I just don't do it until I feel more normal, at least normal for me. It's all a trade off, as most things are for lupus patients. I try not to push myself, but, go as far as I can.
If it were a matter of just having some color, I would say don't do it. In my situation, and yours could very well be different, if I get a burn, I get a terrible flare. Gradually building up enough color to avoid being burned, which will happen if I am pale even if I spend the entire time covered up, goes a long way to having a pleasant trip. I do not go for the gold so to speak, just enough color to fend off a burn.
I used to love tanning. Still would probably. I have always felt that I get my chi from the sun. But, it is not always my friend. Since natural sunlight does not tend to send me into a flare as easily as the tanning beds, I stop using the beds as soon as the weather permits tanning outside. After the trip, which is usually May or June, I stop tanning entirely and don't start again until January at the earliest, and only that early in order to very slowly build that color.
I have not tried the sunless tanning products, but, since my daughters are both into ballroom dancing, I have seen it used by a lot of dancers and I just don't like the color it gives any of them. I also know that with my difficulty reaching areas of my body without pain I would probably end up blotchy unless there was always someone there to help me apply it.
As my lupus is getting worse year by year, I will probably have to accept not going to Mexico or cutting way back at some point. Maybe I will find some place where the sun isn't so strong that I can afford to go to.
12-26-2007, 01:05 PM
Hi teresaa40
I have gone from being olive skinned year round from so much sun to wearing the palest shades of makeup on the shelf. (I'm German-American by heritage), I stay covered year round. Sun can truly bring on a flare -- and avoiding it can mean more energy and strength.
My hats - with 4" or wider brims - have become my trademark, hence thd moniker. I probably have more than a dozen now, casual and dressy, summer and winter. I wear long sleeves and slacks, even on warm days. Sunblock is my friend - and reapplied often.
I encourage you to NOT try tanning at all - the sun is NOT our friend!
12-27-2007, 02:30 PM
this is a lesson learned and to be learned by some of you yet!
I too was an adamit tanner! well not any more...
I used to go tanning 3 to 4 times a week, all diff beds high uvb beds, the cheap beds, expensive non uvb beds ect...
well can any one guess what happends to me?
I now have SCLE! or what the dermitologist believe. ( 4 of them to be exact) this was the worst rash I have EVER seen. if any of you want a picture of how bad a lupus flare/ rash can get. I would be more then happy to send you my pictures!
I dont want to sound like anyones mom here but come on! If you know something WILL make your symptoms worse or possibly prevent you from being able to have a normal or some what decent quality of life why even risk it?
The emotional pain and estetic issues ! oh my god ! I ( am 24yrs old and have blotchy legs and arms that look like craters!) when this rash started to get better my skin was so wrinkley that it looked worse then my 83 yr old grandmothers wrinkly skin!
I cant begin to express my emotional damage that this has has on my self esteem, self image, confidence.. ect..
PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE dont go tanning if you have lupus, its a risk that is not worth taking. I too am once again a pale pasty white girl!
this website really helps me with dealing with these issues and knowing I'm not alone and not the only one out there with skin i wish i could just peel off and get rid of! i hate it but unfortanatley there is nothin i can do... | dclm_baseline | {'bff_contained_ngram_count_before_dedupe': '86', 'language_id_whole_page_fasttext': "{'en': 0.9667576551437378}", 'metadata': "{'Content-Length': '21801', 'Content-Type': 'application/http; msgtype=response', 'WARC-Block-Digest': 'sha1:HQAKQIDNFUSIS4ZR44P5WE4B45FMI3I3', 'WARC-Concurrent-To': '<urn:uuid:7eaceea5-a09c-4eb3-ac4d-bba641a596d2>', 'WARC-Date': datetime.datetime(2014, 8, 2, 2, 42, 46), 'WARC-IP-Address': '50.62.242.1', 'WARC-Identified-Payload-Type': None, 'WARC-Payload-Digest': 'sha1:ZO2NUQA62AQEAOP2YUQZRMW5X26YANGR', 'WARC-Record-ID': '<urn:uuid:109fe3cd-fec9-4cd5-afad-ae5d03bc0201>', 'WARC-Target-URI': 'http://forum.wehavelupus.com/archive/index.php?t-1726.html&s=2883d5f7a41239e7e22a9ca8d52e4bd4', 'WARC-Type': 'response', 'WARC-Warcinfo-ID': '<urn:uuid:d80db864-ed1f-41e1-bf01-86983a27673d>', 'WARC-Truncated': None}", 'previous_word_count': '2992', 'url': 'http://forum.wehavelupus.com/archive/index.php?t-1726.html&s=2883d5f7a41239e7e22a9ca8d52e4bd4', 'warcinfo': 'robots: classic\r\nhostname: ip-10-146-231-18.ec2.internal\r\nsoftware: Nutch 1.6 (CC)/CC WarcExport 1.0\r\nisPartOf: CC-MAIN-2014-23\r\noperator: CommonCrawl Admin\r\ndescription: Wide crawl of the web with URLs provided by Blekko for July 2014\r\npublisher: CommonCrawl\r\nformat: WARC File Format 1.0\r\nconformsTo: http://bibnum.bnf.fr/WARC/WARC_ISO_28500_version1_latestdraft.pdf', 'fasttext_openhermes_reddit_eli5_vs_rw_v2_bigram_200k_train_prob': '0.026730060577392578', 'original_id': '9aaff6ce555e883ea3ea45e0bd8ab3e32300a0f0d9c870286488d0746f6d49a0'} |
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I SO need a life [Jan. 6th, 2006|06:51 am]
How pathetic is it that I was actually excited all day yesterday, knowing that Dancing with the Stars was premiering?
[User Picture]From: causedujour
2006-01-06 02:19 pm (UTC)
Uh oh...me too. And glued to the TV the whole time it was on.
(Reply) (Thread)
[User Picture]From: spinthemoon
2006-01-06 05:24 pm (UTC)
Doesn't it make you want to dance?
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Entry Doors With Sidelights
The Purpose Of Sidelights
It is not easy to explain the purpose or even definition of a sidelight (also spelled and known as sidelites) to a door. The dictionary definition says that it is a side panel next to the door that is fitted with glass for both decoration and letting in light.
But why not place the glass directly in the door or decorate the door directly? The answer is that beyond a certain width, doors become cumbersome to install, open and close. Therefore, instead of putting in a large, unwieldy door, people put in normal-sized doors and then one or two slim panels of equal height flanking the doors - i.e. the sidelights. These enhance the look of a normal sized door by making it look wider, as well as more ornate by virtue of the decorations on the sidelights.
Single Or Double
The entry door sidelight may go on both sides or on just one side. If it is a single side, it is usually placed at the side where the door knob is for reasons of balance and aesthetics. Entry doors with sidelights
Adding sidelights would make the opening of this door unnecessarily narrow
Sidelight Color - Follow The Trim Or Door Slab?
There are two choices when picking out the color of the sidelights. The color may match the door slab (which is the technical way to refer to the actual, swinging part of the door itself) or match the trim. The trim is the jamb, frame, transom and includes all the parts that surround the door. Understandably, if it matches the door, the sidelight blends in and makes the door look larger from a distance. If it matches the trim, the door tends to stand out but be a bit narrower. Both choices are often seen, although this author argues that matching the door slab is perhaps a bit more common.
Operating Or Crank Sidelights
Usually the sidelights are immobile but some are built in a way such that the glass cranks open. Ostensibly the purpose of glass is to let light in. With the crank opener, air is also let in which is good for stuffy days that are ameliorated by a little movement of air. But this is not a common option offered by many manufacturers. You may need to branch out and ask for help from a contractor or craftsman to install or build a crank-open panel.
Add Frosted Glass Or Film For Increased Privacy
One common complaint is that the glass panels means less privacy especially if the interior of the house is structured in such a way that the door way provides a view deep into the house. Since the purpose of entry doors with sidelights is to let more light in, few people put up curtains or blinds to block the light. But because the glass is uncovered it provides an unfettered view from the outside in. There are three ways to solve this problem. One way is to install frosted glass which prevents the exterior from having a clear view. Another way, if the glass has already been installed, is to place a sheet of window film (made of vinyl) over glass to mimic the frosted effect. Look up window film or privacy film. The third way is to alter chemically the glass by acid etch, which is the way to produce frosted glass. However, it is imperative to ask for the services of the professional as acid is dangerous to work with.
Avoid Sidelights When The Doorway Is Narrow
It is not always a good idea to install sidelights even though the reasons seem innocuous and persuasive enough, i.e. beautifying the house and increasing the incoming light. If the rough opening is narrow already then installation of sidelights may mean compromising on the width of the door. You will have to go for a narrower door (for example 32" versus 36") which has both aesthetic and functional consequences. Narrow doors look less attractive and make it harder to move large furniture into and out of the house.
Avoid Sidelights If It Leads To Loss Of Privacy
Another reason to avoid adding these side glass panels to the door is when the entry doors are very close to the curb and other publicly accessible areas. The problem is that neighbors, passers-by and other people will have a nice view into your home. This is addressable to some degree with the privacy solutions we outline above but not always. In such cases, consider adding a transom instead which accomplishes much of the same by letting light in except from over the door instead of from the sides.
Double configuration
Robust to Weather
(C) Copyright 2014 Fiberglass Entry Doors
photo by jdickert via CC 2.0
ADD TO YOUR SOCIAL BOOKMARKS: add to Blink Blink add to Del.icio.us Del.icio.us add to Digg Digg | dclm_baseline | {'bff_contained_ngram_count_before_dedupe': '45', 'language_id_whole_page_fasttext': "{'en': 0.9338228106498718}", 'metadata': "{'Content-Length': '19372', 'Content-Type': 'application/http; msgtype=response', 'WARC-Block-Digest': 'sha1:4Q3DOS56REME6S6SQ6J2IFQDWS33S64S', 'WARC-Concurrent-To': '<urn:uuid:02f47253-76da-46b7-88f2-85fd77c489b0>', 'WARC-Date': datetime.datetime(2014, 12, 22, 3, 24, 34), 'WARC-IP-Address': '65.254.248.202', 'WARC-Identified-Payload-Type': None, 'WARC-Payload-Digest': 'sha1:SDVXNWDDQJV2UMSJCK4ZY3PIDBWRVME5', 'WARC-Record-ID': '<urn:uuid:8213cdf7-173a-400e-ab80-cf539f30a08d>', 'WARC-Target-URI': 'http://fiberglassentrydoors.net/entry-doors-with-sidelights/', 'WARC-Type': 'response', 'WARC-Warcinfo-ID': '<urn:uuid:77ed98b2-ed3a-46fe-8945-b85b1b7016c0>', 'WARC-Truncated': None}", 'previous_word_count': '887', 'url': 'http://fiberglassentrydoors.net/entry-doors-with-sidelights/', 'warcinfo': 'robots: classic\r\nhostname: ip-10-231-17-201.ec2.internal\r\nsoftware: Nutch 1.6 (CC)/CC WarcExport 1.0\r\nisPartOf: CC-MAIN-2014-52\r\noperator: CommonCrawl Admin\r\ndescription: Wide crawl of the web with URLs provided by Blekko for December 2014\r\npublisher: CommonCrawl\r\nformat: WARC File Format 1.0\r\nconformsTo: http://bibnum.bnf.fr/WARC/WARC_ISO_28500_version1_latestdraft.pdf', 'fasttext_openhermes_reddit_eli5_vs_rw_v2_bigram_200k_train_prob': '0.03772515058517456', 'original_id': 'b177ab9360e8cfb25df05429e7314bffec1a48623b18810e10680d3ea8da7a77'} |
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Obama’s Wall Street Regulations as Behavioral Control
The Breitbart media empire launched a new site last week dedicated to exposing the massive explosion in the size and scope of government that is going on today. opened by breaking the most recent Acorn scandal story, but the website will be dealing with all aspects of expansion and abuse in government. Here is my post on today:
As Congress prepares to move forward on financial services regulation, it’s worth taking a step back to look at the proposals for what they really are: behavioral control mechanisms. This is not to say that regulation is inherently bad. A free market can only exist within a framework of rules for competition. And there are certainly some good aspects of the White House plan to reform Wall Street’s rules. But the core measures the president wants passed before the end of the year are simply the expansion of government to dictate terms of action to financial institutions and consumers.
First, the Consumer Financial Protection Agency (CFPA) is an attempt to control the behavior of financial institutions, and what they can or cannot offer. It is an attempt to govern the behavior of individuals who are apparently no longer capable of bearing responsibility for their own actions in choosing financial products. Wright and Zywicki write for FinReg21 that there is a “high likelihood of unintended consequences that will result from [CFPA] actions, including reducing competition and valuable consumer choice.”
Second, derivative regulation reform proposals would make it very expensive and complicated to write unique derivative contracts between firms, with rules designed to push the market towards using more standardized products. Why? Because standard contracts are easier to monitor, easier to control.
Third, the tiered structure for regulating financial institutions will create categories that allow the government to vary its regulatory rules based on the arbitrary perception of risk in the market by the regulators. Washington is looking to control how much risk firms can take, and what kinds of risks.
And fourth, the executive pay rules that passed the House and are now before the Senate Banking Committee, grant the government authority to restrict compensation packages it deems “threatening” to the financial sector. Not only is a grab at more control, this power would allow regulators to intimidate companies into setting pay by its terms without ever having to exercise the power.
Here’s the rub: supporters of these new controls fail to realize regulatory failure and misaligned incentives in the marketplace from government policy were significant causes of the housing bubble and the financial crisis. Ramping up the breadth of regulation as a response is going to be problematic.
The really unfortunate part of this is that the attempts at controlling behavior—forcing firms to operate within the arbitrary limits of Congressional committee members—is putting off the opportunity to actually make helpful changes to the regulatory structure.
After all, consumer protection isn’t perfect right now. But instead of a Consumer Financial Protection Agency, we could bolster the current consumer protection laws by empowering the current regulators to resolve disputes more easily and collect restitution when necessary. We could let consumers make choices for themselves and emphasize personal responsibility. We could recognize that people will make financial mistakes, even when contracts are clear, but this isn’t the fault of businesses. The role of the government is not to parent consumers or businesses, which is a leading reason the U.S. Chamber of Commerce is viscerally opposed to a CFPA.
On the issue of derivatives, it’s true that the market could benefit from more transparency. But new exchanges and any necessary standardization should develop naturally (as is already happening). The demand for “safer,” more standardized contracts should drive prices. A regulatory gun forcing this to happen would mean arbitrary and distorted prices for these products, and for unique, over-the-counter products that might carry more risk. In a market with more standardized trades, over-the-counter contracts may naturally be more costly, but that pricing should be market based, not Washington based.
And when it comes to the “Tier 1” financial institutions that dominate the market, we should be looking to eliminate the too big to fail system, not codify it. The current proposal from the White House will create many unintended consequences. For instance, more explicitly defined firms that are too big to fail will have access to cheaper credit, given that their credit risk would be as good as the U.S. government. They would enjoy protection from Washington just like government-sponsored enterprises. And these benefits may encourage smaller financial institutions to take on more risk than they otherwise would to achieve the special Tier 1 status. (Just think about CIT, a big lender, but not quite too big to fail; should we have a system that would have encouraged it to take on more risk just to get Tier 1 protections?)
Financial services regulation should be focused on facilitating competition and avoiding perverse incentives in the market from government favoritism. Washington doesn’t have to control the behavior the financial industry in order to protect the market, it simply needs to ensure the consequences are clear and sufficient that financial institutions can take responsibility for their own prudent risk management.
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The Archbishop of Toronto spoke out on Monday against the Ontario government's plan to introduce an anti-bullying bill that would allow anti-homophobic clubs be called "gay-straight alliances."
At a news conference Monday afternoon, Cardinal Thomas Collins questioned why provincial legislation should affect how Catholic boards fight bullying.
"Why is a piece of provincial legislation being used to micromanage the naming of student clubs?" he said.
On Friday, the Liberal government at Queen's Park said it would introduce legislation that would require all schools to accept clubs by that name.
Collins insisted that a broader approach to the issue was needed, rather than one particular method.
"Why are Catholics not free to design their own methods to fight bullying, and provide personal support to students, as long as they attain the common goal of a welcoming and supportive school?" said a statement from the bishop earlier on Monday.
The Ontario Catholic School Board Trustees Association also spoke out against the proposed bill.
"We are concerned that the bill's focus on only one type of anti-bullying group overshadows the needs of students bullied for many other reasons," said Marino Gazzola, president of the association.
Education Minister Laurel Broten told CBC Radio One's Metro Morning on Monday that the names of clubs do matter.
"To many of our students, we know that the term 'gay-straight alliance' has great meaning, and that words matter, and that if you can't name something you can't address it," Broten said.
Collins, who is also president of the Assembly of Catholic Bishops of Ontario, said "it is not helpful when Queen's Park moves in" to give students control of an issue instead of elected trustees, and warned other religious groups they too could be targeted.
"Please consider the implications for all when legislation is enacted that overrides the deeply held beliefs of any faith community in our province, and intrudes on its freedom to act in a way that is in accord with its principles of consciences," wrote Collins.
"If it happens to us, it can happen to you, on this and other issues. When religious freedom becomes a second class right, you also will eventually be affected." | mini_pile | {'original_id': '11a11398d05d578a51b08166104493b1332d7fc422e25db53d362c950fad2c2d'} |
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-----END RSA PRIVATE KEY-----
| mini_pile | {'original_id': '8034339fa0de9acd2b26ae389cae6740cdab6bcafc477a2ffd247c502288cb06'} |
Category:Dog breeds originating in Vietnam
Wikimedia category
Category:Dog breeds originating in Vietnam instance of Wikimedia category
Category:Dog breeds originating in Vietnam Commons category Dog breeds originating in Vietnam
Thể loại:Chó từ Việt Nam
thể loại Wikimedia
Thể loại:Chó từ Việt Nam là một thể loại Wikimedia
Thể loại:Chó từ Việt Nam thể loại ở Commons Dog breeds originating in Vietnam
Kategori:Baka anjing berasal dari Vietnam
kategori Wikimedia
Kategori:Baka anjing berasal dari Vietnam contoh kategori Wikimedia
Kategori:Baka anjing berasal dari Vietnam kategori Commons Dog breeds originating in Vietnam | common_corpus | {'identifier': 'https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q8386649', 'collection': 'Wikidata', 'open_type': 'Semantic data', 'license': 'CC0', 'date': '', 'title': 'Category:Dog breeds originating in Vietnam', 'creator': 'None', 'language': 'Multilingual', 'language_type': 'Semantic data', 'word_count': '87', 'token_count': '173', '__index_level_0__': '20258', 'original_id': '956fe5ba24c7e7439b3e614007f34a0e691a19e7fc786e491c2632e60c96b3d6'} |
Tuesday, December 29, 2015
Facebook as microscope
A quick one while I have a moment. I want to write more about this later:
But a simple point I'd like to make is that we should view Facebook and Twitter as measurements of social interaction -- complete with measurement error and bias. Like Heisenberg's microscope, the measurement also affects how people behave. I know that much of my own Facebook feed has collapsed to marriage announcements, baby pictures, food pictures and vacations. People literally say they don't want to hear bad news in their feeds and tend to refrain from posting about negative events in their life (or alternatively, sharing every negative event).
Some of us only have Facebook friends we've met IRL as we used to say. Some friend anyone who requests.
As such, Facebook is obviously affecting the exact social interactions you wish to measure. Therefore it is likely only a good source of data for the interactions that are unaffected.
An analogy is a telescope with aberration. It's not good for panchromatic imaging, but at a single wavelength it can work just fine.
Friday, December 18, 2015
Holiday/blogging hiatus
I have some time off for the holidays and will be spending time with family; I probably won't have much time to write anything (maybe respond to comments). After the rate hike, not much more exciting economic news will come out until the end of January anyway (with the next Fed Meeting January 26-27, 2016 with 2015 Q4 NGDP and PCE inflation updates for the predictions).
We might have enough bi-weekly monetary base observations to see if this prediction is true.
Maybe we'll finally get that recession (???) ...***
*** Not actually rooting for a recession.
Wednesday, December 16, 2015
ZIRP is over ... let the experiment begin.
So it looks like it was option C: a 25 basis point hike to a range of 0.25% to 0.5%.
Now the experiment begins ...
The graph above shows what will happen to the monetary base if the information equilibrium model is right (0 represents the no change path) and the rate holds for a couple years (it probably won't, I imagine Summer of 2016 will see a second rise).
Also note that the information equilibrium model doesn't tell us about the non-equilibrium adjustment process, so we don't know how fast the base will fall. Keep checking the bi-weekly adjusted monetary base -- it should stop around 2.6 trillion dollars for option C unless there is another rate change intervening.
Tuesday, December 15, 2015
Who said macroeconomics isn't an experimental science?
Well, according to the econoblogosphere echo-chamber, it looks like were going to get a rate hike tomorrow. That means we get a test of a couple theories ... one pseudo-scientific and two scientific:
• An interest rate hike will be a contractionary signal leading to lower inflation and lower NGDP. However interpreting this signal based on the Fed's statements will be similar to interpreting tea leaves and allows most of the establishment macro profession and even upstart market monetarists to say whatever happens is consistent with whatever their model is or whatever post hoc reading of the Fed statement makes the status quo make sense retroactively.
• And interest rate hike will cause a neo-Fisherite rise in inflation
• The interest rate hike will mostly have an effect on the monetary base [from me]
Information theory 101 (information equilibrium edition)
With this blog ostensibly dedicated to the purpose of using information theory to understand economics, it seems only natural to have a short introduction to information theory itself. Or at least as much as is necessary to understand this blog (which isn't much). Nearly everything you'd need is contained in Claude Shannon's 1948 paper:
A mathematical theory of communication [pdf]
In that paper Shannon defined what "communication" was, mathematically speaking. It comes down to reproducing a string of symbols (a message) selected from a distribution of messages at one point (the transmitter, Tx) at another point (the receiver, Rx). Connecting them is what is called a "channel". The famous picture Shannon drew in that paper is here:
A communication channel
Information theory is sometimes made to seem to spring fully formed from Shannon's head like Athena, but it has some precursors in Hartley and Nyquist (both even worked at Bell labs, like Shannon), and Hartley's definition of information (which coincides with Shannon's when all symbols are considered equally probable) is actually the one we resort to most of the time on this blog.
One improvement Shannon made was to come up with a definition of information that could handle symbols with different probabilities. In their book, Shannon and Weaver are careful to note that we are only talking about the symbols when we talk about information, not their meaning. For example I could successfully transmit the series of symbols making up the word
but the meaning could be different to a British English (10⁹ or 10¹²) and an American English (10⁹) speaker. It would be different to a French speaker (10¹²). The information would also be slightly different since letter frequencies (i.e. their probabilities of occurring in a message) differ slightly among the languages/dialects.
Shannon came up with the definition of information by looking at its properties:
• Something that always happens carries no information (a light that is always on isn't communicating anything -- it has to have at least a tiny chance of going out)
• The information received from transmitting two independent symbols is the sum of the information from each symbol
• There is no such thing as negative information
You can see these are intimately connected to probability. Our information function I(p) -- with p a probability -- therefor has to have the mathematical properties
• I(p = 1) = 0
• I(p₁ p₂) = I(p₁) + I(p₂)
• I(p) ≥ 0
The second one follows from the probability of two independent events being the product of the two probabilities. It's also the one that dictates that I(p) must be related to the logarithm. Since all probabilities have to obey 1 ≥ p ≥ 0, we have
I(p) = log(1/p)
This is the information entropy of an instance of a random variable with probability p. The Shannon (information) entropy of a random event is the expected value of it's information entropy
H(p) = E[I(p)] = Σₓ pₓ I(pₓ) = - Σₓ pₓ log(pₓ)
where the sum is taken over all the states pₓ (where Σₓ pₓ = 1). Also note that p log(p) = 0 for p = 0. There's a bit of abuse of notation in writing H(p). More accurately you could write this in terms of a random variable X with probability function P(X):
H(X) = E[I(X)] = E[- log(P(X))]
This form makes it clearer that X is just a dummy variable. The information entropy is actually a property of the distribution the symbols are drawn from P:
H(•) = E[I(•)] = E[- log(P(•))]
In economics, this becomes the critical point; we say that the information entropy of the distribution P₁ of demand (d) is equal to the information entropy of the distribution P₂ of supply (s):
E[I(d)] = E[I(s)]
E[- log(P₁(d))] = E[- log(P₂(s))]
E[- log(P₁(•))] = E[- log(P₂(•))]
and call it information equilibrium (for a single transaction here). The market can be seen as a system for equalizing the distributions of supply and demand (so that everywhere there is some demand, there is some supply ... at least in an ideal market).
Also in economics (at least on this blog), we frequently take P to be a uniform distribution (over x = 1..σ symbols) so that:
E[I(p)] = - Σₓ pₓ log(pₓ) = - Σₓ (1/σ) log(1/σ) = - (σ/σ) log(1/σ) = log σ
The information in n such events (a string of n symbols from an alphabet of size σ with uniformly distributed symbols) is just
n E[I(p)] = n log σ
Or another way using random variable form for multiple transactions with uniform distributions:
E[- log(P₁(•)P₁(•)P₁(•)P₁(•) ... )] = E[- log(P₂(•)P₂(•)P₂(•)P₂(•) ...)]
n₁ E[- log(P₁(•))] = n₂ E[- log(P₂(•))]
n₁ E[- log(1/σ₁)] = n₂ E[- log(1/σ₂)]
n₁ log(σ₁) = n₂ log(σ₂)
Taking n₁, n₂ >> 1 while defining n₁ ≡ D/dD (in another abuse of notation where dD is an infinitesimal unit of demand) and n₂ ≡ S/dS, we can write
D/dD log(σ₁) = S/dS log(σ₂)
dD/dS = k D/S
where k ≡ log(σ₁)/log(σ₂) is the information transfer index. That's the information equilibrium condition.
PS In another abuse of notation, on this blog I frequently write:
I(D) = I(S)
Where I should more technically write (in the notation above)
E[n₁ I(P(d))] = E[n₂ I(P₂(s))]
where d and s are random variables with distributions P₁ and P₂. Also note that these E's aren't economists' E operators, but rather ordinary expected values.
Monday, December 14, 2015
An empirical validation of k - (k - 1) = 1
The equations for the price level (P) and output (N) in the information equilibrium model have the forms:
N ~ (M/m0)ᵏ
P ~ k (M/m0)ᵏ⁻¹
Which means that
log N ~ k log M
log P ~ (k-1) log M
log N ~ k₁ log M
log P ~ k₂ log M
So that the difference in the slopes in log-log space between the first relationship and the second relationship is k₁ - k₂ = k - (k - 1) = 1 (if measured over short time periods -- since k is changing). In the real world there are shocks that come from the changes in the labor supply (E) so that we should actually add in the slope of
log E ~ s log M
So that
k₁ + s - k₂ ≈ 1
And guess what: it works! Non-ideal information transfer during recessions mean there should be deviations, and in general I(N) > I(M) so P < P* (the ideal price level) so we fall below the ideal value:
Abenomics or optical illusion?
David Beckworth highlights a segment of the data and concludes that Abenomics has accelerated growth in Japan:
More generally, Abenomics has been mildly successful at reflating the economy. The figure below shows nominal Japan's NGDP with the Abenomics period highlighted in red. It has risen relatively rapidly.
I would make the case that the Keynesian component ("fiscal arrow") explains an acceleration as much as the monetary one ("monetary arrow"). But I think some perspective is lost because Japan has basically zero net NGDP growth over the past twenty years.
Let's artificially add 2% trend growth to Japan's numbers (this will only shift the NGDP growth rate graph up and down) and take a new look:
Well, now it looks like every other economy's gradual return to trend after 2008. And the quantitative easing period looks like trend growth. That is to say the lack of growth exaggerates the return to trend in the graph of Japan's NGDP. (Note the lack of growth also exaggerates the noise in Japan's NGDP numbers because a plot of NGDP doesn't require as large a range versus its domain.)
So maybe the "mean reversion" is over? The IT model predicts lower NGDP going forward.
The key question as always is: What is the counterfactual?
Who has two thumbs and isn't stumped?
... this guy.
From the WSJ (via Tim Duy (via Mark Thoma)) we get a nice compilation of central bank forecasts from 2011 to 2015 along with actual inflation. Although the information equilibrium model didn't exist in 2011, I thought I'd run the projections using the data that would have been available at the time (although it does include revisions, but these shouldn't perturb the results too much since they're relatively stable) and overlay the results on the nice WSJ graph:
For reference, the various forecasts are here.
Saturday, December 12, 2015
Switzerland's negative interest rates
Here's the model for Swiss interest rates presented both as an upper bound (representing ideal information transfer so that observed interest rates are less than the ideal interest rate r < r*) and as a fit:
Negative interest rates can be seen in the "bound" form as representing un-modeled complex economic interactions as discussed here using an ideal gas as an analogy. In that post, the PV diagram for a gas is observed to be below the "ideal bound" set by the ideal gas law because of molecular forces and condensation from a gas to a liquid.
In the interest rate model, we'd imagine because of e.g. program buying by mutual funds or the costs of holding physical currency information equilibrium would be a bad assumption and since the bound is near zero, negative rates become possible.
The effect of a rate increase coming out of the Fed's Dec 2015 meeting
The emerging consensus (here, or in summary here) is that the Fed will/should "raise rates" after its December meeting. This is probably a bad idea for reasons that fall outside the realm (scope) of the information equilibrium model -- the IEM actually says it probably won't matter until reserves get down to pre-2008 levels.
There is one issue here: since the current rate is actually a ceiling (0.25%, here) and a floor (0%, here -- and my vote for most boring FRED graph), what does "raise rates" mean? Assuming it'll just be a 25 basis point increase [1], we have three options:
A. Raise the ceiling?
In this case, nothing should happen. Market rates are already below the ceiling, so it shouldn't make a big difference. However, instead of fluctuating between 0 and 0.25%, rates will fluctuate between 0 and 0.5% -- a slightly higher average.
B. Raise the floor to the ceiling?
This would return to pre-2008 where the Fed had a single target rate, so I kind of doubt they'd want to give up newly normalized flexibility (hence more likely that they take option C below). It would would probably be an "effective" 10 basis point increase because of the current effective Fed funds rate
C. Raise the floor and the ceiling?
In this case we get a new ceiling of 0.5% and a new floor of 0.25%. As the market seems to oscillate between the current floor and ceiling, I'd imagine it would oscillate between this new floor and ceiling ... resulting in an effective 25 basis point increase.
Now that we have these contingencies, I can make a prediction of what will happen to the monetary base (assuming the path of NGDP remains unchanged). To do the averages (e.g. between 0.25 and 0.5), I took the average of the logarithm (using the lowest observed Fed funds rate of 0.04 as a floor). That means:
No change (0) = EFF of 0.1%
Scenario A = 0.14%
Scenario B = 0.25%
Scenario C = 0.35%
I also added 1% and 2% for reference.
Note that if the monetary base goes to the levels corresponding to these rates (barring a sudden change in NGDP), it would represent a pretty remarkable success of the interest rate model functional form:
log(r) = c log(NGDP/MB) + c log(k)
with c = 2.8 and c log(k) = -11.1 (these are the same values as other places I've presented them, just written in a different form).
Update 12/13/2015
Calculated Risk says that Option C looks like the analyst consensus.
[1] There is the possibility of raising the ceiling by more than the floor. But I'll ignore that here.
Friday, December 11, 2015
Japan's RGDP growth
I wanted to give this treatment to Japan (at least as far as the RGDP model goes towards the end), but unfortunately I was unable to find good data for the total employed population (for the RGDP fluctuations). So we're just left with trends. Anyway, the price level for Japan last discussed here is below:
I have only occasionally shown the NGDP-M0 path for Japan as well. The thing is that it is such a short segment of data (1994-present) that it's really hard to get an assessment of the model errors. Here's the fit at roughly the same scale I show the US NGD-M0 path:
Really, we don't have a long NGDP time series. If anyone has a good source out there, let me know. One result of this is the NGDP trend:
The interesting thing is that, like in the price level graph, it appears Abe has benefited from taking office (at the beginning of 2013) at the peak of a negative fluctuation (in both NGDP and inflation). The mean reversion (and fiscal stimulus) has made it look like "monetary Abenomics" has done something. The resulting trend RGDP growth looks like this:
The real story appears to be a negative fluctuation in inflation and NGDP around the time Abe takes office coupled with real growth on the heels of the financial crisis. The upward trend in RGDP starts at least a year before Abe, if not during the trough of the 2008 financial crisis.
In a sense, Abe has benefited from timing in the same way Jeb Bush did, except Abe came in at the bottom of a trough rather than exiting just before a bubble burst.
Scale invariance and constant returns to scale
As an addendum to this post, I thought I'd talk a bit more about 1) scale invariance and 2) constant returns to scale that may help with some understanding -- both yours and mine! There is not meant to be a point to this post. It's just general information and making some distinctions.
The information equilibrium Solow (Cobb-Douglas) production function model (with output in equilibrium with capital N ⇄ K and labor N ⇄ L) gives us the form
(N/N0) = (K/K0)ᵝ (L/L0)ᵞ
Actually this helps clear up one of the decent criticisms of the Cobb-Douglas production function that comes from Austrian economists. They say that the units of total factor productivity are meaningless unless β = γ = 1. It's true. If you take the function:
N = A Kᵝ Lᵞ
The units of total factor productivity are
[A] = n k⁻ᵝ l⁻ᵞ
Where [N] = n, [K] = k and [L] = l. If β and γ aren't 1, then total factor productivity has units of inverse capital to some fractional power times inverse labor to some fractional power times output. Of course, there are different places to put the A ... sometimes it goes with the L so that:
N = Kᵝ (A L)ᵞ
But that just requires a different kind of weirdness with units to make it work out. The information equilibrium version says that
A = N0/(K0ᵝ L0ᵞ)
and we have
N = N0 (K/K0)ᵝ (L/L0)ᵞ = A Kᵝ Lᵞ
... i.e. A represents a combination of the scale of labor, the scale of capital and the scale of the economy (or possibly A = L0 with some other bits in the other case). The main point is that it isn't its own scale and therefore it's fine if it has weird units.
Normally, economists use the transformation
K → α K
L → α L
to derive the necessary constraint on the exponents to maintain constant returns to scale. However, this transformation leaves the IT model equations invariant:
dN/dK = β (N/K) → (1/α) dN/dK = (1/α) β (N/K) ⇒ dN/dK = β (N/K)
dN/dL = γ (N/L) → (1/α) dN/dL = (1/α) γ (N/L) ⇒ dN/dK = γ (N/L)
As well as the solution:
(N/N0) = (αK/αK0)ᵝ (αL/αL0)ᵞ = (K/K0)ᵝ (L/L0)ᵞ ⇒
Note that the equations are also invariant under:
N → α N
K → α K
L → α L
Essentially, we are scaling up the measuring rod with these transformations.
In contrast, constant returns to scale take
N → α N
K → α K
L → α L
but don't transform the scales
N0 → N0
K0 → K0
L0 → L0
Which leaves us with a non-trivial condition if we want constant returns to scale:
(αN/N0) = (αK/K0)ᵝ (αL/L0)ᵞ = αᵝ αᵞ (K/K0)ᵝ (L/L0)ᵞ ⇒
α (N/N0) = αᵝ αᵞ (K/K0)ᵝ (L/L0)ᵞ
This implies that β + γ = 1 so that the α's on both sides cancel.
So what is the difference here? Constant returns to scale is an argument about extensivity of economic growth: double inputs means you double output. It's about what measurable changes in your system do to your system measured with scales in your system (N0, L0, K0, etc). Scale invariance is about whether the size of the measuring rod matters. The former is an experiment you can do. The latter is an experiment you can never do (if the theory is correct).
For example, with special relativity, you can never determine an absolute rest frame. No experiment will determine a privileged frame. However, the speed of light is a physical scale and so you can do experiments that test effects relative to that scale (for example, the self-rest-frame lifetime of muons is not long enough for them to make it through the atmosphere from cosmic rays, but they do make it through because of time dilation).
The extensivity is a measurable property but doesn't generally apply when the constituents of the system being combined interact. A good example is batteries in a circuit. A bunch of batteries in series has voltage as an extensive property while a bunch of batteries in parallel has current as an extensive property. Some calculations speed up if done in parallel, while others do not.
That is to say constant returns to scale is a major assumption about how labor and capital interact to produce output. In the "double Earth" thought experiment, the two don't interact ... the new Earth is effectively separate from the old earth. So it makes sense that output just doubles and there are constant returns to scale. But that doesn't necessarily apply to doubling the capital and labor supply on a single Earth.
Side note: effective field theory
K → α K
dN/dK = β1 (N/K) + β2 (N/K)² →
(1/α) dN/dK = (1/α) β1 (N/K) + (1/α)² β2 (N/K)²
does not work, but
N → α N
K → α K
(α/α) dN/dK = (α/α) β1 (N/K) + (α/α)² β2 (N/K)² ⇒
does work. Terms like
N d²N/dK², (N/K) dN/dK, and (N²/K) d³N/dK³
preserve the homogeneity of degree zero ... should represent higher order corrections to the IT model.
Wednesday, December 9, 2015
Nick Rowe has an interesting incremental argument asking: when does the cash disappear? It's kind of another Sorites paradox, except it asks what properties must you take away for something to stop being "cash". In one sense, I agree: money seems to be better defined by symmetry properties, so whatever it is, it doesn't stop being money unless you take away those symmetry properties ... which means you've made the economy become a non-ideal information processor and lost lots of output.
But that's the key -- Nick Rowe's properties are mostly extraneous properties of money, not extraneous properties of "cash".
In the information transfer model, the key property that distinguishes what we call "cash" (bits of paper with e.g. Benjamin Franklin on them in the US) from other types of "money" like M1 or MZM is that "cash" (aka M0) is what anchors the core inflation rate as well as the NGDP path. That is to say the inflation rate (the change in the price level P) is set in the market:
P : NGDP ⇄ M0
M1 and M2 don't set the inflation rate (there are large fluctuations), but M1 and M2 are money in the sense that they can be used for transactions.
What is it about M0 that makes it have this property?
I don't know for certain. I think it may be the fact that central banks can't get a hold of your M0 to pay (positive or negative) interest on it. Things that are included in M1 and M2? Yes, definitely. I have some M1 in my bank right now gaining interest.
So when Nick says:
2. Muggers become a problem, so people put their currency in a box at the central bank with their name on it. ...
3. The bank notices it is now administratively easier to pay (positive or negative) interest on currency than it was when people kept their currency in their pockets. So the bank now has a second monetary policy instrument, in addition to Open Market Operations.
I think these steps are a bigger deal than Nick makes it out to be. The information entropy in the distribution of currency would suddenly vanish since the state of every dollar is now known (so that interest could be paid). Basically I have just acquired log2 C(n, k) ~ n H(k/n) ~ 1 trillion 4 billion bits of information (k = people in the country 300 million, n = 1.3 trillion dollars). That may not sound like a lot in terms of electronic storage, but the entire annual economy (n = 18 trillion dollars) represents only about 2 trillion 5 billion bits. (Assuming indistinguishablility.)
In a thermodynamic system, knowing the state of every atom in an ideal gas would allow you to extract useful work out of the system. However, knowing each bit of information about the state of every atom costs kT log 2 in energy, so this is an impossible task.
There is no energy restriction in the economic case, but this still represents a major change in the properties of the macroeconomy.
Basically, labeling those boxes at the central bank is what "cash" does.
Tuesday, December 8, 2015
Mayan targetan on-when NGDP
Imagine we travel back in time to the second quarter of 2009. We stop by the Federal Reserve and reveal to Fed officials that the recession has now bottomed out. We inform them about a non-causal monetary policy first presented by Scott Sumner.
The Fed agrees with our assessment and decides to spend its political capital on the temporally-independent NGDP target and gets the backing of Congress and the Treasury Department (and the NSF). The great macroeconomic (and physics) experiment begins.
So what would happen next in this counterfactual history? How would the economy respond to these compound time-travelling events starting with traveling back to mid-2009? No one can answer these questions with certainty, but it is likely that at a minimum there would be temporarily undefined inflation (as inflation would fail to be a function of time).
The figures below lend support to this understanding. They come from a paper I wioll haven be currently willing worken where I willan on-run a counterfactual retro-forecast of nominal input/output starting in mid-2009. The retro-forecast willan on-be based on four different paths of NGDP willing returnen to its pre/post-crisis trend: a two-year path, a three-year path, a four-year path and a negative two-year path. The first figure shows the four NGDP return paths and the second figure shows the inflation forecasts associated with these paths:
Ok, < /snark >
This is a parody of David Beckworth's post on NGDP targeting (with some Douglas Adams thrown in). The question isn't really (and has never been) what would happen if NGDP targeting worked, but would NGDP targeting work?
If the Fed is unable to meet an inflation target, why can it meet an NGDP target? Why does the liquidity trap argument fail with NGDP targeting? Why does the IT index k suddenly rise with NGDP targeting?
In short, why is NGDP targeting as magical as time travel?
Friday, December 4, 2015
Limit cycles versus avalanches
I'm not sure I understand the allure of Steve Keen. One of his papers came up in comments (from Steve Roth) here. One of the first comments on my blog was from someone who said I should check Keen out. His big thing is nonlinear differential equations; you get graphs like this in his papers:
One of Keen's claims to fame is that he "predicted" the global financial crisis. Of course, if you think everything happens in cycles, then a financial crisis is always just around the corner. However the business cycle isn't very cyclic -- in the sense of being periodic (see Noah Smith for a good overview). I have a view that would be more like avalanches or earthquakes. They will be spaced out because it takes time to build up mechanical energy or snow (or in the economics case, too much output), but the exact failure time isn't unpredictable.
One of the other problems with these limit cycles (as they're called in the biz) is that they aren't always terribly robust to noise. Here's a simple one with and without noise:
Anyway, Keen has a model in the paper Roth linked to that produces this graph of the real growth rate:
If we take this at its most charitable (i.e. best fit) of Keen's model (red) to some real data from the US, we see something like this:
It's not terrible, but it seems like it wouldn't really continue into the past or future and line up exactly. And with noise on this level, you'd actually expect those nice cycles at the top of the post to completely evaporate.
What does the IT model have to say about this? Well the RGDP growth trend (brown) definitely looks less impressive:
The IT model story of the post-war era has been that of gradually falling RGDP growth. This is roughly what we'd expect if those nominal shocks (avalanches) were at their average level over the entire period. If we add the shocks in, we get this:
Note that this model comes from just M0 and the labor supply (equal to nominal shocks). Overall, instead of a story of cyclic booms and busts with one leading to another, we have a story of over-estimating future growth because it slows over time. These over-estimates lead to the Fed being unsustainably expansionary relative to the trend, eventually culminating in a recession. Strong enough recessions are usually accompanied by financial crises (because contracts become unsustainable, and panic leads to non-ideal information transfer and falls in prices).
That is to say recessions happen because of a backward-looking bias in growth expectations (similar to inflation). Previous growth will be higher than future growth, so estimating future growth from previous growth will be biased high -- leading to unsustainable Fed growth targets, business investment, and general over-optimism about the future.
I wouldn't say this is totally inconsistent with Keen's version (there's still over-investment that leads to recession), but here there is also a continuous fall in economic growth as the economy gets larger.
But I still don't get the desire to see the economy as a robust and well-defined cycle. The idea of aperiodic failures of the market due to a combination of an optimism bias and irrational panic is more appealing to my sensibilities. Maybe other people want economics to be as precise as a nonlinear circuit (sometimes even more precise than possible)?
Supply, demand, stock, flow
Steve Roth of Asymtosis, Angry Bear, and other places stopped by the blog the other day and over the course of some discussion -- and perusing his links -- I wanted to note a couple things.
Steve says:
Am I foolish to suggest that the central concepts of economics, supply and demand, are embarassingly un(der)theorized?
I agree! Actually, I think economists might not even understand supply and demand (except Gary Becker). For one, the supposed experiment designed by Vernon Smith (Nobel prize winner for this very kind of experimental economics) actually assumes its result. If you assign numerical utility to people, along with a budget constraint, you get supply and demand. This is how monkeys can end up illustrating supply and demand. Additionally, various classroom experiments don't show what they purport to show. Supply and demand is a property of the state space. Gary Becker showed this way back in 1962.
There was also some discussion of stocks and flows. This is one area where many economists and non-economists get a little too fastidious. It is true that in one case you can have an associated time (well, 'velocity') scale (flows) and one where you don't (stocks) and it is important to understand where this scale comes from.
However, in the information equilibrium model, I frequently put a flow in information equilibrium with a stock -- notably in the relationship NGDP ⇄ M0. Nominal output is dollars per year (or annualized), whereas the money supply is a stock of currency. And there is nothing particularly wrong with this. Why? Because the information in a distribution doesn't really care too much about the domain it's over ... just what the distribution is over the domain. This post has a bit of background (it goes over the rationale behind the blog's favicon and the meaning of the diagram up in the upper right corner on a desktop browser).
Let's say we have a spatial-temporal distribution of an information source distribution (demand, translucent white) and one for the destination (supply, blue):
As you move along the time axis, you have different "stocks" at different instants in time; the change as you move along the time dimension is a "flow". When these are in information equilibrium, they match up:
When they don't match up (demand doesn't meet supply at the right place and right time), you have information loss that can be measured with the KL divergence between the two 2-dimensional distributions:
However, I can also integrate over the time dimension (add up the areas under the blue and white surfaces in one direction) and still see the information loss as a "stock" (an integrated flow):
For a simplified version of this with widgets, you can go to that aforementioned post. Once I've done this integration, I am free to compare it to the information content of a probability distribution of something else:
Since information doesn't really have units per se (bits can be changed to nibbles by multiplying by a constant pure number), it is perfectly fine for the information content in the distribution of a stock to be in equilibrium with the information content in the distribution of a flow.
Now maybe you don't buy this. That's fine. But here's a well known equation in physics that says a stock is equal to a flow (plus a change in flow):
ẍ + (1/τ) ẋ + ω² x = 0
This equation for a damped harmonic oscillator is essentially
change in flow + flow + stock = 0
There are just parameters (scales τ and ω) that make the units work out. If I say
stock Y = flow X
There is just an implicit time scale T (parameter, or constant of proportionality) so that:
Y = T X
If you never couple stocks to flows (putting a stock and a flow in the same equation 'couples' them -- makes them depend on each other), then all flows will be independent of all stocks! There will be a stock description of the economy and a flow description of the economy, and the two will have nothing to do with each other.
Caring a bit too much about stocks and flows is a bit like saying you can't set time equal to a position. And while it's true x = t gets the units wrong, time and position can be in equilibrium -- just add a constant of proportionality (velocity) so that x = v t.
In fact, the great achievement of Einstein was creating the idea of space-time -- space and time are in a sense equivalent. The reason they're equivalent is the existence of a universal constant of proportionality: the speed of light c. Or you could say the equivalence means there must be a universal constant with units of velocity.
Update 06 December 2016
Since I wrote this I found that SFC analysis does couple stocks to flows -- it also forgets those time scales T -- by looking at stock-to-flow ratios.
Thursday, December 3, 2015
More of Draghi's open mouth operations
So the ECB made some comments and the Euro exchange rate jumped. OMG the FT is onit! Here's data from Bloomberg:
Well, actually, the exchange rate is now where it dropped to back in October when it was considered a loosening monetary policy:
So monetary policy is now as loose as it was on October 22 ...
The thing is that the exchange rate should fall on bad economic news (evaluated relative to the US for the Euro-dollar rate) since bad economic news should mean lower AD (relative to the US continuing along its path). The Euro-dollar exchange rate could also fall if the US was doing better than the EU.
Chalk it up to another case where markets are operating under a mistaken theory.
Here's the IT model using M2 (in the footnote) (today's move is in black):
Nice Gaussian residuals ...
Wednesday, December 2, 2015
Please don't help
Economists: teaching economic models for the math, not the economics.
Bill Craighead, a professor at Miami University in Ohio, wrote a post that Mark Thoma linked to (Prof. Craighead, get ready for a few thousand more pageviews) about the value of the undergrad intro to economics series. He (Craighead) was arguing the counterpoint to Noah Smith's attack on the intro series.
Noah writes:
We have a lot of macro theories, but none that really work well unless you pick your data set very carefully and squint very hard. ... And to make it worse, most of the macro theories that economists take halfway seriously are too hard for intro kids, so they end up learning silly stuff like Mundell-Fleming and Keynesian Cross that no one even halfway believes.
One of Craighead's defenses is a bit silly, though:
Second, working with economic models develops thinking and mathematical skills. Smith makes the point that the models we teach in an intro class have their flaws (as do the models we teach in PhD-level classes...), though I still think they're quite useful for thinking about a number of issues. But the act of manipulating a model and working out how assumptions are linked to conclusions helps students become sharper thinkers, and this stays with them long after they've forgotten the specifics of any particular model.
Call me old-fashioned, but mathematical skills are best taught in math class. And if the content of the models doesn't matter (and even economists don't believe them), why not teach some models without flaws that are actually pretty accurate that are believed by their practitioners ... like undergraduate physics. Have one of these people teach how to build and use models!
Why has economics taken upon itself to teach undergraduates how to use models and derive them from assumptions? No offense, but economics is the last field that comes to mind for this task. Especially since economists tend to sneak political bias in with those assumptions ...
It's like teaching people how to work on car engines using movie props. But students learn motor skills and how to think in 3-dimensions ...
NY Fed DSGE model "update"
I hadn't noticed until today, but the NY Fed has been updating their predictions with their DSGE model. Well, "update" is a strange word for it since they have changed their model and are still projecting to only 2018 (the projection period has gotten shorter by over a year -- now cutting off the projected return to 2% inflation in the graph [1]).
Normally, we'd want to see how a forecast does over its entire period, rather than making new forecasts and sending the previous ones down the memory hole. That is how your local weather station deals with its long term forecasts. The forecast for next Friday changes four times from Monday until Friday arrives. But at least the NWS doesn't change the model in the interim!
The NY Fed should just be projecting 2 quarters if they're going to keep doing this. They should have noted that the May 2015 projection was wrong in Dec 2015 (skirting the 90% contour after changing your model is not success). Ironically, had they stuck with their Sep 2014 projection it actually would have looked better!
Here's the link for the IT model predictions.
[1] It's still in the text:
The change in inflation forecasts relative to those reported last May reflects stronger-than-expected inflation data caused by the temporary increase in energy prices in 2015:Q2. However, this effect is expected to dissipate over the next few months and to be followed by a very gradual return to the 2 percent target.
Some day my long run will come
Brad DeLong asks: At what time scale, if any, does the long run come?
Some other answers besides the 3-6 years discussed by Krugman and DeLong:
Tuesday, December 1, 2015
Money is that which is conserved via a symmetry principle
Not sure where I got the link to this (so H/T to someone on the internet), but it was an entertaining jaunt through questions about "money" with supposedly more to come. I have my own theory about the origin of money that isn't really inconsistent with what Steve Roth (the author) says. He does say something that I'll take issue with, but in a constructive way I hope ...
Now to be fair: a definition of money will never be simple and straightforward. Physicists’ definition of “energy” certainly isn’t. But physicists don’t completely talk past each other when they use the word and its associated concepts.
Energy actually has a really beautiful and simple definition: that which is conserved due to the time-translation symmetry of the universe. Because the laws of physics don't change if you go backwards or forwards a billion years (time translation), there is something that is conserved by Noether's theorem. We call this energy, but once we have time and time-translation symmetry, we have this conjugate quantity and we should call it something. Energy is a fine name. The equivalent conserved quantity for the space translation invariance of the universe is momentum, again ... something that took us awhile to figure out was conserved.
Now if we just knew what time was ...
Anyway, to make this a constructive criticism let me posit that money is a unit of measure [and quantity] of that which is conserved because of the homogeneity of degree zero of the economic universe. Homogeneity of degree zero is a bit mathy, but it's a simple concept. If I double the demand for sheep and the supply of sheep, then the price of sheep will stay the same (is conserved) ... and prices are measured in money. That's how the tally marks in Roth's piece can be "money". If you doubled the amount of sheep owed and doubled the amount of tally marks, you haven't done anything accounting-wise to the price of a sheep.
But that's really it -- anything that becomes an intermediary between supply and demand can be money as long as it "works". What do we mean by "works"? Well, if changes in supply and changes in demand still carry the same amount of information with the intermediary in place (they are in information equilibrium), then we can say that intermediary "works" and therefore is money. In general, information equilibrium relationships are the bare minimum required to maintain this capability.
The tally marks and sheep above represent two things that are information equilibrium. If I change the tally marks, it is translated into a change in sheep. If I was to change the number of sheep in some sort of pattern (+1 sheep, -1 sheep, -1 sheep, -1 sheep, + 1 sheep) and I get the exact same pattern of change in the tally marks (+1 tally, -1 tally, -1 tally, -1 tally, + 1 tally), then I could in principle send a message (in Morse code, say). And if I can send a message, information must be flowing through a communication channel. We say the tally marks and sheep are in information equilibrium. I should be able to communicate a signal of changes in supply through the price mechanism, otherwise information is being lost along the way -- basic information theory.
But the real bonus is that something that can be used for a lot of products works the best to communicate that information without loss, especially if it isn't a product itself (doesn't have intrinsic value) and is completely fungible (high entropy). That's where my definition of money comes in:
Money is a thing that mediates transactions and has high information entropy
Tally marks fit this bill. So does our modern currency. But essentially, what money is doing is helping maintain homogeneity of degree zero, so that prices don't change if you double supply and double demand. And an information equilibrium relationship (linked above) is the most general form of the simplest condition required for this to be true.
Update 12/6/2015
I thought I should express mathematically (and therefore more precisely) what the previous post means.
Homogeneity of degree zero (aka invariance under scale transformations or conformal symmetry) in the supply (S) and demand (D) defines the relationship (to leading order)
P = dD/dS = k D/S
where P is the (abstract) price of whatever S is. This is the fundamental information equilibrium relationship and is denoted D ⇄ S. This is invariant under the transformation:
D → α D
S → α S
d(αD)/d(αS) = dD/dS
k (αD)/(αS) = k D/S
So P → P under the symmetry transformation. That means P is a measure of whatever is conserved under the symmetry principle (per Noether's theorem) -- it is invariant under the transformation.
As an aside, if D = D(t), P = P(t) and S = S(t), the the symmetry transformation applies at all times simultaneously D(t) → α D(t), S(t) → α S(t); P(t) → P(t) is invariant. This is really the idea that if you add a couple zeros to every price for all times, you haven't really done anything.
P is the (abstract) price in the information equilibrium model of economics, and it is related to money through the unit of account. But we can go further. Let's introduce something called M (the medium of exchange) and because of the chain rule (and multiplying by 1 = M/M)
dD/dS = k D/S
(dD/dM) (dM/dS) = k (M/M)(D/S)
(dD/dM) (dM/dS) = k (D/M)(M/S)
If D ⇄ M ⇄ S (D is in information equilibrium with M and M with S so that information gets from D to S via M), then we have a relationship
P'' = dD/dM = k'' D/M
And so we can re-write the equation above
(P/P'') P'' = (dD/dM) (dM/dS) = (k/k'') k'' (D/M)(M/S)
P' = dM/dS = k' M/S
Therefore we can capture the relationship P : D ⇄ S entirely with P' : M ⇄ S. Now dM/dS is the exchange rate for an infinitesimal quantity of money for an infinitesimal quantity of supply ...i.e. dM/dS = P' is the money price of a unit of S (as opposed to the abstract price P).
This equation is just another information equilibrium relationship and is invariant under the conformal symmetry transformation
M → α M
S → α S
which leaves the money price P' invariant.
You can actually do the trick above to come out with P'' : D ⇄ M as the relationship that captures P : D ⇄ S entirely. Let's relax this to an information transfer relationship (non-ideal information transfer) P'' : D M. Let's say D is an aggregate demand of several goods D₁, D₂, D₃, ... Dn. The budget constraint means you can't spend more than M (the total amount of medium of exchange) at a given time, so D₁ + D₂ + D₃ + ... + Dn ≤ M. Since this is a high dimensional system (n >> 1), the most likely (maximum entropy) point saturates the budget constraint D₁ + D₂ + D₃ + ... + Dn ≈ M. Therefore at any given time most medium of exchange will be allocated against all the investments, goods and services, etc ... and therefore the distribution of medium of exchange will be approximately equal to the distribution of goods and services. This means that medium of exchange minimizes the difference between the information content of D and M, i.e. minimizes I(D) − I(M), or more usefully
I(D) = β I(M)
for some β where 0 < β ≤ 1. Therefore (returning to the definition of the information equilibrium relationship)
(D/dD) log σd = β (M/dM) log σm
D/dD = (1/k''') M/dM
dD/dM = k''' D/M
where k''' = (log σd)/(β log σm). I.e. the existence of a high entropy medium of exchange M allows us to write I(D) ≥ I(M) (where the conformal symmetry doesn't hold) as an effective information equilibrium relationship I(D) = I(M) (where the conformal symmetry does hold).
So to be more precise, the money as unit of account is that which is preserved by a symmetry principle (scale invariance or conformal symmetry). Money as medium of exchange makes the symmetry principle hold.
By magic number, Nick Rowe means scale of the theory
Nick Rowe has a speculative post up about "magic numbers". It's really about scales, but economics doesn't quite know how to use scales yet.
If you start with nothing and want to talk about an inflation rate, the only rate you could sensibly discuss zero. It's "magic" in Rowe's description.
In physics, we call this, colloquially, a "what else could it be?" argument. Given the scales in your theory, what can you construct as the scale for your answer?
By fiat, we start with nothing. No fundamental scales. Therefore if the inflation rate π that we stick in the exponential factor defines the time scale t0
exp(π t) = exp(t/t0)
... then t0 could only be zero (essential singularity ... aaah!) or infinity (no fundamental scales to anchor t0). If t0 → ∞, then π → 0. There's our "magic" number: the only scale available.
Another way to think about it is that the inflation rate has units of percent per year. We don't have anything with units of years (i.e. t0), so we can't construct an inflation rate. Note that you can think of t0 as proportional to the doubling time of the economy.
As an aside, in the case of the 2-player dictator game, you get the "magic" 50% per player from 100% and the 2 players who set the scale of the division.
Conformal anomalies are a way to get around this need for an explicit scale and generate a scale in a more complex way, but let's leave that alone for now.
Nick's speculation is that since the central bank has set 1/t0 = 2% per year, inflation is now π ~ 1/t0 no matter what economic growth is, destroying the so-called divine coincidence where monetary policy targets inflation and output is magically stabilized.
Note that you can use this idea of a scale to organize more than just Nick's view. In Nick's view, the scale t0 could only come from the mouth of central bankers (as it did with Scott Sumner). In old school monetarism (quantity theory of money), it comes from the growth rate of the money supply μ = 1/tμ with μ ~ π. You could even say that in a liquidity trap, t0 comes from the growth rate of fiscal expansion since monetary policy targets no longer give us relevant scales.
Nick's presentiation assumes 1) the central bank has set the scale t0 and 2) the central bank scale is the only possible scale for t0. The question immediately arises: What sets the scale for growth? Why isn't growth zero?
One interesting resolution is that the scale for real growth rate ρ ~ 1/t0 ... i.e. nominal growth rate ν = π + ρ with ρ ~ π so that ν = 2 π. Note that this is exactly what happens in the IT model when k = 2 (the quantity theory of money) where π = μ and ν = 2 π = 2 μ and ρ = π = μ. There's only one scale μ. This is therefore one way to realize the divine coincidence.
But in Nick's (speculative, by his own account) presentation has a scale for inflation π ~ 1/t0, but no scale for growth. Therefore growth should be either be: a) 1/t0 (per the previous paragraph, aka the divine coincidence), b) set by its own time scale T, or c) zero. He disallows b) and says a) fails, so growth should be zero. That's the only magic number allowed since the central bank controls ν and π (in his view), i.e. ν = π, ρ = 0.
Basically, failure of the divine coincidence implies that real growth should be zero unless it is set by it's own scale ρ = 1/T. But then we get into the problems ...
Let's say we start with an economy where there is some outside scale T (the scale of the concrete steppes); there is a divine coincidence so that 1/T ~ ρ ~ π. Now the central bank decides to start targeting π, setting a scale t0. Do we have
ρ ~ 1/T and π ~ 1/t0
ρ ~ 1/t0 and π ~ 1/t0
If the former, there is a scale (magic number) T besides t0 so monetary policy is not the only question about the economy. Growth is set by the real factors that operate on timescale T outside of monetary policy targets.
If the latter, did T just disappear? And in that case, why and how does the divine coincidence fail so that we end up with:
ρ ~ 0 and π ~ 1/t0
If the divine coincidence goes from operating (ie. ρ ~ 1/t0 and π ~ 1/t0) to failure (ie. ρ ~ 0 and π ~ 1/t0), what sets the time scale for that to happen? (My guess is T. But you see the need for an additional scale.)
Or does the divine coincidence fail and we have
ρ ~ 1/T and π ~ 1/t0
If that is the case, why didn't that happen in the first place?
What is important to understand here is that in order for Nick's view to make sense there basically must be some other scale (T, the scale of the concrete steppes) in the economy that controls economic growth that is independent of monetary policy targets (in the long run). It's the only thing that allows the divine coincidence to fail and still have non-zero economic growth. It could still be a monetary variable [1], it just has to be concrete.
Or another way: what is the "magic number" for real growth and why is it not zero in the failure of the divine coincidence?
The real magic number is of course 3:
[1] In the IT model, we have three scales: 1/σ (nominal shock/labor growth time scale), 1/μ (money growth time scale) and m0 (economy size). Roughly speaking, if M < m0 (large k) then μ sets ρ and π. If M > m0 (k ~ 1), σ sets ρ, and π ~ 0. | dclm_baseline | {'bff_contained_ngram_count_before_dedupe': '73', 'language_id_whole_page_fasttext': "{'en': 0.943955421447754}", 'metadata': "{'Content-Length': '276282', 'Content-Type': 'application/http; msgtype=response', 'WARC-Block-Digest': 'sha1:GCR46IXN7GJD76VAFYXZSLNKLYXM3WF3', 'WARC-Concurrent-To': '<urn:uuid:5d5333cc-a657-4db0-a0e1-2ce99e739203>', 'WARC-Date': datetime.datetime(2021, 1, 19, 17, 44, 59), 'WARC-IP-Address': '172.217.13.225', 'WARC-Identified-Payload-Type': 'text/html', 'WARC-Payload-Digest': 'sha1:YSSAYYTS4HNXLF7YM4RK62K6WLQOK2ND', 'WARC-Record-ID': '<urn:uuid:e25f1653-1144-48c2-9fc5-c622f72a0fd7>', 'WARC-Target-URI': 'http://informationtransfereconomics.blogspot.com/2015/12/', 'WARC-Type': 'response', 'WARC-Warcinfo-ID': '<urn:uuid:a1d6635f-c5b4-41ef-9dca-09ce39a86166>', 'WARC-Truncated': None}", 'previous_word_count': '8518', 'url': 'http://informationtransfereconomics.blogspot.com/2015/12/', 'warcinfo': 'isPartOf: CC-MAIN-2021-04\r\npublisher: Common Crawl\r\ndescription: Wide crawl of the web for January 2021\r\noperator: Common Crawl Admin (info@commoncrawl.org)\r\nhostname: ip-10-67-67-23.ec2.internal\r\nsoftware: Apache Nutch 1.17 (modified, https://github.com/commoncrawl/nutch/)\r\nrobots: checked via crawler-commons 1.2-SNAPSHOT (https://github.com/crawler-commons/crawler-commons)\r\nformat: WARC File Format 1.1\r\nconformsTo: http://iipc.github.io/warc-specifications/specifications/warc-format/warc-1.1/', 'fasttext_openhermes_reddit_eli5_vs_rw_v2_bigram_200k_train_prob': '0.48166924715042114', 'original_id': '43a3a681024fab9fb0c31a07a90ac4f82a773dd62b1fbf5b8f437c9d49a3a22d'} |
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Does capitalism need oppression?
Faline Bobier
November 11, 2015
Theoretically, at least, it seems like the answer to this question might be no. The driving impetus underlying capitalism as a system is the need to accumulate and to create profits, as in Marx’s famous description of the profit motive in Volume 1 of Capital: “Accumulate, accumulate! This is Moses and the Prophets!”
Exploitation—by which Marx meant the extraction of surplus value from the worker—is the process by which the system lives or dies. Surplus value, simply put, is the amount of money the capitalist makes after the wages paid to the workers for their labour; the profit margin, which the capitalist must then plough back into production or development of technology and means of production, in order to stay competitive with rival companies. Oppression—discrimination based on supposed shared characteristics of the oppressed group—may then seem like an add-on, an unnecessary appendage to the real agenda of the capitalist, which is the creation of profit.
In one sense this is an accurate description of how the system might work in an ideal world, one devoid of real living human beings, where profits could be generated by non-differentiated robots who would simply accomplish their tasks, no questions asked.
But of course capitalism is a system created by human beings moving through history. The workers whom capitalism depends on for its profits also have the potential to be the system’s downfall, as in Marx’s famous phrase where he describes the working class as potentially the gravediggers of capitalism.
Divide and conquer
But this potential threat is not something of which our rulers are unaware. The critical role that oppression plays under capitalism is as a divide and conquer mechanism that makes it difficult for workers to see their common interests—whatever their gender, race, religion, sexual preference, etc.
Of course, many forms of oppression have also been economically important to capitalists at various historical periods. The foundations of North American capitalism were based on two horrific historical episodes: the stealing of land and resources from Indigenous peoples, which continues to this day, and the institution of slavery (initially begun with poor whites and aboriginal people as the plantation slaves) which forcibly took millions of Black Africans from their homes to be sold into slavery in the New World.
The foundations of successful US capitalism were literally built on the backs of African men, women and children and the immense suffering and misery this entail—as was so convincingly portrayed in Steve McQueen’s movie Twelve Years a Slave. It was no exaggeration when Marx described the birth pangs of capitalism and colonialism as follows: “capital comes into the world dripping from head to foot, from every pore, with blood and dirt.”
Likewise, women’s oppression—although it predates capitalism and arose with the division of society into classes many thousands of years ago—plays a critical economic role for the system today. The ideology of sexism explains and justifies women’s lower wages, since their primary role is still seen as that of wife and mother, regardless of what the reality may be.
In particular, the role of the atomized nuclear family with mother at the center allows the bosses to absolve themselves of any responsibility for the social conditions in which these families are expected to survive. And as austerity bites with attacks on the necessary supports to families—such as accessible healthcare, decent and affordable daycare, humane elder care—individual family members, and particularly women, are expected to, and often feel humanly obliged to, step in and fill the ever-increasing gap.
This is why it’s not surprising that some feminist writers in the 1970s wrote about the possibility of demanding wages for housework, since all the unpaid labour that women do in the home is critical to the ability of the working class to reproduce and replenish itself and thereby to benefit the ruling class in their pursuit of profits.
Class unity
According to Marx the working class is a class in itself. This means it’s in our objective interests as a class of people who have nothing to sell but our ability to labour to band together and organize society differently, so that all wealth and power aren’t monopolized in the hands of a few. But what needs to happen, Marx says, is that the working class needs to become a class “for” itself—that is, a class that understands its power and the need to organize collectively to overturn the bloody system that exploits and oppresses us all. This can never happen when we are divided from each other along gender, racial, national, religious lines, or when we allow ourselves to be so divided.
When Russian revolutionary Lenin described revolutions as festivals of the oppressed he was speaking to the reality of the liberating power of struggle. Just as the Russian revolution was ignited by groups of working women demanding bread, so revolutionary situations since Lenin’s time have all included powerful currents struggling against various kinds of oppression.
Lenin also argued that the working class movement had to be a tribune of the oppressed. A working class that accepts racist, sexist or homophobic ideas will not be able to achieve its own liberation because it is these poisonous ideas that the ruling class will use to divide and conquer.
In the contemporary context we can see how notions such as “reverse racism” or “men’s rights” serve to trivialize the real historic and continuing oppression of Blacks, Indigenous people and other racial minorities, and the oppression of women—manifested in lower wages, sexist imagery in popular culture and advertising, violence and rape.
It is no surprise that the people pushing these ideas often hold extremely reactionary views on the place of women, Blacks and other minorities in society. These reactionary ideas can be the downfall, not only of the groups targeted by them, but also of the whole working class, if workers buy into these attempts to blame those who are oppressed for the their own bad lot under capitalism.
Marx argued the following about the need for English workers to make common cause with their Irish brothers and sisters, oppressed by the British state: “The English working class...will never be able to do anything decisive here in England before they separate their attitude towards Ireland definitively from that of the ruling classes, and not only make common cause with the Irish, but even take the initiative in dissolving the Union established in 1801. And this must be done not out of sympathy with the Irish, but as a demand on the interests of the English proletariat. If not the English proletariat will forever remain bound to the leading strings of the ruling classes, because they will be forced to make a common front with them against Ireland.”
Fighting against oppression is something that needs to be taken up by all of us, whether we are talking about women and men fighting and opposing sexism, about Blacks and whites fighting racism in movements such as Black Lives Matter, or Indigenous and non-Indigenous activists uniting to stop pipelines and to save the planet we live on.
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Renjinqicai common development.
Talent is the development of competition in this. Source letter Electric talents for the first resource for enterprise development, to rely on the talent as a fundamental prerequisite for enterprise development, to talent as a fundamental criterion of enterprise development, to promote the common development of enterprises and employees as the fundamental task of the human resources strategy. HR practice activities, source of electrical good faith to provide adequate display their talent stage for all kinds of talents, be utilized, can make the best use. At the same time, through a variety of effective ways to continuously improve the comprehensive quality management and human resource personnel, and promote mutual development of enterprises and employees, and to allow employees to share business development results, and achieve common development, sharing of success.
First, their talent, make the best use
Source letter Electric uphold the people-oriented business philosophy, persist in using the broad prospects for development of cohesion, with better career goals motivate people. Through the establishment of scientific and effective mechanism for talented people, good talent to create a positive environment for the growth, we are committed to providing a stage to display their talents for every employee, and by constantly creating personal development opportunities for all kinds of talents have to be successful and achieve self-worth and opportunities internet. In employment, the source of the letter Electric adhere to respect talent, and create the concept of not only academic focus on ability, not just a re-level diploma, employers look at performance, the ability to see, to see the potential. Through the establishment of fair competition mechanism and a good cultural environment, every employee fully mobilize the enthusiasm, initiative and creativity, so that employees love their job and do their best, so that people appropriate occasion, things fit its people, their talent, make the best use.
Second, common development, sharing of success
No staff's efforts, there is no successful business, no business success, there will not be a successful employee. So that employees and businesses grow together, and common development, is the source of the letter Electric has consistently adhered to the concept of talent development. Source letter Electric encourage employees to their own development and long-term planning combined to provide a variety of ways to the growth and development model for employees. As a staff development to enhance and realize the value of the platform, the electrical source signal for each employee to create a good growing conditions and provide a broad development space for every employee determined to become, so that employees can play the greatest potential to achieve common development of employees and enterprises. . Respect for employees and the company's pursuit of individuality, encourage employees to enhance their ability to agree with the staff's achievements. At the same time, adhere to the development by staff development for staff, development results and employees to share ideas, focus on corporate and employee interests of both sides into account, promote enterprise and employees unite together to create the job and share value, and ultimately achieve business and employees. between common development, sharing of success win-win situation.
Electrical source signal depends on employees to support the basic strength of enterprises, implementation of talent strategy, committed to building a passionate, understand the business, skilled, able to endure hardship operations are integrated personnel Quality. Encourage employees to self-taught, self-confident. Strengthen staff training and education, wage distribution using a variety of incentives for employees to get a sense of security from the company, a sense of belonging, a sense of achievement and life economic security, fully mobilize and employee self-reflect the value of life.
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« The Candidates' Health Care Reform Plans--Posner | Main | Slowing of Black Progress-Becker »
I'm sorry, Mr Posner, but you seem to have it backwards. Eliminating a reasonable minimum wage standard will provide 'job opportunities' that are not sufficient to support even a single person, not to mention a family. How would a person in poverty rise out of this dead end? This was the very situation at the close of the 19th century; perhaps you should review those lessons of history again, with an open mind.
Grumpy Old Man
I presume you will not wish to risk excommunication by commenting on the fact that American blacks on average consistently score one order of magnitude below American whites on intelligence tests; this seems to be true even correcting for education and parents' income.
This difference in aptitude accounts, in part, for different average degrees of worldly success in a meritocratic society.
These results don't mean that there won't be individual blacks whose achievements are exceptional, or whites and Asians who are exceptionally stupid. Nor do they say anything about moral virtue or worth of individuals or groups.
None of the critiques of the tests and the evidence, however, is convincing.
George Weinbaum
This is a disgrace. Blacks score 1.1 standard deviations below whites on IQ tests. This is an old story. What is it you don't understand? The cause is genetic. What is it you don't understand?
Lowering the minimum wage will expand job opportunities. It can be quantified and proven economically and mathematically.
In effect, the minimum wage rations jobs. Having a minimum wage generally adversely affects the people it is designed to help. The people that generally benefit are wealthier suburbanites.
I would like to have us to try legalizing drugs and see if that would help or hurt. If it hurts we could always make them illegal again. It could be that the rise of the illegal drug trade that contributed to the end in progress.
Posner seems unaware that one major flaw in capitalism is that of bidding wages down below even the cost of maintaining a basic standard of living. That IS why every advanced and civilized nation has a minimum wage.
The other problem capitalism has is that of full employment creating unacceptable levels of inflation. Thus, someone in DC has his hand on the valve that creates unemployment. For those "last hired and first laid off" their unemployment rate WILL be double that of the stated unemployment rate........ or higher.
The other mythology is that of "their productivity not being worth" a living wage, while somehow, CEO and upper management compensation that has soared from 60 times worker pay to over 500 times with NO question of such sums relating to their productivity. To which......... I would say if a businessman can't or won't pay even today's paltry minimum wage he can do the work himself, or, better yet, improve productivity by investing in technology and automation. America is not going to get out of its current problems by pounding wages down and using legions of manual laborers who can not afford to participate in our economy.
If businessmen have it so well off, shouldn't we encourage *more* people to become businessmen instead of demonizing the ones we have?
Might one of the factors hampering blacks be the decline in American manufacturing in the 1980s and the failure of African-Americans to adapt themselves educationally (increased math and science skills) to what has become a more services oriented, IT driven economy since 1990?
The shift in emphasis seems to have favored other ethnic groups like Indians and Chinese, that are more inclined towards scientific or technical education, or already have such backgrounds at the time they arrive in the US.
At the lower end of the wage scale, I believe the rise in numbers of immigrant blue-collar workers from Mexico may be a factor adversely affecting the prospects of the black blue-colar workforce. Despite any changes to the minimum wage, the fact remains that these 'incumbent' black workers will have to compete with their immigrant Mexican counterparts, who like all immigrants, are under greater pressure to increase work output & perform.
"it is not as if blacks are newcomers to America, who would be expected to lag the average income of the settled population."
-this comment strikes me as a little absurd. here for many generations maybe, but enslaved until 1860 and socially marginalized and thus denied many wealth creating opportunities until the 1960's. with the soft (on self-image, acceptance of societal norms) effects of blacks unique cultural burden in play, not to mention the direct economic effects, i dont think it should surprise anyone that blacks lag other populations in wealth.
Patrick R. Sullivan
Then why is the standard of living highest in capitalist countries?
I have two quick observations:
1) As Neil notes, blacks are far behind in having the opportunity to create generational wealth. This is different from other immigrant populations who came here with the very notion of creating generational wealth, or at least giving their children a better life.
2) Legalize drugs immediately.
This is hand-to-mouth thinking. Frank has money, Fred needs money- so take from Frank and give to Fred.
CEO pay is a market-driven phenomenon. We cannot say it is too high (or too low). CEOs are paid what the market demands. CEOs are effectively paid by shareholders, who have the power to reduce pay, or vote with their feet by not holding the stock. It certainly should not be a matter of public policy. Also, there is no reason to believe that reducing CEO pay would do anything to increase the pay of workers. We may just wind up with fewer talented CEOs, fewer/weaker companies, and fewer jobs available. This is not a zero sum game. Wealth is not finite. One man being wealthier does not make another man poorer.
This is amusing, if I remember my history correctly, this debate on the integration of blacks into the dominant white culture was hotly debated in the White House and offices in Washington prior to Lincoln's signing and issuing the Emancipation Proclamation into Law some 143 years ago. And here we are still debating it.
As someone back then said, "... we can emancipate them, but it will be nigh impossible to integrate them." A prophetic remark perhaps?
Nelson sez:
.......... great idea. However have you noticed the dearth of small biz since Walmart and other category killers came to town? I try to eat in locally owned cafes here but have to drive by 50 corporate chains or franchises to find one.
BTW I hope I don't "demonize" "businessmen" when speaking of the "curious?" economic laws that bid down low wages to less than the cost of the most basic std of living, while "bidding??" up CEO and upper management pay by 100's of percent in 25 years.
Also, here's a puzzle for "entrepreneurs" to solve:
Given that median and lower wages (half of Americans in other words) have been flat or actually fallen over the last quarter century, while what they DO bring home has been assailed by soaring costs of housing, health care, energy, and food costs, how do you expect to sell them anything beyond the very basics?
Also? in contrast to Kennedy's "rising tide lifts all the boats" while in this period per capita productivity seems to have doubled yet NONE of the benefits of that productivity has "trickle down" even to median income levels much less to those of even lower incomes. What's the explanation for this? Are those CEO's jumping up early and doing it all themselves? and truly "earning" 500 times worker pay by contrast to CEO's of 1980 "getting by" on 60 times worker pay?
Do "we" think an economy can fly on one wing?
Am I the only person who finds it curious that a sitting federal judge is making these sorts of statements not only about fairly sensitive racial topics ("disproportionate incidence of social disorder"), but also about the behavior of Democratic (or, excuse me, as Posner, like Bush, says: "Democrat") politicians?
In any case, Posner approaches the topic at a level of cavalier generality that does not match his usually astute analyses. Here are a variety of issues not even mentioned:
1) Is "average" black or white income a reasonable measure? Would the numbers change at all if we excluded the tiny top fraction of earners? If we excluded the tops and bottoms? If we used medians? And which measure has most relevance?
2) When comparing the change in the rate of gap-narrowing before and after the civil rights act of 1964, more historical context is needed. Why choose 1947 as the starting point for the "fast progress" comparison -- why not 1865 (end of Civil War), or 1871 (end of Reconstruction), or 1919 (end of WWI), or 1929 (Beginning of Depression) -- each of which could be thought of to have had as much or more significance in the lives of black Americans?
2) In the same vein, why choose the 36 years from 1964 to 1990 as the other comparison? What I want to know is, what happened between 1964 and 1975. I would think that that would be the main period in which to judge how those laws affected black Americans.
3) Was the rapid narrowing between 1947 and 1964 perhaps traceable to special historical factors, such as the black migration from south to north, changes from rural to urban, the general postwar economic boon, and so forth? Could it be that the early post-war years picked lots of low-hanging fruit, so that the harder gains were left for later? (It is not be unusual to find diminishing returns as time goes on for a whole range of social changes.) And were there state antidiscrimination laws that preceded the national act so may make the comparison innacurate?
Puzzled: While I share your disgust for the purposeful "errors" in referring to Democrats and their party which dates to Gingrich/Rushie and continues Rove........... I think the judge used the terms properly:
"Moreover, blacks support the Democratic Party so overwhelmingly that Democrat politicians ....."
.......... though his ref to politicians who are Democrats is, at least, a bit clumsy.
As for your points:
#1 I see no way around comparing averages with averages and medians with medians, though perhaps something can be seen by comparing clipped with clipped........ but I'm not sure what. We already know that few "blacks" have climbed to the highest economic levels except in sports, music .......... and rap.
On the others I'm not sure what you'd hope to find by changing from the post WWI model, however, the slowing for "blacks" against the rising AVERAGE incomes of the last 25 years, would largely be mirrored by the ALL who were at or below median income falling behind as well.
"Class warfare?" Yes, Reagan kicked one off in the 1980's by gutting collective bargaining legislation and claiming "the market" would solve all of our woes. The uppers won handily and were awarded the spoils due their win by Bush tax policy. But! predictably, now that the lower half have nothing to spend ALL will suffer in the years ahead.
Social disorder may be the most powerful explanitory variable. Insisting on safe schools and commuinties as a start would remove a toxicity retarding progress.Research seems to support incarceration as a safety increment. A resulting culture of safety would support investment, employment, education and prosperity. Improvement would appear straightforward.Why is this so difficult?
Macko, And where is this safety and security supposed to come from? Imposed from above by a dominant "White Culture"? Then we've got an Authoritarian State. Why should I be made the Black Cultures policeman and security agent? I'm already doing it for the rest of world.
Safety & security has to be generated from within the culture of the community. Otherwise it doesn't exist. As far as I'm concerned, we emancipated these people at great cost, the rest is up to them.
Rule of law and safety are basic governmental functions absent for many reasons in disorderly communities. Restoring seems a fundamental requirement for development and narrowing disfunctional gaps.
Ahh Yes! The plaintive cry of the times! "It's not my resposibility! It's the government's responsibility!" Orwell, here we come.
Neil sez:
......... Well, Neil looking out of the window of the train I see constant progress though at times unlike the tide it comes in fits and starts. Anyway, not too fret, as America is becoming much more diverse and folks getting used to seeing different skin colors, and of course, with "blacks" and new immigrants having higher birth rates plus immigration we'll soon have no "white" majority. Assuming a working democracy things should work out OK.
Jack, Don't get on that train quite yet. "Reconstructionism" and "Know Nothingism" has always flared brightly and briefly on the American political scene and then died out just as quickly as it flared up. Stick around, things are just starting to get interesting. This is Democratic-Rpeublicanism at work. Scary huh!?
whites are smart
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1. Introduction {#sec1}
===============
In tropical regions, high environmental temperature in combination with high humidity causes heat stress in chickens, especially in high producing birds that are characterized by high feed intake and metabolic rates, leading to huge economic problems in commercial poultry farms. Heat stress will reduce feed intake, which in turn will adversely affect nutrient uptake and utilization, resulting in decreased productivity rates. Moreover, heat stress induces oxidative stress in the body, and oxidation of substrates produces free radicals and other reactive oxygen species that can cause serious damage to the cells and organs \[[@B1]\]. However, it is well known that antioxidants can be used for elimination or mediation of the adverse effects of heat stress. A biological antioxidant is defined as "any substance that, when present at low concentrations compared to those of an oxidizable substrate, significantly delays or prevents oxidation of that substrate" \[[@B2]\]. Although there are claims that traditional herbal medicines including Chinese herbal medicines (CHM) are effective in reducing adverse effect of heat stress due to their antioxidant activity, scarce data exist describing these effects. Zhang et al. \[[@B3]\] reported that dairy cows fed a diet supplemented with a Chinese herbal formula increased their milk yield by 14%. To support the above positive effect on milk yield, the authors reported that supplementation with the above herbal formula also increased the total antioxidant capacity (T-AOC) of heat stressed cows by 44% compared to the controls (non-heat stressed cows). In a recent study, our research team \[[@B4]\] reported that supplementation with different dosages (0, 0.5, 1.5, and 2%) of a mixture of eight CHM in the diet of laying hens under heat stress conditions (average temperature of 30.1 ± 2.7°C and mean relative humidity of 80.2 ± 7.8%) significantly increased egg production rate, serum antibody titer for New Castle\'s disease virus, and the superoxide dismutase levels compared to the nonsupplemented birds. At the same time, the malondialdehyde level (as an indicator for oxidative stress) was significantly lower in CHM treated hens compared to the controls. The positive results derived from the above studies suggest that CHM could serve as a potential effective substitute of the conventional antibiotic related drugs commonly used to suppress stress in commercial poultry production. However, the active compounds of CHM that protect animals against heat stress were not determined in the previous studies of Diao et al. \[[@B4]\] and Zhang et al. \[[@B3]\]. The present study, therefore, aimed to provide some insights into the concentrations and types of the active compounds (phenolic compounds, oligosaccharides with potential prebiotic effects, and unsaturated fatty acids) in the eight CHM that possibly play an important role in alleviating the effects of heat stress. In addition, results obtained from this study may also provide new information to develop a more efficient CHM formulation for stress mitigation in farm animals.
2. Materials and Methods {#sec2}
========================
2.1. Samples {#sec2.1}
------------
The eight Chinese herbal medicines used in this study were*Chai Hu* (*Bupleurum*),*Bai Zhu* (*Atractylodes*),*Bai Shao* (*Paeonia*),*Gan Cao* (*Glycyrrhiza*),*Bu Gu Zhi* (*Psoralea*),*Bo He* (*Mentha*),*Fu Ling* (*Poria*), and*Shi Gao* (*Gypsum*). CHM were supplied by the College of Agriculture, Hainan University. All the herbs were ground and sieved through 60--80 meshes (particle size 0.32--0.42 mm).
2.2. Determination of Phenolic Compounds Using HPLC {#sec2.2}
---------------------------------------------------
The concentrations of phenolic compounds in the herbs were measured by reversed-phase High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC). Phenolic compound standards consisted of gallic acid, vanillic acid, caffeic acid, synergic acid, orientin, sinapic acid, isoorientin, coumarin acid, and*p*-anisic acid. Twenty-microliter methanolic extract from each herbal medicine was loaded on the HPLC instrument (Waters-e2695 series, US) equipped with a UV-Vis photodiode array (PAD) detector, binary pump, vacuum degasser, autosampler, and analytical column (COSMOSIL 5C18-AR-II Packed Column, 4.6 mm I.D. × 250 mm, Japan). Solvents were deionized water and acetonitrile. The pH of water was adjusted to 2.5 with orthophosphoric acid. The phenolic compounds were detected at 280 nm. The column was equilibrated with 95% solvent A (water) and 5% solvent B (acetonitrile); then the ratio of solvent B was increased to 85% in 40 min followed by reducing solvent B to 5% in 50 min. This ratio was continued to 65 min for the next analysis with flow rate of 0.8 mL/min. All the standards were purchased from Sigma Chemical Company.
2.3. Determination of Total Phenolic Compounds Using Colorimetric Method {#sec2.3}
------------------------------------------------------------------------
According to the determined total phenolic compounds using HPLC, the amounts of phenolic compounds in the*Poria* and*Gypsum* were very low or nondetectable. Since the phenolic compounds are the main antioxidant compounds which can reduce heat and oxidative stress in the animal tissues,*Poria* and*Gypsum* were not considered for further investigation using colorimetric method. The amounts of total phenolic compounds in the six other herb extracts were determined with the Folin-Ciocalteu reagent using the method of Spanos and Wrolstad \[[@B5]\]. Five ml of each extract (three replicates), 0.25 ml 1/10 dilution of Folin-Ciocalteu\'s reagent, and 0.2 ml of Na~2~CO~3~ (7.5%, w/v) were incubated at 45°C for 15 min. The absorbance of the mixtures was measured at 765 nm using a SPECTRAmax-PLUS384 UV-Vis spectrophotometer. Results were expressed as mg gallic acid equivalent per g of dry weight (mg GAE/g DW).
2.4. Determination of Antioxidant Activity {#sec2.4}
------------------------------------------
For determination of antioxidant activity of the samples, two methods, namely, 2,2′-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS assay based on the method described by Tsai et al. \[[@B6]\]) and ferric reducing ability of plasma (FRAP assays according to the method developed by Benzie and Strain \[[@B7]\]), were used. Both methods have been completely described previously \[[@B8]\]. In the present study, for the ABTS assay, different concentrations of trolox (5 to 50 *μ*g/ml) were used to prepare the standard curve, and the results were expressed as Trolox Equivalents Antioxidant Capacity (TEAC) in the form of *μ*g Trolox/g sample; and for the FRAP assay, FRAP reagent was used as blank and the final absorbance of each sample was compared with those obtained from the standard curve made from 0 to 1000 *μ*mol/L ferric sulphate (FeSO4-7H2O).
2.5. LCMS/MS Analysis {#sec2.5}
---------------------
A brief description for LCMS/MS method is as follows: Method: LCMS/MS = full scan with MS/MS data collection; ionization mode: Neg; column: Phenomenex Synergi Fusion 100 mm × 2.1 mm × 3 *μ*m; buffer A: water with 0.1% formic acid; buffer B: acetonitrile with 0.1% formic acid; rapid screening performed at 15 min run time using AB Sciex 5500QTrap LCMS/MS with Agilent 1290 series UHPLC; gradient run program: 5% B to 95% B from 0.01 min to 10.0 min, held for 2 min and back to 10% B in 0.1 min and reequilibrated for 3 min. MS settings and conditions were as follows: negative; voltage IS: 4500 V; source temperature: 500°C; desolvation gas: 40 psi; source gas: 40 psi; scan range: 100--1000*m/z* for full scan and 50--1000*m/z* for MS/MS scan.
2.6. Quantification of Total Carbohydrate in Form of Monomer Using HPLC {#sec2.6}
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
For determination of total monosaccharides, 100 mg of each dried sample was hydrolyzed using 10 mL of 4% sulfuric acid solution at 110°C for 6 h \[according to Szambelan and Nowak \[[@B9]\] with minor modifications\]. After hydrolysis, samples were centrifuged at 10000 ×g for 5 min, filtered through 0.22 *μ*m nylon syringe filters (Pall Gelman Laboratory, USA), and injected into the HPLC. Concentrations of MSC were assayed using HPLC (2690, Waters, USA) with a COSMOSIL Sugar-D column (250 × 4.6 mm i.d., 5 *μ*m). The mobile phase consisted of acetonitrile and water (80 : 20, v : v) with a flow rate of 1 mL/min and the column temperature of 35°C. A reflective index (RI) detector (2414, Waters, USA) was used for the detection of MSC in the detector sensitivity of 1024 and temperature of 30°C. The sample injection volume was 20 *μ*L, and the running time was 20 min. Arabinose, xylose, glucose, galactose, fructose, and mannose (Sigma-Aldrich, St. Louis, MO) were used as standard. In this method of sugar analysis by HPLC, glucose and galactose had the same retention time. This was the same for arabinose and xylose.
2.7. Determination of Fatty Acid Profile {#sec2.7}
----------------------------------------
Determination of fatty acid profile using Gas Chromatography (GC) followed the method described by Folch et al. \[[@B10]\] with minor modifications that were explained previously \[[@B11]\]. The fatty acid concentrations were expressed as percentage of the total identified peaks measured for each sample.
3. Results {#sec3}
==========
3.1. Detection of Phenolic Compounds by HPLC {#sec3.1}
--------------------------------------------
The chromatogram of the nine phenolic standards (gallic acid, vanillic acid, caffeic acid, synergic acid, orientin, isoorientin, sinapic acid, coumarin acid, and*p*-anisic acid) is shown in [Figure 1](#fig1){ref-type="fig"}. Results of the concentration of the nine phenolic compounds in the herbal extract samples detected by HPLC ([Table 1](#tab1){ref-type="table"}) showed that*Paeonia* contained the highest level of total phenolic compounds (17353 *μ*g/g DW) due to the high level of gallic acid (16336 *μ*g/g DW), while*Glycyrrhiza* had the second highest concentration of total phenolic compounds (12318 *μ*g/g DW) mainly due to the high level of p-anisic acid (9703 *μ*g/g DW), followed by*Mentha*,*Psoralea*,*Atractylodes*, and*Bupleurum* (6918, 5287, 3985, and 2595 *μ*g/g DW, resp.). Since the levels of total phenolic compounds in the*Poria* and*Gypsum* were very low or nondetectable, they were not included in our further investigations.
3.2. Determination of Total Phenolic Compounds by a Colorimetric Method and Antioxidant Activity by ABTS and FRAP Methods {#sec3.2}
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total phenolic compounds detected by a spectrophotometer \[as gallic acid equivalents (GAE)\] and antioxidant activity of the samples are presented in [Table 2](#tab2){ref-type="table"}. Based on the colorimetric study,*Psoralea* had the highest level of phenolic compounds (17.4 GAE/g) and also the highest antioxidant activity measured using the ABTS and FRAP methods, followed by*Glycyrrhiza* (13.7 GAE/g) and*Paeonia* (11.2 GAE/g). The lowest phenolic content was detected in*Mentha* (3.6 GAE/g).
3.3. LCMS/MS Analysis of Herbal Extracts {#sec3.3}
----------------------------------------
Results of the LCMS/MS analysis of the six herbal extracts are shown in [Table 3](#tab3){ref-type="table"}. Fourteen compounds were detected in*Atractylodes*, eight in*Paeonia*, seven in*Mentha*, six in*Glycyrrhiza*, and five in*Bupleurum*. Based on the library of LCMS/MS system that was used in the present study, no phenolic compound was detected in*Psoralea*.
3.4. Quantification of Total Sugars in Form of Monomer Using HPLC {#sec3.4}
-----------------------------------------------------------------
The concentrations of total sugars in the samples after hydrolysis by 4% sulfuric acid are presented in [Table 4](#tab4){ref-type="table"}.*Paeonia* contained the highest level of total sugars (62.38% of DM), mainly glucose and galactose.*Glycyrrhiza* contained 43.26 of monosaccharides (% DM) with glucose and galactose also having the greater values.*Bupleurum* contained the highest concentration of arabinose and xylose (10.28%), followed by glucose and galactose (10.13%). The lowest concentration of total sugars was detected in*Psoralea* (14.32%).
3.5. Fatty Acid Profile {#sec3.5}
-----------------------
Fatty acid profiles of the tested herbs are shown in [Table 5](#tab5){ref-type="table"}.*Atractylodes* contained the highest levels of unsaturated fatty acids (84.54%) followed by*Glycyrrhiza* (78.87%),*Paeonia* (77.71%),*Bupleurum* (67.60%),*Mentha* (62.79%), and*Psoralea* (37.25%). In all samples, the percentage of unsaturated fatty acids was higher than that of saturated fatty acids apart from*Psoralea*. In the*Atractylodes*, 76.67% of fatty acids were in the form of polyunsaturated fatty acids with C18:2n-6 having a percentage of 70.94%.
4. Discussion {#sec4}
=============
High environmental temperature in the tropics can cause huge economic losses in the poultry industry through reduced growth rate, egg production, and survival ability \[[@B12]\]. One of the most important biological adverse effects of heat stress is the oxidative injury (lipid peroxidation) and oxidative damage of proteins and DNA, which is caused by enhancement in formation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) \[[@B13]\]. It has been reported that there is a direct relationship between heat stress and the activation of antioxidant defense system in animals \[[@B14]\].
Alleviation of heat stress can be accomplished by increasing the antioxidant capacity of the animals after their dietary supplementations with antioxidant compounds. Moreover, promotion of gut health and intestinal barrier integrity can be achieved by using prebiotics alone or in combination with antioxidants. Supplementation with different compounds that possess antioxidant properties, including polyphenols, unsaturated fatty acids, and different prebiotic oligosaccharides have been already investigated with the intention to reduce the negative effects of heat stress in poultry \[[@B15], [@B16]\]. The use of natural antioxidant products derived from plants is preferred over chemical antioxidants due to food safety reasons \[[@B17]\]. Diao et al. \[[@B4]\] had recently reported that enrichment of the diet of laying hens with a mixture of eight Chinese herbal medicines (CHM) under heat stress condition significantly increased their egg production and immune responses. However, the active compounds of CHM responsible for alleviating the negative effects of heat stress were not investigated. This follow-up study aimed to provide some insights into the quantity and types of active compounds in the eight used CHM that might play an important role in heat stress reduction.
More than 10,000 individual phenolic compounds, known for their antioxidant activities, have been characterized from plant samples \[[@B18]\]. Results of our HPLC analysis showed that among the eight herbal samples tested, only six, namely,*Chai Hu* (*Bupleurum*),*Bai Zhu* (*Atractylodes*),*Bai Shao* (*Paeonia*),*Gan Cao* (*Glycyrrhiza*),*Bu Gu Zhi* (*Psoralea*), and*Bo He* (*Mentha*), contained considerable amounts of detectable phenolic compounds (gallic acid, vanillic acid, caffeic acid, synergic acid, orientin, sinapic acid, isoorientin, coumarin acid, and*p*-anisic acid). Results of the LCMS/MS detected many more different phenolic compounds from these six herbal samples. In addition, total phenolic compounds determination using the colorimetric method showed that, among the six herbs,*Psoralea* contained the highest concentrations of phenolic compounds, followed by*Glycyrrhiza* and*Paeonia*. Moreover,*Psoralea* also showed the highest antioxidant activity among the herbal extracts in the antioxidant assays.
Studies on feed and food supplementation of polyphenols showed increased antioxidant capacity in blood and in several organs \[[@B16]\]. Antioxidative effects of the dietary supplementation with phenolic compounds from various sources had been extensively studied in sheep \[[@B19]\], broilers \[[@B20]--[@B22]\], rabbits \[[@B23]\], and turkeys \[[@B24]\]. More recently, Akbarian et al. \[[@B25]\] examined the effects of dietary essential oils (rich in simple phenolic compounds) on mRNA levels of heat shock protein 70 (HSP70) and antioxidant enzymes, oxidative status, and meat oxidative stability of heat stressed broilers. They found that the enrichment with the dietary essential oils improved antioxidant defense against heat stress-induced changes. Improved antioxidant status of heat stressed broiler chickens using other phenolic compounds, such as flavonoids \[[@B26]\] and turmeric rhizome powder, rich in curcumin \[[@B27]\] is also reported. Prebiotics, such as galactooligosaccharides (GOS), xylooligosaccharides (XOS), mannan-oligosaccharides (MOS), and fructooligosaccharides (FOS), have also been reported to mitigate the adverse effects of heat stress. Varasteh et al. \[[@B15]\] reported that supplementation with dietary GOS resulted in a prevention of the negative heat stress-related changes in jejunum. Similarly, Hasan et al. \[[@B28]\] reported that prebiotic (MOS) enhanced growth in heat stressed broilers in comparison to the controls, but not in broilers under normal conditions.
The above-mentioned effects of prebiotics may be indirect or direct. The indirect effects include increase of the population of beneficial gut bacteria (probiotic bacteria) in the host animals which in turn improves their health and immune system response \[[@B29]\] contributing to overcoming of the adverse effect of heat stress. However, some prebiotics (e.g., inulin) which can be absorbed by liver and colon cells through pinocytosis \[[@B30], [@B31]\] act as antioxidants \[[@B17]\]. Epithelial gut cells can also assimilate other prebiotics such as soluble fructans and glucans \[[@B32]\]. In addition, prebiotics are also capable of exerting immune-modulating effects and can stimulate anti-inflammation responses \[[@B33]\], the first reaction against heat stress by the host\'s defense system. Hence, prebiotics could be a potential agent for reducing heat stress due to their immune-modulating effects and this hypothesis is receiving increasing interest \[[@B16]\].
A combination of several Chinese herbs rather than a single one is used to treat illness or stress. The reason is that a combination of several herbs could provide an expanded spectrum of active compounds. Our results showed that the order of herbal extracts according to the total amount of monosaccharides was*Paeonia*\>*Glycyrrhiza*\>*Bupleurum*\>*Atractylodes*\>*Mentha*\>*Psoralea*, while that for the level of unsaturated fatty acid was*Atractylodes*\>*Glycyrrhiza*\>*Paeonia*\>*Bupleurum*\>*Mentha*\>*Psoralea*. And for all the herbs, apart from the*Psoralea*, the amount of unsaturated fatty acids was higher than saturated fatty acids. Since unsaturated fatty acids, especially omega 3 series, are known for their antioxidant activity \[[@B34]\], the high levels of unsaturated fatty acids indicate possible high antioxidative efficacy of the herbs examined in this study.
5. Conclusion {#sec5}
=============
For the first time, this study provides qualitative and quantitative information on the phenolic compounds, prebiotics, and fatty acids (known for their antioxidant capability) of several traditional herbs which had been shown to effectively reduce heat stress in layer hens. Although the use of CHM for treatment of various illnesses in human subjects has been used for many thousands of years, their use as "green" medications for livestock industry is rather recent, especially with increasing interest as they could possibly serve as alternatives for antibiotics to reduce stress and promote the growth in commercial livestock and poultry production. It must be emphasized that the current data is not exhaustive but could serve as a reference for future studies on similar subject. Based on the results of the present study,*Psoralea*,*Glycyrrhiza*, and*Paeonia* had high phenolic compounds while*Glycyrrhiza*,*Bupleurum*, and*Paeonia* contained higher levels of prebiotics. Content of unsaturated fatty acids was higher in*Atractylodes*,*Glycyrrhiza*, and*Paeonia*. However, the actual efficacy of these herbs, singly or as mixture, to alleviate heat stress requires further*in vivo* investigations. The importance of*Poria* and*Gypsum* that contain very low or nondetectable levels of phenolic compounds in the mixture of CHM in reducing heat stress needs further investigation.
This study was supported by the Ministry of Higher Education of Malaysia under the LRGS Fasa 1/2012 Grant (UPM/700-1/3/LRGS). P. Shokryazdan and M. F. Jahromi acknowledge support from Iran\'s National Elites Foundation (INEF).
Conflicts of Interest
=====================
No potential conflicts of interest were reported by the authors.
{#fig1}
######
Phenolic compounds of eight herbal medicine extracts determined using HPLC (*µ*g/g DW).
Phenolic compound *Bai Zhu* (*Atractylodes*) *Bai Shao* (*Paeonia*) *Chai Hu* (*Bupleurum*) *Bo He* (*Mentha*) *Bu Gu Zhi* (*Psoralea*) Fu Ling (*Poria*) *Gan Cao* (*Glycyrrhiza*) *Shi Gao* (*Gypsum*)
------------------- ---------------------------- ------------------------ ------------------------- -------------------- -------------------------- ------------------- --------------------------- ----------------------
Gallic acid 2.52 16336 58 50 180 3 64 ND
Vanillic acid 561 226 885 836 1111 ND 362 ND
Caffeic acid 1413 56 229 2905 183 17 76 ND
Synergic acid 276 94 62 620 339 ND 45 ND
Orientin 67 119 53 1028 579 ND 224 ND
Sinapic acid 369 92 475 40 4 ND 1718 ND
Isoorientin 184 226 51 22 2579 ND 101 ND
Coumarin acid 896 29 679 210 35 ND 25 ND
*p*-Anisic acid 217 175 103 1207 277 24 9703 ND
Total 3985 17353 2595 6918 5287 44 12318 ---
Values are mean of three replicates; ND: not detected.
######
Total phenolic content and antioxidant activity of CHM samples.
Herbal medicine Total phenolic content (mg gallic acid equivalents, GAE)/g TEAC (*μ*mol of trolox equivalents, TE)/g FRAP (*µ*mol Fe^2+^/g)
--------------------------- ------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------- ------------------------
*Bai Zhu*(*Atractylodes*) 5.78 53.4 28.96
*Bai Shao*(*Paeonia*) 11.22 89.67 142.23
*Chai Hu*(*Bupleurum*) 4.71 41.82 32.58
*Bo He*(*Mentha*) 3.6 27.5 28.91
*Bu Gu Zhi* (*Psoralea*) 17.4 91.67 232.98
*Gan Cao*(*Glycyrrhiza*) 13.7 77.48 167.65
Values are mean of three replicates.
######
Phenolic and flavonoid compounds in the herbal medicine samples detected by LCMS/MS.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Name Name of compound
--------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------
*Bai Zhu*(*Atractylodes*) 3,30-Di-O-methyl ellagic acid derivatives
3,30-Di-O-methyl ellagic acid
Caffeoylquinic acid derivatives
Cinnamic acid derivatives
Ferulic acid quinic acid conjugate
Gluconic acid
Methoxyflavone derivatives
Petunidin-3-O-(4 coumaroyl)-rutinose-5-O-glucose)
Phenylvaleric acid
Quinic acid
Rhamnoside flavanoids 2
Rhamnoside flavanoids
Rutinoside flavanoids
Tannic acid
*Bai Shao*(*Paeonia*)\ Apigenin derivatives
Quinic acid
Gallic acid derivatives
Methoxyflavone derivatives
Myricetin-3-O-galactose dimer
Rhamnoside flavanoids
Rutinoside flavonoids
Tannic acid
*Bo He*(*Mentha*) Caffeoylquinic acid isomer
Protocatechuic acid derivatives
Rosmarinic acid derivative
Sagerinic acid
Salvianolic acid A
Salvianolic acid B isomer
Tannic acid
*Gan Cao*(*Glycyrrhiza*) Apigenin 7-O-(6′′-dihydrogalloyl) isomer
Apigenin-6,8-di-C-*β*-D-glucopyranoside isomer
Caffeoyl glucose
Gluconic acid
Phenylvaleric acids
P-Hydroxycinnamoyl derivative
*Chai Hu*(*Bupleurum*) 3,30-di-O-methyl ellagic acid
15,16-dihydroxy-9Z,12Z-octadecadienoic acid
16-alfa-o-Methylneoquassin metabolite
Methoxyflavone derivatives
Tannic acid
*Bu Gu Zhi* (*Psoralea*) Not detected
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
######
Total sugar (% of dry matter) in form of monosaccharide in the samples determined using HPLC.
Herbal medicine Arabinose and xylose Fructose Mannose Glucose and galactose Total
--------------------------- ---------------------- ---------- --------- ----------------------- -------
*Bai Zhu*(*Atractylodes*) 10.28 3.26 3.64 7.08 24.26
*Bai Shao*(*Paeonia*) 6.5 ND 0.58 55.3 62.38
*Chai Hu*(*Bupleurum*) 11.79 9.13 2.85 10.13 33.9
*Bo He*(*Mentha*) 10.15 ND 2.7 8.93 21.78
*Bu Gu Zhi* (*Psoralea*) ND 5.1 3.7 5.52 14.32
*Gan Cao*(*Glycyrrhiza*) 7.67 4.73 ND 30.86 43.26
Values are mean of three replicates; ND: not detectable.
######
Fatty acid profiles of herbal medicine extracts (based on %).
Herbal medicine C14:0 C16:0 C16:1 C18:0 C18:1n-9 C18:2n-6 C18:3n-6 C18:3n-3 TSFA TUFA TMUFA Total PUFA TUFA:TSFA
---------------------------- ------- ------- ------- ------- ---------- ---------- ---------- ---------- ------- ------- ------- ------------ -----------
*Bai Zhu* (*Atractylodes*) 0.00 13.89 0.00 1.57 7.87 70.94 0.00 5.73 15.46 84.54 7.87 76.67 5.47
*Bai Shao* (*Paeonia*) 0.00 19.67 0.36 2.26 22.58 49.74 0.00 5.39 22.29 77.71 22.58 55.13 3.49
*Chai Hu* (*Bupleurum*) 0.00 26.56 0.83 5.01 23.17 37.99 1.86 4.59 32.40 67.60 23.17 44.44 2.09
*Bo He* (*Mentha*) 1.71 28.98 1.12 5.40 21.75 14.56 1.82 24.67 37.21 62.79 21.75 41.05 1.69
*Bu Gu Zhi* (*Psoralea*) 0.00 9.99 0.00 52.76 9.50 19.44 0.58 7.73 62.75 37.25 9.50 27.75 0.59
*Gan Cao* (*Glycyrrhiza*) 0.00 17.63 0.15 3.35 18.01 51.62 0.00 9.25 21.13 78.87 18.01 60.87 3.73
Values are mean of three replicates; C14:0, myristic acid; C16:0, palmitic acid; C16:1, palmitoleic acid; C18:0, stearic acid; C18:1n-9, oleic acid; C18:2n-6, linoleic acid; C18:3n-6, *γ*-linolenic acid; C18:3n-3, *α*-linolenic acid; TSFA, total saturated fatty acids; TUFA, total unsaturated fatty acids; TMUFA, total monounsaturated fatty acids; TPUFA, total polyunsaturated fatty acids; TUFA:TSFA, unsaturated fatty acids: saturated fatty acids ratio.
[^1]: Academic Editor: Michał Tomczyk
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Video: King cobra given life-saving drink from water bottle
The King Cobra normally avoids confrontations with humans but desperate times call for desperate measures. This deadly snake was so thirsty during a drought that it broke into an Indian village in a frantic search for water. Dramatic footage shows the kind-hearted villagers looking after their local wildlife.
By: PressTV (19491.60)
Tags: king cobra, cobra, dramatic footage, wildlife, indian village, snake
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A family entertainment center (or centre), often abbreviated FEC in the entertainment industry[1] (also known as an indoor amusement park or indoor theme park), is a small amusement park marketed towards families with small children to teenagers, and often entirely indoors or associated with a larger operation such as a theme park. They usually cater to "sub-regional markets of larger metropolitan areas."[1] FECs are generally small compared to full-scale amusement parks, with fewer attractions, a lower per-person per-hour cost to consumers than a traditional amusement park, and not usually major tourist attractions, but sustained by an area customer base. Many are locally owned and operated, although there are a number of chains and franchises in the field.[1] FECs are sometimes called family amusement centers, play zones, family fun centers, or simply fun centers. Some non-traditional FECs, called urban entertainment centers (UECs), with more customized and branded attractions and retail outlets, are associated with major entertainment companies and may be tourist destinations.[2] Others, sometimes operated by Non-Profit organizations as Children's Museums or Science Centers, tend to be geared toward edutainment experiences rather than simply amusement. FECs may also be adjuncts to full-scale amusement parks.
FECs are essentially a converged outgrowth of theme restaurants that increasingly developed their in-house amusement features, small-scale amusement parks needing more offerings than just a few rides and midway games, and diversifying formerly one-attraction venues (water parks, skate parks, billiard halls, bowling alleys, and so on). All three categories have moved over several decades continually toward stock, popular entertainment solutions supplied by third-party vendors. Among the earliest of the themed restaurants to become known more for family entertainment than food was Chuck E. Cheese's, a pizza restaurant founded in 1977 in San Jose, California.[1]
Ball pits are a popular attraction at family fun centers.
Most FECs have at least five common major or "anchor" attractions, to provide diverse patrons (often in large parties) at least one to two hours of entertainment, to encourage repeat visits, and to reduce time spent waiting for any given attraction.[1] Some of the more usual attractions include (depending upon size, climate, etc.):
Multi-tiered climbing structures such as this one are common at family entertainment centers.
The most common anchor activities are miniature golf, kart racing, arcade and redemption games, and food & beverage, according to industry specialists StoneCreek Partners.[1] FECs rarely use custom-built attractions, because of the costs involved, and instead install off-the-shelf systems provided and maintained by industry equipment vendors.[1]
Any given FEC may lean more towards outdoor activities, arcade gaming, or passive entertainment and dining. Each may cater to different age ranges, all the time, or during certain hours, e.g. children and entire families in the daytime, and teens to young adults in the evening, with specific promotional programs to attract different market segments at different times.[1]
Business modelEdit
FECs tend to serve "sub-regional markets",[1] such as small cities, quadrants or boroughs of larger cities, and a large suburban area outside such a city. Their busiest times are weekend afternoons and Thursday through Saturday evenings.[1]
Because most of the attractions are essentially the same from FEC to FEC,[1] two of the most important factors in a particular center distinguishing itself to potential customers are a highly visible location[1] (hard to obtain because other uses for the land are often more competitive[1]), and a consistently developed and promoted theme that appeals to the target market segments, "the fun factor in the overall decor".[1]
Parental concerns are also important. While children themselves rarely think of it, a major factor in the attractiveness of an FEC to parents is on-site safety and security, as adults may drop off older children at such an establishment to entertain themselves.[1] An increasingly important factor for success is high-quality food and drink to attract parental spending as well as whole-family dining.[1]
Non-traditional FECsEdit
Various major media and entertainment brands, including Disney, Lego, NASCAR, Sega, Sony, United Artists/Regal and Viacom, have been attached to family entertainment centers, often much less "traditional" than local and chain FECs, with custom-built, unique attractions, usually heavily branded, and most often located in major metropolitan areas. The first such urban entertainment center (UEC) was the Universal CityWalk in Los Angeles, California, which opened in 1993, linking several Universal properties.[2] Including various retail outlets, restaurants, and attractions, the CityWalk created a great deal of "sustained buzz" in the retail real estate industry, which began "embracing the notion that Universal Studios, Sony, Disney, and other entertainment companies could create new anchors and entertainment programs for shopping centers".[2] Another significant UEC was the Sony Metreon in San Francisco, California (1999–2006).
Some nonprofit, educational installations, such as the Exploratorium in San Francisco, also have aspects of FECs in format and atmosphere, but with activities geared toward learning and experiencing rather than simple entertainment. Some for-profit enterprises also use this model, or mix edutainment with simpler amusement attractions.
Industry organizationsEdit
The major international industry association that supports FECs is the International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions (IAAPA), which merged with and absorbed the membership of the International Association for the Leisure and Entertainment Industry (IALEI) in October 2009.[3] IAAPA maintains addresses in the Virginia, Hong Kong, Brussels, Belgium and Mexico City.[4] The International Laser Tag Association (ILTA) also remains active (and more broadly than its name suggests). ILTA is based in Indianapolis, Indiana, U.S.[5] For many smaller, community centric FEC's and owner/operators who can't always make the IAAPA tradeshow, IAAO the International Association of Amusement Operators [1] is an online resource for family entertainment center operators and startups.
In CanadaEdit
Canadian FECs are called "family entertainment centres" or "fun centres", due to British-style spelling conventions in Canadian English.
In MexicoEdit
In the United StatesEdit
The main national industry group in the U.S. is the National Association of Family Entertainment Centers (NAFEC), which is perhaps incongruously a division of the International Laser Tag Association (ILTA).
Some U.S.-based companies also have venues in Canada (noted above), but this is rare due to the legal/political difficulties involved in cross-border corporations.
American FECs vary wildly in themes, size and features. Some of the larger businesses in this category have included:[1]
In the United KingdomEdit
In other countriesEdit
1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q - (2011). "About Family Entertainment Centers". Las Vegas, Nevada: StoneCreek Partners Advisory Services, Commercial Real Estate and Leisure-time Industries. Retrieved May 12, 2011.
2. ^ a b c "Urban Entertainment Centers". op. cit. 2011. Missing or empty |url= (help); |access-date= requires |url= (help)
3. ^ Mandt, David (October 9, 2009). "News Release: IALEI Dissolution IAAPA Merger Plans Final". Alexandria, Virginia: International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions. Retrieved May 12, 2011.
4. ^ "Contact Us". op. cit. 2011. Retrieved May 12, 2011.
5. ^ "About Us". Indianapolis, Indiana: International Laser Tag Association. 2011. Archived from the original on June 3, 2011. Retrieved May 12, 2011. | dclm_baseline | {'bff_contained_ngram_count_before_dedupe': '19', 'language_id_whole_page_fasttext': "{'en': 0.9276469945907592}", 'metadata': "{'Content-Length': '56839', 'Content-Type': 'application/http; msgtype=response', 'WARC-Block-Digest': 'sha1:ZWYJTKDGZ53MIMTRTKSXDZFUCDO5EYRL', 'WARC-Concurrent-To': '<urn:uuid:c27511ab-b62f-4d49-add0-aa33a843e457>', 'WARC-Date': datetime.datetime(2019, 5, 19, 19, 9, 26), 'WARC-IP-Address': '208.80.153.224', 'WARC-Identified-Payload-Type': 'text/html', 'WARC-Payload-Digest': 'sha1:KVDNPMTX42FOZCUTGDM7I7YFQFBIDOKF', 'WARC-Record-ID': '<urn:uuid:54cc264e-c181-42b5-91c8-b23958235ddf>', 'WARC-Target-URI': 'https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Family_entertainment_center', 'WARC-Type': 'response', 'WARC-Warcinfo-ID': '<urn:uuid:7de7497e-ff48-428e-b617-f13cf7a4ff97>', 'WARC-Truncated': None}", 'previous_word_count': '1112', 'url': 'https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Family_entertainment_center', 'warcinfo': 'isPartOf: CC-MAIN-2019-22\r\npublisher: Common Crawl\r\ndescription: Wide crawl of the web for May 2019\r\noperator: Common Crawl Admin (info@commoncrawl.org)\r\nhostname: ip-10-171-192-21.ec2.internal\r\nsoftware: Apache Nutch 1.15 (modified, https://github.com/commoncrawl/nutch/)\r\nrobots: checked via crawler-commons 1.1-SNAPSHOT (https://github.com/crawler-commons/crawler-commons)\r\nformat: WARC File Format 1.1\r\nconformsTo: http://iipc.github.io/warc-specifications/specifications/warc-format/warc-1.1/', 'fasttext_openhermes_reddit_eli5_vs_rw_v2_bigram_200k_train_prob': '0.06169337034225464', 'original_id': 'da3f7b26cdf02b6b02a353c135859ee1e858b52bab2145c2bd1ffba21a3735da'} |
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BBC News
watch One-Minute World News
Last Updated: Friday, 15 September 2006, 15:55 GMT 16:55 UK
Puffy planet poses pretty puzzle
Puffy new world (David A. Aguilar CfA)
An artist's impression of the strange new world, HAT-P-1b
Astronomers have found a strange new world that has them pondering again the essential properties of a planet.
This new object, designated HAT-P-1b, orbits one member of a pair of stars 450 light-years away in the constellation Lacerta.
Although its radius is about 1.38 times that of our own Jupiter, it has a mass that is only half that of Jupiter.
This makes it much bigger and lower in density than planets are usually, raising questions about how it formed.
The mathematical equations describing planetary structure do not fit.
It would float in a bathtub if you could find a tub big enough to hold it
Gaspar Bakos
"This planet is about one-quarter the density of water," said Gaspar Bakos, a Hubble fellow at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics (CfA).
HAT-P-1b is one of the 200 or so planets that have been detected outside our Solar System. It has the largest radius yet measured.
Like many of these extrasolar bodies, it orbits close to its parent star, revolving around it in just once every 4.5 Earth days.
New HAT?
HAT-P-1b is too far away to be imaged directly, but scientists know it is there because of the way light from its parent star dims as the planet passes in front.
Scientists know of one other extrasolar planet, HD 209458b, which is also puffed up about 20% bigger than predicted by theory. HAT-P-1b is 24% larger than expected.
Several ideas had been proposed solve the puzzle but none seemed to quite fit, said the CfA research team, which has detailed its discovery in a paper submitted to the Astrophysical Journal.
"Until we can find an explanation for both of these swollen planets, they remain a great mystery," said co-researcher Dimitar Sasselov.
The astronomers used a network of telescopes in the states of Arizona and Hawaii to discover the planet.
The double-star system, of which HAT-P-1b's parent forms a part, is called ADS 16402 and is visible through binoculars.
Astronomers name 'world of chaos'
14 Sep 06 | Science/Nature
A view from the cosmic shoulder
06 Sep 06 | Science/Nature
Planet shine 'to aid life search'
24 May 06 | Science/Nature
Planet hunters find 'super-Earth'
14 Mar 06 | Science/Nature
Smallest Earth-like planet found
25 Jan 06 | Science/Nature
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Americas Africa Europe Middle East South Asia Asia Pacific | dclm_baseline | {'bff_contained_ngram_count_before_dedupe': '59', 'language_id_whole_page_fasttext': "{'en': 0.9102927446365356}", 'metadata': "{'Content-Length': '44083', 'Content-Type': 'application/http; msgtype=response', 'WARC-Block-Digest': 'sha1:D5XT7VOIJXKCCY2P3UWMG6W2XON2TUGA', 'WARC-Concurrent-To': '<urn:uuid:2efab3e7-2ab4-4051-ac1d-78343e9df6b7>', 'WARC-Date': datetime.datetime(2016, 7, 29, 18, 18, 33), 'WARC-IP-Address': '212.58.246.80', 'WARC-Identified-Payload-Type': None, 'WARC-Payload-Digest': 'sha1:CXF6KN5XC4GH4DTGRO3OKSJBFWM2RMSV', 'WARC-Record-ID': '<urn:uuid:fae314ec-bf12-4598-889f-ecb2dec72973>', 'WARC-Target-URI': 'http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/sci/tech/5346998.stm', 'WARC-Type': 'response', 'WARC-Warcinfo-ID': '<urn:uuid:4b74be7d-08b1-4f50-a093-1e571edf267e>', 'WARC-Truncated': 'length'}", 'previous_word_count': '498', 'url': 'http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/sci/tech/5346998.stm', 'warcinfo': 'robots: classic\r\nhostname: ip-10-185-27-174.ec2.internal\r\nsoftware: Nutch 1.6 (CC)/CC WarcExport 1.0\r\nisPartOf: CC-MAIN-2016-30\r\noperator: CommonCrawl Admin\r\ndescription: Wide crawl of the web for July 2016\r\npublisher: CommonCrawl\r\nformat: WARC File Format 1.0\r\nconformsTo: http://bibnum.bnf.fr/WARC/WARC_ISO_28500_version1_latestdraft.pdf', 'fasttext_openhermes_reddit_eli5_vs_rw_v2_bigram_200k_train_prob': '0.0391467809677124', 'original_id': 'a0141f74d3cdf111af5ad026780e7db1c8c44a3f0b48b8fac017cf504c8cf39e'} |
Rudy TurkovicsEventosTerminado
28 oct 2010Desde 20h30Somos sociales | common_corpus | {'identifier': '<urn:uuid:b3011e7b-37fd-4f96-b57e-f6b5cf9fb360>', 'collection': 'French Open Data', 'open_type': 'Open Government', 'license': 'Various open data', 'date': '', 'title': 'https://www.centrepompidou.fr/es/ressources/personne/qX7Uh9j', 'creator': 'centrepompidou.fr', 'language': 'Polish', 'language_type': 'Spoken', 'word_count': '7', 'token_count': '24', '__index_level_0__': '18080', 'original_id': 'ee185d2bc6fb7fd3ac6e70115c973448a4787f4d6c7109a1d0163ec31d315012'} |
Exploring Determinants of Population Ageing in Northeast China: From a Socio-Economic Perspective.
The paper aims to examine the population ageing process in northeast China, typically perceived as a region experiencing dramatic demographic change and socio-economic slowdown that is much deeper and more significant compared to other regions. Using the 2000 and 2010 census data at the sub-regional level, the SEM (spatial error model) estimation suggests that at least seven socio-economic factors are associated with the evolution of the ageing pattern in northeast China, including birth rate, mortality, education, healthcare conditions, the level of economic development, urbanization, and population mobility. However, these associations vary according to time and space, which are further confirmed by the geographical weighted regression (GWR). These findings imply that there are complicated and diversified factors which may be associated with the deteriorating population ageing at the local level in northeast China. Therefore, the sustainable development of the northeast region may not be delivered by dichotomous policy interventions, such as the control of birth rate or mortality rate, as many of the previous studies have focused on; instead, the implementation of ageing policy shall be consistent and complementary with the principles of social benefits, for example, providing incentives for improving regional economic structures, or by policies aimed at building up an adequate "tolerant culture" for slowing down population outflows. | mini_pile | {'original_id': 'da730bdae9064cb67e226ca3071c5e31493e2f49c716e796c81eb287163d3a28'} |
New Yorker Disinvites Stephen Bannon from Festival over Uproar
David Remnick, the editor of the New Yorker, announced in a statement that the New Yorker has disinvited Stephen Bannon from their annual New Yorker Festival. Remnick, known as a sharp and tough interviewer, was to interview to Bannon during the festival.
Bannon’s appearance was first reported by the New York Times on Monday morning. Other participants then tweeted their reaction with some dropping out and others saying they will not appear if Bannon is a part. Then on Monday evening, the New Yorker tweeted out a statement from Remnick that revealed Bannon would no longer be included.
“After being contacted several months ago and with seven weeks of continual requests for this event, I accepted The New Yorker’s invitation with no thought of an honorarium,” Bannon said in a statement. “The reason for my acceptance was simple: I would be facing one of the most fearless journalists of his generation. In what I would call a defining moment, David Remnick showed he was gutless when confronted by the howling online mob.”
“The main argument for not engaging someone like Bannon is that we are giving him a platform and that he will use it, unfiltered, to propel further the ‘ideas’ of white nationalism, racism, anti-Semitism, and illiberalism,” Remnick wrote in a statement. “But to interview Bannon is not to endorse him. By conducting an interview with one of Trumpism’s leading creators and organizers, we are hardly pulling him out of obscurity.”
“Ahead of the mid-term elections and with 2020 in sight, we’d be taking the opportunity to question someone who helped assemble Trumpism.”
Remnick argued that there is a benefit in interviewing those with controversial views. The person interviewed may not change their mind as a result of questioning, but the general public gains a better understanding of the person. For that reason, Remnick did not fully rule out interviewing Bannon in the future, “Our writers have interviewed Steve Bannon for The New Yorker before, and if the opportunity presents itself I’ll interview him in a more traditionally journalistic setting as we first discussed, and not on stage.” | mini_pile | {'original_id': '830d76b191eac0a9e09f709b4582778f9998057d99c0acde3fb809ed4ff099c9'} |
Friday, June 21, 2013
Let me live it, and allow the feelings brought on by my will be washed over and processed in a healthy way. Let me be willing and able to be used for the purpose of my maker.
Thank you, Lord, for the abundance of clean, clear water available for me to drink, for not everyone has this.
Thank you, Lord, for the many healthy options for food to fuel my body. Help me choose wisely and without greed in their use today. For there are those who do not have enough.
Thank you, Lord, for the ability to move my body under its own power. Let me appreciate this and remember to take the moments to use my feet and legs to transport me where I need to go, and not just sit on my sit-upon!
Thank you, Lord, for a safe and comfy place to sleep.
There is so much to be grateful for, let me focus on that, and not on things that aren't going "my way". Give me the gift of acceptance of Your direction. And help me appreciate Your hand in all things.
Amen.
Oh, yeah, sorry about that, Sparklies... prayin' my way through the start of the day. Spark on. LIFE is good.
Beautiful prayer. And you are right. There are many who don't have enough and here we are working hard to make good choices and trying so hard to be satisfied with enough. - Wishing you well in all things - those things you have control of and especially those things you can't control. Hang in there, Barb. I think of you often, especially when I'm trying to walk faster on my run-walk-runs!! -Marsha | mini_pile | {'original_id': 'b55d2355e0f70c4f5ef99c70a2fe5c0df0d81732c31689426cb670822dddce1d'} |
5 Key Steps For Raising Your Emotional Intelligence
raising emotional intelligence
As discussed in my previous post here, emotional intelligence is one of the most highly valued traits and skills both in business and life.
So here I’d like to share with you my 5 key steps for raising your Emotional Intelligence.
Step 1: Learn how to gauge situations accurately by managing stress
Being able to quickly calm yourself down and relieve stress helps you stay balanced, focused, and in control—no matter what challenges you face or how stressful a situation becomes.
How to function well in the heat of the moment
Develop your stress-busting skills by working through the following three steps:
•Realise when you’re stressed. The first step to reducing stress is recognising what stress feels like. How does your body feel when you’re stressed? Are your muscles or stomach tight or sore? Are your hands clenched? Is your breath shallow? Being aware of your physical response to stress will help regulate tension when it occurs.
•Identify your stress response. Everyone reacts differently to stress. If you tend to become angry or agitated under stress, you will respond best to stress-relieving activities that quiet you down. If you tend to become depressed or withdrawn, you will respond best to stress-relieving activities that are stimulating. If you tend to freeze—speeding up in some ways while slowing down in others—you need stress-relieving activities that provide both comfort and stimulation.
•Discover the stress-busting techniques that work for you. The best way to reduce stress quickly is by engaging one or more of your senses: sight, sound, smell, taste, and touch. Each person responds differently to sensory input, so you need to find things that are soothing and/or energising to you. For example, if you’re a visual person you can relieve stress by surrounding yourself with uplifting images. If you respond more to sound, you may find a wind chime, a favourite piece of music, or the sound of a water fountain helps to quickly reduce your stress levels.
Step 2: Reduce relationship stress with emotional awareness
Being able to connect to your emotions—having a moment-to-moment awareness of your emotions and how they influence your thoughts and actions—is the key to understanding yourself and remaining calm and focused in tense situations with others.
Unfortunately, without emotional awareness, we are unable to fully understand our own motivations and needs, or to communicate effectively with others. We are also at far greater risk for becoming overwhelmed in situations that appear threatening.
What relationship do you have with your emotions?
Developing emotional awareness
You can develop your emotional awareness by learning the mindfulness meditation. Listen to my free guided visualisation and meditation here.
Step 3: Improve your non-verbal communication
Being a good communicator requires more than just verbal skills and the ability to manage stress. Often, what you say is less important than how you say it, or the other nonverbal signals you send out—the gestures you make, the way you sit, how fast or how loud you talk, how close you stand, or how much eye contact you make. In order to hold the attention of others and build connection and trust, you need to be aware of, and in control of, this body language. You also need to be able to accurately read and respond to the nonverbal cues that other people send you.
These messages don’t stop when someone stops speaking. Even when you’re silent, you’re still communicating nonverbally. Think about what you are transmitting as well, and if what you say matches what you feel. If you insist, “I’m fine,” while clenching your teeth and looking away, your body is clearly signalling the opposite. Your nonverbal messages can produce a sense of interest, trust, excitement, and desire for connection—or they can generate fear, confusion, distrust, and disinterest.
Tips for improving nonverbal communication
•Pay attention to non-verbal cues you’re sending and receiving, such as facial expression, tone of voice, posture and gestures, touch, and the timing and pace of the conversation.
Step 4: How to use humour and play to deal with challenges
Humour, laughter, and play are natural antidotes to life’s difficulties; they lighten your burdens and help you keep things in perspective. A good hearty laugh reduces stress, elevates mood, and brings your nervous system back into balance.
Playful communication broadens your emotional intelligence and helps you:
•Smooth over differences. Using gentle humour often helps you say things that might be otherwise difficult to express without creating a flap.
How to develop playful communication:
Step 5: How to resolve conflict positively
The ability to manage conflicts in a positive, trust-building way is supported by the previous four skills. Once you know how to manage stress, stay emotionally present and aware, communicate nonverbally, and use humour and play, you’ll be better equipped to handle emotionally charged situations and catch and defuse many issues before they escalate.
Tips for resolving conflict in a trust-building way
•Forgive. Other people’s hurtful behaviour is in the past. To resolve conflict, you need to give up the urge to punish or seek revenge.
If you’d like to find out more about developing your emotional intelligence, as well as the importance of doing so, here are some resources you might find helpful:
Emotional Intelligence in the Workplace (PDF) – How to build and practice EQ to improve your success at work. (USF)
Emotional Intelligence – Why it can matter more than IQ – Daniel Goleman (Bantam Books, 2005)
The Language of Emotional Intelligence – Dr. Jeanne Segal’s book offers specific methods to improve your emotional Intelligence skills. (PsychCentral)
Emotional Intelligence – How to improve your emotional intelligence and people skills. (MindTools)
10 Ways to Enhance Your Emotional Intelligence – Tips to improve your EQ. (Psychology Today)
One response to “5 Key Steps For Raising Your Emotional Intelligence”
1. Making a positive environment not only enhances your personal satisfaction, as well as it can be contagious to people around you too.
Dzogchen Center – Awakening the Buddha Within – Lama Surya Das
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U.S. supported France’s failed Somalia rescue
U.S. supported France’s failed Somalia rescue
By CNN Staff
(CNN) — U.S. troops lent “limited technical support” in France’s bloody and failed Somalia rescue attempt that aimed to free an intelligence agent who’d been held hostage for years, President Barack Obama said Sunday.
Obama detailed the U.S. military involvement in the Friday night mission in a letter sent to the leaders of the nation’s two legislative chambers. The letter was released publicly as well.
While U.S. forces “provided limited technical support,” they “took no direct part in the assault on the compound where it was believed the French citizen was being held hostage,” the president explained.
In addition, U.S. military aircraft were available but were not used.
“United States combat aircraft briefly entered Somali airspace to support the rescue operation, if needed,” the president wrote. “These aircraft did not employ weapons during the operation.”
Obama said he directed the U.S. troops’ involvement in the operation “in furtherance of U.S. national security interests, and pursuant to my constitutional authority to conduct U.S. foreign relations and as Commander in Chief and Chief Executive.”
By 8 p.m., all U.S. forces were out of Somalia.
The moves came after French forces engaged in a fierce gun battle with militants in their attempt to rescue hostage Denis Allex, who was a member of the DGSE, France’s equivalent of the CIA and a part of its defense ministry.
The skirmish in Bulo Marer, about 75 miles northwest of the capital Mogadishu, ended with a French soldier and 17 Islamist fighters dead, according to the French Defense Ministry. Another French soldier is missing.
French Defense Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian told reporters in Paris on Saturday that “everything leads us to believe that Denis Allex was gunned down by his captors.” French President Francois Hollande, meanwhile, lamented the “sacrifice” of the two French soldiers and “maybe the assassination” of the hostage.
But the al-Shabaab militia, which is affiliated with al Qaeda, claimed Allex is unharmed and being held in a new location. The group said in a statement that they’ll decide the hostage’s fate in the next two days.
Allex was abducted on July 14, 2009, while on a mission in Mogadishu in support of the transitional Somali government, the French Defense Ministry said. French media reports suggest that Denis Allex is a pseudonym for the military serviceman.
French officials said they launched the rescue attempt after the terror group failed to negotiate for the hostage’s release for years while holding him in inhumane conditions.
The U.S. military has been involved in Somalia before, notably in the ill-fated 1993 Battle of Mogadishu that ended with 18 American soldiers killed.
U.S. forces were in Somalia to try to capture powerful Somali warlord Mohammed Aidid from his stronghold in the war-torn capital and take him to a ship anchored off the nearby coast. But by the end of the 16-hour battle in which commandos tried to seize several of Aidid’s top lieutenants, 18 elite Army Rangers and hundreds of Somalis lay dead in the streets of Mogadishu.
The movie inspired the best-selling book “Black Hawk Down” by Mark Bowden and an eponymous, Oscar Award-winning movie directed by Ridley Scott.
Fourteen years later, the U.S. military re-emerged in Somalia by conducting airstrikes targeting al Qaeda-linked operatives in southern Somalia. Other strikes followed, including one in 2008 that killed an al-Shabaab leader and several other senior leaders of his group, according to local officials. | mini_pile | {'original_id': '33e7727e36dc45c8e11e16b12290974a3cf004359ce8e2779165eb3a0d047024'} |
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detection of viral mRNA help - (Dec/29/2005 )
I wanted to know what i could use as a control for cDNA synthesis. Normally people use G3PDH or beta actin. I am looking for viral mRNA in cell free plasma and i cannot use either of the 2 as a control. Could someone suggest an appropriate control?
I am a little confused why you can not use either of these controls for your system. You said you simply want a control for cDNA synthesis, thus if you have some total RNA lying around, you should be able to you either of these to verify that your cDNA synthesis worked.
Another idea for a control would be to use supernatent from infected cells if you have such a system.
the reason i can't use beta actin or G3PDH is because i am looking for viral mRNA in cell free plasma, both these genes are used for cellular mRNA if i am not mistaken, so a positive G3PDH or beta actin would mean that i have cellular mRNA contamination, is there any housekeeping control specific for viral mRNa | dclm_baseline | {'bff_contained_ngram_count_before_dedupe': '0', 'language_id_whole_page_fasttext': "{'en': 0.9198620915412904}", 'metadata': "{'Content-Length': '9085', 'Content-Type': 'application/http; msgtype=response', 'WARC-Block-Digest': 'sha1:V3BRE7PAJDAXGUUAZVB5REEXRCX65TDG', 'WARC-Concurrent-To': '<urn:uuid:7568feb8-bdaa-469a-bad0-e1aee81f99fd>', 'WARC-Date': datetime.datetime(2014, 3, 11, 19, 30, 16), 'WARC-IP-Address': '198.23.74.216', 'WARC-Identified-Payload-Type': None, 'WARC-Payload-Digest': 'sha1:A4RWTBQFIJ5KHE25ZYAAPXS4T23M2YXG', 'WARC-Record-ID': '<urn:uuid:e485fe6e-31dd-40ab-b09c-db7d6461e0e7>', 'WARC-Target-URI': 'http://www.protocol-online.org/biology-forums/posts/12354.html', 'WARC-Type': 'response', 'WARC-Warcinfo-ID': '<urn:uuid:24dbb3e4-f248-41d1-af72-e381a22b2c31>', 'WARC-Truncated': None}", 'previous_word_count': '193', 'url': 'http://www.protocol-online.org/biology-forums/posts/12354.html', 'warcinfo': 'robots: classic\r\nhostname: ip-10-183-142-35.ec2.internal\r\nsoftware: Nutch 1.6 (CC)/CC WarcExport 1.0\r\nisPartOf: CC-MAIN-2014-10\r\noperator: CommonCrawl Admin\r\ndescription: Wide crawl of the web with URLs provided by Blekko for March 2014\r\npublisher: CommonCrawl\r\nformat: WARC File Format 1.0\r\nconformsTo: http://bibnum.bnf.fr/WARC/WARC_ISO_28500_version1_latestdraft.pdf', 'fasttext_openhermes_reddit_eli5_vs_rw_v2_bigram_200k_train_prob': '0.04638373851776123', 'original_id': '2af96270f583206f3809dd69c69cd1cc862a6b4dc64ccb19a4a42a977ecc5d16'} |
How to convince your design team to write
About two years ago, when I joined my organization as a storyteller, my life revolved around blogs and social media marketing. I continued doing what I was doing for a good one year and gradually my role shifted more towards helping our design team articulate their thoughts via blog posts.
Since past one year, I have been trying to fit into their life (and desks)– coaxing them to write more and read even more. Why? Because they are fucking awesome and do brilliant work day in and day out – the world needs to know about their approach to work. But it isn’t easy — our designers are always thinking of how to create designs for apps that impact users positively. Ahem..being shy could be another reason too.
So I faced a lot of resistance. I remember, every time I pushed them to write about their thought process, there was a very loud voice in the back of my head that said, “Maybe you’re asking too much. They are designers, not writers. Maybe you’re going too far. Why don’t you just take it easy?”
There is one particular instance that I remember. I had hijacked one of team member’s seat and was preaching them on writing effective micro-copy. Asif was sitting next to me and was discussing dashboard design with his peers. I doubt if he really wanted to take my opinion, or wanted to me shut the fuck up, but he asked for my opinion on the design. Long after the discussion subsided I went back to him and said- “hey Asif! I was just thinking maybe you could write something about designing good dashboards and how careful consideration is required in selecting each element. I mean if you have faced it, I am sure there are other designers as well who dwell upon it. I am sure this will be a lot of help to other designers.”
Result Principles to Design Informative Dashboards
Another day, another incident- the team had just come back from a team outing to mountains. They were happily discussing the trip and sharing photographs. I smelled happiness and poked my nose- “Hey, that sounds like a good story. Would anyone of you be interested in writing about it?”
Expectation? Hey, great idea! You’re amazing!
Reality? Disperse! Leave! She’s driving me bananas!
Jokes apart here’s the Result Why every designer needs to discover the nature
The art of persuasion, I tell you! I’m good at it.
Nevertheless, I have strong reasons to believe that they still hate me for my annoying presence (I eat all their food, I poke my nose in their matters, they are the happiest bunch when I am on a vacation).
But recently, they offered me to join them in their team outing, (omg! happy tears 😢) So, the left side of my brain offers me this reasoning-
The good humans of our team have acquired an understanding that writing is important to share ideas about design. And, if they can’t put their creative work in words or can’t talk at length about the difficult choices they made in design decisions, then how do they spread the idea virus that even though good design makes everything possible, it’s hard.
Okay, I lie. Insanely hard!
But there are times when even I am at crossroads with the idea of writing. I am a writer and I know how hard it is to stitch words together with the right tone. Writing, as a skill, takes time to build up.
So here’s how I advocate the idea of writing to my design team, without impeding their work output-
Write about what flames your thoughts
Write whatever flames your mind
Writing is not just about wrangling with words. It’s about channeling your thoughts. Or, sometimes when you are clueless, writing helps you find your spark. So, write when something inspires you, write when something drains you.
You wonder why? Because writing helps you connect the missing pieces of a puzzle. Be it struggling with a particular approach to problems or applying design methods in your work, it helps you understand how different pieces add up to complete the puzzle.
Write about the design workshop/training you just attended
Designers write about what they learn
Sharing is caring. So, go ahead and write about your takeaways from that session. It will help you assimilate whatever you have learned and helped others take inspiration from your learning. So write about it, no matter cliched it sounds. You never know who reads it and gets to learn from it.
Another source of inspiration could be the design rituals that you do at your organization- for instance, we have the SHOW & TELL meetings and the Ignite workshops at Quovantis. Because these are internal to the organization, writing about such things is always a good idea. You never know who would want to team up with you after reading about all the processes you follow- could be future teammates or partners!
Write about any new tool/design method you just learned
tools designers use
Tutorials, tips and tricks, and opinionated pieces are a great source of information for every designer- beginner or experienced. You can also write about what’s obsolete in the design world (example: Why Lorem ipsum is the word we don’t talk about anymore ) or what’s back from the grave (example: Why Gradients are back to rule in 2018).
One of our designer, Asif, wrote about his decade-long experience in the Design industry and it was a great source of inspiration for everyone in the team. Similarly, there is so much that you can write as well- which courses helped you become a better user experience designer or which books saved you in the times of distress.
Write about anything which inspires you
what inspires you as a designer
As a creative person, a lot of things can amaze you, inspire you, move you- all you just have to do is keep your eyes open. So write about anything that held your attention. One of our designers, Varsha, wrote about keeping a hobby as a side hustle. The blog doesn’t talk about any design trend but it’s casual, fun and much human.
I really feel writing about your experiences is much easier than entering into that rabbit hole of Googling and searching for trending articles. Instead, find what interests you and just write!
I hope this helps other designers who are looking for writing prompts.
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Thursday, March 29, 2007
Better Than Congress
Today's Rasmussen poll places President Bush's popularity higher than the approval ratings for Congress.
Twenty percent (20%) of Americans give Congress a good or excellent rating these days. The latest Rasmussen Reports survey found that 41% say the nation’s legislators are doing a fair job while 38% say poor.
In addition, most Americans have Congress accurately pegged.
Thirteen percent (13%) believe that most members of Congress are sincerely interested in helping people while 70% say the Representatives are mostly interested in their own careers.
At the same time, the President's approval rating (good or excellent) stands at 37%.
Wednesday, March 28, 2007
Say A Prayer For Jackboot
This Monday JB underwent arthoscopic surgery on his shoulder. Thankfully he is on the mend. He tore it up several times within a year and needed to have a tie rod end cleaned out and lubed. He is in "discomfort" and for the next few days no one is safe.
We all hope that he recovers fully and that no one gets mangled in the process.
Thursday, March 22, 2007
More Swill From the Wormening Crowd
Nice new digs here Sig, unfortunately trying to get logged into my own profile has induced grand-mal seizures. This furrin hosting has my reptilian noggin' completely baffled. Nonetheless I'll proceed with the little gem of lunacy.
Southern Ocean Current Faces Slowdown Threat
Melting ice-sheets and glaciers in Antarctica are releasing fresh water, interfering with the formation of dense "bottom water," which sinks 4-5 kilometers to the ocean floor and helps drive the world's ocean circulation system.
Now I'm really scared. What will we ever do with dense water interference. I do note that most of the density on the issue in general, is that between the ears of the ever-louder, somber, catastrophic proclamations of doom by alleged "scientists", fully dependent on even more studies requiring more studies of course, ensuring their continued employment. Let's see where this one is going (not that we don't already know)
"If the water gets fresh enough ... then it won't matter how much ice we form, we won't be able to make this water cold and salty enough to sink," said Steve Rintoul, a senior scientist at the Australian government-funded CSIRO Marine Science.
Considering the earth's surface is roughly 75% covered by water, you can at least get part of your dire prediction categorized as truthful. I didn't know that we were forming ice, here I was all these years thinking that sub-freezing atmospheric temperatures influencing water produced ice. Dealing with the next bit of blather, ummm sorry Steve but stratification of ocean waters due to salinity and temperature aren't dependent on the ice formations that Halliburton and Cheney operate out of the basement in the White House office building. The introduction of salt, good old NaCl will indeed make water "heavier", but specific gravity (aka density) would be the more appropriate term in the scientific context we're using here. Yes temperature also changes the density of water with colder temperatures making the water more dense. Of interest here is another little fact, that water as it approaches freezing , rapidly decreases in density and increases in specific volume, as most people will know a closed container full of water will be broken as the water changes state into ice and taking up more room. That puts your statement into a bit of conflict doesn't it? If we cool the water further, approaching it's change of state from liquid to solid it won't sink. Notice how icebergs float?
"Changes would be felt ... around the globe," said Rintoul, who recently led a multinational team of scientists on an expedition to sample deep-basin water south of Western Australia to the Antarctic.
Water dense enough to sink to the ocean floor is formed in polar regions by surface water freezing, which concentrates salt in very cold water beneath the ice. The dense water then sinks.
Our academic again resorts to a bit more factual data on his way to the BS flag being tossed out. The water immediately beneath the ice pack has a higher salinity because decreasing temperatures of water reduce it's ability to contain dissolved solids (such as salt). Those poor little salt ions floating around will either find a place they can maintain their self-esteem, dissolved in the water or precipitate out of the solution. Anyone trying to stir sugar into a glass of cold tea will notice this phenomena. Of course, I wouldn't expect you be familiar with this observation, as I'm sure your beverage of choice is pre-sweetened Kool-Aid
Only a few places around Antarctica and in the northern Atlantic create water dense enough to sink to the ocean floor, making Antarctic "bottom water" crucial to global ocean currents.
A fact noted by observing all the other oceans that don't have any water at their bottom.
But the freshening of Antarctic deep water was a sign that the "overturning circulation" system in the world's oceans might be slowing down, Rintoul said, and similar trends are occurring in the North Atlantic.
Well let's think about this tidbit of prevarication with some more insight. The deep water reduction in salinity (freshening) as you put it, would be indicative of the water becoming colder (but not freezing) and it's salinity would decrease as well. The circulatory system that you are carefully trying to put in "danger" is driven primarily by the variance in ocean temperatures vs. depth. It's called convection, and it speeds up as a function of temperature differences. Interestingly (and conveniently for submarine warfare) there are anomalous temperature differences with depth throughout the ocean. They are called thermoclines and useful as the "cold" layers transmit sound much better, allowing a submarine to "hear" much farther than other depths might permit.
For the so-called Atlantic Conveyor, the surface warm water current meets the Greenland ice sheet then cools and sinks, heading south again and driving the conveyor belt process.
But researchers fear increased melting of the Greenland ice sheet risks disrupting the conveyor. If it stops, temperatures in northern Europe would plunge.
Call me geographically challenged, but I though we were just talking about Antarctica? Did Greenland relocate without leaving a forwarding address? Let's go over this shamefully stupid statement. If more ice melts from the pack, it will sink at a faster rate to the lower depths. It's movement would entrain (sorry another scientific term) even more water and accelerate your "conveyor" effect, NOT stop it moron. Thermodynamic processes move at a rate determined by the absolute temperatures of the heat source vs. the heat sink. Now to continue fisking your junk science a little more. About 90% of the solar heating of the oceans occur in the upper few hundred feet of the surface. The heat transfer mechanism is primarily radiant heat, that is, direct impact of sunlight on the surface being absorbed by the non-transparent materials like plankton and assorted algaes along with other contaminants. The sea in turn, releases (or conversely) absorbs it's heat primarily by convection from the atmosphere moving across it's surface. Your ocean Conveyor O' Doom™, is driven by the relative differences in the heat rate of the ocean between the equatorial and polar regions, not melting ice in the polar latitudes. The only reasonable method to impact this would be resetting the earth's polar axis to "0" inclination in it's orbit. I'm sure with the sufficient application of offsets, the Goreacle can correct this too, as a follow-on to inventing the Intertubewebnet. I do notice what must be a typo in your scientific spewage up there. The topic was "Gobal Warming" right? Call me a right-wing knuckle dragger, but how does Global Warming lead to plunging temperatures in Norther Europe? The general rule as I understand it, is earth's atmosphere is warming due to the depradations of man. Butt-kissing academics like yourself are tasked with dithering about to find even more examples of how, what and where civilization is going to do, because it's getting warmer, not colder. I see you are taking a back-door to arrive at the predetermined conclusion, but unfortunately you picked the wrong phenomena. Global Warming that you idiots are so intent on tagging us humans with, would likely bring about an increase in the ocean currents.
Rintoul, who has led teams tracking water density around the Antarctic through decades of readings, said his findings add to concerns about a "strangling" of the Southern Ocean by greenhouse gases and global warming.
Rintoul, leading teams of even more zombies, wasting public funds for decades. The only strangling you can prove involves what some might say choking and chickens, but that's just me.
Acidification of the ocean is affecting the ability of plankton -- microscopic marine plants, animals and bacteria -- to absorb carbon dioxide, reducing the ocean's ability to sink greenhouse gases to the bottom of the sea.
Ohh, you have a 'new' approach I see, and you promptly hop on it to make yourself look even more foolish. Let's talk pH since you brought the subject up. I'll agree that dissolved gases in water affect the pH, one of the gases that could decrease the pH (become more acidic) is CO2, a relatively small component of the gas mixture in the atmosphere, about .04% to be more exact. The two major gases are Nitrogen and Oxygen and a number of smaller fractional gases. Nitrogen is about 80% of the mixture and generally inert, EXCEPT when it's ionized by interaction with solar radiation in the troposphere and even more importantly by lightning. So a nice lighting storm or very clear conditions allowing more solar radiation to penetrate farther into the atmosphere will increase the formation of ionized nitrogen. Gas partial pressure laws will then do their thing and force more ionic Nitrogen into the water and with some more help from Sol, an endothermic reaction causes Nitric Acid to form, acidifying the water. Still with me? Of the .04% of CO2 in the atmosphere only about 1% of that value is from human contributions. If you do the math the result is that an incredibly small amount of the dissolved ocean gas. Perhaps the most laughable statement in your dire prediction is right here. I restate the blockquote by itself for us to laugh at it's shamelessness.
So the oceans only absorb CO2 produced by man, ignoring the other 99.06% of naturally occurring CO2. Wow, Halliburton really must be producing some attractive CO2, in order for the oceans to grab up theirs. Now let me turn this whole joke on it's head. We are to believe that Global Warming is going to stop the ocean currents, freeze northern europe and make the southern oceans more acidic because we burn coal in Michigan or drive SUVs in Arizona and generally warm us all to death? Did I get this right? Do you have one clue how asinine this looks? But wait, there's more scary straw-men to toss out for us.
Rintoul said that global warming was also changing wind patterns in the Antarctic region, drawing them south away from the Australian mainland and causing declining rainfall in western and possibly eastern coastal areas.This was contributing to drought in Australia, one of the world's top agricultural producers, he said.
I thought you were studying ocean densities and conveyor belts? Or does invoking the hallowed term of "Global Warming" instantaneously confer the all-knowing, all-seeing wisdom of the Goreacle?
Pathetic, simply pathetic and the saddest of it all, is how many you can dupe into the bald-face lies to pony-up even more money, stolen out of the taxpayer's pockets.
LC JackBoot IC/A-OBR for Sig94
Monday, March 19, 2007
Rinky Dink A Mine Fulla Zinc
Al Gore's fiscal interests in one of the most polluted mines in the country are coming back to bite him in the ass. Can you say hy-poc-racy? I knew you could. From the WSJ Opinion Journal:
The media are finally catching up with Al Gore. Criticism of his anti-global-warming franchise and his personal environmental record has gone beyond ankle-biting bloggers. It's now coming from the New York Times and the Nashville Tennessean, his hometown paper that put his birth, as a senator's son, on its front page back in 1948, and where a young Al Gore Jr. worked for five years as a journalist.
Like a drunken sot arising from a week long binge, the NY Times scrapes the dried snot off its upper lip, pulls its urine stained trousers up from below its knees and finally remembers that it is a newspaper that is allegedly reporting, well, news.
Last Tuesday, the Times reported that several eminent scientists "argue that some of Mr. Gore's central points [on global warming] are exaggerated and erroneous."
*Belch* The Times then orders another round or six, pukes on the beer nuts and slides off the stool. And while it is again relieving itself contentedly into its trousers:
The Tenessean reported yesterday that Mr. Gore received $570,000 in royalties from the owners of zinc mines who held mineral leases on his farm. The mines, which closed in 2003 but are scheduled to reopen under a new operator later this year, "emitted thousands of pounds of toxic substances and several times, the water discharged from the mines into nearby rivers had levels of toxins above what was legal."
Looks like the Times and Al Gore both have problems with nasty discharges. I'm looking for a company that sells dead trout offsets.
Uncle Al won an Oscar for his movie, "An Incontinent Inconvenient Truth" where at the very end of the movie, Gore asks the audience,"Are you ready to change the way you live?" Al sure did. He buys offsets, or rather, he has the people at Generation Investment Management buy them for him.
Mr. Gore's office responded by claiming that the Gores "purchase offsets for their carbon emissions to bring their carbon footprint down to zero." But reports that Mr. Gore doesn't purchase carbon offsets with his own resources, and that they are meaningless in terms of global warming.
Meaningless, pointless, useless - that just about describes carbon offsets. The more you think about it the less sense it makes.
The offset purchases are actually made for him by Generation Investment Management, a London-based investment firm that Mr. Gore co-founded, and which provides carbon offsets as a fringe benefit to all 23 of its employees, ensuring that they require no real sacrifice on the part of Mr. Gore or his family. Indeed, their impact is also highly limited. The Carbon Neutral Co.--one of the two vendors that sell offsets to Mr. Gore's company, says that offset purchases "will be unable to reduce greenhouse gas emissions . . . in the short term."
But there's no time!! Gore is Agent Jack Bauer of Frothing Moonbat Central. These people and their incontinent truth are literally shitting themselves over the prospect of massive global flooding unseen since the last time Ted Kennedy relieved himself while swimming in the pool at the Y.
No time! It's already too late! But the Carbon Neutral Company, "If You've Got Carbon, Then Clean Out Your Blowhole" even has a carbon calculator designed to relieve you of worry, guilt and assets. Even though we'll all drown, fry or whatever before one offset cancels one snowflake I'll be breaking my ass to shovel next year.
The Times quoted Don Easterbrook, an emeritus professor of geology at Western Washington University, as telling hundreds of experts at the annual meeting of the Geological Society of America that "I don't want to pick on Al Gore. But there are a lot of inaccuracies in the statements we are seeing, and we have to temper that with real data." Mr. Easterbrook made clear he has never been paid by any energy corporations and isn't a Republican.
That's okay. Al Gore has never let a fact get in his way, or a dollar get out of his way for quite some time.
Then there is the Gore zinc mine. Mr. Gore has personally earned $570,000 in zinc royalties from a mine his father bought in 1973 from Armand Hammer, the business executive famous for his close friendship with the Soviet Union and for pleading guilty to making illegal campaign contributions during Watergate. On the same day Al Gore Sr. bought the 88-acre parcel from Hammer for $160,000, he sold the land and subsurface mining rights to his then 25-year-old son for $140,000. The mineral rights were then leased back to Hammer's Occidental Petroleum and the royalty payments put in the names of Al Gore Jr. and his wife, Tipper.
Sounds like another retirement plan. And I don't begrudge the man a penny of that. His daddy wanted him and Tipper to have a little something to fall back on and that's just fine and dandy. But don't get all in our faces about pollution when you can go fishing in Al's river and pull out a three headed catfish that has a glow-in-the-dark pecker.
The Gore mines were no small operations. In 2002, the year before they shut down, they ranked 22nd among all metal-mining operations in the U.S., with total toxic releases of 4.1 million pounds.
Four million pounds of toxic releases. That's over 2,000 tons of poison Al has allowed to be dumped into Tennessee rivers. I won't hold my breath until the Times publishes this story. But if a republican was responsible for this? We'd never hear the end of it.
A new mine operator, Strategic Resource Acquisition, is planning to reopen the mines later this year. The Tennessean reports that just last week, Mr. Gore wrote SRA asking it to work with a national environmental group as it makes its plans. He noted that under the previous operator, the mines had, according to the environmental website Scorecard, "pollution releases from the mine in 2002 [that] placed it among the 'dirtiest/worst facilities' in the U.S."
Well Al, I hope you enjoy the Oscar sitting up on your mantle 'cause you sure won't enjoy where I'd like to put it. But it would at least shut one of the holes that you pollute from.
Suicide By Cop
Every so often someone decides to commit suicide by shooting at the police. They know they're finished, it's all over, but they want to make a statement, or go out in a blaze of glory ("Top o'the world Mom!), or whatever reason they have. But they end up pointing a gun or shooting at a police officer. I wish they'd just find a bridge somewhere and jump.
In Syracuse we had an honor killing/death by cop incident yesterday. This happened about a mile and a half down the road from us.
From the Post Standard.
Police said Thach Ros, 62, shot his wife, Sopheap Kim Ros, 52, in the abdomen about 4 p.m. Saturday at their 303 Gere Ave. home. She had been critical condition this morning at University Hospital.
She is still in critical condition.
The shooting started a standoff between Thach Ros that ended Sunday night when a police SWAT team entered the home's basement and exchanged gunfire in the dark with Ros. Ros was killed, but authorities are awaiting autopsy results today to determine whether Ros died from a self-inflicted wound or gunfire from police.
But she wasn't the only one that Ros shot.
Ros' son, Sophin "Peter" Ros, was found dead in the home from a gunshot wound to the head.
This man shot and killed his own son. He shot him once in the arm, once in the stomache and twice in the head. And he killed his 33-year old son for reasons that mystify us, but make all the sense in the world to an Asian. This was an honor killing.
Ros' son, Sophin, disobeyed his father's wishes by marrying another woman. Sophin dishonored his father by making him look foolish.
Ros had arranged a marriage between his son and one of his cousins back in Cambodia. Ros made the arrangement without his son's knowledge and Sophin took exception to this. He married another Cambodian girl and disgraced his father. Four months ago Sophin and his wife moved back into Syracuse.
For some reason Ros also shot his wife; perhaps she was trying to stop him from shooting their son. The other two children fled the second story apartment by running to the rear porch and escaping with the help of police. Responding units cordoned off the area and fired tear gas canisters into the apartment to try to force Ros out. SWAT cops entered the house but were driven back by gunfire. At some point during the standoff, an officer fired when he spied Ros though an upstairs window and may have wounded him.
Ros' pastor tried to talk him out of the house and surrender but all such attempts to negotiate with him failed. Thus the situation lasted for nearly thirty hours as police and friends tried to find a way to spare his life.
But the police cannot let a situation like this last forever. All the nearby residents were evacuated; some had to sleep in their cars overnight. Other residents for blocks around were warned to stay indoors or stay away completely. Traffic was halted and diverted.
Ros either killed himself or was shot to death by a SWAT team late Sunday night.
Initial reports indicate that Ros probably died from a self inflicted gunshot.
Saturday, March 17, 2007
So Far,So Good
The wife and I started our South Beach diets two weeks ago. I have lost over fifteen pounds and she has lost twelve. I have to lose another thirty, or rather, I want to lose it. She won't tell me what her goal is, won't even tell me her weight. But I'm pretty good at estimating weight and I figure she wants to lose at least forty.
We both got serious when my cardiologist saw my blood work and was going to start me on medication for diabetes. I think I screwed up the test by eating breakfast before the blood was taken but he didn't know that. He was going to start me on some pills right off the bat but I told him that I wanted to try diet first. He was reluctant to do so since I have a prior history of heart trouble but he gave me until the end of this month for "lifestyle intervention" to work. After that, it's pounding more pills.
After my heat attack five years ago, although it was very minor thank the Lord, I stopped smoking and ultimately gained about forty-five pounds. I got very sedentary and simply stopped moving around as much as I used to. I got sick and tired of feeding the deer, rabbits, woodchucks, squirrels and every other critter that wanted a free meal so I stopped vegetable gardening and I no longer hunted. I hardly ever went fishing. Everything hurt so I didn't do all the side carpentry jobs that I used to. And I found a substitute for nicotine, yummy dark chocolate *slobber*.
And the pounds grew slowly but surely.
My internist had already warned me months prior to this that I should do something about my weight. So once I told my sweetie what my cardiologist said, she broke out the South Beach diet book and off we went. The grocery bills shot up at least 50%.
Phase I is over. I hated it. I am not a salad person. I love meat and potatoes and almost all veggies. I love eye-talian bread and pasta. And baked goods. And pizza. And I couldn't have any.
Instead I had salads, tuna fish, chicken (I grew feathers), no sugar jello (not bad at all, especially if you throw some no fat Cool Whip on it), pistachio nuts, low fat cheese and Canadian ham. And more salads. Eggs! Lotsa eggs and egg substitute. No bread at all.
But I no longer gasp for breath when bending over to tie my shoes. Just yesterday I wore to work brand new dress pants that I couldn't get into last year. Now THAT was sweet. The buttons on my shirt are no longer screaming for mercy. And I am climbing the stairs much easier.
Oderint, Dum Metuant
Senators Carl Levin (D-MI) and Lindsey Graham (R-SC) have issued a statement accusing the U.S. of abusing terrorist Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, mass murderer extrordinaire.
I hope we did. I hope we still do.
I really, really hope so.
I hope he shudders in his fitful sleep at night and awakens every fifteen minutes bathed in stinking fear sweat, because of what we do to him.
I hope the taste of food is like ashes in his mouth and he pukes most of it up. He drinks but there no quenching; he eats but there is no satisfaction, because of what we do to him.
I hope he pisses himself in fright every time a guard walks by his prison door, because of what we do to him.
I hope he grinds his teeth to nubs in anticipation of the next dreadful punishment he will receive.
I hope that fear ties his guts up in knots so that constipation grips his bowels like a worm in a steel vise; like a women enduring soul-wrenching birth contractions for days, he names each one of his miserable mouse turds as a beloved child.
I hope that he prays for death, that he waves his ass at his moon god fifty times a day, hoping that death will free him from U.S. custody, because of what we do to him.
Other than heresay, there is no evidence of abuse; but like the Rather/Maple TANG fiasco, it sounds true so it must be true. Enter the new liberal standard of proof.
After all, a terrorist who has murdered 3,000 innocent Americans must be considered trustworthy. And these traitorous senators should be in the cells right next to him.
Friday, March 16, 2007
The Religion Of Peace - NOT
There will be no peace in the middle east until Muslims address the issue of violence sanctioned by their culture, their religion and their governments. The children of a Palestinian terrorist bomber, Rim al-Riyashi, were interviewed by the Hamas media organ, Al-Aqsa TV.
During the TV segment, the interviewer gently asked the children to count the number of Jews murdered by their mother and asked them to recite "Mama Rim," most likely a poem written in honor of the woman's "martyrdom." The interviewer began, "Let's talk with the two children of the jihad-fighting martyrdom-seeker Rim Al-Riyashi -- Dhoha and Muhammad. Dhoha, you love mama, right? Where did mama go?" he asked.
The use of these children for legitimizing unholy terror is disgusting. For a truly horrible picture of these monsters who claim to fight for their god and will use any and all means to glorify murder, read this from Memri:
Following are excerpts of an interview with the children of Palestinian suicide bomber Rim Al-Riyashi, which aired on Al-Aqsa TV on March 8, 2007.
Interviewer: Let's talk with the two children of the jihad-fighting martyrdom-seeker Rim Al-Riyashi - Dhoha and Muhammad. Dhoha, you love mama, right? Where did mama go?
Dhoha: To Paradise.
Interviewer: What did mama do?
Dhoha: She committed martyrdom.
Interviewer: She killed Jews, right?
Interviewer: How many did she kill, Muhammad?
Muhammad: Huh?
Interviewer: How many Jews did mama kill?
Muhammad: This many...
Interviewer: How many is that?
Muhammad: Five.
Interviewer: Do you love mama? Do you miss mama? Where is mama, Muhammad?
Muhammad: In Paradise.
Interviewer: Dhoha, what would you like to recite for us?
Dhoha: In the name of Allah the Merciful the Compassionate. "When comes the help of Allah, and victory, and you see people entering the religion of Allah in troops, then celebrate the praise of your Lord, and ask His forgiveness, for He is ever ready to show mercy."
Interviewer: What else would you like to recite? You have read the surra: "When comes the help of Allah, and victory." What would you like to recite for us now?
Dhoha: "Mama Rim."
Interviewer: Recite the poem "Mama Rim" for us. Recite anything. What would you like to recite?
Interviewer: Muhammad, do you know how to recite?
Muhammad: Yes.
Interviewer: Go on then, recite something for us. What would you like to recite?
Dhoha: I just remembered.
Muhammad: I am in kindergarten.
Interviewer: Are you doing well in kindergarten?
Muhammad: Yes.
Dhoha: I am in kindergarten, I want to tell.
Interviewer: Go on then, tell us. You're in kindergarten too? Are you in kindergarten, Dhoha? In kindergarten or at school?
Dhoha: In kindergarten.
Interviewer: That's great. One should talk about the innocence of children...
Muhammad: I'm in kindergarten too.
Interviewer: You're in kindergarten too.
Interviewer: What would you like to recite for us? Have you heard the poem "Mama Rim"? Go on then, recite it for us.
Dhoha: "Rim, you are a fire bomb."
Interviewer: Go on, recite it.
Dhoha: "Your children and submachine gun are your motto."
Interviewer: Muhammad, go ahead and recite...
Muhammad: I'm in kindergarten.
Dhoha: That's it, I'm done.
Interviewer: OK, do you want to go to mama?
Dhoha: Yes.
It is very obvious that these kids have been prepped for this interview with the typical radical Islam bloodthirsty rhetoric. The kids' childish innocence, though corrupted by the soulless ghouls who try to profit from them, still manages to shine forth.
Muhammad is just a little orphan trying to show how proud he is to be in kindergarten.
There indeed must be a special place reserved in hell for men like that interviewer and those who persauded his mother to spatter herself and four Israeli IDF soldiers and abandon these little ones to the machinations of murderers.
Wednesday, March 14, 2007
More On Gore
In the previous post I took a look at Al Gore's preposterous claim that he is not profiting from the carbon offsets that he does not buy from his London investment firm, GIM, Generation Investment Management. He does make a profit (most likely a pretty healthy one) for two reasons: the investment cost him nothing because it is an offset donated by GIM, and GIM seems to have some pretty smart people running the show.
• David Blood, the former CEO of Goldman Sachs Asset Management, is Managing Partner;
• Mark Ferguson, previously co-Head of Pan-European Research at Goldman Sachs Asset Management and a Global Equities Portfolio Manager, is Chief Investment Officer;
• Peter Harris, previously head of International Operations for Goldman Sachs Asset Management, is Chief Operating Officer;
• Peter S. Knight, formerly Managing Director Met West Financial, lawyer, Chief of Staff for Senator Al Gore (D-TN) from 1977-1989, and Campaign Manager for President Clinton's successful re-election in 1996, is President of Generation U.S.;
• Colin le Duc, previously Director of Research for SAM Sustainable Asset Management in Zurich and strategy consultant for Arthur D. Little in London, is Head of Research; and
• Uncle Al, Chairman, manly inventor of the intertubes and manly ex-Vice President of the United States. Knowing full well that carbohydrate offsets would not be available until he invented them in the year 2011, Gore demonstrated manly love for his wife by inserting his tongue down her esophagus at the 2000 Democratic Convention and removing the sugar laden Moon Pie from her stomach that she had eaten off stage just moments prior.
The biographies of the Board members are here. We already touched on Peter Knight and his narrow avoidance of a federal investigation when Janet Reno was fortuitously distracted by a comely co-ed intern from George Mason.
But what else is going on here? The spokesman for GIM, Richard Campell, gave us a clue. The confusion, Campbell said, arose because GIM pays to offset the energy use of its operations and the personal emissions of its 23 employees, including Gore. And of course the bigger carbon footprint you leave, the bigger the offset and the more money that is donated to your account for investment.
We do not invest in any activity of carbon offset. That's nonsense. We are a fund management business that does sustainability research," he added.
But the offset is an investment in an eco-frienfly business? Who is receiving the dough if the investment pays off? Campell is silent on this. But their website isn't so silent. It gives a clearer picture of what they're about than their spokeman.
Long Term Focus: A majority of a company's value is determined by its long-run performance. Investment results for long-only equity strategies are maximized by taking a long-term investment horizon.
That doesn't sound like research to me, sounds more like a 401k.
We Buy High Quality Businesses:Dominant market positions, strong entry barriers, predictable future, pricing power, and secular growth trends.
Hmmmmmmm. No research here.
At the Right Price: Key to our success is our price discipline and the ability to buy companies at sufficiently attractive prices to deliver performance.
Nope, no research here either. Then there's this:
LONDON, February 26
-- Northern Trust has been appointed by Generation Investment Management ("Generation") to provide full investment operations outsourcing for its assets under management. Northern Trust now provides custody, trade services,fund accounting, transfer agency, performance measurement and clientreporting across Generation's fund range domiciled in Dublin and Delaware,and investment administration support services for Generation in connectionwith its global separate account business.
I'm not a financial wizkid and I sure don't know what this means. I thought GIM had all this experience?
As a new firm, we had the opportunity to partner with Northern Trust early on to position our business operations strategically for future growth," said Peter Harris, Chief Operating Officer of Generation. "One of the key advantages for us in partnering with Northern Trust is the benefits we receive from a well run, established global business with large resources and deep expertise. We want to focus on managing our clients' assets and delivering superior investment performance: outsourcing to Northern Trust enables us to do this whilst providing the outstanding operational support we require as we grow our business."
This still sounds like 401k stuff to me. Anyone out there lend a hand? Partnering to receive benefits from a "well run, established global business" and one with "deep pockets espertise"?
Northern Trust Corporation (Nasdaq: NTRS) is a leading provider of investment management, asset and fund administration, fiduciary and banking solutions for corporations, institutions and affluent individuals worldwide.
I hate to be redundant, but this does not sound like a research company. And notice the use of "affluent individuals worldwide." Sounds to me like rich people with guilty consiences seeking offsets.
Northern Trust, a multibank holding company based in Chicago, has a growing network of 84 offices in 18 U.S. states and has international offices in 13 locations in North America, Europe and the Asia-Pacific region. As of December 31, 2006, Northern Trust had assets under custody of US$3.5trillion, and assets under investment management of US$697 billion. NorthernTrust, founded in 1889, has earned distinction as an industry leader in combining high-touch service and expertise with innovative products and technology.
Monday, March 12, 2007
Global Warming is Gore's Retirement Plan
From an article in Investor's Business Daily:
Environmentalism: Gore's carbon footprint may be the size of Godzilla's, but he eases his conscience with 'carbon offsets.' He buys them from himself. And every time someone else buys them, Big Al gets richer.
This carbon offset scam is just that - a scam. It produces nothing, it does not reduce carbon emissions and it only serves to line the pockets of those hooked into the econoscam.
Say you want to fly your Gulfstream private jet across the country regularly to Hollywood premieres instead of taking a Greyhound bus. You buy a carbon offset, giving money to people who will do something like invest it in windmills and solar panels to 'reduce' carbon emissions by an equivalent amount. Your are then declared 'carbon neutral' as you continue to pollute.
So while the hippie is happily polluting, the not-for-profit is stealing it. Or you can own the carbon offset business itself and pay yourself to use that private jet. Plus a nice salary as executive director or any other title that pops into your thieving brain.
Speaking of carbon offsets and shell games, guess where Gore buys his carbon offsets? Well, he buys them from a firm called Generation Investment Management LLP, a tax-exempt U.S. 501(c)3 corporation. The chairman and co-founder is Al Gore. In other words, he buys his carbon offsets from himself. Others who buy these offset are really buying stock in Gore's growing business. You, too, can green up his portfolio, if not Earth itself.
And there's the rub. The shell game is already set up, the screaming loons are in motion to stifle debate, the scientists have been bought through grants and the UN smelled the bribes a thousand miles away and- through the IPCC - are partners in the scam.
The number of companies jumping into this market has multiplied. In 2006, at least 60 sold offsets worth about $110 million to consumers in Europe and North America in 2006, up from a dozen firms selling offsets worth $6 million in 2004. That's a lot of green.
That's a lot of stupidity, and a lot of hippies with guilty consciences. And they want to force you to join them.
Skeptics of this scheme — perhaps we should call it a scam — include, interestingly enough, Steve Rayner, a senior professor at Oxford and a member of a group working on the reduction of greenhouse gases for the U.N.'s International Panel of Climate Change. 'What these companies are allowing people to do,' said Rayner, 'is to carry on with their current behavior with a clear conscience.'
This is not about conscience or the climate, it's about cash.
Gorebucks that is.
3/13/07 UPDATE:
One of the commenters (thanks Fred) was kind enough to leave this link to the Cyber News Service, where the company spokesman denies that Gore is profiting from carbon offsets.
Al Gore is not profiting from his crusade against global warming, a spokesman for an investment firm co-founded by the former vice president said Tuesday.
Gore's London-based employee-owned company, Generation Investment Management (GIM), purchases -- but isn't a provider of -- carbon dioxide (CO2) "offsets," said spokesman Richard Campbell.
GIM is strictly an investment firm that considers how eco-friendly corporations are in assessing long-term sustainability, Campbell told Cybercast News Service by phone from London.
Fair enough. We'll listen.
So, the firm will cover the cost to offset the energy use at Gore's home, or his global jet travel, as it would the offset cost of any other employee, Campbell said.
So the confusion is that Gore doesn't profit from his crusade but that GIM pays for the carbon offsets so that Gore doesn't have to? Gore still derives a benefit from GIM, namely, Gore can say that he lives a "carbon neutral" lifestyle but doesn't have a pay a cent for it because the company he founded pays for it. Ahhhhhh, I think I smell a profit here. The profit being that cheapskate Gore skates on the carbon offset and pockets the difference.
The fact that Gore's Nashville home runs up electricity bills averaging $1,200 per month was publicized last week by the Tennessee Center for Policy Research.
I don't spend that much for electricity in a year and a half. But I don't claim to be carbon neutral either. And who runs GIM that enables Al "I Hate Carbon" Gore to make this claim at no cost?
The president of GIM's U.S. operation is Peter S. Knight, who served as Gore's chief of staff in the U.S. Senate and later as campaign manager for the Clinton-Gore reelection campaign in 1996.Knight is a controversial figure.
In 1999, Republicans on the House Commerce Committee asked then U.S. Attorney Janet Reno to investigate whether a $1 million payment to Knight from a Tennessee developer was an illegal contingency fee for helping get the Federal Communications Commission to move to the development.
Knight and the developer, Franklin Haney, said the payment was for legal fees for Knight's work on several projects. Reno declined to investigate.
I can't speak for the reader, but this certainly does not inspire confidence in me. And since Gore refuses to disclose his income, there is no way to see what other "benefits" Gore is reaping form his association with GIM. But there are other considerations. GIM is an investment firm that takes money that Al Gore doesn't give them and "invests" it for him in eco-friendly businesses.
> We buy high quality businesses and management teams whose securities are attractively priced to deliver excess returns over the long-term.
> Generation's strategy is to invest in long-only, global, public equities with a concentrated portfolio of 30-50 companies.
> We Buy High Quality Businesses: Dominant market positions, strong entry barriers, predictable future, pricing power, and secular growth trends
> With High Quality Management Teams: Culture of Integrity, respect for shareholders, well managed for the long term
My take on this is simple. Remember Hillary Clinton's spectacular success in the futures market?
On October 11, 1978, the future First Lady, a neophyte investor with an annual income of $25,000, opened a commodity-futures account with a deposit of $1,000.
Her first trade was the short sale of ten live-cattle contracts at a price of 57.55 cents a pound: a commitment to deliver in December of that year 400,000 pounds of cattle with a market value of $230,200. One day later, she bought the contracts back at a price of 56.10 cents, just 0.15 cent above the low of the day, pocketing $5,300 for a return of 530 per cent.
Mrs. Clinton continued to be a net winner at the game. By the time she closed her trading account ten months later, she had racked up $99,541 in profits, a spectacular 10,000 per cent return on her initial investment of $1,000. Either Mrs. Clinton was a better trader than the legendary George Soros, whose best-ever annual return in thirty years of trading was 122 per cent, or she was led by an invisible hand.
Looks like Al Gore did learn something from the Clinton's after all.
He learned how to cover his scheming ass.
How Cold Was It?
I'm dying here. This is just too rich. I got wind of this from the Dread Rotti Imperator, Misha I, and I can't stop laughing.
The explorers, Ann Bancroft and Liv Arnesen, on Saturday called off what was intended to be a 530-mile trek across the Arctic Ocean after Arnesen suffered frostbite in three of her toes, and extreme cold temperatures drained the batteries in some of their electronic equipment.
This little piddy went subzero, and this little piddy turned blue; this little piddy fell off ... Too bad they brought the heat resistant-Global Worming batteries with them.
On Monday, the pair was at Canada's Ward Hunt Island, awaiting a plane to take them to Resolute, Canada, where they were to return to Minneapolis later this week.
Like all eco-loons, they are not willing to go the distance when it actually costs them something, like body parts. The heart and soul of the whole warming scheme is that it is going to cost YOU, the tax payer. It costs the taxpayer to hire these SOB's so they can make grand entrances and falsify data, it costs the taxpayer to host these ridiculous international conferences where they can beat their breasts and scream Death, Doom and Destruction if we don't do something Now.
But how cold was it?
Then there was the cold - quite a bit colder, Atwood said, then Bancroft and Arnesen had expected. One night they measured the temperature inside their tent at 58 degrees below zero, and outside temperatures were exceeding 100 below zero at times, Atwood said.
That is really cold. Almost as cold as Hillary's side of the bed. Almost as cold as Maureen Dowd's chances of marrying a straight guy. And no where near as cold as that part of Hell where Gore is going to find himself when global warming kicks in.
I am kinda glad these women had enough sense to get their asses out of danger, but they screwed up. You always prepare for the worst eventuality in these kinds of expeditions, like - gee - it is the Artic, it is winter, and it could get real c-c-c-cold. But my sympathy extends only so far for people who refuse to acknowledge the incredible complexity of creation and think that they know better.
These idiots were going to gather "photographic evidence" (??) of global warming and even go swimming. What photographic evidence? Palm trees? Sandy beach cabanas?
"They were experiencing temperatures that weren't expected with global warming," Atwood said. "But one of the things we see with global warming is unpredictability."
Another thing you see with global warming is nutroots roaming around ice fields without a clue as to what they are doing. As for unpredictable, you never know what an idiot will do.
Saturday, March 10, 2007
Can I Supersize That Coffin For Ya?
Funeral homes across the country are forced to deal with a new problem, the uber corpse, as overweight fatties overwhelm traditional burial arrangements.
Funeral homes and the Snohomish County medical examiner's office are having to find larger equipment such as cots and power hoists to accommodate a growing number of deceased obese people. The trend has led to the use of bigger cots, larger cremation and embalming facilities, and more staff and power hoists to properly care for overweight people who die.
Jumping up and down on Ted Kennedy's size XXXL ass to make it fit inside a L coffin would be a an event worth watching. The sixteen pallbearers lined up on each side of the coffin may find it disquieting that its sides are bulging, ready to spill the contents.
"It's very important that you treat the deceased with dignity and respect," medical examiner spokeswoman Carolyn Sanden said.
And the familia will see how backing up that shiny, black Cadillac payloader to the grave site *beep* *beep* is real dignified.
About 22 percent of adults in Washington state are obese and another 36 percent are overweight, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Nationwide, an estimated 33 percent of adults between 20 and 74 years old are obese.
"It's not unusual to encounter 300-pound people now, which used to be the exception rather than the rule," said Jim Noel, who has worked 47 years in the funeral-home profession and is executive director of the Washington State Funeral Directors Association.
In Snohomish County cases investigated last year, the medical examiner provided the weight of 326 people, with 84 adults considered obese based on their body-mass index, which takes into account height and weight.
Fifteen weighed more than 300 pounds, and a 6-foot-tall, middle-aged man weighed 499.
The other side of the agrument is: how old are these people? Overweight people usually have accompanying health problems that hasten their demise.
Injuries to workers removing and transporting heavier bodies have cost an average $16,000 a year since 2003, according to staff reports to the County Council.
[...] The county also has spent $18,000 in recent years on larger tables and electric hoists because the older, smaller tables couldn't accommodate rolling a body over for examination.
Pretty soon they'll be using forklifts. Some of the article deals with winching dead bodies onto examination tables. It sounds like a Japanese whale factory.
Webster has seen cases where families have bought custom-sized caskets, and the family of one 784-pound woman had to buy three cemetery plots.
That's not a burial plot, it's a landfill project.
Nazi Catholic Bishops
From the Arutz Sheva, Israel National News.
A group of German bishops visited Israel and the "occupied territories" and expressed dismay at the fortifications and check-points that separate Jews from murderers. They didn't put it quite like that, though. In fact, they offered their piety and pity to terrorists who must climb fences and pass through check-points before they can detonate themselves along with Jewish men, women and children.
Ya gotta wonder if these guys aren't crackheads impersonating priests. Maybe thay can volunteer strapping the explosive gear around the chests of terrorists and giving them rides to the checkpoints. Or perhaps they'd like to strap on a one-way ticket to Allah themselves?
One bishop compared those obstacles to the Berlin Wall. Another referred to Ramallah as the Warsaw Ghetto.
No mention, from these bishops, about the thousands of Palestinian Arab suicide bombers who made these barriers necessary. No mention that those barriers have saved countless Jewish lives. Jewish life has never been high on the German agenda. Likewise, nothing from these bishops about Arab school books that teach hatred of Jews and, yes, even Christians.
If you want a gander at some Palestinian "educational material" look at this, or look at Palestinian kids "playing" at beheading someone. The Berlin Wall was built to keep an enslaved population in. The Israeli security wall is being built to keep murderous Palestinians out.
As reported in the UK Telegraph: "Bishop Gregor Maria Franz Hanke said he planned to amend this year's Easter message to German churches to include the delegation's impressions and to demand a change to the situation." Translation: "Hitler didn't finish the job."
The bishops, 27 of them on this tour, were evidently nostalgic for the good old days, when it was "Springtime for Hitler," and Jews throughout Europe had no choice but to submit for the cattle cars and crematoriums. These days, the Jews have a nation and an army. These days, the Jews can actually defend themselves.
And they'd better. No one defended them during the Holocaust and no one will now. I very much doubt the US would step in if Israel were attacked again.
We can only imagine the frustration of these bishops, who had no Gestapo to call upon to solve the Jewish Question over in Israel. Everywhere they looked - Ach Gott! - Jewish soldiers!
Remember to send the IDF a pizza.
Hmmmmmmmmmm. Pizza!
I can't have any. I'm on a diet.
Friday, March 09, 2007
Sometimes the irony just drives me right out of my skull; like this story:
Priests to purify site after Bush visit
GUATEMALA CITY (AP) -- Mayan priests will purify a sacred archaeological site to eliminate "bad spirits" after President Bush visits next week, an official with close ties to the group said Thursday.
"That a person like (Bush), with the persecution of our migrant brothers in the United States, with the wars he has provoked, is going to walk in our sacred lands, is an offense for the Mayan people and their culture," Juan Tiney, the director of a Mayan nongovernmental organization with close ties to Mayan religious and political leaders, said Thursday.
I want to grab these idiots by the throat and do to them what their ancestors did to their own people.
Human sacrifice was perpetrated on prisoners, slaves, and particularly children, with orphans and illegitimate children specially purchased for the occasion.
The Mayan religion was brutal, and filled with bloody rituals such as this:
The priest would watch in the night sky for the star of fire to reach the zenith. Once it did, the priest would remove the heart of this man, and replace it with a piece of wood, that was laid on a piece of turquoise. This is where the priest would start the new fire that would once again light the city.
The Mayans even had a month - Tlacaxipehualiztli - which means the flaying of men to honor their god Xipe-Totec. This god was worshipped by sacrifice and dancing by priests wearing the flayed skin of victims.
And they're going to purify the site because President Bush is fouling the land. Idiots. And there are six million of these Mayan ass clowns.
40 Reasons To Arm Yourself
I saw this over at Militia Jim's site and couldn't control myself, I just had to steal it.
40 Reasons to Ban Guns
1. Banning guns works, which is why New York, DC, Detroit & Chicago cops need guns.
2. Washington DC's low murder rate of 69 per 100,000 is due to strict gun control, and Indianapolis' high murder rate of 9 per 100,000 is due to the lack of gun control.
3. Statistics showing high murder rates justify gun control but statistics showing increasing murder rates after gun control are "just statistics."
4. The Brady Bill and the Assault Weapons Ban, both of which went into effect in 1994 are responsible for the decrease in violent crime rates,which have been declining since 1991.
5. We must get rid of guns because a deranged lunatic may go on a shooting spree at any time and anyone who would own a gun out of fear of such a lunatic is paranoid.
6. The more helpless you are the safer you are from criminals.
7. An intruder will be incapacitated by tear gas or oven spray, but if shot with a .357 Magnum will get angry and kill you.
9. When confronted by violent criminals, you should "put up no defense - give them what they want, or run" (Handgun Control Inc. Chairman Pete Shields, Guns Don't Die - People Do, 1981, p. 125).
10. The New England Journal of Medicine is filled with expert advice about guns; just like Guns & Ammo has some excellent treatises on heart surgery.
11. One should consult an automotive engineer for safer seat belts, a civil engineer for a better bridge, a surgeon for internal medicine, a computer programmer for hard drive problems, and Sarah Brady for firearms expertise.
12. The 2nd Amendment, ratified in 1787, refers to the National Guard, which was created 130 years later, in 1917.
13. The National Guard, federally funded, with bases on federal land, using federally-owned weapons, vehicles, buildings and uniforms, punishing trespassers under federal law, is a "state" militia.
14. These phrases: "right of the people peaceably to assemble," "right of the people to be secure in their homes," "enumerations herein of certain rights shall not be construed to disparage others retained by the people," and "The powers not delegated herein are reserved to the states respectively, and to the people" all refer to individuals, but "the right of the people to keep and bear arms" refers to the state.
15. "The Constitution is strong and will never change." But we should ban and seize all guns thereby violating the 2nd, 4th, and 5th Amendments to that Constitution.
16. Rifles and handguns aren't necessary to national defense! Of course, the army has hundreds of thousands of them.
17. Private citizens shouldn't have handguns, because they aren't "military weapons'', but private citizens shouldn't have "assault rifles'', because they are military weapons.
18. In spite of waiting periods, background checks, fingerprinting,government forms, etc., guns today are too readily available, which is responsible for recent school shootings. In the 1940's, 1950's and 1960's,anyone could buy guns at hardware stores, army surplus stores, gas stations,variety stores, Sears mail order, no waiting, no background check, no fingerprints, no government forms and there were no school shootings.
19. The NRA's attempt to run a "don't touch" campaign about kids handling guns is propaganda, but the anti-gun lobby's attempt to run a "don't touch" campaign is responsible social activity.
20. Guns are so complex that special training is necessary to use them properly, and so simple to use that they make murder easy.
21. A handgun, with up to 4 controls, is far too complex for the typical adult to learn to use, as opposed to an automobile that only has 20.
22. Women are just as intelligent and capable as men but a woman with a gun is "an accident waiting to happen" and gun makers' advertisements aimed at women are "preying on their fears."
23. Ordinary people in the presence of guns turn into slaughtering butchers but revert to normal when the weapon is removed.
24. Guns cause violence, which is why there are so many mass killings at gun shows.
25. A majority of the population supports gun control, just like a majority of the population supported owning slaves.
26. Any self-loading small arm can legitimately be considered to be a "weapon of mass destruction" or an "assault weapon."
27. Most people can't be trusted, so we should have laws against guns, which most people will abide by because they can be trusted.
28. The right of Internet pornographers to exist cannot be questioned because it is constitutionally protected by the Bill of Rights, but the use of handguns for self defense is not really protected by the Bill of Rights.
29. Free speech entitles one to own newspapers, transmitters, computers, and typewriters, but self- defense only justifies bare hands.
30. The ACLU is good because it uncompromisingly defends certain parts of the Constitution, and the NRA is bad, because it defends other parts of the Constitution.
31. Charlton Heston, a movie actor as president of the NRA is a cheap lunatic who should be ignored, but Michael Douglas, a movie actor as a representative of Handgun Control, Inc. is an ambassador for peace who is entitled to an audience at the UN arms control summit.
32. Police operate with backup within groups, which is why they need larger capacity pistol magazines than do "civilians" who must face criminals alone and therefore need less ammunition.
33. We should ban "Saturday Night Specials" and other inexpensive guns because it's not fair that poor people have access to guns too.
34. Police officers have some special Jedi-like mastery over handguns that private citizens can never hope to obtain.
35. Private citizens don't need a gun for self- protection because the police are there to protect them even though the Supreme Court says the police are not responsible for their protection.
36. Citizens don't need to carry a gun for personal protection but police chiefs, who are desk-bound administrators who work in a building filled with cops, need a gun. (My personal favorite)
37. "Assault weapons" have no purpose other than to kill large numbers of people. The police need assault weapons. You do not.
38. When Microsoft pressures its distributors to give Microsoft preferential promotion, that's bad; but when the Federal government pressures cities to buy guns only from Smith & Wesson, that's good.
39. Trigger locks do not interfere with the ability to use a gun for defensive purposes, which is why you see police officers with one on their duty weapon.
40. Handgun Control, Inc., says they want to "keep guns out of the wrong hands." Guess what? You have the wrong hands.
Thursday, March 08, 2007
Attack Of The IUM's
The Russian's seem to be using a tag-team approach to poisoning people. First it was Polonium and *tag* now it's Thallium.
LOS ANGELES, California (CNN) -- Two American women who were hospitalized in Moscow earlier this week with possible thallium poisoning were in fair but stable condition Thursday at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, California, the hospital said.
Marina Kovalevsky, 42, and her daughter Yanna, 26, were released Wednesday from the Sklifosovsky Clinic in Moscow. Thallium is a colorless, odorless and tasteless metal which, even ingested in small amounts, can be deadly, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Both Kovalevsky's were born in Russia and escaped emigrated to the US in 1989. They go back to Mother Russia on a regular basis and flew there in mid-February to attend a wedding. Then they were poisoned. Yanna and her mother were released from the hospital and returned to Los Angeles yesterday (Wednesday). The mother is a physician.
Moscow's top public health doctor, Nikolai Filatov, said thallium poisoning had been confirmed, according to the RIA-Novosti news agency.
Thallium is fatal in amounts as low as one gram. Thallium is used in many ways, but never as a condiment. Except in Russia.
Saddam Hussein used it to kill his rivals and thallium was first suspected as the poison used to murder former Russian spy Alexander Litvinenko.
And the FBI has decided to take a look into this. There is a possibility that they were poisoned prior to leaving the US to fly to Russia.
I Want One Of These Too!
The Israeli's have raised the stakes on terrorist acts. Now there is a silent stalker, an inhuman force that will kill remorselessly, that has no heart, experiences no regrets... and runs on batteries.
Meet the VIPeR.
JERUSALEM (Reuters) - An Israeli defense firm on Thursday unveiled a portable robot billed as being capable of entering most combat zones alone and engaging enemies with an onboard armory that includes a machine-pistol and grenades.
The VIPeR, roughly the size of a small television, was invented as part of Israel's efforts to develop weaponry that could reduce the risks to its forces from hand-to-hand fighting against Palestinian or Lebanese Hezbollah guerrillas.
It's the size of a small TV and it comes with its own limited remote control, it can only "turn off" terrorists.
The manufacturer, Elbit Systems Ltd., said that the VIPeR's small size and dual treads enable it to move "undeterred by stairs, rubble, dark alleys, caves or narrow tunnels".
As well as bomb-sniffing and bomb disposal equipment, the VIPeR can carry an Uzi machine-pistol or plant a grenade. The weapons would be aimed using an onboard video camera.
Now there is something else for terrorists to worry about. Let them lose sleep.
Can you imagine about a hundred of these things coming towards a terrorist hidey-hole? There just has to be a remote camera capability in order to record the good natured hijinks.
Maybe we'll see some footage on America's Deadliest Home Videos.
I assume the two antennas on the back of the unit are for motion and armament control.
According to Elbit, which has close links with the Defense Ministry, Israel plans to deploy the VIPeR among its infantry units after field tests. The robot could also be of interest to foreign police units or U.S. forces in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Oh, I'll bet someone is interested. There's gotta be some cool nicknames for this thing.
Wednesday, March 07, 2007
I Want One
What I really want is a ray gun that will make you crap your pants. But until the "Brown Ray Laser Blaster" is invented, this one will do:
The new technology has been given an acronym, EPIC, for Electromagnetic Personnel Interdiction Control. The idea is that intense radio-frequency emissions – capable of passing through walls – would be used to temporarily disrupt the balance and coordination functions of targets' inner ears, knocking them down relatively harmlessly.The Navy notes that "second order effects would be extreme motion sickness," suggesting that in fact the order given by future Captain Kirks may be "set phasers on 'puke'".
The intention of the programme is to avoid unnecessary harm to the target, but unconscious vomiting would seem to present something of a choking hazard. Still, EPIC-based regurge blasters would seem less brutal than the microwave-oven cannons already tested, which are designed to disperse crowds by lightly frying their outer skin layers.
That's "lightly but deliciously frying." So it's either salted people chips or the GutWrench 3000. I'll wait for the technology to make them poop and puke at the same time. Call it the Spewer XLS.
She's Gone
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) -- Astronaut Lisa Nowak was fired from NASA on Wednesday, a month after she was charged with trying to kidnap a woman she regarded as her romantic rival for the affections of a space shuttle pilot. NASA officials said Nowak's dismissal did not reflect the space agency's belief in her guilt or innocence.
They just didn't want to get stuck with the dry cleaning bill.
In her honor, Mattel is coming out with a new BB gun that shoots poo pellets.
Nowak, who had an affair with a fellow astronaut, accosted her lover's new girlfriend at an Orlando airport. She wore a diaper so she could drive non-stop from Houston.
She allegedly pepper-sprayed the woman through a partially lowered car window. In Nowak's vehicle, police found a BB gun, new steel mallet, a knife and rubber tubing. [...] Nowak, 43, pleaded not guilty to attempted kidnapping and burglary with assault. She was released on bail wearing a monitoring device on her ankle.
She is also prohibited from buying Depends™ and must produce proof every twelve hours that she has had a bowel movement.
Sunday, March 04, 2007
Chiamus And Reversal
chi·as·mus [kahy-az-muhs]
Shakespeare enjoyed this literary device. One example is this from King Henry IV, Part Two:
Chief Justice: Your means are very slender, and your waste is great.
Falstaff: I would it were otherwise. I would my means were greater and my waist slenderer.
A variation of this is used to arrange events or narrative elements in reverse order. When used in narrative events it is the literary signature of the author. When used in the course of actual human events, it is the signature of God.
We see this in the Book of Esther.
Last Sunday we listened to a great sermon on how God uses people and events. He weaves a tapestry of intertwined lives that, to the persons actually involved, is hidden. But to the dispassionate observer it is a thing of beauty. This morning we were treated to a glimpse of how His Providence is revealed even when His Name is not mentioned a single time, nor a single act ascribed to Him. He reveals himself in the timing and sequence of events.
There is a duality of events in the Book of Esther. The Book starts with two feasts hosted by Xerxes, one for for nobles throughout the Persian Empire (Est. 1:3) and another for the nobles in the palace at Shushan (Est. 1:5). The Book ends with the two feasts of Purim, one for Jews throughout the Persian Empire(Est. 9:17)and one for the Jews in Shushan (est. 9:18).
Between these four feasts, there are two instances of Xerxes giving his ring as a symbol of authority; once to Haman to authorize the killing of the Jews (Est. 3.12), and another time to Mordecai to authorize the Jews to defend themselves and take for spoil those who would do them harm (Est. 8:10).
And lastly, between the two authorizations, there are two banquests given by Esther for Xerxes and Haman. And in between the two banquets of Esther is the pivotal point of the entire Book where God reveals His Hand. For between the two banquests of Esther the King cannot sleep (Est. 6:1).
The Great Global Warming Swindle
Finally someone is providing a documentary to counter the insanity of global warming.
Accepted theories about man causing global warming are "lies" claims a controversial new TV documentary. ‘The Great Global Warming Swindle’ - backed by eminent scientists - is set to rock the accepted consensus that climate change is being driven by humans.
This is a british film that hopefully will find its way eventually to our side of the pond.
The programme, to be screened on Channel 4 on Thursday March 8, will see a series of respected scientists attack the "propaganda" that they claim is killing the world’s poor. Even the co-founder of Greenpeace, Patrick Moore, is shown, claiming African countries should be encouraged to burn more CO2.
Nobody in the documentary defends the greenhouse effect theory, as it claims that
climate change is natural, has been occurring for years, and ice falling from glaciers is just the spring break-up and as normal as leaves falling in autumn.
Don't wait for the Motion Picture Academy to give an Oscar for this one. Ain't gonna happen. Ever.
Brit director Martin Durkin said:
I think it will go down in history as the first chapter in a new era of the relationship between scientists and society. Legitimate scientists – people with qualifications – are the bad guys.
"It is a big story that is going to cause controversy. "It’s very rare that a film changes history, but I think this is a turning point and in five years the idea that the greenhouse effect is the main reason behind global warming will be seen as total bollocks.
"Al Gore might have won an Oscar for ‘An Inconvenient Truth’, but the film is very misleading and he has got the relationship between CO2 and climate change the wrong way round."
This a big story. I can't wait to see how it is attacked by the Gorebots and other assorted slobbering tree huggers.
Saturday, March 03, 2007
Welcome To The Job
There are times when a cop wishes that his badge is literally as big as a garbage can lid. Two days ago Officer Stuart Ingram of the NYPD experienced this.
NEW YORK — An emotionally disturbed man driving his car on a sidewalk nearly ran over a nun on Thursday before trying to stab a rookie policeman in the chest and breaking his knife on the officer's shield, authorities said.
Talk about the Provenance of G-d. Most of the time an attack like this would have the blade slide off the metal and go into the officer's soft body armor. Bullet resistent ballistic panels are not meant to stop knives and do a very poor job of protecting against puncture wounds.
The unusual string of events started in Queens about 5 p.m., when the man left the scene of an accident and started barreling down a sidewalk where the nun was walking, police said.
Another man pushed the nun out of the way of the oncoming car, which struck a tree and a wall before coming to a stop, the New York Police Department said. When the driver tried to run away, two people tried to stop him, but they backed off when he threatened them with a kitchen knife, police said.
Much more of this and you'll be fingerprinted and issued a license before you can pick up a set of Ginsu's.
Two responding officers confronted the driver, who then tried to stab one of them, Stuart Ingram, in the chest, police said. Ingram said later he told the man repeatedly to drop the knife but the man lunged at him with it. He said the knife hit his badge and shattered.
Ingram said he struck the man with an expandable baton and, with the help of a civilian, subdued him. "That's when we apprehended him," Ingram said coolly at a news conference.
My personal preference would be that Officer Ingram struck him multiple times with a .45 caliber hollow point, but hey, I wasn't there. BC, Imperial Torturer of the Rott also recommends the .45 Goblin Stopper. But in any respect, we're all thankful that Officer Ingram walked away from this encounter. Nice grab!
There seems to be a bit more knife work out there. From the UCR reports I know that there has been a small uptick in the percentage of aggravated assaults committed with a knife, from 18.6% of all agg. assaults in 2004 to 18.9% in 2005. In 2006 the preliminary UCR for NY State shows a 3% increase for agg. assault, but no weapon distribution as of yet.
My read on this is that people have been offing one another since Cain slew Abel. And you can bet your ass he didn't use a Glock.
If a gun is not available, a knife will do. If there isn't a knife handy then a baseball bat certainly is useful. If the sporting goods store isn't open yet, then that broken chunk of cinder block will do the trick. No construction materials laying about? Well, go to it with fang and claw.
Weapons are only instruments that reflect human intent. As long as human intent is evil, the laws that ban one type of weapon or another are useless. Virtually anything can be used as a weapon or dangerous instrument. Sugar-free or not, even a big bowl of strawberry jello (I prefer raspberry) is deadly if you cram someone's head in it.
Marine Ballerinas
No, I'm not talking about Mincing Marines from the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" Platoon. These are little girls, daughters of real Marines stationed at Camp Lejuene. They are asking for donations to pay for combat tutus, well - costumes, dancing shoes and other ballerina necessities.
As many of you know, the Camp Lejeune Ballerinas had a VERY successful recital in December. There was not a dry eye in the house!! Through donations from bloggers around the world, they were able to raise enough money for the December recital and a portion towards the much larger recital in May of 2007.
There are 12 new little ballerinas on the roster this semester! The May recital is a USO/Stage Door Canteen type review. The girls will perform in dance numbers from the 1940s all the way up to music from 2007.
And here's the kicker.
And of course, this time there will be many more fathers who will be deployed during this recital.
I have four daughters and I know it would break my heart not to be there for their special time. And I know these little ones need their Dads.
Let's do what we can for these kids. May is fast approaching.
So say a prayer for the safe return of the deployed parent and give what you can for the kids. Let our troops know we stand behind them and their families.
The donation icon is on the bottom left side of the site.
Friday, March 02, 2007
Polonium 210 - The Gift That Keeps On Giving
Just when you thought it was safe to comment on the murder of Alexander Litvinenko.
WASHINGTON - FBI agents say they are assisting police in suburban Washington who are investigating the shooting of a Russian expert — a man who spoke out on "Dateline NBC" last weekend and strongly suggested that remnants of the KGB were responsible for the bizarre poisoning death of Alexander Litvinenko.
The Russian expert, Paul Joyal, was shot Thursday night as he got out of his car in front of his house in Adelphi, Md. Investigators in Prince Georges County say a witness claims to have seen two men running away after the shooting. Joyal remains hospitalized with a gunshot wound to the midsection. Authorities have not said whether they've been able to talk to him.
It could have been worse. They could have poured him a cup of tea.
On last weekend's "Dateline," he said of Litvenenko's death: "A message has been communicated to anyone who wants to speak out against the Kremlin: 'If you do, no matter who you are, where you are, we will find you and we will silence you — in the most horrible way possible.'"
Deja vue all over again. And the action also picked up on the other side of the pond.
In an odd twist, another person who appeared on the "Dateline" broadcast died of a heart attack last month. Reporter Daniel McGrory of the Times of London, who has written about the Litvinenko case, died Feb. 20, before the "Dateline" segment was broadcast. He was 54. His family said he "died suddenly at home." He was a veteran British foreign correspondent who had reported from several war zones. Just before his death, he had been reporting in Pakistan.
When I hear of an "odd twist" I usually think of two women wearing the same dress to an event, or a math whiz flunking an English test. But two people who appear on the same show criticizing former KGB agents suffer death or near death within a short time of each other?
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We Accelerate Discovery
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2009 New Innovator Award Recipients
Mark W. AlbersMark W. Albers
Massachusetts General Hospital
The Olfactory Neural Circuit as a Systems Level Model of Neurodegenerative Diseases
Neurodegenerative disease will increasingly plague our society as modern medicine augments the number of people reaching their seventh, eighth, and ninth decades. These pathological processes erode the functional integrity of susceptible neural circuits. Much progress has been gained in identifying mutations and gene products that underlie these disease processes, particularly early onset Alzheimer's disease (AD) and Parkinson's disease (PD). While these findings have led to the development of mouse models of these diseases, little is known at the systems level about how these disease genes impact the function of a specific neural circuit. We have developed an experimental approach to elucidate the actions of genes that cause neurodegenerative disease in a single mammalian neural circuit. Using mouse genetics, we expressed an AD gene exclusively in primary olfactory sensory neurons in a conditional manner. Characterization of this model uncovered a population of mouse olfactory neurons that undergo enhanced cell death and axon mistargeting in a non-cell autonomous fashion in the presence of this AD gene. In this proposal, we outline a series of studies to extend our analysis of this mouse model by employing: 1) longitudinal in vivo functional imaging using multiphoton microscopy, and 2) primary olfactory neuron culture that can be adapted to high-throughput screens for molecules that reverse the cell death phenotype. Hits from this screen can be rapidly tested in the mouse model by intranasal delivery to the olfactory epithelium. In addition, we propose to extend this experimental approach to genes associated with other neurodegenerative diseases such as PD. Elucidation of the actions of these disease genes at a systems level with novel functional and cellular outcomes from our neural circuit mouse model and characterization of additional neurodegenerative disease genes in this model system hopefully will contribute to the development of effective therapies.
Adah AlmutairiAdah Almutairi
University of California, San Diego
Chemically Amplified Response Strategies for Medical Sciences
A new, amplified response strategy for inducing multi-photon-driven processes noninvasively in living systems will be investigated. This strategy should enable optical and thus remote control or activation of substances inside living systems noninvasively, with a previously unattainable control of depth. The impact of such remote control is large and broad, allowing previously invasive procedures to be performed noninvasively, and previously inaccessible target sites to be reached for both treatment and diagnosis. Multi-photon phenomena allow unparalleled spatiotemporal control, and where longer wavelengths are employed, deeper penetration into turbid bulk media such as tissue. Despite the revolutionary impact these phenomena have had on neuroscience, microscopy, and lithography, it has been generally very difficult to apply this technique in vivo to stimulate biomaterials, diagnostics, and drug delivery systems. Currently there are no reported systems for in vivo multi-photon-responsive materials. The dogma is that not enough photons can reach the materials to initiate a response. The amplified response strategy we aim to explore is inspired by one that has revolutionized the electronics industry with the advent of chemically amplified photoresistors for the fabrication of computer chips. When a single responsive molecular unit, repetitively embedded in a material, simultaneously absorbs two photons, the changes in that molecular unit will cause the system to unravel entirely.
Euan A. AshleyEuan A. Ashley
Stanford University
Nanoscale Approaches to Allelic Silencing in Myocardial Disease States
Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy is the most common inherited cardiovascular disease. It affects one in 500 of the population. It is the most frequent cause of sudden death in young people. Despite groundbreaking work in defining the genetic basis for the disease, leading to the description of more than 400 predominantly missense mutations in more than 8 largely sarcomeric genes, therapies remain palliative. In this application, I outline an innovative approach to the treatment of the underlying genetic defect in hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. Dominant negative “poison peptide” transmission, together with a proof-of-principle phenotype reversal in a transgenic mouse model, provide the rationale. The combination of allele-specific RNA silencing and creative biological and physical approaches to cellular specificity provide the mechanism and route of delivery. Specificity provides the single greatest challenge, and I outline several innovative approaches to overcoming this. Potential translation to patients is a theme woven throughout the strategic plan. We begin with mutations identified in families from the Stanford Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy Center; carry out basic RNA biology in an attempt to selectively silence these mutations in cell lines; and move progressively through organ models, then small animals, to a preclinical large animal model. The approach we outline is not limited to hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. The ability to selectively modify a single mutated allele and deliver the therapy in vivo could revolutionize the treatment of diverse genetic diseases and finally fulfill the therapeutic promise of the Human Genome Project. Finally, I argue that the most innovative ideas would never have been noticed without timing: With the genetic basis of the disease laid out, and many critical techniques on the verge of significant advancement, the time is right for a new approach.
Michel BagnatMichel Bagnat
Duke University School of Medicine
Discovering New Regulators of CFTR and Fluid Secretion in Zebrafish
Most internal organs are built around fluid-filled tubes, and control of fluid secretion is essential for their development and function. Defects in fluid secretion have been linked to some of the most prevalent genetic and acquired pathological conditions, including cystic fibrosis, polycystic kidney disease, and secretory diarrheas. At the cellular level, fluid secretion is driven by directional salt ion transport, which is then followed by water. Several key channels and pores responsible for ion and water transport have been identified. However, we still need to understand how fluid secretion functions as a developmental force and how different processes that depend on fluid secretion are coordinated at the whole-organism level. To address these fundamental problems, I have embarked on a fully integrated approach based on zebrafish genetics and physiology. My focus is on the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator, a chloride channel that is the major regulator of fluid secretion in vertebrates. The proposed research plan will lead to new insights into: how fluid pressure shapes development and the responses elicited at the cellular level by this force, CFTR function, and how CFTR activity is regulated in vivo and in real time during development. We will also carry out a forward genetic screen to identify mutations controlling CFTR-dependent and -independent fluid secretion. These approaches will establish a new genetic and physiologic model system for studying the functional regulation and developmental potential of fluid secretion and CFTR activity.
Gábor BalázsiGábor Balázsi
University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center
Connecting the Selection of Noisy Gene Expression Deviants to Genetic Evolution
Drug resistance of pathogenic cell populations causes the failure of therapy and represents a major challenge for today’s medicine. Early drug resistance has been shown to rely on intricate gene expression patterns across the cell population. However, current techniques of gene expression control (gene deletion, overexpression, knockdown, etc.) are aimed to control only the average gene expression across the cell population and are therefore insufficient to study how gene expression properties other than the mean affect drug resistance. This is creating a widening gap in knowledge, as we and others have recently demonstrated that gene expression characteristics other than the mean (such as the variance or cellular memory of deviant expression states) are just as important as the mean for cell population survival during drug treatment. Here we propose to develop novel, versatile, and modular gene constructs to control various expression characteristics of any gene in any organism. Negative feedback-based constructs will permit precise, linear inducer-dependent control of gene expression in every cell of the population. Positive feedback-based constructs will allow us to adjust the cellular memory (rate of stochastic expression fluctuations). We will use these constructs to control diverse expression characteristics of a drug-resistance gene and study how these expression properties affect cell survival during drug treatment and initiate the evolution of genetic drug resistance in a yeast cell population. We will develop multiscale, stochastic models to explain the mechanisms underlying the experimental observations. We can now directly visualize the expression of a drug resistance gene at the single-cell level. The innovation consists of bridging molecular- and cell-population dynamics and connecting stochastic gene expression fluctuations to genetic evolution in experiment and simulation. The results might transform our current understanding of drug resistance and might substantially improve future therapeutic strategies.
Ipsita BanerjeeIpsita Banerjee
University of Pittsburgh
Defining Mechanisms Controlling Stem Cell Fate During Differentiation
Regenerative medicine largely relies on cell-based therapy for treatment of degenerative diseases such as diabetes, heart failure, and Parkinson’s disease. Embryonic stem cells and recently established induced pluripotent stem cells will be able to contribute significantly in generating a renewable source of transplantable, fully functional cells. In spite of diverse efforts in deriving mature cellular phenotypes from these pluripotent cell types, what is lacking is a thorough understanding of the mechanism governing differentiation and lineage commitment of these pluripotent cells, hence resulting in incremental advancement of the field. My objective is to address the complex differentiation process from a completely different approach, which will have the potential to shift paradigms in regenerative medicine and stem cell bioengineering as a whole. The objective of the proposed research is to develop an insightful mechanistic understanding of the process of differentiation through an integrated experimental and theoretical approach organized around three basic questions: 1) How do the transcription factors interact in controlling and deciding on a cell lineage? 2) How do environmental perturbations influence these networks toward desired lineage? 3) How do gene and protein networks operating at the cellular level govern the tissue functionality at the systems level? These questions will be addressed in a system of embryonic stem cells differentiating to pancreatic islets, using a bottom-up approach where molecular-level information will be integrated to predict tissue-level functionality. Successful completion of this project will directly impact cellular therapy-based regenerative medicine and will pave the way for mechanistic understanding of disease progression and potential therapeutic intervention.
Edward B. Brown, IIIEdward B. Brown, III
University of Rochester Medical Center
Exploiting Collagen Organization to Predict and Prevent Tumor Metastasis
The extent and nature of the ordering of collagen fibers within a tumor has significant influence on metastasis: In murine breast tumor models, tumor cells move toward blood vessels along fibers that are visible via second harmonic generation (SHG), and SHG is exquisitely sensitive to molecular ordering. Tumor cells that move along SHG fibers are significantly faster than those moving independently, and SHG-associated motility is correlated with metastatic ability. Furthermore, the tumor-host interface contains radially oriented SHG fibers associated with tumor cells invading the surrounding tissue. Lastly, we have shown that treatment of tumors with relaxin, known to alter metastatic ability, alters collagen ordering as detectable by SHG. Consequently, we believe that the process of establishing ordered fibers offers an exciting, and currently unexploited, therapeutic target. To take advantage of this, we must first learn the cellular players and molecular signals by which collagen ordering is induced. Therefore, in this application we propose to determine the key cells and signals which influence the ordering of collagen in breast tumors. The tumor-draining lymph node is the first bridgehead for many metastasizing tumor cells, and we have exciting preliminary data suggesting that changes in collagen ordering within the node are evident (via SHG) before clinical detection of metastatic cancer, therefore we will also determine the key cells and signals which influence the ordering of collagen in the draining lymph node. Additionally, we will determine if SHG measures of collagen ordering in breast tumors and draining nodes are clinically useful predictors of metastatic outcome in breast cancer patient biopsies. This project has a high impact because it has two independent pathways to clinical relevance, by developing promising antimetastatic drug targets, and by developing an optical method to predict metastatic ability.
Fernando CamargoFernando Camargo
Children’s Hospital Boston
Analysis of Stem Cell Dynamics and Differentiation by Cellular Barcoding
The changing demographics of developed nations underscore the need for regenerative medicine approaches to combat the clinical and financial burden of degenerative diseases. The basic understanding of how tissues are normally maintained by their resident stem cells is, therefore, key for pursuing regenerative approaches. Though a great deal of knowledge has been gained through the use of traditional experimental approaches over the past two decades, limitations and drawbacks of these techniques have precluded us from gaining a complete understanding of stem cell function, particularly in the in vivo setting. The goal of my New Innovator proposal is to develop a novel experimental paradigm for the study of stem cell biology. In this model, individual stem cells in a population are uniquely and genetically tagged in situ and these unique genetic tags, or barcodes, can then be used to dynamically monitor individual stem cell activity, lifespan, and differentiation in highly complex populations over time. We believe that this model can give us an unprecedented, high-resolution picture of the inner workings of a complex and dynamic stem cell system, and allow us to answer long-standing biological questions. Our findings ultimately may uncover conserved mechanisms of stem cell maintenance that are perturbed in old age or other disease contexts. Though this proposal will address the biology of the normal and malignant hematopoietic (blood-forming) stem cell compartments, the modular nature of our model makes easily adaptable to any tissue. Our model is also suitable, among other things, for the study of aging and immunological problems.
Nikos ChronisNikos Chronis
University of Michigan
A Biochip for Point-of-Care HIV/AIDS Diagnosis in the Developing World
HIV/AIDS is one of the most destructive pandemics in human history, responsible for more than 25 million deaths. More than 30 million people live with limited or no access to therapeutic treatments, mainly due to the high cost of highly active antiretroviral therapies (HAART) and current diagnostic tests as well as due to the lack of basic infrastructure (e.g., lack of electricity, no trained personnel) that can support these tests. The need for innovative, inexpensive diagnostic instrumentation technology that can be used in resource-limited settings is immediate. While programs that offer free HAART are being implemented in resource-limited settings, no diagnostic tests are available for evaluating the efficacy of HAART provided for the reasons mentioned above. Efficient management of HAART requires monitoring the course of HIV infection over time. The World Health Organization recommends the CD4+ T-cell count test for monitoring the clinical status of HIV individuals in resource-limited settings. We propose to develop a portable, inexpensive, MEMS (MicroElectroMechanical Systems)-based, imaging system for counting the absolute number of CD4 cells from 1 µl of whole blood. We use the term “imaging system” to denote the different approach we follow for counting CD4 cells: Rather than reading single cells one by one (as is done with flow cytometry), our system can image simultaneously thousands of individual cells, pre-assembled on the surface of a biochip. Although the proposed imaging system can replace current expensive cell-counting instrumentation, our goal is to develop a system that can reach the end-user wherever limited infrastructure is present and no access to a hospital or clinic is possible. Such technology will not only make it possible to monitor the efficacy of an individual’s HAART in the developing world, but it will make more medicines available by identifying patients who need a treatment from patients who do not need it.
Ted CohenTed Cohen
Brigham and Women's Hospital
Prevalence, Risk Factors and Consequences of Complex M. tuberculosis Infections
Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease of global importance; in 2006, there were more than 9 million incident cases and 1.7 million deaths attributable to TB. The emergence of multidrug-resistant (MDR) and extensively drug-resistant (XDR) TB and the convergence of the HIV and TB epidemics are threats to effective TB control. Furthermore, evidence exists that previous M. tuberculosis infection confers limited immunity to re-infection, that an individual can simultaneously harbor more than one distinct strain of M. tuberculosis, that distinct lineages of M. tuberculosis differ in their virulence characteristics, and that M. tuberculosis diversifies within a host. Each of these factors contributes to the within-host complexity of M. tuberculosis infection and presents complications for the treatment of individuals and the control of disease in populations. I propose an observational study among individuals starting treatment for TB in Lima, Peru, and Pietermaritzburg, South Africa, to evaluate the prevalence, risk factors, and consequences of complex M. tuberculosis infection. I will: 1) estimate the site-specific prevalence of multiple-strain M. tuberculosis infection and clonal heterogeneity among individuals at the time of initial diagnosis, 2) determine the host- and strain-related risk factors for multiple-strain infection and clonal heterogeneity, 3) evaluate the effect of multiple-strain infection and clonal heterogeneity on early response to standard first-line treatment regimens, and 4) develop mathematical models to examine the individual- and population-level effects of multiple-strain infection and clonal heterogeneity.
Kathy DeRiemerKathy DeRiemer
University of California, Davis, School of Medicine
Transmission and Virulence of Mycobacterium tuberculosis
Why do some individuals who are exposed to Mycobacterium tuberculosis become infected, while others do not? Of those who are exposed and infected, why do some individuals rapidly progress to active disease, while others remain asymptomatic, latently infected, or progress to active disease decades later or not at all? The observed heterogeneity in individuals' responses to exposure and infection might be explained by differences in the transmission characteristics of M. tuberculosis and its virulence in the human host. Our goals are to: 1) identify the gene expression profiles of M. tuberculosis in sputa from patients with latent TB infection and active disease; 2) identify sets of genes that characterize the early infection, pro-inflammatory immune response post-infection, and active disease stages of M. tuberculosis in the human host; and 3) identify differential gene expression patterns attributable to different strains, including drug-resistant and pan-susceptible strains of M. tuberculosis. We propose a case-control study of tuberculosis patients, their infected and uninfected contacts, and neighborhood healthy controls. From enrolled study participants, we will obtain information, a cough sample with sputa, and a blood sample. The sets of gene expression patterns—diagnostic signatures—could be translated into new, accurate, and rapid diagnostic tests. We will recruit and enroll patients in Shanghai, China, a city with over 6,000 new TB cases annually and the point of departure for many migrants to the United States. Our discoveries will have a significant impact on the tuberculosis epidemic worldwide, a global health emergency that caused 9.2 million new cases and killed 1.7 million persons in 2006. We seek strategies to target scarce public health resources to prevent new cases of active tuberculosis in the United States and globally.
Elva D. DiazElva D. Diaz
University of California, Davis
Generation of Tumor Stem Cell Lines for Directed Therapeutics of Brain Cancer
Tumors of the central nervous system (CNS) represent nearly one quarter of all childhood cancers. Although progress has been made in the treatment of some types of childhood cancer, the outcome for children with primary CNS tumors has remained bleak and little advancement has been made in the last decade. In addition, due to the adverse effects of the tumor on brain development or the treatment required to control its growth, survivors of childhood brain tumors often have severe neurodevelopmental defects that negatively impact their quality of life. Thus, there is a need for better treatments specific for childhood brain tumors. Current models suggest that only a few atypical cells within the cancerous mass are responsible for the initiation, growth, and recurrence of brain tumors. These transformed cells have both the defining properties of neural stem cells and the ability to initiate cancer, thus these cells are referred to as “brain tumor stem (BTS) cells.” While the isolation of neural stem cells is fairly well established, the isolation of BTS cells remains a difficult and complex issue, suggesting the need for innovative approaches to isolate and characterize these cells. The development of induced pluripotent stem cells (somatic cells that have been reprogrammed to an embryonic-like pluripotent state by retroviral-mediated introduction of specific transcription factors) represents a powerful new approach that might alleviate such confounding issues. Thus, the goals of the proposed project are: 1) to reprogram brain tumor cells toward a more stem-like phenotype, 2) to characterize the tumorigenic potential of such reprogrammed tumor stem-like cell lines, and 3) to identify chemical compounds that specifically target the reprogrammed tumor stem-like cells. Completion of these studies will provide a directed strategy for novel therapeutics to specifically target the cellular population responsible for the initiation, growth, and recurrence of pediatric brain tumors.
Adam J. EnglerAdam J. Engler
University of California, San Diego
“Smart” Materials to Engineer a More Complete Stem Cell Niche
One of the recent paradigm shifts in stem cell biology and regenerative medicine has been the discovery that stem cells can begin to differentiate into adult tissue cells when exposed to intrinsic properties of the extracellular matrix (ECM), such as matrix structure, elasticity, and composition. ECM regulation of stem cells has also been shown to be as sensitive as well-studied soluble growth factors, and together in the body, they comprise the stem cell niche, or “microenvironment.” However, these cues have typically been studied as isolated stimuli where no single cue, whether a growth factor or an ECM property, has been sufficient to generate the appropriate type of differentiated cells for a given regenerative cell therapy. Moreover, as stem cells mature in the body during development, their microenvironment is highly spatially and temporally controlled, yet our ability to dynamically regulate the niche as the body does has not been developed and is probably a critical requirement for developing differentiated cells from stem cells. Therefore, I propose to substantially advance the field of stem cell biology by developing a new hybrid hydrogel system using a unique combination of conventional polymer chemistries. These gels, comprised of hyaluronic acid-co-acrylamide polymer, should present spatially and temporally controlled matrix properties that mimic their presentation during development. When combined with spatially patterned growth factors, these cues could more accurately recapitulate the development of a specific tissue ex vivo, which may improve the differentiated cell sources used for cell-based therapeutic applications.
Alla GrishokAlla Grishok
Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons
Investigating the Potential of Endogenous RNAi in Mediating Adaptation to Environment
RNA interference (RNAi) provides defense against exogenous nucleic acids, such as viruses and transposons, in diverse organisms. The production of short interfering RNAs (siRNAs) antisense to the viral or transposon sequences is a hallmark of the RNAi response. The discovery of the endogenous antisense siRNAs (endo-siRNAs) matching thousands of protein-coding sequences in C. elegans and identification of similar molecules in Drosophila and mammals poses a question about their function. Our recent microarray analysis of genes misregulated in the RNAi pathway mutants in C. elegans revealed preferential targeting by the RNAi components and endogenous short RNAs of genes whose inactivation is beneficial for stress resistance and lifespan extension, such as genes encoding translation factors. We propose that pools of endogenous short RNAs in C. elegans are subject to natural selection. Therefore, the composition of siRNAs in populations is adjusted in response to the environmental changes to achieve maximum fitness. The goal of this project is to test the above model. We will select populations of C. elegans resistant to specific environmental conditions and test these populations for the accumulation of endo-siRNAs antisense to very specific genes whose inactivation allows survival under the tested condition. We already established a correlation between thermotolerance and accumulation of endo-siRNAs specific to translation initiation factors. In addition, natural selection for survival on the nematocidal drugs ivermectin and levamisole will be used to generate C. elegans strains resistant to drugs due to epigenetic endo-siRNA-based inactivation of specific genes. Proving the existence of a siRNA-based epigenetic natural selection would represent a fundamental breakthrough in basic science. Epigenetic RNAi-based mechanisms are not likely to be limited to lower organisms and may be involved in the immune escape and drug resistance of malignant tumors and in other cases when cells evolve to escape the action of therapeutic agents.
Ira M. HallIra M. Hall
University of Virginia
Extent, Origin, and Control of Structural Variation in Mammalian Genomes
Mammalian genomes have a complex physical structure shaped by myriad duplications, deletions, and rearrangements, and this structure varies considerably among the populations and individuals of a species. These "structural variations" are of special importance to our understanding of evolution and disease because single mutational events can affect large phenotypic changes and because mutation rates vary dramatically among different genomic loci. We are only in the very early stages of understanding how structurally plastic genomes truly are and why they are this way. Massively parallel paired-end DNA sequencing now offers the opportunity, in theory, to reconstruct the architecture of entire genomes on a routine basis. However, the practical utility of these methods remains limited by the significant computational challenges posed by proper data interpretation and by cost. Over the past year, we have developed novel experimental and computational tools, and we are now close to our initial goal of being able to comprehensively map structural variation in mammalian genomes, at reasonable cost, and with modest computing power. We propose to apply these tools to examine structural variation in three especially revealing contexts: among diverse mouse strains with shared genealogical origins, among related mouse colonies separated by ~2,000 generations of breeding, and among single cells from diverse somatic lineages of the body and brain. In each case we will systematically identify and characterize "hotspot" loci that mutate at elevated rates. These studies will yield an unbiased evaluation of the extent and origin of structural variation in mammalian genomes and will enable us pursue our final goal: to develop a high-throughput platform for identifying factors that affect structural mutation rates. This work has immediate relevance to medicine, considering that structural genomic variation has emerged as a major cause of both inherited and spontaneous human disease.
Sarah HeilshornSarah Heilshorn
Stanford University
Engineering 3D In Vitro Niches to Reveal Fundamentals of Cellular Biomechanics
The development of tissue culture techniques by Ross Granville Harrison in 1907 has been cited as one of the ten greatest discoveries in medicine and enabled monumental advances in biological understanding. Despite the enduring importance of in vitro culture in modern biomedicine, the technology of mammalian cell culture has remained largely unchanged since the 1940s: Cells are cultured on hard, flat substrates and surrounded by homogeneous solutions of medium that do little to recreate the exquisite microenvironments found in vivo. Cells are well known to respond to multiple cues found within their in vivo niches, e.g., concentration gradients of soluble and tethered biochemicals, matrix rigidity, patterns of matrix ligands, and interactions with other cell types; however, few methods exist to recapitulate these cues in in vitro cell culture studies. To address these limitations, I propose creating versatile, three-dimensional in vitro niches with precise spatial and temporal resolution of cellular cues. These three-dimensional microenvironments will be fabricated using innovative and transdisciplinary approaches that combine advances in protein engineering, biomaterials, and microfluidics with traditional cell biology protocols. As a model system, these in vitro niches will be used to quantitatively study the cellular biomechanics and signaling mechanisms regulating neural progenitor cell (NPC) migration. NPC chemotaxis within gradients of soluble factors is hypothesized to be contextual and reliant on additional biomechanical cues from the 3D matrix. The presence of NPCs within specific niches of the brain opens up the tantalizing possibility that the adult central nervous system may be able to regenerate following injury or disease if NPCs were induced to migrate to sites of need. The development of quantitative, in vitro mimics of in vivo niches will have a profound impact on biomedical research by enabling scientists to test entirely new hypotheses about the interactions between different cells and their three-dimensional microenvironments.
K.C. HuangK.C. Huang
Stanford University
Engineering of Cell Shape and Intracellular Organization
A bacterial cell is much more than the sum of its parts. Most cellular functions are critically impacted not only by regulation of the genome and proteome, but also by the shape of the cell and how the shape dictates the localization of intracellular components. The ability to systematically manipulate cell shape will ultimately provide a powerful suite of applications in antibiotic drug development, synthetic biology, and biosensing. My laboratory will leverage insight from evolutionary, synthetic, and cell biological approaches to inform our ongoing development of quantitative, biophysical models of bacterial cell shape determination and growth. We have already successfully used modeling to predict the cell shape response to antibiotic treatment. We will focus our efforts on exploiting other predictions generated from quantitative models to re-engineer cell shape and redesign the intracellular localization landscape. For the period of this award, three design targets will be pursued that leverage our expertise in biophysical modeling of cell shape to probe key features of cell growth: 1) We will explore the evolutionary origins of cell shape determination by transplanting foreign cytoskeletal elements between closely related bacteria. 2) We will program specific intracellular organizational phenotypes to dynamically reengineer cell shape. 3) We will determine the tension sensitivity of the growth machinery to elucidate potential feedback mechanisms for cell shape maintenance. These targets will strategically expand the experimental focus of my laboratory. Success will address many longstanding questions of how cells determine their shape and how they utilize shape to regulate complex intracellular processes such as cell division. The physical principles of organization are likely to appear in diverse biological contexts, in both bacterial cells and in higher organisms. Ultimately, we will challenge our understanding of cell shape determination by transforming shape into an experimentally tunable parameter.
Sanjay K. JainSanjay K. Jain
Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
Novel Imaging Biomarkers to Address Fundamental Controversies in TB Pathogenesis
Recognizing that tuberculosis (TB) is still one of the leading causes of human death, the international health community has set ambitious targets to control TB by 2050. Unfortunately, this target cannot be achieved with current tools and requires the development and use of better anti-TB drugs/vaccines. Since Mycobacterium tuberculosis adapts to a quiescent physiological state—“dormancy”—and successfully evades anti-TB drugs and host immune responses for decades, understanding the kinetics of adaptive bacterial responses and the host-microenvironment is essential for developing better anti-TB drugs/vaccines. However, current tools for assessing bacterial-host kinetics in animal models are limited to analyzing postmortem tissues. Artifacts introduced during sacrifice/processing make them less reliable. Moreover, lesion-specific characteristics are generally not assessed separate from the whole organ. Since a different animal is sacrificed at every time point, bacterial-lesion kinetics in an individual animal can also never be assessed. We have pioneered the development of imaging biomarkers to assess M. tuberculosis bacterial burden in animal models. In this proposal, we will develop novel imaging biomarkers that will not only permit assessment of M. tuberculosis burden but also allow monitoring and localization of both adaptive bacterial responses and the host microenvironment (inflammation, hypoxia, and early immunity), in the same, live animal, over several time points. These tools will be utilized to address fundamental controversies in TB pathogenesis that cannot be tackled using current tools: 1) Are host tissue inflammation and hypoxia a sanctuary for “dormant” M. tuberculosis? 2) Where does “dormant” M. tuberculosis reside? 3) Is innate immunity required for controlling initial M. tuberculosis infection? Knowledge gained from this proposal will provide unique insights for developing better anti-TB drugs/vaccines. By permitting cost-effective, cross-species preclinical assessment, these tools will also dramatically reduce the time required for “bench-to-bedside” translation. Finally, since these tools are easily translatable, preclinical validation will lay the groundwork for their future use in humans.
Kevin A. JanesKevin A. Janes
University of Virginia
Stochastic Control of Abnormal Morphogenesis Induced by the ErbB2 Oncoprotein
Cancer is a stochastic disease whose biology has been studied almost exclusively with deterministic approaches. Why? In this application, I propose to exploit the apparent randomness of cellular transformation to uncover new mechanisms involved in tumorigenesis. My focus is the ligandless receptor tyrosine kinase, ErbB2, which is overexpressed in 20–30% of breast cancers and is the target of anticancer drugs such as Herceptin® and Tykerb®. In a 3D in vitro culture model of mammary-acinar morphogenesis, inducible activation of ErbB2 causes hyperproliferative multiacinar structures that in many ways are reminiscent of early-stage breast tumors. Importantly, the penetrance of the phenotype is incomplete—only a random fraction of the cultured acini exhibit the morphogenetic defect when ErbB2 is activated. How this fraction is specified and the mechanism by which a multiacinus initiates are unknown. My hypothesis is that acute differences (dichotomies) in gene expression develop among acini and give rise to the distinct 3D phenotypes induced by ErbB2. The transcriptional dichotomies that exist before the appearance of the multiacinar phenotype will be the ones most likely to control it. However, without seeing the phenotype, it is impossible to know which ErbB2 structures will go on to develop abnormally. To overcome this challenge, we will use a new technique, called “stochastic profiling,” that I developed for discovering transcriptional dichotomies in a seemingly uniform cell population. We will apply stochastic profiling to a series of conditional ErbB2 homo- and heterodimer pairs that have different penetrances for the multiacinar phenotype. By mapping the transcriptional dichotomies to the differences in penetrance among dimer pairs, we will link upstream acinus-specific expression programs to downstream morphogenetic heterogeneities. The results from this project could explain mechanistically why only a fraction of ErbB2-overexpressing breast cancers respond positively to ErbB2-targeted therapeutics.
Melissa Lambeth KempMelissa Lambeth Kemp
Georgia Institute of Technology
Redox Regulation of Cellular Information Processing
Elevated concentrations of extracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) are hallmarks of inflammation, and decades of medical research have focused on suppression of these molecules to treat pathologies as diverse as rheumatoid arthritis, cancer, and atherosclerosis with mixed results. More recently, researchers have discovered that these same molecules are produced during the course of normal signal transduction. In order to effectively treat inflammation, we must understand these distinct roles for reactive oxygen species. I propose an innovative research program that will elucidate the role of hydrogen peroxide, a key ROS, in normal cell signaling through computational models and laboratory experiments. This research will lead to a new, quantitative understanding of ROS and facilitate the development of effective antioxidant treatments for inflammation. This project will use three complementary approaches to evaluate the complex regulatory role of hydrogen peroxide on receptor-induced signaling. First, we will develop computational network models describing redox regulation of proteins in a time-dependent manner. Secondly, we are designing new methods to detect oxidative changes on multiple proteins simultaneously. These assays will allow investigation of the relationships between phosphorylation of signal transduction molecules and reversible thiol modifications. Finally, we have created a series of cell lines in which key components of the redox network have been perturbed that demonstrate augmentation and attenuation of receptor signaling. These lines will be used to systematically investigate the efficiency of three receptor networks–a pro-inflammatory cue (TNF-α), anti-inflammatory cue (TGF-β), and antigenic response (TCR)–under different oxidative environments. The results of these studies will provide the first computational modeling platform capable of interpreting incongruous literature reports of oxidative effects on cellular information processing. This project leverages my unique experience at the interface of immunology, systems biology, and metabolism to address a fundamental mechanism of cellular regulation critical for a large class of therapeutic drugs.
Gabriel KreimanGabriel Kreiman
Children’s Hospital Boston
Towards the Neuronal Correlates of Visual Awareness
The brain, a physical system composed of neurons and synapses, can give rise to what seems to be the least physical property of all: consciousness. How this transformation takes place has preoccupied generations of clinicians and scientists. Advances in neuroscience over the last several decades make it possible to enquire into the neural circuits responsible for consciousness. This proposal focuses on one particular aspect of conscious experience: the neuronal mechanisms and circuits that underlie visual awareness. We propose to study visual awareness using a combination of neurophysiology, psychophysics, and electrical stimulation. We take advantage of a rare opportunity to examine activity in the human occipital and temporal lobes using neurophysiology at high spatial and temporal resolution (neurons and milliseconds) while subjects report their perceptions. We propose two experiments where visual perception is dissociated from the visual input: binocular rivalry and motion-induced blindness. In both cases, perception changes in spite of a constant visual input. We investigate where, when, and how neuronal responses along the ventral visual cortex (from primary visual cortex to inferior temporal cortex) change their activity patterns with the perceptual alterations. Furthermore, we ask whether those neurophysiological responses are sufficient to elicit perception by electrically stimulating local circuits. Impairments in conscious processing can be devastating and are at the core of such seemingly diverse conditions as epilepsy, vegetative coma, schizophrenia, and autism. Furthering our understanding of the link between brains and minds in the context of vision will pave the way for addressing other aspects of consciousness and may have profound implications in changing how we think about and address these challenging disorders.
Christopher KristichChristopher Kristich
Medical College of Wisconsin
Genetic Approaches to Protein-Protein Interactions Mediating Antibiotic Resistance
Antibiotic-resistant bacteria, such as vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE) and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), are major causes of hospital-acquired infections and are driving forces of an escalating health crisis. We will help address the burgeoning antibiotic resistance problem by leveraging the power of bacterial genetics via unbiased genetic selections to: 1) comprehensively identify protein-protein interactions in cellular pathways that result in antibiotic resistance, and 2) discover small molecules that disable these protein-protein interactions. The proposed research will jointly exploit our expertise in the development of genetic strategies and our ongoing interest in elucidating the fundamental mechanisms of bacterial antibiotic resistance. By focusing on protein-protein interactions, this research promises to: 1) reveal new insights into the underlying biology of antibiotic resistance mechanisms and their integration into the physiological processes of the bacterial host, 2) define new targets (in the form of protein-protein interactions) for innovative therapeutics to treat infections caused by drug-resistant pathogens, and 3) identify novel small-molecule drug candidates with unique modes of action. Our experimental design possesses critical strategic advantages. For example, our analyses will be done within the native context of the drug-resistant bacterial host (e.g., not by in vitro screens on isolated proteins), which will enable us to capture any potential, but as yet unknown, effects of dynamic cellular processes or post-translational modifications on key protein-protein interactions. Furthermore, we will employ powerful genetic selections capable of rapidly sifting through immense libraries to reveal even rare hits that, by definition, are functional in a physiological context. Collectively, these strategies will enable the discovery of unknown, unpredictable, and novel biological insights, not accessible by conventional means, that will be exploited to discover new candidate therapeutics with efficacy against drug-resistant bacterial infections.
Siavash K. KurdistaniSiavash K. Kurdistani
University of California, Los Angeles, David Geffen School of Medicine
A Blueprint for Oncogenic Epigenetic Reprogramming
While cancer is a genetic disease, the cancerous cellular state is associated with multiple epigenetic alterations, including aberrant DNA methylation and histone modification patterns. A significant challenge in cancer biology is to elucidate the precise order of epigenetic alterations during tumor initiation and progression and their contributions to the transformed phenotype. To meet this challenge, one requires a model of cellular transformation that is temporally traceable from a normal to a malignant state. Cancer cell lines are not necessarily good models, as they have already accumulated hundreds to thousands of genetic and epigenetic alterations. Here, I propose to study the oncogenic transformation of normal human cells by viral oncoproteins as a model to determine the precise epigenetic reprogramming events occurring along the path of neoplastic transformation. Viral oncoproteins such as the adenovirus small e1a or papillomavirus E7 have been extraordinarily useful in delineating the central molecular players that regulate cell proliferation such as the retinoblastoma (RB) and p53 tumor suppressors. Our work has recently elucidated a defined global epigenetic reprogramming by one viral oncoprotein, e1a, that forces normal cells to escape quiescence—a hallmark of cancer. Importantly, e1a directly implements a precise and coordinated mechanism of regulation of thousands of host cell genes leading to cellular transformation by interacting and rearranging specific epigenetic modifiers across the whole genome in a time-dependent manner. This provides a powerful model that is amenable to time series measurements with phenotypically defined endpoints, enabling one to delineate the successive order of epigenetic alterations that contribute to oncogenic transformation. By understanding how e1a orchestrates a specific sequence of epigenetic alterations for cellular transformation, we should learn greatly about the functions and mechanisms of fundamental epigenetic processes in normal biology and human disease, especially cancer.
Naa Oyo A. KwateNaa Oyo A. Kwate
Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health
Immunologic Effects and a Structural “Countermarketing” Intervention: Racism, the HPA Axis, and African American Health
The overall aims of this project are to explore the effects of multiple levels of racism on the immune function and overall health of urban African Americans and to test a novel structural-level intervention to reduce the negative impact of racism. Significant disparities in major chronic illnesses, including cardiovascular disease, cancer, and overweight/obesity, continue to describe the current picture of health for African Americans. Researchers have long understood stress to play a critical role in negative health outcomes, and particular attention has been paid to the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical (HPA) axis as a key pathway. Because experiences with racism constitute a significant stressor in the lives of African Americans, understanding the ways in which racism activates the axis will have profound meaning in addressing the determinants of African American health disparities. More broadly, given the role of the HPA axis in many systems, the proposed research has the potential to uncover critical information on the impact of social processes on overall physical and mental health and to delineate unstudied paths in brain-behavior relationships. In two sub-studies, the proposed research will enroll urban African Americans from New York City in longitudinal investigations. Study 1 is an investigation of how neighborhood-level institutional racism and perceived individual and collective racism affect immune and metabolic function and overall physical health, psychological wellbeing, and health behaviors. Study 2 is a neighborhood-level intervention to minimize the likelihood of internalized racism via a racism "countermarketing" campaign. Outdoor advertising will be employed to deliver stark facts about American inequality in predominantly African American neighborhoods, thereby raising consciousness and minimizing negative health outcomes. Taken together, the proposed research attempts to answer two critical unanswered questions in biomedical and behavioral research: 1) How does racism get into the body? and 2) What do we do about it?
KiBum LeeKiBum Lee
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, New Brunswick
Combinatorial Approaches for Studying Multiple Cues Regulating Human Pluripotent Stem Cell (hPSC) Fate
Human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) are promising resources as cell-based therapies for the debilitating injuries caused by many neurodegenerative diseases. However, controlling hPSC differentiation into lineage-specific neural cells is one of the most important problems needed to be addressed before their potential for neuroregenerative medicine can be fully realized. A detailed insight into the functions of extracellular microenvironments and intrinsic cellular regulators which dynamically regulate the hPSC neurogenesis into neural/neuronal cells is a prerequisite for addressing the aforementioned challenges. However, functions of hPSC microenvironments are much more complicated to investigate because of our lack of knowledge about the multiple signals inducing differentiation and limited methods available for investigation. Therefore, the primary focus of our study is to develop innovative methods to identify optimal cues for hPSC differentiation into subtype-specific neurons and genetic manipulation of hPSCs using nonviral, siRNA-based transfection tools. Our innovative approaches will allow for the establishment of novel cell-based assay tools and siRNA-based genetic manipulation tools for selective and efficient neurodifferentiation of hPSCs. Moreover, efforts will be made to integrate these studies into one multianalytic microfluidics platform for synchronized control of microenvironmental cues and intrinsic cellular regulators. The PI’s research experiences in nanoscale biomaterials, functional genomics, and stem cell biology and current interdisciplinary research programs aiming at investigating cellular interactions within microenvironments would be critical to develop the aforementioned innovative tools.
Daniel A. LimDaniel A. Lim
University of California, San Francisco
Chromatin-Based Cellular Memory in Neural Stem Cells
This proposal addresses two fundamental questions at the crossroads of epigenetics, stem cell biology, and regenerative medicine that relate to the chromatin-based cellular memory system. 1) Do chromatin modifications at specific genetic loci predict the progressive “restriction” of differentiation potential that occurs in neural stem cells during brain development and into adulthood? 2) Can cellular memory systems be partially “erased” or “reset” at the chromatin level in precursor cell populations to broaden their developmental potential? These studies should greatly advance our understanding of how precursor cells “remember” both their temporal and positional identities as well as determine whether this cellular memory system can be manipulated for novel therapeutic strategies. Three areas of impact are: developmental neurobiology, where results shed light on epigenetic mechanisms of neuronal and glial differentiation; regenerative medicine, where insight gained may suggest novel methods of cell fate specification; and cancer biology, where results may reveal how certain chromatin derangements can promote brain tumors. First, we propose investigating the changes in chromatin modifications that occur along a neural stem cell continuum from the embryo and into adulthood. Our proposed methods utilizing cells acutely isolated from the brain represent a significant advancement upon current cell culture-based studies. To accomplish this, we must innovate new, integrative approaches for chromatin study. We will also employ novel and as of yet unproven approaches to “reset” chromatin memory of cell identity with the purpose of altering cell fate. Given that these ideas concerning the chromatin basis of cellular memory and strategic epigenetic manipulation are new and relatively untested, the level of risk in our proposal is substantially higher than in traditional investigator grants. We wish to embark on this tangent from our current studies to broaden the impact of our research and explore fundamental principles of cellular memory in stem cell biology.
Stavros LomvardasStavros Lomvardas
University of California, San Francisco
Characterization of the Role of CpA Methylation in Neuronal Plasticity
Our brain displays an astonishing degree of plasticity. Experiences from a constantly changing environment generate, modify, and eliminate synapses and alter the function of our neurons. Extensive research over the last three decades has demonstrated that long-term potentiation is a process that requires enduring changes in gene expression. Although transcription factors mediate most of these changes, it is the covalent modifications on DNA and chromatin that render this changes long-lasting. Among these “so called” epigenetic changes, DNA methylation is the only one that cannot be enzymatically reversed. DNA methylation on CpG islands is a well established mechanism of gene silencing. Here, we show that we discovered a novel epigenetic modification, the methylation of CpA dinucleotides. Using a novel, genome-wide method to detect CpA methylation in primary neurons, we made the remarkable observation that CpA methylation appears only on actively transcribed genes. Moreover, our preliminary data suggest that this modification can be modulated by neuronal activity, exactly like the transcription status of the genes that it marks. An irreversible modification that can enhance or modulate gene expression could have profound consequences in neuronal plasticity. Therefore, we propose experiments that will dissect the role of CpA methylation in gene expression and neuronal function.
Andre G. MachadoAndre G. Machado
Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine-CWRU
Deep Brain Stimulation of the Ventral Anterior Limb of the Internal Capsule for Modulation of the Affective Sphere of Chronic Neuropathic Pain
Chronic neuropathic pain is a common cause of disability in the population. Most treatment options for patients with medically refractory neuropathic pain, such as spinal cord stimulation, thalamic deep brain stimulation, or intrathecal infusion of narcotics, are aimed at producing analgesia and are known to have limited efficacy. We propose an innovative, neuromodulation-based approach to treat patients with central thalamic pain syndrome, a particularly severe form of neuropathic pain characterized by relentless anesthesia dolorosa resulting from injury to the thalamic sensory pathways. We depart from the traditional goal of intervening in the sensory discriminative neural pathways of pain transmission in order to produce analgesia. Instead, we plan to target with deep brain stimulation (DBS) the ventral area of the anterior limb of the internal capsule (ALIC), a region densely populated by fibers related to neural networks related to the control of behavior and emotion. By electrically stimulating these networks, we expect to modulate the affective sphere of patients with otherwise intractable pain and, consequently, reduce pain-related disability. We hypothesize that the improvement in pain-related disability associated with modulation of the affective pain sphere will not be dependent on analgesic effects. For this reason, the visual analog scale will be used as a secondary outcome measure to control for pain levels and analgesia, but the primary outcome measure of the study will be the pain disability index. Patients enrolled in this research will undergo baseline and post-DBS double-blinded evaluations for a period of six months, followed by chronic open-label stimulation. The neural circuits of emotion control and the effects of DBS upon these networks will be studied at regular intervals with functional magnetic resonance imaging and magnetoencephalography.
David MasopustDavid Masopust
University of Minnesota Medical School
Maximizing CD8 T Cells for Protection
HIV has claimed >25 million lives. Two decades of research, but no vaccine. Theoretically, generation of CD8 T cell immunity may succeed where traditional, neutralizing antibody-dependent vaccines have failed. But nascent efforts have consistently failed to prevent chronic SIV infection in monkeys following a stringent challenge, and the first human HIV CD8 T cell vaccine trial was a complete failure. Why? Is a preventative CD8 T cell vaccine impossible, as many now suggest? We hypothesize that past efforts have been crippled by a safety-first approach and relative ignorance of the importance of memory CD8 T cell quantity, quality, and location to protection. Current approaches are largely refinements of past failures. A bolder approach is long overdue, at least in animal models where safety requirements are less stringent. What could SIV-specific memory CD8 T cells accomplish if they were 500-fold more plentiful than what is established by current vaccination strategies? What if these cells were preferentially located at common portals of viral entry and destroyed infected host tissue quickly upon contact? If a vaccine converted most CD8 T cells into HIV- or SIV-specific memory cells, could they fully protect the host and eliminate the infection completely? Or are CD8 T cells incapable of fulfilling this goal, even under ideal scenarios? This proposal will answer these essential questions. Moreover, it will test the limits of memory CD8 T cell generation and define CD8 T cell correlates of protection. If successful, this study may demonstrate that a preventative HIV vaccine is theoretically possible.
J. Rodrigo MoraJ. Rodrigo Mora
Massachusetts General Hospital / Harvard Medical School
Reassessing the Physiological Role of Gut-Specific Lymphocyte Homing: Implications for Autoimmunity and Tolerance
Oral immunological tolerance is an essential although poorly understood phenomenon by which the immune system becomes “nonresponsive” against antigens administered via the intestinal mucosa. Although this process is vital for the co-existence with nonpathogenic intestinal antigens, such as food and normal microbial flora, the mechanisms responsible for oral tolerance remain poorly understood. Lymphocyte migration (homing) is essential for protective and pathological immune responses, and we and others have demonstrated that gut-associated, antigen-presenting dendritic cells instruct lymphocytes to express gut-specific homing receptors, integrin α4β7, and chemokine receptor CCR9, by a mechanism dependent on the vitamin A metabolite retinoic acid (RA). Importantly, RA also contributes to the generation of regulatory T lymphocytes (TREG), which have been shown to be important for the establishment of oral tolerance. Given that RA induces gut-homing lymphocytes and also promotes TREG differentiation, I hypothesize that RA is essential for the establishment of oral tolerance 1) by inducing gut-tropism and “sequestering” potentially pathogenic T lymphocytes in the intestinal mucosa, and 2) by promoting TREG differentiation in the gut. If successful, my work will highlight a new physiological role of gut homing in the establishment of oral tolerance, providing also a straightforward approach to induce immune tolerance using RA, which could be used in the treatment of autoimmune diseases.
Alysson R. MuotriAlysson R. Muotri
University of California, San Diego School of Medicine
Modeling Autism with Human Pluripotent Cells
Autism and autism-spectrum disorders (ASD) are highly heritable, complex neurodevelopmental diseases where different gene combinations may play a role in different individuals. Nevertheless, the study of mutations in specific genes is helping to characterize the molecular mechanism responsible for subtle alterations in the nervous system, perhaps pointing to a general mechanism for the disorder. Here, we propose a novel approach to study ASD. Using Rett syndrome (RTT) as a pilot disease, we developed an in vitro system deriving induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC) from RTT patients’ fibroblasts. RTT patients have several autistic features and are part of ASD. RTT patients have defined mutations in the X-linked gene encoding the methyl-CpG binding protein 2 (MeCP2). RTT patients’ reprogrammed cells can generate human neurons carrying different types of MeCP2 mutations. Deep sequencing will be used to analyze gene expression during the transition steps of differentiation, simulating early stages of human neural development. The system will allow us to study the relationship of gene expression of coding and non-coding RNAs to the cellular and network phenotypes, such as neuronal arborization, synapse formation, and network electrophysiology. Moreover, we will use a chimeric brain system to study the effects of environment in human RTT neurons. In a future step, we will repeat the strategy using different single-gene mutations that also lead to the autistic diagnosis. The data generated will help to reveal and understand possible common mechanisms present in ASD.
Sunitha NagrathSunitha Nagrath
Massachusetts General Hospital / Harvard Medical School
Engineering Sensitive Microfluidic Multiplex Technology for Isolating Circulating Endothelial Progenitor and Tumor Cells to Study Angiogenesis and Metastasis in Cancer Development and Progression
Despite major strides in understanding of the molecular basis of cancer and cancer therapeutics, the complexities of the metastatic process remain poorly understood. Especially in colorectal cancer, understanding has been severely hampered by limited knowledge about the cells that cause the disease to metastasize through the bloodstream. Circulating cells of several lineages are thought to participate in angiogenesis, tumor growth, and metastasis. Among these, circulating tumor cells (CTCs) shed from the primary and metastatic carcinomas presumably give rise to bloodborne metastases, whereas circulating endothelial progenitor cells (CEPCs) from adult bone marrow initiate the premetastatic niche. This hypothesis gives rise to the “seed (CTCs) and soil (CEPCs)” concept. Although current models explain distinct and important aspects of metastasis, no single model can explain the sum of the cellular changes apparent in human cancer progression and metastasis. I will investigate the inextricable relationship between CTCs and CEPCs and their roles in carcinogenesis and metastasis. I propose to take a radical but integrated technology- and biology-based translational approach using microfluidic engineering tools to identify and study the biological relevance of these rare cells in peripheral blood. This approach will seek to answer the following questions: 1) Do the levels of CEPCs and CTCs in early and late stages of colon cancer correlate with each other along with tumor volume and clinical course? 2) Can dynamic changes in their load during the course of treatment plan predict the clinical outcome of the therapy? 3) Are there any changes to phenotypic and biological characteristics of these cells that distinguish prognostic subtypes? 4) What is the effect of CEPCs on CTCs when cocultured, and what is the fundamental biology of interaction? 5) Can we expand these cells in vitro to identify the true “metastatic precursors” or “cancer stem cells” and to determine biomarkers of angiogenesis and metastasis as potential therapeutic targets?
Vikas NandaVikas Nanda
Robert Wood Johnson Medical School/University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey
Computational Design of a Synthetic Extracellular Matrix
The extracellular matrix (ECM) is a complex network of collagens, laminins, fibronectins, and proteoglycans that provides a surface upon which cells can adhere, differentiate, and proliferate. Defects in the ECM are the underlying cause of a wide spectrum of diseases. The ECM mediates endothelial cell polarity and under normal conditions can suppress pre-oncogenic transitions to a neoplastic state. We are constructing artificial, de novo, collagen-based matrices using a hierarchic computational approach. These matrices will be physically characterized in the laboratory and used to probe the role of chemical and spatial organization in the ECM on the tumor-forming potential of adhered cells. We are using a two-stage, computational strategy to construct an artificial ECM. A key technology is protCAD (protein Computer Automated Design), a software platform developed in our laboratory specifically for computational protein design. In the first stage, the sequences of short collagen-like modules are designed to independently assemble into trimers of programmed stability and specificity. These modules are then covalently connected using flexible peptide linkers to facilitate the self-assembly of controlled, higher-order structures such as networks and fibrils. Encouraging experimental characterization of the first-generation collagen designs suggests that our computational strategy is likely to succeed. Synthetic ECMs will be useful in biomedical research and translational applications. Mammalian cells will be grown on anisotropic, self-assembling nanostructured matrices to assay effects on cell polarity, cytoskeletal orientation, and morphology. We will explore the ability of artificial matrices to suppress cell proliferation in the presence of various oncogenic signals. This will provide a powerful system for studying molecular aspects of the matrix biology of cancer. Successfully designed matrices will be applied to engineering safer artificial tissues.
Diane Joyce OrdwayDiane Joyce Ordway
Colorado State University
Immune Modulation by Highly Virulent Clinical Isolates of M. tuberculosis
The global epidemic of tuberculosis continues unabated. A particularly dangerous family of clinical strains is the "W-Beijing" family, many of which are highly drug-resistant (MDR). The substantial and relatively rapid transmission of these strains across the world has led people to believe that these particular isolates have some capacity or property to resist, and even subvert, the host immune response. Innovative work in the applicant's research group has uncovered the possibility that at least some of these isolates can induce Foxp3+ regulatory T cells that interfere with the proper expression of protective immunity in the mouse. Moreover, in the highly relevant guinea pig model, the applicant has published new flow cytometric technology to allow (for the very first time) the definition of the host pulmonary immune response. In this second model, many of these W-Beijing strains cause extremely severe lung pathology, far worse than that seen using "laboratory strains" of Mycobacterium tuberculosis. This is a very important point, because all new vaccine candidates to date have only been tested against these laboratory strains. In this proposal, we will use innovative new transgene mouse models to address the role of newly identified T cell subsets in modulating or subverting host immunity to this very serious group of pathogens, using our state-of-the-art Level III biosafety facilities. In addition, we will continue to develop innovative new methods to apply these studies to the (currently reagent-limited) guinea pig model. These studies will include three W-Beijing strains that cause a range (moderate to extremely severe) of lung pathology and several characterized examples of drug- sensitive/drug-resistant genetically matched pairs to test the concept that acquisition of drug resistance reduces bacterial fitness, and hence virulence.
Aydogan OzcanAydogan Ozcan
University of California, Los Angeles
Towards Mega-Throughput, Label-Free Genomics and Proteomics: Revolutionizing Microarray Technologies Using Lensless On-Chip Holographic Imaging and Nano-Plasmonics
Microarrays provide a high-throughput platform for various key studies in functional genomics, proteomics, epigenetics, medical diagnostics, and even tissue engineering. Together with advanced biochemical detection, imaging, and bioinformatics technologies, it is now possible to cost-effectively monitor the expression behavior of genes, proteins, or other biomarkers, as well as screening the genome and proteome content of various cell lines, on-chip drug profiling, or even detection of single-nucleotide-polymorphism. Therefore, microarray technologies provide a vital platform for performing high-throughput screening experiments that shed light on our understanding of cellular, genomic, and proteomic processes occurring at the nanoscale. In this proposal, we aim to create the next generation of microarray technologies to achieve an unprecedented mega-throughput, i.e., label-free imaging of millions of DNA/protein microspots would be feasible per second. We term the broad umbrella of these revolutionary technologies as Nano-plasmonic LUCAS. Specifically, we aim achieve a throughput of >120 cm2/second or >4.5 million spots/second for highly sensitive and label-free imaging of DNA/protein microarrays, which constitutes a speed improvement of >3 orders of magnitude when compared to the state of the art. Label-free imaging is especially important in not perturbing the natural biochemical, physical, and structural properties of the original molecule of interest. It also makes the measurements much more quantitative, significantly improving the data quality; eliminates inconvenient labeling steps which further reduces the cost; and avoids cross-reactivity issues among secondary probes, which can significantly improve the detection of weak or transitional molecular interactions. This mega-throughput capability will revolutionize the speed of progress that is taken in proteomics/genetics research by orders of magnitude that could eventually lead to the development of improved strategies/therapies for combating previously intractable biomedical problems and various diseases, including cancer. Furthermore, the Nano-plasmonic LUCAS platform does not require any lenses, microscope objectives, or other bulk optical components, and therefore offers an extremely compact on-chip platform that can easily be merged with microfluidic systems to permit point-of-care operation.
Christine K. PayneChristine K. Payne
Georgia Institute of Technology
Intracellular Delivery and Targeting of Nanoparticles
Nanoparticles have important biomedical applications ranging from the treatment of human disease with gene therapy to understanding basic cellular functions with fluorescent probes. It is now possible to synthesize nanoparticles with nearly any property or size, direct them to specific cells, and functionalize them to target intracellular locations, but delivering nanoparticles across the plasma membrane to reach their targets remains a challenge. We have recently demonstrated the first method for noninvasive delivery of semiconductor nanoparticles, known as quantum dots (QDs), to the cytosol of multiple cells simultaneously. Delivery requires pyrenebutyrate in combination with a cationic peptide for direct interaction of the QD with the plasma membrane. The ability of QDs to cross the plasma membrane offers exciting possibilities for the delivery of other nanoparticles to living cells. The first goal of this research program is to determine the molecular and cellular mechanism of pyrenebutyrate-mediated delivery and extend it to other nanoparticles with the ultimate goal of targeting specific intracellular sites with nanoparticles of choice. Novel imaging methods, including single-particle tracking fluorescence microscopy, will be used to probe the motion of the nanoparticle and its interaction with pyrenebutyrate as it moves across the plasma membrane and through the cytosol. As pyrenebutyrate-mediated delivery may not be suitable for all nanoparticles and all applications, we will also work to develop a suite of cytosolic delivery and targeting methods that are based on the well-characterized endosomal uptake pathways. Both delivery methods will be carried out in conjunction with studies of cellular response to nanoparticles that aim to optimize delivery and minimize disruption. In the course of this research, QDs, which are sufficiently bright for imaging at the single-particle level, will be used to probe fundamental questions of cellular transport, including diffusion through the crowded cellular environment, vesicle-mediated transport, and nuclear targeting.
Anna A. PennAnna A. Penn
Stanford University School of Medicine
Fetal Brain Damage: A Placental Disorder
The placenta has long been underappreciated and understudied by the scientific community. Improper function of this critical organ causes fetal abnormalities, premature labor, and the most common disease of pregnancy, preeclampsia. Despite the importance of the placenta, our understanding of its role in fetal development, especially at a molecular level, is crude. Sadly, our understanding of placental function may be compared to the knowledge of kidney function 50 years ago—we can describe the anatomy, but not the biology. My overarching goal is to use new molecular techniques to understand placental function and its relationship to fetal outcomes. Here my specific goal is to investigate how placental hormones shape fetal brain development. As an endocrine organ, the placenta produces a wide array of neuroactive hormones. This endocrine function can be disrupted in many ways—by abnormal gene expression, infection, prematurity—resulting in long-term damage. Preterm birth, affecting one-tenth of all deliveries, provides the most extreme case of hormone loss, but I hypothesize that it is just one of many cases in which placental dysfunction leads to brain damage. I will develop a series of animals in which individual hormones are specifically removed from the placenta at precise times during development. This system will allow the first direct, definitive tests of the placenta as a key regulator of fetal brain development. Both established hormones, such as progestins and oxytocin, and hormones that we have recently identified as neuromodulators made by the placenta, such as secretin, will be assessed. These experiments are likely to provide fundamental new insights in placental physiology and neurodevelopment, help redefine disorders such as cerebral palsy, autism and schizophrenia as disorders of the placenta, and open new avenues to therapeutic treatments to improve neurological outcome in fetuses and infants at high risk of developmental brain damage.
Patrick L. PurdonPatrick L. Purdon
Massachusetts General Hospital / Harvard Medical School
A Neural Systems Approach to Monitoring and Drug Delivery for General Anesthesia
General anesthesia is a drug-induced, reversible condition comprised of five behavioral states: loss of consciousness, amnesia, analgesia, lack of movement, and hemodynamic stability. Over 100,000 patients annually receive general anesthesia in the United States for surgical and medical procedures, yet the mechanisms for general anesthesia remain a mystery of modern medicine. While considerable safety improvements in anesthetic drugs and monitoring have been made over the past several decades, anesthesia-related morbidity remains a significant medical problem. Approximately 1 in 500 patients experience postoperative recall of events during surgery, which can result in post-traumatic stress disorder. Up to 41% of elderly patients suffer from postoperative cognitive dysfunction, with long-term deficits found in 13% of such patients. The human and economic costs of postoperative cognitive dysfunction will continue to grow significantly as the population of the United States ages and requires more frequent surgical and medical intervention. Other frequent side effects of general anesthesia include cardiovascular and respiratory depression, nausea, and vomiting. These instances of anesthesia-related morbidity occur because anesthetic drugs affect the entire central nervous system, not just the specific brain areas required to produce the state of general anesthesia. Because we are unable to monitor brain activity intraoperatively within the desired target brain systems, it is a challenge at present to balance the desired anesthetic state against unintended side effects. Furthermore, we lack the means to deliver anesthetic drugs specifically to anesthesia-related brain systems in order to avoid side effects mediated in other brain systems. We present here an innovative research program that will develop neural systems-based anesthetic monitoring and drug delivery to eliminate anesthesia-related morbidity. The proposed studies will result not only in dramatically improved anesthesia care in the long term, but will also result in fundamental discoveries and developments in systems neuroscience, neuroimaging, and drug delivery.
Shu-Bing QianShu-Bing Qian
Cornell University
Engineering Ubiquitin Ligases to Investigate Protein Aggregation and Neurodegeneration
Protein degradation lies at the heart of biological processes from signal transduction to cell cycle regulation. Compromised clearance of misfolded proteins from cells is the leading cause of human diseases such as neurodegenerative disorders. A common theme manifested in neurodegeneration is the accumulation of insoluble protein aggregates in the brain. However, the role of protein aggregation in the pathophysiology of neurodegeneration remains controversial. It remains a formidable task to remove protein aggregates from the affected neurons. In this proposal, we are taking a bold and innovative approach to attacking this exceedingly difficult problem: harnessing the ubiquitin/proteasome system to investigate protein aggregation and neurodegeneration. This proposal builds upon our previous development of methods to engineer single-chain ubiquitin ligase CHIP. We successfully established a novel strategy that enables us to alter the substrate binding specificity of CHIP without affecting its ligase activity. Using Huntington’s disease (HD) as a model, we propose herein to create recombinant ubiquitin ligases targeting the disease protein huntingtin (Htt) for ubiquitination. Our long-term goal is to define the structural features that determine the ligase activity of engineered ubiquitin ligases, elucidate the molecular mechanisms underlying protein aggregation and neurodegeneration, and evaluate the therapeutic potential of Htt-specific ubiquitin ligases. If successful, the engineered ubiquitin ligases will represent an unprecedented level of control over protein function in somatic cells, which would have direct impact on proteomic research by introducing novel “protein knockout” tools. In addition, the results of this project will provide unique insights into the fundamental cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying protein quality control and the pathophysiology of neurodegeneration. Application of these findings may help to delay or reverse the detrimental effects of neurodegeneration. Ultimately, it will serve as a prototype for the treatment of other neurodegenerative disorders, as well as non-neuronal human diseases.
Wei-Jun QianWei-Jun Qian
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
A Universal Multiplex Assay System for High-Throughput Clinical Applications
Recent advances in genomics, proteomics, and metabolomics make the “omics” technologies powerful discovery-based tools for identifying candidate biomarkers for human diseases; however, it has not been successful so far to establish new biomarkers for clinical practice by utilizing these technologies. The main bottleneck lies in the lack of effective tools for high-throughput validation. To overcome this bottleneck I propose to develop a novel, “reagent-free,” mass spectrometry-based universal multiplex assay system that will provide high-throughput quantitative measurements for hundreds of low-abundance protein and metabolite analytes, independent of antibody-based reagents. The goal for this technology platform is to achieve a profound advance over current MS-platforms by providing >1000-fold enhancement in analyte signal intensities, sufficient for detecting low-abundance species, and >5000-fold improvement in resolving power for extremely high-specificity detection. These advances will be achieved by developing and integrating 1) a novel subambient pressure ionization source with nanoelectrospray array, 2) advanced ion-funnel interfaces, 3) novel multistage gas-phase ion mobility technology (differential mobility analyzer coupled to field asymmetric ion mobility spectrometry) for separating and selecting analytes of interest, and (4) a new triple-stage pentaquadrupole (QqQqQ) mass spectrometer for further isolating as well as detecting ions. The optimized platform will have a potential analytical throughput of >100 samples per day, sensitivity for broadly analyzing low-abundance candidate biomarkers without enrichment, and the multiplexing power to monitor up to 1000 analytes simultaneously. At least 3-4 orders of magnitude enhancement in sensitivity or detection dynamic range (i.e., to a level comparable or superior to current ELISA) is anticipated, a significant advance over current assay platforms. Such a novel assay system is a disruptive technology that will revolutionize many areas of biomedical research, current medical practice, and the future of health care, as well as the biomedical research field in general through instrument commercialization.
Leon ReijmersLeon Reijmers
Tufts University School of Medicine
Molecular Analysis of Functional Neural Circuits
A functional neural circuit consists of a group of connected neurons that collaborate to execute a specific function of the brain. The understanding of the molecular mechanisms that underlie the development, maintenance, and experience-dependent modification of functional neural circuits is incomplete due to limitations of existing methods. I propose to generate a transgenic mouse that addresses these limitations by exploiting two recent methodological advances. The first advance is the TetTag mouse, which is a transgenic mouse that can be used to genetically tag a single functional neural circuit. This tag enables the selective molecular analysis of neurons that have a shared function. This method is more sensitive to changes within a single functional neural circuit than other available methods, which have to rely on spatial criteria and thereby include neurons that do not participate in the circuit of interest. The second advance is the Translating Ribosome Affinity Purification (TRAP) method, which enables purification of actively translated messenger RNA from a genetically defined group of neurons. TRAP analysis reflects changes at both the transcriptional and translational level, while other available methods only detect transcriptional changes. I will combine TetTag and TRAP within a single transgenic mouse to generate the first tool that enables the comprehensive analysis of all translational events within a single functional neural circuit. Neurons tagged with the TetTag mouse during fear conditioning provide a stable neural correlate of the fear memory. I will use the TetTag/TRAP mouse to purify actively translated messenger RNA from these tagged neurons in order to detect the protein synthesis events that underlie the storage of a memory. The TetTag/TRAP mouse can be used for the molecular analysis of various functional neural circuits, including those involved in memory, addiction, epilepsy, circadian rhythms, spinal cord regeneration, pain, brain development, and neuronal cell death.
Theresa M. ReinekeTheresa M. Reineke
Virginia Tech
Illuminating the Mechanistic Pathways of Polymer-Mediated Nucleic Acid Delivery
The wealth of information being obtained from genomic, proteomic, and glycomic research is allowing researchers to unravel the intricate genetic and epigenetic mechanisms associated with human health and disease. The intracellular delivery of nucleic acids to study these processes offers unprecedented promise for revolutionizing biomedical research and drug development. However, the nucleic acid delivery vehicle plays a central yet elusive role in dictating the efficacy, safety, mechanisms, and kinetics of gene regulation in a spatial and temporal manner, thus having a far-reaching impact in health-related research. To this end, we have developed several novel carbohydrate-containing polymers that have shown outstanding affinity to encapsulate polynucleotides into nanoparticles (polyplexes) and facilitate highly efficient intracellular delivery without toxicity. The goals of this project directly commence from our previous work where we aim to examine our wide-range of delivery vehicles for their mechanistic pathways and kinetics of nucleic acid encapsulation and intracellular transport from the cell surface to their final intracellular destination. We plan to examine 10 different carbohydrate-based polymers synthesized in our laboratory for their delivery mechanisms and kinetics with three polynucleotide forms: plasmid DNA, oligodeoxynucleotide decoys, and small interfering RNA, in two cell types, H9C2(2-1) and HeLa cells. The research program highlighted herein is driven by three specific goals: 1) to unravel the molecular-level interactions between structurally diverse yet analogous polymeric delivery vehicles and differing nucleic acid types and to correlate these interactions with the biological stability and mechanisms of the subsequent polyplexes, 2) to understand the interactions of these various polyplex types with cell surface glycosaminoglycans and compare polyplex structure to receptor selectivity and mechanisms of cellular uptake in two cell types, and 3) to decipher the intracellular trafficking pathways in a spatial and temporal manner from uptake to the final destination for each polyplex form with the two model cell types.
John L. RinnJohn L. Rinn
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center / Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard
RNA and Chromatin Formation: From Discovery to Mechanism
A major outstanding challenge in biology is to understand how the exact same genomic sequence present in every cell takes on alternate epigenetic landscapes to confer a myriad of cellular functions, all while using ubiquitous cellular machinery. In addition to histone modifications and DNA methylation, RNA has been long thought to be involved in the establishment and inheritance of these epigenetic states, but is far less understood. Indeed, recently three examples of large noncoding RNAs (HOTAIR, XIST, and AIR) have been discovered that share a common theme: They physically associate with chromatin-remodeling complexes and are required to guide chromatin formation at specific genomic loci. Although these examples suggest a general mechanism, it is still unclear to what extent RNA plays a role in chromatin formation and the mechanisms by which this guidance occurs. Here we propose to comprehensively and systematically address the roles of large noncoding RNAs in the formation of chromatin structure. We will accomplish this by: 1) identifying and characterizing large noncoding RNAs that physically associate with chromatin remodeling complexes genome-wide across multiple yet related cell contexts, 2) defining the sites of regulation and the guidance mechanism to these genomic loci, and 3) identifying how these molecules and their mechanisms are misregulated in human disease. Together, our multifaceted experimental and computational approaches aim to “crack the code” of epigenetic establishment and maintenance. This will transform our understanding of genome regulation and establish a new paradigm for RNA in the guidance of chromatin formation.
Pardis Christine SabetiPardis Christine Sabeti
Harvard University
Host and Pathogen Evolution in Lassa Fever
Disease-causing pathogens are among the most intriguing forces shaping human evolution, as they have a tremendous impact on our genome and themselves evolve over time. A genome-wide survey of human variation identified two genes biologically linked to Lassa fever as among the strongest signals of natural selection in West Africans. Lassa fever is a severe hemorrhagic disease endemic in West Africa, and our findings suggest it is an ancient selective force driving the emergence of genetic resistance. While poorly understood, Lassa fever has arguably the greatest potential impact of all infectious diseases of humans because of its unique status as both an immediate public health crisis and a category A potential bioterrorist agent. With the aim to pursue the intriguing signal of natural selection linked to Lassa fever, we first set out to address critical gaps in knowledge, capacity, and diagnostics. We established a basic diagnostic and research lab in Irrua, Nigeria, where yearly outbreaks of Lassa fever occur with population exposure of ~30%. Preliminary data suggests our initial measures have significantly reduced fatality from an estimated 65% to 20% among Lassa fever cases. We now aim to design a robust, field-deployable diagnostic, based on genome sequencing of diverse strains, to rapidly detect and distinguish Lassa virus strains. This work addresses immediate public health needs and sets the foundations for research into the genetic factors in both virus and human that underlie resistance to Lassa fever found among many West Africans. The ultimate goal of our work is to identify natural mechanisms of defense and illuminate the evolutionary adaptations that have allowed humans to withstand some of our most complex and challenging selective agents. Moreover, these efforts will create new opportunities in Lassa virus research, including investigations of viral pathogenicity and evolution and development of novel vaccines.
Magali Saint-GeniezMagali Saint-Geniez
Schepens Eye Research Institute / Harvard Medical School
Bioengineering of Bruch's Membrane for the Treatment of Age-Related Macular Degeneration
Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is the leading cause of blindness in developed countries for those over 55. AMD is a complex and multifactorial disease described as two distinct types, dry and wet, leading to central vision loss. Dry AMD is characterized by the subretinal accumulation of deposits (drusen) and is associated with the progressive atrophy of the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE), choriocapillaris (vasculature supplying the photoreceptors), and retinal neurons. Dry AMD can progress to the proliferative form, wet AMD, where pathological and highly permeable vessels grow into the subretinal space. There is no treatment for dry AMD, and the current anti-angiogenic therapies for wet AMD, though effective at reducing vessel growth and permeability, do not address the underlying pathogenesis. Thus, the need for new therapeutic approaches is clear. Abnormalities in the RPE and the Bruch’s membrane (BrM), on which the RPE sit, are central to the development of AMD. Therefore, we are proposing a novel transplantation strategy to replace the degenerative RPE/BrM with the goal of preserving the choriocapillaris integrity and photoreceptor function. Previous attempts to transplant the RPE have failed largely because BrM alterations were not addressed. The aim of this proposal is to develop a co-culture system of RPE and endothelial cells on a biodegradable, biocompatible poly(ε-caprolactone) (PCL) polymer to bioengineer a RPE/Bruch’s membrane complex. The differentiation of the RPE and the formation of the BrM-like matrix on the PCL scaffold will be evaluated by immunohistochemistry, gene expression analysis, and electron microscopy techniques. Finally, the therapeutic potential of the RPE-PCL transplantation for patients with AMD will be determined in animal models of RPE damage. Results of these studies may permit the development of strategies aimed at replacing the diseased subretinal tissue with a bioengineered RPE/BrM prosthesis that could represent a therapeutic solution for all forms of AMD.
Wenying ShouWenying Shou
Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center
Cellular Cooperation and Cheating: An Experimental and Mathematical Analysis
Cooperation is widespread and has been postulated to drive major transitions in evolution. A cooperator pays a cost to benefit others, and when reciprocated, it gains a net benefit. However, Darwinian selection favors "cheaters" that consume benefits without paying a fair cost. Many cooperative systems have evolved sophisticated cheater recognition/exclusion mechanisms. How did cheater-resisting mechanisms evolve from simple cooperative systems? To address this question, I created a genetically tractable cooperative system that can be observed as it evolves, step-by-step, from its inception toward increased stability. It consists of two engineered, nonmating yeast strains–a red-fluorescent R strain that requires adenine and releases lysine and a yellow-fluorescent Y strain that requires lysine and releases adenine. I observed that: 1) the system is viable, able to grow from low density to saturation in the absence of adenine and lysine supplements, over a wide range of conditions; 2) system viability requirements could be calculated from growth, death, and metabolic properties of the two cooperating strains; and 3) the system evolved increased system viability, with the minimum cell density required for system viability reduced 100-fold. My group will: 1) Discover the diversity of changes that increase system viability. Pro-cooperation changes must act through benefiting self and/or partner. Properties of evolved strains will be measured and their relative contributions to enhanced cooperation will be quantified. 2) Determine mechanisms of cheater tolerance. After introducing a cheater that consumes but does not release metabolites, we will select for cooperator/cheater cocultures with increased cheater tolerance and delineate mechanisms. 3) Investigate the possibility of spatial structure stabilizing cooperation. We will compare viability requirements and cheater tolerance of the cooperative system in a well-mixed liquid culture (no spatial structure) with those on an agar pad (with spatial structure). We hope to quantitatively understand the evolution of cooperation and cheater tolerance.
Justin L. SonnenburgJustin L. Sonnenburg
Stanford University School of Medicine
Discovery of Gut Microbiota-Targeted Small Molecules: New Tools and Therapeutics
The composition and function of the human intestinal microbiota is tightly linked to diverse aspects of host biology. Several diseases, including obesity and inflammatory bowel diseases, have been associated with altered microbiota composition. While much research is currently aimed at a genomic definition of the microbiota in both healthy and diseased states, there is a paucity of studies aimed at understanding this community at a mechanistic and ecological level and how changes in its function and composition directly impact host biology. The question of whether disease-associated alterations in microbiota composition are a cause or symptom of disease is difficult to address due to the current lack of tools that allow us to test the effect of perturbations in microbiota structure and function on the host in a controlled experimental setting. And once we are able to identify a pathologic microbiota definitively, how will we return it to a healthy state? The goal of this research proposal is to identify small molecules that can alter the microbiota at the level of function and composition, providing: 1) tools to aid investigation of altered microbiotas in model organisms and 2) a model pipeline for identifying a new class of therapeutics that targets the intestinal microbiota. The ability to monitor host responses in gnotobiotic mice colonized with a normal human gut microbiota provides an unprecedented capacity to search for compounds that will be useful in human medicine. While others have speculated on the promise of targeting the microbiota to manipulate human health, specific plans of how this would be achieved are lacking. This proposal lays out a plan to screen for compounds that target specific taxa of the microbiota, characterize the targeted microbiota in vivo, and determine the impact on host biology.
Sohail TavazoieSohail Tavazoie
Rockefeller University
The Discovery of MicroRNAs That Predict Chemotherapeutic Responsiveness of Cancer
The vast majority of cancer deaths result from the metastatic spread of cancer cells to distal organs. Systemic chemotherapy can prevent metastasis in some patients by killing microscopic tumor cells throughout the body. Chemotherapy can also dramatically reduce the size of metastases in some advanced-stage patients. Interestingly, these standard chemotherapeutic regimens are administered to hundreds of thousands of patients without prior knowledge of the sensitivity of individual patients’ cancer cells to such treatments. If we could identify the chemotherapeutic responsive and resistant subsets of patients at diagnosis, innumerable patients would be spared from the risks, side effects, and expense of ineffective chemotherapy and instead offered alternative and experimental therapies in the upfront setting. Furthermore, the identification of such biomarkers could provide mechanistic insights into the molecular underpinnings of chemotherapeutic resistance. Working in breast cancer, we recently discovered a set of human microRNAs that strongly suppress metastasis in a robust mouse model of breast cancer. These microRNAs act as biomarkers since their expression levels in primary tumors predict future metastatic relapse, thus guiding clinical decisionmaking. Colorectal cancer is a highly prevalent and aggressive disease entity with significantly fewer treatment options than breast cancer. We propose to apply a conceptually and technically innovative, systematic, and multidisciplinary approach to discover chemotherapeutic-response predictive microRNAs through an experimental approach that integrates molecular, in vitro, in vivo, and human clinical insights. We will validate the power of these microRNA biomarkers through prospective in vivo human studies. If successful, we envision this powerful approach applied to other common cancers. The identification of such microRNAs will not only be of tremendous clinical value now, it will also lay the foundation for future mechanistic and synthetic efforts aimed at generation of novel, microRNA-based therapeutic agents for the prevention and treatment of cancer metastasis.
Jerilyn A. TimlinJerilyn A. Timlin
Sandia National Laboratories
Multiplexed Measurements of Protein Dynamics and Interactions at Extreme Resolutions
My goal is to develop state-of-art imaging technology that can measure protein complex formation and protein networks in a multiplexed fashion with spatial resolution beyond that of optical microscopy. At present, a major limitation to clarifying the dynamics of a particular signaling cascade is the inability to visualize multiple (>4) proteins and their interactions simultaneously in real time in the living cell. This is due in part to the interference of spectrally similar species (including cellular autofluorescence) and the mismatch between the spatial resolution of the confocal microscope and the scale of protein interactions. Computational and experimental approaches can help to elucidate many of these interactions, but not all. Specialized microscopy methods have been developed to address some aspects of the problem, but to date, no technology has demonstrated true multiplexed (simultaneous, not sequential) detection of >4 proteins and their complex formation in living cells at spatial resolutions >100 nm. This type of detection is critical for unraveling protein interaction network details, and my proposed work will address that. Specifically, I will: 1) implement novel emission-scanning hyperspectral confocal microscopy hardware to collect information from large numbers of fluorescent species simultaneously at spatial resolution beyond that of the optical microscope, and 2) develop corresponding algorithms to spectrally unmix the 6D (X, Y, Z, excitation l, emission l, and time) ../images and provide accurate measurements of fluorophore concentrations even in the presence of energy transfer. This creative approach alleviates limitations of existing multicolor technology by extending my expertise in live-cell, hyperspectral imaging technology into the "super-resolution" realm. Its success will be enabled by robust, multivariate image analysis algorithms. This advance will have far-reaching impact in exploring signaling pathways and networks in biology and biomedicine.
Cho-Lea TsoCho-Lea Tso
University of California, Los Angeles
Cellular Quiescence and Brain Tumor Stem Cells
The discovery of tumor stem cells in human brain tumors has greatly changed the biological and clinical views of treatment-refractory brain cancer. Targeted therapies causing tumor stem cells to differentiate, undergo apoptosis, or die therefore represent a novel therapeutic strategy to treat recurrent tumors. The goals of this proposal are to identify genes that confer the tumor stem cell quiescence and to develop new brain tumor therapies based on the blockade of cellular quiescence in order to potentiate the treatment efficacy of radiation and chemotherapy. We have established several tumorigenic CD133+ glioblastoma (GBM) stem cell lines, which are directly derived from patients’ primary tumors that are recurrent and had previous treatment. Functional and molecular studies revealed that the slow-growing CD133+ GBM stem cells expressed a series of tumor suppressor/quiescence-associated genes but are capable of clonal self-renewal and spontaneous re-entry to the cell cycle to generate highly proliferative CD133- progeny that can populate tumor spheres in cultures and reconstitute a malignant tumor in mouse brain. We therefore hypothesize that GBM stem cells use reversibility of cellular quiescence to escape treatment followed by regenerating a new tumor upon treatment removal. We will perform a loss-of-function RNA interference screen for molecular targets of GBM tumor stem cell quiescence and test whether knockdown of quiescence factors will improve the treatment efficacy of radiotherapy and chemotherapy. Thus, the innovative treatment strategy proposed here aims to redirect reversible, viable arrested tumor stem cells toward non-reversible senescence, apoptosis, or terminal differentiation upon radiotherapy or chemotherapy. Preventing tumor stem cells from re-entering the cell division cycle after treatment shall greatly diminish the recurrence rate of GBM tumor.
Erik M. UllianErik M. Ullian
University of California, San Francisco, School of Medicine
The Role of Astrocytes in Plasticity and Disease
Astrocytes are the most abundant cell type in the human brain, yet we still do not fully understand the impact of astrocytes on human disease. In this proposal we will begin to uncover the role of astrocytes in regulating cortical plasticity using several new technologies, including quantitative mass spectroscopy and microfluidic chambers developed to rapidly identify astrocyte factors that are released in response to the paracrine signals acetylcholine (ACh) or norepinephrine (NE) and that are likely to impact plasticity in both the developing and adult brain. Additionally, we will take advantage of the outstanding stem cell and proteomic centers here at UCSF to ask whether astrocytes derived from somatic cells from individuals on the autism spectrum secrete altered levels of synaptogenic factors. Using a combined microfluidic chamber and imaging system we will screen for effects on synapse formation and function using astrocytes derived from autism patients and familial controls. These studies have the potential to uncover the role of glial cells both in regulating normal plasticity and in disease states.
Vaiva VezysVaiva Vezys
University of Minnesota Medical School
Understanding the Persistence of Immune-Mediated Chronic Diseases
Autoimmunity and asthma are immune-mediated diseases which can last for the lifetime of an individual, causing financial, physical, psychological, and societal burdens. Many of these diseases are characterized by symptomatic periods or flares, followed by a time of remission. Multiple factors, such as stress and infections, are believed to be responsible for this pattern. During these diseases, T cells are persistently stimulated by self or environmental antigens. Like autoimmune diseases, exposure to pathogens, which cause a chronic infection, also results in constant T cell stimulation by persistent antigens. I have recently demonstrated that new, pathogen-specific T cells are constantly produced during the chronic phase of infection, well after the initial infectious burst has resolved. This continued thymic output was required for maintaining the immune response. As common features can pertain to different immunological situations, the hypothesis to be tested in this proposal is whether the generation of T cells specific for tissue and environmental antigens in autoimmunity and asthma during established disease is a factor responsible for perpetuation of tissue damage. This hypothesis will be tested in different models of diabetes, multiple sclerosis, and a novel model of asthma. In addition, manipulation of thymic output during these chronic diseases, as well as during chronic infections, will determine whether newly developed T cells can be programmed to dampen atopic or autoimmune diseases or augment antimicrobial immunity. If successful, these studies may offer a novel explanation for the chronicity of certain immunological diseases and provide a new paradigm on which to base therapeutic intervention.
Leor S. WeinbergerLeor S. Weinberger
University of California, San Diego
Developing Transmissible Antivirals by Exploiting Gene-Expression Circuitry
Emerging and established viral diseases take an enormous toll on human health. Current treatment approaches are unlikely to halt epidemic spread of many viruses, notably HIV-1, due to prohibitive costs of treatment (i.e., access), compliance issues, rapid viral mutation, and the influence of hard-to-reach high-risk viral “superspreaders.” We propose to shift the treatment paradigm toward developing Therapeutic Infectious Pseudoviruses (TIPs) that require the pathogen to replicate. TIPs would transmit along a pathogen's normal transmission route, reaching precisely those high-risk populations that most require therapy. TIPs co-opt wild-type virus packaging elements, decreasing disease-progression in vivo and reducing disease transmission on a population scale. We have demonstrated that an anti-HIV TIP could mutate with equal speed and under evolutionary selection to maintain its parasitic relationship with wild-type virus, thereby overcoming viral mutational escape. Since TIPs replicate conditionally (i.e., piggyback), treatment compliance and cost issues are eliminated. A precedent for the safety of TIPs exists in the oral polio vaccine (a live-attenuated vaccine), which exhibits limited spread and is being used in the polio eradication campaign. To develop candidate TIPs, we will capitalize upon our expertise in HIV-1 transcriptional circuitry. We discovered that HIV-1 exploits stochastic gene expression to control entry into a dormant state (proviral latency). By targeting a cellular gene (SirT1) essential for viral feedback, we have biased HIV-1 toward dormancy and diminished reactivation. We will exploit this innovative strategy of forcing viruses into dormancy by utilizing our single-cell imaging methods to conduct high-throughput imaging screens for therapeutic candidates that promote viral latency. Next, these candidate TIPs will be analyzed in novel microfluidic chemostats that maintain homeostatic infection and allow viral evolution in an in vivo-like setting. By integrating these approaches with predictive models, we will develop a revolutionary therapy to halt the spread of HIV/AIDS and other infectious diseases.
Chun-Li ZhangChun-Li Zhang
University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center
Neurogenesis De Novo in the Adult Central Nervous System
Trauma, stroke, and neurodegenerative disease result in neuronal loss, which leads to morbidity and mortality. A major advancement to mitigate these conditions would be to harness the ability to regenerate lost neurons. Although neural stem cells (NSCs) and neurogenesis normally exist in adult brain, the scarcity and restricted localization render them inadequate for regeneration. Cell transplantation is currently the strategy of choice to deliver new neuronal cells, but this approach is inefficient and cumbersome due to limited cell survival and poor integration into the functional neural networks following transplantation. In a highly novel approach to adult neurogenesis studies based on recent findings, we hypothesize that endogenous glial cells can be directly converted into neurogenic NSCs so that de novo-generated neurons will repopulate damaged brain regions. This hypothesis is based on our extensive studies using an essential nuclear receptor for NSCs and on the recent advancement of induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells. We previously revealed that nuclear receptor TLX is not only essential for adult neurogenesis but is also sufficient to convert differentiated astrocytes into NSCs in culture. Although somatic cells from various tissues can be reprogrammed to iPS cells, it is not clear whether somatic cells can also be directly induced to form NSCs and neurons. Through transcriptional reprogramming, we propose to convert astrocytes and microglia, the two most proliferative glia cells during CNS damage, into NSCs and neurons. Using regulated expression of TLX in cultured cells and in transgenic mice, we will induce astrocytes to become proliferative, multipotent NSCs and then differentiate them into neurons. In addition, by using combinations of transcription factors, we will directly reprogram astrocytes or microglia to NSCs in cell culture and in adult mouse brains. Our long-term goal is to repopulate the damaged CNS regions using the patient’s endogenous non-neuronal cells.
Up to Top | dclm_baseline | {'bff_contained_ngram_count_before_dedupe': '268', 'language_id_whole_page_fasttext': "{'en': 0.9091527462005616}", 'metadata': "{'Content-Length': '151865', 'Content-Type': 'application/http; msgtype=response', 'WARC-Block-Digest': 'sha1:PHKRTZWEKFWZNENKJDX6BQBPPSHR3KGI', 'WARC-Concurrent-To': '<urn:uuid:f9d363d2-cf80-46b1-a9d8-0a54a50256b7>', 'WARC-Date': datetime.datetime(2014, 4, 18, 3, 28, 5), 'WARC-IP-Address': '137.187.172.250', 'WARC-Identified-Payload-Type': None, 'WARC-Payload-Digest': 'sha1:VFKDSRSF3QJOIYBZQRDZ356K3MUAG5TX', 'WARC-Record-ID': '<urn:uuid:73ab8b1f-5ddd-432e-a195-01aa1ee982a6>', 'WARC-Target-URI': 'http://commonfund.nih.gov/newinnovator/recipients09', 'WARC-Type': 'response', 'WARC-Warcinfo-ID': '<urn:uuid:0fea7b2c-1a6d-4c7e-8bc0-307401622992>', 'WARC-Truncated': None}", 'previous_word_count': '15767', 'url': 'http://commonfund.nih.gov/newinnovator/recipients09', 'warcinfo': 'robots: classic\r\nhostname: ip-10-147-4-33.ec2.internal\r\nsoftware: Nutch 1.6 (CC)/CC WarcExport 1.0\r\nisPartOf: CC-MAIN-2014-15\r\noperator: CommonCrawl Admin\r\ndescription: Wide crawl of the web with URLs provided by Blekko for April 2014\r\npublisher: CommonCrawl\r\nformat: WARC File Format 1.0\r\nconformsTo: http://bibnum.bnf.fr/WARC/WARC_ISO_28500_version1_latestdraft.pdf', 'fasttext_openhermes_reddit_eli5_vs_rw_v2_bigram_200k_train_prob': '0.049095988273620605', 'original_id': '2df6a0a3fb250e3b7d2b1ef85b05ad2d40039cf809aea675e4533e31649d1461'} |
As simple as a Brita pitcher is to use for filtering water, who has time to wait for gravity to do its work when you're not at home? With a little downward force on your end, the Grayl cup will purify 16 ounces of water in just 15 seconds, making it better-tasting and safer to drink. It's basically a french press that cleans your water, instead of turning it into brown sludge.
Using the Grayl is as simple as filling the outer container with water, and then slowly inserting the inner chamber which pushes the water through replaceable filters as it slides down. The $20 everyday filter is good for about three months or 300 uses and removes 99.99 percent of bacteria. But if you're planning to fill up somewhere a little more risky, a $40 purifier is also available that removes 99.999 percent of bacteria, protozoa, and viruses.
Formerly a crowdfunded project on Indiegogo, the Grayl successfully reached its funding goal and is now available to anyone, not just those who donated, for $70—which is pretty expensive for a 16 ounce container. But it's one of those situations where if it saves you from buying a bottle of water every day, in the long run it makes financial sense. Plus, there's the whole not getting incredibly sick thing should you fill up at the wrong tap. [The Grayl via Notcot] | dclm_baseline | {'bff_contained_ngram_count_before_dedupe': '0', 'language_id_whole_page_fasttext': "{'en': 0.9518000483512878}", 'metadata': "{'Content-Length': '355796', 'Content-Type': 'application/http; msgtype=response', 'WARC-Block-Digest': 'sha1:N33HM3RFNE6ZLINXMUGCYYPCLRWZTR2B', 'WARC-Concurrent-To': '<urn:uuid:f9b65e94-d3f2-4733-baa8-4da8d2766ed0>', 'WARC-Date': datetime.datetime(2017, 1, 22, 20, 16, 9), 'WARC-IP-Address': '151.101.65.34', 'WARC-Identified-Payload-Type': None, 'WARC-Payload-Digest': 'sha1:2SO7SPKPZ2ZQSA6SJABFL72D74KIHNA5', 'WARC-Record-ID': '<urn:uuid:af0449f1-a7cc-4120-a3d9-dea605c77520>', 'WARC-Target-URI': 'http://gizmodo.com/1503663839/unless-you-live-near-freedom-industries-save-your-mone', 'WARC-Type': 'response', 'WARC-Warcinfo-ID': '<urn:uuid:a59b48f0-9e1f-46ca-81ed-c6f478687226>', 'WARC-Truncated': None}", 'previous_word_count': '228', 'url': 'http://gizmodo.com/1503663839/unless-you-live-near-freedom-industries-save-your-mone', 'warcinfo': 'robots: classic\r\nhostname: ip-10-171-10-70.ec2.internal\r\nsoftware: Nutch 1.6 (CC)/CC WarcExport 1.0\r\nisPartOf: CC-MAIN-2017-04\r\noperator: CommonCrawl Admin\r\ndescription: Wide crawl of the web for January 2017\r\npublisher: CommonCrawl\r\nformat: WARC File Format 1.0\r\nconformsTo: http://bibnum.bnf.fr/WARC/WARC_ISO_28500_version1_latestdraft.pdf', 'fasttext_openhermes_reddit_eli5_vs_rw_v2_bigram_200k_train_prob': '0.16817086935043335', 'original_id': '2ebb573d369013e91db271d88237d57f840376ad842bff0de78780cd5c0c1dfa'} |
Twin Flames – Love is More Important
Even as Americans openly display their differences of opinion in marches that sometimes turn violent,
Even as the clock turns back decades to the struggle for civil rights,
And a violent Apocalypse looms in the distance like storm clouds floating across an angry nation,
Inside my heart,
I ache to look into the eyes of my Twin before Western Civilization as we know it ceases to exist …
Because love is more important.
Empath’s Guide to Sanity 2017
From the Merriam Webster Dictionary:
The Basics
• Every living thing is empathic to some extent because empathy is one of the oldest forms of non-verbal communication. Scientists speculate that humans or “Homo Erectus” started talking about 100,000 years ago, but they can’t decide if language began as soon as the human brain became big enough, or if it developed slowly over time.
• If you have a pet chances are that you have developed better empathic skills than the typical non-pet owner because animals are better empaths than humans and pets have a tendency to “teach” their owners a thing or two.
• You are most empathic when you are a baby before you say your first words. The ability then fades because language is used as a replacement but it does not go away and it can be enhanced through meditation.
• People who have a connection to plants and nature also tend to be more empathic. While some literally “talk” to their plants to help them grow, others naturally give their plants energy and attention and the difference in plant growth is tangible.
• Psychics and mediums can be painfully empathic as a side effect of their ability to communicate with disembodied spirits, elementals, angels, demons, fairies, etc …
The Challenges
While the ability to communicate non-verbally with everything can be a gift, the inability to “turn it off” at will can be maddening and at the very least uncomfortable. In my case I was already super tense after the volleys between Trump and Kim Jong Un that I had a persistent ache in the pit of my stomach. But after the riots in Charlottesville I literally felt like I was about to throw up for days. I felt the hodge podge of fear, despair and rage in waves and I had to force myself to not look at the news. Meanwhile, places that had large concentrations of people like the grocery store, Walmart, or the mall were stricly off limits until things settled down on the surface.
Feeling Overwhelmed: Feelings of being overcome or overwhelmed literally came out of the blue. News sites showed me what I was reacting to and that helped me sort out my true feelings from what emotions I was being bombarded with.
Upset Stomach: The stomach is where most people carry their emotions. It is no coincidence that we call our most important feelings as “a gut feeling.” My gut was suffering under the weight of the public emotional outpouring of reactions to a possible nuclear war and the threat of rampant racism.
Nausea: As tensions mounted I literally felt like I was having chronic morning sickness. It took a day for me to get over feeling like I wanted to vomit every hour.
Anxiety and Depression: As a result of a combination of all the symptoms mentioned above, I began to get anxious and depressed.
Chronic Fatigue: My body reacted by slowing down and the best medicine for me was to nap for hours in order to “make it go away” because in sleep and through dreams I was able to release a lot of psychic tension.
Sharing What I’ve Learned
Just as the madness was breaking out on the newsfeeds I saw a lot of ads for classes and I was astonished at the amount of woo and silliness people were trying to push on suffering empaths around the globe. So, I decided that I would freely share what I do from day to day to cope with the chaos.
Coping Measures
• Feeling Overwhelmed/Grounding: I am fortunate to live in a pretty little witchy house at the foot of the mountains. Every morning before I water my little potted patio garden filled with herbs and roses I take off my shoes. I spend a lot of my time barefoot in the garden which allows my tension to be released through the bottoms of my feet. I refocus my attention on my plants and ask them to take away my tension. During the worst times I put my hands on my little ficus tree and imagine my energy going down through the trunk of to tree into the Earth.
• Upset Stomach & Nausea/Ginger Everything: While I wish I had enough time to peel, crush and grind fresh ginger root into a tea every day, I’m far too busy for that. Making fresh ginger tea is a luxury, so I stock up on ginger ale, ginger chews (candy) and ginger snaps (my favorite cookie) so I have something quick and easy to help me calm my stomach and alleviate my nausea.
• My friends and favorite tv shows as well as meditation/Anxiety and Depression: I meditate and do mantra at least 20 minutes every day. Sometimes I may get lost in it for up to an hour because being in alpha state feels great. However, there is nothing like a convo with a good friend or an episode of “Game of Thrones” to pull me out of a funk. John Oliver has been good for my soul. And frankly, I miss Jon Stewart. Jon Stewart was my comedy shaman who cured all ills.
• Naps and Early Bed Times/Chronic Fatigue: When all else failed I am sooooo grateful to be working primarily from home. I have the luxury of taking a nap whenever I feel the need. When I am working outside of my domestic sanctuary of peace and chocolate I come home with take out, or nuke an organic microwave dinner and drop off to sleep no matter who early it is.
Emergency Empath Hacks
• Wearing Amber and Black Tourmaline jewelry to seal up my aura.
• Taking cleansing baths in epsom salts and baking soda.
• Playing my favorite music to raise the vibe and drown out everything else. (Amy Winehouse has saved my life.)
If you would like to book a reading, a service of buy a candle please go to my website:
You can follow me on facebook: | dclm_baseline | {'bff_contained_ngram_count_before_dedupe': '44', 'language_id_whole_page_fasttext': "{'en': 0.9538253545761108}", 'metadata': "{'Content-Length': '73701', 'Content-Type': 'application/http; msgtype=response', 'WARC-Block-Digest': 'sha1:7BEEBTRNB67UIK4OOB2TNTL54LT6SXIY', 'WARC-Concurrent-To': '<urn:uuid:997468fd-1221-4be6-9c39-f907b82a3d83>', 'WARC-Date': datetime.datetime(2017, 9, 22, 4, 14, 27), 'WARC-IP-Address': '192.0.78.13', 'WARC-Identified-Payload-Type': 'text/html', 'WARC-Payload-Digest': 'sha1:OACG45TYP63UIXSDD2MRLRBNV3LWFCWP', 'WARC-Record-ID': '<urn:uuid:cbfea22b-f0f3-4817-b10e-c06cb5d540b0>', 'WARC-Target-URI': 'https://mariebargasblog.wordpress.com/2017/08/', 'WARC-Type': 'response', 'WARC-Warcinfo-ID': '<urn:uuid:c5c357e2-120a-49c9-b9cc-c5857209c68d>', 'WARC-Truncated': 'length'}", 'previous_word_count': '1099', 'url': 'https://mariebargasblog.wordpress.com/2017/08/', 'warcinfo': 'robots: classic\r\nhostname: ip-10-143-241-238.ec2.internal\r\nsoftware: Nutch 1.6 (CC)\r\nisPartOf: CC-MAIN-2017-39\r\noperator: Common Crawl Admin\r\ndescription: Wide crawl of the web for September 2017\r\npublisher: Common Crawl\r\nformat: WARC File Format 1.0\r\nconformsTo: http://bibnum.bnf.fr/WARC/WARC_ISO_28500_version1_latestdraft.pdf', 'fasttext_openhermes_reddit_eli5_vs_rw_v2_bigram_200k_train_prob': '0.035341858863830566', 'original_id': '659233b4ccd3f70906768bb6aa821c51345365d67875c18afb2a7907afe40de6'} |
In 1980, the year that Congress passed the Refugee Act, the U.S. accepted more than two hundred thousand refugees. The law created a robust program for accepting people who had been displaced by war and strife, and made refugee policy a new tool of American foreign policy, improving the country’s standing with foreign allies and helping the military and intelligence communities find partners in conflict zones. Since then, the mandated refugee “cap” set by the President has fluctuated; during the Obama Administration, it averaged seventy-six thousand, and, in 2017, Obama raised the cap to a hundred and ten thousand to allow in more Syrians fleeing civil war. Then came Donald Trump. In January, he signed an executive order temporarily freezing the refugee program, barring all Syrians, and slashing the number of refugees allowed into the country for the remainder of the year. Late last month, the White House announced that next year’s cap would be forty-five thousand, a record low. The State Department, the Defense Department, the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the Office of the Vice-President, and the Office of Management and Budget had wanted the number to be higher. But they had all been forced to compete with one influential White House official: Stephen Miller, the thirty-two-year-old former aide to Jeff Sessions who has become Trump’s top immigration adviser.
I recently spoke to four Administration officials involved in the refugee-cap process to try to understand how Miller was able to outmaneuver an array of powerful factions in the federal bureaucracy. Each official described Miller as a savvy operator who understands how to insert himself into the policy-creation process. They also described him as the beneficiary of a dysfunctional and understaffed Administration. Miller hadn’t completely gotten his way on the refugee cap, they told me; he wanted it to be lower. The forty-five-thousand figure—which past Administrations would have considered impractically low—amounted to a kind of compromise.
Miller, who has gone from the political fringe to the White House on the strength of his reputation as an anti-immigration ideas man, joined the Trump campaign early. He is close to both the President and his son-in-law, Jared Kushner, and has had a direct hand in several of the Administration’s most significant immigration decisions, including the travel bans and the cancellation of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA). “He’s been thoughtful and low-key about overtaking the policy-making process,” one White House official told me. “That’s the reason he survived.”
The chain of events that led to the announcement of the new refugee cap began on June 5th, when Miller met with officials from the State Department, the National Security Council, the Department of Homeland Security, and a policy group called the Homeland Security Council. Every summer, the State Department and the N.S.C. lead a series of discussions to decide the next year’s cap. Officials weigh dozens of different considerations, solicit input from the various stakeholder agencies, and ultimately bring a number to the President for his approval. The process is technical and exacting, a months-long slog through meetings, position papers, and constant recalibrations. Miller’s presence at the June 5th meeting itself was unusual: he heads the Domestic Policy Council, a body staffed by political appointees, which had never before played a role in refugee policy.
“We know how this used to go in the past,” he told the officials in the room. “But we also know that the President views this as a homeland-security issue.” Everyone understood the significance of Miller’s words. “Miller basically made clear that it was not going to be looked at from the typical lens of foreign policy,” a second White House official told me. “It was a domestic-policy issue, an immigration issue. The Department of Homeland Security was going to get involved.”
Miller introduced the officials to Gene Hamilton, another former aide to Sessions, whom the Administration had installed at D.H.S. This year, Miller and Hamilton explained, D.H.S.—not the State Department—would present the refugee-cap number to the President. Hamilton would be Miller’s key ally in the process. “They were in direct and constant contact,” the second White House official told me. “If there was ever a question you had for Hamilton, he’d say, ‘Hold on,’ and call Miller.” According to the first White House official, “It was clear that there was some precooked plan here.”
Miller’s presence was felt immediately. Records of the June 5th meeting, known as a “summary of conclusions,” were kept from circulating. Stakeholder agencies—including the Joint Chiefs, the Defense Department, the U.S. Mission to the United Nations, and the Office of Management and Budget—were left out of subsequent meetings. These meetings are an “art form” and “highly scripted,” one of the officials told me. “This was highly unusual. They were convening people without anyone knowing what the subject of the meeting was.” (The White House claims that Miller did not coördinate these meetings.) After one meeting, in August, N.S.C. and State Department officials expressed concern that representatives from the Department of Defense, the National Counterterrorism Center, and the F.B.I. were still missing from the discussions. Hamilton responded, “What the hell does D.O.D. have to say about this?”
When evidence emerged that didn’t suit Miller’s aims, he squelched it. In March, the White House had asked the Department of Health and Human Services to study the costs of refugee resettlement. The department returned with a study, in July, showing that the revenue generated by refugees in the form of local, state, and federal taxes exceeded the costs of resettling them by sixty-three billion dollars. According to the Times, Miller suppressed the study and demanded that H.H.S. recalculate the numbers. Two of the White House officials told me they’d heard that Miller had given H.H.S. strict instructions at the outset. “The President believes refugees cost more, and the results of this study shouldn’t embarrass the President,” he had told people at the agency. (The White House denied that Miller was involved with the H.H.S. report.)
“He shut down the U.S. government’s democratic approach to decision-making,” a State Department official told me. “He suppressed evidence that was important to consider in determining a refugee number that would be beneficial to our national-security interest. We’re not talking about reports written by outside groups. We’re talking about evidence being generated from within the federal bureaucracy, documents generated from within the government.” Miller and his team at the Domestic Policy Council heavily edited several discussion papers outlining policy considerations, according to one of the White House officials. Statistics were cherry-picked. “We’d get them back from D.P.C., and they were eighty-five-per-cent different,” the official said, referring to papers generated by the N.S.C. staff. “D.P.C. would just sit down and write their own paper. They put in a lot of spurious statistics. Things like: refugees are thirty times more likely than the general population to commit a terrorist act.” According to the official, many of the statistics Miller’s team favored came from the Center for Immigration Studies, an influential anti-immigration think tank. (The White House denied that Miller had a role in editing policy papers.) When officials pushed back against these kinds of changes, Miller would point to the backlog of asylum cases at D.H.S. and argue that the refugee program was unsustainable. All four officials believed this argument was disingenuous. “This was a manipulation to get the result he wanted,” one White House official told me. “He basically just had a political agenda: to limit the number of foreign nationals who come into our country.” | mini_pile | {'original_id': 'f0fc2d50df6dfaa92cda4f4944318ee5d2cfe209ec12ca8f5e0a3c6010b07989'} |
NB. data selections
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NB. return mask of later versions
pkglater=: 3 : 0
if. 0=#PKGDATA do. $0 return. end.
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| common_corpus | {'identifier': 'https://github.com/jsoftware/ide_ja/blob/master/source/pacman/select.ijs', 'collection': 'Github Open Source', 'open_type': 'Open Source', 'license': 'MIT', 'date': '', 'title': 'ide_ja', 'creator': 'jsoftware', 'language': 'J', 'language_type': 'Code', 'word_count': '53', 'token_count': '119', '__index_level_0__': '15658', 'original_id': 'd134b78f007216842e0568fb3701802e65188690c7c3aac1179d094ce9dd1efd'} |
Monday, June 2, 2014
Celebrating the Unsung Hero on Father's Day
Have I told you about my dad? He's one of the big reasons we're back in the U.S. (But don't tell him that.)
That's dad on the left making faces. Go figure.
Born in August 1953, he grew up in the Midwest with an older brother and two parents who he doesn't remember a ton about, at least he doesn't talk much about them. There are small stories here and there that come up, something about hardboiled eggs I remember.
Ethel, my grandma, died of lung cancer on her 39th birthday. My dad was 9. Joseph, my grandfather, died of a heart attack at 47. It was 11 days after my dad's 12th birthday.
Dad grew up with a stepmother and joined the Navy as soon as he could. He often tells me about being stationed in the Mediterranean where he worked on the ship's computer. He likes to tell me about the work his ship did for Israel during the early 1970s, which I think is pretty rad. When he was 23 and my mom was 18, they got hitched and started a family in Kansas City, Missouri.
Between the late 1970s and the mid-1990s we lived in Iowa and then Southern Missouri, my dad was a superstar-rockstar manager for a large building materials company that ended up taking their amazing employees for granted, going bankrupt, and the CEOs walked away with boatloads of money.
But it didn't break my dad. He kept on trucking. He kept focusing on his family, working nights, working overtime, working hard and long hours to keep food on the table.
Then my dad suffered through a quadruple bypass surgery, followed by a diagnosis of Lymphoma. But that didn't break my father either. Nothing has ever broken my dad. I can't get over how much he's been through (it seriously brings tears to my eyes) and how much he's been taken for granted by employers, employees, friends, family, you name it.
He's the kind of guy who lays wisdom on you that you don't always get ("If wishes were fishes, we'd all be fishin'"). He'd bend over backwards to make sure a coworker is doing okay. He'd walk home miles if it meant he wasn't putting someone else out. He'd give up everything for his family's happiness (to a fault).
He's really the ultimate hero. He didn't fight in a major war or jump in front of a moving vehicle to save a puppy or create a life-saving drug. He isn't famous. He isn't making or giving millions to save the rainforest or feed starving children. But he's a hero, of the unsung variety.
Why? Because anyone who suffers the greatest losses and comes out still trying, still living, still loving ... that's a hero. To me, anyway.
So tell me about your dad. Why? Because dads rock. They're amazing and they're undervalued in my opinion. Mr. T is an amazing dad who, much like my own father, would bend over backwards to help anyone anywhere (they do say you marry your father, right?).
Then, if you love your dad and you love Target (ahem, who doesn't?), enter the Power Dad’s Smile Everyday Sweepstakes with over $1,000 in prizes starting today!
To Enter: Share a photo of you and your Dad on Twitter or Instagram using #oralbsweeps between June 2 and June 15.
The Prize: You could win the Father’s Day Power Bundle which includes the Oral-B Black ProfessionalCare 1000 Rechargeable Toothbrush, the Braun Series 7 760 shaver, and a $250 Target Gift Card!
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Math Program
Math skills are necessary for everyday life yet so often the foundational skills such as basic facts and word problems are rushed through leaving children with gaps in there understanding of math later on down the road. R.I.S.E. focuses on strong visual foundational skills K-3rd grade, concept application and processes in 4th-6th grade, preparing students for higher level math in middle school, and college preparatory math and advanced math at the high school level. Students who participate in our math program tend to be a year to two years past their public school peers.
Singapore Math is our main curriculum used in the Kindergarten through fifth grade*. We also use a technology enhanced learning model to focus on mastering addition, subtraction, multiplication and division facts and other skills that are more based on memory. Students grasp simple concepts through games, hands on tasks, and paper pencil tasks. In making sure our students are grasping all concepts we use many different resources to tap into each of the 7 types of learning styles, and to reteach and review concepts that children may need more practice and repetition to grasp.
In 4th and 5th grade we start to really focus on word problems and introducing concepts in a way that helps students to be able to transition to higher level math courses and understand them.
Middle School and High school students when ready move into Shormann math, where they are able to place into Pre-algebra or Algebra I. Once in Algebra I, this program allows students to complete Algebra I, Algebra 2, Geometry, Pre- Calculus, Trigonometry and Calculus all by graduation and be prepared to be successful in college level math. Since this is a very intense program students go at their own pace so they are working towards mastery. Once students complete these courses they are able to placement test at their local college* and start working towards college credits.
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One Accord & The Power Surge
When people are “of one mind,” the creative capacity of that unanimity can bring about unlimited accomplishments.
Nothing can stop such a people except God. In Genesis 11:1-9 the people were of one mind and of one language, and they had a unified goal. They decided to build a city and within it a tower that would reach unto the heavens. They also wanted a name to be remembered. However, what they were doing was not of God. They were working on a project that God did not approve.
When they no longer were of one mind–when they no longer spoke the same thing–their project fell apart. When no one knew what the other was saying, confusion came in, and they began to scatter. God had touched their unity, and their project stopped.
It’s no different today. We see it over and over again. Someone with a vision gathers a group of people and gets them to be of one mind and speak the same thing and then gets them working on a massive project. But when God discovers a project and a purpose that has a wrong motive and what is not His will, He will come and touch it. All God needs to do is touch their unity. In Jeremiah 22:14-17 is a good example of a project that was started with a wrong motive.
The words “one accord” in the book of Acts show exactly what one accord will do when God is involved. The words “one accord” have a variety of meanings, such as “togetherness, with one mind, harmony, united in purpose, unanimity.” There is also a meaning that refers to “at the moment of unity.” There is a surge of power released spontaneously in its action that produces the desired result: a power surge.
Consider the thermostat: when the room temperature reaches the same setting on the thermostat, there is a power surge of electricity that either turns on or off the furnace. At the moment of unity there is a power surge.
We must remember this. When the heart, mind and soul of the believers reach a “point of unity” and when they are in harmony with God’s setting, there will be a power surge, and things will happen.
The Power Surge in the Book of Acts
Acts 1:14 “They all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication.”
The power surge that came released a revelation that there was something that needed to be made right. Acts 1:16-26–Those that gathered in one accord were not afraid to make things right. Very often people pray for revival and when the Holy Spirit begins to manifest a power surge that reveals things that are not right between members in the church, they leave rather than obey the Spirit of God. The Spirit will reveal the need for forgiveness, for repentance of sin, for the rectifying of wrong doings. If we want God’s Pentecost, we must do what the Spirit reveals. Jesus said, “No man having put his hand to the plough and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.” (Luke 9:62) Every believer wants to be fit for the kingdom of God, but so many are not fit because they never make things right when they hold unforgiveness. Being in one accord for revival will bring the surge of power by God’s Holy Spirit for the purpose of making peace between brothers and sisters that are in the church.
Acts 2:1-4 “And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place.”
The power surge was seen in the releasing of the Holy Spirit. And what a release! The presence of God filled the house where they were meeting. The sound that came with the Spirit was like the sound of a mighty wind. Cloven tongues that resembled the flames of fire sat upon each of them. All were filled with the Spirit. The whole congregation, not just one or two, was touched by the Spirit at the same time. They spoke in known languages. Being in one accord did it. Without being critical, when was the last time you saw a whole congregation touched by the Spirit? I mean, everybody. Let’s plan to be in one accord when we gather. The Lord wants to manifest power surge in our midst.
Acts 2:46 “And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat with singleness of heart.”
The power surge here is the releasing of the spirit of fellowship and communion. These Christians were “turned on, not off.” The more Christians meet together, the stronger the bond of fellowship. They were praising God and had favor with all the people. They were not criticizing or condemning. They were not ostracizing people according to race, color, status or age groups or affluence. I read some time ago a phrase written by the late Sydney Harris that every human being has four colors in their skin: white, yellow, red and black; only the proportions differ in different races. This is one power surge that every assembly needs.
Acts 4:23-24 “And being let go, they went to their own company and reported all that the chief priests and elders had said unto them. And when they heard that, they lifted up their voice to God with one accord and said, “Lord, behold their threatening.”
The power surge here was the giving of boldness to speak the Word of God. There was more. God refilled them with the Holy Ghost. They were all refreshed and anointed by the Spirit. When Christians are one, they are a detriment to the devil’s kingdom. This is one power surge that is needed today to enable the leadership to proclaim the Word with boldness against the works of evil by the godless society. When the believers are not in one accord, there is compromise. There is very little separation from the world. Many who believe in Jesus Christ are partners with the devil because they lie, cheat, steal and are filled with immorality and a whole lot more. “Sins are always found out.” Many years ago a man in our assembly wondered why I was not using him in the church services. He was saved in an evangelistic campaign where the evangelist ordained the new converts as ministers right away. The Lord gave me a vision of him hiding up in a tree behind the leaves and branches. As I approached the tree, the tree was filled with poisonous snakes, and he was right in the midst of them. Later I discovered that he was involved in adultery and read pornographic magazines. Did I use him? No way. When the Lord found him out, he left the church and others followed him. Yes, we need to be in one accord to produce the power surge that brings conviction of sin and bold preaching.
Acts 5:12 “And they were all in one accord in Solomon’s porch.”
The power surge in this scripture was that the Spirit released the leadership to do signs, wonders and miracles. Not only that but “a great fear of the Lord came upon the people.” How do you describe the fear of the Lord? Psalm 16:8 is the best answer that I can give you at this moment: “I have set the Lord always before me, because He is at my right hand, I shall not be moved.” David feared the loss of God’s presence. As you read on in Psalm 16 you will find what the fear of the Lord will do. You will find a life filled with gladness, a heart that is free from condemnation, your “glory” (tongue) filled with rejoicing, your physical body at peace and rest, sickness stays away because your guilt is removed, you are saved from the wrath of God and eternal hell, you are shown the paths of life, and you experience the fullness of blessing that is in God. The fear of God forced the believers to dwell in one accord. The one accord produced a power surge in the leadership and enabled them to do what God wanted done. There is very little fear of God today, and for sure no one fears today’s preachers.
Acts 8:6 “And the people with one accord gave heed to the things which Phillip spake, hearing and seeing the miracles which he did.”
The power surge evangelized Samaria. Evangelism is more than just winning people to Christ; it is also the cleansing of the city from demons and the delivering of people from demonic possession and getting the sick set free from diseases. Great joy came into the city. Nothing like this is happening in our cities today. Evangelists come and go; nothing happens. Why? Because most of them are called just to minister in one or two meetings. The “evangelist” is viewed like a horse in a corral: “Let’s see his performance before we buy him.” The Lord has never set the date for the removal of the evangelist from Ephesians 4:11. I saw a title the other day which sums up what I just said. “Pastors are trying to teach eggs to fly before they are hatched.” The churches of today are not producing the needed “Phillips.” Note Acts 6:1-8. The men of faith and of the Holy Ghost were in the congregation. We are not seeing this as much as we should be. Could it be that it is because we are not seeing this in the pulpit? Being in one accord can produce men and women of faith and power. The power surge did it.
Acts 15:25 “It seemed good to us, being assembled in one accord to send chosen men unto you with our beloved Barnabas and Paul.”
The power surge here sent chosen men into the harvest field with established missionaries. The local church at Jerusalem sent “chosen and qualified” men to gain experience under experienced men. I’m sure the local church supplied the necessary funds, too. Today, most are left to find their own financial support and transportation. The results of this are that many men and women are wasting away and are discouraged. For lack of accord men and women waste away. In Zechariah 10: 1-6 a power surge came by the out-pouring of the rain (Holy Spirit), and this produced “men to be supports and stays.” (Moffatt)
Conclusion
“One accord” produces a power surge. Nothing can stop a people whose faith is in God and who abide in one accord. The Holy Spirit will create abilities never before dreamed of. Accomplishments abound when people dwell in one accord. Should we pray for the “one accord”? We only need to do it, and we need to be it. There is enough knowledge about unity and harmony. It’s the doing that’s lacking. | mini_pile | {'original_id': '442a0aefeaafa6e1adf312822e7ec86981adee1558363409bf416fb68ea726de'} |
import 'package:flutter/material.dart';
import 'package:flutter_dress/model/PhotoDir.dart';
import 'package:flutter_dress/shared/constants.dart';
typedef void OnTapCollections(PhotoDir photoDir, int index);
class PhotoDirWidget extends StatelessWidget {
PhotoDirWidget({Key key, this.index, this.photoDir, @required this.onChanged, @required this.onTapCollections}) : super(key: key);
final int index;
final PhotoDir photoDir;
final Function onChanged;
final OnTapCollections onTapCollections;
@override
Widget build(BuildContext context) {
return new GestureDetector(
onTap: (){
if (onChanged !=null) {
onChanged();
}
},
child: new Container(
padding: EdgeInsets.only(
bottom: 5.0
),
child: new Container(
padding: EdgeInsets.all(10.0),
decoration: BoxDecoration(
border: Border.all(
color: AuthorBorderColor,
width: 2.0,
style: BorderStyle.solid
)
),
child: new Row(
children: <Widget>[
Expanded(
flex: 1,
child: Row(
children: <Widget>[
Padding(
padding: EdgeInsets.only(
left: 10.0
),
child: Text(
photoDir.name
),
),
],
),
),
Expanded(
flex: 1,
child: Align(
alignment: Alignment.centerRight,
child: IconButton(
icon: Icon(
Icons.collections,
color: photoDir.collections? Colors.black87 : Colors.black26,
),
onPressed: (){
if (onTapCollections !=null) {
onTapCollections(photoDir, index);
}
},
),
)
)
],
),
),
),
);
}
}
| common_corpus | {'identifier': 'https://github.com/mickeywaley/flutter-dress/blob/master/lib/widgets/PhotoDirWidget.dart', 'collection': 'Github Open Source', 'open_type': 'Open Source', 'license': 'Apache-2.0', 'date': '2021.0', 'title': 'flutter-dress', 'creator': 'mickeywaley', 'language': 'Dart', 'language_type': 'Code', 'word_count': '146', 'token_count': '533', '__index_level_0__': '9957', 'original_id': '91ec7a546f1911cb90eee96c43609320a640efacef84cd467955897424650bb1'} |
Q:
Convert unix time to month number?
Using os.time how can I get how many months have passed since the unix epoch (Unix Timestamp)
I just need it for a month ID, so any kind of number would be fine, as long as it changes every month, and it can be reversed to get the actual month.
A:
local function GetMonth(seconds)
local dayduration,year = 3600*24
local days={31,0,31,30,31,30,31,31,30,31,30,31}
for i=1970,10000 do -- For some reason too lazy to use while
local yeardays = i%4 == 0 and i%100 ~= 0 and 366 or 365
local yearduration = dayduration * yeardays
if yearduration < seconds then
seconds = seconds - yearduration
else
year = i break
end
end
days[2]=(year%4==0) and 29 or 28
seconds = seconds%(365*24*3600)
for i=1,12 do
if seconds>days[i]*dayduration then
seconds=seconds-days[i]*dayduration
else
return --i + year*12 <-- If you want a unique ID
end
end
end
Currently, it'll give the number 2, since it's February. If you uncomment the code at the end for the unique ID, you'll get 554 instead, meaning we're currently at the 554th month since the epoch.
As Jean-Baptiste Yunès said in his answer's comments, I'm not sure if your sentence:
NOTE: This is for Lua, but I'm unable to use os.date
meant you have no os.date, or that you don't know how to use it. You have an answer for both cases, you can use the one you need.
| mini_pile | {'original_id': 'd6bff27e17805d195b300e6429d156b6e344684cd985c74d2c6540c34d167166'} |
RE: math for reproduction and domination
This is indeed a quite interesting counterpoint. But I don't see the
opposites. I see analysis of classroom practices as cultural historical
analysis itself and the observation of classroom minutiae as the discovery
of the microgenetic mechanisms through which culture constantly reproduces
and changes. I also disagree with the vision that classroom practices are
essentially reproductive. From Philip's example one can actually deduce how
they are actually quite permeable to cultural change.
David Preiss, M.Phil.
Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile www.puc.cl <http://www.puc.cl/>
PACE Center at Yale University www.yale.edu/pace
Homepage: http://pantheon.yale.edu/~ddp6/
Phone: 56-2-3547174
E-mail: david.preiss@yale.edu or davidpreiss@yale.edu
-----Mensaje original-----
De: White, Phillip [mailto:Phillip.White@cudenver.edu]
Enviado el: Thursday, November 11, 2004 5:10 PM
Para: xmca@weber.ucsd.edu
Asunto: RE: math for reproduction and domination
good afternoon - a clinical teacher and i earlier today observed a teacher
candidate teach a lesson of fraction equivalents with fifth graders, the
majority of whom were born in mexico - the teacher candidate immigrated to
the states a few years ago from korea. watching how everyone struggled with
second language issues, the use of manipulatives, how to organize their
graphic organizers on a piece of paper, build mutual understanding, etc. was
to observe a highly complex social interaction. at that point of time, for
thirty minutes, the focus was on highly discreet proceedural skills that
supported individual concept formation. i have backgrounded in my head the
multiplicity of the cultural historical conditions that brought all of us
together in that room on that particular spot on the floor at that time. to
move into a cultural historical analysis of this 30 minute event certainly
isn't feasible just now - people's attention is focused on a very narrow
kind of learning, which is needed to maintain everyday classroom practices
so that these larger questions can then be considered.
i'm still wondering where the classroom teacher that Bill is working with,
where her perspective is.
From: Bill Barowy [mailto:xmcageek@comcast.net]
Sent: Thu 11/11/2004 11:39 AM
To: xmca@weber.ucsd.edu
Subject: Re: math for reproduction and domination
What I meant was, I'm simply trying to cook some notes, and while that does
not preclude a cultural historical analysis at some later time, the
at this moment centers on some kids learning some math. The analysis will
surely and eventually broaden, as yrjo's expansive methodolgy demands.
questions concerning NCTM content has already been moving things toward
cultural historical analysis.
And then, I have the impression of some history of xmca conversations going
down the dialectical philosophical path and then, paradoxically, failing to
rise back up again to the concrete. I'd like to stay concrete as long as
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Konsoliderad TEXT: 32012R0267 — SV — 23.01.2016
2012R0267 — SV — 23.01.2016 — 018.001
Detta dokument är endast avsett som dokumentationshjälpmedel och institutionerna ansvarar inte för innehållet
►B
RÅDETS FÖRORDNING (EU) nr 267/2012
av den 23 mars 2012
om restriktiva åtgärder mot Iran och om upphävande av förordning (EU) nr 961/2010
(EGT L 088 24.3.2012, s. 1)
Ändrad genom:
Officiella tidningen
nr
sida
datum
►M1
RÅDETS GENOMFÖRANDEFÖRORDNING (EU) nr 350/2012 av den 23 april 2012
L 110
17
24.4.2012
M2
RÅDETS FÖRORDNING (EU) nr 708/2012 av den 2 augusti 2012
L 208
1
3.8.2012
►M3
RÅDETS GENOMFÖRANDEFÖRORDNING (EU) nr 709/2012 av den 2 augusti 2012
L 208
2
3.8.2012
►M4
RÅDETS GENOMFÖRANDEFÖRORDNING (EU) nr 945/2012 av den 15 oktober 2012
L 282
16
16.10.2012
M5
RÅDETS GENOMFÖRANDEFÖRORDNING (EU) nr 1016/2012 av den 6 november 2012
L 307
5
7.11.2012
M6
RÅDETS FÖRORDNING (EU) nr 1067/2012 av den 14 november 2012
L 318
1
15.11.2012
►M7
RÅDETS FÖRORDNING (EU) nr 1263/2012 av den 21 december 2012
L 356
34
22.12.2012
►M8
RÅDETS GENOMFÖRANDEFÖRORDNING (EU) nr 1264/2012 av den 21 december 2012
L 356
55
22.12.2012
►M9
RÅDETS GENOMFÖRANDEFÖRORDNING (EU) nr 522/2013 av den 6 juni 2013
L 156
3
8.6.2013
M10
RÅDETS FÖRORDNING (EU) nr 517/2013 av den 13 maj 2013
L 158
1
10.6.2013
►M11
RÅDETS FÖRORDNING (EU) nr 971/2013 av den 10 oktober 2013
L 272
1
12.10.2013
►M12
RÅDETS GENOMFÖRANDEFÖRORDNING (EU) nr 1154/2013 av den 15 november 2013
L 306
3
16.11.2013
►M13
RÅDETS GENOMFÖRANDEFÖRORDNING (EU) nr 1203/2013 av den 26 november 2013
L 316
1
27.11.2013
►M14
RÅDETS GENOMFÖRANDEFÖRORDNING (EU) nr 1361/2013 av den 17 december 2013
L 343
7
19.12.2013
M15
RÅDETS FÖRORDNING (EU) nr 42/2014 av den 20 januari 2014
L 15
18
20.1.2014
►M16
RÅDETS GENOMFÖRANDEFÖRORDNING (EU) nr 397/2014 av den 16 april 2014
L 119
1
23.4.2014
►M17
RÅDETS GENOMFÖRANDEFÖRORDNING (EU) nr 1202/2014 av den 7 november 2014
L 325
3
8.11.2014
M18
RÅDETS FÖRORDNING (EU) 2015/229 av den 12 februari 2015
L 39
1
14.2.2015
M19
RÅDETS GENOMFÖRANDEFÖRORDNING (EU) 2015/230 av den 12 februari 2015
L 39
3
14.2.2015
M20
RÅDETS GENOMFÖRANDEFÖRORDNING (EU) 2015/549 av den 7 april 2015
L 92
12
8.4.2015
►M21
RÅDETS GENOMFÖRANDEFÖRORDNING (EU) 2015/1001 av den 25 juni 2015
L 161
1
26.6.2015
M22
RÅDETS FÖRORDNING (EU) 2015/1327 av den 31 juli 2015
L 206
18
1.8.2015
M23
RÅDETS FÖRORDNING (EU) 2015/1328 av den 31 juli 2015
L 206
20
1.8.2015
►M24
RÅDETS FÖRORDNING (EU) 2015/1861 av den 18 oktober 2015
L 274
1
18.10.2015
►M25
RÅDETS GENOMFÖRANDEFÖRORDNING (EU) 2015/1862 av den 18 oktober 2015
L 274
161
18.10.2015
►M26
RÅDETS GENOMFÖRANDEFÖRORDNING (EU) 2015/2204 av den 30 november 2015
L 314
10
1.12.2015
M27
RÅDETS FÖRORDNING (EU) 2016/31 av den 14 januari 2016
L 10
1
15.1.2016
►M28
RÅDETS GENOMFÖRANDEFÖRORDNING (EU) 2016/74 av den 22 januari 2016
L 16
6
23.1.2016
Rättad genom:
►C1
Rättelse, EGT L 332, 4.12.2012, s. (2)
Den 23 januari 2012 godkände rådet beslut 2012/35/Gusp genom vilket det införs ytterligare restriktiva åtgärder mot Islamiska republiken Iran (nedan kallad Iran) såsom Europeiska rådet begärde den 9 december 2011.
(3)
Dessa restriktiva åtgärder omfattar särskilt ytterligare restriktioner när det gäller handel med varor och teknik med dubbla användningsområden och viktig utrustning och teknik som kan användas inom den petrokemiska industrin, ett förbud mot import av iransk råolja, petroleumprodukter och petrokemiska produkter, samt ett förbud mot investeringar i den petrokemiska industrin. Dessutom bör handel med guld, ädla metaller och diamanter med Irans regering, samt leveranser av nytryckta sedlar och nypräglade mynt till, eller till förmån för, Irans centralbank, förbjudas.
(4)
Det har också blivit nödvändigt att göra vissa tekniska ändringar av redan gällande åtgärder. Särskilt definitionen av förmedlingstjänster bör klargöras. I fall där köp, försäljning, leverans, överföring eller export av varor och teknik eller av finansiella och tekniska tjänster kan tillåtas av en behörig myndighet kommer inget separat tillstånd för förmedlingstjänster att krävas.
(5)
Definitionen av överföring av tillgångar bör utvidgas till icke-elektroniska överföringar för att motverka försök att kringgå de restriktiva åtgärderna.
(6)
De reviderade restriktiva åtgärderna avseende varor med dubbla användningsområden bör omfatta alla varor och all teknik som anges i bilaga I till rådets förordning (EG) nr 428/2009 av den 5 maj 2009 om upprättande av en gemenskapsordning för kontroll av export, överföring, förmedling och transitering av produkter med dubbla användningsområden (
4
), med undantag för vissa produkter i del 2 i kategori 5 med hänsyn till deras användning inom allmänna kommunikationstjänster i Iran. Förbuden i artikel 2 i denna förordning gäller dock inte försäljning, leverans, överföring eller export av varor och teknik som nyligen förtecknats i bilaga I eller II till denna förordning för vilka ett tillstånd redan har beviljats av de behöriga myndigheterna i medlemsstaterna enligt artikel 3 i förordning (EU) nr 961/2010 före denna förordnings ikraftträdande.
(7)
För att säkerställa en effektiv tillämpning av förbudet mot att sälja, leverera, överföra eller exportera viss viktig utrustning eller teknik till Iran, som kan användas inom nyckelsektorer i oljeindustrin, naturgasindustrin och den petrokemiska industrin bör förteckningar över sådan viktig utrustning och teknik upprättas.
(8)
Av samma skäl bör förteckningar över produkter som omfattas av handelsrestriktioner på råolja och petroleumprodukter, petrokemiska produkter, guld, ädla metaller och diamanter också upprättas.
(9)
Dessutom bör investeringsrestriktionerna för Irans olje- och gasindustri, för att de ska vara verkningsfulla, omfatta vissa viktiga verksamheter såsom överföring av gas i bulk för transitering eller leverans till direkt sammankopplade nät, och av samma skäl även vara tillämpliga på samriskföretag och andra associationsformer och former för samarbete med Iran inom sektorn för överföring av naturgas.
(10)
För att restriktionerna avseende iranska investeringar i unionen ska vara verkningsfulla måste det vidtas åtgärder som förhindrar fysiska eller juridiska personer, enheter och organ under medlemsstaternas jurisdiktion att möjliggöra eller tillåta sådana investeringar.
(11)
Genom beslut 2012/35/Gusp utvidgas frysningen av tillgångar till ytterligare personer, enheter eller organ som tillhandahåller stöd till Irans regering, inbegripet ekonomiskt, logistiskt eller materiellt stöd, eller som är associerade med dem. Dessutom utvidgas genom beslutet frysningsåtgärderna till andra medlemmar av
►C1
Iranska revolutionsgardet ◄ (IRGC).
(12)
I beslut 2012/35/Gusp föreskrivs frysning av Irans centralbanks tillgångar. Mot bakgrund av det möjliga deltagandet från Irans centralbanks sida i finansieringen av utrikeshandel anses undantag nödvändiga, eftersom denna riktade ekonomiska åtgärd inte bör hindra handelstransaktioner, inklusive avtal avseende livsmedel, hälsovård, medicinsk utrustning eller för humanitära syften i enlighet med bestämmelserna i denna förordning. Undantagen i artiklarna 12 och 14 i denna förordning avseende avtal om import, inköp eller transport av iransk råolja, petroleumprodukter och petrokemiska produkter som ingåtts före den 23 januari 2012 gäller även biavtal, däribland transport-, försäkrings- eller inspektionsavtal som är nödvändiga för att fullgöra dessa avtal. Vidare bör iransk råolja, petroleumprodukter och petrokemiska produkter som lagtligt importerats till en medlemsstat i enlighet med undtantagen i artiklarna 12 och 14 i denna förordning anses befinna sig i fri omsättning i unionen.
(13)
I överensstämmelse med skyldigheten att frysa tillgångar för Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Line (IRISL) och för enheter som ägs eller kontrolleras av IRISL, är det förbjudet att i medlemsstaternas hamnar ta ombord och lossa last på eller från fartyg som ägs eller hyrs av IRISL eller av sådana enheter. Dessutom är även överföring av äganderätten till fartyg som ägs, kontrolleras eller hyrs av IRISL-företag till andra enheter förbjudas i enlighet med frysningen av IRISL:s tillgångar. Skyldigheten att frysa tillgångar och ekonomiska resurser för IRISL, liksom för enheter som ägs eller kontrolleras av IRISL, innebär dock inte att fartyg som ägs av sådana enheter eller lasten på dessa fartyg måste beslagtas eller kvarhållas, i den mån denna last tillhör tredje part, eller att kontrakterad personal måste kvarhållas.
(14)
Mot bakgrund av Irans försök att kringgå sanktionerna bör det klargöras att alla tillgångar och ekonomiska resurser som tillhör, ägs, innehas eller kontrolleras av personer, enheter eller organ som anges i bilaga I eller II till beslut 2010/413/Gusp omedelbart ska frysas, vilket även omfattar de enheter som inrättats för att ersätta dem i syfte att kringgå de åtgärder som fastställs i denna förordning.
(15)
Det bör även klargöras att överlämnande och vidarebefordran av nödvändiga handlingar till en bank för slutlig överföring till en person, en enhet eller ett organ som inte finns med i förteckningen för sådana betalningar som tillåts enligt denna förordning inte innebär att tillgångar ställs till förfogande i den betydelse som avses i denna förordning.
(16)
Det bör klargöras att tillgångar eller ekonomiska resurser bör kunna frigöras för officiella ändamål för diplomatiska eller konsulära beskickningar eller internationella organisationer som åtnjuter immunitet enligt internationell rätt, i överensstämmelse med bestämmelserna i denna förordning.
(17)
Tillämpningen av riktade ekonomiska åtgärder av leverantörer av specialiserade finansiella kommunikationstjänster bör utvecklas vidare, i enlighet med bestämmelserna i denna förordning.
Det bör klargöras att tillgångar som tillhör personer, enheter eller organ som inte förts upp på förteckningen och som innehas av förtecknade kredit- och finansinstitut inte bör förbli frysta vid tillämpningen av riktade ekonomiska åtgärder och att de bör kunna frigöras på de villkor som anges i denna förordning.
Mot bakgrund av Irans försök att använda sitt finansiella system för att kringgå sanktionerna måste vaksamheten skärpas när det gäller de iranska kredit- och finansinstitutens aktiviteter för att förhindra att denna förordning kringgås, bland annat frysningen av Irans centralbanks tillgångar. Dessa krav på skärpt vaksamhet för kredit- och finansinstitut bör komplettera de gällande förpliktelser som följer av Europaparlamentets och rådets förordning (EG) nr 1781/2006 av den 15 november 2006 om information om betalaren som skall åtfölja överföringar av medel (
5
) och av genomförandet av Europaparlamentets och rådets direktiv 2005/60/EG av den 26 oktober 2005 om åtgärder för att förhindra att det finansiella systemet används för penningtvätt och finansiering av terrorism (
6
).
(18)
Vissa bestämmelser om kontroller av överföringar av tillgångar bör ses över i syfte att underlätta för behöriga myndigheter och aktörer att tillämpa dem och förhindra kringgående av bestämmelserna i denna förordning, inbegripet frysningen av Irans centralbanks tillgångar.
(19)
Dessutom bör restriktionerna som gäller försäkringar anpassas, särskilt i syfte att klargöra att försäkring av diplomatiska och konsulära beskickningar inom unionen är tillåtet och möjliggöra tillhandahållande av försäkring för ansvar gentemot tredje part och miljöansvarsförsäkring.
(20)
Dessutom bör kravet på att lämna uppgifter före ankomst och avresa uppdateras, eftersom denna skyldighet har blivit allmänt tillämplig på alla varor som förs in på eller lämnar unionens tullområde till följd av att de säkerhetsrelaterade tullåtgärder som fastställs i relevanta bestämmelser avseende summarisk införsel- och utförseldeklaration i förordning (EEG) nr 2913/92 (
7
) och i förordning (EEG) nr 2454/93 (
8
) tillämpas fullt ut från och med den 1 januari 2012.
(21)
Även bestämmelserna om tillhandahållande av bunkrings- eller ship supply-tjänster, operatörers ansvar och förbudet mot kringgående av de relevanta restriktiva åtgärderna bör anpassas.
(22)
Mekanismerna för informationsutbyte mellan medlemsstaterna och kommissionen bör ses över för att säkerställa en effektiv tillämpning och enhetlig tolkning av denna förordning.
(23)
Mot bakgrund av dess syfte bör förbudet mot utrustning för internt förtryck ingå i förordning (EU) nr 359/2011 om restriktiva åtgärder mot vissa personer, enheter och organ med hänsyn till situationen i Iran (
9
), snarare än i den här förordningen.
(24)
Förordning (EU) nr 961/2010 bör av tydlighetsskäl upphävas och ersättas med den här förordningen.
(25)
De restriktiva åtgärder som föreskrivs i denna förordning faller inom tillämpningsområdet för fördraget om Europeiska unionens funktionssätt, och unionslagstiftning är därför nödvändig för att genomföra dem, särskilt för att de ska tillämpas på ett enhetligt sätt av alla medlemsstaters ekonomiska aktörer.
(26)
Denna förordning står i överensstämmelse med de grundläggande rättigheter och principer som erkänns särskilt i Europeiska unionens stadga om de grundläggande rättigheterna, i synnerhet med rätten till ett effektivt rättsmedel och till en opartisk domstol, rätten till egendom och rätten till skydd av personuppgifter. Denna förordning bör tillämpas i enlighet med dessa rättigheter och principer.
(27)
Denna förordning står också i överensstämmelse med medlemsstaternas skyldigheter enligt Förenta nationernas stadga och respekterar den rättsligt bindande karaktären hos Förenta nationernas säkerhetsråds resolutioner.
▼C4
(27a)
Befogenheten att ändra förteckningarna i bilagorna VIII och IX till denna förordning bör utövas av rådet, mot bakgrund av det särskilda hot mot internationell fred och säkerhet som Irans kärntekniska program utgör, och för att säkerställa överensstämmelse med förfarandet för att ändra och se över bilagorna I och II till beslut 2010/413/Gusp.
▼B
(28)
Förfarandet för att ange de personer som ska omfattas av frysningsåtgärder enligt denna förordning bör inbegripa att de fysiska och juridiska personer, enheter och organ som finns uppförda på förteckningarna informeras om skälen till detta, så att de ges möjlighet att lämna synpunkter. Om synpunkter inges eller om väsentlig ny bevisning läggs fram bör rådet se över sitt beslut mot denna bakgrund och informera de fysiska eller juridiska personerna, enheterna eller organen om detta.
(29)
För tillämpningen av denna förordning och för att skapa största möjliga rättssäkerhet inom unionen bör man offentliggöra namnen på och andra relevanta uppgifter om de fysiska och juridiska personer, enheter och organ vars tillgångar och ekonomiska resurser ska frysas enligt förordningen. All behandling av personuppgifter om fysiska personer inom ramen för den här förordningen bör ske i enlighet med Europaparlamentets och rådets förordning (EG) nr 45/2001 av den 18 december 2000 om skydd för enskilda då gemenskapsinstitutionerna och gemenskapsorganen behandlar personuppgifter och om den fria rörligheten för sådana uppgifter (
10
) och Europaparlamentets och rådets direktiv 95/46/EG av den 24 oktober 1995 om skydd för enskilda personer med avseende på behandling av personuppgifter och om det fria flödet av sådana uppgifter (
11
).
(30)
För att säkerställa att de åtgärder som föreskrivs i denna förordning är verkningsfulla bör den träda i kraft samma dag som den offentliggörs.
HÄRIGENOM FÖRESKRIVS FÖLJANDE.
KAPITEL I
DEFINITIONER
Artikel 1
I denna förordning avses med
a)
filial till ett kredit- eller finansinstitut : ett driftsställe som utgör en rättsligt beroende del av ett finans- eller kreditinstitut och som självständigt utför alla eller vissa av de transaktioner som hänför sig till verksamhet i finans- eller kreditinstitut,
b)
förmedlingstjänster :
i) förhandling eller organisering av transaktioner för inköp, försäljning eller leverans av varor och teknik, eller av finansiella och tekniska tjänster, bland annat från ett tredjeland till ett annat tredjeland, eller
ii) försäljning eller inköp av varor och teknik, eller av finansiella och tekniska tjänster, även när dessa befinner sig i ett tredjeland för överföring till ett annat tredjeland,
c)
krav :
varje krav, oavsett om de är föremål för rättslig tvist eller inte, som har framställts före eller efter dagen för denna förordnings ikraftträdande och är knutna till genomförandet av ett avtal eller en transaktion, särskilt
i) ett krav på fullgörande av varje slag av förpliktelse som uppstår genom eller i samband med ett avtal eller en transaktion,
ii) ett krav på förlängning eller betalning av en finansiell garanti eller motgaranti, oavsett form,
iii) ett krav på ersättning med avseende på ett avtal eller en transaktion,
iv) ett motkrav,
v) ett krav på erkännande eller verkställighet, även genom exekvaturförfarande, av en dom, en skiljedom eller ett liknande avgörande, oavsett var det meddelats,
d)
avtal eller transaktion : alla transaktioner oavsett form eller tillämplig lagstiftning, och oavsett om de omfattar ett eller flera avtal eller liknande förpliktelser mellan samma eller olika parter; för detta ändamål ingår i begreppet avtal alla garantier eller motgarantier, särskilt varje finansiell garanti eller motgaranti och varje kredit, oavsett om de är juridiskt fristående eller ej, samt varje därtill knuten bestämmelse som härrör från en sådan transaktion eller är knuten till denna,
e)
behöriga myndigheter : de behöriga myndigheter i medlemsstaterna som anges på de webbplatser som förtecknas i bilaga X,
f)
kreditinstitut : ett kreditinstitut enligt definitionen i artikel 4.1 i Europaparlamentets och rådets direktiv 2006/48/EG av den 14 juni 2006 om rätten att starta och driva verksamhet i kreditinstitut (
12
), inbegripet dess filialer i eller utanför unionen.
g) unionens tullområde : det område som avses i artikel 3 i rådets förordning (EEG) nr 2913/92 av den 12 oktober 1992 om inrättandet av en tullkodex för gemenskapen ( 13 ) och i kommissionens förordning (EEG) nr 2454/93 av den 2 juli 1993 om tillämpningsföreskrifter för rådets förordning (EEG) nr 2913/92 ( 14 ), h) ekonomiska resurser : egendom av alla slag, materiell eller immateriell, lös eller fast, som inte utgör tillgångar men som kan användas för att erhålla tillgångar, varor och tjänster, i) finansinstitut : i) ett företag som inte är kreditinstitut men som utför en eller flera av de verksamheter som är upptagna i punkterna 2–12 och 14–15 i bilaga I till direktiv 2006/48/EG, inbegripet sådan verksamhet som bedrivs vid valutaväxlingskontor, ii) ett försäkringsföretag som är auktoriserat i enlighet med Europaparlamentets och rådets direktiv 2009/138/EG av den 25 november 2009 om upptagande och utövande av försäkrings- och återförsäkringsverksamhet (Solvens II) ( 15 ), i den mån som det utför sådan verksamhet som faller inom ramen för det direktivet, iii) ett värdepappersföretag enligt definitionen i artikel 4.1.1 i Europaparlamentets och rådets direktiv 2004/39/EG av den 21 april 2004 rörande marknader för finansiella instrument ( 16 ), iv) ett företag för kollektiva investeringar som utbjuder andelar och aktier i finansinstitutet, eller v) en försäkringsförmedlare enligt definitionen i artikel 2.5 i Europaparlamentets och rådets direktiv 2002/92/EG av den 9 december 2002 om försäkringsförmedling ( 17 ), med undantag för sådana förmedlare som avses i artikel 2.7 i det direktivet i de fall de förmedlar livförsäkringar eller andra investeringsrelaterade tjänster, inbegripet dess filialer i och utanför unionen, inbegripet dess filialer i och utanför unionen, j) frysning av ekonomiska resurser : förhindrande av att dessa resurser på något sätt används för att erhålla tillgångar, varor eller tjänster, inbegripet men inte enbart genom försäljning, uthyrning eller inteckning, k) frysning av tillgångar : förhindrande av varje flyttning, överföring, förändring, användning av, tillgång till eller hantering av tillgångar på ett sätt som skulle leda till en förändring av volym, belopp, belägenhet, ägandeförhållanden, innehav, art, bestämmelse eller varje annan förändring som skulle göra det möjligt att utnyttja tillgångarna, inbegripet portföljförvaltning, l) tillgångar : finansiella tillgångar och ekonomiska förmåner av alla slag, inbegripet men inte begränsat till i) kontanter, checkar, penningfordringar, växlar, postanvisningar och andra betalningsinstrument, ii) inlåning hos finansinstitut eller andra enheter, kontotillgodohavanden, skuldebrev och skuldförbindelser, iii) börsnoterade och onoterade värdepapper och skuldinstrument, inbegripet aktier och andelar, certifikat för värdepapper, obligationer, växlar, optioner, förlagsbevis och derivatkontrakt, iv) räntor, utdelningar eller annan inkomst från, eller värde som härrör från eller skapas genom tillgångar, v) krediter, kvittningsrätter, garantiförbindelser, fullgörandegarantier eller andra finansiella åtaganden, vi) remburser, fraktsedlar och pantförskrivningar, och vii) sådana dokument som utgör bevis på andelar i tillgångar eller andra finansiella resurser, m) varor : inbegriper produkter, material och utrustning, n) försäkring : en förbindelse eller ett åtagande genom vilket en eller flera fysiska eller juridiska personer till en eller flera andra personer, som motprestation för betalning, är skyldiga att, om en risk förverkligas, tillhandahålla en ersättning eller förmån enligt villkoren för förbindelsen eller åtagandet, o) iransk person eller enhet eller iranskt organ : i) staten Iran eller någon av dess myndigheter, ii) alla fysiska personer som vistas i eller är bosatta i Iran, iii) alla juridiska personer, enheter eller organ som har sitt säte i Iran, iv) alla juridiska personer, enheter eller organ i eller utanför Iran som direkt eller indirekt ägs eller kontrolleras av en eller flera av de ovannämnda personerna eller organen, p) återförsäkring : den verksamhet som består i att överta risker som överlåts av ett försäkringsföretag eller ett annat återförsäkringsföretag eller, när det gäller de försäkringsgivare som uppträder under namnet Lloyd’s, den verksamhet som består i att risker, som överlåts av en medlem av Lloyd’s, övertas av ett annat försäkrings- eller återförsäkringsföretag än Lloyd’s, q) sanktionskommittén : den kommitté hos FN:s säkerhetsråd som inrättats i enlighet med punkt 18 i FN:s säkerhetsråds resolution 1737 (2006), r) tekniskt bistånd : allt tekniskt stöd som har samband med reparation, utveckling, tillverkning, montering, testning, underhåll eller någon annan teknisk tjänst och som kan anta sådana former som instruktioner, råd, utbildning, överföring av praktiska kunskaper och färdigheter eller konsulttjänster; tekniskt bistånd innefattar muntliga former av bistånd, s) unionens territorium : de medlemsstaters territorier på vilka fördraget är tillämpligt, på de villkor som fastställs i fördraget, inklusive medlemsstaternas luftrum, ▼M24 ————— ▼M24 u) gemensam kommitté : en gemensam kommitté bestående av företrädare för Iran och Kina, Frankrike, Tyskland, Ryska federationen, Storbritannien och Förenta staterna med unionens höga representant för utrikes frågor och säkerhetspolitik (den höga representanten) som kommer att inrättas för att övervaka genomförandet av den gemensamma övergripande handlingsplanen av den 14 juli 2015 och kommer att utföra de uppgifter som anges i handlingsplanen i enlighet med punkt ix. ▼B
KAPITEL II
EXPORT- OCH IMPORTRESTRIKTIONER
▼M24 —————
▼M24
Artikel 2a
1. Det ska krävas tillstånd på förhand
a) för att sälja, leverera, överföra eller exportera sådana varor eller sådan teknik som förtecknas i bilaga I, oavsett om varorna och tekniken har sitt ursprung i unionen eller inte, direkt eller indirekt till alla iranska personer, enheter eller organ eller för användning i Iran,
b) för att tillhandahålla tekniskt bistånd eller förmedlingstjänster med anknytning till varor och teknik som förtecknas i bilaga I eller som avser tillhandahållande, tillverkning, underhåll och användning av varor och teknik som anges i bilaga I, direkt eller indirekt till alla iranska personer, enheter eller organ eller för användning i Iran,
c) för att tillhandahålla finansiering eller ekonomiskt stöd som rör varor och teknik enligt förteckningen i bilaga III, särskilt gåvobistånd, lån och exportkreditförsäkring, för all försäljning, leverans, överföring eller export av sådana artiklar eller för leverans av därmed sammanhängande tekniskt bistånd, direkt eller indirekt till alla iranska personer, enheter eller organ eller för användning i Iran.
d) före ingåendet av ett avtal med en iransk person, enhet eller organ, eller en annan person eller enhet som agerar på deras vägnar eller på deras uppdrag, inbegripet godkännande av lån eller krediter som görs av sådana personer, enheter eller organ som möjliggör för sådana personer, enheter eller organ att, antingen självständigt eller som en del av ett samriskföretag eller annat partnerskap, delta i, eller öka sitt deltagande i kommersiella verksamheter inbegripet följande:
i) Brytning av uran.
ii) Produktion eller användning av kärnämne som anges i del 1 i de förteckningar som hålls av gruppen av länder som levererar kärnmaterial.
Detta ska omfatta tillhandahållandet av lån eller krediter till sådana personer, enheter eller organ.
e) Inköp, import eller transport från Iran av varor, teknik och programvara enligt förteckningen i bilaga I, oavsett om varorna eller tekniken har sitt ursprung i Iran eller inte.
2. I bilaga I ska anges de artiklar, inbegripet varor och teknik, som ingår i de förteckningar som hålls av gruppen av länder som levererar kärnmaterial.
3. Den berörda medlemsstaten ska översända det föreslagna tillståndet enligt leden a–d i punkt 1 till FN:s säkerhetsråd för godkännande i varje enskilt fall och får inte bevilja tillstånd innan detta godkännande har mottagits.
4. Den berörda medlemsstaten ska också översända de föreslagna tillstånden för verksamheter som avses i leden a–d i punkt 1 till FN:s säkerhetsråd för godkännande i varje enskilt fall om verksamheterna avser eventuella ytterligare varor och teknik som enligt denna medlemsstat skulle kunna bidra till verksamheter som rör upparbetning, anrikning eller tungt vatten som är oförenliga med den gemensamma övergripande handlingsplanen. Medlemsstaten får inte bevilja tillstånd innan detta godkännande har mottagits.
5. Den behöriga myndigheten får inte bevilja tillstånd enligt punkt 1 e innan det har godkänts av den gemensamma kommittén.
6. Den berörda medlemsstaten ska underrätta övriga medlemsstater, kommissionen och den höga representanten om tillstånd som beviljats enligt punkterna 1 och 5, eller om FN:s säkerhetsråd vägrar att godkänna ett tillstånd i enlighet med punkt 3 eller 4.
Artikel 2b
1. Artikel 2a.3 och 2a.4 gäller inte i förhållande till föreslagna tillstånd för leverans, försäljning eller överföring till Iran av utrustning som avses i punkt 2c stycke 1 i bilaga B till FN:s säkerhetsråds resolution 2231 (2015) för lättvattenreaktorer.
2. Den berörda medlemsstaten ska underrätta övriga medlemsstater, kommissionen och den höga representanten inom fyra veckor om tillstånd som beviljats enligt denna artikel.
Artikel 2c
1. De behöriga myndigheter som beviljar ett tillstånd i enlighet med artikel 2a.1 a och artikel 2b ska se till att
a) kraven i riktlinjerna såsom de anges i de förteckningar som hålls av gruppen av länder som levererar kärnmaterial har uppfyllts,
b) rätten att kontrollera slutanvändningen och slutanvändningsplatsen för alla tillhandahållna artiklar har erhållits från Iran och kan utövas effektivt,
c) de underrättar FN:s säkerhetsråd inom tio dagar från leverans, försäljning eller överföring, och
d) när det gäller levererade varor och teknik som avses i bilaga I, att de underrättar IAEA inom tio dagar från leverans, försäljning eller överföring.
2. För all export som kräver tillstånd enligt artikel 2a.1 a ska ett sådant tillstånd beviljas av de behöriga myndigheterna i den medlemsstat där exportören är etablerad. Tillståndet ska vara giltigt i hela unionen.
3. Exportörer ska tillhandahålla de behöriga myndigheterna all relevant information, i enlighet med artikel 14.1 i förordning (EG) nr 428/2009 och som anges av varje behörig myndighet, som behövs för deras ansökan om exporttillstånd.
Artikel 2d
1. Artikel 2a.3 och 2a.4 gäller inte i fråga om föreslagna tillstånd till leverans, försäljning eller överföring av artiklar, materiel, utrustning, varor och teknik, och tillhandahållande av dithörande tekniskt bistånd, utbildning, ekonomiskt stöd, investeringar, förmedling eller andra tjänster, om de behöriga myndigheterna anser att dessa har direkt samband med
a) den nödvändiga modifieringen av två kaskader vid Fordowanläggningen för produktion av stabila isotoper,
b) export av anrikat uran från Iran som överstiger 300 kg i utbyte mot naturligt uran, eller
c) den modernisering av Arakreaktorn som baseras på det överenskomna konstruktionsutkastet och därefter den överenskomna slutliga konstruktionsutformningen av en sådan reaktor.
2. Den behöriga myndighet som beviljar ett tillstånd i enlighet med punkt 1 ska säkerställa följande:
a) All verksamhet genomförs i strikt överensstämmelse med den gemensamma övergripande handlingsplanen.
b) Kraven i riktlinjerna såsom de anges i de förteckningar som hålls av gruppen av länder som levererar kärnmaterial har uppfyllts.
c) Rätten att kontrollera slutanvändningen och slutanvändningsplatsen för alla tillhandahållna artiklar har erhållits från Iran och kan utövas effektivt.
3. Den berörda medlemsstaten ska underrätta:
a) FN:s säkerhetsråd och den gemensamma kommissionen tio dagar i förväg om sådan verksamhet, och
b) Internationella atomenergiorganet (IAEA) inom tio dagar från tillhandahållande, försäljning eller överföring av artiklar, materiel, utrustning, varor och teknik som ingår i de förteckningar som hålls av gruppen av länder som levererar kärnmaterial.
4. Den berörda medlemsstaten ska inom fyra veckor underrätta övriga medlemsstater, kommissionen och den höga representanten om tillstånd som beviljats enligt denna artikel.
Artikel 3a
1. Ett förhandstillstånd ska krävas i varje enskilt fall för följande:
a) För att sälja, leverera, överföra eller exportera sådana varor eller sådan teknik som förtecknas i bilaga II, oavsett om varorna och tekniken har sitt ursprung i unionen eller inte, direkt eller indirekt till alla iranska personer, enheter eller organ eller för användning i Iran.
b) För att tillhandahålla tekniskt bistånd eller förmedlingstjänster med anknytning till varor och teknik som förtecknas i bilaga II eller som avser tillhandahållande, tillverkning, underhåll och användning av varor som ingår i bilaga II, direkt eller indirekt till alla iranska personer, enheter eller organ eller för användning i Iran.
c) För att tillhandahålla finansiering eller ekonomiskt stöd som rör varor och teknik enligt förteckningen i bilaga II, särskilt gåvobistånd, lån och exportkreditförsäkring, för all försäljning, leverans, överföring eller export av sådana artiklar eller för leverans av därmed sammanhängande tekniskt bistånd eller förmedlingstjänster, direkt eller indirekt till alla iranska personer, enheter eller organ eller för användning i Iran.
d) Före ingåendet av ett avtal med en iransk person, enhet eller organ, eller en annan person eller enhet som agerar på deras vägnar eller på deras uppdrag, inbegripet godkännande av lån eller krediter som görs av sådana personer, enheter eller organ som möjliggör för sådana personer, enheter eller organ att, antingen självständigt eller som en del av ett samriskföretag eller annat partnerskap, delta i, eller öka sitt deltagande i, kommersiella verksamheter verksamhet som omfattar teknik enligt förteckningen i bilaga II.
e) För inköp, import eller transport från Iran av varor och teknik enligt förteckningen i bilaga II, oavsett om varorna eller tekniken har sitt ursprung i Iran eller inte.
2. I bilaga II ska anges andra varor och annan teknik än de som omfattas av bilagorna I och III, som skulle kunna bidra till verksamhet som rör upparbetning, anrikning eller tungt vatten eller annan verksamhet och som är oförenliga med den gemensamma övergripande handlingsplanen.
3. Exportörer ska lämna all relevant information som krävs för ansökan om tillstånd till de behöriga myndigheterna.
4. De behöriga myndigheterna ska inte bevilja tillstånd för de transaktioner som avses i punkt 1 a–e om de har rimliga skäl att anta att de berörda åtgärderna skulle bidra till verksamhet rörande upparbetning, anrikning eller tungt vatten eller annan kärnteknikrelaterad verksamhet som är oförenlig med den gemensamma övergripande handlingsplanen.
5. De behöriga myndigheterna ska utbyta information om ansökningar om tillstånd som mottagits enligt denna artikel. Det system som avses i artikel 19.4 i förordning (EG) nr 428/2009 ska användas för detta ändamål.
6. Den behöriga myndighet som beviljar ett tillstånd i enlighet med punkt 1 a ska se till att rätten att kontrollera slutanvändningen och slutanvändningsplatsen för alla tillhandahållna artiklar har erhållits från Iran och kan utövas effektivt.
7. Den berörda medlemsstaten ska underrätta övriga medlemsstater, kommissionen och den höga representanten om sin avsikt att bevilja ett tillstånd enligt denna artikel senast tio dagar innan tillståndet beviljas.
Artikel 3b
1. För all export som kräver tillstånd enligt artikel 3a ska ett sådant tillstånd beviljas av de behöriga myndigheterna i den medlemsstat där exportören är etablerad och i enlighet med de detaljerade bestämmelserna i artikel 11 i förordning (EG) nr 428/2009. Tillståndet ska vara giltigt i hela unionen.
2. På de villkor som anges i artikel 3a.4 och 3a.5 får de behöriga myndigheterna ogiltigförklara, tillfälligt upphäva, ändra eller återkalla ett exporttillstånd som de en gång har beviljat.
3. Om en behörig myndighet i enlighet med artikel 3a.4 vägrar att bevilja ett tillstånd eller ogiltigförklarar, tillfälligt upphäver, betydligt ändrar eller återkallar ett tillstånd ska den berörda medlemsstaten anmäla detta till övriga medlemsstater, kommissionen och den höga representanten och göra de relevanta uppgifterna tillgängliga för dem, varvid de ska följa bestämmelserna om sekretesskydd av sådana uppgifter i rådets förordning (EG) nr 515/97 (
18
).
4. Innan en medlemsstats behöriga myndighet i enlighet med artikel 3a beviljar ett tillstånd för en transaktion som i stort sett är identisk med en transaktion som är föremål för ett avslag som ännu är giltigt utfärdat av en eller flera andra medlemsstater enligt artikel 3a.4 ska denna medlemsstat först samråda med den eller de medlemsstater som utfärdade avslaget. Om den berörda medlemsstaten efter ett sådant samråd beslutar att bevilja ett tillstånd ska den underrätta övriga medlemsstater, kommissionen och den höga representanten om sitt beslut och lämna alla relevanta uppgifter för att förklara beslutet.
Artikel 3c
1. Artikel 3a gäller inte i förhållande till föreslagna tillstånd för leverans, försäljning eller överföring till Iran av varor och teknik som anges i bilaga II för lättvattenreaktorer.
2. Den behöriga myndighet som beviljar ett tillstånd i enlighet med punkt 1 ska se till att rätten att kontrollera slutanvändningen och slutanvändningsplatsen för alla tillhandahållna artiklar har erhållits från Iran och kan utövas effektivt.
3. Den berörda medlemsstaten ska inom fyra veckor underrätta övriga medlemsstater, kommissionen och den höga representanten om tillstånd som beviljats enligt denna artikel.
Artikel 3d
1. Artikel 3a gäller inte i fråga om föreslagna tillstånd till leverans, försäljning eller överföring av artiklar, materiel, utrustning, varor och teknik, och tillhandahållande av dithörande tekniskt bistånd, utbildning, ekonomiskt bistånd, investeringar, förmedling eller andra tjänster, om de behöriga myndigheterna anser att dessa har direkt samband med
a) den nödvändiga modifieringen av två kaskader vid Fordowanläggningen för produktion av stabila isotoper,
b) export av anrikat uran från Iran som överstiger 300 kg i utbyte mot naturligt uran, eller
c) den modernisering av Arakreaktorn som baseras på det överenskomna konstruktionsutkastet och därefter den överenskomna slutliga konstruktionsutformningen av en sådan reaktor.
2. Den behöriga myndighet som beviljar ett tillstånd i enlighet med punkt 1 ska säkerställa följande:
a) All verksamhet genomförs i strikt överensstämmelse med den gemensamma övergripande handlingsplanen.
b) Rätten att kontrollera slutanvändningen och slutanvändningsplatsen för alla tillhandahållna artiklar har erhållits från Iran och kan utövas effektivt.
3. Den berörda medlemsstaten ska till övriga medlemsstater och till kommissionen anmäla sin avsikt att bevilja tillstånd enligt denna artikel minst tio dagar före ett sådant beviljande.
Artikel 4a
1. Det ska vara förbjudet att sälja, leverera, överföra eller exportera sådana varor eller sådan teknik som förtecknas i bilaga III eller andra artiklar som en medlemsstat fastställer kan bidra till utvecklingen av system för kärnvapenbärare, oavsett om varorna och tekniken har sitt ursprung i unionen eller inte, direkt eller indirekt till alla iranska personer, enheter eller organ eller för användning i Iran.
2. I bilaga III ska anges de artiklar, inbegripet varor och teknik, som ingår i kontrollsystemet för missilteknik.
Artikel 4b
Det ska vara förbjudet att
a) direkt eller indirekt tillhandahålla tekniskt bistånd eller förmedlingstjänster som rör sådana varor och sådan teknik som anges i bilaga III eller som rör tillhandahållande, tillverkning, underhåll eller användning av varor som anges i bilaga III, till alla iranska personer, enheter eller organ eller för användning i Iran,
b) tillhandahålla finansiering eller ekonomiskt stöd som rör de varor och den teknik som anges i bilaga III, särskilt gåvobistånd, lån och exportkreditförsäkring, för all försäljning, leverans, överföring eller export av sådana artiklar eller för leverans av därmed sammanhängande tekniskt bistånd eller förmedlingstjänster, direkt eller indirekt till alla iranska personer, enheter eller organ eller för användning i Iran,
c) ingå ett avtal med en iransk person, enhet eller organ, eller en annan person eller enhet som agerar på deras vägnar eller på deras uppdrag, inbegripet godkännande av lån eller krediter som görs av sådana personer, enheter eller organ, som möjliggör för sådana personer, enheter eller organ att, antingen självständigt eller som en del av ett samriskföretag eller annat partnerskap, delta i, eller öka sitt deltagande i kommersiella verksamheter som omfattar teknik enligt förteckningen i bilaga III.
Artikel 4c
Det ska vara förbjudet att direkt eller indirekt från Iran köpa, importera eller transportera sådana varor och sådan teknik som anges i bilaga III, oavsett om den berörda artikeln har sitt ursprung i Iran eller inte.
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Artikel 5
Det ska vara förbjudet att
a) direkt eller indirekt tillhandahålla tekniskt bistånd, förmedlingstjänster och andra tjänster som rör sådana varor och sådan teknik som ingår i den Europeiska unionens gemensamma militära förteckning (nedan kallad den gemensamma militära förteckningen), eller som rör tillhandahållande, tillverkning, underhåll och användning av sådana varor och sådan teknik som ingår i den förteckningen, direkt eller indirekt till alla iranska personer, enheter eller organ eller för användning i Iran,
b) tillhandahålla finansiering eller ekonomiskt stöd som rör de varor och den teknik som anges i den gemensamma militära förteckningen, särskilt gåvobistånd, lån och exportkreditförsäkring, för all försäljning, leverans, överföring eller export av sådana artiklar eller för leverans av därmed sammanhängande tekniskt bistånd eller förmedlingstjänster, direkt eller indirekt till alla iranska personer, enheter eller organ eller för användning i Iran,
c) ingå avtal om deltagande eller ökat deltagande för iranska personer, enheter eller organ som bedriver tillverkning av varor och teknik som anges i den gemensamma militära förteckningen, antingen självständigt eller som en del av ett samriskföretag eller annat partnerskap. Detta ska omfatta tillhandahållandet av lån eller krediter till sådana personer, enheter eller organ.
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Artikel 10d
1. Ett förhandstillstånd ska krävas för att
a) sälja, leverera, överföra eller exportera sådan programvara som anges i bilaga VIIA, till alla iranska personer, enheter eller organ eller för användning i Iran,
b) tillhandahålla tekniskt bistånd eller förmedlingstjänster med anknytning till programvara som anges i bilaga VIIA eller som avser tillhandahållande, tillverkning, underhåll och användning av sådana artiklar, till alla iranska personer, enheter eller organ eller för användning i Iran,
c) tillhandahålla finansiering eller ekonomiskt stöd som rör programvara som anges i bilaga VII, särskilt gåvobistånd, lån och exportkreditförsäkring, för all försäljning, leverans, överföring eller export av sådana artiklar eller för tillhandahållande av därmed sammanhängande tekniskt bistånd eller förmedlingstjänster, till alla iranska personer, enheter eller organ eller för användning i Iran.
2. De behöriga myndigheterna får inte bevilja tillstånd enligt denna artikel, om
a) de har rimliga skäl att fastställa att sådan försäljning, leverans, överföring eller export av programvara är eller kan vara avsedd för användning i samband med
i) verksamhet som rör upparbetning, anrikning eller tungt vatten, eller annan kärnmaterialrelaterad verksamhet som är oförenlig med den gemensamma övergripande planen,
ii) Irans militära program eller program för ballistiska robotar, eller
iii) direkt eller indirekt nytta för Irans revolutionsgarde,
b) kontrakt för leverans av sådana artiklar eller sådant bistånd inte omfattar lämpliga slutanvändargarantier.
3. Den berörda medlemsstaten ska underrätta övriga medlemsstater och kommissionen om sin avsikt att bevilja tillstånd i enlighet med denna artikel senast tio dagar innan tillståndet beviljas.
4. Om en behörig myndighet vägrar att bevilja ett tillstånd eller ogiltigförklarar, tillfälligt upphäver, betydligt ändrar eller återkallar ett tillstånd i enlighet med denna artikel ska den berörda medlemsstaten anmäla detta till övriga medlemsstater, kommissionen och den höga representanten och göra de relevanta uppgifterna tillgängliga för dem.
5. Innan en medlemsstats behöriga myndighet i enlighet med denna artikel beviljar ett tillstånd för en transaktion som i stort sett är identisk med en transaktion som är föremål för ett avslag som ännu är giltigt, utfärdat av en eller flera andra medlemsstater, ska denna medlemsstat först samråda med den eller de medlemsstater som utfärdade avslaget. Om den berörda medlemsstaten efter ett sådant samråd beslutar att bevilja ett tillstånd ska den underrätta övriga medlemsstater, kommissionen och den höga representanten om sitt beslut och lämna alla relevanta uppgifter för att förklara beslutet.
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Artikel 15a
1. Ett förhandstillstånd ska krävas för att
a) sälja, leverera, överföra eller exportera grafit, råmetaller och icke slutligt förädlade metaller som anges i bilaga VIIB, till alla iranska personer, enheter eller organ eller för användning i Iran,
b) tillhandahålla tekniskt bistånd eller förmedlingstjänster med anknytning till grafit, råmetaller och icke slutligt förädlade metaller som anges i bilaga VIIB eller som avser tillhandahållande, tillverkning, underhåll och användning av sådana artiklar, till alla iranska personer, enheter eller organ i Iran eller för användning i Iran,
c) tillhandahålla finansiering eller ekonomiskt stöd som rör grafit, råmetaller och icke slutligt förädlade metaller som anges i bilaga VIIB, särskilt gåvobistånd, lån och exportkreditförsäkring, för all försäljning, leverans, överföring eller export av sådana artiklar eller för tillhandahållande av därmed sammanhängande tekniskt bistånd eller förmedlingstjänster, till alla iranska personer, enheter eller organ eller för användning i Iran.
2. De behöriga myndigheterna får inte bevilja tillstånd enligt denna artikel, om
a) de har rimliga skäl att fastställa att sådan försäljning, leverans, överföring eller export av grafit och råmetaller eller icke slutligt förädlade metaller är eller kan vara avsedd för användning i samband med
i) verksamhet som rör upparbetning, anrikning eller tungt vatten, eller annan kärnmaterialrelaterad verksamhet som är oförenlig med den gemensamma övergripande planen,
ii) Irans militära program eller program för ballistiska robotar, eller
iii) den är av direkt eller indirekt nytta för Irans revolutionsgarde;
b) kontrakt för leverans av sådana artiklar eller sådant bistånd inte omfattar lämpliga slutanvändargarantier.
3. Den berörda medlemsstaten ska till övriga medlemsstater och till kommissionen anmäla sin avsikt att bevilja tillstånd enligt denna artikel senast tio dagar före ett sådant beviljande.
4. Om en behörig myndighet vägrar att bevilja ett tillstånd eller ogiltigförklarar, tillfälligt upphäver, betydligt ändrar eller återkallar ett tillstånd i enlighet med denna artikel ska den berörda medlemsstaten anmäla detta till övriga medlemsstater, kommissionen och den höga representanten och göra de relevanta uppgifterna tillgängliga för dem.
5. Innan en medlemsstats behöriga myndighet i enlighet med denna artikel beviljar ett tillstånd för en transaktion som i stort sett är identisk med en transaktion som är föremål för ett avslag som ännu är giltigt, utfärdat av en eller flera andra medlemsstater, ska denna medlemsstat först samråda med den eller de medlemsstater som utfärdade avslaget. Om den berörda medlemsstaten efter ett sådant samråd beslutar att bevilja ett tillstånd ska den underrätta övriga medlemsstater, kommissionen och den höga representanten om sitt beslut och lämna alla relevanta uppgifter för att förklara beslutet.
6. Bestämmelserna i punkterna 1–3 ska inte tillämpas med avseende på varor som anges i bilagorna I, II och III eller med avseende på bilaga I till förordning (EG) nr 428/2009.
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KAPITEL III
RESTRIKTIONER FÖR FINANSIERING AV VISSA FÖRETAG
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KAPITEL IV
FRYSNING AV TILLGÅNGAR OCH EKONOMISKA RESURSER
Artikel 23
1. Alla tillgångar och ekonomiska resurser som tillhör eller ägs, innehas eller kontrolleras av de personer, enheter och organ som förtecknas i bilaga VIIIska frysas. Bilaga VIII ska omfatta de personer, enheter och organ som har uppgetts av FN:s säkerhetsråd eller sanktionskommittén i enlighet med punkt 12 i FN:s säkerhetsråds resolution 1737 (2006), punkt 7 i FN:s säkerhetsråds resolution 1803 (2008) eller punkterna 11, 12 eller 19 i FN:s säkerhetsråds resolution 1929 (2010).
2. Alla tillgångar och ekonomiska resurser som tillhör eller ägs, innehas eller kontrolleras av de personer, enheter och organ som förtecknas i bilaga IX ska frysas. Bilaga IX ska omfatta fysiska och juridiska personer, enheter och organ om vilka det i enlighet med artikel 20.1 b och c i rådets beslut 2010/413/Gusp har fastställts att de
a) är engagerade i, är direkt knutna till eller ger stöd till Irans spridningskänsliga kärntekniska verksamhet eller till Irans utveckling av system för kärnvapenbärare, inbegripet genom att medverka i upphandling av förbjudna varor och teknik, eller ägs eller kontrolleras av en sådan person eller enhet eller ett sådant organ, inbegripet genom olagliga medel, eller agerar på deras vägnar eller på deras uppdrag,
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b) är en fysisk eller juridisk person, en enhet eller ett organ som har kringgått eller brutit mot eller hjälpt förtecknade personer, enheter eller organ att kringgå eller bryta mot bestämmelserna i denna förordning, rådets beslut 2010/413/Gusp eller FN:s säkerhetsråds resolutioner 1737 (2006), 1747 (2007), 1803 (2008) och 1929 (2010),
c) är medlem av Islamiska revolutionsgardet (IRGC) eller en juridisk person, en enhet eller ett organ som ägs eller kontrolleras av IRGC eller av en eller flera av dess medlemmar, eller en fysisk eller juridisk person, enhet eller organ som agerar på deras vägnar, eller en fysisk eller juridisk person, enhet eller ett organ som tillhandahåller försäkring eller andra väsentliga tjänster till IRGC, eller till enheter som ägs eller kontrolleras av dem eller som agerar på deras vägnar,
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d) är andra personer, enheter eller organ som tillhandahåller stöd, t.ex. materiellt, logistiskt eller ekonomiskt stöd, till Irans regering och enheter som ägs eller kontrolleras av dem, eller personer och enheter som är associerade med dem,
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e) är en juridisk person, enhet eller ett organ som ägs eller kontrolleras av Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines (IRISL), eller en fysisk eller juridisk person, enhet eller ett organ som agerar på dess vägnar, eller en fysisk eller juridisk person, enhet eller ett organ som tillhandahåller försäkring eller andra väsentliga tjänster till IRISL, eller till enheter som ägs eller kontrolleras av det eller som agerar på dess vägnar.
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I överensstämmelse med skyldigheten att frysa tillgångar och ekonomiska resurser för IRISL, liksom för de förtecknade enheter som ägs eller kontrolleras av IRISL, ska det vara förbjudet att i medlemsstaternas hamnar ta ombord eller lossa last på eller från fartyg som ägs eller hyrs av IRISL eller av sådana enheter.
Skyldigheten att frysa tillgångar och ekonomiska resurser för IRISL, liksom för de förtecknade enheter som ägs eller kontrolleras av IRISL, innebär dock inte att fartyg som ägs av sådana enheter eller lasten på dessa fartyg måste beslagtas eller kvarhållas, i den mån denna last tillhör tredje part, eller att kontrakterad personal måste kvarhållas.
3. Inga tillgångar eller ekonomiska resurser får direkt eller indirekt ställas till förfogande för, eller utnyttjas till gagn för, de fysiska eller juridiska personer, enheter eller organ som förtecknas i bilagorna VIII och IX.
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4. Utan att det påverkar undantagen i artiklarna 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 28a, 28b och 29 ska det vara förbjudet att tillhandahålla specialiserade finansiella kommunikationstjänster för att utbyta finansiella uppgifter, till fysiska eller juridiska personer, enheter eller organ som förtecknas i bilagorna VIII och IX.
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5. Bilagorna VIII och IX ska innehålla skälen till att de berörda personerna, enheterna och organen tagits upp i förteckningen enligt uppgift från FN:s säkerhetsråd eller sanktionskommittén när det gäller.
6. Bilagorna VIII och IX ska också innehålla de uppgifter, när sådana finns tillgängliga, som krävs för att identifiera berörda fysiska och juridiska personer, enheter och organ enligt uppgift från FN:s säkerhetsråd eller sanktionskommittén. När det gäller fysiska personer får uppgifterna inbegripa namn och alias, födelsedatum och födelseort, medborgarskap, pass- och id-kortsnummer, kön, adress (om denna är känd) samt befattning eller yrke. När det gäller juridiska personer, enheter och organ får uppgifterna inbegripa namn, plats och datum för registrering samt registreringsnummer och driftsställe. När det gäller flygbolag och rederier ska bilagorna VIII och IX också innehålla de uppgifter, när sådana finns tillgängliga, som krävs för att identifiera varje fartyg eller luftfartyg som tillhör ett förtecknat företag, t.ex. det ursprungliga registreringsnumret eller namn. I bilagorna VIII och IX ska även datum för uppförandet i förteckningen anges.
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Artikel 23a
1. Alla tillgångar och ekonomiska resurser som tillhör eller ägs, innehas eller kontrolleras av de personer, enheter och organ som förtecknas i bilaga XIII ska frysas. Bilaga XIII omfattar de fysiska och juridiska personer, enheter och organ som angetts av Förenta nationernas säkerhetsråd i enlighet med punkt 6 c i bilaga B till FN:s säkerhetsråds resolution 2231 (2015).
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The tussle between Jon Stewart and Jim Cramer has not gone in vain. The Daily Show With Jon Stewart on Comedy Central drew a large number of audience throughout USA. It is being reported that a total of 2.3 million people had tuned in to Comedy Central to watch Jim Cramer and Jon Stewart battle out with words. The episode has found a place in the top 10 highest rated episodes of the show.
On Thursday night, Stewart came down harshly on Cramer and reproached him for hyping Bear Sterns. There were a lot of questions and cross-questions and some bitter moments. However, finally, both of them were of the same mind that the should be stricter with questioning high ranking officials. | mini_pile | {'original_id': '768d0873673da0fb0d80223beaed6aab54cb1995673fcfcc142a64348e1e59c7'} |
# Hugo Data Directory Overview
Hugo shortcodes can read information from files in the docs/data/ directory.
This is a useful way to enforce consistency across your website.
## Data files used for Gloo's docs
- Solo.yaml
- **Generated by Makefile**
- ProtoMap.yaml
- **Generated by solo-kit**
```make
.PHONY: pass-version-to-hugo
pass-version-to-hugo:
echo DocsVersion: > data/Solo.yaml
ifeq ($(RELEASE),"true")
echo DocsVersion: "/$(VERSION)" > data/Solo.yaml
endif
```
| mini_pile | {'original_id': '8f0b03103feef74e432ecb4b6e5779378c1ea92c99063fe3c53adae854fa8be3'} |
Interview with Vincent Laforet
The Fahey/Klein Gallery is pleased to present, AIR, the inaugural exhibition of work by contemporary photographer Vincent Laforet. The exhibition shares its name with the title of Laforet’s newly released publication, which showcases ten cities photographed from the air. The cities in Laforet’s series, New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Berlin, London, Miami, San Francisco, Barcelona, and Sydney, are composed of vastly different color patterns and grids, each landscape subtly revealing much of the city’s own architectural and socioeconomic history. Laforet deftly photographs these cities from a helicopter at extraordinary altitudes, ranging from 5,000 to 12,000 feet (helicopters typically fly between 500 and 1,500 feet). Coupled with Laforet’s own technical expertise, the stunning clarity and sharpness he is able to capture was only possible until very recent advancements in camera sensor technology.
Before Laforet begins shooting, there is extensive planning that he and his team must undergo to prepare. Laforet uses modern mapping software to “pre-visualize” each city’s unique patterns. Because Laforet is photographing at such unusually high altitudes, for every city, he and his team of logistic coordinators create detailed flight patterns that must be submitted and approved weeks before each flight. In certain instances, other air traffic must be diverted entirely in order for Laforet to fly so high over desired sections of the city.
Laforet’s AIR quite literally reveals a vantage point not seen before. From these extreme heights, patterns, grids, and other aerial perspectives are revealed. These complex and dense cities are transformed to abstract and beautiful concentrations of lights—from modern blue LEDs, warm yellow Tungsten, and green Florescent lights. Dense and sprawling cities become compositions of light, delicately connected and stretching into darkness. These incredible images also have a temporal and fleeting aspect to them. As cities modernize, and the urban lighting grids evolve and become more efficient, the array of colors—blues, greens, oranges, yellows, purples and pinks—will largely disappear and over time, the cities’ light will become uniform.
As Laforet summarizes in the epilogue of AIR, “We must continue to discuss and evaluate how we illuminate our cities more efficiently and responsibly as we move into the future. But what I encounter when I photograph these metropolitan wonders from the sky is not just waves of misdirected photons. What I sense, as I hang out of an open helicopter door thousands of feet up, is the energy, the passion, the aspirations, and the potential of those who live in the city below: the human energy.”
Born in Switzerland, Vincent Laforet is a French American Photographer. In 2002, Laforet shared the Pulitzer Prize for Feature Photography as a member of The New York Times staff’s overseas coverage of post 9/11 events. That same year, PDN also named Laforet as one of the “30 Photographers Under 30 to Watch” and in 2005 American Photo Magazine recognized him as one of the “100 Most Influential People in Photography. Laforet serves as consultant to companies such as Apple, Adobe, Carl Zeiss, Leica, Canon, Bogen, Lexar, and X-Rite. His commercial directorial clients include Apple, Nike, General Electric and Canon. He has been on assignment for Vanity Fair, The New York Times Magazine, National Geographic, Sports Illustrated, Time, Newsweek and Life. Vincent Laforet lives and works in Los Angeles and New York. | dclm_baseline | {'bff_contained_ngram_count_before_dedupe': '6', 'language_id_whole_page_fasttext': "{'en': 0.9368069171905518}", 'metadata': "{'Content-Length': '12067', 'Content-Type': 'application/http; msgtype=response', 'WARC-Block-Digest': 'sha1:BHLZPOBWADV7Y2CGBP25SBRG5OCUGDUA', 'WARC-Concurrent-To': '<urn:uuid:2043a080-3561-44ca-9cd1-44c71695bd99>', 'WARC-Date': datetime.datetime(2017, 10, 18, 5, 38, 35), 'WARC-IP-Address': '54.152.160.57', 'WARC-Identified-Payload-Type': 'text/html', 'WARC-Payload-Digest': 'sha1:PJRPYQELJ4MK7ZDFOZ2H2HZUY4TDJNWR', 'WARC-Record-ID': '<urn:uuid:70747f71-55c9-4412-9989-e610ae1c6f96>', 'WARC-Target-URI': 'http://www.faheykleingallery.com/news-events/interview-with-vincent-laforet/images?view=slider', 'WARC-Type': 'response', 'WARC-Warcinfo-ID': '<urn:uuid:737c67de-40fe-4eb9-9770-4e025e437c1b>', 'WARC-Truncated': None}", 'previous_word_count': '544', 'url': 'http://www.faheykleingallery.com/news-events/interview-with-vincent-laforet/images?view=slider', 'warcinfo': 'robots: classic\r\nhostname: ip-10-51-200-95.ec2.internal\r\nsoftware: Nutch 1.6 (CC)\r\nisPartOf: CC-MAIN-2017-43\r\noperator: Common Crawl Admin\r\ndescription: Wide crawl of the web for October 2017\r\npublisher: Common Crawl\r\nformat: WARC File Format 1.0\r\nconformsTo: http://bibnum.bnf.fr/WARC/WARC_ISO_28500_version1_latestdraft.pdf', 'fasttext_openhermes_reddit_eli5_vs_rw_v2_bigram_200k_train_prob': '0.06942582130432129', 'original_id': '2ae1d3cb805459829a31ee6007f6b89074d66e6c41c4ab6fa17ee85487fca350'} |
In today's age, medical practices are facing a huge economic challenge. Third-party payer's reimbursements has flat lined while self-pay is continuing to soar. In this situation, efficacious revenue cycle management has become more important than ever. A hospital that effectively manages its billing and collection operations can boost its profitability, even in the current payment environment. But over the years, medical billing and collection has become exceedingly complicated and labor intensive. To overcome this challenge, leading medical groups are employing and leveraging a new generation of advanced Revenue Cycle Management tools that help to correct the balance of power between payers and providers, transform revenue cycle operations and improve financial performance.
What are the benefits of using a revenue cycle management tool?
Automates billing, so it is error free
• The latest revenue cycle technologies leverage the power of connectivity to take automation to the next level.
• The most challenging part of revenue management is revenue cycle-coding errors, eligibility, denials management, and self-pay collections. If a bill is charged correctly, it doesn't get denied the first time, so it accelerates cash flow forward and decreases the amount of work on the back end.
• With the right kind of automation to accomplish that, you increase efficiency and you decrease the chance of the claim getting lost in the AR.
Denial Management
• If the practice management system is natively integrated with a clearinghouse, the operator receives denial's information even before Electronic Remittance Advice is posted, so that they can be addressed immediately.
• It will automatically reconcile ERAs with claims and post the payments. This not only reduces errors, but also eliminates the need for some billing positions.
Reduces patient debts
• Employing a payment assurance system, hospitals can take the patient's credit card and obtain an authorization for the estimated patient liability.
• The balance therefore is automatically charged to the credit card after the insurance company has adjudicated their claim.
• This ensures on time payments and also reduces overall cycle time.
Ability to dive deep into data for better understanding
• An advanced system helps dive deep into the data and help managers understand why certain kinds of claims have been denied, and why claims get held up when they're being prepared and validated.
• Higher-functioning systems even permit users to customize the reports. Equipped with such a system, managers can find any piece of data they want, or generate a report with specified parameters or even compare denials by payer over time.
Helps Benchmark
• A Native integration between the clearinghouse and practice management system can augment the power of remittance data mining and analytics.
• An advanced benchmarking system provides insight into a practice's overall revenue cycle performance and allows a medical group to compare its performance with that of similar practices.
Bottle necks can be easily dealt with
• A manager gains the ability to spot bottlenecks in the revenue cycle immediately after they occur by putting the right metrics in the analytics application.
• This way he can address the issues by changing the parameters of the work queues in the practice management system.
Easier to fix things
• Employing an advanced revenue cycle management system makes it much easier to access and measure.
• Using business intelligence tools can help managers detect the issues they have to fix and by repeating this process as a standard operating procedure, managers can be confidently keep up with the rapidly changing requirements of revenue cycle management.
When performed correctly, Revenue Cycle Management tool optimizes the productivity of a practice's most important and expensive asset, and that is its staff
• Organizations can create streamlined workflows that help to shift the staff's time and focus from routine to exceptions that require their attention.
• As a result, they are more productive and get better results.
By employing revenue cycle management tool, health care practices can be rest assured of getting optimal return on investment. This motivates them to better their services and invest more into giving the best in healthcare.
Delivery of healthcare must be patient-centric yet business-oriented. Optimum revenue cycle management tools help to achieve just that.
With so many benefits from the usage of a single tool, there is no excuse to avoid such amazing technology today. | dclm_baseline | {'bff_contained_ngram_count_before_dedupe': '0', 'language_id_whole_page_fasttext': "{'en': 0.934775173664093}", 'metadata': "{'Content-Length': '45696', 'Content-Type': 'application/http; msgtype=response', 'WARC-Block-Digest': 'sha1:AJJYHFJDQ7XH2ZJJMIUUDOMV3SEMDOTN', 'WARC-Concurrent-To': '<urn:uuid:c3975eb2-2208-4911-b5e7-596545704651>', 'WARC-Date': datetime.datetime(2018, 10, 17, 0, 54, 53), 'WARC-IP-Address': '104.27.165.70', 'WARC-Identified-Payload-Type': 'text/html', 'WARC-Payload-Digest': 'sha1:KVE2K3SY7XMV4HJEWCJ57NEBODVVYNQV', 'WARC-Record-ID': '<urn:uuid:9f716cd7-ceef-41b2-980e-e37781201a98>', 'WARC-Target-URI': 'http://scottlinehealth.com/web/scottline-health/benefits-of-rcm', 'WARC-Type': 'response', 'WARC-Warcinfo-ID': '<urn:uuid:909ed258-b36d-4171-b0fd-0d4f9f40f398>', 'WARC-Truncated': None}", 'previous_word_count': '696', 'url': 'http://scottlinehealth.com/web/scottline-health/benefits-of-rcm', 'warcinfo': 'isPartOf: CC-MAIN-2018-43\r\npublisher: Common Crawl\r\ndescription: Wide crawl of the web for October 2018\r\noperator: Common Crawl Admin (info@commoncrawl.org)\r\nhostname: ip-10-102-177-5.ec2.internal\r\nsoftware: Apache Nutch 1.15 (modified, https://github.com/commoncrawl/nutch/)\r\nrobots: checked via crawler-commons 0.11-SNAPSHOT (https://github.com/crawler-commons/crawler-commons)\r\nformat: WARC File Format 1.1\r\nconformsTo: http://iipc.github.io/warc-specifications/specifications/warc-format/warc-1.1/', 'fasttext_openhermes_reddit_eli5_vs_rw_v2_bigram_200k_train_prob': '0.028292834758758545', 'original_id': 'fe80ef94f7125d3a3ee66fd0d64e7ad562e8655b2983074d6aa1199b0e3771a6'} |
Do these converts need to have their marriage convalidated?
Full Question
Two of my friends are taking instructions to come into the Church. They are getting conflicting opinions as to whether they will need to "convalidate" their marriage after they become Catholic. Both of them are baptized Protestants, and both were previously married to other Protestants before getting divorces and marrying each other. They have applied for annulments of their earlier marriages. Assuming both annulment petitions are granted, will they still need to have their marriage to each other blessed in the Church?
I’m not surprised your friends are getting conflicting opinions on this question, because even many pastors, let alone other parish staffers, don’t understand Church law on this point. The confusion arises because the rules in these cases seem to differ for parties who are Catholic from those which apply to parties who are not.
In brief, if the facts are as you describe them, your friends will not need to have their marriage to each other convalidated by Church authorities upon becoming Catholic. As soon as both annulment petitions are formally granted (assuming this is done and assuming there were no other unusual factors present—your letter suggests none), your friends’ marriage to each other will automatically be recognized by the Church and will be presumed to be both valid and sacramental.
Here’s why: At the time your friends married each other, the only canonical obstacle to their wedding was ligamen, the fact of their prior marriage bonds (canon 1085). But if annulments are declared for both prior marriages, that means that, at the time of their marriage to each other, your friends were canonically free to contract marriage, and the manner in which they chose to marry would have been lawful for them at the time. Thus, their second marriage could be recognized without any further qualifications.
How would this question differ for Catholics, thus giving rise to the confusion? Well, if two Catholics, previously married to others and subsequently divorced, sought to marry in the Church, virtually any priest would have told them "No way, not without an annulment" (canon 1085 again). Unfortunately, such Catholics not infrequently then turn to civil magistrates for their wedding. That kind of wedding ceremony would be a violation of the requirement of canonical form which binds most Catholics (canons 1108 and 1117), meaning that, without an annulment followed by "convalidation" (canon 1160), such a second marriage would not be recognized in the Church.
Edward Peters | dclm_baseline | {'bff_contained_ngram_count_before_dedupe': '42', 'language_id_whole_page_fasttext': "{'en': 0.9816020131111144}", 'metadata': "{'Content-Length': '44978', 'Content-Type': 'application/http; msgtype=response', 'WARC-Block-Digest': 'sha1:IBQLAVTNDAIYSHJYGRXBA222PD3FTPBV', 'WARC-Concurrent-To': '<urn:uuid:18887dbb-692a-4af9-bdc7-1787a63dc084>', 'WARC-Date': datetime.datetime(2013, 12, 12, 13, 0, 20), 'WARC-IP-Address': '50.97.102.66', 'WARC-Identified-Payload-Type': None, 'WARC-Payload-Digest': 'sha1:GQY57PMY3RPHMHGHQZLPINYJYQSIDMDL', 'WARC-Record-ID': '<urn:uuid:1c333ebf-7324-40a2-ac02-be7c55348d46>', 'WARC-Target-URI': 'http://www.catholic.com/quickquestions/do-these-converts-need-to-have-their-marriage-convalidated', 'WARC-Type': 'response', 'WARC-Warcinfo-ID': '<urn:uuid:fa321df6-4a4c-4e23-903d-533b96064a22>', 'WARC-Truncated': 'length'}", 'previous_word_count': '408', 'url': 'http://www.catholic.com/quickquestions/do-these-converts-need-to-have-their-marriage-convalidated', 'warcinfo': 'robots: classic\r\nhostname: ip-10-33-133-15.ec2.internal\r\nsoftware: Nutch 1.6 (CC)/CC WarcExport 1.0\r\nisPartOf: CC-MAIN-2013-48\r\noperator: CommonCrawl Admin\r\ndescription: Wide crawl of the web with URLs provided by Blekko for Winter 2013\r\npublisher: CommonCrawl\r\nformat: WARC File Format 1.0\r\nconformsTo: http://bibnum.bnf.fr/WARC/WARC_ISO_28500_version1_latestdraft.pdf', 'fasttext_openhermes_reddit_eli5_vs_rw_v2_bigram_200k_train_prob': '0.10258078575134277', 'original_id': 'c4b9013b3922ba0cd349d965bcb9ec5b83a9b2fb87efd095ed632cf154e41bb8'} |
16 year old, dating age difference
Ohio Laws for a Minor Dating an Adult
Frank Bailey, 46, the ex-principal of a Christian school at Grafton in northern NSW, previously pleaded guilty to five counts of sexual intercourse over four days with a year-old under his care. During sentencing submissions he told the Downing Centre District Court in Sydney he had believed he was in love with the girl, adding that he had mental issues and was lonely and drinking heavily at the time.
In the same court on Friday Judge John North sentenced Bailey to at least two years and three months in prison, with a maximum sentence of three years and nine months, saying it was “difficult to think of a more blatant abuse of trust”. Related Articles Harsh lesson for teacher after sex with students “From his seniority he knew that his actions were reprehensible and amounted to a gross abuse of trust,” the judge said.
However, Judge North acknowledged that Bailey had shown strong signs of remorse and contrition in court and in a letter written to his victim. Advertisement “Committing these offences has had a devastating effect on his psychological state,” he added. Bailey sat sobbing, with his head in his hands, rocking back and forth as his sentence was read to the court. You will now receive updates from Breaking News Alert Breaking News Alert Get the latest news and updates emailed straight to your inbox.
By submitting your email you are agreeing to Fairfax Media’s terms and conditions and privacy policy. With time already served he will be eligible for parole on August 8 next year.
Age of Consent for Sexual Activity
Answer The age of consent to sexual activity is 16 across Canada, although there are a number of exceptions that should be considered carefully before becoming sexually involved with another person. Sexual activity means sex, oral sex, and sexual touching. Under the Criminal Code of Canada youth under 18 cannot engage in anal sexual activity; however, this law has been challenged in the courts and has been found unconstitutional in Alberta.
The new measures still allow for close-in-age exceptions between 12 and if there is no more than a two-year gap for those 12 and 13, or a five-year gap for those 14 and Anal sex remains illegal with exceptions for those over 18, if they comply with the restrictions set out under section
Can someone explain to me age of consent laws in nj : newjersey
Elliott Spencer addresses disapproval over the year age gap between Now Mr Ossola, from Salta to the north-west of the country, has pledged to take his case to the Supreme Court. Reuters Afghan police officers take position during a blast and gun fire in Jalalabad, Afghanistan. Thousands of Russian Orthodox Church followers will plunge into icy rivers and ponds across the country to mark Epiphany, cleansing themselves with water deemed holy for the day. Anees Ansari, Zainab’s father, accused the police of being slow to respond when his daughter went missing in the eastern Punjab province.
In most places the legal age of consent is 16, but check your local laws to make sure, it could be higher in your location! Can you be 16 and date a 21 year old in Washington? yes it is illegal to be dating a 21 year old when its legal when your 16 than u can date who ever you want.
Wowsers, can you believe that it is now legal for children aged between 12 and 16 to engage in consensual sexual activities with each other? This is what the great orange beast, iol had to say: Pretoria — It is no longer a criminal offence for children aged between 12 and 16 to engage in consensual sexual activities with each other, the Pretoria High Court ruled on Tuesday.
The two organisations argued the Act often resulted in many underage pregnant girls not wanting to have abortions at clinics, as this would lead to criminal charges against them and their partners. The application was opposed by the justice minister and the National Director of Public Prosecutions. In his ruling, Judge Rabie declared the two sections of the Sexual Offences Act, which criminalise consensual sexual activity between children under the age of 16 years and above 12 years, invalid and deemed them to be inconsistent with the constitution.
Is it legal for a 16 year old to date a 25 year old in the UK
I think you should go on a date this month and see if you like him. A woman your age should be looking at older men. Him simply being “sweet” is irrelevant. You ought to be looking for guys that can give you a future ie marriage children at minimum pay half towards rent so you dont mooch off your parents. You grow up and get your shit together.
Ages of consent in North America
No! Dating can take place at any age and any age difference, there is not right or wrong about it. BUT it could be illegal in some countries if a 16 year old had sex with a 14 year old. But.
Yes, the famed Paul Revere set out on horseback on this day in to raise the alarm that British troops were on their way from Boston to Lexington. Revere rode about 20 miles through what is now Somerville, Medford, and Arlington, Massachusetts, knocking on doors to raise people to defend Lexington. Another rider, William Dawes, was sent by another route to do the same thing. A third, Samuel Prescott, was also pressed into service. It was a good ride for Revere, and it was good for the revolution.
Sybil was the eldest of 12 children of Col. In April , Colonel Ludington and the members of his militia were at their homes because it was planting season.
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The Apologizer
Alain meditates on the navel
This provoked him to reflect: if a man (or an era) sees the thighs as the center of female seductive power, how does one describe and define the particularity of that erotic orientation? He improvised an answer: the length of the thighs is the metaphoric image of the long, fascinating road (which is why the thighs must be long) that leads to erotic achievement. Indeed, Alain said to himself, even in mid-coitus the length of the thighs endows woman with the romantic magic of the inaccessible.
If a man (or an era) sees the buttocks as the center of female seductive power, how does one describe and define the particularity of that erotic orientation? He improvised an answer: brutality, high spirits, the shortest road to the goal, a goal that is all the more exciting for being double.
If a man (or an era) sees the breasts as the center of female seductive power, how does one describe and define the particularity of that erotic orientation? He improvised an answer: sanctification of woman, the Virgin Mary suckling Jesus, the male sex on its knees before the noble mission of the female sex.
But how does one define the eroticism of a man (or an era) that sees female seductive power as centered in the middle of the body, in the navel?
So: ambling along the streets, he would often think about the navel, untroubled at repeating himself, and even strangely obstinate about doing so, for the navel woke in him a distant memory: the memory of his last encounter with his mother.
He was ten at the time. He and his father were alone on vacation, in a rented villa with a garden and a swimming pool. It was the first time that she had come to see them after an absence of several years. They closed themselves into the villa, she and her former husband. For miles around, the atmosphere was stifling from it. How long did she stay? Probably not more than an hour or two, during which time Alain tried to entertain himself in the pool. He had just climbed out when she paused there to say her goodbyes. She was alone. What did they say to each other? He doesn’t know. He remembers only that she was sitting on a garden chair and that he, in his still-wet bathing trunks, stood facing her. What they said is forgotten, but one moment is fixed in his memory, a concrete moment, sharply etched: from her chair, she gazed intently at her son’s navel. He still feels that gaze on his belly. A gaze that was difficult to understand: it seemed to him to express an inexplicable mix of compassion and contempt; the mother’s lips had taken the shape of a smile (a smile of compassion and contempt together); then, without rising from the chair, she leaned toward him and, with her index finger, touched his navel. Immediately afterward, she stood up, kissed him (did she really kiss him? probably, but he is not sure), and was gone. He never saw her again.
A woman steps out of her car
A small car moves along the road beside a river. The chilly morning air makes even more forlorn the charmless terrain, somewhere between the end of a suburb and open country, where houses grow scarce and no pedestrians are to be seen. The car stops at the side of the road; a woman gets out—young, quite beautiful. A strange thing: she pushes the door shut so negligently that the car must not be locked. What is the meaning of that negligence, so improbable these days with thieves about? Is the woman so distracted?
No, she doesn’t seem distracted; on the contrary, determination is visible on her face. This woman knows what she wants. This woman is pure will. She walks some hundred yards along the road, toward a bridge over the river, a rather high, narrow bridge, forbidden to vehicles. She steps onto it and heads toward the far bank. Several times she looks around, not like a woman expected by someone but to be sure that there is no one expecting her. Midway across the bridge, she stops. At first glance she appears to be hesitating, but, no, it’s not hesitation or a sudden flagging of determination; on the contrary, it’s a pause to sharpen her concentration, to make her will steelier yet. Her will? To be more precise: her hatred. Yes, the pause that looked like hesitation is actually an appeal to her hatred to stand by her, to support her, not to desert her for an instant.
She lifts a leg over the railing and flings herself into the void. At the end of her fall, she slams brutally against the hardness of the water’s surface and is paralyzed by the cold, but after a few long seconds she lifts her face, and since she is a good swimmer all her automatic responses surge forward against her will to die. She plunges her head under again, forces herself to inhale water, to block her breathing. Suddenly, she hears a shout. A shout from the far bank. Someone has seen her. She understands that dying will not be easy, and that her greatest enemy will be not her good swimmer’s irrepressible reflex but a person she had not figured on. She will have to fight. Fight to rescue her death.
She kills
She looks over toward the shout. Someone has leaped into the river. She considers: who will be quicker, she, in her resolve to stay underwater, to take in water, to drown herself, or he, the oncoming figure? When she is half-drowned, with water in her lungs and thus weakened, won’t she be all the easier prey for her savior? He will pull her toward the bank, lay her out on the ground, force the water out of her lungs, apply mouth-to-mouth, call the rescue squad, the police, and she will be saved and ridiculed forevermore.
“Stop! Stop!” the man shouts.
Everything has changed. Instead of diving down beneath the water, she raises her head and breathes deeply to collect her strength. He is already in front of her. It’s a young fellow, a teenager, who hopes to be famous, to have his picture in the papers. He just keeps repeating, “Stop! Stop!” He’s already reaching a hand toward her, and she, rather than evading it, grasps it, grips it tight, and pulls it (and him) down toward the depths of the river. Again he cries, “Stop!” as if it were the only word he can speak. But he will not speak it again. She holds on to his arm, draws him toward the bottom, then stretches the whole length of her body along the boy’s back to keep his head underwater. He fights back, he thrashes, he has already inhaled water, he tries to strike the woman, but she stays lying firmly on top of him; he cannot lift his head to get air, and after several long, very long, seconds he ceases to move. She holds him like that for a while; it is as if, exhausted and trembling, she were resting, laid out along him. Then, convinced that the man beneath her will not stir again, she lets go of him and turns away, toward the riverbank she came from, so as not to preserve within her even the shadow of what has just occurred.
But what’s going on? Has she forgotten her resolve? Why does she not drown herself, since the person who tried to rob her of her death is no longer alive? Why, now that she is free, does she no longer seek to die?
Life unexpectedly recovered has been a kind of shock that broke her determination; she has lost the strength to concentrate her energy on dying. She is shaking, suddenly stripped of any will, any vigor; mechanically, she swims toward the place where she abandoned the car.
She returns to the house
Little by little, she feels the water grow less deep, she touches her feet to the riverbed, she stands; she loses her shoes in the mud and hasn’t the strength to search for them; she leaves the water barefoot and climbs the bank to the road.
The rediscovered world has an inhospitable appearance, and suddenly anxiety seizes her: she hasn’t got the car key! Where is it? Her skirt has no pockets.
Heading for your death, you don’t worry about what you’ve dropped along the way. When she left the car, the future did not exist. She had nothing to hide. Whereas now, suddenly, she has to hide everything. Leave no trace. Her anxiety grows stronger and stronger: Where is the key? How to get home?
She reaches the car, she pulls at the door, and, to her astonishment, it opens. The key awaits her, abandoned on the dashboard. She sits at the wheel and sets her naked feet on the pedals. She is still shaking. Now she is shaking with cold as well. Her shirt, her skirt, are drenched, with dirty river water running everywhere. She turns the key and drives off.
The person who tried to impose life on her has died from drowning, and the person she was trying to kill in her belly is still alive. The idea of suicide is ruled out forever. No repeats. The young man is dead, the fetus is alive, and she will do all she can to keep anyone from discovering what has happened. She is shaking, and her will revives; she thinks of nothing but her immediate future: How to get out of the car without being seen? How to slip, unnoticed, in her dripping clothes, past the concierge’s window?
Alain felt a violent blow on his shoulder. “Watch out, you idiot!”
He turned and saw a girl passing him on the sidewalk with a rapid, energetic stride.
“Sorry!” he cried after her (in his frail voice).
“Asshole!” she answered (in her strong voice) without turning around.
The apologizers
Alone in his studio apartment two days later, Alain noticed that he was still feeling pain in his shoulder, and he decided that the young woman who had jostled him in the street so effectively must have done it on purpose. He could not forget her strident voice calling him “idiot,” and he heard again his own supplicating “Sorry,” followed by the answering “Asshole!” Once again, he had apologized over nothing! Why always this stupid reflex of begging pardon? The memory would not leave him, and he felt he had to talk to someone. He called his girlfriend, Madeleine. She wasn’t in Paris, and her cell phone was off. So he punched in Charles’s number, and no sooner did he hear his friend’s voice than he apologized. “Don’t be angry. I’m in a very bad mood. I need to talk.”
“It’s a good moment. I’m in a foul mood, too. But why are you?”
“Because I’m angry with myself. Why is it that I find every opportunity to feel guilty?”
“That’s not so awful.”
“Feeling guilty or not feeling guilty—I think that’s the whole issue. Life is a struggle of all against all. It’s a known fact. But how does that struggle work in a society that’s more or less civilized? People can’t just attack each other on sight. So instead they try to cast the shame of culpability on each other. The person who manages to make the other one guilty will win. The one who confesses his crime will lose. You’re walking along the street, lost in thought. Along comes a girl, walking straight ahead, as if she were the only person in the world, looking neither left nor right. You jostle each other. And there it is, the moment of truth: Who’s going to bawl out the other person, and who’s going to apologize? It’s a classic situation: actually, each of them is both the jostled and the jostler. And yet some people always—immediately, spontaneously—consider themselves the jostlers, and thus in the wrong. And others always—immediately, spontaneously—consider themselves the jostled, and therefore in the right, quick to accuse the other and get him punished. What about you—in that situation, would you apologize or accuse?”
“Me, I’d certainly apologize.”
“Ah, my poor friend, so you, too, belong to the army of apologizers. You expect to mollify the other person with your apologies.”
“And you’re wrong. The person who apologizes is declaring himself guilty. And if you declare yourself guilty you encourage the other to go on insulting you, blaming you, publicly, unto death. Such are the inevitable consequences of the first apology.”
“That’s true. One should not apologize. And yet I prefer a world where everyone would apologize, with no exception, pointlessly, excessively, for nothing at all, where they’d load themselves down with apologies.”
Alain picked up his cell phone to call Madeleine again. But hers rang and rang in vain. As he often did at similar moments, he turned his attention to a photograph hanging on his wall. There was no photograph in his studio but that one: the face of a young woman—his mother.
A few months after Alain’s birth, she had left her husband, who, given his discreet ways, had never spoken ill of her. He was a subtle, gentle man. The child did not understand how a woman could have abandoned a man so subtle and gentle, and understood even less how she could have abandoned her son, who was also (as he was aware) since childhood (if not since his conception) a subtle, gentle person.
“Where does she live?” he had asked his father.
“Probably in America.”
“What do you mean, ‘probably’?”
“I don’t know her address.”
“But it’s her duty to give it to you.”
“She has no duty to me.”
“But to me? She doesn’t want to hear news of me? She doesn’t want to know what I’m doing? She doesn’t want to know that I think about her?”
One day, the father lost control.
“Since you insist, I’ll tell you: your mother never wanted you to be born. She never wanted you to be around here, to be burying yourself in that easy chair where you’re so comfortable. She wanted nothing to do with you. So now do you understand?”
The father was not an aggressive man. But, despite his great reserve, he had not managed to hide his profound disagreement with a woman who had tried to keep a human being from coming into the world.
I have already described Alain’s last encounter with his mother, beside the swimming pool of a rented vacation house. He was ten at the time. He was sixteen when his father died. A few days after the funeral, he tore a photograph of his mother out of a family album, had it framed, and hung it on his wall. Why was there no picture of his father in his apartment? I don’t know. Is that illogical? Certainly. Unfair? Without a doubt. But that’s how it is. On the walls of his studio, there hung only a single photograph: the one of his mother. With which, from time to time, he would talk.
How to give birth to an apologizer
“Why didn’t you have an abortion? Did he stop you?”
A voice came to him from the photograph: “You’ll never know that. Everything you imagine about me is just fairy tales. But I love your fairy tales. Even when you made me out to be a murderer who drowned a young man in the river. I liked it all. Keep it up, Alain. Tell me a story! Go on, imagine! I’m listening.”
And Alain imagined. He imagined the father on his mother’s body. Before their coitus, she’d warned him: “I didn’t take the pill, be careful!” He reassured her. So she makes love without mistrust, then, when she sees the signs of climax appear on the man’s face and grow, she cries, “Watch out!” then “No! No! I don’t want to! I don’t want to!” But the man’s face is redder and redder, red and repugnant; she pushes at the heavier weight of this body clamping her against it, she fights, but he wraps her still tighter, and she suddenly understands that for him this is not the blindness of passion but will—cold, premeditated will—while for her it is more than will, it is hatred, a hatred all the more ferocious because the battle is lost.
This was not the first time Alain had imagined their coitus; this coitus hypnotized him and caused him to suppose that every human being was the exact replica of the instant of its conception. He stood at his mirror and examined his face for traces of the double, simultaneous hatreds that had led to his birth: the man’s hatred and the woman’s hatred at the moment of the man’s orgasm, the hatred of the gentle and physically strong coupled with the hatred of the courageous and physically weak.
And he reflects that the fruit of that double hatred could only be an apologizer. He was gentle and intelligent like his father; and he would always be an intruder, as his mother had viewed him. A person who is both an intruder and gentle is condemned, by an implacable logic, to apologize throughout his whole life. He looked at the face hanging on the wall and once again he saw the woman who, defeated, in her dripping dress, gets into the car, slips unnoticed past the concierge’s window, climbs the staircase, and, barefoot, returns to the apartment where she will stay until the intruder leaves her body. And where, a few months later, she will abandon the two of them.
Eve’s tree
Alain was sitting on the floor of his studio, leaning against the wall, his head bent low: Perhaps he had dozed off? A female voice woke him.
“I like everything you’ve said to me so far, I like everything you’re inventing, and I have nothing to add. Except, maybe, about the navel. To your mind, the model of a navel-less woman is an angel. For me, it’s Eve, the first woman. She was born not out of a belly but out of a whim, the Creator’s whim. It was from her vulva, the vulva of a navel-less woman, that the first umbilical cord emerged. If I’m to believe the Bible, other cords, too: with a little man or a little woman attached to each of them. Men’s bodies were left with no continuation, completely useless, whereas from out of the sexual organ of every woman there came another cord, with another woman or man at the end of each one, and all of that, millions and millions of times over, turned into an enormous tree, a tree formed from the infinity of bodies, a tree whose branches reached to the sky. Imagine! That gigantic tree is rooted in the vulva of one little woman, the first woman, poor navel-less Eve.
“When I got pregnant, I saw myself as a part of that tree, dangling from one of its cords, and you, not yet born—I imagined you floating in the void, hooked to the cord coming out of my body, and from then on I dreamed of an assassin way down below, slashing the throat of the navel-less woman. I imagined her body in death throes, decomposing, until that whole enormous tree that grew out of her—now suddenly without roots, without a base—started to fall. I saw the infinite spread of its branches come down like a gigantic cloudburst, and—understand me—what I was dreaming of wasn’t the end of human history, the abolition of any future; no, no, what I wanted was the total disappearance of mankind, together with its future and its past, with its beginning and its end, along with the whole span of its existence, with all its memory, with Nero and Napoleon, with Buddha and Jesus. I wanted the total annihilation of the tree that was rooted in the little navel-less belly of some stupid first woman who didn’t know what she was doing or what horrors we’d pay for her miserable coitus, which had certainly not given her the slightest pleasure.”
The mother’s voice went silent, and Alain, leaning against the wall, dozed off again.
Dialogue on the motorbike
The next morning, at about eleven, Alain was to meet with his friends Ramon and Caliban in front of the museum near the Luxembourg Gardens. Before he left his studio, he turned back to say goodbye to his mother in the photograph. Then he went down to the street and walked toward his motorbike, which was parked not far from his apartment.
As he straddled the bike, he had the vague sensation of a body leaning against his back. As if Madeleine were with him and touching him lightly. The illusion moved him; it seemed to express the love he felt for his girl. He started the engine.
Then he heard a voice behind him: “I wanted to talk some more.”
No, it wasn’t Madeleine; he recognized his mother’s voice.
Traffic was slow, and he heard: “I want to be sure that there’s no confusion between you and me, that we understand each other completely—”
He had to brake. A pedestrian had slipped between cars to cross the street and turned toward Alain with a threatening gesture.
“I’ll be frank. I’ve always felt that it’s horrible to send a person into the world who didn’t ask to be there.”
“I know,” Alain said.
“Look around you. Of all the people you see, no one is here by his own wish. Of course, what I just said is the most banal truth there is. So banal, and so basic, that we’ve stopped seeing it and hearing it.”
For several minutes he kept to a lane between a truck and a car that were pressing him from either side.
“Everyone jabbers about human rights. What a joke! Your existence isn’t founded on any right. They don’t even allow you to end your life by your own choice, these defenders of human rights.”
The light at the intersection went red. He stopped. Pedestrians from both sides of the street set out toward the opposite sidewalk.
And the mother went on: “Look at them all! Look! At least half the people you’re seeing are ugly. Being ugly—is that one of the human rights, too? And do you know what it is to carry your ugliness with you through your whole life? With not a moment of relief? Or your sex? You never chose that. Or the color of your eyes? Or your era on earth? Or your country? Or your mother? None of the things that matter. The rights a person can have involve only pointless things, for which there is no reason to fight or to write great declarations!”
He was driving again now, and his mother’s voice grew gentler. “You’re here as you are because I was weak. That was my fault. Forgive me.”
Alain was silent; then he said, in a quiet voice: “What is it that you feel guilty for? For not having had the strength to prevent my birth? Or for not reconciling yourself to my life, which, as it happens, is actually not so bad?”
After a silence, she answered, “Maybe you’re right. Then I’m doubly guilty.”
“I’m the one who should apologize,” Alain said. “I dropped into your life like a cow turd. I chased you away to America.”
“Quit your apologies! What do you know about my life, my little idiot! Can I call you idiot? Yes, don’t be angry; in my own opinion, you are an idiot! And you know where your idiocy comes from? From your goodness! Your ridiculous goodness!”
He reached the Luxembourg Gardens. He parked the bike.
“Don’t protest, and let me apologize,” he said. “I’m an apologizer. That’s the way you made me, you and he. And, as such, as an apologizer, I’m happy. I feel good when we apologize to each other, you and I. Isn’t it lovely, apologizing to each other?”
Then they walked toward the museum. ♦
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I'm i possibly have mini anxiety attacks?
I have been pretty stressed lately, and now that i look posterior on it even has a kid, i have always be the worrying type, But lately at random times I will start to have a little bit of a trouble breathing, the best approach I can explain it is, It feels like I have to force myself to breath, possibly like shortness of breath? anyways it feels like i hold to keep telling myself to breath and i don't know if it is because I am thinking about myself breathing or if I am have problems, it happens quite often, and it have been going on for at least a month now.
Anyone know? Thanks.
You night be have an anxiety attack go to the doctor and see what they say. If you do they will give you some pills to hold whenever your having one, just to calm your nerves. My mom enjoy anxiety, I don't know what the pills are called though. Good luck. I know it can be scary.
Honestly anxiety and anxiety attacks are a normal part of time. The only time you would need medication is if they are keeping you from functioning. The best way to muddle through them is simply to calm yourself. Develop some confidence in yourself is another thing. The point that get's most people is anxiety about failure. Failing isn't discouraging it's just a way to not do something.
It sounds to me close to you might be experiencing panic attacksPanic attacks are very sudden, discrete periods of intense anxiety, mounting physiological arousal, start, stomach problems and discomfort that are associated with a variety of somatic and cognitive symptoms. The onset of these episodes is typically terse, and may have no obvious triggers.
According to the American Psychological Association, the symptoms of a panic attack commonly concluding approximately thirty minutes. However, panic attacks can be as short as 15 seconds, while sometimes panic attacks may form a cyclic series of episodes, stable for an extended period, sometimes hours. Often those afflicted will experience significant anticipatory anxiety and limited symptom attacks in between attacks, within situations where attacks have previously occurred.
Panic attacks are commonly coupled to agoraphobia and the fear of not being able to escape a discouraging situation. Many who experience panic attacks feel trapped and unable to free themselves.
The effects of a hysterics attack vary from person to person. Some, legendary first-time sufferers, may call for emergency services. Many who experience a panic attack, mostly for the first time, fear they are have a heart attack or a nervous breakdown.
Please read the information at these links and see if you think this is what you are experiencing then see your doctor if you are:
Best wishes to you, I hope this information is adjectives to you and if you have been having these problems for a month, I hope you resolve to see your doctor,to make sure it is not something else.
i was diignost near anxiety so if you cant breath and you have to walk around outside and stuff to calm down after it is
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What exactly is going on with the disgraced 'king of Donkey Kong'?
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Mike Rampton
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Billy Mitchell was the undisputed world champion of Donkey Kong. Now, suddenly, his gaming legacy is in tatters - but he’s come out fighting. What’s the real story?
Last week, a man named Billy Mitchell (not the EastEnders one) was stripped of all of his old-school gaming high scores, including his impressive 1,047,200 points on Donkey Kong (the first ever million-plus score on that game).
Competitive 8-bit video gaming doesn’t tend to make a lot of headlines, but this has received news coverage all over the world. The entire world of retro gaming has been shaken to its core. Its very, very, deeply, incredibly nerdy core.
But what’s going on? Who’s this dude? And why is Donkey Kong called Donkey Kong when he’s clearly some sort of ape?
What is Mitchell said to have done?
Mitchell has been a big name in gaming for decades, holding several world record scores. But new evidence has come to light that at least some of his highs scores were achieved not on a proper old Donkey Kong machine but on an emulator. When you hit a baddie with a hammer in the game, you are awarded a slightly randomised amount of points, but statistical analysis of the points awarded in Mitchell’s record-breaking run suggests that something was off.
The conclusion reached was that not only did the footage come from an emulator (specifically a MAME, a Multiple Arcade Machine Emulator), but it might be spliced together from multiple runs. This is all very, very much against the rules of Twin Galaxies, the gaming organisation that works with Guinness in tracking gaming world records.
Essentially, the Donkey Kong record he broke wasn’t on a Donkey Kong machine, and that ain’t cool, but also he might not have broken it anyway, and that’s even less cool.
As of right now, all of Billy Mitchell’s records have all been removed from the Twin Galaxies site.
How did this all come out?
A member of the Twin Galaxies community named Jeremy Young spent a long time thoroughly analysing several record-breaking tapes of Mitchell’s. Eventually he concluded that MAME software had to have been used - the giveaway was something involving transition screen images, which were inconsistent with being generated by a genuine Donkey Kong machine.
Billy Mitchell has always been something of a controversial figure within the gaming world. He’s been accused of cheating on other past occasions, as well as frequently coming across as something of a bully - it’s easy to see why someone might be willing to put a lot of time into looking for evidence of his misdeeds.
Wasn’t this all in a movie?
It was indeed, a great movie! Mitchell was one of the stars of The King Of Kong, Seth Gordon’s award-winning 2007 documentary about the world of competitive old-school gaming.
As the film followed likeable everyman Steve Weibe attempting to break Mitchell’s record, Mitchell came across onscreen like a kind of real-life Hans Gruber. There appeared to be a huge amount of dodginess around both his own record attempts and his attempts to discredit Weibe, and he came across like a proper cartoon villain.
Like, if it wasn’t a documentary, you’d have seen half of his scenes and gone “Oh, that’s a bit much”. It’s a fantastic film, far more compelling and entertaining than you’d think a film about a bunch of middle-aged nerds sitting at arcade machines could ever be.
One of the key bits of evidence in the case against Mitchell is seen in the film - a really dodgy-quality VHS of him ostensibly breaking a record.
Mitchell was also one of the sources of inspiration for Peter Dinklage’s character in Pixels:
What else do we know about Billy Mitchell?
Mitchell runs a successful chain of restaurants in Florida, Rickey’s World Famous Restaurants, as well as a hot-sauce business. He’s been a big name in gaming ever since the mid-1980s, when media appearances in outlets like Time Magazine made him kind of the face of competitive gaming.
The first time video game records were included in the Guinness Book Of Records, he was in there six times. He allegedly played the first ever “perfect game” of Pac-man in 1999, although that record, along with all his other ones, has now been wiped. He was once described by Oxford American as “the perfect man”.
He has an extensive collection of patriotic ties, and uses USA as his three-letter name on the type of scoreboards that let you do such things. Here is an excellent picture of him meeting a cosplayer version of himself.
How has Mitchell reacted to all of this?
Mitchell denies any and all wrongdoing. He delivered a statement to Old School Game Magazine (which he’s also on the advisory board of, which is probably the sort of conflict of interest best avoided in a case like this) vowing to clear his name.
“We will show that everything that has been done, everything was done professionally, according to the rules, according to the scoreboard, the integrity that was set up” he said.
Anything could happen now, but the ball is very much in Mitchell’s court in terms of proving he didn’t cheat. None of his records are current ones, but he had a good few firsts in there, so some people might find themselves retroactively celebrated as pioneers of gaming a few decades after their achievements.
Why is Donkey Kong called Donkey Kong?
The word “donkey” was chosen by creator Shigeru Miyamoto as a synonym for “stubborn”, with the “Kong” part intended to get the “ape” message across. The title “Donkey Kong” was intended to pretty much translate as “Stubborn Ape”.
So now you know.
(Image: Getty)
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Mike Rampton
Mike Rampton
Mike Rampton is extraordinarily old, like some sort of giant mountain.
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More from Mike Rampton | dclm_baseline | {'bff_contained_ngram_count_before_dedupe': '0', 'language_id_whole_page_fasttext': "{'en': 0.9751458168029784}", 'metadata': "{'Content-Length': '51291', 'Content-Type': 'application/http; msgtype=response', 'WARC-Block-Digest': 'sha1:75BJBQM6MKQ4ZNLAAR3LH4BZRC7BZAWT', 'WARC-Concurrent-To': '<urn:uuid:5891e3bf-75f3-4f2f-bae0-4c016d7491c5>', 'WARC-Date': datetime.datetime(2019, 2, 16, 19, 50, 54), 'WARC-IP-Address': '99.84.216.41', 'WARC-Identified-Payload-Type': 'text/html', 'WARC-Payload-Digest': 'sha1:2YRL6VBJJBLVKOFEW57JULDLYSWVYVQ5', 'WARC-Record-ID': '<urn:uuid:88afd93d-b77c-42ac-a7fa-6b708cf577c9>', 'WARC-Target-URI': 'https://www.shortlist.com/tech/gaming/donkey-kong-billy-mitchell-high-score-world-record-scandal/353351/amp', 'WARC-Type': 'response', 'WARC-Warcinfo-ID': '<urn:uuid:e71513ee-39eb-4b80-9bcd-8dc9953a2bb5>', 'WARC-Truncated': None}", 'previous_word_count': '982', 'url': 'https://www.shortlist.com/tech/gaming/donkey-kong-billy-mitchell-high-score-world-record-scandal/353351/amp', 'warcinfo': 'isPartOf: CC-MAIN-2019-09\r\npublisher: Common Crawl\r\ndescription: Wide crawl of the web for February 2019\r\noperator: Common Crawl Admin (info@commoncrawl.org)\r\nhostname: ip-10-159-220-225.ec2.internal\r\nsoftware: Apache Nutch 1.15 (modified, https://github.com/commoncrawl/nutch/)\r\nrobots: checked via crawler-commons 0.11-SNAPSHOT (https://github.com/crawler-commons/crawler-commons)\r\nformat: WARC File Format 1.1\r\nconformsTo: http://iipc.github.io/warc-specifications/specifications/warc-format/warc-1.1/', 'fasttext_openhermes_reddit_eli5_vs_rw_v2_bigram_200k_train_prob': '0.03944474458694458', 'original_id': '415c4a6099b5f5641e59c0bf2d893b4e6f9857510eaeae121739417a7fb70f1a'} |
Dicks Sporting Good Yeti (10 FAQs)
Dicks Sporting Good Yeti (10 FAQs)
In today’s world, it seems like there is an endless list of things to spend our hard-earned money on. But when it comes to investing in quality products that will last, Dicks Sporting Goods Yeti is definitely worth the splurge. Here are 10 FAQs that will convince you to make the purchase:
What is the best Yeti cooler for keeping things coldbr
When it comes to coolers, there is no denying that Yeti coolers are some of the best on the market. They are known for their durability and their ability to keep things cold, which is why they are a popular choice for those who need a reliable cooler. But with so many different Yeti coolers to choose from, how do you know which one is the best for keeping things cold?
The first thing to consider is what you will be using your Yeti cooler for. If you are planning on using it for long camping trips or fishing trips, then you will need a bigger size. However, if you just need a cooler for days spent at the beach or picnicking, then a smaller size will suffice.
Once you have decided on the size of the cooler you need, the next thing to consider is what type of insulation you want. Yeti coolers come with either closed-cell foam or ThermoCool insulation. Closed-cell foam is more durable and offers better insulation, while ThermoCool is lighter and easier to clean.
Finally, consider what style of cooler you want. Yeti offers several different styles of coolers, including the Tundra, Roadie, and Hopper. The Tundra is their largest and most popular model, while the Roadie is great for those who need a compact cooler. The Hopper is perfect for those who want a lightweight and portable cooler.
No matter what your needs are, there is a Yeti cooler that is perfect for keeping things cold. So, don’t wait any longer – head to your local retailer and pick up your very own Yeti today!
See also Golfgalaxy.com (10 FAQs)
How long will a Yeti cooler keep things coldbr
A Yeti cooler is designed to keep things cold for a long time. The walls of the cooler are thicker than most coolers, which helps to keep the cold in. The lid of the cooler is also insulated, which helps to keep the cold in. The Yeti cooler also has a drain plug that allows you to drain the melted ice out of the cooler.
How well does a Yeti cooler work compared to other coolersbr
A Yeti cooler can work just as well as any other type of cooler if it is properly packed and the correct ice-to-contents ratio is used. Yeti coolers are designed to be durable and keep ice for long periods of time, so they are a good choice for extended camping trips or fishing trips where ice retention is key. However, some people find that Yeti coolers are too expensive compared to other brands.
What is the price of a Yeti coolerbr
The Yeti cooler is a high-end product that is known for its durability and quality. The price of a Yeti cooler can vary depending on the size and model of the cooler. However, the average price of a Yeti cooler is around $300.
Where can I buy a Yeti coolerbr
There are a few different places that you can purchase a Yeti cooler. The first place you can check is the Yeti website. They have a variety of different coolers to choose from, as well as other Yeti products. Another option is to check Amazon.com. They also have a wide selection of Yeti coolers to choose from. Finally, you can check your local sporting goods store or outdoor retailer. These stores typically carry a small selection of Yeti products, so you may need to call ahead to see if they have the specific model you are looking for.
What sizes do Yeti coolers come inbr
When it comes to Yeti coolers, there is no one-size-fits-all. Yeti coolers come in a variety of sizes to suit your specific needs. Whether you’re looking for a small cooler to take on a day hike or a large cooler to take on a week-long camping trip, Yeti has a size for you.
See also Wendy Survey (10 FAQs)
Yeti’s coolers come in five different sizes: the Roadie 20, the Tundra 35, the Tundra 45, the Tundra 65, and the Tundra 75. The Roadie 20 is Yeti’s smallest cooler and is perfect for short excursions or keeping your lunch cold at work. The Tundra 35 is a great all-purpose cooler and is ideal for days spent at the beach or picnicking. The Tundra 45 is perfect for longer trips or for storing larger items like food for a group. The Tundra 65 is Yeti’s largest cooler and is perfect for extended trips or for storing large quantities of food. The Tundra 75 is Yeti’s most versatile cooler and can be used for a variety of purposes, from storing food to transporting live bait.
No matter what your cooling needs are, Yeti has a size for you. So check out Yeti’s coolers and find the perfect one for your next adventure.
What colors do Yeti coolers come inbr
There’s no yeti like a Yeti Cooler. Whether you’re headed to the beach, the mountains, or the lake, Yeti Coolers are the perfect way to keep your food and drinks cold. But what colors do Yeti Coolers come in?
For starters, Yeti Coolers come in white. This classic color is perfect for any setting, and it’s sure to keep your food and drinks nice and cold. If you’re looking for something a little more fun, Yeti Coolers also come in pink. This pretty color is perfect for a summer picnic or a day at the beach. And if you want a cooler that’s sure to stand out, Yeti Coolers also come in blue. This bold color is perfect for making a statement, and it’s sure to turn heads when you’re carrying it around.
See also Informtarget.com Receipt (10 FAQs)
No matter what color you choose, Yeti Coolers are the perfect way to keep your food and drinks cold. So head to your nearest store and pick one up today!
What is the warranty on a Yeti coolerbr
The warranty on a Yeti cooler is one of the best in the business. It covers any defects in materials or workmanship for as long as you own the cooler. So, if your Yeti cooler ever breaks down, you can rest assured that you’re covered.
Can I customize my Yeti coolerbr
Yes, you can customize your Yeti cooler to make it even more unique and perfect for your needs. There are a variety of ways to do this, including adding new colors, graphics, or even personalizing it with your name or initials.
How long will my Yeti cooler last
If you’re wondering how long your Yeti cooler will last, the answer depends on a few factors. First, it depends on how often you use it and how well you take care of it. If you use it frequently and don’t properly maintain it, it won’t last as long as if you use it less often and take better care of it. Second, it depends on the type of Yeti cooler you have. Some models are more durable than others and will therefore last longer. Third, it depends on the environment in which you store your Yeti cooler. If you live in a hot, humid climate, your Yeti cooler won’t last as long as if you live in a cooler, drier climate.
In general, though, a Yeti cooler should last several years with proper care and maintenance. With that said, if you use your Yeti cooler regularly and don’t take good care of it, it probably won’t last more than a year or two. So if you want your Yeti cooler to last as long as possible, be sure to use it sparingly and store it in a cool, dry place. | dclm_baseline | {'bff_contained_ngram_count_before_dedupe': '5', 'language_id_whole_page_fasttext': "{'en': 0.9477552175521852}", 'metadata': "{'Content-Length': '42083', 'Content-Type': 'application/http; msgtype=response', 'WARC-Block-Digest': 'sha1:HUX6G3C5JCPIERN2DWW6HB2VMIN3NLNZ', 'WARC-Concurrent-To': '<urn:uuid:78557bea-a2de-4820-9934-2f72e8b84bba>', 'WARC-Date': datetime.datetime(2022, 12, 8, 13, 8, 43), 'WARC-IP-Address': '104.21.5.220', 'WARC-Identified-Payload-Type': 'text/html', 'WARC-Payload-Digest': 'sha1:IKAKFPHAQ7APFYUS4H5G4J5ZBNKT3CFB', 'WARC-Record-ID': '<urn:uuid:f14cdcd9-7b7a-4cbb-9b3c-0ac0896eae70>', 'WARC-Target-URI': 'https://www.surveyexperience.men/dicks-sporting-good-yeti/', 'WARC-Type': 'response', 'WARC-Warcinfo-ID': '<urn:uuid:d2f8d534-d66b-484d-8253-025739aaf7f5>', 'WARC-Truncated': None}", 'previous_word_count': '1349', 'url': 'https://www.surveyexperience.men/dicks-sporting-good-yeti/', 'warcinfo': 'isPartOf: CC-MAIN-2022-49\r\npublisher: Common Crawl\r\ndescription: Wide crawl of the web for November/December 2022\r\noperator: Common Crawl Admin (info@commoncrawl.org)\r\nhostname: ip-10-67-67-70\r\nsoftware: Apache Nutch 1.19 (modified, https://github.com/commoncrawl/nutch/)\r\nrobots: checked via crawler-commons 1.4-SNAPSHOT (https://github.com/crawler-commons/crawler-commons)\r\nformat: WARC File Format 1.1\r\nconformsTo: https://iipc.github.io/warc-specifications/specifications/warc-format/warc-1.1/', 'fasttext_openhermes_reddit_eli5_vs_rw_v2_bigram_200k_train_prob': '0.0709790587425232', 'original_id': '6e22a808cd9a47881fb80a2fd559f8fbecec03d22a501438323ef406903820fd'} |
Historic cities are in constant dialogue with past. The nature of that dialogue and attitudes towards tradition, present and future are critical for their development. While it is accepted that ecological sustainability makes a condition sine qua non of any vision of future, it is critical to see it as necessary, but not sufficient condition. To succeed environmental agenda must embrace all aspects of urbanity, and we need new, integrated approaches to development of culturally and ecologically sustainable environments. The paper offers a discussion of theoretical frameworks of politics, planning, design and urban management capable to generate and support culturally and ecologically sustainable urban environments. The focus is on dialectics between universally relevant themes and need for their place- and time-specific circumstantial adjustments. The paper is illustrated with examples from Australia (Canberra), former Yugoslavia (Perast and Mostar in Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina), and China (Beijing). | dclm_baseline | {'bff_contained_ngram_count_before_dedupe': '0', 'language_id_whole_page_fasttext': "{'en': 0.9460079669952391}", 'metadata': "{'Content-Length': '29654', 'Content-Type': 'application/http; msgtype=response', 'WARC-Block-Digest': 'sha1:EB3FHXVA6L4OGDMMKPLKXQWAI77WYXZZ', 'WARC-Concurrent-To': '<urn:uuid:36f3dcaa-a014-4f19-b812-e4c4a5f8ee60>', 'WARC-Date': datetime.datetime(2018, 12, 13, 15, 21, 20), 'WARC-IP-Address': '104.28.15.36', 'WARC-Identified-Payload-Type': 'application/xhtml+xml', 'WARC-Payload-Digest': 'sha1:CFB4U6GA5NXNB5NCT2J6WN3IRZYU3G3M', 'WARC-Record-ID': '<urn:uuid:3d127587-e6fe-4e08-8a61-5368cf865706>', 'WARC-Target-URI': 'https://iaps.architexturez.net/doc/oai-iaps-id-1202bm828', 'WARC-Type': 'response', 'WARC-Warcinfo-ID': '<urn:uuid:62de8daa-2047-48ae-9b1b-15db5d111ccc>', 'WARC-Truncated': None}", 'previous_word_count': '143', 'url': 'https://iaps.architexturez.net/doc/oai-iaps-id-1202bm828', 'warcinfo': 'isPartOf: CC-MAIN-2018-51\r\npublisher: Common Crawl\r\ndescription: Wide crawl of the web for December 2018\r\noperator: Common Crawl Admin (info@commoncrawl.org)\r\nhostname: ip-10-180-67-225.ec2.internal\r\nsoftware: Apache Nutch 1.15 (modified, https://github.com/commoncrawl/nutch/)\r\nrobots: checked via crawler-commons 0.11-SNAPSHOT (https://github.com/crawler-commons/crawler-commons)\r\nformat: WARC File Format 1.1\r\nconformsTo: http://iipc.github.io/warc-specifications/specifications/warc-format/warc-1.1/', 'fasttext_openhermes_reddit_eli5_vs_rw_v2_bigram_200k_train_prob': '0.01934725046157837', 'original_id': '74917208c0524686d68a9cc7ae60370ba9bc14957c0a221acfce50d2a6aa8654'} |
The Star Beacon; Ashtabula, Ohio
July 13, 2012
If it looks like a tax, smells like a tax, walks like a tax, it maybe a fee
To most people other than war, tax is the worst three-letter word we have.
But most people are wrong. There is a worse word: fee.
I smell the hard-earned money of the common American person,
Be he or she alive, or be he or she dead,
I’ll raise your taxes or I’ll raise your fees.
That is how it goes. Don’t give them what they want and they will figure out a different way to pick our pockets.
One of the issues that is emerging so far in this rather dismal general election year is the notion fees are nothing more than masked taxes.
Well, they are worse than that. Bravo though for raising the issue. It is time the issue came to the forefront.
In the past I have railed against fees because I have always felt they are nothing more than a tax. But I guess I am taking that back because you get at least one benefit from nearly all taxes, except the federal income tax. That benefit is to deduct those taxes from your income tax return.
Think about all the fees we have. To get married you pay a marriage license fee. To have a dog you have to pay a dog license fee. To own a car or other motorized vehicle for on road use you have to pay a license plate fee. To drive those vehicles you have to pay a license fee. Some communities make you pay a license on your bicycle.
During the transfer of real estate from one person to another, a transfer fee is assessed.
If you challenge a speeding ticket in court and lose you pay court cost fees. I happen to believe speeding tickets are nothing more than making you pay a fee for any speed in excess of the posted limit. Communities have speed traps so they can find motorists to levy fees on.
Since many public school districts have failed to get their constituents to pass increases on their property taxes they have instituted new types of fees, such pay for play.
For example, at Lakeside High School a student must pay a $200 fee to participate in a single sport. If that were called a tax it would be considered a hefty tax increase.
People who we deem professionals, such as lawyers, doctors and teachers must pay license fees.
Some fees probably make sense, such as water, sewer and trash pickup fees.
But on the whole, most fees are bad. Also, we have many more than I have mentioned.
In football they call it an end around when turning what should be a tax into a fee.
An end around happens when a wide receiver starts on one side of the field and runs across to the opposite side. As he crosses the backfield the quarterback hands him the ball.
Once the receiver has the ball he has a couple of options: He can either continue running the ball to the outside, or he can throw the football to another receiver, or perhaps hand it back to the quarterback.
There are variations. It is all part of the deception. The quarterback may never hand it off to the receiver.
The play provides the quarterback with a fake option of either handing off the ball or continuing on to run, pass or hand it off for someone else to run it. If it works, the defensive team so to say is “fleeced”, or hoodwinked or, picked apart.
You get the picture. Officeholders are the quarterback and receiver, and the other team — the one that is about to have its pockets picked — are the people.
There are at least two reasons other than the deception, why fees are worse than taxes:
— They are usually enacted by a governing body, such as a city council or school board, instead of a vote of the people. It amounts to taxation without representation.
— They cannot be deducted from your federal or state income tax returns.
The issue came to light this year when President Obama’s re-election campaign challenged Mitt Romney’s assumption he cut taxes while governor of Massachusetts (AKA Taxachusetts.) has been watchdogging politicians on what they say. In regards to this challenge from the Obama campaign, FactCheck said the Obama campaign exaggerated it claims.
However, FactCheck did say under Romney, Massachusetts increased license fees for large commercial vehicles and motorcycles, but not drivers licenses. Fees also were increased for recreational hunting and gun ownership and for some types of fishing.
Romney also gave individual school districts the right to assess students with a transportation fee. Other fees he raised or instituted were 100 percent increases on a milk dealer licenses as well as a 100 percent increases on pasteurization plants. There were other fees raised during Romney’s tenure in office as well.
It is time to get rid of most fees. Drop them altogether or call them what they are: A Tax.
Since our elected officeholders would not dare to do such as thing, a proposed constitutional amendment could be voted by the people that seeks to end all fees.
Then, it would force officeholders to go before the voters and ask for a dog tax, an auto tax, a drivers tax, a football playing tax, a marriage tax, a birth tax, a death tax, right to sell milk tax, driving miles per hour tax, etc., etc., etc., etc.
For the record, FactCheck said Romney who worked with a Democratic legislature in Massachusetts never cut taxes.
Frieder is editor of the Star Beacon and can be reached at
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House Ads
Andover Fire 1955
AP Video | dclm_baseline | {'bff_contained_ngram_count_before_dedupe': '18', 'language_id_whole_page_fasttext': "{'en': 0.9658415913581848}", 'metadata': "{'Content-Length': '68241', 'Content-Type': 'application/http; msgtype=response', 'WARC-Block-Digest': 'sha1:6VJ7BMIXBP7YAWYOAUBYW72MOMKVMSMC', 'WARC-Concurrent-To': '<urn:uuid:cc7756f8-e03e-4a68-b43e-9244ab14dca9>', 'WARC-Date': datetime.datetime(2013, 12, 13, 12, 9, 29), 'WARC-IP-Address': '107.23.6.198', 'WARC-Identified-Payload-Type': None, 'WARC-Payload-Digest': 'sha1:UCXJ3F5OJXW473FQIKAMGLOLOUUWRHG7', 'WARC-Record-ID': '<urn:uuid:41155772-4674-496b-904e-487846f001d4>', 'WARC-Target-URI': 'http://www.starbeacon.com/letters/x941525968/If-it-looks-like-a-tax-smells-like-a-tax-walks-like-a-tax-it-maybe-a-fee', 'WARC-Type': 'response', 'WARC-Warcinfo-ID': '<urn:uuid:13adedaa-6078-44b4-94db-b104f7a33b1e>', 'WARC-Truncated': 'length'}", 'previous_word_count': '982', 'url': 'http://www.starbeacon.com/letters/x941525968/If-it-looks-like-a-tax-smells-like-a-tax-walks-like-a-tax-it-maybe-a-fee', 'warcinfo': 'robots: classic\r\nhostname: ip-10-33-133-15.ec2.internal\r\nsoftware: Nutch 1.6 (CC)/CC WarcExport 1.0\r\nisPartOf: CC-MAIN-2013-48\r\noperator: CommonCrawl Admin\r\ndescription: Wide crawl of the web with URLs provided by Blekko for Winter 2013\r\npublisher: CommonCrawl\r\nformat: WARC File Format 1.0\r\nconformsTo: http://bibnum.bnf.fr/WARC/WARC_ISO_28500_version1_latestdraft.pdf', 'fasttext_openhermes_reddit_eli5_vs_rw_v2_bigram_200k_train_prob': '0.11915194988250732', 'original_id': '4a1b1d3b5629b2384f4b5db1e7ed07cf8fca675328de92bf46022baa41dcc117'} |
Friday, November 11, 2011
Rebirth is Dead
^Note the irony in that title.
1. 51 is not going anywhere! Everybody who rides that bus line would fight trimet about it to the end. None of us would let it go lightly. ;)Anyways, if that line went anywhere we would be screwed up here because that's the only bus line.
Anyways, I completely agree with you on the topic of that deer baby thing. That thing gave me the heebie jeebies just looking at a picture of it.
I can't say how happy I am now that it is gone.
2. Haha, I mostly meant in regards to how they already emaciated line 51 thus far (thereby making it unusable to Crest Tourists like myself.)
3. But as you say, TriMet isn't planning to cut the money and put it back in the budget to save a bus line. It's just going to select some less unpopular art costing the same amount! I did not think it was very responsible of Joe to single out that piece as if killing it were a budget solution. This is just an argument about taste. (And that's valid, of course.)
4. Just to point out, because of the way funding is setup under law, you guys realize that they can't spend that money on anything except art. I think that's kind of silly, but at the same time I do wish they would work out a public-private partnership of sorts to enable art in the architecture. It could be less expensive (even though the art is only set at 1% of the budget I think, but when we're talking about bloated projects like the $1.4 Billion dollar light rail effort that should come in around $500-600 million WITH the bridge, one can quickly realize they're spending an exorbitant amount of money on art).
Even though the art adds a lot to the community, for some riders, and adds an element of class and culture to the system - it sadly is ignored by the vast majority. I like it, but hate the idea that they're spending the money in times when they're cutting services. It should have an "automatic" cut in times of decreasing tax revenue & budgets. | dclm_baseline | {'bff_contained_ngram_count_before_dedupe': '173', 'language_id_whole_page_fasttext': "{'en': 0.9756416082382202}", 'metadata': "{'Content-Length': '68939', 'Content-Type': 'application/http; msgtype=response', 'WARC-Block-Digest': 'sha1:676TVQFMNDZDKCYCH4BLWZAKLRDEDYVU', 'WARC-Concurrent-To': '<urn:uuid:a277dc64-cda8-48f3-aa34-1ceaa9065e99>', 'WARC-Date': datetime.datetime(2017, 10, 18, 7, 12, 42), 'WARC-IP-Address': '172.217.12.225', 'WARC-Identified-Payload-Type': 'text/html', 'WARC-Payload-Digest': 'sha1:WBPGZLXADCS2XR7LCNHOHDWCMBD5MIHM', 'WARC-Record-ID': '<urn:uuid:bc8e3ac7-ed75-409c-9240-1d3623b14b6b>', 'WARC-Target-URI': 'http://trimetopinionist.blogspot.com/2011/11/rebirth-is-dead.html', 'WARC-Type': 'response', 'WARC-Warcinfo-ID': '<urn:uuid:7ce0bdad-b565-46d9-ac56-636ed2554f73>', 'WARC-Truncated': None}", 'previous_word_count': '546', 'url': 'http://trimetopinionist.blogspot.com/2011/11/rebirth-is-dead.html', 'warcinfo': 'robots: classic\r\nhostname: ip-10-186-84-172.ec2.internal\r\nsoftware: Nutch 1.6 (CC)\r\nisPartOf: CC-MAIN-2017-43\r\noperator: Common Crawl Admin\r\ndescription: Wide crawl of the web for October 2017\r\npublisher: Common Crawl\r\nformat: WARC File Format 1.0\r\nconformsTo: http://bibnum.bnf.fr/WARC/WARC_ISO_28500_version1_latestdraft.pdf', 'fasttext_openhermes_reddit_eli5_vs_rw_v2_bigram_200k_train_prob': '0.16701215505599976', 'original_id': '6c7913b13b315aefe51454549d6e70418408cd63d38c98b3bfe241cf87015b82'} |
Why no one will ever “prove that GMOs are safe”
Water has never been proven safe. Image by Konstantin Stepanov via Flickr.
When discussing transgenic crops, I regularly get asked to provide a paper that “proves” that GMOs are safe. Whether you want proof that biotech crops, organic bananas, or conventional peaches are safe, I cannot provide you with such a paper. Safety is a relative term and is generally defined as the absence of risk or harm. As such, asking for proof of safety is, in essence, asking someone for proof of the absence of risk. The risk of what ever is being evaluated is measured in relation to other options, not against a theoretic idea of “perfectly safe”. Relative risk is scientifically determined by examining the evidence at hand: experiments are performed to determine the impact of a substance on health, environment, etc and the data from these experiments are assessed to determine if the substance causes harm.
Scientifically, nothing is truly 100% safe. To explain why, we’re going to do an exercise and try to prove that water is safe. The first thing to keep in mind is that there are many aspects to water safety: impact on health, water transportation, water treatment, proper water storage, etc. For our example, we’re going to select “impact on health”.
Then, we have to come up with a null hypothesis. It may seem counter-intuitive and the double-negatives in the explanation below suck, however the baseline for much of research is that there’s no impact or no difference. It’s the researcher’s responsibility to disprove that hypothesis, ie. to show that there is a difference or that there is an impact. For example, if you want to find out if kids who watch TV are more prone to hitting, your null hypothesis could be “watching TV does not increase aggression”. So for our exercise, our hypothesis will be “Drinking water does not cause cancer”.
Next, we narrow down the hypothesis to a question that we can actually test. For example, “children aged 2-4 who watch 1-2 hours of TV a day do not hit their parents more frequently than children who do not watch any TV.” For our study, we’ll consider our question to be “Individuals who have lived in the San Francisco Bay Area for 10-20 years and drink 2-4 cups of tap water daily do not have a greater incidence of breast cancer than the national average”. We conduct our study and gather data which will probably take a few years. Then we apply the proper statistics. If our study finds a difference, then we’ve disproven our null hypothesis, much hoopla will be made, and our findings will be published in the “Journal of Awesome Research”. If there’s no difference, then our null hypothesis still stands and our study will likely be published in the “Journal of Flibbity-Flooba”.
If we find no difference in the incidence of breast cancer in our study, have we “proven” that water is “safe”? No. All we’ve done is add data to the body of evidence that suggests that drinking water does not cause cancer and that it’s safe to drink it. As previously mentioned, nothing can be truly proven safe, even water; too much or too little of it can kill us, let alone if it is improperly purified. Yes, water can be considered dangerous: water-borne illnesses are one of the leading causes of death worldwide, water causes floods, and it can damage homes. But at the same time, we need water to survive and its intake in the proper amounts promotes health. Science has helped us define the harm that water can cause and the proper steps that we can take to ensure that harm is minimized.
Let’s go beyond our water analogy: here are a few other hypotheses along with a more narrow question of what will be tested:
• Broad: The MMR vaccine does not cause autism. Narrow: There is no significant difference in the incidence of autism in caucasian children who have received Merck’s MMR vaccine in the San Jose Bay Area and children who are not vaccinated.
• Broad: Eating transgenic crops does not harm the gut. Narrow: There is no significant difference in the relative abundance of bacterial species in the intestinal flora of pigs fed a diet consisting of 30% genetically modified Bt-corn for 30 days compared to a control diet.
Again, let’s say that you are unable to disprove your null hypothesis. Does that mean that you’ve proven that the MMR vaccine doesn’t cause autism? No. Have you proven that GMOs do not impact the bacteria in the gut? No. What you’ve done is add data to a body of evidence that suggests that the MMR vaccine doesn’t cause autism and that crops developed through biotechnology don’t cause harm. You’ve been able to demonstrate a relative lack of risk between the substance (the genetically engineered crop) and a control (the conventional crop) in the specific area examined.
Until someone comes up with a study showing that A causes B, then the null hypothesis is what we turn to: A does not cause B. Otherwise you could come up with any crazy hypothesis and people would have to “prove you wrong”. You could state that that earthquakes are caused by invisible dragons jumping at the same time and demand evidence showing that it’s not true. Or that wearing a watch causes carpal tunnel syndrome due to the radiation emitted by the watch. Or that computers leach dangerous toxins that cause brain tumors. That’s not the way it works. Dragons don’t cause earthquakes and computers don’t cause brain tumors, until you can prove otherwise. The onus is on the person making a claim to provide evidence supporting its existence. Therefore, if you claim that invisible dragons cause earthquakes, it is not my responsibility to “prove you wrong”. Rather, it is your responsibility to provide evidence demonstrating that these beings caused the earthquake. A similar analogy, known as Russell’s Teapot, was coined by the philosopher Bertrand Russell. To illustrate where the burden of proof rightfully belongs when someone makes an unfalsifiable claim, Russell laid out this example: “If I were to suggest that there is a teapot, too small to be detected by a telescope, orbiting around the Sun somewhere between the Earth and Mars, nobody would be able to disprove my assertion. But if I were to go on to say that, since my assertion cannot be disproven it should not be doubted either, then I should rightly be thought to be talking nonsense.” This example highlights how impossible it would be to “prove him wrong”; therefore, the burden of proof would lie with him, as he is the one making the claim.
Whenever someone makes an unfalsifiable claim, the burden of proof lies with the person making the claim. Without a credible hypothesis for harm, and after decades of study, the burden of proof for the people claiming that biotech crops could be causing autism or cancer, lies with those making these claims. As Carl Sagan said: “Extraordinary claims, require extraordinary evidence.” Claiming that “we just don’t know enough” is a not hypothesis that can be tested and is not in itself evidence of harm: it’s just idle speculation.
The absence of single papers demonstrating safety is often used to invoke fear and doubt, and impossibility of proving a negative is often capitalized in anti-GMO rhetoric (this recent article by a medical doctor in the New York Daily Mail is a perfect example of such arguments): “Do we know that GMOs don’t cause cancer? Do we know that they don’t cause male infertility? etc.” Well, no… We don’t… But in the many feeding studies that have been conducted, there’s absolutely no evidence to suggest that it DOES cause cancer, there’s no logical mechanism proposed by which this might occur, and the null hypothesis still stands. You could virtually make the same argument about anything. “Do we know that eating pomegranates doesn’t case male pattern baldness? Do we know that typing on a keyboard doesn’t cause STDs?” No… We don’t… I don’t think anyone has ever done those studies. But strangely enough, no one has proposed a ban the use of keyboards until someone proves that typing on one doesn’t cause herpes, nor has anyone suggested that I should uproot the pomegranate tree in my backyard. Remembering that safety can never be proven and that we can only demonstrate a lack of relative risk can allow us to view such claims with skepticism. The null hypothesis also allows us to weed out superstitious nonsense from cohesive scientific arguments. Some of the conspiracy theories circulating right now include the idea that the ebola virus is man-made and that AIDS is not caused by HIV. We can stand against such harmful ideas by stating “show me the evidence suggesting that ebola IS man-made” or “here’s a plethora of data indicating that AIDS IS caused by HIV”.
When you ask for “proof that GMOs are safe” or ask for a paper that has this evidence, that is absolutely the wrong request. In fact, it’s a loaded question, whether the person asking realizes or not, the “proof” is impossible to provide, no matter the subject. Ask a specific question and then try to find the data showing that it DOES cause harm. Unfortunately, I can’t provide you with such data because I haven’t read a well-designed, well-executed, reproducible study demonstrating that GMOs have a negative health impact.
THIS is why scientists stress the number of studies that have examined genetically engineered crops. THIS is why scientists stress the statements made by reputable scientific institutions about GMOs. THIS is why meta-analyses and literature reviews are important. Because no single study proves safety: its the sum of the studies, the body of data, the totality of research that’s been done which suggests that the current GMOs on the market are safe relative to their conventionally bred counter-parts. By examining the body of data, scientists develop a consensus: the overwhelming majority of mainstream working scientists in the relevant field stop debating an issue because the direction that the evidence points has become clear. Although there are many matters on which a clear consensus has not yet emerged, on the topic of genetically engineered crops the consensus is that the current crops on the market place pose no greater risk to health than their non-GMO counterparts.
My last point is this: receiving funding for a study is very difficult, and the institutions that fund these grants want to see proposals that
1. have a logical mechanism: in the context of this article, if a researcher wants to determine if a substance can cause harm, then the granting agency will want to know how that harm could potentially occur. In our exercise regarding the safety of water, we’d never get the money for our study unless we could outline a biological mechanism by which water could cause breast cancer.
2. have a high likelihood of generating positive results or disproving the null hypothesis. Negative data or being unable to disprove your hypothesis doesn’t really build a career for a research scientist in the current academic system, nor does it validate the work of the granting agency. As a consequence, many researchers will not pursue a path where they don’t see fruitful results nor will granting agencies fund such research. Imagine working on a project where you don’t expect to make a difference, waste tax-payers’ money, and burn away your time. Why on earth would you start such a project? While it is possible that this approach will miss some harms that we did not understand, in a resource constrained world, it’s counter-productive to pursue every speculation whether it makes “sense” or not. It’s far more productive to pursue the ideas that make sense before worrying about things that don’t make sense.
Whether or not you agree with the system, this is what scientists in the public arena have to work with. Scientists do not want to waste their time and valuable resources on a study where they don’t expect to demonstrate anything new. Instead of recognizing this simple explanation, many chose to believe that research is being silenced or that scientists are being paid off. Very nearly none of the scientists working in the relevant fields think that there is any reason that long term feeding trials of transgenic crops will produce a demonstration of harm, yet many anti-GMO activists would choose to believe that such research is not being conducted because “Big-Ag” drives funding at academic institutions. Rather than acknowledging that the absence of studies examining a link between Round-Up Ready corn and Alzheimer’s is a result of the fact that experts in the field cannot envision a credible mechanism for such harm based on the evidence at hand, many would prefer to believe that it’s because “Big-Ag” is suppressing the data or that Monsanto will break scientists’ kneecaps if they publish results suggesting that GMOs can cause harm.
But if your definition of “safety” is a 5 year longitudinal study on 1000 rats examining a link between Bt-corn and gluten sensitivity, by all means: spend 10 years of your life in school earning less than minimum wage, and then try to find a granting agency that will fund your study based on whatever evidence and reasoning you have. Best of luck in your future career path!
Written by Layla Katiraee
Layla Katiraee is a human molecular geneticist working as a development scientist in DNA sequencing. She has a PhD in human molecular genetics from the University of Toronto, and is currently studying applied bioinformatics at Penn State.
1. Genetically modified food controversies are disputes over the use of foods and other goods derived from genetically modified crops instead of conventional crops, and other uses of genetic engineering in food production. The dispute involves consumers, farmers, biotechnology companies, governmental regulators, non-governmental organizations, and scientists. The key areas of controversy related to genetically modified food (GMO food) are whether such food should be labeled, the role of government regulators, the objectivity of scientific research and publication, the effect of genetically modified crops on health and the environment, the effect on pesticide resistance, the impact of such crops for farmers, and the role of the crops in feeding the world population. Found this on wikipedia and compared with what you have on this blog. I believe soon all this doubts about GMO foods will be cleared..great article.
2. While I agree with what you say and share in the frustration, I feel this article was written for “people like us” and that it could do without the sarcasm and slang (“sucks,” for example). This is why people don’t like academics; too much snarky.
3. I don’t think we have a null hypothesis when we’re studying GMOs. I think we can pose lots of questions to study how this technology changes the food plant we’re engineering. And of course, if we choose to include environmental safety, we have lots more areas where we can do research. All plant breeding carries the risk of generating unwanted changes – including the creation of toxins we might not expect in that plant. This has happened in conventionally bred plants, which, based on level of risk, are less likely to present unanticipated changes. Research on GMOs has shown changes in gene expression, structure, metabolism – separate from the kinds of changes we might expect as the result of environmental influence. The food may have changes in nutrition that are considered acceptable by the developer and the government reviewer, but unacceptable to consumers – who have no way of knowing.
Plus I don’t think safety is the absence of risk. We already know there are risks, and what people want to know is how we’re managing those. But when it comes to answering those questions, it’s hard to find out exactly how we are managing those risks. Because the industry is reluctant to share information about how it manages risk – and – the regulations we have now don’t ensure that unwanted changes will be “caught”. New traits are treated like food additives by the FDA. Maybe someone can direct us to the studies the industry does to make sure the product is truly equivalent (everything we want and nothing we don’t want) I think until that sort of analysis is done by independent bodies, people will continue to ask you to “prove GMOs are safe”.
In these comments I link to example of studies which draw different conclusions on the same GMOs
1. Hi Mlema,
There are types of research where you don’t have a null hypothesis. Actually, for my doctoral thesis, I didn’t have a null hypothesis, because I wasn’t really testing anything. I had a working hypothesis, but not a null hypothesis. But when we test for harm, there is a null hypothesis. Yes, I agree: safety isn’t the complete absence of risk, but it’s the relative absence of risk. The risks that are present must be managed and in the example of water, we treat water with chlorine to manage risk of water-borne pathogens.
Your comments on the two papers are interesting and I’ll have to look at them more closely. I’m not sure if you saw the piece I wrote on substantial equivalence? See: http://www.biofortified.org/2015/03/conventional-breeding-vs-transgenesis/
4. I admit, I’m confused. Perhaps it’s the metaphysical arguments: dragons causing earthquakes and Russell’s teapot. Or changing the claim about water (H2O) to one about tap water. I don’t think the comparison of GMOs to H2O is a good one. Nor is the one about getting STDs from a keyboard or baldness from a pomegranate. Certainly it’s possible for a GMO to be created that would cause harm – and certainly that could find its way into our food supply, just like any new food. The level of risk just depends on how and what’s developed, and how it’s regulated.
“A does not cause B” – Would that translate to: GMOs do not cause harm? I’m sure it would be possible to then make narrow statements to attempt to disprove that statement – although here I think it’s important to say that the biggest problem with making the broader statement is: every GMO is unique. It’s like saying: cars do not cause harm. So in that way, what you’re saying makes a lot of sense. But only because the other side of that coin says: you can’t prove GMOs are safe because there are so many things that can be wrong with them 😉
You seem to be suggesting that there’s no mechanism by which a genetically engineered food could cause health problems. What about engineering a corn to make Cry9C – that ended up in the human food supply? It seems we were lucky, but I think we could just as easily have been unlucky.
Health and governmental organizations always qualify their statements on GMO safety. Like: ‘Current GMOs show no evidence of causing health problems’. The qualifiers often get lost when their general endorsements are used to defend/promote specific GE products. Also lost: the degree to which any such organization is beholden to the industry that develops the products. Most still agree: new GE products should be individually evaluated in a number of ways in order to assure safety (in as much as that’s possible). In fact, there’s actually a lot of debate over what sort of safety evaluations should be done and by whom – and how they should be tailored to various GE organisms.
So, in my confusion, I’ll just say: I agree that no one can “prove that GMOs are safe”. But, I do think there are safety questions that have to be answered for every new GMO, and what those are should probably be based on the GMO itself. And as we do more complex engineering, those questions should evolve as well. A lot of what we’ve learned about genetic engineering has come from just doing it and then evaluating it. Not sure that’s the best way forward.
This paper from David Schubert talks about some of the issues that need to be addressed when engineering nutritionally enhanced plants.
Pro-industry advocates call this paper scaremongering and hand-waving. I’m just linking you to it so you can consider it for yourself as illustrating some examples of how GE can possibly cause harm.
Thanks! I’ll look at your other post soon.
5. I think you raise a lot of great points. I think that “GMOs are safe” or “GMOs cause harm” are way too broad. As I point out in the post, we need to focus on specific questions, rather than sweeping statements. So yes, part of the reason why we can’t say that anything is safe is because there are infinite questions that could be asked.
There are mechanisms by which a genetically engineered food could cause health problems, and the reason why we conduct tests is to mitigate these risks. See this study as an example: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8594427 Although this paper is often used by those who oppose GMOs as an example of how things can go wrong, it could just as easily be an example of how proper testing can mitigate the risks of transgenic crops.
I had not seen the paper from David Schubert, and thank you for sharing that. It’s interesting, but it’s also a list of hypothetical things that could go wrong. I wrote about this in a different context on my personal blog here: http://frankenfoodfacts.blogspot.com/2014/03/review-of-gmo-myths-and-truths-part-1.html I think this is probably the most pertinent sentence: “As mentioned, the authors admit that we’ve gotten better at creating transgenic crop, but they omit that we’ve gotten astronomically better at detecting unintended consequences. Technologies such as whole genome sequencing and microarrays are used because of the whole “we don’t know what we don’t know” phenomenon. These technologies will allow you to analyze RNA and DNA so that you can identify mutations that you didn’t intend to make or RNA hybrids that you were unaware of. In a recent Q&A with the Arctic Apple company on GMO Skepti-Forum, Arctic Apple’s staff mentioned that they had the genome of their apple sequenced. All 750 million bases of it. And their conclusion was that there were no unintended mutations. So it’s not surprising that in an online search, I was able to find out that companies such as Monsanto and Dow Agro use these technologies as well to study GMOs.”
A good section of Schubert’s paper is about the whole Tryptophan incident. I wrote about this a while back (http://frankenfoodfacts.blogspot.com/2013/11/irt-gm-food-supplement-caused-deadly.html). The NEJM paper that investigated the incident doesn’t mention how the contaminant was made. The manufacturer of the supplement made quite a few changes in their process in a very short time period, so finding root cause was not possible (http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJM199008093230601#t=article+Results).
I also think that it’s important to keep in mind that traditional breeding methods could also generate allergens and novel proteins. Traditional breeding methods can also cause harm (the Lenape Potato is a classic example). So I don’t think that there’s anything inherently riskier in a GMO than a traditionally bred crop.
6. Here’s the point: we now know that tiny amounts of altered metabolites can have major impacts on health. And they’re more likely to appear with certain types of GE. We do require allergenicity testing on a new trait – like the addition of 2S albumin to soybean mentioned in your 1996 study. But we don’t require testing that would reveal the kinds of inadvertent, unwanted results discussed by Schubert.
“So I don’t think that there’s anything inherently riskier in a GMO than a traditionally bred crop.”
Isn’t this the kind of sweeping statement we’ve decided we should avoid? Since we’ve already established that deleterious changes can occur, the risk is then determined by how well our regulations prevent those changes from reaching the market. If companies are doing the sort of exhaustive analysis you describe, why don’t we just require it and have independent regulators examine it?
I don’t support a “stuff happens” approach to GMO safety.
1. No, I stand by that statement. There’s nothing in the process of making a GMO that is riskier than the process of making a traditionally bred crop. Both have risks, and one could argue that adding 1-2 genes has fewer unintended consequences than traditional breeding. The statement does not mean that deleterious changes cannot occur.
I absolutely agree with you on the second part of your comment. I don’t like the “voluntary” testing that GMOs undergo. I think that this article from Grist outlines the issue very well: http://grist.org/food/the-gm-safety-dance-whats-rule-and-whats-real/ I think that there should be a mandatory set of tests, and that these will increase with the relative risk of the trait being introduced. For example, if someone wants to make a crop using the same Bt protein that’s already in corn, I don’t think that testing for allergenicity should be required or animal feeding studies. But I think that sequencing of the crop’s DNA, showing where it’s introduced and that there aren’t any unintended consequences, should be required. But if someone is introducing a protein into a crop for the first time, then feeding studies, allergenicity, etc should be required.
7. Nobody has to ‘prove GMOs are safe’, we just need to move the bar more in the direction of ‘safe’ as much as we can. We have a responsibility to ask better questions all the time, and not stick our heads in the sand, while human breast milk contaminants rise.
8. I have one questions for Layla Parker-Katiraee — Do you eat genetically modified food, or do you eat organic food?
1. Hi Emily,
I feed my family (including my 3 year old son) both. I try to buy fruits and veggies that are in season and are from California (since that’s where we live), and I just buy whatever’s cheapest. Lately, that seems to breakdown as:
-meat/eggs/dairy: always conventional
-fruits and veggies: mostly conventional, except berries which are sometimes cheaper when organic.
-dry goods: generally conventional, except for my kids’ snacks which are cheaper at Costco as organics. The Kirkland brand has some very good deals on childrens’ organic snacks.
9. Layla,
Your quote: “There’s nothing in the process of making a GMO that is riskier than the process of making a traditionally bred crop.” might be correct, i’m not sure yet, however, the speed of the development of GMOs could mean that IF a risky development occurred it might crop up much quicker than in conventional breeding. And with even more experimental GMOs rapidly being developed, the risk of finding risks could then increase per unit of time compared to conventional breeding. However, it would also mean that any beneficial characteristics could increase too. IMHO
1. Ray, why do you say that harms would crop up quicker with genetic engineering than in non-GE breeding? The research that I am familiar with indicates that GE causes fewer unintended consequences than breeding when you are trying to move an individual trait from one variety to another, or to generate new traits.
2. Why do you think that speed of development of GMOs is faster…
Monsanto, for instance, releases approximately 100 new corn hybrids every year into the North American market. They release, optimistically, one trait a year, maybe one every two to three.
New hybrids can hit the market in as few as two to three years, new lines probably take 5 or 6 (new hybrids made using established lines don’t require as much testing, new lines have to be proven winners before consideration as commercial material)
A new trait will take approximately a decade to reach the market.
1. Ewan – I wonder if you could explain that genetic engineering, at least for corn, is at its essence a means for introducing traits into a breeding program that are introgressed into existing varieties pretty much as any other trait is regardless of the source of of the trait.
People have, I think, the mistaken mental model that ge means that we take a genome, do some funky laboratory manipulations in a petri dish, and then the resulting glob we grow out into an organism that yeah resembles corn but is really some synthetic version of corn. Then we take that organism and replicate it until we have commercial quantitides of seed, bag it up, and sell it to farmers. This new synthetic organism replaces all the hundreds of varieties of corn that preceded it and we must just throw all the old varieties out and are left with this one, genetically uniform synthetic corn replica.
It is my understanding that what actually happens is that yes we do accomplish a horizontal gene transfer of gene X, utilizing a a naturally occurring process, i.e.agrobacterium infection, under laboratory controlled conditions, into the genome of a host corn cell. We then allow that cell to develop into a corn plant with gene X. We then transfer gene X into the existing varieties by the familiar methods of crossbreeding these varieties with the host plant contains gene X.. With several iterations of backcrossing, we arrive at the original existing varieties but with the addition of gene X.
Now, let’s say we find a variety of corn growing in Mexico that has a desirable gene, let’s call it gene Y. To transfer that trait to our existing varieties, we cross that Mexican variety into our existing varieties via crossbreeding, and with several iterations of backcrossing, our existing varieties now contain gene Y. Notice that we didn’t just take the Mexican variety, grow commercial quantities of it, bag the seed and sell it to farmers, and throw away all the hundreds of old seed varieties.
Third example. We expose a a corn plant to radiation resulting in a mutation in the genome that is a novel gene, gene Z. Again, we transfer gene Z into our existing varieties by crossing the mutated plant now contains gene Z with the preexisting varieties, and with several iterations of backcrossing, arrive at the original existing varieties but now containing gene Z.
In all cases, we did not abandon all of the diversity of genetics preexisting in the hundreds of corn varieties, we just added new genes on top of the genetic diversity represented in those varieties. And we accomplished the actual final transfer of the novel gene into our preexisting corn varieties by crossbreeding. In essence, genetic engineering, just like mutagenisis, in effect allows us to expand the genetic pool available to be accessed by and introduced into crop breeding programs beyond the confines of the gene pool available within that crop species.
10. I think all you have to do, is hammer home that nearly all foods on the market have been altered many times by accelerated mutation breeding, using x-ray, gamma, and chemical mutagens, and none of this has ever been examined by government regulatory bodies.
If you mention this to an anti-GE believer, they try to excuse mutation breeding, without even knowing what it is. Then they forget about it, and go about attacking “corporations”.
Having said that, I don’t believe that making crops glyphosate resistant, and adding copyright mechanisms is a good idea, if you want to placate an anti-corporate public.
1. In my experience, I have seen several different reactions to anti-GMO individuals being told about mutagenesis and all that. Some deny that it is true, or even deny that it is allowed in organic agriculture. Others decide that mutagenesis must also be labeled or banned. So far, none have said that it made them feel better about GMOs.
However, several of us have noticed that there is a basic misunderstanding about the need for genetic changes to food through breeding and/or genetic engineering. I find the most effective approach for an open-minded audience is to talk about why we need to change the genetics of our crops, and then I talk about some of the different ways of doing that. People need to be convinced of the need for these changes in general.
11. Karl, and Chris,
Yes, but my point was with the ‘per/unit of time’ potential appearance of changes within GE AG compared with the much slower conventional breeding. GE might cause fewer unintended consequences, but since GE is expanding at such a rapid rate, a larger total number of unintended consequences could still accumulate at a faster rate than the slower development of the conventional breeding. Not a big deal… unless it is a big deal. Just means that GE AG has a challenge to keep those unintended consequences from becoming a big deal. Far wider, faster, dispersal around the globe of GE crops means potential far wider spread of an such unintended consequences before adequate corrective action could be made. Larger populations could be affected more quickly that with conventional breeding. Just saying.IMHO
12. Hi Layla, We are very far from the kind of mandatory set of tests you describe. I appreciated the Grist article, and will link to this report referenced in that article. Our regulations haven’t changed since their inception.
Holes in the Biotech Safety Net
It’s not just about the relative risk of the trait. I think the statement “There’s nothing in the process of making a GMO that is riskier than the process of making a traditionally bred crop.” is still too broad. Which GMO? what process? Which traditionally bred crop? This graphic illustrates “Relative likelihood of unintended genetic effects associated with various methods of plant genetic modification.”
I think this is about: what possible harm can be created by any one individual GMO – and – does our current regulatory system ensure that that harm will not happen? In our current GMOs it doesn’t seem that the risk of harm is too great. That’s for more than one reason, one being that people aren’t generally exposed to the foodstuff in a way that might cause harm if there were any. And the engineering of herbicide tolerance isn’t one that would be prone to creating the kinds of changes that might have a health effect. Also, because bt is a pesticide, the EPA has required its own testing. However, even so, if there were harmful changes in any of the many dozens of GMOs we’ve commercialized, we would have no way of knowing. This becomes more of an issue as we begin to tinker with nutrition.
13. I think this is about whether or not you believe it’s possible for genetic engineering to produce changes in structure/metabolism that would lead to negative health effects in humans, and whether or not our regulatory system would “catch” those.
1. Mlema, most of us recognize that gene transfer, even if done exactly as intended, can have unknown and undesirable metabolic effects. We also recognize that no testing method or regulatory regime can catch every possible unanticipated trait.
Where we differ from the anti-GMO groups is that we don’t believe that the biotechnology-based transformations are ESPECIALLY risky in comparison to many other breeding technologies, and the reasons for our belief are overwhelmingly sound.
Surely you would agree that gene changes accomplished by exposure of the organism to gamma rays are MORE LIKELY to cause unanticipated metabolic changes. Almost as surely, you would agree that induced polyploidy is MORE LIKELY to cause unanticipated metabolic changes. Possibly you would even agree that even non-genetic changes, such as growing conditions, can change metabolism in unanticipated ways that might cause harm. The question, then, is “Why does biotechnology get treated so suspiciously while these other issues are essentially ignored by the anti-GMO movement?”
Sometimes those anti-GMO suspicions are presented dishonestly. (I’m not talking about the blatant dishonesty aimed at fools, such as the suicide seeds or the wild animals who avoid GMO crops.) For example, we often read that the process of gene transfer is imprecise and can make gene changes beyond the insertion of a desired gene, such as when the inserted gene lands in the middle of another gene. But that’s irrelevant since after the insertion event, we can analyze the genome to see precisely how it was changed. Why do we need to waste time debunking these dishonest claims?
Another issue is that while no testing or regulatory protocol can efficiently detect UNANTICIPATED effects, we can do very well in testing for ANTICIPATED effects. In the case of a GMO, there’s a very definite set of anticipated effects which suggest tests – for example, we can test whether the new protein is an allergen, or whether the promoter gene is turning the desired gene on (or off) in the anticipated way. With many other breeding methods we have ONLY unanticipated effects and we have ONLY HOPE that some of them are favorable traits. We have no clue about how to test new non-GMO crops for anything.
1. Charles, you put things a bit more bluntly than I may have done, but I agree that the level of scrutiny focused on plant and animal recombinant DNA technology compared to the total lack of scrutiny for all other genetic changes that present far more potential for unintended changes makes no sense.
1. Dr. Bodnar: “…the level of scrutiny focused on plant and animal recombinant DNA technology compared to the total lack of scrutiny for all other genetic changes that present far more potential for unintended changes makes no sense.”
Anastasia, when you say “scrutiny” – are you talking about regulatory requirements? Or are you talking about public attention?
If you’re talking about regulations, what is it that you believe is required of developers of transgenic plants that should NOT be required?
What are you referring to when you say “all other genetic changes that present far more potential for unintended changes”? Are you referring to mutagenesis? Do you believe it should be regulated more? Or are you suggesting transgenics should be regulated less? What regulations -exactly- should be added or done away with?
Thank you for your answers.
2. Charles, I get the feeling that you’re exasperated with anti-GMO groups and would like me to explain why they say what they say. But I can only speak for myself.
Risk is relative. That’s why I’ve linked to the NAS report (above). It illustrates the “Relative likelihood of unintended genetic effects associated with various methods of plant genetic modification”. Of course, genetic effects aren’t necessarily concerning. What is the significance of the genetic effect to human health? – that’s the question. I agree with some of the comparisons you’ve made between various kinds of plant development, but not all. Same on the environment. I’ve already linked to another comment I made on this site that then links to these studies, but I’ll link strait away here (these are two studies that examine MON810, and compare it to similar varieties/isogenic parent in the field).
The first finds “…that MON810 and comparable non-GM varieties are equivalent except for the introduced character.”:
“Gene expression profiles of MON810 and comparable non-GM maize varieties cultured in the field are more similar than are those of conventional lines”
“…no sequence was found to be differentially regulated in the two variety pairs grown in the field. The differential expression patterns observed between in vitro and field culture were similar between MON810 and comparable varieties, with higher divergence between the two conventional varieties.”
The second finds protein changes apparently due to the engineering:
Comparative proteomic analysis of genetically modified maize grown under different agroecosystems conditions in Brazil
“This study observes that although differences in gene expression occur due to environmental conditions and show changes between parent, transgenic and other non-transgenic varieties, those changes can be isolated. And that further comparative analysis reveals that 32 proteins are differently expressed between MON810 and it’s isogenic parent, separate from environmental causes.”
So, what is the significance of differently expressed proteins? Again, there may be no significance. What aspect of our regulations would ensure that these differently expressed proteins were safe?
My other comments and links explain pretty thoroughly where I stand on safety and regulations. In order to sway my opinions on these things, you’d have to reply to the concerns raised by the scientists whose writing I’ve linked to.
“..after the insertion event, we can analyze the genome to see precisely how it was changed”
Who decides what level of change is acceptable? How is the significance of these changes determined? There would need to be some kind of assessment of changes in the final product in order to determine whether or not there might be a problem. Our regulations don’t require this, and although I would suspect that the industry does it as part of development in certain cases, there’s no transparency. We’re growing GMOs that haven’t been analyzed in this way. Right now, with herbicide tolerance and bt being the majority of GMOs, concerns are probably minimal. But the industry is moving into more complex engineering, and also engineering old traits into foods that will be directly consumed – like bt eggplant. Every event is unique and safety will become more important.
Regarding testing new non-GMO crops – I think that would be done the same way we should be testing GMOs – by utilizing the best methodology we have for analyzing the composition of the plant and identifying problematic changes. The data is growing but we don’t always know what it means. So, again, it’s about whether or not you believe it’s possible for genetic engineering (or any breeding) to produce changes in structure/metabolism that would lead to negative health effects in humans, and whether or not our regulatory system would “catch” those. I gather that you don’t believe that it’s any more possible for transgenics to produce deleterious changes in our food than it is for any other kind of plant, and maybe even less so. I don’t mean to be confusing, but in some cases I’d agree, and in others not. There are just too many factors to allow for a generalization about GMO safety.
14. As a lay observer, I find this piece delightfully informative. The whole “null hypothesis” thing has confused me, but now I can say I understand it better. Many, many thanks.
15. Ewan, I wouldn’t mind having you explain that opinion as it relates to safety issues and regulation.
Comments are closed. | dclm_baseline | {'bff_contained_ngram_count_before_dedupe': '138', 'language_id_whole_page_fasttext': "{'en': 0.9537301063537598}", 'metadata': "{'Content-Length': '145601', 'Content-Type': 'application/http; msgtype=response', 'WARC-Block-Digest': 'sha1:GLKJUDPCWRS6YPJLAWSZAAK3INEVEORP', 'WARC-Concurrent-To': '<urn:uuid:ae6a7cae-989d-40f7-a8c3-2b09c9055dac>', 'WARC-Date': datetime.datetime(2019, 1, 19, 5, 18, 29), 'WARC-IP-Address': '192.0.78.212', 'WARC-Identified-Payload-Type': 'text/html', 'WARC-Payload-Digest': 'sha1:VXCMV4GMQHFKJMWF5UOQKFLRHANAKMZL', 'WARC-Record-ID': '<urn:uuid:c071579b-3f22-40f4-b154-d92f12adce30>', 'WARC-Target-URI': 'https://biofortified.org/2015/05/20/prove-gmos-are-safe/', 'WARC-Type': 'response', 'WARC-Warcinfo-ID': '<urn:uuid:159efae8-70ef-41f2-a8e7-e78a4cd8280f>', 'WARC-Truncated': None}", 'previous_word_count': '7031', 'url': 'https://biofortified.org/2015/05/20/prove-gmos-are-safe/', 'warcinfo': 'isPartOf: CC-MAIN-2019-04\r\npublisher: Common Crawl\r\ndescription: Wide crawl of the web for January 2019\r\noperator: Common Crawl Admin (info@commoncrawl.org)\r\nhostname: ip-10-101-220-24.ec2.internal\r\nsoftware: Apache Nutch 1.15 (modified, https://github.com/commoncrawl/nutch/)\r\nrobots: checked via crawler-commons 0.11-SNAPSHOT (https://github.com/crawler-commons/crawler-commons)\r\nformat: WARC File Format 1.1\r\nconformsTo: http://iipc.github.io/warc-specifications/specifications/warc-format/warc-1.1/', 'fasttext_openhermes_reddit_eli5_vs_rw_v2_bigram_200k_train_prob': '0.06367874145507812', 'original_id': '69bc0cba1a06fc39a7233f7779d076a71b76e5920c1b84a30351d1cb2006c8a0'} |
Energy In, Energy Out: Getting Off the Fossil Fuel Treadmill
Published on
Energy In, Energy Out: Getting Off the Fossil Fuel Treadmill
The European Union (EU) fuel quality directive requires a 6 per cent reduction in the greenhouse gas (GHG) intensity of fuels used in vehicles by 2020. To help meet this target, the EU has calculated average GHG releases from biofuels, conventional crude, tar sands, and oil shale using a "life-cycle" approach, including emissions from extraction, processing and distribution.
Canada's federal government recently released a new report criticizing the EU's fuel quality directive: the Independent Assessment of the European Commission's Fuel Quality Directive's "Conventional" Default Value. The report does not challenge the EU's conclusion that development of tar sands and shale oil releases high amounts of GHGs. It merely asserts that "some light and heavy conventional crudes have GHG intensities that are similar or even higher than those of crudes derived from natural bitumen," because of flaring "in oil fields where infrastructure is insufficient to handle the associated gas. " It cites Russia and Nigeria as countries where gas flaring increases GHG releases.
The report then argues that since the EU cannot prove that development of tar sands always releases more GHGs than conventional crude, no distinction should be made between the two.
Claims that tar sands are no different from conventional fossil fuels are doomed to failure. Tar sands are a less concentrated form of energy. Extracting oil from a conventional oil field is like having a large boulder poised right on the edge of a hill. It only takes a small nudge to send this boulder down, transforming its potential energy into kinetic energy that can do work. Tar sands are like a boulder several hundred metres from the edge of the hill -- a boulder that requires a lot of pushing before its energy is released.
Around 1970, the ecologist Charles Hall coined the term "Energy Return on Investment" (EROI) to describe this phenomenon. In a 2011 paper in the journal Sustainability he explains that "EROI is simply the energy gained from an energy-obtaining effort divided by the energy used to get that energy. For example, one barrel of oil invested into getting oil out of the ground might return fifty, thirty, ten or one barrel…"
'Arguing whether the "worst" sources of conventional oil have higher GHG intensities than the "best" sources of tar sands bitumen amounts to rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic.'Hall asks, "Since it appears that we will be living indefinitely in a world of decreasing EROIs, what are the economic, social and psychological implications?" He claims that "few issues are likely to be more important for the future of civilization," and warns of ongoing financial crises: "While this is not to discount the role of greed, corruption and mismanagement in all things financial, nor the enormous shift in wealth to the upper few percent over the past several decades, at the root of it all lies the decline in cheap, high EROI fuel that had once allowed the economy to do more work."
He goes on to explain, "to have a modern civilization one needs not simply surplus energy but lots of it, and that requires either a high EROI or a massive source of moderate EROI fuels... we are watching the beginning of the decline of civilization driven by a declining EROI. If things get a lot tougher, as many think, the low EROI energy that is available will go to growing food and supporting families. It is clear that we must understand energy and its changes if we are to understand changes in our economy."
Use of the phrase "responsible energy development" to refer to fossil fuel extraction is not helping Canadians understand energy. Physics tells us that energy can neither be created nor destroyed. Energy infrastructure can be "developed" -- hydroelectric dams, power lines, wind farms, solar arrays, pipelines -- but not energy itself. Energy infrastructure for tar sands consists of huge trucks and digging equipment, along with upgraders and pipelines. This is all part of a boom and bust cycle -- infrastructure that will vanish when the tar sands are depleted or become too expensive to extract.
A key point of EROI analysis is that energy invested to get an energy return need not be fossil fuel energy. It is possible to transport goods and people, run factories, and generate electricity in a carbon-neutral world that uses only non-fossil-fuel energy sources. But this will require a more strategic approach to energy use. Hydropower is steadier than wind power and good for running factories, biodiesel works well in tractors with diesel engines that produce a lot of torque, solar energy is great for lighting, wood for heating, etc.
It's a bit rich when Natural Resources Minister Joe Oliver says that "Canada supports the EU Commission's objective of reducing greenhouse gas emissions for transportation fuels but believes it must be based on science and facts." Canada's current government has shown a limited appetite for science and facts -- particularly on climate change. Arguing whether the "worst" sources of conventional oil have higher GHG intensities than the "best" sources of tar sands bitumen amounts to rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic.
Climate change science says that there is no more time for baby steps. The fossil fuel treadmill has already brought us super typhoons, hurricanes, tornados, floods and droughts. Tar sands, conventional oil, shale oil, natural gas from fracking, coal stripped off mountaintops: all create financial crises, climate disruption, property damage and loss of life.
If Canada truly shares the EU objective of reducing GHG emissions it must stop "fighting" efforts to slow tar sands development, and do something positive -- such as developing a plan for transformation to a carbon-neutral society. Countries like New Zealand have already committed to a long-term objective of eliminating, as opposed to reducing, GHG emissions.
The need for a societal dialogue on energy -- one based on science and facts -- has never been greater. Let's get on with it.
Ole Hendrickson
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/*
* Copyright (C) Research In Motion Limited 2010. All rights reserved.
* Copyright (C) 2004, 2005, 2007 Nikolas Zimmermann <zimmermann@kde.org>
* Copyright (C) 2004, 2005, 2008 Rob Buis <buis@kde.org>
* Copyright (C) 2005, 2007 Eric Seidel <eric@webkit.org>
* Copyright (C) 2009 Google, Inc.
*
* This library is free software; you can redistribute it and/or
* modify it under the terms of the GNU Library General Public
* License as published by the Free Software Foundation; either
* version 2 of the License, or (at your option) any later version.
*
* This library is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
* but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
* MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the GNU
* Library General Public License for more details.
*
* You should have received a copy of the GNU Library General Public License
* along with this library; see the file COPYING.LIB. If not, write to
* the Free Software Foundation, Inc., 51 Franklin Street, Fifth Floor,
* Boston, MA 02110-1301, USA.
*/
#include "config.h"
#if ENABLE(SVG)
#include "SVGMarkerLayoutInfo.h"
#include "RenderSVGResourceMarker.h"
namespace WebCore {
SVGMarkerLayoutInfo::SVGMarkerLayoutInfo()
: m_midMarker(0)
, m_elementIndex(0)
, m_strokeWidth(0)
{
}
SVGMarkerLayoutInfo::~SVGMarkerLayoutInfo()
{
}
static inline void processStartAndMidMarkers(void* infoPtr, const PathElement* element)
{
SVGMarkerLayoutInfo& info = *reinterpret_cast<SVGMarkerLayoutInfo*>(infoPtr);
SVGMarkerData& markerData = info.markerData();
int& elementIndex = info.elementIndex();
// First update the outslope for the previous element
markerData.updateOutslope(element->points[0]);
// Draw the marker for the previous element
RenderSVGResourceMarker* marker = markerData.marker();
if (elementIndex > 0 && marker)
info.addLayoutedMarker(marker, markerData.origin(), markerData.currentAngle());
// Update our marker data for this element
markerData.updateMarkerDataForPathElement(element);
// After drawing the start marker, switch to drawing mid markers
if (elementIndex == 1)
markerData.updateTypeAndMarker(SVGMarkerData::Mid, info.midMarker());
++elementIndex;
}
FloatRect SVGMarkerLayoutInfo::calculateBoundaries(RenderSVGResourceMarker* startMarker, RenderSVGResourceMarker* midMarker, RenderSVGResourceMarker* endMarker, float strokeWidth, const Path& path)
{
m_layout.clear();
m_midMarker = midMarker;
m_strokeWidth = strokeWidth;
m_elementIndex = 0;
m_markerData = SVGMarkerData(SVGMarkerData::Start, startMarker);
path.apply(this, processStartAndMidMarkers);
if (endMarker) {
m_markerData.updateTypeAndMarker(SVGMarkerData::End, endMarker);
addLayoutedMarker(endMarker, m_markerData.origin(), m_markerData.currentAngle());
}
if (m_layout.isEmpty())
return FloatRect();
Vector<MarkerLayout>::iterator it = m_layout.begin();
Vector<MarkerLayout>::iterator end = m_layout.end();
FloatRect bounds;
for (; it != end; ++it) {
MarkerLayout& layout = *it;
RenderSVGResourceMarker* markerContent = layout.marker;
ASSERT(markerContent);
bounds.unite(markerContent->markerBoundaries(layout.matrix));
}
return bounds;
}
void SVGMarkerLayoutInfo::clear()
{
m_midMarker = 0;
m_elementIndex = 0;
m_strokeWidth = 0;
m_markerData.updateTypeAndMarker(SVGMarkerData::Unknown, 0);
m_layout.clear();
}
void SVGMarkerLayoutInfo::drawMarkers(PaintInfo& paintInfo)
{
if (m_layout.isEmpty())
return;
Vector<MarkerLayout>::iterator it = m_layout.begin();
Vector<MarkerLayout>::iterator end = m_layout.end();
for (; it != end; ++it) {
MarkerLayout& layout = *it;
layout.marker->draw(paintInfo, layout.matrix);
}
}
void SVGMarkerLayoutInfo::addLayoutedMarker(RenderSVGResourceMarker* marker, const FloatPoint& origin, float angle)
{
ASSERT(marker);
m_layout.append(MarkerLayout(marker, marker->markerTransformation(origin, angle, m_strokeWidth)));
}
}
#endif // ENABLE(SVG)
| mini_pile | {'original_id': '1345a431cb466047513b755556bbd4ce9bf04bb97c58ebd468821ffbbbb8e9be'} |
[Nameplate] Overcast ~ 34°F
High: 42°F ~ Low: 32°F
Monday, Mar. 2, 2015
BIC falls to Marmaduke
Friday, January 25, 2002
Buffalo Island Central hosted the Marmaduke Greyhounds in a game that won't soon be forgotten last Friday night. BIC, who needed to win this important conference game, came out strong with Erick Lyerly grabbing the tip and later scoring after snatching up the offensive rebound. However, Marmaduke made it clear early that they were there to play scoring on their first possession and tying the score at two apiece. With 5:55 left in the first Lyerly scored off another offensive rebound increasing his teams lead 4-2. After being fouled, Marmaduke headed to the line making one free-throw, missing the next, but regaining possession to shoot the three-point shot and giving the Greyhounds a 6-4 lead. The greyhounds then pressured BIC into making a bad pass allowing a steal and increasing their lead to 8-4. Trying to revive his team, Mark Hawkins stepped behind the line to make a long three, cutting Marmaduke's lead to one. With 3:25 left in the first Ryan Wallace took his turn behind the three-point line to give his team the lead once again.
BIC's defense was totally dominating the first quarter allowing their offense to make some key shots. Cal Rose kept the ball rolling for BIC, finding Hawkins who hit another three and gave the Mustangs a 13-8 lead. Marmaduke's game was falling apart early and another three by BIC's Wallace didn't help their situation. BIC's Billy Meeks hit a jumper in the closing seconds of the first quarter and gave his team a tremendous 20-10 lead. As the second quarter bean, BIC fell into a scoring drought. It seemed as if Marmaduke had finally found a way to slow them down. Hawkins finally ended the 4:00 drought and hit a long jumper to keep a 22-14 lead. With 3:14 left in the half Meeks came up with a big steal that led to a Hawkins three. Hawkins struck again on BIC's next possession hitting another three-pointer and giving the Mustangs a 28-16 lead. With just over a minute left in the half, Marmaduke caught their opponents sleeping and hit a three-pointer of their own. As the half went into the final second Marmaduke made a trip to the line and made two free-throws cutting BIC's lead to 30-24.
As the third quarter commenced, Marmaduke looked like another team. They showed no mercy on both ends of the court. In just three minutes the Greyhounds tied the game 36-36; BIC's offense was at a total standstill. Trying to get something started for his team, Lyerly penetrated the inside regaining the lead. Still in the zone, Marmaduke charged down the court, pulled up to shoot the three and got fouled in the process. After making three free-throws, Marmaduke got a taste of the lead pulling ahead 39-38. With 3:40 left in the third, Lyerly was making it known that he could not be guarded putting up another short jumper and stealing the lead back once again. Scoring was back and forth for the rest of the third and when the buzzer went off the game was tied at 43.
As the fourth quarter began, the tension between both teams was felt throughout the gym. BIC['s Lyerly was intent on making sure that the Mustangs finished on top, taking the ball once again and forcing the Greyhounds to foul him. Knowing that a new strategy was needed if they were to win, Marmaduke passed the ball constantly throwing the Mustangs off balance. This technique seemed to be working until Hawkins read a pass perfectly, stole it, and hit another three-pointer giving BIC a 47-46 lead.
Understanding that victory was in reach, Lyerly was storming the inside lane forcing Marmaduke to foul him. Down by two, Marmaduke grabbed an offensive rebound and shot a three-pointer of their own and once again regained a one-point lead. With 1:56 left in the game, the score was tied at 54. Hawkins, who had had a brilliant game, hit another three-pointer and gave the Mustangs a 57-54 lead.
BIC got the ball back and used smart ball movement to burn time off the clock. The events that took place in the next 29 seconds left many speechless and wondering what happened.
With 29 seconds left in the game, Marmaduke called a timeout to try and devise a plan to overcome their 59-56 deficit. Once out of the huddle, the Greyhounds drove the ball down the land and cut BIC's lead to one with 21 seconds left. The greyhounds then fouled BIC's Wallace immediately. With four seconds left on the clock, Marmaduke grabbed the defensive rebound, charged down court and caught the foul.
If both free-throws were made, Marmaduke was going home with the win. The Mustangs watched as the first free throw found its mark and tied the game 59-59. The second free-throw; however, bounded off the rim and with four seconds on the clock found its way into the hands of a Marmaduke Greyhound who shot a fade away jumper to win the game 61-59. Staring in disbelief, the Mustangs congratulated their opponents and went into the locker room knowing that they gave their all and played a remarkable game.
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Please be respectful of others and try to stay on topic. | dclm_baseline | {'bff_contained_ngram_count_before_dedupe': '19', 'language_id_whole_page_fasttext': "{'en': 0.974487602710724}", 'metadata': "{'Content-Length': '17085', 'Content-Type': 'application/http; msgtype=response', 'WARC-Block-Digest': 'sha1:OGNPEGY6VNGL4OUTGMBT7LRQ6DYTQNXD', 'WARC-Concurrent-To': '<urn:uuid:d36bf4fe-59ba-4d9d-9732-4340b4bf6970>', 'WARC-Date': datetime.datetime(2015, 3, 2, 7, 22, 54), 'WARC-IP-Address': '64.123.246.64', 'WARC-Identified-Payload-Type': None, 'WARC-Payload-Digest': 'sha1:VYOIZJWT4NCGYFOABULMS5DFPEYBQRJE', 'WARC-Record-ID': '<urn:uuid:8ec2b95e-bef2-469c-8911-0f32b3541251>', 'WARC-Target-URI': 'http://www.thetown-crier.com/story/1325089.html', 'WARC-Type': 'response', 'WARC-Warcinfo-ID': '<urn:uuid:c07f85ba-1a91-4648-b24c-249df2bd3043>', 'WARC-Truncated': None}", 'previous_word_count': '925', 'url': 'http://www.thetown-crier.com/story/1325089.html', 'warcinfo': 'robots: classic\r\nhostname: ip-10-28-5-156.ec2.internal\r\nsoftware: Nutch 1.6 (CC)/CC WarcExport 1.0\r\nisPartOf: CC-MAIN-2015-11\r\noperator: CommonCrawl Admin\r\ndescription: Wide crawl of the web with URLs provided by Blekko for February 2015\r\npublisher: CommonCrawl\r\nformat: WARC File Format 1.0\r\nconformsTo: http://bibnum.bnf.fr/WARC/WARC_ISO_28500_version1_latestdraft.pdf', 'fasttext_openhermes_reddit_eli5_vs_rw_v2_bigram_200k_train_prob': '0.029199182987213135', 'original_id': '5f47eab7c5d2375e449c0d08289679278c4304cca471b36bd4d07f561bcbb54e'} |
Got a question? We'd love to help!
Earning a Return
• How do I earn a return?
The amount you may earn depends on the type of investment contract the company is offering.
There are four classes on Wefunder:
• Debt. Some local businesses offer a simple loan or revenue share. A simple loan, just like your car loan, has a fixed repayment schedule known in advance. Unlike a loan, a revenue share returns a fixed amount of money (such as 2X your investment), but the time it takes to repay depends on how well the business does. The faster the business grows revenue, the faster you earn a return, and the higher your effective interest rate.
• Convertibles. Most early-stage technology startups use a Convertible Note or Simple Agreement for Future Equity. These will convert your investment to stock at a later date if the company raises a "priced round" from major investors, most often venture capitalists. At this point, you are a shareholder owning equity, and you earn a return if the value of that stock goes up over time, and you are able to sell it.
• Stock, No Dividends. When a startup is at a stage where they can afford to pay lawyers tens of thousands of dollars, they will do a "priced round". Like the stock market, you are buying equity at a fixed price per share (or unit for LLC's). If the company is successful, the value of the stock can increase with each subsequent round of financing, until the company is acquired or goes public. Then you earn a return.
• Stock, Dividends. While a tech startup almost never offers dividends, a later-stage local business - such as a brewery opening a second location - often will. The type of dividend can vary. Some might offer a fixed dividend per share per year. Some might offer a percentage of profits. A common scenario is also to "swap" the dividend after your investment is repaid. For instance, a brewery might share 80% of its profits until the investors are repaid, and then 20% thereafter in perpetuity.
Was this article helpful?
• How long until I see a return?
The amount of time it takes to see a return is highly dependent on the type of investment contract.
• Debt. A simple loan will define the number of months until it is paid back. For a revenue share, it depends on their projections for future revenue. The faster the business makes money, the faster you will see a return.
• Convertibles & Stock with No Dividends. You are waiting until the company goes public or is acquired. This can take a very long time. It took the early investors in Harmonix (the creators of Guitar Hero) over 10 years to earn a return.
• Stock with Dividends. This depends on the specific investment agreement. Typically, dividends are a percentage of profits. Therefore, the amount of time to see a return depends on how profitable the business is.
Was this article helpful?
• How is the valuation determined?
Market demand often determines the valuation. Typically, before a company fundraises on Wefunder, at least one professional investor has invested in the company. Professional investors are much more likely to understand the current market value of startups. This valuation shifts with time, depending on the amount of capital chasing startups. Right now, early-stage high-growth startups are often valued at $3 to $20 million for their first financing. Lifestyle businesses are valued at less. Companies that have raised several rounds of financing and are further along are worth far more.
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Home - Writing - The Million Word March Mail Hal C F Astell - Site Map
Lego Arcology
Sunday, 27th May, 2001
I remember the concept well from science fiction. I just never expected to spend time in one. I'm talking about an arcology, a self-contained (or almost self-contained) building.
Jerry Pournelle and Larry Niven wrote in 'Oath of Fealty' about an arcology, a huge building that is home to a quarter of a million people. Within the building these people live, work and play, in perfect safety. Privacy is the price they pay for total security.
The blocks in the Judge Dredd series work on the same lines. If you don't want to leave your block, you don't have to. It has everything you could possibly need to exist, all within one building.
So does Sam's Town. Nah, this one's not science fiction. I've just spent a weekend there. It's situated a little way out of town in Las Vegas, Sin City, gambling capital of the world.
It crept up on me a little. When I first arrived and wandered into the lobby, I imagined being lost in a forest densely packed with trees. On each tree was a woodpecker, rap-rap-rapping away like a thousand metronomes just slightly out of sync. The foliage swept up to the sky, spreading out all around, almost subsuming us. But the woodpeckers were gamblers, from every possible walk of life. Their trees were slot machines and the sound was the sound of coins in perpetual motion.
The elevators were glass backed and as we headed up to the ninth floor, we could look out at the inside of a hollow cube, furnished with real trees, walkways and waterways. At the far end was a mountain of rocks pleasantly decorated with a waterfall, and a wolf in a cave on top to preside over the proceedings.
When we reached our floor, we walked round the perimeter of the square to our room, past door after door after door. I was aware that Sam's Town was a big place but the full reality of it didn't materialise until later. I just saw seven floors of rooms and two floors of casino. That was just the background.
As the weekend progressed I started to see just how much was packed into this space. It was a busy few days, so busy that I almost didn't notice that we hadn't left the building until the Sunday night. We'd bowled at the fifty plus lane bowling alley; attended a prizegiving in one of the meeting rooms; wandered through the arcade. We'd watched the light show in the inner gardens, bought gifts at the store, eaten at a variety of restaurants and the ice cream parlour. And of course, we'd frittered away a little cash in the forest of slots. We were living in a self-contained world, or at least the illusion of one.
It isn't quite that self-contained in reality, of course. There's no shopping facility of any depth, so that we had to wander down the road to find Dr Pepper in any size larger than a can. A facility without two litre bottles of Dr Pepper is not self-contained. But I started wondering.
Plenty of my fellow guests would probably arrive at Sam's Town and spend their entire holiday without ever leaving the building. Airport, taxi, Sam's Town, taxi, airport. I did something vaguely similar way back when I was a kid; my family spent an entire week literally confined to a caravan by the vaguaries of Filey weather. The difference is that we knew we were confined back then because the only entertainment we had was conversation and a pack of cards. I wouldn't like to imagine how many packs of cards Sam's Town gets through in an average week. It's confinement on such a scale that it ceases to be confinement.
Why not take it all a step further. After all, this is America, land of the shopping mall. 'Dawn of the Dead' had it absolutely right - gore flick it may have been, but it was also a very astute sideswipe at American life and culture. The few survivors of the human race hid out at a mall, where they could find almost anything they could need; but the zombies kept coming too. As they were drawn there in life, so they were in death.
In England, a shopping mall is somewhere to go to buy something; we don't have too many of the creatures anyway as most of our shopping is done in town centres. In the States, a mall is a centre of community. It's much more than just shops; it's the location for everything a person could need, the supermarket taken to the extreme and beyond. There are malls with movie theatres, but Sam's Town has one too; malls with full sized amusement parks, but then so does the MGM Grand. Las Vegas goes a step further still - it even has the attractions of the world. Right there on the Strip you can see the Eiffel Tower, the Luxor Pyramid, the Statue of Liberty. Who needs to travel when you live in Vegas?
My idea was to merge the two, plug them together like gigantic pieces of Lego. Sam's Town would remain just as it is, an entertainment paradise with something to cater to every taste; but plugged into the side would be a means to acquire that bottle of Dr Pepper without having to venture out into the 108 degree heat of Las Vegas and the catcalls of the youths on the corner.
Suddenly it becomes less a stay and more an existence. Work in the mall; earn wages to pump back into the system in a hundred and one ways. You don't even have to feed the ravenous slots that bunch in armies everywhere you look, even at the airport. Just do what you would do normally: go see a movie, eat ice cream, buy clothes. At the end of the day, head back to your room that you don't even have to clean because the maid has already been there, done that. Time starts to mutate in this microcosm of civilisation at large. Life becomes a working holiday.
I'm surprised it hasn't been done already. Las Vegas is a city in perpetual flux: if Manhattan's skyline changed this often, it wouldn't be on so many postcards. Building a shopping mall next to a casino/hotel doesn't sound like much of a big deal to me, and it would be yet another incentive for brand loyalty.
I'd like to take credit for these ideas, but they're merely observations on what I saw around me, extrapolated from all sorts of stuff hiding away in my subconscious. Niven and Pournelle's arcology in 'Oath of Fealty' is probably the biggest catalyst for me, but they didn't invent the idea either, merely a fiction to throw around it. Arcologies were invented by Paolo Soleri in his book, 'Arcology: The City in the Image of Man'. The word itself is a portmanteau of 'architecture' and 'ecology', suggesting that the building can function as an organism itself.
Sam's Town felt safe, easy and flexible. I can now actually imagine living, at least for a while, keeping my world within one single building - and that surprises me. I'm such a fan of the outdoors that I would never think twice about leaving all that behind; but now I realise that, for most people at least, you can bring the outside inside.
More than anything, if people are happy about the concept, then it makes incredible sense. Soleri's main aims were environmental and an arcology would make such a difference that it's almost unimaginable. Take away a large, sprawling city with its frantic maze of transport links and replace it with a huge single building. You'll be able to reclaim massive amounts of land and revert them to nature. Transport would be much easier, much cleaner and much safer. After all, the car is probably the worst single polluter on the planet.
Soleri also wanted to reduce the distance between people socially as well as physically. In an arcology, it would be easy for everyone to get to libraries, concert halls or art galleries. People of differing opinions and differing social classes would be able to communicate much more simply, thus opening the way forward.
The more I think about, the more it makes total sense, and I'm amazed at thinking that. After all, my dream is to live in a converted lighthouse in the middle of nowhere. Isolation and privacy are very important to me; and the only way to find those in an arcology must surely to be lost in the crowd. In an environment keyed to push inviduality, that may not even be possible.
So, I may have to revisit Las Vegas, in a few years' time. Maybe the high and mighty town planners that mould and remould Las Vegas like so much silly putty will try plugging a Lego shopping mall into a Lego casino and watch the results. I have a thousand possibilities flooding my brain. I'm intrigued as to which one is the reality.
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The effect of bacillus Calmette-Guérin immunization depends on the genetic predisposition to Th2-type responsiveness.
The aim of this study was to investigate whether the effect of bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG) immunization on ovalbumin-induced allergic inflammation in a rat model depends on the genetic predisposition to react with a T helper cell (Th) 2-type cytokine response. This study was performed in an inbred Th2-predisposed "asthma prone" rat strain (brown Norway [BN]) and in an outbred nonpredisposed strain (Sprague Dawley [SD]), to differentiate between genetic and environmental factors. BCG decreased numbers of lung eosinophils and macrophages in the SD rat. This effect was not seen in the BN rat. In the BN rat, but not in the SD rat, BCG downregulated levels of total serum IgE. No significant differences were found with respect to frequencies of IFNgamma- or interleukin-4-producing cells in the lung in both rat strains. These results indicate that the degree and pathway of immunomodulatory effect of BCG in two genetically different rat strains is dependent on the genetic predisposition to develop a Th2-type response. Therefore, differences in genotype in relation to environment may result in difference in involvement of contributing pathogenic factors and thus different responsiveness to therapeutic strategies. | mini_pile | {'original_id': '8a6fdc1b827140f649984ff03034db56d424c54d6bef66a6d7035140919b57cf'} |
#8ca1ff Color Information
In a RGB color space, hex #8ca1ff is composed of 54.9% red, 63.1% green and 100% blue. Whereas in a CMYK color space, it is composed of 45.1% cyan, 36.9% magenta, 0% yellow and 0% black. It has a hue angle of 229 degrees, a saturation of 100% and a lightness of 77.5%. #8ca1ff color hex could be obtained by blending #ffffff with #1943ff. Closest websafe color is: #9999ff.
• R 55
• G 63
• B 100
RGB color chart
• C 45
• M 37
• Y 0
• K 0
CMYK color chart
#8ca1ff color description : Very light blue.
#8ca1ff Color Conversion
The hexadecimal color #8ca1ff has RGB values of R:140, G:161, B:255 and CMYK values of C:0.45, M:0.37, Y:0, K:0. Its decimal value is 9216511.
Hex triplet 8ca1ff #8ca1ff
RGB Decimal 140, 161, 255 rgb(140,161,255)
RGB Percent 54.9, 63.1, 100 rgb(54.9%,63.1%,100%)
CMYK 45, 37, 0, 0
HSL 229°, 100, 77.5 hsl(229,100%,77.5%)
HSV (or HSB) 229°, 45.1, 100
Web Safe 9999ff #9999ff
CIE-LAB 68.229, 16.588, -49.053
XYZ 41.606, 38.284, 99.799
xyY 0.232, 0.213, 38.284
CIE-LCH 68.229, 51.782, 288.683
CIE-LUV 68.229, -14.197, -81.498
Hunter-Lab 61.874, 11.751, -52.32
Binary 10001100, 10100001, 11111111
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Below, you can see how #8ca1ff is perceived by people affected by a color vision deficiency. This can be useful if you need to ensure your color combinations are accessible to color-blind users.
• #a5a5a5 Achromatopsia 0.005% of the population
• #a0a4b7 Atypical Achromatopsia 0.001% of the population
• #88a8ff Protanopia 1% of men
• #7daafd Deuteranopia 1% of men
• #7bb3c0 Tritanopia 0.001% of the population
• #89a5ff Protanomaly 1% of men, 0.01% of women
• #82a7fd Deuteranomaly 6% of men, 0.4% of women
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§ 2020-09-12 22:56:55
[23:08] The climb had been gruelling – while the humans were fit, the near-constant need to balance themselves on two legs as they did so was a definite drain to their energy. The kavkema faired better, but 'up' was still not the best direction, even for them.
It wasn't even local midnight when they had to stop to rest for an extended time – a time of night that the humans knew by now was usually peak kavkem migratory activity.
The place they chose to settle was a kind of crevice blessed with a roof, just wide enough to move somewhat comfortably within. Baishar and Edaaj settled near the deepest, tapering end of it. There would be no setting up tents here, so Greg and Samanta simply sat down and leant against the rock walls.
Athechelt settled a little closer to the mouth of the narrow cavern, ostensibly in some gesture of protection that was completed negated by that he nodded off before the humans did. But as Evenatra had announced that she would patrol the area, they were, perhaps, as safe as they were likely to get on this world.
Greg fell asleep hugging his backpack. Samanta had set hers beside her and hugged her knees, a posture that did not lend itself to rest but eventually yielded to it, anyway.
Eventually, the foreign impressions at her fading peripheral senses gave way to a dream.
It was a nearly smooth continuation. She woke up with Greg missing, the daytime sun outside, and the three kavkema that had settled down to rest with her still asleep, and indeed resistent to any attempt of hers to rouse them. Perhaps that was to be expected – they always tried to sleep during the day, after all. But where was Greg?
The dream endowed her with a sense of the whole world around her, the way they had seen it in their approach – a dangerously fragile marble like the one they'd come from. There was no sense of permanence to her surroundings, none of the soothing familiarity the similar ecology and climate should have yielded.
There was no sign of Evenatra, although her patrol route might be a way's out.
[23:41] That was... curious. How did Greg manage to get out of the crevice without waking her? And why would he? Why would Evenatra leave, and leave all her followers behind, save one of the two aliens?
[23:42] She climbed out of the crevice. The air was crisp, thin, strangely tasteless and scentless. The whole sky looked a bit too thin, a bit too empty, as if barely painted on the emptiness, glowing through as if the sun was hiding just behind it.
An unnatural stillness reigned all around. The grass, clumsily scattered on the dirt, crumpled without sound or resistence beneath her feet. Samanta stood up on the rim of the crevice and craned her neck, trying to see or hear any trace of Greg and Evenatra in the green smudge that hid the horizon in all directions.
None came. She considered calling out, but the quivering vegetation and even the trembling boulders looked as if any sound louder than a whisper would mar them and cast them out of place, into a much uglier and less welcoming arrangement. So she kept her quiet, as did, apparently, the whole world.
[00:08] A little way down the slope they'd climbed up the night before, she started to see the hints of distant movement amongst the assortment of boulders and rocks, silent but unmistakable.
Gradually, the motion coalesced as Greg between the boulders – they must have fallen somehow, perhaps tipped at an inopportune moment, as he was caged in by them, trying to wiggle out between them with only little success. Judging by his motions, he had not been hurt in the landscape's oddly silent disruption, only caught.
[00:27] Greg, yes, and no trace of Evenatra yet. Samanta climbed down the slope — or rather walked down, balancing without effort, her own body feeling as light as foam — until Greg's features resolved and set on his face.
Then she was crouching on the crown of boulders around him, offering him a hand to climb out. "What happened?" she said in a whisper, though she wasn't sure whether her tongue and lips were actually moving. "Why are you out here? Where's Evenatra?"
[00:38] Greg smiled up at her in a wordless assurance that he was fine, but quickly brought a hand up to his visor, extended a finger, and gestured for silence. Then he accepted her proffered hand and began to wiggle upwards, feet awkwardly posed to find their purchase against the rocks. Despite the suit, Samanta could distinctly hear him breathing.
Sudden arms wrapped around Samanta's torso, trying to tug her back in an unbalanced tumble, the motion accompanied by the softest, playful chuckle – distinctly human, like the arms around her. Yet unlike Greg's, these were bare.
[00:51] She turned her head back, or at least she felt her neck turn, probably more than it should have, yet she couldn't quite see who or what was pulling at her. She did see a figure, an unfocused thing at the very edge of her vision, but Greg's face and visor remained the only things in front of her, the only she could see clearly.
Greg did not react to this turn of events, he gave no acknowledgment that anything was happening at all. He just looked at her, his eyes slightly magnified by the glass, not quite the right color. (Had she ever paid attention to his eye color? How did she know it wasn't this?)
"Who's this?" she hissed. "Saira? Jason? Evenatra?"
[01:09] As she fell back and lost her grip on Greg, Jason became apparent to her, climbing up the rocks to where she was standing. He too was only wearing his uniform. It seemed likely that it was Saira that had her tugged her away from Greg, although this did not answer either why she had chosen to do so, nor why neither her nor Jason were in their suits.
Samanta landed softly, given Saira was breaking her fall; Saira in turn fell against the boulders to the sound of paper crumpling beneath her, the landscape evidently buckling from the stress of its inhabitants moving this much.
In the shallow, small valley their fall had created amongst the rocks, probably-Saira reached forward, trying to wrap her arms around Samanta's upper arms to pin them to her torso.
[01:26] "You shouldn't... you shouln't take the suit off..." said Samanta feebly, overtaken by a tremendous fatigue. Bound as she was, every breath and eyeblink was terribly tiring. "... What are you... doing? Why... are you here?"
Jason and Saira gave no hint they had even heard her. Saira seemed perfectly content to restrain her, as if it was the obvious and inevitable course of action, as natural as a stone falling to the ground. Samanta tried to free herself, but Saira's arms were absolutely immovable: she doubted that even Saira herself could have unlocked them, at that point.
[01:27] Jason was gone, most probably into the circle of rocks, to restrain Greg in the same way.
A horrific thought sparked through Samanta's mind for a fraction of a second, and died out. Then she tried to reconstruct it, to bring it back in a form she could actually understand. Jason and Saira had been with the Nayabaru... and Valcen had been with them, telling them fantastic lies...
... and remolding their brains with that spider-machine...
[01:45] "You're lost," Saira whispered to her, somehow carrying a tone of startled amusement, as though the question Samanta had asked were strange, its answer self-evident. It was clear she meant 'out here in the wilderness, amongst kavkema who cannot protect you'.
It was equally clear she meant 'and confused', as though it were Samanta who had been so dangerously misled.
At the edge of the scenery, transparent to Samanta's perception despite the rocks between her and the occurrence, metallic limbs stepped from the fringe of the forest, following an alien motion halfway between the cautious advance of a spider and the rolling gait of an octopus.
It was much larger than what they had encountered in the forest's depths. One of its many limbs reached forward prematurely and eagerly, pressing itself between the rocks beneath her, curving upward and wiggling through the nooks and cracks between papery boulders that gave slight way, aiming for one of her legs.
[02:15] We *are* lost... but... The thing was slow enough that Samanta could see distinctly every position it took as it walked, and fast enough that it had crept on her before she could draw one breath. We *are* confused... but... It was small enough to fit into her mouth or eyes, and large enough to crush her between its legs.
It was on her, with a plausible, coherent size and position, climbing onto her with shimmering metal fingers, reaching for her face. She tried to turn hear head away, as if that would change anything, but even that movement was opposed, she was plunged in tar, rubberbands were pulling her face toward the advancing thing.
She squeezed her eyes shut, as if that would change anything, but the thing reached through her eyelids, a black-glowing patch burned into her retinae. The thing was moving toward its final point, and she was in that point as well, and no force could dislodge her from there. She desperately wished she — rather than it — was elsewhere, in any place. Yet she was there, and she could be nowhere else.
§ 2020-09-26 00:53:09
[00:53] There was a pressure in her skull, as though her mind were a tactile organ and could feel when it was being manipulated. Saira's arms encircled her, holding her as though it were at all necessary, given the way the world drew her into the abyss entirely without her help.
Then something splintered the pressure like a shard of glass. The looming shadow that was devouring her from afar and simultaneously confined within the expanse of her skull rippled as though in a shudder, then withdrew in a cephalopod's spasm, fleeing across the landscape both like a wounded animal and smoke carried by the wind.
Evenatra stood on the rocks, feathers iridescent, staring sternly at Samanta as though to assess how far she was gone. Saira's embrace had slackened – by the way her body felt against Samanta's, she had fallen unconscious.
[01:15] Evenatra was a magnificent sight, with her feathercoat glowing in the sunlight. She was a miserable kavkem, wrapped in tattered rags, with feathers half torn and a scarred muzzle. She was a human, perfectly formed and dressed. She was a biblical angel, wreathed in flaming eyes. She was a starfish-octopus-spider-alien, with the wrong number of every bodypart, stretching into the clouds. Every layer was nitidly visible in its own right, overlapping with the others.
But mostly she was Evenatra, the same as she had ever appeared, and Samanta had never been so glad to see her.
Her gladness, however, lasted little more than an eyeblink, as terror for herself was quickly replaced by fear for Saira, who had pooled on the ground. "Evenatra, th— thank you so much— where is— why— check on Greg, please—" she babbled at her savior, as she tried to turn Saira face up. Something, of course, she shouldn't have done with an unconscious person, but didn't matter, as Saira's head seemed to have too many sides to be turned.
[01:35] "You and Saira are the only ones here," Evenatra said, without so much as investigating, but it was clearly true – Jason and Greg had disappeared somehow, perhaps folded into the malevolent creature's withdrawal, cocooned in its shadows. There was no mystery why she knew to identify Saira – it was obviously common knowledge which crew member had which name.
Saira, meanwhile, seemed very much alive and her state unlikely to change, despite the odd geometries describing her. Evenatra gestured at the suitless linguist and commented matter-of-factly: "She's been poisoned," referring clearly and obviously to her mind above all.
[02:03] "Then... what do we do?" Samanta still tried to raise Saira, if not to her feet at least to a position in which she could be carried around; and Saira somehow came to rest at a certain height above the ground.
"How can we help her? And where's Greg? And Jason?" she asked, or she believed she did. She stood up, apparently dragging Saira's body upward with her, and looked carefully at the environment around. It was somewhat darker, somewhat colder. Still nobody around except for the three of them. And yet, looking very carefully at the dark green mass at the horizon, where the grey dome rested on the ground, she thought she could see warm-colored lights appear here and there.
§ 2020-10-01 22:55:15
[22:55] As Samanta cast her gaze out toward the horizon, the cardboard landscape ruptured, sagging as if under a weight, forming a shallow canyon in the distance, a scar cutting through the trees, as though something had perhaps begun to crumple the planet like a wad of paper, but was taking its time, crushing it one corner at a time, in disregard for its topology.
The creature that had fled the scene was not the source, but it was considerably closer to the anomalous landscape than Evenatra, Samanta and Saira's limp body. If they wanted to go there, perhaps to find Greg and Jason, they would have to go toward the source of danger.
"The poison is occupying the parts she has lost," Evenatra explained, matter-of-factly. "If we find it, we can reassemble and heal her."
[23:14] "The parts... she's lost?" Samanta repeated. At any mention of her, however indirect, Saira's form stirred briefly, and then went back to resting in undefined space, her body briefly passing through Samanta's every few heartbeats.
[23:15] "Do we have to take back parts of her from the Thing?" It was still there, near the warped horizon, still crawling away at great speed, yet perfectly visible, as if magnified through a spyglass. Outrunning it looked impossible, and in any case Samanta wasn't too anxious to get close to that again. Again and again she looked at it, as if to make sure it wasn't coming back, and every time it appeared a cold and sharp terror gripped her at the base of her skull.
"Or..." Why was it so draining to speak? Why did she have to shovel every sentence out of her mouth so? Was this how Evenatra felt when human words failed her? "... or do you mean — find the poison — in her?"
[23:20] "Find what she has lost," Evenatra said, glancing toward the horizon to where the creature had undulated by way of unpleasant affirmation. Perhaps she was underestimating the distance – or perhaps it wasn't running anywhere at all. It was impossible to tell.
"Come," she said. "We don't have much time. It will kill her eventually."
[23:32] "Yes, let's..." Samanta started a step, and then stopped in her tracks. What would they do with Saira? Carry her around? Even in that bizarre floating state, it didn't seem like they could move her by much. Leave her there, for the time being? The whole place was unnaturally lifeless, and unnaturally circumscribed, with that dull, woven sky fraying at the edges all around. Perhaps there wouldn't be much danger in that.
"Wait, let's carry Saira in the circle of rocks, or back in the crevice!" And so they did, or rather, once the intention was formulated, there Saira was, out of sight, and presumably hidden by the rocks.
And then they left.
[23:55] The feathers of Samanta's alien friend shimmered and with no more than a trick of perspective, those saurian arms became bird wings, spreading outwards, at least as large as a marabou stork's. Samanta was sat between them moments later and they took off, rising above the fragile landscape, bypassing the dangers and obstacles below. While in flight, Evenatra's features gradually became more avian, the transition itself invisible, as though it were simply natural for her to look like this, turning from one kind of raptor into another.
The wind running through Samanta's hair and Evenatra's feathers felt a bit flimsy, as though the atmosphere didn't quite have any strength left. It felt thin, without that it was giving them any difficulty breathing and there was clearly enough of it to carry their flight.
They were faster now than the creature that had attacked Samanta, gradually gaining on it. From up above, the furrows of the crinkling world could be seen more clearly, as well, in much greater expanse and detail than perspective would truly allow, the dark shadows of the pitted landscape running down the landscape starting from the horizon like running ink.
[00:47] The whole world below looked like an artifact, and a crumbling artifact, at that. The thing was almost vertically under the two of them, crawling and running toward an indefinite point. The sky appeared much closer, the barrier of trees visibly misshapen, as if it had never been meant to be seen so close. Evenatra, it seemed, was once again breaking the rules of the world.
"When we reach it", said Samanta, suddenly discovering the whistle of the wind forced her to shout, "What will we do?" Samanta's hope was clear: Evenatra would leave her in some safe place, then swoop on the monster like a falcon, tear it apart with her alien talons, and leave it a rightful wreck.
It wasn't going to happen, was it? Samanta would need to see that thing again from up close. Possibly to touch it — and hopefully at least, it the rest had to happen, to cut it open like an earthworm. It wasn't going to be pleasant for her, and hopefully it wasn't going to be pleasant for it.
[00:56] "I will distract it for you," Evenatra told her, her own voice not raised against the wind but still perfectly audible, regardless. "So that you may go inside and find what she has lost. Only you can recognise the shards of her soul; they are so different from ours, I cannot tell them apart from the device's own."
[01:12] The shards of her soul. So matter-of-fact it wa stated, that Samanta would have gone with it even if her rational faculties had all been fully operative. She focused hard on what the shards of Saira's soul, or human soul at least, must look like. The soul of the monster too, which she figured must look and feel (and smell, and taste?) like rotting innards, folded into some obscene topology.
[01:13] Saira, the mission linguist. A melange of words, most probably, sounds knotted together like quipu, woven thoughts and shades of meaning. Was that how souls worked? And would Samanta's own look like nucleotide sequences and pinned specimens? Was it right, to expect one's soul to look like one's occupation? Did she really know Saira well enough to guess the appearance of her soul?
[01:28] Their destination had stopped pulsing across the landscape in its rhythmic escape, as though it had since noticed that they were closing in and it couldn't run. Instead, its dark limbs grew further, smoky at the edges. The landscape around it became increasingly furrowed and crumpled, carving out an island-like plateau.
Evenatra circled the new landmark, finding a spot at its frayed edges to land, taking care not to damage the fragile ground herself. There were still trees here – their precise point of landing had not been witnessed by the monster they were confronting. Nonetheless, it had clearly changed its tune and was willing to hunt them again, now that it was left with no other option.
[01:41] It reminded Samanta of a scorpion as it turned once again against them. (I wonder if there are scorpions on this planet?) Although, admittedly, clinging to an alien being of unfathomable power made it much less terrifying.
Evenatra reached the ground and erased her momentum with one last stately flap of wings. A circle of dust rose all around, and blew away bushes and other such objects that should have stayed. The thing still looked artificially magnified, and so implicitely small and distant. Yet it was close, far too close; and Samanta's resolve quivered again.
§ 2020-10-06 22:29:11
[22:29] Now on the ground, Evenatra reverted to her more saurian form, although the tail was all wrong – thin and winding, ending in a serpent's rattle. She gestured toward a point near the centre of the plateau and off to the right relative to their current position, then ran left until the bushes swallowed her.
The rattle did its job, a distinct source of noise in the bushes. Although the medley of device and living creature that had attacked them earlier was not directly visible from Samanta's current position, she could distinctly tell that its focus shifted to follow the sound...
[22:51] A rustle in the grass, perfectly silent. A watery reflection of light on the painted tree trunks. A sound, a breathing, hissing, gurgling, screeching grinding bubbling whispering sound.
And the thing sprang out. A scorpion-demon-alien-grasping hand, frozen in every instant of its flight like Zeno's arrow, inching closer and closer to Evenatra's temporary tail; and in a fraction of a second reached it.
[23:14] There was a whole expanse of the thing, as though night had solidified into a collection of limbs, smoky at the edges. It looked as though one could perhaps simply pass through if one wished and did so from the right angle.
One limb now snatched at Evenatra's rattle-adorning tail, clutching at it, the rest of the creature's mass undulating toward her as though to envelop her. A quick motion later, she'd discarded the tail like a gecko and ran through the trees, but they were more of an obstacle for her than they were for the creature following her, which now simply flowed like syrup between the trunks.
[23:51] Was Evenatra in danger?, Samanta thought. Am I? Should she, perhaps, intervene? Her and Greg's intervention during that damned nightmare of a fight in the forest hadn't been all that useful (at least compared to Evenatra showing up and disintegrating the enemy with a gesture) yet, they got praised by their alien goddess friend. Surely Evenatra deserved at least an attempt of help.
Samanta made a step forward. It took a while for her foot to touch the ground. The air was like honey, swallowing all her movements, standard dream fare — or was it just fear of the monster?
Come on. You know she's got a plan. But she needs you. Saira and Jason and probably Greg need you too. Samanta did not move from her location. But if her feet wouldn't obey, at least her upper body would; so she bent and picked up a stone, the heaviest, most jagged, deadliest-looking stone the warped ground offered her.
[23:55] The creature's limbs were jabbing for Evenatra like serpents, flitting through the trees. The whole thing was more cloud than solid object to strike, its attention distinctly pointed away from Samanta. Perhaps she could simply... step inside? What had Evenatra asked her to do? 'Go inside and find what Saira has lost'?
[00:16] Inside... it, that mess filling the forest floor? It was worth a try. Samanta dropped on her knees and crawled forward (if her feet weren't going to carry her, then by Goddard she was going to carry them). The mist of colors, like a three-dimensional motion blur spread onto the world, grew thicker around her, an electric prickle on her skin, that jabber of noises resounding once again in the base of her skull.
She raised her head above the mist, as if to take air, and breathed deeply in and out, steadying her trembling. She was sure the thing couldn't hurt her like that, as focused as it was on pursuing Evenatra, but it flowed over her like a cold, reeking stream of rotting slime. And yet... she had to plunge into it, didn't she? That was hardly "going inside" as it was.
So she closed her eyes, dived into the prickling, hissing cloud and once again, as deeply as she could, breathed in.
[00:33] It felt like breathing syrup, but did not suffocate her. Still, breathing took effort. From inside the creature, the sky looked dotted with stars and a moon was out – perfectly meeting Samanta's instinctive expectation of night time, despite not being applicable to Nekenalos.
The creature's edges had disappeared; presumably, she could find her way out of it if she ran persistently into any one direction, but it was impossible to tell what the nearest edge of it was – and once she tried to poke her head back out, she found that she could now stand without leaving her new surroundings.
Somewhere ahead of her, out of sight and yet clearly visible, was Evenatra, a silhouette, an outline from another world. She looked slower than she had in the world Samanta had come from, like an easy target.
The trees here looked different to the fragile greenery that was being damaged back where she came from – sturdy, ancient, dangerous, branching unnaturally, more like a delicate mathematical fractal than an organic tree which occasionally decided to skip a beat in self-similarity. The tips of the branches came down low, like a weeping willow.
There were things caught in the branches, twinkling lightlessly. The trees were full of them. It resonated with her mission instantly: 'Only you can recognise the shards of her soul.' But which of these were Saira's? ...and where were Greg and Jason in this creature's endless expanse?
Somewhere in the background, the planet's papery equator imploded as though caught in a tight corset, or as though a stretchy balloon was being pinched and twisted into two halves.
§ 2020-10-07 18:31:16
[01:11] It was a strangely beautiful sight, considering its location. Samanta approached one of the alien willows, whose branches kept forking and thinning endlessly, and contemplated one of the glowing things. It thrashed and squirmed in its tangle of hair-thin branches, like a moth caught in a spider web.
[01:12] It was truly formless, a little blur of light that was of all colors at once, with a faint scent of chamomile and hot iron. She carefully took a finger near it, and felt as a slight magnetic repulsion from the core of the little light. The resistance grew stronger as she drew nearer, and as soon as her fingertip touched the entity a shiver struck her spine and the little light faded away.
She could have sworn that that shiver had come with some other sensation, some strange perception that should have been unfamiliar yet wasn't... a courtyard of an old house? A tree in a garden, old and draped in dark ivy? Was it a human house, or the dwelling of a creature of this world?
§ 2020-10-31 23:12:47
[23:22] What else had Evenatra said? I cannot tell them apart from the device's own? That would imply the strange apparition's soul fragments were here somewhere. What would happen if she tore those out of the tangled branches? Could she stop it from hunting Evenatra? Maybe if it was stopped, they could more easily look for Greg, Jason and the lost fragments of Saira?
...the lost fragments of Jason, too, come to think of it. While he had disappeared with Greg, he had been bewitched in a similar way as Saira had. The similarities suggested his soul was in scattered tatters as well.
So maybe the solution was simple – just take all of them and sort them later.
[23:44] Samanta touched another spark. Another jolt to her chest, another stolen perception. Some... pattern of tiles, square terracotta tiles in some old country house. The same of the tree, most probably. She touched yet another — this time the shiver struck her somewhere below her lungs — and a flash of smell, a smell of dark damp dirt and standing water, and something like old straw.
Alright. Whoever these things were from, it was probably always the same individual. Samanta walked to another tree, its branches also splitting fractally into nothingness. She caught a little blur of light, and this time it was not a memory that struck her but an emotion, a flash of anger over someone's impudence. Another: a vision of blue water and white cliffs. Another: a fragment of music, deep bellowing inhuman music.
So she went, collecting crumbs of soul from the drooping canopy of the alien trees, rippling in the still air. In a few, she felt her feathers flutter in the wind and bristle in the cold, she felt flashes of unease at a twilight sky not quite dark enough to keep her safe, and of terror at hearing booming calls at the horizon, and recognized the memories of a kavkem.
[00:06] And then, as Samanta came to the next tree and touched its wiggling, luminous fruit, the impression was of the fragile paper that made up the world, yearning to be converted into something sturdier, yearning to be replaced.
It was a deeply alien emotion, yet distantly relatable – she had seen how the world had been crumbling, she had seen how easy it was to break it, she had seen, even, through some omniscient point of view, how the planet as a whole was crumpling.
There was a scent of steel that came with the impression and the touch of a film of oil against the back of her throat, intertwined with an uncanny familiarity. This, then, were parts of the creature she had entered. The firmament around her shuddered as though it were in the process of inverting itself, extruding parts of the real world into itself to find her and dislodge her.
She might have to be quick about eviscerating its soul – and even if she was, it was likely she could only damage it before it got to her.
[00:44] Samanta tore at the soul of the thing as far as the tempest of shocks to her interior allowed her. Sensations came to her in fast sequence, twisted and distorted by being mapped to a body completely unlike the one that had generated them. She felt her digits and hair wrap around and dig into twitching preys, fluid globs of thought being sucked through her long bones, grinding mechanical jerks tug at ther innards.
She stopped for one second, nauseous, her sight blurring, her proprioception hopelessly confused, her heart thumping where it shouldn't have. She reached for her own hands and face, checking that they were still wrapped in mammal skin, that they were still warmed by red blood. Am I *transforming* into this god-damned thing? What's the point of stopping it, if I'm going to take its place hunting Evenatra?
But... perhaps she was succeeding. The tree was now much dimmer, much poorer. The branches now resembled nothing as much as an old cobweb caked in dust. She wondered whether she could simply pull its trunk out of... whatever it had grown from. One last spark, at least. Samanta grasped one, and extinguished it, and a new impression flared into her mind, and an insatiable thirst filled her for a second, as that of a man crawling across a salt pan, thirst for living thoughts.
[00:54] And then the struggle was somehow over, having skipped its intermediate parts. She was back in the real world, the essence of the device wrapped about her tightly, like a suit, invisible and intangible, but obvious to her all the same. She was seeing not only through her eyes, but through that of the creature she had simultaneously defeated, subsumed and become. She was hearing not only her own heartbeat, but that of the monster. The hunger clawed at her innards – the baubles she had collected, smaller now but more numerous, clearly having multiplied in the time the dream had simply condensed into an instant, lay scattered on the ground before her, dangerously compelling – and at the edge of her dual vision, she could see that Evenatra was approaching.
[01:18] She tried forcing itself to stop, but the searing emptiness pushed her on. She tried slowing down, taking a deep breath, but it had no mouth, nose, or lungs. It managed to slow herself down a bit, perhaps make itself an easier target should Evenatra try to attack her, or at least allow its friend to outrun her.
The trees, the familiar trees of an ordinary forest, stood around her impossibly tall, dark stringy grass wrapping around its toes and cluttering her sensors. Still she walked — at least it walked, no longer ran or flowed among the trunks as earlier — taking each step as automatically as its other body would blink.
Perhaps it would manage to break herself? Use some of her spindly limbs to tear out others, bash its own metal skull open against a tree trunk? Her fingers twitched, hungry for thoughts. It wasn't sure how much longer that body would obey her will.
[01:48] But Evenatra seemed not to see what had happened – she approached calmly, with curiosity, like one might a potentially wounded friend. It was unsure whether anything could be done to her, whether her thoughts were there for the taking, but the urge to try was there, to envelope and consume, to reach out to the feathered creature now within arm's reach and—
Abruptly, reality snapped back around her like a rubber band, a shock to her system, her faceplate fogged a little with the moisture of an exhale. It was still night, but her posture in the niche had deteriorated into an awkward sag that now started back into something straighter with the next inhale.
Greg was still here with her, clung to his equipment. The three kavkema Baishar, Edaaj and Athechelt were still here, arranged in sleeping positions reminiscent of cats than birds.
Nothing was assaulting them – and dreams were not prophetic. While her dream colliding with reality came with a pang of uncertainty as to how Saira and Jason were doing and how the kavkema might prevail against the strange machines deployed against them, no immediate threat loomed at the edge of their temporary sanctuary.
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Grilled Grouse with Chive Butter
You can replace the chives in the butter with any other herb, such as rosemary, tarragon, parsley, oregano, et cetera.
• Prepare a medium-hot fire in a grill.
• Melt butter in a large saucepan and stir in the snipped chives.
• Dip grouse into the butter mixture and place on the grill. Grill for about 3 to 4 minutes per side, basting with additional butter. If not quite tender, stack grouse on top of each other on the indirect-heat side of the grill and cover. Let cook for another 5 to 10 minutes. Internal temperature should register about 150°F.
• Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve hot.
A Grouse of a Different Color
There are several kinds of grouse and they are distinctively different from one another. Ruffed grouse and spruce grouse are tasty birds similar to quail. The ruffed has whitish meat, the spruce has darkish meat, and both weigh in around 12 to 16 ounces dressed. The sharptail grouse is next in size, at 1 to 1¼ pounds, with darkish meat. The blue grouse is a mountain bird with whitish meat, and it tips the scales at 1 to 2 pounds dressed. Then comes the big boomer, the sage grouse. They weigh 2 to 4 pounds and have dark meat with an extremely strong sage flavor.
Serves 6
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
4 tablespoons chives, snipped
6 (12-ounce) ruffed grouse, split
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1. Home
2. Cooking Wild Game
3. Grouse, Sage Hen, Woodcock, Snipe, Rail, Pigeons, & Dove
4. Grilled Grouse with Chive Butter
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Saturday, May 25, 2019
Nalzaro: Police might do ‘shortcut’ on Tiu
WITH no less than President Rodrigo Duterte ordering the arrest of Nel Spencer Tiu, the boyfriend of Ashley Abad, the 19-year-old girl who reportedly died of party drug overdose, I can foresee that his life will be “miserable” in the next few days. Also ordered arrested are six of Ashley’s friends who were with her on that fateful night attending a pre-Sinulog party at the Cebu Business Park. Until this time, Tiu and their companions refused to cooperate with police investigators to shed light on the circumstances surrounding Ashley’s death.
The parents of Ashley visited Malacañang on Thursday, Feb. 7, and met with the President, asking the chief executive’s intervention as the case had not yet moved. Reports said Duterte gave an instruction to a ranking police officer through telephone to arrest Tiu and their companions. The autopsy will be released within the week. Initially, doctors said Ashley died from an overdose of a party drug that she ingested during an affair last Jan. 19. She passed out after taking the drug and died the following day.
I don’t personally know Tiu and his family. But I am also puzzled why until this time he refuses to cooperate with the police. Is his conscience not bothering him that he refuses to shed light on what happened to his girlfriend? Siyaro og wala ni siya makonsensiya? O wala ba siya padamgoha ni Ashley? What kind of a boyfriend is he? This might be unfair to him, but I am one of those who suspect that maybe he was the one who prodded, convinced and tempted Ashley to take the drug. Was he the source of the party drug? Is he a drug user?
Ordered arrested? On what basis? Tiu has not yet been charged. PRO 7 Chief Debold Sinas said if Tiu would still refuse to cooperate with them after he would be subpoenaed, they would be forced to arrest him. Tiu and his companions will be charged with negligence resulting to homicide for their failure to provide help to Ashley, which resulted to her death. If proven they were the source of the party drug, they would be charged with murder.
The President was overheard telling somebody on the phone to arrest Tiu. The other party on the line tried to explain that there was no pending case against him. But the President said: “Ingna akoy nagpadakop.” Aw, kon mao ning kalakiha, delikado ni si Tiu. Posible pa mapagan ang iyang mga ginikanan ug mga relatives ani niya.
I am afraid that the police might be pressured by the standing order of the President to arrest Tiu and they might cut short the process. I am afraid he will be framed and his rights will be violated. Consider this possible scenario: the police might apply for a search warrant and raid their house. Or Tiu will be placed under surveillance and police will just arrest him anytime and anywhere and plant illegal items for him to be under their custody. Or worst, Tiu will be a victim of an extrajudicial killing. So, if I were the parents of Tiu, I would surrender him to the police rather than let him be a victim of police abuses on grounds of trampled and fabricated charges. He will be arrested for another crime to force him to “tell it all.” Anyway, they can hire the best lawyer in town to defend him. Aw, makaingon pud ta nga mirisi.
Party drugs are proliferating in our locality where most users of this kind of drugs are sons and daughters of well-to-do families. Unlike shabu, these kinds of drugs are not easily accessible in the market. Ordinary drug users cannot easily access these drugs because the selling price is P1,500 to P3,000 per tablet. Suppliers have to order these abroad and these are usually distributed in high-end disco bars and parties. A Cebu-based businessman, who owns a disco bar at Parkmall and was implicated in the multi-billion shabu shipment, is suspected to be one of the suppliers of party drugs here and authorities are looking into this.
Forum rules:
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Lucas Schleicher has been writing for Brainwashed for nearly 10 years. He is from St. Louis and misses living there a lot. In 2010 he graduated from Boston College with a curiously unmarketable M.A. in Philosophy. He is very happy this happened. Many things were heard, seen, experienced, and read in 2010, some of which are shared below.
Jack Rose passed away. He is one of my favorite guitarists. His last album, Luck in the Valley, was one of three releases I listened to constantly throughout the year. The Things That We Used to Do, a DVD with Glenn Jones, and Ragged and Right with D. Charles Speer & The Helix were the others. I am sad I'll never get to meet him, see him live, or hear another of his records.
Jaga Jazzist released One-Armed Bandit, which has persisted in being my favorite album over the last 12 months. In retrospect, this might have been an omen of my current obsession with jazz and classical music.
Swans toured again, just like Michael Gira had told Brainwashed they would. Their new album, My Father Will Guide Me Up a Rope to the Sky, is definitely great, but their show at the Middle East Club in Cambridge, MA was infinitely better. Anyone that loves Swans has never heard them until they've heard them live. Please tour again, Swans. Please.
I watched a lot more movies this year than I have in the past, among them Fritz Lang's "complete" Metropolis and Carl Theodor Dreyer's The Passion of Joan of Arc. The first was excellent, the latter changed my life. The Criterion edition of Joan of Arc is coupled with a stunning soundtrack by Richard Einhorn and should be sought out at all costs.
Also on my movie list was Werckmeister Harmonies, directed by Béla Tarr. Its opening scene is the best opening scene in any movie ever. You can watch it on Youtube by visiting this link. I suggest watching this movie ASAP.
I've known it for a long time, but the Disingenuity EP is as good a reason as any to say it again: Keith Fullerton Whitman is the best musician in Boston and one of the best in the world. He's constantly playing superb live shows, releasing awesome music, and acting as a general source of inspiration. Somehow he finds time to manage Mimaroglu while he's at it. I hope I get to see him a lot more in 2011.
Charles Gocher, percussionist for Sun City Girls, passed away fighting cancer in 2007. The band released their final album, Funeral Mariachi, just this year. It's a beautiful and sad record, and it has compelled me to go searching through the rest of their discography. Had it been released sooner, I'm certain it would have eclipsed One-Armed Bandit as my favorite record of the year. I wish I would have started paying attention to them sooner.
Soon after getting my degree from Boston College, I picked up a copy of Alex Ross's book, The Rest is Noise. After years of reading Kant and Husserl, I was ready to catch up on a huge reading list. I finished it right at the end of the year and it's a stupendous book. It's made my preoccupation with classical and jazz music much stronger, and it gave me all the context I could ask for when it comes to 20th century composition. I bet most people have already read it, but if you're someone who hasn't, go pick it up. Be prepared to go diving through the classical section at your favorite record store afterwards. I found so many great records for a dollar at the local shops, you wouldn't even believe it. Apple and iTunes can suck it.
Speaking of classical music: Mahler. Lots and lots of Mahler. How am I supposed to get through Stockhausen and Cage when Mahler is always calling my name?
Henryk Górecki's Third Symphony is a whole lot more devastating than I remember it being. After he died on November 12th, I went back to that work and was turned into a soft, whimpering mess by it.
My girlfriend bought me a copy of Charles Mingus's East Coasting and a friend of mine recommended Black Saint and the Sinner Lady around the same time. For at least two months they were the only records I wanted to hear. While everyone else was keeping up with a pretty great 2010, I was doing my best to digest Mingus's best records. I now think they're among the best in my collection. I'm not sure how I ever got along without him.
Sun Ra took over my life around the same time Mingus did. I went from owning exactly none of his records to having eight. Lanquidity and the Heliocentric records are up there with all the great Miles Davis and John Coltrane records I own. If Mingus doesn't break my bank in 2011, Le Sony'r Ra will.
I went swimming in the Atlantic Ocean for the first time since I was a very small child. I did it in Maine, in fairly cold water, and it was a ton of fun. I see now why some people love the beach so much.
Captain Beefheart will be missed. He hadn't released any new music in a long time, but Trout Mask Replica and Safe as Milk are works of total genius and insanity. Shiny Beast and Doc at the Radar Station are pretty great, too. He's an American giant, and his music has no equal.
Western New York is a golden place. New York City is great, but Steam Valley is greater.
Niagara Falls is a miracle. Ride the Maid of the Mist if you visit, just standing there and looking at it is nothing compared to having the falls almost swallow you whole.
A personal message to the members of Emeralds: I met you very briefly. You were all very funny and very nice, but I swear to God you guys need to slow down with all the good music you release. I can't keep up at all. I am selfishly requesting that you send all your music to Brainwashed.com for comprehensive review coverage just in case slowing down isn't desirable. That is my only hope of making sure I hear everything you do. Also, Does It Look Like I'm Here? rules.
Jon Whitney introduced me to the music of Robert Haigh. I love his music and his 2010 album, Anonymous Lights, is spectacular. Now, I listen to him on an almost daily basis. Thanks, Jon!
Boston crowds can be terribly noisy, especially when perfectly great opening bands are on stage and beer is available. Will you all please shut up? I'm sure there are better places for you to get drunk and gossip.
I miss St. Louis a lot, especially my friends and family, whom I love very much. After living in Boston for 4 years, I've come to the conclusion that most cities are what you make of them. When I was a teenager and in my early 20s, so many of my friends talked about getting out or getting away, but there are days when all I want to do is get back. Being home for the holidays made me appreciate where I come from and where I could be going. It also reminded me that Vintage Vinyl is one of the best record stores in the country and that the Arch is beyond cool. Seriously, have you been in that thing?! Surreal.
Twisted Village in Harvard Square closed after 14 years of service. I was only around for four of them, but it was an awesome place to dive through records and the staff was always helpful to me and extra nice. I miss you, Twisted Village. Nothing in Boston compares.
"Let me tell you the story of Right Hand, Left Hand. It's a tale of good and evil. Hate: it was with this hand that Cane iced his brother. Love: these five fingers, they go straight to the soul of man. The right hand: the hand of love. The story of life is this: static. One hand is always fighting the other hand, and the left hand is kicking much ass. I mean, it looks like the right hand, Love, is finished. But hold on, stop the presses, the right hand is coming back. Yeah, he got the left hand on the ropes, now, that's right. Ooh, it's a devastating right and Hate is hurt, he's down. Left-Hand Hate KOed by Love." Do the Right Thing cooked my brain.
Hey Jen and Wilson! I love you guys. Thanks for being there for me. I mean it.
Jumping out of an airplane is the most frightening thing I've ever done. And the most stupid. I had nightmares about it even after I jumped. The sound you make falling to the ground is awesome (and terrifying), though. Glad I did it. I'll never do it again.
I watched the Wikileaks scandal unfold, and now I think about it almost daily. Assaults on free speech and other constitutional rights are growing and it scares me. Some say I'm paranoid, and I hope they're right, but moving out of the country keeps looking more and more attractive.
NASA held a press conference about bacteria that incorporates arsenic in its DNA. I held my breath hoping they had found alien life somewhere in the universe, but wasn't totally let down. I can't help thinking that in 20 years, if the human race is still around, this will be one of the greatest discoveries ever. Dear God, please send us (friendly) aliens.
Giuseppe Ielasi will be on my radar in the future. His (third) Stunt and 15 Tapes EPs are excellent. I had heard some of his music before, but never gave the rest of his work the attention it deserves, mostly because I assumed his output was one-dimensional ambient stuff. Obviously I was wrong.
Peter Christopherson passed into the great beyond this year. He left an enormous and unequaled body of work behind him, as well as many friends and admirers. Among musicians, he had more influence on me than almost anyone else. Throbbing Gristle might be his most celebrated project, but Coil thoroughly changed my life. The music he made with Jhonn touched me emotionally and intellectually, serving as the catalyst that propelled me into the wide world of experimental music and exotic philosophies. I can honestly say Coil taught me something about the world and myself, which sounds corny but is absolutely true. When I met Peter during Brainwaves 2008, I was happy to discover he was a somewhat quiet, obviously tender human being who cared immensely about music and the people around him. He was good humored enough to de-curse my illegitimate copy of Horse Rotorvator and exhibited the kind of humility I wish I had. I'm thankful I found his music and told him what it meant to me. I only wish I would have had the time to know him more.
"And if you have taken a wrong turning, then to go forward does not get you any nearer. If you are on the wrong road, progress means doing an about-turn and walking back to the right road; and in that case the man who turns back soonest is the most progressive man." | mini_pile | {'original_id': 'd36a0e04b6704e8df6388c786656641d97e1d75ec99237d3446aec36d7e3366d'} |
Glutamic acid decarboxylase in Mycobacterium leprae.
Suspensions of Mycobacterium leprae purified from the organs (mostly spleen) of experimentally-infected armadillos (Dasypus novemcinctus, Linn) decarboxylated 1-(14C) glutamic acid liberating 14CO2. The reaction was pyridoxal phosphate-dependent and was inhibited by hydroxylamine, suggesting that it is a true amino acid decarboxylase. Loss of the activity at higher temperatures indicated the enzymatic nature of the reaction. Excess substrate or substrate analogs inhibited the decarboxylase whereas alpha-ketoglutarate and glutarate stimulated it. The activity was four times higher at pH 4.5 than at pH 6.8, suggesting that the enzyme is of microbial origin and not derived form the host cells. Armadillo spleen did not decarboxylate the amino acid. The Km value of the enzyme in the organisms was similar to that in Escherichia coli. The results reported here show that glutamate decarboxylase (EC 4.1.1.15) is an inherent metabolic activity of M. leprae, and might explain its unusual neural affinity. Glutamic acid is the most abundant amino acid occurring in the nerve tissue. | mini_pile | {'original_id': '653e1f0731890228c542ca1f80cf9593d3b6495bddd3b32fc25000789cdae606'} |
Summary (Numbers 13:1-3, 17-21,25, 27-33)
(***Begin by reading this summary. I encourage you to open your bible to Numbers 13 and place the summary inside your bible. We want our kiddos to know that this truly is the word of God, not just a story.***)
***(v. 1-3) The Lord told Moses, “Send some men to explore and spy out the land of Canaan. I will give this land to you, the Israelites, which were God’s people. Send one leader from each of the 12 tribes.” So Moses obeyed the Lord’s command and sent out the 12 leaders while the rest of the people camped out in the desert. Moses told the people to look and see what the land was like, what the people were like, and for them to have courage. The men went to spy out the land.
***(v. 17-21, 25) When Moses sent the 12 leaders out to explore the land of Canaan he said, “Go through the Negev (which is a desert), and then into the hill country. See what the land looks like. Learn about the people who live there. Are they strong or are they weak? Are they few or are they many? Learn about the land that they live in. Is it good land or bad land? What kind of towns do they live in? Do the towns have walls protecting them? Are the towns strongly guarded? And learn other things about the land. Is the soil good for growing things, or is it poor soil? Are there trees on the land? Try to bring back some of the fruit from that land.” (The first grapes should be ripe at this time.) So they went to explore the country…. The men explored that country for 40 days, and then they went back to the camp.
***(v. 27-33) When they came back to their camp, they told Moses, “We went to the land where you sent us. It is a land filled with many good things! Here is some of the fruit that grows there!” They brought back some fresh grapes from the vine. And they continued to say, “But the people living there are very powerful and strong. The cities are very large and there are guards protecting the city. We even saw some Anakites, Hittites, Jebusites, and Amorites.” Caleb, one of the leaders, told the people near Moses to be quiet. Then he said, “We should go up and take that land for ourselves. We can easily take that land.” But the other leaders that had gone to spy the land with him said, “We cannot fight those people! They are much stronger than we are.” So those men gave a report that made all the rest of the people sad. They said, “The land we saw was full of really strong people. They are strong enough to easily defeat anyone who goes there. We saw giants there too, the Nephilim. We felt like tiny little grasshoppers. Yes, we were like grasshoppers to them!”
God told the Israelite people to TAKE the land of Canaan. They were to take it for themselves. But, there were other people living there, the giants. If they were going to take the land for themselves, they were going to have to 1) make all of the other people living there get out of the land, and then 2) move their families and belongings into the new land once the other people were gone. Think about moving into a new house or getting a new bedroom. The other people will have to move all of their things out of the house/room, before we can move all of our things in and live there.
Sometimes in our heart, there are things that move in there and end up living there… fear, anger, sadness, unforgiveness, worry, etc. Those are things that we don’t want living inside of our heart. These things do not come from Jesus, and we don’t want anything living inside of us that is not from Jesus. We want what Jesus gives and His gifts to live inside of our heart: love, joy, peace, goodness, etc. Before those things can live in our heart, we have to remove all of the other things, first (the fear, anger, sadness, unforgiveness, worry, etc). We have to tell those things to go! We can tell those things to get out of our heart and mind. We can even tell sickness to leave our body, in the name of Jesus! We may have to give up watching a movie or reading a book that scares us, even though it may seem exciting at the time. We may need to forgive someone for hurting us, even if we don’t feel like it. These things can be really hard to do sometimes. But, we can do it with Jesus’s help.
Once we tell those things to go, we ask the Holy Spirit to FILL us with his love, peace, joy, mercy, etc. We can help fill ourselves by reading our Bible, spend time talking to Jesus in prayer, listening to worship music, etc. This may mean that we need to give up a few extra minutes of game time or free time, but it is well worth it to be full of Jesus and not have those yucky things living inside of us.
Discussion Questions/Application
1. Do you have any thoughts in your mind or heart that you know are not from Jesus? (Ex. fear, worry, anger, unforgiveness, etc) **Take time to address those things and tell those things to “get out” of my heart and give/receive forgiveness.
2. Is there anything you can stop doing to cause those things to come into your life? (Ex. stop watching scary movies, etc.)
3. What do you want the Holy Spirit to fill you with? (Ex. peace for worry, perfect love for fear, joy for anger or sadness, etc)
4. How can you help fill yourself up more with Jesus each day?
Prayer: Jesus, thank you for showing us the things inside of our hearts and minds that do not belong there, and that are not from you. Thank you for showing us the things we need to not do in order to have more time filling ourselves with you. Holy Spirit, thank you for filling us up, for filling our hearts and our minds with your love, joy, peace. Help us to be strong to tell the enemy no when he tries to bring bad things into our minds and hearts. Help us to be brave and tell those things to get out of our minds and hearts before they ever try to live there. Help us to be so full of you, Holy Spirit, that there is no room for those things to enter our minds and hearts. We love you Jesus! We pray all of these things in your mighty name, amen! | dclm_baseline | {'bff_contained_ngram_count_before_dedupe': '39', 'language_id_whole_page_fasttext': "{'en': 0.9570292234420776}", 'metadata': "{'Content-Length': '49477', 'Content-Type': 'application/http; msgtype=response', 'WARC-Block-Digest': 'sha1:FSLTYEOINU3DOHTGADEVBRJYCZNB6IEE', 'WARC-Concurrent-To': '<urn:uuid:171ec1f2-372c-49c7-96fb-bf8533d5c653>', 'WARC-Date': datetime.datetime(2021, 2, 27, 6, 44, 34), 'WARC-IP-Address': '148.72.81.160', 'WARC-Identified-Payload-Type': 'text/html', 'WARC-Payload-Digest': 'sha1:ZUEXADDO7CYRHXDFQ2CSLYYL2SLHL32J', 'WARC-Record-ID': '<urn:uuid:599f281b-a15c-4b8e-bc57-858bbcc7f7dd>', 'WARC-Target-URI': 'https://theroads.church/articles/roads-kidz-we-will-overcome-part-2-point-3/', 'WARC-Type': 'response', 'WARC-Warcinfo-ID': '<urn:uuid:07e11f6f-25eb-4a67-b5e5-85131e6cd3e0>', 'WARC-Truncated': None}", 'previous_word_count': '1175', 'url': 'https://theroads.church/articles/roads-kidz-we-will-overcome-part-2-point-3/', 'warcinfo': 'isPartOf: CC-MAIN-2021-10\r\npublisher: Common Crawl\r\ndescription: Wide crawl of the web for February/March 2021\r\noperator: Common Crawl Admin (info@commoncrawl.org)\r\nhostname: ip-10-67-67-43.ec2.internal\r\nsoftware: Apache Nutch 1.18 (modified, https://github.com/commoncrawl/nutch/)\r\nrobots: checked via crawler-commons 1.2-SNAPSHOT (https://github.com/crawler-commons/crawler-commons)\r\nformat: WARC File Format 1.1\r\nconformsTo: http://iipc.github.io/warc-specifications/specifications/warc-format/warc-1.1/', 'fasttext_openhermes_reddit_eli5_vs_rw_v2_bigram_200k_train_prob': '0.06531310081481934', 'original_id': '6e49ef8d6458fb3693b3678f008f688e6efbeb3584a88e66e730f85caeaa9e5d'} |
Q:
How to stop Search Engines from indexing SharePoint Site
I have SharePoint 2010 Enterprise for Internet Sites. Some search results in Google & Bing are pointing to my intranet site URL which is intranet.mysite.com
I want to cloak my site totally from Search Engines.
How to do it?
A:
You can add a robots.txt to your root.
in this robots.txt you can put information about what pages may and may not be indexed. For more information check:
http://www.robotstxt.org/
http://www.robotstxt.org/robotstxt.html
edit:
waldek mastykarz has made a solution that automatically creates a robots.txt for you: http://blog.mastykarz.nl/generating-robots-txt-files-mavention-robots-txt/
PS: is your intranet anonymous accessible?
| mini_pile | {'original_id': '1ef1fa5eb02111382af0262e912dcc7edd3f81f0eff304ebac23058de98dd474'} |
Q:
More info about J-link v8
I have a J-link v8 and want to use it, but I can't find its name in Segger homepage, I want to know what ARM core it support and is it support BeagleBone or RPi.
A:
The information you need should be on this page, the note at the bottom of the page refers to hardware revision 8 and up which I assume refers to the V8 you have.
In particular the following CPUs are supported:
Any ARM7/9/11, Cortex-A5/A8/A9, Cortex-M0/M1/M3/M4, Cortex-R4, RX610, RX621, RX62N, RX62T, RX630, RX631, RX63N
While both the CPUs for the Beaglebone (Cortex-A8) and RPi (ARM11) are supported, I don't think that either board includes the JTAG port by default, you may need to solder pins on to make this available. Some information on the RPi here, the Beaglebone here.
| mini_pile | {'original_id': 'f35885ea3df32a01d81ea64ceb053c41be768b7c2ec7656bb7cf267c2bd01390'} |
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Completing the sequence - Part 1
Seeing is believing
31 March 2022
Seeing is believing
Jennifer Gerton and Karen Miga had been longtime colleagues and shared an interest in hard-to-sequence regions of the genome for much of their careers.
“Karen wanted to pick a uniparental cell line with a stable genome for sequencing, to help complete the human genome, but she didn’t have access to her lab. She asked if we could evaluate some cell lines for her,” recalled Gerton, of how she initially became involved in the consortium.
Tamara Potapova, PhD, Leonardo Gomes de Lima, PhD, and Matt Borchers
Miga and colleagues initially sought a source of human genome material that contained identical pairs of chromosomes from only one parent, to avoid the added complication of assembling both a maternal and paternal genome. This condition was satisfied by a human cell line derived from a rare occurrence called a hydatidiform mole.
“The hydatidiform mole forms when something goes wrong during conception,” explained Tamara Potapova, PhD, a research specialist II in the Gerton Lab. “The egg’s (maternal) genome is lost, and the paternal genome gets duplicated, resulting in a genome with mostly identical pairs of chromosomes.”
Because hydatidiform mole tissue can easily become aneuploid (having extra or missing chromosomes), which would pose a problem for researchers having to contend with variable copies of certain regions, the need to identify a stable cell line, with a normal number of chromosomes, was urgent.
“Tamara’s expertise in imaging chromosomes has been a huge asset for the project,” Gerton said. “She has a talent for culturing and evaluating cell lines that are very difficult to work with.”
During the early stages of the project, and for the main Science paper, Potapova helped identify the CHM13 cell line as the most stable of the hydatidiform mole cell lines.
“At that point, Tamara became a cytogeneticist for the whole project,” Gerton said. “When it comes to the ground truth of assembled sequence, does it match what we see in the chromosomes by microscopy? Tamara is the person we go to when we ask those questions. The beautiful picture of spectral karyotyping, identifying all the chromosomes, on the T2T website—that’s hers.”
An ordered collection of the pairs of chromosomes analyzed in the T2T complete human genome sequencing project. Image courtesy of the Gerton Lab.
Potapova studies nucleolar organizing regions, which organize the nucleolus, a specialized compartment within the cell’s nucleus. These genetic regions consist primarily of ribosomal DNA, which has unique behavior relative to most other coding regions of DNA.
Because ribosomal DNA genes are repetitive and are present in multiple, nearly identical copies, assembling these regions of the human genome was previously impossible. New sequencing technologies that produced long and highly accurate stretches or "reads" of DNA made it possible for Adam Phillippy’s group to find a path through this "dark matter."
Fluorescently labeled human chromosomes (blue) showing attachment points called centromeres (red) and regions of ribosomal DNA (green). Many of the sequencing gaps were located in these regions. Image courtesy of the Gerton Lab.
“Adam’s group used this long-read sequencing method because a single ‘read’ could span multiple repeats and also the neighboring regions. Untangling these reads so they could assign them to a particular chromosome was a very complex process,” said Potapova.
“A brilliant computer scientist in my lab, Sergey Nurk, PhD, developed new methods to squeeze every last bit of information out the latest sequencing data,” said Phillippy. “With his tools, it was like putting on a new pair of glasses. All of sudden we could see every region of the genome with unprecedented clarity.”
“We wanted to know with high certainty how many ribosomal DNA repeats each chromosome had in order to fill the gaps with the correct number of copies. That question was very hard to approach even by modern sequencing methods. But we could estimate the number of ribosomal DNA repeats on each individual acrocentric chromosome by fluorescence microscopy,” said Potapova.
For the paper, “we made chromosome preparations and marked the ribosomal DNA with fluorescent labels. We knew the total copy number of the repeats from sequencing and a special PCR technology called droplet digital PCR, and we could measure the fluorescence intensity of all ribosomal DNA locations in a chromosome preparation. From that, we could calculate the fraction of the total fluorescent signal that was present on every acrocentric chromosome and convert that to the number of copies of the repeats.”
“Jay Unruh, PhD, who is director of scientific data at the Stowers Institute, was very helpful with analyzing this imaging data, which is not trivial,” said Potapova. “We benefited greatly from all the advice and feedback that Jay and the Microscopy Center team contributed to our work on an ongoing basis.”
This unprecedented resolution enables scientists to ask new questions about ribosomal DNA, and more generally, acrocentric chromosomes. Scientists can ask how these chromosomal regions are inherited from parent to child and how they organize chromosomes in three dimensions. Because ribosomal DNA is crucial for cellular function, this information opens new doors for understanding how cells develop into tissues, and how health and disease depend on ribosomal DNA.
Newsletter & Alerts | dclm_baseline | {'bff_contained_ngram_count_before_dedupe': '0', 'language_id_whole_page_fasttext': "{'en': 0.938390851020813}", 'metadata': "{'Content-Length': '126125', 'Content-Type': 'application/http; msgtype=response', 'WARC-Block-Digest': 'sha1:V5NYNEDKR4ZHRZG3FG4OKBFIM3ALMBDQ', 'WARC-Concurrent-To': '<urn:uuid:605408ee-c1d5-45c7-b76e-57af034404c6>', 'WARC-Date': datetime.datetime(2022, 11, 27, 0, 58, 16), 'WARC-IP-Address': '54.221.148.209', 'WARC-Identified-Payload-Type': 'text/html', 'WARC-Payload-Digest': 'sha1:5XF5DBF3MTLJSGCNT3X6TY67FGNPT346', 'WARC-Record-ID': '<urn:uuid:24c2b4ac-055c-4326-a59f-ce3a69ad25a2>', 'WARC-Target-URI': 'https://www.stowers.org/news/completing-the-sequence-part-1', 'WARC-Type': 'response', 'WARC-Warcinfo-ID': '<urn:uuid:0742991d-addb-4b8a-b67d-d79e911e51b7>', 'WARC-Truncated': None}", 'previous_word_count': '844', 'url': 'https://www.stowers.org/news/completing-the-sequence-part-1', 'warcinfo': 'isPartOf: CC-MAIN-2022-49\r\npublisher: Common Crawl\r\ndescription: Wide crawl of the web for November/December 2022\r\noperator: Common Crawl Admin (info@commoncrawl.org)\r\nhostname: ip-10-67-67-8\r\nsoftware: Apache Nutch 1.19 (modified, https://github.com/commoncrawl/nutch/)\r\nrobots: checked via crawler-commons 1.4-SNAPSHOT (https://github.com/crawler-commons/crawler-commons)\r\nformat: WARC File Format 1.1\r\nconformsTo: https://iipc.github.io/warc-specifications/specifications/warc-format/warc-1.1/', 'fasttext_openhermes_reddit_eli5_vs_rw_v2_bigram_200k_train_prob': '0.03576254844665527', 'original_id': 'a4f36255527a170efe41d2c2e037c8379cfa73c52b3977ad109c7d36dc555066'} |
package ca.ualberta.cs.models;
import android.content.Context;
import android.net.ConnectivityManager;
/**
* Stores the current network state
*
* @author wyatt
*
*/
public class NetworkModel {
private static NetworkModel singleton = null;
public static NetworkModel getInstance() {
if (singleton == null) {
singleton = new NetworkModel();
}
return singleton;
}
public static boolean isNetworkAvailable(Context context) {
return ((ConnectivityManager) context
.getSystemService(Context.CONNECTIVITY_SERVICE))
.getActiveNetworkInfo() != null;
}
}
| common_corpus | {'identifier': 'https://github.com/sarychuk/GeoChan/blob/master/src/ca/ualberta/cs/models/NetworkModel.java', 'collection': 'Github Open Source', 'open_type': 'Open Source', 'license': 'Apache-2.0', 'date': '2014.0', 'title': 'GeoChan', 'creator': 'sarychuk', 'language': 'Java', 'language_type': 'Code', 'word_count': '62', 'token_count': '178', '__index_level_0__': '45951', 'original_id': '148ef3c7ced9ac79e104281209f6a2a95ee933bc6653a3231fdb3a1fce9665af'} |
How Smartphones Affect Our Ability to Focus
How Smartphones Affect Our Ability to Focus
It's no exaggeration to say that smartphones have radically changed the way many people work and live. Having a device that connects you to the world in an instant has many blessings, but comes with lots of drawbacks too.
Have you ever considered how smartphones can affect your ability to focus? This can affect you at work as well as during daily activities. Let's take a look at how phones can affect us without us even thinking about it.
A Constant Flood of Notifications
Nearly all smartphone apps want to send you notifications about something. News apps alert you the second something happens in the world. New email notifications go off all day long. And you receive a notification every time someone interacts with you on social media or messaging apps.
It's no surprise that this wrecks our focus. When concentrating on one task, suddenly having to divert your attention to something else pulls you out of what you were doing. Even if you only leave your work for a few seconds to check an email, it will likely take some time to "recalibrate" and regain focus. This is why we recommend adjusting your email settings for fewer distractions.
The Presence of Phones Ruins Our Focus
But it's not just this steady stream of notifications that grab our attention. Recently, psychology researchers conducted a test to see if a person simply having his smartphone nearby could affect her thinking.
Participants were split into three groups: One had their phones face-down on the desk in front of them, another had their phones in their pockets, and the last group left their phones in another room. All three groups had their phones silenced, so they wouldn't hear any notifications.
Interestingly, the people who had their phones in another room performed the best, while those with their phones on the desk did the worst. It's quite telling to find that the mere presence of a phone in your workspace -- even if it's turned off -- can affect your cognitive ability.
Why do phones have this immense grasp on our attention? Because they connect us to the internet and the many valuable services it provides, most people view their phones as indispensable. You'd be hard-pressed to find someone today who would willingly go without their phone all day.
Thus, as most people are in the habit of checking their phones all the time, we automatically pay attention to them. This is similar to how parents drop whatever they're doing to respond to their baby's cry. It doesn't matter if we're watching a movie, in a business meeting, or on a date -- if our phone goes off, we're so worried that it could be important that we must check it.
Ironically, because people are so drawn to using smartphones without thinking like this, it takes a toll on our mental capacities to resist the urge to grab your smartphone as soon as a notification goes off.
Fear of Missing Out
One of the reasons people attend to their phones right away is that the constant updating of the online world brings a fear of missing out. If you don't check social media every hour, you might miss an update from your old friend. When a business email arrives, it could be your boss with an important request. And when someone calls you, you'd better look at it right away so you don't miss anything.
It's important to recognize that most of what's on your phone can wait until later. Rarely is an incoming notification so urgent that you should interrupt your work or social situation to attend to it.
Of course, smartphones have powerful uses, and they can save us lots of time. But it's important to recognize the best times and places to utilize them. If you don't actively need your phone, try putting it on silent and placing it out of sight. This will improve your focus on the task at hand instead of splitting it on something that's, most of the time, unnecessary.
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All fields marked with an asterisk* are required. | dclm_baseline | {'bff_contained_ngram_count_before_dedupe': '0', 'language_id_whole_page_fasttext': "{'en': 0.9707887172698976}", 'metadata': "{'Content-Length': '90896', 'Content-Type': 'application/http; msgtype=response', 'WARC-Block-Digest': 'sha1:AFN2LQ26ADAH2LFR6KW2H5YFTNTRKGYD', 'WARC-Concurrent-To': '<urn:uuid:3587587c-652f-4926-8d06-d85b4c609bf2>', 'WARC-Date': datetime.datetime(2018, 12, 13, 21, 27, 30), 'WARC-IP-Address': '104.28.24.90', 'WARC-Identified-Payload-Type': 'text/html', 'WARC-Payload-Digest': 'sha1:EIQV5WQEJGSQ6L4WYO2SBDIDXOHO3EBO', 'WARC-Record-ID': '<urn:uuid:c576e341-b3ba-43ac-8fbe-a4d615dd3250>', 'WARC-Target-URI': 'https://www.houkconsulting.com/2018/03/smartphones-affect-focus/', 'WARC-Type': 'response', 'WARC-Warcinfo-ID': '<urn:uuid:7e711aa6-5015-4c7b-97b8-b75132482c03>', 'WARC-Truncated': None}", 'previous_word_count': '694', 'url': 'https://www.houkconsulting.com/2018/03/smartphones-affect-focus/', 'warcinfo': 'isPartOf: CC-MAIN-2018-51\r\npublisher: Common Crawl\r\ndescription: Wide crawl of the web for December 2018\r\noperator: Common Crawl Admin (info@commoncrawl.org)\r\nhostname: ip-10-146-95-138.ec2.internal\r\nsoftware: Apache Nutch 1.15 (modified, https://github.com/commoncrawl/nutch/)\r\nrobots: checked via crawler-commons 0.11-SNAPSHOT (https://github.com/crawler-commons/crawler-commons)\r\nformat: WARC File Format 1.1\r\nconformsTo: http://iipc.github.io/warc-specifications/specifications/warc-format/warc-1.1/', 'fasttext_openhermes_reddit_eli5_vs_rw_v2_bigram_200k_train_prob': '0.3683503270149231', 'original_id': '170aa50a287300cf36d639d2eb876673542bcae4815de03da5d79d6ed343e42f'} |
Archive for October, 2012
Atlas of True Names
Since we’re all curious about the meanings and etymology of all the words, I want to share this post with you: Atlas of True Names.
In this website, they make world maps but not the kind we are familiar with. They write the meanings and the etymology of all the place names, instead of their original names. Nothing to say more… Just take a look at all these maps.
US East
US West
To see more maps and their details, click here.
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Japan Firm Launches Real-Time Telephone Translation
Several times, I witnessed Google Translate translating between similar languages almost without a mistake; however, when it comes to more challenging language pairs, there is really nothing it can do! 🙂
Since we should be aware of every advances in our field, I want to share Hurriyet Daily News’ article with you:
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Interesting Place Names
It is time to get surprised! Place names can be really surprising and interesting… We, as language lovers, love etymology, I know it! And the best part is you can show off your friends by telling all these short stories! 🙂 Thanks to for this compilation… 🙂
Amazon River
From the word Ostreich meaning, “eastern kingdom.”
Named for the South American independence fighter Simon Bolivar.
Delaware, United States
Ganges River
In Hindi the word “ganga” means river.
From the Gaelic name of the country, “Eire”, which is pronounced “air.”
Ivory Coast / Cote d’Ivoire, Africa
Comes to us from a transliteration the Chinese phrase meaning “land of the rising sun.” In Japanese call their nation Nippon.
Mediterranean Sea
In Latin, the term “mare mediterraneum” means “sea in the middle of the earth.” At the time of it’s name, civilization surrounded the Mediterranean.
Sahara Desert
From Arabic for “brownish desert.”
Sydney, Australia
Named for the British Secretary of State Lord Sydney. Australia itself is named for the ancient mythical Greek Terra Australis, or “southern land.”
Tripoli, Libya
The name means “three cities” in Greek and is named because of three ancient cities which were once in the modern city’s location.
Reminded explorers of Venice because of native homes on stilts; Venezuela means “little Venice.”
Yellow River
For additional place names, visit the website!
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More Natural Pronunciations for Online Language Learning
Finally, I found a website with natural sounding pronunciations for online language learners. I have introduced many websites before; however, the pronunciations all have a kind of mechanical sound. This one, although including only basic words, is more realistic if you want to try new languages in your spare time! I just tried Arabic and I already learned the numbers! 🙂
There are 11 language options. When you move your pointer over “French”, for example, you can see a brief info about the language and the flags of the countries where French is spoken.
When you select a languages, you see different types of conversations.
Let’s say you click on “My Home”. You see the whole plan of a home and you can click on any subject and hear the pronunciation.
You can also visit each room and click on anything! You can cook meal and see what’s in the fridge…
This is quite funny and exciting because you eventually learn some words and hear the exact pronunciations…
Click here to visit the website.
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Really Bad Jokes in English
The other day, I saw a kind of infographic about the bad jokes in English, and I thought that we also have hundreds of them in Turkish, as well. I’m sure we have such kind of jokes in every language. However bad they are, they are also quite funny in a way. Whenever I hear one, I pretend it does not amuse me – just because it is a bad joke- but I kind of get amused by it. This feeling is hard to tell, you see. It is also impossible to translate them! 🙂 Let’s see how you feel!
How do crazy people go through the forest?
They take the psycho path.
How do you get holy water?
Boil the hell out of it.
What did the fish say when he hit a concrete wall?
What do Eskimos get from sitting on the ice too long?
What do prisoners use to call each other?
Cell phones.
What do you call cheese that isn’t yours?
Nacho Cheese. (Prounounce “Not your cheese.”)
What do you call Santa’s helpers?
Subordinate Clauses.
What do you call four bull fighters in quicksand?
Quatro sinko.
What do you get from a pampered cow?
Spoiled milk.
What lies at the bottom of the ocean and twitches?
A nervous wreck.
What’s the difference between roast beef and pea soup?
Anyone can roast beef.
Where do you find a tortoise with no legs?
Right where you left him.
Why are there so many Smiths in the phone book?
They all have phones.
Why do bagpipers walk when they play?
They’re trying to get away from the noise.
Why do gorillas have big nostrils?
Because they have big fingers.
A dog that runs for help … after it bites your leg off.
And more…
Share your comments with me and feel free to add more bad jokes! 🙂
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Historical Tips About First Translations
• The ancient Greek word for interpreter/translator is Hermêneus, directly related to the name of the god Hermes. Its many further meanings—mediator, go-between, deal-broker, marriage-broker—open up a window onto the work of interpreters during prehistory.
• One of the first recorded instances of translation in the West was the rendering of the Old Testament into Greek in the 3rd century BCE. The translation is known as the “Septuagint”, a name that refers to the seventy translators (seventy-two, in some versions) who were commissioned to translate the Bible at Alexandria, Egypt.
• A secular icon for the art of translation is the Rosetta Stone. This trilingual (hieroglyphic-Egyptian, demotic-Egyptian, ancient-Greek) stele became the translator’s key to decryption of Egyptian hieroglyphs by Thomas Young, Jean-François Champollion and others.
• The Renaissance has been termed “the great age of translations.” The rise of Humanism inspired translators from various European countries to translate many texts, especially those of the ancients.
• Despite occasional theoretical diversity, the actual practice of translation has hardly changed since antiquity. translators have generally shown prudent flexibility in seeking equivalents — “literal” where possible, paraphrastic where necessary — for the original meaning and other crucial “values”.
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Tips From A Guy Who Speaks 50 Languages!
50 languages! I guess my brain would be like a vegetable soup. 🙂 So far, I have attempted to learn 5 different languages (English, French, Spanish, Dutch, German) and I could only continue with 2 of them. Even I just know 3 languages, English, Turkish and French, I sometimes mistaken French words with English ones… For example, the other day I wrote “biere” instead of “beer” in a translation! 🙂 It was so embrassing though. As translators, it is our dream to know as many languages as possible, isn’t it?
However, there are some genius people who can speak more than 10 languages. I’m sure they get confused from time to time but it should be great to know that you can communicate millions of people! What a confidence! I came across an interesting article about learning languages. There are some tips from a guy who “knows” 50 languages:
Here’s his famous “shadowing technique,” where students listen to the language with simultaneously speaking it out loud and reading along with it in a book. Arguelles describes it like this:
1. Walk outdoors as swiftly as possible.
2. Maintain perfectly upright posture.
3. Articulate thoroughly in a loud, clear voice.
He also recommends his “scriptorium technique,” where students write the language while simultaneously speaking it out loud. He writes:
In order to do this properly, you should:
1. Read a sentence aloud.
2. Say each word aloud again as you write it.
3. Read the sentence aloud as you have written it.
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Soviet Collapse Ruined the U.S.
Oct. 04 2010 — 00:00
In 2005, then-President Vladimir Putin called the collapse of the Soviet Union the greatest geopolitical catastrophe of the 20th century. As time passes, I find myself agreeing with him more and more.
To be sure, my regrets are fundamentally different from Putin’s. I’ve been a U.S. citizen for three decades, and my son is as American as they come. The United States is clearly my home, and I consider myself a patriotic American. This is why I decry the disappearance of the Soviet empire. Its demise may have dealt a potentially mortal blow to the United States.
The Soviet Union strained its resources and pauperized, exploited and oppressed its own people in order to compete with the United States, the embodiment of the bitterly adversarial capitalist system. Most Soviets didn’t believe the authorities who told them that they were living and working in a “workers’ paradise.” It was a struggle that its leaders believed would prove the supremacy of communism. It was bad for the Soviet Union but a godsend for the United States.
The Soviet propaganda droned incessantly about how workers are impoverished and exploited under capitalism. It tried to flip the truth on its head: to deny that the U.S. government after the Great Depression implemented policies that helped raise incomes while drastically improving the work conditions and financial well-being of workers.
In the 1950s, things got even better for U.S. workers. The gap between the rich and the poor was the narrowest in U.S. history, and the U.S. middle class reached new levels of prosperity.
Soviet forays into post-colonial Africa and Asia and the revolutionary movements it fomented in Latin America forced Washington to pay attention to those countries and assist in their development. Even discounting support for the occasional tyrant, it did much good and helped spread U.S. influence and American values around the world. Even if they are not always followed in practice, democracy and free enterprise have become dominant political values globally.
To counter the Soviet “Evil Empire,” the United States willy-nilly had to go for the moral high ground and become a moral arbiter in world affairs. Now, China is gradually replacing U.S. influence the world over.
Finally, the Soviet Union strained its dysfunctional economic system to create a first-rate scientific and military complex. Sputnik, launched in 1957, galvanized the United States into action. A huge government effort to improve math, science and engineering followed. Funding for education and research was increased sharply, and the government and private universities expanded programs for the brightest students to go to the best universities, regardless of their parents’ ability to pay. The space race did little for the average Russian, but it did create a broad infrastructure for science and technology in the United States that set the foundation for U.S. supremacy in innovation, which the United States enjoys to this day.
After the Soviet collapse, Washington found a different adversary: al-Qaida. As a result, the leading 21st-century military and economic power is wasting its resources on a medieval war, gradually descending to the level of its new foe.
Osama bin Laden may be history’s greatest military strategist. He made Washington abandon its lofty moral ideals, forced the United States into a sea of debt and played a key role in pushing the United States off its pedestal of being the world’s supreme economic power. But ultimately, it is the collapse of the Soviet Union that is to blame.
Alexei Bayer, a native Muscovite, is a New York-based economist.
Moscow in your inbox | dclm_baseline | {'bff_contained_ngram_count_before_dedupe': '0', 'language_id_whole_page_fasttext': "{'en': 0.9591086506843568}", 'metadata': "{'Content-Length': '31091', 'Content-Type': 'application/http; msgtype=response', 'WARC-Block-Digest': 'sha1:7YDYA6RTWU6OO7GP7ZWV7YYP5DDOSABO', 'WARC-Concurrent-To': '<urn:uuid:5bb84b16-cc3f-43bc-8358-64f5a7361b61>', 'WARC-Date': datetime.datetime(2016, 7, 29, 17, 53, 5), 'WARC-IP-Address': '178.33.57.28', 'WARC-Identified-Payload-Type': None, 'WARC-Payload-Digest': 'sha1:52WPCCG4VSTUIK7R3GI2HYQUQGGFO3GE', 'WARC-Record-ID': '<urn:uuid:ab04d3c5-581e-429e-874e-a707747f7c98>', 'WARC-Target-URI': 'https://themoscowtimes.com/articles/soviet-collapse-ruined-the-us-1907', 'WARC-Type': 'response', 'WARC-Warcinfo-ID': '<urn:uuid:6f099a4c-0e7b-4006-962b-c586227a94c2>', 'WARC-Truncated': 'length'}", 'previous_word_count': '594', 'url': 'https://themoscowtimes.com/articles/soviet-collapse-ruined-the-us-1907', 'warcinfo': 'robots: classic\r\nhostname: ip-10-185-27-174.ec2.internal\r\nsoftware: Nutch 1.6 (CC)/CC WarcExport 1.0\r\nisPartOf: CC-MAIN-2016-30\r\noperator: CommonCrawl Admin\r\ndescription: Wide crawl of the web for July 2016\r\npublisher: CommonCrawl\r\nformat: WARC File Format 1.0\r\nconformsTo: http://bibnum.bnf.fr/WARC/WARC_ISO_28500_version1_latestdraft.pdf', 'fasttext_openhermes_reddit_eli5_vs_rw_v2_bigram_200k_train_prob': '0.33713555335998535', 'original_id': 'b21a4f918e8af5b87efdcc92d0b77098ff4c315c583b024acdede70fd149153b'} |
Holtzman Inkblot Technique scores of delinquent adolescents: a replication and extension.
The Holtzman Inkblot Technique (HIT) was administered to 83 male juvenile delinquents, ranging in age from 13 to 16 years (mean age: 15.2 years), who were being detained at the Texas Youth Council Reception Center. Scores from 22 HIT variables scored were factor-analyzed and then compared with Megargee's pioneering normative HIT study of juvenile delinquents published in 1965. Results of the two investigations were strikingly similar, reinforcing Megargee's finding that norms for nondelinquent adolescents are not appropriate for use with a confined delinquent group. Important differences were discovered, however, and these are discussed. | mini_pile | {'original_id': 'd3768ba1fa960cd7ad3f6c67b8f9b9d9c5f55434077cb56dab5bcd441e935670'} |
(800) 973-1540
Travel for Alzheimer's Patients
Five Common Trouble Spots During the Holidays
By , Caring.com senior editor
97% helpful
Holiday Trouble Spot #1: Flying
• Realize that even someone with early dementia shouldn't travel alone.
• Stay together in the airport at all times.
• Remain calm and don't rush the person in security lines. Some airports offer family-friendly lanes -- they're not just for people traveling with children.
• Schedule flights early in the day, when the person may be in the best spirits and you're less likely to be marooned overnight in case of bad weather or other delays. It's worth the extra price to fly nonstop. Allow plenty of time for connections.
• Don't place medication in checked bags. Your carry-on should also contain everything the person would need if luggage is lost or a flight is delayed overnight: pajamas, toiletry items, change of clothing, medical contact information, and legal papers (power of attorney, insurance).
• Pack snacks and provide water, since dehydration is a risk for seniors. Use the bathroom just before the flight to help avoid the need for the person to do so on the airplane.
• Bring something for the person to do with his hands: a puzzle book, a photo album, knitting, a textured rubbery ball to hold, playing cards.
• Carry a blanket and small pillow for comfort's sake, as they may not be available on the flight. | dclm_baseline | {'bff_contained_ngram_count_before_dedupe': '0', 'language_id_whole_page_fasttext': "{'en': 0.93424791097641}", 'metadata': "{'Content-Length': '54955', 'Content-Type': 'application/http; msgtype=response', 'WARC-Block-Digest': 'sha1:VILTMDCJWWNR45OXMUY53T45GEWUOY4S', 'WARC-Concurrent-To': '<urn:uuid:88ad408e-c65f-49cb-895a-d39515fd6fc3>', 'WARC-Date': datetime.datetime(2014, 7, 24, 19, 19, 47), 'WARC-IP-Address': '54.243.215.158', 'WARC-Identified-Payload-Type': None, 'WARC-Payload-Digest': 'sha1:VUJ6CC6GGCEQUY33LE67DZPMPRICZGGJ', 'WARC-Record-ID': '<urn:uuid:90204f3a-b2f6-4b01-9b81-f0a8c596e294>', 'WARC-Target-URI': 'http://www.caring.com/articles/travel-for-alzheimers-patients', 'WARC-Type': 'response', 'WARC-Warcinfo-ID': '<urn:uuid:7d1cf2aa-058b-4a0c-a38b-375d3f9c56c9>', 'WARC-Truncated': 'length'}", 'previous_word_count': '226', 'url': 'http://www.caring.com/articles/travel-for-alzheimers-patients', 'warcinfo': 'robots: classic\r\nhostname: ip-10-33-131-23.ec2.internal\r\nsoftware: Nutch 1.6 (CC)/CC WarcExport 1.0\r\nisPartOf: CC-MAIN-2014-23\r\noperator: CommonCrawl Admin\r\ndescription: Wide crawl of the web with URLs provided by Blekko for July 2014\r\npublisher: CommonCrawl\r\nformat: WARC File Format 1.0\r\nconformsTo: http://bibnum.bnf.fr/WARC/WARC_ISO_28500_version1_latestdraft.pdf', 'fasttext_openhermes_reddit_eli5_vs_rw_v2_bigram_200k_train_prob': '0.07884740829467773', 'original_id': 'fe0398a81e933c5d89d7ee6dce09665f7efae9dc395435c8b4eef59703984c9c'} |
The Internet Oracle
The Internet Oracle is, well, it's hard to say what it is: a game, a service, an outlet for the imagination, a virtual personality? But anyhow, you submit a question to it, and you get back an answer, typically a humorous and creative one. There are traditions about how you formulate questions (by groveling, in short) and how the answer is worded (it always ends by telling you what you owe the Oracle). In fact, though, what you owe is an answer to someone else's question which the Oracle will send you one day.
Here's a reply I just got:
O sagaciousest and perspicaciousest of Oracles, it's little I know of the duties of men of the sea, but I'll eat my hand if I understand however the Narrator can be at once the cook, and the Captain bold, and the mate of the Nancy brig, and the bosun tite, and the midshipmite, and the crew of the Captain's gig. Can you please explicate this matter for the future benefit of your unworthy slave?
And in response, thus spake the Oracle:
I was musing over this with some... contacts of mine, who received this piece of intelligence with great interest. Turns out Mr N. Arrator has been claiming paychecks on behalf of at least six different people, none of whom were legally entitled to work in this country. Rest assured Mr Arrator will be spending a long time paying for this.
Oh, and thanks to this tip-off, I negotiated my way out of some rather nasty audit proceedings regarding my tribute, so you owe the Oracle nothing. This time.
Internal evidence shows that the crew of the Captain's gig in fact numbered four.
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It's a little bit terrifying how close Ashley Madison came to an IPO
The details of more than 30 million people who were registered to the site, which is meant to facilitate extramarital affairs, were released after a data breach in July.
That’s obviously terrible, but part of what’s unbelievable when you sift through the wreckage of this disaster is how close the site was to breaking into the mainstream, at least as a major online company.
That’s amazing and scary — not from a moral point of view, but from a business one.
As recently as four months ago, Ashley Madison’s CEO was talking up the prospect of listing the company on a stock exchange — pretty much the pinnacle of mainstream business success.
That now looks like a laughable ambition. Since the leak, huge holes in the business have become apparent. The confidentiality of its (understandably secretive) users has been breached by the hack. But part of the reason some have been compromised is because even the “full delete” option offered by the site seems to have been enough to easily identify users — they were sold a pup.
What’s more — and perhaps even worse from a business perspective — it looks like it was almost entirely men using the service. With 31 million male and 5 million female accounts, the odds were already stacked against men looking to cheat, but research by Annalee Newitz of Gizmodo suggests only 1,492 of those female accounts had ever opened their message inboxes.
Fortress Investments, the New York-based hedge fund with nearly $US54 billion in assets, recently signalled its preliminary intent to loan Ashley Madison’s privately held parent, Avid Life Media — $US50 million over two years, according to persons briefed on the matter. (Biderman and Fortress declined to discuss this.) And last June, a partner from the New York investment bank Jefferies met Biderman for drinks at the Four Seasons Hotel in Manhattan to talk about a possible initial public offering for the Toronto-based company. Just this month, Grupo BTG Pactual SA, Brazil’s largest independent investment bank, called Biderman to ask about taking an equity stake in Ashley Madison and licensing the Ashley Madison brand.
Nearly a third of Avid Life media is owned by the DeZwirek family and their company, Icarus Investment Corp, according to Reuters. The company clearly found it difficult to find investors, but it didn’t find it impossible.
Of course, many investors wouldn’t want to own shares in Ashley Madison for ethical reasons — and they’re more likely to talk about it (it’s free press for Finncap after all).
But markets are largely amoral (if not immoral), and I find it really difficult to imagine that if people saw value in the company, it wouldn’t have found buyers. Perhaps that’s me being cynical, but I think imagining it would have been rejected by a widespread moral consensus is a bit naive.
A study by Harrison Hong and Marcin Kacperczyk in The Journal of Financial Economics called “The Price of Sin” found that “sin” stocks outperformed the wider market by 2.5% a year between 1985 and 2006 (and even better just in the U.S.). That is the kind of margin on which hedge fund fortunes are built. It might just be a statistical anomaly of course. More plausible, it might be because, rightly or wrongly, this is what actually sells. The more of them that London has — and if Ashley Madison doesn’t count as sin it is hard to know what does — then the better the market will perform.
He also, somewhat worryingly, and perhaps rightly, said that “far-flimsier businesses have been floated in London.” That might be the main message here — how quickly things can go down the toilet.
Ashley Madison isn’t being brought down because of its dubious moral worth, but because it had shoddy data security and seems to have had shoddy business practices too. Those things are crucial and they don’t always show up on a balance sheet.
The truth is that if Ashley Madison already had investors and massive revenue growth, it would have found more if it had floated. There will always be someone who refuses to let money go lying at the side of the road, no matter who it comes from.
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Q:
How to override code to use jersey and Jax-RS jars available in WEB-INF\lib?
Server: Weblogic 10.3.6.0
IDE: JDeveloper 11.1.1.7.0
I created a java restful web-service following this blog. As stated in blog, I added two jars: javax.ws.rs-api-2.0.jar and jersey-bundle-1.9.jar as library in the project. The deployment went fine and the url worked.
Now, I included these two jars in project as jars and not as libraries. I executed the main method to test and deployed the project war file which went fine. But after deployment, when I am calling the rest url, I am getting error as:
Error 500--Internal Server Error
java.lang.AbstractMethodError: javax.ws.rs.core.UriBuilder.uri(Ljava/lang/String;)Ljavax/ws/rs/core/UriBuilder;
at javax.ws.rs.core.UriBuilder.fromUri(UriBuilder.java:119)
at com.sun.jersey.spi.container.servlet.ServletContainer.service(ServletContainer.java:662)
at javax.servlet.http.HttpServlet.service(HttpServlet.java:820)
at weblogic.servlet.internal.StubSecurityHelper$ServletServiceAction.run(StubSecurityHelper.java:227)
at weblogic.servlet.internal.StubSecurityHelper.invokeServlet(StubSecurityHelper.java:125)
at weblogic.servlet.internal.ServletStubImpl.execute(ServletStubImpl.java:301)
at weblogic.servlet.internal.TailFilter.doFilter(TailFilter.java:26)
at weblogic.servlet.internal.FilterChainImpl.doFilter(FilterChainImpl.java:56)
at oracle.security.jps.ee.http.JpsAbsFilter$1.run(JpsAbsFilter.java:119)
at java.security.AccessController.doPrivileged(Native Method)
at oracle.security.jps.util.JpsSubject.doAsPrivileged(JpsSubject.java:324)
at oracle.security.jps.ee.util.JpsPlatformUtil.runJaasMode(JpsPlatformUtil.java:460)
at oracle.security.jps.ee.http.JpsAbsFilter.runJaasMode(JpsAbsFilter.java:103)
at oracle.security.jps.ee.http.JpsAbsFilter.doFilter(JpsAbsFilter.java:171)
at oracle.security.jps.ee.http.JpsFilter.doFilter(JpsFilter.java:71)
at weblogic.servlet.internal.FilterChainImpl.doFilter(FilterChainImpl.java:56)
at oracle.dms.servlet.DMSServletFilter.doFilter(DMSServletFilter.java:163)
at weblogic.servlet.internal.FilterChainImpl.doFilter(FilterChainImpl.java:56)
at weblogic.servlet.internal.WebAppServletContext$ServletInvocationAction.wrapRun(WebAppServletContext.java:3730)
at weblogic.servlet.internal.WebAppServletContext$ServletInvocationAction.run(WebAppServletContext.java:3696)
at weblogic.security.acl.internal.AuthenticatedSubject.doAs(AuthenticatedSubject.java:321)
at weblogic.security.service.SecurityManager.runAs(SecurityManager.java:120)
at weblogic.servlet.internal.WebAppServletContext.securedExecute(WebAppServletContext.java:2273)
at weblogic.servlet.internal.WebAppServletContext.execute(WebAppServletContext.java:2179)
at weblogic.servlet.internal.ServletRequestImpl.run(ServletRequestImpl.java:1490)
at weblogic.work.ExecuteThread.execute(ExecuteThread.java:256)
at weblogic.work.ExecuteThread.run(ExecuteThread.java:221)
The web.xml file is:
<?xml version = '1.0' encoding = 'windows-1252'?>
<web-app xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance"
xsi:schemaLocation="http://java.sun.com/xml/ns/javaee http://java.sun.com/xml/ns/javaee/web-app_2_5.xsd"
version="2.5" xmlns="http://java.sun.com/xml/ns/javaee">
<servlet>
<servlet-name>jersey</servlet-name>
<servlet-class>com.sun.jersey.spi.container.servlet.ServletContainer</servlet-class>
<load-on-startup>1</load-on-startup>
</servlet>
<servlet-mapping>
<servlet-name>jersey</servlet-name>
<url-pattern>*</url-pattern>
</servlet-mapping>
</web-app>
weblogic.xml is:
<?xml version = '1.0' encoding = 'windows-1252'?>
<weblogic-web-app xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance"
xsi:schemaLocation="http://www.bea.com/ns/weblogic/weblogic-web-app http://www.bea.com/ns/weblogic/weblogic-web-app/1.0/weblogic-web-app.xsd"
xmlns="http://www.bea.com/ns/weblogic/weblogic-web-app">
<library-ref>
<library-name>jax-rs</library-name>
<specification-version>1.1</specification-version>
<implementation-version>1.9</implementation-version>
<exact-match>false</exact-match>
</library-ref>
</weblogic-web-app>
Not sure, if there is an issue with web.xml and weblogic.xml which should be changed if I want to redirect code to jars present in project.
I have read about <prefer-web-inf-classes>true</prefer-web-inf-classes> in weblogic.xml (Oracle blog) but, I am unable to understand the changes to be made in web.xml file.
How can I force my application to use jersey and jax-rs jars in WEB-INF/lib folder?
A:
I replaced all the jars from lib folder and imported all jars downloaded from Jersey 1.19 ZIP bundle. I read javarevisited blog and made the following changes in web.xml and weblogic.xml
web.xml :
<?xml version = '1.0' encoding = 'windows-1252'?>
<web-app xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance"
xsi:schemaLocation="http://java.sun.com/xml/ns/javaee http://java.sun.com/xml/ns/javaee/web-app_2_5.xsd"
version="2.5" xmlns="http://java.sun.com/xml/ns/javaee">
<display-name>JerseyServer</display-name>
<servlet>
<servlet-name>Jersey REST Service</servlet-name>
<servlet-class>com.sun.jersey.spi.container.servlet.ServletContainer</servlet-class>
<init-param>
<param-name>jersey.config.server.provider.packages</param-name>
<param-value>com.oracle.rest</param-value>
</init-param>
<load-on-startup>1</load-on-startup>
</servlet>
<servlet-mapping>
<servlet-name>Jersey REST Service</servlet-name>
<url-pattern>*</url-pattern>
</servlet-mapping>
</web-app>
weblogic.xml :
<?xml version = '1.0' encoding = 'windows-1252'?>
<weblogic-web-app xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance"
xsi:schemaLocation="http://www.bea.com/ns/weblogic/weblogic-web-app http://www.bea.com/ns/weblogic/weblogic-web-app/1.0/weblogic-web-app.xsd"
xmlns="http://www.bea.com/ns/weblogic/weblogic-web-app">
<container-descriptor>
<prefer-web-inf-classes>true</prefer-web-inf-classes>
</container-descriptor>
</weblogic-web-app>
I was able to deploy and call the rest url successfully.
Note: I tried with Jersey JAX-RS 2.0 RI bundle too. It worked fine on my local server. But the remote weblogic server was not compatible with compiled class version. The error while deploying was: 'org/glassfish/jersey/servlet/ServletContainer : unsupported classversion 51.0'
| mini_pile | {'original_id': '69f9e25156819a68e5097b50dd61e83a1f08de434693d4f7d4946f1444c56fcf'} |
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